Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
August 26, 2015
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See a pretty version of this newsletter: http://bit.ly/1U3b9yp
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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
Below are excerpts.
YOUR FIVE MOST ECSTATIC MOMENTS
I invite you to write down brief descriptions of the five most pleasurable
moments you've ever experienced in your life. Let your imagination dwell
lovingly on these memories for, say, 20 minutes. And keep them close to
the surface of your awareness in the next three days.
If you ever catch yourself slipping into a negative train of thought,
interrupt it immediately and compel yourself to fantasize about those Big
Five Ecstatic Moments.
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YOU MAY BE A MAGICIAN
When many people think of a magician, they picture a stage performer
who pulls rabbits out of top hats, does card tricks, and makes things
disappear.
Other folks, more mystically inclined, visualize a wizard who uses
incantatory spells to command spirits and attain occult power.
There is a third kind of magician. It's anyone who aspires to control her
own thoughts, ceaselessly shepherding her psychic energy in a direction
that will serve her highest values. For this kind of wonderworker, magic is
the art of creating desirable practical changes.
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YOUR MOST IMPORTANT DESIRE
I invite you to write the following on a piece of red paper and keep it
under your pillow. "I, [put your name here], do solemnly swear on this day
[put date here] that I will devote myself for a period of seven days to
learning my most important desire. No other thought will be more
uppermost in my mind. No other concern will divert me from tracking
down every clue that might assist me in my drive to ascertain the one
experience in this world that deserves my brilliant passion above all
others."
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If you're not feeling amazed, maybe you're not seeing wildly enough
"If you are a poet, you will see that there is a cloud in this sheet of paper.
Without a cloud, there will be no rain; without rain, the trees cannot grow;
and without trees, we cannot make paper." —Thich Nhat Hanh, "Peace Is
Every Step"
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"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." That's the opening
sentence of Charles Dickens' bestselling novel "A Tale of Two Cities." The
author was describing the period of the French Revolution in the late 18th
century, but he could just as well have been talking about our time -- or
any other time, for that matter.
Of course many modern cynics reject the idea that our era could in any
way be construed to be the best of times. They obsess on the idea that
ours is the worst of all the worst times that have ever been.
Here's my request: Even if you are one of those cynics, be rebellious and
come up with three reasons why this is the best of times. Send to
Truthrooster@gmail.com.
If you like, you may balance your testimony with a litany of why this is the
worst of times.
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MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:
Study Shows Mindful Meditation Helps Reduce Racial Bias.
http://tinyurl.com/pz7cbnh
The Most Generous Bride on Earth: Couple Feeds 4,000 Syrian Refugees
on Their Wedding Day. This luminous Turkish newlywed spent her wedding
day running a bread line for thousands of starving Syrian refugees.
http://tinyurl.com/nzlemkr
American Geochemist Clair Patterson helped reduce lead levels within the
blood of Americans by approximately 80% by the late 90s, after spending
decades of fighting the industrial use of lead.
http://tinyurl.com/opq9hgs
(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 27
Copyright 2015 by Rob Brezsny
http://FreeWillAstrology.com
Grammar key: Asterisks equal *italics*
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): At least for now, I suggest you suspend the
quest for order and refinement and perfection. The wise course of action
is to disengage from your fascination with control, and instead give
yourself to the throbbing, erratic pulse of the Cosmic Wow. Why? If you
do, you will be able to evolve faster than you thought possible. Your
strength will come from agile curiosity and an eagerness to experiment.
Do you remember when you last explored the catalytic wonders of
spontaneity and unpredictability? Do it again!
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): This is the deepest, darkest phase of your
cycle. The star that you will ultimately make a wish upon has not yet
risen. Your pet monsters seem to have forgotten for the moment that
they are supposed to be your allies, not your nemeses. Smoke from the
smoldering embers in your repressed memories is blending with the chill
night fog in your dreams, making your life seem like a riddle wrapped in a
mystery inside a taco. Just kidding about that last part. I wanted to see if
your sense of humor is intact, because if it is, you will respond resiliently
to all the cosmic jokes in your upcoming tests.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): According to the poet Rainer Maria Rilke,
here's what God says to each of us: "Go the limits of your longing . . .
Flare up like flame and make big shadows that I can move in. Let
everything happen to you: beauty and terror. Just keep going. No feeling
is final." Whether or not you're on speaking terms with the Creator, this is
excellent advice. It's time to give everything you have and take
everything you need. Hold nothing back and open yourself as wide and
wild as you dare. Explore the feeling of having nothing to lose and expect
the arrivals of useful surprises. (The translation of Rilke's poem is by
Anita Barrows and Joanna Macy.)
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): The sun and the expansive planet
Jupiter are currently making a joyful noise in the sign of Virgo, which is
your astrological House of Career and Ambition. This does not necessarily
mean that a boon to your career and ambition will fall into your lap,
although such an event is more likely than usual. More importantly, this
omen suggests that you will influence luck, fate, and your subconscious
mind to work in your favor if you take dramatic practical action to
advance your career and ambitions.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): On August 28, 1963, Capricorn hero Dr.
Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech to a crowd of
thousands in Washington, D.C. In that address, he imagined what it might
look like if African Americans were free of the bigotry and oppression
they had endured for centuries at the hands of white Americans. In
accordance with your astrological potentials, I encourage you to articulate
your own "I Have a Dream" vision sometime soon. Picture in detail the
successful stories you want to actualize in the future. Visualize the
liberations you will achieve and the powers you will obtain.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): If you have been patiently waiting for a
propitious moment to buy a new yacht, pledge your undying love, or get
a tattoo that depicts Buddha wrestling Satan, now is as close as you'll get
to that propitious moment, at least for a while. Even if you have merely
been considering the possibility of signing a year-long lease, asking a cute
mischief-maker on a date, or posting an extra-edgy meme on Facebook or
Twitter, the next three weeks would be prime time to strike. Diving into a
deep, heart-crazed commitment is sometimes a jangly process for you
Aquarians, but these days it might be almost smooth and synchronistic.
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YOU'VE ALWAYS GOT MORE HELP AVAILABLE THAN YOU IMAGINE
What do you want to be when you grow up? Is it possible that you will
eventually develop beautiful capacities and sublime understandings that
you can't even imagine right now?
I might be able to help you move in the direction of becoming more of the
person you were born to be.
Tune in to my EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES
To listen to your Expanded Audio Horoscope online, go to
http://RealAstrology.com.
Register and/or log in through the main page.
You can also listen over the phone by calling 1-877-873-4888.
The cost is $6 per sign on the Web (discounts available for bulk
purchases), or $1.99 per minute by phone. Each forecast is 4-5 minutes
long.
The Expanded Audio Horoscopes work on most smart phones and tablets.
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"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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PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Ready for a ritual? Get a piece of paper and a
pen. Light a candle, take three deep breaths, and chant "YUMMMM" five
times. Then spend ten minutes writing down the qualities you would like
your perfect lover to possess. Identify both the traits that would make
this person unique and the behavior he or she would display toward you.
Got that? When you are finished, burn the list you made. Disavow
everything you wrote. Pledge to live for at least seven months without
harboring fixed beliefs about what your ideal partner should be like.
Instead, make yourself extra receptive to the possibility that you will
learn new truths about what you need. Why? I suspect that love has
elaborate plans for you in the next two years. You will be better prepared
to cooperate with them if you are initially free of strong agendas.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): You like to run ahead of the pack. You prefer
to show people the way, to set the pace. It's cleaner that way, right?
There's less risk you will be caught up in the messy details of everyday
compromise. But I suspect that the time is right for you to try an
experiment: Temporarily ease yourself into the middle of the pack. Be
willing to deal with the messy details of everyday compromise. Why?
Because it will teach you lessons that will serve you well the next time
you're showing the way and setting the pace.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Are you ready to revise your ideas about how
love works? Would you consider re-evaluating your relationship to
romance, your approach to intimacy, and your understanding of sex? I
hope you will not only be willing but also excited to do these things. Now
is a favorable time to make changes that will energize your love life with a
steady flow of magic for months to come. To get the party started,
brainstorm about experiments you could try to invigorate the dynamics of
togetherness. Make a list of your customary romantic strategies, and
rebel against them all. Speak sexy truths that are both shocking and
endearing.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): *Querencia* is a Spanish word with many
nuances. At its simplest, it refers to your favorite spot, a place where you
long to be. But its meaning can go even deeper. *Querencia* may be a
sanctuary where you feel safe and authentic, or a situation that enables
you to draw on extra reserves of strength and courage. It's a special kind
of home: an empowering shelter that makes you feel that you belong in
this world and love your life. Can you guess where I'm going with this
message, Gemini? These days you need to be in your *querencia* even
more than usual. If you don't have one, or if you don't know where yours
is, formulate a fierce intention to locate it.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): The art of effective communication consists
of knowing both what to say and what not to say. It's not enough to
simply find the words that accurately convey your meaning. You have to
tailor your message to the quirks of your listeners. For example, let's say
you want to articulate the process that led you to change your mind
about an important issue. You would use different language with a child,
an authority figure, and a friend. Right? I think you are currently at the
peak of your abilities to do this well, Cancerian. Take full advantage of
your fluency. Create clear, vivid impressions that influence people to like
you and help you.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Arthur Conan Doyle first used the term "smoking
gun" in a story he wrote over a century ago. It referred to a time the
fictional detective Sherlock Holmes burst into a room to find a man
holding a pistol that had just been fired, along with the fallen body of a
man who had been shot. Since then, the meaning of "smoking gun" has
expanded. Now it's any piece of evidence that serves as compelling proof
of a certain hypothesis. If you can't find the cookie you left in the kitchen,
and your roommate walks by with cookie crumbs on his chin, it's the
smoking gun that confirms he pilfered your treat. I believe this is an
important theme for you right now. What question do you need
answered? What theory would you like to have corroborated? The
smoking gun will appear.
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Homework: What new title, degree, award, or perk will you have two years
from today that you don't have now? Testify at FreeWillAstrology.com.
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Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2015 Rob Brezsny
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