Cosmic Shifts
Eclipse Horoscopes
Tonight the Sun and Moon oppose each other at 25° Virgo and Pisces respectively, darkening the full moon in a partial lunar eclipse. The maximum eclipse1 will occur around 10:45 pm EDT.
Like many things in life, eclipses happen in cycles. These cycles are tied to the movement of the north and south nodes of the moon. The nodes are always 180° opposite from each other in the chart. They signify the places where the Sun’s ecliptic intersects with the orbit of the Moon. When the Sun and Moon make conjunctions or oppositions at those places, it results in an eclipse.
The movement of the nodes is what we call retrograde2, or backward relative to the typical motion the planets (usually) follow3. They will retrograde through pairs of signs, taking about 18 months to move through each sign fully. The nodes take 18.6 years to move through the entire zodiac. That means the nodes will visit the same pair of signs about every 9 years.
During that 18-ish month period, the eclipses will always happen in the pair of signs where the nodes are. However, when the nodes begin to shift closer to the earlier degrees of their current sign, eclipses can happen in the next sign pair. This is because there is about an 18° orb on either side of the nodes where eclipses can take place. For tonight’s eclipse, the nodes are at 6° of Aries/Libra, but the opposition of the Sun and Moon are at 25° of Pisces/Virgo. Because it is only 11° away from the nodes, the eclipse will still take place even though it’s in another sign from the nodes themselves.
This “out of sign” eclipse is a preview for the next cycle that will kick off officially in March of 2025. The last time Virgo/Pisces was activated in an eclipse cycle started in September 2015 and lasted until February 2017. Likely, whatever themes arose during that time will rhyme with whatever is coming next.
The moon's north node is also known as Rahu in Vedic astrology. Rahu is the head of the dragon and is always hungry. The north node can symbolize excess and increase. The south node is the tail of the dragon, or Ketu, and symbolizes decrease and detachment. There is also a karmic element, with the north node being what we are moving towards and the south node what we are leaving behind.
The south node is moving into Virgo, the mutable Earth sign ruled by the airy Mercury. As such, we will see the energy of Virgo working toward stripping away processes and cycles. We may feel drawn to pull away from what is unnecessary and figure out how to minimize efficiently. Pisces, on the other hand, is mutable water ruled by expansive Jupiter. Here, we will find the north node, signifying increase and excess. Pisces is a vast ocean with everchanging currents. Thanks to the influence of Jupiter4, there is a spiritual quality to Pisces, but one that is open-ended and intuitive. We may find ourselves overly spiritualizing everything, much to the annoyance of our friends.
When we examine any sign axis in our charts, we look at the duality of two ideals. Virgo and Pisces represent the spectrum between logic and intuition, between the condensed point and the infinite plane. Eclipses call us to reexamine how these energies play out in our lives and if they are working for us or not. Sometimes, what isn’t working needs to change. It is important to the functioning of any organism to clean out and break down the old unused structures of our lives so that new, better ones can be built. There is merit in sticking to tried and true conventions, but sometimes what life requires of us is to strike out into unknown territory and build a new map.
Eclipse Horoscopes
Each person’s chart will be unique, and a lot will be determined by the planets in each sign and where the ruling planets lie. No section of the chart or situation can be looked at in isolation, but there may be general themes that will be common to everyone with a similar rising sign and house placement. If you know your birth time, then locate what houses Virgo and Pisces are for you.5 If you don’t know your birth time (and so you don’t know your house placements), think about the last Virgo/Pisces eclipse season and any big shifts that happened for you then, and locate the houses that best match what you experienced during that time.
1st House/7th House
This season is going to be up close and personal for you. It’s all about the relationship with yourself, and with others. Neptune is in Pisces as well, adding a dreamy and nebulous quality to the whole situation. Like ocean currents, relationships may ebb and flow or may suck you out into a wild and intense rip current. You may be pushed to dissolve restrictions you’ve put on yourself or others, or you may need to draw some much-needed boundaries. Decide how you want to navigate these waters.
2nd House/8th House
The 2nd/8th house axis deals with your resources and where they come from. You may be feeling oppressed or restricted financially. It may seem that you are casting about in an endless ocean with no clear path in sight, and the current plan isn’t working. Now is the time to put your creative powers and intuition to work. Income opportunities may come from unexpected places. Be open to unconventional ways of taking in resources. Don’t neglect the treasures you find in the tide pools and secret coves but be sure they are useful. Take what you need and leave the rest to the gulls.
3rd House/9th House
Themes of fact versus belief may need to be reevaluated during this eclipse season. Intuitive ways of knowing may be more useful than rote fact and logic. Old and outdated thought structures may need to be washed away now so that new thought forms can be built. The 3rd and 9th houses also rule travel, both near and far. You may find yourself on distant shores far from home, or you may feel the need to stick to your home waters. What is important is to examine your deeply held metaphysics on how and why you travel through this life.
4th House/10th House
This eclipse season is going to put the focus on what is most visible about yourself and what you keep hidden and private. It may be that you will need to release and let go of the structures you’ve built to protect your most vulnerable self. How do you transform the inner into the outer and make it work for you in a positive way? On the flip side, how do you process something intensely public in a balanced and positive way? There may be parts of yourself that could stand to be relaxed a bit to allow yourself the grace to assimilate these experiences.
5th House/11th House
Pleasure and friendship are themes for this axis of your chart. You may find yourself mingling and mixing even more than before as boundaries and limits dissolve. Be wary of dissolving them too much or in ways you aren’t comfortable with. It is one thing to be in the ocean with friends but quite another to be swimming with sharks. Build up your social muscle to identify between the sharks and the friends.
6th House/12th House
It is important to be gentle to yourself and allow any rest or healing you need during this period. If that means retreating to quiet waters or taking more time for self-care, let that be your medicine. Focus less on analyzing yourself and more on intuitively feeling what you need during this time. The overbearing voice in your head is rarely helpful, so don’t let it take the rudder when it is not needed.
As with any upcoming period of change, I would recommend divination and meditation for a more intimate understanding of what types of energies will be popping up for you as an individual. Once you get a handle on what you are dealing with, consider astrological remediation, mindfulness, and magick where necessary to help facilitate what changes are needed. Rahu and Ketu —the head and tail of the dragon, represent change. Change can be chaotic and feel scary. Sometimes it is scary. There is a reason the edges of the map were marked with sea monsters. Even so, think of the adventure that lies beyond what is currently on your map.
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About 8% of the Moon’s face will be covered by shadow. That’s why it’s a partial lunar eclipse.
If you calculate the motion of the nodes using the true node, they can be direct for short periods rather than always retrograde. This has to do with the wobble of the orbit of the moon. Like everything else in astrology, there are multiple ways to do it and everyone has their preference.
Planets also go retrograde periodically, however, the majority of their motion in the chart is what is called direct or forward.
In Vedic astrology Jupiter is called the Guru or Teacher.