Hermetica Triptycha: The Mercury Elemental Year, with Ephemerides 1925-2050 Paperback – Illustrated, September 12, 2017

This book is an excellent and concise guide that dives deep into Mercury retrograde periods. If you’ve ever struggled while Mercury was retrograde, Gary Caton’s book “Hermetica Triptycha” can help you to understand how these periods are working in your birth chart and in your life. After reading this book, you will be on the path to using Mercury retrograde periods productively for personal growth and transformation, with the book serving as a useful companion to be referenced during these periods. I highly recommend this book to people with an interest in astrology, magic, or alchemy.The book begins by examining the astronomy of Mercury’s cycle with the sun, paying special attention to three events: the maximum elongation of Mercury from the sun as an evening star, the inferior conjunction with the sun that occurs while Mercury is retrograde, and the maximum elongation of Mercury as a morning star. The three events occur in an approximately 40-day period and interestingly all three events occur in the same degrees of the zodiac – a triple alignment. My favorite chapter of the book teaches the reader how to use these triple alignments as opportunities for personal transformation using the three classic phases of alchemy – nigredo, albedo, and rubedo. The ephemeris in the back is extremely useful for working with these periods as it lists the dates and the zodiacal degrees of these triple alignments, as well as any fixed stars in those degrees. With three retrograde periods a year, I keep this book easily available for quick reference.Subsequent retrograde periods occur in subsequent signs of the same element for 1-2 years before transitioning into the signs of a different element. A chapter of the book examines what this means in a natal chart by examining what houses and element(s) the pre-natal and post-natal inferior conjunctions are found in. The section includes over 144 concise chart examples. Every 6-7 years, the retrograde periods return to the element that they were in at birth. This 6-7 year cycle is examined as the “long-form” of Mercury’s transformational journey. The author provides insight for personal development as the Mercury Elemental Year transforms from fire to water to air to earth and back again to fire. In addition, every 79 years the triple alignments of Mercury’s retrograde period return to the very same degree they occurred in during the retrograde period 79 years prior. In the last chapter of the book, the author examines how transformation occurs through 6-7 year periods in a lifetime of 79 years.The author’s wisdom and knowledge of the subjects of astrology, alchemy, and magic make “Hermetica Triptycha” stand out to me as one of my favorite astrology books. In the last 6 months that I’ve owned the book, I have already read the book twice and I’ve referenced it repeatedly. The book stimulated me to further research alchemy, as well as some of the subjects referred to by the author in the detailed note section of the book. As an outstanding contribution to astrology, “Hermetica Triptcha” will have a welcome place on my bookshelf for many elemental years to come.

It took me a couple of weeks to get through this book, though when I got it in the mail it struck me as a thinner volume than I expected. Never mind the size, it is monumental.It’s true that I am not much into shamanistic astrology or ancient hermetic treatments of life, hence my difficulty in getting through some of the last chapter, but I think I am pretty into it now. If you have or have not read up on these subjects, don’t worry. Also, if you have not a lot of astrological study you can still benefit from the basic tenets in the book, and apply the suggestions for the hermetic work. The Mercury ephemeris at the back of the book alone is very valuable. I think you will not find one anywhere else, and it would be very tedious to make one from a regular astrological ephemeris.Caton’s humility becomes evident with his broad approach and his patience with studying the Mercury cycles, astronomy in general, and photographing Mercury in the sky (unfortunately no beautiful photos in the book). He also does not have a photo of himself with a snap-bio in the front or back of the book (I would have done that if it was me!). His message of hope that we all become familiar with the “transpersonal” attributes of the synodic cycles of inner planets, including the Sun and Moon, is truly a beautiful wish for a wiser and more contemplative human race. He did not write this book for self-glorification, though he has spent years studying this.My reading of this book came at a perfect time for me to appreciate the magnitude of these findings. I had just experienced a re-connection with a younger brother whom I had felt very close to as a child. My brother is 6 ½ years younger than me, born with a retrograde Mercury in an earth element. At that time, it was my first return to the earth element trigon of my birth year. I never knew this before, never even thought of the possibility of it making any difference. Everyone has 12 of these returns within a 79- year period of our life, when Mercury returns to the exact degree of the Sun-Mercury conjunction just prior to our birth. Fascinating! Amazing! If you don’t know what I am talking about (and I bet you don’t), get the book and read it.It is difficult to be concise in this review because there is so much that is presented in the book which ties it all together. As Gary himself has said, it is a book which can be read repeatedly and referred to over time. He is a brilliant writer and a thorough thinker, and I am sure that he will be recognized for his pioneer work.

More than a book about mercury retrograde, this book shows us how much mercury, in all of his processes, is in the midst of our endeavors.If you are reasonably well learned in astrology, this book will certainly contain priceless insights for you, and a useful ephemeris.With the help of this ephemeris, and a knowledge of my houses, it is not difficult to consider what I was up to during each elemental year of mercury, as the author aptly terms it.Even if you do not share the authors picture of the universe, or what I may generally call a cosmology of power (I am a Christian), he is very careful to establish his research into Mercury on firm principle insights into manifest harmonies. The book does not contain the scope to deal with much of the theological implications, or the alchemical implications. yes, it is good to exercise discernment between what we can clearly know, because we have experienced it (in the fullest sense of knowledge-as-wisdom), and what what must remain for us only speculation, for the moment. And it is as the author says, with mercury transit, we must, as an individual, filter out what is right and wrong, so to speak, and project that out into the collective. This is quite clear, in that at the time of writing, mercury is direct, moving through his time in Aquarius, for this air elemental mercury year.In short, there is much wisdom in the pages of this book. I recommend it to the discerning, if you are patient and desire a fuller picture of astrology. If you are looking for an entire system of astrology, or a book about Mercury retrograde, you may be disappointed with your purchase.Thank you Gary for this considered work.

I love this book! I haven't even finished it yet and it had been blowing my mind. I love the perspective of Gary in integrating the sky placement and movement of mercury.I am excited for book 2!