28.10.23: Lunar Eclipse and Full Moon in Taurus
'If you really knew that your body was saying more than your words ever could, would it spark curiosity around being in it?'
- @wakingwomb
Dear Astrology friends,
I'm wondering – how the past two weeks have been for you?
The ones who know me better, certainly know that I don't let transits (planetary constellations that currently happen in the sky) guide my life or the decisions that I make. I'm a big fan of our ability to create and I support our free will – apart from what happens in the sky.
So, with this mindset, I wasn't expecting anything particular to happen on the solar eclipse 2 weeks ago but if I am honest, some deep feelings hit me and made me revisit vulnerable places of my psyche. And I'm assuming that many of us went on a quest into our subconscious.
And you know, that's the beauty of Astrology, I think. We can't ever tell what exactly will happen but we can get a sense of purpose. A sense that things never show up randomly in our process but rather in alignment with our growth. With the focus to raise our consciousness, as a soul but foremost as a human being.
Meaning, if the past two weeks have been a pain in the ass: Hang in and trust the process – if that is possible for you. Because the good news is: You've made it through this weird in-between-time and we're closing a big cycle this Saturday.
LUNAR ECLIPSES AND WHAT THEY TRY TO TELL US
As opposed to the Solar Eclipse two weeks ago, we experience a Partial Lunar Eclipse in the sign of Taurus that coincides with a Full Moon in Taurus on Saturday, the 27th of October, 2023.
In Astrology, the Moon represents our emotions, our hidden parts, our subconscious, the way our soul feels nurtured, and our inner child. It's the part that we don't necessarily show people first but what lives deep inside of us.
On a Partial Lunar Eclipse, we have a Full Moon while at the same time, the Earth is blocking the sun's light to the moon partially. That's because the Moon passes through the Earth's shadow (while Earth is exactly between the Moon and the Sun).
While Solar Eclipses are known to be portals for new beginnings, Lunar Eclipses are famous for closing cycles or completing big processes.
Their medicine is to deepen our relationship to the Unconscious and to get some emotions rolling while doing so.
Lunar Eclipses can be times that help us to befriend our shadows and the parts that we like to keep in the cellar of the Unconscious.
THIS TAURUS ECLIPSE IS ENDING A CYCLE OF 2 YEARS
Maybe you know by now that Eclipses always come in sets.
The Partial Lunar Eclipse ends a two-year Eclipse cycle that was happening on the axis of Taurus and Scorpio and started on November, 19th, 2021.
Here's an overview of the eclipse set on the Taurus-Scorpio axis:
Partial LUNAR Eclipse November 19, 2021 Taurus
Partial SOLAR Eclipse April 30, 2022 Taurus
Total LUNAR Eclipse May 16, 2022 Scorpio
Partial SOLAR Eclipse October 25, 2022 Scorpio
Total LUNAR Eclipse November 8, 2022 Taurus
Penumbral LUNAR Eclipse May 5, 2023 Scorpio
Partial LUNAR Eclipse October 28, 2023 Taurus
Other Eclipses along the Taurus-Scorpio axis occurred from 2002-2005, then 2012-2014, and now from 2021-2023.
It makes sense to think back to those timelines and see if you can somehow track a process you've been going through.
The questions to ask for this ending of a cycle are:
What process that started in Nov 2021 finds its completion now?
What have you been working on for the past 2 years?
How can you give reflection and space to the cycle that is ending in those weeks?
How can you reward yourself for the hard work you've done in the past 2 years?
TAURUS VS SCORPIO: BETWEEN SAFETY AND INTIMACY
The axis of Taurus and Scorpio is a very dear one to me because – through the lens of Evolutionary Astrology – it's part of my evolutionary path in this lifetime.
Last year, I participated in a course that was called “Embodied Intimacy” and only a year later it occurred to me that this basically IS the quintessence of my relation to Taurus and Scorpio.
Taurus comes into the zodiac as the second sign after Aries who symbolizes the beginning of all. Taurus grounds the fiery ram and gives a vessel to the cosmic fire energy.
The glyphs of Aries (that looks like a V) and Taurus (the V arriving into a circle) speak for themself: Whereas in Aries the energy is roaming around like an explosion, in Taurus it finds a home to rest, it comes into a circle.
Taurus takes Aries by the hand and invites it to feel the ground under his feet, to take care of his body, to make sure his basic needs are met and to rest deeply.
Taurus, an earthy fixed Yin sign is about security. It's about finding safety within my own body, going on a quest for my non-negotiable values, and taking my talents seriously.
THE INTIMACY WITH YOURSELF DETERMINES HOW YOU RELATE WITH OTHERS
There's one thing that the facilitator of “Embodied Intimacy” made clear straight away: “In order to be deeply intimate with someone, you need to feel safe within yourself, your own body.” Without safety (Taurus), no intimacy (Scorpio).
So we spent many weeks dropping into our bodies with somatic practices, starting to feel the sensations deep within ourselves and notice their – sometimes subtle – differences.
Only then, with a solid foundation, we started to practice with each other trying to find answers to questions like: “How close can I get to someone without losing myself?”, “How much time and space do I need to feel safe?” and “When do I end and when does the other begin?”.
Taurus teaches us that only if we're able to feel safe within our own body, we can dive deep into connection (Scorpio).
The fundament for intimate relationships is being built in our relation to our fundamental needs and how we approach them.
TO GO DEEP WE NEED TO FEEL SAFE
This Partial Lunar Eclipse occurs when the Moon is at 5-6 degrees of Taurus, opposing the Sun at 5-6 degrees Scorpio.
If you have personal planets and points at approximately 0 to 10 degrees of the Fixed signs (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, and Aquarius), you'll probably feel its effect most significantly.
It's as if the cosmos is saying to us: “My dear child, try to find safety within yourself. It's time to rest and grow some roots deep down so you can be as flexible as a tree."
Some weeks ago, I worked with the image of a tree that grows around the corner in order to catch sunlight. Only if we have deep roots and a safe container, we can stand up for our needs to be met. And sometimes, we need to grow around corners to get our needs fulfilled because we believe that they truly count. Nature knows that and there's no awkwardness in it
DID YOU KNOW THAT BOUNDARIES FOSTER INTIMACY?
If we wish for more intimacy and deeper connections in our lives, then we won't be able to avoid the topic of boundaries.
If we don't have a sense of strong boundaries within ourselves, we won't feel confident in the presence of others. It's a formula.
What often happens is that we avoid going deep with others because – through the lack of boundaries – we feel its danger. So we don't open up and don't show ourselves fully because the fear of getting hurt might be too big (and that's okay!). But also a typical Taurus-Scorpio-dilemma.
On the flip side, if we know ourselves well, if we have set boundaries for ourselves and we're able to communicate them to others, we get a sense of having our own back.
We get more flexible and we start to get out of our comfort zone because we know that we're able to take care of ourselves – even if we get triggered by abandonment or other experiences.
And maybe, slowly, we start to experience a deeper sense of connection. That's the magic of boundaries and knowing ourselves.
The questions that the Full Moon in Taurus would ask today are:
How do you generate safety within your body?
What are the resources that bring you back to yourself when life gets overwhelming?
What is your way to ground and how much space do you give yourself for that?
How do you fall in love with life, what are your personal pleasures?
How well do you know your boundaries and are you able to communicate them?
AN OPPOSITION OF TAURUS AND SCORPIO IN THE HEAVENS
Luckily, with this Full Moon in Taurus, Jupiter is in the game, being 6 degrees apart from the Moon in the heavens. A cosmic sigh at this point.
To me, it seems that the current retrograde motion of Jupiter emphasizes the need to look within at this time of the Full Moon and Lunar Eclipse.
I needed some time to process when someone once told me “If you feel safe within yourself, you'll feel safe with anyone.”
It seems that after all, safety is an inside job. And that if we're not feeling safe, it's our call to take responsibility. Easier said than done – I know.
Coming back to Astrology, Jupiter is the planet of expansion, it wants to grow. Being so close to the Moon, it's inviting us to expand our capacity to sustain our values, our talents and to hold ourselves in our own loving arms – in our bodies and broader, within the natural framework we live in.
It's a call to give ourselves some gratitude for the two years that have passed and acknowledge how far we've come within the topics of safety and intimacy – first and foremost with ourselves (and as a mirror, in our outside relationships).
So for today, Jupiter asks: “Could we expand into our own hearts and grow roots to strengthen the ability to hold ourselves?”
While Jupiter is chilling out with the Moon in Taurus, we can find Mars, Mercury, and Sun in opposition to it in Scorpio.
Mars is the cosmic warrior, it's our willpower, and the way we use our free will in the world. Mercury is the messenger, the way we communicate, and think.
Scorpio can get pretty dark if it doesn't get what it wants. Mars in Scorpio wants to act, to transform and to break. Mercury in Scorpio loves to break taboosand can tend to hurt with its expression. I think that we can all feel the collective tension.
After all, this is a time that calls for building a sense of safety within ourselves and hopefully, this will impact how we'll make use of our free will in the world.
AN INVITATION TO TAKE A DEEP BREATH AND TO REST
Well, if there's one thing that the Moon in Taurus surely knows, it is that the moment of a deep breath can save or destroy whole worlds.
It's the moment where we decide if we jump into the conflict (Shadow-Mars in Scorpio), attack the other person (Shadow-Mercury in Scorpio) or pause for a second (Moon in Taurus), ground our feet deeply into the earth, believe in our capacity to feel safe (Jupiter) and don't let our instinctive patterns to take over.
Meaning, a deep breath can sometimes change the narrative. And I feel that this is what the cosmos asks on this Full Moon and Eclipse.
To slow and wind down, to take a bath, to prepare a good meal, to spend time in nature and to stimulate all our senses for the sake of safety and comfort. And to give ourselves a shoulder clap for all the hard work we've done in the past 2 years.
With love,
—Karina
*Header taken from GIPHY.com
