The Planets: Mercury Through the Signs

• Ruler of: Gemini and Virgo
• Element: Air
• House Association: 3rd and 6th
• Symbol: The Trickster or the Messenger of the Gods
• Tarot Card Association: The Magician

• Domicile– Leo
• Exhalation– Virgo
• Detriment– Sagittarius
• Fall– Pisces

Mercury is a very quick moving planet, only taking 88 days to orbit the sun! Known for quickness, another name given to the planet is the ‘messenger of the gods’.

This planet is known for expression, communication, logic, speaking, language, thinking, ideas, interests one may have, opportunities that occur, and information one gathers. Mercury also includes gossip, slander, hatespeech, cursing, spreading rumors and lies, and most of all… manipulation.

Being cunning and sly, along with the ability to move away from danger quite quickly, Mercury can also be a trickster. Gemini in Mercury, for example would show someone who communicates logically, intellectually, and prefers listening to their mind over their emotions.

Responsible for both natural and learned intelligence, Mercury can also tell us about our perception of reality. While some people are quite intuitive, someone who had Mercury as their chart ruler would be more rational, aware, clear-headed, and present.

He tells us if we’re talented at speaking with accents or explains the reason why we’re so horrible in French class. Anxiety and nervousness can be found within aspects to Mercury.

It can show us our development in phrases we use and our habitual ways of speaking and how well we do at speaking, our sense of humor, our taste in subjects in school (whether it’s English or math), and odd quirks and nervous tics.

Mercury is all about consciousness. He isn’t the type to stare longingly at the sunset with his head in the clouds. In fact, he’d rather fix your computer’s hard-drive. However, he can help us gain insight inside of our imagination and minds. He enjoys challenges, puzzles, and solving riddles, but he is also a charmer, always knowing precisely what to say.

Mercury Through the Signs:

• Aries– This placement will never spare the truth, even if it hurts. Hardly ever pausing to think before diving in head-first, this person can fly through all options without ever making a choice or finishing what they started. Extremely individualistic, their differences are admired, but they can sometimes feel misunderstood and alone because of the tendency to drive others away by not tempering their strong impulse to speak all that comes to mind.
• Taurus– Although these people are always focused on improving themselves, they can sometimes seem like a slave to tradition and are wholeheartedly and absolutely going to stick to their guns on anything they truly believe in, without any wavering. They will always choose what has stood the test of time and will likely argue until death without changing their mind if someone can’t prove to them otherwise. Even if they decide in their heads that they were wrong, their stubbornness may keep them from admitting it.
• Gemini– These people are highly perceptive when communicating and know exactly how to shmoos their way into anyone’s good graces. They’re filled with ideas and possibilities and love to talk about all of their exciting dreams, with gleeful expression. The problem, however, is that they’re easily distracted, especially by excess, and this can inhibit the path they felt they had forged.
• Cancer– This placement may make a person who is cautious when meeting someone new, taking a while to actually open up, but when they do, their communication style is emotion-based on or often led by emotions and sentiments rather than small talk, philosophy, or intellectual debate. Perhaps having a history of shame in speaking up or a scar in sharing from the past, they seem to think a lot about how someone may perceive them or react when they do open up.
• Leo– This person shows a lot of confidence in sharing the information they know. Their minds work rather quickly and they love talking about whatever ideas flood their brain. Having a love of learning, they simply desire teaching it thereafter, but may feel slighted when no one will listen. This can make them feel rejected, but at the root of it, they may be terrified to lose anyone they love or rejection and abandonment issues.
• Virgo– This placement is considered the best at communication out of all the signs placements under Mercury. Being Extremely influential speaker, they can read a crowd and know exactly how to work it to their favor to gain their admiration. They have an ability to find the needle in every haystack with skilled precision and find the flaw in every perfection. The negative side to this placement, however, is that they also overthink very excessively and create a lot of mental stress, feelings of overwhelm, a heavy amount of unaddressed issues, which can cause them neck and shoulder pain.
• Libra– Generally quite comfortable to be around, seemingly light-hearted and sweet-tempered, these people do not enjoy stirring the pot or rocking the boat and will likely avoid saying what’s on their mind if it means that they will. They can keep up the appearance that they are easy-going individuals, but they are actually really skilled at finding the perfect time to attempt speaking about concerns. If anyone notices that they’re bothered, it’s possible they will lie and say they’re fine rather than admit the truth if it’s not their perceived perfect time, creating some tension between themselves and others later on because it changes their original image they had of them.
• Scorpio– With this placement, there is a high level of suspicion centered around how they communicate with others and it can create nervousness others who are less serious. These people may feel an intense need to talk through everything and this comes from the core level of the desire of investigation that this person may naturally possess. Unknowingly testing people, they may set up traps for others to talk themselves into, but this person may not totally unaware they’re doing it. It’s simply how they figure others out. After initial discomfort in sometimes shrewd discussions, this person can also use this to heal others because they can help them discover deep insight within themselves as they make everyone question their own motives.
• Sagittarius- Often appearing quite idealistic, this placement loves the style of communication that is about the adventure of thinking, learning, teaching, and enthusiastically talking of the future with all of the current plans and goals in mind. Having a love of contributing to any exciting conversation, this person can often be found in profoundly philosophical, religious, cultural, or other types of deep debates and discussions. They have strong opinions and genuinely enjoy hearing other’s too. Feeling as though they can really change the world for the better, they can sometimes lack tact in their speech and impulsively stick their foot in their mouth because they forget the rest of the world isn’t as open or as flexible as they are. Great at giving advice and possessing a strong mind, the negative side to this placement is that sometimes they don’t want to listen or hear another give them advice in turn.
• Capricorn- Showing dedicated support and careful consideration, this placement is someone who says what they mean and means what they say, but only after tough deliberation that resulted in a confident decision. Preferring to communicate through actions rather than actual words, you can bet that this is someone who will do what they say they’ll do and they’ll even do it on time. Highly dependable and rarely beating around the bush, this sign shows natural authority and will likely not accept being challenged. Stern and sometimes seeming cold in speech, they may be very hard to read because of their serious demeanor. Once something breaks their many structures down that they had married previously, they will open up a bit more and let some occasional new ideas in.
• Aquarius- This placement is often quite flighty in speech and may not listen without either fidgeting or talking over another person. Uncontrollable and sometimes domineering, this person is not someone who is easily convinced of anything if they didn’t discover it themselves to begin with. They pave their own path in life and don’t need anyone’s help to get there, but along the way, it’s possible they can improve the path for all with their innovative ideas and approach. The negative here is that they may appear eccentric and unorganized in both mind and in environment. They will, however, share all that they know about their passions and have the intention to use it for the common good of all.
• Pisces- Highly imaginative and sometimes too dreamy to understand, this person prefers fantastical flights of fancy to anything sound or logical. Poetic and pretty speech is something they are likely drawn to because they see possibility rather than proof, which can mean they mostly speak with their internal monologue before they speak to others. This helps them sort out intuitive messages they receive, but their attachments they’ve created with emotions can sometimes create misunderstandings between them and others. Through heightened perceptions, they are able to follow a path, as long as they can stick to their own true feelings. This placement may apologize a lot, when they usually have nothing to be sorry for.