So today’s post was going to be something completely different, but then I remembered what today is…it’s May 20th, 2012! And something incredible will take place in our skies. If you’re east of the Mississippi, well, sorry, it won’t be visible to you, but for us west coasties and desert dwellers we will be treated to an annular eclipse of the sun.
What’s that mean? Annular and total eclipses of the sun occur when the entire disc of the moon passes in front of the disc of the sun. With a total eclipse, the sun is completely obscured and it becomes nighttime dark.
This video shows a cool ground view, with inset of the moon’s transit across the sun:
In annular eclipses, the moon does not completely obscure the sun, but leaves a bright ring of fire, and the darkness is not as deep.
As I write this, it’s due to start in just a few hours. Here’s the path it will travel, timetables, and the website where I found this map:
http://earthsky.org/tonight/annular-eclipse-of-the-sun-china-to-texas-on-may-20-or-may-21
From the purely scientific it’s a pretty cool thing. Here in Puget Sound we won’t get the full, annular view, instead it will look like a partial ring with the open ‘horns’ pointing toward the lower left. Actually, I’m unlikely to see anything at this point. After weeks of gorgeous clear weather, the usual Seattle rain has settled back over the skies in an unwelcome blanket. While my garden is a little thirsty and the moisture is welcome, the timing couldn’t be worse!
Throughout the centuries, eclipses have been viewed as deeply mystical events, feared or welcomed. Sacrifices and prayers were made to ensure the safe return of the sun. Ancient Chinese, Mayan, Egyptian and other cultures made studies of the sky and were able to predict their occurrences. Diverse cultures from around the globe tell stories of the sun being consumed, native Americans say a bear, the Chinese, a dragon, Nordic cultures tell of the sun being chased and eaten by wolves.
This eclipse carries an added, mystical significance. It marks the alignment of the sun, moon, galactic center, and the main star of the Pleiades star cluster. This group of stars is significant in both the ancient Mayan and Egyptian cultures. Depending on which website you read will find that this day will see a huge energetic surge in the process of uplifting the Earth and her peoples in their evolutionary progress.
Much of the furor surrounding 2012 concerns not an end of the world, apocalyptic scenario, but rather the Earth moving into a higher vibrational state. This alignment supposedly represents opening a doorway to these higher states, which the Earth will slowly move into. Some have called this upcoming time the Age of Aquarius.
In the astronomical sense, we are at the cusp of precessional movement from the Piscean age into the Aquarian age. This alignment is one that only occurs every 26,000 years, and pinning down an exact date is not an easy thing, with many conflicting reports. Determination of which age we are in is calculated by the position of the rising sun on the spring equinox and which astrological sign is seen behind it.
Movement through each age takes roughly 2500 years, and defining characteristics of each sign are said to correspond to Earthly events; for example, during the Taurean age, worship of the Apis bull in Egypt rose. The Piscean age saw the rise of Christianity, Buddhism and other religions, and is to represent humanity’s deepening spirituality. Others go further and claim that we have allowed the ego to take over and bury our spiritual nature beneath dogma. In the Aquarian Age, this and other illusions are supposed to be removed, allowing for greater group awareness and expanded consciousness.
In researching this, I found a number of websites that added an extraterrestrial component. Some state that this date, this eclipse were predicted by the Mayans as the return of the gods from the Pleiades. Others showed crop circle formations that decoded to indicate this date as significant. Not sure how a crop circle is decoded, some claim the aliens making them are using a binary code. Interesting reading, but not one I can have a firm opinion about.
Here’s some of the sites I visited:
http://www.thetruthbehindthescenes.org/2012/04/30/annular-solar-ring-of-fire-eclipse-of-may-20-2012/
http://www.hogueprophecy.com/2012/05/annular-eclipse-2012-and-earthquakes/
http://soundofheart.org/galacticfreepress/content/preparing-may-20-eclipse-and-ascension-trigger
http://www.ourufosociety.com/ufo-news-articles/galactic-alignment-may-20th-2012/
http://www.astrodynamics.net/Articles/Cycles/Age%20of%20Aquarius.htm
Are you somewhere you can see the eclipse? Will you be partying in the shadow or hoping to feel the energetic surge? Will you let me know if you do feel or see anything? Because here in the Northwest, even if aliens do plunge out of the sun, I won’t be able to see it. However, if my Wild Wednesday post doesn’t go up, blame our new ET overlords.
Lastly, do you think 2012 is a time of transition, as the Mayans and others claim? Or will this year come and go with nothing more exciting than the political comic drama currently taking place? Hope to hear from you!
we don’t get it in Calgary – too far north. I’m so jealous.
Even though I was in the path, like Diana, I missed it too. Mom saw it from Southern California though and was pretty happy about that.
I, like you, missed it due to the lovely Northwestern cloud cover… Ugh! Totally bummed my boys out, too! Interesting to find out that there was a 6.0 earthquake in Italy today. A friend of mine lives there in Bologna…thought of that when I saw one of your links to the eclipse and earthquakes. Thanks for a wonderful post!
Thank you, Diana! I know, I was bummed not to be able to see it, so went and did a meditation on it instead. Lots of earthquakes lately around the earthly ring of fire. Hope your Italian friend is ok!
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I saw people watching it as we entered our neighborhood and my daughter said that several people people were outside a restaurant doing sun salutations! LOVE IT!
How cool! Sun salutations to the eclipse! Awesomeness!
I’m in Ireland and I didn’t hear anything about it 🙁
Love reading about ancient prophecies, just hope the 2012 Mayan one doesn’t come true.
I hope the doom and gloom, end of the world hype isn’t true, but have to admit I’m kind of hoping for the energetic, consciousness raising part. I tend to look at change, even chaotic and uncomfortable change as a necessary part of growth. Of course, I’m usually only able to get that sort of perspective AFTER I’ve gone through it. And the going-through-it part can really suck!
I don’t like change, but I know it’s usually for the good.
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The websites I used for this article are at the bottom. I found them interesting but didn’t go through them completely, and so do not know about all the information in them. Thank you for stopping by and commenting!
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