Mercury in Leo

Speech is where Lilly 1659 and the solar portrait meet. His well-placed Sun speaks deliberately and in few words, and his well-placed Mercury argues with learning and much eloquence. A Mercury in the Sun's only house sets those two manners of speaking side by side.

Ptolemy (Ashmand's 1822 translation) files Leo under fixed signs, whose influence on the mind he describes as resolute, strict and eager for honor. He also ties Mercury closely to the Sun, since the planet never gets beyond a single sign away. When Mercury travels very near the Sun, Lilly's word is combust, which means only that the planet lies close enough to be lost in the Sun's light.

Lilly's tables mark degrees 7 to 13 as Mercury's terms in Leo. Modern astrology calls this placement a dramatic communicator, a phrase built from the sign's reputation, and no older author read for this site has a line on it.