Eclipse

Image: Keep Calm and Put The Kettle On

The ancients believed that an eclipse upset the existing order of things. They feared them because they believed that earthquakes and volcanic activity often followed a lunar eclipse. While no modern day research study has been able to prove the connection, we have seen some substantial seismic activity recently with a 7.0 magnitude quake in Haiti on January 12, a 5.8 magnitude quake in Baja on December 30, 2 earthquakes in the Solomon Islands on January 4, a 6.5 magnitude quake in Northern California on January 9, and a 4.3 magnitude quake in Southern California on January 11. (see the moon wobbles chart for more). And we are still in the time frame of the December 31, 2009 lunation cycle until the new moon of January 15, 2010. Then what? I'm glad you asked.

When the sun is visible like a ring of fire, and the moon darkens its centre, we enter 25 degrees of Capricorn in a new moon annular solar eclipse. Sounds ominous, doesn't it? It gets better. The upcoming solar eclipse is no ordinary eclipse. Apparently, the January 15, 2010 solar eclipse is the longest annual eclipse of the third millennium. And there won't be another one to beat it until the year 3043. Astrologists are predicting it will pack a particularly potent energy punch. Great. If all this is true, we're all in for a real treat! Right?

Well, modern astrologists aren't quite as doomsday as the ancients. Modern astrologists believe eclipses bring about change. Which yes, upsets the order of things as the ancients feared. But they also believe change is necessary for growth and learning and all that positive happiness stuff. The upcoming solar eclipse apparently occurs in the areas of personal affairs and business deals. And since the eclipse takes place in the cardinal sign of Capricorn, these changes will be quick and abrupt.

I should also probably mention that Saturn and Pluto are entering a war. (Apparently there is hell of a lot going on cosmically right now). The two planets are also squaring off starting this month and for the rest of the year to challenge our relationships and personal growth. While Saturn will force us to examine our personal relationships and what we hold on to for the sake of familiarity and fear of the unknown, Pluto will force us to look inward to the self in search of our own hidden truths and those things that are just too difficult to accept.

So what do I believe? I've only recently started to really follow astrology. And I'm still not sure exactly what to make of it all. But I do believe in energy. I believe energy is all around us. I believe we are energy. So for me, the idea that big rocks floating around in space could impact the balance of universal energy seems almost logical to me. But I'm not a scientist. And I'm not an astrologist. I'm just a quirky female that has seen a lot of change in her life. Enough change to know that every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end. So I don't believe in fearing change. I've learned change isn't scary, it's just unknown. And I think sometimes, the unknown can actually be pretty exciting. Since you never know what you're going to encounter next. So my astrological advice is to stay calm, live bravely, hope for the best, wish for the most, and don't be naive to the worst.

Oh and I read Susan Miller's Astrology Zone for your monthly horoscope.