Astrological Magic and Eclipses: A Relational Perspective

Questions inevitably arise around eclipse season. Can one wear astrological talismans during eclipses? Should one do magic on eclipses? In this post, we explore some of the mundane, mythological, and magical significations of eclipses and the lunar nodes before offering our recommendations and thoughts from a relational perspective about working magically with eclipses.

What are the Lunar Nodes?

From a mundane astronomical perspective, the lunar nodes are mathematical points in space where the moon’s orbit crosses over the ecliptic, the apparent path of the Sun. They are the locations where the Sun, Moon, and Earth will line up in space, resulting in the the light of one or the other of the luminaries to be occulted.

In other words, the nodes are the points where eclipses happen.

The ascending node–the point where the Moon crosses over to rise above the ecliptic—has been named the North Node or caput draconis, the Head of the Dragon. The descending node—the point where the Moon crosses over to sink below the ecliptic—has been named the South Node or cauda draconis, the Tail of the Dragon.

In the Samudra Mathana of the Hindu religion, the North and South Nodes respectively represent the head and body of Svarbhanu, a demon (asura) who drank the nectar of immortality meant for the gods (devas) and was decapitated by the goddess Mohini after his deceit was exposed by Surya (the Sun) and Chandra (the Moon). Svarbhanu’s head was named Rahu and his body Ketu, and they are considered enemies of the Sun and Moon.

The Nature of Eclipses in Astrology

Eclipses come in pairs (and occasionally, triads) twice a year, and the most intense periods of their energy occur around the new and full Moons when the Sun is close to one of the nodes. When we talk about “during eclipses” we are talking most specifically about these new and full Moons that occur around the nodes. The two-week (and sometimes four-week) “periods” between eclipses are also elevated periods of nodal activity to keep in mind.

Historically, eclipses were considered fearsome times when the natural order of things was thrown out of balance. Eclipses are times when the light of the heavens from which all life derives goes dark. Even the word for eclipse comes from the Greek ekleipsis, meaning an abandonment or forsaking.

And as the story of the Samudra Mathana mentioned above attests, the Nodes are not considered friendly characters. Eclipses represent the times when the Head and Tail of the Dragon catch up to the Sun and Moon, whom they are chasing, and devour them. Part of a prayer to Rahu from the Jyotish tradition illustrates the qualities associated with this narrative quite vividly:

(Note that since we are not trained Jyotish practitioners, it is not within our expertise to recommend specific uses of this or other Rahu prayers. It is quoted here for illustrative and educational purposes only.)

“…Half bodied one, one who is always angry,
Tormentor who troubles Sun and Moon.
Angry one, Devotee of Rudra, Ogre,
One who is near the Sun, one who terrifies the sun,
King of planets, one who got nectar,
One who desires the moon and the sun.
One who has death inflicting sight, one who likes death,
One who lives in the heart of Shiva, one who made moon dim,
One who is the son of ogress Simhika,
One who has terrifying form, One who is very strong.
One who torments planets, one who has big teeth…”
—from the Sri Rahu Strotam (Prayer to Rahu), from Skanda Purana, tr. P.R. Ramachander

As anyone can clearly see, the Head of the Dragon is considered terrifying, ferocious, and deadly. Eclipses are times when the Head and Tail of the dragon are at their most terrible and most powerful. This becomes articulated quite directly in the Picatrix, at the tail end of a long passage detailing the qualities of aspects between the Sun and the Moon:

“[E]verything in the world, and all their qualities, orders, and ends, are from the aspects of the Moon with the Sun, because this includes everything that is contained in trees and composite bodies because of the Sun and the Moon. This is what causes the greater part of the influence and harm they receive from an eclipse of the Moon or other planets that are eclipsed. From the Sun, the Moon, and the fixed stars come permanent mutations; from these, things suffer change, receive benefits from good qualities and harm from bad ones. Eclipses affect the Sun and the Moon and other planets, and influence them to the harm of other composite bodies.”
—Picatrix, Book II, Chapter 3, tr. Greer & Warnock

Quite clearly, eclipses are not auspicious and life-enhancing, but harmful, chaotic, and destructive.

Some Magical Uses of the Nodes

Despite the fearsome nature of eclipses, the tradition of astrological magic as we receive it does not suggest the nodes are to be avoided at all costs in all situations. The North Node in particular is attested in traditional sources as augmenting certain powers and virtues of the traditional planets. Both the Moon and the benefic planets, Venus and Jupiter, receive additional power when placed with the North Node.

On the Moon, the Picatrix states: “if she is with the Dragon’s Head [i.e., the North Node] it is powerful for workings” (Book I, Chapter 5). In contrast, when the Moon “is conjunct the south lunar node,” this is considered one of the factors that “harm and weaken the Moon” (Book II, Chapter 3). When the Moon is with the South Node, Picatrix states that “the beginning [of the goal of the working] will not be fulfilled, nor will it have any durability.”

More generally, the Picatrix states:

“Know that the nature of the Head of the Dragon is to augment; when it is with fortunate planets it increases them in honor and strength, and if he is with unfortunates he augments them in condemnation and bad fortune. Similarly the Tail of the Dragon has the nature of diminution. And when it is with fortunate planets it diminishes their good and with infortunates it diminishes their evil and condemnation.”
—Picatrix, Book III, Chapter 2, tr. Greer & Warnock

In addition to augmenting or diminishing planetary workings, astrological talismans for the North Node and the South Node are also attested in the tradition of astrological magic as we receive it. The following talismanic recipe appears in Agrippa’s writings:

“[The wise ancients] also made images for the Head and Tail of the Dragon of the Moon—that is, an effigy of a serpent with the head of a hawk enclosed between an airy and fiery circle after the image of the Greek letter theta. They made this when Jupiter was placed in [the] midheaven with the Head [of the Dragon]. Indeed, this image was affirmed for conferring much success in petitions. They desired by this image to observe good and lucky daemons, and they wished for these in the image of a figure of a serpent.”
—Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa, Three Books of Occult Philosophy, Book II, Chapter 45, tr. Eric Purdue

Here again, the theme of augmenting appears: essentially, astrological talismans of the Head of the Dragon constitute magic to make your magic more powerful. Needless to say, these talismans should not ever be created during eclipses or eclipse periods.

As noted above, within the Jyotish tradition there are devotional and remediative approaches to working with Rahu and Ketu, but these are beyond the scope of this article. The Sphere + Sundry referral directory suggests many qualified astromagic-friendly Jyotish practitioners who specialize in remediation.

On Magic During Eclipses

The Picatrix contains an explicit and unmistakable prescription as regards performing magic during an eclipse:

“You should beware of trying to work magic to a good end when the Moon is applying to an eclipse.”
—Picatrix, Book I, Chapter 5, tr. Greer & Warnock

Because more specific practical questions come up, we offer the following breakdowns of more specific actions, intentions, and situations. When in doubt, we recommend consulting a reliable source of divination that you are skilled in interpreting.

As well, remember that not all eclipses are equal for all people at all times. Any guidance below that is qualified should be taken more on the serious and careful side in the case of those (including but not limited to):

for whom the Sun or Moon are time lords of various kinds;
for whom the eclipses are occurring within a few degrees (especially applying) of personal planets, particularly time lords. While we don’t pay strong attention to outer planets, Chiron, asteroids, if the eclipses are partile or within a degree, or those placements are particularly important to you, they are certainly worthy of attention;
for whom the nodes/eclipses are currently angular (e.g., the nodes are currently in Aries-Libra, so those with Aries, Cancer, Libra, or Capricorn rising should take extra care, particularly if their IC-MC are also in the cardinal axis);
for whom the current nodal period is their nodal return/reversal/square.

Making Astrological Talismans: We never recommend making talismans during eclipses.

Wearing Astrological Talismans: An astrological talisman’s character and power derive from its electional chart, not the current astrology. We often continue to wear talismans during eclipse periods—particularly talismans for protection and fixed star talismans—when we already have an existing relationship with that talisman. Some people may find their familiar Solar or Lunar talismans too intense or even unpredictable during eclipse season, and keeping them on their altars or otherwise safely and respectfully storing them away is preferable. We can think about this as letting them rest while we are also resting. Feeling into or even divining on specific talismans when there are questions may help individuals clarify what kind of relational approach would be most supportive during eclipses.

Attuning to New Astrological Talismans: If one has recently made, purchased, or been given an astrological talisman, a question sometimes arises whether it is safe to introduce oneself to that talisman for the first time during an eclipse period. As we say in our blog post series on attuning to astrological talismans, choosing a specific and auspicious time is a gesture of respect to the talismanic spirit. We recommend choosing a more auspicious time because this can help smooth out any potential turbulence in establishing a new spirit relationship. The chaotic temporality around eclipses can add to rather than diminish such turbulence, and so we recommend avoiding it. Remember that the spirits of astrological talismans exist as time not in time: they can wait until a better time comes, and we recommend that you do too.

Using Astromagical Materia: As with wearing astrological talismans, we do not discourage the use of astromagical materia during eclipses or eclipse periods. The nature of any specific materia will be determined by the conditions of its own inception, not the current astrological weather. One exception would be Solar and Lunar materia: because eclipses inherently involve afflictions to the Sun and Moon, we advise caution around using Solar and Lunar materia during eclipses. The use of benefic, cleansing, and protective materia during eclipses and eclipse periods can be helpful as well for smoothing out turbulence and offering grounding/protection. Here again we commend to you Kaitlin Coppock’s article on ritual bathing and personal cleansing.

[Note that some people may have magical, devotional, or ancestral practices or relationships with the nodes or to eclipses that afford greater nuance or a different approach than the ones we are recommending here. Our suggestions and recommendations are mostly aimed at people who lack this kind of specific relationship to the nodes/eclipses, which requires particular training and knowledge.]

Continuing Ongoing Workings or Devotional Practices: Unless you have a specific reason to break your routine, it is probably fine to continue your practices during eclipse and eclipse periods. Workings or practices initiated outside of an eclipse period should be fine to continue. Depending on the details of your practice, particularly if it is heavily Sun and Moon dependent, you might also consider stepping back or pressing pause, especially during the days immediately around eclipses. Follow your spirit sense and divine.

Beginning New Magical Workings or Devotional Practices: We never recommend initiating new magical or devotional endeavors, rites, or practices during or between eclipses.

Regarding Non-Astrological Magic: From an ecological perspective, since everything is in relation to the celestial spheres, we do not draw a sharp distinction between astrological and non-astrological magic, and would issue analogous precautions. Given that eclipses carry the potential to infuse your magic with harm, chaos, and destruction, consider letting it rest if your circumstances afford the privilege of rest (recognizing, of course, that magic often springs from necessity). While some people might be tempted to try to harness eclipses for cursing or other malevolent magic, their inherent unpredictability and volatility always makes it difficult to anticipate consequences. If one wishes to deal with dragons, it is best to approach them when they are calm, sated, and well-disposed, rather than when they are angry, ravenous, and bent on vengeance and destruction.

Discretion is the better part of valor. Unless you know what you’re doing, step back. When in doubt, divine.

If you have taken magical actions during a recent eclipse that run counter to these suggestions, do not panic. Consult your divination tools, supportive spirits, trusted colleagues, and teachers about whether any harm has been done and what next steps, if any, you need to take.

Relational Reflections on Eclipse Magic

We raised the point in our September, 2023 Inspirit Salon with members of our Inner Sanctum that astrological magic foundationally concerns attentiveness to and attunement with the rhythms, cycles, and qualities of the celestial spheres. This naturally and essentially includes their timing.

From our perspective, the bedrock premise of astrological magic is, after all, that some times are better than others for specific purposes. This entails that some times are for acting and some times are better left as fallow periods or even dead periods. The movements of the spheres contain times for Saturnine slowness as well as Lunar speediness. The retrograde motions of Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn underscore that some periods are chthonic and plutonic, rather than solar and heroic.

Sometimes, harmony means distance.

Sometimes, silence is the proper answer.

Sometimes, right relationship means not engaging.

Avoiding magical workings during eclipses can be seen as a way of respecting the natural rhythms of the cosmos.

Despite these considerations, some people still desire to forge ahead. The urge to always be doing something magical, initiating new enterprises, or achieving new magical goals, irrespective of the celestial conditions, should be carefully examined. Why does someone, or would someone, want to do magic during an eclipse?

Does someone’s wish to do magic during an eclipse derive from a genuine and thoughtful need, or merely from an ungrounded impulse or mere acquisitiveness? Does their action spring from a quest for power, or a compulsion to feel powerful? Are they acting with wisdom and care, or are they seeking stimulation and intensity for its own sake? Is their magical effort in step with the gods, or in defiance of divinity? Does their magic move toward right relationship, or is it in the service of (needless) transgression, chaos, or hatred?

Or, perhaps, the urge toward magic during eclipse season might stem from painful feelings of disconnection. The abandonment inherent in the ekleipsis may be hard to stomach, especially for those of us riddled with grief, trauma, or disordered attachments.

For such folks, we offer the gentle reminder that the gods are always with us. The Sun and the Moon—and indeed, the whole cosmos—cannot ever truly abandon you, for they exist as you and inside of you.

Coming into rhythm with the cosmos means accepting that the heroic consciousness of the ever-shining Sun also passes daily into darkness. Just as our bodies need sleep, our magical practices need rest. If we truly pay attention to the significations and meaningful differences in the movements of the spheres, we discover that these times are built in. It is not a loss or waste to bow to them, rather than rage against them.

Tolerating the emptiness, the fallowness, the deadness of certain times is also a way of honoring the parts of the cosmos—the times, the myths, the images, the spirits—who become emptied out, who sometimes lay fallow, and who pass away, often only to be reborn anew.

Patience, seen in this light, may not only be a moral virtue, but also an occult virtue.

From another perspective, magic can be seen as a way to control fate. The risk of grandiose inflation—of believing that we can be not just of the gods but above the gods—can sometimes tempt vulnerable people to believe that they are or could be separate from or immune to context and condition. Such a denial of connection that attempts to place oneself outside of rather than correctly within a divine ecology carries serious psychological, magical, and relational risks.

What eclipses show us is that even the Sun and Moon are at times subject to forces that are—at least temporarily—more powerful than them, and they too must go through processes of destruction and regeneration. Seen in this way, eclipse seasons can serve as a reminder of humility, that we are essentially and always of the humus, the very earth that creatures trod upon. The willingness to submit to forces, times, and circumstances that we cannot control is not a weakness, but an acknowledgement that we are but one part of a larger whole that we cannot encompass or overcome. From a relational perspective, this acknowledgement is merely an acknowledgement of our interconnection with and proper place within the world soul.

At Idola Stellarum, we will be using this magically fallow period not simply to wait, but to clean, to organize and take inventory, to pray, to think, to plan, to write, to tend the land and our ancestors. Although these activities may not involve elaborate magical ceremony, they are inherently magical, and express magical relationship and relatedness.

We encourage you to participate in this kind of quiet magic during eclipse season: the mundane efforts that enable magical moments to truly shine in their rightful time, the shadows that limn and accentuate the light in its glorious return.

Further Resources: We recommend Kaitlin Coppock’s articles at Sphere + Sundry on How Eclipses Work in Astrology + Magic as well as on the North Node and South Node, although these posts are now available to Sphere + Sundry premium members only. Also our favourite Diana Rose Harper recently posted an ‘Eclipse Dos and Don’ts’ especially geared to beginners on her Patreon (also paid).

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