Lunar Eclipse in Leo

This is early tomorrow morning, the 21st January, exact at 5:12 am GMT.

It's a total eclipse and a supermoon, meaning the moon is at a near point in her orbit and will appear larger than usual.

Even without all that though, it'd be super intense. The moon is at 0 degrees Leo, and facing off against the sun at 0 degrees Aquarius. Uranus in Aries is squaring these poles tightly. This is a fixed t-square – a tense and uncomfortable aspect pattern, where change is demanded and yet resisted fiercely. You can expect the unexpected, and crazy drama is likely – you're probably seeing it already. People are going to be stubborn as hell even when they're heading in the exact wrong direction, and explosively angry when challenged. The Brexit mess and the American government shutdown are perfect examples of the energy: big attention-seeking egos (Leo) vs. the future of the collective  (Aquarius), with a Molotov cocktail of inflammatory anger and rebellion (Uranus in Aries) thrown into the mix, and no plausible way out because no one is willing to give an inch.

So I'm aware all that doesn't sound so great. But wait, there's more! Mars in his home sign of Aries (where he can be extra aggro and impatient, raring to go) is exactly squaring Saturn in his home sign of Capricorn (where reality is cold, hard and inflexible). Mars square Saturn is not a nice aspect. It's often compared to driving with the brakes on – intense forward momentum hitting a wall, leading to vicious frustration and rage. It's associated with cruelty.

So that definitely doesn't sound so great. You put together the fixed t-square and Mars square Saturn, and it's not the most pleasant picture that's emerging. It's quite harsh - a battle of egos vs. each other and more importantly, vs. a harsh reality that cannot be evaded indefinitely.

But we do have something soothing and lovely in the form of Venus conjunct Jupiter in Sagittarius. Jupiter, like Mars and Saturn, is in his home sign (as is Neptune). That alone is helpful – there's a lot of cosmic backup right now with all these planets in their home signs. But Venus conjunct Jupiter is especially lucky, as these are the two benefic planets coming together. So it's a bright, hopeful prospect, especially for relationship and money matters. The conjunction is squaring Neptune, meaning that hopeful prospect may be utterly delusive, but still – it's nice to have, considering everything else.

The way out of the impasse we face at this eclipse is suggested by the north node in Cancer, disposited by the moon in Leo: get in touch with your heart and your feelings. Not your feelings of outrage, wounded ego and righteous indignation – we've all had quite enough of that stuff, it won't get us anywhere. But your feelings of love and compassion and generosity. Chiron in Pisces also sends beneficial aspects to the eclipse, meaning there is a big existential woundedness underlying all the fixed, opposing positions and gridlock – the deep, impersonal pain of Being. If you can get in touch with that, you might just be able to see your opponent as no different to yourself deep down. It's a long shot, but there doesn't seem to be any other way out.

Rhetoric and analysis and ideology are not going to help – these are functions of the south node in Aquarius, meaning they'll come easy, but they're not what's called for. Cathartic tears, kindness and a change of heart are what's called for.

Also creative self-expression  - being fully authentic to yourself, no matter how zany it seems to the collective. It's great for artists, so if you can make art with it, you're using it well. The wierder the better.

Full Moon Eclipse in Aquarius

Themes in pictures: 

Calmly observing the primordial swamp from a progress-oriented vantage point

Cutting oneself free of old patterns and conditioning

To thine own self be true

 

This is tonight, the 27th August at 8:22 pm UTC.

So here we are at the big blood moon. Longest eclipse of the century so far, a super-moon (meaning closer to Earth than usual), and conjunct a Mars that is halfway through his retrograde period and closer in his orbit than he's been since 2003. It's a big deal.

I don't really know where to start with regard to this thing. The strings of the whole chart are pulled so tight – like a bow string, or a loaded gun. The moon is nearly exactly conjunct Mars on the south node, the sun is nearly exactly conjunct the north node in Leo, and Uranus in Taurus squares both poles at a tight angle. This is a fixed t-square - pretty uncomfortable, a bunch of immovable objects facing off against irresistible forces. Something's gotta give.

With Uranus so heavily involved, expect the unexpected. Whatever comes, shock will be involved. It may really be a liberation, but it won't necessarily feel like one -- it looks abrupt and uncomfortable.

Mars in Aquarius is squaring Uranus, the ruler of Aquarius. This is a blitzkreig aspect – sudden accidents and explosions of violence are more likely. Please be careful operating machinery and driving, and be careful around electrical equipment.

Also, stay away from angry, aggressive people if you can, and try to avoid being one. With Mars and the moon on the south node in Aquarius, the path of least resistance is cold rage and abrupt, emotionally detached violence – kinda psychopathic really.

The sun on the north node in Leo points the correct way forward: creativity, self-expression, generosity, good humour, playfulness, heart. These qualities may be harder to access than usual at this time, but it's important that you at least try to access them in order to avoid acting like a total psycho.

There is also a theme of maintaining personal authenticity in the face of group dynamics – acting from your core individuality instead of going along with the crowd. Being true to yourself is pretty much impossible if you're preoccupied with how you appear to others. The task here (and always) is to become your authentic self, not a curated persona. The ways in which you are not true to yourself are likely to be cast in sharp relief about now.

Authentic self-expression may be blocked or difficult, as we're dealing with a Mercury retrograde in Leo as of yesterday (26th July), and running till the 19th August. As always, I'd advise using blockage to look inward. Introspection is a prerequisite for true authenticity and self-expression, and you can use this Mercury retrograde to connect with what you truly think and feel, even if expressing it properly is tough at the moment. (Also, hold of signing documents and formalising commitments with Mercury retrograde, and expect the usual issues with travel and communications.)

Full moons are about culminations and endings, and a lunar eclipse is a full moon, only more so. So be prepared to say goodbye to something at this eclipse. Given the Uranian influence, something may be abruptly removed. Please remember that what feels like loss may actually be liberation: one less thing to carry around and worry about.

 Radical minimalism is one of the themes of Uranus in Taurus: the less baggage you're carrying, the more room you'll have to manoeuvre, and the more space you'll have for the new to enter your life. It's all about making space for the new this year: we are in the process of building new operating systems based on greater personal authenticity, because following the same old patterns no longer works. This is for everyone, across the board -- and this eclipse serves that imperative.

I think we're looking at a great opportunity here to cut ourselves free of old conditioning and pathologies. Remember we are still in Cancer lunar cycle, and the new moon solar eclipse in Cancer two weeks ago was about the death or transformation of unhealthy old emotional patterns and family dynamics. Aquarius, unlike Cancer, is emotionally detached and focused on the future.

So at this eclipse, we are facing an inward turning-point, where we can finally look dispassionately at the baggage we're still carrying around and drop what needs to be dropped, in the interests of moving forward. There is unlikely to be much point in dwelling on your hangups any further, unless you really enjoy doing that. But it'll keep you stuck! If you're interested in progress, you can use this eclipse to cut and clear.

At best, it looks like a kind of emotional shock-therapy – liberating, but not exactly comfortable:

Intense as this blood moon is, it really does look like an inward realization kinda vibe to me: coming to terms with reality and understanding how to move forward. We are dealing with a lot of retrogrades at the moment, so you can't expect much progress in the outer world, though you may have great clarity about where you're supposed to be aiming.

On a collective level, some intense reckonings with bedrock reality are underway. On a personal level I think this is all about being true to yourself. Your authentic core self, your essence – not your socially constructed self.

We'll round out eclipse season with a new moon partial solar eclipse in Leo on the 11th August, which underscores the theme of personal authenticity.

Per Shakespeare:
“This above all: to thine own self be true, 
And it must follow, as the night the day, 
Thou canst not then be false to any man”