As I am writing this, we are in the midst of a global coronavirus pandemic. I live in the United States, which at this time has by far the greatest number of confirmed cases of this disease in the world. Even by the most hopeful scientific projections, the situation will get exponentially worse in the next couple of weeks.
To make matters worse, the political situation at the federal level seems quite unstable. We are many mixed messages, making things even more confusing and scary.
It is during times such as these that astrology can give us a clearer understanding of the larger picture.
To be honest, there are a lot of frightening things happening with respect to the movements of the planets. Astrologers are notorious for disagreeing with each other, but I do not know of one serious astrologer who has not been looking at 2020 with trepidation.
For my take on the transits for the year, please see:
2020 – An Earth-Shattering Year
Despite this, I do not believe that astrology was given to us to make predictions of gloom and doom. I believe that it was given to us for wisdom and guidance to help us cope with times such as these and to understand them.
The Great American Eclipse
While most serious astrologers predicted that this would be a difficult year, I don’t think that many of us realized just how difficult it would be. I personally expected there to be an intensification of the normal political upheaval. Part of me feared much worse, but it did not seem wise to borrow trouble if I did not have to.
There is one piece of the puzzle that I had forgotten about, though. That is the impact of the Great American Eclipse that occurred on August 21, 2017. This is the Eclipse that was visible across all of North and Central America, as well as the Northern part of South America.
Many people intentionally went to see this Eclipse. I did not, and I advised others against it as well.
For more information on the reason for this recommendation, see:
There is traditional wisdom that teaches that when there is a Total Solar Eclipse, the full impact of this eclipse is delayed, particularly in the part of the world in which it is visible. The delay is a year for every minute of totality.
This is explained in an article by P. James Clark, The Lingering Mystery of the 911 Prediction.
The duration of the Great American Eclipse was 2 minutes and 40 seconds, which would correspond to 2 years and 8 months. This would bring us to April 21, 2020, which is about the time that many expect the cases of coronavirus to peak in the United States.
This virus is, of course, impacting the entire world. On the other hand, the political situation in the United States is greatly exacerbating the problem.
Saros Series
There are many ways to examine an eclipse, and one of the techniques that I use is to examine the Saros Series, or family of eclipses, that it falls in.
For more information about Saros Series, see:
Eclipse Seasons and Saros Cycles, The Solar Eclipse of August 11, 2018
The Great American Eclipse was part of Solar Saros Series 145. I did research and examine this series, but I do not intend to say much about it here. Suffice it to say that the historical events that seem to be associated with it are of the same magnitude as this global pandemic.
The eclipse discussed in the article by P. James Clark that was cited earlier in this article was of this series, and the famous Medieval Astrologer, Rober Zoller, is said to have used it in his prediction of 9/11.
It might very well be useful to examine this Saros Series in greater depth after this is all over with. On the other hand, I do not think it will really provide us with the guidance we need to get through the next several weeks.
Chart Analysis
One can also examine eclipses by looking at the chart of the eclipse itself. In this case, I think that such an analysis will be useful in helping us face the challenging time ahead of us.
This chart is hot and fiery. Five out of the Seven Traditional Planets are in hot signs, and four of these are in Fire Signs. Of the four planets in Fire Signs, three of them are in Leo. This, in and of itself, shows that the impact of this Solar Eclipse will be dramatic.
The two planets in cold signs are Venus in Cancer and Mercury in Virgo. Mercury is also retrograde.
When I analyze charts, I often look to the disposition pattern to see how the planets are connected to each other.
In this chart, all of the planets but one are pulled into the leadership of the Leo Sun. The only planet outside of the Sun’s authority is Mercury. The Sun and Mercury are linked in a weak cross-sign conjunction.
There are many ways to interpret all this, but there are some clear parallels in the current situation. One way to look at this chart is to see the Sun as the temporal ruler, and Mercury as the science advisors. They are weakly connected, but in signs that have nothing to do with one another.
Venus in Cancer is also disconnected from the planets in Fire. She can be seen as the impulse to nurture and care for each other.
In looking at this chart for clues as to what would help the situation, it is clear that the scientific experts are sound. Mercury is in her own sign of Virgo, even though she is retrograde. On the other hand, she does not have much influence over the rest of the planets which are ruled by the Sun.
It is clear that something other than sound scientific advice will be necessary. Only the Sun has enough influence to impact the outcome.
While the Sun can be seen as the temporal ruler, as discussed above, the Sun can also be seen as the hearth fire and our own hearts. We may not be able to do much about the temporal ruler, but we do have control over our hearth fires and our hearts.
The True and False Sun
In this chart, the Sun is strong in Leo, but she is also Eclipsed. The Sun is the key to this chart and to the outcome of the coming events.
In astrology, the Sun is often seen as the ego, but that is a lower reading of this planet. At her highest, the Sun represents our True Self and our connection with the Divine.
The True Sun is warm and kind. She shines forth her Light on all of creation with generous outpouring. She is the all-knowing, all-forgiving Mother of Manifestation. The True Sun gives us courage and faith.
The False Sun is selfish and ego-centric. This is the part of us that cares only for our own little worries and concerns. The False Sun feeds on pride and fear.
Eclipses are times of choice. Each and everyone one of us has the opportunity to choose the True or the False Sun during this time.
Wisdom from Anime
Ever since I learned of this crisis, I have been thinking of one of my favorite Anime series, Doki Doki Precure. In particular, I have been thinking of the ending.
Some of my readers may be familiar with this series, but I imagine most will not. I watched the original Japanese version. Netflix also did a remake called Glitter Force: Doki Doki that was dubbed into several other languages. I think that the original version is much better, but for the purposes of this article, the remake tells the story well enough.
In Doki Doki Precure, there a magical place called Trump Kingdom. The theme of the series was based on playing cards, and “trump” is a Japanese word for them. In Glitter Force, I believe the kingdom was called Splendorius.
Trump Kingdom was taken over by King Jikochu (Selfishness), who was also trying to take over the town where the Precure lived. In the final few episodes, we learn that Trump Kingdom fell because the citizens panicked when they were being invaded and gave in to fear and selfishness.
Because of the efforts of the Precure throughout the season, their town did not suffer the same fate. Instead, everyone helped and took care of each other during the invasion.
The efforts of the citizens gave the Precure the strength to fight and to eventually defeat King Jikochu.
I believe that this story shows what we need to do if we are all to come through the present crisis.
More commentary on Doki Doki Precure can be found here.
Practical Things that We Can Do
As ordinary people, there are many things that we cannot change. We cannot change how far this virus has already spread. Outside of election years, we cannot change who is leading us. We also cannot change what our neighbors or our friends and family members do.
On the other hand, we can change our own behavior and our own hearts. We can choose the True Sun over the False one.
This crisis has already hit some countries very hard and is likely to hit other countries hard in the near future. By all estimates, though, the crisis is in the United States right now and will be getting much worse in the next couple of weeks. We, as individuals, have the power to either exacerbate or mitigate the situation depending on how we respond.
Below are some of my suggestions as an astrologer to help mitigate the situation.
1) Do your best to maintain your own physical and emotional health.
Everyone knows (or should know by now) the recommendations from the experts. Wash your hands regularly and thoroughly. Stay 6 feet away from everyone not in your immediate household. Stay home as much as you are able to.
Yet, caring for our health goes beyond that. If you have pre-existing conditions, manage them as sensibly as you can. Try to maintain a healthy diet and get enough exercise. Do what you need to in order to manage any underlying mental illnesses you may have.
If you know your natural temperament, try to maintain your optimal balance.
For more information about this, see:
Managing Temperament, A Balancing Act
2) Be gentle with yourself and with others
This is a stressful time…for everyone! While it is important to do your best to be healthy, this might not be the time to make radical changes to your diet. Instead, make small changes and forgive yourself if you backslide.
Curb your temper, and be as patient as you can with those you live with.
It is very likely that each and every one of us will suffer at least one loss of someone dear to us during this time. If it is not someone we personally know, it will be someone close to someone we know.
Even among those who are healthy, many have lost their jobs or their main source of income. While this may not compare to the loss of a loved one, it is still a loss.
We will all need to grieve. It will be necessary for us to comfort each other. This will be more challenging because we cannot be in physical contact. It is such a blessing, though, that many of us have so many ways of being in contact through non-physical means.
3) Practice gratitude
There are no guarantees in life. While times like this bring our mortality to the forefront, the truth is that anyone of us could die at any time…even when there is not a global pandemic looming over us.
Each day that we are alive is a blessing. Yes, there are difficult things we all have to deal with. At present, much of the world is in lockdown. Yet, there are many things to be grateful for…our homes, our families, the flowers and trees, our computers and phones, Zoom. Try to focus on these things rather than the stress and frustration of being in quarantine.
We also have many people to be grateful for. On a collective level, we have medical personnel, grocery store clerks, delivery people, letter carriers, bank tellers, and many other people who are risking their lives to go to work each day for the rest of us.
Aside from helping us to feel better, the gratitude in our hearts will help us to manifest our best selves during this crisis.
4) Find ways to be of service
For many of us who are not “essential workers” or on the front lines, our main responsibility is to stay healthy. This is not just so that we do not spread the virus, but also to reduce the number of people who will need medical care.
Yet, over and above that, they may be more that we can do. There are numerous volunteer opportunities for those who are still healthy and not at great risk for complications, such as helping at food banks and the like.
There are also things that can be done at home. If you can sew, there are many hospitals and other organizations that are accepting donations of homemade masks and even gowns. You can even be of service by keeping in touch with friends and family members by phone or the Internet, especially those that live alone.
Even if you are not called to provide a practical service, taking the time to pray or send Light into the world can also make a big difference.
5) Manage your own anxiety and fear to the best of your ability
One of the unique features of this crisis is that everyone in the world is in the same boat. There are some places that are being hit harder than others at the moment, but almost everyone, everywhere is being impacted by this virus.
This is a scary time. It is natural to be feeling anxiety and fear. Yet, it is important to try to have as much faith and courage as you can. Even under orders to “stay at home” or “shelter in place” we are still connected to many other people.
Fear is just as contagious as the coronavirus, if not more so. Fear will lead to selfishness, which will do more damage to us than this disease.
Although most of us have never experienced anything of this scale in our lifetimes, our ancestors have, and most likely, so will our descendants. We are not alone.
This too shall pass.
The good news is that when this is all over, if we all do our best, this world will be a much better place than it is now.
Reblogged this on Blue Dragon Journal.
Thank you, Cynthia! I always appreciate your thoughtful analysis, guidance, and writing. Hope you are doing & being well!