TAURUS FULL MOON / PARTIAL LUNAR ECLIPSE - 19 November 2021

Exact at 8.52am UK time (GMT)

We are not only in Scorpio season, but are now also in Eclipse season! This is a potent time energetically, when there is the potential for the end of one chapter and the beginning of a new one. Eclipses can bring significant events or inner shifts that have a greater impact on our lives than your average Full Moon. They tend to kick start a new phase of development in whatever houses the Sun and Moon are placed in our birth chart. This is an intense Full Moon as it is, with powerful Pluto involved and the Sun, Mars and Mercury all in soulful, intensely emotional, cathartic, transforming Scorpio! This is a time of purging, letting go, releasing and shedding old skin. It is a time of fearlessly digging deep beneath the surface and facing whatever we find there, even if it’s not pretty. The Scorpio part of us isn’t afraid of the truth, no matter how dark it may be or how uncomfortable it may make us feel.

And now we have the Full Moon in Taurus, the sign opposite Scorpio. We are urged to find some balance between the energy of the two signs, rather than veering one way or the other. Taurus is the sign of Mother Earth that gives us a sense of stability and helps us feel safe and secure in the physical and material sense. However, we can get too bogged down by the material if we place too much value on it and end up in situations whereby we choose security over growth. Scorpio, on the other hand, is the energy of transformation and can sometimes pull the rug out from underneath us if we are too attached to something that is no longer healthy for us, whether it be a relationship, a job or a situation. This is a very good time to recognise where and how we may be stuck in a rut and playing it safe to the detriment of our soul growth.

Taurus represents our self-worth, our values, our relationship with ourselves, our attitude towards money and our capacity to attract what we need into our lives. This is part of us that may have survival issues, fearing loss and change and preferring to maintain the status quo and remain “secure” rather than rocking the boat. How we feel about ourselves has a direct impact on what we attract into our lives. This Moon could bring up issues around self-worth and could also bring the subject of financial security into the foreground, both on the personal and collective level. There is also the potential for Mother Earth herself to kick back, in the form of extreme weather, earthquakes or volcanoes. This is no ordinary Full Moon - it is an Eclipse, which has a much stronger impact on our lives in the long-term. It will certainly be interesting to see what occurs on the world stage in the next few weeks!

Pluto, the ruler of Scorpio, is very much involved in this lunation, as it is forming a helpful, supportive aspect to both the Sun and the Moon. This will exaggerate the Scorpio energy, helping us to confront our shadows and have the courage to face the truth of the matter rather than denying its existence. We may be prompted to face up to some uncomfortable truths, both personally and collectively, as secrets are exposed and the darker aspects of existence are revealed for what they are. There is no hiding when Pluto is at work! While he has been in Capricorn, since 2008, he has been working away at exposing the patriarchal system for what it is, revealing the flaws and corruption and anything that is simply outworn, outdated and no longer appropriate. The old world has been slowly crumbling to make way for the new. Pluto has a transforming, detoxing quality to it, and we are coming close to the end of Pluto’s long, slow, thorough detoxification of the power structures that should be complete by 2023/2024, when Pluto moves into Aquarius.

This Moon could certainly bring some power struggles, as Pluto is the planet of power, soul-growth, death and rebirth that forces us to be emotionally honest with ourselves and others. This can leave us feeling quite vulnerable and exposed, but can also deepen intimacy and bring a greater feeling of closeness. Not to mention that as we find the courage and willingness to face our shadows and the disowned parts of ourselves, we have an opportunity to move forward in a more empowered manner, with greater integrity and a much lighter step! This certainly does seem like a good opportunity to shed some skin, release old, unhealthy patterns, looking ourselves squarely in the face and not hiding from what we see in the mirror. Pluto is quite adept at stripping back the layers of self-deceit!

Anyone with personal planets or angles around 27° of a sign will feel the energy of this Moon most acutely, especially the fixed signs of Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius. Anyone with personal planets or angles around 24° of a sign, especially the Cardinal signs of Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn will have been feeling the powerful, exposing, transforming energy of Pluto, off and on, since the beginning of 2020.

Eclipses are connected to the Nodes of the Moon, as the Sun and Moon move very close to the Nodes and are more often than not in the same signs that the Nodes are in. This Moon is an exception, however. The Nodes have been in Gemini and Sagittarius since May 2020 and are getting ready to move into Taurus and Scorpio at the end of December. The theme of the Nodes for the past year and a half has been around our beliefs (Sagittarius South Node) and what is the actual truth versus what we are being made to believe. The Sagittarius part of us may have some strong convictions and an intuitive hunch about whatever is going on, but the Gemini North Node has been encouraging us to do the research necessary to find the facts and data to back up whatever we are feeling in our gut.

Similarly, our inner Sagittarius can make people very emotional and fanatical about their beliefs so that they try to convince and convert others of their version of the truth, while the Gemini North Node encourages us to be open to other people’s points of view. Gemini, the sign of “street smarts” also encourages us to listen to the word on the street versus what we are being told is the “truth” by those in authority.

There certainly have been issues around beliefs versus data in the past year or so, not to mention the data itself sometimes being misleading! Sagittarius and Gemini also brings up issues around truth and lies, which has also been a prominent theme! It is so hard to know who is telling the truth in the current climate. This is where our sixth sense comes in. It has also been hard for some people to harness their inner Gemini to find their voice and speak their truth, for fear of being shot down by people with opposing beliefs and opinions. However, this is exactly what Gemini wants us to do - to find a way of expressing our views and beliefs in a way that others are able to understand. They don’t necessarily have to accept them, but we are all entitled to our point of view and as such it is important to be open to other people’s opinions and perspectives. Gemini is quite adept at finding the right words and expressing them in a way that is palatable and doesn’t offend. Sagittarius is a bit more blunt!

With the Nodes so close to the Sun and Moon during this lunation, and coming so close to the end to the end of their stay in Gemini and Sagittarius, we could find that these themes become more intense and emotional. This is especially so with Jupiter, the ruler of the Sagittarius North Node forming a challenging square to the Sun and Moon! Those who are willing to question the status quo and listen to what their gut is telling them may feel called to do some investigation and research in order to corroborate this “inner knowing”. This could mean that they find themselves discovering things that they don’t necessarily want to know. With the Sun, Mars and Mercury, the ruler of the Gemini North Node currently in Scorpio, the sign of the detective that isn’t afraid to dig for the truth, there is the potential for some rather uncomfortable material to come to light that we might prefer not to be true.

Secrets could be exposed, people could speak out and information could be revealed that isn’t pretty and could make us wish we didn’t know! However, it is better to know the truth than live in denial. Indeed, we may say things to our loved ones that penetrate their core and reveal the heart of the matter, or we may be on the receiving end of some hard truths ourselves. As I said, Scorpio doesn’t shy away from the truth. It digs and pokes and probes , leaving no stone unturned until it brings whatever is hiding in the shadows out into the light.

Venus, the ruler of this Taurus Full Moon, is also involved in the picture. Uranus is forming a supporting trine to Venus, helping us to undo some of our conditioning around relating, self-worth and our attitude to money. Uranus is a freeing, liberating, unconventional, revolutionary energy that can help us to find an alternative and more authentic way of relating. It can also help to jolt us into a better relationship with ourselves and a greater understanding of any self-worth issues we may have. We may gain a considerable amount of insight into our approach to relationship and money, as Uranus has a “waking up” quality to it that can help see things from a different perspective.

Chiron, the Wounded Healer, is forming a challenging square aspect to Venus, so while we may gain insight we may also feel some pain come up, possibly as a result of hearing some hard truths. Indeed, Venus is in Capricorn at the moment, which makes the whole subject of relationship and commitment a rather serious matter!

The Sabian Symbol for this Moon, at 28° Taurus, is: “A woman, past her “change of life,” experiences a new love”, which Dane Ruidyar describes as “Man’s capacity to rise in consciousness and feelings above biological limitations. The symbolism stresses man’s capacity to rise above the limitations which both biological nature and the “normal” social pattern of behaviour have tried to impose upon him. The indication is that he or she should freely open his or her mind to the possibility of always new REBEGINNINGS. Ideally, the new beginning should imply a more mature response to the new possibility of experience.” This is an interesting symbol, given that this is an Eclipse, as it seems to be promising some kind of shift and an opening to new possibilities and new beginnings, but with the wisdom and maturity to make the best of it.

This could be an interesting few weeks, that’s for sure! Uranus and Saturn are also starting to move closer to their third and final square of the year that will be exact on 24 December, just as the Nodes are switching signs! Uranus, the planet of freedom, is squaring up to Saturn, the planet of control. The rebel against the authority figure, the rule breaker against the rule maker. But first we have these Eclipses, which could bring a shift in consciousness and the beginning of a new phase of development. This Moon is connected to the Taurus Full Moon/Eclipse on 19 November 2002, so it’s worth looking back to that time, because there could be an energetic resonance with that time.

During this Moon the truth could be revealed, lies exposed, shadows brought out into the light. There is much potential for purging and releasing with all of this Scorpio energy around, while Taurus reminds us to keep it simple and stay grounded, taking some delight in all that nature has to offer. Scorpio certainly brings its fair share of drama, while Taurus reminds us that life doesn’t have to be so intense! When the going gets tough Taurus gently reminds us to take care of ourselves and remember the breath, hug a tree, put our feet in the earth, enjoy some nourishing food. Small, simple yet profound acts of self-love.

Much love

Amy

xoxo   

Picture: Havoc winds and strong tree by Michelle Teague

www.amybirdartandastrology.com