On 24th October, Mercury turns retrograde… and before you blame it for the dodgy wifi and the email that went to the wrong Sarah, stay with me.
For a start, it never leaves Scorpio. Three weeks, one sign, nowhere to hide. Scorpio rules depth, secrets and things that resurface, which is exactly the territory a retrograde loves.
Then there’s Venus. She turned retrograde on 3 October, so this is a double act, with the planet of communication and the planet of love and values both walking backwards at once. And they finish together. Mercury turns direct on Friday 13 November, and Venus follows just after midnight, in the early hours of the 14th.
Friday the 13th. The unluckiest date in the calendar, with two planets turning forward in the same breath. I’ll take that.
A guided descent
In Greek myth, Hermes, Mercury’s counterpart, was the messenger who guided souls down to the underworld and back again. So, a retrograde in Scorpio, landing right on Samhain, isn’t a glitch. It’s a descent with a guide, and the point of going down is to come back with something.
The 20 days
24 October. Mercury turns, and the Sun slipped into Scorpio the day before. Write down the one thing you keep avoiding. Just name it.
25 October. The clocks go back, so you get an extra hour. Spend it on that to-do list. It’s the most useful hour of the year and it’s handed to you the morning after the turn.
26 October. The Full Moon in Taurus, the Hunter’s Moon, asks what you’re actually keeping. Look at the list again and keep what’s true.
31 October. Samhain, the night the veil is said to run thin. Light a candle and name what you’re ready to leave behind.
4 November. Mercury meets the Sun at about 12 degrees Scorpio, a moment astrologers call cazimi, “in the heart of the Sun”. Think of it as a flash of clarity in the middle of the murk. Pay attention to what suddenly makes sense.
5 November. Bonfire Night, the day after. If you want a ritual with a bang, write down what you’ve outgrown and burn it (safely, in a fireproof dish, or just watch the fireworks and let the sentiment do the work).
13 November. Mercury turns direct, and Venus follows in the early hours of the 14th. Now you act on what you decided. Not before.
Why scent belongs here
Retrograde is about revisiting the past, and nothing opens the door to a memory faster than a scent. So, make the whole thing a small ritual. Light a WYLDE MOON candle before you sit down with your list, and let the room do some of the remembering for you.
Mercury isn’t out to get you this autumn. It’s asking you to slow down, look back and tidy up before the final stretch of the year. Go down, find your answers, and come back on Friday the 13th feeling lucky.
Reconnect. Realign. Rediscover your WYLDE. 🌙
