Spring 2024: Navigating This World to Discover the Real You ASTROLOGICAL INSIGHTS BY MISTY KUCERIS
lunar eclipses occur, you have an innate understanding of what is re- quired to survive, especially when you’re under emotional stress. But when the eclipse is a penumbral lunar eclipse, you sense something is off kilter, yet your emotional response to this feeling is unclear. With the Sun in Aries and the Moon in Libra at this time, your emo - tional response will deal with relationships in your life. Usually during full Moon time periods you let go of situations that no longer support your needs. But since this is a penumbral lunar you can’t quite under - stand why you’re not letting go when holding on can be so painful. You may even feel frustrated and angry because you can’t seem to move on. Yet, for all of the off-kilter and askew energies this eclipse indicates, it may also represent something more important: the need to take time to understand what you’re getting from the relationship and whether the price being paid is worth it. If you can do this, you’ll be able to move on with your life at the right moment.
Brace yourself as Spring 2024 appears over the horizon and moves into your life. The next few months are one of the most intense time periods both astronomically and astrologically. Two eclipses empha- sizing the sign of Aries form the foundation for the energies you’ll experience this Spring quarter: the penumbral lunar eclipse that occurs on March 25, and a total solar eclipse that occurs on April 8. Meanwhile, other important energies are also occurring: the Spring Equinox with Sun in Aries on March 19; the change of direction with Mercury in Aries as it goes retrograde from April 1 until April 25; and Jupiter changing signs by moving from Taurus into Gemini. In general, this Spring quarter emphasizes the sign of Aries and all that goes with that sign. Spiritually, Aries represents where you take the new breath of life, discover your true identity, and find ex - periences that enable you to integrate your personality into your soul and this world. Because this energy is all about you and learning how to navigate your life in this world, you are willing to take risks without considering the consequences. You are ready to fight for your beliefs. The Spring Equinox, occuring on March 19 as the Sun enters the sign of Aries, heralds the official start of a new astrological year. You look forward to the warming of the Sun and the coming of new life. You feel excited the winter doldrums are now moving beyond you. And, with the Moon in the sign of Leo and moving away from a trine to the Sun, as well as the Sun forming a sextile to Pluto, you realize new opportunities exist that can bring more joy into your life. You feel passionate about what you want to do, and you won’t let other people stand in your way. While this passion is a gift because it’s easier to focus on your goals, Jupiter is moving into a conjunction with Uranus at this time that won’t be exact until April 20. This means other people may ques - tion your passion; or, they may present new concepts that disrupt your plans. While you want to focus on your goals right now, main- tain some flexibility in your approach. If you can do that, then when new information is presented to you between now and April 20, you’ll know how to respond. You’ll also know where making changes in your approach generates more benefits in your life. And, expect a lot of that new information to surface during the time period of the first two eclipses that are about to occur. Eclipses always evoke feelings among people. You may feel awe as you see nature shift in response to the dance played out by the Sun and Moon. Or you may experience feelings of dread as you realize just how much that dance between the Sun and Moon actually controls the re - sponse of nature in its interplay. In some instances you may not even realize the eclipse is about to occur — not because the eclipse occurs in some other part of the world, but because the eclipse, which occurs in space, is hardly, if even, registered here on earth. Meanwhile, other eclipses are of such magnitude they fool nature into believing some- thing has truly stopped the motion of the Sun and the day no longer exists. Both may seem extreme; but the two eclipses occurring this quarter represent both extremes on this spectrum. The penumbral lunar eclipse that occurs on March 25 is one of those eclipses that barely registers here on earth. While it occurs at the time of the full Moon, it occurs at the outskirts of the Earth’s shad - ow, called the penumbra. While technically the eclipse is said to be visible in most of North and South America, the Earth stands between the Moon and Sun, barely “kissing” the Moon. So, the Moon never enters the deep shadow of the Earth, the umbra, which creates a total or partial lunar eclipse. If you’re awake at 3:12:51 am EDT when this maximum eclipse occurs, you may see a slight flicker of shade cover the Moon; or not. But you really won’t see the disappearance of the Moon as you might expect at the time of a lunar eclipse. Still, there is astrological significance in this penumbral lunar eclipse, which I like to call the “askew” eclipse. When you experience a lunar eclipse, you find it’s important to understand your inner being through your emotions. While eclipses may obscure matters in gener- al, lunar eclipses also heighten survival instincts. When partial or total
Illustration 56657444 © Vhcreative | Dreamstime.com Before the next eclipse occurs, Mercury in Aries turns retrograde on April 1. It will remain retrograde until April 25. With Mercury in the sign of Aries you usually speak before thinking as thoughts just rapidly go through your mind. You also tend to take offense if people don’t hear what you have to say. Yet with Mercury in Aries retrograde, things are a bit different. You still don’t want people to tell you what to do. You still want people to listen to what you have to say without judgment. But you slow down. You start strategizing. You start think - ing about ways you can do things without alienating others. You still want your own way, but you tend to be a little more polite about how you get your own way. When the next eclipse occurs, it’s the most emotionally intense eclipse of all — the total solar eclipse. Here in the United States on April 8, you are about to see an eclipse of even greater magnitude than the “Great American Eclipse” that occurred on August 21, 2017. The April 8 total solar eclipse will cover all parts of the United States, ei - ther as a total or partial eclipse. The Moon this time is closest to the earth on the day prior to the eclipse. For this reason, the path of the eclipse is wider than in 2017; and the length of time for totality is dou - bled from that experienced in 2017. States that will see totality (if you
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PATHWAYS—Spring 24—19
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