Mercury Retrograde in the sign of its own exultation, aka, Mercury retrograde in Virgo.

Hmmm this post was shelved back in 2010, and I can't see why I didn't publish it while Mercury WAS retrograde in Virgo.....anyway, it's not a bad look at retrograde Mercury (which comes up 3 times a year, so I'l post it now anyway, with the ceveat that the

Mercury is happiest of all in the sign of Virgo. Yep, pragmatic, anal-retentive, hyper-detail oriented, Virgo. I can just about hear the Gemini’s I know saying, “hang on, communication, music, knowledge, these are all mercurial celebrations....... what’s this about stick-in-the-mud details?”

Well, lets see...... at his heart, Mercury is the great translator.... yes, you heard me, translator. He takes what has meaning to one, and gives it a similar (though not identical) meaning to another through various languages, such as the many languages of speech and writing, the language of mathematics, the language of music, (which is applied mathematics) the language of physics (which is also applied mathematics), the language of astrology (yep, applied mathematics again), and the language of medicine (for which we have still to find the best application of mathematics, because the abuse of statistics is killing us.)

Now, its the similarity of this knowledge that makes all sorts of extraordinary achievements possible, but its the unique meaning, that is uniquely true for each and every person, that extends the realm of what is possible far and beyond the collective understanding.

Lets take Beethoven as an example. I expect it is possible to hear beethoven’s 9th and remain unmoved, but I have never found it possible. However, the things that stir my emotions will vary, slightly, from those that stir yours, and you and I together in our similar and united appreciation, could completely miss the point that Mr Beethoven was making, yet still come away improved for the experience..... and this is the miraculous nature of Mercury, that it is even possible for this to occur.

The gift of translation, so that each person takes away from a common experience, those things the person needs to be improved, is Mercury at its finest.

The problem with translation is that it is never perfect. If each hearer takes away a slightly different message, and builds certain assumptions on that message, what happens when those assumptions meet? Often, nothing very much, because the assumptions were similar enough to begin with that they interweave seamlessly when they come back together.

On occasion, however, it is necessary to deconstruct our assumptions in order to homogenize our understanding, this mostly occurs under retrograde Mercury. For this reason, retrograde Mercury is associated with misunderstandings, things blown out of all proportion, arguments that end in impasse, long-term friendships dissolving over trifles and so forth.

For what its worth, retrograde mercury has a lot less to do with blowing up equipment, but the assumptions you made about that faulty equipment are worth examining.

So, what happens when Mercury, in the height of is glory in Virgo, goes retrograde? Well, I guess this period truly defines what all retrograde Mercury’s should look like, after all, Mercury is strongest here, and is more Mercurial than in any other sign.

My expectation is for more disputes to be solved more rationally, and fewer to be left to blow up in an uncontrolled fashion. This doesn’t mean it will always happen that way, Mercury is also a trickster who seems far too fond of folks falling foul of their assumptions, however the assumptions are more likely to come to light in Virgo than in any other sign, and this is where I see more likelihood for resolution of disputes.

We can expect the word ASSUME to make an ASS out of U and ME while Mercury is retrograde in Virgo, and if we are prepared to listen to its lessons, we can learn a lot about each other.

So, while we learn to cut each other a little more slack in our interpretation of details, we can gain the advantage of multiple perspectives.... or we can continue to fight and brawl as usual, its really up to us after all.

Take Care

Rod

PS.......again Mercury will be retrograde in Cancer this time, not Virgo, but the rest of the information was too much fun to leave unpublished.