Mercury goes combust when he is within 14deg of the Sun (12 deg when retrograde). He goes combust three times in a year for about 30 days at a time. In this current year, 2025 all the three combust Mercury cycles are in the first half of the year. This will have serious implications as all Mercury related things will remain unsettled and in a state of flux for the first half of the year, back to back.

He is going combust in the first cycle from 20 Jan – 22Feb. In this time he will be moving between the 23deg Sagittarius and 20 deg Aquarius. He will be transiting through 3 signs in this time. So things connected to Mercury will seem to move faster in this time. So open your birth chart and check the positions of Gemini, Leo, Virgo, Sagittarius, Capricorn and Aquarius. These aspects of your life will feel the heat, so be aware of what is going on here in your life. 

Mercury is the thinking process within your mind and the choice of action in your hands. When combust he makes you think selfishly. The signs involved are mainly Sagittarius, Capricorn and Aquarius. These signs are more linked to the collective rather than the individual. So expect the public to behave extremely illogically as a collective. A few selfish charismatic individuals will whip the public emotions up and then disruptions are possible. Especially the most illogical and irrational ‘religious logic’ will create mass hysteria and misbehaviour. This will challenge law and order on several levels, from the family to the nations. Some more nations will go bankrupt. ‘Financial war’ will escalate, the threats of ‘tariffs’ and ‘sanctions’ will be used often and often irrationally to satisfy the ego. Also I expect at least one major electronics or serious software related attack in this time.

On the negative side. The choices available to you may not be appropriate or create more problems. Or you might take rash decisions and then hasty actions. The spoken and written words both might cause confusion. This can manifest from mis-reading the question in your exam paper to making mistakes in your financial documents. Misunderstandings are possible. Students appearing for exams must be careful. Your mental processes, logic, analytical skills, understanding may be affected. And tempers may be short.

In the office, finance related figures should be double checked in this time. Read and understand important communications carefully. Papers or messages might get lost/ misplaced. And your electronic items like mobile, laptop, hard disks etc can get corrupted or damaged. You might get into arguments with your co-workers, team-mates as mis-communication coupled with short tempers can disrupt things. Gossip can spoil relations. For businessmen, take risks only after due precautions, as this Mercury may give unexpected expenditures in this time. 

At home, disagreements with siblings, friends, extended family are possible. So be careful of the advice you get from your seniors. Your elderly family members or your father may have some disagreements with you. Your boss may not agree with you or give you some typical projects. Your investments may not give the expected returns. Your public image may be affected in some way. Traveling will be tiring. If you need to travel, be prepared for delays. On the health front specifically, digestion can get affected. Headaches, skin rashes and allergies are possible. If you feel unwell, do take proper medical treatment, do not ignore symptoms.

On the positive side, your intelligence will be on fire, so your logical thinking may get you some good gains in this time. If you work in pure research or in languages, like coding and in software, you may get some unexpected breakthoughs. For spiritual aspirants this is a good time as your Vijnyanmaykosh might give you some rare insights which will help you on your journey. Some nations will make use of this energy to improve their standing in the global arena and especially strenghten their financial position.

For the remedies, On the behavioural side, think first on what can go wrong and accordingly modulate your behaviour. The power to think and the power to act both are temporarily affected for everyone. So always think before you speak. If you have your birth Mercury or Sun in an inauspicious position or your current Dasha/ transits are not favourable, you must take efforts to keep your mood light. Listen to relaxing music, Sanskrit shlokas, nature sounds. Keep yourself active. Avoid over-thinking. Go out for a walk, sit in the fresh air. Try to keep a regular schedule, eat, sleep on time. Read light-hearted books or see happy romantic movies if you feel like it. And avoid talking about controversial issues or politics or getting into illogical arguments. 

The ‘Sun-energy’ in the sky, during these days, is not the pure Sun as he usually is. He is going to be a blend of Mercury and Sun. So the best way of balancing this composite-Sun’s energies during this period is to offer mantra energised water called an ‘Arghya’ to the newly risen Sun. Try to do some mantra for the Sun and Mercury during this time, it will help you. Or offer some Daana for these two planets at the Navagraha temple. Do these remedies from the Bruhat Parashr Hora Shastra on the day Mercury goes combust and on the days the Sun or Mercury transit into the next signs. Use Jyotish, the timeless wisdom of our Maha Rishis to live your life in a balanced way.

Dr. Tejaswini Arvind Patil