Ganesh Astrology: MERCURY RETROGREAT! 10 Steps on How to be a Mercury Retrograde Ninja

MERCURY RETROGREAT!©

10 steps on how to be a Mercury Retrograde Ninja!!

As many of you are retrograde veterans, at this point you are all familiar with the cliches that abound during Mercury retrograde cycles. You will probably misplace your phone charger, or your cell phone service will go on the fritz, or your mail will accidentally end up in unexplored regions of Siberia for a few months, or that you will likely be cursed-out by a 6 year-old school girl, or that your computer will be fighting off colds, flus, vaccines and other viruses, or that your car you just got out of the shop won’t start. The good news is that after years of training in the Mercury Retrograde Dojo, I can probably assist you to gleam some insights into the ancient art of Retro-Do with ten easy to follow rules to get you in shape for the retrocalypse.

The following are excepts from The Stars are the Windows of the Soul© series

Pātañjalayogaśāstra 2.33 1. वितर्कबाधने प्रतिपक्षभावनम्

Vitarkabādhane Pratipakṣabhāvanam

~ When the hinderances of negativity arise in our minds, we should shift our focus to the opposite polarity – positivity ~

The word bhāva in this śloka suggest that we need to connect our experiences with a positive sensation and make it more cellular and not just merely intellectual. The word bhāva indicates that we need to adopt a state of being.

Since we mainly create karma through our actions, thoughts and speech, we should consider applying Pratipakṣabhāvanam to our thoughts, words and deeds.

THOUGHTS

When you find yourself having negative thoughts, project positive thoughts and sentiments instead. Connect with some good vibes, and if you’re feeling yourself incapable of that, then read or listen to the words of worthy pundits or enlightened teachers. If your still experiencing obstacles, then listen to some Bob Marley and let it sink in.

~ Keep a positive mantra or affirmation in your thoughts as much as possible ~

ACTIONS

To align yourself with more harmonious actions it helps to perform more austerities and puja. Engage yourself in charitable works, or donate clothes, food or money to a good cause. Savor the Seva.

2. LANGUAGE

Mercury rules language. Mercury retrograde is a great time to re-enlist in that language you stopped practicing years ago and re-work your communication skills.

It is important to employ your words gently during Mercury retrograde periods. Read Romeo and Juliet and try to throw some positive words of love and good vibes in someone’s direction. Whisper positive mantras or affirmations to yourself and others as frequently as possible.

Words are co-creators of our reality. Use words to massage the boundaries of your constructs, or better yet, renovate or deconstruct your reality altogether and build it anew. Your words are your contractor, build a vernacular pyramid to align to the stars.

~ Better than a thousand hollow words is one word that brings peace ~ Buddha.

3. YOGA

Mercury is one of the main planets that rule yoga. When his course is retrograde it is a good time to perform your asana routines in reverse.

Employ more inversions to your practice, and if your poses are stronger on your right-side, then spend a few more seconds performing the asana on your left-side everyday.

Work on the sympathetic responses in your body. Have a weak left knee? Then gently open the right one first. Have a weak right shoulder? Then gently stretch the left one first, and then transfer the feeling of lightness and openness to the other side that is challenged.

BREATH

नाड़ी शोधन प्रानायाम

Nādī Shodhana Prānāyāma

Nādī Shodhana Prānāyāma is one of the best Prānāyāma techniques to navigate the chaotic alternating polarity paradigm of Mercury retrograde cycles.

4. LAUGHTER

If you didn’t laugh at some of the minor tragedies in your life, Mercury retrograde will most likely take you back in time, so you may harvest some humor from some otherwise sad and disturbing situations. If you are having some problems with laughter in your life, then the Mercury yogis say you should go to You Tube and bask in the darśana of the George Carlin Sūtras, or the Robin Williams Saṃhita. These two pundits of the mercurial loka should help start you on the path.

5. Gāyatrī Mantra

Mercury is spending a lot of time in this cycle of retrogression in the star cluster of Hastā. This star cluster is ruled by Sāvitrī. The shakti or power of this star group is Hasta Sthapaniya Shakti, the ability to manifest with one's hands, or to hold manifest reality in your hands. This manifestation is usually derived from hard work, piercing intellectual breakthroughs, and austerities.

Sāvitrī is a manifestation of Gāyatrī Devī, and the Gāyatrī Mantra

is one of the most beneficial mantras you can do to align with this most auspicious divine feminine mojo. Start with at least 3 to 108 repetitions a day, and if you can’t feel anything from that, then check yourself into the Mercury Retrograde Emergency Room for a soul transplant.

6. Viṣṇusahasranāma Stotra

Viṣṇu presides over Mercury. One of the most beneficial ways to transform every aspect of your life during Mercury influenced periods is to perform the Viṣṇusahasranāma Stotra. It takes a little more work than the Gāyatrī Mantra, but the benefits are transformative, profound and well worth it.

7. SCULPTURE

Mercury rules sculptures. The art of sculpture is the ultimate dichotomy – you are challenged to create something fluid from something immoveable (kind of like my last relationship).

When sculpting, if you carve off too much, your plans for your sculpture will suffer. While sculpting, you are forced with each stroke of your tools to move in small increments to carve minute impressions of what you are aspiring to create. Mercury spurs us to reflect on those tiny steps. Mercury retrograde periods remind us that it is the little things in life that make the big things fluid. Just call up your nagging, nit-picking, overanalyzing Virgo friends for advice if you have any problems with this concept.

Mercury retrograde usually unveils tiny mistakes we made in our speech or contracts. Minutia is your friend, avoiding big broad strokes is your Zen.

8. FRIENDS

"To know oneself is to study oneself in action with another person" – Bruce Lee

Mercury rules friends. Lets face it, some of our friends have some major issues. Sure, we must try to help some of them out, but cast ye not pearls before swine, and definitely cast ye not bacon before vegans.

Our friends can make us or break us. The Mercury Ninjas say that you should be liberal in casting out the parasitic pretenders that are just sucking up valuable oxygen and depleting your prāṇa.

Honor the friends and healthy associations you have, but if you sense a disturbance in the force, do what the great Jedi knight Kim Kardashian always does and turn the other cheek.

~ With friends like you, who needs the Taliban? ~

9. AlCHEMY

Mercury is the ruler of alchemy and compound ingredients. Mercury retrograde periods are optimal times for reworking and reassessing the syllabus of your life. It is the best time for reassessing the mixtures of activities and the best times they should happen for your schedule. It is also a great time to reflect on or investigate new mixtures of herbs, cooking recipes, teas, chai and even smoothies. Mixing the right combination of factors in the proper proportions is the trick to making your life Mercury Retrogreat!

10. HABITS and ROUTINES

Mercury rules habits. Mercury retrograde will urge you to extinguish bad habits and start beneficial new ones. It may also trigger old habits even if you are already aware they may not be serving you. Good habits will set you free, bad habits will lock you up in a prison of suffering. As the master of polarity, Mercury can assist you in analyzing bad habits, and replacing them with productive ones.

"A zoo is an excellent place to study the habits of human beings" ~ Evan Esar

Virgo rules routines. Mercury is transiting Virgo as per the Vedic system of astrology, so now is an opportune time to re-cast your routines so they may guide you on the route to Mercury Retrograde Ninja Mastery!