☀︎ JANUARY 30 - FEBRUARY 1: EXCELLENT LEO FULL MOON TOTAL LUNAR ECLIPSE

MOON ENTERS LEO at 1:53pm EST on Tuesday, January 30 after being VOID OF COURSE from 11:40am. It remains in Leo until Thursday, February 1 at 5:58am. LAST ASPECT OF MOON: Moon Trine Uranus in Aries. FULL MOON TOTAL LUNAR ECLIPSE is EXACT at 8:27am on Wednesday, January 31 at 11º Leo. In true Leo form this is a mega-dramatic Moon period! We have two critical aspects occurring during this time: The Moon is Full when the Sun (Aquarius) is Opposite the Moon (Leo), which happens on Wednesday - while also creating the Lunar Eclipse as the Shadow of Earth covers the Moon. The second important aspect - on which this blog is always focused - is the Last Aspect the Moon makes before moving into the next sign - which, for this Leo Moon, is the harmonious Trine to Uranus. Our positive evaluation is determined by this Last Aspect which occurs on Thursday. Note that both aspects engage Uranus which is also the ruler of Aquarius. As noted previously, this planet is the one to watch! Become familiar with its archetype. Uranus/Aquarius carries political revolution in its narrative.

LUNAR ECLIPSES  are considered celestial markers for Releasing old patterns of behavior or projects that no longer serve us. Accompanying SOLAR ECLIPSES (they come in pairs or sometimes threesomes - two partial Solar and one total Lunar this July/August) are wake-up calls for Beginning Anew. Consequently, it benefits us when the Lunar Eclipse occurs before the Solar so we can clear our decks for the next chapter. The NEW MOON SOLAR ECLIPSE occurs on February 15th at 27º Aquarius.

This intensified SuperBlueBlood Full Moon should reflect an enormous amount of Leo's creativity and drive for dramatic self-expression. The Full Moon suggests that it is the time to bring current projects or tensions to a climax and conclusion. Ruled by the Sun, the center of our Solar System, we can hog the limelight now, so stay conscious of others' needs and be willing to include your friends in the spotlight. Uranus, which demands this equality, may also speed events up or change them quickly - so get ready to go with the flow. Be willing to do things newly with innovation, excitement and all the electronic devices you can get your hands on! The real challenge of this celestial Opposition is to have the courage to discover and express one's true individual Leo Self amidst the power of the Aquarian group in order to serve both absolutely. Actions initiated now tend to have EXCELLENT resolutions, even though the extreme tension of the Full Moon Eclipse is likely to show itself along the way. Breath through it and have the Faith of Your Convictions.

Again, a BLUE MOON is the second Full Moon in a month; the BLOOD MOON refers to the reddish tint of the Eclipse as the Moon passes through the Earth's Shadow; The SUPERMOON refers to the strikingly large lunar disc we observe when the Moon is closest to the Earth in its orbit (Perigee). It is the first time since March 1866 that these three conditions have occurred simultaneously.

Note: I'm always struck by the metaphor of the Shadow of Earth which plays such a dramatic role in the Lunar Eclipse phenomenon - when the Sun Opposes the Moon and the Earth between them projects its shadow, exactly covering and blocking the Sun's projected Light on the Moon. Psychologist CG Jung brought to our awareness the concept of having a shadow aspect of our individual psyche - that dark material of which we are yet unconscious or in denial - that often has more control of our feelings and behavior than we realize. And that we often project this unconscious behavior onto others we encounter and believe it to be originating from them. We then tend to blame them etc. for what we don't see in ourselves. Consider now the collective Shadow of Earth. What might we as collective Earthlings be projecting at this time?...on the Moon. (Both the Moon and Earth carry the Feminine Archetype.) We might muse on some interpretations: if, in the normal state of astronomical conditions, the Sun (the Masculine Archetype of Consciousness and Authority) projects its Light on the Dark Feminine Moon - might the Feminine be being seen through the Masculine lens? Does the Earth's shadow blocking this Solar perspective at this time give pause for re-considering this interpretation? Might the timing of this particularly unique Lunar Eclipse suggest it might be called the 'Me-Too Eclipse'? See The Post interview with Spielberg and cast that follows the film clip and check out the quote from Streep that speaks to this exact concept.

LEO LUNAR ECLIPSE CLIP: The Post, 2017; Director: Steven Spielberg. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLwK9Yutr-k

While I thought I would wait to use this film as an example of a Sagittarius dilemma - to publish or not to publish - I discovered, when writing about the Leo Lunar Eclipse, that The Post was even more appropriate for this climactic Sun Opposition Moon moment. Here we have the story of a sophisticated, yet unprepared upper-class woman, Katherine Graham (Meryl Streep) thrust into to the role of Publisher of her family's newspaper at a moment in US history which changed our world. When faced with that Sag dilemma, her Leonian courage and eventual titanium sense of self, propelled her to publish a story that could have been the demise of her paper. The constellation of events that preceded and followed her decision were the stuff of individual and collective Uranian revolution. Graham herself had Black Moon Lilith in Leo which is an indication of trail-blazers and game-changers. As the first woman Publisher of a major US newspaper, she faced a sea of strong male industry colleagues (particularly Editor Ben Bradlee, played by Tom Hanks) with whom she found the inner strength to stand in equality and leadership. A true Leo Moon Opposite Aquarian Sun successful resolution!

I didn't initially register the current heightened importance of the story: military analyst Daniel Ellsberg, employed by the Rand Corporation, steals a Pentagon report (aka the Pentagon Papers) detailing the evolution of Vietnam War policies and releases sections to the NY Times which publishes articles. After the government legally blocks further publication, The Post gets even more of the material and makes the hard decision to publish. I realized in a flash that this 70's period narrative mirrors what's happening now. This preface to the Watergate chapter of US history illuminates the similarity of Nixon's attempt to coverup decades of presidential lies about the Vietnam War to Trump's present attempts to control the Freedom of the Press. Though Spielberg got the original Liz Hannah script while in high-gear pre-production for another film (sci-fi Ready Player One) when he realized the urgent relevancy of the First Amendment theme, he immediately braked, downshifted, took a hard left turn and floored his accelerator to develop, produce and release The Post asap. The film has been nominated for most of the major Academy and Golden Globe Awards.

Best quote from The Post: "In the First Amendment, the Founding Fathers gave the free press the protection it must have to fulfill its essential role in our democracy. The free press was to serve the governed, not the governors." (Judge Hugo Black, writing for the 6-3 U.S. Supreme Court majority that decided in favor of the press.)

DIRECTOR AND CAST INTERVIEWED BY WASHINGTON POST FILM CRITIC 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBy3DKdJMhY

This is a fascinating discussion! Some quotes:
Streep: "Women have learned the language of men...[when you learn a new language] it isn't your language until you dream in it. The only way to dream in it is to speak it and women speak it. Women speak...men. Men don't speak women. They don't dream in it." (at 51 mins)

Bradley Whitford (West Wing's Josh): These founding documents - you have to hold them to that...You don't get a democracy. You gotta make it every day. "(at 49 mins)

Katherine Graham and Ben Bradlee