Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter http://ezezine.com
Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
May 25, 2011
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For a pretty version of this newsletter: http://bit.ly/mpAAMz
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The piece below is excerpted from my book
*PRONOIA IS THE ANTIDOTE FOR PARANOIA*
available at Amazon: http://bit.ly/Pronoia
or Powells: http://bit.ly/PronoiaPowells
ECSTATIC STUDY GUIDE, Part 3
Strategies for plying a chronic, low-key, blissful union with everything
you're not
1. My old philosophy professor Norman O. Brown would periodically
interrupt his lectures, tilt his head upward as if tuning in to the whisper of
some heavenly voice, and announce in a puckish tone, "It's time for your
irregular reminder: We're already living after the end of the world. No
need to fret anymore."
The implication was that the worst had already happened. We had lost
much of the cultural riches that had given humans meaning for centuries.
All that was going to be taken from us had already been taken.
On the bright side, that meant we were utterly free to reinvent ourselves.
Living amidst the emptiness, we had nowhere to go but up. What
remained was alienating, but it was also fresh.
Working from the hypothesis that you're living after the end of the world,
what are you free to do that you weren't able to do before? Who are you
free to be?
2. One of my favorite memories is gazing into my daughter Zoe's face
just moments after her complicated birth. She had been through a heroic
ordeal that scared the hell out of me, and yet she looked calm, beatific,
and amused.
"She's part-Buddha and part-elf," I thought to myself as I held her in my
arms. Gazing back at me, her shiny face blended two states I had never
before witnessed together in anyone, let alone in an infant: elegant
compassion and playful serenity. This revelation imprinted me like a blood
oath and has informed my life and my work ever since.
Do you have a comparable memory? A time when a key to your destiny
was suddenly laid bare? A turning point when you got a gift that has
fueled your quest for years? Revisit that breakthrough. Then ask life for
another one.
3. Many people sincerely think that they will be called before God to
account for themselves on Judgment Day. If you yourself have held that
belief, you can stop worrying about it. The fact is, according to a survey
of over 800 dissident bodhisattvas, urban witch doctors, sacred agents,
and undercover geniuses, that you are called before "God" on Judgment
Day on a regular basis.
Since you still exist, you have apparently passed every test so far. "God"
obviously keeps finding you worthy. You shouldn't get overconfident, of
course. But maybe from now on you can assume that although there may
be a world of pressure on you, that pressure is natural, merciful, and
exactly what you need.
Try this experiment:_For seven days, see what it feels like to be secure in
your knowledge that you have passed the tests of Judgment Day many,
many times.
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MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:
HOW DO YOU FEEL WHEN YOU GIVE BEAUTY?
Radical Joy for Hard Times
http://tinyurl.com/3qfscux
Heal a wounded place on the earth
GETTING SOCIAL SERVICES RIGHT MATTERS MORE THAN IDEOLOGY
The story of how MedellĂn, Colombia's drug capital, became as safe as
Washington. Unexpected victory for urban planning -- placing beautiful
architecture in poorest, crime-ridden areas -- and social reintegration
programs.
http://tinyurl.com/3z9oe6s
HAVE YOU HAD YOUR MINIMUM DAILY REQUIREMENT OF BEAUTY?
Evidence of nature's pronoia
http://i.imgur.com/DqYhk.jpg
(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 May 26
Copyright 2011 by Rob Brezsny
http://FreeWillAstrology.com
Grammar key: Asterisks equal *italics*
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Poet Gerard Manley Hopkins coined the verb
"to selve," which is what a person does in the process of creating his or
her distinctive presence in the world. Writing this column is an ongoing
opportunity for me to selve, for example, because each time I conjure up
a new horoscope I exercise the idiosyncratic combination of skills,
attitudes, training, and knowledge that is special to me. According to my
reading of the omens, Gemini, you are in a phase when you have a sacred
duty to selve with extra intensity and alacrity. In fact, I suggest you be
ruthless in seeking out experiences that give you a chance to tap into,
cultivate, and express your most unique qualities.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): Here comes your ninth loss of innocence,
Cancerian. Or is it your tenth? As you will soon prove once again, you
manage to make every time feel like the first time. When the moment
arrives and the sweet purity ebbs away, the twinge that shudders through
you will have the same primal intensity you've experienced before. But
here's the redemption: Like most of the previous transitions, this one will
lead to a surprising blessing you couldn't have gotten any other way.
When your innocence is reborn -- as it will be, sooner or later -- it will be
wiser and wilder than ever before.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): There's a small chance that the following scenario
will soon come to pass: You'll be invited to become part of a situation
that promises to give you special privileges or inside information, but
after you join you'll find out that your participation would require you to
compromise your principles. But there's a far greater chance -- over 80
percent -- that the following scenario will take place: You'll be invited to
join your fortunes to a group or circle or tribe or situation that won't ask
you to dilute your integrity or betray your values at all. In fact, it's likely
to activate a dormant part of your potential. The moral of the story, Leo:
Be very discerning.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Right now you have more power than you
realize -- more power to understand confusing situations, more power to
influence people you've assumed are resistant to change, and more power
to overcome your apparent disadvantages. In fact the only factor that
could prevent you from accomplishing way more than what you thought
possible is a lack of confidence. Please note, Virgo: I'm not urging you to
cultivate a foolishly arrogant faith in your ego. Rather, I'm clueing you in
to the fact that there are hidden forces at work you can call on to help
you -- wisdom that has been dormant, love that has been neglected, and
allies who have been mum.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): According to the *Guinness Book of World
Records,* the longest love letter in history was written by an Indian man
named Harish Kondakkuli. The gushing 143-page message took him over
three months to complete. Oddly, it was addressed to an imaginary
woman, since there was no one in his life he was actually in love with. I
encourage you to consider the possibility of exceeding his achievement in
the coming weeks, Libra. You're at the peak of your ability to express
wickedly delicious passions and profoundly tender intentions. There may
even be a real person, not an imaginary one, who warrants your
extravagant outflow.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Postsecret.com is a website where people
can anonymously reveal their deep, dark feelings. I came across one entry
that I think would be perfect for you to use as your own in the coming
weeks. "I don't want to cover up my scar," it read. "It's a good
conversation starter and it makes me look bad-ass. But thank you
anyway!" To further inspire what I hope will be your fearless effort to
claim the power inherent in your wounds, I also offer this spur from
musician and author Henry Rollins: "Scar tissue is stronger than regular
tissue. Realize the strength, move on."
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MY OTHER HOROSCOPES
Factual information and reasonable thinking alone are not sufficient to
guide you through life's labyrinthine tests. You need and deserve regular
deliveries of uncanny revelation.
One of your inalienable rights as a human being should therefore be to
receive mysteriously useful omens on a regular basis. In this spirit, I offer
you the free weekly horoscopes you read in this newsletter.
If you ever want more, and think it's worth paying for, try my daily text
message 'scopes or my expanded audio 'scopes.
Go here to access them:
http://RealAstrology.com
The weekly forecasts are also available by phone:
1-877-873-4888 or 1-900-950-7700.
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SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): In her irreverent platinum-selling song
"Monster," Sagittarian rapper Nicki Minaj offers up a poetic sequence
never before heard in the history of the planet: "Pull up in the monster . .
. with a bad b-tch that came from Sri Lanka / yeah I'm in that Tonka,
color of Willy Wonka." I hope that you will soon come up with an equally
revolutionary innovation in your own chosen field, Sagittarius. All the
cosmic forces will be conspiring in the coming weeks to help you to do
the equivalent of rhyming "Tonka" and "Sri Lanka" with "Willy Wonka."
Please cooperate! (The NSFW video is here: http://bit.ly/MinajMonster.)
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Time is the enemy of romantic love, said
Andrew Marvell in his 17th-century poem "To His Coy Mistress." Medieval
author Andreas Capellanus had a different idea, identifying marriage as
the enemy of romantic love. In Richard Wagner's opera *Tristan and
Isolde,* Tristan rails against the daylight, calling it the enemy of romantic
love. And in their book *Immediacy and Reflection in Kierkegaard's
Thought,* the editors theorize that "capitalism, which makes a fetish out
of sex . . . is the enemy of romantic love." While all of those statements
may be true, they're only mildly relevant for you right now. The most
dangerous enemy of romantic love -- or any other kind of love, for that
matter -- is this: not listening well. Overcome that enemy, Capricorn.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): In an age when bee populations have
dropped dramatically, some gardeners have found they need to pollinate
their tomato plants manually. One woman I know tickles each swollen bulb
of seeds with a toothbrush. Another uses a camel-hair brush.
Metaphorically speaking, Aquarius, I suspect you will have to try
something similar in the coming weeks: making an intervention to
facilitate a fertilizing process that doesn't quite seem to be happening
naturally.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): In the coming week, your psyche may
sometimes have an odd tingling sensation that resembles what happens
when you hit your funny bone. Is it painful? Is it pleasurable? Maybe some
of both, with the net effect being a command to wake up and play harder,
love stronger, and notice more beauty. If you respond to that mandate
with even a moderate amount of passion, I suspect you'll get a surprising
reward: At least one of the secret laws of your own nature will reveal
itself to you, rising up clear and raw in a sweet waking vision.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): "Weaseling out of things is important to
learn," said cartoon anti-hero Homer Simpson. "It's what separates us
from the animals -- except the weasel." I normally don't share that
sentiment. My standard advice is to face up to challenging situations and
take responsibility for the part you played in creating them. But I'm going
to rebel against my custom this week and endorse Homer's approach,
Aries. You may be on the verge of getting sucked into a mess that you
had virtually no role in creating. Either that, or you'll be asked to carry out
a mission that is irrelevant to your long-term goals. In either case, you
have cosmic permission to weasel out.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): I'm going to bring up a sore subject only
because I think you're finally ready to make it much less of a sore subject.
The truth as I see it, Taurus, is that a part of you got petrified way back
when. A formerly fluid and flexible part of your psyche got turned into
stone, metaphorically speaking, losing much of its usefulness and creating
distortions throughout the rest of you. Now, after all this time, you have
circled back to a phase when you have the power to at least partially un-
petrify this lost function. To get the process started, I suggest you turn
your attention to it in such a way that you feel like laughing and crying at
the same time.
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HOMEWORK: What name would you choose for yourself if you couldn't
have the one you do now? Write: Freewillastrology.com
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Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2011 Rob Brezsny
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