With Mercury entering its domicile placement in its home sign of Gemini, all things communication (and that includes thinking as well) can go several ways. Mercury loves being in Gemini: this placement has that home-sweet-home feeling to it, and it can certainly be sweet. At the same time, Mercury is also trickster energy and can play games for the sake of stirring things up. So can Gemini: the sign of the twin can double think, double talk and double cross. Anyone who knows a person with a significant planetary placement in Gemini might testify to their ability to pull a “Jedi mind trick” in order to get their own way now and again, leaving the blindsided alien (sometimes me) scratching their heads and doing a “Doh!” Scooby Doo schtick. It’s no fun being on the receiving end of deceitful communication, so one thing to watch for this season is trickster energy trying to pull one off on the sly. On the other side of the same coin, Mercury in Gemini can be a wonderful ally when the energies are in balance and working in accordance with the principles of right speech, right thought and right action. Borrowing this Buddhist concept, we’re in right action, speech and thought when we’re aligning what we do with our moral code and keeping the benefit of all in our highest set of priorities. It’s the opposite attitude of “I got mines.”
Keep in mind (pun intended) that if we’d like our own thoughts and wishes respected, we must commit to respecting the same in others. We don’t have to agree with them in order to make a silent pact that everyone’s thoughts and wishes deserve respect (unless, or course, they cause harm to others). This season is a good time to reevaluate our moral codes and how we either embody them or skirt by them.
Are we walking our talk or simply talking our talk? Do we stand behind what we say we do? How do we cast votes with our resources? Where do we spend our money? Are we supporting institutions that align with our values? Do we speak up against injustice when we see it? Are we voices for the voiceless?
When Mercury is retrograde this season (May 29 – June 21), we might wish to double down on these reevaluations, and keep a closer eye on communication that might go awry. We also may wish to take a deeper look at how we invest energy into people, places and things with how much mental currency we give to them. Doom-scrolling is generally always a bad idea, and when Mercury is retrograde, it’s especially advisable to avoid this rabbit hole of fear, terror and despair. The best course of action about worrying over what we can’t control is to assert our control over that which we do have agency over. In other words…
Just because we can’t do everything, it doesn’t mean we can’t do anything.
Urban Siren Creative
When Mercury is retrograde, we tend to over-worry instead of meeting this energy with the response it deserves. Rather than react, let's be reverent.
Holding space for the unknowable is a valiant and noble ambition. Our overthinking minds want control over everything, and that’s simply impossible. We are not meant to know everything, and this is coming from someone who works with divination to help us see and clarify. I never claim to be able to predict the future when I do Tarot card readings or astrology readings. If you do encounter someone who claims to be able to know what the future holds, I’d carefully examine the validity of that claim and perhaps question why they’re not working directly for NASA or some governmental organization that could certainly use the help of a fortune teller. As divination practitioners, the best we can do is examine and expose patterns to help determine the course of action should all cylinders continue to fire in a particular way. If we continuously do the same thing over and over again, we can expect the same results. This is how we begin to know ourselves and our minds. We recognize patterns, and begin to understand the reasons behind doing the things that we do. We can know our own minds and what makes us tick, and knowing ourselves is just about the closest we’ll ever come to truly knowing anything. Now, when it comes to knowing in the sense of comprehension of external events, it’s nearly impossible to truly know anything outside of ourselves. That’s because…
Knowing is an inside job.
Urban Siren Creative
Knowing is not the same as understanding.
How does that feel, and can you let that sink in for a moment?
Much of the world’s suffering comes from people who purport to “know” what’s best for another person, place or thing. When we impose our own sense of knowing on another, we eradicate that person’s right to live in accordance with what best supports them–body, mind and soul. Consider the wars over religion and the loss of life over the concept of one god being better than another. If we have the wisdom to commit to understanding others, we can spare much tragedy by not forcing our will on others and trying to make them “more like us.”
It comes down to healthy boundaries. While I can know myself but cannot truly know another, I can work toward understanding another and commit to continuous learning as people change constantly. Just because I understand someone today, doesn’t mean I’ll understand them tomorrow. Thus, my work is to adapt to the changing needs and evolution of others.
And, at the end of the day, we may never understand another, yet we can certainly respect them. On the practical level, that means not imposing our values on other people, but instead holding space for everyone to have their own valid and unique experience. And that’s truly enough for us all to live in harmony with one another.
It’s enough to simply keep these energies in mind while going about your business, since being aware is the best course of protection against mind tricks of all sorts. If you feel like increasing your awareness during this time, you are also welcome to download my little mantra here and post it somewhere prominent like your office, bedroom, or use it as your phone or computer home screen.
I’m excited to hear your thoughts on this post. Share it up on social media and tag me @urbansirencreative on Instagram and Facebook, and @urbansiren on Twitter so we can continue the conversation.
