New Moon Solar Eclipse: The Convergence of Sun + Moon
Image by Beebe Bahrami, taken in the Sahara Desert
As the year has continued to unfold, we find ourselves cradled by the dark sky once more, in the final embrace of the New Moon of 2020. We have been taught through the various lunations of the year how to go inwards and seek our own internal compass. Now we are being coaxed by the Sagittarian fires within to move from this space of internal contemplation. The chrysalis has begun to crack ever so slightly, as ice might on a frozen lake. The dark expanse of wisdom beneath is waiting for us. It is us.
This New Moon is optimistic, powerful, and a little adventurous, paired with a powerful checkpoint of a solar eclipse. What has taken place for us energetically in the past year? How has that manifested into our reality? In what way is our individual being rippling out into the shared collective? Where can this lead us into the new year? We're shifting our gaze, now beginning to curiously expand. Our minds lead the way to where our spirits may go as the final moments of the year progress, and the moon waxes full again. Be sure to pay attention to the time between now and December 29th (the final full moon of the year from Gemini to Cancer), and don’t skimp on your ideas and dreams. It's been a highly unusual year, and Sagittarius understands this like no other. It can laugh with us, cheer with us, clap us on the back with an enthusiastic understanding, and also shed compassion on grief or residual exhaustion. Lean into this one. Trust it as you trust yourself. Begin to trust yourself.
To embrace and embody this Super New Moon, regard the deepest foundation of your body - your bones. As we journey with the moon from Sagittarius to Capricorn, we may begin to notice our skeletal system and the muscles they support through sore spots, tightness or tension. Stretch into them, even gently. In fact, gentle is ideal. Soak in a hot bath if you can. Drink in this opportune moment of listening with a cup of tea. Anoint your body with a blend of healing oils, and feel them permeating deep into your core, down to the most central part of you. Consider the wisdom your body contains, right down to the marrow. Your bones are the scrolls of your body, carrying both the joy and grief of generations past. As we learn from our history, we are able to ground into our present and build bridges toward our future.
Achuguayo + Magec
honoring celestial energies of the sun + moon
During this time, I’d like to share some information about two deities known within Amazigh lore. Most popular amongst the people of the Canary Islands, it should be noted that there is a great deal of overlap between the old gods and goddesses of North Africa, Spain, Greece and elsewhere.
Achuguayo + Magec are all at once unified and forever separated - except for very rare instances of alignment, such as today’s solar eclipse. As we find ourselves in its midst, I honor these dueling and converging celestial energies which effect life the world over.
To honor and call upon these energetic beings, light a candle and meditate on the glow on the outermost periphery of the flame. Jot down any insights that come up for you. This point of brightness and darkness is where these deities meet and forever reside. Achuguayo particularly enjoys hearing prayer and worship - sing or speak with your candle if you feel so called.
Achuguayo, also known as "the voice conserved among the vulgar" and “the Father of the Times” is the god of the Moon, most famously revered in ancient Tenerife, one of the eight Canary Islands (where many Amazighen now reside). He is known to be responsible for regulating time, and is the energetic duality of Magec, god of the Sun. According to tradition this god lives in the mountains (and associated directly with pine trees), only descending to hear the prayers of the people. Worshippers performed rituals under sacred trees or near sacred mountains and sometimes caves.
Magec is wholly shrouded in mystery - the traditional gender of this deity is unknown, making them a powerful source of divinity for all forms and sources of existence. Magec is now typically regarded as genderfluid with a predominantly masc personality. Their name means “possesses radiance,” and they are the ancient god/dess of the Sun. According to oral tradition, Magec was held prisoner inside of the volcano Teide, also on Tenerife of the Canary Islands. On a personal note, I find this curious since the relationship between the Sun and Volcanic activity is known to be auspicious, especially when considering how the sun is blocked out during volcanic eruption, darkening the atmosphere and later turning the sun into a dark blood-red spot in the hazy skies.