Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter http://ezezine.com
Rob Brezsny's Free Will Astrology Newsletter
"If you are a poet, you will see that there is a cloud in this sheet of paper.
Without a cloud, there will be no rain; without rain, the trees cannot grow;
and without trees, we cannot make paper." -Thich Nhat Hanh, *Peace Is
Every Step*
"Regardless of who sees it, there really is a cloud in this sheet of paper,
as well as a bark beetle, a handful of soil, a bit of bird poop, even the
gasoline that powered the logger's chain saw. It is even possible that if
you were to chronicle the history of those carbon atoms currently part of
the page you are now holding, you would find that they were once part of
Peter the Great, a woolly mammoth, or (and!) a Komodo dragon, before
they found themselves incorporated into the loblolly pine that eventually
became this particular sheet of paper."
-David P. Barash, "Buddhism and the 'Subversive Science,'" *The Chronicle
of Higher Education*
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May 10, 2006
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http://www.freewillastrology.com
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ROB'S UPCOMING PERFORMANCES
Harmony Festival
in Santa Rosa, CA
June 9, 10, 11
http://www.harmonyfestival.com
Oregon Country Fair
near Eugene, Oregon
July 7, 8, 9
http://www.oregoncountryfair.org
Elliott Bay Bookstore
Seattle
Wednesday, July 12
6 p.m.
101 South Main Street
Seattle, Washington 98104
http://www.elliottbaybook.com
23rd Avenue Books
Portland
Thursday, July 13
7:30
1015 NW 23rd Avenue
Portland, OR 97210
http://www.23rdavebooks.com
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ATTENTION READERS in PORTLAND and SEATTLE:
Many thanks for all your suggestions about where I could seek out gigs to
celebrate my book. Your tips directly led to me getting booked at Elliott
Bay Bookstore in Seattle and Twenty-Third Avenue Books in Portland. I'm
impressed with and grateful for your generosity!
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Here's an excerpt from my book
"PRONOIA IS THE ANTIDOTE FOR PARANOIA:
How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings"
available at http://snipurl.com/krjj
or find out more at http://www.freewillastrology.com
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How Is Enlightenment Like a Million-Dollar Vacation Home?
For some seekers, spiritual enlightenment is the ultimate commodity.
They believe that through diligent meditation and self-improvement, there
will come a day when it will no longer elude their grasp. Breaking through
to the singular state of cosmic consciousness, they will forever after own
it, free and clear. Permanently illuminated! Never to backslide into the dull
ignominy of normal human awareness!
Here's what I have to say about that: It's a delusion.
The fact is, the nature of perfection is always mutating. What constitutes
enlightenment today will always be different tomorrow. Even if you're
fortunate and wise enough to score a sliver of "enlightenment," it's not a
static treasure that becomes your indestructible, everlasting possession.
Rather, it remains a mercurial knack that must be continually re-earned.
If you want to befriend the Divine Wow, you must not only be willing to
change ceaselessly—you have to love to change ceaselessly.
Lucky you: All of creation is conspiring to help you live like that.
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To read other news and features from my book, go here:
http://snipurl.com/l9o3
or
http://freewillastrology.com/beauty/beauty.main145.shtml
To buy the book, use the links to Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble,
which are on my homepage at http://www.freewillastrology.com
Or cut and paste the direct links below:
AMAZON
http://snipurl.com/krjj
BARNES & NOBLE
http://snipurl.com/krjn
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OTHER PRONOIA RESOURCES:
PHOTOS
Images from the Hubble Telescope
http://snipurl.com/q8sg
NEWS
Superheroes steal fancy food for the poor
http://snipurl.com/q97e
PLACES
New Seven Wonders of the World
http://snipurl.com/q8s1
http://snipurl.com/q8s5
MUSIC
*Buddha-Bar* by Claude Challe
THEATER
*Not a Genuine Black Man*
One-man show by Brian Copeland
playing in New York at the DR2 Theater in Manhattan from May 9 thru July
30.
http://www.briancopeland.com/
(Note: I endorse these because I like them. They're 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 11
Copyright 2006 by Rob Brezsny
http://www.freewillastrology.com
Grammar key: Asterisks equal *italics*
ARIES (March 21-April 19): I did something today that's an apt metaphor
for the task you have ahead of you. While driving my 1997 Honda Accord
on the streets of San Francisco, I had to drive *very* slowly and gradually
while ascending a steep hill. I kept my foot on the gas pedal just hard
enough to keep the vehicle from sliding backward as I inched upward at
two miles per hour. It was an exercise in supreme concentration: I had to
be delicate and focused while prodding a one and a half ton beast. Just as
I pulled off this feat, Aries, I believe you'll be able to accomplish a
comparable version of it.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): "Nothing would be done at all," said Cardinal
Newman, "if a man waited until he could do it so well that no one could
find fault with it." Let's forgive his sexist language and concentrate on
the truth he articulates, which is profoundly apt for you right now. It's
important that you try to do what you can't do very well--that you not
use your lack of mastery as an excuse to avoid practicing an immature
skill. Be willing to look foolish as you improve, and paradoxically you will
often appear brave and inspired.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Would you please go have a picnic after
midnight in a secret garden? Or maybe wander out to the edge of
nowhere and throw a birthday party for the sun? Or weave wildflowers in
your hair and lead a sweet thing unto temptation with a seduction
strategy plucked from a poem by Pablo Neruda? Please, Gemini, tear your
eyes away from the terribly obvious and the numbingly familiar. Be willing
to be as impractical as you've ever been. The weird probability is that
you'll have a piercing insight about the bottom line while you're wandering
free in a place that's far from the bottom line.
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AUDIO LOVE LETTERS
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.
For Web access, go here:
http://www.relationshipnetwork.com/horo/index.asp?client_id=50700
From the United States, call
1-900-950-7700
or if you prefer to pay by credit card
1-877-873-4888
If you live in Canada, call 1-888-499-4425 to purchase a Block of Time
with your credit card.
"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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CANCER (June 21-July 22): You now have the power to raise a million
dollars for charity. For that matter, you could launch an organization that
would last a hundred years, make an invigorating connection with a
resourceful ally, or talk a depressed person out of suicide. On the other
hand, it's also conceivable that you could tally the highest score ever
recorded on the Berzerk video game or engage in spectacular drunken
stunts that earn you a spot on the local TV news. In other words,
Cancerian, there's a high potential for you doing something very big,
whether it's smart and great or dumb and useless. Choose wisely how you
want this cosmic tendency to manifest.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): I just received a check in the mail for seven cents.
It was from the Screen Actors Guild, a residual payment for my tiny role in
the Robin Williams' movie *Being Human,* in which I played a TV psychic
who gives readings for pets. Though the 1994 film was a critical and box
office failure, it has continued to earn modest revenue through video
sales in Third World countries. I decided not to cash my miniscule check,
but rather frame it and put it up on my wall as a conversation piece. I
predict a similar event will soon occur in your life, Leo: You'll receive a
"reward" whose value will consist almost entirely of its power to generate
joke and story material. That's not something to be sneezed at.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): It's a good time to work on your moon tan. I
suggest you put on a bathing suit and find a place where the moon can
beam down on you for a while. As you bask in its glow, periodically
turning over to let it saturate every part of your body, imagine that
soaking up the lunar vibes will deepen and tone your emotional life,
enhance your receptivity, make you a wiser nurturer, and build up your
knack for adjusting deftly to change.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): The leaves on the persimmon tree outside my
door are growing so fast I swear I can see them expanding right in front of
my eyes. Like them, you are in a period of almost maniacal fertility. The
ripening process is so elemental that you may feel as if unpredictable
forces of nature have been unleashed inside you. As long as you keep
your sense of humor about it, however, nothing too out-of-control will
happen. At worst, you'll resemble a funny monster with a brilliant future,
like an awkward kid destined to grow up to be a cute genius.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Have you ever wondered about the X-ray
glasses advertised in comic books and sold by mail? They allegedly allow
you to see through people's clothes, maybe even through their skin to
the skeleton beneath. You Scorpios now have the next best thing to that
cartoon technology. Your eyesight is especially keen--so much so that
you'll notice many things that have previously been hidden from you. Not
only that. You'll be especially adept at discerning the real stories
unfolding beneath the official stories. You'll have the ability to decipher
people's unconscious motivations and secret agendas. It's almost like
you'll have a psychic version of X-ray specs.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Hybrid cars get great gas mileage and
don't spew dirty emissions into the air. They also produce minimal noise
pollution. In fact, some are so silent that they can be hazardous to
pedestrians and bicyclists. While riding my bike today, for instance, I
didn't hear the Toyota Prius that was bearing down on me from behind,
and I almost swerved right into its path. Let this serve you as an
illustration of the law of unintended consequences. You should watch for
unexpected changes caused by the healthy improvements you've made in
your life. I'm not saying the changes will necessarily be bad, just that you
should be alert for results you didn't foresee.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Cuban tyrant Fidel Castro is so afraid of
exotic assassination attempts that he has his aides burn his underwear
after just one use. He apparently imagines that some dissident will find a
way to saturate his unmentionables with poison during the laundering
process. You're currently in no danger of having your briefs rendered
toxic, Capricorn, but I nevertheless suggest that like Castro you incinerate
each fresh pair when you're done wearing them--at least for the next few
days. It will be a lyrically symbolic statement that you are ready to
transform the way you express your sexual energy, and that will be in
perfect alignment with the invitation the cosmos is offering you.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): In high school I got all A's in science and
math, and scored in the top one percentile on the math section of the
SATs. I've studied calculus, used logarithms, and love biology and
astronomy. Still, I'm not aligned with the growing chorus of political
leaders, corporate executives, and scientists who want schools to teach
more math and science. Less would be better, I think, so as to make more
room for truly neglected subjects like mastering human relationships,
cultivating emotional intelligence, developing discrimination about the
media, questioning authority, interpreting dreams, and understanding how
to take care of one's body. Since few of us are taught these basic
subjects when we're young, we lag way behind well into adulthood. That's
the bad news, Aquarius. The good news is that it's a perfect time for you
to do some rapid catching up.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): A California company specializing in
background checks recently reported that 40 percent of all job résumés
contain misinformation. Meanwhile, a study in the *Journal of Basic and
Applied Social Psychology* found that most people tell lies every day. You
and I aren't surprised. We know that deception is a normal part of life. I
hope, however, that you'll rebel against that convention in the coming
week. It's the High Integrity Season for you--a time to be scrupulously
honest and impeccable in your execution of every detail. I urge you to
regard this demanding assignment as an opportunity to give gifts
everywhere you go.
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HOMEWORK:
Imagine it's 40 years from today. As you look back on your life, what is
the one adventure you regret not trying? Testify by going to
http://www.freewillastrology.com and clicking on "Email Rob."
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WANT TO GET YOUR CHART DONE?
I'm not doing charts these days. In addition to writing my weekly column
and expanded audio horoscopes, I'm also working on a CD and promoting
my new book.
But I can recommend a colleague whose astro-aesthetics closely match
my own. She's RO LOUGHRAN.
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
http://www.yoursouljourney.com/
She can also be reached at roloughran@comcast.net
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I totally respect your privacy. I'll never sell or give away your address to
anyone.
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Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2006 Rob Brezsny
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