august 2017 eclipses

On Fear of Eclipses -- Some thoughts...

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Hello Friends!  I wrote this bit a few days ago on FEAR OF ECLIPSES, since I saw so many anxiety inducing articles passing through my Facebook news feed.  I thought I would pull it up and edit it for my Cosmic Weather blog to offer some of my thoughts on the matter…  This will be my first direct experience of a total solar eclipse – though I have enjoyed a total lunar eclipse, and several partial eclipses of both moon & sun at different times – so I cannot claim to be an expert on the effects of witnessing one.  But I do know that eclipses are powerful, mysterious, strange, and intense – and have worked with their energies religiously since I have been an astrologer.  Many people have different ideas about this, and so I am simply offering my own in addition/my own intuitive feeling at this time.  Please enjoy – and most importantly – listen to YOUR intuition and YOUR heart about the best way to honor the solar eclipse portal.


Coming up in just a few days, the eclipse will be visiting my general neighborhood – just a short drive west millions of visitors are expected to flood the Path of Totality in my region.  Even though I have been aware of this coming for over a year, the media hype seems to have stirred up suddenly within the past week or so.

In addition to articles about what to expect, getting the right eclipse glasses, etc -- there is a lot of fear coming out about around the lore of solar eclipses from times of old to the present day.  As someone who has been looking at eclipse maps for years, anxiously and excitedly awaiting the day that I would be within range to witness a TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE – I have been sitting with why it is the solar eclipse elicits so much fear.  As an astrologer, I find eclipses and the working of the nodal points to be one of the most interesting subjects within the whole field of astrology. I am deeply attuned to my sense of fate and free will by nature, I have always trusted my connection with the divine grace. Eclipses, to me, are the most potent gateway energy there is -- if you observe the energy on eclipse days (whether they are visible at your location or not) you have the opportunity to make spiritual shifts.

After some contemplation, and some writings I've come across recently from other cosmonaut types, it suddenly clicked into place -- the lore about eclipses, the fear of eclipses.  Solar eclipses deal with the interplay of yin and yang as we know it, and this is something that is fundamentally jarring.  Even though eclipses are a part of the cosmic order, for a moment we are confronted with something that seems to defy that and it feels chaotic to us.

The sun represents the yang spirit (the divine spark), but the ego is also represented by the sun. The moon is the yin spirit (intuition), also associated with demons/fears/negativity. When yin covers yang, this is a moment when subconscious fears run wild and unbridled. This is a moment when the feminine energy of intuition is unobstructed by the masculine structure of ego. This is a moment when the veil drops and the doorways are wide open to things unseen.

It is sometimes said that the human ego was developed as a survival mechanism, and when it acts up, it believes it is protecting you.  The problem that exists now, of course, is that it's become like an organ we've evolved beyond. Extra teeth that we grow because our genes still harken back to our paleolithic ancestors whose diets were considerably more rough than our current one. In much the same way, a mechanism which once served us to deal with survival in a harsh primal context has now become an element of our being that sees EVERYTHING as a threat, EVERYTHING as a fight. And the world we live in capitalizes on this trait by constantly pushing fear and turmoil into our hearts.

As a result, we are constantly on the defense, constantly battling, and constantly anxious.  The negativity of our world can be so triggering that we get sucked into its vortex of problems and lose our own sovereignty, our own precious spark. What can we control? What can we direct? What can we change? Ourselves. Our minds. Our will.  But how easy it is to forget that simple truth!

The eclipse energy is building immensely, and as I feel that powerful yin energy expanding in my consciousness, I can begin to understand the feelings of the various traditions that honor an eclipse day with solitude and meditation.  This is, indeed, one way to deal with the intensity of the energies -- and perfectly legitimate when presented within the appropriate context/structure (rather than as a random set of blanket statements crying peril to the internet).  But for me, I feel it is not so black and white as to assume that it is as simple as staying indoors, saying X mantra, doing X ritual, burning your clothes, and throwing away your entire fridge full of food.

We are in a time where we must confront the so-called evils of lesser yin energy, in our personal consciousness and in our world.  This is an inside job that extends well beyond the boundaries of the eclipse itself.  Indoors, outdoors, meditating or having a barbeque, any place the eclipse is touching will not escape the eerie feeling, the internal disruption, the sense of going into the silence, the darkness.  No matter how one deals with the eclipse -- the causes and effects are already underway.  "What will be will be."  All we can do is do what makes us feel the most HAPPY, STABLE & POSITIVE that we can throughout the experience.  Changes and intentions are set through authentic FEELING, not rules or specific actions as dictated by someone else.  Likewise, for any actions to be effective/protective we need to feel connected to what we are doing, not simply acting out of anxiety because of something we read on the internet.

For me, there is a reason and a symbolic nature to all things.  The timing of this event happening in the USA could not be more fitting.  Certainly, it could easily be interpreted as a bad omen -- and portend difficulty for our country (but the astrology already basically implies this, so...)  Or you could see it from another, additional, or different perspective:  That such an event coming at such a time is an invitation to reconnect with the essence of intuition -- to eclipse our own egos -- and to recognize and resonate with the qualities of mystery.  To re-engage a populace, one that is stuck in ingrained, stubborn, and seemingly impossible navel gazing patterns, with something grander, something beyond -- something REAL, that reminds of us of our connection to all that is.

We are here to be witnesses, and also to use our spiritual will to aspire for something greater. This is a time to not fall for the hopelessness and the fearfulness -- but to take this portal to direct the whole of your mind and will to achieving peace and healing for the world.  It is a time when we could all use the healing power of awe, of taking in and directly experiencing COSMIC BEAUTY.  To fortify our strength and our light within to withstand darkness without.  For what is an eclipse but a time of inwardly directed light?

I talk to my students all the time about dealing with the True Yang (inner spirit) and the False Yang (conditioning) in their qigong practice. You only access the inner spirit, the truth of life, the truth of your own being, through the shedding of conditioning & rigidity. Receptivity & surrender (yin principles) are that which open us to the true spirit. Allow this to be a time where the part of us that is eclipsed is the part we must surrender to shine more brightly & more truly on the other side. As for the false yin -- the darkness, the demons -- why should we uphold one (ego) and fear the other (the shadow)? Why should we hold fear to keep ourselves in the shadows? What purpose does that really serve?

FACE fear, ENDURE fear – and TRANSMUTE fear.  Pass through darkness to know brightness.  Purify shadows by holding sacred fire and holy light.  In whatever way you are called to do that – do that.  But do it from a place of strength, a place of TRUST.  Not a place of fear, anxiety or chaos.  That is the lesser yin – that is getting stuck in limbo.  Trust that the sun shines again.  That life exists on the other side.  That darkness is only a gateway we pass through to engage more wholly with divine nature.  Burn away fear, become more bright.  Become the YOU you know you are.

Eclipses may be strange but they are also beautifully still.  Wherever you are, whatever you do – BE PRESENT, BE STILL -- witnessing, receiving – this is the fundamental shared agreement of all the traditions.  Be at peace within, and pray for the return of cleansing light that heals the brokenness of this world.

Sitting with the Eclipses -- further elaborations on the energy of August 2017 and its larger implications

Tomorrow, August 7, is the Full Moon Lunar Eclipse in Aquarius, the first of the pair of eclipses that are to occur this month.  As we prepare for the major Solar Eclipse that will touch the entire continental USA, the Lunar Eclipse precedes it carrying important messages, realizations and revelations.  Because the Solar Eclipse will be so profound, the energetic unfolding has been with us throughout this summer in anticipation for the transformational energy it brings.  I often view eclipses as energetic thresholds – but another way to say it, perhaps, is that an eclipse is like an energetic neutral zone or zero point.  From a Taoist cosmological perspective, transformation arises from stillness – and an eclipse of any kind carries with it a sort of interruption to the energetic flow, creating a still point, particularly in the case of a total eclipse like the one we will be experiencing on the 21st.   In this cycle leading up to the Lunar Eclipse tomorrow, many things have come into our awareness on a conscious level that are up for deep transformation.

I think it is worth noting that this lunar cycle began with a new moon at 0 Leo and the Solar Eclipse is a new moon at 28 Leo.  So that is two Leo new moons to kick off the transit of the North Node through Leo – for me, what this means is that we’re getting kind of a preemptive opportunity to consider and plant our intentions regarding Leo issues (fun, creativity, romance, sexuality, self expression, will power, etc) – and then, through the subtle energetic influence of the Lunar eclipse and the messages/changes received therein, we then get to consider and plant those intentions a second time with the necessary amendments.  The reason that this strikes me in this particular way is that the lessons of Leo seem very important for us to grasp right now – as our society, and as a result we as individuals, suffer greatly from Aquarian shadows.  Just to name a few -- we live in a culture that supports individuality and freedom, but can often lack a sense of warmth, community & support.  Many people have strong ideals and beliefs, but few are genuinely applicable to real world diversity.  Rationality and ideas are at odds with human and spiritual connection.  Technicalities become obstructive to truth.

In the Aquarian spirit of our culture we strive to be more inclusive by creating more distinctions, but in the process we unknowingly create more divisions because the distinctions are made in an almost surgical way.  They are not made with the heart, really.  They are made with the mind that wants to right the afflictions of the heart, created by the problems of our ideals.  The ideals, simply put, are just too rigid.  They are less like a framework and more like a rulebook, and this can actually be harmful to the social freedom that we desire to find.  On a personal level, we are being guided to really trust in the flow of our own hearts to find the solutions that vex us, no matter how big or small the problems may be.  Not to analyze, research, and over-think our ways to the answers, but to find them ourselves BY FEELING, by LIVING.

The Solar Eclipse on August 21st is of special significance for the USA because it is impacting us directly.  We will all experience the literal effects of the moon blocking out the sun for just a few minutes at the height of the day.  This event is so incredibly powerful it has been difficult for me to separate any astrological happenings for the summer from the coming of that eclipse.  For me, it feels, most simply, like a major karmic, and likely historic moment in USA history and for all of those who are alive and living here during this time.  The Lunar eclipse energy is just a part of this process: it serves to help us IDENTIFY the inhibiting factors – the reasons why we, ourselves, do not utilize our own personal will to the best of its potential.  What are the social, mental, and emotional factors that keep us trapped in our heads instead of shining freely in the world – giving back by giving our GIFTS which were uniquely bestowed upon us.  There are a million ways that we undermine our own freedom every single day due to subconscious ideals that don’t really serve us to truly be our best self.  Shifting just a few of these mental obstructions can be the difference between positively influencing life by way of greater happiness and authenticity or just merely existing within it.

The insights that have to come to me about the eclipse cycles have largely centered around the wise use of energy and really knowing and understanding one’s personal direction rather than allowing ourselves to succumb to peer/social/societal pressure of any kind.  It is important for us to be undistracted – even by the most valid & positive ideas – because each of us has a specific journey that we need to honor and fuel, and the information loaded world that we live in can easily deter us from those pursuits if we are not paying close attention and acting with intention.  Doing our individual piece is what will serve society best.  Personal will & personal effort to create something tangible trumps abstractions and ideals.  Actually live life nobly, in total honesty with regards to what is truly beneficial to yourself and those you touch.

Regarding the USA astrology in overarching cycles – The eclipses come at a very interesting time in our process as a society.  The solar eclipse is in close aspect to the USA natal moon – signifying transformation at the level of the national psyche.  In addition to this, the President happens to be someone who was born during an eclipse (so eclipses impact him extra strongly), and his natal Mars & Ascendant also align directly with the eclipse.  The August 21 eclipse also just happens to be a part of a series that has historically triggered significant events in American politics.  In so many ways, I believe we are being pressed to deal with the dichotomy of individual will and social structures and there is no question in my mind that the solar eclipse across the USA is going to trigger an important shift on the national level, starting with the people in power.

The next total solar eclipse in the USA is in 2024 – the two eclipses (2017/2024) are like bookends to the USA Pluto return, representing a 248 year cycle of maturation around issues of power & social order at the government level.  We have arrived at this place for a reason and whatever changes lie ahead are, in a way, unavoidable.  The direction of those changes should start to become clearer in the coming months after the major impact of the eclipse starts to manifest.  I personally feel that with the energy of LEO in charge, the will is in individuals to direct the change – we are the “king.”  We must awaken to that.  And I believe we will and can, as we may also simultaneously awaken to the shadows of culture and society that have not yet been revealed quite so clearly.

With that said, I feel compelled to leave these notes with this:  The King is not the person who rules all – rather it is the person who rules himself.  The King is the one who is sovereign.  Free unto himself, unbound unto himself.  This is the true aspiration of LEO for all people.

For more thoughts on this topic, check out my article covering the Astrology of the Summer of 2017 :)


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