but it's not that easy
you can't just snap our fingers and
then voila the genie blinks
and you get what you want
you have to have the right idea
be in the right place at the right time
work at it
seed it
water it
nurture it
then you have to have luck, too
but it doesn't happen over night
then all of sudden
it sprouts
but you can't just think you're going to
thrown the coin in the machine
and win the prize
doesn't work that way
I'm kind of surprised to see that The Know-It-All Astrologer has a T-square AND a grand trine both linked off of her Saturn, the way I do. And she's a Taurus/Sag person (though her Sag is rising and mine's moon) as well.
I dunno how I feel about karma.
I am NOT a believer in the "My Name Is Earl" school of karma, i.e. "Do bad things and bad things will happen, do good things and good things will happen." I have certain evil relatives who happily thrive, and after 28 years, I don't think karma is going to kick them in the ass at this point. And if it does "in another life," who CARES? I want them to get the clue bat in THIS one, dangit. Nor do I buy into the Rule of Three, i.e. "Do one bad thing and bad things will multiply on you threefold, and vice versa." I am more along the lines of, "Don't act like an asshole, because enough people act like assholes, why do you have to join the herd?" I can't say I'm perfect at it (especially when my mom is JUMPING ON MY LAST NERVE), but I try. Not because I think I'm going to get rewarded for good behavior, but just to not spread the shit around more.
However, when it comes to the astrological concepts of it, I am more of a believer. I don't know why, really, but it's interesting. The weird thing being that I REALLY HOPE past lives don't exist, so why I would buy into something that's all about the past lives, I don't know. (I cannot conceive of a past me who would have wanted to come back to Earth. "Put me back in the game, Coach! Put me back in the game!" Um, NO. If I existed in past lives and came back, it's because I got forced into it.)
Anyway, I thought this article on karmic storms was interesting.
"Big K" karmas are usually termed "acts of God," or some such thing. These are events that are seemingly beyond our ability to control. We may not have any idea why these are happening when they are, and we're forced to do the best we can without a complete understanding of the larger forces at work creating these Karmic events.
When you look at your own natal chart, alone, the bare positions of these traditional points, outside of their traditional astrological interpretations, mean nothing. They're just there. But overlay your parents, your siblings, your children, your co-workers, the people in your recent phone or email correspondence, your progressions, and the current positions in the sky and you'll start to see individual degree areas bunching up like crazy, in a provocative fashion. It's not random, there are regular clusters, and over a lifetime the clusters stay in the same places. Whatever the specific degrees - usually (but not always) obvious degrees in your own chart - they repeat themselves again and again. It's like you're locked into a weave that was there when you were born and keeps coming back to you, a celestial family with DNA that's totally extraterrestrial. Journalists these days bemoan the lack of family and social connections - the fact is, there are more there than you may want, you just haven't noticed it. And further, like biological family but more permanent, you're stuck with them.
Astrologers see it all the time, but rarely note it except in passing. I remember when I had an ad in the New York City yellow pages, and over ten years only people with lots of similar degrees called, no random pattern there. They could have called anybody else in the listings, but they didn't. They called me. All the others simply didn't call. They called the other astrologers in the yellow pages who had their degrees, instead. There are some degree areas (not populated in my own chart) which I have simply never met. No reason to cross paths, apparently. And other astrologers regularly report the same. Is it some cosmic principle of attraction? Paul Kammerer thought so, and it's why he believed "synchronicity" was no accident. It's a great tool for rectification (finding someone's true birthtime, when they don't know it) - all you have to do is collect charts of all their friends and family and the preponderance of the degrees that turn up are their natal angles).
It forms the essence of traditional astrological compatability, synastry, and comparison. Whatever the immediate passion between two people, if they have lots of shared degrees between their charts, they will tend to stay together, at least as friends, or even enemies. Circumstances just tend to shepherd them both into the same situations. If they have few degree contacts, even the greatest passion will have to fight circumstances just to stay in the same neighborhood. Composite charts are another story, as they start slowly, but gain momentum over time, but they, too, usually reflect the same degrees. Of course, there are many people you have never met with lots in common with you, and you don't know them, yet. But once you actually meet, just watch how difficult it becomes to escape them. That's perhaps why first meetings and introductions are so important - they are gateways to floods of experience that you may quickly lose control over.
In non-astrological terms, this type of event is considered ordinary. It's just the way life works. For all the gossip, Hollywood stars marry other Hollywood stars - mainly because that's the world they live in and they never get to meet anybody else, even if they occasionally go out and meet ordinary people elsewhere. But the same principle appears to extend to the rest of life, in ways where we don't get to go choose to meet other "ordinary" people elsewhere, because we're not even aware of the option. And if we do accidentally meet, we don't notice them, and they don't notice us, like ships passing in the night.
The mathematics and the probabilities of this could be debated forever, but the ultimate test is specific and often anecdotal. Don't you notice it yourself? Have you known anyone for very long that doesn't have a lot of degree areas in common with you? At a glance, it should become obvious. After that, you begin to focus on the individual common degrees and see which parts of that warp and weft you share with another influence each of you, one to the other. Is it Saturn (a teacher) or Jupiter (an inspirer), perhaps Mar or Venus (physical, sexual), or raw energy and timing with Sun and Moon and the Angles? But if there is no commonality, it just doesn't generally happen long enough to answer the question - the term "star-crossed" meant just that when it was coined. Some of us are swimming in the same river together, others simply aren't.
How do you explain this? Probably that mutual attraction thing. Astronomically, the planets do it, by gravitation, and it's described by LaGrange points. A simple extrapolation of these five points defines all the common astrological aspects and their meanings. It's about repetition and locking yourself into the familiar by simply doing it over and over again, just like the tides that go in and out.
Only it's more complicated, like the tides themselves. Some creatures live their lives and meet their mates only at high tide, others only at low tide, others only at certain points in between. Most are never even aware of those who do otherwise, on a different tide. Just a simple look at how we individually overlap by degree areas shows this same principle in action. Cosmically, astrologically, gravitationally, however you want to put it, it's about the greater family you are thrown into simply by your beginning, regardless of biological ties. You may not notice it right away, but as you get older you begin to just know them at first glance, although astrological awareness and comparisons really help to flush out the details - oh, here comes another one, and another one, some better, some not so nice. You can't avoid them, they're family.
The question and decision at any one moment is, "Should I invite them in?"
AstroBarry is having problems getting his writing done of late.
Allow me to vocalize my professional frustrations.
At times like these, when many of the planets bottleneck into an accumulation in one band of the zodiac, it makes my work a lot more troublesome.
Why? Because I end up feeling like a broken record, repeating the same themes over and over again in the horoscopes for each sign. (Hopefully, you haven't noticed. I do my damnedest to find fresh angles, or to rephrase.)
It's not my fault, though. I blame the planets, for hanging so close to one another, forcing us to focus on the one thing (or a variety of one-things that resemble each other) represented by whatever specially-overcrowded region of our chart is being triggered.
For instance, we recently had five (and, for a moment, up to six) planets in Scorpio at one time. (Read more about it here.)
When I write my horoscopes, I look at solar charts for each sign. A solar chart distributes all the signs to house placements around the wheel. Building a solar chart for, say, Taureans, I'd start by putting Taurus on the 1st house cusp… then continue to Gemini (the next sign after Taurus) on the 2nd, Cancer on the 3rd, and so on. The meanings I extrapolate for each horoscope are based on, among other things, which houses in a sign's solar chart are being transited by which planets. Make sense?
Well, when so many planets are in the same sign, it also means that, for each solar chart I construct, the whole batch of planets is also in the same solar house. So (continuing with the Taurus example) that explains why, week after week, Taureans have kept reading about relationships in my scopes. Because the super-Scorpio conglomeration was in their 7th house, which symbolizes our behaviors in one-on-one partnerships.
Anyway, back to me. How mind-addling it becomes, searching for creative ways of describing the same thing. Have you ever tried to fine-tune the intonations of a Mars in Scorpio, as differentiated from a Venus in Scorpio, Sun in Scorpio, and Mercury in Scorpio, all at the same time? (At least the Mercury was retrograde, giving me something else to discuss.) I suppose I could've just written, 'Things will be intense,' for every sign for several weeks in a row, and left it at that. But wouldn't you, my dear readers, have felt cheated?
Frankly, I'm bored of the same damn concentration of energy pushing down on me for weeks at a time. (Is thatfucked my back up?) I need what variety already… and sure, I've gotten some, now that the Sun, Venus and Jupiter have moved on into Sagittarius.
Alas, December brings a different version of 'more of the same'—with Sagittarius substituting for Scorpio as 'the same damn concentration of energy'. Now you know why your next few weeks' horoscopes might all end up sounding alike. Blame the planets.
Hmmm, this sounds good.
I'm trying to work on that momentum thing...Scorpio: This impacts your 1st house of self image, your body, and your instincts. Figure out how to release whatever you need to in order to get momentum into a new adventure already upon you. Change your values to better express your playfulness and creativity. Help children release pressure.
(Posted for the astrology carnival theme.)
When I heard that they were naming the new planetary body Eris, after the goddess of chaos and discord, I thought, "Oh shit, that is a BAD IDEA." It seems like in astrology the planetary influences are based upon their namesakes, and I cannot fathom why anyone thought naming an asteroid/dwarf planet after one of the biggest troublemakers out there was a good idea, even if it caused astronomer-types some trouble. Besides, don't we have Uranus around to cover the "unexpected event" territory? Uranus at least allows for some positive unexpected events. Eris doesn't seem to have that going on, other than the "well, maybe it'll make you work hard" thing.
I already felt a bit like Eris throws things at me a lot. I tend to attract chaotic stuff. I'm very well behaved, but I've spent most of my life since I turned 18 having various drama eruptions break out around me. I've always assumed that had something to do with Uranus being in my first house, that things are just supposed to go wacky in my vicinity. My friends tend to either be strange and/or have strange things happening with them, my family situation has been flushing down the toilet for years, and let's not even start about my dating life. Plus I've had tons of fun on the home front that was very unexpected and discordant (flooded apartment that had to be rebuilt).
Naturally, I couldn't help but wonder if Eris had any major relations to anything in my chart. Of COURSE it did- it's conjunct my Mercury. It also opposes my chart ruler, Pluto, and trines the midheaven, Neptune, Saturn, and Mars. So essentially, I have discord and chaos tied to dreams, career, adulthood, passion, war, and my very self.
YIKES!
Okay, okay. I'm probably supposed to be more Positive! about such things...so I did some searching over at Lindaland.
"Positive - liberation from addictions to success or status, clear priorities regarding matters of love and money, finally getting you can't take it with you and applying full resourcefulness in life, recognition of the potency of one's energy and life force, clear sense of the sacred marriages: spirit to body, self to Creator, between soulful companions, personal sense of emergence.
Negative - greed, workaholism, believe that you must take over for God, general sense of being forsaken, condemned or abandoned, lack of spiritual regard for life, superficial, status oriented.
Mundane: promises and vows (both kept and broken), elections and election fraud, intervention by higher powers (troubleshooters, authorities, deity or God), using chaos and disruption as a method of reorganization - i.e., dumping a closet onto the floor, then reorganizing, things that overturn, the scales of justice
Ceremonial: capitulation ceremonies, vows to create order from chaos, intent to right wrongdoing, abundance ceremonies"
Sounds Uranian to me again!
I got some reports done with Grupo Venus that just came in. Their "Revelations" report is not one I would recommend, because they somehow got half of my data wrong (I don't know why, they got it right in the other report) and it's brief halfassed little lines. Useless.
The Karmic Past Life Interpretation one was fairly interesting in a wackadoo sort of way, though. Some stuff from it:
Secret alliances and clandestine relationships may be your
undoing. You keep your desire for luxury, beauty and harmony to
yourself. You have a deep sense of justice and fair play.
Look for a significant prior lifetime relating to the law or
justice (either side of it), or in art, or in a position where
refined social skills were required. Other possible past life
experiences may have been in counseling or in social work.In your prior life, you misused your psychic gifts to dominate
others. Most likely, you practiced witchcraft or used hypnotism
to control and instill fear. This time, the karmic fear of
unleashing your inner power is so deep that you may allow
yourself to be victimized without putting up any resistance.
So...I was apparently some kind of ah, criminal? Huckster psychic for hire? What now?
I can't really argue with the "fear of unleashing your inner power, victimization" stuff, though I could also chalk that up to having a dominating set of parents in this life.
In a prior life where you were in a prominent position that was
restrictive or burdensome. There may be a karmic connection with
your same sex parent which needs resolution.
On the positive side, you understand your public responsibilities
and accept them with humility. You use your authority to improve
humankind and base your actions on the sincere desire to serve
rather than on what is socially expected of you.
On the negative side, you may avoid any social responsibilities,
reject your social status or hide yourself in a boring secure
job.
I'd believe the stuff with my mother.
I also can't argue that I hide myself in a boring secure job. Okay, I like it, but things have grown old.
Rash actions in a prior lifetime had severe consequences. Your
past life memories of those consequences is expressed in your
inner tensions. This time, your karmic fear of punishment
prohibits you from making any spontaneous move. The result of
this self-imposed restriction is sudden and uncontrollable
outbursts of anger, followed by a feeling of total release.
Can't argue with the lack of spontaneous moves thing either.
Your abundant love and generosity expressed towards your children
in prior life has given you a kindly nature and a nurturing
instinct.
This time you have an opportunity to express your nurturing love
on a broader scale, through feeding the homeless or helping to
eliminate world hunger. Your past life as a homemaker, cook or
farmer has is reflected in your interest in food and the home.
This, however, I do not buy AT FUCKING ALL. I have no interest in food and the home, even if I'm a damn Taurus with Jupiter in Cancer. And I thought I was supposed to be a huckster in my last life?
I somehow doubt I was nice to my children either.
You have strong beliefs in life after death, and under some
circumstances can be very telepathic. In a prior life you
administered the estates of clients in a selfless manner and your
tireless efforts to ensure that all beneficiaries received their
rightful inheritances has enabled you in this life to receive
benefit from insurance, bequests, or joint finances.
Life after death, yes. Telepathic, no. Again, wasn't I a huckster?
Personal advancement and gain were important to you in prior
lifetimes. Your sense of self-importance was exaggerated, and you
may have used your physical attractiveness to gain undue
advantage.
The drive and competition you have exhibited in past lives is
still evident today. This time around you need to learn to work
with others as opposed to your former 'lone wolf' style.
You have probably spent past lives as a soldier, explorer,
pioneer or inventor.
In this life, you have many strong likes and dislikes and you are
not afraid to let people know what they are. You can be envious
of the advantages others have, thus making you bitter about your
own lot in life.
In order to maintain the balance between your two karmic
doorways, you need to learn that selfishness will only increase
your bitterness. The joys of sharing and cooperation will bring
you untold personal satisfaction. Use your strong sense of
justice for the betterment of humanity, not only to advance your
personal cause.
Same stuff as always for the north node...
Outwardly, you may look very conventional. Inwardly, you are
unconventional. You may express your uniqueness through your
ideas or your behavior. Your ideas are often so far into the
future that others find you difficult to understand. You may find
it difficult to stay in one place for long, or at one job, or
have the same friends for long. You are in a constant state of
flux, but it is directed to your inner (spiritual) being.
In a prior life, you may have exercised your freedom, without
concern for the feelings or welfare of others. You may have been
a revolutionary or just in the avant-garde.
I can't argue with this.
Sometimes you find it difficult to determine what is real and
what is not. You have a vivid imagination and you find comfort in
your daydreaming and fantasy. Although it may not be recognized
as such, you have a psychic gift.
In a prior life, you may have used illusion and delusion to take
undue advantage of others. You were attracted to things psychic
and may have even represented yourself as a medium or even as a
magician. In this lifetime, you are still drawn to psychic and
occult matters.
Your lesson in this lifetime, is to develop your real spiritual
side. You may decide to use your psychic gifts for personal gain.
If you do so, use them honestly, avoiding deception of others at
all costs.
Again, huckster!
Great personal transformation is possible for you. You have
experienced many upheavals in your life, but to the casual
observer, the effects are not obvious. These upheavals have given
you hidden strength and power, the extent of which you yourself
may not be completely aware.
You have the capacity for considerable spiritual growth. But,
there is a tendency to eliminate from your life anything which
inhibits this growth.
Your lesson in this lifetime is to learn to detach yourself from
others without complete destruction of your relationships.
Hmmmm.
Law of Attraction and Astrology.
While writing this article I encountered the challenge of allowing my astrology beliefs to overpower my creative abilities. After a new love interest made the unwitting error of providing his birth date, I scrutinized his chart for over an hour.
His Sun Moon conjunction in Virgo was particularly troubling, since I wasn’t interested in someone described as "highly discriminating, critical, finicky and conventional." Grant Lewi himself called a person with this aspect a "moralist!" Probably not a good match for me. As I predicted the demise of our relationship before our first date, I realized I’d just fallen victim to my astrology.
So I gave it another shot. I reviewed other traits of a double Virgo: loyal, affectionate, sentimental, and domestic. I must have skipped over those as I dug out the dirt on him. Even if he is picky - well, he’s interested in me, right? That has to be a good sign. A peek at his Sun Pluto conjunction also revealed "magnetic charm, strong physical desires, with an interest in correcting social injustices." Okay, sign me up!
