Lunar Eclipse in Capricorn ~ July 2009

Tomorrow's event (taking place Tuesday at 5:02 am EDT and 11:02 am UTC/GMT) is in Capricorn. That will bring up themes of obligation, commitment and the pros and cons of old ideas. At the time of the eclipse, Mercury is precisely conjunct Vesta in the sign Cancer -- yet another appearance of Vesta in our current run of astrological charts. I've been thinking all day about how much better a place the world would be if more people shared their knowledge in writing.

People around me are involved in all kinds of interesting things, but few of them feel any inclination to share their knowledge with others. Writing was invented as a way to preserve what we learn in the school of many knocks called Planet Earth. I suggest you devote the time and effort to writing as a direct gesture of nourishing others with knowledge. For those concerned that you don't know enough to write about it, remember Ken Kesey's suggestion about how it's better if you write what you don't know. Writing is one of the best ways to learn. The writing process helps us integrate and organize our thoughts; and helps us get over our insecurity about learning, and about our ability to express ideas coherently.

The Capricorn Moon is emotionally complex. It tends to compartmentalize feelings. Between Pluto in this sign and an eclipse in this sign, we are all being given a warm welcome to open up some of those rooms and let the Sun and breeze into the darker places in our minds.

Back in the summer of 1999 -- ye gods, a decade ago, during a very significant summer of eclipses -- I wrote a missive about eclipses in an article called "One Way (Or Another)," as part of the Burning Man series. I've retrieved the heart of that particular article, which gives basic concepts for experiencing eclipses. Here the basic ideas, with some revisions.

The first property of eclipses is concentration of experience. A lot happens in a short time; time itself becomes distorted. This works on an individual level, and on a collective level. Of course time and events move so fast now that we might not notice the acceleration, but you will if you pay attention, and make a conscious choice to work with it.

Events seem karmic or predestined. They may not be, but they certainly seem that way. A lot of how that shapes up depends on your relationship to the ideas of karma and destiny. It's better not to push the river, but rather guide yourself with intention and as much clarity as you can muster.

Eclipses come with a feeing of discontinuity. Things are often different before and after a sequence of eclipses; it helps if we work with the process of change. The world often seems to plow forward on its crazy way, and yet nothing ever seems to really change; eclipses are the remedy. In the process of Soul evolution of the planet, and in our individual lives, these events represent critical transition points without which there would be very little progress at all.

Therefore, another characteristic is a distinct sense of transition. We move from one space of life into another. Personal relationships, including marriages and lover relationships, are particularly susceptible to rearrangement. The change can be deepening of stronger relationships, and shake-ups in weaker relationships, many of which are likely to change dramatically.

Anything that's not working with the process of our personal and collective evolution is subject to disruption, things that are working are subject to challenge, and have a big opportunity for enhancement. It is vital to work with the energy consciously, make decisions and follow your intuition. It may take time to determine whether your intuition speaks first or second; boldly or softly; but you're the one who can tell from experience.

Eric Francis
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The Man Burns. Photo by Dan Adams.