Mercury retrograde Archives - Astrology readings and writings by Lynn Hayes

Weekend update: 2.20-21.2021 Mercury turns direct! And a very active Gemini Moon

Mercury, planet of the mind and communication, can be a little trickster. Language isn’t always straightforward and can often be bent to suit a particular purpose or intention, and when Mercury appears to be retrograde the shadow trickster aspect of Mercury can emerge. Sometimes it’s just that we begin to see things in a new light, through a different lens than we had before. Mercury has been retrograde since January 30th and turns direct on Saturday February 20th so you might think that all of this potential for unexpected handling of events would be behind us. But you would be wrong! It will take Mercury about a week to 10 days to resume its normal orbital speed, and during this time it’s still important to pay close attention to all that we do and say as the potential for miscommunication and confusion remains.

On Saturday and Sunday the Moon is in Gemini, ruled by Mercury – the sign that more than any other deals with the transmission of information and messaging – and the Moon will be interacting harmoniously with all of the Aquarius planets which will help to facilitate a smoother awakening of clear and focused information processing. This is an excellent weekend for anything involving language: reading, writing, debate, discussions. Because we are at the stationary point of the Mercury cycle, this can also be a superb time for a conversation to repair a longstanding problem. As Oliver Wendell Holmes said, and I love this quote: “Language is the blood of the soul into which thoughts run and out of which they grow.”

Have a great weekend! ❤️

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By Lynn Hayes|2021-02-20T10:54:11-05:00February 20th, 2021|Mercury retrograde, Planetary news this week|3 Comments

1.30.21 Mercury turns retrograde!

art by Ciro Marchetti

The first retrograde turn of Mercury occurs on January 30th. Mercury, planet of the mind and communication transmission, is more important when retrograde. Information becomes more critical, and it’s important to take special care to be as specific as possible when making important decisions or making big purchases and commitments. When Mercury is retrograde things often need revision and it’s not unusual to have to re-do agreements or decisions especially if they were made in haste.

Mercury is in Aquarius now, a fixed sign which does not easily adapt to the changes and revisions that we often face with Mercury retrograde, so we sometimes have more of the glitches in fixed signs that Mercury is famous for. Fortunately, at least today, the Moon is in Virgo. Virgo is one of the two Mercury-ruled signs, and Mercury is happy there. Virgo also helps us to use the care and caution required when Mercury is retrograde, helping us to ease into this retrograde more smoothly. ❤️

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By Lynn Hayes|2021-01-29T20:10:43-05:00January 30th, 2021|Mercury retrograde, Planetary cycles, Planetary news this week|3 Comments

Are we in the shadow of Mercury retrograde?

Artist unknown

Mercury will turn retrograde on October 31st (I hear you in the back weeping and wailing!! 😃). Mercury is retrograde for three weeks four times a year, inspiring us to revisit the past but not generally to begin something new. In classical astrology, Mercury is said to be “debilitated” when it is retrograde; it doesn’t operate as it normally does which is to facilitate communication and messaging, as well as daily routines, short distance travel and plans of all kinds. As most of you know, I don’t particularly care for these ideas of positive and negative as they cause us to miss out on the benefits offered by astrological factors that we normally consider negative such as Mercury retrograde and Saturn and Pluto transits. I view the retrograde phase of a planetary cycle as being a part of the natural ebb and flow of nature. The waves of the ocean flow towards the beach, and then they must flow back to the ocean before returning to the sand. The joyful warm days of summer give way to the bitter cold days of winter’s hardship.

When Mercury is retrograde, it’s not uncommon to run into problems. Contracts written when Mercury is retrograde often have to be renegotiated. Plans made often have to be revised. Travel reservations are often stymied. Communication breakdowns are common. Mercury retrograde periods are excellent fr some things though – they are perfect for review and reassessment. They are perfect for do-overs and repairs. It is said that anything that begins with the prefix RE- (from the Latin word meaning “again”) is ideal for Mercury retrograde periods, including REdecorating your […]

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By Lynn Hayes|2019-10-11T17:23:52-04:00October 12th, 2019|Mercury retrograde|3 Comments

Mercury retrograde tips: July 2019

When a planet appears to move backwards, its astrological influence is altered somewhat. The matters that the planet represents tend to work differently – not as straightforward, and often somewhat murky. Mercury rules communication, conversation, mental function, and short travels so all of these kinds of things are sometimes affected when Mercury is retrograde.

Mercury will change direction on the 7th, but before the actual turn it slows down to a crawl and we begin to see the effects of Mercury’s upcoming retrograde. Sometimes this is called the “shadow period” and you can read more about that here if you like. Mercury is retrograde for three weeks about four times a year, so this is not a rare occurrence. Much has been written about how you should basically never do anything while Mercury is retrograde, but that kind of advice isn’t only unhelpful, it’s just wrong. We can’t stop living our lives just because Mercury is retrograde, but we DO have to be more careful about the things we say and the decisions we make, and we should expect that we may encounter glitches along the way.

Every Mercury retrograde period is different, depending upon the signs that Mercury travels through and the angles that are made to other planets. This particular retrograde period begins with Mercury in the sign of Leo – the sign that celebrates the Self and seeks joy in everything. Mercury is pretty happy in Leo – it’s love for movement and discussion is enhanced by Leo’s expansive view of the world. But Mercury is aligned with Mars right now, and that alignment will tighten when Mercury turns retrograde on July 7th. Expect tempers to flare, resulting in arguments or […]

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By Lynn Hayes|2019-07-02T07:28:50-04:00July 2nd, 2019|Mercury retrograde|1 Comment

Adventures in Mercury Retrograde, December 2017 edition

It’s easy to give advice like “don’t plan any trips or start anything new when Mercury is retrograde,” we can’t always put our lives on hold. I always advise clients who need to begin a new job or start a new endeavor of some kind during Mercury retrograde to go ahead and do it, but expect communication problems or the need to renegotiate during the process.

Take me for example. I have been renovating a house to sell, and despite my best efforts it was finished right when Mercury turned retrograde. I could wait til Mercury turned direct around Christmas day, but the market would be absolutely dead. So I bit the bullet and listed it on a day when the Moon was in Cancer, the sign of home and family life, well aspected and not void of course. We had a contract immediately and everything went smoothly until the inspection when the inspector flagged some foundation items. It turned out the inspector was wrong – a Mercury retrograde issue of having to go back and revisit something – and since then everything has been fine and we are closing in a few weeks. Mercury Rx fears averted!

But not everything goes so smoothly under Mercury Rx. I also was planning a trip and had intended to wait until after the holidays to book the airfare, but there was a very good price available and only two seats left. So I booked the flights, and on the Delta website was an offer to get their American Express credit card and get a $200 discount off the flight. I filled out the application, because $200 is a lot of money, was approved, and tried to book my ticket with […]

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