Two transitions are in the planets at the moment: the Sun is in the last few degrees of Aquarius, set to ingress Pisces Saturday morning; that is followed by a solar eclipse in Pisces about a week later. When there’s an eclipse on the horizon, every event or development becomes a step on the way into its vortex.

The Helix Nebula, a dying star 650 light years away in the constellation Aquarius. Image courtesy of NASA Blueshift.

When the Moon is waning toward a solar eclipse (which is also a New Moon), we’re in the pattern-clearing / pattern-setting zone of the cycle. Think of this as a time to clarify and refine your intentions, to which you commit by taking action.

The Sun’s last days in any sign are distinctive, representing the culmination of a project or process. This can intensify as the solar egress and ingress occur, especially with an eclipse so close by. In Aquarius, these last degrees point to some core concepts of soul cultivation and growth.

One of them is the idea of an exemplar. True development of one’s character is often based on modeling. Upon assessing that you genuinely respect a person, you can aspire to become that which you admire. Sooner or later people will grow by example. Late Aquarius extends the power to choose who you model yourself after as a conscious decision. This is not about idealizing people, which almost always fails (people are not their ideal). Rather, it’s about making contact with the core humanity of someone whose words and deeds you see serving the world in a way you want to.

Second is the concept of initiation. Aquarius is the sign of groups, though it concludes with the image of an individual emerging into group consciousness, embraced by those who are witnessing and assisting with the transition.

This is a reminder that a group is a joining of individuals in a mutually committed purpose. It’s different from a mass (such as a crowd), where there is neither authentic commitment nor purpose.

Signing off of fixed air sign Aquarius for this solar cycle, the Sun moves onto Pisces. There, it makes a conjunction first to release-point Ketu (the South Node), facilitating an emotional purge, surrender and point of reconciling with the past. Almost simultaneously the Sun contacts centaur Nessus, which in Pisces is currently a vortex of deep emotional healing.

The Sun-Nessus meeting is exact Thursday, Feb. 23. Let’s take the current sequence of events out to that development and pause discussion of the eclipse. What the Pisces solar eclipse of Feb. 26 is about is closely related to whatever developments, progress or breakthroughs arrive with the Sun passing through Ketu and conjoining Nessus.

Standing stones at Clent Hills, UK. Photo by Tony Hisgett.

This brings out a theme I’ve been seeing develop since around the southern solstice (that is, just before Northern Hemisphere winter solstice) of quantum healing. This is what happens when you resolve a complex group of issues that you may have deemed impossible to heal. It can come with events or realizations that, in a sense, compel you to reorganize your emotional reality so you can be free of the past.

It’s not really possible to push this or make it happen; rather, you can help set the conditions that facilitate the process. An aspect of that involves being real with yourself. Being real means you might, for example, acknowledge that unless you make a decision about something, you will never be happy; therefore if you make the decision you might get yourself to a better place; then you take the obvious step and do it.

What I am seeing is that much of this involves sexual healing, including going deep into abuse patterns, understanding what was done and then going deeper and resolving not to be a victim of the past. The combined effects of such movements can have a cascade effect. But you must be patient. And in my experience it helps to practice trust and openness with one or two key individuals from a solid place of friendship and respect.

It also helps to resolve that you’ll make any change you need to make to fulfill the deeper value and purpose of healing. Borrowing a bit from Bill W., pay attention to people, places and things.

One last. Healing is about releasing yourself from pain so that you love your life and have fun, and can make love and make art and do your good work. You have incentive. Yet you also facilitate healing by reaching into art, work, love and pleasure and stretching out into territory you’re claiming back and learning to feel safe exploring.

More on Tuesday’s Planet Waves FM.

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