The week of an eclipse…

Dear Friend and Reader:

We are now in the last four days leading up to a total solar eclipse. It is more important to pay attention to your life than to astrology. As I’ve mentioned a few times before, in recent decades solar eclipses in Leo are pretty rare. Leo is the sign of the Sun, and this is an eclipse of the Sun. The message here is: it’s not about astrology, it’s about self.

If you look up eclipses in the Dictionary of Astrology by Alan Leo, it’s a little like reading from the Book of Revelation. They are associated with pestilences, earthquakes, toil on the king, hard times for animals, earthquakes, floods, running out of coffee on a Monday morning and everything else gone wrong. One gets the impression that eclipses are a good time to be away from the Solar System.

In actual fact, decent astrologers all learn respect for eclipses, and teach that respect to those who follow their work. Some learn it the easy way, some learn it the hard way, but upon commencing the study of astrology, eclipses soon reveal their unparalleled influence. We learn to respect them like small children who grow up by the ocean are taught to respect waves and water. Swallow a few good gulps of salt or get knocked into an undertow and the sea becomes a god that one treats tentatively. To my thinking, astrology is as basic as a sea captain or navigator learning the respect for weather, tides and magnetic forces that guides a safe passage. Few people would argue with a hurricane. Eclipses are natural events with natural results, and, as it happens, we are moving through their neighborhood right at the moment.

Eclipses work on three levels, broadly speaking. The first is personal. The second is collective. The third is where the personal and the collective intersect.

In personal terms, modern astrologers have begun to see the light on eclipses, if you ask me. In newspaper horoscope columns, they are generally described as moments of opportunity, times of peak intensity and critical juncture points. All this is true, though one could argue it’s a matter of perception. Do you congratulate someone when they lose their job, because they get to discover who they are, collecting unemployment for six months or a year? What do you say when a horrid relationship ‘suddenly’ falls apart? What do you say to a tidal wave?

The perception of an astrologer can be a significant influence on the lives of people who encounter their interpretations. Even if it goes no further than self-fulfilling prophesy, astrologers owe it to the world to rise above fears and superstitions and allow faith and reason to carry their work.

And I see it happening. The more consciously eclipses are handled, the less they are inclined to do damage and the more they are inclined to give us a push in the right direction.

Here is an overview of the week’s aspects. Let’s see if we can get a sense of just what direction that is.

Yours & truly,

27 Sunday: Moon entered Gemini 11:55 am EDT. Mercury enters Leo. Mercury trines Hylonome retrograde in Sagittarius.

28 Monday: Ceres in Capricorn sextile Logos in Virgo. Do you think about what you eat, or do you just eat it? When was the last time you read a food package?

Eros in Leo trines Ixion (retrograde) in Sagittarius. Eros also opposes Nessus retrograde in Aquarius. Eros squares Psyche in Scorpio. Venus in Leo opposes Chiron (retrograde) in Aquarius. This aspect set, all involving Eros and Venus, presents compelling evidence that we need to look at the power of sexuality in our lives.

Genevieve Salerno writes, “It’s hard to believe that a power as procreative as Eros could possibly have a downside. But it’s true that often times, we are capable of inflicting damage on those that we feel love for, by mistaking control and manipulation for love. Today a wound that is either not addressed or unhealed is likely to manifest itself in your actions. Use this energy to become aware of the struggle. Knowing how you love, and why you love, is as important for Eros as knowing where your food comes from for Ceres.”

29 Tuesday: Moon enters Cancer 1:12 pm EDT. Leo Sun conjoins Mercury, marking the midpoint between Mercury sesquiquintile Uranus (retrograde) in Pisces. Juno trines Eros.

30 Wednesday: Sun sesquiquadrare Uranus. Venus trines Eris (retrograde) in Aries. Leo Mercury squares Vesta in Taurus. Ceres in Capricorn sextiles Sedna in Taurus. Now is the time to heal the bridge between ourselves and the Earth, and our ourselves to ourselves. We cannot afford to live fragmented lives, where we do not acknowledge, name or engage specific parts of our being, and still expect to live in a good relationship with the Earth.

31 Thursday: Moon enters Leo 2:22 pm EDT, beginning the dark of the Moon. Venus opposite Neptune retrograde Aquarius.

1 Friday: SOLAR ECLIPSE 6:13 am EDT. Moon occults Mercury; this is a second eclipse. Venus trines 1992 QB1. Ceres in Cancer trines Uranus in Pisces (retrograde).

2 Saturday: Moon enters Virgo 4:59 pm EDT. Mercury sesquiquadrate Pluto.

3 Sunday: Eros conjoins Elatus, asking: where does desire lead you? Mercury trines a retrograde Quaoar in Sagittarius. Venus trines the Galactic Center. According to different sources, Elatus was a centaur who tried to flee Hercules’ rain of arrows during the Pholus episode. Today’s aspects reflect a desire to dance to the beat of your own drummer. Make no mistake that the consequences of such an action will be a kind of social alienation. But this should come as a welcome blessing to those who are desperately in need of some quiet time, away from their social obligations, to learn who they really are.

Today’s Oracle takes us to Mar 01, 1999 – LIBRA – Monthly

Every now and then I get the idea that my paranoia will kill me before anything else does, and lately my No. 1 spiritual project has been learning to feel safe, protected, loved and fearless. This is not always easy, and I have to remember to wake up at the very times when I am the most asleep, and of course, in those moments, I have my doubts that I’m not courting danger just by feeling so safe and protected. If you’re feeling a new sense of security entering your life, pay attention; it may not be the care-free confidence you expected, but it may be a very bold safety; a kind of aggressive serenity; an understanding that this is all a gamble anyway, and you’ve got to bet on yourself, or bet against yourself, and then let the game of life happen. Where are you going to lay down those chips?

Monday 28 July 2008

Vesta (8+ Taurus) conjunct Asbolus (8+ Taurus)
Mercury (3+ Leo) quintile Sedna (21+ Taurus)
Ceres (20+ Cancer) sextile Logos (20+ Virgo)
Sisyphus (14+ Libra) sextile Juno (14+ Sagittarius Rx)
Eros (12+ Leo) trine Ixion (12+ Sagittarius Rx)
Nessus (12+ Aquarius Rx) sesquiquadrate Hades (27+ Gemini)
Mercury (3+ Leo) sextile Amor (3+ Gemini)
Sun (5+ Leo) square Chariklo (5+ Scorpio)
Venus (19+ Leo) opposite Chiron (19+ Aquarius Rx)
Orcus (28+ Leo) trine Pluto (28+ Sagittarius Rx)
Arachne (12+ Libra) sesquiquadrate Pallas (27+ Taurus)
Eros (12+ Leo) opposite Nessus (12+ Aquarius Rx)
Eros (12+ Leo) semisquare Hades (27+ Gemini)
Venus (19+ Leo) septile Hades (27+ Gemini)
Venus (19+ Leo) semisquare Kronos (4+ Cancer)
Apollo (25+ Leo) septile Kronos (4+ Cancer)
Mars (16+ Virgo) quintile Kronos (4+ Cancer)
Mercury (5+ Leo) semisquare Logos (20+ Virgo)
Eros (13+ Leo) square Psyche (13+ Scorpio)