Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
August 22, 2018
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TIME FOR A FEW LOVE ERUPTIONS
I love you not only for what you are, but for what I am when I am with
you. I love you not only for what you have made of yourself, but for what
you are making of me. I love you for the part of me that you bring out. -
Elizabeth Barrett Browning
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Love imperfectly. Be a love idiot. Let yourself forget any love ideal. -
Sark
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Love is the only game where two can play and both win. - Erma Freesman
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When I think of you,
fireflies in the marsh rise
like the soul's jewels,
lost to eternal longing,
abandoning my body
- Izumi Shikibu
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Love is a great beautifier. - Louisa May Alcott
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Fall in love over and over again every day. Love your family, your
neighbors, your enemies, and yourself. And don't stop with humans. Love
animals, plants, stones, even galaxies. - Mary Ann and Frederic Brussat
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Be my ruckus, my perfect non-sequitur. Be my circuit-breaker, my
lengthening shadows at dusk, my nest of pine needles, my second-story
window. Be my if-you-stare-long-enough-you'll-see. Be my subatomic
particle. Be my backbeat, my key of C minor, my surly apostle, my
scandalous reparté, my maximum payload. Be my simmering, seething,
flickering, radiating, shimmering, and undulating. - Andrew Varnon
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I love you between shadow and soul. I love you as the plant that hasn't
bloomed yet, and carries hidden within itself the light of flowers. I love
you without knowing how, or when, or from where. Because of you, the
dense fragrance that rises from the earth lives in my body, rioting with
hunger for the eternity of our victorious kisses. - Pablo Neruda
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You are my inspiration and my folly. You are my light across the sea, my
million nameless joys, and my day's wage. You are my divinity, my
madness, my selfishness, my transfiguration and purification. You are my
rapscallionly fellow vagabond, my tempter and star. I want you. - George
Bernard Shaw
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The air I breathe in a room empty of you is unhealthy. The merest whisper
of your name awakes in me a shuddering sixth sense. I am longing for a
kiss that makes time stand still. -- a blend of words from Edgar Allan Poe,
Pamela Moore, and John Keats
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We are pain and what cures pain, both. We are the sweet cold water and
the jar that pours. I want to hold you close like a lute, so that we can cry
out with loving. Would you rather throw stones at a mirror? I am your
mirror and here are the stones. - Rumi
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I love you more than it's possible to love anyone. I love you more than
love itself. I love you more than you love yourself. I love you more than
God loves you. I love you more than anyone has ever loved anyone in the
history of the universe. In fact, I love you *more* than I love you. - Me
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For a relationship to stay alive, love alone is not enough. Without
imagination, love stales into sentiment, duty, boredom. Relationships fail
not because we have stopped loving but because we first stopped
imagining. - James Hillman
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Our love is like a well in the wilderness where time watches over the
wandering lightning. Our sleep is a secret tunnel that leads to the scent of
apples carried on the wind. When I hold you, I hold everything that is–
swans, volcanoes, river rocks, maple trees drinking the fragrance of the
moon, bread that the fire adores. In your life I see everything that lives. -
Pablo Neruda
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Your body needs to be held and to hold, to be touched and to touch.
None of these needs is to be despised, denied, or repressed. But you have
to keep searching for your body's deeper need, the need for genuine love.
Every time you are able to go beyond the body's superficial desires for
love, you are bringing your body home and moving toward integration and
unity. - Henri Nouwen
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Let's heat up the night to a boil. Let's cook every drop of liquid out of
our flesh till we sizzle, not a drop of come left. We are pots on too high a
flame. Our insides char and flake dark like sinister snow idling down. We
breathe out smoke. We die out and sleep covers us in ashes. We lie
without dreaming, empty as clean grates. Yet we wake rebuilt, clattering
and hungry as waterfalls leaping off, rushing into the day, roaring our
bright intentions. It is the old riddle in the Yiddish song, what can burn
and not burn up, a passion that gives birth to itself every day. - Marge
Piercy
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HEROINES
I'm soliciting your nominations for older women heroes who are
perpetrating rebellious compassion and dissident magic and healing uproar
and inspiring memes. Who do you nominate? Here are some of my top
choices. Send your votes to Truthrooster@gmail.com.
Starhawk
Deena Metzger
Clarissa Pinkola Estes
bell hooks
Joy Harjo
Carolyn Myss
Arundati Roy
Pema Chodron
Sandra Cisneros
Vandana Shiva
Amy Goodman
Rebecca Solnit
Naomi Klein
Bernice Johnson Reagon
Max Dashu
Rita Dove
Ysaye Maria Barnwell
Anne Waldman
Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Jean Houston
Patti Smith
Elizabeth Warren
A few quotes:
How does my spiritual practice and daily life serve the earth? How does
my spiritual practice and daily life affect the poorest third of humanity?
How will my spiritual practice and daily life affect the generations to come
in the future? - Starhawk
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We want to be God in all the ways that are not the ways of God, in what
we hope is indestructible or unmoving. But God is fragile, a bare smear of
pollen, that scatter of yellow dust from the tree that tumbled over in a
storm of grief and planted itself again. - Deena Metzger
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Clarissa Pinkola Estes, from *Women Who Run With the Wolves*: 1. The
desire to force love to live only in its most positive form is what causes
love ultimately to fall over dead. 2. If you have ever been called defiant,
incorrigible, forward, cunning, insurgent, unruly, or rebellious, you're on
the right track. If you have never been called these things, there is yet
time. 3. What must I allow to die today in order to generate more life
tomorrow?
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The moment you come to trust chaos, you see God clearly. Chaos is
divine order, versus human order. Change is divine order, versus human
order. When the chaos becomes safety to you, then you know you're
seeing God clearly. - Caroline Myss
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In her essay "The Possible Human," Jean Houston describes amazing
capacities that are within reach of any of us who are brazen and cagey
enough to cultivate them. We can learn to thoroughly enjoy being in our
bodies, for example. We can summon enormous power to heal ourselves;
develop an acute memory; enter at will into the alpha and theta wave
states that encourage meditation and creative reverie; cultivate an acute
perceptual apparatus that can see "infinity in a grain of sand and heaven
in a wild flower;" and practice the art of being deeply empathetic.
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Vandana Shiva: Globalized industrialized food is not cheap: it is too costly
for the Earth, for the farmers, for our health. The Earth can no longer
carry the burden of groundwater mining, pesticide pollution,
disappearance of species and destabilization of the climate. Farmers can
no longer carry the burden of debt, which is inevitable in industrial farming
with its high costs of production. It is incapable of producing safe,
culturally appropriate, tasty, quality food. And it is incapable of producing
enough food for all because it is wasteful of land, water and energy.
Industrial agriculture uses ten times more energy than it produces. It is
thus ten times less efficient.
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Elizabeth Warren: There is nobody in this country who got rich on their
own. Nobody. You built a factory out there -- good for you. But I want to
be clear. You moved your goods to market on roads the rest of us paid
for. You hired workers the rest of us paid to educate. You were safe in
your factory because of police forces and fire forces that the rest of us
paid for. You didn't have to worry that marauding bands would come and
seize everything at your factory . . . Now look. You built a factory and it
turned into something terrific or a great idea -- God bless! Keep a hunk of
it. But part of the underlying social contract is you take a hunk of that
and pay forward for the next kid who comes along.
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MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:
Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About the World -- and Why
Things Are Better Than You Think
https://tinyurl.com/y8y7u9z2
Over a century ago, a young brown journalist named Jovita Idár stood up
to Texas Rangers when they came to destroy her press.
https://tinyurl.com/y9rxy9ys
Why the Arrest of a Racist Police Chief Gave Me Hope.
"As a black man in law enforcement, I see a small but significant shift in
attitude. Maybe we're ready to get rid of dangerous police behaviors that
do a disservice to all Americans."
https://tinyurl.com/ycqhtwcb
(Note: I endorse these because I like them. They aren't advertisements,
and I get no kickbacks.)
Please tell me your own nominations for PRONOIA RESOURCES:
Truthrooster@gmail.com.
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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY
Week beginning August 23
Copyright 2018 by Rob Brezsny
http://www.freewillastrology.com/horoscopes/
Grammar key: Asterisks equal *italics*
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): I think you've done enough rehearsals. At this
point, the apparent quest for a little extra readiness is beginning to lapse
into procrastination. So I'll suggest that you set a date for opening night.
I'll nudge you to have a cordial talk with yourself about the value of
emphasizing soulfulness over perfectionism. What? You say you're waiting
until your heart stops fluttering and your bones stop chattering? I've got
good news: The greater your stage fright, the more moving your
performance will be.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): In all the time we've worked on diminishing
your suffering, we may have not focused enough on the fine art of
resolving unfinished business. So let's do that now, just in time for the
arrival of your Season of Completion. Are you ready to start drawing the
old cycle to a close so you'll be fresh when the new cycle begins? Are you
in the mood to conclude this chapter of your life story and earn the
relaxing hiatus you will need before launching the next chapter? Even if
you don't feel ready, even if you're not in the mood, I suggest you do the
work anyway. Any business you leave unfinished now will only return to
haunt you later. So don't leave any business unfinished!
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Are you ready to mix more business with
pleasure and more pleasure with business than you have ever mixed? I
predict that in the coming weeks, your social opportunities will serve your
professional ambitions and your professional ambitions will serve your
social opportunities. You will have more than your usual amount of power
to forge new alliances and expand your web of connections. Here's my
advice: Be extra charming, but not grossly opportunistic. Sell yourself, but
with grace and integrity, not with obsequiousness. Express yourself like a
gorgeous force of nature, and encourage others to express themselves
like gorgeous forces of nature.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): "When I picture a perfect reader," wrote
philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, "I picture a monster of courage and
curiosity, also something supple, cunning, cautious, a born adventurer and
discoverer." I suspect he was using the term "monster" with a roguish
affection. I am certainly doing that as I direct these same words toward
you, dear Sagittarian reader. Of course, I am always appreciative of your
courage, curiosity, cunning, suppleness, and adventurousness. But I'm
especially excited about those qualities now, because the coming weeks
will be a time when they will be both most necessary and most available
to you.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You do not yet have access to maps of
the places where you need to go next. That fact may tempt you to turn
around and head back to familiar territory. But I hope you'll press forward
even without the maps. Out there in the frontier, adventures await you
that will prepare you well for the rest of your long life. And being without
maps, at least in the early going, may actually enhance your learning
opportunities. Here's another thing you should know: your intuitive
navigational sense will keep improving the farther you get from
recognizable landmarks.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Healing isn't impossible. You may not be
stuck with your pain forever. The crookedness in your soul and the twist
in your heart may not always define who you are. There may come a time
when you'll no longer be plagued by obsessive thoughts that keep
returning you to the tormenting memories. But if you hope to find the
kind of liberation I'm describing here, I advise you to start with these two
guidelines: 1. The healing may not happen the way you think it should or
imagine it will. 2. The best way to sprout the seeds that will ultimately
bloom with the cures is to tell the complete truth.
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MY OTHER HOROSCOPES
Since 1995, I've offered my written horoscopes on the Internet for free. I
love doing that. It's relaxing to be able to give you my oracles without
asking for anything in return. It's healthy for my soul and yours.
But I also don't mind earning money from doing what I love to do. That's
why I create Expanded Audio Horoscopes and Daily Text Message
Horoscopes that cost money -- for those of you who want more of my
offerings.
I love you just as much if you don't buy my extra stuff as if you do! No
pressure! But if you would like the extra stuff, here's how to get it:
Go to http://freewillastrology.sparkns.com/. Register or log in. On the
new page, you have two choices: Expanded Audio Horoscopes or Daily
Text Message Horoscopes.
If you have any questions about how to access them, write to my tech
support team at freewillcs@gmail.com.
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PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Nineteenth-century British painter J. M. W.
Turner was one of the greats. Renowned for his luminous landscapes, he
specialized in depicting the power of nature and the atmospheric drama
of light and color. Modern poet Mary Ruefle tells us that although he
"painted his own sea monsters," he engaged assistants "to do small
animals." She writes that "he could do a great sky, but not rabbits." I'm
hoping that unlike Turner, you Piscean folks will go both ways in the
coming weeks. Give as much of your creative potency and loving
intelligence to the modest details as to the sweeping vistas.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): The two pieces of advice I have for you may
initially seem contradictory, but they are in fact complementary. Together
they'll help guide you through the next three weeks. The first comes from
herbalist and wise woman Susun Weed. She suggests that when you face
a dilemma, you should ask yourself how you can make it your ally and how
you can learn the lesson it has for you. Your second burst of wisdom is
from writer Yasmin Mogahed: "Study the hurtful patterns of your life.
Then don't repeat them."
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Speak the following declaration aloud and see
how it feels: "I want strong soft kisses and tender unruly kisses and
secret truth kisses and surprise elixir kisses. I deserve them, too." If that
puts you in a brave mood, Taurus, add a further affirmation: "I want
ingenious affectionate amazements and deep dark appreciation and brisk
mirthful lessons and crazy sweet cuddle wrestles. I deserve them, too."
What do you think? Do these formulas work for you? Do they put you in
the proper frame of mind to co-create transformative intimacy? I hope so.
You're entering a phase when you have maximum power to enchant and
to be enchanted.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): As you map out your master plan for the next
14 months, I invite you to include the following considerations: an
intention to purge pretend feelings and artificial motivations; a promise to
change your relationship with old secrets so that they no longer impinge
on your room to maneuver; a pledge to explore evocative mysteries that
will enhance your courage; a vow to be kinder toward aspects of yourself
that you haven't loved well enough; and a search for an additional source
of stability that will inspire you to seek more freedom.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): If you have been communing with my
horoscopes for a while, you've gotten a decent education -- for free!
Nonetheless, you shouldn't depend on me for *all* of your learning needs.
Due to my tendency to emphasize the best in you and focus on healing
your wounds, I may neglect some aspects of your training. With that as
caveat, I'll offer a few meditations about future possibilities. 1. What new
subjects or skills do you want to master in the next three years? 2.
What's the single most important thing you can do to augment your
intelligence? 3. Are there dogmas you believe in so fixedly and rely on so
heavily that they obstruct the arrival of fresh ideas? If so, are you willing
to at least temporarily set them aside?
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): "All the world's a stage," wrote Shakespeare,
"And all the men and women merely players." In other words, we're all
performers. Whenever we emerge from solitude and encounter other
people, we choose to express certain aspects of our inner experience
even as we hide others. Our personalities are facades that display a
colorful mix of authenticity and fantasy. Many wise people over the
centuries have deprecated this central aspect of human behavior as
superficial and dishonest. But author Neil Gaiman thinks otherwise: "We
are all wearing masks," he says. "That is what makes us interesting."
Invoking his view -- and in accordance with current astrological omens -- I
urge you to celebrate your masks and disguises in the coming weeks.
Enjoy the show you present. Dare to entertain your audiences.
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Homework: What's the part of yourself that is least evolved and needs
most transformation? Testify at Freewillastrology.com.
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Submissions sent to Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
or in response to "homework assignments" may be
published in a variety of formats at Rob Brezsny's discretion,
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Requests for anonymity will be honored. We are not responsible for
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Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2018 Rob Brezsny
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