This year we have so many retrograde planets! For those born with many planets retrograde in their own chart or their significant relationship’s chart, it will be as important as 5 Retrogrades in 2016 extremely paralleling 7 retrogrades of 1984 I have written about. But this time it will also be strongly felt by everyone. We are having a year of a drastic switch from zero retrograde planets to see all of them go retrograde, 6 at the same time.

 

As a reminder: I count Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn (the classical planets) and separately these classical planets together with Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. Therefore one can have up to 5 classical planets retrograde (last happened in 16th century) or 8 out of all planets retrograde (although we never had more than 7 planets retrograde simultaneously for more than few days in the entire 21 centuries of common era, last time in spring 1984) (see TABLE / see article).

 

The most important is the period when Mars Jupiter and Saturn are simultaneously retrograde, with a week before and after it, therefore from June 16th till July 17th. That’s all 3 heavy classical planets (planets outer to the Earth’s orbit) and  5 retrogrades total (together with Neptune and Pluto). A bit later in August, we will also have 6 planets retrograde total. Which is strong in a different way. And also very unusual (See my article on the number of planets retrograde).

 

In the table, you can see when each of the planets is retrograde and when it goes direct.
Also the retrograde foreshadow path (light gray and dots) is indicated – when the planet is passing degrees that are about to be covered when it goes retrograde), and the retrograde catching up its shadow path (darker gray and comas) – when the planet is catching up to the zodiacal degree from before going backwards in motion. For these, the start/end dates are not given (to save space). Yet for every instance of planets changing the direction that you see in the table – you can glance how many other planets are in the retrograde foreshadow or catching up phase.

Also mind that 7 days before and after of the date that the planet changes direction its influence is the most powerful, louder, more pronounced and evident.

 

Overview of the year of the all planets going retrograde:

 

JUPITER

Jupiter turned retrograde on March 8th (9th in Europe) at 23° Scorpio while the Sun was applying to trine this Jupiter from 18° Pisces, Jupiter’s sign.

The last Jupiter-Saturn conjunction, that begins their cycle, happened in 2000 when they were at 22° Taurus at the beginning of the Egyptian bounds of Saturn. 2018 Jupiter turning retrograde in Scorpio is therefore in the 7th house of that current cosmic cycle.

This means that people and not-people (businesses, events, animals, legal entities, etc.) with strong Taurus sign (especially born in spring 1984, when there were 7 planets retrograde, Sun and sometimes also Moon in Taurus opposite retrogrades Mars, Saturn and Pluto in Scorpio, and this 2012 year, or for anyone to whom Taurus is the profected sign of the year) will experience very unstable weird relationship, very likely of a weird legal improper conduct of things. The most common scenario would be meeting with some jolly man offering them unusual dream deal, he will get over-excited with plans, then will suddenly be out of reach not answering any calls, then back again with some changes in plans, and so on back and forth, in every stage of the deal creating complications, changes and nuisances, while revealing how shady, sketchy, broke or uncommitted to his own business he is. The whole deal and relationship will run in stages from March 9th till July 10th (when Jupiter turn direct), but the aftermath will keep boiling till October 6th when things would finally get back to normal after Jupiter moves past the degree it had started retrograding in and catches up to continue his path from before this retrograde loop period. March 22 – April 15 coincides with Mercury retrograde – and at that time the miscommunication and issues with documents would be the most prominent in the above-mentioned areas (though it’s not likely that they are no longer a problem after that!).

It is not that much straightforward though. For example one person (born 1984 with 7 retrogrades and Taurus marking the profected lord of the year for this period) got in the business to obtain exotic animals he always felt he wants to have. I was asked a lot of horary questions, the business negotiations were as emotionally unbearable, and in each question chart Jupiter retrograde was the main player to assess the answer (and I had to say “yes, more retrograde ‘not as told’, I’m sorry” many more times than it’s bearable). When animals were finally at his home, it was in no way end to the problems. It’s too long of a story to summarize here. However, these animals can indeed be seen as an important relationship that challenges his whole world not only emotionally. Therefore it can be a challenging relationship (personal) brought to you by an unusual business relationship. It’s a Taurus-Scorpio mid-cycle – and we can expect things to be old, secretive or hard to easily understand and care for, and things that have big esthetic, social or financial value.

Apart from Taurus and Scorpio, all fixed signs (so also Leo and Aquarius) strong in one’s astrological chart (especially if activated by time lords at this period) will experience this strongly.
However, for Leo and Aquarius, this would be a square – an obstacle rather than a relationship.
For Scorpios it’s a time more about oneself than about others, however as it could amplify the dark wounds of Scorpio, one can feel overly focused on feeling distanced from their partners. But the focus is centered on personal feelings and detachment.

SATURN

Saturn turns retrograde over a month after Jupiter, on April 17/18 at 9°Capricorn. He was there together with Mars (in parallel aspect to it) and Pluto. The ruler of Capricorn turning retrograde in it together with its exalted ruler Mars. Capricorn is the 9th house from the last Jupiter-Saturn conjunction in Taurus. Travel, beliefs and … medicine. And this time impacted the most are those who have string Capricorn or other cardinal signs. Saturn stays retrograde until September 6th at 2° Capricorn, but can have its effects extended to December 12th before it catches up.

Few days later – April 17/18 – PLUTO turns retrograde in Capricorn as well and that adds extra juice for the cardinal signs.

June 19th NEPTUNE turns retrograde as well at 16° Pisces, being the 4th retrograde planet now.

June 26th MARS turns retrograde at Aquarius 9° (30 degrees away from where Saturn turned retrograde in April) as a fifth retrograde planet and it will travel back to Capricorn on August 13th and keep going retrograde back to 28° Capricorn at August 27th. This is the most important of the retrogrades, as it’s very rare to have Mars retrograde in Aquarius. last time it was in summer 1971 – known primarily for Nixon ending convertibility of US dollars to gold, and first ride on the Moon by astronauts in the lunar rover (which occurred a day after planes collision in Japan and 2 days after UK opting out of the Space Race with canceling their spaceship). The 1971 Mars retrograde in Aquarius started on July 11th with nationalization of copper mine in Chile, a female world record in running by a German citizen, and The Irish Republican Army bombed the center of Belfast (people injured) and ended on September 9th with the revolt in the maximum security prison in Attica, NY (1,000 convicts seize prison, many people killed), John Lennon’s album “Imagine” is released in US , in Poland a TV-series about the police dogs start airing (and 2 days later, a Moon probe crushed on the Moon). Hopefully, 2012 Aquarius-Capricorn retrogradation is less intense than a purely-Aquarian one.

Both Aquarius and fixed signs, as well as Capricorn and cardinal signs, will be strongly affected, but for Aquarius people, this will be much harder and more intense.

In the meantime Jupiter goes direct (July 7th), changing the 5 retrogrades to only 4. But July 26th Mercury turns retrograde, this time in Leo

August 8th Uranus turns retrograde in Taurus making the total of 6 planets retrograde, including all three of the modern planets and will retrograde back to 28° Aries. This can be difficult to Taurus people and late-Aries people.

 

October 5th to November 16th Venus turns retrograde from 10° Scorpio to 25° Libra (the switch from Scorpio to Libra is on the last day of October). While this happens only with Uranus and Neptune also being retrograde at the same time, so she is the only classical planet in retrograde motion. This however concludes ALL of the planets going retrograde within 4 months. This will happen while Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and Pluto will still in the process of catching up to their positions prior to having gone retrograde. A Venusian influence therefore will obstruct multiple things trying to sort themselves at once after these previous multiple instances retrograde chaos.

 

This year will be mentally intense and for some of us also filled with difficult or intense external situations.

Share your comments how this year is passing by for you.

If you want to learn more about retrogrades check my main article or consider my personalized astrological reading.