Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
October 17, 2018
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See a pretty version of this newsletter: https://bit.ly/YourTruthThrives
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YOUR MOST IMPORTANT DESIRE
I invite you to write the following on a piece of red paper and keep it
under your pillow. "I, [put your name here], do solemnly swear on this day
[put date here] that I will devote myself for a period of seven days to
learning my most important desire. No other thought will be more
uppermost in my mind. No other concern will divert me from tracking
down every clue that might assist me in my drive to ascertain the one
experience in this world that deserves my brilliant passion above all
others."
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YOU HAVE MORE FREEDOM THAN YOU ARE USING
"You have more freedom than you are using," says artist Dan Attoe.
I hope that taunt gets under your skin and riles you up. Maybe it will
motivate you to lay claim to all the potential spaciousness and
independence and leeway that are just lying around going to waste.
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GO WITH WHAT FLOW?
When they say "Go with the flow," what "flow" are they talking about? Do
they mean the flow of your early childhood conditioning? The flow of your
friends' opinions? The latest cultural trends? Your immediate instinctual
needs?
When they say "Go with the flow," are they urging you to keep doing
what's easiest to do and what will win you the most ego points, even if it
keeps you from being true to your soul's code?
Consider the possibility that there are many flows to go with, but only
one of them is correct for you. Do you know which one? Maybe it's the
one flowing in an underground cavern, far from the maddening crowd.
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KNOW YOUR WOUNDS
Mythologist Michael Meade says that the essential nature of every human
soul is gifted, noble, and wounded.
I agree. Cynics who exaggerate how messed-up we all are, ignoring our
beauty, are just as unrealistic as naive optimists.
But because the cynics have a disproportionately potent influence on the
zeitgeist, they make it harder for us to evaluate our problems with a wise
and balanced perspective. Many of us feel cursed by the apparent
incurability of our wounds, while others, rebelling against the curse,
underestimate how wounded they are.
Mead says: "Those who think they are not wounded in ways that need
conscious attention and careful healing are usually the most wounded of
all."
Your task -- and your talent -- is to make realistic appraisals of your
wounds.
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THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN REPRESSION AND SUPPRESSION
There's a difference between repression and suppression. When you
repress a difficult feeling or thought, you drive it so deeply into your
unconscious mind that you forget about it. In effect, you hide it from
yourself out of fear. And yet because this exiled material is of crucial
importance, it refuses to remain buried. It ultimately re-emerges in
disguise, often as an addiction or obsession, sometimes as an illness.
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Suppression, on the other hand, is a healthier mechanism. It involves you
moving the problematic feeling or thought away from the center of your
attention, but remaining aware of it. You're not motivated by fear, but by
the intention to deal with the challenge at a time of your choosing.
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IS THERE ANY SUCH THING AS FREE WILL?
Is there really such a thing as free will, or are our destinies shaped by
forces beyond our control?
Here's one way to think about that question: Maybe some people actually
have more free will than others. Not because they have more money.
(Many rich folks are under the spell of their instincts, after all.) Not
because they have high-status positions. (A boss may have power over
others but little power over himself.)
Rather, those with a lot of free will have earned that privilege by taking
strong measures to dissolve the conditioning they absorbed while growing
up. They've acted on the advice of psychologist Carl Jung: "Until you
make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it
fate."
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Wherever you stand, be the soul of the place.
-Rumi
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MY THOUGHTS ON THE CURRENT TROUBLES
If you'd care to read my thoughts and research concerning recent political
and cultural events, you can find them here:
https://tinyurl.com/yac54gft
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MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:
Good news: There was a 75 percent increase in women of color among
nominees for Congress in 2018 compared with 2012.
A record number of women ran and won in the primaries, and an
unprecedented number of LGBTQ candidates also ran and have won so
far.
https://tinyurl.com/ycjley8g
9 Stats On Women Running For Office In 2018 That Will Get You Fired Up:
https://tinyurl.com/yd5bpqbg
A record number of women stepped up for U.S. House and Senate races—
524. Overall, almost half of the women who ran won their primary.
https://tinyurl.com/y7gshpuw
More than 40,000 US women have expressed interest in running for office
since the 2016 election.Emily's List, a political action committee focused
on enlisting pro-choice female candidates for office, announced the
figures of those running for office since November 2016 – a dramatic
increase from the less than 1,000 women who reached out to them
during the last election cycle.
https://tinyurl.com/yantndcd
Since 2016, a number of groups have emerged to work towards the
election of explicitly progressive Democrats. As of this August, 41
percent of the Democratic candidates who received an endorsement from
one or more of these progressive groups won their primary races as
Democrats.
https://tinyurl.com/yajghqxj
Please tell me your own nominations for PRONOIA RESOURCES:
Truthrooster@gmail.com.
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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY
Week beginning October 18
Copyright 2018 by Rob Brezsny
http://www.freewillastrology.com/horoscopes/
Grammar key: Asterisks equal *italics*
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): "There are works which wait, and which one
does not understand for a long time," wrote Libran author Oscar Wilde.
"The reason is that they bring answers to questions which have not yet
been raised; for the question often arrives a long time after the answer."
That's the weird news, Libra. You have been waiting and waiting to
understand a project that you set in motion many moons ago. It has been
frustrating to give so much energy to a goal that has sometimes
confused you. But here's the good news: Soon you will finally formulate
the question your project has been the answer to. And so at last you will
understand it. You'll feel vindicated, illuminated, and resolved.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Many seekers who read horoscope columns
want common-sense advice about love, career, money, and power. So I
hope I don't disappoint you by predicting that you will soon have a
mystical experience or spiritual epiphany. Let me add, however, that this
delightful surprise won't merely be an entertaining diversion with no
useful application. In fact, I suspect it will have the potential of inspiring
good ideas about love, career, money, or power. If I had to give the next
chapter of your life story a title, it might be "A Thousand Dollars' Worth
of Practical Magic."
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): In 1962, when she was 31 years old,
Sagittarian actress Rita Moreno won an Academy Award for her role in the
film *West Side Story*. In 2018, she attended the Oscars again, sporting
the same dress she'd worn for the ceremony 56 years before. I think the
coming weeks will be a great time for you, too, to reprise a splashy event
or two from the past. You'll generate soul power by reconnecting with
your roots. You'll tonify and harmonize your mental health by establishing
a symbolic link with your earlier self.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): The Committee to Reward Unsung Good
Deeds hereby acknowledges your meritorious service in the trenches of
the daily routine. We praise your tireless efforts to make life less chaotic
and more coherent for everyone around you. We're grateful for the
patience and poise you demonstrate as you babysit adults who act like
children. And we are gratified by your capacity to keep long-term projects
on track in the face of trivial diversions and petty complaints. I know it's a
lot to ask, but could you please intensify your vigilance in the next three
weeks? We need your steadiness more than ever.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): You need a special pep talk that's best
provided by Aquarian poet Audre Lorde. Please meditate on these four
quotes by her. 1. "Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-
preservation. 2. "We have been raised to fear the yes within ourselves,
our deepest cravings." 3. "You cannot use someone else's fire. You can
only use your own. To do that, you must first be willing to believe you
have it." 4. "Nothing I accept about myself can be used against me to
diminish me." 5. "The learning process is something you can literally
incite, like a riot."
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Warning: My horoscopes may interfere with
your ability to rationalize your delusions; they could extinguish your
enthusiasm for clichés; they might cause you to stop repressing urges
that you really should express; and they may influence you to cultivate
the state of awareness known as "playful wisdom." Do you really want to
risk being exposed to such lavish amounts of inner freedom? If not, you
should stop reading now. But if you're as ripe for emancipating
adventures as I think you are, then get started on shedding any attitudes
and influences that might dampen your urge to romp and cavort and
carouse.
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WHY IS IT CALLED "FREE WILL" ASTROLOGY?
It's called Free Will Astrology because my goal is to create horoscopes
that nurture your free will.
Contrary to what some horoscope fans believe, there's no such thing as
predestination. Fate is a tricky sucker that keeps changing its mind about
where it wants to go. The stars may impel, as the astrological saying
goes, but they don't compel.
That's why I've never considered myself a fortuneteller. I prefer to think
that my greatest service is as a psychic intelligence agent, helping you
explore the hidden patterns and unconscious forces that may be affecting
your life without your full knowledge.
If I "predict" anything, it's not so much the future as the unknown part of
the present.
And if you ever want more than the 'scopes you're reading here, keep in
mind that I also create EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES for you. They're
four-to-five-minute meditations on the current state of your destiny.
To buy and listen to your Expanded Audio Horoscope online, go to
https://freewillastrology.sparkns.com
Register and/or log in through the main page.
The cost is $6 per sign on the Web (discounts available for bulk
purchases), or $1.99 per minute by phone. Each forecast is 4-5 minutes
long.
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ARIES (March 21-April 19): *Humraaz* is a word in the Urdu language. Its
literal meaning is "secret sharer." It refers to a confidante, a person in
whom you have full trust and to whom you can confess your core
feelings. Is there such a character in your life? If so, seek him or her out
for assistance in probing into the educational mysteries you have waded
into. If there is no such helper you can call on, I advise you to do
whatever's necessary to attract him or her into your sphere. A
collaborative quest may be the key to activating sleeping reserves of your
soul wisdom.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Taurus author Roberto Bolaño suggests that
the world contains more beauty than many people realize. The full scope
and intensity of this nourishing beauty "is only visible to those who love."
When he speaks of "those who love," I suspect he means deep-feeling
devotees of kindness and compassion, hard-working servants of the
greater good, and free-thinking practitioners of the Golden Rule. In any
case, Taurus, I believe you're in a phase when you have the potential to
see far more of the world's beauty. For best results, supercharge your
capacity to give and receive love.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Once upon a time you were walking along a
sidewalk when a fairy floated by and whispered, "I'm willing to grant you
three wishy-washy wishes for free. You don't have to do any favors for
me in return. But I will grant you three wonderfully wise wishes if you
perform three tasks for me." You asked the fairy, "What would those
three tasks be?" She replied, "The second task is that you must hoodwink
the devil into allowing you to shave his hairy legs. The third task is that
you must bamboozle God into allowing you to shave his bushy beard."
You laughed and said, "What's the first task?" The fairy touched you on
the nose with her tiny wand and said, "You must believe that the best
way to achieve the impossible is to attempt the absurd."
CANCER (June 21-July 22): You Crabs tend to be the stockpilers and
hoarders of the zodiac. The world's largest collections of antique door
knobs and Chinese restaurant menus and beer cans from the 1960s
belong to Cancerian accumulators. But in alignment with possibilities
hinted at by current astrological omens, I recommend that you redirect
this inclination so it serves you better. How? One way would be to gather
supplies of precious stuff that's really useful to you. Another way would
be to assemble a batch of blessings to bestow on people and animals who
provide you with support.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Chinese mythology tells us there used to be ten
suns, all born from the mother goddess Xi He. Every 24 hours, she bathed
her brood in the lake and placed them in a giant mulberry tree. From
there, one sun glided out into the sky to begin the day while the other
nine remained behind. It was a good arrangement. The week had ten days
back then, and each sun got its turn to shine. But the siblings eventually
grew restless with the staid rhythm. On one fateful morning, with a
playful flourish, they all soared into the heavens at once. It was fun for
them, but the earth grew so hot that nothing would grow. To the rescue
came the archer Hou Yi. With his flawless aim, he used his arrows to shoot
down nine of the suns, leaving one to provide just the right amount of
light and warmth. The old tales don't tell us, but I speculate that Hou Yi
was a Leo.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): You now have maximum command of a
capacity that's a great strength but also a potential liability: your piercing
brainpower. To help ensure that you wield this asset in ways that
empower you and don't sabotage you, here's advice from four wise
Virgos. 1. "Thought can organize the world so well that you are no longer
able to see it." — psychotherapist Anthony de Mello 2. "Keep some room
in your heart for the unimaginable." —poet Mary Oliver 3. "I like to wake
up each morning and not know what I think, that I may reinvent myself in
some way." —actor and writer Stephen Fry 4. "I wanted space to watch
things grow." —singer Florence Welch
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Homework: Forget all you know about gratitude. Act as if it's a new
emotion you're tuning into for the first time. Then let it rip.
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Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2018 Rob Brezsny
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