Why Do You Think the Way You Do? Mercury Has the Answer

In this deep-dive episode of As Above, So Within, we explore Mercury through the lens of mythology, psychology, and evolutionary astrology. Together, we'll uncover the fascinating story of Mercury as the Messenger, the Trickster, and the Translator Between Worlds, and discover why this archetype is one of the most important keys to understanding yourself.

Most people know Mercury as the planet of communication, but Mercury's story goes far beyond texting, talking, and Mercury Retrograde.

Mercury reveals how your mind works.

Whether you're a lifelong astrology student or completely new to the language of the stars, this episode will help you better understand the lens through which you experience reality—and why your mind works the way it does.

Because Mercury doesn't just describe how you communicate.

It reveals how you make meaning of life itself.

Have a question or topic you'd love us to explore? Email us at
📧 asabovesowithinpod@gmail.com

Connect with us:
🌿 Jody: earthandskyessentials.com | @earthandskyessentials (IG & FB)
🌙 Mari: yoursoulpurposeastrology.com | @yoursoulpurposeastrology (IG & FB)

Transcript

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Hello everyone, and welcome to our episode today at As Above So Within. I am Mari. And I'm Jodi. And today we're doing another planet in our deep dive series on the planets, and we're going to address Mercury. Since we are in Gemini season, we thought that would be appropriate. But before we start, I just wanted to apologize briefly about our audio quality recently. We have been really struggling with the getting the recording platform that we want to be on. We started on one platform, recently switched thinking that it was going to be better, and ended up with just all sorts of recording issues that it would drop words out or, I don't know. It just, it's been a journey. So we've gone back to our original recording platform today, hoping that will be better. But we are doing our best over here, I promise, and I apologize for the audio issues that we've been having recently. It's been very frustrating. Yeah. But anyway we're doing our best, and hopefully this is gonna be better for y'all. Okay. Mercury, the messenger between worlds. So you likely know the planet Mercury in astrology by its most common descriptive words like communication, thinking, learning, technology, mind, right? Those are the main sort of archetypes that we talk about with Mercury. And while all of that is true, Mercury is actually much deeper than that, and that's why we are calling this series the Planetary Deep Dive series, which is one of my favorite things to do. If you know me at all, I like to go deep. So I've been having fun with this, just really getting into the nuance and the full picture of the archetypes of all of these planets. So beyond those main descriptive words, Mercury is also the translator, the bridge, the storyteller, the messenger, the trickster, and the nervous system. And there are more descriptive words too. I narrowed that down, so I wasn't just sitting here reading off a list of words to you. But we could keep going, but there are many nuanced aspects to all of the planets beyond just the main archetypes. Mercury governs the way consciousness moves. So it rules how we gather information, process reality, how we interpret experience, how we speak our thoughts into existence, and how we make meaning out of life. Mercury is curiosity. He asks questions, notices patterns, gathers data, compares, translates, and connects the dots. He is the mind in motion. So Mercury is the fastest-moving planet in astrology. He takes about 88 days to orbit the Sun and move all the way through the zodiac. So he also never strays very far from the Sun in the sky, always staying within two signs of the Sun, which is why Mercury is always somewhat close to the Sun in the natal chart. And also, I just wanted to chime in and say that I think that Mercury's probably one of the most famous astrology planets. Even people who don't really know astrology hear about Mercury retrograde. Absolutely. Even if, yeah, even if they don't even know what Mercury retrograde means except for the fact that, oh, things go wrong, or text messages don't go through, or you lose something, or your phone glitches out. 100%. So anyway. Yeah. It's true. It's true, but as we know, it's much deeper than that, which we'll go into later, but I think it's funny that, it's one of those planets that have, you know- popularity through- Yeah a negative archetype really, but- Yeah, but definitely out there, people know about Mercury retrograde, even if they don't really fully understand what it means. If they don't even know what sign their own Mercury is in, they don't know any of that, but they know Mercury retrograde is a thing. And when it's happening. Yes. Yes. 'Cause everybody on TikTok is talking about it. Yeah. It's funny. Yes. Yeah. So Mercury comes from the Roman god Mercury, known in Greek mythology as Hermes. And Hermes was the messenger of the gods, the guide between worlds, and patron of merchants, travelers, writers, storytellers, thieves, and crossroads. But one of the most fascinating things about Hermes is that he was the only god who could freely move between Mount Olympus, which was the heavens, Earth and the human realm, and the underworld. So this is incredibly symbolic astrologically. Mercury is the bridge between realities. So Mercury translates spirit into language, emotion into words, intuition and symbol into meaning. Mercury governs the process of interpretation itself. Yeah, and I love that Mercury is a little mischievous. The fact that Hermes stole the cattle in one day and that honestly feels very Mercury. It's quick thinking. There's creative problem-solving. There's just talking your way out of situations. Exactly. Mercury is just so adaptable. Exactly, yeah. So Hermes was not born as a rule-following deity in mythology. On the very first day after he was born, he escaped his cradle, stole Apollo's sacred cattle, walked them backwards to hide the footprints, invented the lyre from a turtle shell, and then charmed and talked his way out of his punishment. That's Mercury. So quick thinking, adaptive, mischievous, clever, inventive, improvisational. Mercury survives through intelligence, and the trickster archetype bends rules rather than confronting them head-on. He's asking, is there another way, a shortcut, a loophole? How can I reframe this or outsmart this system? And the trickster energy serves us by disrupting rigidity. This archetype exists in all of us somewhere. And as you can see, this cleverness can also be harnessed as an incredible problem solver. It does not have to be used for evil. But the idea of it is inventive, and it gets us outside of the norm. It brings in creativity and ideas, that curiosity. It keeps us outside of that rigid, in-the-box thinking. It's very antithetical to a Saturn type of rigidity, right? Yeah. So psychologically, Mercury is deeply connected to adaptation and social survival as well. Very much a social planet. Mercury energy often learns how to read the room and mirror environments, how to change masks depending on context, and how to navigate socially through language. That's why a strong Mercury placement in your chart can show up as someone who is witty, observant, socially intelligent, and verbally agile, quick with their words, mercury is mutable by nature, which means that it's very adaptive And Mercury also rules the nervous system, not just the brain, the entire system of signals and connections. Now, if you listen to our Uranus deep dive episode, you might remember us also talking about Uranus in connection with the nervous system. And that is true, but Mercury and Uranus relate to the nervous system in different ways. Mercury rules the communication pathways of the nervous system, so that's the signaling, processing, mental responsiveness, and exchange of information. Whereas Uranus rules the electrical charge moving through the system, the surges, shocks, and sudden activations, the lightning bolt quality of awakening and overstimulation. So you could think of Mercury as the wiring and messaging network itself, while Uranus is the electricity moving through it So, I honestly think this is one of the most important Mercury conversations right now because we live in such an overstimulated Mercury world. So- most people are consuming information nonstop all day. I know this is me. I have my Mercury in Gemini, and I also have two other placements there. So, Text, social media, new notifications, podcasts, I'm always listening to something. And, Mercury rules how we process all of that. So when you're overloaded, when your Mercury is overloaded with information, that's when anxiety comes in, and racing thoughts, or doom scrolling on your phone, just that nervous system exhaustion, and of course, overthinking, and inability to just turn that chatter off- and rest. So I thought it would be great to go into some grounding practices by element. I think one of the most healthy ways to work consciously with your Mercury is to learn how your nervous system regulates. So you really have to dig into that a little bit. You can look at the elements, but if something resonates a little bit more with you, so let's say you have an air Mercury, but you're like, "Gosh, what you said about fire really resonates with me more," then you know what? Use them both, because we all have all of these elements in our chart, and sometimes you feel more than others. So for, fire signs, which are going to be Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius, they need movement to regulate. So if your nervous system is feeling overstimulated, get out there and do something. Move your body. It helps you process stress physically. So when you're feeling overloaded mentally, it's gonna show up as irritability or impulsiveness. You're gonna be frustrated, restless mentally burnt out. So what helps is moving, walking, dancing working out, laughing, being creative, getting outside, and reducing that overstimulation. Fire signs typically need somewhere for all of that energy to move. So movement is huge for fire. Essential oil support for fire signs would be peppermint, 'cause peppermint is great for mental clarity, wild orange for bringing in joy and emotional warmth, and then doTERRA has a blend called Adaptive, which is for overwhelm and that nervous system support, and then another blend called Motivate, which is for those stuck or frustrated energies or feelings. Just diffusing essential oils can help get us moving physically. Okay, then we have our earth signs, which is Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn. And earth signs usually regulate through stability, routine, and physical grounding. So when overwhelmed, earth signs are going to have overthinking. They're gonna have perfectionism. They're gonna be a little rigid mentally exhausted. So what's gonna help earth elements ground is going to be in nature, which really every element, being in nature is gonna be helpful. So you'll hear that repeated. For earth elements,, gardening, routine cooking, body-based practices, just really slowing down in intentional practices, deep breathing tactical activities like crafting or baking. So earth often needs that reconnection with the body, like earth needs that grounding that we're talking about. So getting back into the body. Essential oil support would be vetiver for grounding. Cedarwood is great for calming and stability. Frankincense is for slowing down those racing thoughts. And Balance blend is for the nervous system support. And then we have the air signs, which are Gemini, Libra, and Aquarius. Air signs often become mentally overstimulated very easy, so their nervous system can get overloaded through too much information, too much conversation, and too much mental activity. So what helps ground would be journaling, meditation limiting your screen time, taking quiet time, time to just sit Remembering to take those deep breaths. Air signs can have a tendency to shallow breathe so doing breathwork. Intentional silence, intentional no talking and trying to turn down that chatter that we get with, always thinking. So organize your thoughts through writing is another idea. You really want to try to do what you can to help slow down the mind some essential oils that would help support that would be lavender for calming the nervous system, clary sage for mental overwhelm. In Tune Blend is for focus, and bergamot for anxious mental energy And then on to the water signs, which would be Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces. So the water signs, often process through emotions and energy. So when they're overloaded, they tend to absorb way too much emotionally from other people and from their environment. So grounding practices would be alone time giving yourself time for that emotional release, listening to music, taking a bath, doing something creative, allowing yourself to just rest, emotional processing, and then setting boundaries for energy and stimulation. Some essential oil support would be Serenity blend for emotional calming, Roman Chamomile for soothing the emotional overwhelm, Frankincense for spiritual grounding, and then our Console blend for emotional support and comfort. When it comes to the nervous system overwhelm when Mercury becomes out of balance, it really disconnects us from our wisdom. We can really become addicted to stimulation and unable to use our full discernment, and really, that can cause us to be unable to even rest or slow down. It's important to remember that more information does not always equal more truth. One of the shadows of Mercury is that Mercury fears stillness because in stillness, there is no distraction from the deeper self, which leads me to another sort of shadow element of Mercury and that can be intellectualizing emotions instead of feeling them. It's so mind-oriented that it wants to stay in that problem-solving mode and just thinking instead of feeling. So there can be this tendency to try to explain feelings instead of experience them, analyze pain instead of actually grieving, or joke during moments of vulnerability. We've all probably been subject to a little gallows humor. I have I've definitely been that person before. Me too. Because it's hard to be uncomfortable. It's hard to be in our emotions, fully in our emotions, especially the ones that we don't like and enjoy And that's kind of Mercury's way of using language to avoid the intimacy with the self or those uncomfortable emotions. So that's just something to be aware of. It wants it to speed up and move through all of that and just "Ah, let's not think about that," so and on a social aspect, another shadow element can be gossip or manipulation, intellectual superiority, lying or bending the truth to suit your needs. Those are all Mercury shadow elements or aspects to be aware of. And that doesn't mean that those are expressing through you,... We always like to give you the full picture, so there's always a shadow side to every sign, planet, to everything, right? We live in a- Yeah universe that has polarities, and so there's going to be- highest expression and then shadow expression. And I don't wanna call it highest and lowest because we're not here to place judgment. But you get to choose where you wanna live. You get to make the choice about how you want to express. And I do my best to make the choice for the higher expressions because what I'm giving out, I know I receive back, and that's what I wanna receive back. And to me, that's really when it comes to polarity, what do I wanna receive back? The it really is that simple. It's the, it's the do unto others. It really comes down to that, right? Yeah. It's contrast. Yes. I always like to use the word shadow instead of bad or, lower those types of things. But we get to make a choice on where we wanna live and what we wanna put out and receive. So- the gifts though, Mercury has so many gifts for us in its highest expression. Mercury becomes the sacred translator between worlds, giving language to the invisible. Mercury's superpowers help us interpret symbols, bridge perspectives, and create meaning from our experiences. Without Mercury, we're all just living in only our own experience, and how do we show other people or express to others and connect with others on what's in our head? What's in my mind? How do I think? How do I process? Mercury helps us do that, communicate with one another, and express these ideas, learn from one another. It bridges relationships and bridges worlds. So healthy Mercury energy remains open and curious, which teaches us to stay mentally flexible instead of rigidly certain. This is also really important in our day and age, I think. We live in a very polarized world right now. Politically ideology, people are very polarized very tribal, m- me versus you, and really holding fast to this one opinion or thought. That's rigid certainty, right? That's I'm right and you're wrong. Instead of staying mentally flexible and open And asking why. There's that curiosity. Why do you believe that, i'm genuinely curious why you think that way. Why do you believe that? If it's an opposing thought to my own, instead of going "You're wrong," and there's no conversation then. That doesn't open a dialogue. So Mercury is here to help us with that. He reminds us that language shapes reality. He's a storyteller. And as we look back through human history, it is our stories that have moved through time, transferring wisdom, knowledge, spirituality, culture, and history. So an integrated and healthy Mercury communicates honestly and with integrity, listens actively. Listen more than you speak. Honestly, Mercury has trouble with that sometimes. Mercury just wants to be the one talking. But also, he's, that Mercury, that Hermes archetype is smart. So you know that Hermes was listening as much as he was speaking because he's clever. He's taking in information, observing, being curious, and that's how he comes to these clever little adaptations. An integrated and healthy Mercury adapts without losing its authenticity, We can still stay authentic to ourselves, but adapt and give grace to others. It stays open and curious, balances intellect with embodiment. Jodi was talking about all those beautiful ways that we can drop into our body and calm our nervous system while also having that intellect be sharp. It's a balance. It knows when to speak and when to be silent. Mercury reminds us that words are not small things. Words shape perception, and perception shapes reality Okay, and Mercury retrograde, which we already briefly touched on this cultural phenomenon of Mercury retrograde. So there's come some confusion along with this popularity of I wanna say poor Mercury here, 'cause Mercury gets, it gets a bad rap for this. But, Yeah when Mercury appears to move backward from Earth's perspective, because we've explained this before during a retrograde, the planet itself does not stop in motion and actually reverse. That doesn't make any sense, right? It is a perspective thing. From Earth's perspective and the speed of the planets, it appears to move backward for a brief period of time. The mercurial systems of life tend to become less linear and predictable. Because Mercury governs things like our communication, technology, travel, schedules, and commerce, retrogrades come along, and this means we sometimes, not always, sometimes experience delays, misunderstandings, technical glitches, old thoughts or memories returning, rehashing old patterns and the need to slow down and reassess. Mercury retrograde is primarily about recalibration and reassessment, and those words apply to retrograde in general. Recalibration, reassessment. It's just going back and going over what we've been learning. So during a Mercury retrograde, you're asking "Did you actually mean what you said? Are you listening clearly and carefully? What needs to be rethought, reworked, and re-understood?" Yeah. And I think it, it gets a bad rap, but like you said, it just asks us to slow down- and really pay attention to what you're doing. So all this hype out there about, "Don't do anything during Mercury retrograde," life does not wait for Mercury retrograde or Mercury to go direct. Life happens. So what we're saying is that you just slow down, take the time to pay attention before you make any decisions. So if it happens to come along and you're like, "Oh my gosh, I'm buying a house. Oh my gosh, I'm getting married and it's Mercury retrograde," it's just asking you to slow down. It's not saying, "Cancel your plans." Exactly. It's just saying, slow down, pay attention, and analyze a little bit more. Just- read through your contracts. Yeah. Make sure it all aligns. Exactly. If you're getting married during Mercury retrograde, which this season, it's coming along in June? Yep. June 29th through July 23rd. Is when that's the one. Okay. That's prime wedding season. Yeah. Let's be honest, right? So if you're getting married during that time no need to change your wedding plans. Maybe just call your florist and double-check that you know what I mean? Just, that's what it means. Yeah. It's just go over your plans a little more thoroughly. Slow down a little bit. Cross your Ts, dot your Is. Just because it's asking you to rework or look things over, it doesn't mean you're gonna find anything wrong. I- Yeah like I have said on the podcast before, I I cannot give you an instance where it was Mercury retrograde and I had something happen that I could relate to it. I can't give you one. So it is not something- Yeah that even is going to affect you every single time either. And it's not, obviously, the more attention you put on it, the more aware you're gonna be of it, and the more you might see things show up. And I've even had some advice given to, "Don't look at the chart." Yeah. If you have something happening, like your, whatever it might be don't look at the chart. Can tell afterwards because really the chart, the transits or whatever's happening, life is still happening, and you don't want to cause yourself more stress by focusing on it. Yes. Astrology's a great tool, but you don't want it to be an excuse to not do what you want to be doing. Yes. You do not want to ever let astrology rule your life. It is meant to be a tool to help us, but when we start planning our lives around all trying to make sure there's the right chart for this and that it's, then it's starting to control you. And, Yeah that is not- It'll drive you crazy. Yes. And my personal belief is that is not what this tool is for. It is not. Because then it's counteracting. It's actually become a negative then instead of a positive in your life and then if it's starting to project fear into the future, all of those things, that's not what it's there for. It really isn't. No. So yeah, just encourage you all to not let that seed be planted of fear or paranoia or, you know what I mean? Around that. Yeah. Yeah. I always just to think of Mercury retrograde as a redirect. Okay, where do I need to pay attention and maybe redirect or maybe just reassess. And just give yourself a minute. Yeah. Think of it like an excuse to slow down, which we don't get given very often. Yeah. Yeah. There's a positive for you. It's your excuse to slow down a little bit. Take a little vacation- from the insanity that is the pace of our lives these days. Yeah. So little Mercury vacation. There you go. It's your excuse, yes. Yeah. Okay, so I just wanted to talk about Morning Star and Evening Star Mercury because most people don't even know that this is a thing or that it exists. Whether you're a morning star Mercury or an evening star Mercury, this really changes how Mercury operates in your chart. So a morning star Mercury rises before the sun. And a quick way to know this is look at where Mercury and your sun are and what is at their earlier degree. So for example, if your Mercury is at five degrees Gemini and your sun is at twenty-eight degrees Gemini, then you have a morning star Mercury. If your sun is twenty-eight degrees Gemini, and your Mercury is at I don't know, five degrees Cancer. Then you would have what is called the evening star Mercury. So looking at the morning star Mercury, this symbolizes how your mind moves ahead of your identity, these people think fast. They speak quickly. They notice things immediately. Their brain is usually ahead processing and waiting for the rest of them to catch up. So they're thinking about it ahead of time. They're often very verbal processors. You're like that person that is texting somebody at six o'clock in the morning when you first wake up because you had a great idea. And then evening star people have their Mercury after their sun. so experience happens first, and then the mind processes it afterwards. you tend to process more reflectively, and you may need more time before speaking, and you're often internally processing long after everybody else has moved on from the conversation. And Mercury can feel more observant, more introspective, and wise And again, how to find it, you're gonna pull up your birth chart, look at where Mercury is compared to your sun. If Mercury is before the sun in the zodiac order, then it's a morning star. If it's after the sun, it's an evening star. Which one do you have? Mine is the morning star. Same. Same. Yeah. Yeah, so- Yeah yes mind first is definitely that morning star feeling, and I relate to that for sure. Yeah, me too. My brain wants to overthink and solve problems, and is always spinning, a little bit of that ADD spinning out type of a mind. And I have to tell myself frequently to slow down, to put my bare feet on the ground, and, take long, slower breaths, drop into my heart, drop into my body, let my mind slow down a little bit. Definitely relate to the morning star. All right. Let's talk about Mercury in the natal chart, your Mercury. What does it represent in your chart? It's your inner narrator. It's the voice inside your head, the way you organize experience into meaning. Your Mercury placement can reveal how you understand other people, your learning style, your communication style, and how your mind naturally works. Mercury does not determine whether someone is smart or not smart. That is very important. Every Mercury sign is intelligent. They are simply intelligent differently. For example, Mercury in Aries is gonna process quickly and instinctively versus a Mercury in Virgo processing more analytically and systematically, or Pisces processing more symbolically and intuitively. So understanding your Mercury can help you understand how to communicate more effectively and how to understand other people too, say, your partner, right? And how to communicate with them based on their Mercury and your Mercury, or your best friend, or your mom, or whoever, people in your life. Help you know how to regulate your own nervous system and how to learn in a way that actually works for you. Not everyone learns the same, which is one of the tough things about the public school system. they can't really cater to all these different learning styles, and that can be tough. But if you know your learning style, you can help yourself with little tips and tricks and tools to help you in your p-particular learning style. So have you ever noticed how two p-people can experience the exact same event and walk away with completely different stories about what happened? That's Mercury. Mercury is not objective reality. This is very important. Mercury is not objective reality, but rather your interpretation of reality. And your personal Mercury filters experience through its sign, its house, aspects from other planets or angles, and your nervous system conditioning, meaning nature versus nurture, We have how we were raised and the influences in our life that absolutely will- affect our conditioning, right? But the sign, the house, and the aspects, that's gonna tell us a lot more about ourselves with our Mercury. Yeah. So if you have your Mercury in Aries, your mind works quickly and instinctively. You tend to process information in real time and often speak with directness and immediacy, sometimes even before you've fully thought something through. There is a fast reactive quality to the way your mind engages with life, and you tend to learn best through action, experience, and just jumping in. Conversations that move too slowly can feel really frustrating for you because your thoughts naturally move so quickly, and your nervous system tends to run a little hot, right? You are- You're all about speed. Yeah. Some possible shadow expressions of Mercury in Aries would be interrupting, speaking impulsively mental frustration. And some natural gifts would be courageous communication, quick problem-solving, and motivating others through words. If you have your Mercury in Taurus, this is a very different energy. Your mind tends to move more slowly, steadily, and deliberately. You are not someone who likes to be rushed at all in any way, but especially mentally often preferring to take your time processing information in order to fully absorb and understand it. You think in practical, grounded ways, communicating with a calm, measured tone that can feel soothing or stabilizing to other people. Taurus people in general, but Mercury in Taurus, are often very easy to talk to. They're, they are, have a calming nature in the way that they communicate which makes other people feel calm around them. So you typically learn best through repetition, consistency, and embodied experience rather than rushing through information too quickly. There is patience and steadiness in the way your mind works. And once you form an opinion or understanding, this tends to stick And possible shadow expression of Mercury in Taurus would be rigidity or stubbornness in your thinking, resistance to new ideas. But your natural gifts are gonna be practical wisdom, grounded communication, thoughtful decision-making, and nervous system steadiness. That really helps ground that- Yeah Mercury, actually. Mercury Taurus is gonna struggle less with grounding the nervous system than some of the other placements. Yeah. If you have Mercury in Gemini Mercury rules Gemini. So your mind moves quickly and curiously, constantly gathering information, making connections, and exploring new ideas. You learn rapidly and often have a natural adaptability that allows you to shift between topics, conversations, or environments with ease. Variety mentally stimulates you. You like things changing up. And you're energized by interesting conversations, new information, and the exchange of ideas. Communication comes very naturally to you, and your mind is highly associative, and that means one idea often sparks another in a rapid chain of connections. You have that ease of connecting ideas. You may find yourself thinking about many things at once, jumping between interests or noticing patterns and links that other people miss entirely. Possible shadow expression would be scattered attention, nervous overstimulation, and talking instead of feeling. But your natural gifts are humor and wit, social intelligence, and you are an excellent storyteller If you have Mercury in Cancer, your mind is deeply emotional and intuitive, and processing information through your feelings, memory, and emotion rather than pure logic alone. Communication for you tends to be sensitive, protective, and deeply influenced by the emotional atmosphere around you. Tone matters. Energy matters. The way something is said can impact you just as much as the words themselves. This placement often creates a strong emotional memory and ability to pick up on what others are feeling beneath the surface of their words. Possible shadow expression is taking things personally, retreating inward emotionally, and communicating indirectly. Your natural gifts are emotional intelligence, deep memory and intuition, and creating emotional safety through compassionate listening and communication. If you have Mercury in Leo, your communication style is expressive, creative, and full of personality. You speak from the heart, and you want conversations to feel genuine, alive, and emotionally real rather than flat or purely intellectual. There's often a natural storytelling ability with this placement, along with a flair for dramatic expression, humor, or captivating the attention of others through the way you speak. Your voice is meant to be heard, and communication becomes a powerful extension of your creative self-expression Possible shadow expression is pride in your opinions, needing validation, talking at people instead of with people. Your natural gifts are creative self-expression, charismatic and often humorous storytelling, heart-centered and inspiring leadership. If you have your Mercury in Virgo, your mind is analytical, observant, and naturally attuned to details that other people may overlook. This is the second placement that Mercury rules. It's Virgo and Gemini. So you tend to process information carefully, noticing patterns, inconsistencies, and small nuances with remarkable precision. There is a strong desire to organize, refine, and make sense of information in practical and useful ways, giving you a natural gift for discernment and problem-solving. Your mind desires clarity, accuracy, and understanding rather than vague or scattered thinking So possible shadow expression would be overthinking and anxiety, perfectionism hypercriticism of self or others. And your natural gifts are precision and clarity, problem-solving, and deep practical intelligence If you have Mercury in Libra, your mind is naturally relational, thoughtful, and attuned to the dynamics between people. You likely process information through dialogue and often think best when ideas can be talked through, compared, or reflected back by another person. You seek fairness, balance, and mutual understanding in your communication and have a natural ability to see multiple perspectives at once. This placement often creates a diplomatic communication style and a strong awareness of how words impact relationships. Possible shadow expression is indecisiveness, people-pleasing communication, and avoiding conflict. Your natural gifts are creating harmony through words, relational intelligence, and elegant and graceful communication If your Mercury is in Scorpio, your mind is deep, intense, and naturally drawn beneath the surface of things. You tend to think psychologically, instinctively reading between the lines and picking up on what is unspoken, hidden, or emotionally charged beneath outward appearances. There is a naturally investigative quality to the way you process information, along with a desire to understand truth at its deepest level, rather than settling for superficial explanations. This placement often creates a highly perceptive mind that can sense motives, patterns, and emotional undercurrents that others completely miss. Possible shadow expression would be suspicious or obsessive thinking, manipulation, withholding communication due to guardedness. Your natural gifts are emotional and psychological depth, penetrating insight, communication that has the power to transform, and the ability to speak truths others may avoid If your Mercury is in Sagittarius, your mind is expansive, curious, and naturally oriented towards the bigger picture of life. You are drawn to ideas that bring meaning, perspective, and a broader understanding of the world. You tend to think philosophically rather than getting lost in the small details. You learn through exploration, experience, travel, conversation, and exposure to new perspectives. This placement often creates a restless, growth-oriented mind that is constantly searching for truth, wisdom, and a deeper understanding of life and the meaning of it all Possible shadow expression is speaking without filters and missing the details. Your natural gifts are sharing wisdom you have gleaned through experience, inspirational teaching, and expansive and visionary perspective. Okay, Mercury in Capricorn. Your mind is structured, practical, and naturally focused on long-term thinking. You tend to process information carefully and communicate in a thoughtful, deliberate way, often preferring substance over unnecessary words. There is a serious disciplined quality to the mind here, along with a desire for competence, clarity, and useful knowledge that can be applied in tangible ways. This placement often creates a strong discernment, strategic thinking, and the ability to stay mentally focused on goals even when things become difficult or demanding. Possible shadow expression is pessimism. Rigidity. And fear of sounding unintelligent. And your natural gifts are wise planning, strong discernment, and mental endurance. Mercury in Aquarius. Your mind is innovative, unconventional, and naturally drawn towards new ways of thinking and seeing the world. You tend to think outside the box, questioning assumptions, and looking beyond traditional perspectives or social conditioning. There is a strong conceptual intelligence with this placement, along with an interest in larger systems, collective patterns, technology social dynamics, or the future itself. Your mind naturally wants to understand how things connect on a broader level and may be especially energized by progressive ideas and visionary thinking Possible shadow expressions would be emotional detachment, intellectual superiority, And playing the devil's advocate. Your natural gifts, visionary insight and innovative communication, progressive ideas, and Objective thinking. And finally, last but not least, Mercury in Pisces. Your mind is imaginative, intuitive, and deeply connected to symbolism, feeling, and subtle perception. Rather than thinking in purely linear ways, you tend to process through imagery, emotional association, your intuition, and energetic impressions that are difficult to fully explain logically. This placement often creates a highly creative mind with a rich inner world and natural sensitivity to the emotional or energetic undercurrents around you. Your thoughts may move in fluid, non-linear ways, allowing you to perceive meaning, beauty, and connections that others may not consciously notice. I think about Mercury in Pisces people. I always imagine that they would make great fantasy writers, the imagination and creativity in their minds. They can go to other worlds with their thinking. Yeah, for sure. So possible shadow expression would be confusion and escapism, difficulty organizing your thoughts, and absorbing others' emotional or mental energy. Okay, so we are gonna switch to Mercury through the houses. So obviously you're gonna have a strong influence of the sign that your Mercury is in, but the house matters too. This is where this shows up for you. So if you are someone who has Mercury in the first house, your mind is visible. You naturally express yourself through communication and observation. It is in the forefront, right? Because it's the first house of self. So your identity is strongly tied to your thoughts and your self-expression. Others experience you as communicative or mentally alert The growth edge is learning to slow your mind and utilizing grounding and embodiment practices to balance all of that mental activity. If you are someone with Mercury in the second house, your thoughts are tied to your values, security, and your self-worth. You are likely a practical thinker, and your mind is often focused on stability and your resources The growth edge is not attaching your self-worth to productivity or intellectual competence Mercury in the third house Mercury is extremely strong here. This is the natural home for Mercury. So you are a natural communicator, curious, social, mentally active, and you likely love learning, sharing, teaching, and gathering information. The growth edge would be avoiding overstimulation and information overload With Mercury in the fourth house, your mind is deeply shaped by your emotional history and family conditioning. You are likely reflective and inward processing. You have a strong memory, and your thoughts are often affected by your emotional environment And the growth edge is Separating the present reality from your inherited emotional narratives If you have Mercury in the fifth house, your creative expression is mental and communicative. So you likely have natural storytelling gifts and a playful or humorous style of communication. You possess creative writer, speaker, teacher energy The growth edge is allowing your full self-expression without overthinking how it will be received. Mercury in the sixth house, you likely have a highly analytical and detail-focused mind. Strong organizational thinking and problem-solving skills are some of your gifts, and there's often a strong mental focus on improvement and efficiency The growth edge is learning that rest is productive too Mercury in the seventh house, you process and learn through relationships and dialogue. So you possess a strong relational intelligence and communication deeply affects your relationships The growth edge is maintaining your own voice within relationships. If you have Mercury in the eighth house, you are a deep psychological thinker with a strong desire for transformation. You likely have an investigative mind and are drawn to hidden truths, and you can often perceive what is beneath the surface of a situation or the words people are saying. The growth edge is avoiding obsessive mental spirals or mistrust. Learn to let your guard down. If you have Mercury in the ninth house, your mind seeks meaning and expansion. You are a philosophical thinker, and this placement loves learning about spirituality, culture, wisdom. You are big-picture oriented The growth edge here is balancing wisdom with grounded practicality. If you have Mercury in the 10th house, communication becomes part of your public identity. You are likely a natural teacher, speaker, writer, or strategist archetype, and your reputation is often tied to your intellect or communication skills The growth edge is not over identifying with your achievements or external validation. If you have Mercury in the eleventh house, your mind is naturally innovative and you think collectively or futuristically. You often think in big picture or community-oriented ways, and you connect with others through shared interest, dialogue, and collective visions The growth edge is staying emotionally connected while thinking collectively. Keep your heart connected to your head, and you are truly a gift to the world. And finally, if you have Mercury in the 12th house, your mind operates partly beneath your own conscious awareness, so you possess highly intuitive and symbolic thinking, and you likely have a sensitive nervous system, and you need alone time to process and regulate that. Your inner world is deep, emotional, and imaginative The growth edge here is learning to trust your inner voice without becoming lost in mental fog or escapism Okay. And now we're gonna briefly touch on Mercury and the other planets by aspect. And I just went with a general sort of archetype of these energies blended. So in your own chart, is it more of a flowing energy by trine or sextile, or is it more of a a tension energy between a square or an opposition, or is it really blended with a conjunction? Those energies are coming together in that way. This is just when these two planets meet in some way. And you have to interpret through what type of aspect that they are communicating 'cause we can't hit on all of them. It's just too much. So Yeah. Mercury aspects shape the way we think, though, and speak, and learn, interpret, right? They're affecting this Mercury archetype. The other planets have strong effects on each other by aspect. So all the things that we've already been over, those archetypes may be true for you by sign and house, but if there are strong planetary influences, it can change things a lot. So Mercury and the Moon aspects. This is mind meets emotion. So if you are someone who has strong placements around Mercury and Moon connected, you are a person who tends to think and feel simultaneously. There's often a strong emotional memory and an intuitive perception. There's often a strong need to talk out your feelings. Some shadow aspects could be emotional overthinking, anxiety loops, difficulty separating feelings from facts, and some gifts would be emotional intelligence, empathy, and compassionate communication. Mercury and Venus aspects, beauty in language. This softens Mercury and brings grace, charm, and artistry to communication. Those with Mercury-Venus aspects tend to be diplomatic in their communication, have social intelligence, artistic or creative language, and storytelling gifts. Some shadow could be people-pleasing or avoiding difficult conversations, and the gifts are healing words, relational intelligence, and artistic expression. Mercury and Mars, fast mind, sharp tongue. This creates speed, intensity, and decisiveness in your thoughts and communication. If you have Mars affecting your Mercury by aspect, you likely have passionate opinions, a very direct way of speaking, and strong debating abilities. Some shadow could be impatience, reactive communication, argumentative tendencies, but your gifts are mental courage, advocacy, and motivational leadership. Mercury and Jupiter, the teacher. This expands Mercury's perspective and desire for meaning and influences Mercury with philosophical thinking, broader perspectives, and often strong teaching abilities. Some shadow here could be exaggeration. Jupiter makes everything bigger. Big old storyteller, Jupiter. Overconfidence or missing the details. Too big picture, right? You kinda, you miss the minutiae with the big picture thinking. Some gifts are wisdom sharing, inspiring communication, and hopeful vision. Jupiter has that little unstoppable sea of hope in it. Mercury and Saturn. This is the structured mind. Saturn slows Mercury down, often creating depth and seriousness. So aspects from Saturn to Mercury often lend to more careful communication, disciplined thinking, and intellectual focus. Some shadow here could be self-criticism, communication anxiety, or rigid thinking. But the gifts are wisdom, discernment, and thoughtful communication. Mercury and Uranus. This is the lightning mind. It's a lot of nervous system intensity This creates originality, rapid insight, and unconventional thinking. Uranus aspects to Mercury often bring innovative ideas, intuitive downloads, and future-oriented perception. Some shadow here could be mental overwhelm, nervous system overstimulation, no surprise there- and scattered focus. But the gifts here are visionary insight, innovation, and awakening perspectives. Mercury and Neptune. This is the mystic or the poet. This softens logic and strengthens imagination and intuition. Neptune's effect on Mercury lends towards more poetic communication, symbolic and imaginative thinking, and heightened spiritual perception. Some psychic or intuitive thinking is strong here if you have a strong Neptune-Mercury. Some shadow could be confusion, escapism, projection, or mental fog, but your gifts are spiritual insight, creativity, and compassionate communication. Mercury and Pluto aspects. This is taking the mind into the depths. This creates psychological intensity and penetrating perception. Those with Pluto affecting their Mercury by aspect may have a strong ability to see beneath the surface with their investigative thinking. There can be an obsession with truth, but often your words have a transformative quality on others, which is very interesting. Some shadow here could be paranoia, compulsive thinking, obsessive thinking, or manipulation. But your gifts are psychological wisdom, profound insight, and truth-telling And then finally, if you have Mercury retrograde natally, so if you were born with Mercury retrograde you may be processing differently. And I just wanna mention that. It's almost like having an aspect from another planet. It does affect your natal Mercury. So this can look like inward-oriented and deeply introspective thinking, nonlinear processing, and needing more time to articulate your thoughts. People with this Mercury retrograde natally are often revisiting, reworking, and reinterpreting reality internally. It's a more inward-processing mind and reworking problems. But that can be a real gift because you're slowing down enough to process. It almost kinda reminds me of the evening star Mercury, right? Yeah. Yeah. So not a bad thing at all, just something to know about yourself if you have Mercury retrograde natally in your chart. Yeah, it's so interesting to look at everybody's different Mercury placements and their aspects, like how the planets talk to each other. Somebody with Mercury and Mars aspect is gonna communicate very differently than somebody with a Mercury and Neptune aspect. The Mercury and Mars is gonna be like, "Let's handle it now." And the Mercury and Neptune's gonna be like, "I need three days and a dream sequence first." It's just very- Yeah. Yeah funny to see all the different... But once you understand it, it really helps you understand, the way people communicate. Yeah. The way you communicate, the way others communicate. Yes. Yeah, definitely. It's really interesting. So ways to work consciously with your Mercury. We've hit on this a lot, but the nervous system care is essential, and Mercury is deeply impacted by your sleep stress, information consumption emotional suppression in your social environment, right? So any of that overstimulation, take care of your body. It's very important. It affects your mind. I think even without all of this information, we all know that those things affect the way that we process, so be aware of that. Do that self-care regulate your system. Some helpful practices to do that especially with Mercury in particular, journaling, get your thoughts on paper, therapy, talk it out. Conscious communication, really being present in the way that you communicate and the way that you listen. Learning new things. Mercury loves to learn. Meditation and stillness, quiet the mind, limit that stimulation, spend time in silence, and really intentionally listen. Some questions that you can ask yourself as you're integrating this are, "Are my thoughts helping or harming me? Do I communicate reactively or consciously? Am I listening as much as I speak? What stories am I repeating internally? What information am I feeding my mind every day?" Some just good questions to ask yourself, and check in with yourself and see where you're at with that self-care around your Mercury. So I think one of the biggest Mercury lessons is becoming conscious of what we consume mentally, because as we all know, information affects us. So conversations affect us, and the stories that we repeat internally affects us. So just pay attention to what you're consuming yeah. Very important. And what you have playing,, on repeat in your mind internally. So just maybe take some time to really pay attention and become aware of how your conversations are going with yourself and others. Yes. Yeah. Our thoughts shape our perception, and our stories shape reality. So what are you putting in? What are you putting into your mind? What are you choosing to believe? What are you thinking about and focusing on? It matters. It matters 'cause it shapes your reality, so We love you all very much. Thank you for being here. Thank you for listening. 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