Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
AUGUST 6, 2008
FreeWillAstrology.com
Rob Brezsny performs this Friday, 8.08.08
SOUL REVIVAL and SACRED UPROAR
A Benefit for Temple Pantheogenesis
at Entheon Village, Burning Man
Irreverend Rob leads the congregation through a Soul Revival
service that features raucous prayers, Dionysian sermons, chaotic
meditations, tender rants, and praise songs. Accompanied by guitarist
Josh Brill and vocalist Jessica Rice.
Friday, 8.08.08
Anon Gallery
285 9th Street @ Folsom
San Francisco
9 pm - 4 am
Suggested donation $15-$30
For further info: tinyurl.com/6esajd
Rob and friends are on from about 10:15 to 11:15. The night also
includes a dance party, visionary art, shrine creation, elevating
films, and a full bar. For the full schedule, go to the website.
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"If Spirit has any meaning, it must be omnipresent, or all-pervading
and all-encompassing. There can't be a place where Spirit is not,
or it wouldn't be infinite. Therefore, Spirit has to be completely
present, right here, right now, in your own awareness. That is,
your own present awareness, precisely as it is, without changing
it or altering it in any way, is perfectly and completely permeated
by Spirit.
"Furthermore, it is not that Spirit is present but you need
to be enlightened in order to see it. It is not that you are one
with Spirit but just don't know it yet. Because that would also
imply that there is some place Spirit is not. No, according to
Dzogchen, you are always already one with Spirit, and that awareness
is always already fully present, right now. You are looking directly
at Spirit, with Spirit, in every act of awareness. There is nowhere
Spirit is not.
"Further, if Spirit has any meaning at all, then it must
be eternal, or without beginning or end. If Spirit had a beginning
in time, then it would be strictly temporal, it would not be timeless
and eternal. And this means, as regards your own awareness, that
you cannot become enlightened. You cannot attain enlightenment.
If you could attain enlightenment, then that state would have
a beginning in time, and so it would not be true enlightenment.
"Rather, Spirit, and enlightenment, has to be something
that you are fully aware of right now. Something you are already
looking at right now. We are all already looking directly at Spirit,
we just don't recognize it. We have all the necessary cognition,
but not the recognition."
- Ken Wilber, Grace and Grit: Spirituality and Healing in
the Life and Death of Treya Killam Wilber
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My book
PRONOIA IS THE ANTIDOTE FOR PARANOIA:
How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings
is available for sale at
tinyurl.com/qaj62
Here's an excerpt:
WHAT IF YOUR DESIRES ARE HOLY?
Some religious traditions teach the doctrine, "Kill off
your longings." In their view, attachment to desire is at
the root of human suffering. But the religion of materialism takes
the opposite tack, asserting that the meaning of life is to be
found in indulging desires. Its creed is, "Feed your cravings
like a French foie gras farmer cramming eight pounds of maize
down a goose’s gullet every day."
At the Beauty and Truth Lab, we walk a middle path. We believe
there are both degrading desires that enslave you and sacred desires
that liberate you.
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Psychologist Carl Jung believed that all desires have a sacred
origin, no matter how odd they may seem. Frustration and ignorance
may contort them into distorted caricatures, but it is always
possible to locate the divine source from which they arose. In
describing one of his addictive patients, Jung said: "His
craving for alcohol was the equivalent on a low level of the spiritual
thirst for wholeness, or as expressed in medieval language: the
union with God."
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Therapist James Hillman echoes the theme: "Psychology regards
all symptoms to be expressing the right thing in the wrong way."
A preoccupation with porn or romance novels, for instance, may
come to dominate a passionate person whose quest for love has
degenerated into an obsession with images of love. "Follow
the lead of your symptoms," Hillman suggests, "for there’s
usually a myth in the mess, and a mess is an expression of soul."
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In Maldoror and Poems, the French poet Lautréamont
wrote about holy yearning disguised as mournful complaint. "Whenever
you hear the dogs’ howling in the fields," his mother
told him as a child, "don’t deride what they do: They
thirst insatiably for the infinite, like you, me, and the rest
of us humans. I even allow you to stand at the window and gaze
upon this exalted spectacle."
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"Mad! One must become mad with love in order to realize
God. When a person attains ecstatic love of God, all the pores
of the skin, even the roots of the hair, become like so many sex
organs, and in every pore the aspirant enjoys the happiness of
communion with the Supreme Universal Self."
- Ramakrishna
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Like all of us, you have desires for things that you don't really
need and aren't good for you. But you shouldn't disparage yourself
for having them, nor should you conclude that every desire is
tainted. Rather, think of your misguided longings as the bumbling,
amateur expressions of a faculty that will one day be far more
expert. They're how you practice as you work toward the goal of
becoming a master of desire. It may take a while, but eventually
you will get the hang of wanting things that are really good for
you, and good for everyone else, too.
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"The only way anyone is ever cured of desiring nonsensical
things is by getting the nonsensical things and then experiencing
the unpleasant but educational consequences."
- Ann Davies, bota.org
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"To become a master of desire, keep talking yourself out
of being attached to trivial goals and keep talking yourself into
being thrilled about the precious few goals that are really important.
Here's another way to say it: Wean yourself from ego-driven desires
and pour your libido into a longing for beauty, truth, goodness,
justice, integrity, creativity, love, and an intimate relationship
with the Wild Divine."
- Raye Sangfreud, "Black Market Orchids," Underground
Pronoia
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"God has desires. Since I want to be close to God and to
model myself after God, I therefore don't aspire to extinguish
my desires, but rather to make my desires more God-like: i.e.,
imbued with an inexorable ambition to create the greatest and
most interesting blessings for everyone and everything."
- Collin Klamper
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"When I hold you, I hold everything: ruby-throated hummingbirds
sipping from plum flowers, mangoes ripening in the smoke of burning
forests, crones praying in the foamy sand at low tide, shocked
waterfalls gracing new housing developments, volcanoes drinking
in the fragrance of the stars. In your eyes I see everything that
lives."
- mash-up of Pablo Neruda and Rob Brezsny
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Imagine it's 30 years from now. You're looking back at the history
of your relationship with desire. There was a certain watershed
moment when you clearly saw that some of your desires were mediocre,
inferior, and wasteful, while others were pure, righteous, and
invigorating. Beginning then, you made it a life goal to purge
the former and cultivate the latter. Thereafter, you occasionally
wandered down dead ends trying to gratify yearnings that weren't
worthy of you, but usually you wielded your passions with discrimination,
dedicating them to serve the highest and most interesting good.
. . . To read all of
"WHAT IF YOUR DESIRES ARE HOLY" (some has been censored
so as to avoid being crushed by spam filters), go here:
tinyurl.com/3d6hut
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To read news and features from my book, go here: tinyurl.com/lhwx2
You can buy the book here:
AMAZON
tinyurl.com/qaj62
POWELLS
tinyurl.com/3dsx6q
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OTHER PRONOIA RESOURCES:
AMAZING PEOPLE ARE WORKING BEHIND THE SCENES TO HELP US ALL
"Major discovery from MIT primed to unleash solar revolution:
Scientists mimic essence of plants' energy storage system"
"In a revolutionary leap that could transform solar power
from a marginal, boutique alternative into a mainstream energy
source, MIT researchers have overcome a major barrier to large-scale
solar power: storing energy for use when the sun doesn't shine."
tinyurl.com/5uu53h
IMPERFECTLY PERFECT PRONOIAC SOLUTIONS
A Life Saver Called "Plumpynut"
Not as many Nigerian kids are starving
tinyurl.com/5agou5
PRONOIA + CONTROVERSY = PROTOVERSY
Instead of a controversy, start a protoversy.
"The world's a big enough place for a diverse ecology of
successes."
torley.com/start-a-protroversy-today
(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 August 7
Copyright 2008 by Rob Brezsny
FreeWillAstrology.com
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
When British rock legend David Bowie came to America for his
first tour in 1973, he said he felt like a fly in a glass of milk.
He was half-drowning in a flood of interesting new sensations
and perceptions, while at the same time he was greedily drinking
it all in, stoked with fascinated joy. According to my astrological
projections, Leo, you're in that fly-in-the-milk state yourself,
or will soon be.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
The light in your eyes looks a little foggy, Virgo. The fire
in your belly seems to be smoldering, and your brain has been
hiccupping. At least your heart isn't exactly broken. (Though
I'm tempted to make suggestions about how to fix it anyway.) Am
I worried? Not at all. After the nonstop breakthroughs you enjoyed
there for a while, I expected that you would eventually need time
to slow down and let everything sink in. So I suggest that you
cultivate a state of low-key contentment as your deep mind integrates
the transformations you set in motion.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
I'm not a fan of renowned free-market guru Milton Friedman, who
died in 2006. His philosophy has wreaked more suffering on the
world than any since Communism. (Read Naomi Klein's The Shock
Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism for the gross details.)
There's one particular keystone of his belief system that is especially
important for you to rebel against in the coming weeks. He said
that "only a crisis -- actual or perceived -- produces real
change." In the name of all you hold holy, Libra, I ask you
to prove him wrong. Show yourself and everyone who looks to you
for inspiration that real change can be motivated by an exuberant
lust for life -- by a generous longing to risk adventures that
will yield greater rewards.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
The guy who gave his name to North and South America was a pickle
salesman and writer as well as an explorer. After a stint in Spain
selling his vitamin C-rich pickles to outbound ships, Amerigo
Vespucci got to travel to the New World in 1499 and 1502. The
stories he penned about his adventures there were highly imaginative,
like his description of giant native women with huge breasts who
employed poisonous fluids extracted from insects to super-size
their husbands' penises. I nominate Amerigo to be your role model
in the coming weeks, Scorpio. May you, too, do what comes natural
and be your funky self in ways that lead to glory and renown.
(My source for the info about Amerigo is Tony Horwitz's book A
Voyage Long and Strange: Rediscovering the New World.)
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LISTEN TO AN EXPANDED HOROSCOPE
In addition to the horoscopes that you read here, I create additional
in-depth audio horoscopes for your inspiration.
They're not repeats or elaborations of the stuff you find here,
but entirely fresh explorations of your astrological omens, designed
to help you tune in to your soul's code.
Try them at RealAstrology.com.
They're available by phone at 1-877-873-4888 or 1-900-950-7700.
They're $6 if you access them on the Web, or $1.99 per minute
over the phone.
"Your audio horoscopes help me love myself better, and I
mean that in a non-narcissistic way."
- Deva P., Indianapolis
"I'm really grateful for the way you pick up my telepathic
requests and answer them in your expanded audio 'scopes."
- Marion H., Birmingham, AL
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SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
"Two chemicals called actin and myosin evolved eons ago
to allow the muscles in insect wings to contract and relax,"
writes Deepak Chopra in The Book of Secrets."Today,
the same two proteins are responsible for the beating of the human
heart." Likewise, Sagittarius, actions you take or ideas
you embrace in the coming days will send reverberations deep into
your future. They will show up many years hence in altered form,
but imprinted with the essence you give them now. This is your
chance to bestow a profound blessing on the person you will later
become.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
Here's a passage from Kurt Vonnegut's novel Breakfast of
Champions:"Kilgore Trout once wrote a short story which
was a dialogue between two pieces of yeast. They were discussing
the possible purposes of life as they ate sugar and suffocated
in their own excrement. Because of their limited intelligence,
they never came close to guessing that they were making champagne."
This scenario has some resemblances to what you're doing, Capricorn.
Fortunately, you're much smarter than the two pieces of yeast,
and so you will not do the equivalent of drowning in crap. But
I bet you'll create something comparable to champagne.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
"The question of evil," writes psychologist James Hillman,
"refers primarily to the anaesthetized heart, the heart that
has no reaction to what it faces, thereby turning the variegated
sensuous face of the world into monotony, sameness, oneness."
Your assignment in the coming week, Aquarius, is to triumph over
this kind of evil in yourself. By whatever ingenious and imaginative
means you can dream up, you must awaken your heart fully to the
unpredictable, ever-shifting beauty and ugliness you encounter.
Drink it all in like a thirsty wanderer who has just emerged from
a long trek lost in the desert. [The source of Hillman's quote
is his book The Thought of the Heart and the Soul of the World.]
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
"Dear Rob: If you were, like me, setting out on a ten-year
project to become a beautiful truth-teller, having the simple
goal of actually expressing the things that Everyone Ought To
Say But Doesn't, what would you do? Other than to bother your
favorite truth-tellers for advice, of course! - Aspiring Fount
of Truth." Dear Aspiring Fount: In its highest expression,
the Piscean style of telling the truth is ripe with emotional
intelligence and a deep thoughtfulness that's devoted to staying
focused on the big picture. One of the best ways to increase your
mastery of this approach is to regularly tell yourself the truth
about yourself with kick-ass kindness.
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LISTEN TO AN EXPANDED HOROSCOPE
In addition to the horoscopes that you're reading here, I create
more in-depth audio horoscopes for your inspiration. Find out
more at RealAstrology.com.
The audio horoscopes are also available by phone at 1-877-873-4888
or 1-900-950-7700.
"The best part about your audio horoscopes is that they
pat me on the head and kick me in the ass at the same time."
- Rita L., San Diego
"Your audio oracles go beyond helping me find the truth
-- they inspire me to find the WILD truth."
- Patrick K., Montreal
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ARIES (March 21-April 19):
Do you get aroused from squeezing balloons until they explode?
Do you quiver with delight as you watch popcorn pop? Have you
ever been patient enough to stand in front of a ripe flower bud
for hours to witness its slow explosion into full opening? If
you answered yes to any of those questions, you're in for an orgasmically
pleasing week, Aries. Lots of things are going to change into
something else through the process of eruption or sprouting or
bursting forth. I bet you'll dream of undersea volcanoes spurting.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
In my vision of your ideal future, you would spend the next two
weeks both way out on the frontier and yet close to home. Paradoxical?
Yes, but that's the magic and mystery of the unusual opportunity
you have before you. Don't just take my word for it, Taurus: Meditate
on how you could wander free on the outskirts of everything you
know even as you feel as stable and secure as a monarch in your
castle. Be on a far-flung adventure even as you draw deeply from
the mother lode. Enjoy the pleasures of unexplored territory as
you draw on the power of the familiar.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
Although the platypus is technically a furry mammal, a new study
of its genetic code reveals that it also has some qualities common
to birds and reptiles. It lays eggs and has venom like a snake
and a bill like a duck. Sounds like it's the perfect creature
to serve as your totem in the coming week, Gemini. Life will bring
you unexpected mixtures and improbable hybrids. You won't be able
to make sense of your experience if you rely on your usual categories.
And I think you'll find that the best way to attract good fortune
will be to weave together threads of different colors and textures.
CANCER (June 21-July 22):
Write down five exciting things you love to do or think about.
Take this list with you everywhere you go. On another piece of
paper, name five fears or unpleasant thoughts that demoralize
you. Put this list at the back of your closet. For the next seven
days, try to refrain from letting your mind wander to the things
on the bad list. Meanwhile, undertake an aggressive campaign to
cultivate, seek out, and enjoy the five exciting things that you
love to do and think about. In fact, any time you notice your
attention veering toward the negative stuff, immediately steer
it toward the positive. Don't worry, this exercise won't turn
you into a brain-dead optimist. After all, you'll only do it for
a week. The items on the second list will still be there when
you're done. Or will they? Maybe they will have mutated into something
more manageable.
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HOMEWORK:
Make a game out of a situation you're bored by or in dread of.
In other words, find a way to play in a place where you've been
stuck. Report your results by going to FreeWillAstrology.com
and clicking on "Email Rob."
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WANT TO GET YOUR CHART DONE?
I'm not doing personal charts, but I highly recommend my astrological
colleague, RO LOUGHRAN. Her approach closely matches my own. In
our many discussions about astrology over the years, we've had
a major influence on each other's work.
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 YourSoulJourney.com
She can also be reached at roloughran@comcast.net
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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,
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Astrology column, and Free Will
Astrology website. We reserve
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for length, style, and content.
Requests for anonymity will be
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otherwise, reader names, screen
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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
2008 Rob Brezsny
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