A Full Moon in Virgo and total lunar eclipse arrives in the early hours of March 3.
Lunar eclipses happen when the Earth is between the Moon and the Sun as all three line up. The Earth’s shadow on the Moon creates the red-orange “blood Moon” effect.
This eclipse will last about six hours, from the subtle shadowing on the Moon, to full eclipse, and out again.
Eclipses change the light around us. We see things we don’t usually see. Familiar things look strange. The effect is uncanny. The world reveals itself in unfamiliar ways.
Astrologically, eclipses are big forces in the sky, dramatic, not to be ignored. They are part of astrology’s origin story. Great forces rearrange themselves, realigning in ways we can’t see right away.
This happens on a large scale, which is why astrologers do not advocate ritual or magical practices to invite something specific to happen. There’s too much energy around for the results to be predictable.
A better approach is to view eclipses as times for omens and prophecy.
Pay attention to what comes up for you. Note anything unexpected or unusual. Remember your dreams. These might be clues pointing the way to what this eclipse will bring for you.
Of course we’re already in an eclipse field, because the New Moon two weeks ago was also an eclipse. This Full Moon eclipse will close the spring eclipse season for this year, but don’t look for life to settle down right away. With any eclipse, it takes weeks to fully emerge from the field. This time, we’re likely to feel extra foggy.
This is a Full Moon eclipse in the sign of Virgo, careful, precise, detail-oriented Virgo. This sign is ruled by Mercury, who loves Virgo’s focus and clarity. Right now, though, Mercury is retrograde in Pisces. In fact, Mercury stationed retrograde a few days ago, between these two spring eclipses.
Mercury does not prefer Pisces. This dreamy, unfocused sign isn’t a good place for clear thinking, bright ideas, and detailed plans. In fact, of all signs of the zodiac, Pisces is the place Mercury struggles the most.
So our Full Moon eclipse in crisp, focused Virgo is ruled by a confused, possibly lost, Mercury. So add Mercury’s fog to the confusion created by the eclipses themselves.
What intrigues me about this Mercury retrograde is, having reached the end of Pisces, ready to dive into Aries, Mercury said, “Wait. I want to go back a bit. What more does Pisces have to offer?”
My name for this Mercury retrograde is, Remember the Dream. Before they join Saturn and Neptune in a brave new world in Aries, they dive back into Pisces one more time. Into connection, possibility, presence, and dreams.
Mercury won’t enter Aries until mid April. Before they get there, they’ll meet with the Sun (their cazimi), trine Jupiter (a good luck aspect, this one), conjunct Mars (this one is edgy), and conjunct the North Node (intense).
Every Mercury retrograde goes backward and forward. This one stands out because of the crowd of planets and points in Pisces Mercury will interact with. And, again, the fact that the retrograde motion began between eclipses.
So, this Mercury retrograde eclipse season is especially confusing as well as important. We’ve already seen major events on the world stage since the first eclipse on February 17. We can expect more such events over the next weeks.
Some of the emerging world events are challenging, upsetting, and have very uncertain outcomes. We’ll be watching closely as they continue to unfold.
Yet this period is not a total disaster. Mercury in Pisces connects with both Venus and Jupiter who are especially beneficent right now. Venus is exalted in Pisces. Jupiter is exalted in Cancer. We can count on these two to help as much as they can.
One general bit of advice is to remember this much Pisces can make us more sensitive and reactive to substances, whether medicinal or recreational. Be careful of set and setting. Watch for unusual side effects.
Another agent of confusion for this Lunar Eclipse Full Moon is Mars having just entered Pisces. Mars is also not at his best in this sign of mutable Water, but this doesn’t make him less combative.
Mars in Pisces can get resentful, irritated, or just plain angry without first getting clear on what’s actually happening. So, another caution for this eclipse time is, if you find yourself feeling resentful, pause. Take a breath. Remind yourself we’re in an eclipse Mercury retrograde. Make extra effort to understand what you’re irritated about and what the facts are before taking action.
We can remember, too, we’re all under this same confusing setup. If someone gets unfairly angry with us, we can try to offer a bit of grace, realizing we’re all prone to get a bit sideways right now.
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The Lunar Eclipse in Virgo is conjunct the South Node. This is the place of letting go, of releasing. We’re clearing out space for new things to come into our lives.
Astrologer Chris Brennan refers to eclipses as times of great endings and great beginnings. This South Node eclipse might emphasize endings. Yet, just like the Mercury retrograde, it’s not a disaster. The South Node brings our attention to things we’re done with, that are complete, that we can let go of.
Virgo is good at this. Being well organized is about getting rid of stuff as much as it is about curating what we have.
Marie Kondo’s key phrase for checking our attachment to things is pretty good advice right now. If you remember, she said to hold something we’re considering letting go, and ask, does this bring me joy? That’s a pretty decent Piscean question.
So, if something seems to be coming to an end during this eclipse time, ask yourself, in a gentle Piscean and orderly Virgoan way, does it bring me joy? If not, letting go feels easier.
One glance at the chart for this Full Moon eclipse shows how focused it is. Notice the large stellium in Pisces, the significant Moon and South Node in Virgo, the important Neptune, Saturn, Chiron and Eris in Aries, and Jupiter in Cancer.
Pluto and Uranus remain very important overall but are less emphasized for this Full Moon.
As you check your birth chart, note anything you have in mutable signs: Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces. Since the Pisces stellium goes from 0º to 26,º anything in the mutable signs is getting some kind of aspect from something in Pisces.
Water signs are also emphasized, because of all the Pisces and Jupiter exalted in Cancer. So, check your placements in Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces.
Eclipses always affect world events. Their impact on individuals varies based on how the birth chart interacts with the eclipse chart.
Note that the Nodes of the Moon (which move backwards through the zodiac) are in the early degrees of Virgo and Pisces. This means the Virgo-Pisces eclipse season is moving toward completion.
The first eclipse across the Virgo-Pisces axis was in September 2024. There were three eclipses across this axis in 2025. 2026 has two Virgo-Pisces eclipses: this one and the Pisces Lunar Eclipse in late August. The last will be a Virgo eclipse in late February of 2027.
Another way to understand the impact of eclipses in our lives is to trace eclipses across any axis that’s important in our charts. So, if the signs of Virgo and Pisces are important for you, check the dates of Virgo–Pisces eclipses and see if any overall pattern begins to emerge.
Looking for patterns across Virgo and Pisces can help clue us in to what this series is about. Then we can partner with it more effectively.
We’re in the midst of the spring eclipse season of a very intense year. It’s not surprising that many of us feel more than a bit confused. Pay attention to what comes up for you. Consider how this series of Virgo-Pisces eclipses has been affecting you. Give yourself and everyone around you some extra grace.
Title image adapted from Engin Bilgiç on Unsplash
