Eclipses, Spring Equinox and Ocean Tides

Last updated on: March 7, 2016 at 5:00 am by Liz Fisher

Eclipses, Spring Equinox and Ocean Tides 2016-03-07T05:00:08+00:00 Liz Fisher

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This image is the work of Luc Viator / www.Lucnix.be Wikimedia Commons A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon completely covers the sun’s disk, as seen here on August 11, 1999. Solar prominences can be seen along the limb (in red) as well as extensive coronal filaments.

My earth-centered spirituality calls me to notice and respond to events in the cosmos. This month the Spring Equinox, when day and night are equal, is bookended by two eclipses. A milestone event in the celestial calendar, the Spring Equinox is an important turning point. Eclipses always occur in pairs. Having the Spring Equinox between them makes this upcoming period noteworthy.

A total solar equinox happens tomorrow, March 8th in the United States, heightening the relationships among the sun, moon, and earth. Occurring at the New Moon phase of the lunar cycle, a solar eclipse is astronomically when the moon blocks the sun’s rays from reaching the earth. Although it will not be visible in the U. S., the eclipse affects the whole globe.

Eclipses are when the moon’s influence on my psyche is intensified. The moon is cyclical, teaching that there are right times for everything. Increased emotional responses often occur during eclipse seasons. This eclipse period is potentially when we can make a great leap forward. New beginnings require appropriate endings, however. Something usually has to be removed to give room for the new.

Here are thoughts about the impact of this configuration from my favorite counselors.

Image by Suppakij1017, courtesy of Shutterstock.

This new moon is also a super moon which is when the moon is in closer proximity to the earth. Its gravitational pull has the effect of raising not only water and oceans tides, but our life tides too. Also note that a solar eclipse can be event generating not only on the actual day it happens, but in the days and weeks before and afterward. For more click: Rose Marcus Evolutionary Astrology

This eclipse is a portal for healing to take place. Use your intuition rather than your intellect to move toward or away from what may be showing up. There is big power and big support this month for stepping up and firing up something new. It is when the compassionate heart is activated. Over the last 2000-3000 years the dominance of the patriarchy severely unbalanced the masculine and feminine energies. We accumulated much to forgive and release, before we can begin to balance these two polarities. At this time the goddess as Kuan Yin, Isis, Mother Mary, the Guadalupe, and Tara gladly takes in the sufferings and woes of all and holds them in compassionate love, dissolving the burdens our human hearts are too small to carry. For more click: The Shaman School

As I explored various sources to develop the sessions in Rise Up and Call Her Name that invoked these female deities, I definitely felt their energies. Through honoring the female divine in one of her many forms, millions of people cross-culturally access their own compassionate feelings. The nature aspect of these goddesses is present in the rituals and stories that honor them. They are not separate and above nature but are intertwined as important energy sources in the interdependent web of life. By exploring beliefs about them, I was able to increase my own ability to tap into this emotional reservoir they encourage.

It has also struck me that although western contemporary pagans often see the moon as female, mythologically the sun and moon carry a variety of meanings and can be male or female depending on the historical period and the culture. Perhaps in the future acceptance of the androgynous nature of humanity will ultimately settle these contradictions.

Photo by Bob Fisher of high tide at Asilomar Beach, Pacific Grove, California.

The sun and moon also affect another natural phenomenon which carries important psychological clues, the ocean tides. The word “tides” is a generic term used to define the alternating rise and fall in sea level with respect to the land, produced by the gravitational attraction of the moon and the sun.

The most drastic tides, called spring tides, occur when the earth, moon, and sun are aligned. Therefore, during a solar eclipse, spring tides will occur. The high tides are very high and the low tides are very low. (The spring tides, as they are called scientifically, do not have anything to do with the season Spring; they are especially strong tides.) Moon Tides is a great website about the natural relationship of moon and tides.

This tells me our emotional sensitivities will also be heightened. Our receptivity to the subtleties of what is happening around us, and our ability to intuit the truth about situations from the personal to the global will be sharpened. Surrendering to the bigger picture will put threatening feelings into a more supportive perspective.

Photo of the Moon by John Vermette, Dec 21, 2010 – John’s Astro Photos, Wikimedia Commons

Then comes a Lunar Eclipse on March 23, 2016. These only happen at a Full Moon. The moon does not have its own light. It shines because its surface reflects the sun’s rays. A lunar eclipse occurs when the earth comes between the sun and the moon and blocks the sun’s rays from directly reaching the moon. This allows the moon to assert its own influence.

At this Lunar Eclipse which follows closely the Spring Equinox, because the earth is between these two magnetic bodies they assist us in uniting our intuitive and reasoning abilities, creating a supportive synthesis. Following this natural pattern, I sense the moon is reinforcing our ability to receive divine inspiration in our various chakra centers. The sun is calling us into action based on our best perceptions.

Needless to say, I am looking forward to this portal experience which has already begun since the energy from eclipses is felt before the actual event. The powerful energies of these three celestial occurrences—two eclipses straddling an equinox—will affect us for several months. (The next pair of eclipses occurs in September.) This month will give each of us added energy to begin nurturing something especially potent that means a great deal personally and globally. May we all make the most of these celestially granted opportunities.

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