By Elizabeth Morgan
© 2004 Elizabeth Morgan

October 27 features the last full moon/lunar eclipse for 2004 and it’s followed less than 24 hours later by the month’s second Grand Quintile. The Taurus lunar eclipse is going to urge people to really consider what they value and does it make sense. How do you feel about yourself? Where do you stay stuck in situations because they’re too comfortable? At the same time, the Scorpio sun will help to transform anything not working. Taurus normally resists change, but once it starts to act, nothing can stop it, and with the energies of Scorpio and an eclipse involved, resistance should be less. Those who are prone to spending money when they’re stressed and/or want to feel better should take care, though. Taurus moons can activate excessive spending as a distraction from things you really need to address.

For anyone who has a copy of their astrological chart, anyone with planets, especially the sun and moon, in their natal chart within 5-6 degrees of 5 degrees Taurus 2’ or the same degree of Scorpio will feel this eclipse especially strong. The same degrees of Leo and Aquarius could also be activated since that would square both the sun and moon during the eclipse.

The next day we have the second Grand Quintile of the month and there have only been 150 in the last 2500 years. The next Grand Quintile won’t take place until 2024 and historical astrologers haven’t found any evidence yet of there ever having been two Grand Quintiles in one month before. We had a Grand Quintile on October 1 and I find it very interesting that even astrologers writing about it tended to only discuss the first Grand Quintile very briefly. I have the feeling it wasn’t supposed to be studied too carefully. Instead, it was supposed to work behind the scenes, much like a farmer tills the soil before planting.

A Grand Quintile is made up of five planets whose pattern creates a five-pointed star design.

The points for this Grand Quintile are anchored by the moon (emotions), Saturn (lessons and boundaries), Jupiter (expansion and philosophy), Pluto (transformation) and Uranus (individuality and change). The short answer as to what this means is that we have a tremendous opportunity for change and creativity.

Many astrologers are saying this could be the catalyst for humanity to finally understand that what harms one of us impacts all of us. Historical astrology indicates that Grand Quintiles herald inventions, discoveries or new approaches that impact our daily lives in both subtle and major ways. Prior Grand Quintiles preceded breakthroughs in nuclear energy, Einstein’s theory of relativity, the discovery of penicillin, X-rays and the atomic model, and the development of electricity, binary electronics (which enabled modern computers), the light bulb, telegraph, typewriter, telephone, the motion picture camera and automobile, just to name a few.

Pagan astrologers believe that the Grand Quintile might speed up humanity’s rediscovery of a more balanced view of God, meaning God as both Father and Mother, masculine and feminine, as opposed to the all-knowing old man in the sky view of Divinity. There may be something to this since in recent years there has been a renewed interest in and study of Mother Mary and Mary Magdalene from Christianity, Kwan Yin from Buddhism and Sofia, who is referred to in ancient Hebrew religious texts as "the wisdom of God" and the wife of Jehovah, another name for God.

Regardless, the Grand Quintile is about redefining and restructuring our family units, sense of home, what nurtures us and having healthy boundaries in regard to all of that (Saturn in Cancer). Pluto in Sagittarius is continuing its work of making us examine and redefine the belief behind our government, laws and religions. Are we walking our talk or being hypocrites? I believe Pluto in Sagittarius is very active this election season as more people are reclaiming their electoral power and registering to vote. Sagittarius also wants to understand different viewpoints and a key debate point has been going alone in regard to international opinion versus building a broader coalition and working with other countries. All Pluto in Sagittarius issues.

Uranus is the rebel and when it’s retrograde, as it is in this Grand Quintile, it’s about deep, internal change that helps us to really discover who we are and what we want in life and finding the courage to follow through with that once is goes direct in Nov. In Pisces, the change comes with compassion and no judgment so we can be more in touch with our spirituality and understand that we are all connected.

Jupiter in Libra is about expansion – expansion of how we think, our opportunities and luck. It’s also about the philosophies that drive us, consciously or unconsciously. In Libra, it wants to find the truth, but truth that is fair to all, bringing harmony and balance along the way. Jupiter definitely adds a sort of sprinkling of fairy dust over this pattern, making it easier to digest and work with through Jupiter’s innate benevolence.

Then the Taurus moon comes in to make it all practical. The moon represents our emotions and Taurus handles things slowly, carefully, sensibly, so we’re not going to rush off impulsively with this energy. We’re going to do something concrete with it and build something new.

For those already familiar with astrology, you might want to look at your birth chart and see if any of the planets in the Grand Quintile trigger any of your natal planets. The planets involved are moon in Taurus 15 degrees 6', Saturn in Cancer 27 degrees 15', Jupiter in Libra 7 degrees 8', Pluto in Sagittarius 20 degrees 27' and Uranus retrograde in Pisces 2 degrees 57'.

At the minimum, I suggest harnessing this energy by giving some thought to the changes you want to create in your life and how you might want to tap into new aspects of creativity. Make a list or write in your prayer journal. Be open to new opportunities and try to be alert when they happen. Above all, think positive and have fun!