The Cosmic Story: Cancer New Moon Solar Eclipse 2020

The Cosmic Story: Cancer Summer Solstice Solar Eclipse,

 June 20 – 21, 2020

The Sacred Marriage of Heaven and Earth

Birthing a New Story for Us. 

Sunrise on Summer Solstice at Stonehenge

 

Welcome to Summer 2020!

Just in case you haven't realized it yet, there is going to be a new normal in the years ahead, because we're writing a new story. And that new story begins with this Solstice's Cancer Solar Eclipse on the Global Axis – the zero degree points of the four cardinal signs – Aries, Cancer, Libra & Capricorn.

This Solar Eclipse occurs about 8 hours after the Sun enters the sign of Cancer on Summer Solstice in the northern hemisphere and Winter Solstice in the southern hemisphere.

A solar eclipse is an extra-potent New Moon because it's aligned with the Earth – so it feeds into Earth's energy grid even more than a regular New Moon does. And because the Moon is far away from Earth at the moment, the disc of the Moon won't completely cover the Sun, so we'll see a ring of fire around the dark Moon. (Perhaps the fires of transformation if we allow it?) This solar eclipse will be seen in Asia and the Middle East and parts of Africa.

This is the second eclipse of the season, a solar eclipse book ended by two lunar eclipses. The first Full Moon lunar eclipse occurred in Gemini & Sagittarius on June 5^th, this New Moon solar eclipse occurs in Cancer on June 20^th - 21^st, and there's another Full Moon lunar eclipse in Cancer&Capricorn on July 4^th – 5^th. These eclipses occur because the planes of the Sun, Moon and Earth are aligned. So they transform us on a cellular level.

Three is the number of process. There is a re-alignment happening to our consciousness, a process that is moving us out of a patriarchal paradigm into a new partnership paradigm where everyone is equal and yet still an individual. We are entering the headwaters of the Aquarian Age.

The first lunar eclipse energized us to examine our limiting beliefs, open to new possibilities and then to let go of the toxic masculinity of patriarchy and become spiritual warriors who stand up for our beliefs. This solar eclipse will be a time to plant a new vision of life. And the second lunar eclipse will release the last toxic bits of patriarchal congestion within us and hopefully energize a new sense of communal responsibility – we are here to take care of each other. That we belong to each other and to Mother Earth and Father Sky.

But first, let's remember to celebrate Summer Solstice (hello to my friends down in the southern hemisphere where you're celebrating Winter Solstice).

The Wheel of the Year: Litha – Summer Solstice

As the Sun spirals its longest dance,

Cleanse us.

As Nature shows bounty and fertility

Bless us

Let all things live with loving intent

And fulfill their truest destiny.

 

We've come halfway around the Wheel of the Year, from Winter Solstice and the re-birth of the Light to Summer Solstice, the marriage of that Light with Earth. Summer Solstice is the longest day of the year, just as Winter Solstice is the shortest.

On Summer Solstice, the light triumphs and yet it also begins to decline into the dark, for after the 'sun stands still' for 3 days, the Sun will begin to move back south and so the days will grow shorter and nights longer.

Sacred Marriage

Summer Solstice is the symbolic Sacred Marriage of Heaven and Earth, when the Sun's light brings forth the Earth's fertility. The creative fires of life have a home here on Earth, shaping it and us to grow and evolve. Our souls incarnate here on Earth to understand and develop our human nature infused with our spiritual essence – we are spirits having a human experience. But it's so hard to remember sometimes – hard to take our stand in life based on our Soul purpose. But if there was ever a time when all of humanity was ready to accept and live out that promise, it is NOW. We have been given a magical opportunity to evolve.

Mother Earth has stopped our world and sent us to our rooms to mediate on our lives. Will we allow the powers-that-be to resume their destruction of our home and our people for money and power? Or will we unite and change our society so that 'life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness' becomes our main concern, rather than consumerism and human and environmental destruction?

With the Sun at it's most northern limit, we can imagine it as the circle of the Sun over the cross of matter/Earth – and we get the symbol for Venus, the Goddess of Love and Wholeness. At the Summer Solstice, Love becomes our mission, our purpose, and our initiation. That means seeing life through the eyes and heart of love and connection. If we're connected, we feel each other's pain and suffer together. When we're connected we celebrate and rejoice together. When we know that we are one people and one world, we can do anything.

Each of the cardinal signs change the seasons for us. As we travel from Winter to Spring to Summer to Autumn and back to Winter, life moves and changes. These turning points are always a time of change and choice.

And this year, those changes and choices are more important than ever. So at this moment, with the Sun in the sign of Motherhood, nurturing, family, home and our emotional body, we each have to choose what will nurture us individually and collectively. 

 

Imagine that the Great Mother, the best mother, the loving mother, is holding you in her arms. And asking you, What do you desire most?

We have an opportunity to re-imagine the Future, to take it away from a vision of capitalist corporate world domination to a community-based, environmentally sound sustainable life-style that offers us new ways to be and grow. The economy is a tool of life – not the center of life.

So create the vision and imagine planting it in Mother Earth's Garden. Feel it, think it, imagine it, trust it. That's the vision you have to hold for yourself and the rest of us. And as we join our highest good with everyone else's, we will evolve. We will change the quantum field of possibilities and take back our world.

That's the magic of Summer Solstice. In ancient times, it was when the Faerie Folk came out to play in our world. This is the moment when magic happens and the world becomes bright and fruitful for all of us.

Summer Solstice Cancer New Moon Solar Eclipse

This Cancer New Moon solar eclipse occurs on Saturday June 20^th at 11:41pm PDT and Sunday June 21^st at 2:41am EDT/ 7:41pm GMT. Although the western hemisphere won't see the eclipse, we will still feel its effects for months to come.

Annular Solar Eclipse

At the moment of a solar eclipse, the Sun's light is hidden and our world is placed in shadow. It is at this moment that we see our collective shadows – our bigotry, our misogyny, our greed, our childish need to bully and dominate, our fear of death.

This is an important eclipse on the World Axis which herald's big world events. The Sun's light gets hidden and the world goes quiet and things change. The last time this eclipse series occurred was in 2001, months before 911. Before that, it seeded the 80s Iran-Contra scandal, the 60s Kennedy assassination and before that D-Day. It signals a big change for the world, which shouldn't surprise any of us.

But it doesn't have to be scary or disastrous. If we take it as a reminder to stand up for what is just and right, follow our hearts and NOT follow some leader who tells us to 'go out and shop', we will be using this energy wisely. This isn't about keeping the economy going. This time it's about helping to heal Mother Earth and her children. This time, it's about writing a new story for the world that brings us freedom and growth and balance.

We are learning the lessons of family and society. The past few months have taught us a lesson in being home: with ourselves, our work, our families. What have you learned about life? Have you noticed how clear the skies are? How there's not as much noise pollution from planes and cars? Have you re-examined your priorities about your life? Or have you worried about getting back to the old job, the old routine?

Cancer is the realm of the Mother, the great mysterious force of creation. The Divine Feminine wants to birth a new world for us – that's part of her purpose. This is a time for our souls to awaken. The Great Mother wants to calm our fears, feed our strengths and nurture our imagination of what's possible. Let Her! 

The Woman Clothed with the Sun

 

Of course, many people have negative mother complexes – the 'I'm not good enough' complex that keeps us from fulfilling our life's purpose. Our initiation at this time is to learn to love ourselves with all our imperfections. Just as the Great Mother of creation loves us.

During eclipse season, especially with two lunar eclipses, things get amplified. So there will be many mood shifts – Cancer can get moody and emotional. Like the tides, emotions can shift and change from day to day. The lunar eclipses are bringing up old wounds that have been repressed and ignored. Now is the time to let them all go. That's the old story that taught us about life. You don't need that story anymore.

This is something everyone is experiencing. So don't pick on yourself. Confusion, conflicts and sensitivity are up now. So try not to create conflict. Watch your words. Stay centered and don't do anything impulsive for awhile. This can be a time of great healing. Do it now because there is still a lot of intense transformation coming this fall and you want to be in top form for it.

That fear of being unloved is Cancer's hard shell. Cancer crabs have to protect their soft and juicy bellies. But with this eclipse, it's time to look at our Shadows around the ideas of mother, home, family, security country and Soul. It's time to learn to mother ourselves and each other, to allow ourselves to be nurtured by the Great Goddess – Mother Earth, Mary, Sekhmet, Aphrodite, Isis, Selene, etc.

Once we find that Cancerian mother-love and self-love, we can tune into what Cancer's other creative treasures mean in a new world. Mercury will be retrograding in Cancer and will help us re-define what those treasures mean to us. So let go of any past negative feelings about mother, family, security, home and country, and look at them again with new eyes.

Mercury retrograde and the Sun in Cancer are resonating with the Capricorn stellium of Saturn, Jupiter and Pluto in Capricorn square Eris in Aries. These energies have been de-constructing our social order, getting rid of what no longer serves life. Saturn retrogrades back into Capricorn on July 1^st to finish up that deconstruction until it returns to Aquarius on December 16^th, 5 days before it joins Jupiter on Winter Solstice. So trust that heaven's story is aligned with Earth's realities and leave fear and doubt behind.

Cancer is so creative. It's the kind of creativity that is useful and needed. It's the little things that matter in life, like a well glazed bowl or colorful flower bouquet. They're more necessary to a good life than a picture of a Campbell soup can in a museum or a statue of a war hero. Be creative now.

Earthship, Taos, NM

Home can be a place or it can be a centeredness within yourself. There is a longing within each of us for a home we can't remember but know in our hearts. Go to that home. That goes for the issue of security too. It's time to learn to feel the inner security that can never be taken away from us. Family can mean your family of birth or it can be your tribe which can include both family and friends as long as it is loving and supportive. Your country and how you feel about it will vary according to how well you think your leaders are taking care of their responsibilities. But you can love your country enough to stand up to change it by being a responsible citizen.

And your soul is what wants to awaken within you and stretch its wings. Because Psyche/Soul is a butterfly, an angel, a soaring phoenix who wants to fly free.

This New Moon Solar Eclipse on Summer Solstice is a magical time and it is your chance to plant the seeds of your soul's flight into the future.

While we've been using the internet to connect, there's nothing like the real thing. The Gene Key Code for this New Moon is 15 – work in small groups and 10 – just BE. Sounds like a plan.

The Sabian symbol for the New Moon Solar Eclipse at 1* Cancer is: On a ship the sailors lower an old flag and raise a new one. What better symbol than this to recognize that the old order is gone and a new one is arising. A ship sails over a vast ocean of depth and mystery. There is no solid ground, only a container for our hopes and vision. So sail on! A new world awaits.

The strongest aspect to this New Moon is Saturn retrograde in Aquarius, which is exactly 150* away, forming an inconjunct. The question of how we use our technology to connect is very front and center this solar eclipse. Can we grow our tribe over the Internet and keep it as real as when we're physically present? Probably not with everyone, but it's certainly one way to get to meet people you otherwise wouldn't meet.

The Sabian symbol for Saturn retrograde at 1* Aquarius is: An old adobe mission in California. This image presents us with the idea of a spiritual, idealistic combination of social forces that can change the world. Bringing the ideal into 3D reality.

Saturn inconjunct the New Moon indicates that we need to be responsible for our tribe and make sure we're not excluding people who need us. While not everyone is in our tribe, everyone deserves to have a tribe. We need to grow up and recognize that others have the same needs as we do. That's why it's so important that we speak and communicate kindly, even when we speak our truth. We have to stop the bullying and threatening that goes on when someone expresses their opinion – patriarchal toxic masculinity on display. So we have to stop being judgmental and accept people for where they're at. The only way to change someone's mind is to change how you act or speak your truth so well that they want to listen. That's what conversations are all about – having different opinions that are listened to and met with your own view of things. It's to help you sort through your beliefs so you really know your truth.

Mars and Neptune in Pisces squares this solar eclipse, challenging our ideals and our determination to take care and protect those we love.

Other Astrological Happenings

Right around this eclipse, we have 3 planets stationing to reverse direction. Mercury goes retrograde in Cancer on June 17^th – 18^th, the solar eclipse occurs on June 20^th – 21^st, Neptune goes retrograde on Tuesday, June 23^rd, and Venus turns direct on June 24^th – 25^th. And Mars enters Aries on June 27^th, where it will retrograde and stay in Aries for 6 months rather than 6 weeks. This is the time for us to learn courage and refuse to buy into the fear mongering of the media.

Alchemical Hermes/Mercury

Mercury goes retrograde on June 17^th at 15* Cancer, repeating its retrograde in another water sign. The Sabian symbol for 15* Cancer is: In a sumptuous dining hall, guests relax after partaking of a high banquet. To me this image suggests the Grail Castle – each guest gets what they desire most. And isn't that what this solar eclipse is asking us to decide? While Mercury retrogrades back through Cancer until July 12^th, ask yourself what you need for a plentiful life that includes other people's needs and desires.

Venus Star Point Mandala

Venus turns direct on June 24^th at 6* Gemini. The Sabian symbol for 6* Gemini is: Workmen drilling for oil. What have we discovered during this Venus retrograde that can power us through these transformative times? What values have we discovered within ourselves? What kinds of conversations have we had about what is happening in the world? Venus says, “Be authentic and live from your deepest values.” But we have to value ourselves first. We have to have self-worth. Venus in Gemini is slowing down at the solar eclipse, bringing us into our hearts. In her Morning Star phase, She confronts us with the questions, “What do we want to create? What can we bring forth? What are we willing to stand up for?”

Neptune turns retrograde on June 22^nd - 23^rd at 21* Pisces. The Sabian symbol is: Under the watchful and kind eyes of a Chinese servant, a girl fondles a little lamb. There are too many ways we can interpret this image during the COVID virus, so I'll leave it to you to think about.

This is a time to remember who we are: that we are souls having a human experience. Otherwise, the old dragon of unconsciousness will keep us sleeping through the biggest evolutionary change humanity has gone through.

The world is full of paradox, most especially at times of collective transformation. So stop using your intellect and dive down into your imagination like a child would. Listen to the promptings of your heart and put yourself in the sheltering arms of the Great Mother, who births each new age.

Meet the mystery of Life with courage and enthusiasm. You are Safe!

Bright Blessings for Summer Solstice!

Cathy

Cutting Loose

Sometimes from sorrow, for no reason,
you sing. For no reason, you accept
the way of being lost, cutting loose
from all else and electing a world
where you go where you want to.

Arbitrary, a sound comes, a reminder
that a steady center is holding
all else. If you listen, that sound
will tell you where it is and you
can slide your way past trouble.

Certain twisted monsters
always bar the path -- but that's when
you get going best, glad to be lost,
learning how real it is
here on earth, again and again.

~ William Stafford ~

(The Way It Is)