Tonight there is a New Moon and Solar Eclipse in Pisces. As usual, Cafe Astrology tells us what this event has in store for us much better than I ever could:

On Sunday evening, an especially potent New Moon occurs in late Pisces--potent because it's a Solar Eclipse. Because this solar eclipse occurs in the sign of Pisces, imagination, service, dreams, ideals, and compassion will be in focus. In the sign of Pisces, this eclipse is about new beginnings when it comes to taking a leap of faith, our beliefs, the acceptance of imperfections, imagination and intuition, selfless service, and dreams.

This eclipse squares Pluto, suggesting that deep, transformational change is required of us now. This is a time when we should build our powers of acceptance, belief, and compassion; take a leap of faith--believe in something higher; start a creative, imaginative project; practice putting ourselves in others' shoes, and let some things go (such as judgments, annoyances, and the like); revitalize ourselves through experiences that require imagination, compassion, or that simply represent a "break" from the routine; give ourselves selflessly through compassionate service; and to share a dream with others. For some of us, circumstances are such that we need to pay more attention to our spirituality.

We may find ourselves completely re-working the area of life ruled by Pisces in our charts. It's a time to take special note of our dreams, as well as insights or thoughts/emotions that seem to come from "out of the blue". These could be creatively inspiring. The range of emotions that Pisces registers is extraordinary, and this could be a time when we feel that enormous range. We've been focusing on what works in the real world since the Full Moon on Lunar Eclipse on March 3rd. With Virgo, we are acutely aware of imperfections. We see the flaws around us and perhaps become very tense and irritable, or we work hard at fixing them. To Pisces, however, imperfection is beautiful. With the health and service axis (Pisces-Virgo) involved, health or work issues may come to the fore. As well, the ability to set boundaries to the amount of service we render can become a major issue. Situations that test our faith, or magnify our fears and doubts, may be part of the picture. For some, a new "calling" will surface in the coming six months. A new line of work that better matches our inner nature, desire to serve, or emotional make-up may unfold in the months following this eclipse. We may discover that we need more rest and relaxation or attention to our spiritual nature than we are currently allowing ourselves. Compassion, and finding beauty in imperfection, is our path to balancing this energy, symbolized in the North Node's position in Pisces.

That's some pretty powerful stuff, especially coming mere days before Ostara and its promise for the reawakening of the Earth, and by extension, ourselves. The promise of Spring speaks to our soul of hope, growth and new possibilities.

Since the actual moment of the New Moon is later tonight, 10:43 pm EST, we have all day to use the last of the Waning Moon to energetically and literally clean out the old to make room for the new. Clean your house today. The proverbial Spring Cleaning is a great way to prepare for Ostara and, to follow Chinese belief, to wait to clean house after the auspicious event occurs means you may be hoovering up the good chi that the New Moon brought in with it.

With the profound potential for transformation that the Eclipse adds to this New Moon, today is an ideal time to use the Dark of the Moon to perform a spell to banish something that you just haven't been able to shake. Call upon one of the dark mothers, light a black candle. I like to use petition spells for banishing because there is something very satisfying about seeing the words (and thus the issue) literally go up in flame.

Personally, I'm just one of those people who needs "more rest and relaxation or attention to our spiritual nature than we are currently allowing ourselves." The compassion I owe is to myself and while this Eclipse illuminates that which is hidden, I'm going to recognize the beauty in my own imperfection. I can't wait to turn my face toward the radiance of the new Sun and let it warm me to the core.

Petition spell and correspondences follow.

Petition Spells

Petition spells are easy and very effective. Basically, you are making a statement of intention while in the magick circle. You write your petition on a piece of paper. After reading your petition in the circle as the work, burn the spell and raise the cone of power, sending your intention out into the universe. As your petition burns, visualize your intention, bring up your strong emotion to back it up, and repeat the key words in your mind. (A word to the wise - if you live in an apartment with smoke detectors, make sure you leave a window or something open so the smoke can get out and cast your circle wide enough to include whatever outside area this includes. I learned this tip the hard way!)

Petition spells have five basic parts. You can do them in any order but this is the basic flow:

Announcement: The announcement simply states who you are. You are announcing yourself, and your intention to do magick, to the universe.

Evocation: The evocation is asking the divine powers to be present. You may want to focus on a specific God or Goddess, or simply say "Goddess, God and Great Spirit." You may call other helpful beings into your circle to help you, but it's best to focus your petition on the God and Goddess.

Intent: Here is the basis of the work. This is the actual spell. Write down what you want to manifest as clearly and succinctly as possible. Remember, your spell will manifest what you say, not what you meant to say. Give some thought to this. Maybe you'll have to write it a few times before you get it just right.

Conditions: With the conditions, you put in any parameters or limits you want to the spell. Usually conditions include some request that it be in balance with divine will, so your own ego doesn't supersede the spell. Phrases such as "I ask this be for the highest good, harming none," or "I ask this be in accord with divine will," are good to add to your conditions. You can ask that your petition happen within a certain timeframe, within a particular Moon or Sun cycle, or simply "immediately." Conditions are your safeguards. It's better for a spell not to work than to work in a way you didn't intend. The trick is that your heart must really be in it in order for it to work. You must really mean what you say; your emotions and intentions must be on the same page (no pun intended - oh who am I kidding, of course it was intended) in order for the conditions to protect you.

Gratitude: Gratitude acknowledges the divine help and gives thanks. Often included in the conditions, it ends with an affirmation that puts all requests into a positive tense.

Petition spells often look like this:

I (state your name or magickal name), ask in the name of the Goddess and the God to grant me/remove from me (state your intent). I thank the Goddess and the God and ask that this be correct and for the good of all involved, harming none. So mote it be.

Feel free to get creative to make the spell more personal. Some people like to use special paper and special inks (just make sure you use paper that will burn all the way - nothing is more disheartening than a petition spell that doesn't burn completely). You can also combine petition spells with other things, like charms, potions and symbols.

Just remember, the keys to a successful petition spell are to be specific, focus your intention, and really mean it.

Correspondences

Some Pisces correspondences:

Ruler: Neptune

Physical Correlation: feet and ankles

Tarot Correspondent: The Moon

Element: Water

Quality: mutable

Energy: feminine

Color: purple or lavender

Natural House: Twelfth

Natural House Qualities: cadent and endings or terminal

Keywords: sacrificing, introspective

Phrase: "I believe"

Since Pisces is ruled by Neptune, here are some Neptune correspondences:

Colors: sea blues, sea greens, gray, all incandescent and opaque colors

Metal: platinum, pewter

Stones: amethyst, aquamarine, bloodstone, blue aragonite, blue tourmaline, calcite (all colors), celestite, coral, gem silica lithium, green tourmaline, jade, kyanite, lepidolite, mother-of-pearl, pearl, petalite, petroleum products (oils and plastics), sea salt, sea shell, watermelon tourmaline, turquoise

Herbs: Adam and Eve root, African violet, agaric, alder, aloe, apricot, ash, blue flag, cabbage, catnip, cedar, celery, chives, copal, cucumber, elm, fennel, fig, fir, grape, lemon, lemon grass, lettuce, lotus, lovage, magnolia, mastic, milkweed, morning glory, moss, mugwort, mushroom, narcissus, onion, papaya, passion flower, peach, pear, plum, poppy, pumpkin, sea weed, skunk cabbage, soapwort, sweet pea, violet, water lily watercress, watermelon, willow, wisteria, yerba mate, ylang-ylang

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 9:48 AM