EYE ON THE SKY:  LUNAR ECLIPSE for  MAY 5

 

Penumbral Eclipse begins  May 5 at 15:14:11 London time

                                           May 5 at 10:14:11 am Chicago Time

Maximum Eclipse               May 5 at 17:22:59 London Time

                                           May 5 at 12:22:59 pm  Chicago Time

Penumbral Eclipse ends    May 5 at 19:31:45   London Time

                                           May 5 at 2:31:45 pm   Chicago Time

 

There is a penumbral lunar eclipse that can be seen in India and other parts of the world but not in London or the United States. It will be visible for a time in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia. Consult the internet for times in your area.

During this penumbral eclipse, the Moon passes deep into the outer part of Earth’s shadow (known as the penumbra).

The umbral magnitude of this eclipse is -0.046, which means the Moon just misses the darker, inner part of Earth’s shadow (which is called the umbra). By this measure, this is the deepest penumbral eclipse until September 2042.

Even if the eclipse is not visible, it will be felt but will have more of an impact on areas where it is visible. They are not considered auspicious to watch if you live in areas where they are visible and better to be in meditation.

This eclipse will impact  Aries and Libra rising the most with the exact degree at 21 Libra so if you have key planets like the Sun, Moon, Rahu/Ketu,  or the ascendant within a few degrees of 21 Libra, it will impact you most particularly if you are running a Moon/Rahu or Rahu/Moon or Sun/Rahu or Rahu/Sun period.  It tends to create a lot of emotional noise.   People fear eclipses but they are powerfully spiritual for meditation and personal revelations.

Eclipses are good for meditation and that is the best way to spend time during an eclipse as the meditation 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.  One of them 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 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 an eclipse is much more powerful. This is the ancient saying.  Mantras are said to be 1000 times more powerful during an eclipse.

Subconscious patterns can come up during eclipses that provide deep insights into your life. Mostly you will get a lot of garbage thoughts during eclipses so ignore them but if you get an aha experience after the eclipse and it seems very valid, then it is time to make changes around those patterns that are not useful.

Eclipses are a very auspicious time for sadhus; it is not a bad time. It is a bad time for enjoyment and pleasure. 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 inactivity, our mind is always focused in 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 the activity, the mind is mostly focused on the frontal part of the body. For relaxing, we take our minds to the background. You will see that suddenly there is something different happening. This is necessary, from time to time. (SSRS)

So depending on what part of the world you are in, enjoy the eclipse with deep meditation and chanting and remember most of the noise and garbage going through your mind is Maya or illusion.   Sometimes after an eclipse, you will get a glimpse into some deep subconscious pattern that you have and the eclipse can reveal and help you dive deeper and heal.  With the eclipse in the deeply psychological/subconscious sign of Scorpio, it may be particularly potent to do that this year.

The eclipse is occurring in the Nakshatra of Vishaka which is connected to Jupiter and is connected to the deities Indra Agni.  Remedies for this eclipse include:

Honor Lord Dattareya with the mantra – Aum Namo Bhagavate Dattatreyaya 108 times.

 

The deity of Vishakha is Indra Agni, so you can chant the mantra – Aum Indragnibhyam Namah 108 times 

The eclipse is a super-charged Full Moon and will impact geocosmic events such as tides and earthquakes and its emotional intensity can be felt for a few days.  Even Thursday when the Moon is conjunct Ketu, at 15:30 Chicago time on May 4^th, its impact will be particularly strong.   Ketu eclipses can increase psychic and intuitive abilities, create irrational fears, intense events around your mother and your emotional nature and maternal love, and unhappiness, and may bring up strong past emotions and emotional imbalances. It may suck your energy from you and create stressful relationship issues as it is happening on the Aries/Libra natural relationship axis.  Ketu is a fire planet and can stir up intense anger and passions that explode out of nowhere. Best to tame all this energy with long meditations. This period may entail a time of heavy vibrations, overall instability, and emotional challenges. Buried or unconscious issues can surface for some, which will force the need to face something difficult or to take new action to resolve a problem.

This eclipsed Vishakha Moon is generally good for spiritual ceremonies, as well as for activities that require hard work and a strong mental focus. The eclipsed Moon will occupy the portion of Vishakha known as Aries navamsa, which can lead to passionate and angry outbursts and eruptions around relationships and issues around ego.  Remember the secret of relationship is saying yes, not controlling and cooperating rather than being right.   

So take time off and do not plan an important date or relationship event on the day of the eclipse and relax and let it settle out. 

Need help with these difficult transits and tensions and problems in your life?   Get a consultation from Barry Rosen.