Taurus Full Moon/Eclipse at 16°01’—November 8
Today’s translations are correlated to today’s specific degrees, of course, as always, and this is as practical as possible… particularly because today’s eclipse is directly conjunct Uranus—the planet of surprise and unpredictability—as are eclipses, in general… though I do believe that the degrees’ symbolisms will solidly represent underlying circumstances—still, the moon/Uranus conjunction strongly suggests upheaval through provoking routines for change, or changing routines for healing.
Today’s total lunar eclipse may very well be emotional or irrational—though the focus should not dwell there… “the physical must come first or all else will suffer, a truth that the Taurus moon understands,” as shamanic astrologer Raven Kaldera writes—this is a moon when “we take care of our bodies and the bodily needs of others.”
As above, so below—as within, so without.
Kaldera asks, “Are you eating healthy? Is there medical care that you need and aren’t seeking? Are you getting enough sleep? Do you enjoy the feel of your clothing on your skin, or are you sacrificing comfort for stylishness? Are you getting enough hugs and regular body contact, or are you suffering from skin hunger? Are there small pains and annoyances on your physical surroundings that you endure every day that, with a little bit of practical organization or elbow grease, could be eliminated?”
Kaldera mentions that these are such simple and practical questions, questions which we tend to ignore or leave to last priority—though, Kaldera says, “to our peril… they are more important than we imagine.”
Through this degree, there is “a struggle between practical needs and the underlying reasons for having those needs…” be they physical or otherwise.
Always, always—with a Taurean moon, we’re dealing with issues of comfort and security… and of course, pleasure.
The degree through which this total lunar eclipse occurs is one of what astrologer Dane Rudhyar transcribed as a ‘symbolical battle’… between ‘swords and torches’, to finish the sentiment.
This symbol speaks “to the eternal conflict between the ideal and the practical… the image of a battle between the sword and the torch depicts a battle between spiritual forces on the one hand and physical or mental forces on the other—the swords symbolize force or compulsion and the torches symbolize enlightenment…” and so the emphasis here is “on finding ways to reconcile conflicting goals or competing interests that won’t require compromising personal integrity.”
Through this degree we are motivated by ‘the crusading spirit; fighting for the truth in every situation; seeing the crux of a debate; developing confidence in one’s own viewpoint; arming others with the ‘sword of truth’; cutting the Gordian knot—slicing through big, messy problems with simple but radical solutions; and fighting to secure the future…’
Though, through this degree, “it can be that someone has become so caught up in the ‘what’ they are trying to achieve that they have probably lost sight of ‘why’… the endeavor to bring enlightenment could meet with resistance—particularly when the enlightenment will disrupt the usual process of things.”
And that’s the thing.
Enlightenment may come in the form of actual nourishment, or symbolic nourishment—it could be as functional as the transforming evolution of a value… these energies are deeply and intensely provoking you to consider the ‘why’ toward reasons for striving “to achieve or to maintain a particular agenda by persuasive force—battles are only truly worth fighting when the ideals behind them are clearly believed in or understood… to do this it is often important to pause and reassess why you are doing what you are doing.”
Another perspective considers that any confusion you may be experiencing—that this should tell you that the outer world needs to be reconsidered within your inner frameworks of values and needs… and these may very well be quite crucial now.
How might things be transformed and better understood so that they might become nourishing rather than poisonous?
What’s the right way to go about your being and doing?
Astrologer Pam Younghans writes of this eclipse, that these energies “will test our flexibility and our detachment… [that we] might call it a test of our ‘spiritual maturity,’ which includes having compassion for the human condition as well as the ability to maintain objectivity, to not get caught up in the drama…our higher evolution depends on our ability to cultivate the qualities of patience, persistence, forgiveness, and gratitude—we are being called to have good personal boundaries, to be aware of our own values but also to respect the needs of others…”
Further, Younghans writes that “thespiritual challenge of this eclipse is asking us to rise above the very human tendencies to get caught up in the drama, to become emotionally enmeshed with others, to overreact, and to resist or try to control what we do not (as yet) understand… if we see everything as either black or white, it is almost impossible not to become self-righteous and judgmental—this inevitably lowers our frequency, even if we are convinced that we are ‘right’ and someone else is ‘wrong’…”
This eclipse falls within the second decan of Taurus, which is a decan of success, as astrologer Austin Coppock writes it, “promising wealth and beastly fecundity…” though timing is particularly everything.
The 6 of pentacles within the tarot is associated with the second decan of Taurus—a card that typically points out an imbalance… which is implying, further, oppositionality.
This lunar event will likely feel quite oppositional overall, and extreme, with the most essential need becoming the ability to identify the necessary and important values, and matters, and circumstantial chaos—among the unnecessary and unimportant—and take on whatever these ask of you, thoroughly, as well as really committing to an understanding of the actual motivation behind emerging conflicts, or anger, or destructive behaviors, or anything otherwise that is surfacing through this week.
Tarot writer Jessica Dore writes of the 6 of pentacles, which is a card with imagery of a cloaked man giving coins to beggars, that “the person who gives coins to those begging does so in a measured way, so mechanically that it’s impossible to see the complex messiness of who he is (as we all are) in the process, and it feels likely to me that he prefers it that way… those begging, on the other hand, practically bare their souls—palms out, faces to the sky in a posture of utter vulnerability… further, in giving coins—rather than something of real and enduring value, like letting oneself be moved through deep listening or sharing direct access to an ongoing source of provisions—the quality and impact of this relationship is deeply unquestionable.”
And entirely imbalanced… this is how we might be feeling Saturn’s influence, metaphorically speaking.
Dore continues, “when we don’t let ourselves be known, we make ourselves untouchable by those we care for… but it is a two-way, dynamic, heart-to-heart touch that makes deep healing possible—after all, it was in deep connection that our oldest injuries were sustained, and so perhaps it is in deep connection that the roots of such wounds might be properly treated…”
Tarot writer TS Chang writes of this card, that “an opportunity opens up, and you take it—it’s the very epitome of being in the right place at the right tune…” Further, Chang suggests you “appreciate everything that’s going smoothly (which you might not normally notice till things start to go wrong…) look for harmony between your inner and outer self—between right view and right conduct…”
The energetic void within this extremely volatile t-square is within the influences of Leo—and so, above all, to come back to, and realign, with your heart-center, within that precious place within which overlaps with your higher mind… and resonate with these vibrations of genuine love without reason, or fear…
Without whatever you ego has assigned as deserving… Leo represents deep connection.
This is how you’ll understand what’s true.
Leonine energies regard matters of personal self-expression, emotional vulnerability, conditions of tenderness, and heart-centeredness, to name but a few… though Leo also teaches us confidence, and loyalty, and thoroughly honest compassion. Practice these expressions through this eclipse, and always—in light and with love—and you should experience these eclipsed energies free of fear or imbalance.
❝Truth is a torch that shines through the fog without dispelling it.❞
—Claude A Helvétius
🖋 by Jamie James
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Coppock, A ‘36 Faces’ Three Hands Press; ©2014. Chang, TS. ‘36 Secrets.’ Anima Mundi Press; ©2021.
Dore, J. ‘Tarot for Change.’ VIKING; ©2021.
Goldsmith, M. ‘The Zodiac by Degrees.’ Weiser Books; ©2004.
Hill, L. ‘360 Degrees of Wisdom.’ A Plume Book; ©2004.
Kaldera, R. ‘Moon Phase Astrology.’ Destiny Books; ©2011.
Reed, T. ‘Tarot: No Questions Asked.’ Weiser Books; ©2020.
Roche, D. ‘The Sabian Symbols.’ Astrology Classics; ©1998, 2010.
Rudhyar, D. ‘An Astrological Mandala.’ Vintage Books; ©1973.
Younghans, P. northpointastrology.com