Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter http://ezezine.com
Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
October 22, 2008
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http://FreeWillAstrology.com
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"If you're really listening, if you're awake to the poignant beauty of the
world, your heart breaks regularly. In fact, your heart is made to break; its
purpose is to burst open again and again so that it can hold ever-more
wonders." —Andrew Harvey, *The Return of the Mother*
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Dear Readers,
Before the last U.S. presidential election in 2004, *What Is
Enlightenment?* magazine posed the following query to five religious
leaders: "Many people argue that the upcoming presidential election is the
most important in our lifetime. Do you agree?"
Four of the respondents said, in effect, "Yes, because George Bush is bad
for America and the world."
But the fifth religious leader, Zen Buddhist Jan Chozen Roshi, replied, "I
don't know. Our existence is so short, it's like a dust mote in the eye of
God. To say that the time in which my dust mote existed was the most
important is a self-centered view."
Roshi's wisdom reminded me of an anecdote told by Henry Kissinger, an
American politician who was Secretary of State in the 1970s. Kissinger
once asked Chinese premier Zhou Enlai what he thought of the French
Revolution, which had happened two centuries earlier. "Too soon to tell,"
Chou answered.
I always like to keep these ideas in mind, even in times of relative peace
and calm. But I'm especially fond of focusing on the *very* big picture
when divine chaos is whirling around -- like now. It helps keep me humble,
and discourages me from any temptation I might have to believe I know
the Whole Truth about anything, let alone about the mysterious long-term
processes at work in the evolution of the human race.
There's another factor that makes me cautious about getting embroiled in
partisan politics and the narrow-minded hostility that fuels it. One of my
main goals in life is to love everyone with passionate intensity -- no
exceptions. Not just the people I find beautiful and helpful and interesting
and attractive. But also the people I don't like and the people who don't
like me and the people I disagree with and the people who can't or won't
do anything for me.
In order to become the gorgeous genius I aspire to be, in order to fulfill
the unique destiny I came to Earth to embody, I have to hold EVERYONE
in my heart with compassion and empathy. As I contemplate how every
single part of creation is interconnected, I've got to be aware that the
creatures I'm allergic to and inclined to feel alienated from are also part of
the great web of life.
That's my spiritual goal; it's essential to awakening my best self and
cultivating an intimate connection to Spirit. It's also my selfish goal; it's
critical to my physical and mental health. Hatred always sickens me. Love
always invigorates me.
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On the other hand:
I was born at a specific moment in history with a unique outlook and a
particular assignment. I can't help but be passionate about the truth as I
see it.
And the truth as I see it is that Barack Obama is the best choice for
President of the United States. He is definitely the most pronoiac
candidate.
That's why I'm voting for him and feel good about saying:
BARACK OBAMA FOR PRESIDENT
If you'd like to know a little more about my political perspectives, some
(but not all) of which are shared by Obama, you can read them here:
http://tinyurl.com/2etg3c
If the spirit moves you, you can also read this article from *The New
Yorker,* which I largely endorse:
http://tinyurl.com/4ev99m
P.S. It's crucial to keep in mind that Obama can't single-handedly and
magically heal all the havoc inflicted on America and the world by He-
Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and his henchmen. The resuscitation will have to
be accomplished primarily by we-the-people, and as much on the local
level as in the federal realm.
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PRONOIA RESOURCES:
"Vote for Hope"
The best Obama song out there, by M.C. Yogi
http://tinyurl.com/4hdl95
Free download of the song here:
http://tinyurl.com/5uz2fo
*The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream* by
Barack Obama
http://tinyurl.com/4jbkdu
*Change We Can Believe In: Barack Obama's Plan to Renew America's
Promise* by Barack Obama
http://tinyurl.com/4kxgj6
(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 October 23
Copyright 2008 by Rob Brezsny
http://FreeWillAstrology.com
Grammar key: Asterisks equal *italics*
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): What do you tend to do when you're
squeezed between the demands of authority and the healthy need to
rebel? How do you respond when the past and future are at odds? What
resources do you draw on when the person you have always been starts
to evolve into an interesting new form that you don't recognize? You've
come to a fork in the road, Scorpio, when you will be asked to deal with
these questions on a larger scale than before. My advice? Study your past
so thoroughly that you'll be able to keep it from repeating itself, and open
your mind to possibilities you've rarely considered.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): The world is poised at the threshold of a
great choice: Should we stick with what has worked for us, even though
it's not working any more? Or should we experiment with possibilities that
may work for us in the future, even though they don't have a track
record? You, Sagittarius, can and should be a leader in this epic
adventure. The best way to do that is to summon your dormant courage
as you apply the big questions I just posed to the specific circumstances
of your personal life.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): The planet Saturn symbolizes the
preservative and conservative tendencies of evolution. It teaches us to
learn from the past and keeps us from rushing into the frontier before
we're ready. Uranus, on the other hand, represents future shocks, both
the disturbing and benevolent kinds. It disturbs our sleep in order to wake
us up and energizes us to reinvent ourselves on the fly. What happens
when these two planets slip into an intimate dynamic, as they are now?
Will one of them prevail over the other in a great battle? Or will they
coordinate their efforts artfully in a riveting, gorgeous dance? Amazingly
enough, the outcome depends in part on you.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): No faking allowed, Aquarius. I mean it. You
must do no pretending, tell no dirty lies, and never act as if you know
things you don't truly know. Instead, say exactly what you mean; be more
real than you have ever dared to be; be nothing more and nothing less
than who you actually are. Why is this authenticity crusade so important
right now? Because in the coming weeks, you'll be setting your life's tone
for months to come. You will be planting more seeds than you can
imagine.
##########################################
Want to get an idea of what my EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES are like?
Tune in to my free podcast, "Fear Versus Intuition."
It's at http://tinyurl.com/3j8huc.
My approach there has a close resemblance to the style of my weekly
pay-for-view offerings.
Find out more about how to buy my EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES at
http://RealAstrology.com.
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PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Uranus symbolizes your instinct for freedom,
your drive to express your dormant genius, and your attunement with
your intuition. Saturn represents structure and responsibility; when it's
prominent, it's time to get back to basics and cut down on distractions
and excesses. So what should you do when these two planets are in exact
opposition, as they are now? Here's one hint: We're all being squeezed
between a mandate to head toward the frontier and the pressure to play
it safe. To keep from being paralyzed, some of us may have to choose
one way over the other. In my opinion, you Pisceans are likely to profit by
choosing the Uranian path.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): The government of my home country America
spends an obscene fortune on its armed forces -- as much as do all the
other nations of the world combined. In fact, we are by far the most
weaponized empire in the history of the world. Our 761 military bases in
over 100 countries dwarf the comparatively puny garrisons of the Roman
and British empires at their peak, with 37 and 36 bases respectively. If
our military costs were cut down to a more reasonable amount -- say the
same as that of China (whose population is more than four times the size
of ours) -- we'd have an annual trillion-dollar bonus to deal with the
financial infection that erupted here and sent toxic ripples throughout the
world. Maybe we'd even have enough left over to seed a national health
care system. Keeping that in mind as a metaphor, Aries, make this your
hypothesis: By reducing the hostility, combativeness, and judgmental ire
that you personally generate, you'll be far more likely to navigate your
way toward prosperity.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): The days leading up to America's presidential
election feature a rare opposition between Saturn and Uranus. Since
Saturn symbolizes the past and Uranus the future, we might expect there
to be a showdown between what has been and what will be, not only on a
collective level but also in our personal realms. In what areas of your life
do you think that will materialize, Taurus? Identify those hotspots, then
get to work coordinating synergistic interactions between the seemingly
contrary forces.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Write the number ten followed by eleven
zeroes. Our Milky Way Galaxy has that many stars. Write a ten followed by
twelve zeroes. That's the size of America's national debt in dollars. Now
promise me that for the next month, you will avoid absorbing any scary,
overwhelming data like the kind I just threw at you. Worrying about the
big financial picture would not only be fruitless, it would also distract you
from your main tasks, which are as follows: Regard the crisis as an
excellent opportunity to shed materialistic obsessions and live more
humbly and creatively. Sublimate your buy-ological urges into biological
urges. Stretch yourself to get into closer touch with your spiritual core.
##########################################
Want to get an idea of what my EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES are like?
Tune in to my free podcast, "Fear Versus Intuition."
It's at http://tinyurl.com/3j8huc.
My approach there has a close resemblance to the style of my weekly
pay-for-view offerings.
Find out more about how to buy my EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES at
http://RealAstrology.com.
##########################################
CANCER (June 21-July 22): As the stock markets came crashing down, a
different kind of global devastation received scant notice. The World
Conservation Congress revealed that 25 percent of the planet's mammal
species and one out of eight birds are on close to extinction. We're not
just talking about exotic animals in remote hideaways, but rabbits and
deer and cardinals and turtledoves. As you meditate on how to reinvent
yourself in the wake of the financial shifts, Cancerian, please hold a vigil in
your heart for the endangered creatures. The two crises are related, after
all. The greed to turn everything into a means of generating money has
led humans to both despoil nature and risk the crazy gambles that have
savaged the economy. The more you understand that, the better your
intuition will be as you make personal decisions affecting your future
relationship with money.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): TV's "The Daily Show" did a mock biography of
your fellow Leo, Barack Obama, poking fun at the adoration he inspires in
millions of people around the world. Every time he speaks, said the
narrator, "an angel has an orgasm." According to my analysis, you now
have a scaled-down version of that power. You may not incite the same
intensity of pleasure in the heavenly hosts, but you could definitely
unleash eruptions of raw enthusiasm in numerous humans. I suggest that
like Obama, you channel it in service to a cause beyond your own selfish
interests.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): When the planet Uranus comes into play, as it
is now, it's a good time to initiate experiments that will expedite the
arrival of future blessings. Pushing beyond comforting habits, you thrive
by going in quest of bracing truths, unfashionable beauty, and wild
justice. The symbolic nature of Saturn is different. It invites you to
creatively limit and discipline yourself so that fate isn't forced to limit and
discipline you in unpleasant ways. It so happens, Virgo, that Uranus and
Saturn are now poised in opposition to each other. Will they work at
cross-purposes, spawning a sticky mess? Or is there a way for you to get
them to work together? More than you imagine, you have the power to
affect how they interact in your personal sphere.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): "I cannot tell if the day is ending, or the world,
or if the secret of secrets is inside me again." So wrote Jane Kenyon,
translating Russian poet Anna Akhmatova. At this juncture in history,
that's a feeling many of us have. Part of the time we're on the verge of
freaking out, half-expecting some new calamity to befall the world. Other
times we're awash in wonder and awe, catching glimpses of the
miraculous flow that's hidden just below the surface of everyday chaos;
we're tantalizingly close to understanding that everything is proceeding
exactly as it should. In the coming weeks, this excruciating poignancy will
peak, especially for you. Regard it as a gift -- as a difficult blessing that
has the potential to free you of your illusions.
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HOMEWORK: Write an essay entitled "How I'm Going to Get Stronger,
Smarter, and More Soulful During the Financial Chaos." Send a copy of
your thoughts to me by going to http://FreeWillAstrology.com and
clicking on "Email Rob."
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WANT TO GET YOUR CHART DONE?
I'm not doing personal charts, but I highly recommend my astrological
colleague, RO LOUGHRAN. Her approach closely matches my own. In our
many discussions about astrology over the years, we've had a major
influence on each other's work.
Ro utilizes a blend of well-trained intuition, emotional warmth, and a high
degree of technical proficiency in horoscope interpretation; she is skilled
at exploring the mysteries of your life's purpose and nurturing your
connection with your own inner wisdom.
Ro is based in California, but can do phone consultations and otherwise
work with you regardless of geographic boundaries.
Ro's website is at
http://YourSoulJourney.com
She can also be reached at roloughran@comcast.net
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Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2008 Rob Brezsny
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