Eclipse in Vedic Astronomy

The Eclipses:
Eclipse meaning as per dictionary,
a. “an obscuring of the light from one celestial body by the passage of another between it and the observer or between it and its source of illumination.”

b. “the obscuration of the light of the moon by the intervention of the earth between it and the sun (lunar eclipse) or the obscuration of the light of the sun by the intervention of the moon between it and a point on the earth (solar eclipse)”

c. A "lunar eclipse" and a "solar eclipse" refer to events involving three celestial bodies: The Sun ("solar"), the moon ("lunar"), and the Earth.

Astronomically an eclipse is the partial or total blocking of the light or occultation of one heavenly body by another. An eclipse of the Sun or Moon occurs when the Earth, Moon, and Sun are aligned.

◇ In a solar eclipse the Moon comes between the Sun and Earth. During a total solar eclipse the disk of the Moon fully covers that of the Sun, and only the Sun's corona is visible.

◇ An annular eclipse occurs when the Moon is farthest in its orbit from the Earth so that its disk does not fully cover that of the Sun, and part of the Sun's photosphere is visible as a ring around the Moon.

◇ In a lunar eclipse all or a part of the Moon's disk enters the umbra of the Earth's shadow and is no longer illuminated by the Sun. Lunar eclipses occur only during a full moon, when the Moon is directly opposite the Sun.

The Sun is about 400 times wider than the Moon and 400 times farther from Earth, causing the two to appear to be almost the same size in our sky. This relationship is also responsible for the phenomenon of the total solar eclipse, an eclipse of the Sun in which the disk of the Moon fully covers that of the Sun, blocking the Sun's light and causing the Moon's shadow to fall across the Earth

Out of two kinds of eclipses (1. Solar eclipses, 2. Lunar eclipses) Solar Eclipses are usually more powerful than the Lunar Eclipses. A Solar Eclipse can occur only at Amavasya (New Moon) but not every month (Since the orbit of the moon is tilted at an angle of 5° approximately to the ecliptic, the sun-moon-earth trio does not fall on same line on every new moon day. Hence there is no eclipse on every new moon day.) when the Sun and the Moon are conjunct and parallel in declination.

When the Moon passes directly in front of the Sun, blocking out its view over a small region on the Earth. Viewed from earth, the Moon appears to move in front of the Sun blocking either a part (Partial Eclipse) or all (Total Eclipse) of the Sun’s light. The more complete an eclipse the greater its power.

Our sages had perfect knowledge of eclipses and their exact occurrence due to the science of astrology. Astrologically Nodes of Moon (Rahu and Ketu) are responsible for the Eclipse. An eclipse occurs when the sun, moon and the axis of Rahu and Ketu overlap.

A sizable portion of the 35th chapter of the Bhagvata Purana is devoted to narrating a fable as to why Rahu and Ketu are responsible for all the solar and lunar eclipses.

Solar Eclipses: A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes directly in front of the Sun, blocking out its view over a small region on the Earth. Remember that the angular diameters of the Sun and the Moon as viewed from Earth are almost identical.
A solar eclipse occurs when the shadow of the moon falls on the earth. This means that at the time of the eclipse the moon lies between sun and earth.

Conditions for Solar Eclipse to happen are

New moon day (Amavasya), when the sun and the moon are conjunct and lie on the same side of the earth.
Sun and Moon comes on Rahu-Ketu Axis

There are 4 kinds of solar eclipses: total, partial, annular. A total solar eclipse is when the moon blocks out the Sun entirely, a partial eclipse is when it blocks out a portion of the Sun, and an annular eclipse is when the moon is at its furthest point in orbit. It will not cover the Sun completely that's when you can see a thin ring of light emerging from the outside rim of the moon. There is also a rare hybrid that is a combination of two eclipses.

Total Solar Eclipse: A total solar eclipse occurs when the Moon completely covers the Sun, as seen from Earth. In other words, when the umbra of the Moon's shadow touches a region on the surface of the Earth.

Annular Solar Eclipse: An annular eclipse occurs when the Sun and Moon are exactly in line with the Earth, but the apparent size of the Moon is smaller than that of the Sun. Hence the Sun appears as a very bright ring, or annulus, surrounding the dark disk of the Moon. In other words, Annular Solar Eclipses occur when a region on the Earth's surface is in line with the umbra, but the distances are such that the tip of the umbra does not reach the Earth's surface.

Hybrid Solar Eclipse: A hybrid eclipse (also called annular/total eclipse) shifts between a total and annular eclipse. At certain points on the surface of Earth, it appears as a total eclipse, whereas at other points it appears as annular. Hybrid eclipses are comparatively rare.

Partial Solar Eclipse: A partial eclipse occurs when the Sun and Moon are not exactly in line with the Earth and the Moon only partially obscures the Sun. This phenomenon can usually be seen from a large part of the Earth outside of the track of an annular or total eclipse. Partial Solar Eclipses occur when the penumbra of the Moon's shadow passes over a region on the Earth's surface.

However, some eclipses can only be seen as a partial eclipse, because the umbra passes above the Earth's polar regions and never intersects the Earth's surface. Partial eclipses are virtually unnoticeable in terms of the sun's brightness, as it takes well over 90% coverage to notice any darkening at all. Even at 99%, it would be no darker than civil twilight. 

A given solar eclipse may be all three of the above for different observers. For example, in the path of totality (the track of the umbra on the Earth's surface) the eclipse will be total, in a band on either side of the path of totality the shadow cast by the penumbra leads to a partial eclipse, and in some eclipses the path of totality extends into a path associated with an annular eclipse because for that part of the path the umbra does not reach the Earth's surface.

Places under Dark black area in above pic will observe total eclipse and  places under light grey area will observe partial eclipse. 

Lunar Eclipses: A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon moves through the Earth's shadow, thereby blocking sunlight from falling on the Moon. The shadow of the earth falls on the moon. This happens on the full moon day when the sun-moon-earth trio falls on the same line. Again, because of the obliquity of the moon's path to the ecliptic, this situation does not arise every full moon day. Instead, there are two eclipse seasons every year, about 6 months apart.

There will be a total eclipse, when the Moon go through the umbra of the Earth's shadow. If the Moon partly goes through the umbra, there will be a partial eclipse. If the Moon only goes through the penumbra, then the Moon's light is only slightly dimmed, and the eclipse is hardly noticeable here on Earth. The shadow of the Earth can be divided into two distinctive parts: the umbra and penumbra. Within the umbra, there is no direct solar radiation. However, as a result of the Sun's large angular size, solar illumination is only partially blocked in the outer portion of the Earth's shadow, which is given the name penumbra.

Total Lunar Eclipses: A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth's umbra – the central, dark part of its shadow – obscures all the Moon's visible surface.

Partial Lunar Eclipses: A partial lunar eclipse occurs when only a portion of the moon enters the umbra. When the moon travels completely into the Earth's umbra, one observes a total lunar eclipse. When the moon is near its apogee, the farthest point from the Earth in its orbit, its orbital speed is the slowest. The diameter of the umbra does not decrease appreciably within the changes in the orbital distance of the moon. Thus, eclipsed moon occurring near apogee will lengthen the duration of totality.

Penumbral Lunar Eclipses: A penumbral lunar eclipse happens when the Moon travels through the faint penumbral portion of the Earth’s shadow. A special type of penumbral eclipse is a total penumbral eclipse, during which the Moon lies exclusively within the Earth's penumbra. Total penumbral eclipses are rare, and when these occur, that portion of the moon which is closest to the umbra can appear somewhat darker than the rest of the moon. 

Central Lunar Eclipse: A central lunar eclipse is a total lunar eclipse during which the moon passes through the center of the Earth's shadow. These are relatively rare.

Sun represents the soul and the Vrihad Agni (digestive fire) and Moon represents the mind (चन्द्रमा मनसो: जातः) and the body fluids like the lymph and blood. Vedic wisdom suggests that we should spend this time in doing prayers and meditation as this time is very conducive for spiritual uplift. There is also a strict regimen which should be followed regarding diet. So our ancient wisdom suggests that we fast to exert minimum load on our digestive system and do spiritual sadhana to energize our mind with positive vibrations. It is also said food items get contaminated, when the rays emanating during the time of eclipse pervade the atmosphere. It is said that a single Doorba grass kept in food items, protects the food from harmful affects of eclipse. It has even been proved scientifically that even X-ray radiation can be absorbed by Doorba grass.

Every eclipse falls in a particular nakshatra of the zodiac. Individuals born in that nakshatra and those born in the corresponding triads of that nakshatra should avoid getting exposed to the rays of a particular eclipse. 

The triads are:

Ashwini	Magha	Moola
Bharani	Purva Phalguni	Purva Ashada
Krittika	Uttara Phalguni	Uttara Ashada
Rohini	Hasta	Shravana,
Mrigshira	Chitra	Dhanishtha
Ardra	Swati	Shatbhisha
Punar vasu	Vishakha	Purva Bhadrapada
Pushya	Anuradha	Uttara Bhadrapada
Ashlesha	Jyeshta	Revati.

The Nakshatra in which an eclipse falls will also give a clue to its effect on both nations and individuals.

Remedial measures to counteract the effect of an eclipse in each Nakshtra the recommended activity during an eclipse is meditation, or possibly the chanting of an appropriate mantra for the Nakshatra in which the eclipse is occurring.

The period of 3 days on either side of the eclipse should be avoided for beginning new endeavors in general, but especially for things related to the symbolism given above. This is not a great time to start creative projects, for example, or any type of project that requires design. The same is true for things related to homes or houses.

ECLIPSES IN THE ELEMENTS: 

The astrological element in which the eclipse occurs shows how the effects of the eclipse are likely to be shown. 

FIRE (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius) – Ambition may increase. Personal desires may be more important than they were in the past. You may become more daring or assertive or drawn to sports, romance, gambling, entertaining, the arts/creative work, hobbies, or risky activities. 

EARTH (Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn) – Security consciousness and conservative thinking is emphasized. Possessions or real estate can draw attention. Physical appetites become stronger. Changes in attitude towards work, spending, the environment, responsibility and career can be expected. 

AIR (Gemini, Libra, Aquarius) – Renewed interest in reading, education, travel, social activities or information gathering is highlighted. Personal communication style may change as well as stance on issues, situations, or people. There can also be possible involvement or interest in science, vehicles, publishing, teaching or the travel industry. Relationships may change. 

WATER (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces) – Attraction to romance, religion, mysticism, creative work or occult studies. Possible involvement with other people’s money or belongings. More or less dependence on other people. Research, homemaking, shopping, cooking or collecting may be appealing. There can also be a preference to meditate or take time out from activities. A tendency to worry about others might also be prominent. 

ECLIPSES IN THE HOUSES: 

Regardless of the sign in which an eclipse occurs, its house position can bring various possible developments. It is important to remember that whichever house an eclipse affects, its polarity is also sensitized. 

First House: There may be changes in your self image or your approach to people and life. Events are taken personally. During the period between eclipses you focus mainly on issues that affect you as an individual. You may change your clothing style, hair or appearance. Relationships may be affected by the personal changes you make. 

Second House: Changes occur in your income, financial conditioning, values, sense of security or self worth. You may gain or lose emotional support. Your attitude toward money, or possessions might change. You discover what is REALLY important to your happiness.

Third House: Changes may occur in the way you communicate, gather and process information or deal with other people including siblings and neighbors. Your mundane pace of life may change. 

Fourth House: Changes may occur at home, in the family or in the way you feel about these things. You might deal with real estate, property, antiques, or food. You might also redecorate or move to a different house. 

Fifth House: The sexual appetite may increase or diminish. You may produce impressive creative work or be drawn to art. Love affairs may begin, end or change direction. You may be involved with pregnancy.

Sixth House: You may experience changes in your employment, duties, or diet. The way you use your time is important. Health needs or habits may receive attention. Protect your health. 

Seventh House: Alliances or relationships are emphasized. Your marital status may change. There may be changes in the way you feel about commitments or loved ones. The balance of power may shift in relationships. You might deal with legal affairs or advisors. 

Eighth House: Changes of a serious nature may be on the horizon. Stabilize your finances now. Other people’s money, debts or loans may have your attention. Security issues might also arise. 

Ninth House: Intellectual growth and exploration are emphasized. You might travel, take classes or find other ways to expand your mind. 

Tenth House; Achievement is emphasized. There may be a change ion status or authority. You might find yourself in a high profile position. 

Eleventh House: Generally a time of increased optimism. You might be able to achieve a cherished goal or set new ones. You may gain or lose friends or be drawn to people you would not have previously have found appealing. Your position in groups, clubs, or corporations may change. 

Twelfth House: You might have less contact with people but be busy behind the scenes. You may experience restrictions due to work, health, obligations or lack of opportunity. This can be a beneficial period if used for introspection.

During a Total Eclipse, darkness descends upon the Earth that can last up to seven minutes. In some cases, the Sun looks like a bright ring around the black disc of the Moon, this is known as an Annular Eclipse. A Total Solar Eclipse is the most potent. A Solar Eclipse draws attention to concerns and brings external conditions into focus. They trigger effects that are more obvious than those associated with Lunar Eclipses. On a personal level a Solar Eclipse deal with expression of the ego and the ego needs.