The astrological trend for October 2019 is depth and intensity, and Mercury makes no exception. Having entered Scorpio on October 3, the trickster among planets turned into the psychopomp that escorts the souls towards the realms beyond – this being one of the archetypes associated with Mercury since the ancient times. Communication has been dense, sharp and somewhat challenging ever since: what Scorpio Mercury lacks in loquacity and liveliness is more than made up for in acumen and obstinacy.

Yet, a month like the one we are navigating, one of relentless excavation and introspection, wouldn’t be complete without a Mercury Retrograde cycle; throughout the past few weeks, we have likely peered beyond the veil of comfort and ignorance right into the shadows and brought some taboo truths to light. When Mercury crawls to a halt on October 31, at 27°38′ Scorpio, we will be invited to follow the psychopomp into the underworld, turning our attention away from the stridor of the surface and towards the within in order to process all the submerged feelings our recent Soul searching process has been digging up from the second week of October onwards.

Mercury and Venus: beneath and behind our relationships

The fact that the Retrograde station happens with Mercury in conjunction with Venus, the planet that symbolizes the human tendency to establish social and romantic contacts, is especially significant. This is not just about us, our individual histories, our individual minds – it’s about who we are when we connect with one another, what is awakened within us by human interaction, and what human bonds can tell us about ourselves.

The very aspect of conjunction symbolizes a synergy between the planets involved;  we are not just looking at our communication patterns and the real motives behind our own words, we are especially considering these aspects in a context of interrelatedness and assess the way the recent conversations have exposed hidden flaws, blockages and repressed desires we need to acknowledge. The subtext of every word we have said or heard is now being put under the microscope lens to be probed and investigated; every tone of voice, every hesitancy, every passive-aggressive remark has the potential to disclose a whole new perspective, putting us face to face once and for all with the uncomfortable truths we previously tried to hide from.

Scorpio, the Phoenix

The sign of Scorpio symbolizes transformation and rebirth through crisis; this encounter with the darkness is not meant to annihilate us, but rather to allow us to shed old communication habits, cut away useless thought patterns and break free from mental ruts, perhaps re-evaluating our toxic self-talk as well. As laborious as this Mercury Retrograde phase might feel at times, we can take a substantial load off our minds if we remain open to the insight we receive and trust our gut.

Mercury will travel back to 11°35′ Scorpio, where he will station direct on November 20. The second shadow phase will end on December 7.