Transcendental
Mercury
Reason is the bound
or outward circumference of Energy.
–William Blake, The
Marriage of Heaven and Hell.
Mercurius is the Logos
become world ... [He] truly consists of the most extreme opposites;
on the one hand he is undoubtedly akin to the godhead, on the other
he is found in sewers.
–Carl Jung, The Spirit
Mercurius.
Core meaning:
Mercury’s seemingly
up-front, matter-of-fact, and even banal qualities and correspondences
represent only the surface appearance of an energetic force that
is far more complex than is generally recognized. Through the cognitive
network symbolized by Mercury, the other planetary principles partake
in a mutually recognizable form of communication with one another,
especially within the crucible of human consciousness. This plexus
of interconnecting pathways of communication facilitates and unites
the planetary forces in the microcosm of the human psyche.
In its evolution
through various planetary symbols, the Transcendental energy is
channeled through experiences of identity-separation (yang) and
-unification (yin). In a similar fashion, in alchemical symbolism,
the final stage of rapport between the yin and yang principles
is called the coniunctio:
a process that proceeds through various stages of “chemical”
separatio and unio, culminating in a union of differentiated qualities within the
alchemical vessel, i.e., the psyche.
Just as the alchemists
were well versed in astrological lore and borrowed freely from astrological
principles to enhance their philosophical-allegorical understanding
of processes of spiritual transformation, alchemical symbolism
has, in turn, influenced and enhanced our understanding of the astrological
symbols of transformation. In our present study, this transformation
of energy is symbolically imagined as one assisted
by the mediating force of Mercury.
In alchemical literature,
which preserved and refined astrological thought and tradition,
Mercury is sometimes referred to by his Greek appellation, “Hermes,”
or by the Latin “Mercurius.”1 The alchemical retort
was referred to as the vas Hermeticum or vessel of Hermes-Mercury. In the Mercurial Fountain
illustrated in the Rosarium
philosophorum (1550), the basin of the fountain is adorned with
six stars, signifying the other celestial spheres (including Sun
and Moon) that were visible to astronomers during the Middle Ages.
The planetary principles are “contained in Mercurius,”
whose personification symbolizes “the unity of the seven planets.”2
This alludes to the unifying function of the hermaphroditic Mercury,
who symbolized the gathering, sorting, and ordering function in
the alchemical process of the separation and unification of psychic
elements.
In alchemy, these
are usually represented as metals which, when separated from their
corrupt amalgams or base forms, are transformed into symbolic “gold.”
This is a philosophical or spiritual gold, representing an enlightened,
spiritualized, or individuated consciousness. (Hence, Gerhard Dorn,
a philosophically oriented alchemist of the sixteenth century,
would write: “The gold we seek is not the common gold.”)
Therefore, in the rational, cognitive qualities symbolized by Hermes-Mercury,
the various levels of Logos (spirit) / Eros (soul) dualism are unified.
The “golden germ” (the potential for higher consciousness)
is sealed within the vas Hermeticum
and “heated.”
As the living vessel
of Hermes-Mercurius, a human being has the potential for vitalizing
(heating) and elevating (sublimatio)
consciousness. It is explicitly the vessel
of Hermes that serves as the agent of unification and that is
a mediator of the various opposing principles (or metals) that are
eventually brought into harmony or rapport.
The
union of antagonistic elements is referred to with a terminology
that is explicitly astrological. Throughout the alchemical literature,
Mercury plays a central role in combining opposing principles of
solar and lunar consciousness. Just as we have four key elements
(originally: moist, dry, hot and cold; these correspond to water,
air, fire and earth) and seven astronomical bodies (the seven that
were known to antiquity) at the basis of all astrological thought,
Jung writes that the “synthesis of the four [moist, dry, cold,
warm] was one of the main preoccupations of alchemy, as was ...
the synthesis of the seven.” In one alchemical text, Hermes-Mercury
speaks to the Sun: “I cause to come out to thee the spirits
of thy brethren [the planets], O Sun, and I make them for thee a
crown the like of which was never seen; and I cause thee and them
to be within me, and I will make thy kingdom vigorous.”3 Jung
goes on to explain that the above “refers to the synthesis
of the planets or metals with the sun.”
Here, Mercury performs
the active (yang) role of causing planetary spirits to “come
out” to the Sun (i.e., to appear to and to unite with consciousness).
In addition, their unification is metaphorically portrayed as a
crown: a symbol of soulful union (yin) and of discriminating spiritual
consciousness (yang). The various planetary qualities are united
through the intercession of Mercury, and this union results in a
generation of special powers, which are symbolized by a crown.
Therefore, the individuated seeker attains an elevated form of consciousness,
i.e., this is an internal, spiritual, and soulful result, rather
than a merely material one, as Mercury-Hermes states: “I cause
thee and them to be within me.” Finally, Mercury enables the “kingdom”
(the unique realm of transformed consciousness) to be made “vigorous,”
i.e., full of life. As with all authentic individuation processes,
the result is an immediate one, directly experienced in everyday
life.
Elsewhere in alchemical
literature, we find other examples of the Mercury-Hermes role being
described as a special process of union. “The ‘centre’
unites the four [elements] and the seven [planets] into one. The
unifying agent is the spirit Mercurius.” Jung adds that the
“idea of Mercury as a peacemaker, the mediator between the
warring elements and producer of unity, probably goes back to Ephesians
2:13ff”:
Mercurius is conceived as “spiritual blood,” on the
analogy of the blood of Christ. In Ephesians those who are separated
“are brought near in the blood of Christ.” He makes
the two one and has broken down the dividing wall “in his
flesh.” Caro (flesh)
is a synonym for the prima
materia [the elemental material which is destined for alchemical
transformation] and hence for Mercurius. The “one” is
a “new man.” He reconciles the two “in one body,”
an idea which is figuratively represented in alchemy as the two-headed
hermaphrodite. The two have one spirit, in alchemy they have one
soul.
The
“spiritual blood” unites “those who are separated.”
This notion of separation alludes to a one-sided and extreme form
of (yang) consciousness: the experience of life as alienating; the
experience of the social collective as an aggregate of distinct,
separate, unrelated beings (i.e., the nihilistic point of view).
The Savior attempts to alter this condition with his blood. He can
make “the two one,” because he has “broken down
the dividing wall ‘in his flesh’.” In other words,
he has unified the opposites internally: he is individuated. He
is whole.
Like the Savior,
Mercurius personifies a cosmic duality. And like Christ, he is conceived
of as “spiritual / blood” [yang / yin]. The cold, dry,
immaterial spirit (yang) is united with a hot moist matter
(yin), the latter symbolized by blood, which is typically associated
with human feeling, warmth, and even love (i.e., blood is the fluid
of the heart).4
Most importantly,
Mercury is imagined as a central container within which the opposing
planetary forces are brought together. As hermaphrodite, Mercury
personifies a conjunction of spirit and soul; of animus
and anima; of Sol and
Luna. Jung writes that the “circle and the Hermetic vessel
are one and the same, with the result that the mandala [a sacred
or “magic” circle] ... corresponds to the vessel of
transformation.” Therefore, Mercury plays a special role in
synthesizing planetary forces within
the astrological vessel
of humanity, i.e., the circle of the zodiac and its idiosyncratic
expression as a horoscope or “birth chart.” Mercurius
is the “true hermaphroditic Adam and Microcosm,”5 for,
in receiving and transmitting the alternating male and female planetary
qualities, Mercury partakes of a dualistic flow of energy. In the
words of the alchemical philosopher, Gerhard Dorn:
Our Mercurius is therefore that same [Microcosm],
who contains within him the perfections, virtues, and powers of
Sol [in the dual sense of sun and gold], and who goes through the
streets [vicos]
and houses of all the planets, and in his regeneration has obtained
the power of Above and Below, wherefore he is to be likened to their
marriage, as is evident from the white [yin/soul] and the red [yang/
spirit; my brackets] that are conjoined in him. The sages have affirmed
in their wisdom that all creatures are to be brought to one united
substance.6
Mercurius effects and
personifies the union of opposites on a microcosmic human level.
The oppositional tensions of the planets are resolved and integrated
through a mediation of Mercurial discrimination, analysis, and comprehension:
the crucial elements of consciousness that are astrologically symbolized
by this planet.
Therefore, it should
be clear that the alchemical Mercury possesses qualities that are
synonymous with the astrological Mercury. This is especially so
concerning symbols that reflect an evolution of consciousness. As
the symbol of cognition and rational comprehension, Mercury provides
a means of bridging the tension of psychological and emotional
polarities, all of which are personified by the various planetary
forms. Through Mercurius, the spiritual (or solar) consciousness
can rationally communicate with the lunar (or soulful) dimension
of consciousness. Mercurius is imagined (i.e., symbolized) as an
agent of unification, because through Mercury the needs of one side
of existence (e.g., Logos-spirit-yang) are made comprehensible
to the other side of existence (e.g., Eros-soul-yin). Mercury piques
our curiosity, forms the question: Why?7
and then searches for a way of balancing the dualism inherent in
consciousness.
Mercury symbolizes
the fundamental pathways and elements of communication (e.g., the
nervous system; psychic functions promoting cognition, communication,
and comprehension). Alchemically, this is symbolized by Mercury’s
role as a unifying agent of chemical properties: a force that allows
various “metals” or “chemicals” to enter
into rapport with one another. Mercurius is envisioned as standing
between Sol and Luna–the fundamental forms of Logos and Eros–and
providing, through receptive awareness and active transmission
of thought, a mediating function that leads to continual philosophic
and spiritual (i.e., psychic) growth. For the more literally inclined
alchemists, this was imagined as a mere chemical interaction; for
the alchemical philosophers, the “heavenly marriage”8
was an internal, philosophical process, yet one that simultaneously
attempted to transform “metals” or chemicals through
ritualistic enactments (i.e., repeated chemical “experiments”).
The special
alchemical relationship between Sun and Mercury is of significance
for our own purely astrological purposes, as our rational functions
and faculties (Mercury) are directly related to the ego’s
ability (Sun) to process information and to build and organize an
effective ego-complex structure. In an apt metaphor expressed through
astronomical fact, Mercury is “the planet closest
to the Sun.”9 Gathering, sorting, processing; seeking, receiving,
and transmitting information, Mercury directs a singular focus upon
each detail–one at a time–whether in the process of
transmitting that information (e.g., giving a lecture) or receiving
it (e.g., listening raptly to a speaker). Without this essential
Mercurial function, it would be difficult for the ego (Sun) to comprehend
or express itself. Without a properly functioning Mercury, the ego-complex
would be overwhelmed by details that it could neither sort through
nor process effectively. Without Mercury’s discriminating
ability to analyze and present data, ego-expression is subject to
a void of Mercury: a babbling incoherence; a “scatter”-brained
inconsistency.
Mercurius provokes
the first stage of union between the yin and yang planetary principles
(i.e., Sun and Moon). In alchemy, this is expressed as the marriage
of Sol (spirit) and Luna (soul). “As the little star near
the sun, he [Mercurius] is the child of sun and moon,”10 i.e.,
the consciousness born of their union. Mercury assists in creating
additional unions between the other yang / yin planetary couples,
i.e., the latter ontological stages of Mars-Venus; Saturn-Jupiter;
and (in modern times) Pluto-Neptune. The alchemists conceived of
Mercurius as the “spiritus
vegetativus, a living spirit, whose nature it is to run through
all the houses of the planets, i.e., the entire Zodiac.” According
to Jung, “We could just as well say through the entire horoscope”
or “through all the characterological components of the personality.”
In the archetypal “Journey through the Planetary Houses,”11
Mercury corresponds to the cognitive function that attempts
a comprehensive synthesis of planetary symbolism. Mercury’s rapid
transit of the natal chart–comprising a restless seeking and
questioning–further portrays its continual and dynamic influence.
Mercury’s
role in uniting the masculine and feminine energies reflects a
character trait of the alchemical Mercurius: a hermaphrodite who
is “fittingly called ‘duplex’, both active and
passive. The ‘ascending’, active part of him is called
Sol, and it is only through this that the passive part can be perceived.
(The passive part therefore bears the name of Luna, because she
borrows her light from the sun.” Mercury’s solar consciousness
is intimately linked to a lunar consciousness, as “it is only
through this that the passive part can be perceived” or made
conscious.12 “Luna
secretes the dew or sap of life. ‘This Luna is the sap of
the water of life, which is hidden in Mercurius’.”13
Thus, within the unifying mediator of Mercurius–a hermaphrodite
who contains Sol and Luna (the red and the white)–there is
a deep-seated bilateral capacity to grasp, comprehend, and experience
the seemingly oppositional psychic forces. Through their marriage
in the Mercurial waters (of receptive awareness and active analytical
comprehension), a new consciousness is born: the alchemical
unio mentalis. Mercurius is “masculine and feminine and
at the same time the child born of their union.”14
Mercurius as quicksilver
represents an adaptable and changeable energy: one with a peculiar
ability to shift into a variety of planetary forms, “mimicking,”
“animating,” and “quickening” the celestial
spheres as it travels through their realms. This process is symbolized
by the peregrinus microcosmus
or “wandering microcosm”: Mercury represented in a voyage
or “odyssey in search of wholeness.”15 (Astrologically,
it is symbolized by Mercury’s Transcendental “couplings”
with the other planets; by natal aspects; or by dynamic, transiting
aspects.)
Through
Mercury’s search for an essential ingredient in spiritual
truth (yang); union based on empathic understanding (yin); and
understanding enhanced by the “unifying / force of language”
(yin-Eros / yang-Logos). An animating force that “quickens”
the planetary energies by means of its relentless absorption and
transmission of truth, Mercury stimulates the flow of psychic energy
and directs information gleaned from each celestial realm (or form
of consciousness). Again, through its “freewheeling”
interaction between each astrological stage of yin and yang, Mercury
partakes of an energetic dualism that is expressed in its hermaphroditic
nature. The felt awareness (Eros-soul) and rational
grasp (Logos-spirit) of the various planetary principles (especially
as experienced in the microcosm of human consciousness) is the immediate
result of Mercury’s quest to obtain
a truth partaking of multiple realities by adapting to each of them:
absorbing, reflecting, and qualifying their natures; and creating
the formal means of expressing such
realities through sign, symbol, language, schemata, diagram,
blueprint etc.
Mercury and its
“higher octave,” Uranus, signify two different yet closely
related psychic functions. Mercury represents a dynamic search for
the elements that compose the multiple facets of consciousness (i.e.,
“thought forms”),
while the unexpected reversals and shocking reformations expressed
through Uranus signify a search for a higher order: a more sophisticated
synthesis and expression of consciousness (i.e., the reformation
of thought). The restlessness of Mercury (seeking to comprehend
itself) and the Uranian tendency to restructure energy forms (a
self-regulation of psychic energy, expressed through the dynamic
reversals of its extreme forms of expression) exemplify the transhuman
origins and qualities of these energy complexes. A “thought”
which suddenly appears “out of the blue” (Mercury’s
color) partakes of a transpersonal or archetypal pattern and origin.
Likewise, Uranian intuitions that appear “out of nowhere”
(the immaterial nature of Uranian energy) are expressions of a suprarational,
transpersonal consciousness. In this sense, Uranus and Mercury
(whose astrological symbols or “glyphs” are shaped like
antennae) are planetary “receptors” of higher states
of consciousness: receptors capable of transmitting the subtlest
expressions of spirit and soul.
In accord with ancient
astrological and occult traditions, the alchemists invoked the spirit
Mercurius as a mediating agent in their quest to render form to
such philosophic inquiry. Jung writes that the “union of alchemical
opposites formed a ‘correspondence’ to the unio
mentalis that took place simultaneously
in the mind of man, and not only in man but in God.”16
Mercury’s special mental role is suggested here. In the mental
union simultaneously experienced by God and man, Mercury is linked
to the Divine realm (human cognition based on a transpersonal,
archetypal, divine pattern; Mercury as a receptor that “steps
down” the energy of higher planetary forms of consciousness).
Here Jung is again referring to the writings of Gerhard Dorn, who
states: “We conclude that meditative philosophy consists in
the overcoming of the body [the base instincts and unconscious nature]
by mental union [unio mentalis]
... [and] that He may be one in All.”17 According to Jung,
“The goal of the [alchemical] procedure is the unio
mentalis, the attainment of full knowledge of the heights and
depths of one’s own character.”18 Jung further theorized
that the “unio mentalis, the interior oneness which today we call individuation,
he [Dorn] conceived as a psychic equilibrium of opposites ‘in
the overcoming of the body’, a state of equanimity transcending
the body’s affectivity and instinctuality. The spirit (animus), which is to unite with the soul, he called a “spiracle”
[spiraculum] of eternal
life’, a sort of ‘window into eternity’ (Leibniz),
whereas the soul is an organ of the spirit and the body an instrument
of the soul.”19
This final occult
goal–the union of opposites upon a newfound (or higher) level
of awareness–is a process realized in a special manner through
an intercession of the hermaphroditic, unifying form of Mercury.
Therefore, Mercurius is conceived as “many-sided, changeable”;
“the ‘twin’, made of ‘two natures’,
or ‘two substances’”; “the ‘giant
of twofold substance’”; the “winged and wingless”
dragon; the “spirit
and soul of the bodies”; composed of elements that are “dry
and earthy” and “moist and viscous”; “passive”
and “active”; and even “good and evil.”
Through the “united double nature”20 of the hermaphrodite,
“Mercurius duplex” presages the final goal: the union
of psychic opposites, the mysterium
coniunctionis.
As a force that
both unites opposing principles and symbolizes their presence in
the dualistic tendencies of consciousness, Mercury–by standing
in between and uniting–forms a triune structural dynamic and
is often symbolized as such. Hermes-Mercurius is referred to as
“All and Thrice One” (omnia
solus et ter unus); “triple in name, one in essence”
(triplex in nomine, unus in esse); the “three-headed Mercurius”
or “three-headed Hermes” (Hermes
tricephalus); the “union of three” (triunus);
the triune “Mercurial Fountain” (fons
Mercurialis); “a three-headed snake” (serpens
Mercurialis); and “triple natured–masculine, feminine,
and divine.”21 This triune form alludes to Mercury’s
role in processes of separation (into complementary planetary pairs,
such as Mars and Venus) and unification (the psychic integration
of the Mars and Venus principles). Interpreted psychologically,
Mercury represents a function that integrates rational and nonrational
aspects of consciousness.
Improper
manifestation of the energy:
Alchemical lore warns
of a “darker” aspect of Mercury. Besides its role as
spiritual unifier, Mercurius duplex is conceived as duplicitous;
shifty; wily; poisonous (“a spreading poison that has brought
death to many”); “a child of chaos”; 22 “many
sided, changeable, and deceitful”; “inconstant”;
“good and evil”; “dark and light”; “visible
and invisible”; “coarse and fine”; and related
(through Saturn) to the devil. Since Mercury takes on the qualities
of the planets that it serves to link, in its close proximity to
the various planetary principles, Mercury may be contaminated or
inflated with either the yin or the yang planetary elements. The
“darkness” or “coarseness” of one side of
the duality indicates that one of the Mercurial functions has now
become obscured and is operating unconsciously.
This is reflected
in the horoscope when Mercury is portrayed as a hyperactive planet.
For example, in its contact with Saturn, Mercury may “serve”
Saturn by encouraging emotional constraint and the fear of change.
“Understanding” may suddenly shift into “excluding”
other viewpoints, perspectives, or emotional realities that would
lend greater expansiveness or wholeness to the soul (especially
the soulful qualities corresponding to Saturn’s complimentary
yin form, Jupiter). In its rigid adherence to Saturnian principles
(structure, order, discipline, the “laws of limitation,”
and the utilization of those laws in effecting achievements), Mercury
excludes other realities by forcefully proclaiming its belief in
the already analyzed and categorized details that constitute an
established Saturnian point of view. The complimentary Jupiterian
impulse to expand beyond established borders of reality (and to
expand the collective frontiers of the soul) is here usurped by
a fixed belief in the limits of the “already known”:
the logically deducible realm of material reality. In defending
this rigid, Saturnian position, the Mercurial “light of reason”
is transformed into a dark, obscuring cloud: one of opaque absolutism.
Conversely, by adhering
to or becoming contaminated with the Jupiterian impulse, the wandering
curiosity of Mercury will expand beyond its ability to maintain
focus, following an endlessly widening, tangential trail through
a morass of ideas and concepts that all seem linked in some maddeningly
inflated and endless fashion. This will lead to a fixation on Jupiterian
“facts,” especially those pertaining to philosophical,
religious, ethical, or other forms of the “codified wisdom
of the ages”–yet one lacking a truly soulful awareness
of such matters.23
In merging with
Mars, Mercury will give voice to such forceful, opinionated and
heated exchanges that the “separation and differentiation
of identity” principle symbolized by Mars will be excessively
extolled, with the result that it backfires and causes alienation,
separation, and misunderstandings with others.
Overactive, one-sided
contacts with yin planets such as Venus may lead to compulsive
communications concerning romantic obsessions or opinionated exchanges
regarding aesthetic beliefs. Instead of an intimate, soulful experience,
a fixed notion concerning the
nature of love (e.g., romance viewed in a hyperrational manner)
will block anything other than a superficial exchange of intimacy.
In Mercury’s
contamination by Neptune, ideas
and opinions concerning a mystic dimension of the soul will
inhibit a deeper, authentic spiritual experience. Here Mercury will
insist upon communicating something about the vague, obscure, or
indefinite nature of the Neptunian experience, yet an overriding
focus upon the significance of the word (or in some other graphic
notation, such as the symbol) will eclipse an essential Neptunian
soulfulness: the merging with and dissolution into the anima
mundi or world soul.
With Pluto, the
attempt to comprehend the essential nature of something and to use
that knowledge to reshape or transform that essential nature lends
the Mercury-Pluto contamination a particularly terrifying power.
In applying a willful analysis to a person or a thing (e.g., a myopic
view of how something should be transformed and a concern
over the “dictatorial control” one will have upon the
transformed person, place or thing), the Mercury-Pluto contaminated
native is obstructing his own depth transformation potential.
In every one-sided
Mercury-planet contamination, the word
or rational form obscures
the truth it attempts to shape or articulate. In the effort to express
its triune structural nature, Mercury has grasped too tightly upon
one planetary principle to the detriment of the opposing principle.
The latter then falls into an unconscious darkness (the unrealized,
unvitalized part of life) and will later emerge only under special
circumstances. (Only an enlightened consciousness can redeem it.)
In all the Mercury-planet contaminations, the philosophical Mercury
(mercurius philosophicus)
or spiritual Mercury (mercurius
non vulgaris) is bogged down by the common or crude Mercury
(mercurius vulgaris; mercurius
crudus). Instead of lending fluency of expression to the ineffable
experiences of spirit and soul, Mercury is overly attached (earthbound
or “concretized”) to some aspect of the
form of communication itself. This is reflected in the manner
of expression (e.g., Plutonian willfulness; Jupiterian expansiveness;
Venusian sensuality; Martian force) or in the words, symbols, or
language systems that are overvalued and that serve as a substitute
for the realities they are meant to convey. Rather than the word
serving to clarify and enhance our experience of the mystery of
life, the word usurps the place of the mystery itself.
When Mercury is
psychologically unintegrated, the traditional astrological literature
warns of a scatter-brained, unfocused native; one who cannot rationally
ascertain his place in the larger scheme of things. Such a person
may have difficulty in making decisions; forming critical judgments;
communicating clearly and objectively; comprehending elaborate
concepts; retaining details, facts, and figures; or making simple
logical deductions. For such a native, two essential elements are
lacking:
Existential conditions,
such as a lack of educational opportunities, may have dampened the
native’s interest in such Mercurial pursuits. This, in turn,
may interfere with the urge to absorb, reflect, comprehend, communicate,
or plan in an orderly, rational manner. This impasse will force
Mercury to operate primarily on an unconscious level. Mercurius
“duplex” then becomes duplicitous or diabolical. This
is the trickster aspect of Mercury, which will reveal itself through
an inner shiftiness and an underhanded unconsciousness. This means
that one “hand” of Mercury is overgrasping or is overidentified
with one of the (yin or yang) planetary principles, to the detriment
of the complementary principle. Instead of functioning as a mediator
and forming, on a higher level, a transcendent union (as reflected
in his hermaphroditic nature), here Mercury is overidentified with
one form of consciousness at the expense of another.
If, for example,
the native is overidentified with the yin side of the equation,
the yang-oriented impulses (symbolized by Sun, Mars, Saturn, or
Pluto) are then trapped and operate primarily unconsciously. The
need to redeem this one-sided (or partially unconscious) Mercury
is expressed in the alchemical notion of the “Freeing of Mercury,”24
illustrated in the Grimm fairy tale, “The Spirit in a Bottle”:
a story of Mercurius hermetically sealed in a glass bottle. If Mercury
is not capable of functioning as a mediator between planetary energies,
the native will experience difficulty in finding his “Logos”:
a formal means of communicating with clarity. Yang thought-forms
will become blocked and will emerge only through dreams, unexpressed
longings, the “subtext” (or subliminal meaning) behind
“surface” communications, or the acting out of the unconscious
self (e.g., hysterical expressions). The yang consciousness will
only be expressed symptomatically, through snide remarks; double
entendres; aggressive or awkward body “language” etc.
Essentially, the right hand does not know what the left hand is
doing. In between stands Mercury, who says one thing but is secretly
thinking another. He may pursue his unconscious agendas by expressing
himself in “half-thought” imaginings and in “unthinking”
remarks (e.g., insults). For the native who is unaware of his “duplex,”
situations seem to “figure themselves out” or to reach
“untoward conclusions” (i.e., an inability to consciously
plan for and reach a proper conclusion).
When Mercury’s
powers of comprehension and rational deduction have fallen this
far into the realm of diabolic unconsciousness,25 a further problem
arises in the native’s ability to believe in the self-regulating
nature of the Mercury energy. For a native so far removed from the
ability to tune in to his own thoughts, the fear is that the “wheel
will have to be reinvented”: that a thinking process must
be created from scratch. The thought process is, however, largely
autonomous; we receive thoughts (generated as they are from within
the overall psyche) just as much as we can be said to create them.
Yet instead of teasing out or channeling thought in this intuitive
manner, the native may despair that he must work through every word,
every detail, every aspect of communication in order to effectively
utilize the Mercury complex. Of course, nothing could be further
from the truth, as “channeling Mercury” into the conscious
realm is far different from controlling each of his frenetic movements.
Indeed, for every human function (i.e., for each planetary principle)
the conscious mind must work with a largely autonomous, instinctive,
and intuitive process that proceeds along by itself, directed here
and there by consciousness yet certainly not invented by the ego
or created from scratch. We may seek to formulate a thought and,
in the process of properly “listening” (being mentally
receptive), a thought coalesces in a manner that is largely involuntary
and instinctive: generated from within the psyche and reformulated
within consciousness.
The same holds true
no matter which planet is “unintegrated.” The native
must engender a belief in the autonomous reality of the psychic
function involved (e.g., the reality of love [Venus]; the reality
of the “expansive philosophical mind” [Jupiter] etc.).
One must cultivate receptivity to the presence of the energy
in question. (And this requires an appropriately introverted attitude.)
Besides instilling a belief in such energetic potentials, one must
develop a positive point of view regarding the use of such energies.
Since unintegrated energy is largely blocked from conscious expression,
this means it has been experienced mostly in a negative form. Once
psychic energy has been redeemed, its beneficial effects are enormous,
yet this is often difficult for the native to imagine, since things
pushed into the unconscious are often viewed only negatively.
Transcendental
potential:
Relocation to the Transcendental
Mercury line offers the native opportunities in which this function
finds a formal means of expression. This will occur through encounters
with those who have evolved a Mercury principle within themselves
to such an extent that the “unattractive” or “unconscious”
aspects of Mercury (the “dark,” “coarse,”
and “poisonous” dimensions) are transformed into a more
positive, creative form of expression. For instance, someone with
an unintegrated Mercury who is not verbally oriented may, under
this location, experience language as a tool that can be tailored
to suit his needs in furthering relationships with others, rather
than as something that leads to experiences of intellectual intimidation,
alienation, or separation. In relocations in a foreign country,
the attempt to learn a new language26 will stimulate such underutilized
mental functions. This, in turn, will stimulate other functions,
such as comprehending ideas and formulating concepts.
Under this location,
the ability to rely on the autonomous expression of Mercury is enhanced.
This may be coupled with a positive external experience, such as
encounters with those who personify creative aspects of Mercury
(e.g., personally meaningful and relaxed communication instead of
impersonal, irrelevant, intimidating discourse). Mercury as mercurius philosophicus may be personified as the curious seeker who,
by receiving and transmitting knowledge, furthers the evolution
of others by teaching eternal truths and ideas. Here Mercury is
functioning as a mediating agent between the Eros-yin and Logos-yang
principles, communicating to each their mutual needs and articulating
their realities in a manner furthering growth and enhancing comprehension.
When functioning properly, Mercury lends
form to the unknown and
helps to shape the otherwise elusive language of human cognition
and consciousness.
The possibility
of actualizing creative, philosophical aspects of Mercury in a Transcendental
locale is exemplified by the prolific and visionary writings of
Jules Verne [with Secondary Transcendental Uranus]; the acclaimed
literary achievements of William Butler Yeats; the direct, simple
clarity of the novelist Jack London; and the “prodigal genius”
who gave intellectual form to an eclectic variety of ideas, Nikola
Tesla. In each of these examples, Mercury found a significant formal
expression in the world-at-large. Under the Transcendental location,
instead of haphazard or disjointed expressions of mental energy,
Mercury coalesces into forms that communicate knowledge, enhance
comprehension, and further the quest for greater understanding.
Personalities
with Primary Transcendental Mercury:
Catherine the Great
([with equally underaspected Uranus] Empress of Russia remembered
for her “educational” reforms, “eclectic intellectual
prowess,” and “notable intelligence, curiosity, and
wit,” who “frequently corresponded” with leading
French “intellectuals” and established “literary
reviews” in Russia); Claudette Colbert (born in Paris under
the line of her Primary Mercury, remembered for her “charismatic
/ voice” [Secondary Neptune / Primary Mercury] and for acting
in “smart” roles in which she easily “matched
wits” with Hollywood’s leading men); Peggy Fleming ([with
equally underaspected Venus] ice figure-skater acknowledged for
her “skillful / grace” [Mercury / Venus] and for the
personification of “beauty / in motion,” who won her
first gold medal in France, directly under her Primary Mercury line);
Grace Kelly ([with equally underaspected Jupiter/Uranus] actress
who traveled to the European locale of her Mercury line (over the
principality of Monaco), where she assumed her final role as Princess
of Monaco); Jack London (prolific author of numerous Klondike tales,
such as Call of the Wild
and White Fang,
whose Primary Mercury passes precisely over the Klondike in its
vertical, Transcendental Midheaven position); Jackie Robinson ([with
Secondary Transcendental Mars] athlete who relocated to his Primary
Mercury line early in life, where he “attended school”
and “learned the skills” necessary to participate in
a “variety” of athletic sports, who later “educated”
baseball fans about racism by becoming the first African American
to play in the major leagues); Bertrand Russell (Welsh “intellectual”
known for his “eclectic and prolific writings” and his
“advanced analytical skills”); Nikola Tesla (renowned
“intellectual” who once suffered a nervous breakdown
in an attempt to read the complete works of Voltaire; known as the
foremost “intellectual / of electricity” [Primary Mercury
/ Secondary Uranus], who immigrated to the U.S. and constructed
a laboratory in New York City, in close proximity to his Primary
Mercury); Jules Verne (whose prolific “writing” is filled
with prophetic insights [with Secondary Uranus] that anticipate
in “literary form” the scientific discoveries of the
future); Queen Victoria (whose “overly detailed concern”
with the “efficient handling” of the daily business
of the monarchy was said to interfere with the theatrical displays
of royalty required of her; whose “careful scrutiny of facts
and details” led critics to say she had “drill eyes”
and that she “insisted on consultation even over trivial details”;
who from 1832 to 1901 faithfully kept a dairy comprising 122 notebook
volumes; and whose prolific “correspondence” is contained
in over a dozen published volumes); Kaiser Wilhelm II (the last
emperor of Germany, born in Potsdam, Germany, near his Primary Mercury,
who was remembered for his imperialistic “speeches”);
William Butler Yeats (Nobel-prize-winning “writer” born
in Sandymount, Ireland, almost directly under his Primary Mercury
line).
* * *
Keynote
phrases for Mercury:
•The animating
energy behind forms of communication.
•Traditionally, Mercury is hermaphroditic and contains qualities
that derive from active (yang) and receptive (yin) energies. Mercury
unites these opposing tendencies, especially in the role of transmitting
(yang) and receiving (yin) information.
•Cognitive functions that determine communication and more
advanced intellectual abilities.
•Intellectual (rather than philosophic [Jupiter] or divinely
intuited [Uranus]) communication.
•The ability to learn and refine skills.
•Education, especially elementary education.
•The “automatic pilot” aspect of cognitive experience,
especially concerning the performance of tasks that rely on the
smooth functioning of previously learned motor skills.
•Physiological structures in the brain and nervous system
that facilitate communication.
•In Indian astrology, Mercury corresponds to “matters
pertaining to learning.”27
•The yin and yang functions of reception, comprehension, and
expression of information.
•Everything that facilitates communication and that leads
to an understanding of the self- and soul experience.
1. The Romans identified
Hermes with Mercury. See Jung, “Mercurius and Hermes,”
Alchemical Studies, pp.
230-234.
2. Jung, The Practice of Psychotherapy,
p. 204.
3. Kitab al-’ilm al-muktasab,
edited and translated by Eric J. Holmyard, as reproduced by Jung
in Mysterium Coniunctionis,
p. 9.
4. In the symbolism of the alchemical “heating” of the
emotional foundations of the soul, a similar meaning is at work:
a “turning on” and “turning up” of the emotions,
until they are sublimated and unified with spirit.
5. Gerhard Dorn, “Congeries Paracelsicae chemicae,”
Theatrum Chemicum, vol. 1, p. 578, as cited by Jung in Mysterium
Coniunctionis, p. 16.
6. Ibid.
7. “Gemini’s character is essentially that of the child
who always asks ‘Why?’” Alan Oken, As
Above, So Below, p. 109. (Gemini is one of the astrological
signs ruled by Mercury.)
8. See Jung, Mysterium Coniunctionis,
p. 5, n. 4: “Senior says: ‘I joined the two luminaries
in marriage and it became as water having two lights’ (De
chemia, p. 15 f.),” and p. 4: “The opposites and
their symbols are so common in the texts that it is superfluous
to cite evidence from the sources ... Very often the masculine-feminine
opposition is personified as King and Queen ... or as servus
(slave) or vir rubeus
(red man) and mulier candida
(white woman); in the “Visio Arislei” they appear as
... the King’s son and daughter.” In a footnote, Jung
adds: “The archetype of the heavenly marriage plays a great
role here.”
9. Mercury’s only significant aspect to the Sun is the conjunction
(as it is never more than 28 degrees from the Sun).
Regarding aspects
traditionally deemed significant, such as the conjunction (0), semisextile
(30), semisquare (45), sextile (60) etc.: technically, any angle
of separation between planets forms an aspect or degree, but relatively
few of these celestial degrees of separation are considered to be
of significance in the horoscope. (See my appendix B.)
10. Jung, Alchemical Studies,
“The Relation of Mercurius to Astrology and the Doctrine of
the Archons,” pp. 225-226.
11. Jung, Mysterium Coniunctionis
pp. 224-235.
12. Ibid., p. 97. Just as yin is characterized in the I Ching as
the “perfect complement of the creative–the complement,
not the opposite, for the Receptive does not combat the Creative
but completes it.”
13. Ibid., p. 131.
14. Ibid., p. 459, n. 16.
15. Jung, Psychology and Alchemy,
commenting on an illustration of the “Grand Peregrination,”
from Maier’s Viatorium:
“Two eagles fly round the earth in opposite directions, indicating
that it is an odyssey in search for wholeness.” F. 97, facing
p. 201.
16. Jung, Mysterium Coniunctionis,
pp. 470-471 (“in the mind of man” = my italics).
17. Gerhard Dorn, “Philosophia meditativa,” Theatrum
Chemicum, vol. 1, p. 456, as reproduced by Jung in Mysterium Coniunctionis, p. 465.
18. Jung, Mysterium Coniunctionis,
p. 474.
19. Ibid., pp. 470-471.
20. Jung, The Practice of
Psychotherapy, p. 218.
21. Ibid., p. 216.
22. Jung, Alchemical Studies,
“The Relation of Mercurius to Astrology and the Doctrine of
the Archons,” p. 228.
23. The role of Mercury as an agent of unification positioned between
the collectively oriented symbols of Saturn-Jupiter is intuitively
described in the alchemical texts: “Another aspect of the
dual nature of Mercurius is his characterization as senex
[Saturn] and puer” [Jupiter]. As a unifying force standing between the pairing
of Sun and Moon: “Mercurius is also designated with the Gnostic
name ‘Father-Mother’.” Ibid., “The Dual
Nature of Mercurius,” p. 220, 220, n. 39.
24. Ibid., “The Problem of Freeing Mercury,” pp. 202-203.
25. Ibid. See “The Relation of Mercurius to Astrology and
the Doctrine of the Archons,” p. 228.
26. We should note, however, that “foreign languages”
are traditionally assigned to the rulership of Neptune, as the
initial experience of encountering a new language is, indeed, a
“foreign,” dreamlike, strange, and disorienting experience.
27. Dreyer, Indian Astrology,
p. 90.
Additional
Mercury quotes:
All things follow from
the Word.
Seekers of wisdom first
need sound intelligence.
… we need the
Word
to keep things known in common.
(Heraclitus, trans. Brooks Haxton.)
One learns in teaching.
(Proverb.)
