The Gemini Full Moon Lunar Eclipse: 30* Gemini/Sagittarius

This week’s Winter Solstice lunar eclipse relates back to the summer eclipse on June 26, 2010, bringing the energies of the Cardinal Grand Cross into play again.  Although Saturn has moved to the middle degrees of Libra, and Uranus/Jupiter are about to have their 3^rd conjunction in the last degrees of Pisces, the energies are resonated again because of Pluto and the North Node being so close to the Solstice points of 0*Cancer/Capricorn.  See where these points lie in your chart to discover what aspects of your life will drive the change that is happening.

This eclipse also echoes the December 1991 eclipse.  Can you remember what you were doing 19 years ago?   

The December 20/21 event is the first total lunar eclipse in three years. There will be two more in 2011.

In the Americas, where the eclipse is visible, it happens overnight December 20-21. Here's the timing:

Partial eclipse begins 9:27pm Pacific December 20
Total eclipse begins 11:40 pm Pacific December 20
Mid-eclipse 12:17 am Pacific December 21
Total eclipse ends 12:53 am Pacific December 21
Partial eclipse ends 3:06 am Pacific December 21

As the Moon appears to darken, it will actually turn a deep shade of red. The entire event lasts three-and-a-half hours. Within that, the period of totality is 72 minutes. If you live in North, South or Central America and have a clear sky, you can watch from beginning to end.

Times of over North America

Event	PST (-8 UTC)	MST (-7 UTC)	CST (-6 UTC)	EST (-5 UTC)
Start penumbral (P1)	9:27 pm (*)	10:27 pm (*)	11:27 pm (*)	12:27 am
Start umbral (U1)	10:32 pm (*)	11:32 pm (*)	12:32 am	1:32 am
Start total (U2)	11:40 pm (*)	12:40 am	1:40 am	2:40 am
Greatest eclipse	12:17 am	1:17 am	2:17 am	3:17 am
End total (U3)	12:53 am	1:53 am	2:53 am	3:53 am
End umbra (U4)	2:02 am	3:02 am	4:02 am	5:02 am
End penumbral (P4)	3:06 am	4:06 am	5:06 am	6:06 am
(*) before midnight on Monday night, December 20

These simulated views of the earth from the center of the moon during the lunar eclipse show where the eclipse is visible on earth.

The moon passes right to left through the earth's northern shadow
Gamma[1]	0.3213
Duration (hr:mn:sc)
Totality	1:13:12
Partial	3:29:22
Penumbral	5:38:22
Contacts
P1	05:27:43 UTC
U1	06:32:17 UTC
U2	07:40:21 UTC
Greatest	08:16:56 UTC
U3	08:53:34 UTC
U4	10:01:39 UTC
P4	11:06:04 UTC
At descending node in Taurus

Preparing for next week's Gemini Lunar Eclipse

With Mercury retrograde, the mind (Mercury) is inwardly focused, helping us search out the inner darkness that keeps us off balance and unsure of ourselves.  In Capricorn, we look to how our society influences us.  Where do we 'buy into' our collective culture and what shadows does that create?

While we're pondering these deep issues, sometimes the 'real' world responds with chaos as life begins to change around us.    I’ve heard stories of things knocked over, spilled water, dropped objects, missed mail more often in the past few days than in the preceding months!  Mercury is traveling very fast this time, and perhaps we are simultaneously moving through our world at different speeds. Perhaps our 'phase' is off.

Pluto, Mars, Mercury and the North Node in Capricorn focus our attention on our responsibilities to our Earth and to our society.  Pluto, North Node and Mercury in a wide square to Saturn in Libra challenge us to restructure our collective life through truth, fairness and social equality.  We begin in our own lives, so personally, we are called to inner balance, so look to your relationships to show you exactly where your shadow comes into play.   

As Pluto moves through Capricorn in the next decade, we will see the end of our patriarchal culture.  Humanity must grow up and do away with both patriarchy and matriarchy and create a society of equal partnership between men and women. 

To begin this process, at the December 21st lunar eclipse, Mars will be transiting at 11* Capricorn, the same degree as the Cancer lunar eclipse last December 31, 2009. Watch for issues you were dealing with this time last year.  How have you changed?  Mars in Capricorn gets things done, and with its square to Saturn, will make sure that whatever we do, we do with integrity and truth.

The Sabian symbol for the Mars at 11* Capricorn is:  A large group of pheasant on a private estate.  This symbol tells us something about how our natural resources have been privatized by rich individuals.  This is a natural outcome of any economic or philosophical system that values one person or thing above another.  This is an attitude that gives rise to big shadows such as greed and ignorance and violence. 

It would help the world if we looked at what makes for real security.  On an international level, perhaps we need to see how our western shadow creates the very terrorists that plague us.  On a personal level, we need to break free of our worries about social status and wealth, and think about what keeps us stuck in a consumer mentality.  The question is, what can we do for our country and for our world?

 Mars grapples with things – that’s one of his functions.  So grapple with this: do only the few continue to own the pheasants or can you imagine a world where the pheasants are free to come and go as they please as we all share in the beauty of LIfe.   

The Cosmic Story: Mercury Retrograde: Speak Truth to Power

 

Each Mercury retrograde period asks us to reconsider something, probably because we’ve gotten too far ahead of ourselves!  So we have to go back and retrace our steps and see what it is we’ve been too hasty to understand.

This Mercury retrograde period is one of the shortest, lasting only 20 days because Mercury is going at its fastest speed.  But it will be potent! 

After going retrograde today December 10^th at 7:06am EST and 4:06 am PST, Mercury will join up with the North Node, Pluto and Mars in Capricorn on Monday December 13^th, and before its reverse run is over, it will connect to Uranus and Jupiter in Pisces and Neptune and Chiron in Aquarius. 

This time, Mercury has a lot of catching up to do as it makes its all- important conjunction with the Sun on Sunday December 19^th, a day before the lunar eclipse and the Winter Solstice.  What will the messenger of the gods have to say to us this Winter Solstice?

Mercury goes retrograde at 6* Capricorn: Ten logs lie under an archway leading to darker woods.   This is a call to complete unfinished tasks before embarking on a new adventure.  10 is the number of completion, and so Mercury stopping here symbolizes the need to go back and make sure our foundational beliefs (Mercury goes back into Sagittarius, which rules our beliefs) are strong.  Here we stand on the threshold of a new beginning.  If you have any planets around 6* of cardinal signs, you will be especially affected.  Watch your dreams now.

Mercury meets up with the North Node, Pluto and Mars on Monday at 5* Capricorn: Indians on the warpath.  While some men row a well-filled canoe, others in it perform a war dance.  The mix of energies is explosive.  Mars’ aggression and assertiveness coupled with Pluto’s power and intensity will hopefully be communicated (Mercury) for the good of all of us (North Node).  

This certainly is a time to speak Truth to Power.  The Cosmic Story is keeping us right on schedule as we watch how whistle-blowing Wikileaks has dominated the news, especially with the arrest of Julian Assange. 

       The release of thousands of sensitive diplomatic cables, especially the last ones that occurred in the ‘shadow’ period of Mercury’s retrograde (the first pass over the degrees that Mercury will retrograde) is bringing the subject of government secrecy up for examination. 

        Is Assange a terrorist for speaking Truth to Power?  With Pluto just beginning its work of renovating Capricorn – our governmental and financial institutions – is it any wonder that someone has stepped forward to expose the ‘dirty little secrets’ of government shenanigans? 

        So let’s watch the news on Monday to see what these explosive energies have in store for us.  

        Of course, each of us will also be affected by this powerful convergence of energies.  Watch how you interact with people on Monday, especially when you’re out holiday shopping.  Now is the time to practice inner peace and serenity, because you can bet that there will be people out there who aren’t.  Keep the balance (Saturn in Libra rules Capricorn) by shining your Light out whenever you meet the darkness of fear, pain and antagonism in the world.

        In the next blog, we’ll speculate on how Mercury will interact with the full Moon eclipse on the Winter Solstice.

               

Neptune and Mars: Practical Inspiration

Today Mars and Neptune form a positive astrological aspect called a sextile.  But Mars and Neptune are completely opposite energies.  And yet they are also very similar in their power to overwhelm you.

Mars is not just the God of War.  He is the god who grapples with things.  And he is the defender and protector of life.  Mars in astrology symbolizes our passion, our way of getting what we want, our energy and will power.  But never forget that he is a warrior and can lose his temper.

That's where he's like Neptune - they both have anger issues.  Neptune, the god of the seas, can let loose his fury in the waves he sends to destroy what has displeased him.

But astrologically, they are very different energies.  Where Mars uses his will to get his way, Neptune patiently dissolves what stands in his way.  Neptune symbolizes our fantasies, our longings, our addictions and our spiritual imagination.

So, today they are linked together in a sextile, a 60* aspect which is a mentally energizing aspect.  A waning sextile between two planets gives us the opportunity to reform ourselves and our environment through out-of-the-box thinking.  There can be a lot of insight and intuition present with a sextile.

That's what this Neptune/Mars alignment can offer us today.  Together, they give us the opportunity for Mars (taking action) to make our dreams (Neptune) come true.  Spend time doing some artistic project today to get your creative juices flowing.   And then focus your Mars grappling energy to use those intuitions to solve problems or open to creativity.