My take on eclipses is not very popular.
I’m not going to tell you to light a black candle and manifest your hidden desire. And I’ve stepped away from advocating the specific use of that time for cleansing and banishing. We cleanse with light, not darkness. The ancients were rightfully wary of the eclipse, and the word has its ancillary definitions of blocking, overwhelming, or coming-between for a reason.
I stop spellcasting in the week leading up to a solar eclipse and do not recommence until a week after the lunar. (Or vice versa if the lunar precedes the solar.) The only magic I recommend during this time is protective magic.
In a lunar eclipse, the earth is coming between the sun and the moon, blocking significant light from reaching the moon. The moon’s energy is lessened at a time when we are trained to feel its fullest effects. The light that does reach the moon is reflected from our atmosphere, causing that beautiful red glow. The moon is still there as a gravitational force and tides are not affected in a noticeable way.
Light is one of the ways we perceive the world, and eclipses are associated with ignorance, unpredictability, and poor judgment. Frustrations run high before, during, and after an eclipse. Tempers explode, purposeful action is stymied. This is a time when your enemies can find themselves thwarted and their initiatives rebuffed, so there’s that welcome aspect.
What you can “do” during an eclipse (if you must do something) is observe yourself and others. You can learn a lot during this time. Remember the fourth dictate of the magician’s path: to keep silent. Wait out the time.
