Planetary transits
Mercury (Budha) transit 2026–2028
Mercury is quick: a sign in two to three weeks, and three retrograde periods a year, each about three weeks long.
Times in UTC.
14 October 2026: Mercury is in Libra; next change of sign: 2 December 2026.
Signs Mercury passes through, 2026–2028
Mercury: sign changes and turns, 2026–2028
| Date and time | Event |
|---|---|
| Enters Capricorn | |
| Enters Aquarius | |
| Turns retrograde in Aquarius | |
| Turns direct in Aquarius | |
| Enters Pisces | |
| Enters Aries | |
| Enters Taurus | |
| Enters Gemini | |
| Enters Cancer | |
| Turns retrograde in Cancer | |
| Enters Gemini | |
| Turns direct in Gemini | |
| Enters Cancer | |
| Enters Leo | |
| Enters Virgo | |
| Enters Libra | |
| Turns retrograde in Libra | |
| Turns direct in Libra | |
| Enters Scorpio | |
| Enters Sagittarius | |
| Enters Capricorn | |
| Enters Aquarius | |
| Turns retrograde in Aquarius | |
| Enters Capricorn | |
| Turns direct in Capricorn | |
| Enters Aquarius | |
| Enters Pisces | |
| Enters Aries | |
| Enters Taurus | |
| Enters Gemini | |
| Turns retrograde in Gemini | |
| Turns direct in Gemini | |
| Enters Cancer | |
| Enters Leo | |
| Enters Virgo | |
| Enters Libra | |
| Turns retrograde in Libra | |
| Enters Virgo | |
| Turns direct in Virgo | |
| Enters Libra | |
| Enters Scorpio | |
| Enters Sagittarius | |
| Enters Capricorn | |
| Turns retrograde in Capricorn | |
| Turns direct in Capricorn | |
| Enters Aquarius | |
| Enters Pisces | |
| Enters Aries | |
| Enters Taurus | |
| Turns retrograde in Taurus | |
| Turns direct in Taurus | |
| Enters Gemini | |
| Enters Cancer | |
| Enters Leo | |
| Enters Virgo | |
| Turns retrograde in Virgo | |
| Turns direct in Virgo | |
| Enters Libra | |
| Enters Scorpio | |
| Enters Sagittarius | |
| Enters Capricorn |
Mercury: combustion periods
The periods in which the graha stands within the classical limit of the Sun (combust, asta): the degrees of the BPHS table, the same rule as in the charts. Sites that print the visibility-based “asta” of the almanacs show other dates.
| From | Until |
|---|---|
Written for 14 October 2026; the line at the top is recalculated for your own day. Dates follow the engine of our charts: sidereal (Lahiri), apparent positions; Rahu and Ketu by the mean node first, then the true node. Other sites can differ by minutes, for Jupiter and Saturn by up to about an hour; more.
What Mercury stands for
In the Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra Mercury is the giver of speech (ch. 3, sl. 12–13) and the prince of the planetary court (sl. 14–15); by general convention it is also the graha of learning, trade and travel. Its transit points to the area of the chart where, by that reading, speech and thought are occupied; it does not predict how conversations will go.
Retrograde Mercury and combustion
Three times a year Mercury appears to move backwards for about three weeks. In the classical measure a retrograde graha counts as strong in motion (BPHS ch. 27, sl. 21–23); the popular advice to re-read, back up and double-check during “Mercury retrograde” is a modern practical convention, not a classical rule, and it forbids nothing. Mercury is never more than about 28° from the Sun, so it is combust very often; the periods are listed in the table. The graha is described on the Mercury page.
How we calculate and verify
Positions come from the same engine as the charts in JyotiSoft: sidereal zodiac, Lahiri ayanamsha, apparent positions (as the Indian Astronomical Ephemeris and Drik Panchang; since 14 October 2026), moments to the minute, stored in UTC. Rahu and Ketu are given by the mean node first, the date most calendars print, and by the true node that our charts use.
- Checked against independent sources. Every sign change and every retrograde or direct turn is compared, in automated tests that fail the build on a mismatch, with the published tables of Drik Panchang (New Delhi, Lahiri); eclipses with the NASA GSFC catalogue; tithi and Ekadashi with Drik Panchang. Drik's Lahiri runs a few arcseconds ahead of the standard one of the Indian ephemeris, so its moments are later than ours by about 3 minutes for the Sun and up to an hour for Jupiter and Saturn, more when they move slowly; the tests model exactly that difference and allow nothing more. Last cross-check: 14 October 2026.
- What follows the classical texts. What a graha signifies and which are benefic or malefic: Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra, ch. 3 sl. 12–15, ch. 32 sl. 18–21, ch. 34 sl. 8–10 and 16; combustion limits: BPHS ch. 7 (table of degrees in the translator's note; our charts use it as printed, Saturn 16° in direct and retrograde motion alike); strength of a retrograde graha: BPHS ch. 27 sl. 21–23; transits counted from the Moon sign: Phaladeepika ch. 26, the Ashtakavarga method: BPHS ch. 66. Chapters and verses follow R. Santhanam's English edition.
- What does not. Sade Sati, Guru Peyarchi and the sankranti festivals are later or regional traditions. Practical readings such as “Mercury retrograde, a time to review” are modern conventions. We mark them as such.
How the site's texts are written and checked
Questions
Is Mercury retrograde bad?
Why is Mercury combust so often?
When does Mercury change sign?
Is Mercury retrograde?
How long does Mercury stay in a sign?
See also
- Mars (Mangala) transit
- Jupiter (Guru) transit
- Horoscope 2027
- Planetary transits 2027
- Planetary transits
- Ekadashi 2027
- Hindu festivals 2026–2027
- Wedding
- Moving into a home
- Buying a car
- Buying property
- 2026 or 2027 for a wedding?
- Purnima and Amavasya 2027
- Eclipses of 2027
- Annular solar eclipse, 6 February 2027
- Jupiter back in Cancer, January – June 2027
- Saturn in Aries 2027
- Mars retrograde, January – April 2027
- Mercury retrograde, February – March 2027
Positions and tables: sidereal zodiac, Lahiri ayanamsha — the same as professional Jyotish astrologers use, and the same calculation as the charts in JyotiSoft. Updated 2026-10-14.
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