Author Archives: Amanda Painter

The Mysterious Case of Mercury Retrograde in Scorpio

2 Replies

Dear Friend and Reader:

Mercury stationed retrograde in Scorpio today at 11:41 am EDT (15:41:20 UTC). It will station direct on Nov. 20. As strongly as Mercury is associated with tricks, especially during its retrograde phases, it does in fact bestow treats as well — though it can require actively seeking that perspective, often in the form of recognizing the lessons hidden in the mischief and frustration.

Mystery figures at the 2016 Sacred and Profane festival, Peaks Island, Maine; photo by Amanda Painter.

I guess you could say that the blessings of Mercury sometimes arrive in disguise, wearing an inconvenient costume. You know, like that one friend who dresses up as a ‘concept’ that nobody gets, and then is bummed about having to explain it all night. (I’ve totally been guilty of that.)

Yet once you grasp the concept, you kind of have to applaud the cleverness behind it. Is Mercury too clever for its own good? More likely we’re the ones guilty of that charge — zooming around, physically and mentally, often faster than our full awareness can keep up, and trying to fool ourselves into thinking that we’re ‘multitasking’. As you may have read before, Mercury’s retrograde phases are a good time to slow down — move slower, rein in the pace of your thoughts, take a little extra time and care with communication.

Continue reading →

The Mysterious Case of Mercury Retrograde in Scorpio

1 Reply

By Amanda Painter

Mercury stations retrograde in Scorpio today at 11:41 am EDT (15:41:20 UTC). It will station direct on Nov. 20. As strongly as Mercury is associated with tricks, especially during its retrograde phases, it does in fact bestow treats as well — though it can require actively seeking that perspective, often in the form of recognizing the lessons hidden in the mischief and frustration.

Mysterious figure at the 2016 Sacred and Profane festival, Peaks Island, Maine; photo by Amanda Painter.

Mystery figures at the 2016 Sacred and Profane festival, Peaks Island, Maine; photo by Amanda Painter.

I guess you could say that the blessings of Mercury sometimes arrive in disguise, wearing an inconvenient costume.

You know, like that one friend who dresses up as a ‘concept’ that nobody gets, and then is bummed about having to explain it all night. (I’ve totally been guilty of that.)

Yet once you grasp the concept, you kind of have to applaud the cleverness behind it. Is Mercury too clever for its own good?

Continue reading →

Secrets and Surprises

4 Replies

By Amanda Painter

In one week, on Oct. 31, Mercury stations retrograde in Scorpio. On the way there, this Saturday, the Sun and Moon make a conjunction — the Scorpio New Moon — which is opposite Uranus. One translation of all this: the next seven-plus days may well be characterized by secrets and surprises. The question is: what determines whether such things feel like tricks or treats?

Illuminated offering at the 2016 Sacred and Profane Festival, Peaks Island, Maine. Photo by Amanda Painter.

Illuminated offering at the 2016 Sacred and Profane Festival, Peaks Island, Maine. Photo by Amanda Painter.

The short answer is, “you.”

More specifically, it’s things like your perspective, attitude, agility in responding to new information, and emotional attachments (whether to people, to certain ways of doing and thinking about things, to the familiar, to what you think you know about yourself and others) that will contribute to whether life feels like an enticing mystery that you’re unraveling, or a haunted hayride you didn’t want to go on in the first place.

Continue reading →

Chaos, Balance and Birth

Leave a reply

By Amanda Painter

Mercury may still be two weeks from its station retrograde in Scorpio on Oct. 31, but I feel like I’ve been noticing its effects all week. How about you? Hopefully this means the retrograde proper will be less about glitches and more about rewarding (if intensive) introspection and evolution — though that’s always partly a matter of personal intention and perspective.

Fire engine abstract #2; Photo by Amanda Painter.

Fire engine abstract #2; Photo by Amanda Painter.

Against this mercurial backdrop, the sky is offering some additional prompts to assist you on your journey of self-awareness — and in just trying to get by. Given the chaos and confusion the world is throwing at us (such as Pres. Trump escalating conflict between Syria and Turkey by turning on allied Kurdish rebels — on a dime, and apparently on a bluff), sometimes just trying to get by constitutes a day well lived.

Today’s major aspect is an opposition between the Libra Sun and Eris in Aries. On one level, this is the ‘other shoe’ dropping in our fall preview of the January Saturn-Pluto conjunction in Capricorn, which will be square Eris.

Continue reading →

More Kicks than Pricks?* The Aries Full Moon

Leave a reply

Sunday night’s Aries Full Moon, which will be exact at 5:08 pm EDT (21:07:45 UTC), brings the Saturn-Pluto conjunction to the forefront. Full Moons are one of the most palpable astrological events we experience — both internally, and through witnessing others’ behavior. This one is like running the essence of Saturn-Pluto in through an IV line.

Planet Waves

Photo of a 2019 Full Moon by Amanda Painter.

Both the Aries Moon and Libra Sun are square Pluto in Capricorn; the Sun will remain so for the next couple of days. The Aries Moon is also conjunct Eris, which the Sun will oppose on Oct. 17.

When an inner planet event activates such a pivotal upcoming aspect pattern (Saturn-Pluto square Eris is exact in January 2020), it’s a clarion call to pay attention now. Don’t wait. These intersections of astrological events point out how the big changes and trends we see happening around us are not separate from us; rather, they’re reflecting and echoing what’s happening within us — just on a magnified, collective scale.

Inner planet aspects also bring some ‘personality’ to the larger, slower event (which can otherwise seem a little abstract) when they intersect. The themes of the slower aspects emerge into our personal lives in more tangible ways.

Continue reading →

The Aries Full Moon and Friends

1 Reply

By Amanda Painter

How’s your sleep this week? And your relationship to authority figures — the ‘real’ ones and the internalized ones? Where are your thoughts going, and how do you feel about it? What about your urges and responses in your more intimate relationships? How conscious are you about using your energy in a creative, focused way?

The 2015 Aries Full Moon; photo by Amanda Painter.

The 2015 Aries Full Moon; photo by Amanda Painter.

As we end this week, several planetary events are conspiring to drive questions like those. The headlining act is the Aries Full Moon on Sunday.

Before we get there, Mercury enters its pre-retrograde echo (or shadow) phase tomorrow. On Saturday, Venus opposes Uranus to add a little extra voltage. Let’s take them in chronological order.

Mercury entering its shadow/echo phase Friday evening is your heads up to prepare any and all things related to communication, its related technologies, spending, transit, and how you handle your frame of mind in general. As in: back up your computer, tie up any loose ends with contracts and major purchases, and begin to get back into habits that help to safeguard against sending emails that ought not to be sent.

Mercury won’t actually station retrograde until Oct. 31 (Trick or Treat!). But as you may know, things can sometimes get even funkier prior to the retrograde than during it. Mercury will station direct — still in Scorpio — on Nov. 20.

Continue reading →

Action and Resolution at the Quarter Moon

6 Replies

By Amanda Painter

Full Moons and New Moons tend to carry more weight in astrology writing. Yet this weekend’s first quarter Moon happens to connect with one of the more important aspects we’re building up to, as does another event this week.

What's in there? Mercury in Scorpio wants to find out. Photo by Amanda Painter.

What’s in the dark under that rock? Mercury in Scorpio wants to find out. Photo by Amanda Painter.

On Saturday, the Capricorn Moon squares off against the Libra Sun. That’s the quarter Moon, traditionally describing an opportunity to lean into projects and processes you can build some early momentum with.

Yet the Moon will also be conjunct its own South Node and the planet Saturn. The South Node can represent what is familiar, ‘comfortable’ and habitual in a way that does not help us to grow. You can also think of it as karma: repeated patterns that we’re trying to learn from, so we can move on toward a greater sense of lived purpose. Saturn, of course, holds the line of authority, responsibility, limits and restrictions. Its presence also connects this quarter Moon to the Saturn-Pluto conjunction in January.

Continue reading →

Time to Get into Gear

Leave a reply

Have you noticed that some weeks feel more clearly than others like a car shifting into a higher gear? This looks like one of those weeks, though you might not notice the full effect until we’re closer to the weekend.

Planet Waves

This guy’s in gear. Photo of the Portland, Maine, Climate Strike by Amanda Painter.

According to our astrological road map, we have two major planets changing sign this week, and a third that’s stationing direct. The Moon is also waxing again, after Saturday’s New Moon, adding another — gentler — layer to the sense of picking up speed or directing more power to your engine.

Of these events, the first is Pluto stationing direct in Capricorn on Thursday. I can’t say I’ve ever really noticed a particular sensation or event associated with Pluto stationing; not the way I have with Mercury or Mars, for example, though perhaps you have. What makes this station direct of Pluto notable is that it’s the final change of apparent direction either it or Saturn will make before they meet for their conjunction in January.

Pluto is a ‘take no prisoners’ agent of change and surrender in astrology. Even though Saturn is associated with structures, it has its own way of compelling change and growth. Much has been written about these two planets and their upcoming conjunction; suffice it to say here that Pluto stationing direct signals a new phase where any shifting undercurrents that have gone unnoticed thus far should begin surfacing. It’ll likely become increasingly harder to deny that they’re real.

Continue reading →