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Tomorrow, Wednesday March 29th, 2006 is a total solar eclipse.
The peak of the eclipse is at 10:16am GMT and occurs at 14
degrees Pisces. According to NASA, "a total eclipse of
the Sun will be visible from within a narrow corridor which
traverses half the Earth. The path of the Moon's umbral shadow
begins in Brazil (at 8:36 am GMT) and extends across the Atlantic,
northern Africa, and central Asia where it ends at sunset
in western Mongolia. A partial eclipse will be seen within
the much broader path of the Moon's penumbral shadow, which
includes the northern two thirds of Africa, Europe, and central
Asia."
Solar eclipses occur on the new Moon (amavasya) when the Moon
passes between the Sun and the Earth. They are of three types:
total, partial and annular. A total
solar eclipse is when the Moon's dark shadow called the "umbra"
falls on the Earth's surface. From that region of the earth
the Sun will appear to be completely eclipsed by the Moon
for a short period of a few minutes. The shadow will move
across a portion of the earth in a narrow band called the
path of totality. It is about 10,000 miles long but only
100 miles or so wide. In order to see the Sun totally eclipsed
by the Moon, you must be standing in the path of totality.
When only the Moon's faint shadow called the "penumbra"
strikes the Earth, we see a partial eclipse of the Sun from
that region. An annular solar eclipse is when the Moon is
too small to cover the entire disk of the Sun. This can happen
because the Moon's orbit around the earth is not round but
oval and varies by about 13% in proximity to the earth. When
the Moon is closest to the earth and crosses the plane of
the earth's orbit around the Sun then a total solar eclipse
occurs. When the Moon is farthest from the earth and crosses
the plane of the earth's orbit then annular eclipse occurs.
If you are in this path, you will see a ring or 'annulus'
of bright sunlight surrounding the Moon at the maximum phase
of the eclipse.
The point in space where the plane of the earth's orbit and
the plane of the Moon's orbit cross is called the eclipse
point, or Rahu and Ketu in Vedic astrology. Only about
2-4 times per year does the Moon and Sun's paths cross the
eclipse point. Astrologically speaking, for an eclipse to
occur, Rahu and Ketu have to be within approximately 20 degrees
of the Sun and Moon.
It's always best to do spiritual practices during eclipses
and not anything of significance in the material world like
starting a major project or signing important documents. Eclipses
are excellent times for meditation, chanting mantras, or other
spiritual practices. It's recommended to fast. Traditionally
in India Brahmans (priests) will do spiritual practices like
chanting mantras while submerged up to the neck in a body
of water like a sacred river during the final hours of the
eclipse. It is believed that any spiritual practices done
during the eclipse will be many times more powerful and effective
than at other times.
If the eclipse happens to occur at a key location in your
astrology chart, like ascendant, Sun or Moon, then that period
of time can represent a dramatic change or transition in your
life relative to the house it occurs in and/or the planets
it aspects. This is especially true when the dashas and other
major transits like Jupiter and/or Saturn also indicate this
dramatic change.
To learn about lunar eclipses click
here.
Copyright 2006. Vaughn Paul
Manley. All Rights Reserved.
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