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A total eclipse is perfectly safe to view with the naked eye. You just have to be carful you don't start too early or end too late...

Many references, but e.g., https://eclipse2017.nasa.gov/safety "Looking directly at the sun is unsafe except during the brief total phase of a solar eclipse (“totality”)..."

In fact I viewed the 1976 total eclipse in Oregon with binoculars.

It was a glorious sight, an experience of a lifetime.

I was on a hillside near The Dalles with other eclipse chasers. Many of us wore sunglasses and looked away from the sun before totality to get our eyes a bit dark-adapted. And then when someone called out "totality!" we turned around, took off the sunglasses and used our binoculars or telescopes if we had them, and viewed the corona directly.

And no, no eye damage.

I don't want to suggest this is a _good_ idea, but I spent a lot of time staring directly at the sun as a kid without any apparent damage to my eyes.

It's safe.