Retrograde calendar
A planet does not actually reverse. From Earth, however, three or four times a year, the geometry between us and the outer worlds makes a planet appear to walk backwards through the zodiac. The calendar on this page lists those windows for every relevant body — when the station begins, when the planet turns direct, and which degree it traces twice. A geometry question rendered as a calendar.
What retrograde actually is
A retrograde is a parallax illusion. As Earth overtakes a slower outer planet, that planet appears to slip backwards against the fixed stars for weeks before resuming forward motion. Mercury and Venus retrograde when they slip between us and the Sun. Swiss Ephemeris calculates apparent geocentric longitude — the same sky an astrologer of antiquity saw, computed to a fraction of a second.
What it means for you
Retrograde periods are not bad weather. They are review weather. Mercury retrograde is the season for re-reading what you wrote, Venus for revisiting attachments, Mars for restraint and revision of action. The planet walks once forward, retraces, then walks forward again over the same degrees. What you do in that window stays — but it is more honest to revise than to launch.
How to use the calendar
Each row gives the station-retrograde date, the station-direct date, and the degree range walked twice. Look at the degree range and check whether it touches a sensitive natal point — your Sun, your Moon, your Ascendant, an angle. A retrograde that ignores your chart is mostly atmosphere. One that lands on your natal Mercury or Venus is the actual review-letter addressed to you.
Mercury, Venus, Mars and the rest
Mercury retrogrades three times a year for about three weeks; Venus once every eighteen months for forty days; Mars roughly every two years for two months. Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto are retrograde for months at a time — they are the ambient backdrop, not specific events. Read the inner-planet retrogrades for personal review windows; read the outer ones as background colour.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Mercury retrograde really bad?
No. The popular reputation oversells it. Mercury retrograde is a three-week review window — useful for editing, returning, reconnecting. Most "Mercury retrograde disasters" are confirmation bias: equally many things break in direct weeks, nobody just blames a planet then.
Should I avoid signing contracts?
Up to you. Many readers prefer to finalise contracts when Mercury is direct simply for symbolic cleanliness. If a contract must be signed during retrograde, read it slowly, twice — that is the real instruction the period offers.
What about the shadow period?
The shadow is the degree range the planet will retrograde back through, entered before the actual retrograde begins, and left after it finishes. The calendar marks both shadow boundaries. Themes often start in the pre-shadow and only resolve after the post-shadow.
Does this calendar use sidereal or tropical zodiac?
Tropical, by default. Retrograde stations are the same in both zodiacs — they are a geometric event, not a sign-dependent one. Only the sign labels of the station degrees change. Vedic readers can use the dates as-is and translate signs.