Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
December 5, 2018
+
See a pretty version of this newsletter: https://bit.ly/YouCreateChange
+
If you would like to contribute to me and my ongoing work, please visit
my Virtual Tip Jar at Paypal. It's here:
https://paypal.me/FreeWillAstrology
You can also contribute to my well-being by buying the Expanded Audio
Horoscopes I create. These forecasts are different in tone and content
from the written horoscopes I provide here. They're four- to five-minute-
long ruminations about the current chapter of your life story. They're
available at https://freewillastrology.sparkns.com/
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
PLAY AS A SPIRITUAL PRACTICE
Once, as an adult, psychologist Carl Jung took a break from work to stroll
on a beach. As he meandered, he was overcome with a spontaneous
impulse to build things as he did when he was a kid. He gathered stones
and sticks and used them to construct a miniature scene, including a
church.
As he finished, he was visited by a flood of novel insights about his life.
He concluded that his childlike play had called forth these revelations from
his unconscious mind.
That might sometimes be a worthwhile strategy for you. To access
important information that your deep mind has sequestered, go play a
while.
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
PLAYING EASILY IN THE DEEP
"Approfondissement"
is a French word
that means
"playing easily
in the deep."
—Tom Robbins
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
LEARNING COMES FROM PLAYING
"The ancient Greeks knew that learning comes from playing," writes Roger
von Oech in his book "A Whack on the Side of the Head: How You Can Be
More Creative." Their word for education, paideia, he says, was close to
their word for play, "paidia."
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
MEDITATION AS PLAY
"As a free deed, meditation is naturally individual, uniquely our own. It is
where we most fully become ourselves. Its practice is also always
individual.
"There are no rules. Just as every potter will elaborate his or her own way
of making pots, so every person who meditates will shape his or her own
meditation. No two people will do a given meditation in exactly the same
way. The same meditation practiced daily will be different every time.
"Every meditation is experimental. One never knows what is going to
happen. Improvisation is essential . . . Meditation is something to play with
. . . There is no 'wrong' way of doing the meditation, except not doing
it!"
- Christopher Bamford, *Start Now!: A Book of Soul and Spiritual
Exercises*
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
WE ARE FULLY HUMAN WHILE PLAYING
"We are fully human only while playing, and we play only when we are
human in the truest sense of the word."
-Rudolf Steiner
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
HOW MUCH COURAGE IS NEEDED TO PLAY
The research of the Beauty and Truth Lab is made possible in part by the
largesse of Boris Pasternak's poem "Bacchanalia," which includes these
words:
"How much courage is needed
to play forever,
as the ravines play,
as the river plays."
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
YOU ARE A MUTANT DEITY
You are a mutant deity in disguise—not a Buddha or a Christ exactly, but
of the same lineage and conjured from the same fire. You have been
around since the beginning of time and will be here after the end. Every
day and in every way, you're getting better at playing the preposterously
amusing master game we all dreamed up together before the Big Bang
bloomed.
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
DISRUPTIVE PLAY
*Disruptive Play: The Trickster in Politics and Culture*
by Shepherd Siegel: https://tinyurl.com/y7dhktkh
Description of the book:
"In a world ruled by conflict and competition, non-competitive play is
insurrection.
"Mischief-makers and culture jammers have transformed society again and
again, from ancient folkloric appearances of the Trickster as Raven and
È_ù-Elegba, to the twentieth century's dada and hippies, to contemporary
social actors like the graffiti artist Banksy.
"Original Play is the frolic and noncompetitive play that animals and
human babies do in order to have fun and to keep on playing -- not to win
or to lose. It is a substance of the universe that occurs in all life. It is the
behavior by which love and belonging are expressed, given, and received.
"When play moves into contest or other roles and rules, with winners and
losers, it becomes Cultural Play. Issues of ego and narcissism are issues
for Cultural Play, not for Original Play.
"Disruptive Play occurs in the rare times when the rhythms of Original
Play suddenly appear in a political or cultural setting, settings
conventionally fraught with Cultural Play. Like driving a clown car across
the field during an official NFL game. Or Raven tricking Chief into releasing
the sun, the moon, and the stars into the sky. Or a surreptitious Banksy
graffiti that invades a museum or the public commons. Tricking power
into performing an act of love.
"Disruptive Play: The Trickster In Politics and Culture connects knowledge
from mythology, folklore, popular culture, art, politics, and play theory to
make its case that to be playful means not taking power seriously. At
critical mass, power collapses and leaves us swimming about in the waters
of the amoral Trickster. New values emerge and could lead to some
version of the dystopia that currently drenches popular culture.
"Or, if people can discern between the authentic contact and exhilaration
of play, and branded, mediated, alienated pleasure, then we just might
stumble and frolic our way to the Play Society.
"Disruptive Play is ideal for enthusiasts of the human condition and those
who hold out for the vision, however slim, of the Play Society."
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
Lila: The cosmos is a manifestation of the creative play of God and
Goddess.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lila_(Hinduism)
+
Western science and religion have differing views on how the universe was
created, but they agree that it happened a long time ago.
The mystery schools of the West, on the other hand, assert that the
universe is re-created anew in every moment through the divine erotic
play of God and Goddess. They say that if we humans treat lovemaking as
an experimental sacrament, we can attune ourselves to the union of the
two primal deities and, in a sense, participate in the ongoing creation of
the world.
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
THE IMPORTANCE OF PLAY
The Importance Of Play:
https://tinyurl.com/y72yfupb
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
A STUDY OF THE PLAY ELEMENT IN CULTURE
*Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play-Element in Culture*
https://tinyurl.com/y8bk29bu
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
HOW TO FIND GOOD NEWS
Experiment: Imprint yourself with the intention that, say, 25% of the
time, you will seek out the GOOD news instead of the BAD stuff -- that
you will regard tales of affliction and mayhem and corruption and tragedy
as no more interesting or worthy of your attention than tales of triumph
and liberation and pleasure and ingenuity.
If this idea appeals to you, here are sources of GOOD news to get you
started:
Yes magazine: http://yesmagazine.org/
Good News Network: http://goodnewsnetwork.org/
Celebrate Small Victories: https://celebratesmallvictories.com/archives/
Reddit Uplifting News: http://reddit.com/r/UpliftingNews
New York Times' Good News section: https://tinyurl.com/ya2hpe9e
Heroic Stories: http://heroicstories.com/
(Note: I endorse these because I like them. They aren't advertisements,
and I get no kickbacks.)
Please tell me your own nominations for PRONOIA RESOURCES:
Truthrooster@gmail.com.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
FREE WILL ASTROLOGY
Week beginning December 6
Copyright 2018 by Rob Brezsny
http://www.freewillastrology.com/horoscopes/
Grammar key: Asterisks equal *italics*
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Robert Louis Stevenson published his
gothic novel *Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde* in 1886. It was a
bestseller, and quickly got turned into a theatrical production. In the
ensuing 132 years, there have been well over a hundred further
adaptations of the story into film and stage productions. Here's the funny
thing about this influential work: Stevenson wrote it fast. It took him
three feverish days to get the gist of it, and just another six weeks to
revise. Some biographers say he was high on drugs during the initial burst,
perhaps cocaine. I suspect you could also produce some robust and
interesting creation in the coming weeks, Sagittarius—and you won't even
need cocaine to fuel you.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): A blogger on Tumblr named Ffsshh
composed a set of guidelines that I think will be apt and useful for you to
draw on in the coming weeks. Please study these suggestions and adapt
them for your healing process. "Draw stick figures. Sing off-key. Write
bad poems. Sew ugly clothes. Run slowly. Flirt clumsily. Play video games
on 'easy.' OK? You do not need to be good at something to enjoy it.
Sometimes talent is overrated. Do things you like doing just because you
like doing them. It's OK to suck."
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Aquarian athlete Michael Jordan is the
greatest basketball player who ever lived. He was also the first to become
a billionaire. But when he was growing up, he didn't foresee the glory that
awaited him. For example, in high school he took a home economics class
so as to acquire cooking abilities. Why? He imagined that as an adult he
might have to prepare all of his own meals. His ears were so huge and
ungainly, he reasoned, that no woman would want to be his wife. So the
bad news was that he suffered from a delusion. The good news was that
because of his delusion, he learned a useful skill. I foresee a similar
progression for you, Aquarius. Something you did that was motivated by
misguided or irrelevant ideas may yield positive results.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): The Bible does not say that Mary Magdalene
was a prostitute or even a "sinner." There's no mention of her sexual
proclivities at all. Delusional ideas about her arose in the Middle Ages,
instigated by priests who confused her with other women in the Bible. The
truth is that the Bible names her as a key ally to Christ, and the crucial
witness to his resurrection. Fortunately, a number of scholars and church
leaders have in recent years been working to correct her reputation. I
invite you to be motivated and inspired by this transformation as you
take steps to adjust and polish your own image during the coming weeks.
It's time to get your public and private selves into closer alignment.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): When I write a horoscope for you, I focus on
one or two questions because I don't have room to cover every single
aspect of your life. The theme I've chosen this time may seem a bit
impractical, but if you take it to heart, I guarantee you it will have
practical benefits. It comes from Italian author Umberto Eco. He wrote,
"Perhaps the mission of those who love humanity is to make people laugh
at the truth, to make truth laugh, because the only truth lies in learning
to free ourselves from insane passion for the truth." I swear to you, Aries,
that if you laugh at the truth and make the truth laugh in the coming
days, you will be guided to do all the right and necessary things.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): You have a cosmic mandate and a poetic
license to stir up far more erotic fantasies than usual. It'll be healthy for
you to unleash many new thoughts about sexual experiments that would
be fun to try and novel feelings you'd like to explore and people whose
naked flesh you'd be interested to experience sliding and gliding against
yours. But please note that the cosmic mandate and poetic license do not
necessarily extend to you acting out your fantasies. The important thing
is to let your imagination run wild. That will catalyze a psychic healing you
didn't even realize you needed.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
LOSING WHAT'S NO GOOD FOR YOU
An earthy psychic once told me that my first name "Rob" is an apt
description of my spiritual function. "You're here on earth to rob people
of their godawful belief that life is a bitch," she advised me. "Your job is
to steal away the habits that sap their life energy; to rip off the sorry-ass
dogmas that blind them to the wondrous feats their imaginations are
capable of."
I don't know if I have fully earned that glowing promise, but I certainly
aspire to do so.
If you ever want more information and inspiration generated in this spirit -
- beyond the horoscopes you're reading here -- keep in mind that every
week I also offer EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES for you. They're four-to-
five-minute meditations on the current state of your destiny.
These forecasts are different in tone and format from the written
horoscopes you read here in the newsletter. They're longer and more
leisurely in tone. 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
https://freewillastrology.sparkns.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.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): In my continuing efforts to help you want what
you need and need what you want, I've collected four wise quotes that
address your looming opportunities. 1. "What are you willing to give up, in
order to become who you really need to be?" —author Elizabeth Gilbert 2.
"Leave the door open for the unknown, the door into the dark. That's
where the most important things come from." —Rebecca Solnit 3. "You
enter the extraordinary by way of the ordinary." _Frederick Buechner 4.
"Happiness is like a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our
grasp, but, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you." _Nathaniel
Hawthorne
CANCER (June 21-July 22): I've called on author Robert Heinlein to
provide your horoscope. According to my astrological analysis, his
insights are exactly what you need to focus on right now. "Do not
confuse 'duty' with what other people expect of you," he wrote. "They
are utterly different. Duty is a debt you owe to yourself to fulfill
obligations you have assumed voluntarily. Paying that debt can entail
anything from years of patient work to instant willingness to die. Difficult
it may be, but the reward is self-respect. But there is no reward at all for
doing what other people expect of you, and to do so is not merely
difficult, but impossible."
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): What does "beauty" mean to you? What sights,
sounds, images, qualities, thoughts, and behavior do you regard as
beautiful? Whatever your answers might be to those questions right now,
I suggest you expand and deepen your definitions in the coming weeks.
You're at a perfect pivot point to invite more gorgeous, lyrical grace into
your life; to seek out more elegance and charm and artistry; to cultivate
more alluring, delightful magic.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): You know the expiration dates that appear on
the labels of the prescription drugs you buy? They don't mean that the
drugs lose their potency after that date. In fact, most drugs are still quite
effective for at least another ten years. Let's use this fact as a metaphor
for a certain resource or influence in your life that you fear is used up or
defunct. I'm guessing it still has a lot to offer you, although you will have
to shift your thinking in order to make its reserves fully available.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Libran rapper Eminem is renowned for his
verbal skill. It may be best exemplified in his song "Rap God," in which he
delivers 1,560 words in six minutes and four seconds, or 4.28 words per
second. In one stretch, he crams in 97 words in 15 seconds, achieving a
pace of 6.5 words per second. I suspect that in the coming weeks, you
will also be unusually adept at using words, although your forte will be
potent profundity rather than sheer speed. I encourage you to prepare by
making a list of the situations where your enhanced powers of persuasion
will be most useful.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): In May of 1883, the newly built Brooklyn
Bridge opened for traffic. Spanning the East River to link Manhattan and
Brooklyn, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world. But almost
immediately people spread rumors that it was unstable. There was a
growing fear that it might even crumble and fall. That's when charismatic
showman P. T. Barnum stepped in. He arranged to march 21 elephants
across the bridge. There was no collapse, and so the rumors quickly died. I
regard the coming weeks as a time when you should take inspiration from
Barnum. Provide proof that will dispel gossipy doubt. Drive away
superstitious fear with dramatic gestures. Demonstrate how strong and
viable your improvements really are.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Homework: Imagine that one of your heroes comes to you and says,
"Teach me the most important things you know." What do you say?
FreeWillAstrology.com.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
NEED TO CHANGE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS?
To join or leave the email list for this newsletter, or to change the address
where you receive it, go to:
http://www.freewillastrology.com/newsletter/
Once you join, check these points to ensure you'll actually receive the
newsletter:
1. Add my address, televisionary@comcast.net, to your address book so
that the newsletter won't be treated as spam and filtered out.
2. Adjust your spam filter so it doesn't treat my address as spam.
3. Tell your company's IT group to let my address pass through any
filtering software they have set up.
4. If my newsletters don't reach your inbox, look in your "Bulk Mail" or
"Junk Mail" folder.
5. Problems could originate with your email provider. It may be using a
"content filter" that prevents my newsletter from reaching you. If you
suspect that's true, complain. Tell your email provider to stop blocking
my newsletter.
P.S. I totally respect your privacy. I'll never sell or give away your address
to anyone.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Submissions sent to Rob Brezsny's Astrology 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 submissions for length, style, and content.
Requests for anonymity will be honored. We are not responsible for
unsolicited submission of any creative material.
Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2018 Rob Brezsny
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++