astronomy and astrology, architecture, and magic. Thoth played an important role in
Egyptian afterlife. At the time of death a person’s soul was magically weighed to deter-
mine if he or she had lived a good or bad life. It was Thoth’s assignment to document
the outcome.
In Alexandria Egypt, around the second century B.C.E., a new form of mysti-
cism was developing from a mixture of Egyptian, Near Eastern, and Greek philosophy.
The primary text is known as the “Corpus Hermeticum” and is attributed to Hermes
Trismegistus, or the Great-Great-Great Hermes. These Hermetic texts were crucial in
the development of astrology and resulted in the development of today’s natal astrolo-
gy. The texts describe the development of the soul through reincarnations that are
given qualities based on the planets. Later these writings would evolve into the phi-
losophy of alchemy.
In Europe the god associated with the planet Mercury is the Celtic Lug, known
as Odin, or Wotan to the Germanic peoples. He is the master of fine speech, magic,
poetry and music, as well as wealth. He is known as the king of the gods, but is also the
god of the underworld. His Valkyries transport dead warriors to Valhalla where they
celebrate their bravery and conquests. In various myths Odin is shown as an old man
wandering the Earth, or exchanging an eye for the wisdom of the world.
Mercury rules all forms of thought and communication. It also represents
childhood, education, language, the intellectual mind (as compared to the emotional
mind represented by the Moon), movement, business, healing, humor, music and
dance, and the derivatives of these key words. For example the key word “language”
includes vocabulary, speech, grammar, writing, foreign languages, prose and poetry,
oration, understanding, and debate. “Business” includes the concepts of money,
exchange or barter, mathematics, marketing, and legal issues pertaining to business.
Mercury rules the zodiac signs of Gemini and Virgo. The mutable nature of
these signs is indicative of Mercury’s changeable nature. Gemini is an air sign and
expresses the mental or intellectual quality of Mercury. Virgo is an earth sign and rep-
resents the manual dexterity of Mercury as well as the practical application of knowl-
edge, primarily through service. Mercury is exalted at 15° of Virgo, and in debilitation
or fall in the sign of Pisces.
A well-aspected or -placed Mercury will give the native a keen intellect, excel-
lent business skills, and a fine sense of humor. The native can enjoy great diplomatic
skills, and excel in logic and debate. They may love to travel and find pleasure in new
experiences of all kinds. A weakly placed or aspected Mercury will give a wavering
mind that is unable to make decisions. Speech may be affected resulting in harsh or
rash language, or excessive gossip.
Mercury in a positive sense is adaptable, but in a negative sense is easily influ-
enced. Close conjunctions and aspects of Mercury with other planets will change the
expression of Mercury to a great degree. The one exception is the Sun. Because Mer-
cury spends so much time near the Sun, he can “defend” his self-identity more readily.
Wherever Mercury falls in an astrological chart indicates the area of life where
communication is crucial. The house position indicates the field of life where suchMercury
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