TRANSCRIPT EPISODE 150 | Solar Eclipse in Scorpio: Sweet and Sacred (Oct. 24, 2022)
Listen and read show notes hereApril: Hello, invisible friend, April here, and the date today is October 24th, 2022. Welcome to Episode 150 of The Big Sky Astrology Podcast. This week, Eclipse season begins in earnest with a Solar Eclipse in Scorpio, Mercury makes aspects to Mars and Pluto before entering Scorpio, the sign they both rule. Mars in Gemini begins its long-awaited retrograde period and Jupiter backtracks into Pisces. Plus, I answer a listener question about setting intentions.
New Moon/Solar Eclipse (Oct. 25, 2022, 3:49 am PDT)
We begin with the Moon Report for the week of October 24th. And this week, we enter Eclipse season in earnest with a New Moon Solar Eclipse on October 25th at 3:49 AM Pacific Time. This Eclipse falls at 2°00’ Scorpio on the Sabian symbol, A broken bottle and spilled perfume.
Eclipse seasons are the turning points in our lives. We think of Eclipses as being very rare, and they are not – we have at least two every year. We’ll have a Solar Eclipse six months apart at the New Moon closest to one of the Lunar Nodes. And since, as we know, the Lunar Nodes are currently moving through the signs of Taurus and Scorpio, that means the months when the Sun is in one of those signs are going to be the months when we have Eclipses. And a Solar Eclipse can be accompanied within two weeks by a Lunar Eclipse. We will have a lunar Eclipse on November 8th, and we’ll talk about that one as we get a little closer to it.
There are a few different ways to look at Eclipses in your chart. I did an episode at our last Eclipse season, I think it was back in April and Episode 120 I think, where I did kind of an expanded look at Eclipses as they aspect the different planets in your chart. I’ll link to that in the show notes because it’s well worth going back and listening to that. That’s one thing to look at when it’s Eclipse time. We’ll look at where does that 2° Scorpio fall in your birth chart? And, that is the house position. And also, any planets that are being closely aspected by that degree. So certainly, if you have anything around 2° of Scorpio, but also Taurus, Leo or Aquarius or within 4° either side.
So, this takes us into the late degrees of the cardinal signs, Aries, Libra, Cancer or Capricorn, all the way to 6° of the fixed signs, so there’s a bit of a range there. But the closer the Eclipse point is to something in your chart… and it really needs to be one of what we call the hard aspects, a conjunction, a square, or an opposition. Because, the nature of eclipses is crisis and change, and generally speaking, the easy aspects, the sextile, the trine, don’t tend to provoke change in crisis. So, this is why in my work with eclipses over the years, I’ve learned to really narrow my focus, just the hard aspects just within 4°. There are a few articles on my website too that talk about the Eclipses in the houses of the chart or in aspect to planets, and we’ll link to those as well, so you can go and take a look at them.
If we look at the chart for this eclipse on October 25th at 3:49 AM here in San Diego where I live, we have the Sun and Moon in a pretty close conjunction with Venus, which has of course just entered Scorpio last week. Besides that, in comparison with a lot of eclipses we’ve had this year, this is a fairly mild looking chart. But I think in combination with that Sabian symbol, 2° Scorpio, A broken bottle and spilled perfume, there’s some suggestion that changes are coming to our relationships. Generally, I will look to Lunar Eclipses to tell us a lot about relationship transitions, but this particular Solar Eclipse being so close to Venus, in a sign where she struggles, and then with that very evocative Sabian symbol – the broken bottle, the spilled perfume – I get the feeling that in relationships that have been struggling, that now is a turning point and either something has to change or the relationship has to end or go to a new level.
This Eclipse is close in degree to eclipses that we had in 2013-2014, 2005, 1995, 1986, and 1976. Because the eclipses then were moving through the same parts of your chart that they are now, it’s reasonable to look back at those time-frames and gather some intelligence about what was happening in your life at that time in the area of life suggested by the house the eclipse is in for you, and also the planets that are being aspected. Think about how Scorpio asks us to go deep and to look at some things about ourselves, about others that are a little bit dark, a little bit difficult. Because, in fully inhabiting all that we are and fully acknowledging what somebody else is, then we’re actually building relationships or anything in our lives on much more solid ground.
This is the time of year when we celebrate Halloween, and in some cultures there are other festivals related to death and rebirth. In the Northern Hemisphere, we see all around us the indications that nothing lasts forever, we see leaves falling from the trees, we see grass dying off and flowers going dormant, and it just reminds us that there is a season to everything, and this is the season of endings, and endings aren’t necessarily forever. If you talk with someone about what they think happens after we die, you’ll get a wide range of interpretations of that. But to me, the promise of Scorpio season is that what is physical can pass away, but there is something mysterious, some invisible intangible spirit that very likely lifts on.
Taurus to me, really talks about inhabiting a body, but Scorpio is that invisible part of us that always has one foot on the earth and one foot on its way to the invisible realm. As eclipses are happening in these two signs, we’re seeing reminders and evidence of this interesting balance. It’s interesting to be human and to know that one day we’ll cease to exist in this form on this place, and it makes life itself inhabiting the physical world that much more sweet and sacred.
Void-of-Course Moon periods
Let’s look at the void-of-course Moon periods for this week. On October 24th, the Moon in Libra makes a square to Pluto at 5:36 PM Pacific Time. It’s void-of-course for about seven hours before it enters Scorpio on October 25th at 12:19 AM Pacific Time, and this is the void-of-course period for us that is going to be moving toward that Solar Eclipse that happens just a few hours after the Moon enters Scorpio. This is the time maybe to meditate on the things that I said about this Eclipse, about relationships needing to change or move in another direction.
And the Moon in Libra square Pluto is the tone of this void-of-course Moon period. The Moon in Libra is a bit lighter in tone than Pluto is, than Scorpio is. So, this is when the part of us that wants everything to just be nice, comes into conflict with a part of us that knows that in order to be true, real, authentic within ourselves and with others means confronting that darkness, that Pluto side. So, this is an evening where we kind of stare into that Pluto place for a while, getting ready to submerge into the eclipses.
On October 26th, the Moon in Scorpio makes a sextile aspect to Pluto at 09:27 PM Pacific Time, it’s then void-of-course for about six and a half hours before it enters Sagittarius at 03:55 AM. The Moon in Scorpio, of course, knows all about the abyss, the darkness, the things represented by Pluto, and there is a kinship between them. Pluto is considered the modern ruler of Scorpio, which is traditionally ruled by Mars. So, the Moon in Scorpio entering this dialogue with Pluto just before bedtime here on the West Coast, and actually kind of in the middle of the night on the East Coast of the United States, feels natural. It’s a very rich night for dreaming, and some of them might not be the happiest dreams, but pay particular attention to what might come up in your dream state, however powerful, maybe even unsettling it is. It’s telling you something that if you pay attention to it, if you act based on what it tells you, then you can get to a deeper understanding of yourself, which is kind of what this Scorpio Eclipse wants: know yourself better, be willing to look at others for what they are as well.
Then, on October 29th, the Moon in Sagittarius makes a square aspect to Jupiter at 6:10 AM Pacific time, it is void-of-course for only about 11 minutes before it goes into Capricorn at 6:21 AM, a nice quick little void-of-course, and, it’s a happy Moon in Sagittarius. Yes, it’s squared Jupiter, which has just moved back into Pisces and that is significant, but like I always say, if you’re going to have squares, squares to Jupiter are the way to go. What this void-of-course Moon period does, in the blink of an eye, in 11 minutes, is to very quickly open a little window and invite us to fly out into a new and exciting direction. Nice way to begin the day.
Mercury trine Mars (Oct. 26, 2022, 8:37 pm PDT)
This week, Mercury makes two aspects to Mars and to Pluto before it enters Scorpio. The trine to Mars comes on October 26th at 8:37 PM Pacific Time, at 25°31’ Libra and Gemini. And the square to Pluto is on October 27th at 6:08 AM Pacific Time, at 26°12’ Libra and Capricorn. Mercury’s degrees as it makes these aspects are both on Sabian symbols that have to do with flying. 26 Libra is An eagle and a large white dove turning one into the other, and then Mercury at 27 Libra as its squares Pluto is, An airplane hovering overhead. So, in both of these instances, there is the idea that Mercury is thinking big thoughts, that it’s hovering high overhead and that our minds as Mercury finishes its kind of long journey through Libra. It was in Libra between August 25th and September 23rd, then it turned retrograde, direct again, and then it finished up between October 10th and October 29th its journey through Libra.
And as it’s moving through these two degrees towards the end of this air sign, there’s a sense of liberation, of letting go of what came up during that Mercury retrograde period that proved to be problematic or outmoded and that we’ve been needing to let go of. Some of this is relational because it’s in Libra and some of it is about things that are putting our lives out of balance. That’s really what Libra wants, is for everything to kind of even out, for one thing to balance the other.
As Mercury makes its trine to Mars, it becomes much easier to act on what we’ve been thinking about. This long process of Mercury retrograde has made us ready now to take an action in the direction of something we’ve been wanting to do. Now, the tricky part of that is, is Mars is turning retrograde just four days later, so we don’t have much time to act before things begin to change before the situation changes. So, this is a moment that if you are ready to do something you’ve been wanting to do to make some kind of decision, whatever it is, that’s going to be your moment around October 26th.
Mercury square Pluto (Oct. 27, 2022, 6:08 am PDT)
Then on October 27th as Mercury squares Pluto, there is kind of the awareness, the coming down to earth from these wonderful Sabian symbols in late Libra about flying. Mercury square Pluto is about awakening to the idea that even though we have a clearer picture of what we want to do, there are still forces that we’re contending with that are gonna make that difficult.
And then, on October 29th, Mercury enters Scorpio at 12:22 PM Pacific Time, as I said, what seems like a really long time that it’s been in Libra. Mercury in Scorpio is good for a number of things. One is research. So, if you miss the window of opportunity as Mercury is trine Mars before Mars turns retrograde, this is a good time to keep researching, keep digging into something and really making sure that it’s exactly what you want. It’s also about having difficult conversations that need to be had. And this is something again that’s related to that Solar Eclipse on the 25th and now is the time to really talk about some of the insights that you may have had with people very close to you. Mercury enters Scorpio says, the only way to true intimacy is through honesty. And sometimes it’s honesty in the words we actually use, the things we actually say. But as we all know, there are ways that we can be dishonest without saying a word. So, this speaks about honesty on all those levels from below and above.
Jupiter enters Pisces (Oct. 27, 2022, 10:10 pm PDT)
On October 27th at 10:10 PM Pacific Time, Jupiter re-enters Pisces, It was first in Pisces between December 28th, 2021 and May 10th, 2022. It’s been retrograde since July 28th and now is re-entering Pisces for the last time. It will be in this sign through December 19th, and then it is in Aries for good.
Here is our opportunity to make the most of Jupiter in one of its very strongest signs. And if we revisit that period from the very end of last year to May 10th of this year and think “What was left undone?” in the Pisces area of your chart, because now’s the last chance you’ll have for 12 years to really do something great with this Jupiter. Jupiter is always the planet that wants to do something big, something remarkable and here’s our chance.
Mars stations retrograde (Oct. 30, 2022, 6:26 am PDT)
On October 30th at 06:26 AM Pacific Time, Mars turns retrograde at 25°36’ Gemini. The Sabian symbol for 26 Gemini is Winter frost in the woods. That seems seasonally appropriate as in the parts of the world that actually get frost, this is about the time of year I can imagine that you might get your first frost. I think in some places you might even be getting snow by now. Mars being retrograde at this degree, at the winter frost degree, is interesting, it’s kind of literally cooling things off, it’s cooling Mars off. Mars will be retrograde until January 12th, 2023, which means it’s spending a very long time in Gemini. It entered Gemini on August 20th and it will be in this sign through March 25th of 2023.
I think I’ve probably said this before, but of all the planets, Mars is the least happy being retrograde because Mars always wants to be moving forward. And when it’s retrograde, it’s being asked to instead, slow down, look over its shoulder and see what it might have missed. And it’s doubly hard when it’s in Gemini. Gemini is interested in experiencing things in the moment, maybe a couple of things at any given time, and then if there’s a blockage or something doesn’t go quite right, Gemini will just go in another direction. And Mars in Gemini is resourceful in that way, it will always find another direction that it can go, an escape route, but not really when it’s retrograde.
We have to be a little careful while Mars is retrograde, because frustration and anger can build up and it can turn back on us. So, we’ll have to consciously look for ways to direct this Mars vibrancy in a way that is healthier and happier. For example, Mars might normally like to compete, it might like to be involved in some kind of sport that lets you test your strength and ability against somebody else’s, but Mars retrograde speaks to me of really challenging ourselves without looking outside us for a sense of what others are doing. It’s maybe a little bit of a cliche to say it, but it is about competing with ourselves with our sense of what our best effort would look like.
This Mars retrograde extends out through the holiday season. Just know as you’re making plans for the holiday season that Mars retrograde is almost like Mercury retrograde on steroids because it’s in Gemini, a Mercury ruled sign, getting places, finding gifts, getting along with people are all likely to be a lot more challenging this holiday season. And just knowing that going in I think can make the process a little bit easier for all of us.
Listener Question: Setting Intentions
In this week’s Listener Question, listener Bailey writes, “You are kind enough often before new Moons and sometimes on other occasions to indicate auspicious times for sitting new intentions. What are the mechanics of intentions? How does an intention differ from say, a wish, a preference, a commitment, a solemn oath? Should intentions be held lightly with a degree of non-attachment or firmly ‘Ala’ Leo DiCaprio’s character in the 2015 motion picture, The Revenant?” I can’t speak to that Bailey. I actually have not seen that movie. Bailey continues. “Does the new age maxim that we each create our own reality align with the practicalities of astrology? Besides directing one’s household staff to shut the door on mysterious curly-slippered figures offering new lamps for old, what are your best practices for manifesting more of what you want and less of what you don’t?”
Well, what a delightful question, Bailey. Let’s begin with the dictionary, always a good source for parsing these things out. An intention according to the dictionary is, a thing intended, and aim or plan, whereas a wish seems to indicate a strong desire or hope for something that is not easily attainable. A commitment is the state or quality of being dedicated to a cause or an activity. A preference is just liking one thing more than another. And an oath is a solemn promise often invoking a divine witness regarding one’s future action or behavior.
So, I think intention is the right word here as I like to use it, because it is a thing that we intend. At a New Moon, we come up with an aim, an intention that’s congruent with that sign. With this Solar Eclipse for example in Scorpio, we put out an intention to know ourselves better, to understand the people important to us more intimately, to see things as they truly are. An intention like that takes a lot of courage because we don’t know what we might find out, we don’t know what dark corner of the human experience we might find ourselves in, but this is an excellent time to be setting in intention to know ourselves and what is right for us a lot better.
But I think that we do hold these more lightly because we have to acknowledge, especially if we’re setting intentions at an eclipse time, which is very unstable, we always have to leave open the possibility that there could be something that’s better for us that we don’t have the imagination to consider. Sometimes intentions can fall into the category of a wish, where we’re hoping for something that is not really probably going to happen, at least not before the next New Moon. So, an intention feels about right for me.
Now, you also ask, “Do we create our own reality? Or, can we see different realities for ourselves in our astrology?” I think the answer is somewhere between the two. I think that we definitely have a strong hand in creating our reality, we definitely have a strong hand in interpreting our reality. But we have to understand that we are part of a much larger system, we’re surrounded by others who are creating their own reality, and that I think can make it more or less possible for our intentions to reach fruition. I think it’s a good exercise, at least at every New Moon. It’s just kind of a good set point for the next 28 days to – in that darkest part of the month where the Sun and the Moon are together in the same degree of the same sign and the nighttime sky is dark and we can’t really see what we’re planting, we can’t really see what we’re doing, but in this act of faith – we make an intention and we throw it out into the world and we hope that it will find a place to take root.
I hope that helps, Bailey. I know some people feel really strongly that at every level in every instance, we are exactly creating our own reality. And I’m not sure that I go that far with it, but I do think the first step in creating the reality we want is first envisioning it, and that is what I try to do at least at each New Moon when I set my intentions.
If you have a burning question about astrology that you would like me to answer on a future episode, leave a voicemail of one minute or less at speakpipe.com/bigskyastrologypodcast or just send me an email april@bigskyastrology.com and be sure to put “Podcast Question” in the subject line.
Donor Thanks
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That’s it for this episode. Join me again bright and early next Monday. And until then, keep your feet on the ground and your eyes on the stars!
© 2022 by April Elliott Kent
