Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter April 15, 2015

 Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
 April 15, 2015
 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

The e-book is available at bit.ly/eePronoia

Below are excerpts.

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I invite you to say this, or something like this: "I pledge to wake myself up, never hold back, have nothing to lose, go all the way, kiss the stormy sky, be the hero of my own story, ask for everything I need and give everything I have, take myself to the river when it's time to go to the river, and take myself to the mountaintop when it's time to go to the mountaintop."

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How's your fight for freedom going? Are you making progress in liberating yourself from your unconscious obsessions, bad habits, and conditioned responses? Do you find that you're getting more skillful at minimizing your suffering? Are you turning out to be the hero of your own life?

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I hereby appoint you a dissident bodhisattva in charge of overthrowing the sour and crippled mass hallucination that is mistakenly called "reality," and replacing it with an authentic reality built on the principles of insurrectionary beauty, ingenious love, reverent justice, rigorous equality, and rowdy bliss.

Any other principles you want to add?

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I have an essay in a new book called "Pluto: New Horizons for a Lost Horizon: Astronomy, Astrology, and Mythology": bit.ly/PlutoSoul

It's edited by one of my mentors, Richard Grossinger -- a person I consider one of the five smartest people in the world. It's published by North Atlantic Books, the visionary publisher that has published my last three books.

My essay is about the astrological, psychological, and mythopoetic meaning of Pluto. Here's an excerpt:

Scientists no doubt had sound, rational reasons to exile Pluto from the traditional solar system and transfer its realm to the Kuiper Belt with the other dwarf worlds, but they were also under the influence of deeply unconscious forces too. The expulsion of Pluto marked a symbolic turning point in the triumphalism and triumph of scientism, the ascendency of a mode of thinking that values only what's visible, measurable, and categorizable. But Pluto is more than the rocky planetoid representing it: Pluto is an essential phase of human consciousness.

It is no accident that the ostracism comes at a time when the Plutonian realm itself is being devalued and rendered inessential. The overall downgrading of Pluto is a milestone in the modern attempt to depreciate the soul's mode of awareness and make it subsidiary to the deductive mind. To banish Pluto is to deny that living in the soul has any value to us.

bit.ly/PlutoSoul

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"A spirituality that is only private and self-absorbed, one devoid of an authentic political and social consciousness, does little to halt the suicidal juggernaut of history. On the other hand, an activism that is not purified by profound spiritual and psychological self-awareness ... will only perpetuate the problem it is trying to solve, however righteous its intentions."

- Andrew Harvey

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Are you in quest of an Intimate Ally? A Soul Friend? A Wild Confidante?

Check out Matchmaker.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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MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:

A teenager's Sweet 16 birthday won't be a celebration of excess or a focus on her. Instead, it will be used to help orphans in Ethiopia.
tinyurl.com/ljzf7zk

St. Boniface Church In San Francisco Lets Homeless People Sleep In Pews.
tinyurl.com/avzf6lm

In Australia, waves are being put to use providing steady streams of both electricity and potable water, all while generating zero emissions. It's all thanks to an innovative green energy production system -- the first in the world to provide both power and water with networked generators
tinyurl.com/le28pd3

(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 April 16

Copyright 2015 by Rob Brezsny
FreeWillAstrology.com

ARIES (March 21-April 19):

The California Gold Rush hit its peak between 1849 and 1855. Three hundred thousand adventurers flocked to America's West Coast in search of gold. In the early days, gold nuggets were lying around on the ground in plain sight, or relatively easy to find in gravel beds at the bottom of streams. But later prospectors had to work harder, developing methods to extract the gold from rocks that contained it. One way to detect the presence of the precious metal was through the use of nitric acid, which corroded any substance that wasn't gold. The term "acid test" refers to that process. I bring this to your attention, Aries, because it's a good time for you to use the metaphorical version of an acid test as you ascertain whether what you have discovered is truly golden.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20):

The time between now and your birthday will provide you with excellent opportunities to resolve lingering problems, bring drawn-out melodramas to a conclusion, and clean up old messes -- even the supposedly interesting ones. You want to know what else this upcoming period will be good for? I'll tell you: 1. Surrendering control-freak fantasies. 2. Relieving your backlog of tension. 3. Expelling delusional fears that you cling to out of habit. 4. Laughing long and hard at the cosmic jokes that have tweaked your attitude.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20):

In the mid-19th century, the entrance exam for the British Royal Navy was quite odd. Some candidates were required to write down the Lord's Prayer, recite the multiplication table for the number three, get naked and jump over a chair, and drink a glass of sherry. I'm guessing that your own initiation or rite of passage may, at least initially, seem as puzzling or nonsensical as that one. You might be hard-pressed to understand how it is pertinent to the next chapter of your life story. And yet I suspect that you will ultimately come to the conclusion -- although it may take some time -- that this transition was an excellent lead-in and preparation for what's to come.

CANCER (June 21-July 22):

Sergei Diaghilev founded the Ballets Russes, a Parisian ballet company that ultimately revolutionized the art form. The collaborative efforts he catalyzed were unprecedented. He drew on the talents of visual artists Picasso and Matisse, composers Stravinsky and Debussy, designer Coco Chanel, and playwright Jean Cocteau, teaming them up with top choreographers and dancers. His main goal was not primarily to entertain, but rather to excite and inspire and inflame. That's the spirit I think you'll thrive on in the coming weeks, Cancerian. It's not a time for nice diversions and comfy satisfactions. Go in quest of Ballets Russes-like bouts of arousal, awakening, and delight.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):

"Don't ever tame your demons -- always keep them on a leash." That's a line from a song by Irish rock musician Hozier. Does it have any meaning for you? Can your personal demons somehow prove useful to you if you keep them wild but under your control? If so, how exactly might they be useful? Could they provide you with primal energy you wouldn't otherwise possess? Might their presence be a reminder of the fact that everyone you meet has their own demons and therefore deserves your compassion? I suspect that these are topics worthy of your consideration right now. Your relationship to your demons is ripe for transformation -- possibly even a significant upgrade.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):

Will you be the difficult wizard, Virgo? Please say yes. Use your magic to summon elemental forces that will shatter the popular obstacles. Offer the tart medicine that tempers and tests as it heals. Bring us bracing revelations that provoke a fresher, sweeter order. I know it's a lot to ask, but right now there's no one more suited to the tasks. Only you can manage the stern grace that will keep us honest. Only you have the tough humility necessary to solve the riddles that no one else can even make sense of.

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PLEASURE IS HOLY?

Assume that your drive to experience pleasure isn't a barrier to your spiritual growth, but is in fact essential to it. Proceed on the hypothesis that cultivating joy can make you a more ethical and compassionate person. Imagine that feeling good has something important to teach you every day.

For inspiration in practicing this approach, tune in to your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES. They're four-to-five-minute meditations on the current state of your destiny.

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

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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LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):

My message this week might be controversial to the Buddhists among you. But I've got to report the cosmic trends as I see them, right? It's my sacred duty not to censor or sanitize the raw data. So here's the truth as I understand it: More desire is the answer to your pressing questions. Passionate intensity is the remedy for all wishy-washy wishes and anesthetized emotions. The stronger your longing, the smarter you'll be. So if your libido is not already surging and throbbing under its own power, I suggest you get it teased and tantalized until it does.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):

Karelu is a word from the Tulu language that's spoken in South India. It refers to the marks made on human skin by clothing that's too tight. As you know, the effect is temporary. Once the close-fitting garment is removed, the imprint will eventually disappear as the skin restores its normal shape and texture. I see the coming days as being a time when you will experience a metaphorical version of karelu, Scorpio. You will shed some form of constriction, and it may take a while for you to regain your full flexibility and smoothness.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):

Georgia is not just an American state. It's also a country that's at the border of Western Asia and Eastern Europe. Many people who live there speak the Georgian language. They have a word, shemomedjamo, that refers to what happens when you love the taste of the food you're eating so much that you continue to pile it in your mouth well past the time when you're full. I'd like to use it as a metaphor for what I hope you won't do in the coming days: get too much of a good thing. On the other hand, it's perfectly fine to get just the right, healthy amount of a good thing.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):

When you're a driver in a car race, an essential rule in making a successful pit stop is to get back on the track as quickly as possible. Once the refueling is finished and your new tires are in place, you don't want to be cleaning out your cup holder or checking the side-view mirror to see how you look. Do I really need to tell you this? Aren't you usually the zodiac's smartest competitor? I understand that you're trying to become more skilled at the arts of relaxation, but can't you postpone that until after this particular race is over? Remember that there's a difference between the bad kind of stress and the good kind. I think you actually need some of the latter.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):

Until the early 20th century, mayonnaise was considered a luxury food, a hand-made delicacy reserved for the rich. An entrepreneur named Richard Hellman changed that. He developed an efficient system to produce and distribute the condiment at a lower cost. He put together effective advertising campaigns. The increasing availability of refrigeration helped, too, making mayonnaise a more practical food. I foresee the possibility of a comparable evolution in your own sphere, Aquarius: the transformation of a specialty item into a mainstay, or the evolution of a rare pleasure into a regular occurrence.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):

Piscean author Dr. Seuss wrote and illustrated over 40 books for children. Midway through his career, his publisher dared him to make a new book that used no more than 50 different words. Accepting the challenge, Seuss produced Green Eggs and Ham, which went on to become the fourth best-selling English-language children's book in history. I invite you to learn from Seuss's efforts, Pisces. How? Take advantage of the limitations that life has given you. Be grateful for the way those limitations compel you to be efficient and precise. Use your constraints as inspiration to create a valuable addition to your life story.

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HOMEWORK:

When was the last time you loved yourself with consummate artfulness and grace? Testify at FreeWillAstrology.com.

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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 2015 Rob Brezsny

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