Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter February 27, 2008

Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
FEBRUARY 27, 2008
FreeWillAstrology.com

+

"The capacity to blunder slightly is the real marvel of DNA. Without this special attribute, we would still be anaerobic bacteria and there would be no music."
- Lewis Thomas, Lives of a Cell

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

My book
PRONOIA IS THE ANTIDOTE FOR PARANOIA:
How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings
is available for sale at
tinyurl.com/qaj62

Here's an excerpt:

FURTHER EVIDENCE

In our quest to insinuate pronoia into dinner table discussions taking place all over the world, we bring the following pieces of evidence to your attention.

+

Exhibit A

The bible of the mental health community is a 943-page textbook called the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, or DSM-IV. Published by the American Psychiatric Association, it's a standardized catalog of psychological disorders that therapists use to evaluate and treat their patients. Surprise! This ultimate word on the state of the human psyche describes countless pathological states, but there's not a single entry referring to good mental health.

You might imagine that shrinks would be mildly interested not only in fixing what's wrong with their patients but also in helping them cultivate what feels good. But how can that happen if the feel-good states aren't even recognized as important enough to name?

+

Exhibit B

David G. Myers and Ed Diener authored an article called "The Science of Happiness," which appeared in the September/October 1997 issue of The Futurist. "What causes happiness?" they inquired. "This question not only went largely unanswered during psychology's first century, it went largely unasked." They note that from 1967 to 1995, essays on negative emotions far outnumbered those on positive emotions in the psychological literature. The ratio was 21:1.

+

Exhibit C

Even those supreme perpetrators of pop nihilism, The New York Times and The Washington Post, have a better ratio than the psychological literature. They average only 12 negative stories to every one that might be construed to be non-negative. Most other daily newspapers maintain a similar proportion.

Many of their non-negative stories, however, cover success in two specific fields: finance and sports. For example: NASDAQ is up today; the Atlanta Braves won their eighth straight game. Remove these feel-good stories from the equation, and the media's Curse Quotient rises closer to that of the psychological literature.

+

Exhibit D

In his book, Omens of Millennium, Harold Bloom hints at the "reductive fallacy" that serves as a shibboleth for intellectuals. Picture yourself, he says, in conversation with a bright, literate acquaintance who asks you about someone you know well: "Tell me what he or she is really like." You reflect a moment and give a brief description of your impressions, but your acquaintance isn't satisfied: "No, I mean really like." And now you grasp the actual question: "What is the very worst thing you can say about him or her that is true?"

+

Exhibit E

Thousands of amazing, inexplicable, wondrous, and even supernatural events occur every day. And yet most are unreported by the media. The few that are cited are ridiculed. Why? Here's one possible reason: The people most likely to believe in miracles are superstitious, uneducated, and prone to having a blind, literalist faith in their religions' myths. Those who are least likely to believe in miracles are skilled at analytical thought, well-educated, and yet prone to having a blind, literalist faith in the ideology of materialism, which dogmatically asserts that the universe consists entirely of things that can be perceived by the five human senses or detected by instruments that scientists have thus far invented.

The media is largely composed of people from the second group. It's virtually impossible for them to admit to the possibility of miracles, let alone experience them. If anyone from this group manages to escape peer pressure and cultivate a receptivity to miracles, it's because they have successfully fought against being demoralized by the unsophisticated way miracles are framed by the first group.

At the Beauty and Truth Laboratory we're immune to the double-barreled ignorance. When we behold astonishing synchronicities and numinous breakthroughs that seem to violate natural law, we're willing to consider the possibility that our understanding of natural law is too narrow. And yet we also refrain from lapsing into irrational gullibility; we actively seek mundane explanations for apparent miracles.

+

Exhibit F

Wes Nisker wrote a book called If You Don't Like the News . . . Go Out and Make Some of Your Own.

+

Exhibit G

If you have encountered examples of the following evidence, tell us about it. Send your testimony to the Beauty and Truth Laboratory at uaregod@comcast.net or P.O. Box 150628, San Rafael, CA 94915:

1. bliss that flows toward you because you've made a habit of expecting it and cultivating it;

2. good news that's really interesting; fascinating stories that provide an antidote to the media's obsession with hardship, anguish, deterioration, and death;

3. states of emotional wealth and psychological health: raw material for the manual that will be the corrective for the DSM-IV; the missing half of the story;

4. mirabilia: mysterious revelations, rejuvenating prodigies, ineffable breakthroughs, beguiling ephemera, sudden deliverance from boring evils;

5. plain old everyday miracles;

6. the good news you've gone out and created.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

To read news and features from my book, go here: tinyurl.com/lhwx2

You can buy the book here:

AMAZON
tinyurl.com/qaj62

POWELLS
tinyurl.com/3dsx6q

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

OTHER PRONOIA RESOURCES:

FUTURE BLESSINGS
tinyurl.com/3cloun
"We shall have the power of gods"

FIGHTING REALITY?
"How I Learned to Stop Suffering" by Byron Katie
tinyurl.com/2k8kl2

PRACTICAL PEACE-MAKING
Nonviolence: 25 Lessons from the History of a Dangerous Idea
by Mark Kurlansky
tinyurl.com/22ehrt

(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.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY
Week beginning February 28

Copyright 2008 by Rob Brezsny
FreeWillAstrology.com

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):

In the coming week, you should try to experience, or at least visualize, scenes like the following: an apple pierced by an arrow that's lying on a bridge near a half-crumpled Valentine card; wind rattling through an old tree in such a way that you hallucinate there being an angel perched in its branches; an accordion floating down a stream trailed by two quacking ducks; a stranger who's simultaneously crying and laughing in a cafe while writing frenetically on white paper napkins. And why is it important to commune with scenes like these? Because they will energize your soul in ways you can't rationally understand. They will remind you that deeply meaningful events can be utterly mysterious.

ARIES (March 21-April 19):

What's the opposite of a freak out? Let's call it a freak in. I suspect you're about to enter into this state. That means you will have at your disposal all the intensity of a hysterical fit, but you'll be able to express it artfully as you accomplish acts of amazing grace. Time may even seem to expand for you as you slip into a wildly relaxed perspective that unleashes exuberant insights with practical applications.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20):

People close to you have been transforming. Be alert for the possibility that they are not who they used to be. Your ability to shape reality creatively in the coming weeks depends on you being able to recognize that some of the old truths about them have been replaced with new ones. Now study this passage from T. S. Eliot's The Cocktail Party: "We die to each other daily. What we know of other people is only our memory of the moments during which we knew them. And they have changed since then. To pretend that they and we are the same is a useful and convenient social convention which must sometimes be broken. We must also remember that at every meeting we are meeting a stranger."

GEMINI (May 21-June 20):

Whether or not you consider yourself a storyteller, it's time to do the best you can at practicing that art. I say this for two reasons. First, the people you encounter will have a special need to hear about your adventures in redemption, the riddles that have fueled your quest, and the mysteries that have pushed you to the edge of your understanding. Second, as you talk about those adventures, riddles, and mysteries, you will give yourself the exact boost you need to open fully to the next great story of your life.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES

In addition to the horoscopes that come to you in this newsletter, I create more in-depth audio horoscopes for your inspiration. I think of them as my love letters to you. They're $6 if you access them on the Web, or $1.99 per minute over the phone.

Try them at RealAstrology.com.

They're 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

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

CANCER (June 21-July 22):

"Never play cards with a man called Doc," said Nelson Algren in his book A Walk on the Wild Side. "Never eat at a place called Mom's. Never sleep with a woman whose troubles are worse than your own." Whether or not you generally heed cautionary advice like that, I suggest that you adopt a more freewheeling approach in the coming weeks. In fact, given the frontier-prowling, rules-breaking, fun-erupting nature of your current astrological indicators, you may benefit from experimenting with a host of exploits that at any other time might seem iffy or dicey or itchy.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):

Many people who understand the workings of the subconscious mind use their knowledge to manipulate us. Their insights into the nature of the deep psyche give them an advantage as they try to sell us their products, ideas, and personalities. Personally, I try to do the opposite, harnessing my understanding of your subconscious mind so as to help you tap into your unique genius, free you from your suffering, and awaken you to the transformative power that comes from expressing your love with smart generosity. It's prime time for me to inspire your efforts in these tasks. It also happens to be a perfect moment for you to upgrade your relationship with your own subconscious mind.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):

Read this joke, told by Jeff Thredgold in his book On the One Hand: The Economist's Joke Book. "An economist returns to visit her old school. She's interested in the current exam questions and asks her old professor to show her some. To her surprise, they are exactly the same questions that she answered 10 years ago. When she asks the professor about this, he says: 'The questions are always the same. Only the answers change!'" The professor's reply should be your guiding meditation in the coming week, Virgo. Your most enduring uncertainties are inviting you to seek new solutions. Questions that have tormented and tantalized you for a long time will respond revealingly to your fresh probes.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):

Will the coming week feature encounters with drunken judges, passive-aggressive spies, semi-repressed cat people, and codependent enablers? Perhaps. I'm not sure. But I can state more authoritatively that you will have to deal with at least some of those characters in your dreams. And that means there may be aspects of your own psyche that resemble a drunken judge, passive-aggressive spy, semi-repressed cat person, and codependent enabler. If you find that's the case, I suggest you open up a dialogue with them. See if you can get them to pitch in and lend a hand to your long-term goals instead of undermining you the way they are now.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

AUDIO HOROSCOPES

In addition to the horoscopes that you're reading here, I create more in-depth audio horoscopes for your inspiration. Find out more at RealAstrology.com.

The audio horoscopes are also available by phone at 1-877-873-4888 or 1-900-950-7700.

"You told me the truth when no one else in my life would."
- Darren H., Minneapolis

"Your wake-up calls keep me from getting stale."
- Arris T., Aspen, CO

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):

Actor Cary Grant said he didn't necessarily advocate making love constantly. "Who can do it all the time?" he asked. "Though I do try." Your assignment in the coming weeks, Scorpio, as revealed by the astrological omens, is to attempt what Grant aspired to: Do the wild thing as much as possible. Get busy before breakfast on the kitchen table and on your mid-morning break in the closet. Duck out of work early so you can get your freak on. Get a hundred more strokes and licks and kisses in before bedtime. Et cetera. And if you don't have a lover to help you out in this noble cause, then boink the wind, screw the sky, hump your dreams, make love to the universe.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):

Although dolphins are among the smartest animals of the sea, they get pretty stupid when they're on dry ground. This is according to a report by the world's finest news source, The Onion. Researchers found that when bottlenose dolphins were transferred from their water-filled tanks to lab tables, they flunked 11 different tests designed to assess their cognitive skills and reasoning abilities. Let that be a lesson to you, Sagittarius, as you navigate your way through the challenges of the coming week. As much as possible, make sure you're on your home turf or in your natural habitat when you're working to solve knotty dilemmas.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):

"Often the truth needs to be packed in great illusion," writes medical intuitive Caroline Myss, "to protect it from the carrier of that truth." Your job in the coming week is to chip off some of the illusion that's hiding a precious truth you're shielding yourself from. You're getting closer to being able to handle the whole truth, but you're not completely ready yet. That's why I suggest you preserve a bit of the protective illusion as a buffer. The dramatic revelation will best occur in stages.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):

A century ago, human life expectancy was 47, the speed limit on most roads was 10 mph, and the average wage was 22 cents an hour. Only one out of six homes had a bathtub, while one out of ten had a phone. Women washed their hair once a month and often using egg yolks for shampoo. Coca Cola contained cocaine. I predict that between now and 2028, life on earth will change as dramatically as it did in the last 100 years, and no other sign of the zodiac will be better positioned than you Aquarians to thrive on the transformations. What can you do to fully capitalize on your natural advantage? Create a 10-year master plan and a 20-year master plan, envisioning what you'd like to be doing in 2018 and 2028. The coming weeks will be an excellent time to write out these documents.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

HOMEWORK:

Your assignment, should you choose to accept it, is to make nonsense noises for at least two minutes straight every day this week. Testify by going to to FreeWillAstrology.com and clicking on "Email Rob."

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

WANT TO GET YOUR CHART DONE?

I'm not doing personal charts, but I highly recommend my astrological colleague, RO LOUGHRAN. Her approach closely matches my own. In our many discussions about astrology over the years, we've had a major influence on each other's work.

Ro utilizes a blend of well-trained intuition, emotional warmth, and a high degree of technical proficiency in horoscope interpretation; she is skilled at exploring the mysteries of your life's purpose and nurturing your connection with your own inner wisdom.

Ro is based in California, but can do phone consultations and otherwise work with you regardless of geographic boundaries.

Ro's website is at YourSoulJourney.com

She can also be reached at roloughran@comcast.net

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Submissions sent to the Free Will Astrology Weekly Newsletter or in response to "homework assignments" may be published in a variety of formats at Rob Brezsny's discretion, including but not limited to newsletters, books, the Free Will Astrology column, and Free Will Astrology website. We reserve the right to edit such submissions for length, style, and content. Requests for anonymity will be honored with submissions; otherwise, reader names, screen names, or initials will be used. Please be sure to note your preference when sending to us. We are not responsible for unsolicited submission of any creative material.

Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright 2008 Rob Brezsny

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++