ESSAY: Mercury Retrograde: Old God Has New Meaning for Modern Times

c. 2004 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Now that the Olympic Games have returned to their birthplace in Greece, the world is again reminded of the colorful gods and goddesses who centuries ago reigned over the pre-Christian Mediterranean world. Once-glorious deities such as the mighty Zeus and the beautiful Aphrodite have long since fallen from their […]

c. 2004 Religion News Service

(UNDATED) Now that the Olympic Games have returned to their birthplace in Greece, the world is again reminded of the colorful gods and goddesses who centuries ago reigned over the pre-Christian Mediterranean world.

Once-glorious deities such as the mighty Zeus and the beautiful Aphrodite have long since fallen from their pedestals.


Yet for many, these pagan divinities live on in the age-old tradition of astrology _ exercising their heavenly influence as they once did from the heights of Mount Olympus. These days, one god in particular _ Mercury, the fleet-footed messenger god _ is enjoying a modern-day renaissance.

Indeed, while most people’s knowledge of astrology doesn’t extend beyond their sun sign, an astrological phenomenon called “Mercury retrograde” is generating widespread interest.

This is the three-week period when astrologers warn there is a greater risk of communications mishaps and delays. As it happens, Mercury will be retrograde for most of August.

What exactly is Mercury retrograde? Based on the Greek term meaning to “walk backwards,” this is a thrice-yearly event when the planet Mercury appears to slow down and reverse direction. This celestial optical illusion occurs whenever Mercury, the nearest planet to the sun, begins to round the bend in its orbit and swing closer to Earth. Thus, from Earth’s position, Mercury appears to be moving backward against the sky.

After a period of about 21 days, it then shifts, appearing to move forward, or “direct,” again in the skies.

Mercury is “retrograde” Aug. 10 through Sept. 2, and will be again Nov. 30 through Dec. 20.

As they have done for millennia, astrologers interpret the motions of the planets in a way that imparts meaning to human affairs. Each of the planets is associated with a deity, which in turn represents a myth or archetype.


In myth, Mercury was said to be a message bearer. With his winged cap and golden staff, he ferried messages between the gods and humans. Astrologically, Mercury is said to govern all forms of expression and travel _ from cars to e-mail to newspapers.

Mercury’s rulership over communications is what gives rise to astrologers’ cautionary advice during the three-week period it is retrograde. Computer crashes, missed deadlines at work and personal misunderstandings, they say, are more likely to occur. For these reasons, astrologers counsel their clients to handle their affairs with greater care and hold off on starting new ventures.

No scientific evidence exists to prove that the planet Mercury interferes with communications on Earth. But increasingly, on Web sites and in conversations around the office water cooler, anecdotal evidence abounds around this urban legend.

One woman I know, for instance, was advised by her real estate agent to postpone signing the contract on the house she was buying. Yet another friend called to say she had made an appointment with a doctor _ only to show up for her appointment at the office of a different doctor with the same name. One woman sent an urgent love letter by e-mail to her boyfriend _ who never received it because his laptop broke down.

Like my son who loudly protests whenever his “astrologer mom” raises a warning flag that Mercury is about to go retrograde, there are those who view this phenomenon as an excuse to procrastinate. Like any other spiritual technique _ whether prayer, yoga or meditation _ there is always a potential for the misuse of astrology.

Still, I think there is a grain of healthy truth in this new trend. In a communications-dominated society that knows only one speed _ fast-forward _ this ancient god may have resurfaced with a much-needed message.


Stressed out, task-oriented, future-directed, we suffer an inability to slow down and savor the present moment. Rich in technology like cell phones and e-mail, we are poor in solitude and reflection.

Indeed, perhaps the reason Mercury retrograde touches a chord among so many these days is because it stirs something long-forgotten _ the need for silence. Measured against the frantic pace at which most of us live our lives, astrologers’ advice to use this three-week period as a “time out” to pause, reconsider and review sounds like common sense.

Like our distant ancestors, blaming those things in life that go wrong on the stars is a time-honored way of admitting there are larger forces at work than we are aware of. Reading symbolic messages in the stars, observing the cycles of Mercury retrograde, as well as the sun and moon, restores our broken rhythms with nature. If we let it, listening to the deeper message of Mercury retrograde can serve to widen our habitual frame of mind _ prompting us to glance up at the sky and remember that life is a rare mystery. And then we can get back to work again.

(Pythia Peay writes on spiritual topics. She is the author of “Soul Sisters: The Five Sacred Qualities of a Woman’s Soul” and “Mercury Retrograde: Its Myth and Meaning” (Tarcher/Penguin, 2004).

DEA/PH END RNS

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