☿︎Mercury in astrology

Mercury is retrograde in Scorpio until 13 November.

Cycle

About 88 days round the Sun

Time in a sign

Usually 2 to 4 weeks, longer around a retrograde

Rules

Gemini and Virgo

Turns retrograde

Yes

Mercury is the planet closest to the Sun. It circles the Sun in about 88 days and, seen from the Earth, never strays far from it, so it is always in the Sun's sign or in the sign just before or after it. It usually spends two to four weeks in a sign, longer when it turns retrograde.

In tradition Mercury stands for thinking, speech, writing, learning and trade. The traditional keywords are communication, reasoning, curiosity and the exchange of information. It rules two signs, Gemini and Virgo. Mercury turns retrograde about three times a year for around three weeks each time, which is why its retrograde is the most widely noticed one.

The retrograde calendar lists every Mercury station, and a page for each year shows the dates in Nicosia time. Astrologers who use retrogrades often read them as a time to revisit the planet's themes; that is a tradition of interpretation, not a measured effect.

Astrology is a tradition of interpretation. What is written here is traditional, offered for reflection and entertainment, not advice and not a prediction.