Sunday we reach the moment of the Full Moon eclipse in Pisces, yet are already under its spell. Eclipses generate special fields around them, in which all we see and experience begins to shift. This is especially true under a Full Moon lunar eclipse in Pisces, the most mystical of signs.
Eclipses happen at New and Full Moons when the Sun and Moon are within 18º of the Nodes of the Moon. The closer they are, the more complete the eclipse. At this eclipse, the luminaries and the Nodes are only 3º apart.
The Nodes of the Moon are the points where the Moon’s orbit crosses over the ecliptic, the path the Sun traces around the Earth. (Yes, we all know the Earth really moves around the Sun, but this earthly perspective is our reality. It’s not a false one. Our point of view here on Earth is just as valid as any other in the cosmos.)
When the luminaries align with the Nodes, it means the Earth, Moon, and Sun are lining up. These bodies, aligned, block each other’s light for a time. This creates an eerie experience for us, a time when we see differently, when the space around us takes on unusual lights and shadows.
When a full lunar eclipse happens when the Moon is high in the night sky, we see a red shadow gather, shifting the golden glow of a Full Moon into a darker red. A full lunar eclipse is sometimes called a blood moon, for this is the color invoked. Throughout history, such eclipses have been viewed with trepidation, seen as warnings, or harbingers of strife or difficulty.
Yet it’s more accurate to say eclipses bring chaos, which, good or bad, is not something we humans prefer.
We use the lens of astrology to understand eclipses in terms of its signs and degrees and aspects, which allows us to create a more nuanced picture of what a specific eclipse might create for us.
This Full Moon Eclipse in Pisces is a magical one.
Magic, of course, can create chaos. It can also help us understand and manage chaos. How we navigate this particular eclipse will depend on our approach, our expectations, and our birth charts.
The easiest way to figure out how you might experience this eclipse is to compare your birth chart with a chart of the Full Moon. I’ve included a Placidus and a Whole Sign chart in all my posts, which are available on my website (risingmoonastrology.com), and on my Instagram and Substack pages, also Rising Moon Astrology.
You want to check where the middle degrees of Pisces and Virgo fall in your birth chart. At the Full Moon, the Moon is at 15º22’ of Pisces and the Sun at 15º22’ of Virgo, with the Nodes of the Moon at 18º22’ of each sign.
Note which houses in your chart these degrees fall in. The houses indicate aspects of life where eclipse influences will show up. Notice these are oppositions: The Sun and South Node oppose the Moon and North Node. So, two houses, directly across from each other, will be involved.
Then note which planets are nearby or being aspected. This eclipse will definitely affect the middle of Virgo and Pisces, but also Gemini and Sagittarius, which square this Full Moon. The other Earth and Water signs, Taurus and Capricorn, and Cancer and Scorpio, will trine and sextile this Full Moon.
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Each eclipse is unique and its own aspects are also important.
Jupiter is the most important touchpoint for this eclipse. As the ancient ruler of Pisces, Jupiter rules the eclipse. Currently in the Moon’s sign of Cancer, Jupiter is also exalted and approaching the degree of his greatest exaltation, so, especially uplifted at this time.
This creates a mutual reception between the Moon and Jupiter. They support each other as each visits the other’s domicile. This support is strengthened by the fact that Jupiter is trining the Moon and the North Node.
In other words, the Great Benefic, the big bringer of good stuff, is really supporting this Full Moon eclipse. We couldn’t ask for a better blessing.
Let’s note, though, Jupiter also serves to make things bigger. In a supportive and beneficent way, Jupiter will be making sure we notice whatever we’re meant to see at this time. What we experience might be startling, but look for a sliver lining. Jupiter is really good at silver linings.
Saturn has just reentered Pisces, and while not close enough to aspect the Moon and North Node, is in the same sign. Saturn can put a damper on things, pointing out limitations, downsides, or responsibilities. Saturn knows where work is needed.
These are not bad things, even if they’re not as pleasant as Jupiter’s gifts. In Pisces, especially, Saturn can be helpful. Pisces is a place of misty uncertainties. Saturn can help find structure. Think of what it takes to create a ritual, for example. To invoke magic and mystery, we must create a space, boundaries, a container.
The Sun and South Node also have significant support. Mercury sits with them. This is a strong Mercury, who is both the rule of and exalted in Virgo. He is combust, within 8º of the Sun, not visible as he moves toward his cazimi, his moment of joining the Sun in splendor.
The tarot card associated with the middle of Virgo is one of my favorites, especially in the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, in which we see a woman standing in a walled garden holding a hooded and jessed falcon on her hand. This is the Nine of Pentacles.
T. Susan Chang names this card “Perfection Alone,” which is a very Virgoan concept. Yet this woman is not alone. She has her falcon, who, at this Full Moon, we identify as Mercury, as Hermes the messenger god. Currently combust and hidden he may be, yet we know Hermes is also a psychopomp, with the power to go where he wills, no matter how shadowy or magical the location. All the lady need do is release him, and he will fly.
There are so many tales about the Moon and water and magic, more than we could count or tell. In Pisces, we might think of tales from the fen country in the east of England, in which the Moon comes down too low, and is caught, imprisoned in the boggy depths, until she is found and released. This story might resonate on the night of a blood moon. Perhaps the falcon Hermes will be needed to release her.
Other tales link to the Moon’s influence on tides, the deep knowing that the Moon in her courses has the power to makes waters rise and recede. It’s said in Celtic lands that selkies, the seal people, the shapeshifters, come out on the shore and dance under the Full Moon.
Moonlight on water is also linked to prophecy. Light is linked to knowing, and light on water can bring up hidden knowledge, emotional insights, and visions of past, future, and other times altogether. The tarot card associated with the middle of Pisces is the Nine of Cups, sometimes called the Lord of Happiness, which T. Susan Chang names Fishes and Wishes.
Eclipses are times of omens and portents rather than actions and intentions. We’re called to watch and listen, not plan or do. And what a rich nexus is created here for diving into this eclipse and seeing what it brings.
This is a time of change, of what astrologer Chris Brennan calls great beginnings and great endings. We’re inside its opening, stepping deeper into this space. Tomorrow’s eclipse is only half of this eclipse time, which also includes the next New Moon, a solar eclipse in Virgo.
As we embark together, having studied where Pisces and Virgo are in our charts, we open to the mystical experiences on offer with open eyes and open hands, alert to messages and taking note of everything.
