Well, welcome to eclipse season, folks.
Eclipses are periods of accelerated change and moments where massive change is possible, especially from the revelation of things lurking in the shadows. In Vedic Astrology, the Nodes of the Moon, the points at which eclipses occur, are called “shadow planets” and imagined as the head and tail of a dragon. Every six months, they pop out of hiding and eat up one of the luminaries. There’s a robust history of significant historical events happening amidst eclipses—powerful endings and beginnings. Sometimes, what unfolds during eclipses continues to exist in the shadows for a while until they reveal their importance further along in the story. And as anticipated, it’s been an eventful couple of weeks, even though the eclipse we had on Monday was a very partial eclipse—the moon just passed through the edge of the earth’s shadow, but not enough to totally turn it the dark orange-red color associated with total lunar eclipses.
There are a few major stories on my radar that relate to this Libra Eclipse. The ceasefire resolution passed by the UN Security Council is perhaps the biggest— happening just after Mars entered Pisces, where he’ll approach a conjunction with Saturn—and importantly, this was all set off with Mars’ conjunction with the South Node in Libra on October 6th—although we’ll see to what degree it takes effect. The ISIS attack in Moscow also definitely threw a wrench into the already chaotic geopolitical mess. In other Libran spheres, we discovered that Princess Kate Middleton has cancer (which might have consequences for the legacy of the royal family?) and King of the Science Bros, Andrew Huberman, may have been juggling up to six girlfriends at a time.
But I actually want to discuss the upcoming eclipse in Aries today, and from a much more esoteric/psychological angle than a geopolitical one. As I’ve been sitting with the constellation of images the eclipse has to offer, one in particular has grasped my attention as instructive: The Emperor card from the Tarot.
In the sets of correspondences between Tarot cards and astrological symbolism, the Emperor is associated with Aries—where the total solar eclipse is occurring on April 8th. Typically, Aries symbolism is simply explained in its connection with Mars—it’s spoken of as a sign of strong impulses, of young, feisty, zesty energy. But here, we see a distinguished expression of this Ram quality—someone who certainly has the capacity to make a strong impact, to exercise a great deal of force, but we see him in a position of stillness. I’m struck by the range of reds, oranges, and golds in this image—it feels to me like crystallized fire, powerful energy having been fully exercised and developed and held in reserve.
The background of the image takes me back to a lake underneath the mountains in Switzerland, where a friend used to take me on spontaneous adventures. The force that it took to establish a community in those rocky, harsh, and heavenly realms must have been tremendous—it required moving mountains in a very literal sense. Crowley has a very idiosyncratic take on the Hebrew letters associated with the cards, attributing Tzaddi to the Emperor rather than the Star. He argues that the “S/Z” sound naturally corresponds to the Emperor’s sharp force, as depicted in words like “Ceasar” and “Tsar.”
In Medical Astrology, Aries is associated with the head—a correlation that makes obvious sense. But, importantly, included in this are also the eyes and the entire visual system. In this regard, we can think of the capacity to see things clearly and to follow an articulated vision as key qualities of Aries. With Mercury stationing retrograde just before the eclipse, this quality seems doubly emphasized. Of late, I’ve really enjoyed the "Tarot de El Dios de los Tres,” which centers this quality of vision in its representation of the Emperor.
Another reason I love this deck is the way it depicts the figures not as human but as hybrids—here, a human with a ram’s head; many other animals grace other cards, often in forms reminiscent of different divinities. This part-animal quality is shared by another prominent figure in this Aries eclipse, Chiron, who will be exactly conjunct the Sun at the moment of the eclipse. Chiron, the first centaur, is half horse, half human. This gives him a liminal, magical quality, not belonging entirely to the world of humans and giving him a distance on the whole affair from which he is able to be helpful. Although many of the signs are symbolized by animals, Aries is particularly appreciated for a certain raw, instinctual physical energy—that quality that gives rise to folks saying someone is “like an animal.” In this context, perhaps it would be helpful to savor our kinship with animals and the particular “spirit animals” or creatures that populate our imagination. Paradoxically, we might find that they help us become more effective and capable in our worldly, human affairs.
Of course, mythical creatures are also invited to the party, and serpents and dragons are particularly relevant to eclipses. Here, we can get an appreciation of the way that eclipses are sometimes thought to be evil omens and the caution they’re approached with. The North Node, the Dragon’s Head, called Rahu in Vedic Astrology, is thought to be potentially demonic in the way that it can incite an unhealthy desire—we get ahead of ourselves, biting off more than we can chew, and since the head is severed from the tail, we cannot be satisfied. Here, we might get hypnotized by the dragon’s eyes—we might have to keep a sense of healthy proportion to whatever visions are emerging, making sure that we’re actually seeing things as they are, maintaining our capacity for discernment. With the presence of dragons, there’s certainly treasure and immense power afoot, but asking for more of it than we can wield will likely mean injury.
Of course, let me know if you’d like to explore what this eclipse means for you.
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