We Asked People What the First Mercury Retrograde of the Decade Means to Them

For as long as humans have walked the earth, we have looked to the stars for answers, hoping for some cosmic sense to prevail over our everyday struggles. Is there a larger reason behind why I forgot to plug in my charger last night? Could the stars have predicted the traffuck on the highway this morning? Is there any way to be prepared and prevent the impending doom waiting for me at the other end of a weekend filled with too much wine?

From the woes of one-side lovers who can't get a text back to being in the throes of a financial setback to wondering if it's a good day to take a big risk, astrology is often the place people turn to when they want to stop and make a quick check-in on their luck and fortunes.

In recent times, the beloved pseudoscience has gained immense popularity, with millennials and Gen Z taking to it in big numbers—spawning everything from memes to TV series. And one of the most popular outcomes of this renaissance is seeing increasingly more people believing it’s the Mercury retrograde—a phenomenon that gets a bad rap—that’s responsible for a picture of their ex popping up on their feed.

The world’s most infamous planetary movement, the first Mercury retrograde of the year, began yesterday and runs through till March 9—with the planet doing a peculiar thing as it makes its way across the evening sky, appearing to move backwards from east to west. We took the opportunity to ask some young people about what the retrograde means to them, whether they actually believe in it, and what they're doing to prep for it.

I started getting into astrology as a fun and interesting thing to read about when I was bored, but then I realised how in-depth it actually goes. I don't think astrology is a perfect science, but it is something to believe in and find patterns in. I never really related to organised religion so astrology is kind of like my source of spirituality. As for the Mercury retrograde, I think it affects us as much as we let it. Though, I can't stop myself from being a little superstitious and I do find myself being more careful with what I say or do during the retrograde.

It's a simple, low-cost pastime that lets you feel like there's someone looking out and charting your day for you and/or you have some idea of how your otherwise unpredictable day will turn out. I don't know too much about the Mercury retrograde—except that in 1994, Ronald Weasley was about to lose a treasured possession because of it. #ifyouknowyouknow.

I think astrology has a science to it that people don't fully grasp yet. I like it because there have been times I’ve felt like there’s a higher power guiding and working towards my benefit and I’m not going to bash it based on the fact that I don’t fully understand it. As for the Mercury retrograde, I hear it’s the ruling planet for communication and technology. Last year, I broke my phone, got into an accident and had many verbal spats with people when it happened. This time around, just to be careful, I'll be staying grounded. And hydrated.

I don't believe in astrology simply because the constellations have shifted so much over the years. The month in which the Sun passed through cancer, when the charts were laid out, doesn't happen at the same time of year anymore. As for this retrograde thing, it just means the planet is moving relative to the earth in the solar system, making an 8 symbol in the sky. Just like all planets do.

The universe is a vast, vast space. The placement of the planets in our galaxy has an effect on nature. Since we are a part of nature too, the planetary movements and placements, according to me, do affect us as well. It helps me to be careful about certain situations and also tells me that there is a balance in the universe about both good and bad times existing. As for the retrograde, well, things can't get any worse than they already are, can they?

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