Two weeks into what has been an extremely eventful year so far, it’s time for the next big cosmic event – the first Lunar Eclipse for 2019! As with last year’s Leo Lunar Eclipse, this one will also be a Supermoon, which will make it appear larger than usual in the sky. This may make it appear even redder to the naked eye than it might otherwise. It may also be emotionally charged than usual because of the involvement of volatile Uranus. Read my Guide to 2019’s only total lunar eclipse to find out more…
Encounter with Earth’s Shadow
January’s Lunar Eclipse in Leo occurs at the time of the January Full Moon, which the Native Americans referred to as the month of the ‘Snow Moon’ or ‘Wolf Moon.’ According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, this is because in late January – usually a cold, lean time – wild animals such as the wolf could be heard to howl in hunger as they came closer than usual to villages and other human habitations to scavenge for food.
Although I am not one for dramatics, it is an interesting symbol, especially if we view it in relation to the Sabian symbol for this particular eclipse. (See below)
Liberation from Old Patterns?
It’s probably fair to say that since the Capricorn Solar Eclipse earlier this month, we’ve all been experiencing a series of encounters with Pluto, which has been raising a lot of shadow stuff for many of us. In this sense, it’s been a great time for purging anything toxic or unhealthy in our lives, whether these be relationships, challenging situations or unhealthy habits.
In many way, this particular soli-lunar event can be seen as a completion of themes begun or amplified at both the Leo Solar Eclipses in August 2017 and July 2000 – one whole Saros cycle ago. It maybe worth checking back to see what happened to you around these times to see if there are any parallels between then and now…
Now, as we get closer to the Jan Solar Eclipse’s matching twin – the lunar eclipse in Leo – we begin to pick up a second signature – one that, in its own unique way, also featured strongly around the time of the Capricorn solar eclipse – Uranus. Just after the New Moon on Jan 7, the planet of liberation, sudden advancement and personal freedom stationed, which created quite a lot of emotional turbulence and uncertainty. Now, as we head for a supercharged Full Moon, Uranus will form a T-square to the luminaries, which could cause create a charged atmosphere filled with anxiety which could spill over into emotional outbursts that could be difficult to contain or control. (More on this further down).
Sign
The January 6 solar eclipse takes place in fiery and flamboyant Leo.
A fixed fire sign, the Lion is charismatic, ambitious and flamboyant. It is also stubborn, proud and loyal. The opposite of shy and retiring, it does tend towards the loud and melodramatic end of the scale – this is, generally speaking, someone who is an extrovert and a leader, rather than a follower.
During the next two to four weeks, the following Leo-based themes are likely to be emphasised:
- Self expression and individuality
- Self confidence and public masks/personas
- Fame, leadership and positions of power
- Creativity, personal flair and displays of individuality
- Playfulness, leisure, children and the ability to relax, kid around and enjoy yourself
However, lunar eclipses always occur during Sun-Moon oppositions, which require a certain degree of balance. At this time, therefore, the above Leo themes will need to be counter-balanced by external Aquarian factors such as:
- The many over the individual: Consideration for the mores or norms of a group, the needs or expectations of friends, and therefore social obligations, group acceptance/popularity, and being a team player
- The bigger social picture: Altruism, social conscience, humanitarianism
- Taking the credit versus being a team player
- Artistic self-expression needs to be counter-balanced by: Scientific advances or the role of tech; opinions with fact-based research
- Dramatic emotional outbursts may need to be countered by: Emotional detachment, the need for a cool head – this is especially important, given the Sabian symbol of this eclipse (see below).
Is this Eclipse Personal?
Anyone who has planets or chart points at, or between, 0-10 degrees Leo or Aquarius as well as 25-30 degrees of Capricorn or Cancer, are bound to be more affected by psychological triggers, raised emotions or the reactions of loved ones at the lunar eclipse than others.
This is because the Sun and Moon will be at 1 degrees of Leo & Aquarius, while the lunar nodes will be in the late degrees of Cancer and Capricorn. It’s worth checking to see if this contacts anything in your natal charts because this could give you an indication of where you are mostly likely to feel its impact in your life.
Although much depends on your time and place of birth (and therefore what latitude you were born at) as well as which house system you or your astrologer use, the table below should give you a general steer on where to expect emotional flashpoints to arise:
| SUN/RISING SIGN | AREA OF LIFE 1 – Self | AREA OF LIFE 2 – Others |
| ARIES | Fifth house of creativity, natural talents, pursuit of pleasure, hobbies, sports, romance, new relationships & sexual involvements, children, pregnancy & childbirth, gambling, financial speculation, the entertainment industry, social popularity | Eleventh house of friendships, groups, clubs, the need to belong socially, humanitarian ideals or endeavours, social media, mass communication including the media, networking |
| TAURUS | Fourth house of home and domestic life, family members, activities and influences, motherhood and relationships to mothers or primary care-givers, food & nourishment, conditioned responses and ingrained emotional attitudes | Tenth house of public life, career or profession, public, future goals and aspirations, worldly success, fame, honours and reputation, positions of authority, obligations & responsibilities of public office, relationships with authority, bosses or government, parents, especially father |
| GEMINI | Third house of communication, speech, thinking, ideas, early study (especially schooling), learning, teaching, siblings and relationships with brothers & sisters, neighbours and the immediate environment, logic, day-to-day decisions, local modes of transport, commuting. | Ninth house of expansion, long-distance travel & adventure, higher learning, lecturing, personal, philosophical or religious beliefs, contact with foreign cultures, people or organisations, publishing, the search for meaning, cultural values and trends, the law, ethics and social customs. |
| CANCER | Second house of earned income, money and finances, personal wealth and resources (including skills), possessions, real estate, desire for material status or security, self-esteem, personal values. | Eight house of sex, power, death, inheritance, taxes, loans, shared resources (including taxes, insurance, alimony), joint partnerships, intimacy, large financial institutions e.g. banks, personal transformation, psychic abilities, otherworldly encounters |
| LEO | First house of the self, identity, individual expression, personal decisions or actions, physical appearance, physical vitality, new areas of personal experience | Seventh house of close relationships, marriage and romantic commitment, known enemies, business partnerships, diplomacy and compromise, the reactions of others to personal action |
| VIRGO | Twelfth house of dreams, the collective, unconscious dynamics, hidden activities or things done in seclusion, institutions eg libraries, hospitals, prisons and mental institutions), secrets, spiritual activities & mystical experiences, compassion, empathy towards others, the creative imagination, escapist tendencies, self-delusion, self-sabotage, neurotic tendencies. | Sixth house of health, personal habits & hygiene, routines, schedules, job, everyday work environment, colleagues, employees, servants, trouble-shooting, dealings with the medical profession, occupational health & safety, detailed work or responsibilities, pets. |
| LIBRA | Eleventh house of friendships, groups, clubs, the need to belong socially, humanitarian ideals or endeavours, social media, mass communication including the media, networking | Fifth house of creativity, natural talents, pursuit of pleasure, hobbies, sports, romance, new relationships & sexual involvements, children, pregnancy & childbirth, gambling, the entertainment industry, social popularity (or lack of it) |
| SCORPIO | Tenth house of public life, career or profession, public, future goals and aspirations, worldly success, fame, honours and reputation, positions of authority, obligations & responsibilities of public office, relationships with authority, bosses or government, parents, especially father | Fourth house of home and domestic life, family members, activities and influences, motherhood and relationships to mothers or primary care-givers, food & nourishment, conditioned responses and ingrained emotional attitudes |
| SAGITTARIUS | Ninth house of expansion, long-distance travel & adventure, higher learning, lecturing, personal, philosophical or religious beliefs, contact with foreign cultures, people or organisations, publishing, the search for meaning, cultural values and trends, the law, ethics and social customs. | Third house of communication, speech, thinking, ideas, early study (especially schooling), learning, teaching, siblings and relationships with brothers & sisters, neighbours and the immediate environment, logic, day-to-day decisions, local modes of transport, commuting. |
| CAPRICORN | Eight house of sex, power, death, inheritance, taxes, loans, shared resources (including taxes, insurance, alimony), joint partnerships, intimacy, large financial institutions e.g. banks, personal transformation, psychic abilities, otherworldly encounters | Second house of earned income, money and finances, personal wealth and resources (including skills), possessions, real estate, desire for material status or security, self-esteem, personal values. |
| AQUARIUS | Seventh house of close relationships, marriage and romantic commitment, known enemies, business partnerships, diplomacy and compromise, the reactions of others to personal action | First house of the self, identity, individual expression, personal decisions or actions, physical appearance, physical vitality, new areas of personal experience |
| PISCES | Sixth house of health, personal habits & hygiene, routines, schedules, job, everyday work environment, colleagues, employees, servants, trouble-shooting, dealings with the medical profession, occupational health & safety, detailed work or responsibilities, pets | Twelfth house of dreams, the collective, unconscious dynamics, hidden activities or things done in seclusion, institutions eg libraries, hospitals, prisons and mental institutions), secrets, spiritual activities & mystical experiences, compassion, empathy towards others, the creative imagination, escapist tendencies, self-delusion, self-sabotage, neurotic tendencies. |
Sabian Symbol
This eclipse occurs at 1 degree Leo. The Sabian Symbol for this degree is:
Under emotional stress, blood rushes to a man’s head.
Leo is a fire sign and therefore quite passionate by nature. It also tends to make people quite bossy and impatient, as well as demanding – if this sign feels it is not getting the recognition or attention it deserves, it can be a bit sulky or throw a hissy fit.
So it may be worth noting that this Sabin symbol points to an excess of passion, which can temporarily dampen the more logical faculties, possibly leading to rash behaviour or emotional outbursts, some of which may be a little out of character.
The suggestion seems to be that it may be a good idea not to take the way someone else, especially a family member or love done, behaves at this time too personally – they may be under duress or a lot of stress and therefore not thinking too clearly.
Of course, the same may be true of yourself, of course, so around now, you may want to take a breath before you potentially overreact to something or do something that you’ll regret.
For those looking for some more inspiration for meditating on the personal meaning of this particular degree, the Sabian Oracle provides the following keywords:
Keywords: Ambition. Becoming fired-up. Charging off in all directions at once. Dizziness and disorientation. Nervous breakdowns. Not acting like one’s usual self. Events coming to a head. Feeling like one will explode at any moment. Too many obligations to live up to. Feeling incapable of action. Too much excitement to contain safely. Headaches. Blood pressure. Erections. Animal passions.
The Caution: Becoming ill through emotional suppression. Losing one’s cool. Going off the deep end. Lack of self-restraint. Taking things too seriously. Grumpiness and irritability. Not knowing how to act or respond. Difficulty containing emotional reactions. Unable to make accurate decisions due to irrational thoughts. Sunburn.
Key Aspects
The Uranian signature is all over this eclipse – notice the big large triangle linking the Sun, Moon and Uranus in a T-square. Uranus is still in the final degrees of Aries, which can create the sudden outbursts and emotional explosions highlighted by the Sabian symbol.
Sun & Moon square Uranus
Uranus concerns freedom and social justice. It can also make people a little anxious, rebellious and unpredictable – something to be aware of when out in crowed public places – something which is ruled by the Moon.
Many of us noticed when Uranus retrograded back into Aries last autumn – that jumpy, nervous feeling returned to the group consciousness. I think it is no coincidence that the stock market also became a bit erratic and volatile. The key now will be exercising a little self-control and detachment – try not to take anything too personally as people become more sensitive to stress and uncertainty. It’s probably also not a good idea to make risky trades or important decisions if at all possible. Wait a few days until the air clears.
Also be kinder to yourself – allow more room for rest, downtime – and where possible, practise calming techniques like gentle exercise, meditation or listening to music to help you stay centred.
Venus and Mars square Saturn & Neptune
A few other difficult aspects also perfect on the same day as the eclipse.
Sadly, although Venus and Mars are due to trine each other in fire signs the Friday before the Full Moon; the planets closely associated with romantic love, passion and sex will also form challenging squares to Saturn and Neptune. This is likely to make it difficult to see clearly or know what to do for the best, particularly in relationships. Getting to the bottom of situations or understanding their intentions will also be tricky now, which could ramp up levels of inner tension, creating a lot of insecurity.
Luckily, both Saturn and Neptune are heading for a harmonious sextile to each other, which should help to stabilise the situation. Furthermore, the outlook for things will also be brightened on the 22nd, thanks to some divine intervention by Jupiter. So when in doubt, give people the benefit of the doubt, have faith that things can work out OK in the end, and ask an experienced or older person for some sensible advice.
Fixed Stars
NO major fixed stars are involved in this particular eclipse.
Saros Series
Lunar eclipses are not considered by Bernadette Brady to have Saros families. This eclipse forms part of Van Den Berg’s 134 series.
Past Precedent
The last time we had a lunar eclipse in this series was on 9 Jan 2001 (Cancer). The last solar eclipse in this series was on 3 Oct 2005 (Libra).
Geographical position
This particular lunar eclipse will be visible from most of the northern hemisphere, including: the Americas, Europe and western Africa. Central and eastern Africa and Asia will see a partial eclipse of the Moon.
An interactive map of the eclipse path can be found at Time and Date.com.
