Hail and Well Met, you magickal souls!!!!
It's time for Mars to go retrograde for about two and a half months, between 6th December 2024 and 23rd February 2025. What's interesting about this retrograde is that Mars will start off in the sign of Leo and will end in Cancer.
Mars is the Roman god of war, so there are plenty of connections between the planet named after Him and intentions/purpose/drive. Whenever a war starts, it's always because someone in power decided that they wanted to have what someone else/another country has/had. So the person behind the invasion had the drive to do something about it. This is what Mars is about - our drive, why we want what we want, and how we can get there.
We might assume that with achieving anything, we always have to be moving forwards but sometimes we have to retreat and let others think they've won for a short time when we're just regrouping and rethinking our plan of action to try again. This is the energy of Mars in retrograde because Mars wants us to take action but sometimes we have to take a step back to really think and put together a plan about how we can achieve any of our dreams and desires.
Add in some Leo energy and it means we have to think about how we can be the ones in charge, how we can direct what needs to happen. Leo is also about having confidence so we need to think about how much self-confidence we have because if we don't believe in ourselves, how can we ask others to follow our lead?
But there's another energy to add in because Mars doesn't stay in Leo; it moves back into Cancer, which is all about nurturing and being emotionally sensitive. So with the added Cancer aspect, we need to look after those who follow us, and cater to their needs as well as our own. We have to look after our own selves during this time so that we don't become burned out or lose motivation to achieve our dreams or desires.
To be honest, that's a lot of energy swirling around during Mars' retrograde. It could be important that this retrograde straddles the end of 2024 and the start of 2025, showing that this is the perfect time to consider all of this before putting it into action when Mars goes direct again towards the end of February 2025.
To help everyone navigate this particular retrograde, I put together this collective reading and used the Lord of the Rings oracle deck, which was actually chosen by one of my feline companions.
How can we take charge of our own lives?
The Shire, The Ghost Army of Dunharrow
With The Shire, we're being told that we can take charge of our own lives if we pay attention to what is happening close to home. Home could be just ourselves, our loved ones, our physical home, or even where our family lives. But it can also be a feeling of peace, contentment and happiness from doing something. So whatever we want to do with our lives, we can take charge by paying attention to where we feel happiest, what brings us most contentment and peace, and who amplifies those feelings. By following those feelings, we are listening to the song of our soul or our heart's desire, which may not align with what others expect us to do but that's okay as long as what we're doing won't actually hurt or harm others.
With The Ghost Army of Dunharrow, we're being told that we need to be true to our morals, our values, and who/what we believe in. This Army weren't loyal and paid the price by becoming ghosts until they had fulfilled their vows. This card is warning against that happening to us - if we listen to others and aren't loyal to our promises and our hearts, then we will become a shadow of ourselves. We won't be able to enjoy true life, or the joys of this world. If we want to be in control, then we have to be true to our goals, desires and dreams, without letting anyone or anything get in the way. It is easier said than done but if we can stick with it, then our lives will be filled with a deeper joy.
How can we develop a greater sense of self-belief?
The White Tree
With this card, the message is that we can develop a greater sense of self-belief by looking closely at how we react to intense situations and deal with any challenges that we face.
The White Tree is symbolic of hope, inspiration, new beginnings and rebirth. So perhaps the message of this card is to always have hope that we can achieve our dreams and desire regardless of what is happening in our lives.
But also, perhaps our sense of self-belief can be improved by the idea that anytime we need to, we can start again to rebuild our lives the way that we want it to be.
No matter what the challenge is that we face, we can still achieve our desires if we believe in our own selves, our growth (no matter what form it takes), and our dreams.
In what way can we nurture and care for our own selves on a deeper level?
The Eagles, The Nine Rings That Were Made for Mortal Men
With The Eagles, the message is that we can nurture and care for our own selves better by making wherever we nest (our home) as comfortable as possible. If our home is pleasant and full of things that improve our own comfort levels, we can feel like we are surrounded by love. As well as this, we can also remove ourselves from the company of people who don't make us feel cared for and nurtured but if this isn't entirely possible, then making time and space to look after ourselves is the next best thing - no matter what that looks like for each of us.
With The Nine Rings That Were Made For Mortal Men, the message is that we can only nurture and care for ourselves if we denying that we aren't doing a good enough job of it already. If we think we're already doing enough when it comes to self-love and self-care, then we don't think we need to improve. So everything stays as it was and our practice of nurturing and caring just is. Sometimes things that we do to take care of ourselves stop working for us so we need to be able to adapt or try new things. We also need to remember that sometimes we can become a slave to what we know and recognise so we avoid trying something new occasionally. We all have the right to be as nurturing and as possible, and practice them as we feel is appropriate.
What kind of impact will doing all this have on our lives?
Realm of Lothlorien, Rose Gamgee and Belladonna Took - The Mothers
With the Realm of Lothlorien, we're being told that this is an opportunity for us to show love and acceptance to ourselves as well as those around us. If we can achieve everything the other cards have advised, we will be able to relax, and give and receive love freely. We'll free ourselves from the things, people and habits that have disturbed our lives more than we might want to admit. We might even find our own personal creativity comes out when we stop being so critical about ourselves and others. All of this work will give us a new and deepers sense of personal integration
With Rose Gamgee and Belladonna Took, they represent the archetypal Mothers. They show that we can come full circle with all of this work. The impact will be that we can unwind and review, so that we can improve and take better care of ourselves first and foremost as well as others. We'll be able to see where we need to put more energy that, until the work has been done, has been tied up in other less important things. The relationship with have with anyone who has a maternal role in our lives will improve as we appreciate everything that they have ever done to take care of and nurture everyone around them. We ourselves will be able to nurture and care for others as we engage and embody the energy of the Mother archetype. We will also be be able to value what we already have as well.
It seems as if this particular Mars retrograde is a major opportunity for us to learn about how to care for ourselves first and then others while holding a safe space for anyone and everyone. The next two and a half months will be deep but all meaningful personal work always is.
I hope this has been helpful and prepares you. If you'd like a more personal look at what Mars going retrograde could do for you, my diary and inbox are open so feel free to send me a message.
Peace and love to all!!!!
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