Bold, Bright Leo Faces Two Eclipses

 

The word eclipse itself is anathema to the brightness of Sun ruled Leo.  The official meaning of eclipse is “an obscuring of the light from one celestial body by the passage of another between it and the observer or between it and its source of illumination:  an eclipse of the sun.”  As a verb eclipse can also imply depriving “someone or something of significance, power, or prominence.”  This obviously becomes a challenge for Leo, especially during the partial eclipse on August 11th.

Last year’s powerful total solar eclipse on August 21st, if you remember, was also in Leo.  So Leo has been emphasized tremendously for quite some time, and now with Mars in Aquarius conjunct the South Node, we see a strong polarity emerging on almost every level globally.  Aquarius-Leo, or Leo-Aquarius.  With the Full Moon Eclipse falling at 4+ of each sign on July 27th we need to look again at what this might mean for wherever these two signs fall in our own celestial world.

For the record, here are the two important dates to pay attention to coming up:  July 27th, Full Moon Eclipse with Sun at 4+Leo and Moon at 4+Aquarius; August 11th, Partial Solar Eclipse at 18+Leo.  Note also that the Full Moon Eclipse will be visible across the entire North American continent.

Just to remind you again; my understanding is that a Full Moon Eclipse means you can let go of the past in order to move forward into the future, because the Moon/past is being eclipsed.  A New Moon Solar Eclipse, on the other hand, means that in order to move forward you must deal with something unfinished from the past because it is the Sun that is being eclipsed.  These are simple meanings of course.  Mundane astrologers put a lot of weight on Solar Eclipses for nations and the leaders of those nations.  Personal astrologers also feel that an emphasis will be placed in that area of your chart where that eclipse occurs which can be highly positive or not depending on various factors.

Leo is truly the boldest and brightest of signs and its strength lies within an inner knowing of pure and simple solar fire.  Nothing is more fiery than the Sun and nothing seems more powerful than one unified ball of fire.  Leo rules the heart, the nucleus of a cell, the center most pivotal point.  Yet the Sun is also a star and the universe is full of trillions upon trillions of other stars.  That’s where Aquarius enters the picture, and Leo/Aquarius are actually two ends of the same spectrum.

I’m going to quote some passages describing this polarity from a book written way back in 1978 called Astrology The Divine Science by two remarkable astrologer’s, Marcia Moore and Mark Douglas.  I took a past-life workshop from Marcia Moore in the early 1970s.  She was in a long wine colored dress with her black hair and white skin looking very beautiful and dramatic as she led the circle of us surrounding her in a group regression.  No, she was not a Leo.  :). She had Moon/Pluto in Cancer in her 12th house actually.  The regression was remarkable in that I experienced a life as a rick-a-shaw driver in the Orient while my teacher, Thalia, a Capricorn, experienced a life as Catherine de Medici!!  But I digress!  I’m posting these excerpts way at the bottom of this article for those of you interested in understanding more deeply the archetype of the Leo/Aquarius axis.

The Full Moon Eclipse shows this polarity in its extreme with Mars Retrograde just one degree from the Moon in Aquarius conjoined the South Node.  The Sun conjoining the North Node is in Leo.  This is an extremely fixed polarization showing many battlegrounds between sides that may be at war with each other unless creative (Leo) solutions are found and group (Aquarius) consensus is arrived at.  The only easy aspect to Leo in this Full Moon Eclipse configuration is the trine to Chiron in Aries.  Not all astrologers give credence to Chiron the way I do.  Chiron might represent the maverick here who knows a thing or two about thinking out of the box and mitigating, or the healer who is able to see both sides and find NEW (Aries) solutions to the extreme stand-off.  But Chiron is in square to Saturn in Capricorn, which is making an in conjunct to the Leo Sun.  Ouch.  The old guard may not allow for innovation and creative solutions to age-old battles.  The Sun is also in square to Uranus now in Taurus and Jupiter in Scorpio creating a Fixed Grand Cross.  On the global scale thus far the people who hold the money—trillions of it—are calling the shots.  We might also say that they continue to back a patriarchal system “in which males hold primary power and predominate in roles of political leadership, moral authority, social privilege and control of property.” (Wikipedia’s definition). This might just be beginning to crack with the inevitable, and now inexorable, reality of climate change, and various social movements such as the “Me Too” rise of women in the workplace standing up for their rights (Jupiter in Scorpio), or the backlash of public outcry against children being unceremoniously ripped from their parents arms without regard for the children themselves (further Leo/Aquarius issues).  Much of this is now going to increase due to Uranus in Taurus which will also be shaking up the economies of the world.  Status quo Taurus will never be the same for many years to come.

How will all Leos handle these challenging times?  Each individual will do so according to their blueprint and level of consciousness.  We see in the Solar Eclipse of August 11th a shift from the hard square to Uranus, since only those Leos who have early sign degrees are impacted by this energy thus far.  Mid-Leos must deal with Neptune in Pisces and strongly still with Jupiter in Scorpio.  This may be confusing and highly deceptive situations for them made murky further by Pluto in Capricorn.  Nothing in this Solar Eclipse chart is easy!  

I think of the symbolism of Leo as being that of the radiant child.  All fire signs are somewhat childlike.  So this symbolism of challenging times IS about THE CHILDREN OF THE WORLD.  What kind of future do they have?  Who is watching over them and wanting to create a better world for them to grow up in to?  It’s really up to all of us to pay attention to Leo right now.  Leo, wherever it is in our charts, is the bright child within us!  I would suggest that the Aquarius/Leo axis may also be about a need for nations to cooperate for the sake of all children everywhere.  We can look at Mars in Aquarius and the South Node as symbolizing either the destructive forces at work collectively, or the pro-active forces collectively for the common good and survival of  FUTURE GENERATIONS (Aquarius) who are our children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren.  I’m thinking of the suffering of children on the planet RIGHT NOW:  Yemen for starters.  The United Nations has stated unequivocally that this is the world’s worst  humanitarian disaster.  Over 8 million people are in desperate need and that ‘every ten minutes, a child under five dies of preventable causes.’  The suffering is almost unfathomable. Most of the bombs devastating parts of this country are made in the USA.  That makes me feel sick!!!

 I give you the lyrics of a beautiful song by Jackson Browne entitled “How Long”

  When you look in to a child’s face

You are seeing all the human race

And the endless possibilities there

Where so much can come true

And you think of the beautiful things

A child can do

How long can a child survive

How long if it was up to you

When you think of all the money spent

On defense by the government

And the weapons of destruction we build

We’re so sure that we need

And you think of the millions and millions

That money could feed

How long can you hear someone crying

How long can you hear someone dying

Before you ask yourself why

How long will we hear people speaking

About missiles for peace and just let it go by

How long will they tell us these weapons are keeping us free

It’s a lie

It you saw it from a satellite

With its green and with its blue and white

The beauty of the curve of the earth

And the oceans below

You might think it was paradise

If you didn’t know

You might think it was turning

But it’s turning so slow

How long can you hear someone crying?

How long can you hear someone dying?

Before you ask yourself why

How long will it be till we’ve turned

To the tasks and the skills that we’ll have to have learned

If we’re going to find a place in the future

Have something to offer where this planet is concerned

How long how long

 

I do know a lot of Leos.  They are strong.  The ones I know have a lot of heart energy that they exercise through generous gestures and even caring concern for others.  They are also very proud.  So they need their ‘pride’.  Leos need their own circle of loyal people, like the Leo cats need their pride families.  They aren’t meant to hoof it alone.  Yes, they’ll go off and lick their wounds in private usually because they prefer not to show weakness.  Hopefully they have a kindred spirit close by to confide in who will commiserate with them when they suffer just like anyone else.  Many have suffered greatly.  The courage Leos display in the face of adversity can be truly inspiring.

So now I’m going to share with you some amazing Leo women that I know.  Each one exemplifies the best qualities of this sign I feel:

Joy Stroehmann exemplifies the polarity of Leo/Aquarius in a good and positive way. She states in her ‘About Me’, “I have always been fascinated with the human mind and it’s power of perception, performance and persuasion.  I’ve been a student of psychology and consciousness studies, both formally and informally, throughout my lifetime.”

I have known her since 1994 when I learned she was in love with horses and an accomplished equestrian.  After reading her biography on her beautiful web site I realize she was also a top ranking swimmer, which now makes sense since she has a great deal of Pisces/Virgo—in fact an abundance of mutable energies—in her birth map which help her to problem solve and be helpful to others in a highly compassionate way.  

Leos, like all the Fire signs as well as Scorpio, need to follow their passion.  Joy has traveled that winding road to finally follow both her joy and passion.  She was named well!  Here’s another quote from her “About Me’, “After many decades of using what I’d learned to make achievements in competitive sports and in business, I woke up one morning to realize it was time for me to trade-in ambition for meaning as my driving force.  In that moment, everything changed.”

 She is now a practicing hypnotherapist and cognitive coach practicing from her office in Walnut Creek, CA, but she can work with anyone in the world who has inter-net access and she is presently working on multiple products including a book and on-line classes that will reach people in need far and wide.  Please take a look at what she has to offer on her web site Inner Work 

 

Susan Bratton could have had a career as an entertainer or even a movie star in my opinion;  she’s that gorgeous and talented!  Instead she has chosen to use her multi-faceted skills to help people of all persuasions, but especially married couples, to have more satisfying and pleasurable erotic lives with each other.  Here is her mission statement which is clear, simple, and to the point: “I’m writing this to you on the eve of celebrating almost 14 years of being in business with my husband, helping lovers create more sensual and passionate experiences.  To have more ecstatic moments of pleasure together.  It is our purpose, our passion to help you…

Become a better lover.

To continually innovate to touch more people with quality, life-changing content for a passionate relationship.

And co-create a family-centered, supportive culture where we work hand-in-hand to create a safe haven for our customers.”

Take a look at all the services she and her partner provide, which you can access all from the safety and privacy of your own home.  Her company is called Personal Life Media and her team come from many places on the globe, as one employee states so enthusiastically, “The company is an equal opportunity employer that holds no limit to age, sex or nationality! I have learned so much in my stay here and have improved a lot.  My employers are very very nice people and are very fun to work with together with the rest of my co workers! Thank you!”

Astrologically, it’s no surprise that Susan encompasses a broad spectrum of other energies along with her Sun in Leo.  They include Capricorn and Aquarian energies giving her the full spectrum of authority and management skills along with endless creative zest to help people enjoy life to the fullest in a truly humanitarian way.  She’s here to improve life!  Her chart is tightly woven showing her ability to integrate multiple threads but not without her own struggles and challenges along the way.  She is also a brave Leo woman!

I am constantly referring many of my clients to read her E-book ‘Relationship Magic’ which truly helps couples to understand each other’s values and thus know best how to make real breakthroughs in creating a more harmonious and loving relationship.  This book reminds me of another sterling Leo quality:  staying simple and getting right to the heart of the matter.

I’ll end my biographical section of amazing Leo’s with one more:  

Susan Wolf used to be our daughter-in-law.  She still is, as far as we are concerned, and will always be ‘family’ to us.  Susan, like most savvy Leos, is creative and good at business.  She is also known for her kindness and generosity as well as being the ‘hostess with the mostess.’!!  We love family gatherings where she presides in the kitchen as chef extraordinaire, and her pies are simply sublime!  She was raised on a cattle ranch in Nebraska so she knows a thing or two about feeding hungry people.

Today Susan is a filmmaker who spent many years of sharing a business with her ex-husband called ‘Highlight Productions’.  She recently produced and co-directed a powerful documentary entitled ‘Mata Hari, the Naked Spy’.  This project evolved out of a connection with a colleague, Michiel Amorison, who proposed the project from his home in the Netherlands.  Susan had never even heard of Mata Hari, but once she read up on her she pursued it with a passion.  Mata Hari, by the way, was also a Leo, and I personally feel Susan and her co-director have redeemed this woman by showing more of the truths behind the legend.  She was a woman ahead of her times and used her wits to survive an era when women were nothing without lineage and/or marriage to the right man.  She was abused terribly in her marriage and suffered as a mother, losing one child to medical poisoning, and the other to her inability to support her.  All of this is brought out accurately and beautiful re-enacted in Susan and Michiel’s movie.  Here is a link for you to learn more on your own and perhaps view it someday.  It is truly gorgeous to watch as well as heart-wrenching for it shows the suffering this mythic woman with such sexual prowess endured, proving again that Leos are not just getting the easy road we sometimes project onto them.  No wonder their journey demands courage and the slow but determined road to self-confidence.  

Notice that each of the Leo women I have presented is working with the entire spectrum of Leo to Aquarius, and not just for their own self-aggrandizement.  Each is making a positive contribution to the betterment of the world through educating and enlightening.

 

 Below is what I said I’d share about the Leo/Aquarius polarity:

In this very thick book, Astrology the Divine Science, the authors describe each polarity of signs with about six pages of dense descriptions first encompassing the basic meaning, then the excessive action, next the deficient action, and finally the resolution.  I wish I could transpose the entire transcript to you because this is now a rare book, but I will simply type out a few highlights which I consider so totally spot on considering the dramas we are witnessing unfold on the world stage today.  Here goes:

Basic Meaning:  “Centralization versus Distribution”. 

“Leo the king, conquers space; Aquarius, the inventor, conquers time.  The accomplishments of this pair of opposites are preceded by the work of Cancer, which contains space, and Capricorn, which confines time.  Leo is the circle which centralizes power.  Aquarius is the circle opened up to become the cycle whose undulating motion disperses solar energy into the atmosphere.”

“The Leonian enjoys personal recognition and likes to move amidst an entourage of admirers.  The Aquarian, by contrast, is content to remain anonymous and functions happily in groups in which everyone cooperates on an equal basis…….”

“Temperamentally, Leo is the artist while Aquarius is the scientist………The Leonian is preoccupied with the need to be original.  The Aquarian hesitates to present himself as an original creator because he is aware that he is standing on the shoulders of giants….”

“………..The Leonian draws inspiration from the particular culture with which he identifies and to which he contributes his creative talents.  Most works of art are sufficiently stylized to indicate the region of the world from whence they came.  Aquarius inventions are more likely to transcend national and racial boundaries and to speak for civilization in general.”

“Since one sign implies its opposite, the era now under way, which probably began shortly after 1900, should be called ‘the Leo-Aquarian Age.’  The forces of Leo, being subjectively polarized, operate compulsively and are less subject to reason than the positively polarized Aquarian forces.  Consequently, humanities’ growing scientific objectivity is accompanied by an almost idolatrous worship of well-known personalities, especially those who have triumphed in the fields of art and entertainment.  These celebrities may be connected with the stage, screen, sports, politics, or any endeavor which thrusts them into the spotlight. but in many respects that have become a kind of royalty……..”

“Leonian centralizing and Aquarian distributive forces are as intimately related as a flame and its radiations.  The former represents the solar source of energy which the latter transmits throughout the universe.  Leo proclaims ‘I am what I am’. Aquarius explains, ‘This is how it is’.  Leo signified the one who knows, while Aquarius signifies the field of knowledge.  Theirs is the mystery of unity in diversity, a mystery which can be solved only by bringing all the resources of the scientific mind to bear upon the challenge of releasing the power of the nuclear Self.”

Excessive Action

“When Leo’s desire to shine is based on egotism rather than on merit, the negative side of Uranus (in detriment in this sign) manifests through deviant behavior……”

“The broadcasting industry (and now the mighty Media Industry) is a potent instrument of Aquarian democracy which blends the talents of artists and scientists in order to entertain and enlighten the public……..yet they have also demonstrated that the tyranny of the majority can be as oppressive as any other form of domination.  The taste of the viewers for mediocrity too often swings the balance away from enlightenment toward low-grade entertainment which precludes artistic or original programming……”

“Eventually, the excesses  of power-mad dictators, like the extravagances of the kings they have supplanted, provoke the revolutionary side of Aquarius.  Then amidst outcries about the rights of humans, the wheel turns once more and the uneasy balance between freedom and regimentation sees a new equilibrium.”

Deficient Action

“…….The eccentricity of Aquarius is seldom far removed from the egocentricity of Leo.  consequently, people in the limelight often lead erratic lives.”

“The humanitarian Aquarian often renounces personal pleasures for the sake of the cause with which he identifies.  Yet the submerged ego may reassert itself in subtle ways.  Thus, one frequently encounters unselfish individuals, but it is extremely uncommon to find a really unselfish group…………”

“The Aquarian Age has given rise to numbers organized charities.  Unquestionably, they accomplish immense good and are a boon to the underprivileged.  Yet the average tax-burdened citizen who is continually solicited to donate to worthy cause may resent the group’s insistence that he/she be altruistic.  They are aware of being subject to social pressures, yet the appeal to their Leonian pride and generosity makes the outstretched hand hard to resist.”

“Since Leo and Aquarius are both Fixed signs, their natives are liable to become enmeshed in power struggles.  They compensate for a sense of personal insignificance by a boastfulness which declares, ‘MY country, right or wrong.’  These vicarious egotists justify the big ‘MY’ by their exemplary patriotism……”

“The weakness of the Sun in Aquarius becomes evident only if a person has failed to find his integrating center in Leo.  then the socializing Aquarian force produces the diffuseness of the dissatisfied radical who knows what he/she is against but not what he/she is for.  An individual must become self-reliant before developing the global consciousness of the true democrat if his/her energies are not to be dispersed in futile gestures whereby he/she tries to reassure him/herself that he/she is somebody by behaving in a singular or anomalous manner.”

Resolution

“At best, Aquarius reconstructs society with its ideal of equal rights (Saturn) and equal liberties (Uranus) for all.  Metaphysically, the Aquarian ideal holds that the spark of individuality is a ray of living light cast off by an overturning cosmic fire, and that man/woman is not so  much an instrument of Spirit as its prolongation into Matter.  A real democracy can consist only of freely cooperating citizens, each one illumined by the light of his/her conscience, and never of mere masses of people to be manipulated by wily politicians.”

“Cancer and Capricorn are associated with partisan politics (is THIS a key to Cancer United States opposite it’s Pluto in Capricorn??), but Leo and Aquarius inspire statesmen who are concerned with broader principles of administration…..”

“The Leonian artist develops a universal outlook through intense concentration upon the particular form he/she shapes.  The Aquarian scientist develops a keener insight into the nature of particular objects through his/her study of the formative laws of the universe.  Both are concerned with the processes of creation, but the Leonian strives to make something that has never before existed while the Aquarian investigates the handiwork of the Maker of heaven and earth.  Leo knows that in order to produce something significantly new and different, one must be a unique kind of person, while Aquarius realizes that in order to be inventive, one must forget all about him/herself and cooperate with the impersonal forces of the elements.”

“As the modern ruler of Aquarius, Uranus implies that the liberty men/women seek must be won through the use of the intuitive mind rather than through the enforcement of Saturnian regulations.  Leo shows that subjectively the desire for freedom must come from the heart, since freedom is a state of consciousness and not a physical condition.  The lesson of this pair of opposites is that a person who is incapable of love can never be free.  Only when mind and heart combine can man achieve the fullest expression of his creative potential.”

I’ve given you nearly two pages of quotes from this book which was WAY ahead of its time.  We do see it playing out now on almost every level.  Perhaps some of these quotes will give you added insights into your own need to bring these two ends of the same spectrum into balance.