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Graha
Budha (Mercury)
Mercury is intellect and speech — how you think, learn, calculate and communicate. Quick, adaptable and a little neutral, it takes the colour of whatever planet it sits with.
| Signifies | Intellect, speech, commerce, learning, skin and nervous system |
|---|---|
| Rules | Gemini (Mithuna) & Virgo (Kanya) |
| Exalted | Virgo |
| Debilitated | Pisces |
| Day | Wednesday |
| Gemstone | Emerald (Panna) |
What Mercury signifies
Mercury is buddhi in its quick, verbal form: reasoning, wit, memory, and the skill of putting things into words and numbers. It governs students, traders, writers and analysts, the hands and skin, and the nervous system's restless speed. It is the youngest and most impressionable of the grahas.
Strong Mercury, afflicted Mercury
A strong Mercury gives clear thought, easy speech, and a head for detail and business — and joined to a strong Sun forms the classic Budha-Aditya Yoga of intelligence. Afflicted, it can scatter into nervousness, glibness, or trouble with study and communication. Mercury takes on the nature of its companions, so its company matters.
Traditional remedies
Mercury is honoured on Wednesdays: study and teaching, green offerings, the Budha mantra, and — on advice — an emerald. Its behavioural remedy is honest, precise speech and steady learning; Mercury rewards the mind that is used well.
Common questions
What does Mercury represent in Vedic astrology?
Intellect, communication, learning and commerce. It rules Gemini and Virgo, is exalted in Virgo, and is weakest in Pisces.
Why does Mercury change character in different charts?
Mercury is neutral and adaptable — it takes on the qualities of the planet it sits with, so the same Mercury reads very differently beside Jupiter than beside Saturn or a node.