Eclipses–How do They Affect You?

Are you curious about eclipses and how they may affect you? Throughout history, we’ve been awed by eclipses, and ancient astrologers made their reputations by being able to predict when they would occur. Now we all know when they are happening in advance, and we’re able to watch them on television, direct from wherever the totality occurs. Eclipse buffs will even fly halfway around the world to see them in person. In olden days, eclipses were so mysterious that they were considered powerful and often unfortunate omens.

Today, most astrologers would agree that they aren’t necessarily destructive. They’re an indication of a heightened focus of energy, so most astrologers do track the chart areas where they occur. Here, from a table at www.astrologyweekly.com/, is a list of eclipses for 2011, so you can see where they fall in your own chart. As you’ll note, the key areas of the zodiac affected in 2011 are in Gemini and Sagittarius.

Solar Eclipse:	4 Jan 2011	13Cap38
Solar Eclipse:	1 Jun 2011	11Gem01
Lunar Eclipse:	15 Jun 2011	24Sag23
Solar Eclipse:	1 Jul 2011	09Can12
Solar Eclipse:	25 Nov 2011	02Sag36
Lunar Eclipse:	10 Dec 2011	18Gem10

 

Solar eclipses occur at the new Moon and block out the sun, while lunar eclipses occur at the full Moon and block out the Moon. The transiting nodes, which determine where eclipses fall, travel backward at the rate of one sign a year. A complete nodal cycle will impact all twelve signs and houses of your chart in turn. Here, from http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr161/lect/time/lunar_anim.html is an illustration of how a lunar eclipse works:

Why eclipses aren’t all the same: If you have followed the effect of eclipses, you may have noticed that some are intense and others are mild. The more intense ones often involve aspects between the Sun and Moon and a transiting outer planet, or they may set off a major pattern in the birth chart.

Seldom have I seen someone have a lunar meltdown at an eclipse unless important outer planet transits have already been acting on the same area for a while.

Joanne Wickenburg also points out that the Moon’s nodes are necessarily involved in eclipses. She feels that an eclipse at the north node is going to be different–more productive, generally–than one at the south node, which involves more necessity to let go of things. (The Sun and Moon can be some distance away from the exact aspect to the nodes, for they are only exact at a total eclipse.)

What can you expect if an eclipse triggers off one of your natal planets? For at least six months afterwards, it highlights the house involved, but especially the matters concerned with any planets it aspects.

These are periods of special tension between the solar and lunar hemispheres. They are powerful windows for healing work or flower remedies, for a great clearing can occur. (See several posts about flower essences and how they correlate with astrology under Healing Tools–Essences, Light, etc. )

When an eclipse affects you in a major way, you may experience conflict in the houses involved. For six months or longer, you will need to concentrate on balance in those areas. Sometimes the eclipse six months later will be in the same house, so there is a repeated emphasis.

An eclipse that aspects a natal planet can trigger an upheaval in the functions of that planet. If so, it’s not the Moon’s fault. Over time you have allowed those matters to deteriorate or to build up a backlog of tension that must be discharged.

Suppose a solar eclipse conjuncts your natal Saturn in the eleventh. Perhaps you’ve been carrying too much responsibility for a friend for far too long–or allowing a friend to assume too much responsibility for you. The eclipse hits, and the friendship is in jeopardy. Don’t curse the Moon–you set this up, and now you have to clean it up.

If an upcoming eclipse is going to fall in an area where you feel vulnerable, use this knowledge preventatively. Begin to take stock of the issues, examine what your true feelings are, and then work to improve the situation. When the eclipse happens, you will already have let off some of the tension and resolved some of the problems. It won’t be as hard on you as it would be if you’d hid your head in the sand.

When an eclipse occurs at the full Moon, the Sun is traveling through a particular sign and house while the Moon occupies the opposite sign and house, so both signs and houses are emphasized. There is tension between these areas, each demanding your attention. The key is to learn how to deal with both in a balanced way, without neglecting either.

For instance, an eclipse that falls across the axis of the sixth and twelfth houses shows tension between the demands of the work life and the inner life. A full Moon across the first/seventh axis would show conflict between your own interests and those of your partner, demanding to integrate the two. The affairs of each house pair can conflict unless there is cooperation, but they can also lend mutual support and wholeness when they are integrated.

Readers: Do you have an eclipse story? Leave it in the comment section so we can all learn more about them.

Want more information about eclipses? See these sites:

• The lunar eclipse animation came from: http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr161/lect/time/lunar_anim.html
• Astrology Weekly’s Table of Solar and Lunar eclipses: http://www.astrologyweekly.com/astrological-information/solar-lunar-eclipses.php lists the eclipses from 2005-2012.
• Dana Gerhardt gives sage advice on how to cope with eclipse energies here: Eclipse feng shui magic
• Best all-around site for following the current Moon conditions and how they affect you: Auntie Moon

More Posts about the Moon on this Blog:

• How to View an Eclipse
• Eclipses: Moving Beyond the Four Walls of the Known
• Using the Daily Moon Sign to your Advantage
• How To Use The Moon For A Daily Emotional Weather Report
• The Moon Signs and their Emotional Habits
• The Void of Course Moon–A Lunar Sabbath?
• Why Transits to the Birth Moon are so Challenging
• How Outer Planet Transits to the Moon Affect Family Life
• Cancerians, Memory and Emotion
• Fool’s Gold—the Slippery Slope of the South Node