This spring the Mercury retrograde cycle syncs up with the Venus retrograde cycle and they go spelunking together in the underworld just as Neptune enters Aries for the first time in 165 years. Both Venus and Mercury cross paths with Neptune as they shuttle back and forth from Aries into Pisces and back again. You can read more on the Venus retrograde here.

Mercury enters his retrograde shadow in Pisces on 1st March, the day before Venus goes retrograde in Aries. Here are the key dates for your diary:

• 1st March 2025: enters retrograde shadow at 26° Pisces
• 15th March: stations retrograde at 9° Aries
• 24th March: inferior conjunction with the Sun at 4° Aries
• 7th April: stations direct at 26° Pisces
• 26th April: leaves retrograde shadow at 9° Aries
• 30th May: superior conjunction with the Sun at 9° Gemini

When Mercury goes retrograde it provides an opportunity to reassess the way you think and communicate in the areas covered. In fire and water signs you can rethink how you take the initiative and look for creative ways to challenge yourself, as well as explore your dreams and break emotional habits to find a new perspective on your life.

Mercury will cover the degrees between 26° Pisces and 4° Aries so this is the area of your chart that will be affected. Mercury will be in Pisces for about 5 weeks and in Aries for a little longer at just over 7 weeks.

Mercury entered Pisces on 14th February and stays until 3rd March, then returns on 30th March until 16th April. With Mercury in Pisces your thinking and communication may be imaginative and sensitive to emotional atmospheres. You may be inspired by dreams and intuitive insights which could be channelled into creative or spiritual work. During the retrograde phase you may feel disorganised and forgetful or struggle to keep track of details, and you may want to escape into daydreaming or fantasy.

Mercury in Aries will feel very different. He enters Aries on 3rd March and stays until 30th March, then returns on 16th April until 10th May when he goes into Taurus. With Mercury in Aries your mind may speed up and your communication may become bolder and more direct. You could have lots of new ideas but may need to remember to listen to others and not just talk across them, especially once Mercury goes retrograde because it could trigger arguments.

This entire cycle could be a highly creative and imaginative time when you receive many insights and new possibilities. You may want to start a new project or make changes to your life as soon as the idea hits you. But when Mercury goes retrograde, you may need to rethink your plans when you discover alternative perspectives that need to be taken into account. So try to wait until Mercury goes direct – or at least until after the inferior conjunction with the Sun – before launching yourself into a new enterprise.

Mercury stations retrograde conjunct Venus retrograde, opposite the Moon, and sextile Jupiter. Mercury is conjunct Venus for about 6 and a half weeks from 5th March to 20th April and the aspect becomes exact on 11th March just before the Mercury station on 15th March.

This conjunction is great for socialising and doing creative work or just appreciating beauty and the arts. It’s also helpful if you need to have important conversations or tell someone how you feel in a sensitive and diplomatic way. However, when they’re both in Aries together you might be more interested in being independent in your thinking and relationships and that could ruffle a few feathers.

Mercury and Venus have their inferior conjunctions with the Sun on consecutive days so this period could bring significant events or turning points in your life. The Venus conjunction happens first on 23rd March, marking the official start of the Venus retrograde cycle when Venus is re-energised by the Sun and reborn as a warrior goddess.

The Mercury conjunction happens the next day on 24th March, marking the halfway point or simply a turning point in the cycle. This is when Mercury receives his boost from the Sun and new ideas and intentions for the future can be planted.

Venus retrograde conjuncts Neptune in Pisces on 27th March. Then Mercury enters Pisces on 30th March and conjuncts Neptune the same day at 29°59’ Pisces. Neptune then enters Aries about 9 hours later on 30th March while Venus and Mercury go off happily together into Pisces and towards Saturn.

As I said in the Venus retrograde post, this will probably be a chaotic and unpredictable time with a solar eclipse also happening on 29th March in Aries widely conjunct Mercury.

The best way to approach this may be to try not to react to every little thing that’s going on. Maintain as much inner calm and poise as you can and don’t take anything that happens personally. Meditate and stay grounded as much as possible. It might also be a good idea to stay off social media for a few weeks!

Thankfully, Mercury only makes a few aspects during this retrograde cycle and they’re mostly benign. Aside from the Venus conjunction already mentioned, here are the other aspects Mercury makes during the rest of the cycle:

• Mercury sextile Pluto: 25th March retrograde in Pisces, 20th April direct
• Mercury conjunct Neptune: 30th March retrograde in Pisces, 17th April direct

The conjunction to Neptune could be tricky depending on your chart and whether it triggers sensitive points. You may be more prone to self-deception or escapism and denial of reality and if you have issues with addiction this could become a problem. But you can also work with this aspect to create an inspired new beginning in the Pisces and Aries parts of your life.

The harmonious aspect to Pluto can also be used to channel your instincts and powerful emotions into transforming your mind and liberating yourself from anything that no longer serves your growth as an individual.

Mercury stations direct while conjunct Saturn but the aspect never goes exact. This could represent a moment of clarity breaking through the fog or a reality check on whatever you’ve been doing during the retrograde phase of the cycle. It may be a moment to watch for clues to what you need to do next.

You can find out more about the Mercury retrograde cycle and how to make the most of this time by using the Mercury Retrograde Workbook available here! This is a comprehensive guide to working with Mercury retrograde transits that includes worksheets to track your experience. Click the image to find out more!

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