Redefining What Still Matters: February’s Annular Solar Eclipse

On February 17, 2026, an Annular Solar Eclipse perfects at 28 degrees of Aquarius, with the Sun and Moon joined by Mars at 19° Aquarius. Unlike a regular new moon, the Solar Eclipse marks a significant new beginning. 

The Moon moves directly between the Earth and the Sun, temporarily obscuring the Sun’s light. In an annular eclipse, the Sun is not fully extinguished but ringed; its brilliance partially hidden behind the lunar shadow. Symbolically, this speaks to something in our lives that is not yet fully visible. A storyline has been developing quietly, working behind the scenes, forming in the dark. What we thought we understood may not be the whole picture. Eclipses remind us that illumination does not disappear; it shifts. And sometimes what has been unfolding out of sight is precisely what is preparing to step forward. 

Every eclipse occurs along an axis. This one activates the Leo–Aquarius polarity, the tension between the individual and the collective, between personal creative expression and communal participation.

Leo asks: Who am I? What is mine to create?Aquarius asks: How does my individuality serve something larger than me?

This eclipse brings those questions into sharp focus.

At 28 degrees, we are in the final stretch of Aquarius. The themes of this sign have matured.

Aquarius governs community, networks, movements, shared ideals, and the “mass field” the ways we gather, organize, and shape the future together. It is concerned with collective evolution.

But Aquarius cannot exist without Leo. The collective only has vitality when individuals bring their creative fire into it.

This eclipse asks:Where have you muted your individuality in order to belong?Where have you prioritized personal visibility without meaningful contribution?

The Leo–Aquarius axis is not about choosing one over the other, but about integration.

Mars in Aquarius: Action Within the Collective

With Mars at 19° Aquarius, the eclipse carries momentum.

 Mars here acts on principle. It is willing to disrupt group dynamics if they no longer reflect shared values. It can mobilize communities, energize movements, and push innovation forward.

Yet Mars in Aquarius can also become detached or ideological. The risk is fighting for ideas without remembering the human heart behind them.

This is where Leo becomes essential. Creative force without community becomes self-absorption. Community without creative individuality becomes conformity.

The work of this eclipse is finding the bridge.

Saturn Conjunct Neptune at 0° Aries

The traditional ruler of Aquarius, Saturn, is conjunct Neptune at 0° Aries, the first degree of the zodiac.

Aries represents identity, initiation, and the emergence of the self. Saturn demands responsibility while Neptune dissolves illusions and amplifies vision.

Together, at the birth point of the zodiac, they signal a collective reset around identity and leadership.

The question becomes: What does responsible individuality look like now?

Aquarius imagines the future of humanity. Aries asserts the self. Saturn insists that assertion carries weight. Neptune ensures that ego-driven identity dissolves in favor of something more visionary.

This conjunction shapes the backdrop of the eclipse. The collective (Aquarius) is being seeded by a new archetype of selfhood (Aries), one that must balance courage with accountability.

Square Uranus in Taurus

The Sun and Moon square Uranus in Taurus, the modern ruler of Aquarius.

Since 2018, Uranus in Taurus has disrupted our sense of material stability: money, resources, land, food systems, and what we consider secure. Taurus prefers steadiness, but Uranus accelerates change.

As Uranus prepares to leave Taurus and enter Gemini in April 2026 for the next seven years, we are in a closing chapter of redefining value.

This square intensifies the Leo–Aquarius tension. Taurus represents personal security. Aquarius represents collective progress. Leo represents personal expression.

What happens when personal comfort conflicts with collective evolution?What happens when your creative identity outgrows the structures that once felt stable?

Uranus entering Gemini will shift the revolution toward communication, media, information systems, and networks of thought. The conversation will move quickly. Narratives will change faster. The “mass” will become increasingly shaped by data and dialogue. 

This eclipse prepares us for that acceleration by asking us to clarify who we are within the crowd.

Mars and Saturn in Mutual Reception

Mars in Aquarius and Saturn in Aries are in mutual reception, strengthening one another.

Mars gains discipline.Saturn gains initiative.

The creative force of Leo is not directly occupied in this eclipse, yet it is implicitly activated by opposition. The individual heart must decide how to show up within the collective field.

This mutual reception suggests that action taken now can be structured and sustained. It is not merely a flash of rebellion or a temporary surge of enthusiasm. There is backbone here.

The question is not whether you will act, but how consciously you will choose your role.

The Power of the Leo–Aquarius Axis

Leo is the Sun’s domicile: radiant, expressive, and life-giving. Aquarius is the sign opposite the Sun’s throne, where the light disperses into the collective.

An eclipse in Aquarius temporarily dims the solar light of personal ego and creative selfhood. It invites reflection: How is your light being distributed?

Are you withholding it?

Are you over-identifying with it?

Are you aligning it with something meaningful?

The Leo–Aquarius axis is about sovereignty within community. It is about allowing individuality to enrich the whole without dissolving into anonymity.

This eclipse may mark turning points in:

• Friendships and group affiliations

• Creative leadership within organizations

• The way you share your voice publicly

• Your willingness to stand out while remaining connected

This eclipse is not only about changing external structures; it is about recalibrating the relationship between who you are as an individual and how you participate in the communities around you, so that your identity and your sense of belonging no longer compete, but consciously support one another.

What This Eclipse Initiates

 

As we move toward Uranus entering Gemini, the collective field will become more intellectually charged and communicative. Ideas will spread rapidly. Movements will organize digitally. The pace of change will quicken.

This eclipse is the moment before that shift fully takes hold.

It asks you to clarify:

• What is uniquely yours to express?

• Where do you genuinely belong?

• How does your creative force contribute to the communities you participate in? 

  
  

Eclipses accelerate evolution. They do not always feel comfortable, but they are purposeful.

On February 17, 2026, the sky highlights a central truth: The collective future depends on the courage of individual hearts.

The question is not whether you shine. It is whether you are willing to let your light serve something larger than yourself.

3 Simple Eclipse Rituals:

The following rituals are designed to help you engage this eclipse in a grounded, thoughtful way.

1. The Creative Reclamation Ritual (Leo Activation

Choose one creative impulse you have delayed, something that feels personally meaningful but not necessarily productive or strategic. It could be drafting a page of writing, sketching an idea, outlining a future offering, rearranging a space, or exploring a concept you’ve been quietly carrying.

Set a timer for 30 uninterrupted minutes during the 24 hours surrounding the eclipse.

During that time:

• Do not edit.

• Do not evaluate.

• Do not share.

• Do not turn it into content.

The purpose is not performance. It is about reconnecting with yourself.

Leo represents the source of creative life force. Aquarius disperses that light into the collective. This ritual restores your relationship to the source before it is distributed outward.

2. The Community Alignment Ritual (Aquarius Reset)

Aquarius governs the groups, networks, and communities we participate in, both in person and digitally. This ritual is about consciously evaluating where you belong and how you participate.

Set aside 20–30 minutes.

First, make a simple list of the communities you are currently part of:

• Professional networks

• Friend groups

• Online spaces

• Memberships, masterminds, collaborations 

Next, beside each one, write one word describing how you feel when you engage there: energized, neutral, drained, inspired, obligated, expansive, unseen.

Then choose one small adjustment based on what you notice:

• Step back from a space that no longer reflects who you are.

• Re-engage more intentionally in a community that feels aligned.

• Reach out to someone you respect within your network.

• Clarify a boundary where your individuality has been diluted.

This ritual is not about dramatic exits or public declarations, but about realignment. Aquarius evolves through conscious participation, not passive belonging.

3. The Future Conversation Ritual (Uranus Threshold)

With Uranus completing its time in Taurus and preparing to enter Gemini, the conversation is about accelerating ideas, media, communication, technology.

Record a private voice memo to yourself titled: “The Voice I Am Becoming.”

Speak freely for five minutes about:

• What you care about.

• What you stand for.

• What you want to contribute over the next seven years. 

Do not script it. Then save it. Revisit it when Uranus fully settles into Gemini.

This ritual honors the shift from material stability (Taurus) to narrative and information (Gemini), and anchors your individual voice before the collective noise intensifies.