Taurus Full Moon: The Big Reveal

We are about to experience something auspicious that only happens about thirteen times in a century. Astronomers call it a “transit of Mercury,” in which the Winged Messenger passes directly across the Sun. Usually Mercury’s activities are hidden from view during its retrograde phase, but during this transit on November 11 the Winged Messenger in secretive Scorpio will be exposed for all to see.

Similar to a solar eclipse, during its transit Mercury appears through a telescope as a tiny black dot gliding slowly across the solar disk. The event will be visible on the East Coast beginning at 7:35 a.m. EST  and lasts for several hours. As with all eclipses, be sure not to stare directly into the Sun; it may be easiest to view it online from wherever you live.

A celestial event of this magnitude (which won’t occur again until Nov. 13, 2032) is a portent for us Earth-dwellers at this fraught time in history. Because Mercury is retrograde in Scorpio, its mission is to reconnect us with whatever has been hiding under the surface and bring it up for examination, purging and renewal. And boy, has it been doing its job! More secrets are about to be exposed in the intense process we’ve been experiencing lately. Remember, however, that things are not getting worse, they are merely getting uncovered.

Mercury’s transit offers us a chance to reconnect with the source of life-giving energy in our solar system – our Sun – to recharge ourselves. Notes astrologer Gary Caton, “Since this event happens in a special zone of Scorpio afforded to Mercury by the Egyptians – known as terms or bounds – this gives all things Mercurial (communications, local travel, commerce), a temporary boost of power or protection. We have the chance to zoom into the very heart of something and witness it in a way seldom possible.”

Making this celestial event even more potent, it happens the morning before the Taurus Full Moon (Tuesday Nov. 12, 5:34 a.m. PST) This Full Moon is famous for opening a gateway to magic, whether of the emotional, financial or spiritual variety, as it activates the powerful fixed signs of Scorpio and Taurus. In Greek myth, Mercury was the personal messenger of Zeus, King of the Gods, as well as the psychopomp who guided souls to the Underworld after death. Since the Scorpio Sun is so close to retrograde Mercury at its transit, we can petition the Winged Messenger now for personal and collective aid, or call on him to bring us messages from the Great Beyond. And, a helpful sextile from Saturn to the Sun at this Full Moon lends stability and efficacy to our efforts and petitions at this time.

Caton adds that for the Egyptians, the region of Scorpio that Mercury is transiting evoked a visit to the throne room of the King or Queen. “But this visit is even more special,” he says, “as the sovereign doesn’t completely outshine the messenger; this may translate as a special opportunity for upward mobility.”  

So say a prayer to the Winged Messenger as you raise your arms to the Taurus Full Moon on Monday night. And stay tuned around November 30 when Mercury returns for its final pass to 17 Scorpio, the degree at which it transits the Sun, and the whole story gets revealed or at least understood.