Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
AUGUST 3, 2011
FreeWillAstrology.com
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DAILY HOROSCOPES
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My 388-page book PRONOIA IS THE ANTIDOTE FOR PARANOIA
is available at ridiculously reasonable prices here:
Amazon: bit.ly/Pronoia
or Powells: bit.ly/PronoiaPowells
"I have seen the future of American literature and its name
is Rob Brezsny."
- Tom Robbins
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SOME OF MY THOUGHTS ABOUT ASTROLOGY
Here are some of my thoughts about astrology, as quoted in an
article by Damon Orion at bit.ly/fYYp2q:
"I think astrology, at its best, is about opening up the
imagination, opening up the possibilities, by getting you to play
with visions of what's possible," says Rob Brezsny. "It's
not a belief system; it's not a religion; it's not a science.
It's a language of the archetypes that you can play with and thereby
get a read on the biggest possibilities that are available to
you."
But if Brezsny sees astrology as a symbolic language, then does
he or doesn't he literally believe that the planets have a say
in earthly affairs? "There are many astrologers who don't
believe that the planets literally shower down some sort of invisible
influence on people," he says. "I know that some astrologers
believe that, but I would say that at this point, a majority don't.
The important thing is that the planets are signatures in the
sky that can be read and have been read by experts over a number
of centuries and correlated with specific tendencies in the human
personality and in evolution."
Brezsny points to a passage from what he calls "the definitive
astrology book of the 21st century -- probably the 20th century,
too": Richard Tarnas' Cosmos and Psyche. Therein,
Tarnas compares the motions of the planets to a clock: When you
look at a clock, you do so to know what time it is, but the clock
doesn't cause time. Likewise, when you're reading the movements,
configurations, and relationships of the planets, you're getting
a read on the particular energy of a given moment, but the planets
don't cause that moment.
But if the planets aren't influencing human behavior, then how,
exactly, are these two things correlated? "The theory of
divination is that everything reflects everything else,"
Brezsny states, "so that the tea leaves at the bottom of
your tea cup are an exact reflection of the nature of this moment
in civilization, or the way the Tarot cards are thrown down is
an exact replica, if you know how to read it, of where we are
now, or probably of where you are, if you're throwing the cards.
But the value of reading the sky as opposed to tea leaves is that
the sky is an objectively existing thing beyond any individual's
life: It's very objective and can be traced into the distant past
and the distant future."
Brezsny adds that it's a well-established tradition in human
societies to read any number of natural signs for clues to the
inner nature of things. He mentions that San Francisco Chronicle
columnist Tom Stienstra makes long-term weather forecasts by analyzing
natural phenomena such as the quality of red onion skins. Stienstra
can also supposedly tell what the spring is going to be like by
the thickness of the winter coats on coyotes.
Brezsny also mentions that when acacia flowers are ready to bloom,
members of an Australian tribe called the Yanyuwa know that the
sea turtles and the dugongs (a kind of marine mammal) are getting
fat and are therefore ready to be hunted. "So they're reading
the signs of nature to make some sort of deductions about what's
to come," he says. "And I think astrology is exactly
that. There is a well mapped out understanding of where the planets
were thousands of years back and where they'll be thousands of
years into the future."
And what are we to make of the notion that human behavior is
connected with planetary positioning at the time a person is born?
What is so crucial about the moment of birth, and how are the
planets connected to this? Brezsny refers to a person's astrological
chart as "a snapshot of the archetypes at that moment."
He says that although the tradition of astrology has developed
based on a person's birth, at any particular moment, we could
take this kind of snapshot of the heavens to get an idea of how
the archetypes are working together to create human civilization.
"Conceivably, there could have been a tradition that developed
over many centuries that involved the analysis of where the planets
were at the time of conception," the astrologer says, "but
that's a much murkier thing. It's easy to know when a person is
born. It's a dramatic event. So the tradition grew up around what
was the snapshot of the heavens at the moment the person was born,
and over centuries, many people have devoted their life energy
to trying to make empirical observations about what kind of pictures
of the heavens are correlated with particular human types."
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MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:
I TOLD YOU THERE'S A CONSPIRACY TO HELP YOU
On any given day, the average person's life is entrusted to more
than 2,000 different people who are complete strangers.
tinyurl.com/3nmkg2o
FAIRNESS AND JUSTICE ARE GROWING
Same-sex marriage is now legal in Argentina, Belgium, Canada,
Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, South Africa,
Sweden, as well as Mexico City and in these parts of the United
States: Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont,
New York, plus Washington, D.C. and the Coquille Indian Tribe
in Oregon. Civil unions and registered partnerships are legal
in 20 other countries.
JUST ANOTHER PERSON WORKING VERY HARD TO DO GOOD DEEDS
Greatest person of the Day
The Paradigm Project co-founder wants to bring 5 million fuel-efficient
stoves to poor, rural communities around the world.
tinyurl.com/66at39a
(Note: I endorse these because I like them. They are not advertisements,
and I get no kickbacks.)
Please tell me your own personal nominations for PRONOIA RESOURCES.
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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY
Week beginning August 4
Copyright 2011 by Rob Brezsny
FreeWillAstrology.com
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
Astronomer Sir Fred Hoyle rejected the prevailing scientific
theory that life on this planet emerged by accident from a primordial
soup. The chance of that happening was as likely as "a tornado
sweeping through a junkyard [and assembling] a Boeing 747 from
the materials therein." I do think that something less amazing,
but still semi-miraculous, is in the works for you, Leo. What
do you imagine it might be? I'm getting a vision of a windy thunderstorm
blowing through a junkyard in such a way as to assemble an impressionistic
sculpture of you wearing a crown of flowers and X-Ray Specs as
you ride confidently on the back of a lion.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
In the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, the yellow brick
road symbolizes a path leading to all of life's answers, to a
place where fantasies can be fulfilled. Dorothy and her companions
follow that road in the belief it will take them to the all-powerful
Wizard of Oz in the Emerald City. While I don't mind you playing
with the idea that you may eventually find your own personal yellow
brick road, for the immediate future I urge you to adopt the attitude
Elton John articulated in his song, "Goodbye Yellow Brick
Road": "Oh I've finally decided my future lies beyond
the yellow brick road." It's time to add more nuts-and-bolts
pragmatism to your pursuit of happiness.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
Some readers get enraged about the "crafty optimism"
I advocate in my book Pronoia Is the Antidote for Paranoia.
Given what they regard as the miserable state of the world, they
feel it's a sin to look for reasons to be cheerful. One especially
dour critic said that after reading a few pages of the book, he
took it out in his backyard, doused it with gasoline, and incinerated
it. You may face similar opposition in your attempts to foment
redemption, smoke out hope, and rally the troops, Libra. I urge
you to be extra fierce in your devotion to peace, love, and understanding.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
Of all the adversaries I will ever face, my ego is the supreme
challenge. It tries to trick me into thinking its interests are
exactly the same as my own. It periodically strives to bamboozle
me into believing that I should be motivated by pride, competitiveness,
selfishness, or judgmental evaluations of other people. When I'm
not vigilant, it lulls me into adopting narrow perspectives and
subjective theories that are rife with delusions about the nature
of reality. Don't get me wrong: I still love my ego. Indeed, being
on good terms with it is my only hope for keeping it from manipulating
me. I bring this up, Scorpio, because it's prime time for you
to come to a riper understanding of your own ego so you can work
out a tougher, more no-nonsense agreement with it.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
Sagittarian author Derrick Jensen wrote the book A Language
Older Than Words. He weaves together the tale of his abusive
childhood with an angry analysis of the damage human beings have
done to the earth and each other. It's a wrenching text, but in
the end it offers redemption. A review by Publisher's Weekly
says that "Jensen's book accomplishes the rare feat of both
breaking and mending the reader's heart." I invite you to
pursue a similar possibility, Sagittarius. Summon the courage
to allow your heart to be broken by a blessed catharsis that will
ultimately heal your heart so it's even stronger and smarter than
it was before the breaking.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
Right now you may be feeling especially squeezed by one of the
apparent contradictions in your life. But I'm here to tell you
that it's not as contradictory as you think. Its seemingly paradoxical
elements are in righteous harmony with each other at a higher
level of understanding. Can you rise to that higher level so as
to see what has been hidden from your view? I believe you can.
For best results, let go of any temptation you might have to act
as if you're oppressively defined by your past.
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EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES
In addition to the horoscopes that come to you in this newsletter,
I create audio horoscopes for your inspiration. They discuss themes
and cover material that I don't have room to deal with in the
written horoscopes.
They're $6 if you access them on the Web, or $1.99 per minute
over the phone.
Try them at RealAstrology.com.
By phone: 1-877-873-4888
"I always feel like I know myself better after listening
to your audio 'scopes."
- June R., Austin, TX
"Your audio horoscopes calm me down when I'm too manic and
pep me up when I'm down."
- Arthur T., Cleveland, OH
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AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
Psychologist and priest David Rickey counsels people who are
about to be married. "You are perfectly mismatched,"
he likes to tell them. "As much as you think you have chosen
each other because of beauty or shared interests, the deeper reason
is that unconsciously you know the other person is going to push
your buttons. And the purpose of relationships is for you to discover
and work on your buttons." I share Rickey's views, and offer
them to you just in time to make maximum use of their wisdom.
You see, Aquarius, you're in a phase when you have extraordinary
power to learn from and adjust to the challenges that come from
having your buttons pushed by those you care about.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
In his song "Crazy," British singer Seal repeats the
following line numerous times for emphasis: "We're never
going to survive unless we get a little crazy." I recommend
it as a mantra for you to rely on in the coming days. Your emotional
health will depend on your ability to laugh at yourself, play
along with absurdity, and cultivate a grateful reverence for cosmic
riddles. Being a little crazy will not only keep you robustly
sane; it will also allow you to enjoy and capitalize on the divine
comedy life presents you with.
ARIES (March 21-April 19):
Symbolically speaking, there is a Holy Grail hidden close to
you, and you know it, but you haven't been able to find it. The
Grail is a golden chalice filled with medicine that could open
what needs opening in you. Luckily, you will soon come into possession
(symbolically speaking) of a big, thick magical wand that can
give you a new advantage. Here's what I conclude: Use your wizard
stick to locate the cup of wonder so you can take a big sip.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
Much of the work you're doing right now is invisible to the naked
eye, maybe even to your own naked eye. You're learning a lot while
you sleep, drawing sustenance from hidden reservoirs even when
you're awake, and steadily improving yourself through the arts
of creative forgetting and undoing. Continue this subtle artistry,
Taurus. Be cagey. Be discreet. Don't underestimate how important
silence and even secrecy may be for you right now. The healing
transformations unfolding in almost total darkness should not
be exposed or revealed prematurely; they should be protected with
vigilance.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
Either Way I'm Celebrating. That's the title of a poetry
comic book by Sommer Browning, and I suggest that you consider
it as a worthy title for your life in the coming days. The adventure
you're in the midst of could evolve in several possible directions,
each with a different rhythm and tone, each with a distinct lesson
and climax. But regardless of what path you end up taking, I'm
almost positive you will have good reasons to throw yourself a
party at the end. Having said that, though, I also advise you
to decide which version of the story you prefer, then make it
your strong intention to materialize it.
CANCER (June 21-July 22):
During the skunk mating season, two robust members of the species
made the crawl space beneath my house their trysting place. The
result was spectacular. Siren-like squalls rose from their ecstasy,
spiraling up into my kitchen accompanied by plumes of a stench
that I imagined the Italian poet Dante, in his book The Inferno,
might have identified as native to the ninth level of hell. Being
as instinctively empathic as I am, I naturally appreciated how
much delight the creatures were enjoying. At the same time, I
wished they would take their revelry elsewhere. So I called on
the Humane Society, an animal rescue group, to flush them out
without harming them. If anything resembling this scenario takes
place in your sphere, Cancerian -- if someone's pursuit of happiness
cramps your style -- I suggest you adopt my gentle but firm approach.
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HOMEWORK:
Imagine you have time-traveled to one of your favorite places
in the year 2020. What do you see? Tell me at Freewillastrology.com.
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I SHARE MANY OF THE VIEWS THAT ARE ARTICULATED BRILLIANTLY BY
THIS GUY
One of my favorite thinkers and writers is my friend Jonathan
Zap. His vision is simultaneously cosmic and intimate, shocking
and healing.
His upcoming book is Crossing the Event Horizon -- the Singularity
Archetype & Human Metamorphosis. The first 40 pages are
available here for free: bit.ly/qvefZq.
Zap has also created a great online oracle deck you can use to
do your own divinations. Go to zaporacle.com
and click on ORACLE.
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Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2011 Rob Brezsny
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