So many planets in retrograde can't be good, can it?!
Question: I am an Aries and I happen to have no fewer than five planets in my chart in retrograde. Mars, Saturn, and Pluto all in the seventh house in Libra. Jupiter in the eighth house in Scorpio and Uranus in the ninth house in Sagittarius. I find this a little unnerving. I also have NO PLANETS in houses 2,3,4,5,6 and 11. Does this mean I am more concerned with physical things than spiritual? My north node is in Cancer in the 5th house, and I am having a hard time understanding exactly how this fits into my chart. Also, should I be worried about having the moon, Mars and Venus all in the Twelfth House? This is the house of Sorrows, and I really don't like the way that sounds. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I'm trying to interpret this natal chart myself with (lots) of books, but there are some things that just aren't explained clearly.
Answers: I am an Aries and I happen to have no fewer than five planets in my chart in retrograde. Mars, Saturn, and Pluto all in the seventh house in Libra. Jupiter in the eighth house in Scorpio and Uranus in the ninth house in Sagittarius. I find this a little unnerving. I also have NO PLANETS in houses 2,3,4,5,6 and 11. Does this mean I am more concerned with physical things than spiritual? My north node is in Cancer in the 5th house, and I am having a hard time understanding exactly how this fits into my chart. Also, should I be worried about having the moon, Mars and Venus all in the Twelfth House? This is the house of Sorrows, and I really don't like the way that sounds. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I'm trying to interpret this natal chart myself with (lots) of books, but there are some things that just aren't explained clearly.
First of all, do not panic because it's fairly common to have a number of planets retrograde in one's chart (due to some planets going retrograde at a high frequency). Retrograde planets always indicate a 'special' karmic lesson to be learned in that part of life associated with the planet's energy. Instead of looking at them in a negative light, embrace the skills that they are imparting to you this lifetime.
Having no planets in the houses indicate mean that these areas of life have already been mastered by you, one way or another, so there is no need to give emphasis on them this lifetime. The physical Houses are actually indicated by the 2nd, 6th & 10th Houses (Earth signs rule them) while the 'spiritually-inclined' Houses would be 9th - 12th Houses (the last quadrant which deals with the spiritual realm).
It looks like you have a stellium (at least 3 planets congregated) in the 7th and 12th Houses. So these 2 Houses will be of particular importance in your life. Having heavyweights like Mars, Saturn and Pluto in 7th House indicates that when it comes to initiation, responsibility, making changes and the like, you have to take into consideration the other party's feelings and try to create balance, harmony since the 7th House is all about partnerships and marriage.
Any planets found in 12th House is never an easy thing to handle because it deals with the subconscious, the darkest part of our psyche that we'd rather not confront. However, it is imperative that you confront the apparent fears and challenges manifested by your emotional needs (Moon) and the way you attract or view love (Venus) before you can hope of achieving any successful relationship with others.
It is not necessarily a bad thing but it does indicate that you, more than others, need to take time out to go deep into your subconscious to resolve issues that are hindering you from making progress in your soul growth.