Five Ways to Thrive in Mercury Retrograde

by Haridev Kaur | May 22, 2015 | Kundalini Meditation and Yoga Tips

Expect to see numerous articles in your Facebook and Twitter feeds during the next few weeks about the perils, frustrations and annoyances of mercury retrograde. This is not one of those articles.

As a space policy wonk and reluctant astrology reader, I am likely the last person you would expect to write about mercury retrograde. But I am writing this as a Kundalini yoga teacher, recognizing how holding stress in our current time can impact our whole selves.

What is mercury retrograde? Japa Kaur, the amazing weekly Spirit Voyage astrologer, describes it best in her weekly post.

After experiences like that, the fears of the impending retrograde can get us into protection and “fight or flight” mode – the realm of the negative mind.  While very important, the negative mind can get out of balance and overwhelm the positive mind, or your ability to see hope and beauty in each situation.

• Ask yourself – what do I HAVE to get done before June 11 when mercury goes direct (or retrograde ends)?
• Identify what is not urgent and make a list of “to do post-June 11” to keep your schedule a bit more open to allow for potential changes and confusion that may ensue during this period. (This is what I should have done in advance of Summer Solstice in 2014…)
• Get comfortable with not completing EVERYTHING on your task list during this period.

• When either of these two of our ten bodies get out of balance, we feel out of balance, especially when experiencing or seeing others with stress around us.
• Balancing our negative mind, which corresponds with our second chakra, the seat of our creativity and sexuality, will enable us to balance our needs for freedom and belonging. These mantras, kriyas and meditations are great tools for the negative mind.
• Balancing our positive mind, which corresponds with our third chakra, our place of action and balance, will enable us to strengthen our sense of humor and our organizational skills. These mantras, kriyas and meditations are great tools for the positive mind.

• Recognizing that schedules and communications may get kooky and disrupted in the next few weeks, take time to slow down and allow yourself to act rather than react in response to oncoming stress.
• A way to explore this is through a practice of mindful eating. Even just with the first five bites of each meal, take a moment to look at, smell and be present with your food before eating it – with no other distractions. With each bite, observe, feel and fully taste each morsel. Saying no to multitasking while eating with your smartphone, tv or laptop may feel strange at first, but being present with only your food will allow you to seize a few moments of calm that can brighten your day even when stress abounds around you.

• Do you deal with a lot of details each day?
• When you are prepping for a potluck picnic, are you the one who rushes back to the grocery store across town at the last minute when you forgot the blueberries for your strawberry and blueberry salad?
• For this Memorial Day in the midst of mercury retrograde, you may want to be ready to take a breather and make a strawberry salad instead. The last minute grocery runs can wait until July 4th!

• One of my most loved Kundalini yoga manuals is Praana Praanee Praanayam, an amazing resource of Kundalini yoga breathing exercises.
• I have many favorites exercises in this book, but during mercury retrograde I expect I will savor the technology of the Eight Stroke Breath for Energy and Stress Release.
  • Sit with your eyes closed, hands in Gyan Mudra or any other comfortable position.  Inhale through the nose in 8 equal strokes, and then exhale through the nose in one deep and powerful stroke.  Practice for 11 minutes, and end with three long deep powerful breaths, holding the breath in for 10-20 seconds each time, and rolling the shoulders as fast as you can during the final breath.

Regardless of what you feel about mercury retrograde and its impact on your life, it is likely that the next few weeks will have its crazy and stressful moments. Seize the amazing tools of Kundalini yoga to thrive in these challenging times!