I finally got a chance to spend a little more time with the chart for today’s annular solar eclipse, which is still occurring as I write and coincides with the New Moon in Libra. (The New Moon was exact at 1:55 pm EDT, with the eclipse peaking four minutes later.)
From the perspective of astrology, the two weeks between eclipses regularly prove to be powerful times to shift patterns in one’s life, even its overall trajectory, for at least the next six to twelve months. (YMMV with each specific eclipse season.)
Eclipses describe a process of releasing or shedding something that no longer is necessary, healthy, or supportive of one’s growth, and subsequently or simultaneously taking steps toward whatever IS necessary, healthy, or supportive of one’s growth. An actively engaged eclipse process is one of making space (or recognizing and accepting that it is being made), and then being very intentional about how you fill it.
Eclipses are a disruption in the typical lunar-solar relationship, and disruptions can feel a little choppy. The more conscious awareness you can bring to that choppiness, the less upsetting or disorienting it may be as you move through it. Kind of like how if you’re in a kayak approaching rapids in a river, you’ll have a much easier time riding them if you position your kayak with the current, rather than across it.
Between now and Oct. 28, when we get the partial lunar eclipse and Full Moon that pairs with today’s solar eclipse and New Moon, the idea is to get clear on how the rapids are running in your life and do what you can to point your kayak into the flow.
One of the features in the chart for today’s eclipse that caught my attention most strongly is that the Sun and Moon at 21+ Libra are leaning into a square aspect with a centaur planet named Hylonome, which is at 22+ Capricorn. Centaur planets often describe healing processes, especially those relating to multi-generational family patterns.
Hylonome is one of the rare female centaurs named in Greek myths. She perished from a self-inflicted injury following the unexpected death of her beloved in battle, using the same weapon that killed him.
It is this idea of “self-inflicted” that I think holds an interesting key to this eclipse. With Hylonome in Saturn-ruled Capricorn, this could easily relate to “restrictions.” Hylonome’s position in Capricorn means that its relationship to the eclipse is one of inner tension and the need to resolve it through action.
To me this looks like the ability to release self-inflicted restrictions to achieve a more fair, accurate, or creative balance in some facet of life. Are you feeling this impulse in any way? (If you could use a hint on where to look, see if my previous post from this week offers any useful info.)
If the next steps calling you forward on your path are at odds with who you’ve been up till now (such as how you’ve always done or thought about something, or how you’ve always been in a relationship), that will probably generate tension.
Can you let go of any such self-inflicted restrictions standing in the way, without getting too caught up in the drama of “losing” them? Initiating your own actions in this endeavor will likely feel more empowering and less frustrating or fear inducing.
“Loss” is a loaded word in Western culture, and loss is often rightly heavy with grief. Yet shedding can also be enlivening and lightening. Carrying less psychological, emotional, and spiritual weight — whether in the form of outdated identities, familial and cultural expectations, or attachment to feelings — allows us to move with greater agility and a sense of being balanced within ourselves.
Looking ahead, the Oct. 28 eclipse (which occurs across the Taurus-Scorpio axis) appears poised to bring in, build on, or be supported by whatever got catalyzed or accelerated into understanding and action between the Libra equinox, the Sept. 29 Aries Full Moon, and now. Toward the end of this month it may be more noticeable that the space for the “intention-setting and building” part of the process has been cleared and you are more ready than you realized.
May the next two weeks offer you ways to more easily move from the present moment toward the unknown future. May you also give yourself permission to continue evolving along the way, discovering a new equilibrium with each phase of becoming who you are.
With love,
Amanda
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