Libra, Eclipse and Equinox

Libra and the Autumnal Equinox
As the Sun enters the sign of Libra (which it did this year on September 23rd) we once again hang in the balance between the Summer phase of the yearly solar cycle that we’re leaving behind, and the Winter phase to come, via the Autumn. The Sun’s entry into Libra is also the date of the Autumnal Equinox.

The word Equinox means "equal night", and it is the time when the number of hours of daylight are equal to the hours of night. This equal day and night occurs only twice a year, the Spring (or Vernal) Equinox being in late March. At both the Spring and Autumnal Equinox, the Sun rises exactly in the East and sets exactly in the West everywhere on earth.

Whereas the Spring equinox carries with it the theme and energies of Aries, representing the surge of new life both in nature and in our own lives, the Autumnal Equinox brings the theme of balance and a chance to seek harmony in our lives.

Harmony and balance are, of course, both Libran themes, and those born under this sign are constantly striving to keep harmony flowing between themselves and others. Libra is a sign of relationship and part of the Libran challenge is to see the other person’s point of view without letting it overwhelm one’s own needs and opinions. Quite a balancing act! Libra must learn to make judicious choices, whilst understanding that avoidance of all conflict is an impossibility in life. You simply cannot please all of the people all of the time! Sometimes it’s best to clear the air by having a good old fashioned row rather than trying to keep the peace at all costs, and risk allowing resentment to breed as a result of not being totally up front.

For most of us, though, this apparently altruistic (though potentially self-destructive) stance of always seeing the other’s point of view is quite difficult to achieve. As the Sun moves through the sign of the scales, we find ourselves presented with an opportunity to reflect on Libran themes and think about where improvements can be made in these areas of our lives. The obvious area of focus is in our relationships. How much unnecessary conflict could we avoid if we took time out to see things from the other person’s point of view? What can we do to make the other person happy? By promoting harmony we can build more satisfying personal relationships. We can also consider the question: “Where is the beauty in our lives?” Libra is Venus-ruled, so honouring the planet of love and beauty means recognising and appreciating all of the beauty we see in nature, in our homes and in our everyday existence. In today’s fast paced world it’s also a good idea to take time out to relax, socialise and maybe even pamper ourselves aswell: all of these things are Libra/Venus themed.

Libra teaches us that life’s balance is constantly changing, and that we should all strive towards equality and harmony in our relationships. This can be achieved through good grace, a spirit of co-operation and appreciation of the beauty we can all create in our lives, whether physical or symbolic.

The Solar Eclipse of September 22nd 2006

“What is an eclipse and what effect can eclipses have in my life?” I hope to answer this twofold question in this section of the newsletter.

First of all, Eclipses as a natural phenomenon:

Please note: you should never look directly at the Sun or at an eclipse without specialised protective eyewear as doing so can permanently damage your eyesight.

There are two main kinds of eclipse, Solar and Lunar. A Solar Eclipse occurs at New Moon when the Moon passes directly between the Earth and the Sun. Because of the relative distances between the Moon and the Sun, the visible discs of each body appear to be nearly equal in size, causing the Moon to appear to obscure the Sun from our viewpoint on Earth. A Lunar Eclipse, which can only occur on a Full Moon, is caused when the Moon moves through the shadow cast by the Earth, making it appear that the Full Moon goes dark. On Earth, there can be anywhere from four to seven eclipses within any given year. Types of Solar and Lunar eclipse can be further sub-categorised as follows: total, partial, annular, hybrid.

Eclipses and the birth chart
When eclipses occur in the heavens, you can bet that astrologers worldwide are rushing to look where the eclipse has “hit” their birth chart. Why? Here’s a summary of the potential effect of eclipses in the birth chart and therefore on the individual.

Eclipses carry a “wild card” sort of energy, and have a shake it up and see what happens sort of effect on our lives. In one sense, the house in which an eclipse falls in your birth chart is the area where the universe is giving you a kick up the ass, saying “here’s where you should be putting in the work!” In addition, eclipses can fall on or near planets or combinations of planets in the chart, further refining themes for each individual. For instance, if an eclipse falls on your Sun, which represents your life direction and personal power, that’s where you’re being asked to put in extra work. If you have a tenth house Sun, this will bring in strong themes of career and direction, if it’s in the second you’ll be looking at your resources and talents, if it’s in the fourth, it will bring home and family life into focus, and so on.

The Solar Eclipse of September 22nd fell at 29 degrees of Virgo. So if this date coincided with your birthday, you may have had a sudden event or realisation in your life that you need to think more about your personal ambitions and direction. This can apply also to anyone whose birthday is within a two or three days of that range. Those whose birthday is near the end of Pisces, Gemini or Sagittarius may also be affected, as these positions make challenging and energised contacts to the eclipse.

So when exactly should you expect to feel the effects of an eclipse? Well, this is where things can get tricky, as the timing of eclipse energies manifesting in personal experience is by no means an exact science! Some astrologers believe that the run up to the eclipse is the time when its effects can be felt. Others think it’s more likely to hit you in the few weeks afterwards. In addition, it’s possible to note repeat effects, or varations on a theme of each eclipse at intervals of 3, 6 and 9 months afterwards. It’s really a matter of observing each individual chart and correlating the timing of the effects felt back to the eclipse in question – we’re all different!

More complex even than this is that the eclipse could be contacting any of your so called “personal” planets, ie Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus or Mars, each variation of which will give a modified experience of the eclipse energy. Of course, it’s also entirely possible that the eclipse is not hitting a key point in your chart and you’ll sail on through this eclipse period in relative oblivion to its effects!

So what effects, generally speaking, will the eclipse manifest? Each eclipse belongs to a different series, each series having a distinct theme. Bernadette Brady, author of “Predictive Astrology, the Eagle and the Lark”, (Weiser, 1992) describes the September 22nd eclipse’s effects as having to do with separation and things coming to an end, finishing something and being sad at its completion. This of course can apply to many areas of our lives, and endings are important markers for us, as they augur new beginnings.

In short, and the main thing to remember, is that the house in your chart in which this particular eclipse fell is the area of life in which you are being asked to work on letting go. An appropriate theme indeed at the Equinox, as we let go of Summer and move into the Autumn of the current Solar cycle

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