New Moon Eclipse in Pisces: Ocean of Emotion

Tomorrow, March 8, we have a Total Solar Eclipse, a New Moon, in the mutable water sign of Pisces, the Fish. Attempting to write about this lunation as the energy crests is like trying to write a manuscript 20,000 leagues below the sea, wearing full scuba gear. It honestly feels impossible to engage the rational mind long enough to convey a coherent thought. With the Sun, Moon, Mercury, Neptune and Chiron all lining up in the most sensitive, spiritual, transcendent of signs, we are drawn deeper into our very selves, our souls, and our hearts.

This is a time when emotional and spiritual intelligence run the show. Probably the most ineffectual use of this energy is to struggle and fight to accomplish, to achieve, to push. We can let the limbic system lead, and trust the intuitive, vast wisdom of the body.

So much is occurring below the surface right now, in the collective consciousness. Two weeks ago, you may recall, I wrote about preparing for this time. I advised taking care of some essential business details where possible, because this week and through much of March, we can only flow. We cannot force. There is tremendous power available, and we are not separate from it.

At this time, yogis around the world are celebrating the great night of Shiva, known as Maha Shivaratri. Shiva is the god of creation and destruction, a fitting ruler of Pisces, the grand finale of astrological signs. Shiva carries a trident staff, which is also the glyph of Pisces’ planetary ruler Neptune, lord of the oceanic depths.

Neptune dissolves. Neptune shape-shifts. Neptune changes form, an endless dance known as tandava. Shiva’s power animal, the cobra, winds around his body, reminding us of the power of kundalini life force as well as endless cycles of rebirth. The skin is shed, and a new shape emerges. Endlessly changing according to the perception of the moment.

On the exoteric level, Shiva is the “Hindu God,” (the Supreme Deity for many) who superintends the forces of dissolution. In esoteric and tantric traditions, Shiva is seen as All Pervading Consciousness, the One Reality that we are all part of (or that we actually are). As “destroyer,” Shiva the energy that releases the burden of the ahamkara, the “false ego” that experiences itself as separate from everything and everyone. As the great or Maha Yogi, Shiva embodies the power to break out of illusion and become free from “grasping” or “dependency.” ~ Rick Jarow, author of In Search of the Sacred and Creating the Work You Love

Imagine: you are surfing the Ocean, and you ARE the Ocean, simultaneously. There is a direct, fully conscious perception – a knowing – that there is no separate central operating mechanism running the show. Everything is occurring as a conglomeration of an infinite number of causes and effects, a collision of past, present and future, over which no one single person – no single perception – has ever had entire control.

 

The ego is the appearance of a me, a “doer,” which is a drop of water in the entire Ocean. Whatever the “me” is doing, or not doing, arises out of the entirety of Consciousness. When the ego makes an illusory attempt to usurp the power of the limitless ocean of consciousness, suffering is experienced. The end of suffering, here, is the end of the belief in the separate volitional power of a separate "me."

So, whatever happens at this Piscean eclipse time – welcome it. Know that is Evolution ~ Shiva dancing his tandava ~ doing its thing, of which you are a part of, not separate from it. Whether the cresting wave is a surprise to you, or you had a hunch all along, know that it is exactly perfect. You are the participator and the co-producer, along with Existence. Individual agency is not problematic so long as it knows it is part of the collective.

If we listen closely, if we lean into the wave, we experience the thrilling ride of the dissolving separation between self and other. There is seeing, a feeling, a visceral knowing of the boundless capacity for unconditional love - a universal love that encompasses the personal, familial, worldly, and divine. Resistance is futile. Open your heart, and let it flow.

Erin Reese is an author, spiritual guide, astrologer, and modern psychic reader based in the San Francisco Bay Area. She works with clients all over the world. For readings and spiritual counseling by Skype, phone or email, contact her directly. She can be reached at erin@erinreese.com.