Sunday’s lunar eclipse marks the final punctuation in the story that has been playing out since this time of year in 2016, when we had the first lunar eclipse in Leo as the nodes began their slow journey through the opposing realms of the ego and the collective.

Like a celestial metronome, the eclipse cycle structures time in a way that allows us to see the unfolding of various musical phrases, calls, responses, and developments playing out in the realms of our life where those eclipses fall.

We have seen how the themes of tension between the fixity of the individual will and the fixity of collective responsibility have played out both for good and for ill, indeed. Each time the Moon’s dark body blocked out the radiant Sun, each time the Moon passed unseen through the Earth’s ruddy shadow, we were given a window into the deep magic where will and responsibility hold one another in tension.

This has played out on the stage of our national life, within our cultural discourse, as well as within the silent and secret chapters of our lives. So, what have we learned?

Those of us who have been able to work constructively within the measures tapped out by the Sun and the Moon in these last two years have seen that the individual and the collective will are connected to one another. “What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.”

For those of us who have found our wills drawn to that which we desire most in life over the last two years, and who, under Jupiter’s beneficent patronage in Sagittarius have discovered again what it means to aim high, I offer this line from the writer Wallace Wattles:

“The very best thing you can do for the whole world is to make the most of yourself.” And one of the best ways to do so is to employ the creative, effusive powers of Leo, where identity and expression reign, so that they may be united to Aquarius’ social ethic.

If we have not yet learned this lesson, we will be given another opportunity to do so when, in nine and a half years, the eclipses return to Aquarius and Leo, but the shoe will be on the other foot this time.

If you’ve not learned this lesson, do it now. Do it today. Do not put if off to tomorrow. We have a fantastic opportunity to do so this week, not only as a result of this final eclipse in Aquarius, but also because of the story being told by the trio of Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn.

The day after the eclipse, January 21st, Mars on a warpath in Aries strikes a stoic and staid Saturn in Capricorn, who refuses to yield to Mars’ assault—for Mars in Aries reminds Saturn of times in which Saturn has had to engineer clever Saturnian solutions out of the most unlikely materials available, as though he had to build a house out of fire.

Saturn is on the defensive and can withstand Mars’ siege as long as he needs, for he lacks for nothing in his frigid earthen fortress.

We will encounter stopping points and dead ends in our campaign towards our desires as a result of Saturn retaliating against Mars’ excitement with a deadening glare, but that’s not the end of the story for this week.

Mars’ blade throws sparks and a scintillating shower illuminates what it is that we desire. We’ll see that what Mars wants is not war, but simply to cut a new path to move forward, to blaze new trails in whatever area of our lives fall under his fiery demesne.

What better power to help him do that than Jupiter?

As Mars continues his journey forward, he carries with him the structuring power of Saturn as a result of this spat, and on the 25th, he brings this power to Jupiter in Sagittarius by a munificent trine, asking the All-father to help him find a new way.

It helps quite a bit that Jupiter’s daughter Venus has seen what’s been going on between Mars and Saturn and is bringing advance notice to her father as she visits him at home, carrying news of her brother Mars’ plight. Jupiter’s primed and ready to help.

Defeated but determined, Mars pleads his case, and Jupiter straightaway grants Mars the ability to accomplish what it is that he has set about to do, for Jupiter sees both Mars’ intensity and sincerity in his approach.

Since Jupiter sees Mars approaching from allied territory (for Jupiter is a stakeholder in every fire sign), Jupiter’s aid to Mars is in his own best interests, too. Goose and gander, once again, and Mars will be given what he needs to make the most of himself.

Wherever it is that we are striving and investing in our energy, signified by the place that Aries holds in our natal charts, we will encounter a barrier at first and then a breakthrough this week as the lesson of the Leo-Aquarius eclipse cycle sets more deeply into our bones.

Learn this lesson: the very best thing we can do for ourselves is to make the most of the whole world, and that the very best thing we can do for the whole world is to make the most of ourselves. In spite of barriers. Without delay. Today.

ARIES RISING

As you strive to manifest the most positive possible outcomes for your health and your personal circumstances, look for your spirit-attuned teachers to show you a new way to rise above the present challenges through fixing your eyes on that which is noble, true, and just in all things.

TAURUS RISING

Mars is on his warpath in places unseen to you, striking down those who would seek to undo you with a smile on their faces, and you will find secret and silent aid coming to you from the energies of people who you may have counted as enemies otherwise. “Love your enemies.”

GEMINI RISING

As you are striving to expand your social circles, be ready for challenge to come from people to whom you owe a debt of responsibility. New and gracious partners to assist you in connecting with communities where your insights can be validated and put to utmost use in motivating collective action.

CANCER RISING

Even though your workload seems like it has been growing beyond your ken as of late and you meet with resistance from your associates, the beneficent aid you’ll receive from far-sighted allies will help you manifest a tremendous payoff in your professional status. Remember to give credit where credit is due.

LEO RISING

As you strive for deeper understanding and a higher perspective, do not let the drudgery of your search have the final word but rather seek after new and creative ways of seeing as peers and superiors enrich your capacity to open the doors of perception.

VIRGO RISING

Striving for a way forward in your obligations to other people finds itself against creative blocks; you can’t keep doing the same thing. A return to ancient and nobler ways of advancing will give you the insight that you need in order to find this new way. Try going back to go forward.

LIBRA RISING

Willingness to engage in new ways of conversing—and perhaps putting some financial skin in the game—will allow you to find a new way forward in partnership with your beloved as they come up against the carefully constructed boundaries and restrictions defining your home life these days.

SCORPIO RISING

The tremendous effort you’ve been putting out to construct the best circumstances for yourself has met with utter resistance in your day-to-day environment (how are those resolutions going)? A new way comes when effort joins itself to viewing your financial powers from a higher perspective.

SAGITTARIUS RISING

Expect the energy you’ve been investing in your creative output as of late to trigger a notable breakthrough for your circumstances despite throttled resources. Knowing how to say “no” to the wrong materials will help you say “yes” to the right ones, even though “no” isn’t in your vocabulary. Think less Michelangelo, more Mondrian.

CAPRICORN RISING

All the recent motion at home isn’t unsettling you in the least—if anything, it’s creating new advantages by which to steel yourself against the enemies wearing friendly faces. Don’t accept more help or advice than you need—not that you’ve ever had a problem saying “no” to officious advice, anyway.

AQUARIUS RISING

Getting the word out to new audiences is continuing to prove a challenge due to resistance from the dark and deadening walls that contain you, but you’ve got friends in high places who stand at the ready to help amplify your messaging and thereby get you out of the box. Since when was cardboard so strong?

PISCES RISING

Against the sensible urging of your friends you’ll probably make a tremendous investment in furthering your view of the world this week, using your cash or your cache of energy. The return on investment looks promising, as does the view from up there.