Wolf Moon Lunar Eclipse in Cancer ♋ Jan 10, 2020

Friday, Jan 10 at 11.09 am PST

Artist: Daria Hlazatova

Happy full moon! Happy lunar eclipse! The January full moon is called the Wolf Moon. Cold and hungry, packs of wolves would howl through the night around native villages. The moon will rise at sunset, peak at midnight and set at sunrise, and this is true all over the world, no matter your time zone.

Eclipses can be full or partial. The earth’s shadow consists of two parts: the shadow cast directly behind the earth is called the umbra, and the fainter, fan-like shadow surrounding the umbra is the penumbra. This full moon is a partial (or penumbral) eclipse – in fact, we won’t have another total lunar eclipse until May 2021. Most of the world will be able to view this partial eclipse, but unfortunately we won’t see it in North America – moon gazers in Africa, Asia, Australia and Europe will have the best view.

Sun and moon hover in 180 degree opposition in Capricorn and Cancer. This is the nature of every full moon: to examine a particular polarity in the zodiac wheel. The last Full Moon in Cancer fell just before Christmas in Dec 2018. Any themes/conflicts that surfaced then will now return.

On this watery/earthen quest, the full moon swells the heart with feeling and empathy. Luna is right at home in Cancer, the constellation she rules. The crab and the moon are associated with womynhood, emotion, intuition, family and homeland. This full moon is about what makes us feel at home. It’s about (self) love and commitment (to self).

Cancer and Capricorn both yearn to put down roots and get settled early in life. They gravitate toward relationships and environments which promise longevity, safety and security. A stable partner is (usually) a priority element in what it means to feel settled. This full moon, as a culminating force, not only indicates an apex moment in a relationship, but also vows to deliver seismic understanding. Cancer’s affirmation is “I feel.” Expect to feel moody, sensitive, and loving all at the same time!

The Cancer-Capricorn polarity is – roughly – between the heart and the head. Capricorn is the uncompromising stalwart of the zodiac, holding himself to the highest standard, so tangled in his own idea of what should be that he rarely experiences real freedom. The good news is that Capricorn helps us cultivate discipline. He just needs to be more relaxed and open. Cancer could likewise benefit from fortifying her spirit. Too much Capricorn makes us rigid; too much Cancer makes us complain, or cling to comfort.

At the full moon in Cancer, we tend to feel especially overwhelmed. Ask yourself if you can be more open, more understanding? Focus on release, letting go, letting in love. Practice radical acceptance and forgiveness. Sing or walk around, or lay in bed with your hands on your heart and breathe deeply.

Full moons are high energy and felt not just the day of, but for days before and after. This is especially true given that this is a lunar eclipse! Full moon lunar eclipses heighten emotions and intuition. During this time, we are more likely to overreact. It is our duty to remain calm and non-reactive no matter what. Non-reaction is the root of all journeys.

This is an extremely busy full moon. In the morning, the sun in Capricorn will be conjunct Mercury in Capricorn. This is auspicious and signals an exceptionally productive day. After the eclipse, Uranus Retrograde in Taurus ends – we are moving forward in such a tangible way. As for the specific aspects of the lunar eclipse: Luna is up against some serious opposition, as it is not just the sun and Mercury conjunct, but also Saturn and Pluto in Capricorn. The silver lining is that the moon will also form a loose trine to Neptune in Pisces. I feel exhausted just thinking about all these planets opposing the moon – in a nutshell, it’s going to be a very long, intense day full of earthen/Capricorn things like work and deadlines, but also watery/Cancerian things like emotional processing.

In meditation, focus on the heart chakra. Calm your ocean heart with Cancer Yoga. To find your personal moon sign, click here.

Affirmation:  unconditional love