DORÉ

April is the month of radical acceptance.

Can you flaunt your individuality without burning bridges or disrupting the harmony of your relationships? April’s stars beckon us to find that delicate balance. This challenge arrives amid a spell of seismic change, as we are smack in spring’s unpredictable eclipse season. We’re all a bit like surfers seeking grace in the center of a giant wave—we somehow have to create poise in the wildness of each moment.

There are four eclipses in 2015—two in the spring, two in the fall. Eclipses fall at either new moons (solar) or full moons (lunar), and they can bring shakeups that incite necessary change. As human beings, we tend to resist change, so the role of an eclipse is to rattle us out of stagnancy with a bold wakeup call.

As April begins, we’re still riding out the emotional intensity of the March 20 Pisces total solar eclipse, which accompanied a supermoon AND the spring equinox. Whew! For many people, this rare cosmic triptych dredged up buried desires or swept-aside concerns. And yeah, some of what our minds coughed up could have been pretty weird, skewed or even taboo. (“You want me to do what…and where?”) The challenge was to examine those outre impulses with compassion, not judgment. And the lesson: Just because you lapse into denial doesn’t mean the issue has gone away.

Now, it’s time to integrate. On April 4, we have a total lunar eclipse in Libra, the sign of relationships, balance and cooperation. This charged full moon helps us alchemize whatever the Pisces eclipse pried loose—and to bravely confront any breakdowns in our closest partnerships.

The question: Can we love ourselves, and others, warts and all? Under this outsized celestial spotlight, everyone will show up in stark relief. Flaws and humanity are on full display. Can we accept what we see?

Acceptance, mind you, does not mean complacency. It just means looking the current reality dead in the eye instead of fighting it. It’s one of life’s paradoxes: only through radical acceptance is radical change possible.

The eclipse gets some help in the radical department, too, as it’s locked a tense three-way battle between transformational Pluto and revolutionary Uranus. We will be pressed to do some serious spring cleaning, deciding which parts of our lives to discard and which to keep around.

Some things are simply outmoded and have run their course. Goodbye! Others serve a deeper role: They are messengers reflecting the areas where you need to grow.

Luckily, we have help from a couple of other planets. Four days after the eclipse, optimistic and expansive Jupiter wakes up from a four-month retrograde spin. From April 8-August 11, Jupiter will charge forward in Leo, the sign of courageous self-expression. It’s time to have a little fun with your inner drama queen, to infuse a spirit of playfulness and creativity after all that heaviness.

Meanwhile, assertive Mars is in self-assured Taurus from March 31-May 17, giving us another boost of bravado. The April 18 new moon in me-first Aries finishes the job, giving us all an astrological permission slip to be ourselves. Finally, a brilliant weeklong trine (120-degree angle) between Mars and transformational Pluto on April 21 asks us all: How will YOU use your unique gifts and expression to make the world a better place?

Your complete monthly horoscope here.