Nov 8 2022 Total Lunar Eclipse
In tomorrow’s early morning hours, at 3:02 am PST, the earth aligns exactly so that it eclipses the Scorpio Sun’s rays and darkens the Taurus full moon. Eclipses already make for a kind of energetic windstorm, but with Uranus- ruler of lightning-fast disruption- also in Taurus, the unpredictable wire is live. Eclipses have been feared and revered for as long as humans have been tracking the sky. In ancient Babylon, every eclipse would prompt the “substitute king ritual” putting a proxy (or sacrifice) in place should some unforeseen circumstance strike the position down. Oddly enough, on the November 19th Taurus-Scorpio eclipse last year Kamala Harris took over as President for 85 minutes while Biden (a Scorpio!) underwent a colonoscopy.
Taurus and Scorpio, opposite signs in the Zodiac, are an axis of power and solidity; of digging into the earth and digging deeper still. They’re 2 of the 4 fixed signs (the other 2 being Aquarius and Leo), and I would argue the most fixed of the 4. Fixed signs fall in the middle of their respective seasons. They stabilize and establish their rhythm, sometimes stubbornly so. Taurus and Scorpio particularly create power through commitment, tangibility, and even fear. Not through intimidation or hierarchy (this is more Capricorn), and not through separation and distinction (this is more Aquarius), It’s more along the lines of ‘what I show you might just draw you in. You might not be able to resist it even if you’re scared.” It may not reveal a lot, it may seem downright mysterious. IT may show displays of beauty, but not in a totally distracting dazzle. This axis never strays far from an awareness of mortality. An unearthing to either bury or bloom. We bring flowers to graves. The Taurus-Scorpio cycle is a reminder that we’re not all on a linear path to the end. Death is always co-present with life and nature, regeneration, beauty, and memorialization are some of the language of knowing it.
I’m keeping this newsletter brief because I believe in stirring up less in a moment like this, but I’ll leave you with the same advice I give myself for eclipses: watch the storm from the safety of your own home (or mind). When it stills, you’ll have a moment to sort through it - even if you can’t imagine a still moment right now - and you might be surprised with what you can make of the debris you find.
