On June 20th the Sun moves into Cancer and hours later the Moon conjuncts the Sun. In other words, the New Moon takes place Mid-Summer. This is not just a New Moon, it’s an eclipse. An annular Solar eclipse. With an annular Solar eclipse the shadow of the Moon almost completely covers the Sun, only leaving an outer ring of fire. The word annular comes from the Latin word annulus meaning ring. Annular eclipses are strong!
Usually I write horoscopes for the New Moon articles. Unfortunately, I can’t offer you horoscopes this time. Part because I didn’t have the time to write them because of other priorities in life. Part because there is so much going on in the heavens above right now, which all deserves attention in this article. So, I also had to spend a lot of time on the astrology in general and this article, again, is a long one. 2020 is an intense year for sure, on Earth and also reflected in the cosmos. So in this article I offer you in depth information on the upcoming eclipse and I also guide you through the astrology between this New Moon eclipse and the Full Moon eclipse in the beginning of July. Though I wasn’t able to write horoscopes, I can and will give you a few clues to help you figure out what this eclipse might be about for you.
Ending the Cancer – Capricorn chapter with a bang
The New Moon / Solar Eclipse at 0 degrees Cancer 8.41 am CEST on June 21th is accompanied by a whole lot of other astrology. But before I’ll dive into that, I want to mention that this eclipse is the last Solar eclipse in the Cancer-Capricorn axis. Since 2018 a series of eclipses has taken place in the signs Cancer and Capricorn. In May 2020 the nodes of the Moon moved from this axis into the Gemini and Sagittarius axis. The eclipses that will follow in December and in 2021 will take place in Gemini and Sagittarius (the first one was on June 5th, giving us a little introduction of what’s to come in this next chapter of eclipses). So, the eclipse coming Sunday is the last Solar eclipse on the Cancer – Capricorn axis (followed by a last Lunar eclipse on this axis in July). As a human collective we are changing chapters, but personally too. For more information check out this article that I wrote on eclipses: click here.
As I mentioned this is a strong Solar eclipse, being annular and so close to the north node (which is at 29 degrees Gemini). In other words, the Cancer – Capricorn eclipse chapter goes out with a bang! This eclipse is extra noteworthy if you have the ascendant, midheaven or any personal planets close to 0 degrees Cancer, Libra, Capricorn or Aries (I would say within 2 degrees or maybe 3 degrees). This eclipse is also one to watch if the eclipse chapter thus far has been impactful for you (having experienced previous eclipses in close proximity to important spots in your birth chart). The energy of an eclipse builds up in the week before and diminishes in the week after. So, it isn’t felt on just the day of the eclipse but can also be felt in the days surrounding the eclipse. The energy is most intense on the day of the eclipse. The impact of the eclipse and the changes it brings can ring out over a span of six months; acting like a paragraph in the bigger eclipse chapter that usually lasts about a year and a half and sometimes two years.
One way of practicing astrology is by working with archetypes. Cancer the sign of the Mother and the womb; providing safety, care, nurture, and initiating emotional bonds. Capricorn the sign of the Father; known for authority, discipline, setting boundaries and building solid structures. Since 2018 there have been eclipses bounding off between Cancer and Capricorn; with the north node in Cancer and the south node in Capricorn. For the collective this meant we were pushed into a letting go, changing and restructuring of groups and societies in terms of emotional closeness and physical distance. This chapter is coming to an end. A new chapter of eclipses started in the Gemini – Sagittarius axis, with the north node in Gemini and the south node in Sagittarius. Gemini is known as the twins; two faced, flexible, a gatherer and disperser of facts, having multiple conversations at once. Sagittarius is the archer, philosopher or sage; spreading wisdom far and wide while traveling the world. This new chapter, for the human collective, is about letting go of fundamentalist ways of thinking, daring to change perspective and adopting new points of view. It is also about focusing on communications nearby and less about traveling the globe. To get a clue on what these chapters are about for you personally, apart from the human collective: look at the houses these signs are on. The topics that correlate to the houses are ‘illuminated’ by the eclipses.
Astrology on Mid-Summer, the Solar Eclipse
The New Moon Solar eclipse takes place at zero degrees Cancer. Co present are Mercury retrograde at 14 degrees Cancer and Vesta at 8 degrees Cancer. The eclipse takes place Mid-Summer, in the northern hemisphere the moment in year when we have the longest day and shortest night. Right across the eclipse, in Capricorn, we have Pallas retrograde at 27 degrees, Jupiter retrograde at 25 degrees and Pluto retrograde at 24 degrees. In other words, this eclipse doesn’t happen in isolation. This eclipse happens while there is a lot happening in the same sign and in the sign opposite of it. Not to forget that 2020 is a year with a lot of stuff happening in Capricorn; starting in January with the Saturn x Pluto conjunction in Capricorn in the same weekend as the Lunar Eclipse in Cancer, opposite from it (the weekend the first death of Covid-19 was reported). In different ways this eclipse is related to that one. Not only because the effects of eclipses ring out over six months; by now we will need to see some kind of ‘culmination’ of the eclipse in January. Also, because the previous eclipse in Cancer happened across ‘major stuff’ in Capricorn. This eclipse also happens across ‘major stuff’ in Capricorn. The stuff being a little different and a little less major. The eclipse being more ‘major’, however. This eclipse follows on all of that and signifies a push into a different future. What we do with it, whether we use it to build a better future or not, is up to us.
So, the Moon and Sun align in Cancer with Vesta close by. Vesta is the asteroid Goddess that keeps and protects the sacred fires. There is no transformation without burning. Vesta doesn’t just holds the light that is present in our hearts and souls. Vesta holds the power of transformation, the power of magic. Power that we so much need to tap into at this moment. The first half year of 2020 has been intense. There is still a lot to come. We are running a marathon and not a sprint. When it comes to anti-racism work, when it comes to restructuring the world after Covid-19, when it comes to bringing down patriarchy. All of it. It takes work, patience, blood, sweat and tears. If we want to keep going and if we want to transform the world, we need to tap into the sacred fire. We need to fuel it, raise it high, warm our hearts by it and feed our passion with it.
Mercury is retrograde in Cancer and at 14 degrees when the Solar eclipse will take place. Mercury, being under the ruling of the Moon and in the same sign with her, will be affected by the eclipse. (For more info, check the previous article, in which I share my insights on this Mercury retrograde period.) At the same time, the Moon can’t ignore the presence of Mercury in her own home. This eclipse will ask us to review the Cancer x Capricorn themes in the collective. Do we want to distinct from one another or do we want to bond? Do we separate or do we care? Do we dare to be vulnerable and feel into one another or do we keep our hearts safe but closed and cold?
Upcoming astrology
After June 21th and while the energy of the eclipse still needs to work itself out, some major transits are taking place. All these transits bring their own different energies. Don’t be surprised if life will feel like a rollercoaster; moments of emotional release, sadness, bursts of energy, acts of love, moodiness, passion, lust, joy and rage all following on each other like shots blending into an overwhelming cocktail. Pleasurably intoxicating for some. Nauseating and painful for others. Below I’ll share my insights on all transits in general and apart from each other. How delicious or distasteful the cocktail ends up to be for you, depends a lot on your personal life and chart.
These are the major transits between now and the Full Moon Penumbral Lunar eclipse in Capricorn:
- June 25th 8.48 am CEST Venus direct 5 degrees Gemini
- June 28th 3.45 am CEST Mars enters Aries
- June 30th 7.46 am CEST Jupiter retrograde conjunct Pluto retrograde 24 degrees Capricorn
- July 2nd 1.37 am CEST Saturn retrograde enters Capricorn
June 25th 8.48 am CEST Venus direct 5 degrees Gemini
After six weeks of moving retrograde, Venus stations direct. The Goddess of love, beauty and pleasure is reborn. From evening star to morning star; this Venus is youthful and ready to go out there. Which doesn’t mean the Earth gets showered in love and pleasure. There is so much other rough astrology. But for some of us, especially Taurus and Libra rising / Venus / Sun / Moon, this might feel like a breath of fresh air, at least for the moment.
If there were any relationship or love related struggles / questions that popped up in the beginning of the retrograde period (May) or maybe even during the pre-shadow period (April – May) they have probably been clarified a lot in the past two weeks. Clarification in love doesn’t necessarily means a joyful resolution or positive answer; it means some kind of resolution or some kind of answer. Venus retrograde is about reviewing relationships (romantic / friendship /self / otherwise) and love related topics in life with the purpose of realignment and moving forward. Apart from reviewing relationships, the topics related to the part of your chart that contains Gemini were under evaluation or reconstruction. That part of your chart went through some sort of rebirthing process. Which is, again, not always pleasant. But it may also have been exciting for you. Either way, Venus has just started a new cycle. The Goddess of Love has renewed energy and will bring new possibilities. Think back to May / June 2012, that was the last time Venus was retrograde in Gemini. Are there similarities between the past months and those months in 2012? And, what did those happenings back then initiate either in life circumstances or in yourself?
June 28th 3.45 am CEST Mars enters Aries
Mars moves out of the flowy waters of Pisces into his home sign Aries. Mars in Pisces is all about inspired but unfocused energy that ebbs and flows. Mars in Aries knows what he wants, is fired up and goes at it. Good chance during end of June we will feel energized. We may suddenly experience new passion or a burst of energy to fight for a certain cause. This energy won’t last the whole period Mars is in Aries. Mars stays in Aries for a long time, because he has a retrograde period coming up. Mars stays in Aries for about six months. That is insanely long. This transit begins with energy and passion. Think hot and fast ‘wham bam thank you ma’am’ sex. Think passionate soldiers fighting for a (good) cause. Think the courage to make bold and courageous decisions. All this directed energy feels very welcome. However, in the next six months Mars in Aries will also bring us irritation, frustration and maybe even anger. We will also experience lack of energy and lack of courage when Mars is retrograde.
June 30th 7.46 am CEST Jupiter retrograde conjunct Pluto retrograde 24 degrees Capricorn
Jupiter and Pluto meet up with each other three times in 2020. They were conjunct in April and they will be conjunct again in June and November. When Jupiter and Pluto are conjunct, we are asked to go into the depth of what matters. To release and purge untruthful fundamentalist views, philosophies that are toxic and unjust. It’s highly unique that Jupiter and Pluto meet up three times in a year. The conjunction happens three times because both planets are retrograde at the moment. This just shows how much work there is to be done in the collective when it comes to our life philosophies. The cosmos is urging us three times in one year to purge toxic unjust but held true belief systems. Usually the conjunction only happens once every thirteen years.
Especially with this upcoming conjunction on June 30th, processes of reviewing and rethinking are much more prevalent due to both the planets being retrograde (as well as Mercury). Jupiter x Pluto conjunctions can bring wisdom, insight and healing. They can also bring strive and maybe even war. When we are able to do the reviewing; when we are able to let go of that what is toxic; to do the work and reflect on our behavior and ways of thinking. Then this process will result in healing and wisdom. When we fail to take an honest look at ourselves and don’t dare to take a look at our inner darkness, the result will be struggle and strive. Jupiter x Pluto conjunctions are never easy. No conjunction with Pluto is every easy. Because Pluto is all about entering the underworld, the uncomfortable darkness. We can journey out of the underworld released from the darkness and reborn as one with more wisdom and guided by inner light. We can also re-enter the world haunted by our own demons if we haven’t managed to release them in the underworld. Whatever way the process manifests is very much up to our own willingness and capability to handle the darkness in ourselves.
“The nature of Pluto is similar to that of the Hindu god Shiva, the creator and destroyer. Pluto usually begins by breaking down a structure; then it creates a new one in its place. This entire cycle of death, destruction and renovation is accompanied by tremendous powers, for Pluto is not a mild or even very subtle planetary influence.” (R. Hand, Planets in Transit, p. 477) Whatever needs to die and be reborn depends on the planet that Pluto conjuncts. Earlier this year Pluto was conjunct Saturn in Capricorn; meaning the death of the ways societies are organized (financial, infrastructure, travel, healthcare, justice system, etc.). Pluto conjunct Jupiter in Capricorn points to the death and needed rebirth of philosophies and ways of thinking relating societal structures and dynamics. In other words: the belief systems that determine the ways we organize our societies and that determine the ways we interact with each other.
July 2nd 1.37 am CEST Saturn retrograde enters Capricorn
The last few years Saturn was at home in Capricorn. In March this year Saturn moved into his other home in the sign Aquarius. In May Saturn stationed retrograde and now he will re-enter Capricorn. Saturn retrograde in Capricorn will bring about circumstances in the collective (and our individual lives) that force us to deal with, confront and take responsibility for the structures in the human world that are not aligned with the intention of the cosmos.
Saturn brings karma to the table. Saturn is our teacher. Saturn shows us where we have something to learn. Saturn asks us to take responsibility, to show up, to work hard, to be honest and modest. Saturn transits, just like Pluto transits, aren’t easy. But they can bring about so much good. If we are willing to do the work. (For more info and horoscopes on Saturn in Capricorn and Aquarius, click here.)
With Saturn going back into Capricorn and staying there till mid-December, he offers us one last final lesson concerning the Saturn in Capricorn themes we have been dealing with in the last few years. For the collective this means that Saturn will ask us to review the structures of our society and specifically themes like patriarchy and capitalism that are both Saturnian and even Capricorn related themes. With Saturn re-entering Capricorn it might very well be possible that Saturn related themes from January – mid March show up again or are asked for review; one of those themes being Covid-19. With Saturn re-entering Capricorn I also suspect the economy will be getting some hits. This transit won’t be easy. This transit will serve us the karma we deserve. I hope we will deal with it in a good way; so we can build a better world.
Astrology is sometimes called the study of fate and fortune. Astrology is based on the assumption that there is a correlation between what happens above and below. It doesn’t assume causation. It doesn’t state all is determined and that there is no free will. I like to believe that we humans do have a free will. We often can’t decide the cards we get. Life just deals them to us. But we do get to decide how to play the cards. The astrology of 2020 is challenging. We get some pretty difficult cards this year. But, if we play them well, we can play them out and get better cards in return.
July 5th 6.44 am CEST Full Moon Penumbral Lunar eclipse 13 degrees Capricorn
On July 5th the Full Moon takes place in Capricorn. I will get back to you with more information the Full Moon in the days leading up to it. Much love! X Maud