The Lunar Eclipse on 11 January 2020 urged 'the People' to stand up against the government and those in positions of power to demand an evolutionary step forward. No wonder we saw so many people attend the rallies and peaceful protests on Friday!
What a massive eclipse yesterday morning's was ... There are a number of different ways we can explore this eclipse chart, from the Universal level that impacts all of us, to the Personal, ie: how it activates our individual natal charts and psyches.
I usually focus on our Personal natal response to what's happening in the Skies. This time, however, I sat down to write, and was surprised that what actually poured out was an article on what's being activated at a Universal level, ie: how we're collectively being impacted by the recent eclipse. First time for everything, right??
It's fascinating to see the archetypes in play around us. It's fascinating to see current events unfold. And it's actually beautiful and empowering to understand how deeply we are held by the Cosmos. As Above, So Below. I thought that some of you might be curious to understand the transits from this level as well, as it helps make sense of the world around us.
We can then look at the Lunar Eclipse from a personal perspective in a separate post - hopefully, tomorrow. I know this was a rough one for many of us.
In the two-week vortex leading up to this Lunar Eclipse, amidst the devastation of our heartbreaking, ongoing bushfire crisis, the People of Australia have increasingly been expressing their outrage and frustration with our Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, renouncing him for his inept response to the bushfire crisis; his holiday in Hawaii; and his government's complete lack of Climate Policy. (Last month, Australia's Climate Policy was ranked last in the world. Last. Bottom of the barrel. Additionally, the Morrison government was criticised internationally for being a “regressive force." So, it's actually worse than doing nothing … His government's stance is pulling the world backwards on Climate Change.)
People have been actively refusing to shake his hand. They've even chased him out of town (Cobargo, NSW), which I've seen replayed on international media outlets. The world is watching, and they're seeing the Australian people rise up against our government in peaceful ways (unlike the uprisings we've seen unfold in France, for example). I think my favourite video clip, though, was of the Firie leaning out of the cab of his firetruck and telling ScoMo that he could "Fuck off." (For any international visitors, ScoMo is a nickname we Aussies have for our Prime Minister, Scott Morrison. Recently, though, I've seen several variants on this, including ScumMo and ScoalMo.) Bless the Firies! Tensions have run high this eclipse season. And now, we've seen tens of thousands of Australians take to the streets, attending Climate Change rallies around the country.
Astrologically, what is going on?
Let's begin by acknowledging that we're currently experiencing a Saturn-Pluto conjunction, which is the 'backdrop' of this Lunar Eclipse (and everything else that is unfolding). As they're both slow moving planets, the conjunction lasts quite a long time, from Jan 2018 - Dec 2021, with the exact conjunction occurring from Dec 2019 - Jan 2020 ... so, we're right in the thick of it, now!
Saturn and Pluto are both powerful archetypes, and their alignments tend to coincide with apocalyptic and doomsday scenarios. (Remember the overwhelming, pervasive fears of a nuclear holocaust during the Saturn-Pluto conjunction of 1981-1984? I remember having to read "Children of the Dust" back in high school, and watching many documentaries on what to expect in a "nuclear winter" scenario, should the nuclear war begin. It was a terrifying time!) Saturn-Pluto alignments bring an intensified collective awareness of dire, imminent threats to the human species and our planet, whether that's through the threat of war (political and military threats), or through harm to our planet and biosphere. These alignments are when we become more aware of "the war between man and nature."
Speaking of which, as Richard Tarnas has said, Saturn-Pluto alignments coincide with the rise of conservative social & political agendas. The Right Wing. It's when we can expect"the intensification of strenuous anti-environmental efforts on the part of corporate and political establishments." When working in its Shadow form (which it is, as it's at the South Node), this alignment tends to bring"predatory materialism and a relentless impulse for control and domination over nature."
The association of anti-environmental policies with conservative agendas; fundamentalist religious beliefs; and corporate pressure for regulatory autonomy and increased profits, becomes clearer during Saturn-Pluto alignments. (In our current conjunction, I'm thinking of the religious devotion to the Hillsong Pentecostal Church that ScoMo displays, most recently with his 'Religious Discrimination Bill'. If you remember, he literally launched his Bill in Sydney, while it was choking in smoke, without even deigning to mention the fires! His conservative views on Climate Change stem from his religious ideology.)
It's exactly what we're dealing with right now!
Looking at the Lunar Eclipse chart, we can see that the Moon (which symbolises 'the People' or 'the masses') is in Cancer at the North Node. Now, the Moon is said to rule Cancer, so She is particularly strong here. The thing that really stands out, though, is that She is opposing a LOT of other planets in Capricorn at the South Node, including the apocalyptic Saturn-Pluto conjunction - ie:
a) the Sun (untrustworthy, men in authority);
b) Saturn (old men; the government; the political & corporate establishments; 'Reality');
c) Pluto (a seemingly inexorable, indomitable force; power behind the government);
d) Jupiter (ideology; beliefs, empires); and
e) Mercury (liars, communication, voice, ways of perceiving the world).
Cancer is progressive and calls for an evolutionary step forward. The opposing sign, Capricorn, on the other hand, is committed to maintaining business as usual, and the status quo. The Cancer-Capricorn axis has always felt like the balancing of the Left and Right in politics, to me. Further, Cancer represents children, while Capricorn represents adults. Therefore, it's the youth, in particular, who are being called to stand up against the older generations, now. This is archetypally present in the fact that these protests were organised by university students, and that so many children were at the event with their placards, too.
A little more astrology … The North Node in a chart shows what needs to be strengthened and developed in order to balance and release the dysfunctional, Shadow energy being held at the South Node. In this moment, Life Force energy is surging to the Moon at the North Node in Cancer, calling for humanity to collectively take an evolutionary step away from Capricorn, which has held us enthralled for far too long, and has caused great damage to our society and to our planet.
In other words, the energy of this eclipse is urging People Power (Moon at the North Node) to rise up and stand in opposition to 'the establishment' (Saturn at the South Node) and demand evolutionary change. The People are to collectively challenge the 'old men' (Saturn) and the 'untrustworthy,' 'male authorities' (Sun), and call 'BS!' on the government's (Saturn) rhetoric, policies, and lies (Mercury), as well as its ideology (Jupiter).
We're also seeing the societal vision of Reality itself (Saturn) being challenged. Australia is one of the only countries where the reality of Climate Change is still being debated, and it's hindering our collective ability to just get on with the work of actually addressing it. As Greens Senator Mehreen Faruqi said at the rally, "Scott Morrison and his mates" need to be shaken out of their "climate denying stupor."
(Looking beyond Australia for a moment, this weekend has also seen the announcement from Greta Thunberg that she and twenty other young activists will be attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, this month, to demand that world leaders abandon the fossil fuel economy NOW. It's the same archetypes playing out ... can you see that?)
Throw in the fact that Uranus was Stationed Direct at the time of the eclipse, and the revolutionary call to rise up against those in power is heightened even further … especially as Uranus is currently having a harmonious conversation (trine) with Mars, the planet of boldness, anger, and our ability to stand up for ourselves. Fiery Mars takes shit from no one, particularly when He's being emboldened by Uranus' energy! It's also highly worth noting that Uranus is Stationed Direct in the eclipse chart. The slower a planet is, the more powerful it is, and nothing is slower than dead stop, which is how it seems when a planet Stations. It's like Uranus is standing at a podium, commanding attention, "Everyone, listen to me!!" Uranus' wildcard energy, His anti-establishment, revolutionary values, as well as His capacity to bring sudden breakthroughs, have definitely been added to the mix of this eclipse.
"It can't affect me if I don't believe in astrology, though, right??"
Whether people individually "believe" in astrology or not, the Skies above are influencing us all the time. It's not like the majority of us wake each morning and study the astrological transits for the day, over breakfast, along with reading the morning paper. We don't tend to say, "Oh, look Mary! There's an eclipse, this morning. Goodness … the Moon is opposing a lot of planets in Capricorn. And Uranus has Stationed, too! It looks like it'll be a fine day for a protest. Shall we? Do you know if there's one in town for us to join?"
And I highly doubt the XR organisers of the protests sat down with an Electional Astrologer to determine the 'best date for a protest'. As cool as that would be, that's not how it really happens. Without a conscious knowledge of the planetary alignments taking place, we simply feel inspired to do or say something in any given moment.
So, without really knowing why, 'the masses' simply felt the call of the Lunar Eclipse and Uranus' Station to rise up in vast numbers in protest against the establishment. Hence, Friday's rallies.
We saw tens of thousands of Australians take to the streets to attend Climate Change rallies nation-wide. Let's look at the public's response, mentioned earlier, through an astrological lens. The public's (Moon) poisonous outrage (Mars) at the Australian government's (Saturn) inaction on Climate Change; their inept political response to our bushfire crisis (which is anchored in the government's climate-denying ideology - Jupiter); and demanded better funding for our firefighters. A huge, central banner equated the government's inaction with mass murder of current and future generations.
With chants like, "ScoMo has got to go!" and carrying homemade placards that said things like, "Denial is not a Policy!", "Quiet Australians are Getting LOUD!!", and "Not OK, Boomer!" (ie: challenging the older (Saturn), baby-boomer generation), the masses made sure their voices of resistance and opposition were heard. They had no interest in being one of ScoMo's 'quiet Australians'!
And our protestors weren't alone ... protesters across Europe stopped traffic in London, Berlin, Madrid, Copenhagen and Stockholm in support of Australia's Climate Change rallies. Wow! (Paris was busy with its own protests against their government.)
Photo credits: Jenny Evans and Ian Curry
Reclaiming the Voice of the People
In the lead up to Friday's rallies, the government, political commentators, and the police were all issuing statements that the protests shouldn't go ahead. (Of course they were!)
"The timing of this protest probably could not be worse if we are serious about supporting the communities impacted by fire,” said North West Metro Region acting assistant commissioner Tim Hansen, about the Melbourne rally.
As many rightfully pointed out on social media, though, the public wasn't told to stay at home on New Year’s Eve (in the height of the bushfire crisis), nor was there a call from the government or the police to cancel the cricket, despite both of these events entailing significant police resources.
The simple fact is, authorities will never think it's a good time to protest! They don't want our voices to be heard! Why do you think they've put so many laws in place now, cracking down on peaceful protest? The government is prosecuting whistle-blowers (Witness K), and is also raiding media outlets, trying to stem the free flow of information which is the lifeblood of a true democracy. They're also forcing tech companies to hand over all the data they have on their customers. (Capricorn abuse of power much??)
This is why Australia was recently downgraded from an 'open democracy', to a 'narrowed democracy', by the CIVICUS Monitor.
(The CIVICUS Monitor is a collaboration between human rights organisations around the world, that assesses the democratic freedoms of 196 countries.)
Were you aware that happened, last month? The Left has been campaigning against these new laws etc, to no avail. And it's now official - we no longer live in an open democracy. Thanks, Right. (Sarcasm, in case you can't tell.)
As Tom Clarke of the Human Rights Law Centre has warned, “Powerful politicians and their corporate backers don’t always respect the rights of individual people or communities."
With the Moon in opposition to Mercury and Saturn in the eclipse chart, the people (Moon) are being urged to stand against the voice (Mercury) of the establishment and of those in a position of authority (Saturn). We need to reclaim the voice of the People! Unfortunately, many people commented that, while they wanted to attend the rallies, they felt compelled to comply with the voices of the establishment. They weren't strong enough to stand in opposition. Many tens of thousands of others, though, were strong enough, and did heed the Moon's call.
One more thing … Political journalist Barrie Cassidy tweeted, “Yes. The protesters’ hearts are in the right place but their heads are not. The timing of this is counter-productive and plays into the hands of those who criticise them. So why do it now?”
Why?? Because Life itself has decreed this to be the 'right' moment to rise up against the establishment and be heard.
And further, the Moon represents our hearts and our emotions. Mercury represents our heads, our logic. With the Moon at the North Node, opposing Mercury at the South Node, Life is asking us to drop into our heart-based wisdom and to act from that space, rather than being constrained by our head's cool, rational logic.
David and Goliath
Many may ask, "But what can the People do in the face of the establishment??? It's too powerful! It's impossible!" (ie: Pluto's seemingly indomitable force.)
To them, I offer Ursula K Le Guin's insightful and encouraging words, “We live in capitalism. Its power seems inescapable. So did the Divine Right of Kings. Any human power can be resisted and changed by human beings."
Now is such a time in history.
It will be interesting to see how this continues to unfold throughout 2020. This is just the beginning ... We're waiting for Jupiter to join the Saturn-Pluto conjunction later this year.
I hope this was helpful in understanding the protests through an archetypal lens, and why they're happening, now? If you have any questions or insights, I'd love to read them!
Peace and Blessings
Juliette xo
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