Solar eclipse
August 2009
We may know there’s a scientific explanation for them, but solar eclipses continue to exert an almost magical power over us.
Even though we know better, during each total solar eclipse, there will be people blinded by the too tempting sight of an eclipsed sun. The word eclipse is derived from the Greek word eikleipsis meaning forsaking or abandonment. Many people believe that an eclipse is a sign of impending disaster or downfall.
The celestial spectacle On July 22, 2009, the world witnessed the longest total solar eclipse of the century. With a longer total solar eclipse occurring next only in 2132, this will be the longest eclipse that anyone alive has or will ever see. Across the centuries, the sun’s eclipse has been considered as an evil or a bad omen. The early cultures saw the sun as a life-giver in its unfailing everyday appearance. So, something that could actually undo the sun was naturally reckoned as a terribly bad event filled with foreboding.
In India, during the time of the eclipse, food is neither eaten nor cooked. It could be because the eclipse causes harmful solar radiation; exposing of skin and food to this radiation should be avoided as far as possible. People immerse themselves in water up to the neck in an act of cleansing or tapasya. They believe that a simultaneous act of worship would help the sun fight the beast of the demon called the Rahu, who is believed to devour the sun.
Sangeeta Krishnan, a practicing Wiccan, says, “Any eclipse is considered to be a very powerful day and magickal work is encouraged. Typically powerful banishing spells are done during eclipses. Energies on Earth are aflutter. So people who can’t handle the energies are told to be very cautious. Advanced practitioners who can channel such chaotic energies never let an eclipse pass by without doing some magick.”
In Tahiti, eclipses have had a romantic connotation. They have been interpreted as the lovemaking of the Sun and the Moon. So, people in Tahiti find the event to be something to look forward to, since the eclipse seems to be the harbinger of a divine blessing.
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