Mercury Retrogrades 2023 : Survival Guide
The planet of communication Mercury is going to play an increasingly important role in 2023. One of the reasons is that this year started with both Mercury and Mars in retrograde!
This is quite unusual and signifies that these two planets are going to play a key role in our lives, both on an individual and collective level.
The first two weeks of 2023 didn’t bring in a lot of new energy.
However, it was a great opportunity to tie up the loose ends of 2022 to ensure there was nothing holding us back from starting afresh in the New Year.
Long story short, we are being asked to pay close attention to Mercury retrograde cycles this year because it started off with one.
Dates of Mercury Retrogrades in 2023
• December 29, 2022 – January 18, 2023 – Mercury Retrograde in Capricorn
• April 21 – May 14 – Mercury Retrograde in Taurus
• August 23 – September 15 – Mercury Retrograde in Virgo
• December 12, 2023 – January 2, 2024 – Mercury Retrograde in Sagittarius and Capricorn
Mercury Retrograde in Astrology
The planet Mercury governs our mind, our thoughts, our learning abilities, processing of information, speech, communication, and technology.
Think of Mercury as software to your physical body.
It has a massive effect on how we interact with the world, how we process and express our thoughts.
Mercury takes our internal self and expresses it out into the world.
Our internal, private self is represented mainly by our natal Moon.
The Moon governs our creativity, our emotions, and feelings. Mercury is the messenger who processes and expresses all of it out into the world.
Mercury retrogrades are great for letting go of certain things, thoughts, limiting beliefs that are no longer relevant and stopping us from living our life to the fullest.
Think of it as a software upgrade process on your smart phone. Just think about how many times you need to upgrade software on your phone or computer to ensure they perform at their highest capacity.
So it is only natural that during Mercury retrogrades things are slowing down. It takes time to upgrade the system to the next level.
The keywords to describe Mercury retrograde: re-evaluate, revisit, rethink, re-do, re-organize, rearrange, re-position, re-launch.
So make sure you engage in these activities more often than initiating brand new things.
Recommended article to understand the meaning of Mercury in Astrology:
Mercury Retrogrades in 2023:
Mercury Retrograde in Capricorn
(December 29, 2022 – January 18, 2023)
Our cosmic messenger stationed to go retrograde in stoic Capricorn on December 29, 2022 right before the New Year. It finished its retrograde on Jan 18, 2023.
Capricorn is all about hard work, discipline and laser focused action.
Ruled by the planet of karma and delays Saturn, Capricorn is in no rush to complete things.
It’s all about quality over quantity.
They key here is not to rush anything during the retrograde period.
It’s advised to take plenty of extra time to revise, review, re-group and re-evaluate, especially when Mercury is retrograde in Capricorn.
Remember Capricorn’s motto: slow and steady wins the race.
Read Horoscope for 12 Zodiac signs for the Mercury Retrograde in Capricorn 2022-2023:
Mercury Retrograde in Taurus
(April 21 – May 14)
Our cosmic messenger stations to go retrograde in the fixed earth sign of Taurus on April 21, 2023 right after the powerful total Solar Eclipse in Aries.
It will finish its retrograde on May 14, just before the planet of good fortune and expansion Jupiter enters Taurus on May 16.
Ruled by the planet of beauty and abundance Venus, Taurus is all about financial stability and accumulation of material possessions.
Taurus enjoys the finer things in life: good food, good wine, beautiful works of art, luxurious surroundings…
This earth sign is also very closely connected to nature.
We are being asked to slow down and smell the roses this Taurus season.
Being present is the key to sail through this Mercury retro without any major disruptions and calamities.
Read Horoscope for 12 Zodiac signs for the Mercury Retrograde in Taurus:
Mercury Retrograde in Virgo
(August 23 – September 15)
This summer is promising to bring in a lot of drama!
Not only Mercury slams on the breaks in its home sign of analytical Virgo end of August, the planet of love and abundance Venus is going to be also in retrograde from July 22 until September 3 in the fire sign of Leo.
Two retrograde cycles are going to overlap which signifies that our relationships will, no doubt, take the centre stage this summer.
This is a major ‘Ex is coming back’ alert!
However, it’s not always a good thing… Sometimes the Universe is just testing us to see if we are ready to embrace bigger and better things. So take your time before you let people from the past back into your life.
It applies to both business and romantic partnerships.
The good news is that if you break up during this retrograde cycle, there is a big chance you will get back together after this major retrograde energy is fully cleared towards the end of September.
Mercury Retrograde in Sagittarius and Capricorn (December 12, 2023 – January 1, 2024)
The fascinating thing with this cycle is that not only it is happening in two Zodiac signs: Sagittarius and Capricorn (two totally opposite energies!) but it happens again right at the end of a calendar year and the beginning of a new one, again!
This repeating theme surely calls for our attention.
The good news is that we are no strangers to Mercury retrograde in Capricorn, as we started off the year with it!
This cycle will be a great opportunity to conduct a major review of what has been achieved thus far in 2023. Look back at the start of the year and honestly review your work.
Where did you manage to achieve your goals and what can be improved and perhaps redone?
This Mercury retrograde will help you tie up the loose ends before the start of 2024 to ensure you do not repeat the same mistakes you might have made in 2023.
Use this free Birth Chart calculator to create your Natal Chart in case you haven’t had a chance to get it yet.
N.B.: Remember that it’s ideal to have your EXACT time of birth on hand. Use 12 p.m. noon if you have no way to get this information. The best option, of course, is to get a personal reading with a professional astrologer who can provide birth-time rectification. Birth time and birthplace are crucial pieces of information for your Natal Chart, as they determine the unique position of the houses and planets that can help you understand transits and their impact on your personal journey.
