Mercury Joins Venus in Retrograde, and a Three-Card Spread for the Weeks Ahead

Mercury turns retrograde on Saturday, October 24, at 20 degrees of Scorpio, and turns direct again on Friday, November 13, at 4 degrees of Scorpio. Venus has been retrograde since October 3, and it turns direct on that same day, November 13. (A planet is “retrograde” when it appears, from Earth, to drift backward across the sky. The Mercury retrograde guide explains why it is only an appearance.) So for about three weeks, two planets are in review at once, and they finish together.

What Each Planet Is Reviewing

Mercury is the planet of thinking, messages, plans, and travel. When it turns retrograde, the traditional pull is toward a second look at what you have said, written, and agreed to: the email you sent in a hurry, the plan you never wrote down, the conversation that ended without a clear answer.

Venus is the planet of love, money, and what you value. Its retrograde tends to bring a second look at what you want and what it costs you: a relationship you have been taking for granted, a purchase you keep putting off, a pleasure you stopped making time for.

When the two review at the same time, the questions tend to join. Have you told the people you care about what you mean? Are your time and money going toward what you value? Mercury stays in Scorpio, the sign of private matters, shared resources, and things left unsaid, for the whole retrograde, so the pull is toward the conversations you have been quietly avoiding. Venus began its retrograde in Scorpio and backs into Libra, the sign of agreements and fairness, around October 25. That adds a second question: are the agreements you have already made still fair to both sides? The Retrograde Tracker lists every date, and Today’s Sky shows where both planets are tonight.

Two Cards That Match the Pair

In one of the most widely used systems of tarot correspondences (the one handed down from the Golden Dawn, a nineteenth-century magical society), each major card is tied to a planet. The Magician belongs to Mercury. It is the card of skill, of using the tools already on the table, and of saying exactly what you mean. In a Mercury retrograde, it tends to read as a reminder to check your wording and your tools before you use them.

The Empress belongs to Venus. It is the card of comfort, nurture, and whatever grows when it is looked after. In a Venus retrograde, it tends to ask what you actually enjoy, and whether you are tending it. Other decks and traditions pair the cards differently, so treat these two as a starting point and not a rule.

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Three Dates Worth Marking

October 24: Mercury turns retrograde. Many people notice the change a few days before and after the exact date, as the planet slows to a stop. October 26: the Hunter’s Moon is full in Taurus, two days into the retrograde, which makes it a natural night for the second look at what you have enough of. November 13: both planets turn direct together. They start slowly, so the review does not end sharply; the weeks after it are a gentle return to forward motion.

Small, Practical Ways to Use the Weeks

None of this asks you to stop your life. A retrograde works best as a recurring prompt for housekeeping you already meant to do. Reread important messages before you send them. Back up your phone and your computer. Confirm travel details a day or two ahead. When a decision about money or a promise to someone does not have all its facts yet, it costs very little to wait until the planets turn direct. If a deadline is real, meet it. The caution is for the gray area, not for everything.

The Venus half of the pair adds one more prompt: reconnect with someone you have been meaning to reach, and say the plain version of what you mean. Old friends and old feelings tend to resurface in a Venus retrograde, and the Mercury half helps you find the right words before you answer them. Write the message, leave it for a day, and read it once more before you send it.

A Card for the Whole Stretch

If you want a single card to carry through the three weeks, pull one on October 24 and keep it where you will see it. Then pull another on November 13 and set the two side by side. Comparing them is a simple way to see what the review turned up. A card for the turn from review to action may be The Hermit, the card of quiet thought before a decision, or Judgement, the card of answering for what you now know.

Curious where Mercury and Venus sit in your own chart? Pull up your birth chart, or draw a card on the Tarot page.