By Amanda Painter
“How will you go about finding that thing the nature of which is totally unknown to you?”
— Meno, in one of Plato’s Socratic dialogues
On Saturday we come to the last quarter Moon: the Moon in Taurus making a square to the Sun in Leo. This marks the halfway point between the July 27 lunar eclipse in Aquarius, and the corresponding Aug. 11 solar eclipse in Leo.
Spring Point Lighthouse, South Portland, Maine; Photo by Amanda Painter.
Like any last quarter Moon, this is a reminder (with assistance) to move a project toward completion. But what if you aren’t sure what that project is, or how to move it forward?
You might be; it could be perfectly clear to you what your primary goal is right now, what vision of your life you’re heading for. It’s also possible that you feel like you’re in some kind of limbo or stasis: aware that you’re in a process, but not entirely sure what exactly it is.
You may feel like you’re moving more energy than usual, or you could be waiting for the wind to fill your sails again so you can know how to respond to it.
A lot gets written about conscious visioning and making choices to release things during eclipses. But what if you feel a little lost in that? I suspect that sensation makes good sense, given that we have the planet of action and motivation (Mars) and the planet of thought processes (Mercury) both in retrograde motion (Mars in Aquarius, Mercury in Leo).
Even one of those could pose a challenge to clear forward navigation and momentum. Having both those planets retrograde is a good reminder to be gentle and patient with yourself if your path ahead seems unclear, or if your steps feel like they’re moving you backwards or laterally. And if you do happen to be riding these eclipse waves like a California surfer who’s ‘in the zone’, keep trusting yourself and looking where you want to be. (Actually, that’s a good strategy no matter how things are going for you.)
As with all eclipse periods, there’s the “relinquishing a pattern” phase of things, and the “do what you love / keep your eye on your goal” phase. Those processes tend to merge and intertwine, and the eclipses associated with each can come in either order. With the Sun and Moon in fixed signs for the lunar last quarter (and for the second and third of our current three eclipses), there’s some extra perseverance available. The shadow side is that the fixed signs also tend to reinforce staying attached to things that might not facilitate your next steps in life.
Thankfully, for Saturday’s last quarter Moon, Jupiter is in the mix, receiving a square from the Sun and an opposition from the Moon. You may find it easier to tap into some extra energy to get ahead (or go deeper — Jupiter is in Scorpio, after all). Jupiter can magnify both ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ elements of a situation, though, so it will be up to you to notice which side of the coin you’re focusing on and feeding. You might ask yourself, “Where could I use a little push to help me round a corner?” And then see if you can train your attention on things like gratitude, goals, desires and — perhaps the most important of all — possibility.
Note also that during the last quarter Moon, there’s a square between Venus in Virgo and the Galactic Center in Sagittarius. I think one way to read this is as a question: where do you get caught between concrete details or having to ‘get it right’ and the overwhelming unknowability of the mystery of life, of what comes next?
We all have to do what we can with what we have where we are, to paraphrase Teddy Roosevelt. Details do matter to a certain extent, because they’re part of the foundation of how we can get started. But that foundation is meant to give us something to build from, not to limit us.
It can be hard to trust ourselves to move from the details of ‘now’ to the big picture of ‘someday’, but that path can unfold — not usually how we envisioned it — if we take some small, first steps. Pholus hanging out near the Galactic Center suggests those small first steps right now could have a bigger effect than you’d imagine — especially if you can embrace steps that do not seem ‘perfect’.
I had this dynamic in mind (and the astrology) late Monday night when I ran across the quote at the beginning of this piece. I read it in an essay by Rebecca Solnit titled “Open Door,” in her book A field Guide to Getting Lost. She writes that she first encountered the quote when a student in a workshop shared it with her. Solnit goes on to write:
The question she carried struck me as the basic tactical question in life. The things we want are transformative, and we don’t know or only think we know what is on the other side of that transformation. Love, wisdom, grace, inspiration — how do you go about finding these things that are in some ways about extending the boundaries of the self into unknown territory, about becoming someone else?
That is the question, isn’t it? I wish you well in exploring it between now and the Leo New Moon and partial solar eclipse on Saturday, Aug. 11. We’ll have more to say about that spectacular chart in the days to come.
Eric has now completed all 12 signs of The Sacred Space of Self, the 2018 Spring Reading on Chiron’s transition into Aries, and Mars retrograde in Aquarius over the summer. Order today and get all 12 signs for just $99. Check out our sample videos here, and the full Guide to Chiron Transits here.