New Moon Solar Eclipse in Libra: The Feather of Truth
We have an annular ('ring of fire') solar eclipse this month in the sign of Libra, on Weds 2nd Oct at 7.46pm UK time. This is one of the most powerful moments in this year's astrological calendar, which really intensifies our experience of truth, fairness and justice. It calls us to account for our thoughts and actions, which more than ever now must be weighed in the scales of wise judgment. Being in the moral, ethical sign of Libra, and in conjunction with Mercury, Black Moon Lilith, the onus is on right thinking, and right speech. It is about the way we communicate with each other, and the way we attend to the unacknowledged shadow power of the words that we utter. Partly that's to do with the impact that our words have on others, but even more than that, it's about the way we speak our life into being. As we speak, so we create the parameters for our lives, in terms of what is possible, what we can achieve, and who we believe ourselves to be. Extraordinary and (perhaps) unprecedented changes are afoot in our world, we are dancing on the precipice of a new era that could go in one way or another, and produce very different outcomes. I don't think it is too dramatic to say that the fate of humanity, and the likelihood of a human future really does hang in the scales, and this solar eclipse would seem to exemplify that more than ever.
Libra is the peacemaker in the zodiac, the bestower of beauty and harmony, the one whose role it is to remain impartial and to find the middle way through conflict. A solar eclipse occurs at a new moon, when the moon lies directly in the path of the Sun, temporarily obscuring the Sun's light. As this eclipse lines up with the south node of the moon, it raises the spectre of unconscious judgments, preconceptions, biases and stored up resentments. Although it will only be observable across the southernmost part of South America, its symbolic effect will be felt powerfully by us all, especially those who have personal planets or angles (AC/DC or MC/IC) at around 8 -12˚ of the cardinal signs: Libra/Aries or Cancer/Capricorn.
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Before I get further into it, I want to let you know that I am accepting final enrolments this week for my year-long astrological trainings. I have my Diploma Course starting this weekend, This APAI accredited professional training is suitable for anyone who has completed my foundation course or an equivalent course from another astrological school - or indeed anyone who is self-taught and can demonstrate the requisite knowledge suitable for diploma level. I am also taking final enrolments this week for my Foundation Course starting 15th October. Please contact me or enrol by the end of this week, if you would like to take this course.
Also a reminder that I am running a very exciting new 3-part webinar series with my friend and colleague, Jez Hughes: "Awakening to Psycho-Spiritual Crisis". Drawing upon what we have each learned from our own personal experiences in early life, and our subsequent practice and research, we will be approaching the topic of mental breakdown and psychosis from a shamanic and astrological perspective. The webinar series starts on 31st October, and we are offering a Free Introductory Webinar on Thurs 17th October at 6pm UK time.
This eclipse marks a critical threshold. In our personal lives, in our spiritual lives, and in terms of our vocational paths and the integrity of our work and service, we are being faced with a whole range of dilemmas and choices that don't have easy answers. So much of what we are expected to do now, and the ways in which we are required to engage with each other involve reductive codes and systems; de-humanising technological interfaces that risk impoverishing the human spirit, and diminishing the possibility of meaning and soulful connection. And in a way that seems inevitably related to this, there appear to be increasing levels of disagreement and misunderstanding among people. In a post-truth, tech-driven, social media centred society, as new faultlines of dispute occur, we are expected to take a side on every issue, and algorithms stand in for common sense. We may no longer be in accord with people in our lives that we used to agree with on social, political or spiritual issues, and we may find ourselves making unexpected alliances with people who, in the past, we would thought to have had little in common with. In the midst of what many perceive as an apocalyptic moment in history, there are so many divided opinions on the way we progress from here as communities, as nations, and as a society, as political leaders engage in dangerous rhetoric and wars escalate.
What gets seeded here at this time, over this Libran eclipse, both individually and collectively seems absolutely pivotal. For while the social and political order seems to be breaking down, many people are becoming self-realised, raising their spiritual frequency, rejecting the mainstream narratives and seeing beyond the illusion of materialism. Remarkably juxtaposed, the possibility of global catastrophe, and the possibility of a wholesale transformation of consciousness both appear closer than ever!
Libra's medicine is about learning to stand in the shoes of another, and recognise the good intention that lies behind that other person's perspective; in recognition of the humanity that you share in common with them, even if your viewpoints are radically different. This is much harder in the current climate of censorship and surveillance, where the ground of debate is being so dramatically reduced, and the fear of expressing an unpopular opinion is causing many people to self-censor. Libra carries the gift of beauty, balance, harmony and proportion, and over this eclipse, we can take the opportunity to visualise ourselves being like the pivot of the balancing scales, holding the centre between two delicately poised pans, each filled with opposing views and perspectives, including our own. As we observe each side pulling against the other, we can experience the tension that is generated, and learn to mediate, to hold that tension; to hold the centre, even whilst feeling the intense pull on either side, to suspend judgment as to what is right or wrong, to recognise there are two sides to every argument, and to feel the light in us increase, as we resist coming down heavily on either side.
The feather of truth, fairness and justice belongs to the Egyptian goddess Ma'at, who presides over the famous Egyptian judgment scene. At the end of one's life, the heart is weighed against the feather of Ma'at, and one's soul can progress to the Field of Reeds, the blissful afterlife, only if the heart is light enough not to tip the scales. This scene reminds us that we must lighten our load; it teaches us the importance of releasing the many burdens that weigh upon our hearts. It is surely no coincidence that the word 'light' refers both to the condition of weightlessness and to that of illumination. To become lighter is to allow in more light. To raise our consciousness above the weighty concerns of the body and the world, not by ignoring them, or pretending that they don't exist, but by releasing our attachment to their ultimate significance.
The chart for this new moon eclipse shows the line up of Sun, Moon and Mercury alongside Black Moon Lilith (an imagined point which marks the current lunar apogee) all within 1˚ of exactitude. The latter acts as shadow mirror for the dark side of the moon, and holds in memory the repressed, banished parts of our psyche. Her presence here at this eclipse seems worthy of note. Mercury has just separated from the Sun, having made its exact, superior, conjunction on Monday, with both having passed over the south node of the Moon at the weekend. Looking at it here, it feels like a moment of moment of karmic reckoning, with light being shed upon issues from the past, and an opportunity to evaluate more clearly one's options and the ways in which one is influenced by the opinions of others. We also notice that the the new moon is applying by square aspect to Mars in Cancer, (with a 5˚ orb), which draws attention to certain conflicts which seek to be resolved, but which (with Mars in Cancer) we may be quite reticent about tackling! Libra's ruling planet Venus is in Scorpio, where she is far from comfortable, remembering past betrayals and finding it hard to trust. This is offset to some extent however by the fact that she is in a grand water trine with Mars in Cancer and Saturn in Pisces, which suggests that she can find alliances when the emotional life is properly recognised and feelings are admitted.
My Libra mantra runs: "I come in peace, I walk in beauty, and I choose the middle path."
New moon blessings to all over this eclipse. Maw we sow the very best of intentions.