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Image: Solar eclipse of June 21, 2001

 

Solar Annular Eclipse

September 22, 2006

 

Right now, as of September 17, 2006 , we are between two eclipses, a Lunar one which happened on the 7 th and a Solar Annular one which will occur only hours before Fall equinox, on September 22. Eclipse seasons happen twice a year, about six months apart. As one could expect the weeks around these celestial key events always are intense. It is during these times when old patterns are broken open, and when simultaneously – almost into the rifts of what is eradicated – new seeds are planted.

 

Whenever a Solar eclipse happens close to equinox and solstice points, we can be sure that strong and powerful changes are just around the corner. The axis of the equinoxes is the collective horizon; fall equinox the Descendant of the Collective. The seventh house (Libra: September 23 – October 22) is an exposed place, the space where inner conflicts are fought out in the open. We only realize and recognize who we are by relating, context is absolutely necessary. And, we attract what we're lacking and what we're denying within ourselves. The seventh house gives space for projection, offering a playground to meet and merge and fool around. However, true wisdom only arises after we have understood the world's mirror like quality– that all apparent distance is illusory; that all duality is a deception endorsed by our rudimentary senses which we've been trained to exclusively rely upon. When outgrowing this self- afflicted handicap, of exclusively believing in the superficial impressions produced by our senses, then all distinctions loose their inner emotional charge. Centered in the core of one's being, life transmutes into a play. When anchored in boundless inner spaciousness, the physical body with its senses is seen for what it truly is – a miraculous vessel, a highly evolved apparatus which permits for boundless life energies to be received and transfigured. By juggling with matter we can excel inventing yet new configurations and crystallizations, simply celebrating the unbelievable abundance, simply participating, without any particular agenda, with deep gratitude for having been invited to this most intriguing play.

 

Last time we saw a Solar eclipse at one of the four cardinal points was on June 21, 2001 , laying the energetic foundations for 9/11 and all the difficult, dark and challenging times since. The 2001 eclipse occurred at 0 degrees Cancer, right when the Sun was at its highest yearly passage over the Northern Hemisphere. Dane Rudyhar calls zero degree Cancer the point of ‘Decision'. We all know on how much 9/11 and all events in its wake have changed the world. Now, five years later we might see more clearly on how much all this has been a great wakeup call. Particularly after the highflying visions and great hopes released at the cusp of the third millennium, this was a tough call. All of a sudden it became pertinently clear that nothing substantial had changed yet, still we were in the same world ruled by polarities. We were shaken out of sweet dreams, ultimately confronted with the realization that still relentlessly evil forces were holding the hub of power. The moment of ‘Decision' marked the turning point, the point of departure. The message was to turn around and retreat within, to stop exhausting our life energy. It was a great moment of disillusionment which made us recognize the absurdity of fighting with windmills. Like no other event before, 9/11 was an eye opener. It became obvious that shadows and phantoms are everywhere and all around us. Decision meant to totally redirect our focus and nourish hidden inner structures. These five years were about retreat, the focus was on growing strong and becoming dependable. 9/11 made it clear that only complete reinvention eventually would have a chance – and that such radical change only could emerge from an inner fullness.

 

It's now five years since 2001. On September 22 again a Solar eclipse occurs in a similarly potent zodiacal position. However – and this is highly significant – short before equinox. Whereas the 2001 event pushed into unknown territory, this present one will force us to have a second look, to tie all sorts of loose ends up and formulate the conclusion.

It occurs in the last degree of the sixth sign Virgo, the sign of harvest, focus and determination, at the point of culmination of the first half of the zodiac. The 30 th degree of Virgo represents high refinement and complexion, there's an aura of urgency to it, the deadline of equinox approaching; tasks revealed are critical and imperative and they hold tremendous potential of accomplishment. According to Rudhyar's version of the Sabian symbols, this degree represents a most decisive occasion endorsing utmost focus and concentration. When immersed in that energy, doing happens in a state of heightened awareness and single-pointed intent, so much so that no outer voices can penetrate mind or soul.

One thing last degrees of all signs have in common is their visionary aspect. Even more so this is true about last degrees of seasons. Looking ahead from this perspective at the eve of equinox, closely conjunct the cusp of the collective seventh house, already smelling the fresh breeze, most likely new directions of public focus are going to be initiated. However as the energy is short before its completion, whatever newly emerging focus there might emerge, it will be a continuum of some sort; wrapping up, concluding and transforming a process that has been with us for long. With all this in mind [and even more so when looking at the entire celestial picture (see below)] one can say that this eclipse will open the collective to new frontiers, initiating us to a new mindset, redefining history, opening the curtains for an entirely new scene.

Rudhyar's keyword for the first half of the sign Libra is ‘Transfiguration'. It cannot be stressed enough that the eclipse occurs short before that turning point, right at the pinnacle of the earthy-material semi-circle, indicating a tremendous resourcefulness, literally drawing on unlimited resources. So this is a very auspicious eclipse! In the last degree of Virgo complexity has fully evolved; holding the potential for accomplishment, reflecting fullness at the very end of a long evolution.

Annular Solar Eclipse, September 22, 2006 , 7:40 a.m. EDT , Washington DC

 

 

It's most remarkable that right in the moment when the Solar eclipse comes to its

Maximum as observed from Washington DC – right at the hub of our present-day mad world – Moon and Sun will rise in close embrace, planet Mars less than two degrees from the Ascendant in Libra. And the most interesting little detail: because of the angles between Sun, Moon and Earth, the eclipse' maximum is reached five minutes before new moon, five minutes before the Moon is pulling up to the Sun, a few minutes before initiating a new 30-day period of mutual dance. This is a catch 22 – the last degree of Virgo, and five minutes before new moon, indicating something very urgent and at the same time representing the final touch – the master stroke!

In the American chart of July 4, 1776 , this eclipse is almost exactly at midheaven. There are different versions of this chart, however the eclipse will either show up in the ninth house of higher mind, or according to my personal take with an MC of 27,44 Virgo, right at zenith, in the tenth house of public and governmental affairs.

As the story continues, 16 hours after the maximum eclipse, at midnight of September 23, as the equilibrium between day and night becomes perfect, with the Sun standing exactly above the equator, when the forces of light and dark for one single instant are in perfect balance all over the planet, in that moment the Moon has traveled from the 30 th degree of Virgo to the 8 th degree of Libra, now being in close embrace with Mars, having pulled up right to the Solar eclipse' Washington Ascendant! Now, what could this mean? In a nation's chart the Moon represents the people and reflects on general moods and trends. The Moon's alignment with Mars will be one of the strong themes of the coming three months for the whole world, however for the US East coast where the pair is just about to rise; this energy will be setting the themes. Mars inflames the Moon, churns up emotions and fosters courageous acts which are emerging from deeper and often unconscious levels of our psyche. Good news is that this powerful pair is in the sign of Libra, which implies diplomatic skills and peacefulness, rooted in sensing the complexities involved.

This eclipse chart is really the drop which might bring the cup to spill over. Fall season of 2006 will be remembered as a most crucial period, having ignited the final downfall of hypocrisy, marking the turning point when the dark and evil forces which had brought this planet to the brink of collapse finally are about to get narrowed in, the scope of the actions starting to seep out into the general public. It all looks as if an unbelievable disclosure is about starting kicking off.

On Full moon of September 7, Sun, Moon and Earth already strongly interfered with one another when the Moon was gliding through Earth's shadow. Eclipses always happen in sequence and the weeks between such outstanding events are usually densely packed with deep stuff coming to surface. Two news casts in particular gave clear indications of where we're heading. It was on September 6, when President Bush publicly had to admit to the fact that there are secret CIA prisons, spread all over the world. Particularly in Europe these news created quite some uproar and disclosure of these prisons locations was requested. Only one week later, on September 13, IAEA, the international atomic energy agency accused the US congressional commission of lying, as 5 of 29 points made against Iran 's atomic programs were exposed as blatant lies.

 

Overlaying the zodiac with the 64 hexgrams of the I CHING (according to the Human Design System) brings this eclipse into Hexagram 46, ‘Pushing Upward'. The judgment, as taken from R. Wilhelm's translation, says: ‘Pushing Upward has supreme success. One must see the great man. Fear not. Departure toward the South. Brings good fortune.' And in the adjacent explanation R. Wilhelm writes: ‘The pushing upwards of the good elements encounters no obstruction and is therefore accompanied by great success.'

 

If you look at the above chart wheel you will see a big line-up of planets trailing Sun and Moon. The stellium includes Juno, Venus, Vesta, as well as recently discovered slower moving orbiters (not appearing in the chart wheel) FY9, CZ118, CO104 and CY118, all grouped around the Moon's descending node. This nodal point is where the Moon reunites with the main energetic plane of Sun and Earth, returning the gathered momentum and releasing its assimilated energies, and which actually can be called responsible for the eclipse phenomenon, of Sun and Moon merging in the same spot in the sky. So it's the Moon's descending node which is strongly highlighted.

The Lunar eclipse two weeks ago was very close to the Moon's ascending node, suggesting to take on more active roles in meeting requirements of the time, actively engaging in translating thoughts into deeds, rendering insights into form. Keeping in mind that the September 7 Lunar eclipse occurred in Pisces, the invitation is ‘to rely upon one's inner source of inspiration or guidance' (D. Rudhyar's keynote on the 16 th degree of Pisces in his Sabian symbols).

The Moon's ascending node is likewise the ‘cause', whereas its descending node being the ‘effect'. In this sense one could say that the primary momentum of this eclipse cycle has been ignited by the Moon's occultation, while the Solar eclipse could be seen as natural response emerging from such reliance upon one's inner source of inspiration or guidance. Anyway, for whatever it may be, this coming Solar eclipse is quite cathartic as the whole big stellium of Virgo planets is squared by Pluto conjuncting the Galactic Center !

Yet another aspect of the entire configuration which demands our attention is that this eclipse happens at the Moon's apogee, the Moon's furthest separation from Earth on its elliptical orbit. The Moon's apogee is also known as Black Moon, which generally acts as a magnet attracting all kinds of shadows, problems and difficulties.

As I mentioned in the last newsletter – “for something big to change (or something new to occur) one single strong planetary alignment is not enough. Rather there has to be a whole series of exact and powerful alignments, all speaking the same language, pointing in the same direction, building up a common momentum.” Both eclipses are exceptional alignments; they're part of an ongoing series of celestial events pushing the energetic levels to ever new heights.

Rudhyar stresses the fact that during the moment of furthest distance from Earth the Moon is closest to the second center of its orbit, which in contrast to its first orbital center (occupied by Earth), is vacant and freely floating in space. And the most distant passage is also one of two occasions when the Moon's centrifugal momentum exactly equals the gravitational attraction – being one of the two orbital positions where the two forces cancel each other out. At these two extreme occasions the Moon isn't pulled out of its actual orbital sphere, but rather experiencing a place of equilibrium and therefore coming to some inner rest. So this makes yet another argument for the strong amplification of Lunar influence as experienced in these locations.

Once more I want to come back to the stellium of Virgo planets lead by an occulted Sun, only hours shy of closing a big chapter, at the verge of generating a fresh momentum., CY118 is the last celestial body the Moon merges with before swallowing up the Sun, hence this body might be the crucial link in the planetary chain. And its twin, CZ118 dominates the Moon's descending node, pointing towards what's most likely to be naturally released. Both of them were discovered in 1999; they first jumped into researchers eyes when found that they both closely aligned with the Sun in the 9/11 chart. Juan Revilla, one of the leading researchers of the Centaur discussion group did many case studies on these two scattered disk objects with orbital periods of 878 years (CY118) and 1272 years (CZ118). Soon it became clear that these two highly eccentric orbiters had many traits in common. Both of them reach out into deep space, 150 and 200 AU (1 AU being Earth's distance from the Sun), and at closest passage they come within Pluto's orbit, around 35 AU from the Sun. The energies they represent are radical and revolutionary, outspoken and highly critical, emotionally detached, obsessed with social justice and ready to overthrow existing orders even at the cost of destroying something valuable, just to create a rift so the unprecedented may gain foothold.

Last but not least, we shouldn't underestimate the powerful dynamics of the three giant planets' T-square – Jupiter forming a right angle to opposing Saturn and Neptune both. The last of the three squares Jupiter forms with Neptune comes exact on September 24, and one month later, on October 25, Jupiter will square Saturn for the third time this year. As mentioned in the last newsletter, this configuration certainly is leaving marks on society at large. Under the applying Saturn/Neptune opposition, on August 24, some 3000 astronomers redefined the Solar system, bringing clarity to the point of what celestial objects should qualify being called ‘planet'. This had become necessary because of almost countless numbers of newly discovered minor planets, Centaurs, asteroids and alike. What really set the ball rolling was orbiter UB313 which proved being bigger than Pluto. So 76 years after its discovery, Pluto got declassified as planet. Together with UB313 (which just recently has been named Eris), Pluto is now known as ‘dwarf planet', a new category which already has dozens of candidates!

From October 23 to November 21, the Sun dives into the Scorpionic depths. Was the Libran passage informally playful, now life truly will be getting truly intense. We might have believed we're separate and independent, able to turn the curve at any time, drawing a clear line whenever we wished doing so. Not so anymore within the resonance field of the eighth sign. Here we have to give all we can, and even more, take risks, dare to get involved and be consumed by the flames of passion, awed and humbled by the supremacy of sacred intent. Sharing, yet even melting are the trademarks here. The only question is, are we strong enough to surrender? Do we have the inner grandeur to disappear as who we are, to be reborn into a new form which can't be known unless we embrace the challenge?

And then, on November 24, only two days after the Sun, giant planet Jupiter enters its home sign Sagittarius, from where it will dominate the heavens into the end of 2007. As if energetic levels wouldn't be crackling with extensive charges already, Jupiter definitely will add fuel to the flames, causing things to accelerate and heat up. Already there's quite a remarkable group of celestial bodies assembled in fiery Sag. Aside from Sun and Venus there's Pluto, Pholus, Crantor, Ixion and Quaoar, not even mentioning all latest discoveries which yet have to be researched and named!

What exciting times we're living in! Approaching the threshold of 2012, we're pushing limits, a great crescendo has begun. Regarding the present Solar cycle, as per now we're still around the Solar minimum. However, the first reversely charged sunspots have arrived, proving that the new solar cycle is under way. And scientists predict an extremely stormy one, peaking in 2011.

 

External link:         http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/SEmono/ASE2006/ASE2006.html

 

© 2004-2006    -     Khoji J. Vihara