Prepare for Decisive Action, But Without Making a Decision

4.12.04


My astrological antennae are aimed square at the Solar Eclipse New Moon of next Monday, Apr 19.

I am not waiting until next week to discuss this intensely noteworthy event, since eclipses make their energy known over a matter of a couple weeks in either direction. As I've mentioned many times in the past, I see eclipse periods as 'chapter markers' in the stories of our lives, climactic moments at which already-in-existence situations come to a head and propel us into new situations that will develop over the approaching six months or so. I'd be surprised if you haven't already sensed the events in your personal narrative piling up in significance toward climax—and these coming weeks will indeed spawn the predictable intensification of movement, the release and the resulting altered landscape.

The last pair of eclipses occurred back in Nov 03, and it included the unique six-pointed planetary alignment dubbed (and overhyped) 'the Harmonic Concordance'. As I said back then, this fortuitous Nov 8 lunar eclipse was less likely to force external events than to simply provide a fantastic opportunity to create our own major changes. If you can remember back to last November and whether you concentrated your energies toward any specific goals, you will most certainly recognize that you reaped at least as much as you sowed in that period, if not a great deal more. Then, the Nov 23 solar eclipse in Sagittarius squaring Uranus kickstarted several months worth of direct forward motion, with the spotlight aimed on issues of justice and truthtelling (Martha Stewart, the 9/11 hearings, opening debates of the '04 campaign).

Frequent readers will note I've repeatedly contrasted the chaotically confusing circles of events during Jul-Nov 03 with the more dramatic free-action advances of Dec 03-present. The recent deliverance from stalemate began with this eclipse in late November and continued as Mars, Venus, Mercury and the Sun each took turns entering Aries, a fiery spark of a sign that heralds new beginnings without regard for the conflict it leaves in the wake of its pioneering proceedings.

That's why I keep repeating the phrase 'new beginning', not only because beginnings happen all the time and are a natural part of living an engaged life—it's because these last five months have contained so many instances of breaking free over inertia, acting over too much thinking (there was plenty in the preceding period anyway!), future-mindedness over past-dwelling.

(If you cannot figure out how to apply my descriptions of this period to your life, then trust me, you are far too forcibly invested in maintaining the status quo. Standing still in the middle of a rushing rapid requires much more exertion than swimming along. What could you do with all that self-will besides refusing to budge?)

Monday's eclipse occurs in the very last degree of Aries, so unbelievably close to Taurus that the breath of the bull can be felt from over the cusp. The Aries-Taurus cusp represents the point in the zodiac where what we do turns into what we make. Aries is pure action. Taurus is the steadfast vessel into which we pour our actions so we can store them, whether in the form of material goods, artistic expressions, physical connections or whatever else helps us feel more secure and grounded in the world. With the eclipse falling here, just on the 'doing' side of the border, we mustn't jump too quickly into cementing things as they are, though we are much closer to this new sense of stability than ever before. We've already done the lion's share of the breaking free and moving forward, but we're not quite ready to pitch the tent where we are. Another few paces, and then pitch.

Imagine that, a few months ago, you embarked upon an adventure-filled road trip to find a new home, just you and your vehicle, a needed antidote to previous months or years of demotivating dullness. You had no map, just a destination in mind and a general sense of direction, and with that you proceeded ahead and kept moving. Imagine that, now, you are very close to getting where you want to go, to heading off the highway and settling into an existence in this radically different environment than that from which you came. Eager to get off the road and into your own space, you signal to turn off at the next exit, even though you think it could still be another few miles until you're really where you want to go but you're tired or hungry or bored.

Don't get off the highway yet, just because impatience tempts you to lower your high expectations. Even if you end up driving back the way you came—discovering once you get there that this place back here was where you wanted to be all along—it's worth the extra trip. On the way, you could find a second favorite spot, a job, a friend, a picture worth snapping, God…

This is where Mercury retrograde, which conjoins Monday's solar eclipse, comes in. Mercury recently headed into Taurus, then turned retrograde and crossed back into Aries, making a clear statement that our minds require a few more fresh insights before settling in for a stay at building security. (See last week's comments.) This Merc-retro conjunction with the solar eclipse tells me our next few months will not adhere to plans made during this past month—because there's more facets to the plan and its consequences than we thought, and the only way to know is to do. Yet there is a lot of personal freedom allowed in our current movements, as this solar eclipse is relatively unhindered by the distracting pull of other major planets. I repeat: The bulk of the breaking free has already occurred. Yes, we're so close to the resting place, but it would be foolish to stop now, with a few good miles still left in these shoes.

That's why, in line with the upcoming eclipse and all that Gemini influence (Mars and Venus), I urge everyone to take decisive action without actually making the decisions it seems to warrant. In other words, do something—as opposed to not really doing anything—with the attitude that what you're doing makes a mark, a statement, a big step. Just don't try to identify what the statement is or where the step takes you.

Along the way, take any attractive-looking detour without fearing your time is wasted. You might end up staying at that detour spot for the next few years, for all you know. Make a lot of small talk, but don't even attempt to call things what they are because you don't know what they are.

But gee, life is a lot of fun, even without the proper words to describe it…