Relational Ripples ~ Solar Eclipse

What magic is available during eclipse season?

An Eclipse is a dark looking glass into the often ignored corners of our existence. As witches, we are uniquely suited to this work of navigating the shadowlands - it comes naturally to us. We feel called to grapple through the dark, to feel our way through root systems and the ecosystems that thrive in darkness. As nocturnal creatures, we see the value in spending time in dark spaces, so as to perceive a more complete picture of reality.  

Eclipses are traditionally feared astrological events. Kings die, empires collapse. The norms we have become used to are challenged. This is all a part of the cosmic cycle. Secrets are revealed so that we can better comprehend truth. Revelation begets wisdom. 

In the darkness created by this Libra Solar Eclipse (October 14th, 2023), we are offered a window through which to recognize our wounds and to hold space for that pain. We are all navigating some kind of grief, pain, fear, and anguish as we survey the rubble of our world. In psychological shadow work the common advice is to embrace your shadow so as to transform it. Through an acceptance of our shame, fear, regret, belonging, we are able to transmute it into something forgivable, and maybe even loveable. 

How does your body feel under the influence of this Solar Eclipse? Where are the revelations lurking in your own personal root systems? 

This work - working in the shadows - is delicate and extremely challenging work. It takes immense courage to walk through this world with compassion and kindness. Empathy may be just the antidote for the hubris that seems to have taken hold of the dominant narrative. The simple act of caring for each other can counteract even the most toxic spells. 

Eclipse energy is not supportive of spellwork or manifestation rituals, because Eclipses demand so much energy from us and for the collective. If we define magick as the art of exerting our will to affect changes, then Eclipses trump our individual efforts to maintain or exert control over a situation. With their intensity of intelligence and energetic output, Eclipses zap our vitality in a way that reminds us that we are not all-powerful, islands of consciousness, solitary beings colliding against each other. No, Eclipses remind us of the over-story of the cosmos. The waves and cycles of history that oftentimes feel incomprehensible, divinely guided, or synchronistic. 

Eclipses are not for manifesting, but they are times for tuning into the larger web of influence that we are all inextricably bound with. Notice how the cosmic tides are shaping your existence. Notice who or what plays a role in defining who you are. Pay attention to the support systems bolstering you during these difficult times. Allies both human and beyond human are here, witnessing, available, listening. Give thanks to the yarrow flower essence, to your fury familiars, to the black tourmaline in your palm, to the ocean, to Hecate keeping watch at the crossroads. This is the magic we have access to. Relational love magic. 

Eclipses are not for manifesting but they are extremely affirming magical moments; moments when we can clearly see who and what are unconditionally with you on your journey, part of your constellation of community. 

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On the Solar Eclipse in Libra (October 14th) the scales are tipping towards the parts of our lives that we must reckon with and relate to differently. With the Sun and Moon at 21° Libra kissing the South Node at 24° Libra, we are feeling the weight of our shadow material, the shadow material that is so often ignored or repressed. The South Node represents our past, as well as our karmic baggage; what we often run away from in favor of progress. While we are constantly tasked with the project of evolution, we cannot grow beyond ourselves, or our collective histories, if we don’t know where we’ve come from and what mistakes we’ve already made. This Eclipse pulls the veil off of what we’d rather keep hidden. 

Our personal and collective wounding is being highlighted by this Eclipse, with Chiron sitting in opposition to the Sun and Moon at 17°, asking us to notice how we prioritize our own needs over the collective needs, or how we over-index on the needs of others and sacrifice ourselves at the altar of self-less-ness.

Highlighted in this moment are the wounds that we each carry, the personal, collective, and ancestral traumas that are a part of us. These stories shape us in ways that are both conscious and unconscious, and the Eclipse shines a spotlight on these parts of our lives so that we can gain greater acceptance of who we are. We are asked to understand how our trauma alchemizes with the traumas of others in ways that are painful and complex. Through increased acceptance, we have more capacity to heal, and to move forward from a place of compassion for ourselves and for others. 

Eclipses feel overwhelmingly intense because they demand so much of us. This Eclipse demands so much of our awareness in ways that we’d rather not attend to, that it’s likely to feel exhausting and depleting. Stay vigilant to your needs, and the needs of your community. Practice gratitude for the pillars of support that are constant and unconditional during these trying times. Make offerings of gratitude to Hecate at the crossroads, to the spirits of home and place that you interact with daily, and to the deities that guide you through troubling times. This is the magic we have access to. How we relate to and practice loving reciprocity with all beings ripples outward into the greater web of relationships which connects us all. 

May you be tender with yourself and others. May you strive to practice kindness even in the darkest of times. May you move through this Eclipse with an open heart and may that heart expand as the Moon grows through her stages of illumination. 

Blessed be!