Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter http://ezezine.com
Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
May 22, 2013
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See a pretty version of this newsletter: http://bit.ly/190YH8k
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My book
*PRONOIA IS THE ANTIDOTE FOR PARANOIA*
is available at Amazon: http://bit.ly/Pronoia
or Powells: http://bit.ly/PronoiaPowells
Here's an excerpt:
EVIL IS BORING
To read the entire text of this piece, go here:
http://bit.ly/EvilisBoring
To hear a shorter audio version, go here:
http://bit.ly/A9cl4D
When an old tree in the rain forest dies and topples over, it takes a long
time to decompose. As it does, it becomes host to new saplings that use
the decaying log for nourishment.
Picture yourself sitting in the forest gazing upon this scene. How do you
describe it? Would you dwell on the putrefaction of the fallen tree while
ignoring the fresh life sprouting out of it? If you did, you'd be imitating
the perspective of many modern storytellers, especially the journalists
and novelists and filmmakers and producers of TV dramas. They devoutly
believe that tales of affliction and mayhem and corruption and tragedy
are inherently more interesting than tales of triumph and liberation and
pleasure and ingenuity.
Using the juggernaut of the media and entertainment industries, they
relentlessly propagate this covert dogma. It's not sufficiently profound or
well thought out to be called nihilism. Pop nihilism is a more accurate
term. The mass audience is the victim of this inane ugliness, brainwashed
by a multibillion-dollar propaganda machine that in comparison makes
Himmler's vaunted soul-stealing apparatus look like a child's backyard
puppet show. This is the engine of the phenomena I call the global
genocide of the imagination.
At the Beauty and Truth Lab, we believe that stories about the rot are
not inherently more captivating than stories about the splendor. On the
contrary, given how predictable and ubiquitous they are, stories about the
rot are actually quite dull. Obsessing on evil is boring. Rousing fear is a
hackneyed shtick. Wallowing in despair is a bad habit. Indulging in cynicism
is akin to committing a copycat crime . . .
To read the rest of "EVIL IS BORING," go here: http://bit.ly/EvilisBoring
To hear the audio version:
http://bit.ly/A9cl4D
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Steal This Image from *PRONOIA*: http://bit.ly/A5Lhuv
"I am totally opposed to all duality"
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Are you in quest of an Intimate Ally? A Soul Friend? A Wild Confidante?
Check out Match.com via Free Will Astrology's link:
http://bit.ly/SoulMatch
Look for a Co-Pilot, Co-Conspirator, or Collaborator . . . an Agent to
represent you or a Disciple to worship you . . . a Secret Sharer who'll
listen better than anyone or an Amazing Accomplice with whom you can
practice the Art of Liberation.
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MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:
USEFUL REVELATIONS FROM DREAMS
Srinivasa Ramanujan was one of India's greatest mathematical geniuses.
He lacked formal training and his work was thought peculiar by his fellow
mathematicians, but he made dramatic breakthroughs that are highly
regarded. He attributed his success to the Hindu goddess Namakkal. She
appeared regularly in his dreams, where she revealed innovative formulas
he had only to verify when he awoke.
http://tinyurl.com/c39bcd7
HEROES TAKING OUT THE GARBAGE
In the past 15 years, Chad Pregracke has helped pull more than 67,000
tires from the Mississippi River and other waterways across the United
States. About 70,000 volunteers have joined his crusade, helping him
collect more than 7 million pounds of debris through his nonprofit, Living
Lands & Waters.
http://tinyurl.com/bu8y7mx
THE PRONOIA OF EMPATHY
We can help create social change by stepping outside of ourselves. The
Power of Outrospection.
http://tinyurl.com/css2kap
(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 23
Copyright 2013 by Rob Brezsny
http://FreeWillAstrology.com
Grammar key: Asterisks equal *italics*
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Giant Sequoias are the biggest trees on the
planet. Many are more than 300 feet tall and 30 feet wide. Their
longevity is legendary, too. They can live for 2,000 years. And yet their
seeds are tiny. If you had a bag of 91,000 seeds, it would weigh one
pound. I suspect there's currently a resemblance between you and the
Giant Sequoia, Gemini. You're close to acquiring a small kernel that has
the potential to grow into a strong and enduring creation. Do you know
what I'm talking about? Identify it. Start nurturing it.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): Don't take yourself too seriously. The more
willing you are to make fun of your problems, the greater the likelihood is
that you will actually solve them. If you're blithe and breezy and buoyant,
you will be less of a magnet for suffering. To this end, say the following
affirmations out loud. 1. "I'm willing to make the mistakes if someone else
is willing to learn from them." 2. "I'm sorry, but I'm not apologizing any
more." 3. "Suffering makes you deep. Travel makes you broad. I'd rather
travel." 4. "My commitment is to truth, not consistency." 5. "The hell
with enlightenment, I want to have a tantrum." 6. "I stopped fighting my
inner demons. We're on the same side now."
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Would you buy a stuffed bunny or a baby blanket
that was handcrafted by a prisoner on death row? Would you go to a cafe
and eat a sandwich that was made by an employee who was screaming
angrily at another employee while he made your food? Would you wear a
shirt that was sewn by a ten-year-old Bangladeshi girl who works 12 hours
every day with a machine that could cut off her fingers if she makes one
wrong move? Questions like these will be good for you to ask yourself,
Leo. It's important for you to evaluate the origins of all the things you
welcome into your life -- and to make sure they are in alignment with your
highest values and supportive of your well-being.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Having good posture tends to make you look
alert and vigorous. More than that, it lowers stress levels in your tissues
and facilitates the circulation of your bodily fluids. You can breathe
better, too. In the coming weeks, I urge you to give yourself this blessing:
the gift of good posture. I encourage you to bestow a host of other
favors, too. Specialize in treating yourself with extra sweetness and
compassion. Explore different ways to get excited, awaken your sense of
wonder, and be in love with your life. If anyone calls you a self-involved
narcissist, tell them you're just doing what your astrologer prescribed.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): The German word *Fernweh* can be translated
as "wanderlust." Its literal meaning is "farsickness," or "an ache for the
distance." Another German word, *Wandertrieb,* may be rendered as
"migratory instinct" or "passion to travel." I suspect urges like these may
be welling up in you right now. You could use a break from your familiar
pleasures and the comforts you've been taking for granted. Moreover,
you would attract an unexpected healing into your life by rambling off
into the unknown.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): We call it "longing," says poet Robert Haas,
"because desire is full of endless distances." In other words, you and the
object of your yearning may be worlds apart even though you are right
next to each other. For that matter, there may be a vast expanse
between you and a person you consider an intimate ally; your secret life
and his or her secret life might be mysteries to each other. That's the bad
news, Scorpio. The good news is that you're in a phase when you have
extraordinary power to shrink the distances. Get closer! Call on your
ingenuity and courage to do so.
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WANT MORE ASTROLOGICAL INSPIRATION?
What new influences are heading your way?
How do you want to create your life story in the coming weeks?
How can you exert your free will to seek out the adventures that'll bring
out the best in you, even as you find graceful ways to cooperate with the
tides of destiny?
If you'd like help in figuring it all out, consider trying my EXPANDED AUDIO
HOROSCOPES. They're four-to-five-minute meditations on the current
state of your destiny and where you're headed.
What fresh resources will you be able to draw on?
How can you conspire with life to create the best possible future for
yourself?
Go here to register and log in: http://RealAstrology.com
You can also listen over the phone by calling
1-877-873-4888
The cost is $6 if you access them on the Web -- with discounts for
multiple purchases -- or $1.99 per minute over the phone.
"I always feel like I know myself better after listening to your audio
'scopes."
-June R., Austin, TX
"Your audio horoscopes calm me down when I'm too manic and pep me up
when I'm down."
-Arthur T., Cleveland, OH
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SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Are you ready to go deeper, Sagittarius?
In fact, would you be willing to go deeper and deeper and deeper? I
foresee the possibility that you might benefit from diving in over your
head. I suspect that the fear you feel as you dare to descend will be an
acceptable trade-off for the educational thrills you will experience once
you're way down below. The darkness you encounter will be fertile, not
evil. It will energize you, not deplete you. And if you're worried that such
a foray might feel claustrophobic, hear my prediction: In the long run it
will enhance your freedom.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): In the course of his 91 years on the
planet, artist Pablo Picasso lived in many different houses, some of them
rentals. When inspired by the sudden eruption of creative urges, he had
no inhibitions about drawing and doodling on the white walls of those
temporary dwellings. On one occasion, his landlord got upset. He ordered
Picasso to pay him a penalty fee so that he could have the sketches
painted over. Given the fact that Picasso ultimately became the best-
selling artist of all time, that landlord may have wished he'd left the
squiggles intact. In every way you can imagine, Capricorn, don't be like
that landlord in the coming week.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): "I was often in love with something or
someone," wrote Polish poet Czes_aw Mi_osz. "I would fall in love with a
monkey made of rags. With a plywood squirrel. With a botanical atlas.
With an oriole. With a ferret. With the forest one sees to the right when
riding in a cart. With human beings whose names still move me." Your
task, Aquarius, is to experiment with his approach to love. Make it a fun
game: See how often you can feel adoration for unexpected characters
and creatures. Be infatuated with curious objects . . . with snarky Internet
memes . . . with fleeting phenomena like storms and swirling flocks of
birds and candy spilled on the floor. Your mission is to supercharge your
lust for life.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Scientists in Brazil discovered a huge new
body of water 13,000 feet beneath the Amazon River. It's completely
underground. Named the Hamza River, it moves quite slowly, and is
technically more of an aquifer than a river. It's almost as long as the
Amazon, and much wider. In accordance with the astrological omens,
Pisces, I'm making the Hamza River your symbol of the week. Use it to
inspire you as you uncover hidden resources. Meditate on the possibility
that you have within you a secret reservoir of vitality that lies beneath
your well-known sources. See if you can tap into deep feelings that are so
deep you've been barely conscious of them.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): "I'm still learning," said Michelangelo when he
was 87 years old. For now, he's your patron saint. With his unflagging
curiosity as your inspiration, maybe your hunger for new teachings will
bloom. You will register the fact that you don't already know everything
there is to know . . . you have not yet acquired all the skills you were born
to master . . . you're still in the early stages of exploring whole swaths of
experience that will be important to you as you become the person you
want to be. Even if you're not enrolled in a formal school, it's time to take
your education to the next level.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman
admitted that physicists can't really define "energy," let alone understand
it. "We have no knowledge of what energy is," he said. "We do not have a
picture that energy comes in little blobs of a definite amount." While it's
unlikely that in the coming weeks you Tauruses will advance the scientific
understanding of energy, you will almost certainly boost your natural
grasp of what energy feels like both inside and outside of your body. You
will develop a more intuitive knack for how it ebbs and flows. You will
discover useful tips about how to make it work for you rather than
against you. You're already a pretty smart animal, but soon you'll get
even smarter.
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Homework: Write your ultimate personal ad. Address it to your current
partner if you're already paired. Share it at Freewillastrology.com.
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Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2013 Rob Brezsny
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