eclipse season guide: rituals for release & renewal
Eclipse season is astrology’s version of a fated fast moving, intense, plot twist. Unlike regular full or new moons, eclipses speed up timelines, close doors and open new ones before we’ve even had a chance to process the ending of an outdated chapter. They’re realignments, often dramatic but always spiritually purposeful.
This September, the skies deliver a particularly powerful season with two eclipses that arrive against a backdrop of major planetary shifts:
• September 7: Total Lunar Eclipse in Pisces
This watery eclipse highlights hidden emotions, deep longings, and truths we can no longer avoid. Pisces energy dissolves illusions, while our Jupiter in Cancer offers growth and healing. With Mercury opposing the eclipse, mental fog or overthinking may accompany the revelations.
• September 21: Partial Solar Eclipse in Virgo
Landing at a critical 29th degree, this solar eclipse pushes us toward clarity and discernment. Virgo’s energy is exacting, it wants structure and practical steps. With Saturn and Neptune in retrograde, illusions may finally shatter, offering a chance to establish firmer personal boundaries.
On top of this, Saturn re-entered Pisces on September 1, emphasizing emotional accountability, while Uranus went retrograde in Gemini on September 5, making us rethink our ideas, communication, and approach to freedom. Together, these transits mean the September eclipses will create long-term turning points and changes in our lives.
Working with Eclipse Energy
The golden rule of eclipses? They’re not for control or forceful manifestation. They’re times to step back, release, and let clarity emerge. The energy can feel intense or destabilizing, but grounding rituals help us process and integrate what’s changing.
Here are six practical ways to work with this eclipse season:
1. Journaling for Release
During the Pisces Lunar Eclipse, write freely about what you’re ready to let go of. Acknowledge emotions you’ve been carrying and write them down on the page for mental and emotional release.
2. Space Clearing and Cleansing
As the Virgo Solar Eclipse approaches, clear and reorganize your environment. Virgo thrives in simplicity and order, a physical reset can help to mirror the energetic one.
3. Creating Digital Boundaries
Unplug devices during the eclipse windows. Too much noise (especially with Mercury and Uranus active) can cloud your clarity and judgment. You have to create space to hear yourself think.
4. Prioritize Rest and Renewal
Eclipses can be extremely draining. Prioritize rest, hydration, and nourishment. Gentle movement like stretching, yoga, or walking helps soothe the nervous energy.
5. Water Rituals
With Pisces energy emphasized, water can become an ally. Take a salt bath, swim, or shower intentionally, visualizing old energy washing away.
6. Grounded Intentions
After the Virgo Solar Eclipse, set small, realistic intentions. Virgo energy supports practical action, even the smallest steps build lasting foundations.
How Each Zodiac Sign Will Feel the Shift
Every eclipse pair activates opposite signs, shaping different areas of our lives. This September, Pisces and Virgo themes ask us to balance compassion with clarity, release with refinement:
Aries
• Lunar Eclipse (Pisces): Emotional rest, release of hidden burdens.
• Solar Eclipse (Virgo): Reset in routines, health, and daily structure.
Taurus
• Lunar Eclipse: Shifts in friendships and community ties.
• Solar Eclipse: New energy in romance, creativity, or personal passions.
Gemini
• Lunar Eclipse: Career revelations and professional turning points.
• Solar Eclipse: Focus on home, family, or private life.
Cancer
• Lunar Eclipse: Shifts in beliefs, spirituality, or learning.
• Solar Eclipse: Clarity in communication and self-expression.
Leo
• Lunar Eclipse: Emotional and financial intimacy come into focus.
• Solar Eclipse: Grounding in money, resources, and self worth.
Virgo
• Lunar Eclipse: Truths emerge in relationships and partnerships.
• Solar Eclipse: A personal reset and new direction for identity and goals.
Libra
• Lunar Eclipse: Focus on health and daily rhythms.
• Solar Eclipse: A behind-the-scenes reset, rest and reflection are prioritized.
Scorpio
• Lunar Eclipse: Turning point in love, creativity, or self expression.
• Solar Eclipse: Friendships and networks evolve or shift.
Sagittarius
• Lunar Eclipse: Home and family truths come to the surface.
• Solar Eclipse: Career clarity and boost in professional direction.
Capricorn
• Lunar Eclipse: A release in communication or learning.
• Solar Eclipse: Expansion through travel, study, or worldview shifts.
Aquarius
• Lunar Eclipse: Transformation in shared resources or intimacy.
• Solar Eclipse: A focus on healing, depth, and inner growth.
Pisces
• Lunar Eclipse: A powerful personal reset. Old identities fall away.
• Solar Eclipse: Relationships realign, clarify, or shift direction.
Eclipse season isn’t here to shake you, it occurs to reveal truth and alignment. These September eclipses, framed by Saturn and Uranus shifts, ask us to release illusions, refine our structures, and choose authenticity. Though change may feel sudden during this time, it is always purposeful. Trust that what falls away wasn’t meant to last and what does remain will be the foundation of your next exciting chapter.