These four cards were enough for me this week: the 4 of Wands, the Aeon, the 3 of Wands, and the Hermit. We immediately feel the energy pulling back—from expansion, success, movement, and determination, to revision. This aligns perfectly with the four retrogrades and Mercury crossing its shadow, preparing for retrogradation.
The energy speaks of a certainty that makes us feel as if we are at the peak of situations; yet, the true outcome is inner revision. It is through this revision that reassurance and the expansion of inner light arise.
How is it possible that once we gain clarity, the next step is to go inwards? Going inwards often feels like something we do when things are not working, as a way to reevaluate. But this backward movement reveals the true nature of life: it is not linear, and we do not move in a single direction. Life moves in circles—better expressed as spirals—and our true nature is to be projectors of our inner processes. We think we are “doing” in life, but in reality, the outer work is the result of the inner work. Or rather, the work inside manifests in physicality.
The energy of this week speaks of a clarity that represents victory, because clarity itself is a great triumph: it dissolves the veils, placing people, situations, and priorities in their rightful place. Clarity structures the plan, showing us how and where to move. Clarity, by its nature, leads to victory.
However, this week, clarity is a victory that calls us to step back—from the 4 of Wands to the 3—to slow down and integrate that clarity within. This integrated clarity transforms into an inner lamp, granting us wisdom. What is more important: external success, or the wisdom of carrying an inner light that guides us with discernment? External success feels like something we attain outside ourselves, while internal wisdom becomes our greatest success because it can never be stripped away.
This is the purpose of planetary retrogrades: to move energy inward, making us stronger within. It may take time to master this energy, creating discomfort in the beginning, but as we integrate it, we gain a power that is steady, deep, and unshakable.
The Circle of Hanik 