Mercury Retrograde Patterns
There is an obviously emergent pattern to this late summer Mercury Retrograde Pattern, starts in Virgo, slips backwards to Leo, then grinds forward again — eventually, while the sun is in Leo.
But mostly not until Virgo.
Recitals? Mercury hit 20°-21° of Leo around July 16/17. Depends on the accounting system, and the measurements, but mid-July onward is a wash, as Mercury is in its shadow. Not bad, not good, just where things fall.
Mercury enters Virgo around July 25, getting to 4° Virgo August 4, turning retrograde August 5. Mercury slips backwards into Leo on August 15, finally stopping at 21° Leo on August 28 (turning stationary). Mercury doesn’t arrive back at 4° Virgo until September 12.
Mercury Retrograde Patterns
The shared elements are not unusual for a Mercury Retrograde Pattern. However, both signs, The Leo and Virgo are crossed with this particular synodic pattern, and its visual interpretations.
Astrologically, there is a lot to cover.
Practically, there’s even more, as this spins across two important pieces of the night’s horoscopic heavens. Part of this happens in The Leo, a fixed sign. Fire, but fixed, and in person, like I always say, “The best fixed fire sign.” But fixed energy is stubborn, and this is digging at something that might be best left alone.
The other part, though, is that touch of Virgo, a sign intimately associated with Mercury’s energies, a thinking sign, an analytical, thinking presence (and usually prescient.) So digging at something that might be best left alone is part of the questing from analytical Virgo.
Individual pieces of this suggests pointedly searching for more data, and part of this recommends not trying to dig up dirt on that situation.
How can we all use this Mercury Retrograde Pattern to our mutual (and personal) benefit?
What is the correct course of action, or inaction?
Mercury Retrograde Patterns
Inherited from my patriarchal line, part genetics, as much as anything, I used to employ a “Pile It” form of organization. As an example, I would have three projects underway, a book I was editing, a book I was writing, and a presentation series.
Three projects. That means three piles, for starters. Each project gets its own columnar inception point, the first notes for the project, the completed manuscript, the rough draft, the material I think I will want to use.
The “Pile It” method works well within the framework etched by this Mercury Retrograde Pattern, as described with its combination of Virgo precision and Leo magnificence.
There are two parts, collection and collation. For the duration of this pattern? It’s about collection, as that Mercury in Virgo doesn’t really sort out the sorting out parts until September?
Collection and collation.
For more than 80% of the population, this should be about collection: collecting the data. The pieces, parts, things, points of information. We’ll figure out how to assemble, analyze, and interpret this stuff, afterwards.
Collection and collation. We curate later.
the Portable Mercury Retrograde
