Eclipse Notes: Aspects, Effects and Returns

A circumhorizontal arc - an optical phenomenon caued by ice crystals in high level cirrus clouds

(photo credit Jeff Kubina, June 2007)

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Eclipses are funny astrological beasts. Sometimes they time out some very fun times - particularly if you’re talking about a lunar eclipse, as lunar eclipses (like all things lunar) tend to be ‘framed’ by feeling where solar eclipses, as emotional a time as they may indicate, are more focused on lifestyle and evolutionary life events than any particular emotional goal, needs or fervent hope. Plus lunar eclipses tend to be prompt. That is, with a lunar eclipse the effects are immediate - and if the eclipse aspects your chart with any acuity - often memorable.

But the emotional ‘high’...? Those effects tend to be relatively short-lived. Three months is pretty much the standard duration - which may be disappointing when all is bliss but rather reassuring when events which time with a lunar eclipse go really and truly bad.

Solar eclipses, on the other hand, are less defined - and they’re curiously reflective of the process of an eclipse. The Sun represents life. Or ‘illumination’ as in understanding and inner clarity. And when an eclipse happens, the Moon - a satellite which is closer to Terra Earth than the Sun is - that Moon intervenes...which metaphysically is what happens with a solar eclipse: something about life (yours, or life in general) ‘blacks out’ your sense of understanding. Or your ability to ‘shine.’

Yet solar eclipses aren’t metaphysically ‘cruel’ or about 'failure' even if they’re often challenging and in sync with losses and mistakes. Indeed, lore teaches that eclipses are about causing us to shed something we may or may not like or prefer - and even which we may have stuck with/invested ourselves in over many a year. But in some way...and at some level, that loss, that change, whatever else it may be is also about eliminating something which in some way is now keeping us from being that person we are capable of being going forward.

And why aren’t we that person? Well... you know.,.. it may just be easier to keep on doing (saying, thinking, acting) in a manner which ‘settles’ when it comes to our capacity? Or maybe we're just doing what has worked well enough for us over a lot of years.

On a metaphysical level, whatever our reasons are they’re excuses. Very human and perhaps heartfelt excuses, but (metaphysically) excuses, nonetheless. And those ‘excuses’ or those singular or many ways of ‘escaping’ our true capacity (read: the truth of our Self and who we really are) are what solar eclipses tend to affect. Generally effects are neither subtle nor convenient - and in that last bit (in particular) are seldom entirely to our liking. In fact, any solar eclipse which aspects your natal chart with acuity will manifest as some sort of situation which includes some degree of being (and feeling) at a lack for control.

And that would happen why?

That would happen because you are letting go of that thing you feel so comfortable doing, being surrounded by or feeling part of (etcetera).

You’re in free-fall with/within your Self, without being able to fasten on some inner (Sun) knowing.

 Shown as calculated for the October 2014 solar eclipse at 0 Scorpio,

the five degree orb of aspect surrounding the conjunction.

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With the conjunction (an aspect which extends to five degrees in either direction from the eclipse), eclipse effects are very personal. They’re about our life and how we perceive it - for better and for worse. (And maybe both.) Whatever planet, axis or other point is being conjuncted, the eclipse will manifest through whatever ‘flavor’ is exhibited by that combination of point and sign, making the conjuncting eclipse something along the lines of transformative tofu.

 Shown as calculated for the October 2014 solar eclipse at 0 Scorpio,

there is a three degree (plus/minus) orb of aspect surrounding the sixty (60)

degree standard sextile aspect which from 0 Scorpio would occur at 0 Virgo

and Capricorn, respectively.

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As opposed to this, the eclipse-by-sextile (the sextile being a 60-degree aspect) is the signature of opportunities lost... or about to be found, depending on how you come into any given eclipse period.

Sextiles seldom exhibit requirement or necessity, however positive they may be - and that can be a positive where utilization of a natural ability or talent - the ‘voicing’ of it gets involved. On the other hand, having an eclipse aspecting your chart by sextile can represent the ‘blacking out’ or elimination or destruction of some avenue or choice - or some opportunity you may have had. In such, eclipse energies sometimes seem like Pluto, which tends to point to a ‘transformation’ which reverses existent to non-existent (and vice-versa) depending on where, how and what in the chart is aspected.

But eclipses aren’t Pluto. Eclipse effects differ from those regarding Pluto in that Pluto manifestations tend to apply to our personal feelings - the why we’re feeling them, whether we have any right-minded reason to feel that way and whether such emotional drives (cravings, desires, aims) are safe or dangerous in practice or theory. Against that, eclipses are more ‘situational.’ Yes, they can (and sometimes do) manifest as a physical illness or accident. But the ‘eclipse factor’ in that mix is about how our lives are changed by the eclipse and thus all about how we need to change who we are being or how we are going about doing what we’re doing (or living our life) in order to take best advantage of some challenge... or simply in order to cope.
As with most things astrological, the greatest challenges, problems and gains are associated with the squares and as with sextiles, trines, semi-sextiles and inconjuncts (aka quincunxes), there are two different squares to consider. The first is the ‘departing square’ (or departing whatever other aspect) - a reference to the idea that the ‘event’ (in this case, an eclipse) is occurring within a three-degree orb of sixty degrees from whatever natal chart point you want to consider.

ASPECT EXAMPLES: The October 2014 solar eclipse will be at 0 Scorpio and the October 2014 lunar eclipse will occur under the sign of Aries. If this position is within the three-degree orb of sextile to some point in your natal chart (which would be in Virgo for the solar eclipse and in Aquarius for the lunar eclipse), then your chart is being eclipsed by sextile.

Do you have a point within five degrees (plus or minus) of 0 Leo - which is to say between 25 Cancer and 5 Leo? If so, that point is being eclipsed by square - and because from Leo to Scorpio is moving forward through the zodiac, that is referred to as a “departing” (i.e., from the point in your chart) square...and conversely, were it ‘behind’ in astrological/zodiacal order, that would be the approaching square.

Departing aspects are about something wanting to be built, developed or utilized as a point of personal growth. 

Conversely, approaching aspects are about finishing, completing or achieving something. When a solar eclipse occurs in a position to eclipse that departing momentum, that aim or the ability to pursue that aim changes - often dramatically - either for better or worse. When a lunar eclipse hits at the departing aspect (or within orb of it), something dramatic may well happen - but in the end the aim itself generally remains ‘out there.’ No, it may not work as we thought it would and depending on the natal point(s) being eclipsed the experience may no longer be desirable.

But it’s there. That’s the difference between lunar and solar eclipses: where the Moon symbolizes all things which elicit or reward our feelings, the Sun refers to life itself and therefore things we have to learn about and contend with.

 With the October 2014 solar eclipse at 0 Scorpio, the two squares will occur in Leo

and Aquarius. Given that squares are given five (5) degree standard orb, this means

these squares start at 25 Cancer or Capricorn and end at 5 degrees of Leo

and Aquarius.

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Squares pose particular questions and challenge our sense of balance. A square successfully handled requires that we both accept limitations and our responsibilities to act, embrace and balance qualities which differ against each other whether those qualities are intrinsically ours or exist with regards to something we are doing or attempting to accomplish. To have one’s chart eclipsed by square poses a challenge - one from which we will (generally) prefer to retreat out of a sense of being thrown ‘off balance’ or because something we had counted on (or believed in) has been removed, eliminated or proven invalid.

 Oppositions also get a five (5) degree standard orb, which puts the opposition to

October 2014's 0 Scorpio solar eclipse at 0 Taurus and the extent of opposition

orb between 25 Aries and 5 Taurus.

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Oppositions differ from squares by being a flat-out confrontation. Sometimes that’s with others or something in or about our overall life and sometimes that’s with ourselves as we belly up to the mental bar and come to grips with something about our Self or our assumptions.

When we experience an eclipse by opposition, something (or someone) either vanishes from our life (which could be as simple as their changing jobs and no longer being part of our workday) or as we become ‘confronted’ with a need to be or do something and all it is going to take to deal with that. Eclipses by opposition often reveal qualities about our Self which we have either been ignorant of or unperturbed by so long as they didn’t cause problems...which (voila!) the eclipse period provides feedback on.

 Like oppositions, trines also get a five (5) degree standard orb. Unlike oppositions

however, trines do have departing and approaching formats, giving us a departing

trine to the October 2014 Scorpio solar eclipse with a position of 0 Pisces (and thus

an orb of affect between 25 Aquarius and 5 Pisces) and an approaching trine

between 25 Gemini and 5 Cancer.

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Having some point in your chart be eclipsed by trine is to not be able to ‘escape’ some process which is continuing to alter whatever attribute is being described by the planet/symbol being trined. Less of an obvious ‘hit’ to your life or lifestyle than the the conjunction, getting eclipsed-by-trine is potent enough to keep us on track with necessities and highly likely to eliminate a sense of personal ease (or a willingness to ‘take it easy’).

So much for trines being all pleasant, eh?

Two last aspects, which are by nature the inverse of each other: the 30-degree semi-sextile and the 150-degree OR 210-degree inconjunct or quincunx.

(above) Like trines, squares and sextiles, both semi-sextiles and inconjuncts have

approaching and departing and approaching formats. However, unlike any of those

aspects, semi-sextiles and inconjuncts are most useful when the orb is kept limited

- often to an orb as small as one and one-half (1 1/2) degrees. This gives us semi-

sextiles to the October 2014 0 Scorpio eclipse (0 Scorpio 25, to be exact) at

0 Sagittarius and Libra with orbs allowing for effects between 29 Scorpio and

2 Sagittarius or 29 Virgo and 2 Libra... and inconjunct positions at 0 Aries and

Gemini with effects extending to between 29 Pisces and 2 Aries and/or

29 Taurus and 2 Gemini.

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Put in simplest terms, the semi-sextile is about getting past our own feelings while the inconjunct is about our personal feelings about what it takes to adapt to being part of a group, system or process. In other words, they’re both about adjusting to what we feel or think about things it’s just that the semi-sextile process is more about a conversation in our head we have to work through (mostly) on our own where the inconjunct is about something outside of our Self. Either way, when eclipsed both of these points tend to speak to responsibilities and how we respond (or sometimes more to the point, how we don’t respond) to the standards, morals and ethics of responsibility.

As noted, lunar eclipses tend to have a duration of around three months. By the end of that time the ‘heat’ of our feelings will have cooled and we will have learned a lot - most of all about our Self. Solar eclipses however, run a longer course. Instead of three months their duration is three years, which may well mean that we will at times be under several overlapping eclipse cycles. Also: at about two-and-one-half years after the eclipse itself things tend to surface or happen. Whatever occurs, it could not have happened or we would not have been in a position to care or take advantage of this opportunity or information had we NOT gone through whatever happened at the time of the eclipse.

That may be the most interesting thing of all about solar eclipses - whatever else they are, solar eclipses are also a rather ultimate form of the ‘delayed gratitude’ lesson... a lesson which perhaps is meant to teach us to handle the moment and to recognize life has much, much more to offer if we will just keep walking, whether that’s physically, mentally, emotionally or spiritually.

RETURNS: The one exception to the (above) statements made about how long eclipses last concerns personal returns. If an eclipse - either solar or lunar - occurs within five (5) calendar days of EITHER your birthday (i.e., your yearly solar return) or your monthly lunar return, eclipse effects will be far more pronounced. If the eclipse occurs within five days of your personal/monthly lunar return, get your emotional raincoat on, particularly during the first month after the lunar eclipse. Whether effects taper off over the next few months as they normally would depends on your natal chart - most specifically the astrological ‘condition’ of your natal Moon plus whatever point the eclipse is in aspect to.

However, if an eclipse - solar or lunar - occurs within five (5) calendar days of your solar return (birthday), those eclipse effects can be expected to (lunar eclipse) last... and indeed (solar eclipse) dominate the whole of your solar/birthday year.

We just can’t say this often enough - and this is actually one of the biggest of big markers astrologers look for. A lunar eclipse around the date of your birthday can speak to a year which will have lots of ups and maybe an equal amount of downs and will often mark dramatic changes of circumstance, mindset or heart (personal or otherwise) over the course of that year, but a solar eclipse around the date of your birthday speaks to a year which could (just possibly) change the charted course of your life - or your ability to have the life you’ve worked long and hard to chart out for yourself.

Mind you, an eclipse around the date of your birthday is NOT enough to predict tragedy. I mention this here because people tend to jump to conclusions about such things. So please understand: even if an astrologer sees a solar or lunar eclipse around the date of your birthday it’s no sign of doom.

In fact, it’s a sign of an opportunity. No, everything may not be the way you want it to be. But that’s the point. Life is bigger than any of us know and we can’t know how to define all the possibilities.

Sometimes something has to break down the walls and lift our cherished veils so that we can grow, so that we can learn differently, so that we can move beyond our previous conceptions, realizing even as we witness eclipse dramas in the sky how we are  part of something miraculous... something vast and ever-changing and truly universal.

Maybe that’s why eclipses fascinate us so.   


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Mercury Retrograde at 2 Scorpio

A barn raising in Lansing (now North York City Centre) Toronto, Canada

(photo credit Alexander W Galbraith/c. 1900-19, photo courtesy of City of Toronto Archives)

I was stiff when I got up this morning - unusually so, even for an injured person. Figuring there's nothing to do but cope, I went about my business... turning on the television, setting water on for tea...

It didn't take all that long to realize that even for Los Angeles, traffic was particularly rancid this morning.

Putting it together, it makes sense: Mercury has moved on station as of October 2nd to go retrograde on October 4th at 5:03 in the evening, UT/+0 time - and in having done so within some rather evident proximity to the Aries Lunar Eclipse which will occur on October 8th we're getting very personal, physical, situational effects.

Expect such things to keep happening. The Mercury part of this (read: the motion, the thought, the exchange of information or conversation) will ease out of the energetic equation as of the 6th or so (as Mercury's station allowance runs out)... but at that point we're very much into the heart of the incoming eclipse, which in being lunar is very much about emotionality (the experience/effects of) as well as anything which evokes a feeling response.

Which is a rather all-encompassing sort of statement, I know. But then, this is emotionality - the 'where humans live.' As I have asserted elsewhere and experienced in first person reality, human life is an emotional thing. We're emotional creatures. How we feel determines whether we will even get to those lofty, respectable, well-structured thoughts we all like to think we can rely on.

(And isn't it sad how we're so often wrong about that?)

In going retrograde at 2 Scorpio, Mercury is asking us to be use that part of our nature - and also our thinking nature. It's asking that we be responsible in taking charge of our own most human nature. There seems to be some necessity for disappointment with this degree, as if only through failure can we resolve ourselves to our Self as a human person and proceed on that basis.

You know, as the mortal, not the icon, real or imagined.

As for the emotionality which tends to arise at this time, it tends to be very positive or negative and not all that much betwixt or between. Imaged by the Sabian symbol 'a house-raising part in a small village enlists the neighbor's cooperation' 2 Scorpio references both acceptance and it's opposition - rejection and marginalization - plus all the various types of protections (the house) which goes or doesn't go with same.

Then again, there's a Mercury/Neptune factor here as Mercury is going into retrograde in trine to Neptune - a sign that there may be...or have been...some compromise of clarity or truth in the works - all of which seems strikingly in keeping with Royal/fixed star Aldebaran having just moved from 9 to 10 Gemini (Gemini being a Mercury-ruled sign) as of yesterday, October 1st. (See previous post.)

Mercury seeks to clarify - either through mentality (the Gemini way) or through how something is done (or what gets done) - that being more of the Virgo/Mercury solution. But when Neptune and Mercury are in aspect, Neptune's famous 'is it real...is it not real?' qualities of illusion - willful or otherwise - create complications. Confusion. Even out and out lies.

Or, of course, the exposure of same.

So some who have been deceived will discover now. Some who have been deceivers will be laid bare now. All such moments could happen in a snap... or they may 'come to be' over time, which is to say through whatever occurs during Mercury's three weeks in apparent 'reverse.'

Reverses of circumstance, reversals of decisions... we are likely to see/experience many changes of course (charted and otherwise) in these weeks ahead. In going retrograde at 2 Scorpio Mercury's position theoretically supports and enhances our realization... even our understanding/need to understand all the many and varied forms of trial and human ugliness which have been surfacing of late. That Mercury both starts and ends this retrograde period in trine to Neptune combines rather well with the image of the Scorpio eclipse both as a notice as to how we have been 'kidding ourselves' (aka lying to ourselves) or simply where we've been being irresponsible.

To our Self/selves, that is. The single and ultimate plural are both implied here, so there is the You and then there is the Everyone, with virtually nothing between. Given next week's lunar eclipse there is-was-will be many an issue which concerns guidelines and success is attained generally/most often through a basic agreement to (as they say) 'play by the rules.' Problems will occur through trust placed in the wrong people, with such alliances generally based in convenience rather than anything else.

But still, it all counts.

Also - considering how 15 Aries (the degree of the lunar eclipse) has a known tendency to produce the thing we fear through the very energetic of fearing it, this is a time to control our indulgence of our own emotionality. With Mercury going retrograde, some matters will/should be reflected on most thoroughly with an eye to understanding the full spectrum of emotions which may lie behind the urge to do or say something. That Mercury's station is in Scorpio will drive a desire to 'control the conversation' (and thus the emotions and emotionality in place) but to do such a thing - to attempt to manipulate or control are likely to somehow come to naught, most often for reasons which are not all that apparent at this time.

You'll just have to wait, in other words.

Speaking of the post just before this one - that being about Aldebaran's move to 10 Gemini - Aldebaran is, of course, the fixed star which promises success ONLY if we uphold (or establish) standards of integrity. So that Aldebaran is making this move as Mercury goes on station puts a little Mercury in the Aldebaran quotient (lending a quality of vulnerability - ours - to our own insecurities as part of our process) and lends a little Aldebaran to the Mercury station.

In other words, don't be surprised if integrity fouled begins to produce karma.

By the time Mercury reaches its station/direct point on October 25th (UT/+0), the Sun will have eclipsed and we will be not just be ready to move on, we will already be in the process of moving on. (Solar eclipses are odd like that - so often we recognize what they're 'about' only after they occur.) And because Mercury's 16 Scorpio station/direct effects will begin on October 23-24 (depending on where you are) we're seeing Mercury involved with both eclipses - one at either end of its retrograde. Hopefully 16 Scorpio will manifest with on the positive side - which 16 Scorpio is noted for, though its traits of reliability, honor and courage can/will obviously be seen as positive to some and (simultaneously) as trouble to others.

As always, that choice will be ours. The Scorpio (Mercury) component here is always about choice, with our choice always being whether we are willing to treat and experience others as equals. (In other words, it's what you do/don't do which counts...and why you do or don't do it.) Since Scorpio is not about 'them' and what 'they' are doing but rather about whether we're able to be honest with our Self about our Self, what we have earned now survives, doing so through validation, interaction, connection and mutual support.

And what about what we have not earned? That begins to cool and grow less appealing, whether in our Mercurial regard or that of others.

One last thought... in going retrograde in conjunction with asteroid Lumiere while also trine Neptune it is likely that at least part of what we are not seeing (or being willing to believe or accept) is something we also regard as 'a light' [Lumiere] in our life.

What that means and why it means whatever it means to us is at least part of why this Mercury retrograde has come along. And while it is true that Mercury/Neptune can represent 'the lie,' they can also represent that hope, that thing we hold onto in order to get ourselves through something.

Which is which, you ask?

That's individual. However... as we also know that when Mercury goes direct on October 25th (UT/+0) it will be doing so in conjunction with asteroid Lilith (what I deny or ignore in or about my own life) and Typhon, an emblem of something very basic and very primal. We also know that this October 25th station will occur in relating/relationship-oriented Libra and at one of Libra's more feeling and inspiring degrees (16 Libra).

What this 'spells' (if you will) is an opportunity to learn something about ourselves over these next few weeks which in recognizing will break through our reluctance to understand ourselves in conjunction with others. That, plus Aldebaran's shift plus the idea how by October 25th the Sun, Venus and Pallas (wisdom born of a logical, dispassionate perspective) will either release us to be our kinder (16 Libra) Self or put us in position to be open to that which happens then.

Or it may glue us utterly in place, forcing us to see how our personal short-sightedness (read: self-concern, self-focus) has now hindered our various goals.

After all, apart from all the missed phone calls, distracted conversations, mental headaches, sloppy/botched efforts, losses and mistakes, delays of schedule and endless interruptions so common with any (and every) Mercury retrograde regardless of sign, in a sense Mercury retrograde is all about getting our inner house in order so that we are ready to be graced with all which happens in retrograde's wake. Mercury retrogrades are famous (infamous, actually) for putting us through something which only comes clear just after Mercury goes direct.

And then there's the retrograde shadow. Mercury entered the shadow of its retrograde over the weekend of September 13-14 (depending on what time zone you were in) a won't exit that shadow until November 10th. So while the actual retrograde period may feel the most 'retrograde-like' (putting us on the spot with our Self), there is a greater if rather more 'shadowy' (meaning 'less apparent') implication of some process which spans this entire arc - and which, at least in the short (next three month/lunar eclipse) run is likely to feel terribly, terribly important.

The only thing is that in reality, it's not. And that's where we may be kidding ourselves - a concept we may profit long term by remembering not to forget.
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Aldebaran @ 10 Gemini (2014-2086)

 Constellation Taurus

(image generated using Stellarium software)

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There are a lot of famous stars, though what they’re famous for (and who made them famous) varies. Astrology certainly has its share of same, for sure - though even among astrologers there are a group of stars which seem to take stage center front more often than not.

Those stars are known as the Royal Stars of Persia. The complete list of Royal Stars is several dozen names long, but of those we use all the time, none seems any more important than Aldebaran.

All Royal Stars promise success IF (and only if) some particular human foible is avoided. With Aldebaran, that challenge regards integrity - most specifically, the not violating of one’s integrity.

This makes astrological sense of a rather important type when we think of Aldebaran as a star which sits at the heart of the zodiac constellation known as Taurus.

You know, Taurus values - what we value and what we are valued for against all our insecurities and vulnerabilities.

All of which gets tested out through our various Adventures Scorpionic. You know... like the 0 Scorpio solar eclipse about to occur on October 23rd (UT/+0)?

For decades now (many plural decades) Aldebaran has been sitting at 9 Gemini, a degree which tends to involve us in very complex issues and ideas, occasionally causing us to outsmart (or scare) ourselves in the process. Known for amazing thought processes which tend not to lead to accomplishment under the influence of this degree, Aldebaran’s having been positioned at 9 Gemini since September 1943 suggests that when it comes to what we’ve created or begun to understand or harness hasn’t even really begun paying off.

Imagine that.

Considering all that, is it logical or philosophically reasonable to think that just as Aldebaran is about to change degrees it would represent the pressure and squeezing of us, each and all, getting us to give up (cough up, let go of) that which is so futile... that which will not ever bear the dreamed of fruit?

It often works that way with planets. Why not stars?

In any case, now Aldebaran’s ‘integrity required’ directive is moving to 10 Gemini. The date the change occurs is October 2nd (UT/+0), and the degree ‘ten’ in any sign is one which includes an experience of.. or embodying of... some sort/amount of feeling(s). In a sign known for dispassionate perspective, 10 Gemini somehow ‘breaks’ that mold by being known for its strong compassion and desire to uphold justice (and correct injustices) which given Aldebaran’s presence speaks to an undercurrent we are going to hear a lot about (and feel in our own lives) over the seven or so decades.

During that time we will each meet up with many ways which ask us to connect with and uphold the concept of compassion, injustice, reform and so on.

And because Aldebaran will be in 10 Gemini, we are required to uphold standards of universal integrity. That means that things many people have ‘gotten away with’ up until now will no longer work. Corner-cutting or bypassing which has been accepted prior to now will either not be accepted/acceptable, or not work - to substantial (even great) cost.

This is a degree of beginnings - and evidently the need to begin with integrity, and to build or progress with ever more integrity. This is a degree of insight, which with Aldebaran at 10 Gemini suggests that one of our tests is going to be knowing the limits of integrity as a concept, for though we will understand much in the years ahead, not all of it will be what we’d like.

Aldebaran ‘travels’ in zodiacal opposition to another of the Royal Stars, a star which goes by the name of Antares and whose test involves obsession.

Don’t do it, in other words. Where Antares is concerned, obsession - which in this case is coming from Sagittarius (the “I Know the Truth and What’s Right”) undermines ultimate success.

(Ours, that is.)

In perfect opposition for these past more-than-several decades (and thus in the natal charts of everyone born since 1944) this Aldebaran-Antares dynamic is our challenge to find our passion... and the need to remain aware of our limits. That balance is in each chart and each life... and now that which was spinning like a gyroscope is going to begin to wobble -- just a bit, and just for a few years as Antares will also change degrees as of 2017, re-establishing a sense of inner directives.

But it’s could be a bit lumpy for the next few years. Things don’t have to be wildly out-of-round, but they will inflict on us a sense of being just barely out-of-balance. The smart money being on remembering this fact when things go wonky, it is to be expected that a lot of people (from every walk of life) are going to be flailing just a touch... or now and again... as they attempt to control that which cannot be controlled.

To typify this star as a more familiar sort of energy, one might call it assertion. But it’s more than that. Aldebaran represents the making of a point and the understanding of some point.

It also represents the need to simply know - not because we want to be right, but rather as a matter of living a life in which information doesn’t just allow us to make better choices but which requires of us to do that ‘right’ thing (live up to our own standards of integrity) and to that which is right because that’s simply the right thing to say, think or ultimately, do.
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