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Free Will Astrology
horoscopes for week of August 11, 2005

Aries (March 21-April 19)

You wouldn't plant a rosebush in a spot where a geyser erupts periodically, would you? You wouldn't build a romantic hideaway on the bank of a river that floods every year, right? So please say you won't be careless as you track down the best place to express your love and fertility in the future. Swear to me that you'll research the possibilities with forethought and a passion for detail.


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When you’re an aspiring master of pronoia, you see the cracks in the facades as opportunities; inspiration erupts as you careen over bumps in the road; you love the enticing magic that flows from situations that other people regard as rough or crooked. "That which is not slightly distorted lacks sensible appeal," wrote poet Charles Baudelaire, "from which it follows that irregularity—that is to say, the unexpected, surprise and astonishment—is an essential part and characteristic of beauty."
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The preceding oracle comes from my new book. It's called PRONOIA Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings, and is available on the Web at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Powells.

Taurus (April 20-May 20)

About every 90 seconds, there's an earthquake somewhere on the planet. Most are very small and aren't felt by normal human beings. But I predict that in the coming days you may actually be aware of those subtle tremors arising from deep in the planet--just as I expect you'll be highly attuned to every little change in the weather and each minute shift in the emotional atmosphere of your immediate environments. In fact, Taurus, you may soon be more sensitive than you've been in years. You'll probably also be impressionable, perceptive, empathetic, and even psychic.


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"Kumulipo" is an old Hawaiian prayer chant that poetically describes the creation of the world. The word literally means "beginning-in-deep-darkness." Here darkness doesn’t connote gloom and evil. Rather, it’s about the inscrutability of the embryonic state; the obscure chaos that reigns before germination. Think about the last time you dwelt in kumulipo.
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The preceding oracle comes from my new book. It's called PRONOIA Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings, and is available on the Web at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Powells.

Gemini (May 21-June 20)

The average major league baseball game lasts nearly three hours, but the time when the ball is actually in play is only about 10 minutes. In other words, there's a lot of waiting around between brief flurries of activity. Sound familiar, Gemini? From what I can tell, your life recently has had a lot of prolonged stretches when nothing much of interest or importance has happened. I bet that will soon change, though. According to my reading of the astrological omens, the action is about to heat up. Get ready to score in double figures.


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Tantric sex practitioners say an artful lover never makes love the same way twice.

Similarly, chanteuse Billie Holiday believed a good singer should never sing a song the same way twice. If you use all the same phrasing and melody, she said, you’re failing your art.

The only Zen master we know—whose name we can’t tell you because she changes it every week, and we haven’t heard the latest one—likes to quote the ancient Greek philosopher, Heraclitus: "You cannot step into the same river twice, for fresh waters are ever flowing in upon you."

Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh has the last word: "Thanks to impermanence, everything is possible.
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The preceding oracle comes from my new book. It's called PRONOIA Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings, and is available on the Web at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Powells.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

After mating for the first and only time, a young queen ant burrows underground, where she lays about 20 eggs a day for 10 years. Sometimes you remind me of her, Cancerian--lately, for instance. You have been animated by an almost insatiable drive to create. You've been spinning out little miracles and making everything fresh again and again and again. The astrological omens say you'll need to take a break soon. Do this under your own power, please, so that fate doesn't have to force you to do it.


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At the heart of the pronoiac way of life is an apparent conundrum: You can have anything you want if you'll just ask for it in an unselfish way. The trick to making this work is to locate where your deepest ambition coincides with the greatest gift you have to give. Figure out exactly how the universe, by providing you with abundance, can improve the lot of everyone whose life you touch. Seek the fulfillment of your fondest desires in such a way that you become a fount of blessings.
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The preceding oracle comes from my new book. It's called PRONOIA Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings, and is available on the Web at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Powells.

Leo (July 23-August 22)

"Dear Dr. Brezsny: I was wondering if you had any information about Beyonders, people who were born under no star and who are therefore not ruled by the stars. -Leo Goddess, a.k.a. Wannabe Beyonder"

Dear Wannabe: It's impossible to be born under no star. However, it's true that periodically we all go through periods when we're relatively free from the authority of the stars we were born under. During these times, we're less susceptible to the whims of fate and the demands of the past and the compulsions of karma. Our willpower has more breathing room. It happens to be one of those phases for you Leos right now. At least temporarily, you're like a Beyonder.


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Imagine that you have been relieved of your responsibilities for a given time. They will be taken care of by people you trust. You won't have to work to make money during this grace period, but will be given all you need. Nor will you have to clean your house, wash your clothes, or buy and make your food. Now here's the big question: What will you do now that you are free to do anything you like?
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The preceding oracle comes from my new book. It's called PRONOIA Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings, and is available on the Web at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Powells.

Virgo (August 23-September 22)

Writing in The New York Times, Nicholas Kristof reported that the media has been as guilty of ignoring the ongoing genocide in Darfur as the Bush administration has been. In June, he said, the main TV news programs collectively ran 55 times more stories about the Michael Jackson trial than they did about East Africa's crisis. CBS gave three minutes of coverage to Darfur in all of 2004, and NBC five minutes. As soon as you finish reading this horoscope, Virgo, I hope you will take aggressive action to avoid falling victim to equally misplaced priorities in your personal life. Don't you dare let trivial spectacles divert you from healing the sorest spot in your world.


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It's time for the Gratitude Fest. Write thank-you notes to the creatures, both human and otherwise, that have played seminal roles in inspiring you to become yourself. Who have been your guides along the way, both the purposeful teachers and the inadvertent helpers? Who has seen you for who you really are? Who has nudged you in the direction of your fuller destiny and awakened you to your signature truths? Who has loved you very, very well?
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The preceding oracle comes from my new book. It's called PRONOIA Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings, and is available on the Web at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Powells.

Libra (September 23-October 22)

This week's new word, class, is bravura. Derived from an old Italian word for "bold," it has two meanings: (1) skill and brilliance exhibited in a performance or task; (2) a display of incredible daring. In the coming week, I urge you to write I have bravura on your palm, on your mirror, and anywhere else your eyes frequently gaze upon. If you keep reminding yourself that you now have the capacity to pull off acts of bravura, you will in fact pull them off.


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Review in painstaking detail the history of your life, honoring every moment as if you were conducting a benevolent Judgment Day.
Forgive yourself of every mistake except one.
Create a royal crown for yourself out of a shower cap, rubber bands, and light bulbs.
Think of the last place on earth you'd ever want to visit, and visualize yourself having fun there.
Test to see if people are really listening to you by asserting that Karl Marx was one of the Marx Brothers.
Track down people who are impossible to love, and love them defiantly without expecting anything in return.
Steal lint from dryers in laundromats and use it to make animal sculptures for someone you admire.
Fantasize you're the child of divine parents who abandoned you when you were two days old, but who will soon be coming back to reunite with you.
Once a year, say these words into a mirror: "It's bad luck to be superstitious."
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The preceding love note comes from my new book. It's called PRONOIA Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings, and is available on the Web at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Powells.

Scorpio (October 23-November 21)

It's unlikely that you or I or anyone we know will become famous enough to earn a mention in the historical records of the future. The odds are probably 10 million to 1. But if you do manage to make such a prominent name for yourself that our descendants will be able to read about your exploits and contributions, it could very well be because of events you set in motion during the next six weeks. The possibility that you will make a mark on eternity is as great as it has ever been.


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"I’ve been practicing radical authenticity lately," my friend Brandon told me. "I’m revealing the blunt truth about unmentionable subjects to everyone I know. It’s been pretty hellish—no one likes having the social masks stripped away—but it’s been ultimately rewarding."

"I admire your boldness in naming the currents flowing beneath the surface," I replied, "but I’m curious as to why you imply they’re all negative. To practice radical authenticity, shouldn’t you also express the raw truth about what’s right, good, and beautiful? Shouldn’t you unleash the praise and gratitude that normally go unspoken?"

Brandon sneered. He thought my version of radical authenticity was wimpy. I hope you don’t. As a budding lover of life, you have a mandate to be honest in both ways.
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The preceding oracle comes from my new book. It's called PRONOIA Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings, and is available on the Web at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Powells.

Sagittarius (November 22-December 21)

There's a three-mile stretch of Interstate 880 south of Oakland, California that I call the Singing Highway. For reasons I don't understand, it generates low humming melodies every time I drive over it, similar to the guttural chants of Tibetan monks. Sometimes I swear I can even hear lyrics. Today, for example, I was driving to the airport. My mind turned to you, my Sagittarian readers. Yours was the only horoscope I had left to write for this week, and to pass the time I thought I'd scavenge around for fresh intuitions. Just then I reached the Singing Highway, and I swear I began hearing the same lyric repeating over and over again: "a shortcut to the path with heart/ a shortcut to the path with heart/ a shortcut to the path with heart." Coincidence? I don't think so.


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HELP WANTED. Practical dreamers with high emotional intelligence needed to become experts in the following subjects: the art of possessing abundant resources without feeling greed or a sense of superiority; the science of cultivating luxurious comfort in a way that does not lead to spiritual sloth; and a knack for enjoying peace and serenity without diluting one's ambition.
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The preceding oracle comes from my new book. It's called PRONOIA Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings, and is available on the Web at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Powells.

Capricorn (December 22-January 19)

Of all the animals in the world, the fly is the most unloved. It annoys us with its zigzag buzzing. When it lands in our food, we lose our appetite, knowing it carries residues of the disgusting things it has preyed on. But in the creation story of the Chelan Indians, the fly is given a heroic role to play because of its speed. In modern parlance, people say they'd like to be a fly on the wall in a place where an interesting conversation takes place. And the ancient Roman poet Virgil had a pet fly that saved him a fortune. When the fly died, he gave it a large funeral and declared its final resting place a cemetery, thereby avoiding a sizable land tax through a legal loophole. In the coming weeks, Capricorn, I predict you will find similar redemption in an influence you have always regarded as comparable to the fly's.


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You're a star—and so am I. I'm a genius—and so are you. Your success encourages my brilliance, and my charisma enhances your power. Your victory doesn't require my defeat, and vice versa. Those are the rules in the New World—quite unlike the rules in the Old World, where zero-sum games are the norm, and only one of us can win each time we play. In the New World, you don't have to play down or apologize for your prowess, because you love it when other people shine. You exult in your own excellence without regarding it as a sign of inherent superiority. As you ripen more and more of your latent aptitude, you inspire the rest of us to claim our own idiosyncratic magnificence.
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The preceding oracle comes from my new book. It's called PRONOIA Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings, and is available on the Web at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Powells.

Aquarius (January 20- February 18)

When rock star Courtney Love asked me for advice about her relationship with rock star Trent Reznor a few years ago, I told her the same thing I'll tell you now: Empty your brain of everything you think you know about the person who both excites you and drives you crazy. Drop all of your fantasies and projections and expectations. As soon as you do, you will clearly see that person is not a diabolical angel whose main task in life is to rouse your obsessive thoughts, but rather a flawed human being who has only a partial resemblance to what you imagine him or her to be. When you achieve that enlightened state, then and only then will there be even a shred of hope that you two can have an authentic, vital, mutually enriching relationship.


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A common obstruction to a vital intimate relationship with another human being is what I call the assumption of clairvoyance. You imagine, perhaps unconsciously, that your partner or friend is somehow magically psychic when it comes to you—so much so that he or she should unfailingly intuit exactly what you need, even if you don’t ask for it. This fantasy may seem romantic, but it can single-handedly sink the most promising alliances. To counteract any tendencies you might have to indulge in the assumption of clairvoyance, practice stating your desires aloud.
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The preceding oracle comes from my new book. It's called PRONOIA Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings, and is available on the Web at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Powells.

Pisces (February 19-March 20)

According to my analysis of the astrological omens, Pisces, the week ahead will be overflowing with paradox. Lucky danger may be headed your way, or a risky opportunity that will feel like an ordeal even as it brings out the best in you. I also wouldn't be surprised if you had encounters with benevolent trouble, exacting love, and weighty silliness. To thrive in the midst of these rich anomalies, you should suspend any prejudices you might have against puzzling evidence. Don't just tolerate the contradictions--love them.


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"If you bring forth the genius within you," said Jesus in the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas, "it will free you. If you do not bring forth the genius within you, it will destroy you." Is there any aspect of the genius within you that you're not bringing forth? If so, what can you do to change that?
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The preceding oracle comes from my new book. It's called PRONOIA Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings, and is available on the Web at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Powells.

© 1995-2013 -- Rob Brezsny. All rights reserved