By Doris Lam
March 18, 2021
Have you ever gone through times where you felt like bad luck followed you wherever you went? Mercury ‘s recall is probably to blame
You may have heard the phrase “Mercury in retrograde” a hundred times, whether it’s from your friend who starts their day reading their horoscope and examining their astrology apps, or from people celebrities like Taylor Swift and Katy Perry discuss whether Mercury retrograde is the reason behind the series of unfortunate fortunes.
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You seem to have wondered too: What is a Mercury retrograde and why does life seem to go wrong every time it happens? How can we avoid the seemingly unfortunate fortune that he always brings us?
To answer these questions and more, we spoke to De Rui, a Western astronaut in Hong Kong who founded the astrology service, Chart Life. Here, De helps us learn more about Mercury retrograde, along with explaining what we can expect from the two remaining Mercury recalls in 2021.
In terms of basic astronomy, a reversal is the visual observation in the sky that a planet is moving backwards. It’s like the feeling that while you’re driving, when you make a distance, the other cars go backwards, at least for you. Of course, the cars are not going backwards –– it’s just a deception caused by your speed. Similarly, square bodies in the sky do not move back into orbits –– is a deception caused by the Earth’s orbit in relation to them.
All the planets go backwards regularly. In those times the energies associated with that planet do not express in their normal, direct way. We are often drawn to visit past events and rethink their meaning in our lives.
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Mercury thrives three or four times a year for a few weeks at a time, so we come in and out of those times more often than for any other planet. Moreover, the nature of Mercury is that it is directly related to our rational thinking, daily plans, and communication –– so no wonder it feels very visual to many people. Mercury also governs the circulation of electricity and computer chips, and as the world becomes even more digital –– as technology fits into more aspects of our lives –– Mercury’s movement will important.
The main things to keep in mind are that your plans are going haywire and communication is misinterpreted. Messages will be lost or obscure. A command you enter to your device will not give the correct answer. Often comes the careful release you were planning, or that plan you made to meet it as you hoped. Especially large collections with lots of moving parts –– anything that relies on a lot of fast and accurate messages going back and forth –– could end a catastrophe.
Mercury energy has a greater focus on the interior, so this is great for integrating information obtained earlier and perhaps seeing new ways to use it. With the right amount of quiet time, off-screen for meditation and digestion, Mercury Retrograde can bring new insights and mental connections.
At times there seems to be a challenge in the logical activity of those born under Mercury Retrograde (Mercury Rx) but these people are just working on a different wavelength. Many brilliant musicians or artists were born in the Mercury Retrograde. Intuitive abilities can be quite strong.
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Usually before Mercury appears to be moving again, the technical difficulties and supply issues will diminish. Often, we are presented with new perspectives or new perspectives on the past. There is a “shadow period” before and after the withdrawal dates when the effect can be seen so if you are recording an event, I would try to clear the start and end dates at least a week.
There are other effects that may have slightly smaller, albeit similar, effects compared to Mercury Rx, including when Mercury and Neptune make hard angles, or when Mercury in Pisces, which we get from March 16 to April 2 this year.
Dual communication, making plans with a comfortable margin of error, and just being aware of the long-gone energies. Don’t cut it too close to time and resources, and expect people to drop the ball or lift something unexpected. If you pick up enough buffers, Mercury Rx need not be feared.
Some astronauts will tell you not to sign contracts or legal documents at this time but considering Mercury recalls often for weeks at a time, I don’t think it is necessary to put the life grip. If you do a little extra effort and make sure you know what you’re getting into – maybe what you should be doing anyway – the impact can definitely be mitigated.
Mercury is a personal planet so its effects are greater on a daily basis, and they are less well reflected in global events. Think back to the end of January and the first half of February and see where things may have fallen through the cracks in your life, and what buffers you can pick up next time.
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May 29 to June 22
In the next May-June withdrawal period, Mercury moves back in a sign it rules, Gemini. At a time when we would be naturally more cerebral and chatty, the energy is turned on and our daily organization can be weak.
You might find yourself talking more in group discussions or meetings, but you still wouldn’t have a good understanding of it. At the same time a number of heavily charged planetary events take place during that time, including solar eclipse, the return Jupiter, and the real squaring of Saturn and Uranus–– conflict between ancient ideas and objects new, also the main theme of 2021. It is going to be a more intense time of everything under consideration.
26 September to 18 October
The withdrawal from September-October also occurs in another air sign, Libra, presents challenges to communication, but at that time of year there are several major planets going right after the their own withdrawal times. The normal Mercury Rx conditions will apply but the moving energy with other planets will balance the potential obstacle we may have with Mercury.