Astro-insight: Eclipse season – best tips on how to survive it

Astro-Insight:
This week eclipse season really gets into full swing and the focus is on eclipse ruler, Mercury. Having gotten all cosy with Venus on Monday, Mercury changes direction and goes retrograde on Tuesday. By Friday – Mercury is back in the arms of Jupiter. Is it time to re-think our relationships? It soon will be. Venus enters charming Libra on Tuesday and Jupiter will follow her on September 9th. It won’t be long before we will be weighing the pros and cons and assessing the benefits against the risks and costs. We surely need to think things through and this is what makes this Mercury retrograde period so useful.

Astro-Insight:
Because of its retrograde motion,  Mercury will remain longer in its own sign. Mercury feels comfortable and useful in Virgo. Bascially, with Mercury also ruling the Moon’s North Node, we are being offered an extended period to re-evaluate our options. Whether it be a relationship/partnership strategy, a life plan, communication issue, we have a great opportunity to re-define our position. This particular Mercury retrograde is a researchers dream. Anyone editing something? If so, you might try to enjoy – crossing the ’t’s, because this retrograde Mercury encourages nit-picking. Editors can be taxing. Best be willing to run your mind back over things and correct and re-correct, until you get it just right. Keep firmly in the back of your mind, that there is growth to be had here. The house or houses where the eclipse and the North Node fall – show life areas that are particularly in focus right now and where around the 19th, when Mercury goes direct, a grow spurt can be made.

Astro-Insight: Nonetheless, it must be said, Thursday solar eclipse is difficult. On a scale of 1-10 ? I’d definitely give this eclipe a 9!! Virgo is the essence of practicality, of helpfulness, of service, altruism, pragmatism. Virgo is a thoughtful sign and one of the few zodiac signs represented by a human figure. This of itself suggests a humanitarian  (as opposed to instinctive or emotional) approach to life. Virgo likes to use order as an aid to understanding. The Virgo eclipse falls opposite Neptune, the archetypal great mystery, the void, empty, unexplored space, the concept of nothingness, non-being, the sound of silence, the warm water of the eternal womb. Neptune’s realm contains unfathomable oceans of feeling that unexpectedly swell up, sending strong currents against which we struggle before being swept out to sea. Neptune can be an overwhelming sense of helplessness. Pisces throws Virgo’s practical, ‘clear head’ type solutions into disarray. Virgo becomes bewildered, swamped, bogged down and frustrated, as wave after wave washes away her best laid plans. A rational approach to Neptune can only disappoint. We reach Neptune by engaging with and welcoming the loss of ego. Ultimately, none of this matters – since all will return to the source in the end. There is a need to embrace a greater wisdom, while we continue to do our best to be helpful, useful and caring, but simply for its own sake and not for rewards.

Astro-Insight: Mercury has an infinity with the young and enquiring adolescent mind, but, with the eclipses Sun square Saturn (and Mars) it feels like its almost, nearly time to grow up ? Virgo labours away – but Saturn is a hard taskmaster. Meanwhile Mars is out of bounds, so our rebel, wild, centaur nature is triggered. Who wants to run amok? Who wants a made passionate love affair? Let’s turn our back on all responsibility and just go wild in the country? Yeah. Let’s do it. This energy peaks in the weekend, but is in the air throughout the entire eclipse season.

Astro-Insight: I told you this eclipse was a 9 !! So what’s my advice? Here are my tips for this eclipse and the coming retrograde Mercury period:

Whatever confounded mystery Neptune throws your way, try to act sensibly and do the right thing
Keep your head cool – literally use a cold compress
Make a particular conscious note of where you put your bag, your keys, your telephone, etc
Pay special attention to all things that relate to the practical day to day running of your life
Your best laid plans can and will be disrupted or delayed through a lack of consciousness with regard to simple everyday routines. Don’t play into Neptune’s hands. Be assured, you will be late for that appointment if you cannot find your keys!

Liz Hathway, MA, DFAstrolS, Horary Craftswoman