Hello tribe! long time no post!
mercury just doesn't do it for me anymore. having dug a deeper well in astrology, i am personally finding that vesta is a far more accurate ruler of virgo. astroids just aren't looked upon as "significant heavenly bodies" but they are. actually, pluto, if it were discovered today would not be considered a planet, it would be called as astroid as the qualifications for what we call a "planet" has changed over the years.

that being said- this heavenly body called vesta symbolizes where in life a person can experience a profound sense of selfless dedication, commitment and purpose. vesta relates to a sacred flame that we protect. (vesta was the goddess of the hearth- the protector of the heart- relates to the temple dancers that sought to reach perfection of body and relationship and dedicated themselves purely to the gods)

virgo is where consciousness seeks self accuracy. it is the intent to embody perfection and purity of self/action/intention. integrity, honesty, reliability, hard working, committed are all key words for virgo- and that correlates directly to vesta.

I find mercury, as it relates to the functioning of the left brain, how one learns and how one proceesess/ communicates information relates to virgo only in the sense that it is detail oriented and exacting. but it fails to speak to the integrity, dedication, selfless facets of virgo.
mercury works really really well for gemini! let me tell you! id love to hear what ya'll have to say about this. look at your chart and find vesta and mercury (you'd have to go to astro.com and click on "extended chart selection" to locate vesta on your chart) and see which planet holds more true as a ruler to your rising sign.

a way to discover that is by envisioning your rising sign energy as a car. the placement of it's ruling planet will be the instruction manual and the tools that help the car run. that placement will give you a more specific sense of "how your rising sign operates, how it is more authentically accessed"

for me:
virgo rising. mercury in sag in the 4th house. if mercury is the ruler of virgo, then i would look at my chart and say, "my ability to individuate myself as dedicated, selfless and committed to a purpose i see as higher than myself (virgo) is experienced and accessed by/through the search and teaching of truth within my tribe/ my home/ safe nurturing spaces (mercury in sag in 4th house).
now of course that will feel true to a certain extent because my mercury is in sag in the 4th house- but the question i ahve to ask myself is: Is that experience where i truly embody a high level of commitment and dedication and purpose?

If i look at vesta. its in opposition to my mercury in gemini in the 10th house. this would be interpreted as: "my ability to indiviuate myself as dedicated, selfless and committed to a purpose i see as higher than myself is experienced by/though/as collecting data, experiencing myself in my enviroment and then utilizing many talents, skills and abilities to communicate it (gemini) in my career/the role i take on in the world (10th house).
i personally find that to be very true- and indeed, i have been moving more into the role of an astrologer/guide for others and i have been experiencing a profound sense of dedication and purpose in this work. most importantly, through this work i find i am more and more experiencing myself as a virgo!