Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
April 29, 2020
FreeWillAstrology.com
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How do you get yourself into a sacred state that rejuvenates your emotional life and expands your mind beyond its monkey chatter and customary habits and same-old-same-old beliefs?
Some people go to church, synagogue, temple, or mosque. Some wander out into nature. (Very few hop onto Facebook to get into arguments.)
One of my reliable ways to slip into the holy dimension is to sing songs that stir me with righteous passion. (The lyrics must be exalting; can't be trivializing or dumb.)
Another is to feel the joy of my body exerting itself while I walk alone up hills.
The best is to sing righteous songs while walking up hills.
And you?
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RADICAL CONFUGURATION OF ALL LIFE STRUCTURES
Richard Tarnas, one of the best astrological thinkers on the planet, offered his views on this "grave and astonishing moment." Here's the youtube link: youtu.be/TwhaNkUzBpg
Excerpts: "This is a time in which there are volcanically intense evolutionary pressures for the radical reconfiguration of all life structures."
"We're in the midst of an encounter with a collective mortal emergency that completely focuses our attention."
"Our agency, as humans, plays a role in how these archetypal energies express themselves. The more courage, imagination intelligence, compassion we can bring to bear on these events, the more free and skillful we can be in shaping the expression of the archetypal energies."
Quoting Greek philosopher Plotinus, Tarnas says, "The stars are like letters that inscribe themselves at every moment in the sky. Everything in the world is full of signs. All events are coordinated. All things depend on each other. Everything breathes together."
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IMAGINING THE POST-PLAGUE WORLD
David Talbot offers the following thoughts:
The bad news is that it's end of the world as we know it. The good news is that it's the end of the world as we know it. And we can use our imaginations to dream up a better world.
I've begun jotting down some notes about how civilization can emerge from this catastrophic pandemic in more socially decent and healthy ways.
1. A climate crisis turning point. The skies have never seemed cleaner and brighter. My city has never seemed so quiet and placid. Do we really have to return to a fossil fuel-powered, frantically acquisitive way of life?
2. There is a new appreciation for the daily heroism of health care workers and the fragility of our public health system. Isn't it past time for America to join the rest of the civilized world and move to Medicare for all?
3. There is a new appreciation for labor in America, especially those who are keeping the country running at warehouses, markets, delivery services. Isn't it past time for employers like Amazon -- run by the richest man in the world who's now getting richer by the minute -- to treat these workers fairly, increasing their wages and benefits and allowing them to join unions?
4. Crime is down and people are shooting each other in America with much less frequency. Does our society have to be so weaponized?
5. We have to think twice or more before reflexively making purchases these days as the ranks of the unemployed swell and the economy crashes. Let's convert our society from its enslaving consumerism to cooperative networks and reduce our wasteful dependence on the latest fashions, cars and electronic gadgets.
6. Now that it's dangerous to vote (black Americans can tell us all about that history), we have to reinvent democracy. How about if we we completely convert to a mail ballot system -- which would not only make the election process safer, but also more inclusive?
How else can we imagine a new post-plague world? Your thoughts?
More from David Talbot: tinyurl.com/y8fsgrs3
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MAKE YOURSELF ALERT
Experiment:
Make yourself alert for
small miracles,
beguiling surprises,
marvelous tweaks,
inexplicable joys,
and subtle changes
that inspire quiet awe
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THE CREATIVE ENERGY WE NEED WILL COME
Pronoia doesn't promise uninterrupted progress forever. It's not a slick commercial for a perfect summer day that never ends.
Grace emerges in the ebb and flow, not just the flow. The waning reveals a different kind of blessing than the waxing.
But whether it's our time to ferment in the valley of shadows or rise up singing in the sun-splashed meadow, fresh power to transform ourselves is always on the way.
Our suffering won't last, nor will our triumph.
Without fail, life will deliver the creative energy we need
to change into the new thing we must become.
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ACT NATURAL
Act natural. Act like all of nature. Act like the entire cycle of life and death and change and rebirth.
—"Welcome to Night Vale" podcast
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I WILL SING UNTIL THE MIRACLES COME
World Kiss:
soundcloud.com/sacreduproar/world-kiss
Shadow Blessings:
soundcloud.com/sacreduproar/shadow-blessings
You Taste Delicious:
soundcloud.com/sacreduproar/you-taste-delicious-version-2
I Want Everybody: soundcloud.com/sacreduproar/i-want-everybody
In a Crisis:
soundcloud.com/sacreduproar/in-a-crisis
Many more of my songs here:
soundcloud.com/sacreduproar
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OUR RESILIENCE
This *%&^#@ pandemic is really inspiring our resilience and resourcefulness!
tinyurl.com/ya7fvglp
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HUMMINGBIRD NEST
Hummingbird nest on a peach:
tinyurl.com/ycplr3t8
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EXPERIMENT
Make a voodoo doll of yourself and then give it a backrub
tinyurl.com/y6uwdj6j
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WOMEN LEADERS
In the Washington Post, Zoe Marks writes: In a global emergency, women are showing how to lead. Among the countries that have seen early successes in the fight against the covid-19 pandemic, female leaders stand out.
Germany under Angela Merkel boasts one of the lowest fatality rates in the world and is gradually reopening. Women-led Switzerland and Norway have both launched multimillion-dollar multilateral relief funds — alongside their own preventive measures — to support poorer countries’ pandemic recovery.
And what do success stories such as Denmark, Finland and Iceland have in common with Hong Kong and Taiwan, halfway around the world? They’re all run by women.
The public response to their efforts is striking. Merkel gets high marks for “reasoning rather than rousing.”
New Zealand’s Jacinda Ardern earns praise for her “clarity and compassion.”
Commentators commend Canada’s numerous female chief medical officers, who have taken the lead on health policy while Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is in quarantine, for their calm and consistency.
Such perceptions owe a great deal to gender stereotypes, which affect both how people perceive women and how women behave.
Decades of research show that female leaders are more likely to be democratic or participative — and less autocratic — in their leadership style, meaning they invite subordinates to participate in decision-making.
Equally, women more often lead through motivation, engaging followers’ shared interests, while men tend to rely on incentives.
Some comparisons are illustrative. On March 13, President Trump addressed the nation in the Rose Garden. As Trump stressed deals with countries and corporations, Vice President Pence called companies “synonymous with communities.”
Three days later, Norway’s Prime Minister Erna Solberg convened a very different news conference, directed at children, not shareholders: “It is okay to be scared when so many things happen at the same time,” she said.
Then, she went on to offer simple and straightforward answers to questions, still ostensibly aimed at children, that many adults are also confronting as the disruptions to their lives multiply: Can I visit my grandparents? How long does it take to make a vaccine? What can I do to help?
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MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:
UC Berkeley is Offering Up Their Popular ‘Science of Happiness’ Course for Free Online
tinyurl.com/ydff4626
More Than 20,000 WiFi Devices Are Being Donated to Hospitals So Patients Can Talk With Family in Quarantine
tinyurl.com/y8pqgs4z
Dogs Are Joining the Fight Against COVID-19 By Learning to Sniff Out the Virus
tinyurl.com/ybw3aaz9
Some Good News For Your TV: Watch the Pilot Episode of The Good News Network!
tinyurl.com/ybssmnuf
Publix Supermarkets Are Buying Food From Struggling Farmers So They Can Use it to Feed Families in Need
tinyurl.com/y9fca2rz
Air Pollution in Major World Cities Has Dropped By as Much as 60% During COVID Shutdowns, Says New Report
tinyurl.com/ycn6zf7c
This 1,000-Year-old Cherry Tree in Japan is a Role Model for Resilience During Trying Times
tinyurl.com/yawzuxx3
Bored in Quarantine, 15-Year-old Transforms Her Bedroom Wall into 8-Foot Climbing Structure
tinyurl.com/y87kf2qf
New York Governor Issues Order Allowing Couples to Be Legally Married Via Zoom
tinyurl.com/yawyg9g9
89-Year-Old Sews 600 Masks While Listening to The Beatles –
tinyurl.com/ydzavhu6
(Note: I endorse these because I like them. They aren’t advertisements, and I get no kickbacks.)
Please tell me your own nominations for PRONOIA RESOURCES: Truthrooster@gmail.com.
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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY
Week beginning April 30
Copyright 2020 by Rob Brezsny
FreeWillAstrology.com
TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
Is there an area of your life where you would like a do-over? A chance to cancel the past and erase lingering messiness and clear a path for who-knows-what new possibility? The coming weeks will be an excellent time to prepare—not to actually take the leap, but rather make yourself ready for the leap. You will have God and fate and warm fuzzy vibes on your side as you dare to dream and scheme about a fresh start. Any mistakes you committed once upon a time could become irrelevant as you fantasize practically about a future breakthrough.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
In 1855, Gemini-born Walt Whitman published his book of poetry Leaves of Grass. A literary critic named Rufus Wilmot Griswold did not approve. In a review, he derided the work that would eventually be regarded as one of America's literary masterpieces. "It is impossible to imagine how any man's fancy could have conceived such a mass of stupid filth," Griswold wrote, adding that Whitman had a "degrading, beastly sensuality" driven by "the vilest imaginings." Whitman's crafty Gemini intelligence responded ingeniously to the criticism. In the next edition of Leaves of Grass, the author printed Griswold's full review. It helped sell even more books! I invite you to consider comparable twists and tricks.
CANCER (June 21-July 22):
In your efforts to develop a vibrant community and foster a vital network of connections, you have an advantage. Your emotionally rich, nurturing spirit instills trust in people. They're drawn to you because they sense you will treat them with care and sensitivity. On the other hand, these fine attributes of yours may sometimes cause problems. Extra-needy, manipulative folks may interpret your softness as weakness. They might try to exploit your kindness to take advantage of you. So the challenge for you is to be your generous, welcoming self without allowing anyone to violate your boundaries or rip you off. Everything I just said will be helpful to meditate on in the coming weeks, as you reinvent yourself for the future time when the coronavirus crisis will have lost much of its power to disrupt our lives.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
Now is an excellent time to take inventory of your integrity. You're likely to get crucial insights if you evaluate the state of your ethics, your authenticity, and your compassion. Is it time to boost your commitment to a noble cause that transcends your narrow self-interest? Are there ways you've been less than fully fair and honest in your dealings with people? Is it possible you have sometimes failed to give your best? I'm not saying that you are guilty of any of those sins. But most of us are indeed guilty of them, at least now and then. And if you are, Leo, now is your special time to check in with yourself—and make any necessary adjustments and corrections.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
I predict that you will have more flying dreams than usual in the coming weeks—as well as more dreams in which you're traveling around the world in the company of rebel angels and dreams in which you're leading revolutionary uprisings of oppressed people against tyrannical overlords and dreams of enjoying eight-course gourmet feasts with sexy geniuses in the year 2022. You may also, even while not asleep, well up with outlandish fantasies and exotic desires. I don't regard any of these likelihoods as problematical. In fact, I applaud them and encourage them. They're healthy for you! Bonus: All the wild action transpiring in your psyche may prompt you to generate good ideas about fun adventures you could embark on once the coronavirus crisis has ebbed.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
It's time to work your way below the surface level of things, Libra; to dig and dive into the lower reaches where the mysteries are darker and richer; to marshal your courage as you go in quest of the rest of the story. Are you willing to suspend some of your assumptions about the way things work so as to become fully alert for hidden agendas and dormant potentials? Here's a piece of advice: Your fine analytical intelligence won't be enough to guide you through this enigmatic terrain. If you hope to get face to face with the core source, you'll have to call on your deeper intuition and non-rational hunches.
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OUR COLLABORATION
I really do feel that you're with me as I create the weekly horoscopes. In a sense, you're my assistant. Our telepathic connection is utterly palpable and practical. The hopes and questions you project my way stream into my higher mind, coloring my psychic environment and enriching my desire to give you exactly what you need.
If you want more inspiration generated in that same collaborative spirit, keep in mind that I also offer EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES. They're longer meditations on the current state of your destiny. RealAstrology.com
Lately I've been addressing your personal story in the context of the coronavirus. I've discussed ways that you might make best use of your time as we navigate our way through our Shared Global Crisis.
To listen to your Expanded Audio Horoscope online, go to RealAstrology.com
Register and/or log in through the main page.
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The cost is $6 per sign. (Discounts are available for bulk purchases.) You at can also access them for $1.99 per minute by phone: 1-877-873-4888.
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SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
When was the last time you researched the intricacies of what you don't like and don't desire and don't want to become? Now is a favorable time to take a thorough inventory. You'll generate good fortune for yourself by naming the following truths: 1. goals and dreams that are distractions from your primary mission; 2. attitudes and approaches that aren't suitable for your temperament and that don't contribute to your maximum health; 3. people and influences that are not in alignment with your highest good.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
Novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky believed that the cleverest people are those who regularly call themselves fools. In other words, they feel humble amusement as they acknowledge their failings and ignorance—thereby paving the way for creative growth. They steadily renew their commitment to avoid being know-it-alls, celebrating the curiosity that such blessed innocence enables them to nurture. They give themselves permission to ask dumb questions! Now is a favorable time for you to employ these strategies.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
What wonderful improvements and beautiful influences would you love to be basking in by May 1, 2021? What masterpieces would you love to have as key elements of your life by then? I invite you to have fun brainstorming about these possibilities in the next two weeks. If an exciting idea bubbles up into your awareness, formulate a plan that outlines the details you'll need to put in place so as to bring it to fruition when the time is right. I hereby authorize you to describe yourself with these terms: begetter; originator; maker; designer; founder; producer; framer; generator.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
If I asked you to hug and kiss yourself regularly, would you think I was being too cute? If I encouraged you to gaze into a mirror once a day and tell yourself how beautiful and interesting you are, would you say, "That's too woo-woo for me." I hope you will respond more favorably than that, Aquarius. In fact, I will be praying for you to ascend to new heights of self-love between now and May 25. I will be rooting for you to be unabashed as you treat yourself with more compassionate tenderness than you have ever dared to before. And I do mean EVER!
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
In the coming weeks, I'd love to see you get excited about refining and upgrading the ways you communicate. I don't mean to imply that you're a poor communicator now; it's just that you're in a phase when you're especially empowered to enhance the clarity and candor with which you express yourself. You'll have an uncanny knack for knowing the right thing to say at the right moment. You'll generate blessings for yourself as you fine-tune your listening skills. Much of this may have to happen online and over the phone, of course. But you can still accomplish a lot!
ARIES (March 21-April 19):
I always hesitate to advise Aries people to slow down, be more deliberate, and pay closer attention to boring details. The Rams to whom I provide such counsel may be rebelliously annoyed with me—so much so that they move even faster, and with less attention to the details. Nevertheless, I'll risk offering you this advisory right now. Here's my reasoning, which I hope will make the prospect more appealing: If you commit to a phase in which you temporarily invoke more prudence, discretion, and watchfulness than usual, it will ultimately reward you with a specific opportunity to make rapid progress.
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HOMEWORK:
What's the bravest thing you ever did? What will be the next brave thing you do? Testify at FreeWillAstrology.com
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Submissions sent to Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter or in response to "homework assignments" may be published in a variety of formats at Rob Brezsny's discretion, including but not limited to newsletters, books, the Free Will Astrology column, and Free Will Astrology website. We reserve the right to edit submissions for length, style, and content. Requests for anonymity will be honored. We are not responsible for unsolicited submission of any creative material.
Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright 2020 Rob Brezsny
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