Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
JUNE 4, 2008
FreeWillAstrology.com
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MANIC SCREAMING
We should make all spiritual talk
Simple today:
God is trying to sell you something,
But you don't want to buy.
That is what your suffering is:
Your fantastic haggling,
Your manic screaming over the price.
- Hafiz, translated by Daniel Ladinsky, I Heard God Laughing
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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:
EVIL IS BORING
When an old tree in the rain forest dies and topples over, it
takes a long time to decompose. As it does, it becomes host to
new saplings that use the decaying log for nourishment.
Picture yourself sitting in the forest gazing upon this scene.
How do you describe it? Would you dwell on the putrefaction of
the fallen tree while ignoring the fresh life sprouting out of
it? If you did, you'd be imitating the perspective of many modern
storytellers, especially the journalists and novelists and filmmakers
and producers of TV dramas.
They devoutly believe that tales of affliction and mayhem and
corruption and tragedy are inherently more interesting than tales
of triumph and liberation and pleasure and ingenuity. Using the
machinery of the media and entertainment industries, they relentlessly
propagate this covert dogma. It's not sufficiently profound or
well thought out to be called nihilism. Pop nihilism is a more
accurate term. The mass audience is the victim of this inane ugliness,
brainwashed by a multibillion-dollar propaganda machine that in
comparison makes Himmler's vaunted soul-stealing apparatus look
like a child's backyard puppet show.
At the Beauty and Truth Laboratory, we believe that stories about
the rot are not inherently more captivating than stories about
the splendor. On the contrary, given how predictable and omnipresent
the former have become, they are actually quite dull. Obsessing
on evil is boring. Rousing fear is a hackneyed shtick. Wallowing
in despair is a bad habit. Indulging in cynicism is akin to committing
a copycat crime.
Most modern storytellers go even further in their devotion to
the rot, implying that breakdown is not only more interesting
but far more common than breakthrough. We reject this assumption
as well. We don't believe that entropy dominates the human experience.
Even factoring in the prevailing misery in the Middle East and
Africa, we doubt that the Global Bad Nasty Ratio ever exceeds
50 percent. And here in the West, where most of you reading this
live, the proportion is lower.
Still, we're willing to let the news media fill up half their
pages and airwaves and bandwidths with poker-faced accounts of
decline and degeneration. We can tolerate a reasonable proportion
of movies and novels and TV dramas that revel in pathology. But
we also demand EQUAL TIME for stories about integrity and joy
and beauty and bliss and renewal and harmony and love. That's
all we ask: a mere 50 percent . . . .
For the rest of "EVIL IS BORING," excerpted from
PRONOIA Is the Antidote for Paranoia,
go here: tinyurl.com/2crfdf
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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:
SACRED ACTIVISM
"Sacred activism is the fusion of the mystic's passion for
God with the activist's passion for justice, creating a third
fire, which is the burning sacred heart that longs to help, preserve,
and nurture every living thing."
"Andrew Harvey on Sacred Activism, the Divine Feminine, and
Loving George W. Bush" by Andrew Lawler in The Sun
tinyurl.com/6e7x9k
MUSIC TO OUTWIT CYNICISM BY
"I Love Everyone" by Phil Roy
from his album The Great Longing
tinyurl.com/6o6prc
GOD'S NOT SERIOUS?
I Heard God Laughing by Hafiz, translated by Daniel Ladinsky,
tinyurl.com/4fjkhd
ARCHIVES OF THESE PRONOIAC RESOURCES
This is a website that is in the process of archiving all the
pronoaic resources I call your attention to in this newsletter.
The posts are categorized and tagged, and there's built-in search.
pronoiaresources.wordpress.com
(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 June 5
Copyright 2008 by Rob Brezsny
FreeWillAstrology.com
GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
"The truth is always more interesting that your
preconception of what it might be," says author Steven Levy.
Journalists "should not have the stories written out in their
heads before they report them. Preconceptions can blind you to
the full, rich human reality that awaits you when you actually
listen to your subjects and approach the material with an open
mind." I think that's an excellent strategy to use even if
you're not a journalist -- and especially for you right now, while
you're in a phase when the healing shock of the new is available
everywhere you go.
CANCER (June 21-July 22):
Whatever you do, Cancerian, DON'T open the door of that closet
that hasn't been opened in years. DON'T poke your nose into the
funny business that has been going on behind the scenes. DON'T
peek inside Pandora's other box, or pick the fruit of
temptation off the tree of knowledge, or rush in, like a trusting
fool, where angels fear to tread. DON'T do any of these controversial,
forbidden things, my dear Crab -- unless you want to risk embarking
on some enigmatic, elemental, enlightening adventures.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
I happen to like The Bees Made Honey in the Lion's Skull,
a CD by sludge rockers Earth. But I'm not urging you to get a
copy of it so much as I'm suggesting that you carry out a metaphorical
equivalent of what the album's title describes. This is a perfect
time for you to create something sweet in a situation that once
scared the sleep out of you.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
In the ancient text known as the Sutra of Forty-two Chapters,
the Buddha is quoted as saying, "My doctrine is to think
the thought that is unthinkable, to practice the deed that is
unperformable, to speak the speech that is inexpressible, and
to be trained in the discipline that is beyond discipline."
Those happen to be your tough assignments in the coming week,
Virgo. You will actually have a good chance at succeeding if you
refuse to be excessively sober and serious in your approach. The
more fun you have and the more playful your style is, the greater
the likelihood is that you will pull off subtle yet spectacular
feats that may seem impossible to more no-nonsense people.
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LISTEN TO AN EXPANDED HOROSCOPE
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.
Try them at RealAstrology.com.
They're available by phone at 1-877-873-4888 or 1-900-950-7700.
"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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LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
"Dear Dr. Brezsny: I love my weekly dose of astrological
wit, but I've got to say that if I had all the fun and revelry
you predict, I wouldn't be a morose meandering malcontent, as
I am now. And if I had even half of the flirting and romance that
your prophecies promise, I certainly wouldn't be home on Saturday
nights playing World of Warcraft. I must conclude that you're
living in a different dimension than I am. So how do I get over
there to where you are? - Up-in-the-Air Libra." Dear Up-in-the-Air:
Funny you should mention this. Due to a rare crack in the space-time
continuum, there's currently a wormhole between my dimension and
the dimension where up-in-the-air Libras live. Come on over! You'll
know you're near the portal when you feel an urge to exuberantly
leap up off your feet for no reason.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
Please join me in a boycott of horoscope columns and astrology
books that insinuate all Scorpios are cruel, perverted, power-mad
jealousy freaks. Let's refuse to read those propagandists until
they cease and desist from brainwashing the masses into directing
bigotry toward your tribe. It's true that there are some less-evolved
Scorpios who speed up their cars to run over small animals and
treat romance as a game in which there can be only one winner.
But do we demonize all scientists simply because a few mad physicists
created weapons of mass destruction? Of course not. I hereby proclaim
June to be Scorpio Pride Month -- a time to celebrate your winning
qualities, especially your unparalleled skill at helping to activate
the dormant potentials of people you care about. Promise me you'll
do that even more intensely than usual.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
"Take time to stop and smell the flowers," says an
old homily. Albert Hoffman, the Swiss scientist who discovered
LSD and lived to age 102, had a different approach. "Take
the time to stop and be the flowers," he said. That's
my advice to you, Sagittarius. Don't just set aside a few stolen
moments to sniff the snapdragons, taste the rain, chase the wind,
watch the hummingbirds, and listen to a friend. Use your imagination
to actually BE the snapdragons and rain and wind and hummingbirds
and friend. It's time to not just behold the Other, but to become
the Other.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
What Martin Luther King Jr. said about epic struggles in the
political arena is also apt for you in your private life, especially
now: "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can
do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that."
I recommend that you translate his advice into the intimate details
of your relationships. If you really do that with the irresistible
force of your burning conviction, you will prove another one of
King's excellent thoughts: "Unarmed truth and unconditional
love will have the final word in reality."
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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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AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
Scientists used to believe that a butterfly has no recollection
of its previous life as a caterpillar. The pupa breaks down into
primal goo during its metamorphosis, they said, erasing all trace
of its caterpillar brain. But new research suggests that there
is in fact continuity. At least some of what the caterpillar learned
remains available to the butterfly. As you carry out your own
personal mutation in the coming months, Aquarius, I believe you
will experience a similar process, thus ensuring that the New
You has most of the wisdom that the Old You possessed.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
It's Blame All Your Problems on God Week. You have license to
shun responsibility for the pain you feel and the messes you've
made, and instead ascribe it all to the Divine Mischief Maker.
The secret of achieving success in this enterprise is to act as
if your dilemmas really do have nothing to do with anything you've
done, but have been entirely caused by God's mistakes, his intentional
cruelty, or his wicked sense of humor. By the way, Accept Total
Responsibility for Your Problems Week is coming up next, and to
observe that holiday correctly you will have to be thoroughly
sincere about this week's. P.S. It's crucial that you really do
blame everything on God, and not on actual human beings. P.P.S.
If you're an atheist, it's Blame All Your Problems on Your Parents
Week.
ARIES (March 21-April 19):
Since authoring the book Brazen Careerist: The New Rules
for Success, Penelope Trunk has written a blog that offers
further advice. Recently she wrote about a subject I'd love for
you to think about: mentors. You're in a phase when you have a
heightened knack for identifying and attracting and learning from
the guides you need. Here's one of Trunk's most crucial points:
To take maximum advantage of your teachers, ask them what questions
you should be asking them. Don't assume you always know what you
need to find out. (You can read Trunk's post at tinyurl.com/5ofj9x.)
TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
"Woodsman Claims: 'Lady Bigfoot Kept Me as Her Love Slave!'"
That was the headline of a report in the Weekly World News.
In addition to providing fascinating details about the man's captivity,
the article also had a helpful section on the jobs most likely
to get someone kidnapped by a female sasquatch. They included
lumberjack, surveyor, landscape artist, and ornithologist. In
my astrological opinion, that list should be amended, at least
for the next few weeks, to note that Taurus lumberjacks,
surveyors, landscape artists, and ornithologists are especially
susceptible. Why do I say that? Because according to my projections,
many of you Tauruses will be swept up in or profoundly influenced
by powerful feminine energy.
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HOMEWORK:
Talk yourself into being proud about something you've always
felt sheepish or shy about. Go to FreeWillAstrology.com
and click 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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Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2008 Rob Brezsny
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