Mercury in the Signs
Mercury in Aries
This is a strong position for Mercury because Aries imparts aggressiveness and brilliance to the intelligence. If you have Mercury in Aries, you tend to be witty, outspoken, and original. There is a sharp edge to your conversation, an ironic or sarcastic tone that can sometimes be biting and sometimes very funny. You use highly expressive language and throw a lot of slang into your speech. You exaggerate. An Aries-Mercury makes you impatient, eager to get things done and wanting your way in the proceedings. You can be argumentative and tactless. Fond of both speaking and writing, you may become active in the literary world. Even if not a professional writer yourself, you like to talk to writers and attend literary cocktail parties. A problem is that you are too impulsive; not enough planning goes into your actions. However, you are blessed with luck in this respect: Your first decisions tend to be the right ones. Mercury-in-Aries people suffer from headaches, especially in a raucous and noisy atmosphere.
Mercury in Taurus
As a Mercury-in-Taurus person, you never embark on a project without being completely prepared. You have a practical, stable, and constructive mind. There is a rigidity to your intellect: You are quite sure your opinions are the wisest and you have little use for what others think. You have an excellent memory and are a good observer, but you are apt to listen inattentively; since you’re not about to change your mind, why listen to what someone else has to say? You also have a tendency to repeat yourself, to state what you’ve just said over again in different terms, usually to make sure everyone has gotten the point. Although you are sociable and attractive, and have a certain refinement about your manners, you’re a bit shy with strangers. You’re more at ease reading a book while lounging in a comfortable overstuffed chair than holding court in the middle of a crowded gathering. You read a great deal, but it is experience that teaches you the lessons you value in life. A Mercury in Taurus promotes a knack for handling money. Possessing an eye for both beauty and value, Mercury- Taureans are often successful art and antique dealers.
Mercury in Gemini
If you have Mercury in Gemini, it’s hard to pin you down. You have a quicksilver duality to your mind. You tend to change opinions quickly based on the latest news you’re listening to. You often hold down more than one job or work on a number of projects at once. Extremely quick, versatile, interested in the world at large, you live mostly on a mental plane. You must have facts and information; what you want is to know. You are good at languages and math and love to read, study, travel, and talk to new people about what you think. However, because you have such a variety of interests, your grasp of knowledge tends to be superficial. You always know a bit about everything, but sometimes not a lot about anything. You are clever enough to conceal this and to give a marvelous impression of being well informed. Another problem is your lack of stick-to-itiveness. At times there is a distinct lack of order in your life. You would make a wonderful debater, public speaker, or actor, and you have lots of friends because of your infectious good humor. Many popular TV interviewers and talk-show hosts have their Mercury in Gemini.
Mercury in Cancer
As a native of this Mercury position, you are sensitive to what others think about you. You have an almost sixth-sense intuition and pick up signals from all around you. You believe that if we had to depend only on our eyes we would see very little. You are chameleon like in the way you are able to0 adapt yourself to different kinds of people. This does not mean you don’t cling possessively to your own ideas. Indeed, you are a bit narrow-minded, but others would need to be as psychic as you are to discern this. On the surface it is not evident; you maintain a charming social face. Your outlook is always intensely personal— you’re fond of discussing large events in terms of your own feelings. Gifted with powerful imagination, a sense of poetry, and a fine memory, Mercury in Cancer people are successful as scholars, historians, teachers, and writers. You are likely to make a profit in real estate and may inherit money from the maternal side of your family. Sometimes you are plagued with irrational phobias, such as a fear of flying.
Mercury in Leo
Mercury in Leo bestows a gift for eloquence and a skill for leading others. If you are a native of this position, you have a magnetic flair for dealing with people. You are a superb organizer who knows how to direct, manage, and control. It’s true that you can be boastful, arrogant, and bombastic; and if things don’t go your way your fiery temper may ignite. But basically you have such a kind heart and sunny disposition that people usually forgive you. There is a showy expansiveness to your outlook. Though you would rather play than work, you are determined to be successful. You have great enthusiasm and sometimes get so caught up in a project you ignore everything else. People with Mercury in Leo are in love with the theater and the performing arts, and are happiest when they are on display. Creative fields attract you; you resent tedious work.
Mercury in Virgo
This position of Mercury gives a fine analytical quality to the mind. You like to deal in facts; before you make up your mind you must know all sides to the question and get all the information available in order to analyze it. Once you form a theory, you’re quite convinced it is the truth. Thenceforward, you expect reality to conform to your ideas, rather than vice versa. You have an intellectual intolerance for people who are sloppy in their thinking; you don’t really understand human failings. Your emotional detachment makes you an excellent scientist, researcher, teacher, or reporter. You are very quick to learn and can usually memorize long pages of material. A fault is your eagerness to take on too much work or too many projects. You wear yourself down, and at times become nervous and hypercritical. As a Mercury Virgo you have a superb talent for creative crafts.
Mercury in Libra
Mercury is the planet of rationality and Libra the sign of balance. If you have this Mercury position, you love to make comparisons by listing all the pros and cons, looking at both sides, weighing all the factors. What you want is to make the perfect choice. Even after you’ve made up your mind, however, it isn’t definite. A favorite ploy is to adopt a wait-and see attitude. In truth, you have fine intuitions and often know things in a flash. But then you tend to intellectualize and go off in the wrong direction. Toward other people, your attitude is gentle, sympathetic, friendly. You are fond of socializing. Not wishing to stir up controversy (oh, never!) in company, you will go along with someone else’s opinion even if you privately disagree. Mercury-in-Libra people do their best creative and intellectual work within a partnership. You are especially successful if you team up with a strong person who can direct you. Left alone, you may become lazy and not apply yourself with diligence.
Mercury in Scorpio
As a Mercury-in-Scorpio person, you are questioning and probing. You must dig beneath the surface to discover the real facts. You are especially drawn to things hidden: many of you go into the fields of medicine, science, religion, and the occult. Mercury-Scorpios are particularly suited for investigative work because you are unflagging in your pursuit and nothing eludes your keen observation. You take great pride in your ability not to be fooled. You also have a stubborn, obstinate mind and are enamored of your own ideas. One cannot budge you from a point of view unless you want to be budged. You consider other people’s “proofs” to be variations of their opinions, and listen to neither one nor the other. Solitary work and research are better suited to your temperament than cooperative ventures. You probably have a volatile temper, and Mercury-Scorpios are known for their biting sarcasm when crossed or upset. You have an emotional intelligence. You will fight for a cause even if it is hopeless, or sacrifice your time and energies for someone you love.
Mercury in Sagittarius
If you have this position of Mercury you are quick and bright, breezy, to the point. You prize freedom of expression and cannot bear the thought of any power of censorship over what you have to say. Your mind is restless, inquiring, always looking for stimulation. You may jump from project to project or change jobs frequently. Travel is often involved in your work. Mercury-Sagittarians never stop learning; yours is an ongoing, lifetime education. You love to read, explore new ideas, learn about other people. You are fast on your feet and can grasp ideas instantly, but a frequent failing is your lack of concentration. Some people find you too blunt and outspoken, but that quality springs from Sagittarius’s basic honesty. You never deliberately set out to deceive or dissemble; if you are tactless it’s because you don’t think before you speak. Sometimes you find it difficult to complete a long, sustained piece of work.
Mercury in Capricorn
If you have Mercury in Capricorn you tend to be ambitious and methodical, careful, calculating, and patient. You are not only superb at handling detail, but you also never lose sight of the whole picture. When it comes to making decisions you are extremely rational. Logic, the steady progression from point to point, is what you put your faith in. You always have an objective; you always have a secret goal you are pursuing. Mercury-Capricorns often attain positions of leadership because they are so dependable and have an air of authority. (This is evident even in very small children who have Mercury in this position.) A problem you have in relating to people can be your dictatorial manner. You also tend to have a disapproving air about the foibles and frivolities of others. Life is serious to Mercury-Capricorns and you see its dark side—though a redeeming trait is your dry sense of humor.
Mercury in Aquarius
Mercury in Aquarius indicates a fine and clever mind, inquisitive, accurate, and inventive. As a native of this position you take a great interest in other people and have excellent judgment of human nature. You love to analyze character and motivation, and with your finely tuned powers of observation are able to predict accurately how someone will react in a certain situation. You are a notorious peoplewatcher— in trains, buses, airports, and restaurants. Yours is a broad and emotionally detached outlook. Aquarius is the sign of the truth-seeker, which characterizes the way your mind works. You enjoy intellectual discussions about philosophy, metaphysics, and the future of mankind. Chances are you have read the classic writings of our great thinkers. You are especially suited for work in progressive professions—science, inventions, the world of television and electronics. Sometimes you may seem eccentric, for your ideas are advanced and you also enjoy saying things that shock other people.
Mercury in Pisces
Pisces is the sign of psychic revelation, and Mercury in this sign gives you a subtle and intuitive mind. There is an intriguing air of mystery about the way you think. You don’t logically arrive at conclusions; you seem to get flashes of knowledge or sudden feelings that are not based on previous facts or circumstances. Sometimes you will make a pronouncement, and afterward what you say will turn out to be true. You have accurate intuition. As a Mercury-Piscean you are imaginative and creative, but you tend to lack self-confidence. At times you appear timid or confused. You have deep sympathy and understanding for the foibles, failings, and follies of other people. In your opinion everyone, including a liar, has his own truth. You have such sensitivity to your environment that you cannot work or think straight when there is anything or anyone upsetting or jarring around you. An apt image for Mercury-in-Pisces is the absentminded professor.
