Astrology of Joy

Author: David

  • Starlog January 2022: A New Beginning

    January 2022 through spring 2023

    According to your Sun sign:

    In Elemental Astrology, we examine human life according to three levels of consciousness: Body (physical body), Mind (mental/emotional body), and Spirit (energy body). Here we give a very brief overview of the prevailing influences upon your energy body currently unfolding in both Scorpio and Taurus now and through the spring of 2023 as determined by your sun sign.

    Sun Sign

    Self-image is harmed through our subconscious associations with pain and pleasure from countless past lives. These cause us to compulsively seek pleasure and avoid pain. However, because these actions are built upon past circumstances and situations that no longer exist, it is as if we are trying to build our life upon a cloud. In this sense, we are not being authentic to who we really are.

    Through the relationship between your sun sign and the nodes of the moon (points of eclipse), we can glimpse both the constrictive subconscious karmic impressions from past lives affecting your self-image and the opportunity to enrich your life through an expanding awareness of who you are — from the limiting self-identities you have gathered over lifetimes to an all-inclusive experience of oneness. The constriction arises from unconsciously holding onto the pain and pleasure of past lives which cause you to build walls of identities as a form of “protection”, e.g., I am old, I am young. I am black, I am white. I am a man, I am a woman. I am rich, I am poor. This attachment to what is limited and “small” leads to all sorts of afflictions: discontentment, depression, pride, jealousy, compulsive behaviour… even illness and disease.

    To offset these constrictive karmic patterns during this period, the sign of Taurus holds the key to forging a new identity by embracing conscious action in the areas listed below in association with your sun sign. For a more in-depth examination of these patterns and their corresponding effects upon your physical and mental/emotional bodies, you may find a dedicated astrological consultation helpful. You can find more information here.

    A brief overview of prevailing influences according to your sun sign for 2022:

    Aries
    A need to control harms your self-image and limits success in these areas: unearned income, business partnerships, income from spouse, willingness to receive, the occult, exploration of psychological processes, accepting change. Lighten up. Transform these areas from compulsion to conscious action by: embracing your burgeoning ability to communicate and express yourself; learning to value your possessions as a springboard to a deeper understanding of your power to manifest what you truly desire.

    Taurus
    A need to control harms your self-image and limits success in these areas: relationships; intimacy; the ability to live in a foreign country or unfamiliar environment. Lighten up. Transform these areas from compulsion to conscious action by: reinventing yourself — begin with knowing who you are what you really, really want. Let go of your attachment to limited and petty identifications and embrace your universally inclusive nature. Take responsibility for everything in your life.

    Gemini
    A need to control harms your self-image and limits success in these areas: health and wellbeing, serving others at the expense of yourself, pacifying enemies, getting lost in the details of life. Lighten up. Transform these areas from compulsion to conscious action by: seeking the support of like-minded individuals to help you experience your timeless, spiritual nature; offer money to charitable organisations and persons in need. Travel to distant lands. Invest in periods of solitude.

    Cancer
    A need to control harms your self-image and limits success in these areas: creativity, children, romance, intellectual activities. Lighten up. Transform these areas from compulsion to conscious action by: seeking the guidance of influential and successful people; focusing on income generation and community involvement; making a life plan.

    Leo
    A need to control harms your self-image and limits success in these areas: home and family life, vehicles, houses and land, emotional connection, contentment, education. Lighten up. Transform these areas from compulsion to conscious action by: making sure work and activity reflect who you are and where you want to go; doing what needs to be done at the time it is needed.

    Virgo
    A need to control harms your self-image and limits success in these areas: personal desires and your ability to fulfil them; performing arts (dance, music, theatre, film, photography, writing); life courage, working with others. Lighten up. Transform these areas from compulsion to conscious action by: finding an authentic teacher/mentor/guru to take you to the next level; embrace your abundant self; spending time with animals.

    Libra
    A need to control harms your self-image and limits success in these areas: communication; public speaking; ability to manifest wealth and acquire possessions; resolving childhood issues; speech and language. Lighten up. Transform these areas from compulsion to conscious action by: embracing the unseen and the mystical; exploring your own psychology; learning to receive; forming business partnerships; giving attention to disease prevention.

    Scorpio
    A need to control harms your self-image and limits success in these areas: identity, self-awareness, self-image, sense of worth, confidence. Lighten up. Transform these areas from compulsion to conscious action by: improving relationships; becoming willing to live in a foreign country or unfamiliar environment. Embracing intimacy as a means to experiencing tenderness, gentleness, etc.

    Sagittarius
    A need to control harms your self-image and limits success in these areas: spiritual journey, solitude, spiritual community, charitable donations, sexual pleasure, exotic travel. Lighten up. Transform these areas from compulsion to conscious action by: serving others selflessly and without expectation of reward; giving time to your health and wellbeing; giving attention to the details of your life; turning enemies into friends.

    Capricorn
    A need to control harms your self-image and limits success in these areas: income generation, networking, community involvement, life plans. Lighten up. Transform these areas from compulsion to conscious action by: engaging your creative self; becoming a Life romantic; giving attention to the needs of children; increasing your intellectual capacity.

    Aquarius
    A need to control harms your self-image and limits success in these areas: work and activity; “doing the right thing” (as an unhealthy obsession for perfection). Lighten up. Transform these areas from compulsion to conscious action by: focusing on home and family, house and land, education, and emotional expression. Discover what really makes you feel content and full of bliss and joy. Cultivate unconditional feelings of compassion, love, and joy.

    Pisces
    A need to control harms your self-image and limits success in these areas: teachers, mentors, gurus; your connection to good luck and good fortune, travel, pets and animals. Lighten up. Transform these areas from compulsion to conscious action by: discovering what you truly desire and taking real steps towards fulfilling those desires; pushing on the boundaries of your comfort zone (not in a dangerous or unhealthy way); exploring the performing arts (song, dance, music, writing, acting, film, and photography).

  • Global Forecast: 2022

    Appreciable change is coming, but so is the opportunity for real transformation…

    The South node of the moon spends 2022 in Scorpio showing the tendency for those in leadership positions in government, industry, and technology, to resist beneficial change which becomes an impediment to real transformation. This resistance arises from an unhealthy need to control the direction of life and leads to compulsive actions represented by the North node of the moon in Taurus. This will tend to create an excessive increase in manufacturing and production brought on by higher rates of consumption, especially through manipulative forms of communication, marketing, and “fake news”. There will also be a wide scale attempt to possess, develop, and control significant aspects of the earth, especially land and minerals.

    What to do? Taurus is ruled by Venus and is related to seeking comfort and convenience through materiality and worldly possessions. Unfortunately, when our primary means of seeking fulfilment is through the world rather than by establishing a strong relationship to an inner state of wellbeing, we develop an attachment to worldly results and define our contentment through what we possess. This leads to “confidence without clarity”.

    As individuals, we should remember that the best form of government is by the people and not by the government. Unfortunately, in an era of extreme ideologies fostered by power-hungry media and social media giants, society tends to vacillate between the two extremes of right and left, either between the over-fixation on profit at the expense of human wellbeing, socio-economic harmony, and a healthy environment, or the attempted social engineering and attachment to petty personal identities at the expense of a free society and an all-inclusive state of universal brotherhood. Taurus is especially energised during 2022 and this spells opportunity to “sit at the same table” if we can become better at controlling the knee-jerk emotions that arise from our past pain. As individuals, this means we need a better relationship to our higher, authentic self.

  • Be Prepared for 2022

    Writing about the future is always a delicate task, one that requires a deft pen and discerning mind. On the one hand, the future has yet to happen which implies that we have something to say about how it unfolds. On the other hand, human beings have rarely been able to manage the world in any respectable sense, so any talk of the future is necessarily influenced by the current list of unresolved conflicts and challenges and a leadership which lacks the clarity to make a difference. Still, to go into the future without a plan is like living on a flood plain and surrendering to chance what we have worked hard to accomplish. Though seasons may pass uneventfully, likely will come the day when we are faced with a life-altering tsunami of circumstance. Being prepared helps even the odds against an outright catastrophe.

    But what does being prepared mean?

    In 1907, an English soldier named Baden-Powell first conceived the Scout motto: Be Prepared. A year later it was published in Scouting for Boys where he wrote that to be prepared means “you are always in a state of readiness in mind and body to do your duty.” And what of duty? Duty is an inner call to do the right thing at the right time, that is, to do what is needed when it is needed. Being prepared, then, is to be in a state of readiness in body and mind such that when the moment calls for us to act, we are able to do so in decisive fashion. As the old proverb implores, we should dig the well before the house is on fire. 

    Being prepared refers to taking ownership of what is within our control. Regarding body, this means that it is our duty to maintain the body in such a condition that doing what is needed is never compromised due to our own negligence. Life happens and at times our physical health is simply at the mercy of what is to be; however, to a large extent, good health is determined by the food we eat, the stress we take on, the environment within which we choose to live, and the amount of movement and exercise with which we engage our physical self — all things with which we have at least some control. Going back to the metaphor of the well, it does no good to know what needs to be done if we are physically unable to do it.

    Mental preparedness in part refers to our level of skill. Obviously, we cannot be experts in every field, but we can be an expert in our own life. This means knowing our talents and abilities and taking steps to make sure they are fully realised. Whether this means going back to school, enrolling in adult education, or becoming our own teacher, being in a state of preparedness means that our innate talents and abilities are honed such that a lack of skill is never an impediment to step up and do what is needed. We may see the necessity of digging the well before the fire and have the necessary physical attributes, but if we are unsure how a proper well is dug, our insight and good health are wasted.

    Mental preparedness also refers to our willingness to do what is needed. No matter our skill or physical ability, if we are unwilling to dig the well, the well will never be dug. The greatest enemy of willingness is our attachment to the laundry list of likes and dislikes we carry with us like a King’s treasure. As with morals, our list of likes and dislikes is in large part an aspect of our personality created from childhood associations to family, culture, and environment. Through astrology, we discover that these “compulsions” arise from lifetimes of experiencing pain and pleasure. Of no particular significance other than social, likes and dislikes are closely related to our desire for comfort and convenience.

    Remember the story of the Little Red Hen? In the end, the other barnyard animals do not get to share in the prosperity of the hen because of their unwillingness to do what was needed when it was needed. Their attachment to what was pleasant and convenient, e.g. the cat’s attachment to napping and the pig’s dinner-time overindulgence, stamped out any willingness to help. In the same way, when we are unwilling to put aside our thirst for comfort and pleasure even for a few moments, what needs to be done and should be done will be sacrificed at the alter of compulsion and our life unfolds unconsciously. 

    A compelling example of the consequences of becoming distracted can be found in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1979 war epic Apocalypse Now. After leading an effective charge of helicopter gunships against a Vietcong village, Robert Duvall’s iconic figure Lt. Col. “I-love-the-smell-of-napalm-in-the-morning” Kilgore admonishes a group of South Vietnamese soldiers for refusing water to a gravely wounded Vietcong. Declaring how he gives a drink to anyone brave enough to give their all, Kilgore offers water from his own canteen. Right at that moment, however, a soldier tells Kilgore that one of the infantry soldiers present is an accomplished surfer. His attention now diverted by one of his passions, the water from Kilgore’s canteen falls aimlessly onto the ground inches from the wounded man’s mouth who desperately struggles to catch even one drop. Though this scene lasts but a few seconds, the message is clear: if we live life unconsciously, our compulsions will always rise to the surface, no matter how demonstrative we proclaim otherwise.

    Our moments of distraction are probably not as dramatic as Lt. Col. Kilgore’s, but they just as easily separate us from doing our duty. They have become an intimate part of our life whether through comfort and convenience or living in such a rush that even our morning shower becomes an obstacle to our ambitions. And to what end? Modern society enjoys technological convenience like no other society before and yet finding time to quietly reflect on life with a warm cup of tea is akin to finding a ruby on our doorstep. We have sacrificed peace of mind for what?

    Being prepared means that we are willing to put our distractions aside for the greater good. It means we are able to respond in each moment to the capacity with which we can. This means we are responsible to each other, no matter creed, colour, or family history. For a responsible person, there is no prejudice; we do what is needed because the duty of the moment requires us to act. Moreover, such responsibility extends to the entire world and all of life becomes our responsibility. In such a state of willingness, there is no need for “right action” legislation; instead, our awareness of what is beneficial for all makes us guardians of the world.

    Being prepared also recognises our responsibility towards not only our generation, but to all future generations. Though some things are simply beyond our control, we can do well if we remember the popular poem attributed to Reinhold Neibuhr (1892-1971):

    God grant me the serenity

    To accept the things I cannot change; 

    Courage to change the things I can;

    And wisdom to know the difference.

    What can we change and what must we learn to accept? Knowing this difference allows resources to be concentrated towards real solutions. More importantly, it suggests there are things we should not change. Too often, however, leadership initiates change without any real clarity of the consequences of doing so. Confidence without clarity tramples the rights of others and ends up being abusive towards at least some — even if initiated with altruistic intent. The road to hell, it is said, is paved with good intentions.

    Being prepared is inherently tolerant. With nothing written in stone but the willingness to do what is needed, each moment of life is lived responsibly and out of the box. Having no prescribed formula or prejudice, we simply offer what is needed when it is needed according to our capacity and abilities. By focusing on the greatest need of each moment, we automatically have a hand in making the world a better place.

    As we begin this auspicious new year, approach each moment as a moment tailor made for your talents and abilities. In this way, you offer what you can, just as you are. Doing so, you will have done your part to create a better future not only for yourself but for all life on this planet. Like a pebble dropped into a clear lake, your conscious actions will reverberate outward and contribute to a better world. 

    References

    https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2017/05/08/be-prepared-scout-motto-origin/

    https://www.lords-prayer-words.com/famous_prayers/god_grant_me_the_serenity.html

    https://www.bookologymagazine.com/resources/authors-emeritus/dodge-mary-mapes/

    https://groovyhistory.com/i-love-the-smell-of-napalm-in-the-morning-apocalypse-now

    https://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/the-road-to-hell-is-paved-with-good-intentions.html

  • MAYDAY 2020: How to Take Advantage of the Coming Change

    This coming week, a major change is taking place in the astrological heavens: the nodes of the Moon will change signs, something that only happens every one and a half years. On May 6, the South node moves into Sagittarius while the North node enters Gemini. As you will recall from last month’s newsletter, the South Node has been in Capricorn since November 2018. The South node represents our past and its location in astrology signifies where constriction from the subconscious pain and pleasure of previous lives keeps us knotted up and confused about how to move forward. Capricorn is our capacity to listen to our higher self, the truth that is rooted firmly in the present and never the past. This capacity to listen, however, has tended to be “bound up” with the past, making it difficult to know what direction to take.

    Nothing represents this confusion more than the current Covid-19 pandemic. Even now, scientists are not completely sure with what they are dealing and false information has been rampant. Capricorn represents governments, the establishment, right action and jobs. Delays and confusion has been the norm for many governments and even experienced medical experts. Those countries with the highest fatalities and cases were some of the slowest to act and to make it worse, people around the world are suffering from loss of livelihoods.

    As I mentioned last week, to offset our incapacity to take a firm step forward, we needed to look toward the North Node. In Cancer, it represents home, family, the feminine and sweet emotions like love, joy, compassion and gratitude. Embracing these aspects of our lives consciously and not as a knee-jerk response to fear, we actually loosen the hold of the past, allowing us to see our better options. As horrible as this period has been for many people, it is still an opportunity to become better humans.

    So what of Sagittarius and Gemini, the signs of the zodiac the nodes will soon occupy? What tendencies will be energised for the next year and one half? Where could we stumble and where could we find an answer?

    Sagittarius is the sign of purification. It is a fire sign and it is Sagittarius that represents the need to experience the “fire” of life in order to be willing enough to grow beyond our limited perspectives. Ultimately, this fire frees us from our limited view of ourself but the process can be challenging. Like gold in the fire of the goldsmith, we need to embrace the fire in order to be transformed into our highest potential. Old concepts must go in order for a new life to emerge.

    The challenge comes not so much in having to go through transformation as it is our resistance to the process. The South node in Sagittarius indicates that we will tend to resist this change, that we will not want to let go of what has been the status quo in order to embrace a brighter future. Many in the media are speaking of a “new normal” as if it is something to fear and dread. This cannot be further from reality. The “normal” ways we have lived life has got to change. Our education systems are a shambles, the gap between rich and poor widens and the planet is nearing a point of collapse. A new normal is absolutely needed.

    Sagittarius is also related to wealth and abundance. What this indicates, then, is that for the next year and a half, we will experience challenges related to wealth stemming from our desire to hold onto it at any cost. For some, there may be great fluctuations in their wealth–up and down, up and down– as this desire to “hang on” stems from a tumultuous past and needs to be understood as a compulsion based upon fear from previous lives and not indicative of what we should do, now, in the present. In many ways, people will be asked to take a profound look at their lives and reevaluate the consumer oriented economy. How much does one really need in order to live a good life for themselves and their family?

    How does one gain more awareness into this process? The past holds us prisoner in our subconscious, a place that is very difficult to illuminate. The answer is found in the North node and its location in Gemini. On the one hand, the North node represents the compulsive actions arising as a “knee-jerk” response to the past. In this way, the North node indicates challenge through unconscious action. However, the North node always represents a doorway through which we can imbibe our higher aspirations. These aspirations are a reflection of our higher self, our authentic self free from our past. Unconscious action digs the hole deeper; conscious action brings illumination and a better life.

    What does this doorway look like over these coming months?

    Gemini is the sign of discernment, of discrimination and analysis. These qualities lie in the conscious part of the mind and evolution has made it available to us as a tool for our survival. Without this aspect of our intellect, we would not be able to survive in the world; a mind without discrimination would endanger the body. The reason you don’t intentionally lay your hand on a hot stove is because you have been burned before and you you don’t need to be told again. However, in the course of living many lifetimes, we have gained impressions from countless situations and circumstances. These impressions keep us from making conscious choices. Instead, our tendency is to go blindly down the road of life acting upon any desire that rears its head never realising these compulsions our simply holdovers from a painful past. In this way, we create a difficult life for ourselves.

    Our challenge during this period is to use our powers of discernment and discrimination as a tool to lead us to a better life. When a desire arises in the mind, hit the pause button. Never take action when you are “excited” by either fear or expectation for excitement is not wisdom; excitement is simply anticipating a reward. The stronger the desire, the stronger the excitement. Instead, look for qualities like enthusiasm, joy, aliveness, compassion; these are more “true” and are much more likely to lead you down the best path for you. These emotions need no “reward” for the reward is the experience, itself.

    To summarise, these are the primary “push and pulls” over the next year and one half:

    • The South node indicates an unwillingness to sacrifice our comforts and pleasures for a higher state of consciousness. This unwillingness will actually create an attempt to avoid what is best for us, think, instead, that it will do us harm.
    • Unwillingness causes us to become constricted and overly sensitive in whatever specific areas of life Sagittarius represents for us (as per our astrological chart)
    • This, in turn, causes a knee-jerk response such that may tend to “overthink” everything, choosing actions based upon warped logic and not truth, that is, not what is really best for ourselves and others. Without awareness, the primary motive to act becomes one of safety and security.

    To live harmoniously, we need to:

    • First, reflect. Not every desire that arises is harmful. How to determine which are beneficial and which are not? Only act upon those desires that reflect where you really want to go; most desires are wolves in sheep’s clothing and only reveal themselves to be a compulsion after you have engaged them and suffered. Discrimination brought about by thoughtful contemplation and self-reflection will go a long way toward getting you through this period in the best way possible.
    • As you do this, you will naturally see the areas of your life, represented by Sagittarius, open up and take on a greater harmony with life. Areas, especially finances, will become more clear so that you can better navigate through this challenging period.

    This next year and one half is really asking you to contemplate very deeply what it is you want and where it is you want to go. As I have said repeatedly, the pandemic is an opportunity, a call to live a better, more harmonious life. Most will not understand the potential of this time and will simply bounce between the karmas of their past. You, on the other hand, can unequivocally come out of this a better person living a better life.

    Be vigilant… then go for it!

  • From My Files: A Case Study

    A 21 year old female asked for an astrological reading. During the consultation, I discovered that she was resigned to a life without a partner creating a festering despondency within her. I asked her why she felt this way as her chart did not reveal a life devoid of marriage; only that she needed to learn to be emotionally open in relationships and that, eventually, she would attract the right partner to her.

    Her response shocked me: she had previously received a reading from a well known astrologer, author of several books on astrology, who told her that a relationship was not in her destiny. I told her I saw otherwise, that while hers was not an overnight process, if she applied herself by embracing certain practices and life directions, she would eventually rise above her self-imposed limitations, for that is always what our limitations are, self-imposed. I told her to have patience and that within three years, the opportunity to find her man would be heightened, increasing her chances of success, because she, herself, would be more emotionally available to relationship and, in fact, this is what transpired.

    Whether or not this famous astrologer actually told her to forget about relationships is not the point; the fact is, this is what she came away with from the reading and that responsibility falls squarely on the astrologer. Astrology is not a system of ironclad predictions but a system of personal enrichment, a process of unfoldment like a blossom opening its petals. Predictions are only as accurate as the unwillingness for a person to stay the same and become less valid the more a person sincerely embraces their own possibility of transformation.

    What we find from this case is that, although the willingness to change is the responsibility of the person, revealing the direction of that change is the astrologer’s. Letting go of the past by embracing one’s deepest urges is the way to beneficial change and should always be at the core of what an astrologer offers. If you find yourself sitting before an astrologer who speaks only in predictions about the future, do yourself a favor and excuse yourself. You are a free being and no one should ever limit your possibilities.