Gryphon Astrology Blog

On May 29, Mercury will leave Gemini and enter the sign of Cancer. This is a substantial drop in strength for Mercury, which was in its own sign in Gemini, and therefore very strong and beneficial. In Cancer, Mercury has considerably less strength, though it is not entirely Peregrine (without any essential dignity) throughout the sign.

The bigger problem with Mercury passing through Cancer this time around is that Mercury will go retrograde at 11° Cancer, on June 15/16. It will go backwards until it hits 2° Cancer, and then slowly start moving forward again. The problem is that during its retrogradation period, Mercury will be passing through degrees where it has no dignity at all. It will not get substantial essential strength until the 25th of July, when it will enter its own term, and it will remain there until July 30.

So Mercury will be particularly unhelpful for about a month, and if you’re interested in doing anything particularly mercurial during Mercury’s journey through Cancer, such as writing a grant proposal, starting a book, calling someone about an important negotiation, it might be best to wait until the end of July. The good news is that by that time, the Sun will have moved into Leo, giving you another very strong planet with which to work, to support your endeavors.

Special Note: Occasionally, I get requests for specific times when a planet will be very strong, beyond what I provide during the date ranges, such as above. This is for purposes of astrologically electing the optimal moment to do something. I think it will be helpful to get a very precise time range when one planet will be very strong both in terms of position, and in terms of essential (zodiacal) strength. For Mercury, one such time will be on May 25, from 7 to 7:40 a.m. local time, at least in Northern California. Your specific location may well be different, as the Moon changes position.

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