You will enter a four-week stretch featuring three eclipses beginning with the Scorpio Full Moon and lunar eclipse at about 4 pm EDT on Thursday. If experience and astrology bear out, the last days of May will find you have come further, and through more, than would be expected of a month-long period. As with any long journey, a good start will serve you well.
A good first step is understanding eclipses.
Eclipses normally take place in pairs, twice a year. A lunar eclipse at a Full Moon typically follows, or is followed by, a complementary solar eclipse during a New Moon two weeks later.
They occur twice a year because that is nearly always how often the Sun is close to one of the perpetually opposed and slow-moving lunar nodes.
They occur in pairs because the Sun usually remains close enough to a given node during the two weeks between the full and new lunar phases for two eclipses to take place, two weeks apart.
The Sun and Moon do not follow the same path through the sky as viewed from Earth. Nor do Earth and Moon follow the same orbital planes through space (as viewed from outer space). In either case, paths or planes, there are two points of intersection. Those are the lunar nodes, the essential ingredient of eclipses. When the Sun appears near one of those intersections from our point of view, or on the zodiac, the first requirement of an eclipse is met.
The second requirement is for the Moon to come around to either the opposing intersection (for a Full Moon and lunar eclipse) or the same intersection occupied by the Sun (for a New Moon and solar eclipse). Every couple years, the timing with the nodes allows a full lunar orbit to be completed with a third eclipse of the same kind that started the cycle. A third eclipse doubles the time between the beginning and end of the eclipse cycle from two weeks to four. That is what you are about to enter.
Enter, because you cannot help but be involved. When the luminaries (Sun and Moon) line up with the nodes, the Earth is lined up as well. For a lunar eclipse, Earth’s place is the same as with every Full Moon — between the luminaries, but precisely enough so that our planet casts a shadow on the lunar surface, darkening the Full Moon (or at least part of it) from a shiny silver to a ruddy buff.
Many of us will not see Thursday’s lunar eclipse, but all of us will go across the threshold it represents together as one. It will be the door into a place and period characterized by all the things that eclipses represent in the real world — crossroads, alignments and shadow, coming together in space-time as they seldom do, for longer than they usually do.
Whatever the course of your life, the impending eclipse cycle will almost certainly move you further along your path and through a greater number of experiences than you would tend to have in four weeks. That can be a good thing if you build on the awareness of what you are about to participate in by aligning your purpose with the circumstances.
Think of it as sticking your thumb out to relieve your walk down a highway. Or climbing into a canoe after a long portage. It will be a different experience, requiring different skills, and providing a whole set of benefits all its own.
Your life will almost certainly move faster, and you probably will encounter more than expected between April 25 and May 25. Nevertheless, there is nothing about the circumstance that will require fear. That includes any form of shadow that goes with the process, which will only serve to distinguish your part in a greater alignment. The only requirements are awareness of what you are getting into, a knowledge of where you want to go, and an idea of what you want to do when you get there.
So, come further with the Cosmos than you could unawares, and come through as more a part of it than ever before. Have your itinerary ready and your head about you by Thursday. Your life is about to become a ride.
Offered In Service
Len is available for astrology readings. You can contact him at lenwallick [at] gmail [dot] com.
Excellent your explanation of Eclipses which was very strong on 25 April on my full moon axis but non I do I’m not transformed into werewolf, good Weekend to all 🙂
Thanks, Len, and I’ll take your assessment of Mars overcompensating. I said no significant aspects, then remembered the square Venus and Chiron in Aquarius. What’s happening now is the Eclipse etc so close to natal Mars is shining a spotlight. I can look at him and say, Where have you been all my life. I am ready to see. Saturn in opposition is saying: LOOK. Not a conflict but a challenge, a calling out. It may be hard for me. It’s what I resist, and I know it’s time to work it. The pay off is huge. Thanks for the attention and the overall reading of this astrology.
Be LOVE your family story. Most of my family story is playing out in my head as I step up and out with new ventures. I’ll take your “family constellation” to heart for the mostly imaginary voices of those long dead.
susyc: My heart goes out to support you and your spouse in your loving quest for healing. You are both a great inspiration to me.
Mia: Thank you for your kind, supportive suggestions for susyc.
be: Thank you for filling the lunar eclipse picture in with the developmental status of this year’s grand water trine and the attending sextile aspects taking place against the long term, continuous background of Uranus and Pluto in cardinal square, all adroitly placed in the experiential context you have provided. Your advice is wise and worthy of being heeded.
Hi Len,
Thanks so much for reminding us to stay aware during these next few weeks as it is so easy to get caught up with the onslaught of these “greater number of experiences”. Like most of your readers here, this eclipse finds me dealing with family issues, or should I say family values? Even family SHARED VALUES might be more to the point. Should one’s awareness wander too far from the subjects of those shared values it could cost one precious time in backtracking. Focus might be the watchword for a couple of weeks and so it isn’t surprising that the Lunar Eclipse in Scorpio has Vesta, symbol of focus, at 0 Cancer, the sign of family on the cosmic crossroad – the Aries Degree Part Two.
In fact, Vesta has for company Ceres, at 6+ Cancer, another symbol for family and what does Ceres care about? Well, nurturing for one thing, and how does your garden grow for another. How divine that during this new growing season she’s trines the Moon at 5+ Scorpio, and nothing says family any more than the Moon. Her tight relationship with Saturn this trip sounds like serious business too. He must be mulling over some business that relates to family matters (likely shared). Still, there’s that “letting go” business that needs to be tended to by everyone in the family. Saturn can be so harsh (or so he seems sometimes) it could be a real downer, but wait! Isn’t that Neptune at 4+ Pisces in the same mode of operation as Vesta-Ceres and Saturn-Moon?
Well, bless my heart, it IS Neptune in the 3rd water sign, and not only does he trine Vesta+Ceres+Moon+Saturn, he also sextiles the Sun and Mars in Taurus. Well, okay then, Saturn (and everyone else) can relax a little now that the friction factor has been reduced.
That’s a good thing because the friction will likely be between Pallas-Athene (she who comes up will all the great plans) and she is square Juno. ‘Aunt’ Juno has never been quite straight with the relationship with her ‘niece’ Athene, what with that story of hers about not having a mother, just a dad, and she’s the apple of his eye for sure.
But Pallas-Athene has business to discuss herself. She’s conjunct Venus in Taurus (who holds the family purse strings) and Pallas-Athene does have a plan. Note that she is trine Pluto in Cap at this time and sextile Chiron in Pisces. The whole family might not get the whole picture right away though. That 3rd eclipse in this series, the one where the Moon will be in Sagittarius? In that chart Pallas-Athene is still in Taurus, but this time she’s conjunct Mars, so there’s the Aries angle to consider, such as Uranus at 11 Aries will be square Pluto at 11 Capricorn. Uh huh. And Jupiter in Gemini will sextile Eris in Aries, hmmm. . . and. . . the Moon at 4+ Sagittarius is in the same degree that Mercury stationed retrograde on election day, 11/6/12!
My suggestion; stay aware and don’t talk politics with the folks for the next 4 weeks.
be
Thank you for the excellent advice miaferoleto. I have felt some energy rising in the cleaning and clearing areas of life now that the initial shock of the news is subsiding. Thank you.
Dear susyc,
With no idea if you and your husband are already engaged in these practices, I would encourage you to look around your living space and do an energetic cleaning and clearing. When a dear friend was diagnosed with brain cancer it is exactly what he and his wife did and it helped them tremendously. I would also suggest (you may be doing this already) to meditate, work with reiki through others and yourselves and use things like Dr. Bach’s Flower Essences to further raise the energy in your home. “Heal Thyself” is a tremendous little book written by Dr. Bach that I cannot recommend highly enough. Loving thoughts to you and your husband.
Mia
My life is already a ride starting in the last week or so and what with the end of the school year coming up in my two elementary schools, there is a lot to be dealt with in my worklife before May 22, and also a lot to be dealt with in my personal life, given my husband’s recent diagnosis of prostate cancer. It is a relatively aggressive cancer according to the oncologist and since it is the second cancer he has had, it is more frightening than it might be otherwise. There is no doubt I am contemplating change on many levels. I feel like I am in the lifeboat that is in Life of Pi, trying not to let the tiger take me over altogether. My students are already noticing I have an unfamiliar edge to me–“Are you grumpy Miss Susy?” and I have to ask myself the same question. Yes, yes I am grumpy to say the least. I’m also tired and the waxing moon is making it hard to sleep at night. Like Pi, I will jump in the ocean or get tossed in throughout these eclipse driven weeks of rising waves hopefully remembering to cry when I need to.
Bette: Thank you for the insightful contribution of your experience and wisdom. Thank you also for affirming and validating Amanda’s cogent observation about a very important and complex lunar aspect. Your voice sounds great from here.
Mia: Thank you again for being so supportive of our comment community.
Mia: You are very welcome. Thank you for your kind words.
Strawberry: Thank you for your generous words as well.
wandering_yeti: Thank you for sharing what appears to be a graceful ascendance into being on a level with which i am not familiar, but somehow can appreciate with awe. Thank you also for citing Riane Eisler’s seminal work, which had a similar (if less profound) effect on my consciousness. Your contributions to this space never fail to bring a nobility that few humans can convey to the extent that you do. For that, and whatever content or style escapes my impoverished ken, thank you.
Chief Niwots Son: You are most welcome.
Daniel: Thank you for sharing what i hope to be forgiven as calling your pilgrim’s progress, your courage of commitment, your eventful epoch of growth.
DivaCarla: Thank you for your observations and question. i am not so sure about Mars being domesticated in Taurus, or anysign for that matter. Perhaps it is one of those things where the feeling is not the issue, but rather how one feels about the feeling. One thing that seems to apply is that there is a certain possibility of Mars overcompensating while wearing Taurus raiment. That thoughtless reaction can indeed lead to a fall or result in detriment. Saturn in opposition does not necessarily indicate a conflict so much as the service of correction. Please, how does work for you?
Lizzy: Thank you for sharing how thoughtful and courageous you have grown to be, even in the throes of hardship and discouragement. Your resilient and compassionate nature can only triumph with time.
Carrie: Thank you for finding my poor service useful in your continued endeavors of devotion.
Hi Bette,
My Moon is in my first house conjunct Neptune. It is a big part of where my intuition comes from. Like you, this is a rather calm also peaceful time with cleaning house and charting my course into the future. It feels very positive!
Thank-you for this insightful piece, Len.
Mia, I too have Saturn at this full moon conjunct my natal moon, in my case in my 5th
house, where Scorpio is intercepted (but has never been quiet or compliant!). and the full moon axis is square my second house Mars and Pluto in Leo. So far, all is surprisingly calm, though I’ve been working through many memories, contemplating roads taken (or not taken), and weighing the value of regret. Also spring cleaning, literal and otherwise, which is always therapeutic.
I would like to thank Amanda for the reference to Moon square Pluto as a “lone wolf” aspect – I’ve been working on that one all of the 40-odd years I’ve been studying/using astrology, and those are such useful key words. Add my Saturn rising in Cancer (retrograde), and yes, I tend to be sometimes more reclusive than is good for me.
I’m a painter, between major projects at the moment, and also working on recovering my music after 25 years of not playing. Guitar fingers remember, but voice is rusty and reluctant.
For me, this is so far a season of preparation, of waiting for spring here in the north, and I welcome the energy of increased activity as we move into the eclipse cycle.
I’m so glad I found Planet Waves! My thanks to all.
Len, thank you so much, this is great news. I am flying to my grandmother’s home May 13th for a week to get her packed up to move back here and live with her son in assisted living. She is 98 and has been living alone all these years but now she is having trouble caring for herself so it is time. She won’t like it but I will help her see that her finances mean this is the best choice for her. She wants to see her son (my dad) so the work won’t be as hard as it may have been. Even so, this will set in motion a chain of events that will mean my whole family flies back to ready her place to be rented out. The logistics of this next month and the later (late June) flight back to work on her place are taking up a lot of core thinking time but so far, things seem to be going well in the effort.
Your words are more confirmation that this is the time to get her safe.
…Saturn and those naughty nodes, have North node in Taurus.
Yeti, Daniel – was so touched by your inspiring and beautiful comments. yeti – as a guitarist, I was so inspired by what you wrote about playing the guitar.
Len, the truth ad beauty of your piece hit me this morning when I woke up. Thank you. Have been in a state of despondency, despair and fear for quite some time now, as all my efforts to replace my lost job have fallen through time and time again, and I’d kind of given up hope. This morning I realised that it’s that old victim mentality that’s tripping me up (and Saturn has shown me this time and time again). I now realise that I have to undertake a plan B, and do all I can to get work in, and turn to all the people I know, who are willing to support me. But even more important than that is the realisation that it’s my hopelessness and despair that is communicating to the universe that thre’s nothing out there for me, and the universe responds in kind. I hope these words will help anyone who suffers from a similar plight to me. Saturn’s lessons are so tough – but ultimately so liberating when one begins to wake up. .
Len, thanks so much. There’s a lot of action surrounding this first eclipse (Venus opp Saturn, Sun sextile Neptune, Venus trine Pluto). I’ve been holding myself back from being pulled back into old patterns these past few days, sometimes painfully so. There is a beautiful need for rebirth, the type that ask for total dedication to forward momentum. Ignoring my neediness in favour of a better unknown is what I’m absolutely committed to. I’ve lost friends now because of it. I’ve spent my last savings on therapy and feel like what is needed most now is both quiet integration and actual experience that lines up with my intentions. I’m full. Fuller than this Full Moon. The Sun opp my natal Sun, the Moon opp my natal Moon – everything is exposed. Somewhere in between it all, perhaps in this perfect balance is my desire to rise higher than I’ve ever done before.
Looking at the chart for the eclipse, I notice that Mars and Saturn are both in the Game, Moon within 2.5 degrees of Saturn (given Len’s time of 4 pm edt) and Mars about 2.5 degrees of the Sun. The drawing of the opposition lines across the center look a little like guitar strings, or banjo. It gets personal since the eclipse is within a degree of my natal Mars in Taurus, approaching at 6 and change.
I’ve been wondering about Mars in Taurus, since it hangs there alone in my chart, with no significant aspects to anything (except conjunct Priapus, who’s associated with the Liliths and has a large penis. That’s all I’ve been able to learn about him.)
Yeti, I appreciate what you write about your Taurean Mars. Thank you for the slowing down, embodiment of touching guitar strings. I can use that for what I am creating.
As Len says , there is a lot of movement and power in this next four weeks. I feel like my Mars is saying bring it on. He’s spent my life watching Venus and Chiron get it on in Aquarius, square his position in Taurus, where he’s been domesticated. I haven’t known how to use this energy, Venus and Chiron in a dry hump mind meld square Mars with a dog collar.
With this eclipse, I am seeing some room to maneuver. I’ve been thinking how my Feminine can serve this creative period I am embarking on right now. Really it’s my inner masculine that wants to take over and support this project. Mars ready and energized, Scorpionized, Saturnated, and Plutoned. I think I’ll unclench my fingers and let him run it.
Len, any other thoughts about these Mars and Saturn working with the eclipse?
Wandering Yeti, your words: “It brought around a release of lingering resentment, fears of being alone, attachments to feelings of having taken so long to come out of my shell, clarifying intentions for new collaborations in intimacy…partners both soft and strong who won’t divert me from my path, but augment it in mutually beneficial energy exchange.”
…echo of my very own. Thank you for such tenderness.
Sweet words wandering_yeti, so potent a reminder.
Len- When I think about how I have scheduled my life in the next month, your words offer both succor and confirmation. Thank you my friend.
That’s really beautiful, Yeti. Thank you for sharing.
Hu Len…bringing light to the mindful channeling of the coming eclipse energy. It coincides with my Mars return this time around. Last night I decided to spend some time with guitar and lyric book in moonlight. It brought around a release of lingering resentment, fears of being alone, attachments to feelings of having taken so long to come out of my shell, clarifying intentions for new collaborations in intimacy…partners both soft and strong who won’t divert me from my path, but augment it in mutually beneficial energy exchange.
On a slightly different wavelength: Slow it down, simplify, pay attention. Interplay between martial arts and musical applications: tai ji teacher tells me to relax into each stance, slow it down, don’t try so hard. On a classical guitar the strings are so sensitive to touch that if I slow down and pay attention to my hands and how they connect to my spine the guitar is a biofeedback meter that sounds better the more I relax and reconnect my flow on the inside. A teacher friend gave me a hands on guitar gong fu lesson yesterday. A simple touch on my hands and a simple thing to practice, taking it slow, and walls come crumbling down. You don’t take giant steps with grace and power until you’ve walked many miles with baby steps.
Already feeling this Mars return tuning in…already in an accelerated process of releasing the trapped ghosts from interpreting Mars in Taurus as a detrimental placement. I just read Riane Eisler’s Chalice and the Blade and it helped a long process of facing my ancestral ghosts come to synthesis: Mars in Taurus is only a detrimental fall when trying to ape the act of the dominator culture. I channel his energy into music, martial arts for healing, and developing a deeper connection to Earth. His ruler of a retrograde Venus in Aquarius turns from an adversary into a guide into love for my people, a passion for beauty instead of violence. Groovin’ on.
Wow. Your work always packs a punch, Len. “That includes any form of shadow that goes with the process, which will only serve to distinguish your part in a greater alignment.” This line speaks volumes. I agree with Mia; you are a brilliant teacher.
Thanks Len,
This is very helpful. As you know from reading my chart this full Moon eclipse and Saturn are exactly conjunct my natal Moon in Scorpio to the degree. Having gone through a very difficult first Saturn/Moon transit in November and December I have decided to embrace the energy and move along with it. You are a wonderful teacher.
Mia