Too Cool!

Mars in Cancer……Om Shanti

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33213245/ns/msnbc_tv-countdown_with_keith_olbermann

Something else you may not know about me…..

I’ve been listening to a lot of speech’s recently.

Today, I listened to someone speak about speech’s and speechwriting.   In 1989 & again in 1998 I spent some time working as a speechwriter.  It was part of my job as an Assistant to the President to a hugely successful and powerful female, real estate broker/owner in NJ.  I learned a lot about a lot, and I’m grateful for that job experience.  During that time, I was also learning how to deliver speech’s myself.

There is No Substitute for good communication skills, regardless of gender, education, intellect, socio/economic class, religion, or anything else.  And yet, it has obviously not been a priority in our culture….. either for the masses,  public officials, and don’t even get me started on the level of communication skills within our established medical/legal communities!!  For this reason alone I applaud Barack Obama, regardless of whatever he does or does not do.

As a graduate of NLP, I feel a certain responsibility to practice conscious, effective, and clear communications as often as possible and to teach/train others to improve their communication skills with others.  In my yoga classes I have often guided the students thru what is called Co-Listening. I learned & practiced many variations of this technique at Kripalu Center in the Berkshires. (1994 – 2008.)  The combination of NLP techniques with yoga philosophy & practices is quite effective when skillfully applied…..at least in my experience.

This century has challenged us to learn how to communicate thru technological mediums.  The internet has indeed changed everything and some are being left behind.  However, for those out here in the blogosphere with me, it’s vital that we all remember that these are just words on a screen.  There is no substitute for human-to-human contact.  Sounds, smell, touch, sight, movement, gesture, are also parts of the whole of communication.

Here’s a cardinal rule to follow.

We are all, as individuals, responsible for what we say & what we hear.  When you ask a question and do not get the response you anticipate, ask again, differently.  If you have an emotional response to something you’ve heard….seek clarification to make sure that what you heard was what the speaker intended to say.  Defense mechanisms have deep roots and we are all responsible for pruning back what no longer works.   (I feel a rant coming on here so that’s a good time to sign off.)

Mercury is still retrograde and will remain so until January 31.  A good time to re-consider how to improve your communication skills.

Have a nice day.

Mercury Retrograde – Oh Yippee!

I’ve returned to my homebase recently after spending a lunar cycle on the West Coast. My Pluto line ran right through the locality I spent most of the time in.

For the last 3 days of my trip I was able to travel to a Sun/Jupiter paran to experience some relief from those intensive Pluto vibrations.

Understanding your personal Astro-Cartography can be very helpful when traveling. My preparations were successful and effective.

My plane landed at the same time as another one in the area was crashing into a nearby river….give or take a few hours…. both of us were flying under Mercury Retrograde with saturn/moon conjunction forming. Good Fortune was present for All. Ommmmm.

How blessed I am to have this retrograde period. It will give me time to process my journey and convert all that I learned into my teaching for this new DAY

Mercury Retrograde periods can be very productive times for cleaning up the lose ends of projects that are not yet complete. This particular Mercury Retrograde period began at 8 Aquarius. If you have planets in Aquarius you need to do a little more research than this blog. But, for now here’s some input from An Astrological Mandala, a book on the Sabian Symbols by Dane Rudyhar, a master for sure.

A great resource for Sabian Symbols.

BEAUTIFULLY GOWNED WAX FIGURES ON DISPLAY

…..a time to consider the “fixed symbols upon which a culture is based, with mental archetypes.

…a stage of vision

….new forms are revealed to the consciousness “

Wow. That seems pretty interesting me considering the state of world affairs these days.

Oh well. More coming as soon as I re-acclimate to the local time/space conditions of the East Coast.

May all beings be peaceful.

A Maverick in the Sky…………………..

As I write this, Chiron is in active conjunction with the North Node at 18+ degrees of Aquarius.  As many of you know, I have been actively watching Chiron’s travels for a while.  For me, this conjunction with Rahu (the vedic term for: North Node of the Moon) is a good opportunity to sweep and de-clutter the path in preparation for the ‘new earth’.   Wherever Chiron goes, healing occurs………………………or not.

The north node is a place and not an object in the sky.  It is a symbolic moment in time/space that has no physical substance to it like the moon or mars.   Think of it as a line bi-secting the earth & moon ecliptics.

Many astrologers have decided that the nodal fields of activity are our relationships with other people, present day company and also past company as in both childhood and past lives.  Karmic experiences are highly likely for those with a belief system that supports this notion.  (In India where Vedic Astrology began, karma and past-lives are an integral part of their belief system.  Hindu’s Buddhists, and the followers of Guru’s all share a deep respect for the laws of karma and extend this respect to their honoring of all beings.)

Nodal contacts can bring new people into our lives for new relationships and/or create so much separation between us in existing relationships that we finally (?)break apart.  Because the north node always occurs with a south node it can be a little confusing to know which has more ‘juice’ at any moment. A gifted astrologer can really help here, seek one out.   The rule of thumb is that the NN will lead you towards future karma or dharma, whilst the SN reflects to you more of your past karma.  Since Now is the only moment that really counts the challenge is to balance the two energies and find common ground.  When a planet highlights a node, as is the case today, it makes it easier to find the particular relationships in your life which are operating on a karmic level, and which aren’t.  (ie.  the grocery clerk who winked today, or a phone call from an old friend)   Look around.

Aquarian energy will be the common denominator for awhile.  (The NN will remains in Aquarius for about 18 months and then it moves on to Capricorn.  It is about halfway into it’s cycle. )  Also note that the nodes revolve around planet earth in the opposite direction from the planets/asteroids.  Think of this conjunction like you would preview a ‘movie trailer’ with a release date of 2009 – 2010. (More on this to come.))

Some keywords for Aquarius are:  friendship, terrorists, eccentrics, genius, intuitive, future-oriented, difficulty with intimacy, objectivity, out-of-the-box, humanitarian.   One might wonder why the word terrorists is on that list and that’s a good question.  I will leave it for another day and I encourage you to meditate on it for the greater good of all beings.  Om shanti.

The 19th degree of the Sabian Symbols (always round up) says:

A forest fire is being subdued by the use of water, chemicals and sheer muscular energy.

The keynote reads:  the skill and courage necessary to bring under control the destructive potential fo carelessness of karmic “visitations”.

Oh!  I left a word off the keyword list above………Aquarius is also the sign of aliens and extra-terrestrials.  Hmmm.

Time for bed.

Links tomorrow if I have the time.

May all beings be peaceful.

The yoga of communication….

For years now I have been opening yoga class with a “check-in”. It’s an opportunity for those who choose, to speak without fear of feedback. It can be a difficult practice and not everyone participates, nor does everyone understand the benefits or meaning of the practice.

I will be turning over my yoga classes to my assistants when I travel later this month. We’ve been having ‘training’ sessions to cover as much as we can before I leave. “Holding the space” for a deep-listening practice can be extremely challenging. And, yet, I want the studio to remain constant and safe for those who attend in my absence.

Over the years of working with deep listening techniques, conscious communication, and silence I have learned a lot. It’s my intention to get it all down in the manual I’m writing for yoga teachers/therapists.

For today, I’d like to call your attention to some words that are best eliminated from your everyday dialogue. They are powerless and ineffective. Nothing of importance gets communicated if these words are in your sentences. And, for now, you’ll just have to take my word for it and do your own research. Let me know what you find. Here’s the list.

COULD

WOULD

SHOULD

BUT

NEVER

ALWAYS

NOT (or any word that has a n’t attached to it)

It’s a short list. However, if you begin to really listen to yourself you will probably find it quite difficult to eliminate these words.

The moon’s in Gemini today….the impulse to connect thru language presents itself. The mental field is active and the communication channels are active.

Introducing Chiron…………

One fascinating way to understand the essence of something (like Chiron) is to look at the etymology of the word. Chiron comes from the root syllable, chiro which relates to the hand. Thus, chiromancy (palmistry), chirography (penmanship/calligraphy), chironomid (one who makes gestures with his hands), and of course the chiropractor who adjusts our nervous system by manipulating our spine. Chiron is the original ‘alternative’ genius.

Here are some more words that convey the ‘energy’ of Chiron.

Maverick, Quest, Guide, Healing, Key, Doorway, Bridge, Loophole, Qualifier, Teacher, Mentor, Holistic Healer, Ecologist, Mentor, Rainbow Bridge, Shamen.

I am not a mechanism, an assembly of various sections.
And it is not because the mechanism is working wrongly , that I am ill.
I am ill because of wounds to the soul,
to the deep emotional self
and the wounds to the soul
take a long,
long time,

only time can help and patience,
and a certain difficult repentance,
long difficult repentance,
realizations of life’s mistake,
and the freeing oneself

from the endless repetition of the mistake which mankind at large has chose to sanctify.

D. H. Lawrence

…remember the movie, “Cocoon”?

Go here:

Let your imaginations happen.

om peace.

Makes me wonder………………….

All about Dennis Kucinich. Does anyone know his birth information?

Stumbling Thru Aquarius…….

The asteroid Chiron is named after a mythological centaur (horse/man) who became a great healer/teacher. In astrological mythology, Chiron is the Wounded Healer and has many talents. One story tells how he became immortal and lived a life of suffering after a fatal(?) wound from a poisoned arrow. In the attempt to heal himself Chiron learned the magic of herbs, gems, astrology, and many other ancient healing tools.

In our natal horoscopes, the placement of Chiron describes the circumstances of our unhealed wounds, the ones that require an integrated approach to understand. These are the wounds that are invisible to the world and sometimes even invisible to ourselves.The emotions of shame and humiliation will give you a clue as to where these wounds are located. By the time we reach our early 50’s we have had numerous opportunities to confront these wounds and perhaps we were successful in transforming this lead into gold. Also around the age of 50, the asteroid Chiron returns to the same place he was in when you were born….a Chiron Return in the astrological language. This might be considered a ‘last chance’ for healing in this lifetime the wound that binds you. It’s also a time (after 50) to share your knowledge with others and become the teacher/counselor/healer who helps others with wounds similar to your own, just as Chiron did in mythology.

The Wounded Healer contributes to the whole in ways that can’t be measured.

The success of the 12-step format is one way in which wounded healers have helped others create happy lives from painful pasts.

We all have a touch of Chiron somewhere in our psyche. It is an archetype that the whole human race feels. The location of Chiron in your personal astrological birthmap can shed some light on the wound that follows you everywhere and has the potential to become your greatest strength. Consult your astrologer/yoga teacher for guidance on this topic.

Om shanti, shanti, shantihi.