Lunar Eclipse in Taurus

When eclipses strike, everything can change with rapid fluidity and chaotic cacophony. Though solar eclipses have the most extreme reputation due to light bringing Sol suddenly transfiguring into the darkness of Night, lunar eclipses bring matters to a head with a propulsive force that overturns previous narratives with dramatic disruption. During a lunar eclipse, Gaia casts her shadow upon Luna, the ultimate intermediary presence within astrology. What has been slumbering in shadow awakens with startling force. We become released by what has previously been binding with fixed attachment. The Taurus Lunar Eclipse on 28 October possesses a particularly potent cathartic force that will incite bold movement. The changes that emanate can ultimately be empowering but will feel stressful while dealing with associated challenges.

The fiery influence of Mars, which has been palpable in the brutal genocide inflicted by Israel in recent weeks, will claim central focus within the astrology of the upcoming month. Mars will be ending a cycle that began in October 2021 and beginning a new two-year cycle in its watery domicile of Scorpio on 18 November. On an individual level, the amplification of Mars can reset our capacity for courageously taking action. Mars represents the ability to fight for our values and separate ourselves from the intolerable, yet when dealing with the massive violence imposed by global power structures and empires, the exhaustion many already feel from having to fight for their own daily survival can feed into feelings of lacking the agency to make effective change and enforce a ceasefire of the oppressive forces operating in the world. As Mars dies and is reborn in the coming month, so will our relationship with our own willpower and courage.

Mars in Scorpio is the ultimate warrior willing to fight unconditionally for core values. Though Mars is connected with violence and discordant strife, in our personal lives it is also an essential aspect of applying willpower to create the life we wish to live. During the Lunar Eclipse in Taurus, Mars will be united with Mercury in Scorpio while forming a volatile opposition with Jupiter retrograde in Taurus. In many situations we will need to be mindful of the potential for harsh verbal conflict to erupt where tension has been building, whereas in other circumstances we will realize the need to take a stand and endure whatever conflict follows. We will need to face our own shadows when feeling wronged, recognizing the kindling of vengeful fires being lit from within.

While Mars in Scorpio is the ruler of the Head of the Dragon demarcating the eclipse, Venus is tending to the care of the Tail of the Dragon in Taurus where the Moon is being eclipsed. Just like the Solar Eclipse in Libra on 14 October, Venus in Virgo bearing responsibility for the Lunar Eclipse in Taurus puts the focus on our relationships and the care we are bringing to them. However, the fixed earth of Taurus that exalts the Moon has more of a connection with the material goods and resources we need for survival than the airy windscape of Libra. Taurus as the fixed sign of earth can be the most resistant to change, corresponding with the greater ease that comes from having stable and sufficient resources and the attachments we form with patterns and activities that sustain them. The volatility of a lunar eclipse in Taurus increases the potential for overturning old attachments and breaking fixed patterns in radical ways. The disorientation may feel stressful, but a profound reorientation can take place full of dynamic creativity.

While Venus in Virgo was forming a flowing trine aspect with Jupiter retrograde in Taurus during the recent solar eclipse, Venus is forming a liberating trine aspect with Uranus retrograde in Taurus during the lunar eclipse. Venus weaving Jupiter and Uranus together within her earthy domicile of Taurus links these eclipses with the larger waves of change that will emanate from the conjunction between Jupiter and Uranus in Taurus on 20 April 2024. Jupiter and Uranus promote innovation and emancipatory movements, and so there can be experiences and events erupting with the eclipse that likewise propel you in new directions, unlocking the ways you have felt restrained by the past. A shattering of the status quo will be taking place in ways that will not only include the horrific tragedy of current events, but will also include the potential for dramatically changing your life to align more with your core principles, values, and desires.

The presence of Jupiter with the eclipse harbors hope that we can rouse the inspiration needed to overcome difficulties and make the most of the opportunities available. Yet Jupiter is in the challenging phase of curtailed passage in which the star of Zeus is retrograde within seven and a half degrees of the Sun. This means that while Jupiter will be especially bright in night skies and will be coming down to set on the western horizon close to sunrise, its proximity to an exact opposition with the Sun means that we will not be able to see Jupiter touch either horizon within its daily orbit. Demetra George in Ancient Astrology defined the lack of visibility of Jupiter on the horizon during curtailed passage as undermining its actions and effectiveness. While the positive associations of Jupiter may not be as effective due to its present solar phase, the intensity of Jupiter being as bright as possible and coming as close to the earth as possible during its orbit will likewise intensify inner visions of what we hope to create with our lives and foster in the world around us.

The Taurus Lunar Eclipse is the final eclipse in the series of Taurus and Scorpio eclipses that have amplified the chaotic volatility of Uranus in Taurus. It’s fair to say that most astrologers expected that the most extreme period of Uranus in Taurus would align with it being set off by these eclipses. Out of all of the eclipses in this series, lunar eclipses in Taurus have been most prevalent with the one on 28 October 2023 being the third and final eclipse. The first eclipse inciting Uranus was the Taurus Lunar Eclipse on 19 November 2021, followed by a Taurus Solar Eclipse on 30 April 2022, a Scorpio Lunar Eclipse on 15 May 2022, a Scorpio Solar Eclipse on 25 October 2022, a Taurus Lunar Eclipse on 8 November 2022, and a Scorpio Lunar Eclipse on 5 May 2023. Important insights will emerge from reflecting upon how your life has changed in correlation with the totality of this eclipse cycle, and how the final installment of the Lunar Eclipse in Taurus fits into the arc of storylines.

Whereas the Taurus Lunar Eclipse on 8 November 2022 formed a close conjunction with Uranus, the Taurus Lunar Eclipse on 28 October 2023 will be forming a close conjunction with Jupiter. The previous eclipses in 2021 and 2022 were especially intense because they exacerbated the shattering square aspect between Saturn in Aquarius and Uranus in Taurus that coincided with a dismantling of systemic structures and an acceleration of change in personal lives. The coming conjunction of Jupiter and Uranus in April 2024 will unleash massive developments in technological innovations, yet it also has the potential to inspire new waves of political activism. The way that collective movements can emerge from periods of economic instability was captured by John Steinbeck in The Grapes of Wrath, a book published during another time in which eclipses were taking place in the same sign as Uranus in Taurus: “How can you frighten a man whose hunger is not only in his own cramped stomach but in the wretched bellies of his children? You can’t scare him – he has known a fear beyond every other.”

The way that the economic disparities and systemic oppression of the recent past can congeal into massive collective movements will also be signified by Saturn and Neptune coming together into a new cycle in 2026. In the week following the eclipse, we will experience the first time that Saturn has stationed direct in the same sign as Neptune this time around. Saturn will station direct in Pisces on 4 November, demanding a grounded assessment of circumstances, coming to terms with limitations that must be accepted. As Saturn slowly begins to move forward in the following week, notice where you need to claim more of your authority and where boundaries need to be strengthened or adjusted. Pay attention to the lessons in maturity that Saturn is delivering through your experiences.

Another wave of change will come a week later when Venus enters her airy home of Libra on 8 November and Mercury enters Sagittarius on 10 November. Mercury’s usual tendency to accelerate activity in the fiery sign of Sagittarius will be obstructed by the star of Hermes immediately forming a square aspect with Saturn. Be patient and bring temperance to whatever obstacles emerge due to this tension between Mercury and Saturn. Venus in Libra will facilitate social interaction and collaboration that can help garner resources for support in whatever difficulties need to be faced.

Taurus 1 Decan

Shadows will fall across the face of the Moon in the first decan of Taurus, associated with the Five of Pentacles card illustrated above by Pamela Colman Smith. The Five of Pentacles is often associated with worry and fear over not having enough money or resources. While the image of those in need left outside a religious institution speaks to spiritual hypocrisy, their presence in front of the stained glass window also suggests that resources can be found in both the realm of spirit as well as in charitable communities. Mercury rules the first face of Taurus, linking the commerce and spiritual mediation of Mercury with the fertile, earthy nature of the sign of the Bull. Mercury makes the connections we need for our livelihood, and in the first decan of Taurus we discover our capacity not only to gain enough resources for our own survival but to also contribute assistance to those in greater need so they are not left out in the cold.

Austin Coppock in his book on the decans 36 Faces ascribed the image of “The Plow” to the first face of Taurus, noting the “face is traditionally connected to all of the sciences necessary to draw forth fruit from the land.” Coppock stated “the power this decan grants is that of understanding how to create growth,” adding that we must also realize that “the mind, heart and body are all ripe fields, which offer abundance when cultivated.” Coppock further noted that the emphasis of this decan on using available resources to increase gain also brings up the shadow of fear that bleak times may arise if we disengage from constant planning and hard work. Yet ultimately Coppock concluded that “the true work of this decan is in the equilibriation of work and pleasure,” as there are also many sensual delights to be encountered in the first face of Taurus.

The Hellenistic text 36 Airs ascribed Charis to the first decan of Taurus, linking the Charites of mythology to the charity we can find in the image of the Five of Pentacles card and the meaning of the first face of Taurus. The Charites are the same as the three Graces you are most likely familiar with, commonly known as Splendor, Mirth, and Good Cheer, though various traditions have additional names as well as numbers for these charming, fertile beings. Fittingly for the eclipse taking place during the season of Samhain, the Charites were also associated with the Greek underworld and the Eleusinian Mysteries. As we will be collectively enduring a period ahead full of violent genocide, warfare, and economic inequities in current events, it will important to cultivate your inner agriculture of soul that will align you with the good graces. May the nurturance of your inner garden lead to a distribution of resources that can support and uplift those in need of your gifts.

If you enjoy my writing please consider supporting my work through a monthly subscription on my Patreon page. Take a look to see the benefits and educational resources you will receive as a patron!

References

Coppock, Austin. (2014). 36 Faces: The History, Astrology and Magic of the Decans. Three Hands Press.

George, Demetra. (2019). Ancient Astrology in Theory and Practice: a Manual of Traditional Techniques. Rubedo Press.