Buckle up and batten down, my babies.
A full moon is rising and with it the most emotionally taxing eclipse of the year.
The full moon lunar eclipse arrives on May 5, 2023 at 11:14 a.m. EST, at 14 degrees of Scorpio, the sign of death and regeneration, intimacy and underbellies, sex and power, control and release.
This is the final Scorpio eclipse of the Taurus/Scorpio cycle that began in November 2021. It’s Scorpio’s last lesson before leaving us and this fixed water loves a mic drop, a plot twist, and most of all anything and anyone returning from the dead. It’s here to incite, to heal and to help us close the circle, turn the page, cut and cauterize. It’s also coming in hot and heavy on the heels of the April 20th new moon solar eclipse in Aries that initiated a new era of challenge and change.
During a lunar eclipse, the earth stands between the sun and the moon. Scrap your Bonnie Tyler karaoke plans as this week’s full moon lunar eclipse in Scorpio is a penumbral rather than total eclipse. Penumbral is derived from the Latin words paene, meaning “almost” and umbra meaning, “shadow.” In kind, a penumbral eclipse will see the earth’s shadow (which sounds like a Christian rock band) slightly shading, rather than fully darkening, the face of the moon.
Fixed signs, fit to be tied
The focus here is on what is buried, and themes of rot and renewal, endings and beginnings.
Full moons charged moments of culmination and eclipses serve to amplify that energy. Scorpio rules the eighth house of sex, death and transformation as well as the reproductive and excretory systems and the sacral chakra. The focus here is on what is buried, and themes of rot and renewal, endings and beginnings. Transformation does not come from stagnation, neigh, it comes from a serious and often seriously disruptive catalyst. In regards to the hoarder, ‘my precious’ mentality of the Taurus/Scorpio axis, this eclipse provides an opportunity for purging of all sorts and invites us to prioritize passions over possessions. Helpful mantra: we are not what we have or who we want.
On that note, Scorpio is the patron sign of obsession (sorry, not sorry) and this eclipse points to patterns, compulsions and behaviors that we repeat but reap no reward from. This eclipse want’s you to cut that s–t out. Scorpio is about what we keep hidden from others so these obsessions, underlying energies, personal pains and anxious attachments are for us to identify, expose, politely thank and heartily cast out.
Add to the moon mix that we are currently experiencing not one but TWO planetary retrogrades; trickster communication planet Mercury is retrograding in Taurus and death daddy planet Pluto is backspinning in Aquarius. Not for nothing folks, all of this unrest and activation is happening in the grudge holding, pry it from my cold dead hands motherf—er, modality of fixed signs.
South node, primal responses and oceanic feels
Remember that reconciliation is release and forgiveness its own kind of revenge.
This is a south node eclipse; in astrology the south node is related to past life experiences and the skills acquired and traumas endured therein. It is not logical but primal. It acts from a place of familiar fear and it speaks to karmic baggage, limited beliefs, indoctrination, internalized bulls–t and other such detritus that bubbles up and needs brushed off. The south node is where we’ve been but it ain’t where we are going.
It is important to note that the traditional ruler of Scorpio is Mars, planet of war and will, action and aggression. The gladiator planet is currently moving through Cancer, its least favorite place to be and the sign that points most directly to the past and its pains. Mars in Cancer is about memory and how we relate to anger and defense. The double emo influence of these two past leaning water signs provided the impetus for us to go deep and heal big. Be brave and remember that reconciliation is release and forgiveness the ultimate upper hand.
The eclipse is also opposing punk rock, shock jock planet Uranus some real wild card, anything goes energy and equal parts exciting and terrifying. Uranus exists to shake us free, to force disruption so that we might see how we have become complacent, and especially with Taurus ruling the skies, how our own comfort might be a cage. It’s the ice bath, gut punch and pulled rug that we never want but invariably need.
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Numerology and the magic of five
In numerology the number five is considered a source of unruly magic, sought freedom and necessary rebellion and this eclipse is going down on Friday May 5th, 2023, IE the fifth day of the week, fifth day of the month and fifth month of the year.
In numerology the number five is considered a source of unruly magic, freedom and rebellion and this eclipse is going down on Friday May 5th, 2023, IE the fifth day of the week, fifth day of the month and fifth month of the year. Five is associated with the older than dirt symbol of the pentacle or pentagram, a five pointed star that represents the four elements of life and the fifth, governing force of spirit.
The arrangement indicates that in the divine order of the world, the material is subject to the spiritual. This is especially apt when we consider that this is the final eclipse in the Taurus/Scorpio axis which negotiates the balance and interchange between nourishment and depletion, death and growth, pleasure and pain, the physical and the psychic. As with all zodiac polarities, the lesson lies not in considering these energies as oppositional but integral to our understanding of ourselves and how we relate to security and scarcity, reception and release.
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How to thrive
In light (and under the shadow of) this eclipse the focus is most certainly on release and getting to the critical degree of culmination before becoming. We are the totality of our lived experiences so release is not about forgetting, but forging.
How to make the most of ,and make nice with this cataclysmic energy? Do not fight the end and look ever forward to the after, remember that he difference between doom and destiny is a matter of perspective The way out is forward, stay hydrated, stay hopeful. Because this eclipse is active in a fixed sign, signs of this modality; Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius will feel its effects most acutely. Look to the area of your birth chart ruled by Scorpio to learn more about where and how these lessons, endings and shifts will play out in your life. For more information, read your May horoscopes here.
Astrology 101: Your guide to the star
- The 12 zodiac signs
- What are the astrology houses
- Here’s what each planet represents
- Sun, moon and rising signs: Get to know your Big 3
Astrologer Reda Wigle researches and irreverently reports back on planetary configurations and their effect on each zodiac sign. Her horoscopes integrate history, poetry, pop culture and personal experience. She is also an accomplished writer who has profiled a variety of artists and performers, as well as extensively chronicled her experiences while traveling. Among the many intriguing topics she has tackled are cemetery etiquette, her love for dive bars, Cuban Airbnbs, a “girls guide” to strip clubs and the “weirdest” foods available abroad.
