Novembers Eclipses and the Mayan Calendar

On further reflection, I think it may be useful to understand the two eclipses this month not only in relation to each other, but in relation to the end of the 5125 year Mayan Long Count calendar on Dec. 21, 2012(Winter Solstice). Context provides meaning that would otherwise be hard to discern.

The Nov. 13 eclipse (21.56 Scorpio) is a total solar eclipse and a SuperMoon (Moon at perigee) in the sign of Scorpio, known for it's emotional intensity. Generally speaking, a solar eclipse represents a major ending and new beginning, a reset of our evolutionary directive- especially as the eclipse conjoins the Moon's North Node or Dragon's Head. The Dragon's Head is a point of intake, and the Dragon's Tail one of outtake. And in this case, the Dragon's Tail/South Node is conjunct the eclipsing binary Algol Beta Persei, the Medusa's Head, that is considered the most evil, violent, and dangerous star in the heavens.(D.K.Rosenberg) "Algol is the wild, raw, and frightening face of the outraged feminine which has been labeled as demonic or evil. This star seems to contain immense female passion and power- the potential power of Mother Nature."(B.Brady) The accumulated karma (Dragon's Tail) of not honoring the awesome power of the goddess is part of our collective legacy, but a regressive, unhealthy tendency.

The solar eclipse with the Dragon's Head is forward looking and future oriented, but the Scorpio emphasis suggests the need to clear away the old, decayed elements in our lives and psyches, so we can start off with a clean slate. As Mars, ruler of Scorpio is now out of bounds (OOB) by declination (measured north or south of the celestial equator), we can act out this clearing process in a novel, innovative way, or in a wildly extreme manner. Transiting Mars in Sagittarius is the righteous warrior- or radical zealot.

Solar eclipses are extraordinary New Moons that birth a lunar cycle which reaches culmination at the Full Moon/Lunar Eclipse. The Nov. 13 Scorpio eclipse is deeply emotional-psychic, and the Nov. 28 Lunar Eclipse at 6.47 Gemini is cerebral in nature, as Gemini is mercurial, and this eclipse also conjoins Jupiter that aspires to knowledge. Moreover, benefic Jupiter signifies hope, optimism, and confidence. The Scorpio catharsis can set the stage for intellectual and spiritual epiphanies. Esoterically- Scorpio relates to the 3rd chakra located at the solar plexus, which pertains to our power center & power issues. While Gemini is linked to the 5th chakra or throat chakra- connected with the voice and communication.

If we see these eclipses against the backdrop of the once in 5125 year reset of Mayan calendar, they take on more profound meaning. The end of this calendar is not the end of the world, but is definitely related to a turning of the ages. The Mayan Long Count calendar is divided into bak'tuns, or 144,000-day cycles that begin at the Maya creation date (3113 BC). The Dec. 21, 2012 Winter Solstice is the last day of the 13th bak'tun, marking what the Maya people would have seen as a full cycle of creation.

Astronomically, the 'Galactic Alignment' is the alignment of the Winter Solstice Sun with the Galactic Equator, or plane of our Milky Way galaxy. This alignment occurs as a result of the 26,000 year precession of the equinoxes, caused by the earth wobbling slowly on its axis which shifts the equinoxes, solstices, and stars one degree forward every 72 years. Because the Sun is one-half of a degree wide, it takes the Winter Solstice Sun 36 years to precess through the Galactic Equator. The precise Galactic Alignment occurred in May 1998 according to master astronomer Jean Meeus.(Mathematical Astronomy Morsels, 1997) And in a previous post here, it was noted that the May 11, 1998 Scorpio Full Moon was most sharply focused in Japan.

The Maya long count system is like an odometer- and although the Maya did make prophecies, it was not in a fatalistic sense, but rather about events that, in their cyclical conception of historical time, could be repeated in the future. One does not need to know much about the Mayan calendar or astrology to see that humankind is coming to a cross-roads, and if we are to survive and prosper, we need to learn to live in harmony with each other and the Earth that sustains us. The possibility of a paradigm shift is also clear to anyone aware of the game-changing Uranus-Pluto square in effect for another 3-5 years. These planets were last square in the early 1930's, but the current square marks the first crisis-phase of the cycle that began with the conjunctions of 1965-66 (at 16-17 Virgo). However, the synchronous start of a new epochal 5125 year calendar cycle seems even more numinous now, and the eclipses this month are celestial portents. Perhaps the Great Conjunction of Jupiter & Saturn in the sign of the Water Bearer on the 2020 Winter Solstice heralds the true birth of the altruistic Aquarian Age.
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NASA Science: Total Eclipse of the Sun