Archive for the ‘Eclipses’ Category

Full Moon in Taurus / Partial Lunar Eclipse – Oct. 28, 2023, 20:24 UT

Saturday, October 28th, 2023

The Full Moon at 5+ degrees of Taurus is a partial lunar eclipse. Eclipses occur twice a year during the period that is called an eclipse season. There are usually two eclipses during the season, one solar and one lunar. A lunar eclipse occurs at the Full Moon when the Earth is between the Sun and the Moon and the shadow of Earth obscures the disc of the Moon either totally or partially. A solar eclipse in Libra two weeks ago is now followed by a lunar eclipse in Taurus. The Sabian symbol for the eclipse degree is A bridge being built across a gorge.

Full Moon / Partial Lunar Eclipse in Taurus

At the lunar eclipse we may be emotionally touchy. The eclipse is said to be a turning point that allows us to have a fresh start. Quoting Demetra George, ”During a lunar eclipse, it is the past, symbolized by the Moon, which is obscured and can be released. In the absence of the conditioning of the past, the possibility emerges of meeting experiences in a new manner.” (Demetra George, Finding our Way Through the Dark, 1994)

The Sun is in the emotional, intense and transformative sign of Scorpio. Besides the Moon, there are Jupiter and Uranus in Taurus. Uranus is in conjunction with a peculiar little body 39P/Oterma. In the past 39P/Oterma has went through a transformation, and in the future its orbit probably will be transformed again.

39P/Oterma is a Chiron-type comet currently on a centaur-like orbit contained between Jupiter and Saturn. This small family of comets is named after its largest member Chiron, officially designated as both a comet and a centaur, which blurs the line between minor planets and comets. 39P/Oterma’s diameter is around 4 – 5 km and the orbital period is nearly 20 years.

Comets are named after their discoverers. 39P/Oterma was discovered by the Finnish astronomer Liisi Oterma on April 8, 1943, in Turku, Finland. The letter P in the name stands for a periodic comet. It was discovered while it was an active comet. A close approach to Jupiter on April 12, 1963, put it on its current inactive centaur orbit. It came to perihelion in July 2023. According to Wikipedia, the orbit of 39P/Oterma keeps its overall characteristics at least until the beginning of the 24th century.

The comet was discovered in 1943 at 4º 50’53” Libra (the Sabian Symbol: ”A man teaching the true inner knowledge”). The close approach to Jupiter in 1963 that put it on its centaur orbit occurred at 1º 37’15” Aries in conjunction with Jupiter (the Sabian Symbol: ”A comedian entertaining a group”).

In astrology the planets can be divided into three groups: the personal planets (Mercury, Venus and Mars), the social planets (Jupiter and Saturn), and the transcendental planets (Uranus, Neptune and Pluto). The social planets Jupiter and Saturn connect the individual with society and represent the interaction between the individual and the larger world. 39P/Oterma’s orbit between Jupiter and Saturn suggests that its influence is connected to a person’s participation in the world at large.

In the standard Finnish language there is currently no such word as ”oterma”. The name is possibly derived from an old Finnish word ”ota”, which means wild hay. It could also mean a thorn or a spear. There is Lake Oterma and Oterma village in the Northern Ostrobothnia. The area is old Sami residential area. Since there isn’t any mythology behind the name of the centaur 39P/Oterma, perhaps these subtle clues help the astrological delineation.

New Moon in Aries / Annular Total Solar Eclipse – Apr. 20, 2023, 04:13 UT

Wednesday, April 19th, 2023

The New Moon in Aries on Apr. 20, 2023, is a solar eclipse, the first eclipse of the year and a rare and intriguing one in several ways.

A solar eclipse occurs usually twice a year when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, and all three bodies are in line. A total eclipse occurs when the Moon completely obscures the light of the Sun. When the Sun and the Moon are exactly in line with Earth, but the apparent size of the Moon is smaller, a bright ring of the Sun appears around the Moon, and the eclipse type is called an annular eclipse. A partial eclipse occurs when the Sun and Moon are not exactly in line with the Earth and the Moon only partially obscures the Sun. This current eclipse in Aries belongs to the extraordinary fourth type of solar eclipses, a hybrid eclipse.

Sometimes an eclipse can shift between annular and total. It is called a hybrid eclipse, an extremely rare phenomenon, which will only happen a few times per century. It will happen only four more times this century. This annular total solar eclipse is visible in Australia and Indonesia. However, the transition from annular to total and back again occurs at two remote locations at sea.

Solar Eclipse in Aries

This hybrid solar eclipse takes place in the last degree of Aries. It is square to Pluto, which recently entered Aquarius. The Moon enters Taurus right after the eclipse and the Sun follows a few hours later. A powerful transformative shift can be expected. Mars is the ruler of Aries and Venus is the ruler of Taurus. The eclipse is in aspect to both planets. It is in quintile to Mars in Cancer and novile to Venus in Gemini.

The quintile (72°) is generally considered as the aspect of creativity. When we divide the chart circle (360°) by five we get the quintile. Robert Hand has written about the five-series aspect family: “All these aspects seem to have a quality that we usually associate with Pluto, with overtones of Venus and Mars.” Dane Rudhyar has described the novile (40°), which is the division of the circle by nine, like this: “At the level of the Nine, the individualized person discovers and envisions the meaning and purpose of what he or she is.” According to him, the novile can lead to personal rebirth.

Each solar eclipse is a member of a particular eclipse family, a Saros series, which has certain characteristics. Each series will run for well over a thousand years and produce a solar eclipse every 18 years. We can study the characteristics of a particular Saros series by delineating its birth chart or by searching similarities between events that have occurred 18 years apart at the time of the eclipses. The word saros means repetition. The current eclipse chart has the same distinguishable flavour as the initial eclipse of this Saros in 1103 had.

The Saros series is number 7 North. The initial eclipse was in Libra opposite Pluto in Aries, and occurred on the Venus/Mars midpoint. Astrologer Bernadette Brady has delineated it as follows: “A very sensual family of eclipses, ranging from sudden sexual passions and lust to birth and procreative drives. This series is not subtle, and can catch people off guard and confront them with their own very deep passion which may have been hidden for many years.”

The solar eclipse in Aries is in conjunction with a tiny near-Earth asteroid ꞌAylóꞌchaxnim, which remained hidden until January 2020. It is the first and so far the only asteroid known to have an orbit completely within Venus’s orbit. The name means ‘Venus girl’ in the indigenous Luiseño language of southern California. The name celebrates the location of the discovery. The orbital period around the Sun is about 150 days. At about 4.1 million years from the present, ʼAylóʼchaxnim will most likely collide with Venus. In the old times the Luiseño people called Venus as Aylucha, “that which is left over from evening till morning, food or anything of the kind.” The presence of ‘Aylóꞌchaxnim emphasizes Venus in the chart, and the fact that the transformation at hand can be built on what already exists.

Full Moon in Taurus / Total Lunar Eclipse – Nov. 08, 2022, 11:02 UT

Tuesday, November 8th, 2022

The Full Moon in the middle degrees of Taurus is an intense total lunar eclipse. The oppositon of the Sun and the Moon is exactly aligned with Mercury-Uranus opposition. Saturn in Aquarius squares the aforementioned planets and adds challenge.

Full Moon in Taurus
A lunar eclipse works often a bit like Uranus, shaking us emotionally. Taurus, Scorpio and Aquarius are fixed signs, which are not keen on change. This eclipse disrupts their stability. Taurus is very concerned with security. The Moon represents our instictual reactions, memories, and what we need to feel safe. Uranus can strike like a thunderbolt. It is revolutionary and unpredictable. Uranus is also the liberator that can free one from something that has become a burden.

In Scorpio there is intensity. Mercury is the planet of communication, travels and commerce. It is also the messenger between our conscious mind and the unconscious. There can be a shift in one’s economical situation, in values, or in relationships. Try to be considerate in your communication now.

New Moon in Scorpio / Partial Solar Eclipse – Oct. 25, 2022, 10:49 UT

Tuesday, October 25th, 2022

The Sun has entered Scorpio, the sign of transformation, passion and strength. The New Moon in early Scorpio is an intense solar eclipse. This is a partial solar eclipse. It will be visible from large parts of Europe, Africa and Asia, if weather permits. Two major cycles are merged now, namely the monthly lunation cycle and the Venus cycle.

The Sun and the Moon are in conjunction with Venus and dwarf planet Haumea, two planets associated with fertility. Venus is in the same degree with the luminaries. The Roman goddess Venus is associated with love, beauty, desire and sex. Astrologically Venus symbolizes that what we appreciate and value, and our relationships. Haumea is the Hawaiian goddess of childbirth and fertility. She can take many different forms and her children sprang from different parts of her body.

Partial Solar Eclipse in Scorpio
The New Moon is always a conjunction of the Sun and the Moon, and it is the starting point of a new cycle. It is a good moment for fresh starts and new beginnings. A solar eclipse occurs usually twice a year when the Moon obscures the Sun’s disc either totally or partially. An eclipse is considered more powerful than the ordinary New Moon.

Each solar eclipse is a member of a particular eclipse family, which has certain characteristics. These series of eclipses are called the Saros series. Each series will run for well over a thousand years and produce a solar eclipse every 18 years when the Sun, Moon, Earth and nodes of the Moon have returned to the same positions relative to each other. We can study the characteristics of a particular Saros series by delineating its birth chart or by searching similarities between events that have occurred 18 years apart at the time of the eclipses. The word saros means repetition.

The current solar eclipse is a member of a Saros series number 6 South. The initial eclipse in 1049 was also in conjunction with Venus. Astrologer Bernadette Brady has delineated it as follows: “The eclipse series is about being forceful and taking power. It has a manic flavour about it, with great force or strength manifesting in the relationship area. Individuals experiencing this Saros Series may experience sudden events, like falling in or out of love, or sudden sexual encounters. The individual may also exert a huge effort in some group activity.”

There is precise repetition in the cycle of Venus too, but in its entirety the cycle is complex. The rose pattern, or the pentagram of Venus, is the path that Venus makes over a period of eight years observed from Earth.

The pentagram of Venus
Image: The pentagram of Venus

The exact conjunction of the Sun and Venus occurred on Oct. 22, 2022 in the last degree of Libra, together with Haumea. Venus is now on the far side of the Sun in direct motion, and the Sun is between Venus and the Earth. This is called a superior conjunction. (The inferior conjunction takes place when Venus is retrograding.) If we compare the phases of Venus to the lunation cycle, we can call this current phase “Full Venus” (and the inferior conjunction as “New Venus”). Whereas the New Moon is a fruitful time for starting new, the full phase is the time of fulfillment of that which was started.

Astrologer Anne Massey has studied the cycles of Venus thoroughly in Venus, Her Cycles, Symbols & Myths (Llewellyn Publications, 2006). The New Venus in the same sign repeats every eight years, and the Full Venus also repeats every eight years. The signs change slowly within time. Eight years ago on Oct. 25, 2014, the superior conjunction of Venus with the Sun occurred at this same position in Scorpio. According to Anne Massey, both the New and Full Venus seem to equal an eclipse in strength.

Let’s cherish things that we value, especially our relationships!

Full Moon in Scorpio / Total Lunar Eclipse – May 16, 2022, 04:14 UT

Monday, May 16th, 2022

The Full Moon in Scorpio is a total lunar eclipse. The Moon in Scorpio and the Sun in Taurus are squared by Saturn in Aquarius. Mercury turned retrograde less than a week ago in its own sign, Gemini. There are two tight conjunctions in the chart, namely Mars conjunct Neptune in Pisces and Chiron conjunct Venus in Aries, and also some interesting recent sign changes.

Full Moon in Scorpio
Jupiter entered Aries on May 10, the same day that Mercury turned retrograde. Jupiter is now in conjunction with Manwë in the beginning of Aries. They are about to start a new cycle. Manwë is a trans-Neptunian binary planet. Manwë’s ingress into Aries lasts a couple of years altogether, and it will go back and forth over the Aries point several times. The final ingress takes place in January 2023. Jupiter too is going to revisit Pisces briefly, but until late October they both will be together in Aries. In mythology both Jupiter and Manwë are sky gods and leaders of their pantheon of gods. In this respect these two planets will intensify their mutual effect while they are conjunct each other. Jupiter in itself magnifies everything it touches.

The Aries point represents contact with the larger world or publicity. The secondary progressed Sun of Finland is now in the last degree of Pisces conjunct the Aries point. Because of the changed security environment of Finland due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Finland has decided apply for membership in NATO. This is a historic shift in Finnish security policy, and we are entering a new era. The international media has widely noted our decision.

Damocles has entered Pisces recently. Like Manwë’s ingress, that of Damocles will also take time. The final ingress into Pisces on this round happens in 2025. Damocles is a peculiar little planet, like a comet without a tale. Its orbit is highly inclined and takes it from Mars to Uranus. The orbital period is almost 41 years. In the astrological chart Damocles seems to behave strangely. It spends around 30 years in Aquarius and then hurries through the rest of the eleven signs only in about ten years. The sword of Damocles is a symbol for an over-hanging threat, faced especially by those in positions of power.

On May 14 President Niinistö called President Putin, because he wanted to deal with the matter directly by speaking to his Russian counterpart. “I’m not the kind of person who just slips away around the corner,” said President Niinistö earlier. President Niinistö’s natal Sun is at 1+ degrees of Virgo, exactly opposite the transiting Damocles. Symbolically President Niinistö was looking at the threat face to face.

The Sun in Taurus is at the North node of the Moon. The North node is future oriented and conjunct the node there are three minor planets, which mythologically suit the current situation well. Lempo is named after the Finnish goddess of love and fertility. One of the Finnish words meaning love is “lempi”. Love can sometimes turn bad; it becomes “lempo”. In our unique situation the only trans-Neptunian body named from Finnish mythology is prominent. Pelion is a centaur named after the mountain where the Centaurs were said to live. Centaurs can bring some dark stuff from the psyche to the surface. They have the healing capacity too. Alicanto, the mythical bird in the darkness of the night can lead a miner to a treasure or a lost traveler to a safe place, but only if the person following the bird has a good heart. Hopefully we get to a safe place.

New Moon in Taurus / Partial Solar Eclipse – April 30, 2022, 20:28 UT

Saturday, April 30th, 2022

The first eclipse of the year is a partial solar eclipse in Taurus. A solar eclipse is more powerful than an ordinary New Moon, and this time it may feel even more so, because the Sun and the Moon are in conjunction with Uranus, the planet of sudden change and surprises. Moreover, Mars in Pisces is in sextile to the New Moon, supporting the transition. Chiron in Aries is at the midpoint of Mars and Uranus, helping to detect the area of life that needs special attention.

The Sabian symbol for the eclipse degree is Taurus 11 A woman sprinkling flowers. According to Marc Edmund Jones, “This is a symbol of the soul’s determination to give constant and tangible manifestation of its creative powers, and of its eagerness to pour itself into every potentiality of living. There is here an easy and rewarding partnership between man and nature, so that a natural profusion tends to match his inner generosity of spirit. He feels responsible for the welfare of his world, and its rewards for his interest are very great. The keyword is care.”

Partial Solar Eclipse in Taurus
The Sun, Moon and Uranus are in conjunction with 15760 Albion (1992 QB1), the first body discovered beyond Neptune after Pluto almost thirty years ago. Albion was the door leading to the unknown and it paved the way for the future. Currently the catalog of minor planets contains about 4,000 trans-Neptunian objects observed since 1993.

In Scorpio, opposite the luminaries and Uranus is 184314 Mbabamwanawaresa, another TNO. Mbabamwanawaresa is named after the Zulu goddess of rainbows, who is called on when guidance is needed to make an important decision.

Eclipses can only happen when the Sun and the Moon are at or near the Moon’s nodes. An eclipse can take place either at the North node or the South node of the Moon. This solar eclipse happens at the North node. The South node represents the past and familiar, whereas the North node is associated with the future and our potentiality. In Taurus in exact to the arcminute conjunction with the North node is the trans-Neptunian 474640 Alicanto.

Alicanto is an ETNO, an extreme trans-Neptunian object, with orbital period of more than 6,000 years. It is named after a mythical Chilean bird, whose presence is said to bring good luck. The Alicanto’s wings shine with metallic colors at night, and it can lead a miner to a treasure or a lost traveler to a safe place, but only if the person following the bird has a good heart.

The eclipse in Taurus occurs at the midpoint of the cosmic nurturer Ceres in Gemini and the visionary Neptune in Pisces. Venus has reached the Jupiter-Neptune conjunction, and now both beneficial planets, Venus and Jupiter, are in a triple conjunction with Neptune. This combination could mean compassion, romantic love, luck, visions, idealism, artistic creativity, and mystic love, for instance. Bear in mind though, that Jupiter is able to exaggerate, and Neptune can escape reality.

New Moon in Sagittarius / Total Solar Eclipse – Dec. 04, 2021, 07:43 UT

Sunday, December 5th, 2021

The New Moon in Sagittarius was a total solar eclipse at the south node of the Moon. The south node is oriented in the past. Ancestral themes can arise. The Sun and the Moon were in conjunction with Mercury and Vesta. Mercury symbolizes our intellectual activities. Vesta is a Main belt asteroid. It is brightest of the asteroids and even visible to the naked eye. It is the symbol of the eternal flame, or the sacred flame. Vesta indicates the focusing principle, and now in Sagittarius in conjunction with the Sun, the motivation for finding one’s purpose can be strong.

A solar eclipse is a powerful New Moon, and the New Moon always starts a new cycle. Sagittarius is a freedom-loving and future-oriented sign. Growth, optimism and joy can be attached to it by its sign ruler Jupiter. However, there are also some dark shadows in the chart, represented by some Kuiper belt minor planets. The eclipse was square to Aphidas and Orcus in Virgo, and Okyrhoe and Nessus in Pisces.

New Moon / Total Solar Eclipse in Sagittarius
The Sabian symbol for the solar eclipse degree is Sagittarius 13 A widow’s past brought to light. The keynote by Dane Rudhyar is: “The karma of past actions as it affects opportunities presented by a new cycle.”

Each solar eclipse is a member of a particular Saros Series. The characteristics of the series can be delineated on the grounds of the chart of the initial eclipse in the series. According to Bernadette Brady, “This is a very joyful, happy family of eclipses. There is a sense of good news, falling in love, a peak experience that is joyful in some way.” There is a Neptunian influence in this 5 New South series. Rose Lineman says that it “heightens sensitivity and reinforces psychic tendencies.”

Neptune retrogrades every year for about five to six months. Neptune has just turned direct on Dec. 1, which emphasizes the Neptunian influence of the eclipse. So does possibly the fact that the eclipse was squaring centaur Okyrhoe in Pisces. Okyrhoe is named after a prophetic nymph daughter of Chiron and Chariklo.

Centaur Nessus offers healing on issues to do with the abuse of power, and it has ancestral implications. Quoting Melanie Reinhart and Sue Tompkins: “Nessus activations correspond with times when things really do end, finish and transcend to another level, when release occurs and when the turning point is reached.”

In Greek mythology, during the battle between the Centaurs and Lapiths, the centaur Aphidas remained in a drunken sleep. One of the Lapiths killed Aphidas with a thrown spear while he slept. Withdrawal is not always the best policy, at least not if you want your inner light shine.

Orcus is a plutino and named after the Etruscan god of the underworld and punisher of broken oaths. Orcus is a transformative energy, like Pluto. According to Jeremy Neal, “rather than a metamorphosis of control needs, Orcus requires a metamorphosis of integrity.”

Asteroid Euphrosyne is conjunct Saturn in Aquarius. Euphrosyne is a large Main belt asteroid which has a small moon. It is the third-roundest known asteroid. It was named after one of the three Graces, a goddess of joy, mirth and merriment. The solar eclipse sextile Euphrosyne is suggesting that grace of joy is coming into your life, although it may first require some work and serious commitment.

Full Moon in Taurus / Partial Lunar Eclipse – Nov. 19, 2021, 08:57 UT

Friday, November 19th, 2021

The Full Moon at 27+ degrees Taurus is a partial lunar eclipse. The Moon and the Scorpio Sun are square to Jupiter and Damocles in Aquarius. The Moon is in conjunction with Sedna at 28+ degrees of Taurus. Sedna is named in honor of the Inuit goddess of the sea, who lives at the bottom of the frigid Arctic Ocean.

Partial Lunar Eclipse in Taurus
The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow has ended. The conference has been criticized a lot. The future actions will determine if it was a success or a failure. I think it is important that the leaders of the world gather on a regular basis to consider the situation.

The global warming rate is most rapid in the Northern Hemisphere. For example, since the mid-1800s, Finland’s annual average temperature has already increased by more than two degrees Celsius. In the Arctic region glaciers and sea ice are melting. The lunar eclipse in Taurus in conjunction with Sedna is emphasizing the importance of the work that all nations must do.

When Sedna was discovered in 2003, nothing of its kind had been seen before. Its orbit is extremely elongated and it takes about 11,400 years from Sedna to orbit around the Sun. The solar system turned out to be different from what we believed before. Discoverer Mike Brown has described Sedna as the most scientifically important trans-Neptunian object found, because understanding its unusual orbit is likely to yield valuable information about our Solar System.

Sedna has given its name to a population of similar kinds of distant minor bodies like itself, but so far only two besides Sedna have been discovered, namely “Biden” (2012 VP113) in 2012 and Leleākūhonua in 2015. Possibly there are many more sednoids. The sednoids belong to the category of ETNOs (the extreme trans-Neptunian objects). Astronomers suspect that a yet undiscovered planet in the outer solar system, Planet Nine, is shepherding these distant bodies into similar type orbits.

In Inuit mythology, Sedna is the goddess of the Arctic Ocean, and she rules the sea animals. If she is not respected, she sends storms and starvation. Then a shaman must visit her and comb her black tangled hair and calm her down. When she is happy again, she releases her sea creatures and allows people use them for food. The myth of Sedna is told with many variations, and according to one of them, before becoming a goddess, Sedna was a young girl with an enormous appetite, who even tried to eat her father’s arm. I can easily associate this with the greedy humankind, which is exploiting Mother Earth.

Astrologically Sedna can be linked to climate change. The World Ocean Conference 2009 raised awareness of the importance of oceans in climate change. It was an international conference held in Indonesia from May 11 to May 14, 2009, in order to develop a common understanding and firm commitment to address the impact of climate change on the state of the world’s oceans. When the conference started on May 11, the Sun was conjunct Sedna in Taurus. The big astrological event of 2009 was the triple conjunction of Chiron, Jupiter and Neptune in Aquarius. The conjunction is tight in the conference chart.


Sedna will come to perihelion in 2076. Perihelion is the point nearest to the Sun in the path of an orbiting celestial body. Hopefully the mankind has succeeded in the combat against the global warming long before, and Sedna will be happy. Cooperation was essential in Inuit culture for survival, and it is essential now for the survival of our planet.

New Moon in Gemini / Annular Solar Eclipse — June 10, 2021, 10:52 UT

Wednesday, June 9th, 2021

The New Moon in Gemini is a solar eclipse, which makes this New Moon more powerful than usual. The Moon is near its furthest point from the Earth and doesn’t completely cover the Sun, and that is why a ring of fire appears around the dark Moon. In some places the eclipse can be seen as partial. The Latin word annulus means “ring”.

Annular Solar Eclipse in Gemini
This Gemini eclipse is conjunct Mercury and centaur Bienor, and square to Neptune in Pisces. Both Mercury and Neptune are in their home signs. Planets in their own sign have strength and they are able to express themselves fully. However, Mercury is retrograding. Mercury is the planet of communication and mental processes. Mercury is concerned with traveling, transportation and commerce. All kinds of confusion, misunderstanding and delay can happen when Mercury retrogrades. The square to Neptune adds possibilities for misconceptions, because Neptune tends to dissolve what it touches. Denial, dreams, deception, and delusion dwell in the Neptunian haze. Neptune is also the planet of art, visions and sensitivity.

This eclipse belongs to the Saros cycle, which started in conjunction with Neptune, on Oct. 12, 1624. Bernadette Brady describes the cycle like this: “A very unusual Saros Series involving sudden flashes of ideas that seem to have a psychic or unconscious flavor to them. Hunches, visions, prophetic dreams are the essence of this family of eclipses. A truly creative series which should leave the individual enriched. The ideas or hunches which come from this eclipse can be acted upon.”

Rose Lineman writes: “This initial eclipse in the second decan (sub-ruled by Uranus) and eighth duad (sub-ruled by Venus as expressed in Taurus) adds refreshing accents of fair play and social concern to sign expression of eclipses belonging to this series. It also reinforces any materialistic qualities naturally present in signs of member eclipses.”

Bienor is one of the biggest centaurs. It orbits the Sun between Saturn and Uranus, grazing the orbit of Uranus. The orbital period is around 67 years. There has been speculation about a ring around Bienor, but this hasn’t been proven yet.

The name Bienor means “Strong One”. Astrologically Bienor can challenge us, and push us to do things that can seem scary because we can’t be sure of the outcome. At the same time we are excited about the novelty of the circumstances. We can break fresh ground only if we are ready to take challenges.

If you are tempted to take Bienor’s challenge now, don’t rush though. Find out about things that you are about to engage to. Read documents carefully, and review contracts several times before signing them, unless you can’t postpone the signing. Make sure that you understand everything, and be clear in your own communication, too.

Full Moon / Total Lunar Eclipse in Sagittarius — May 26, 2021, 11:14 UT

Tuesday, May 25th, 2021

The Full Moon in Sagittarius is a total lunar eclipse. The ruler of Sagittarius is Jupiter, which recently changed signs from Aquarius to Pisces, about two weeks ago.

Full Moon in Sagittarius
Another notable sign change happened only three days ago when the trans-Neptunian Manwë moved from Pisces to Aries. It is now at the Aries Point. It was named after the fictional deity in J. R. R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth legendarium. Both Jupiter and Manwë are sky gods and leaders of their pantheon. You can read more about Manwë here: The Vernal Equinox — March 20, 2021, 09:37 UT

Jupiter has a magnifying effect. In tight conjunction with Jupiter in the first degrees of Pisces is Damocles, the unusual object on an orbit of high eccentricity and inclination, crossing the orbits of Mars to Uranus. Damocles travels almost 41 years around the Sun, but in the astrological chart it spends most of that time, around 30 years, in Aquarius. Damocles entered Pisces in April and turned retrograde yesterday. It was named after a courtier of the tyrant Dionysius the Elder of Syracuse. Damocles was invited to a feast, where he was seated below a sword hanging in a thread. The ”sword of Damocles” has become a symbol of impending disaster, faced especially by those in positions of power.

In July both Jupiter and Damocles are retrograding back to Aquarius and will stay there the rest of the year.

At the moment the Europe is shocked about the hijack of a civilian airplane on Sunday. Ryanair flight 4978 from Athens to Vilnius was forcibly diverted to Minsk, Belarus, and journalist and activist Raman Protasevich, who was aboard, was arrested. The authorization of this outrageous action came personally from President Alexander Lukashenko.


The lunar eclipse at 5+ degrees of Sagittarius squares Lukashenko’s natal Sun at 6+ degrees of Virgo and the transiting Jupiter-Damocles conjunction in early Pisces opposes his Sun. The Jupiter-Damocles conjunction transits also Lukashenko’s natal Mars in early Capricorn and his Damocles in the first degree of Aquarius. Belarus declared independence on Aug. 25, 1991. The Sun of Belarus is at 1+ degrees of Virgo, and thus the current Jupiter-Damocles conjunction opposes also the Sun of Belarus.

Is the sword of Damocles finally going to hit Lukashenko? EU leaders have condemned his action and agreed on sanctions against Belarus. Lukashenko has been in office since 1994, the same year that Damocles ingressed from Capricorn to Aquarius. Hopefully the era of Lukashenko is coming to its end now that Damocles has started to change signs again.