The New Moon in Leo- A Solar Eclipse!

The New Moon in Leo-     A Solar Eclipse!

Sun and Moon at 20 Degrees Leo Mars Sextile Chiron  Venus sextiles Pluto; Opposes Neptune Mercury enters Leo; Mars enters Cancer

Eclipse season begins!

Considered to be one of the most important and significant events during any astrological year, the new moon eclipse in Leo has a definite impact on us! Some astrologers who are well studied and more immersed in the history of cycles and returns, have declared that the awareness of eclipses and their timing could signal the birth of astrology- back to Egyptian and Babylonian times!

When eclipses occur during a new moon they can intensify actions, events, and experiences. Every new moon can signal a beginning, a time to start or re-launch an idea, project, career and give it a jump start into being active and taking forward steps…

However, astronomically and also symbolically, when an eclipse happens during the new moon (not every new moon has an eclipse, but every solar eclipse can only happen at a new moon!) it signals more than a beginning…

It can usher in a transformation! It can bring a shift, a sudden change, a leaving or a severing  of something/someone behind and can signal start something dramatically or radically new!

The quality or depth and intensity of this release, letting go, moving on etc., is more pronounced this time because this solar eclipse is a South Node eclipse that has, as one of its principal meanings, an emptying out, a release, a letting go that can be significant and potentially life-altering!

Astrology research group, Astrobutterfly, gives us a more concise overview of this upcoming eclipse. They write:

At a Solar Eclipse, the Moon changes roles with the Sun. At a Lunar Eclipse, the Earth steps between the Sun and Moon, casting its shadow across the Moon. The hidden becomes visible, roles are turned upside down, and our destiny gets negotiated.

What has become the default of our lives no longer has to be. The career we thought we would always have. The childhood conditioning deeply embedded in our psyche: the same relationship patterns, the same response to rejection, the same choices producing the same outcomes.

If there is a time to really change what’s otherwise the default – the status quo of our lives – it’s eclipse season. Saturn, Uranus, or Pluto transits challenge, break open, or intensify the story already in motion.

Eclipses do something different:

They flip the script. Eclipses are NOT your usual transits. They are that window of opportunity when the old order is interrupted, and a different choice becomes possible.

At an eclipse, it’s not enough to know the sign, degree, or house. We need to understand its underlying mechanism – because there is one.

A Solar Eclipse means something very specific. A Lunar Eclipse means something different. A South Node Eclipse has a completely different mandate than a North Node Eclipse.

And in each eclipse season, there’s a particular sequence – and that sequence dictates the overarching story.

When we understand the whole story, when we are IN eclipse season as it unfolds, then – and only then – can we have a say in how the story develops.

Another way of saying this, one with more punch, comes from Lena, of the Shamanic school. She declares this about the south node eclipse:

“To the extent that you are trapped in your attachment to the past, you may feel very out of sorts during this time. Eclipses always bring intensity and mark the beginning of a new cycle. It is up to you and your personal internal leadership to decide how this cycle will manifest for you.

Only you can choose the right path and only you can decide when you are complete and where you are going next. “

Now, you can begin to ask what about Leo’s strong personality, and how Leos will command deference and exert their self importance- the center stage, the spotlight, or top billing? 

Like good old King Midas, you can have too much of a good thing, which then becomes a burden, and eventually an imprisoning experience! Similar to what we know about addiction- wanting too much of what we truly do not need- this solar eclipse will find that the moon’s power will temper and direct the leoine energies towards their higher or more ethical expressions.

There will be less time for bluffing or being overly demonstrative; in short, this eclipse cycle will allow for a more honest and genuine sense of who I am and what are my core issues and concerns in my life….

The eclipse on the 12th will start or initiate the unfoldment of these kinds of changes throughout the next 18 months… Not that I would rule out any dramatic shifts or changes- you will need to look at where 20 degrees of Leo is located in your chart and what house it is in…

and of course, to get the whole picture, you have to combine that discovery with a more complete astrological reading…

There are some helpful guidance and insightful questions to ask yourself during this process… Astrologer from AstrologyDome newsletter, has given us an excellent set of probing and revealing questions. She asks: 

Reflection

Take a few quiet moments this week and ask yourself:

• Which role have I been playing that no longer feels true?
• What expectations—from others or from myself—have quietly shaped my identity?
• Where do I still seek approval before allowing myself to fully express who I am?
• What parts of myself have I neglected because they didn’t fit the image I believed I needed to maintain?
• What would become possible if I trusted my own heart a little more?

Journal Prompts

✦ Who am I becoming? ✦ What identity am I ready to release?

✦ What parts of myself feel most alive today?

✦ What lights me up even when no one is watching?

✦ If I stopped trying to meet expectations, how would I choose to live?

Now, as a dynamic prelude to this solar eclipse, it is important to note how the actions and motions of both Mercury and Venus influence or the personal planets interact with the most plodding and transpersonal planets such as Uranus, Neptune and Pluto…

Astrobutterfly research group points us towards how these interactions will move into the time period around the eclipse and how they could potentially influence how the eclipse could influence us… They write:

August 10-11th, 2026 – Venus And Mercury Activate The Outer Planets

“As a basic astrology rule, the more exact aspects we have packed into a short window, the more eventful the astrology becomes. Does it ‘help’ that all of this happens the day before the eclipse? YES, it does.

Just look at the geometry:

August 10th: Venus trine Pluto; August 10th: Venus opposite Neptune

August 11th: Venus trine Uranus; 

August 11th: Mercury opposite Pluto; August 11th: Mercury trine Neptune

Venus and Mercury activate the Uranus-Neptune-Pluto configuration we’ve been talking about since 2025, pulling our personal stories directly into the larger collective plot. What was previously operating in the background now gets a tag: “Ah. So this is what it’s about”.

Not to be outshone or placed in the background, we have the entry of Mars into Cancer on the 11th, and then in a short time, he squares Chiron…

Astrobutterfly continues to describe how this challenging aspect will show or demonstrate itself. They write;

To understand Mars in Cancer, think of a warrior – Mars – crossed with a crab – Cancer. This is a crab with a hard shell and a soft belly. With Mars in Cancer, we take a “crustacean approach”, where we act tough as a defense against the fear that our needs and vulnerabilities might be exploited or used against us. 

Mars in Cancer learns to read the room – very quickly – because it understands at a visceral level that there is danger out there. Repeated again and again, what began as a defense mechanism becomes street smarts: knowing what to do, who to trust, and how to be in the right place at the right time.”

While I do not usually mention the asteroids in my bi-monthly reports, there are exceptions, and this new moon eclipse is one of them. While some astrologers will routinely include many of them, I find that it is cumbersome and somewhat confusing to deal with much more than the ten heavenly bodies and the nodes. (Yet, I will add Chiron, BML, and Eris) being the exceptions…)

Yes, that sounds like “doublespeak” and to some degree it is… the four asteroids of most influence and importance are Ceres, Juno, Pallas Athena, and Vesta… (I will place myself out on the astrological wing minority and be willing to consider Ceres to be the co-rulers of Taurus, and possibly Vesta/Vulcan? as the co-rulers of Virgo- all yet to be confirmed!)

Here is what astrologer, Lynn Hayes, has to contribute to this eclipse eport by adding Ceres to the forecast. She writes:

“Ceres enters Cancer August 12. I like to think of Ceres as the inspiration for care of the body, but also of the soul. Her elevation to planet status came at a time when “wellness” – the idea that taking care of ourselves is important – became a trend.

As she moves through the signs we learn the different dimensions of self-care, and in Cancer this comes through associating ourselves with family, or with friends who feel like family. 

Emotions run deep under Ceres in Moon-ruled Cancer, and our relationship with food and nurturing the body could become somewhat fraught, and require a rebalancing in order to achieve that sense of well-being. (Ceres will remain in Cancer until May 2027.)”

Maybe the current, yet reoccurring concern in this country for the safety and delivery of our food supply could tie in here? Our national level of obesity?  Also, the whole “wellness” craze and the hunger to buy all the “miracle” supplements that promise to relieve any problem you have!? 

Celestial Blessings, Peter
Astrologer/Theologian/Life Coach
Onespiritcoaching.com