Mercury represents how you think and communicate and navigate reality, including short journeys and travel, the use of technology and exchange of information. When he goes retrograde all these areas come under scrutiny so this transit can be quite disruptive with communication breakdowns, travel delays and technical malfunctions.

But no matter what happens, these transits are an opportunity to reassess the way you think and break old habits to bring a new perspective to your life. If you work with the energy of the time rather than battling to swim against the tide, you’re less likely to be surprised by setbacks and problems even when they do happen.

To make the most of these transits, get the Mercury Retrograde Workbook which includes everything you need to know about these times. Get it here!

Note: this text is massively simplified from the Mercury Retrograde Workbook:

Mercury retrograde cycles happen three or four times each year and last about three weeks each time. The planet isn’t actually going backwards – it just looks that way to us down here on Earth. Retrograde motion is an optical illusion caused by the variation in the speeds of the orbits of the planets involved.

When the Earth overtakes Mercury in their orbits, Mercury appears to slow down and stand still – or station – and then move backwards. The reverse happens when the planet stations direct again at the end of the cycle.

There’s also a shadow period before the station retrograde when Mercury crosses the degree at which he’ll later station direct, and another at the end of the cycle that ends when Mercury returns to the degree at which he stationed retrograde. This is seen as a loop in the sky.

In general, retrograde motion is interpreted to mean that the energies represented by the planet have turned inwards so they’re not as easy to access with the conscious mind. Activity in the area represented by the sign and house position of the planet will tend to slow down and problems can arise depending on how you deal with the situation.

To make the most of these times you need to understand the difference between the various parts of the Mercury cycle. Here’s a diagram showing the four key moments in the cycle between Mercury and the Sun – not to scale!

There’s some debate about where the cycle begins but we tend to start paying attention when Mercury enters his shadow just after his appearance as the evening star. That gives us six stages:

1. Mercury enters retrograde shadow
2. Mercury stations retrograde
3. Sun conjunct Mercury retrograde – inferior conjunction
4. Mercury stations direct
5. Mercury leaves retrograde shadow
6. Sun conjunct Mercury – superior conjunction

This cycle is also often divided into four faces that are split into two types named after the Greek gods of afterthought (Epimetheus) and forethought (Prometheus). The Promethean phase starts at the inferior conjunction and the Epimethean phase starts at the superior conjunction, giving us four stages:

1. Inferior conjunction – Promethean Retrograde
2. Mercury stations direct – Promethean Direct
3. Superior conjunction – Epimethean Direct
4. Mercury stations retrograde – Epimethean Retrograde

The station retrograde is when your mind turns inwards to reflect on what you’ve been doing since the last superior conjunction. Mercury descends into the underworld and pulls your mind into a liminal space that can make it hard to think clearly. You may feel confused and full of uncertainty, but it can also bring up new perspectives and possibilities, solutions to problems and creative ideas to improve your life.

This is when you should slow down and allow your mind to turn inwards so you can see how your life is unfolding. You don’t have to stop doing everything – just pay attention to what you’re doing and thinking. You’re more likely to experience disruption or mishaps if you carry on rushing about and resist this need to slow down.

The inferior conjunction marks a turning point in the cycle when your mind is still focused inwards but is getting ready for what comes next. This is the moment to plant seeds in your mind for the next phase of activity that starts when Mercury stations direct. You may receive a spark of inspiration, a new idea or a fresh approach to solve a problem.

The days following the conjunction are a period of preparation and waiting which can be frustrating because you want to push ahead with your plans. But now isn’t the time to act. Now is the time to gather inner resources, plan and prepare the foundations for the new beginning to come.

When Mercury stations direct your mind begins to turn outwards again but if you take action too soon you could run into problems. Mercury could surprise you with a change of direction or new ideas that you need to incorporate into your plans. So wait a few days until after the station before doing anything important.

When Mercury is moving forward again you can set your plans in motion and take up the opportunities you spotted during the retrograde. If you already made changes during the retrograde you may see the results now, but the seeds you planted at the inferior conjunction should bear fruit at the next superior conjunction.

When you reach the superior conjunction, you’ll find out whether your new ideas and projects have been successful, or not. Beyond the superior conjunction, Mercury will begin to slow down again and you’ll be ready to begin the process of rethinking what you’re doing and planting new seeds for the next cycle.

Mercury and the Elements

Mercury goes retrograde in a pattern that moves backwards through the elements in the zodiac, going from Fire to Water to Air to Earth and back to Fire again, and so on. That means he cycles through your chart in a pattern that gives you the opportunity to reassess habits of thought in different areas:

Water: an opportunity to rethink your emotional habits and how your feelings contribute to the quality of your experience. Pay attention to your moods, feelings, dreams, and emotional issues in relationships. Time to let go of old emotional wounds and heal the past.

Air: an opportunity to rethink your relationships and thinking and to see how the way you communicate influences the quality of your connections with others. Pay attention to your thoughts and speech, how you connect and network and share information. Time to think things through and achieve greater clarity of mind.

Earth: an opportunity to rethink how you relate to physical reality and deal with security issues and how you meet your basic needs. Pay attention to your health, home, job, and finances, as well as issues around your self-worth. Time to resolve practical problems and assess your resources, inner and outer.

Fire: an opportunity to rethink your ideas about the future and how you channel inspiration, creativity, and intuition. Pay attention to the symbolic patterns of your life, how you play, dream and explore, as well as how you take the initiative. Time to be inspired by a new direction and get out of old habits and ruts.

Mercury Retrograde Advice

The main piece of advice for navigating Mercury retrograde is: don’t panic! If you go into this period thinking everything is going to go wrong, you’re more likely to cause yourself problems. If you panic or allow your mind to be anxious and fearful, then you’re looking for problems and asking for things to go wrong.

The worst days for problems tend to be around the stations, both retrograde and direct. So if you know there’s a Mercury retrograde period due you can plan to finish important projects before then, or arrange to travel before or after the period, for example.

If you can’t wait or delay your plans, then proceed carefully with your eyes open. Pay attention, listen to your intuition and trust the signals that come up. Be flexible and willing to change your plans as you move forward.

In general it’s not a good idea to start new projects or plans at any point during the retrograde period, including the shadow period before Mercury turns retrograde. This is because you don’t know how things will change during the transit. It might be fine if you’re careful, but Mercury could come back from his trip to the underworld with new information that changes your mind about what you’re doing.

This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Mercury retrograde periods are the perfect time to assess projects and ideas and make changes. You can also finish things you’ve already started, tie up loose ends, let go of the past, dissolve bad habits, and find solutions to outstanding problems.

This is a collective process so we’re all working on the same basic issues at the same time. But a particular retrograde cycle will only be significant for you if it directly contacts your chart. So look at where Mercury is transiting retrograde to see whether he aspects any of your natal placements and then prepare wisely.

The Mercury Retrograde Workbook can help you to prepare! It’s a comprehensive guide that contains everything you need to know about Mercury retrograde and includes printable worksheets and calendars up to 2030. For more details, click on the image or follow this link to download your copy today!

Thanks for reading! If you enjoy this blog and would like to support my work, please donate below 🍵. Thanks in advance! 🙏❤️