LEO SOLAR ECLIPSE: KNOW YOUR HEART

The final eclipse of this rare triple eclipse season occurs this week.  As a new moon, this is a partial solar eclipse in Leo, about ten degrees away from where the Sun and Moon conjoined for total solar eclipse of August 2017.  It is one of the final installments of the Leo-Aquarius eclipse cycle.*  The lessons that have been stirred up over the last couple years are now re-settling.  Some things will need to be released, others will need to find root.  We complete the eclipse cycle within ourselves by finding our personal dynamic balance of the archetypes, not only within the context of Leo-Aquarius, but more fundamentally within the meeting of Sun and Shadow.  The former refers to our intentional awareness, while the latter refers to our subconscious sentiments.

The polarity of light and dark is a fundamental metaphorical motif within our culture.  Contemporary Western civilization is strongly solar-oriented.  This is reflected in its mythology, which consistently uses “light” to represent that which is “good,” thus defaulting “dark” to symbolize that which is “bad.”  Hence, when we peruse our history, we find eclipses, times when either the Sun or Moon “goes dark,” are written of with fear and foreboding.  The simplicity of such binary thinking met a major disruption in the work of Carl Jung, whose work dove deep into the psychological nature of the “shadow.”  He wrote, “Filling the conscious mind with ideal conceptions is a characteristic of Western theosophy, but not the confrontation with the shadow and the world of darkness.  One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious.”**  Carl Jung delved into the realms of repression, and revealed that our self-sabotaging behaviors result from this “shadow”--the bits of our selves that we have consciously disowned.  Without our care and attention, these bits begin to take on a life of their own, finding expression despite our best attempts to silence them.  “Shadow work” involves re-integrating these bits in a healthy way.  Doing so requires that we humble ourselves to our own internal darkness and discover our self-compassion.

The astrological axis of the eclipses indicates the themes emerging from the shadow.  The Leo-Aquarius axis represents the polarity of Self and Collective, Creative Self Expression and Radical Social Justice, Youthful Determination and Aged Wisdom.  While these archetypes exist as opposites, that does not mean they are enemies.  Rather, polar signs are best expressed as complements.  When in healthy balance, the youthful exuberance of Leo is guided by the social experience of Aquarius.  The Leonine drive towards self-expression is given purpose in the context of the Aquarian concept of the collective good.  The subject matter of the shadow material arising from the eclipses of the last couple years has included finding balance between one’s pride and one’s knowledge, the centering of the heart-felt amidst increasing technological diffusion, and the celebration of the creative individual within a stratified social structure.

There will be one final eclipse in Leo before the eclipse axis fully realigns itself to the Cancer-Capricorn polarity at the start of 2019.  The celestial movements are sometimes haunting in their poetry.   As the Sun and Moon meet in Leo this week, Mars will be at zero degrees Aquarius, on the precipice of Capricorn.  In this same degree the total lunar eclipse on Jan 21, 2019.  All lunar eclipses are full moons, and all full moons are phases of completion.  All solar eclipses are new moons, and all new moons are the still-points preceding initiation.  This is the start of the final chapter, the beginning of the end of the Leo-Aquarius eclipse cycle, which will not be revisited until 2026.  

How fitting then, to have so many planets in retrograde motion!  A planet in retrograde appears to reverse its movement across our sky.  Likewise, its energetic movement “reverses,” focusing inward instead of outward, much akin to the shadow nature of the eclipse period, which draws our focus from the conscious drive to the subconscious desires.  This is the time to internally integrate the experiences gained through the Leo-Aquarius eclipse cycle that began in February 2017.  This phase of integration brings the lessons from mind to body, to prepare our intentions to move from vision towards manifestation.  

Earlier in the week, Uranus moves retrograde, bringing the total number of retrograde planets to six.  As there are only ten astrological “planets,” of which only eight move retrograde, the scales are heavily tipped towards this inward flow.  All told, Mercury (mind, commerce, and communication), Mars (energy, assertion, conflict), Saturn (structure, boundaries, discipline), Uranus (unpredictability), Neptune (spirituality), and Pluto (power) are retrograde.  Stamina may be low (Mars), communications interrupted (Mercury), and progress may dwindle (Saturn).  Take a celestial perspective to recognize these movements outside of your own personal context.  These stutters in the plan are not signs of individual failure.  Success in shadow work is not measure by height, but by depth.  If you feel you have plateaued, look more closely at what is already here with you.  Oftentimes when we are unable to move forward it is a signal to look within and recognize what internal resources we possess, but have not yet learned to harness (Pluto).  Have faith that you are enough (Neptune).  If you feel you are lacking, dig deeper into what unexpected treasures (Uranus) remain hidden in your shadow.  Apart from the retrogrades, this week Venus moves from Virgo into Libra, helping to alleviate the anxious heart.  Jupiter, the planet of luck and vision, meanwhile sits in Scorpio, the sign most associated with the “shadow.”  Here, Jupiter provides a torch to help us navigate these hidden realms.

If everything feels it is falling apart, take comfort in the knowledge that this is a false perception.  You control the narrative of your own life.  The more awareness we bring to our shadow, the less we trip over our own feet as we walk our path, but never will we be free from obstacle or injury.  Although we are exiting this eclipse period, remember the Shadow remains as long as the Sun is shining--the two are inextricable parts of a unified whole.  “Light” and “dark” exist independent of our morality, yet how we choose to consciously engage, integrate, and balance the two, determines what is “good” or “bad.”  Take the lesson from the Lion that is Leo--move forward with the confidence that comes with knowing one’s own heart.  Take the lesson from the Star that is Aquarius--plant the seed of your intention, but let the light overhead, not the ego within, signal when it is time to sprout.  Leo-Aquarius inspires the radical reinvention of self.  Integrate the shadow to show up more fully as you are--the world needs your light!

*For further reading on the Leo-Aquarius eclipse cycle, see:
Full Moon: Lunar Eclipse in Leo
Leo New Moon: Light of Liberation
Leo Solar Eclipse: Forging a New Way of Being

**From Carl Jung's essay, The Philosophical Tree
 

AQUARIUS SOLAR ECLIPSE: Spirit of Reinvention

February’s new moon is the second eclipse of 2018.  Generally speaking, eclipses arrive in pairs, making this new moon the solar partner to January’s lunar eclipse.  Occurring across the polarity of Aquarius-Leo, this pair is related to the eclipses that happened in August 2017.  Last year, the total solar eclipse visible across the contiguous United States dominated the headlines and sent millions of people outdoors to witness the event.  February’s new moon solar eclipse in Aquarius is opposite the degree of last August’s solar eclipse, and marks the center of the Leo-Aquarius eclipse cycle.

The August solar eclipse launched a phase of introspection.  With both Sun and Moon in the Fire sign of Leo, we were asked to consider our innate creativity and how it is channeled through our self-expression.  Ruled by the Sun, Leo is the sign of the sovereign individual.  Leo governs one’s willpower, self-expression, joy, and children.  By accessing one’s own “inner child” archetype, we can uncover the past injuries that wounded the budding ego and later inhibited its authentic self-expression.  In the process of protecting our vulnerabilities, our organic flow of creativity becomes blocked or diverted, which then affects how successfully we project our identity in the world.  

This makes the eclipse, with its medicine of shadow and alignment, a potent time to investigate the quality of our wounds and the caliber of our emotional armoring.  Last August, Uranus in a tight trine to the sun/moon conjunction acted as a cosmic sword,  piercing the rigid armor that locked our behavior into its unwitting habits.  Thus exposing our vulnerabilities, the last pair of eclipses demanded we no longer shield our sacred light from the vagaries of the external environment, but rather employ our creative agency to craft a life that best allows our self-expression to shine.  Leo’s motto is I will, and these last six months have served to reveal the ways in which we radiate or restrict our willpower, and whether or not this behavior is aligned with our soul mission.

This next eclipse is at the center of the Leo-Aquarius cycle, and establishes a new phase--one of initiation.  In Aquarius, the focus broadens from personal to social, from the individual to the collective.  The Sun reaches the mountaintop in Capricorn, and begins its descent in the Fixed Air sign, Aquarius.  Aquarius is the Water-bearer, much like clouds that carry water that been crystallized (fixed) within the atmosphere (air).  As earthly experiences become concrete knowledge, mountains serve to break open the clouds so the water can be channeled to the valley below.  Aquarius is the sign of the humanitarian.  From this high vantage, the superficial differences between peoples are irrelevant in view of the similarity of our silhouettes, as principles are elevated higher than personalities.  Opposite the inner child of Leo, Aquarius is representative of the elder, and the perspective, knowledge, and wisdom that come with abundant life experience.  The traditional ruler of Aquarius is Saturn, who also appears in myth as Father Time, who is prescient precisely because he understands the past, who knows the world because he knows himself.  

Saturn governs structure.  While Aquarius certainly has the perspective to see the cultural form undergirding a civilization, the heavy, earthy quality of Saturn is at odds with the transiency of the Air element.  The Aquarian attitude is generally not one of preservation, but innovation.  The modern ruler of the sign is Uranus, the planet of originality and unpredictability.  Air is invisible, but hardly ineffectual--its subtlety is its strength.  In the wireless age, it is easy to see how technology travels on air--spreading across populations, connecting previously distant groups, and provoking new ways to structure social order.  All these qualities combine to make the Aquarian archetype that of the intellectual genius, revolutionary spirit, and technological inventor.  If the Fire sign Leo is represented by the warm light of the Sun, Aquarius would be the cool, electric light bulb--the former the radiance of the heart, the latter the brilliance of the mind.    

The beauty of Astrology is to reveal the different planetary movements in their symphonic composition.  While in the lunar cycle we are in a new moon phase, there are other concurrent cycles playing their parts.  Let’s consider three main cycles--lunar, solar, and eclipse.  In the solar cycle, we have just celebrated Imbolc, the cross-quarter holiday when the Sun’s ascent quickens towards the Spring Equinox in the Northern hemisphere, a phase akin to the waxing crescent moon phase.  Within the eclipse cycle (the partnership of the lunar and solar cycles), we have reached the full phase, the midpoint of the Leo-Aquarius set.  While this midpoint is a phase of culmination and completion, the individual lunar and solar phases are initiating.  This indicates that the broader lessons of these eclipses should be clear now, and it is time to make a personal plan for moving forward to integrate what you have been learning.

During the August eclipse, several planets were in retrograde motion.  Now, ALL the astrological planets are in direct motion.  This moon is co-ruled by Saturn and Uranus.  While not aspecting this moon exactly, Uranus will be in sextile to Mercury, which is conjunct this moon, intensifying the emphasis on mental activities.  Mercury was retrograde last eclipse, asking us to consciously remember from whence we came, recall our purpose, and revise our expression.  This phase of past reflection has ended.  It is time to decide upon a direction and advance.  Neptune (planet of illusion) in tense aspect to Mars (planet of energy) may leave us feeling drained just as we are ready to move ahead.  The key here is Mars’s placement in Sagittarius, the sign of philosophy.  In this placement, our actions (Mars) are fueled by the meaning (Sagittarius) that we ascribe to them.  This eclipse cycle has prompted questions that cut to the core of our being--the matrix of our identity, willpower, and self-expression.  Why are we here?  How can each individual expression (Leo) contribute to the evolution of humanity (Aquarius)?  

Notoriously, eclipses reveal previously unknown information and, for this reason, are unsettling.  It is okay to move slowly now, so long as the focus remains forward.  Let each action be full with the pregnancy of why.  Towards the end of the month, there will be five planets in Pisces, which may further stall one’s momentum.  Remember a period of gestation is required before birth, and while this is a liminal stage, it is nevertheless a vital process in which energy begins to fill the framework of its future form.  Though the effects of our actions may seem nebulous, it is that much more crucial to keep clear intentions for what you would like to bring forth.  Thomas Edison famously failed thousands of times before he succeeded in inventing the lightbulb.  The clarity of intention (Aquarius) combined with a determination of will (Leo) allowed him to persevere through these trials, and because he did, in one instant, the world was revolutionized.  

The planets will all remain in direct motion until Jupiter moves retrograde in early March.  Practice self-study, trust your intuition, and have faith in what is growing inside you.  In June, Mars will also station retrograde, giving us a period to review the progress we have made up to that point, and rectify any missteps made along the way.  Embrace mistakes to reap their instruction.  Offer yourself up as a channel to the Divine knowledge that surrounds us as inconspicuously--and as indispensable--as the air we breathe.  Use your awareness to ascertain how you are undermining your natural state of joy, and commit to authentic expression in whatever creative form it takes.  Allow your respiration to be your inspiration, and commit each breath to the spirit of reinvention!