Astro Tips by Linda
Sprague
Total Solar Eclipse
August 21, 2017
28/29 degrees of Leo
“Darkness within
darkness—the gateway to all understanding.” Tao Te Ching
During a total solar eclipse, the Moon passes over the Sun creating darkness and shadow. Solar eclipses are very much
about shadow material. What is waiting to be revealed in the shadow? There is a special kind of landscape
when the sky goes dark. They say Venus
and Mercury are visible in the dark sky (in the path of a total solar eclipse). A total solar eclipse, according to
some reports, causes a kind of shock and awe. Goosebumps! Darkness and silence in the middle of the
day. No wonder the ancients considered
eclipses serious events.
Make
friends with the darkness
During a total solar eclipse, the Sun and Moon form a
perfect conjunction. The Moon lines up with the Sun, then appears to be the
same size as the Sun, and then passes in front--or eclipses--the light of the
Sun. The Sun is our life force as
well as our ego identity. The Moon
darkens the life force and identity.
We get quiet and look to the shadow for more information. Perhaps we will see or understand
things that eluded us before. We
can face our shadows and grab some understanding. The important thing is to
face those parts of ourselves that we wish didn’t exist, e.g. resentment,
jealousy, fear, nasty thoughts, unresolved anger, confusion, greed, and maybe
suppressed memories. You know, those “deadly sins” we talk about. If all we do is be conscious of our
dark material, that’s a good step.
There is also gold to be found in the dark recesses of our individual
cellars. Go on down and see what’s there, dig up the gold.
How
long does this go on?
Meanwhile, keep in mind that eclipses have a time span of up
to six months. The energy of the eclipse has already begun and will continue
throughout the fall. The eclipse
has been in its active state since August 7th, when the Full Moon
eclipse occurred in the sign of Aquarius.
The solar eclipse takes us into the intense time now through the middle
of September. We can expect to uncover secrets of our own or hear news that
reveals hidden information regarding other people and our leaders.
If you have a connection with this eclipse—the Sun, Moon,
Ascendant, Mercury or other planets at 28 or 29 degrees of Leo--then
you may experience huge life altering events during this eclipse period. This isn’t meant to be a dire
prediction. The eclipse can also bring good news like a better job, a windfall,
or a new relationship if you need one!
Leo: the Sun, warmth, love, loyalty,
leadership, ego, and kings
One positive aspect of Leo is love. Leo rules the heart. When the heart is open, we feel
love. During this eclipse period,
we are advised to extend our energy (Mars) in a loving manner (Sun/Moon Leo)
and communicate with love. The
eclipse in Leo opens us up to know and love ourselves more, and to love others
as well. This Leo eclipse also
invites us to realize and know our own unique leadership qualities. We all have
important, unique qualities to offer to our families and community. The hidden trap of Leo is distortion of
ego. We need self-worth and
self-respect. Both are components of a healthy ego. However, Leo ego can
sometimes want to be the exclusive center of attention or has an exaggerated
opinion of self. These
exaggerations will be exposed during this kind of eclipse. Another shadow trait of Leo to look for
right now is childish ego. Even
the more mature person can revert to the childish ego and throw a tantrum when he or she doesn’t
get what he/she wants! Needless to say, our focus right now will be not only on
our own life, but on the leaders “out there”—bosses, managers, CEO’s, the clergy, Congressmen, the President. We
associate Leo with kings and leaders.
How are they and their egos affecting us?
Planets Mercury and Mars are also connected with this
eclipse. There is a bundle of Leo energy.
Mercury is communication and gathering information and Mars is
assertion. Leo, sign of the
leader, the king, and the commander-in-chief, is ruled by the Sun. There is enormous energy directed toward
leadership and especially towards any hidden information about leadership. We are saturated with news about
leaders and we are waiting for any hidden news yet to be revealed. Again,
during this eclipse, we are drawn into the darkness, not just our own dark
corners, but the dark material of other people and the collective body of our
nation.
The
American Eclipse and President Trump
President Trump is intensely affected by this total solar
eclipse. His ascendant is 29
degrees of Leo, the degree of the eclipse. The fixed star Regulus is located at 29 degrees of Leo (this
eclipse point). Regulus watches
over kings and rulers. Mr. Trump
comes by kingship/leadership easily because this star that creates kings sits prominently
on his ascendant! (This same star is on Bill Clinton’s Sun.) If you have
wondered how Trump came to be our president, this news about Regulus gives
perspective. Whether or not Mr.
Trump keeps his position as “king” remains to be seen. Can he look into his own dark cellar
and reach new levels of consciousness? What Regulus gives, it can also take
away if the king lacks integrity. How President Trump handles the current
issues our nation is facing will affect his position. How he addresses the shadow material of our country will
show us what kind of leader he is.
Issues like racism, plutocracy taking over democracy, the struggle to
move beyond our patriarchial system, global migration, climate change issues,
reproductive rights, and separation of church and state, to mention a few, are
up for examination and overhaul. Basically, our nation’s struggle to upgrade
our democracy and at the same time preserve that democracy is on the line. Everything that our nation is
struggling with will challenge Trump’s leadership abilities. We are fortunate
to live in this great country AND we are pushed to make our country better.
Both things are true: On the one hand, we have a beautiful system designed by
our founders based on freedom of speech, equality, fairness and justice. On the other hand, there are inequities
in our collective shadow that must be faced and attended to. At the very least we must be conscious
of our country’s shadows and not be afraid to heal the shadows.
Be
.your own leader
The total eclipse at 29 degrees of Leo urges us to be our
own leader with regard to our beliefs and behaviors. Beliefs and behaviors
based on a small heart and a closed mind will not generate positive, creative
change. This eclipse can guide each of us to a new level of personal
responsibility and integrity if we open our hearts to a bigger love and we open
our eyes to as much truth as we can take in. One of the lessons of Leo is the realization that the
individual is NOT the center of the Universe. Child development 101:
eventually the child learns he/she shares his world with family,
classmates, friends, organizations, city, state, nation, world, solar system,
cosmos, universe! We don’t have to
lose our uniqueness in the process. That’s the extraordinary magic! We are all unique and we are all
connected. Hopefully this eclipse will fill us with Leo courage (the heart of the Lion) to explore our individual and collective darkness and find gifts to take us forward.
