By Amanda Painter

Tuesday night was the Pisces New Moon with a total solar eclipse. This puts us in ‘the eclipse zone’: the two weeks between a matched set of eclipses, one solar and one lunar.

Photo by Amanda Painter

The corresponding lunar eclipse will not take place in Pisces. Rather, it will span the Aries-Libra axis — a Full Moon with the Sun in very early Aries and the Moon in very early Libra.

In fact, the Sun and Moon will be early enough in their signs for this to count as an Aries Point event — the Aries Point being that first degree of the zodiac in the sign Aries where personal and political events seem to intersect and magnify to impressive effect.

I’ll cover that Full Moon and lunar eclipse in greater depth next week. For now, it’s enough to take a look around you (literally and figuratively) and within you in the wake of Tuesday’s Pisces eclipse as we head into the weekend.

Did you notice any unexpected synchronicities, particularly vivid dreams, or compelling fantasies that seemed to hold a clear message? Did you notice any insights about your past, especially something that seemed to release its hold on you?

You might want to explore anything that got your attention. Notice these next couple weeks if anything else rings the same bell that got rung for you Tuesday or Wednesday.

The two weeks between eclipses can sometimes feel rather like another dimension, one where life can shift markedly. It could be easy to read a statement like that and begin to worry that you’re not ‘doing enough’ to launch your life into a new phase, or that you missed some magical opportunity if you slept through the eclipse or did not even know it was happening.

Relax.

For one thing, not every eclipse is going to unfold dramatically for everyone. You might just be keepin’ on keepin’ on, doing your thing. After all, Pisces is all about flow. If you’re already flowing, there’s probably little need to question it aggressively.

Also, the universe always offers another opportunity down the road to learn important lessons. That is not to say you shouldn’t bother trying; more like, don’t freak if you notice a spiral-type shape to your path. Each time you meet a situation with a familiar theme, chances are you’re encountering it in a slightly different way and can apply more of your acquired understanding to dealing with it better.

This weekend’s astrological highlights include more Pisces events, as if to underscore the eclipse and the overall vibe for the month. That said, the Moon has already left Pisces for Aries; Friday it moves into Taurus to offer some grounding and earthy tangibility that might help balance you if the seas you’re sailing have felt rough or unnervingly bottomless. There’s a lot to love about Pisces (creativity, passion, empathy), but when things get too boundary-less, it can feel a little overwhelming if you’re already a very sensitive type. Take care of yourself.

On Thursday, the Sun conjoins centaur planet Chiron in Pisces at 11:27 pm EST (4:27 UTC Friday). An hour and a half later, at 1:01 am EST (6:01 UTC) Friday, Mercury conjoins Neptune (modern ruler of Pisces).

This presents a curious combination of a diffusion effect on mental processes (Mercury-Neptune), with a focusing effect on ego consciousness (Sun-Chiron).

In addition, Venus ingresses Pisces at 5:24 am EST on Saturday (10:24 UTC). So that extra-romantic, sensitive and poetic influence gets layered into everything else.

First thing I’m seeing is that you might get a wake-up call regarding giving yourself permission to heal, to stand out and, indeed, to exist at all as your whole self (Sun-Chiron). For men, this could relate to feelings about your masculinity, your sensitivity, and any past injuries to your integrated embodiment of those two facets of self. For women, questions about how you relate to your father and subsequently other men in your life, and where you place your identity in relation to them, might arise.

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The tricky part, thanks to Mercury-Neptune, could be separating logic from illusion (or recognizing denial) as you encounter these themes. In other words, how can you know when you’re being honest with yourself, versus when you’re trying to escape the questions facing you?

With so many planets and points in Pisces (including Nessus, Neptune, Mercury, Ceres, Chiron, the lunar South Node, the Sun and, after Saturday, Venus — plus others), the sky is practically begging you to indulge your creativity — paint, sculpt, play music (or listen to it deeply), make movies (or watch them), get on stage, dance, write, collage; perhaps have sex.

Whatever your chosen medium, and whether you participate actively or observe others doing so, ask yourself: Is what you are encountering taking you deeper into yourself and closer to your questions and their answers? Or are you indulging in escapism to distract yourself from certain truths that keep dipping a toe into the ocean of your consciousness? It might be hard to tell this weekend. But come March 23, that Aries Point Full Moon and eclipse could very well ask for some clear action using what you’ve learned.

By Amanda Moreno

It’s been a while since I’ve done any ‘shamanic’ journeying, so I decided to make a solar eclipse ritual out of it. I think that sometimes people shy away from ritual because they think it needs to be a certain way. I figured I’d take this opportunity to give you a glimpse into my often whimsical process of creating a ritual.

Photo by graywacke/A Landing a Day

In my very simple, often spontaneous method the basic structure of a ritual comprises a beginning, middle and end. Pretty easy, right?

For this one I began by smudging first myself then my space with some sage. I lit some candles, started an oil burner with some essences to promote purification (rosemary, lavender) and easier breathing (fir needle), and then called in some allies from the four (or five…or was it seven?) directions. I then sat and went through a grounding and centering visualization to infuse myself and my space with some grounded cosmic love vibes.

The intention I set for the ritual was for it to promote gentle release of what is not serving me in the area of relationships — being that this New Moon and solar eclipse took place in my 7th house — and for general healing at all levels. During the journeying, which made up the middle of the ritual, I planned on traveling to a place I go sometimes to receive healing from my guides and to do a visualization exercise I call “Walking around my chart.”

I went ahead and put on a drumming track that would loop for about 45 minutes, lay down and closed my eyes, and called on Eagle to bring me to the upper worlds. I ended up at a slightly different spot from where I intended to go, yet one I’m also familiar with. It became clear to me then that ‘purification’ was going to be a somewhat unanticipated theme of the journey as I found myself immersed in water.

Normally at this stage in the game I head towards a waterfall that I know quite well. This time, however, I realized that not only was I compelled to dive deep into the water, I was enjoying the sensation of going with that instinct. The feeling of swimming deeper and then experiencing the buoyancy combined with the pressure of the depths — especially knowing I didn’t have to worry about breathing — brought about a sense of vibrancy at my root and sacral chakras that seemed to undulate through my spine. Soon, a spirit animal friend arrived and we were tossing about in the water together, alive with the sensuality of it, and then rising to the surface to take a swim.

Eventually I redirected myself, remembering my initial goal. Energetic cleansing and re-balancing occurred under the guidance of my guides, and I allowed some kind of releasing process to convene without really understanding what was being let go, but rather trusting the process. I’ve found lately that my ability to trust these things is heightened, a welcome change and something I have been working on for years.

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Finally, I decided to take a little walk around my chart. I visualized my chart spanning out in front of me as if I were standing on the spot where the eclipse was occurring.

I tuned in to my left where, about 90 degrees away, my natal Neptune seemed to be erupting in torrents of fluid fire in a cushion of pure indigo blue. It felt energizing, smooth, and quite sultry and sexy — like a much-needed infusion of a spritely romantic surge — carrying the tones of the 5th house, Sagittarius and Neptune.

It was one of those ‘duh’ moments when I had a full-bodied sense of just how much fire infuses my Piscean 8th house Venus through this square to Neptune, and how boundary-less that energy sometimes wants to be — and for good reason. It feels incredible!

I then walked around to several other key spots in the chart and uncovered some insights there as well; for example, how much more slowly my 4th house Scorpio Moon reveals what is going on with it than that Neptune. I was also able to locate a feeling of friction and crankiness I’ve been experiencing lately, thereby giving me some insight into what area of my chart I can work with to better understand what has been arising there.

I eventually called Eagle back in to take me back to this world, and then to end my ritual I gave thanks, released the directions and washed my hands.

Afterwards I felt a need for calm, for quiet, and for a social media break. It’s amazing to me how these days it seems that sometimes I forget how to do those three things together. Instead of turning on something mindless, I decided to use my post spontaneous eclipse ritual time to write up the experience, just in case it’s of some value to you. Whatever the case, now that we’re officially in it — happy eclipse season!

For a beautiful and timely example of life on Earth imitating the astrology in our sky, you need not look any farther than a desert in California. That desert is called Death Valley. Most of the time the name is appropriate for an arid and desolate place where simply going for a walk can be lethal.

Right now as you read this, however, Death Valley is evincing a rare phenomenon some call a “super bloom.” For the first time since 2005, circumstances have combined to awaken seeds long dormant, covering the desert with a blanket of flowers.

Death Valley’s super bloom is taking place just as you are entering what has been previously (in this space) been called an “eclipse zone.” This particular eclipse zone begins with today’s New Moon and total solar eclipse in Pisces, and ends with the Libra Full Moon and lunar eclipse on March 23.

The super bloom in Death Valley is an explicit and tangible phenomenon. Uncounted flowers have bloomed, which will then yield the seeds of another such event sometime in the future. Implicitly speaking, the astrology at this time suggests the same potential might exist in your own life. Much as with seeds in the desert, potential needs the right combination of circumstances to sprout, flower and produce the seeds of renewal. Since it is your life, you must at least be the one to get things started.

The first circumstance necessary to produce seeds of renewal in your life is awareness — that’s where astrology comes in. The Pisces New Moon and solar eclipse taking place today (or tomorrow, depending on your time zone) is happening while the Moon is very near the point of its orbit where it is closest to Earth. That’s why some call this a “super” New Moon. Because interpretations of astrology are based on observation and correlation, any astrologer would tell you that a rare super bloom in Death Valley taking place at the same time with a super New Moon is not coincidental, but indicative of circumstances everywhere.

Combine the correlation of a super bloom and a super New Moon with the fact that every New Moon represents the end of an old monthly cycle and the beginning of a new one, and the correspondence is reinforced. If you consider another (and longer) cycle that will both end and begin again before you emerge from this particular eclipse zone, the image of seeding renewal is furthered.

For the first time in nearly a decade, this particular eclipse zone will contain within it (like a seed long dormant) the end of an old yearly cycle and the beginning of a new one called the Vernal Equinox. On March 19 (or March 20, again depending on where you live) the Sun will enter Aries to begin a new astrological year. At the same time, a new season will initiate on Earth. For those of us north of the equator, it will be the first day of spring. For those of you down under, it will be the first day of autumn.

You have a new lunar cycle, a new season, a new astrological year and the implied beginning of even longer cycles combining with a seldom-seen spectacle of nature to help make you aware. Assuming that you now have that awareness, you might ask, “What next?”

What follows awareness, if anything is to become of it, must necessarily be action. In this particular case, the symbol of seeds being renewed provides you with some clues as to what sorts of action would be appropriate.

In order to sprout and bloom, any seed must receive and take in a combination of circumstances. There must be rain so that the dry seed can take in moisture, swell and crack open. Sunlight is then required to provide the energy necessary for growth. Finally, there must be grounding and nourishment from the soil so growth can be sustained long enough to produce the next cycle of seeds.

Should it be your intent to follow the example of the seeds in Death Valley, the implication is that you should be taking in a few things yourself. Beyond breathing deeply, drinking plenty of water and eating nourishing food, what you take in to foment the seeds of your own renewal at this time would probably include some information and support. For those additional requirements, you might endeavor to look beyond what you yourself can provide.

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Implicitly, you should look to further your education in some way. Additionally, you might seek to expand your consciousness.

How you do that would depend both on what you are interested in and what your community has to offer. It could be as simple as a trip to your local library, or as complex as enrolling for some sort of formal schooling.

You could even travel outside of your community. You might consider leaving the familiarity of where you live to engage with, and learn from, the life circumstances of others. In all probability, you need not go far (although that possibility exists) in order to experience different food being served, unfamiliar languages being spoken, and other ways of both believing and living.

So use your imagination. Follow your curiosity. Make an effort, however small, to emerge from who and what you are, even if you are content with your circumstances. Because if there is anything to astrology, it’s time for you start something new over the next two weeks or so. More to the point, if you have anything in common with those flowers in Death Valley (which you do), what you start will demonstrate that you and your life have a point at this time: to somehow sprout, grow, bloom and produce the seeds of renewal once again. It’s time for what has been dormant within you to come out.

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