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There Is More To Astrology Than Horoscopes!
Astrology is an ancient, complex metaphysical tradition that originated over 4000 years ago in Mesopotamia. Yes, indeed! Old Babylonia was its birthplace, not Harry Potter’s Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Neither was it concocted by an enterprising editor of some trendy newspaper or magazine.
Actually, the first horoscope in the modern press is credited to the British astrologer Richard Harold Naylor who wrote a horoscope for the newly born Princess Margaret, titled What The Stars Foretell For The New Princess. It was published three days after her birth on August 24, 1930 in the Sunday Express weekly newspaper. It was so popular with readers that he was asked to write more horoscopes for the publication.
The sun sign astrology we see in modern day horoscopes was not originally intended for the individual, but it has become a useful gateway to entice people into a deeper exploration of astrology. Nothing wrong with a little ‘cheese for the mice,’ as long as we bear in mind that true astrology does not exclusively revolve around our birth sun sign.
Our sun sign is only one letter of the astrological alphabet, albeit a highly significant letter. The other planets in our natal chart do view our sun as the center of things, but the cosmos and our individual lives contain so much more.
The layered complexity of a nativity, a client’s individual birth story crystallized in an exact moment of time and place, is a story as rich as the history that birthed it. Ancient Babylonia carried the first seeds of the western, tropical system of astrology that many of us practice today.
Creating A Crystal Energy Jar Based On Your Astrology Chart
When thinking of Astrology, most people only know their Sun sign. This chart placement indicates the core essence of the person’s traits and personality. However, many other astrological influences shape our lives, including our Moon sign, Ascendant sign, and Midheaven placement.
Each of us also has a unique astrological birth chart with planets and stars in certain placements, meaning that it is exceptionally rare that two people might have the same natal chart. Even twins with seemingly identical birth charts will usually have small variances in their charts, depending on the amount of time that passed between the first and second birth.
On the rare occasion that two people do have identical charts they are known as ‘time twins.’ For this to be possible, they must be born in the same year, on the same day, no more than 15 minutes apart, and within at least a 10-mile (16 km) radius from each other.
Similarly, each individual crystal and gemstone is also unique and can be used to celebrate the uniqueness of your birth chart, despite it being the birthstone for everyone who shares your zodiac sign. Crystals and stones reflect and magnify the energies we exude, and they can be used as a powerful tool in your spiritual practice.
Something special you can create is a specialty crystal jar to reflect the uniqueness of your own astrological identity by harnessing the energies embodied by certain crystals and stones.
The Wise Approach To Mercury Retrograde
According to Astrology our life may at times be in upheaval due to our ruling planet being in Mercury Retrograde. Although this concept is commonly touted in the spiritual and metaphysical communities, I find that many people affacted by it do not understand its true significance and are not well-informed on how to best manage it.
Mercury Retrograde is indeed a challenging cosmic influence. It tends to feel like we had just finished one bout of it, then the next one is already looming on the horizon. The most recent retrograde ended was from May 10th until June 2nd, while the next round will be September 9th to October 2nd, followed by an another one from December 29th until January 18th, 2023. As if 2022 has not been a heck of a ride thus far, with several ups and downs!
There is however some good news for some of us. This year the zodiac signs least likely to be affected by the Mercury Retrograde mayhem are Capricorn (that’s me), Libra, Aries, and Cancer. The other zodiac signs may be in for a rough ride at times.
A common side-effect of Mercury Retrograde for many people an unexplained nervous energy or restlessness. You feel anxious and stressed about everything and you can’t figure out why? Sometimes one even feels anxious about things that have never bothered you in the past. One may also have a hard time focusing on things. This retrograde energy can throw even the most calm and centered person off balance.
However, many blessings and valuable life lessons await at the end of each retrograde cycle for those most affected by it. All one must do in the meantime is keep moving forward, one step at a time, one foot in front of the other, and stay fully present in the moment with your life. The rewards and benefits of the process will emerge once you get through it and the chaos is over. Continue reading
The Spiritual Path Of The Wandering Nomad
A recent chat with a relative about my plans for the future reminded me of a first cousin who once remarked on my nomadic lifestyle, “You really don’t seem to stay in one place for more than ten minutes!” A friend once also pulled my leg about needing to buy a new Rolodex, because I was filling hers up with all my constantly changing addresses from all over the world (those were the days before contacts could be more easily stored on a smart phone).
According to Astrology, I was supposed to get settled early in life as a Cancerian, by creating a permanent home and haven, and having a family with several children. Well, this was never the case. I thought the desire to settle down might come as years passed, but it never happened.
I also never became broody. I would become motherly over a puppy, kitten or other young animal, but I never felt the desire to have children of my own.
Over many years of personal growth and spiritual exploration, I have gained a deeper understanding and greater clarity regarding the choices I have been making in this lifetime.
Astrologically, for example there is a strong Gemini influence in my natal chart which is contributing to my restlessness, as well as Leo fueling my creativity and my sense of determination. I am not am expert astrologer by any stretch of the imagination, but the way it was explained to me by a professional astrologer made perfect sense.
A past life regression session also revealed that I had conceived many children in previous incarnations and that the desire to have offspring of my own this time around was not a part of the blueprint.
I found the matter particularly challenging when I was younger. I would be dating a wonderful guy who really wanted to settle down with me and longed to have a family, but the mere thought of having my wings clipped by marriage and motherhood was always unthinkable to me. So, many good relationships ended because we really were not on the same page about settling down and having children.
The Magic Of Dream Astrology
Dream interpretation using astrology is a wonderful psychic tool few people are aware of. My clients know they can come to me with any recent dream that ruffled their feather quilts, and I can help them sleep on smooth sheets again.
Of course, before you seek such counsel, I advise you first begin to practice strengthening your dream recall. It is handy to keep a notebook or dream journal by the bed, and record your unusual sleep adventures whenever it presents itself.
Distilling the important dreams from the more common ones is an art of discernment that does take some practice for most people. However, in time, you’ll learn to distinguish when a dream has value, as opposed to what astrologer Nina Gryphon calls ‘a spicy pizza dream.’ In other words, the ordinary dreams are like a passing movie reel that has more to do with what you ate the night before, than being a profoundly prophetic dream that has the potential to manifest and change your life.
In ancient Egypt, Greece, and the Middle East, there used to be ‘dream incubation temples’ that required the querent to first fast and purify themselves, before a deity or oracle would show up to interpret their dream.
Today, all that is required is an astrological chart – either an event chart of the moment you actually experienced the dream, or you can use a horary chart, which is the constructing of a horoscope for the exact time at which the question is received by the astrologer.
Dreams are traditionally associated with two archetypes: The ‘gate of horn’ or dreams that stem from a divine source; and the gate of ivory, which is those muddled mind trips we can never fully translate (otherwise known as ‘spicy pizza dreams’).
The Soul Gold Of Dysfunctional Relationships
When I was younger, I actually searched for my birth certificate, just to see if I really was a member of my family! I’ve witnessed some close-knit and very loving families among my friends and acquaintances, which I admire and applaud. But not everyone is that fortunate. It seems some of us are thrown together in families we cannot help but wonder where we all fit in. For many of us our family and romantic relationships are complicated.
We typically grow up seeing perfect families on television and in the movies. We also observe them during summer vacations and winter holidays. But I have always preferred the exceptions to the rule, the alternative families, the dysfunctional, weird and wonderful family stories, because they portray real life with humor.
Growing up my family did the best they could with what they had and what they knew at the time. In our family there was much avoidance, secrets, Catholic school and the constant overhanging threat of being ‘sent to a nunnery.’ Role-models for how to build healthy, constructive I did not have. So, I had to figure it out on my own, making many mistakes along the way.
I have even attributed my sense of not belonging in my family to the planets: my Aquarius Sun sign and Sagittarius Rising sign. I assumed my tendency to be a bit of a star child, moving to the strange music in my own head, just needed its own space? Upon a closer look, as the years went by, my father and I had many similar traits, with some of my mother’s mixed in on the spectrum.
I was constantly searching for that next subject to study and different ways to escape through my imagination. I also closed down when people came too close and moved along as quickly as possible.
Truths In Your Astrological Chart
An astrological chart can be a wonderful tool – a marvelous means of gaining insight into who we are as a person. Reading your astrological chart and having it interpreted correctly is the only way to be able to use this tool effectively.
Many people think that their Sun Sign is the only important aspect to know, and little do they realize that it is a mere piece of the astrological puzzle.
We are complex beings, made up of a variety of astrological aspects. It is important to combine all these elements and influences, in order to truly function at the level of which we are capable. The world around us needs a combination of things to ensure the continuation of life and we are exactly the same.
If you over water a plant you can kill it. Too much, or too little, fresh air and sunlight may or may not damage a plant. We are just another expression of nature, except that we have arms and legs.
For example, a young lady has her Sun in Taurus, her Moon and her Venus in Aries and her Ascendant (or rising sign) in Libra. Let’s go one further, and say that all these planets fall into her Seventh House. Can you determine what this young lady’s Achilles heel might be? In other words, what might her downfall or her soft spot be?
The answer is love. The reason for this is that her Moon (who she is on the inside, her deepest darkest self) is in Aries – a fiery passionate sign, prone to impulse. Her Venus is also in Aries, and her rising sign Libra (the ultimate lover). They are all in or near enough to the seventh house, which rules love and partners, to just about control every aspect of her being, until she has been properly ‘broken in’, just like you would a wild horse.
She has great, harsh lessons to learn in her life about love. She will, no doubt, while she is younger and more resilient (at least in her mind) fall in love many times a day, and for each moment give it her absolute all.
