Montreal Theosophy Project: Astrology: Solar Eclipse, March 8 2016

Saturday 5 March 2016

Astrology: Solar Eclipse, March 8 2016

Death and Transfiguration

There’s a tremendous amount of energy in this total eclipse, with the planets all more or less clustered in one hemisphere, forming five key points, with four important aspects at each point, making for an intense butterfly/trapezoid configuration. The key aspects can be analysed in four main groupings:

A- Mystical Healing Social Sun Stellium
The Sun/Moon eclipse conjunction in Pisces is very powerful as it is part of at least a four-planet stellium (with a strong Neptune in domicile and Mercury, in reception to its domicile, Virgo) add asteroids Chiron and Ceres, and a slightly out-of-orb Venus in Aquarius and this forms a kind of Triple Goddess (Venus, Moon, Ceres) mystical septenary, focused on wounds and healing. As this stellium is conjunct the descendant, it is very socially active.

B- Mutable War and Peace T-Square
However, all is not unimpeded mystical bliss; this stellium forms an opposing corner in a difficult Saturn/Jupiter/Sun T-square (Saturn apex). Jupiter retrograde (in Virgo), in opposition to the eclipse, is conjunct the North Node (which can serve to give even more intensity to the social, transformative and healing aspects, in general). Mars (just entering Sagittarius) is slightly out-of-orb from a conjunction with Saturn (also in Sagittarius), but is square to the stellium, and so adds considerable volatility. This T-Square creates dynamic tension in the social and human relation spheres. It forms quite a cross of sorrow centered around strongly polarized opposites: optimism/pessimism, masculine/feminine, idealism/realism, aggression/peacefulness; conflict resolution and harmony by opposition will be very challenging but also potentially very rewarding.

C- Positive Plutonic Transformative Triangulation
Fortunately, this T-Square is in positive aspect to Pluto (in Capricorn), with Jupiter in trine, the Sun in sextile and Saturn in semi-sextile to it. This gives a strong impetus for positive transformation, resolution and digging deep for solutions; a powerful impetus for the death and transfiguration process necessary for resurrectional self-renewal.

D- Volatile Uranian/Plutonic Square
Unfortunately, this positive Plutonic triangulation is complicated by a difficult Uranus (in Aries)/Pluto square, which is pushing for radical socio-political transformations, related to the mass media technological computer age. Moreover, Mars in semisquare to Pluto and sesquisquare to Uranus creates a powerful disruptive potential. The Saturn/Uranus trine attenuates things somewhat but it is also closely implicated in a volatile Mars/Saturn/Uranus/Pluto configuration, opening the door for revolutionary upheavals of outdated structures and ruling styles.

So we have a Christ-like Piscean stellium, configured in a T-Square cross of sorrow, catalyzed by a Plutonian-triangulated crucifixion process, ideal for a Neptunian resurrection of the Holy Spirit. This eclipse therefore creates an exceptional potential for a productive inner meditative process, if one has the resolve, patience, insight and compassion to overcome the intense, turbulent, frenetic psycho-social challenges and difficulties, as a remarkable amount of Piscean mystical archetypes are constellated during this eclipse, with strong initiatory trial and tribulation energy to catalyze the inner regeneration impetus.

The accompanying image of Mercurius-Virgo is from the De alchimia, Codex Vossianus 29, fol. 95a Leiden, Rijksuniversiteit Bibliotheek, (XVI^{th c.)}and attributed to Pseudo Thomas Aquinas, and, I think, gives some good symbolic hints as to the theosophical nature of this eclipse (hint: the two fountains are of gold and silver and can be related the sun and the moon; the wings can be related to the phoenix).

“This, briefly, is the life of the progressive spirit--self-sacrifice, whereby self is crucified; self-denial, whereby the world is vanquished; and spiritual conflict, whereby the adversaries are beaten back. In it is no stagnation; even no rest; no finality. It is a daily death, out of which springs the risen life. It is a constant fight, out of which is won perpetual progress. It is the quenchless struggle of the light that is within to shine out more and more into the radiance of the perfect day. And thus only it is that what you call heaven is won." (Spirit Teachings, Section 30, William Stainton Moses)