Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter http://ezezine.com
Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
August 24, 2011
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See a pretty version of this newsletter: http://bit.ly/oTztZR
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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
PRONOIA THERAPY
1. Here's the catch about pronoia: Life always gives you exactly what you
need, exactly when you need it, but it doesn't necessarily give you
exactly what you want, exactly when you want it. Do you know the
differences between what you want and what you need? What are they?
2. The English language is in a state of rapid ferment. New words are
barging into the dictionary at an unprecedented rate, even as old familiars
fall into disuse. There's one exception to this trend: profanity. Antique
four-letter favorites like those that start with "f" and with "s" have
gained an acceptance unthinkable 30 years ago, but fresh, original curse
words are rarely coined.
At the Beauty and Truth Lab, we find the overused classics inadequate
for expressing our evolving rage at injustice, ignorance, and ugliness.
Furthermore, as deadening cliches, they don't satisfy the pronoiac
mandate to use language with sonorous precision.
There's another problem. Anger has become one of the trendiest
emotions of all. In moderation it can be a righteous force for constructive
change. But its hackneyed omnipresence means the vast majority of its
outbreaks are trivial. The paucity of colorful obscenities is aggravated by
an abundance of frivolous fury.
How can you purge the cliched ire that dilutes the useful, inspired stuff?
One good method is to make fun of it by expressing it bigger than life.
Try this. Go alone to a place where it's safe to feel blind rage. Envision a
person or thing you love to hate, then unleash the following mantra 15
times in the most vulgar tones possible: "You miasmic heap of shaved-off
cemetery warts. You mangled preen of politicians' tongue scabs. You
brackish tripe of experts' ego tinkles. You fragile scrap of orphaned
tyrants. You demented cluster of fickle weasel vows. You curdled slosh of
rotting fracas-spawned opinions."
Now how about if you get to work helping us coin a new generation of
profanities?
3. "Watch out for the dark side of your own idealism and of your moral
sense," says Howard Bloom. "Both come from our arsenal of natural
instincts. And both easily degenerate into an excuse for attacks on
others. When our righteous indignation breathes the flames of anger
against a 'villain,' we all too often become a fang in nature's scheme of
tooth and claw." What's the dark side of your idealism and morality?
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MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:
NOT ALL ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS IS WORRISOME
Snow Leopards Rebounding in Africa
http://tinyurl.com/3hf9252
THE CONSPIRACY OF DO-GOODERS IS GROWING
Greatest Person of the Day
Redefining student aid in Africa
http://tinyurl.com/5vdm9eb
GET YOUR MINIMUM DAILY DOSE OF BEAUTY
Electrifying Sublimity
http://i.imgur.com/WUcPf.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 August 25
Copyright 2011 by Rob Brezsny
http://FreeWillAstrology.com
Grammar key: Asterisks equal *italics*
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): In August 2009, 120 scientists and their
helpers staged a BioBlitz in Yellowstone National Park. Their goal was to
find as many new species as they could in one day. To their surprise and
delight, they located more than 1,200, including beetles, worms, lichens,
and fungi that had never before been identified. An equally fertile phase
of discovery could very well be imminent for you, Virgo. All you have to
do is make that your intention, then become super extra double-wildly
receptive.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): "Two dangers threaten the universe: order and
disorder," said poet Paul Valery. I think that's especially true for you right
now, although the "danger" in question is psychological in nature, not
physical, and it's a relatively manageable hazard that you shouldn't stay
up all night worrying about. Still, the looming challenge to your poise is
something that requires you to activate your deeper intelligence. You
really do need to figure out how to weave a middle way between the
extremes of seeking too much order and allowing too much disorder.
What would Goldilocks do?
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Readers of Reddit.com were asked to
describe their lives in just six words. It would be a good time for you to
try this exercise. You've reached a juncture in your unfolding destiny
when you could benefit from a review that pithily sums up where you've
been up until now, and where you've got to go next. To inspire your work,
here are some of the most interesting from Reddit: 1. Early opportunities
wasted, now attempting redemption. 2. Searching tirelessly for that one
thing. 3. Living my dream requires modifying dream. 4. Must not turn into
my mom. 5. Insane ambition meets debilitating self-doubt. 6. Do you want
to have sex? 7. Slowly getting the hang of it. 8. These pretzels are
making me thirsty.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Go where the drama is, Sagittarius, but
not where the melodrama is. Place yourself in the path of the most
interesting power, but don't get distracted by displays of power that are
dehumanizing or narcissistic. You are in a phase of your astrological cycle
when you have a mandate to intensify your excitement with life and
increase your ability to be deeply engaged with what attracts you. I urge
you to be as brave as you once were when you conquered a big fear and
to be as curious as you were when you discovered a big secret about who
you are. For extra credit, be highly demonstrative in your expression of
what you care about.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): In his older years, after steadfastly
cultivating his vices with the care of a connoisseur, the agnostic actor W.
C. Fields was caught reading the Bible by an old friend. Questioned at this
departure from his usual behavior, Fields said he was "looking for
loopholes." I suspect a comparable shift may be in the offing for you,
Capricorn. In your case, you may be drawn to a source you've perpetually
ignored or dismissed, or suddenly interested in a subject you've long
considered to be irrelevant. I say, good for you. It's an excellent time to
practice opening your mind in any number of ways.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): I watched a Youtube video that showed
eight people competing in a weird marathon. They ran two miles, ate 12
doughnuts, then ran another two miles. I hope you don't try anything
remotely similar to that, Aquarius. If you're in the mood for outlandish
feats and exotic adventures (which I suspect you might be), I suggest you
try something more life-enhancing, like making love for an hour, eating an
organic gourmet feast, then making love for another hour. It's a good
time for you to be wild, maybe even extreme, about getting the healing
you need.
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LIFE IS BIGGER AND BETTER THAN ANY OF US CAN IMAGINE
In addition to the horoscopes you're reading here, I create more in-depth
audio horoscopes for your inspiration. Find out more at
http://RealAstrology.com.
The audio horoscopes are also available by phone at 1-877-873-4888 or
1-900-950-7700.
"Your expanded astrology thingees help me remember who I really am." -
Gareth N., Toronto
"I never knew it was possible to get my butt kicked and my head patted
at the same time -- until I listened to you, Rob." -Kristi P., Portland, OR
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PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): In the out-of-print book *In Portugal,* A.F.G.
Bell defines the Portuguese word *saudade* as follows: "a vague and
constant desire for something that does not and probably cannot exist,
for something other than the present, a turning towards the past or
towards the future; not an active discontent or poignant sadness, but an
indolent dreaming wistfulness." In my astrological opinion, Pisces, it is
imperative that you banish as much *saudade* from your system as you
can. If you want, you can bring it back again later, but for now, you need
to clarify and refine your desires for things that are actually possible. And
that requires you to purge the delusional ones.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): I predict that in the coming weeks, you will be
able to extract an unexpected perk or benefit from one of your less
glamorous responsibilities. I also predict that you will decide not to ram
headfirst into an obstacle and try to batter it until it crumbles. Instead,
you'll dream up a roundabout approach that will turn out to be more
effective at eliminating the obstacle. Finally, I predict that these
departures from habit will show you precious secrets about how to
escape more of your own negative conditioning in the future.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): "Dear Astrologer: My life is stagnant and slow.
It suffers bone-deep from a lack of changes, good or bad or in between.
Why has my karma been deprived of all motion? Why must I go on frozen
in such eerie peace and quiet? I seek your help. Can you cast a spell for
me so that I will be happily disrupted and agitated? Will you predict my
sorry state of stillness to be ended soon? Arvind Agnimuka, Taurus from
Darjeeling." Dear Arvind: Funny you should ask. According to my analysis,
members of the Taurus tribe are about to be roused out of their plodding
rhythm by a bolt of cosmic mojo. Get ready to rumble -- and I mean that
in the best sense of the word.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): I found this unusual classified ad in a small
California newspaper. "Wanted: Someone to travel backwards in time with
me. This is not a joke. You must be unafraid to see the person you used
to be, and you've got to keep a wide-open mind about the past -- I mean
more wide-open than you have ever been able to. I have made this trip
twice before, and I don't expect any danger, but there may be a bit of a
mess. Please bring your own 'cleaning implements,' if you know what I
mean." As crazy as it sounds, Gemini, I'm thinking you'd be the right
person for this gig. The astrological omens suggest you'll be doing
something similar to it anyway.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): Of your five senses, which is the most
underdeveloped? If you're a typical Westerner, it's your sense of smell.
You just don't use it with the same level of acuity and interest you have
when you're seeing, hearing, tasting, and touching. You may speak
excitedly about an image you saw or song you heard or food you ate or
massage you experienced -- what they were like, how they made you feel
-- but you rarely do that with odors. You easily tolerate an ugly building or
loud traffic noise or mediocre food or itchy fabric, and yet you feel a deep
aversion to an unappealing smell. Having said that, I want you to know it's
an excellent time to upgrade your olfactory involvement with the world.
You'd benefit greatly from the emotional enrichment that would come
from cultivating a more conscious relationship with aromas.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): "Enlightenment is simply this," said the Zen
master. "When I walk, I walk. When I eat, I eat. When I sleep, I sleep." If
that's true, Leo, you now have an excellent chance to achieve at least
temporary enlightenment. The universe is virtually conspiring to maneuver
you into situations where you can be utterly united with whatever you are
doing in the present moment. You'll be less tempted than usual to let
your mind wander away from the experience at hand, but will instead
relish the opportunity to commit yourself completely to the scene that's
right in front of you.
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Homework: What's the part of you that you trust the least? Think up a
test whereby that part of you will be challenged to express maximum
integrity. Testify 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: http://bit.ly/qvefZq.
Zap has also created a great online oracle deck you can use to do your
own divinations. Go to http://www.zaporacle.com and click on ORACLE.
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P.S. I totally respect your privacy. I'll never sell or give away your address
to anyone.
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Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2011 Rob Brezsny
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