EYE ON THE SKY: LUNAR ECLIPSE JULY 4-5Â 10:07 pm CDT to 12:42 am CDT
There is a relatively minor penumbral eclipse of the moon happening at about 20 degrees Sagittarius in the constellation of Purva Shadha (Sagittarius 13.20-26.40) starting about 10:07 pm July 4 CDT peaking into 11:29 CDT and completing on July 5th at 12:42 am CDT.  It will be seen as a slightly darker than usual Full Moon by much of North and South America and Africa.   This eclipse is happening on the Guru Purnima holiday which is the first full moon after the summer solstice which is auspicious spiritual event that we will write about later.
Eclipses are good for meditation and that is the best way to spend time during an eclipse as the meditations can be deeper. Outwardly the emotions and mind get a bit frazzled so never a good time to make major decisions during an eclipse. I usually do laundry or clean or meditate to pass the time.
Both of my Gurus have advocated meditation during eclipses over the years. Sri Sri recently commented on this one:
“The mind is connected with the moon, the body is connected with the Earth and the Sun is connected with both. The time when all three come in alignment is good for spiritual practices. It is not a good time to eat, or indulge in pleasures. It is a good time to conserve energy. So, from the ancient times it is said that you should not eat during the eclipse, and you should meditate.
Eclipse is a very good time for mantra chanting and meditation. Chanting mantras at the time of eclipse is much more powerful. This is the ancient saying.
One or two hours before an eclipse, stop eating so that the food gets digested well and during the eclipse time you have an empty stomach, and on empty stomach chanting and mantras are done for maximum result.
Eclipse is a very auspicious time for saadhaks; it is not a bad time. It is a bad time for enjoyment and for pleasures. And when you chant 108 times during this period it is equivalent to 10,000 times or more! So meditation and chanting are highly recommended during this period.
When we are in activity, our mind is always focused in the front of the body. Close your eyes now, you’ll feel your mind is in front because the mind goes through the eyes to look at the world, and through the ears. During activity the mind is mostly focused in the frontal part of the body. For relaxing, we take our mind to the background. You will see suddenly there is something different happening. This is necessary, from time to time. (SSRS)
So eat a light dinner on Saturday, spend the evening meditating and chanting and , focus on the Divine and all of those qualities will be enlarged by the eclipse on Saturday. Can be a very spiritual time. Enjoy the eclipse.
