“Headed into Eclipse,” chalk pastel by Maria Theresa Maggi
The moon is full at 14 degrees Scorpio in the tropical zodiac on May 5, 2023 at 10:35 AM Pacific Daylight Time. Scorpio is the 8th sign of the tropical zodiac, the second water sign, and the 3rd of the 4 fixed signs. It is also the only sign that has a series of symbolic animals to describe the evolution of its energy. At the most base level there is the scorpion, a stinging machine capable of reflexively stinging itself to death. Next comes the lizard, a “cold blooded” reptile that lives in rocky crevices and must come out into the sun in order to warm himself enough to be able to move (and hunt). Third is the eagle, that flies above the cracks and crevices the scorpion and the lizard reside in and hunts its prey from the larger perspective of above. And finally, there is the mythical bird the Phoenix, capable of bursting into flames and rising anew, alive again, out of its own ashes.
Let’s take a moment to appreciate that spectrum. What each of these animals has in common is the reptilian lineage and a total engagement or immersion with survival and finally self-transformation. Scorpio energy moves all the way from the scorpion who might sting itself to death in a frenzy to stun its prey, to the phoenix who can burst into flames yet rise resurrected. Each of these takes a trap and turns it into a transformation---and each embraces danger, either selfishly to the point of instinctual mindlessness resulting in death, or willingly and consciously, to achieve a profound and genuine transformation.