Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter April 30, 2014

Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
APRIL 30, 2014
FreeWillAstrology.com

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My book
PRONOIA IS THE ANTIDOTE FOR PARANOIA
is available at Amazon: bit.ly/Pronoia
or Powells: bit.ly/PronoiaPowells

Much of the material below appears in the book:

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, many Western astrologers don't believe any such thing. Astrologer Richard Tarnas says it well: Just as clocks tell time but don't create it, the heavenly bodies show us the big picture but don't cause it.

Here's another hoax spread by uninformed scientists: bit.ly/VCsmjT

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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.

Read More: bit.ly/167qJ3j

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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 Q & A, go here: bit.ly/FWA-QandA

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Listen to my song "World Kiss":
soundcloud.com/sacreduproar/world-kiss

Excerpt of the lyrics:

All of creation is alive and conscious, and all of creation deserves our burning, churning, yearning love. All of it. Not just the people and creatures and things that we personally find beautiful and helpful and interesting. But everything. All of creation.

If we want to become the gorgeous geniuses we were born to be, if we want to give back as many blessings as we are given, we've got to be in love with every single part of the Goddess's extravagant masterpiece.

And so we can't possibly be mere heterosexuals. We can't possibly be mere homosexuals or bisexuals.

If we want to commune with the world the way the Goddess does, we've got to be Pantheosexuals -- we've got to be experts in the art of Polymorphous Perverse Omnidirectional Goddess Diddling. Anything less is a lie, an obscene limitation.

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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: 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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Mark Morford on how to make yourself lucky: tinyurl.com/q33t3h7

Excerpt: "To be lucky, in short, is to be open, adaptive, flexible, receptive to the new, relaxed and awake, so you can see the opportunities when they arrive and then act on them without hesitation, doubt or fear, which is pretty much the exact opposite of the operational mode of all those unhappy, anxious humans we all know and love and never, ever vote for.

"Luck expert Richard Wiseman puts his study's essential findings this way: 'Unlucky people are generally more tense than lucky people and this anxiety disrupts their ability to notice the unexpected. As a result, they miss opportunities because they are too focused on looking for something else. Lucky people, on the other hand, are more relaxed and open, which means they see what is there.'

"See? Obvious. But there's a catch: Despite its simplicity, i's not at all easy to change modes and switch that luck energy on. After all, misery is addictive. Millions of people are deeply attached to their suffering, their haphazard convictions, their inability to see how their own nervous monofocus and attachment to particular goals or obsessive desires might be blocking out all manner of opportunity right here and now, in the white-hot immediate moment."

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You are the Chosen One! . . . and so is everyone else:
on.fb.me/1fkuFmu

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MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:

Floating Seawer Skyscraper Rids The World's Oceans Of Plastic While Generating Clean Energy
tinyurl.com/mwsrrvl

Awake inside your dream: lucid dreaming
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Brought Together by the Keystone Pipeline Fight, "Cowboys and Indians" Heal Old Wounds. As natives and ranchers work together to oppose the Keystone XL pipeline, they're also learning to understand each other's history, culture, and relationship with the land.
tinyurl.com/kgkls9g

(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 1

Copyright 2014 by Rob Brezsny
FreeWillAstrology.com

TAURUS (April 20-May 20):

"My personal philosophy is not to undertake a project unless it is manifestly important and nearly impossible." So said Taurus-born Edwin Land, the man who invented the Polaroid camera. I have a feeling these might be useful words for you to live by between your birthday in 2014 and your birthday in 2015. In the coming 12 months, you will have the potential of homing in on a dream that will fuel your passions for years. It may seem to be nearly impossible, but that's exactly what will excite you about it so much -- and keep you going for as long as it takes to actually accomplish.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20):

I wish there was a way you could play around with construction equipment for a few hours. I'd love it if you could get behind the wheel of a bulldozer and flatten a small hill. It would be good for you to use an excavator to destroy a decrepit old shed or clear some land of stumps and dead trees. Metaphorically speaking, that's the kind of work you need to do in your inner landscape: move around big, heavy stuff; demolish outworn structures; reshape the real estate to make way for new building projects.

CANCER (June 21-July 22):

In the Transformers movies, Optimus Prime is a giant extraterrestrial warrior robot. His body contains an array of weapons that he uses for righteous causes, like protecting Earth's creatures. His character is voiced by actor Peter Cullen. Cullen has also worked extensively for another entertainment franchise, Winnie the Pooh. He does the vocals for Eeyore, a gloomy donkey who writes poetry and has a pink ribbon tied in a bow on his tail. Let's make Cullen your role model for now. I'm hoping this will inspire you to get the Eeyore side of your personality to work together with the Optimus Prime part of you. What's that you say? You don't have an Optimus Prime part of you? Well, that's what Eeyore might say, but I say different.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):

Do you finally understand that you don't have to imitate the stress-addled workaholics and self-wounding overachievers in order to be as proficient as they are? Are you coming to see that if you want to fix, heal, and change the world around you, you have to fix, heal, and change yourself? Is it becoming clear that if you hope to gain more power to shape the institutions you're part of, you've got to strengthen your power over yourself? Are you ready to see that if you'd like to reach the next level of success, you must dissolve some of your fears of success?

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):

"Beauty is the purgation of superfluities," said Michelangelo. Do you agree? Could you make your life more marvelous by giving up some of your trivial pursuits? Would you become more attractive if you got rid of one of your unimportant desires? Is it possible you'd experience more lyrical grace if you sloughed off your irrelevant worries? I suggest you meditate on questions like these, Virgo. According to my interpretation of the astrological omens, experiencing beauty is not a luxury right now, but rather a necessity. For the sake of your mental, physical, and spiritual health, you need to be in its presence as much as possible.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):

I'm pretty sure God wants you to be rich. Or at least richer. And I know for a fact that I want you to be richer. What about you? Do you want to be wealthier? Or at least a bit more flush? Or would you rather dodge the spiritual tests you'd have to face if you became a money magnet? Would you prefer to go about your daily affairs without having to deal with the increased responsibilities and obligations that would come with a bigger income? I suspect you will soon receive fresh evidence about these matters. How you respond will determine whether or not you'll be able to take advantage of new financial opportunities that are becoming available.

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LEARN TO BE LUCKY

You can learn to be lucky. It's not a mystical force you're born with, but a habit you can develop. How? For starters, be open to new experiences, trust your gut wisdom, expect good fortune, see the bright side of challenging events, and master the art of maximizing serendipitous opportunities.

For more help, tune in to my EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES. They're reports on the current state of your destiny and where you're headed.

These forecasts are different in tone and format from the written horoscopes you read in this newsletter. They're longer and more leisurely in tone -- averaging four to five minutes. They tend to bring out more of the patient counselor in me, and have a bit less of the poet.

To listen to your Expanded Audio Horoscope online, go to RealAstrology.com.

Register and/or log in through the main page.

They're available on your tablets and smart phones as well as your computers.

You can also listen over the phone by calling 1-877-873-4888.

"Your expanded horoscopes get more personal and intimate with me than some of my closest friends. Thanks for the loving reflections."
- Ari S., Ann Arbor, MI

"Your audio 'scopes have a knack for waking me up from whatever random dream has sneaked into my brain and rendered me half-blind."
- Teresa F., Boston, MA

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SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):

The U.S. military budget this year is $633 billion. In comparison, the United Nations' peacekeeping budget is $7.8 billion. So my country will spend 81 times more to wage war than the U.N. will spend to make peace. I would prefer it if the ratio were reversed, but my opinion carries no weight. It's possible, though, that I might be able to convince you Scorpios, at least in the short run, to place a greater emphasis on cultivating cooperation and harmony than on being swept up in aggression and conflict. You might be tempted to get riled up over and over again in the coming weeks, but I think that would lead you astray from living the good life.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):

Actor Matthew McConaughey prides himself on his willingness to learn from his mistakes and failures. A few years ago he collected and read all the negative reviews that critics had ever written about his work in films. It was "an interesting kind of experiment," he told Yahoo News. "There was some really good constructive criticism." According to my reading of the astrological omens, Sagittarius, now would be an excellent time for you to try an experiment comparable to McConaughey's. Be brave!

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):

"Dear Oracle: I might be hallucinating, but recently I swear my pet iguana has been getting turned on whenever I disrobe in front of it. My naked body seems to incite it to strut around and make guttural hissing sounds and basically act like it's doing a mating dance. Is it me, or is the planets? I think my iguana is a Capricorn like me. - Captivating Capricorn." Dear Capricorn: Only on rare occasions have I seen you Capricorns exude such high levels of animal magnetism as you are now. Be careful where you point that stuff! I won't be shocked if a wide variety of creatures finds you extra alluring.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):

"Eat like you love yourself," advises author Tara Stiles. "Move like you love yourself. Speak like you love yourself. Act like you love yourself." Those four prescriptions should be top priorities for you, Aquarius. Right now, you can't afford to treat your beautiful organism with even a hint of carelessness. You need to upgrade the respect and compassion and reverence you give yourself. So please breathe like you love yourself. Sleep and dream like you love yourself. Think like you love yourself. Make love like you love yourself.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):

If blindfolded, most people can't tell the difference between Pepsi and Coca-Cola. But I bet you could, at least this week. Odds are good that you will also be adept at distinguishing between genuine promises and fakes ones. And you will always know when people are fooling themselves. No one will be able to trick you into believing in hype, lies, or nonsense. Why? Because these days you are unusually perceptive and sensitive and discerning. This might on occasion be a problem, of course, since you won't be able to enjoy the comfort and consolation that illusions can offer. But mostly it will be an asset, providing you with a huge tactical advantage and lots of good material for jokes.

ARIES (March 21-April 19):

"Dear Astrologer: We Aries people have an intense fire burning inside us. It's an honor and a privilege. We're lucky to be animated with such a generous share of the big energy that gives life to all of nature. But sometimes the fire gets too wild and strong for us. We can't manage it. It gets out of our control. That's how I'm feeling lately. These beloved flames that normally move me and excite me are now the very thing that's making me crazy. What to do? - Aries." Dear Aries: Learn from what firefighters do to fight forest fires. They use digging tools to create wide strips of dirt around the fire, removing all the flammable brush and wood debris. When the fire reaches this path, it's deprived of fuel. Close your eyes and visualize that scene.

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HOMEWORK:

Think of the last person you cursed, if only with a hateful thought if not an actual spell. Now send them a free-hearted blessing.

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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 2014 Rob Brezsny

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