Ideas from eclipse season

Three eclipses mark this spring: There was a lunar eclipse on April 25 (6° Taurus/Scorpio), a solar eclipse on May 9 (20° Taurus), and a second lunar eclipse on May 24 (5° Gemini/Sag).

The May 9 eclipse was angular in my birth chart. I had a surprising and strong emotional reaction to a seemingly simple event that opened a chasm of memories and associations that I am still winding through. I maybe could have seen it coming (but didn’t). This eclipse brought an experience that can be typical — something sneaks up on us (Bill Meridian’s phrase) and takes us by surprise. I intentionally keep my schedule a bit open around eclipses to be able to respond to the turns and upsets in peoples’ lives (which definitely happened this time). I did not see that it would also be me who needed a bit of care and attention.

My experience also had the quality described below about this Saros series (in Bernadette Brady’s words): “This series is about release of tension.”

(Funnily enough, early Monday morning, as I was writing this intro part to today’s blog, I uncharacteristically neglected to save the file, Word crashed and I had to start again. Even writing about the eclipse has a way of sneaking up on me. It also shows that events and insights are in transition and still settling down. I’m also relating to the south node symbolism with the solar eclipse: letting go, again and again; not held captive by the past.)

First of all, for any newcomers to using eclipses in natal chart work, Celeste Teal, Moon Valley Astrologer, has a wonderful article explaining how to understand the nature of eclipses and how to apply them in the personal horoscope. “In a general way you can track the transiting North Node through your chart to find the areas to focus your attention and energy that will result in some good coming to you. This is an area of opportunity, where rewards, good fortune and happiness can be found. By directing your efforts there, rewards easily come forth. The house occupied by the transiting South Node indicates an area of potential vulnerability, where you may be working through an issue, and where you might experience some loss or make a sacrifice. Sometimes it means you have a gift to share and the Universe expects something from you.”

Peter Stockinger’s blog (at Traditional Astrology Weblog) on the May solar eclipse includes Lilly’s suggestion to consider the decanate of the eclipse; the eclipse path of angularity, and the ruler of the eclipse, i.e., Venus, who “is conjunct the fixed star Alcyone, the brightest star of the Pleiades.” He surmises: “I would propose that the general theme of this solar eclipse is the renewed effort of women to make their voices heard, highlighting their struggle towards equality and independence.”

Peter describes the upcoming lunar eclipse with similar methods here.
Of the May 25 lunar eclipse, he writes: “On the mundane level, this eclipse should be of immediate effect throughout parts of Canada, as can be seen from the world map below. The line of angularity also shows that the eclipsed Moon will be on the Descendant throughout Ireland, France, Libya and other parts of Africa. In these places the effects of the lunar eclipse will be noticeable by the end of this year, lasting into 2014.”

Lorna Bevan at Daykeeper Journal has an article called Tracking the Trail of the May Eclipses. She explains the Saros cycles. (The May 9 solar eclipse is the same Saros Series as May 1995 which brought the Oklahoma City bombings and the Unabomber.) Bevan quotes Bernadette Brady on this Saros: “This series is about release of tension. A situation which has been lingering will suddenly clear. In the clearing of the problem there is also a sense of grief or loss, which is not so much personal but belonging to the collective.”

Of the May 25 lunar eclipse, Bevan notes: “This penumbral eclipse is the last of the mutable Gemini/Sagittarius eclipses which began in March 2012, not to return until 2028. For those of you who are solar Pisces/Gemini/Virgo/Sagittarius between 2-6 degrees of the sign, this is the last ripple of the big personal upheavals until 2021.”

Genevieve Vierling, The Blue Light Lady, wrote Three Eclipses in a Row. She concludes: “May each of you be blessed as you consciously work with these eclipses. No one of them is particularly powerful in and of itself this time because the Lunar ones are considered ‘shallow’ and the Solar is not a total eclipse, but together in sequence they create a field wherein we can each accomplish a great deal of spiritual momentum in our lives.”

Andrew Smith, Agent EI at Cosmic Intelligence Agency, has a look at the May solar eclipse with good graphics and an interpretation of this eclipse’s relationship to the parent eclipse in its Saros cycle. For this eclipse, he writes: “The process of stepping away from the busyness of life to take time to reflect and start afresh is given a greater emphasis at the time of a solar eclipse, since the radiance of our Source energy is obscured and the focus is upon any unresolved needs, which are given a portal of light through which to escape from their imprisonment within the dark of your unconscious, resurfacing so as to be released and better understood in the light of your current awareness and consciousness.”

Carl Broudeau’s Astrology of May 2013 – High Voltage Politics starts with a recap of April’s events and aspects before a look at the key planetary aspects in May (with graphics). He is particularly sensitive to planetary patterns, not just discrete aspects. He concludes: “May’s eclipses tell us that we will cross a political and economic point of no return. The error of our old ways will become painfully obvious enough to spur genuine change. Attitudes will shift even more strongly in favor of immediate social and economic reform. However, as will all the other events we have discussed in recent months, this process will not take place overnight. It will be yet another long-term transformative process among others now unfolding.”

Peter Sher at Sher Astrology writes The Spring Eclipses 2013. “My view of eclipses is that they change the momentum of things and demand a change be made in some area of our life, whether we like it or not. In other words, they change the inertia of our lives. When there are three back-to-back eclipses, the cycle of changes lasts much longer and the shifts that occur can be deeper and more extensive. This becomes especially true if the location of these eclipses affects our personal chart.”

Jamie Partridge’s Astrology King site has this article: Lunar Eclipse May 2013. “This ongoing theme of toxicity I have been noticing, from the solar eclipse, Pluto retrograde, and potentially from comet ISON, is supported once again in the chart for the May 25 Lunar Eclipse.”
You can also read Jamie’s article on the May solar eclipse.

Cathy Pagano, writing at Wisdom of Astrology, includes Sabian symbols and reference to Adam Gainsburg’s work on Venus’ cycle in
The Cosmic Story: Taurus New Moon Solar Eclipse, May 2013. “At this solar eclipse, Venus is still hidden within the rays of the Sun and she is on the far side of the Sun, the furthest away from Earth (apogee). Traveling at her fastest speed, she will soon emerge from the rays of the Sun to begin the Re-birth phase with her Evening Star appearance. The Transmutation Phase is a time when we can see what’s missing from our Feminine Self, a time to go within and re-discover our Inner Light and Beauty.”

Have a good week everyone, and thanks to all of these writers for helping us sort it all out.