People who pray for miracles usually don’t get miracles… But people
who pray for courage, for strength to bear the unbearable, for the
grace to remember what they have left instead of what they have lost,
very often find their prayers answered… Their prayers helped them tap
hidden reserves of faith and courage which were not available to them
before.
— Rabbi Harold S. Kushner
Mercury begins three weeks of apparent reverse motion on Saturday at 1:02 pm EDT (17:02 UT). Mercury’s retrograde station will be at 2+ Scorpio, precisely opposing an object called 1992 QB1, retrograde in Taurus. The combination indicates how events to follow might well be your call to make.
There is a lot in the deceptively simple opposition from Mercury to 1992 QB1, which is functional now. It has to do with your place as a participant in the cosmos. You are reading this because you are an observer of the cosmos. Modern science tells us all observers are in fact participants in the outcome of what we observe.
Of course, ancient spiritual traditions of the world have long known the truth of what science has only recently revealed, as evinced by the captioned quote. Astrology is no exception — provided your practice of astrology is enlightened by an understanding of your participation in astrological events.
For participate you do. Astrology is not destiny. Astrology does not simply happen to you. You are part of the system we call solar, a very special part with capacities for conscious awareness and free will — capacities that must be exercised to become apparent.
The true variables are your level of awareness and the choices you make. The implications are empowering for you, provided you accept the potential and responsibility of being an active participant in the universe.
In the case of Mercury’s impending retrograde station, evidence of your participation may be found in how Mercury is interpreted by astrologers. Additionally, if you take into account what Mercury has recently been doing, and fold in the emerging astrological interpretation of 1992 QB1, you get a pretty darn coherent picture of what to expect (and your role in it) over the next several weeks.
For astrologers, Mercury is nothing if not versatile. Among its varied (and yet still coherent) collection of correlations is information. Information comes in many forms, and includes what you observe.
Ever since Sept. 14, Mercury has been going over the same degrees of Libra and Scorpio it will ultimately go over two more times — much like a windshield wiper going forth, then back, and forth again in three swipes over the same swath of auto glass.
The first swipe in direct motion, referred to as the first “echo” (or, alternatively “shadow”) phase, is almost finished. On Saturday, the second swipe, or retrograde proper begins, and continues until Oct. 25. With each swipe you get information.
Thousands of years of astrology’s two core practices (observation and correlation) have established how Mercury’s first echo/shadow phase frequently anticipates (or foreshadows, if you will) events that develop prominently during Mercury’s retrograde. If you have noted that yourself, you have in effect been practicing astrology. The question is, at what level? The level of perceiving astrology as happening to you, or the level of consciously taking your place in it?
It’s impossible to observe everything. It’s possible to focus on only so much. To paraphrase Paul Simon’s famous vocal in “The Boxer,” you hear (or see, or otherwise observe) what you want to hear and disregard the rest.
In other words, you choose your focus, and (as astrology’s observations of how Mercury’s first echo/shadow phase corresponds to the retrograde proper verifies) your focus becomes your reality. Which is to say that what happens after Mercury’s retrograde station on Saturday is, to some extent at least, your call.
Because of what the Kuiper Belt object 1992 QB1 appears to correlate with, this particular Mercury retrograde might very well be a threshold across which you and many others finally step to understand and accept the power and responsibility of making that call with conscious awareness and free will.
Unlike Mercury, which has been part of human consciousness from the get-go, we have only been aware of 1992 QB1 for a dozen years. Hence, we do not have the same rich legacy of interpretation for 1992 QB1 as we have for Mercury. Nevertheless (as is the case for many recently discovered objects in the solar system), the circumstances of the discovery convey a lot of information.
In the case 1992 QB1’s discovery, the circumstances are historic. After Pluto’s discovery in 1930, astronomy somehow developed a very unscientific story that there was nothing out there past Neptune other than Pluto. So, for 62 years, nobody looked. If that’s not a case of focus becoming reality, what is?
As Eric’s exclusive 2012 interview with astronomer Jane X Luu revealed, she and her collaborator (David Jewett) had a different focus. They arranged for some time on a very powerful telescope, which revealed more out there past Neptune than just Pluto: an object that, to this day, has no name other than its provisional designation — 1992 QB1.
Think about that (as Mercury would have you do). A different focus literally resulted in a different scientific reality, which in turn served as the threshold for thousands of other objects being discovered where none were thought to be.
To further verify Eric’s interpretation of 1992 QB1 as “a thresholder,” consider what happened when the nameless object (which ironically served as the namesake for all the “cubewanos” out there past Neptune) changed sign for the first time since its discovery in the first degree of Aries.
Shortly after 1992 QB1 entered Taurus for the first time to effectively change the focus of its expression, Edward Snowden’s revelations of how U.S. intelligence agencies abuse you became public knowledge. If that was not a threshold for your conscious awareness, what ever was? Notably, some folks have not dared to cross that threshold and have chosen to remain in denial.
Now, if there is anything to astrology, another threshold beckons. Saturday’s retrograde station of Mercury can serve as a threshold for your empowerment. As with every threshold, however, crossing it means leaving something behind.
For science, the discovery of 1992 QB1 meant leaving willful ignorance behind. For the world, the revelations of Edward Snowden meant leaving behind any notion that we are either served or protected by at least some of those who live on your tax dollars.
For you, accepting how the events following Mercury’s retrograde station will be (at least in part) your call means leaving behind any notion of astrology as destiny or something that happens to you. It will mean taking your rightful place (and also the power and responsibility that goes with it) in the universe.
Dare you?
Offered In Service
Len is available for astrology readings. You can contact him at lenwallick [at] gmail [dot] com.
What a fantastic reading; thank you!
I definitely perceive this as the current dynamic, myself.
The Scorpio element adds a quality of profound, transformational magic to
that threshold of consciousness…
That is one powerful and meaning-laden piece of writing, Len. Odd as it sounds coming from this Geminian, I am now looking forward to the adventure of Mercury’s coming retrogradation. Thank you for offering this perspective from which to live out the energies of the month.
Chief Niwot’s Son: Thank you for your generous words once again. May your retrograde adventure serve well to progress the evolution of your great soul.
What’s a ‘cubewanos’?
I have never seen the word cubewanos before anywhere, what is it?
I look forward (pun intended) to Mercury retrograde, it gives me a chance to play catch up, except when the electronics go bad. I am still learning about Kuiper Belt Objects & 1992 QB1 and will look for the empowerment that you write of. Your post provides a rich and fertile landscape for these observations to root.
Brilliant. Challenging. Clear. Pertinent.
Watching some Alfred Labremoth Weber YouTube videos in the past few days, has, for me, been shifting my focus in many deep ways.
Thanks, Len.
Len, thank you for convincing me I am the best in my pelting attempts at slowing down before I reach the retrograde. which never happens. as an RX floundering is for waders, but I surf the waves.
for what you suggest, as I find myself always bridging the moment, this is already in my compelling argument, to say the least.
for what it is in each of our capacities to change, or begin to change, these earthly timely elements are not only there lending to support us, they are activating us into that extreme. life lived fully.
in all honestly, I could do well without the cordial offering, but how would I tell, if I am lying? what this means, and it may suite to exasperate chiron here as such a time honoured placement, the poise in this affect could ultimately mean that this time, the passive lift to peace is not in peaceful ‘hippy’ stances to activism… singing the signatures to memes on facebook etc. or even the light-horse movement to lend a donation here or there.
what lends to construct emotive is to change is demeaning by, forgive me for saying this here, many lazy bones in fear of their dreams to sanitising life strategies, saviours, western supremacy, you know — the illuminating one’s who’s grow big vision boards to boast their accumulating things to take home pay?
people often rally around to tally not getting what their complaining is about. but the courage is in those who get on and make things of change count. in the real world. not about self. we are all in this together I believe.
I abbreviate quite a bit to spur on critical and interested intelligent thinking, but thank you for your careful writing educating me further. your articulate gift and choice to the world. bless, namaste
Mary: Thank you. Good point about catching up. For this particular Mercury retrograde in particular, it being the last of the year. Finally, please remember that even the best astrologers are still learning about objects in the Kuiper Belt and beyond.
Lea: Thank you for your kind words. Thank you additionally for referring us on to Mr. Weber. Jupiter in Leo want us to take in more of the world and expand our consciousness.
Thanks Len… It’s exactly what I needed to hear.
Sara Victoria: That’s the ticket. Thank you for adding your own gift of phrase turning to our understanding.
Alaine: Welcome to Planet Waves, and thank you for your question. A cubewano is distinguished by:
orbiting the Sun: (1) out past Neptune, (2) in the Kuiper Belt region of the solar system, and; (3) NOT (to use Robert Hand’s recent description of Pluto) “locked into a relationship with Neptune”. Now that the serious part is over, and your question is answered with respect, please consider all the fun you could have with that word, assuming a bar bet is not at stake.
Trace: Welcome to Planet Waves, fellow surfer! Please consider what distinguishes great surfers from good surfers: (1) knowing how to wait for and pick only the best waves, and; (2) knowing how to time a wave once it has picked you. Love how you have demonstrated both proficiencies in your comments! Thank you!
Tug: You are most welcome! Welcome to Planet Waves.
thanks Len…playing w/ a Jamaican pronunciation! I do so enjoy your articles…
Hey Len,
Glad us penniless wayfarers weren’t locked out. Threshold indeed. Astrology’s lens reflects what’s been happening or what’s happening on Earth can also be seen in the patterns of Sky. That’s because it’s all put together, never broken. Zoroasters swords still clanging, difficult to sense the connections.
This eclipse tuning in, it’s exactitude is a square with natal Lilith Black Moon who is the goddess swimming in my solar wind…Sun next door and Mercury and Eros besides. Finding the keys my mother hid digging in the dirt of my body’s basement. What I mean is releasing my fear of the monster woman reveals the shape of the King who was hidden inside the suit of the Tyrant while the Child in me hid in fear of the Ice Queen. The words in clickety clack of plastic take the best shapes they can. What I mean is better expressed in fleshy gesture, song, or pen and paper. But the heart of it is that the distinctions between Tyrant and King are becoming clear, sacred Masculine coming back into view after Lilith held him as in quarantine while I alternately cringed in fear of tyrannical behavior and engaged in little tyrant tantrums myself, throwing out elder wisdom cause I got the Tyrant’s glitch of mistaking all the sacred Masculine for the Tyrant. Dwelling at the bottom, sorting out the bones, extracting the detritus of projections: clarity. It’s this: the King serves the 10,000 things and puts away Power when the job is done. The Tyrant clings to Power and only relinquishes when broken by an external force. The Tyrant serves only himself. The goddess who swims in my solar wind trains me to be a more balance human. Thank you.
Wandering Yeti: Thank you so much for the power of your poetry – love the “clickety clack” part especially. Yes, there may be better modes of expression, but you always do pretty darned impressively with whatever you have to work with. Your wisdom (just as with your eloquence) is well-earned and deeply appreciated here.