Budh (Mercury) in Jyotish: intellect and speech
Budha (Mercury) is the graha of intellect, speech and commerce, and is the karaka of communication and learning.
What it is
Mercury owns Mithuna and Kanya, is exalted in Kanya, and is debilitated in Meena. It takes its colour from the planets it is with, which is why Mercury is called neutral in the Parashari scheme. Its dasha lasts 17 years.
How it is worked out or read
Mercury is never more than 28 degrees from the Sun, so it is always close to the Sun in the sky. It can be combust (asta) when near the Sun, and it can retrograde.
Where it appears on this site
Mercury is shown in the birth chart. The combustion article explains what asta means.
Mercury's character
Mercury is the graha of intellect, speech, writing and trade, and the karaka of learning and communication. It rules Mithuna and Kanya, is exalted in Kanya at 15 degrees and debilitated in Meena. Mercury is unusual because it takes its character from the planets it is with. Alone, it is read as analytical and quick; with benefics, as clear and skilful; with malefics, as anxious or sharp. The texts describe it as neutral in its own nature, which explains why its reading depends so much on company.
Mercury near the Sun
Mercury never moves more than about 28 degrees from the Sun, so it is often close to the Sun in the sky and in the chart. It is then combust, which weakens it in the classical view. It can also retrograde, which the texts sometimes read as a change in the manner of its expression. A reader who finds Mercury near the Sun should check its exact distance and its retrograde status before drawing a conclusion.
Mercury in the chart
A Mercury placement is read through its sign, its house and the grahas it shares a sign with. Mercury's dasha lasts seventeen years, and it rules the nakshatras Ashlesha, Jyeshtha and Revati in the Vimshottari order. A reader who wants to see Mercury in action can look at its house and at the houses of its signs, Mithuna and Kanya, since the lord of each sign is read with the house it occupies.
Mercury and the written word
Mercury is the karaka of writing, calculation and contracts, and a reader may look at it when the subject is a document, an examination or a negotiation. Its sign and house show how the mind handles the written word, and its dignity shows how steadily that work is done. The reading remains a description of tendencies, and the chart's other factors shape how Mercury's themes show up in a life.
Mercury and the quick mind
Mercury's quickness is one of its most noted traits, and a reader may describe it as a mind that moves fast between ideas, sometimes with brilliance and sometimes with restlessness. The reader can check the strength of Mercury's position to see whether that quickness is steady or scattered in the chart.