The Moon is about be reborn in the fires of the Sun amidst Mercury’s pragmatic, industrious, temple of Virgo. This New moon is also our second solar eclipse for the year.
A solar eclipse carries many of the same significations as a standard new moon: as the heavenly queen is reborn in the fires of the Sun, the whole world experiences an energetic reset, this is a time to cleanse, revitalize, start afresh, and renew your spirit.
For this reason, the eclipse remains a good time for purifying the psyche of unwanted old habits, setting new, uplifting intentions for the next cycle, and reinvigorating ourselves with enthusiasm for life.
But unlike a new moon, the solar eclipse also brings loss and disruption to our lives. The parts of our lives touched on by this alignment are, simply put, eclipsed: we often experience disruptions, changes, and some sort of loss as old patterns, behaviors, and relationships fall away in order to make room for new growth.
For this reason, eclipses often carry more sinister overtones, and stories of the Sun being nearly devoured by twisted demons or dragons abound throughout the mythologies of the world. While eclipses aren’t evil in a moral sense, they do cause serious changes to our lives, and should be managed with a certain level of gravity.
Because they tend to stir up so much in our lives, spiritual practices and meditations done during eclipses are said to have greatly magnified effects. Psychologically, so much more gunk arises from the subconscious that spiritual disciplines can heal and integrate; externally, spiritual practices ensure that we respond to these major transitions in our lives in the best possible way, and achieve the cleanest, clearest outcomes. If we treat eclipses with mindfulness and respect, we can set ourselves up for a great deal of good fortune in the long run.
Many of the qualities and themes to this solar eclipse overlap with the previous new moon in Virgo we had last month. You can read more about that new moon here.
Just like the Virgo Moon last month, this eclipse calls us to administrate and oversee our earthly kingdom. However, this eclipse will also up the unconscious resistances that we have to the Virgoan virtues of purity and control, and bring a lot more uncomfortable emotions to the surface as we try and do our work.
In setting intentions toward proper administration and control of our lives, the shadow sides of Virgo - neurosis, obsession, and perfectionism - can arise. Isntead of properly tending to and sorting out the domain of our life, we make perfect into the enemy of good.
Virgo’s highest aspect is of proper administration and management of life - putting everything in its proper place, and bringing a special kind of care to the smallest little details of one’s life. However, many people’s only exposure to these Virgoan aspects came by way of overbearing parents or other authority figures. As such, many of us have a mixed relationship with the Virgoan traits in their life.
You may find that these old wounds around authority get reactivated. The bruised and hurt parts of ourselves that resist Virgoan order and stability become much louder.
This eclipse habits in a very close opposition to Saturn in Pisces. I believe that this close opposition is part of the reason for the severe violence and political turmoil that has captivated the cultural ethos the past week. In your own life, the amount of shadows and unconscious turmoil revealed to you will be magnified.
The best thing you can do is just watch these emotions and reactions come and go. Don’t fight them as they come up, and don’t hold onto them when they’re here. Do not act or react from a place of anger and frustration; wait for some time to pass.
The same protocols that I gave in my previous email regarding eclipses apply here as well. As this is an eclipse, you will want to stay inside, or get as little sunlight or moonlight on your person as possible.
If you do go outside, wear protective stones like black tourmaline. Or carry protective plants like High John the conqueror or hawthorn or burdock wrapped in cloth.
Then, burn an aromatic incense to cleanse yourself when you come in. Many cultures also wash themselves with holy water. You can also take salt baths or baths with baking soda if you feel you really need a strong cleanse.
Your time will be best spent in prayer and meditation. Go on a small retreat, rest in stillness when you're not working. This can be a powerful moment for internal spiritual development - but it has to happen internally.
Give yourself space during this eclipse to rest and be still. Listen lovingly to the thoughts and emotions that get stirred up. Don’t fight or shame the responses that arise from within you - but don’t feed them either.
After this storm has passed, you will have much more space for bringing in the peace and spaciousness that Virgoan fastidiousness promises.