On astrology, therapy, animals, and the blessings of the broken parts

You know, people come to therapy really for blessing. Not so much to fix what’s broken, as to get what’s broken blessed. – James Hillman

Dream Animals, page 2

There is so much emphasis on “fixing” in our culture.

We think we are broken and need fixing. Or we put pressure on ourselves to help others solve their problems or give them “actionable takeaways” (ugh, I hate that phrase).

It’s easy to forget that feeling seen by another person is sometimes the greatest gift they can give us.

The past five years of Jungian analysis has helped me discover ways to listen to and feel seen by my soul, because a Jungian analysis isn’t about fixing. You aren’t “in treatment.” As Hillman wrote about in The Soul’s Code, one’s “symptoms” can sometimes point you in the direction of your calling; if you listen to the symptoms carefully, they can show you what it is your soul would rather attend to.

Since starting to study ancient astrology a year ago, I’ve discovered that an astrologer can bless someone simply by showing them the breathtakingly intricate ways that they are seen by the cosmos in their birth chart. It helps flip one’s inner narrative from marinating in regrets about certain past events to compassion towards self and others. As Hillman said at an astrology conference in 1997, ” The astrologer reverts events to their sources in the heavens, thereby taking the person out of circumstances and into heaven. Hence the revelatory feelings when a striking interpretation is made. Heaven’s gates open and a connection made between the two spheres.”

And let’s not forget the blessings of animals! The Hillman quote at the beginning of the post was from the book Dream Animals, in which Hillman says blessing by the animal occurs when they wake up our imagination when see them in nature. And when they enter our dreams. He also said that pets were the first psychoanalysts and make us aware of ourselves. I also can’t help but add that astrology reminds us of the blessings of animals, too, as several of the zodiac signs are animal symbols. “The planets are largely stabled among beasts,” as Hillman said.

Yesterday, while getting ready to write the draft of this post, the Lutheran benediction that I heard hundreds of times during childhood and early adulthood came to mind. I was able to recite it without difficulty and it goes something like this:

May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. May the Lord lift up his countenance upon you… and give you peace.

I put ellipses in there because I seem to remember the pastor pausing before saying those final four words. Then afterwards the pastor made the sign of the cross, not by touching his or her forehead and chest with their fingers, but with their arm extended from their body, Blessings aren’t meant to be kept clutched to ourselves.

Of course it’s not just a pet, priest, therapist, astrologer, or God that dispenses blessings. All of us can lift up our countenances upon each other and give each other peace.

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What sermons and horoscopes have in common

What sermons and horoscopes have in common

The best of sermons afflict the comfortable and comfort the afflicted. The same can be said of horoscopes. Even when they don’t meet this high ideal, they can remind us of heaven.

There a line that I can still recall from a sermon I heard over 30 years ago, back when I was in college.

The Lutheran pastor began the sermon in a voice as loud as thunder: “Unfulfilled desires prove the existence of heaven.” He was paraphrasing C.S. Lewis and went on to explain that if a desire exists, the fulfillment of that desire must also exist.

My imagination thrilled at this and it fed my soul. Out of the many hundreds of sermons I would go on to hear in the years to come, this is the only line I remember out of all those sermons.

Zoom ahead 30+ years to today, and it is astrology and horoscopes that I partake of regularly. I recently listened to an audio of James Hillman, who was an archetypal Jungian psychologist. It is a one hour talk he gave at an astrology conference and he quoted Paracelsus:

Hillman kept repeating the words “Heaven retains.” He said he takes those two words quite literally. When I heard that I had the same thrill as I did 30+ years ago when listening to that sermon,

You only get a half truth or partial understanding of others or yourself if you neglect heaven. The ultimate meaning of heaven is unknown. It is defined simply as the place beyond the sky, the unknown. It connotes the divine.

Hillman says: “Paracelsus is insisting on the invisible path of our lives. This half is not directly graspable by any natural methods of science, any kind of naturalistic or mundane thinking or understanding. […] We humans, aware that we only live in half truths, and see only through a glass darkly, turn to astrology to find a way back to heaven, to the invisible source of our bodies and maladies.”

Horoscopes and sermons can point us to heaven because it is heaven that makes them possible. It is the arrangement of the planets in the sky during a particular day or period of time that serves up the topics an astrologer must address when writing a horoscope.

For many pastors and priests, it is a lectionary, based on the church calendar, that provides the scripture reading the sermon must address.

Of course there is always the danger that a sermon or horoscope can become too prescriptive, too mired in literalism and fundamentalism. One must choose one’s purveyors of sermons and horoscopes wisely.

In my years of listening to sermons, I noticed that, even when following a lectionary, a pastor or priest would still tend to repeat the same themes over and over again, as if it was the lesson they needed to hear. This can happen to astrologers too. Jung said that teachers, ultimately, don’t teach their subject. They teach themselves (i.e. the teacher is the subject).

Astrologer Adam Elenbaas also steers us away from a literal view:

“I find that thinking too much about when to do stuff with astrology generally gets in the way. If you meditate on something in your heart, and  […] have a good intention that’s not going to harm anyone … then you [should] just go with what feels right.

Part of astrology is trying to get us off the training wheels of astrology. That’s a big part of astrology, actually. We all have the inherent sense of divine timing built into us.”

Ultimately, true healing and comes from within, and not from horoscopes and sermons. But the astrologer and the pastor/priest can help transport us out of our circumstances by providing insights that remind us of what is above. Then we can find a way back to heaven, where the fulfillment of our desires, and comfort for our afflictions, awaits.

Sources:

Adam Elenbaas 9/15/19 video.

RIP Rev. Jerry Knoche

Continue ReadingWhat sermons and horoscopes have in common

If Gary Vee was an astrologer: his defense of sun sign horoscopes (plus his August 2019 horoscopes)

If Gary Vee was an astrologer: his defense of sun sign horoscopes (plus his August 2019 horoscopes)

If Gary Vaynerchuk was an astrologer, here is what his August horoscopes might say, and how he might defend sun sign horoscopes:

Astrology is a gateway drug to self-awareness.

People kept saying to me, “Gary, you talk all the time about self-awareness. But how do I get more self-awareness? You never talk about that.”

Self-awareness is wired into my DNA, and I was perfectly parented, so it’s hard for me to reverse engineer and explain it to you. I have tremendous empathy for people that need outside help with gaining more self-awareness.

That’s why I hired a team of astrologers here at VaynerMedia, to help me create astrology content for you, because it’s a great practical tool to help you get more self-awareness. One of those astrologers is also studying my transits that will happen years and decades from now to help me figure out when I can buy the New York Jets. I’m super pumped.

Before I share my August horoscopes with you, I want to address complaints I get in my DMs that say I say the same things all the time in horoscopes.

People want fancy when they aren’t even following the basic advice in my sun sign horoscopes.

Astrology begins and ends with the sun. The end.

I’m all about process. So is the sun.

The sun is like the heart and the planets are like the blood. They circulate to and from the sun. They willingly return to the sun whey they need to refuel. They even move faster when they are near the sun because they are energized by the sun and experience a rebirth. The sun also takes on the qualities of those planets that are under its beams.

At VaynerMedia we have a Chief Heart Officer, so I love how the sun symbolizes the heart. I always want our company culture to reflect this: employees willingly seeking out the heart/sun, without fear, when they need to refuel. And the two-way street effect of the heart/sun taking on the qualities of the employees and their ideas.

Here are my August horoscopes:

My fellow Scorpios, you can crush it at work or your life purpose this month, because of the new moon in your tenth house. Make this the month that finding happiness in what you do every day becomes imperative.

Libras, the new moon is in your 11th house, the place of friends and allies, so you might meet new people. I’m pumped for you. Relationships are leverage. If you give value to someone else first, you have leverage.

Virgos, the new moon is in 12th house of Leo and connects to Uranus in the 9th house. If you’re not careful you could face some dark places. But remember you only get to play this game one time … one life. Gratitude will bring sunshine to your heart even on dark days.

Leos, you have a square to Uranus going on, landing in the first house. Something new is beginning in your life. But have perspective about change. A penguin cannot become a giraffe, so just be the best penguin you can be.

My Cancer friends, the new moon is in your second house of income and expenses. Don’t get distracted with worry about what goes on with money this month, because you are in control of the one asset that we all care the most about and that is time.

Geminis, you’re starting something new in your immediate environment this month because of the square to Uranus in the third house. All your ideas may be solid or even good, but you have to actually EXECUTE on them for them to matter.

Taurus, there’s a new moon in your fourth house, lots of focus on home and family. There’s a square to Uranus in your first house there to remind you that there’s no reason to do s**t you hate. NONE.

Aries, the emphasis in on your fifth house of good fortune, romance, beauty, sports, children. There’s a square to Uranus in your second house of finances. Have fun this month, but stop whining, and start hustling.

Pisces, Venus and the new moon are in a square with Uranus between the sixth and third houses. The sixth house is the in between world that isn’t always fun. This house is about hard work, suffering, sickness. I love the sixth house. That’s because I weirdly love losing more than winning. If you feel stuck in this in between place, when it all comes down to it, nothing trumps execution.

Aquarius, there is a huge focus on your seventh house of marriage and relationships. Venus square to Uranus means relationship issues could pop up. One of the biggest things for you to remember this month is you should always be the bigger person in any situation. Don’t value money over family and happiness.

Capicorns,a big emphasis on your eighth house this month, you might face debts, karma, things you have to face that you’ve been in denial about. Turn it into positivity. Rise to the challenge. Accept that the climb might be the best part of the whole thing.

Sagittarius, Uranus is in your sixth house of Taurus, with a square to the 9th house of religion, spirituality, higher principles, knowledge, wisdom. Sixth is the house of hard work, sickness, strife, service. Like I said before, I love the sixth house. People will want to challenge you and question your ideas, and you should welcome that.

No matter what your sign is, remember: there no longer has to be a difference between who you are and what you do, in August and beyond. Stop complaining and start doing.

————-

If you have any interest in business and company culture, I recommend that you follow Gary Vee on YouTube and social media.

Continue ReadingIf Gary Vee was an astrologer: his defense of sun sign horoscopes (plus his August 2019 horoscopes)

How blending two planets can help describe your personality. Mine is Jupiter Moon. What’s yours?

How blending two planets can help describe your personality. Mine is Jupiter Moon. What’s yours?

Most people know their sun sign. Many even know their rising sign and moon. But can you quick name your rising sign’s planetary ruler? And then the sign that planet is in in your chart?

As homework for Adam Elenbaas’ Nightlight Astrology class last week, he asked us to do this and think about how those two planets blend together and influence your personality.

My rising sign is Sagittarius. Sagittarius is ruled by Jupiter. In my birth chart, Jupiter is in the 8th house of Cancer. Cancer is ruled by the Moon.

Jupiter Moon is my combo. But what does that mean? I put together this graphic of the archetypes of each planet and a distillation of Richard Tarnas’ description of each planet from his wonderful book Cosmos and Psyche:

In terms of archetypes, Jupiter Moon would be a combination of Caretaker Sage.

Of course I couldn’t resist bringing the I Ching into this. By far my favorite part of Human Design is how it assigns an I Ching hexagram to each of the planets in your chart, one for both your conscious and unconscious sides.

The Wilhelm I Ching translation describes the image for each hexagram, so I’ll post a photo for each image, and only a very brief description of the hexagram:

Jupiter (conscious), Hexagram 52: Keeping Still.

“Your inner stillness and quietness allows you to gain perspective over all life’s circumstances.”

Line 2: “When attracted by outside influences it is important to remain true to your own way.”

The image per Wilhelm is of “mountains standing close together” to represent “keeping still.”

Jupiter (unconscious), Hexagram 45: Gathering Together

“Firm alignment with that which supports everyone best brings together a strong community.”

Line 5: “Being Virtuous: the virtues that attract the confidence of others. Assuming a grandiose approach to leading others, you must be practical to be effective.”

The image for “gathering together” is a lake. “If the lake gathers until it rises above the earth, there is danger of a break-through. Precautions must be taken to prevent this. […] Thus in the time of gathering together we must arm promptly to ward off the unexpected.”

Moon (conscious), Hexagram 44: Meeting Together

“In any meeting of likes or opposites, acceptance and mutual tolerance is essential.”

Line 5: “Integrating: upholding a presence that is exemplary. You align with the laws of nature and high integrity, or take advantage if you can.”

The image is of wind under the heaven, to symbolize “the influence exercised by the ruler through his commands.”

Moon (unconscious) Hexagram 53: Development (gradual progress)

“Gradual advance takes place as an organic process that brings increasing self-knowledge and experience.”

Line 3: “Scrutinizing: watching your step when engaging in all new endeavors. Finding growth potential in all situations, you draw for your inner strength.”

The image is of a tree on the mountain. “The tree on the mountain is visible from afar, and its development influences the landscape of the entire region. It does not shoot up like a swamp plant; its growth proceeds gradually. Thus also the work of influencing people can be only gradual. No sudden influence or awakening is of lasting effect.”

I’d love to hear what your two planet combo is if you care to share.

________

Sources:


The I Ching by Richard Wilhelm (translator)

Adam Elenbaas’ Nightlight Astrology class.

Free Human Design for us All app. There are also free chart generators online if you want to look up what the hexagrams (called gates in Human Design) are for the planets in your chart.

Cosmos and Psyche by Richard Tarnas

Ancient Astrology by Demetra George

Continue ReadingHow blending two planets can help describe your personality. Mine is Jupiter Moon. What’s yours?

If Gary Vee was an astrologer: his July 2019 horoscope

If Gary Vee was an astrologer: his July 2019 horoscope

If Gary Vaynerchuk was an astrologer, his July 2019 horoscope might read something like this:

My horoscope isn’t fancy. It boils down to this: you just have to be willing to give up dumb stuff for a better life. It doesn’t matter if you are a Leo, Capricorn, or whatever you sun sign is. Just remember: It’s always about self-awareness.

You Taurus folks have the solar eclipse in the third house, which is about your tribe, communication, siblings, and your mindset. The north node is in the third house of my chart, where I crush it every day. The pursuit of trying to buy the New York Jets is my passion because it allows me to play the game that I love. Happiness needs to be the ROI. Do you love what you do?

There’s a new moon in the second house for Geminis in July. New business ideas and revenue might be found here. But don’t think you’re fancy. Everybody thinks being an entrepreneur means you make a million a year. I grew up working lemonade stands, baseball card shows, and washing cars as a seven-year-old all day long. One of my biggest highs is going garage sale-ing and motivating others to have a side hustle flipping stuff. Thinking smaller about the second house will actually help you live bigger. I say it all the time: how you make your money is more important than how much you make.

Hey, VIrgos, there is a big solar eclipse going on for you in the 11th house of friends and allies. Learn from me: the biggest weakness I have is I think I can do everything. I’m too optimistic. I’m too confident. In the past I had several businesses with a partner and couldn’t deliver to the partner because I had so much going on. You have to put effort into relationships. You have to give more value to somebody than they give to you. I live my life by guilting people into having a relationship with me.

I’ve been getting DMs from my fellow Scorpios about this month’s new moon in the tenth house of career. If that’s you, look yourself in the mirror and ask yourself: What do I want to do every day for the rest of my life? Then do that. Whatever it is, you can monetize it.

I have tremendous empathy for you Sagittarius folks if you experience heavy stuff in the eighth house this month due to the solar eclipse. I know anxiety about the future, death, and karmic debt can rise up here. Every morning when I wake up, if the people I care about the most are still alive, the day is already a win, no matter what else happens. Anything else just doesn’t matter. #Perspective.

Mercury retrograde starts on July 7. It’s in Leo, a masculine sign, which gives it some kick, and it’s loosely squared to Uranus. Bring it on. Last month a flight of mine got cancelled and I had to drive eight hours from Toronto to New York to make it home in time for my daughter’s birthday. Mercury retrograde type crap happens all year round. Mercury is just a symbol or sign, it’s not what causes this negative stuff. To deal with unpleasant surprises I accept that everything is all my fault. Even if it’s raining out, it’s my fault. It’s about taking responsibility. Use this Mercury retrograde energy to find new ideas that spring from your love for something. Find ways to do what you love. Follow your heart.

You have one life, my friend. Only one shot at July 2019 The biggest poison is regret. Stop making excuses. Stop complaining about transits. Nobody is listening. Just make one person happy this month: YOU. Then you can make others happy and do the things that will put you in a position to succeed in business and in life.

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The biblical “great cloud of witnesses” and archetypal astrology

The biblical “great cloud of witnesses” and archetypal astrology

The biblical phrase “cloud of witnesses” has long enthralled for me, for it hints at the mystical and archetypal.

Hebrews 12:1 is the Bible verse where it’s mentioned:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.

As I continue to do dream work with my Jungian analyst, and have begun to study archetypal astrology, the phrase “cloud of witnesses” keeps coming to mind.

Dreams are populated with archetypal figures that are, in essence, a cloud of witnesses. Animus/anima figures, who often have the persona of the inferior function of one’s personality type. Powerful cameo appearances from loved ones who are deceased and bring a message of healing. And, of course, shadow figures, that remind us of what we have trouble facing in waking life.

I love how James Hillman, the late, great Jungian psychologist and founder of archetypal psychology puts it:

In astrology, this cloud of witnesses is just as evident. It is easier to have self-compassion, and empathy for others, while reviewing the times in your life when you had difficult transits (such as the Saturn return and Uranus square Uranus) because you know that every other person has had a similar period. We are all witnesses to each other.

This archetypal support emboldens us to “run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”

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