Technically speaking, eclipses only occur when the Earth aligns with the Sun and Moon. During Lunar Eclipses (also at Full Moon), the Earth comes between the Sun and the Moon casting a shadow over the Moon’s surface. Solar Eclipses, on the other hand, occur at the New Moon when the Moon appears between the Earth and the Sun blocking the Sun’s light to Earth.

There are at least two Lunar and two Solar Eclipses per year and occasionally more. The point in the zodiac where this occurs actually travels backward through the zodiac. The last Solar Eclipse of March 29 finished off the Aries-Libra series and now we are in eclipses that fall on the Virgo-Pisces axis.

Enough of the technical stuff! What’s important to know is that Eclipses bring change. Oh, no! Not change! Yes, we all know that our closets often develop clutter and get dusty. Periodically we need to open them up, throw some things out and make room for new acquisitions. I realize this is more difficult for some than others. This is a metaphor for the significance of Eclipses.

Eclipses usher in a time when there may be something that ends or leaves your life, but the underlying significance is not loss, but opening space for something new to arrive in your life.

If you understand and accept this, you will not be fearful or concerned about eclipse energy. In days of yore, the court astrologers would foretell the death of kings at eclipse times. There’s some evidence that eclipses are more likely harbingers of death on the world stage rather that in individual lives. Princess Diana, Mother Theresa and John F. Kenney Jr all departed during an eclipse.

What matters is where the Eclipse falls in your chart. If it connects within 2 degrees of a personal planet (Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars), you will undoubtedly feel it based on what planet and sign is hit. For the rest of us, it may influence matters generally related to the houses of your chart that it falls in.

Lunar Eclipses last longer in space but shorter in influencing your life. You may be more emotional about something for perhaps a week.

Solar Eclipses last only minutes but have a long window of influence, making them much more powerful. I have observed that window of influence to be as much as 3 months before and 6 months after the actual Eclipse time, with 3 months afterward being the strongest time. Solar Eclipses have a way of moving you from one state of consciousness into a whole new awareness and that means personal growth in my book.

How can you prepare? Well, you really can’t know for sure what a given Eclipse will mean for you. You can, however, take note of the personal planets and houses affected and consider their meanings. Most of all, staying open to events and awareness that may appear as loss, while looking for the rainbow of new understanding will help you ease the stress and maximize the learning.