Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter http://ezezine.com
Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
November 25, 2009
+
http://FreeWillAstrology.com
+
"What's your position on making love? Do you regard it as one of the
nicer fringe benefits of being alive? Or are you more inclined to see it as a
central proof of the primal magnanimity of the universe?"
- *PRONOIA*
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The revised and expanded version of my book *PRONOIA IS THE
ANTIDOTE FOR PARANOIA* is available at Amazon:
http://tinyurl.com/lxpnyt
Here are a couple of testimonials:
"This wild, wise, and subversive book is a must read for those who want
to live a more imaginative and free life . . . Rob Brezsny is a Culture Hero."
- *Utne Reader*
"I have seen the future of American literature and its name is Rob
Brezsny."
- Tom Robbins, author of *Still Life with Woodpecker,* *Jitterbug
Perfume,* and many more
+
I've posted several more YOUTUBE videos of me performing material from
the book, including "World Kiss," "Bliss Blitz," "Unhappy Hour," "I Have a
Dream," and "Pronoia's Darkness":
http://tinyurl.com/lyr99n
+
Dear Readers,
I've got an idea to help you to help me sell my new book:
Buy a copy of the book and mail to me. I'll autograph it and inscribe it
with a rowdy blessing, and then I'll send it back to you.
Here's the catch:
You've got to provide me with a self-addressed envelope or package
that's big enough to hold the book
AND
the envelope or package must be stamped with $3.16 postage if you
want it sent back to you by Media Mail, or with $11.95 postage if you
want it sent by Priority Mail.
If you want me to autograph and inscribe more than one book, send the
appropriate packaging and stamps.
If you live in Canada, send $10 Canadian worth of International Reply
Coupons per book, in addition to the self-addressed envelope or package.
This will allow for First-Class delivery. If you want Priority Mail delivery,
enclose $26 worth of coupons.
Here's the address to send the books you want me to sign: P.O. Box
4399, San Rafael, CA 94913.
This offer is good though December 18.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Here's an excerpt from page 8 of the book:
Have you ever been loved? I bet you have been loved so much and so
deeply that you have become jaded about the enormity of the grace it
confers. So let me remind you: To be loved is a privilege and prize
equivalent to being born. If you're smart, you pause regularly to bask in
the astonishing knowledge that there are many people out there who care
for you and want you to thrive and hold you in their thoughts with
fondness.
Animals, too: You have been the recipient of their boundless affection.
The spirits of allies who've left this world continue to send their tender
regards, as well. Do you "believe" in angels and other divine beings?
Whether or not you do, I can assure you that there are hordes of them
beaming their uncanny consecrations your way. You are awash in torrents
of love.
As tremendous a gift it is to get love, giving love is an equal boon. Many
scientific studies demonstrate that whenever you bestow blessings on
other people, you bless yourself. Expressing practical compassion not only
strengthens your immune system and bolsters your health, but also
promotes self-esteem, enhances longevity, and stimulates tranquility and
even euphoria. As the scientists say, we humans are hardwired to benefit
from altruism.
What's your position on making love? Do you regard it as one of the nicer
fringe benefits of being alive? Or are you more inclined to see it as a
central proof of the primal magnanimity of the universe? I'm more aligned
with the latter view.
Imagine yourself in the fluidic blaze of that intimate spectacle right now.
Savor the fantasy of entwining bodies and hearts and minds with an
appealing partner who has the power to enchant you. What better way do
you know of to dwell in sacred space while immersed in your body's
delight? To commune with the Divine Wow while having fun? To tap into
your own deeper knowing while at the same time gazing into the
mysterious light of a fellow creature?
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:
WHAT IF YOU WERE SURROUNDED BY HAPPY PEOPLE?
The World's Happiest Places
http://bit.ly/7YTC4e
WHAT IF GOD IS SOMETHING WE'VE GOT TO GIVE BIRTH TO?
Genetically Engineering God from Scratch
http://bit.ly/8PlHqz
WHAT IF YOU MADE IT A POINT TO ABSORB MUSIC AND ART AND STORIES
THAT MADE YOU FEEL GOOD?
"What a Wonderful World" by Louis Armstrong
http://bit.ly/6xCKFs
(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.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
FREE WILL ASTROLOGY
Week beginning November 26
Copyright 2009 by Rob Brezsny
http://FreeWillAstrology.com
Grammar key: Asterisks equal *italics*
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): The surest way to beat the system, my
dear, is to elude it and erect your own system. The strategy most likely
to leave your competitors babbling in the mirror, sweetheart, is to go
completely over their heads. That doesn't mean, darling, that you should
be a remote and grandiose narcissist who listens to no one but yourself.
Smile sweetly as you describe why your way is the best way, you
gorgeous genius. Enlist worthy collaborators through the irresistible force
of your guileless charisma.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): "A neurosis is a secret that you don't
know you are keeping," wrote theater critic Kenneth Tynan. Your
assignment is to uncover one of those secrets in yourself. It may not
result in an instantaneous cure of your minor personality glitch, but it will
be a potent first step that will set in motion a series of healing events. Be
brave, Capricorn. I guarantee that any ugliness you might find lodged
deep inside you will be entangled with surprising beauty.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Seventy percent of the world's fresh water
is locked away in Antarctica's ice, which is 7,000 feet thick. Let's hope it
remains that way for the foreseeable future. If global warming melted that
giant slab even a little, sea levels all over the planet would rise and coastal
lands would be inundated. As for *your* frozen areas, however: I'd really
like to see at least 30 percent of them thaw. Would you consider doing
whatever it takes to release a mini-flood of summery feelings?
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): While walking in an unfamiliar neighborhood, I
saw a huge red wooden chair on someone's front lawn. It was big enough
for a 20-foot-tall giant. An equally oversized martini glass was perched on
the arm of the chair. Nearby was a sign that read, "I have flying monkeys
at my command, and I'm not afraid to use them." I assumed this scene
was the handiwork of an adorable crazy person who's an admirer of "The
Wizard of Oz" mythology. I also flashed on how I could totally see you
sitting in that chair. Metaphorically speaking, you too have flying monkeys
at your command. I just hope you use them to accomplish good deeds,
not evil ones.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): One of the greatest superpowers a human
being can have is the ability to change herself in accordance with her
intentions. Let's say you're tired of feeling shame about something
there's no good reason to feel shame about, and you decide to do
whatever it takes to dissolve that shame, and you succeed in doing it. Or
let's say you no longer want to attract bad listeners and flaky
collaborators into your life, and you resolve to transform that pattern,
and you ultimately achieve your goal. These are acts of high magic, as
amazingly wizardly as anything a shaman does. It so happens, Aries, that
this superpower is especially accessible to you right now.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Your story is taking a hotter and wetter and
more cosmically comical turn. The splendor and the rot are all mixed up.
The line between your strengths and liabilities are hair thin. But have no
fear. One of your dormant talents will activate in the nick of time. Your
wild guesses will shed bright light whenever the darkness creeps in. And
you'll have even more emotional intelligence than usual. P.S. If your
psyche tingles like a funny bone that has been tapped, it means that
unanticipated help or useful information will arrive within 12 hours.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Want to get an idea of what my EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES are like?
Tune in to my free podcast, "Fear Versus Intuition":
http://bit.ly/6vNTIg
My approach there has a close resemblance to the style of my weekly
pay-for-view offerings.
Find out more about how to hear my EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES at
http://RealAstrology.com.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): "The more you do what you want," says Santa
Fe artist Erika Wanenmacher, "the more magic happens." And what she
wants, in part, is to be surprised by how life's random events ask to be
included in her creative process. During her long walks along the irrigation
ditch near her home, for example, odds and ends on the ground call to
her, suggesting that she use them in her art pieces -- heart-shaped rocks,
miniature liquor bottles, bent spoons, parts of toys. One of her gallery
pieces, "Spell Wall," consists of amulets made from this found stuff. "I'll
make whatever I want," Erika says. "Out of whatever I want. About
whatever I want." She's your role model, Gemini. Borrow from her
perspective. Go in quest of unexpected clues that make you feel loose
and free and fertile.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): Needing a creative disruption in my routine, I
hiked into a forest I'd never visited. The late afternoon light was wan and
the wind was chilly. In places, the trail narrowed to a scruffy rut barely big
enough for me to walk on, leading me to wonder if I was reading my map
wrong. Three times this happened, but always the wider path resumed.
Were there bobcats here? When I spied a flash of fur in the distance, I
wished I'd researched that subject before I'd come. Still I pressed on.
Then I came upon a single segment of a wooden fence, inexplicable in this
remote area. One end of its upper slat had come loose and fallen. Moved
by a whimsical urge to insert order into the midst of my disorientation, I
fixed the slat. My mood brightened, my anxiety dissipated, and the rest of
my hike was filled with small epiphanies. Everything I just described, my
fellow Cancerian, is an apt metaphor for your week ahead.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): I believe that in the coming weeks you'll enjoy
experiences that have an emotional resemblance to those referred to in
this passage by French novelist Gustave Flaubert: "I want to cover you
with love, with caresses, with ecstasy. I want to gorge you with all the
joys of the flesh . . . I want you to be astonished by me, to confess to
yourself that you had never even dreamed of such transports . . . When
you are old, I want you to recall those few hours. I want your dry bones to
quiver with joy when you think of them." Please note, Leo, that I'm not
necessarily saying the pleasures you gather in will stem from an
engagement with an actual lover. They might. But your delight may also
have a more mysterious origin.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): It's not just our era that has a tormented
relationship with time. Many cultures have been frustrated by its tyranny.
During France's July Revolution in 1830, for instance, rebels shot guns at
public clocks. While I think that's too extreme for you, I do recommend
that you perform a ritual to empower yourself as you wrestle with the
passage of the hours and days and weeks. How about smashing a cheap
alarm clock with a hammer? Or spending an entire day without ever
referring to a timepiece? Or taking ten deep breaths as you imagine
you're inhaling eternity and exhaling the grinding tick-tock? It's a perfect
moment to claim more freedom from temporality.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): I agree with football coach Lou Holtz, who said,
"The problem with having a sense of humor is often that people you use
it on aren't in a very good mood." It's possible to work around this
difficulty, however. What you have to do, before you unleash your levity,
is conjure up empathy for the sourpuss in question. You should also make
sure that your intention is not to mock or poke at the person, but instead
offer a potential escape from his or her locked energy. By my calculations,
you could be an expert at this kind of psychic judo right now. For best
results, practice on yourself. Whenever you're headed toward a negative
thought or emotion, nudge yourself away with a jest or wisecrack.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Do you know what you're really worth? Not
as measured by your bank account and luxurious possessions. Not as
reflected by your boss's or parents' or enemies' images of you. Not as
distorted by what you wish you were worth or fear you're not worth. I'm
talking about taking an illusion-free inventory of the skills you have that
are fulfilling to you and useful to others. I'm talking about your wisdom
more than your knowledge, your self-love more than your popularity, your
ability to *be* good more than to *look* good.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
HOMEWORK: Go to Youtube and watch me give some pep talks and
crazed lectures. Start here: http://tinyurl.com/lyr99n. Then send me the
critiques, arguments, and inspirations that rise up in you in response to
what you see.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
NEED TO CHANGE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS?
To join or leave the email list for this newsletter, or to change the address
where you receive it, go to:
http://www.freewillastrology.com/newsletter/
Once you do join, check all the below points to make sure you'll actually
receive the newsletter:
1. Add my address, televisionary@comcast.net, to your address book so
that the newsletter won't be treated as spam and filtered out.
2. Adjust your spam filter so it doesn't treat my address as a source of
spam.
3. Tell your company's IT group to allow my address to pass through any
filtering software they may have set up.
4. If my newsletters don't reach your inbox, look in your "Bulk Mail" or
"Junk Mail" folder.
5. The problems may not have to do with anything you do, but may
originate with your email provider. It may be using a "content filter" that
prevents my newsletter from ever reaching you at all. If you suspect
that's the case, complain. Tell your email provider to stop blocking my
newsletter from reaching you.
P.S. I totally respect your privacy. I'll never sell or give away your address
to anyone.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Submissions sent to the Free Will Astrology Weekly 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 such submissions for length, style, and content.
Requests for anonymity will be honored with submissions;
otherwise, reader names, screen names, or initials will be used.
Please be sure to note your preference when sending to us. We
are not responsible for unsolicited submission of any creative
material.
Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2009 Rob Brezsny
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++