The Goddess Foretold – Mercury Echo Phase Begins

By Len Wallick

Tonight, less than half an hour before the Full Moon, Mercury will enter its echo (or shadow) phase at 18+ Leo. That marks a boundary and a beginning. While the fleet one does not station retrograde until August 2, this passage stakes out what will be its furthest retreat. Crossing this point of entry into echo phase, Mercury will be precisely conjunct the asteroid Isis. That conjunction will open a continuum to both parallel and distinguish this particular retrograde cycle. In your life it may feel like remembering the future and anticipating the past while standing in forever. There may also be the sense that something is trying to get your attention.

In the words of astrologer Sheila Belanger, when a planet moves from one sign to another, it is as if the archetype it represents changes its costume. The symbolic intellectual energy of Mercury is currently wrapped in the raiment of Leo and the Sun, its ruler. This favors our thoughts and communication being brought to bear on matters of the conscious self. That was a theme of Gary’s Caton’s expository on the Full Moon in the Planet Waves subscriber edition two days ago. Yet there is another process, an echo, if you will, initiating in parallel and still below the surface with the beginning of Mercury’s shadow phase today.

When a planet in direct motion moves into the space it is destined to retrace, it slows down as if to listen to an echo from its own future. Appropriately, Mercury is not only listening but communicating the feel of that future to our minds by conjoining with Isis from the get-go. That is because this retrograde will not only repeatedly encounter but also express the archetype of that asteroid in several other forms.

Shortly before crossing over into Virgo, where it will station retrograde on August 2, Mercury will make its first of three conjunctions with a hypothetical point. That imaginary object, is called Isis-Transpluto. It has occupied the last degree of Leo for a long time. That is a place Eric has referred to as the sphinx point, where the Goddess energy is strong and “where we combine the energy of a woman with the energy of a cat. Or maybe just notice.”

Isis-Transpluto is a mathematical artifact, of sorts. Based on the irregularities in the orbital motions of Uranus and Pluto, it commemorates the early effort to find the solar system’s missing pieces in order to account for those aberrations. Its archetype signifies the sudden and seemingly chaotic release of energy, leading to a transformation or rebirth.

Which takes us full circle, to August 26 when Mercury stations direct again at the very spot where it is today. That date corresponds to the re-appearance of the brightest star on the eastern horizon. You may remember Sirius from the end of May when it sparkled fiercely in the western twilight. Since that time, its impossible brilliance has been obscured by the light of the Sun. Its helical rise (re-appearance before the dawn) was a sacred moment for the ancient Egyptians, foretelling the annual flooding of the Nile. That sudden and seemingly chaotic inundation, ascribed to the tears of (you guessed it) Isis, nourished and transformed the desert into arable land, re-birthing an ancient kingdom.

In the mythology, those tears were of grief for a loss only partially recovered. As the story goes, Osiris, the beloved consort of Isis, was murdered and dismembered. Parts of his body were scattered far and wide. The heroic quest of the goddess to find the missing pieces was only partially successful. Osiris was not quite the same and survived his resurrection only long enough to give his wife a son.

So it is that this impending Mercury retrograde is interwoven, through repeated conjunctions and precise timing, with the mythology of Isis. It is also concurrent with the dwarf planet, Ceres, occupying the Aries point, melding the mythology of two ancient cultures into one and involving all of us together, all at the same time, now.

From the personal to the political, the Divine Feminine is going to some extraordinary lengths to get our attention. It is subtle now, outshone by the summer Sun and its own heroic quest for what Gary Caton called “…the development of self-awareness and self-actualization.” That whisper, however, is destined to get louder as Sol moves south. The message is not yet fully revealed but we can be as clear about two thematic points as we are about the point of return that Mercury occupies today. We can be sure that the quest of the goddess will complement and complete that of the masculine Sun. We can also be certain that we will have a role in shaping the outcome.

Offered In Service

20 thoughts on “The Goddess Foretold – Mercury Echo Phase Begins”

  1. Len Wallick! Oh how I have missed you sharing your knowledge with me! I thank the Universe for reconnecting me with you 🙂 I Googled to find: “mercury retrograde echo phase”…so I could try to get a feel for when things will start to mellow out…and your article was what I was first guided to. I’m sure you remember how I get during the retrograde periods… Trying to remember my “Om”, and breathe.

    Humbly & with much love, old friend.

    Shan.

  2. and “not letting it be all about the decision.” very powerful. yes, you are right, hindsight. thank you, again.

  3. Thank you, hindsightis202! Those are good words, good thoughts. And, they fit well with the Buddhist perspective, too. Holding good thoughts, supporting the transition. Yes.

    I get so nervous sharing my thoughts aloud and hearing those of others. But, these written words we are sharing are for me purely positive, therapeutic. They don’t activate my resistance, my fear. As a writer, maybe I should have known that the written word might be helpful to me in a way the spoken word cannot, but I never suspected.

    So, Len, maybe the first thing that I am learning from this transit, as Mercury has just past over my Mercury, is that there *are* words that can heal, but maybe that I need them in a different form than most.

  4. Surya,
    Don’t let her crossing be all about the decision, it will be much easier if it is not. Over the years I’ve realized that the more at peace I am with them going in their own time the quicker and easier they cross over. Let it just be what it is, a transformation. Don’t continually put the idea that she is in so much suffering on her. What a gift you can give her to be filled with confidence and love about where she is going instead of fear and loss. If you decide to let her go on her own, verbally release her again and again if necessary. My first and oldest had all of your kitty’s ailments and still didn’t want to go. Finally what really seemed to help was that I told her she would be free where she was going, she could be outside and not get hurt and that I would see her again, soon enough. The more natural you can make it, the better and the less they will try to hold on for you and to you. Breath with her, hold one hand firmly on her chest especially as she is crossing, cheer her on, tell her she is doing great, she’s almost there. And after she goes if you hold her you will see for some time you can still feel her energy, if you can do it, it helps them transition. All that said, you can get pain killers for her if you want and you can give sub- cutaneous fluids to her at home daily. Gerber, chicken with broth with crushed up prednisolone smooshed on the side of the face works great. See your helping her cross over as the honor that it is. It is all going to be allright. Love and blessings to you and her.

  5. pSmith and phall, too, thank you, thank you for sharing your experiences. pSmith, I really appreciate those details.

    Thank you all. Your experiences are now sharing space in mind with my issues at hand and are a very welcome circle of friends, holding space for my own thoughts to evolve.

    So many of us here are Buddhists… interesting. Maybe we should start a thread on Buddhist astrology, about which I know little, just that Tibetan Buddhist astrology derives to some extent from both Vedic and Chinese streams.

    May you all have a gentle, kind lunation, filled with awareness and, as much as possible, joy.

  6. This is the second time I have ever left a comment on a blog…the first time (years ago!) was rather unpleasant as I somehow managed to completely piss off the blogger who really let me have it in her response. Ouch.

    But I really wanted to respond to this post, first of all to say:

    Len,
    You are humble, yes, but you are very rich in your insights and writing skills not to mention your obvious sense of responsibility in this world. We need more men like you! Don’t let the typically feminine habit of self-denigration get to you. Thank you for your heartfelt, objective reports.

    Surya,
    I lost my 11 year old cat in late May. And, I did not go the euthanasia route. It took several days for my beloved pet to die, and it was very, very hard. But, for me and him, it was very much the right thing to do.

    I found him in a parking lot 11 years ago very near Mother’s Day. He became my baby – as all our pets do, so the decision to let him go like this, on his own terms, was quite hard. But the Buddhist in me held firm, and I believe that we both worked through some karma in the process. He and I both had very traumatic beginnings, and he did carry those psychic wounds his whole life. The last three days of his life seemed like an unwinding of all that crap…. a resolution… perhaps…. at least that is my hope.

    For me, the experience touched my heart in a way I could not have imagined. Yes, a little piece of my heart still feels broken, but as it turns out, it was much more of a heart opening experience than a heart breaking experience. Alas, it takes a whole lot of love to let go of something you love so much…

    Such things as this are very personal – and meant to be. I hope you and your sweet kitty find resolution and peace in these hours. My heart reaches out to both of you.

    God’s speed.

  7. Len – my mid heaven is 18 degrees Leo – and today I found out that the director I’m working with on a film project won’t be moving to LA just yet (she’s staying up in Vancouver, BC for a few more months). Of course, we will work virtually. .

    And, for Surya – I finally had my vet visit my beloved 20-year old himi, William, here at home. He did a wonderful ceremony and ultimately put him to sleep. I’ve studied Tibetan Buddhism for 20 years – and it was an incredible transition. However, I do understand why you might not want to take that route.

  8. Wow. bkoehler, len, darkmary, stormilarue, awordedgewise… thank you all so much. You have brightened my day, and now my evening. thank you for your words of care.

    And darkmary, isn’t that just it? Reconciling abstract teachings against in-your-face suffering… I think my kitty has suffered more than enough, frankly, to burn away a few lifetime’s worth of bad karma. And I, I have committed wrongful actions enough in this life that one more isn’t going to add a noticeable weight to my life’s karmic load.

    Much love and thanks to all. Thank you for such immediate friendship and care. Makes me think I shouldn’t be such a lurker, perhaps, after all. 🙂

  9. surya, deep empathy to you and your beloved 4legged friend. i know the pain having had to put down my own beloved friend of 17 years a couple of years ago.

    and thank you dear be for the birthday wishes, i will hold them with love until and after then (8/26 ~ apologies if i wasn’t clear).

    ♥☮♫

  10. Surya, sending love and support to you and your best kitty friend. Eleven years of Vajrayana practice and teachings in the wake of my life and I still haven’t been able to reconcile the teaching of “no euthanasia” with the reality of the animals I have loved and lived with. Just three weeks ago my former partner and I held our old, sick, beloved German Shepherd (who could only drag her rear legs), as our vet injected the poison that stopped her heart. I can only say to you what I continue to say to myself. There are no easy answers and maybe there are no answers. Intention matters. Your love for your cat matters and he/she for you matters. Holding you both in my prayers and practice.

  11. aword:
    Please accept my support. Also my validation. Your intellect and your heart humble and inspire me.

    surya:
    What be said. My heart goes out to you.

    be:
    You are on top of it. Might have to start calling you the Silver Surfer.

  12. Not surprising that today I had the revelation that not only was I my family’s scapegoat, but more profoundly, their sacrificial lamb. It is one thing to pass the blame, another to anoint a sin-eater. Somehow, this is empowering.

    Transiting Venus opposes natal Mars today, Moon having just passed over. Not sure about tomorrow’s 6th house eclipse (mars venus and pholus). Ha! Last time I can figure Pholus was active in my chart was my Uranus Return and life blew up. (Natal Pholus opposite natal Uranus on the AC)

    Haven’t recovered. Maybe it’s near-time.

  13. Well Len,

    It is a challenge to gather all these pieces of info into my own tapestry, so how (on earth) did you do it, and who else, ‘cept Isis herself could have? If we take aword’s needle out of her compass and put it in a haystack, I believe you could find it!~

    Now as I understand it, Mercury is meeting Isis today in the spot that he will return to on August 26. It was only 2 1/2 weeks ago that the asteroids Isis and Osiris were conjoined in the sky, so Mr. O can’t be too far away either. Then, on his way to Virgo, Mercury will cross over the point of Isis/Transpluto, representing a possibility of a seemingly chaotic release of energy which could lead to a transformation or rebirth. That should happen around July 26, 27 or 28, right?

    Okay then, on July 28 he crosses over into Virgo where he changes his clothes from something all about the self, into something more practical I would assume. I see that he will also oppose Neptune on that day, so perhaps something waterproof would be a good choice. Alright then, a couple days later we have the New Moon in Leo (and so close to the U.S. Sibly north node) which will be pretty dramatic don’t you think? Then, on the night of August 2 or early morning of August 3, Mercury halts in the degree for which Dane Rudhyer gives the keywords “a liberating ordeal”, referring to the vision of “A Large White Cross Dominates the Landscape”, the Sabian symbol for that degree. Sounds like something is going to be sacrificed.

    Now Mercury starts his journey back to where he is today, which will take him a little over 3 weeks, changing out of the raincoat as he nods to Neptune across the way, and back into the garments of “self”, passing over all the transforming chaotic energy, and the tearful Isis. No doubt he will have. . like the cat woman and Osiris himself . . . had a rebirth of thoughts. I bet I know what one of them will be about.

    On August 2, the evening Mercury turns around, is the deadline for raising the U.S. ceiling on the debt limit. Something will be sacrificed. Deadline indeed! Expect Mercury to bring us breakthrough news around July 27.

    I’d like to add my thanks to darkmary for her timely quote from James Baldwin, a powerful revelation in itself, and to wish stormilarue a very happy birthday. surya, I feel your pain and will pray that your kitty’s release is swift. I’ve had to make that decision way too many times myself. You will look back and see that this was the releasing point into a new way of life and one that your kitty fully supports right now. Len points out “the Divine Feminine is going to some extraordinary lengths to get our attention”, and of course, for a very good reason.
    be

  14. darkmary, add another “thank you” for the words from James Baldwin.

    pieces of the puzzle come together day by day and night by night.

    One time – while asleep – I was abruptly and cruelly pushed out of my own car whlie a passanger. Another time, a longer adventure, I was pushed “while asleep” out of my own home; a home I had built with heart and soul.

    I find myself wondering now – am I still asleep at the wheel?

    Each morning for years I wake to the terror within and the fear without…….this moment we are on is a like a needle on a compass…..and the biggest challenge is learning to read the language it speaks in real-time.

    Ah! Probably Neptunian gibberish, but it’s the place I am in.

    xo and thanks to all – Len….add more love to the riches you hold.

  15. Hiya, Len!

    While I’ve never been a diarist (I am an impersonal writer, not a personal one, and, yes, I know that means I have issues ;-), I feel like I owe this community a lot, so will do my best to track my journey over the next couple of months.

    What I can see already in my professional life is that I’ve been ramping up to simultaneously dive in to 6-10 projects and now, finally, the prelude activities are complete, and I will be submersing myself in writing from now to early-mid September.

    For my personal life, I won’t try to predict. I do have my best kitty friend (she’s age 19 1/2, and has been with me for 18 years) who is now coming to an end point in this world. Her back legs have just stopped working (two days ago) and along with her renal failure and hyperthyroid condition, physical embodiment is becoming more and more of a strain. There is a crucial decision point coming, where my love and need for her must be balanced against her needs, and my “no euthanasia” Buddhist beliefs against what is transpiring in front of my eyes. We will see.

    Thank you again for all you share, Len. And Eric, and everybody. While I may not feel much like sharing my inner world out loud, it is good to find it echoed and displayed in others.

  16. ah dear Len, i must thank you for this beauty*full peace today. considering my own current transformative death and dismembering of self to find and resurrect Self, and the divine reminder of the full circle, which happens to be on my own day of birth, i am joyful and grateful for your rich service.

    now i shall have to ask you, “who, being loved, is poor?”

    beeg hug beeg kees! 😉

  17. surya:
    Thank you for your kind words. Please, may we ask you to help us learn from you and your transit? Please, if it is not too much trouble, could you let us all know what transpires when Mercury stations retrograde and also when direct again? It would be so wonderful for you to share that adventure with all of us if you are so inclined.

    darkmary:
    James Baldwin… he makes me proud to be a human being, aspiring to his level of creative enlightenment. Thank you for sharing his rich, wise and deep insight to supplement my poor offering today.

  18. Len, you write so beautifully and with such depth. Thank you, thank you!

    Maybe because the myth of Isis is inseparable from that of the Magdalene or maybe because I seem to be gathering scattered pieces and parts of myself, masculine and feminine both, long ago dismembered, stolen, relinquished…I don’t know, but your words are as much a mirror as echo, echo of both past and future.

    Last night, a friend reminded me of this passage from The Price of a Ticket by James Baldwin. I share it wondering if we aren’t constantly blown to bits, left to discover the undiscoverable self, the play of light and shadow, emptiness and form, ever-changing question and answer.

    “It has always been much easier (because it has always seemed much safer) to give a name to the evil without than to locate the terror within.

    “And yet, the terror within is far truer and far more powerful than any of our labels: the labels change, the terror is constant. And this terror has something to do with that irreducible gap between the self one invents — the self one takes oneself as being, which is, however, and by definition, a provisional self — and the undiscoverable self which always has the power to blow the provisional self to bits.”

  19. Amazing. This Mercury retrograde exactly covers the sweep between Mercury and the sun at my birth. My Mercury was at 18 Leo and my Sun at 1 Virgo.

    Fwiw, I’m a professional technical writer in the US, age 45, deep in a heavy but fun writing period, working with a team in Romania.

    Thanks to everybody here for keeping the spirit alive and flowing. Much love to you.

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