Another day, another retrograde. From August 24 until January 22, 2023, the Planet of Revolution will be wrapped up in a backwards dance. Although Uranus retrogrades every year around this time and we've experienced the planetary backwards motion in Taurus before, it's still a transit that triggers some major reevaluating. Are you ready for it?
Uranus is an outer planet that affects our long-term goals. Since it stays in a sign for around seven years, we're often focusing on the same themes for that entire time. For this transit in particular, Uranus's influence is a bit serious on a collective level. "It brings change on a grand scale," says Lisa Stardust, astrologer and author of The Love Deck. "When in Taurus, its least favorite sign to be in, it creates change around the foundations that we have built our lives on. Structures fall, the way we invest our money and source our food is radically different than before, and relationships evolve and grow in different ways."
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Mainly, retrogrades affect us on a more personal level, due to the transit's reflective nature. Uranus is often associated with sudden breakthroughs and shocking revelations or events, but during its retrograde, "We're choosing to reflect on the change that's taken place in our lives over the past few months and what changes we need to make moving forward," says astrologer Stephanie Campos. She urges us to create a cosmic game plan and ask ourselves, "How do we interact with change? Do we welcome it? Are we terrified of it? What changes have we been avoiding? How will applying some of those changes bring us closer to the life we truly desire to live?"
This is the time to dive headlong into our deep feelings, according Iva Naskova, astrologer at the Nebula app. "Uranus retrograde allows us to rethink and reflect on our goals and aspirations and challenges us to take a different approach, and it is more likely for us all to think and act a bit differently or in more creative and unconventional ways," she says. If something hasn't been working out for you this year, take note and change your direction. Although scary, change can often be the catalyst we need for a transformation.
Narayana Montúfar, senior astrologer for Astrology.com and author of Moon Signs: Unlock Your Inner Luminary Power, says that as Uranus retrogrades, its erratic energy diminishes a bit, which in turn allows us to really integrate changes that have been taking place into our lives. "If certain events took us by surprise this year, they could begin to make much more sense," she says. "Uranus is the planet of creative brilliance, but its influence can sometimes be too much to digest when it is direct." This retrograde can be great news, actually, and Montúfar says it'll be especially so for those who have experienced significant change and any big life events this year. Although change is inevitable, big switches will happen at a much slower, more digestible pace during this time, which may save all of us a lot of turmoil.
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This year in particular has been an incredibly active one for Uranus, mainly due to its connections with Saturn and the Lunar North Node of Destiny. "The foundations of our lives have been collapsing to make room for the creation of new structures that allow for more freedom and creativity — but the process hasn’t been easy," Montúfar says. "We have been standing in this liminal space between the past and the future, sometimes resisting moving forward."
And with Uranus retrograding, it will move closer to its square with Saturn, according to psychic astrologer Leslie Hale. "Uranus square Saturn is an intense transit prone to unexpected events that will affect the collective and us personally," she says. "The peak period is mid-September through mid-October. While the results may play out for some time, this will be the final clash between these planets for years to come." If a major change occurs under this aspect, Hale assures us that it will ultimately be for the better — even if it doesn’t feel that way at the time.
Like we said before, change can be scary — but it's also necessary. Use the vibes of this retrograde to your advantage and switch it up. It's daring to do something different, and may just turn your luck around for the better.