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Ah, the enigmatic eclipse. If you’ve delved into the world of astrology or glanced at social media lately, you’ve likely encountered some seemingly contradicting messages from astrologers about how, exactly, to approach the solar eclipse on April 8, 2024.
The controversy isn’t whether the solar eclipse will be disrupting. That, according to astrologers, is a certainty. Chani Nicholas recently wrote in her email newsletter of the related “shake-ups, surprises, and synchronicities.” Juliana McCarthy told her email community to anticipate “disruption.” Debra Silverman‘s Instagram followers heard the message that the “celestial curveball” would bring “unexpected plot twists.”
It’s what astrologers advise you to do in response to these reverberations that isn’t aligned. Advocates of intention-setting during an eclipse encourage you to boldly embrace the intense energy and heightened emotions, explaining that eclipses offer a unique opportunity to make bold declarations to the universe. Other astrologers advocate for a more cautious stance, encouraging surrender to the turbulent vibes and a quiet listening to what is revealed to you afterward.
The contrast reveals the diverse interpretations of navigating the unpredictable currents of cosmic energy and may leave you confounded as to whether the solar eclipse is a potent once-in-a-lifetime moment for setting intentions or a time to ride out the turbulent vibes.
When you feel the chaotic energies tugging on you in the days to come, the conflicting advice can leave you wondering what you’re supposed to do.
What Is the Eclipse Meaning, Anyway?
An eclipse occurs when the Sun, Moon, and Earth align in a straight line. In a solar eclipse, the new Moon falls in between the Earth and the Sun, blocking light from reaching certain swaths on Earth. Conversely, in a lunar eclipse, the Earth comes between the Sun and the Moon, casting its shadow on the full Moon.
Eclipses have been laden with significance and symbolism across cultures and belief systems for millennia. In astrology, they are considered to be potent moments of cosmic reset and recalibration. Their reverberations signal shifts in energy and themes in our lives.
In particular, solar eclipses, such as the upcoming total solar eclipse across parts of North America, are associated with revelations, beginnings, and external events, while lunar eclipses tend to manifest endings, closures, and internal reflections.
Should You Set Intentions During the Solar Eclipse?
The perspective that eclipses are potent portals for transformation and opportune moments that shouldn’t be missed encourage individuals to channel its intensity into fuel for personal growth and empowerment. These proactive approaches to eclipse energy urge the collective to embrace the intensity and potential for profound change. They consider the uncommon occurrence to offer a unique opportunity to help release what no longer serves you, whether patterned behavior or limiting situations, and make room for bold new growth and possibilities.
Amplifying this perspective on eclipses is the fact that the upcoming solar eclipse occurs in the bold and decisive sign of Aries. Astrologer and Spirit Daughter founder Jill Wintersteen explores how to co-create with the eclipse’s disruption in her workbook on the eclipse and new Moon.
Some astrologers also believe that eclipses possess an energy of projection, capable of carrying intentions forward until the next eclipse cycle. This projection energy is believed to imbue intentions with momentum and continuity, making eclipses strategic periods for initiating long-term goals. The belief is that eclipses amplify your intentions and sustain their energetic presence over time, aligning you with the cyclical nature of the cosmos.
For these astrologers, eclipses serve as cosmic catalysts. The thinking is that you should embrace your desires and take decisive action.
Or Should You Proceed with Caution?
Most astrologers allow for the potential for change following an eclipse. Although not everyone in the astrological realm is quick to jump on the intention-setting bandwagon. Enter those who consider the disruptive energies akin to cosmic wild cards that can throw your carefully laid plans into disarray.
These astrologers advise a more cautious approach during celestial upheavals. For them, eclipses are times of introspection and reflection, urging us to tread lightly and avoid making major decisions or initiating new projects.
“Setting intentions during an eclipse is like playing with fire. It can be intense, explosive, and create big results,” explains astrologer and yoga teacher Morgan Thames. “Eclipses generate unpredictable energy.”
“I’ve noticed that we tend to question ourselves more during an eclipse,” says Thames. “We may feel more confused than normal. Thoughts may become cloudy, and a sense of direction may be harder to find.”
The energy during eclipse season can indeed seem tumultuous, intense, and rapidly revolutionary. That destabilizing atmosphere isn’t typically believed to be conducive to manifesting your desires in a coherent fashion. From an astrological perspective, the alignment of the Sun, Moon, and Earth during an eclipse obscures the typical transmission of light and weakens the influence of the Sun and Moon. This makes it an unfavorable time for energy-invoking rituals like those typically performed during new or full Moons.
Thames further advises, “It is a good time to turn inward, quiet the mind, and pause. We don’t need to know all of the answers right now. Patience is our friend.”
Similarly, other astrologers suggest harnessing the energy of the eclipse through waiting and allowing its effects to be revealed. Although Chani Nicholas acknowledges that the “galvanizing eclipse will activate your motivation and vitality,” in a recent astrological post, she also cautions, “It’s wise to lay low and rest up.”
If you seek a respite from the jumbled energies, many astrologers encourage journaling in an exploratory manner without needing to come to any definitive awarenesses or conclusions.
Follow Your Knowing
Ultimately, the choice of how to navigate eclipse energies lies with each individual’s intuitive guidance, understanding of astrological principles, and willingness to embrace the unknown. “Let your soul’s rhythm move you,” astrologer Ryan Scott Seaman recently urged followers.
“My experiences with eclipses have been that the voice of knowing, intuition, guidance, whatever we want to call it, gets much louder,” says astrologer and writer Jordane Maree. She explains that eclipses can amplify our desires and illuminate paths of change and transformation.
She clarifies, however, that an eclipse isn’t necessarily a catalyst for action. The knowing is sometimes more than sufficient. “Whether it is something that’s possible to act on now or the beginning of something that will continue to unfold, I think it’s a poignant time to claim it,” she says.
Maree notes the crux lies in heeding your inner knowing. Whether you opt to set intentions during the solar eclipse or choose contemplation, attune to what feels appropriate for you. After all, astrology is as much about exploring personal alignment as cosmic alignments, a fact that is often underplayed in contemporary astrological interpretations and readings which profess to have the single answer for each sign. There is no single answer outside of yourself.
In the end, perhaps you take a cue from the paradoxical nature of the debate and its cosmic dance of assertion and surrender, of bold declarations and silent whispers, and allow yourself to experience both during the eclipse. Whether you choose to set intentions under the eclipse’s watchful eye or simply ride out its mystique, perhaps what you need is to allow yourself to navigate the tides with grace and curiosity and embrace whatever unfolds along the way.
RELATED: Mercury Retrograde Begins on April 1. (No Joke!) Here’s What That Means for You.
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