March 28th ~ April 4th

With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts. ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

On Saturday, March 29th we have a partial Solar Eclipse at 9º of Aries. Occurring at its maximum at 6:47 am Eastern Daylight Time (3:47 am PDT; 10:47 am in the UK) it will then perfect the New Moon a few minutes later. Since the Nodes have moved back into Pisces/Virgo, this is the last of the series of the Aries/Libra eclipses. This eclipse will be most visible in Canada, Greenland, and parts of the United States. Strangely not surprising, what with this amazing confluence of astrological phenomena combined with the current political landscape. Solar Eclipses can serve as turning points, and albeit a partial eclipse, this will be no different. 

Mars, the ruling planet of Aries is still out of bounds in the sign of Cancer. A planet is considered to be out of bounds when it moves beyond 23º 26’ North or South of the equator. These are the points of maximum declination for the Sun’s migration to the Tropic of Cancer in June, and the Tropic of Capricorn for the December Solstice. Planets that move beyond these latitudes are considered out of bounds, and beyond the field of influence of our liege Lord, the Sun.

Free to roam, and not bound by the usual conventions and rules, these out-of-bound planets are virtually lawless. Left to their own devices, they answer to no one but themselves. This free range expression can be a good thing, even for our warrior planet Mars. For instance, an out of bounds Mars gives athletes that certain edge that allows them to perform beyond expectations, break records and reach stellar heights in their sport. This is the sort of Mars that heroes are made of, courageously running into the fire instead of away, and taking on challenges that leave us breathlessly in awe. But with its domain over the tools of war, destruction and violence (guns, knives, sharp instruments, fire and war) lawless and un-contained, out of bounds Mars can also be dangerous.

Solar Eclipses occur at the New Moon which is about New Beginnings. All the more so in the sign of Aries, the first sign of the zodiac. And then again, even more so because the eclipse is widely conjunct the North Node of the Moon at the end of Pisces. The Nodes are the points at which the Moon’s path and the Sun’s path intersect, allowing the eclipses to occur. North Node eclipses are almost always about new beginnings, and/or opening up opportunities that will allow us to get back in tune with our life’s path and destiny. If we are already there, moving in the correct direction, we might not notice all that much happening in our lives.  

But occasionally, when these eclipses occur, it can feel like a reboot. Or perhaps more magically, this is when the fates, as it were, are able to manipulate things behind the scenes in order to make sure that everyone is in their designated positions. And this may be so even if and when the world and our lives appear to be rife with chaos and uncertainty. 

The Sun is also the source of our very life force, and when it is eclipsed, even partially, it could feel either like a short circuit, or a major reboot. This is why these eclipse periods can either feel very energetically high, or completely exhausting and draining. 

Solar Eclipses often bring turning points in our lives associated with great beginnings and endings. The orchestrations occurring behind the scenes can be felt for weeks before, and the unfolding of the effects of the eclipse can continue for months after. And because these are often turning points, the ramifications and consequences of these new beginnings can affect us not only for months, but perhaps even years afterwards. So these are not only specific to the day of the eclipse, but for much larger blocks of time. 

The spiritual warrior hides from nothing. We jump into the fire, we dive into the ocean. We become the sea. ~ Charlotte Sophia Kasl

One day after the Eclipse, Neptune will enter Aries for the first time. It will retrograde back into Pisces in October for a brief period of time, entering Aries for the long haul in January. But this is the shift right here. This changes the very atmosphere we breathe, the subtle undertones to everything we do, see, hear, believe. For Neptune is what lends meaning to our lives, and imbues us with a sense of purpose. 

As written last week, Aries is the first sign of the zodiac, and when major planets enter this sign there is a resurgence of raw energy heralding a Rebirth. Like an infant fresh from the womb, we become totally invested with this new life force. Neptune represents our ideals, our dreams, our aspirations for perfection. But it can also be about our nightmares, our vulnerabilities and that which dispirits us with disillusionment. And when Neptune makes this all-important ingress into Aries, it dares us to consider what are those things that are worth fighting for? This is important. For the spiritual warrior, Neptune in Aries, does not fight against people or things, the spiritual warrior fights for them. 

Expect to see the full spectrum of Neptune in Aries over the next 13 years. All of it. The good, the bad and some hybrid version of all of it. But in order to do this well we all need to connect with our own inner spiritual warrior, deep in our heart of hearts. This is what we are being asked to do with the current retrogrades of both Mercury and Venus. 

When Mercury and Venus stationed for their retrograde phases, they were at the degree of the current Solar Eclipse, activating it, investing it with all that we have experienced, seen, loved, believed and understood. As they return to Pisces (Venus on March 27th; Mercury March 29th) they both crossed paths with Neptune making its ingress into Aries. They proceeded to carry the light of the spiritual warrior back to the North Node in Pisces, and ultimately to Saturn. There is a process unfolding, guiding us, leading us all on this winding path. The result being to, number one, show us who we really are, and then to participate in this new world order that is gradually emerging. 

As have many, I have often used the perfect alignment of these Solar Eclipses to sow intentions, for after all they represent an open portal to our collective purpose! But there are many who question the wisdom of sowing intentions with eclipses that are woven out of the fabric of chaos itself, for they are more likely to bring us unexpected outcomes. What we think we want, may not necessarily be what the soul needs and desires for its own growth and realization. And if indeed the fates are busy orchestrating things behind the scenes, who are we to interfere with their good work? And so perhaps there is some wisdom in avoiding making intentions with an Eclipse.

However, with this perfect alignment what we do have access to is an inner understanding of the ways in which we can best fulfill the behests of the soul. Request to be led precisely where you need to be in order to fulfill your destiny. And recognize that if a dream is truly meant for you, then and only then, may the conditions arise to make it so. And always qualify your hopes and dreams with the added request that they only be fulfilled in a way that is for the greatest good of all concerned. 

But perhaps the one thing that this eclipse can be especially useful for is connecting with ourselves. For the alignment between the Sun, Moon and Earth also allows this perfect connection between our questioning rational  Mind and our Higher intuitive selves. This can allow us to see things from a much higher perspective, and open us up to guidance, clarity and understanding. 

What we can do with the eclipses, is so positive affirmations, that encourage us to be open to whatever Guidance and Understanding may be needed to fulfill our individual and collective destinies. Therefore, some positive affirmations for the Solar Eclipse at 9º of Aries on March 29th might be: 

• I accept any new beginnings being brought to me with excitement and hopeful anticipation
• I enthusiastically greet the challenges I am facing with an understanding that these can help me grow in ways that I had not previously considered.
• I am open to receiving whatever guidance is needed towards realizing my true path and destiny. 

Don’t explain your philosophy. Embody it. ~ Epictetus

For the Solar Eclipse and Neptune’s Ingress into Aries for your sign or natal house, click through to the Horoscopes page:

HOROSCOPES

Image: CrystalWind.ca