🔥Happy Astrological New Year and the upcoming eclipse season!🌔
🌿 Plus the start of Astronomical Spring, Wood Anemones and the Libra Full Moon⚖️
Welcome to the second of this year’s eight free editions of this newsletter in line with the Pagan Sabbats of the Wheel of the Year.
The Wheel of the Year has turned once again which means that this newsletter edition is open to everyone, with one more in the archives for this year so far. Follow the link via the button above to read them. Please consider becoming a paid subscriber to receive all of the editions by clicking the button below. Thank you.
Here are some seasonal dates to ground you as we ease into Spring:
25 March: Full Crow Moon in Libra at 07:00 GMT
25 March: Penumbral Lunar Eclipse
29 March: Good Friday (Christian)
31 March: Easter Sunday (Christian)
31 March: clocks go forward 1 hour (U.K)
1 April: Easter Monday (Christian)
1 April: Mercury stations retrograde (until 25 April)
8 April: New Pink Moon in Aries 19:21 BST
8 April: Total Solar Eclipse
9 April: Ramadan ends (Muslim)
9-10 April: Eid ul-Fitr (Muslim)
Sun remains in Aries (until 19 April)
I intended to write this newsletter earlier this week to give you a heads up about Astrological New Year which began when the sun moved into Aries on 20 March - coinciding with the Spring Equinox (also known by Pagans as Ostara). Yet, the fiery Aries Springtime energy has meant that I’ve been heading outside as much as possible this week and recharging some very drained and Vitamin-D deficient internal batteries! Here are some of the beautiful Spring flowers I spotted whilst out and about…
Astronomical and Astrological New Year
The Spring Equinox is the astronomical event that occurred on Wednesday, signalling the first day of Spring according to the astronomical seasons. This coincided with an exciting astrological event in the form of astrological new year. Aries is the first sign in the Western Zodiac, offering a third opportunity to celebrate a new year (see Gregorian New Year and Lunar New Year posts). At 0° in the sky, the cardinal fire sign of Aries represents new beginnings and, in my humble opinion, is a better ‘new year’ to set intentions for the months ahead. Ruling the head, Aries energy invites the opportunity to reclaim your dreams, declutter and direct any impatient energy into physical exercise or free writing.
Eclipse season
This year, the first Full Moon of the new Astrological Year on Monday coincides with the beginning of eclipse season! At 07:00 GMT on Monday 25 March the Full Crow Moon shines in Libra and, what’s more, occurs at a time when the Sun, Moon and Earth are aligned, causing the Moon to be darkened temporarily while she sits in the Earth’s shadow (a Lunar Eclipse as shown in my diagram below). Unfortunately this Penumbral Lunar Eclipse will occur during daylight hours so we won’t actually be able to see anything in the UK. This phenomenon only happens around two to five times a year, with a Total Lunar Eclipse occurring at least twice every three years, the last one being on 16 May 2022 (source: Royal Museums Greenwich). There are three types of Eclipses:
Total, Partial and Penumbral. Follow the source link above if you want to geek out more on this topic!
A Lunar Eclipse always occurs about two weeks before or after a Solar Eclipse.
Usually, there are two eclipses in a row, but sometimes, there are three during the same eclipse season. The upcoming Lunar Eclipse is the first of 2024 with a Total Solar Eclipse (only visible in Mexico, USA and Canada) following on 10 April (coinciding with the Aries New Moon). In this instance, the Moon moves in front of the Sun which, if occurring during daylight hours, can mean we experience temporary nighttime in the middle of the day (see my diagram below for a visual representation).
Just as with Lunar Eclipses, we get Partial and Total Solar Eclipses but rather than Penumbral, there are Annular (find out more from NASA). The most memorable Total Solar Eclipse for me was during the UK Summer holidays of 1999. Remember that?
Libra Full Moon
Some names for the Libra Full Moon are: Pashcal Moon, Ecclesiastical Moon, Budding Moon, New Shoots Moon, and Seed Moon (Source: Lia Leendertz). The first two names relate to the Christian Church, and much like how the date of Lunar New Year is decided (the second New Moon after the Winter Solstice), the church also looks to the moon to decide the date for Easter. The reason why Easter shifts each year is because it falls on the Sunday after the first Full Moon following the Ecclesiastical Equinox (a fixed date of 21st March unlike the Astronomical Spring Equinox which can fall on the 19th, 20th or 21st). So if the upcoming Full Moon fell on 22nd March and that happened to be a Saturday - then the following day is when Christians would celebrate Easter. Make sense? I hope so!
Libra is an airy sign representing balance and peace-making, and when the moon is full in this sign, we may feel some opposing energy, especially as the sun remains in fiery Aries until he stations direct in earthy Taurus on the 19th April. Be kind to yourself today if you're feeling pulled between independence (Aries) and acts of service (Libra). Libra energy under the full moon invites us to confront conflict and make space to stand up for our truth. Take some time to reflect on any goals you may have been striving towards recently, particularly any which resonate strongly with your values and wider destiny.
That’s all from me for this second free edition of 2024. Please consider sharing this publication with anyone who you think would like it. Your reciprocity is greatly appreciated 🙏
The next edition of this newsletter comes out on the next New Moon on 10 April 2024 and full access will be for paid subscribers only. Please consider becoming a paid subscriber for less than the price of a good coffee each month (£3.50) or £35 a year. I’m freezing the subscription price for 2024 to honour the devotion of my regular readers.
Thank you so much and Full Moon blessings for Monday,
Love,
Charly x