We have just entered the shadow period for our last Mercury Retrograde of 2016.

At 11:02am this morning (AEST), Mercury passed 28 degrees and 50 seconds of Sagittarius.

This is the point, to which Mercury will return on his next backwards journey before he once again turns direct.

Mercury will traverse two signs during this apparent-backwards journey – Sagittarius and Capricorn.

Interestingly, the energy of these two signs is also prominent right now owing to the Jupiter/Pluto square, so there is likely to be a correlation between what this transit is bringing to you and how our upcoming Mercury retrograde plays out.

For now, we will concentrate on his journey through Sagittarius, as that is where he is currently residing and it is whilst he moves through the last degrees of this sign (between now and 07:18am Saturday morning (AEST)) that you are likely to encounter Sagittarius-related mishaps that you may be re-visiting once Mercury backtracks through the very same degrees of this sign later in December.

Jupiter is the natural ruler of Sagittarius, so any planet in Sagittarius is currently disposited by Jupiter’s placement in Libra.

With Mercury in Sagittarius this relates to the way that we think, speak and/or learn, so we may be about to discover a few truths about ourselves. For example:

• Do you tend to ‘shoot from the hip’ in your speech without giving thought to how the other person may feel? Do you perhaps need to consider being more tactful?
• How do you handle delays and challenges as they arise? Fiery Sagittarian Energy is naturally spontaneous and optimistic with the ability to think on its feet. During Mercury’s backward motion through this sign you may become conscious of negative thinking or situations that trigger you to go into stress or panic. Are you being shown an area of life where your reaction (and not necessarily the event) is creating a depressive or difficult view of reality? Do you need to work on being more optimistic, more trusting of your life path and less controlling with regards to outcomes?
• Fire is also representative of inspiration, play and creativity. If you find that you go through a period of feeling stagnant, joyless or blocked whilst Mercury is retrograde,  don’t worry. It’s likely that Mercury is showing you where you need to enliven and revive an aspect of your life. How can you renew your inspiration in this area?
• There could be delays, confusion or misunderstandings in relation to a study course, your spiritual beliefs, long-distance travel or projects/work where you have neglected to check or confirm the details.  This Mercury Retrograde can highlight where we have tended to be rash or sloppy, so remember to check and double-check the details.
• Believing yourself to be right (even when you’re not) and issues around judgement could arise.
• Problems with Writing/Journalism/Publishing.
• Mercury is strongly aligned with health matters, so watch for Sagittarius-related symptoms and ailments, which may arise and see if you can find a mind/body or emotion/body correlation. Sagittarius is associated with:
  • The Hips, Buttocks and Thighs
  • Accidents that arise from rushing around/recklessness/a lack of focus, so remember to ground and centre yourself – more speed, less haste – how balanced are you at the minute? Remember that Sagittarius’ ruler (Jupiter) is currently in the sign of balance (Libra).
  • Issues with the brain – Sagittarius rules the left hemisphere of the Cerebrum.

Remember to look at which houses in your birth chart that Mercury will retrograde through, as this area of life is likely to be most affected.

If you’d like help with that you can sign up for my Newsletter and download my free E-Book “Introductory Tips for Astrological Self Awareness”.

We’ll look at possible effects of Mercury retrograde through Capricorn later in the week. Until then, stay aware and see if you notice anything arising related to the Sagittarius points raised here.

Much Love, Toria xo