Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
JUNE 9, 2010
FreeWillAstrology.com
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Expanded Audio Horoscopes
RealAstrology.com
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There's a new release from the soundtrack for my book PRONOIA
IS THE ANTIDOTE FOR PARANOIA.
It's called "You're a Prophet"
You can access it here: bit.ly/YouProphet
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The revised and expanded version of my book PRONOIA IS THE
ANTIDOTE FOR PARANOIA is available at Amazon: bit.ly/Pronoia
and also at Powells: bit.ly/PronoiaPowells
Much of the material below appears in the book:
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Q & A
(To read the entirety of this feature, go here: bit.ly/FWA-QandA)
QUESTION. How can an intelligent, educated person possibly believe
astrology has any merit?
ROB BREZSNY. Many of the debunkers who're responsible for trying
to discredit astrology have done no research on the subject. They
haven't read smart astrological philosophers like Dane Rudhyar,
don't know that seminal astronomer Johannes Kepler was a skilled
astrologer, and aren't aware that eminent psychologist C.G. Jung
cast horoscopes and believed that "astrology represents the
summation of all the psychological knowledge of antiquity."
The closest approach the fraudulent "skeptics" usually
make to the ancient art is to glance at a tabloid horoscope column.
To match their carelessness, I might make a drive-by of a strip
mall and declare that the profession of architecture is shallow
and debased.
That's one reason why these ill-informed "skeptics"
spread so many ignorant lies. For instance, they say that astrologers
think the stars and planets emit invisible beams that affect people's
lives. The truth is, most Western astrologers don't believe any
such thing.
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QUESTION. Because you pack your column with doses of humor and
wild imagery, some people think you don't take astrology seriously.
ROB. On the contrary, I think this proves how much respect I
have for astrology -- I mean REAL astrology. Not astrology as
a superstitious belief system that generates boring predictions
in dead language about trivial events that only our neurotic egos
are obsessed with; but rather astrology as a mytho-poetic symbol
system that expands your imagination about the big cycles of your
life, liberates you from the literalistic trance that the daily
grind tends to trap you in, and opens you up to the understanding
that you're much more beautiful and full of potential than you've
been taught to believe.
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QUESTION. You have said that you believe in astrology "about
80 percent." What's up with the other 20 percent?
ROB. I use the same 80-20 approach with every belief system I
love and benefit from: science, psychology, feminism, and various
religious traditions like Buddhism and Christianity and paganism.
I take what's useful from each, but am not so deluded as to think
that any single system is the holy grail that the physicists call
the "Theory of Everything." Unconditional, unskeptical
faith is the path of the fanatic and fundamentalist, and I aspire
to be a rowdy philosophical anarchist, aflame with objectivity
and committed to the truth that the truth is always mutating.
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QUESTION. But don't you risk playing the same role the tabloid
astrologers do: enticing people to take on a superstitious approach
to life and seducing them into believing their fate is determined
by supernatural forces beyond the influence of their willpower?
ROB. I call what I do predicting the present, not forecasting
the future. My goal is to awaken my readers to the hidden agendas,
unconscious forces, and long-term cycles at work in their lives
so that they can respond to the totality of what's happening instead
of to mere appearances. I want to be a friendly shocker who helps
unleash their imaginations, giving them the power to create their
destinies with the same liberated fertility that great artists
summon to forge their masterpieces.
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QUESTION. How do you write your column? Do you use actual astrological
data, or just go into a trance and let your imagination run wild?
TO READ THE REPLY TO THIS QUESTION, AS WELL AS THE REST OF THIS
FEATURE, go here: bit.ly/FWA-QandA
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MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:
BENEVOLENT CONSPIRACIES ABOUND
Fewer children are dying worldwide
tinyurl.com/2dtfccl
BE DISCRIMINATING IN YOUR USE OF CYNICISM
Well, no, we're not having more earthquakes than usual
tinyurl.com/yl6spqc
LAUGH, FOR GOD'S SAKE!
"I Need a Yogi"
Straight up karma hip hop -- maybe NSFW in the eyes of some people.
tinyurl.com/23bnpz6
(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 June 10
Copyright 2010 by Rob Brezsny
FreeWillAstrology.com
GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
If you have long conversations with the image in the mirror
this week, I won't call you a megalomaniacal narcissist. Nor will
I make fun of you if you paint 15 self-portraits, or google yourself
obsessively, or fill an entire notebook with answers to the question
"Who am I, anyway?" In my astrological opinion, this
is an excellent time for you to pursue nosy explorations into
the mysteries of your core identity. You have cosmic permission
to think about yourself with an intensity you might normally devote
to a charismatic idol you're infatuated with.
CANCER (June 21-July 22):
The website "Nietzsche Family Circus" features collaborations
between the sappy family-oriented comic strip "Family Circus"
and the austerely portentous wisdom of German philosopher Friedrich
Nietzsche. Judging from your current astrological omens, I'd say
this is a perfect time for you to expose yourself to this stuff.
(It's at losanjealous.com/nfc.)
You need to toughen up some of your weepy, sentimental urges and
brighten up some of your somber, melancholic tendencies.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
Gather your rewards, Leo. Soak up the blessings. Collect the
favors you're owed. It's harvest time for you: your big chance
to reap the fruits you've been sowing and cultivating these past
11 months. And no, don't try to stretch out the process. Don't
procrastinate about plucking the ripe pickings. This really is
the climax. The time for your peak experience has arrived. If
you postpone the harvest for another two weeks, your beauties
may start to go to seed.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
What are you waiting for, my dear Virgo? Your future power spot
has been exerting a strong pull on you. It has been calling for
you to come and seize the clout you deserve. But you have not
yet fully taken up the offer. As your designated nag and cheerleader,
it is my sacred duty to wave a red flag in front of your gorgeous
face and command you to pay attention. In my opinion, you need
to drop what you're doing, race over to the zone of engagement,
and pounce. You're more than ready to stake a claim to the increased
authority you'll have a mandate to wield in the coming months.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
If you've read my horoscopes for a while, you know I'm the least
superstitious astrologer on the planet. I champion the cause of
reason and logic, praise the beauty of science, and discourage
you from constantly scanning the horizon for fearful omens. And
yet I'm also a zealous advocate of the power of the liberated
imagination. I believe that the playful and disciplined use of
fantasy can be a potent agent for benevolent change in your life.
That's why, in accordance with the current astrological configurations,
I suggest that you spend some quality time in the coming week
having imaginary conversations with the person, living or dead,
who inspires you the most.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
"I want to be everywhere at once and do everything at the
same time," writes one of my Scorpio readers, J.T. He's in
luck, because according to my analysis, your tribe is about to
enjoy a phase much like what he describes. "No more of this
linear, one-day-at-a-time stuff," he continues. "I want
a whole week packed into each 24-hour turn of the earth, with
heavy doses of leisure time interwoven with thrilling bouts of
hard, creative labor. I want to live in a secret garden with ten
years of solitude and hang out at a street fair raging with conviviality.
I want to sing with angels and romp with devils in between walking
the dog, exercising at the gym, and chatting to perfectly ordinary
people. I want enough money to fill a swimming pool, and I want
to live like there's no such thing as money."
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YOU AND ME TOGETHER IN THE ETHERS
In addition to the horoscopes you're reading here, I create additional
in-depth audio horoscopes for your inspiration.
They're not repeats or elaborations of the stuff you find here,
but entirely fresh explorations of your astrological omens, designed
to help you tune in to your soul's code.
Try them at RealAstrology.com.
They're available by phone at 1-877-873-4888 or 1-900-950-7700.
They're $6 if you access them on the Web, or $1.99 per minute
over the phone.
"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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SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
If you live on the Danish island of Mando, your only hope for
driving your vehicle to the mainland and back is when the tide
is low. During those periods, the water often recedes far enough
to expose a rough gravel road that's laid down over a vast mudflat.
Winter storms sometimes make even low-tide passages impossible,
though. According to my reading of the astrological omens, Sagittarius,
there's a comparable situation in your life. You can only get
from where you are to where you want to go at certain selected
times and under certain selected conditions. Make sure you're
thoroughly familiar with those times and conditions.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
One of the leading intellectuals of the 20th century, British
author Aldous Huxley, wrote more than 20 books, including Brave
New World. In his later years he made a surprising confession:
"It is a bit embarrassing to have been concerned with the
human problem all one's life and find at the end that one has
no more to offer by way of advice than 'Try to be a little kinder.'"
In accordance with your current astrological omens, Capricorn,
I'd like you to take a cue from Huxley in the coming week. Proceed
on the assumption that the smartest thing you can do -- both in
terms of bringing you practical benefits and increasing your intelligence
-- would be to deepen, expand, and intensify your compassion.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
Early in Marcel Proust's novel In Search of Lost Time,
the narrator stumbles upon a dizzying epiphany while having a
snack. He dips a small cake into his cup of tea, and when he sips
a spoonful, the taste of the sweet crumbs blended with the warm
drink transport him into an altered state. Inexplicably, he's
filled with an "all-powerful joy" and "exquisite
pleasure" that dissolve his feelings of being "mediocre,
contingent, and mortal." The associations and thoughts triggered
by this influx of paradise take him many pages to explore. I mention
this, Aquarius, because I expect that you're about to have your
own version of this activation. A seemingly ordinary event will
lead to a breakthrough that feeds you for a long time. Be alert
for it!
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
Environmentalist Bill McKibben says that humans are transforming
the planet so drastically that we shouldn't refer to it as "Earth"
any more. To acknowledge the fact that we're well on our way to
living on a very different world, he suggests we rename our home
the "Eaarth." By this logic, maybe we should rename
your sign Piisces. The changes you're in the process of making
this year are potentially so dramatic that you will, in a sense,
be inhabiting a new astrological sign by January 2011. In your
case, however -- unlike that of our planet -- the majority of
your alterations are likely to be invigorating and vitalizing.
And you're now entering a phase when you'll have maximum opportunity
to ensure that successful outcome.
ARIES (March 21-April 19):
The "secret" is in plain sight. The "hidden resource"
is freely available for anyone who intends to use it with integrity.
The "lost key" is very close to where you left it when
you last used it. The "missing link" is missing only
in the sense that no one recognizes it for what it is. The "unasked
question" is beaming toward you from three directions. The
"wounded talent" will be healed the moment you stop
thinking of it as wounded and start regarding it as merely unripe.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
It's time for some image medicine, Taurus. Wherever you are right
now, I invite you to look down at your left palm and imagine that
you see the following scene: an infinity sign whose shape is made
not by a thin black line but by a series of small yellow rubber
duckies. The duckies are flowing along slowly in continuous motion.
They are all wearing gold crowns, each of which is studded with
three tiny rubies. With resonant tones that belie their diminutive
and comic appearance, the duckies are singing you your favorite
song. It makes you feel safe, brave, and at home in the world.
What else can see you see there? What happens next?
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HOMEWORK:
Imagine yourself gazing into the eyes of the person you were
ten years ago. What do you want to say to him or her? Go to FreeWillAstrology.com
and click on "Email Rob."
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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
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material.
Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2010 Rob Brezsny
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