BABOON Solar Eclipse

Baboon New Moon— South Node Solar Eclipse

October 2nd 2024 at 2:48 PM Eastern

10* 3’ Libra

15th Shape: 0° Libra – 12° 51' 26'' Libra 

          October 2nd’s Solar Eclipse Lunation in the equinoctial shape of Baboon holographically parallels in lunar zodiacal significations what the many planetary configurations and aspects also spell out for the surrounding weeks. Within the general astrology of October this Shape further emphasizes covert dynamics surrounding missing pieces in the infrastructure, loss of civility, unpredictability of baselines, going stealth to achieve fixations, and an abundance of paradoxical data. Baboon is keyed to getting the word on the street from many different contacts and connections so as to assess opponents arsenal and understand what one is up against; a street savvy intel gathering.

          The Picatrix talisman is for all good things desired, which echoes Venus’ relentless attractions in Scorpio trine to the malefics ruling over this extreme lunation. It also mentions separating spouses and friends, which tracks with a South Node event in the sign of Libra, the purgation of excess diplomacy.  Picatrix calls this mansion The Covering, appropriate to a period when there is now more dark than light in the equilibrium of night and day, making a fitting medium for the stealthy modes and obscure or secret motivations, evocative of nocturnal stalking, or at least sniffing out in the sense of scavenging, as BABOON is translated from the Greek Kynokéfalos, or Cynocephali meaning literally Dog-Headed, which also has obvious mercurial connotations; again info gathering and exchanges, especially acute as Mercury is just degrees away from the eclipse. This Autumnal section of the Lunar Zodiac deals with the tensions, relationships and paradoxes between the civilized and animal world, interesting as dog domestication seems to have been the first step in leading to civilization, agriculture and urbanization. Dogs size each other up, assess each others vibe, and search each other out as a primary occupation.

          BABOON, being one of the Thoth animals in his underworld role of measuring the heart against a feather, clearly referencing the scales associated with Libra, as an Air sign aligns with autumnal weather shifts and as this is a Shape concerned with speech and thus breath it is also a place of investigating everything carried on the wind, such as news and gossip. Whether it’s seeking treasure, spying on what cards other players are holding, or as the Chinese have it, assessing one’s own and one’s enemies’ arsenals, the dynamics of the 15th Shape match the current astrology in sensitivity to resource guarding, analyzing alliances and possible corruption afoot especially among officials and how official business is administrated, so for best practice keep eyes and ears peeled.

          As this is the last of the Libra eclipses this concludes the refinement occurring in how things are equalized, balanced, and brought to harmony. In the larger cultural scape we’ve seen the heightened and distorted excess of social justice concern inflated to incoherent levels during covid times deescalate in the past year and a half, for instance, the Trump campaign isn’t accompanied by as many flags and Proud Boys this installment. Nearer the start of the Libra-Aries eclipses in 2023 we saw devastating instances of diplomacy decreased and direct action increased. As we land in this final eclipse in the Libra series upon BABOON there are some conclusions culminating in what has been shed, moved out of our existences, narrowed down and refined in how we bring about equilibrium in some dimension of our lives. In this case it may have to do with what makes us not only good listeners, but worthy spies, an interesting component of being civilized, we bring our animal cunning to the cultural dimension and as part of the folk process, gain clarity and coherence on what people are saying vs what they are doing. The previous lunation was the first North Node eclipse in Pisces, which landed betwixt Saturn and Neptune calling in the accumulation of a big atmospheric, intermingling increase in things very fake as well as very real. This lunation you can tune your data sensors to social subtleties and begin to rule a lot of hear say out so as to get to the bottom of things, extracting from the raw data, smelling for yourself what has spoiled already or gone rotten vs what still has worthy meat on the bone.

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          My boat has been moored in Belfast harbor as Summer has transitioned to Autumn. Late August and early September included it being hauled out and on the hard at the shipyard where I was grinding, painting, welding and doing ultra sonic testing to determine the thickness of the steel hull. I got very varied readings throughout, some thinner than I had expected which threw my potential voyaging plans in vortex of indecision. I had wanted to work my way south, get out of the cold, Maine winter, and cross the Atlantic next spring from a lower latitude. Now it seems I'll stick around Maine for the cold months and rent a slip, sailing locally and doing star tours while I methodically go through my hull from the interior behind and beneath the cabin infrastructure looking for hidden corrosion issues and paint blisters.

         Mid October is when the mooring chains get dropped in the mud and the pleasure yachts get pulled out of the water and all the liveaboards take over the town wharf which begins to waft with wood stove smoke. The liminality in the bay this time of year is palpable. Winds begin to shift from southerly to northerly, the evening sun lights up the Islands, the night ecliptic gets on the rise as the sun sinks, leaves glow with color then drop, recluses return to the waterfront as tourists scatter, rodents work their way into houses and many folks work up a side hustle before the lean months. Some stay and some go. Whatever has been vexing, whatever losses were suffered, however hands played out over the summer come into contact with the now and decisions are made what to do for winter.

       Everyone is asking everyone else what their plan is as circumstances shuffle. Anyone renting your Yurt? You going out west for work? You keeping your boat in the water? You headed south? Options are weighed. Often the fall is a time of packing resources away, but in the South Node impacted and eclipsed New Moon post Equinox, when tides are at their most extreme and hurricanes careen off course, we look to what has become corrupted and put some thought into what can be removed, taken away, cleared off the scales. If our hearts are to be weighed against a feather by the Cynocephalic Thoth then we may want to lighten our loads and live in accord with not only own our truth but in a form of legitness, integrity and righteousness on universal levels, both personally and circumstantially. What's currently in play and from what we must migrate to a distance. In love, life and magic “You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em, Know when to walk away and know when to run. You never count your money when you're sittin' at the table. There'll be time enough for countin' when the dealin's done.” This is how the song goes, but every good scryer will tell you to get a fix on the deal prior to the game and make all necessary adjustments under cover of dark having shed any garment or element of costume that might give you away.