MY MYSTICAL LIFE: THE SCIENCE BEHIND MOON MAGIC

More evidence of real Moon magic, the argument for “oracle abuse,” and why there is no 13th zodiac sign…

 

moon magic full moon ruby warrington the numinous

:: MONDAY ::
Fittingly for Moon day (yes, Monday is named after the moon—which, in my opinion, is why/because Mondays are often so moody…nothing to do with the post-weekend blues) I found myself reading an article on new scientific research that showed how the phases of the Moon are linked to major earthquakes and tsunamis. This after Japanese scientists analyzed more than 10,000 earthquakes, and found they were more likely to occur during Full or New Moons.

It’s all linked to the tides, which are controlled by the Moon, since even the teeniest extra water pressure on the earth’s tectonic plates can be enough to trigger a major quake-causing shift. Which I read as yet another example of the scientific and the mystical coming (back) into alignment! Think about it. In astrology, the Moon is said to govern our emotions—which, in turn, are represented by the element of water. And if fluctuations in the ocean’s tides (as dictated by the Moon) are behind tectonic shifts in the natural world—then it is swings in our emotional states that often lead to the big evolutionary shifts in our lives.

Which is why I’m soooooo into Moon sign astrology. For me, our Moon sign is the one to pay attention to when it comes to connecting to our most deeply-rooted (like core-of-the-earth deep) human needs. Plus, if we want to surf the waves—opposed to being dragged down and under by emotions that can feel like a tsunami sometimes—here’s yet more (scientific!) evidence that it pays to pay attention to the phases of the Moon.

gabby bernstein the universe has your back book launch nyc 2016 moon magic the numinous

:: TUESDAY ::
Book launch for Gabrielle Bernstein’s The Universe Has Your Back, where Gabby shared how while writing it she had actually been feeling utterly disconnected from spirit. Her answer—spoken like a true #spiritjunkie—was to go deeper into her spiritual practice. Which got me thinking, since earlier today I also heard the term “oracle abuse” for the first time—meaning an over-reliance on messages from “the other side,” versus trusting our own voice and intuition.

It’s a subject Numi contributor Victoria Cox covered brilliantly in this article, and for me, there’s a fine line between tapping IN, and using spiritual tools to “escape” from what’s going on in the here and now of our human existence. And…you can read more from Gabby on the subject of tuning in vs. numbing out in an interview I’m running with her this Sunday—which also happens to be her 11-year sober anniversary…

:: WEDNESDAY ::
Since the whole world is freaking out about NASA and the 13th zodiac sign, I commissioned this excellent piece which explains the whole sitch perfectly. PLUS will make you lol HARD over just how accurate regular ol’ astrology really is!

ruby warrington the ash center vitamin drip moon magic the numinous

:: THURSDAY ::
First ever vitamin drip at the Ash Center in Manhattan—an upscale functional wellness clinic that is emerging with a new-found optimism following the tragic passing of founder Dr. Richard Ash. What struck me as I sat with the IV feeding me a mega-dose of vitamins B and C, new MD-in-Chief Anthony Lyon’s little dog Champagne on my lap and sipping from a cup of green tea, was the family vibe of the place. It’s a huge testament to how loved Dr. Ash was that his former colleagues have banded together to continue in his name. And honestly, the atmosphere up here is a panacea in itself. As for the drip? I walked out SO. BUZZED. Favorite new healthy treat.

:: FRIDAY ::
Prepping for a ROAD TRIP!!! The Pisces (husband Simon) has wound up with a whole month off in between jobs, and so we’re heading South to tick a few Numinous must-see travel boxes. Here’s where we’re headed—please comment below with any sights, studios, esoteric stores, and mystics we should try to visit! And follow along on IG for adventures from on the road…

AUSTIN
MARFA
ROSWELL (for the aliens, lol)
SANTA FE
SEDONA
GRAND CANYON
JOSHUA TREE
LA
BIG SUR
SAN FRAN

WTF IS UP WITH NASA AND THE 13th ZODIAC SIGN?!

That whole drama about NASA and the 13th zodiac sign explained. PLUS what astrology will forever tell me about you and your sign, says Danielle PaigeArtwork: Kate Philipson

aries 13th zodiac sign the Numinous

 

I don’t know what’s worse. Waking up in the morning without your coffee…or waking up and finding out yesterday you were one zodiac sign, and today you’re another!

Yesterday Libra, today a Scorpio; one day a Gemini, and next a Cancer. Which is kind of what’s been going on since an article surfaced a few days days ago claiming that NASA had done some calculations and “changed” astrology by adding a 13th zodiac sign—Ophiuchus—somewhere between Scorpio and Sag.

Cue identity crisis #949349

But you can breathe easy, dear ones, for nothing has changed (except the fact that…everything is always changing, lol).

Before I explain in detail let me assure you that your Sun sign (aka what you know as your zodiac sign) has not changed—you’re still very much identified with the Sun sign you were born under. Which is good, since most of us are pretty comfortable with our sign and would much rather change the color of our hair!

So allow me to explain what’s really up with NASA and the 13th zodiac sign…

Every so often, an article comes out and the media jumps on this. Editors love to “shock!” You’d think they’d be focused on the violence in the world, and that little thing called the Presidential debate. But, lo and behold, like a moth to a flame we’ve all jumped on the hysteria band wagon.

I know, I know, it’s addicting. We crave drama. But this one almost had people removing tattoos. “Ummmm hi, mom, you’re right. I should have gotten a tattoo that said I love you instead of the Pisces symbol I got backpacking through Thailand in my 20’s…”

And yes, there is a wobble on the earth’s axis due to the moon’s gravitational pull. And it’s true that this has created a shift which means the sun doesn’t align exactly with the constellations as it did when astrology, as we know it, was discovered/defined. Turns out our universe expands, just like we do.

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However, the type of astrology that we use (as in the majority of the Western world, and what you find in most mainstream magazines and articles) refers to what’s called the “tropical zodiac.”

This zodiac “system” does not take the minute shifts in the earth’s axis into consideration, since it is more symbolic and archetypal in nature, and it is also linked to the seasons (equinoxes and solstices) as a measure of time.

The articles that you’ve been reading which tell you about a change in your zodiac sign are referring to “sidereal zodiac”—a different system that does take into account the wobble/shift of the earth’s axis, since it’s measured against the fixed stars and constellations (vs. the seasons).

The sidereal zodiac is more often used by astronomers (not astrologers) who, if you ask any of them, will adamantly tell you that astrology is not a science. My response to this is that “science” is just a word, a label. It doesn’t even really matter. After all, the beauty of being a human equipped with free will, is that there’s always more than one way to see things…

As a professional astrologer, I use the tropical zodiac since over the years I’ve seen how accurate it is to help understand someone on an emotional level. It is also strongly based on cycles, patterns, archetypes, energy, and vibration. When we have dreams or get information from spirit it often comes through in archetypes, patterns, symbols etc. This is the language of the Universe.

I believe that since we have free will, astrology was never meant to be used as a tool for prediction. And so it’s the meanings implied by the aspects described by an individual birth chart that I focus on—for it’s this information that can be used to track cycles and phases that your soul is evolving under.

gemini illustration 13th zodiac sign the numinous

 

All of that was a fancy way for saying, you don’t have to worry, nothing has changed…yet, everything has changed! I know, it’s ironic, but such is the magick of life.

So for now, let’s have some fun. Here’s a reminder of what the tropical zodiac will always and forever tell me about you…

:: ARIES :: You still have no patience and already skipping to the end of this post to save time. Don’t worry; no one beat you to it but we thank you for being the bravest one around!

:: TAURUS :: You’re still stubborn, (but ohhhh so freakin’ loyal which is overkill at times!) and bounce between being a workaholic and lazy AF while your cabana boy feeds you good food, wine, and surrounds you with expensive shit (hi!)

:: GEMINI :: You’re still wanting to know the answers to EVVVVVVERYTHING and then sharing the info with all of us. (Social media was created for you Gemini’s!). Say hi to the twins for me, if they’re not too busy bickering about their opinion on something right now! You know how that goes.

:: CANCER :: You’re still very much an empath and self-protective because of it. Did I mention emotional? Don’t get mad. We see your soft heart underneath your tough shell. Thank you for taking care of all of us, we need you mama/papa bear!

:: LEO :: You’re still the life of the party and the best looking. Did I mention your mane is fab?! Okay for reals though, you’re super creative and a great leader…just need to get over that ego of yours and you can move mountains. (Did someone say ego? cough cough)

:: VIRGO :: You’re still analyzing the F out of this entire post and seeing if the data is accurate. You’ll get back to us on this after you think it through some more. Gotta make sure it all fits into some kind of compartment in your life…like the container store in your brain! Ty for your service…with everything!

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:: LIBRA  :: You’re still dreaming about your perfect, balanced, harmonious, romantic relationship and yes still going back and forth trying to make a decision. Make it already! Newsflash…You can’t always be so “pc” but the Aries energy in me appreciates you trying.

:: SCORPIO :: You’re still seductive, mysterious, and obsessed with sex. (Drops mic…and pants!). And your poker face, yeah it’s a good one. We will never know what is brewing underneath but I can tell it’s a lot. Sorry for outing you but we can’t see you from behind the tinted windows so my Venus in Gemini had to relay the message.

:: SAGITTARIUS :: You’re still a freedom loving, travel/adventure junkie and definitely always right (I’ll let you have it this time…not gonna fight you right now, dear son of a preacher man). Btw do you know the point’s guy? He may just be your spirit animal.

:: CAPRICORN :: You’re still concerned with your reputation and rising to the top in business. Glass ceilings? Nah, there are none because you’ll take your sweet ass time but will devise a grand master plan to manage everyone from the ground up. Btw: how’s your new designer suit? Make sure we see the label.

:: AQUARIUS :: You’re still genius and eclectic AF (thank you for that!) Can you slow down though? Your time machine is a little too advanced for us mere mortals.

:: PISCES :: Well….you’re still zoning out somewhere dreaming of being anywhere but here. But don’t worry, we’ll rub your feet and allow you to cry a little. But seriously, thank you for having more compassion in your little finger than most do in their entire body! We heart you!

To learn more about your soul and make energetic changes in your life…this time I mean REAL changes, click here. To find out more about Danielle and her particular brand of astrology click here.

TAROTSCOPES: OCTOBER 2016

Cast by Lindsay Mack, using The Starchild Tarot.

 

LIBRA :: LIBRA RISING – Awakening/Judgment, reversed

Happy birthday, dear Libra! The medicine of the Awakening, or Judgment card, is extremely advanced—the reversal even more so. The focus of October for you will be deep inner looking, particularly around the areas of self judgment, self loathing, and self doubt. When reversed, as it is for you this month, this card can feel like a hamster wheel of old patterns, particularly of the mind: the same setbacks, issues and problems can present themselves again and again.

But all of this negativity is coming to the forefront to be released, Libra. This particular karmic cycle of self-judgment is ready to be transformed into self acceptance, self love, and inner wisdom. You have all the tools within you to do this already, you just need to get curious. Ask questions of yourself. Look at your family lineage; the way they spoke to one another and themselves. It will be important for you to investigate why you get caught in these tough places, and how you can wake up from the patterns that keep you locked in pain and self-doubt.

This card is here this month because you’re ready for it. You asked for it. It’s not here as a punishment; it’s doing the most important, nitty-gritty work imaginable, clearing out the dustiest corners, the darkest rooms within you. You’re ready to live in your full truth, and this is only possible when we choose to see beyond our fear-based patterning. Which is really tough, but worth it. And really, October isn’t going to be bad; it’s here to make your life easier, shifting the patterns that have made life tough in the past.

Part of the awakening that is possible in this card’s energy is the willingness to see that these patterns and cycles of self-sabotage and judgment are simply a misguided form of self-protection. Your brain and body think they are keeping you safe, in a frequency that you are familiar with. That’s why it is important to review karmic family stuff when this card comes up, to identify what you were shown by example so you can consciously re-write the script, choosing a higher option for yourself. This is the awakening and the transformation that is possible for you, Libra. To become a loving observer of your thoughts, non-identified and free, eyes open to the untapped wonders within yourself.

Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.

SCORPIO :: SCORPIO RISING – Seven of Cups

October offers you the opportunity to get some much needed grounding, Scorpio—to hit pause on the thinking and get back to the present moment. This is all in service of taking an inventory of your life: what you want to accomplish, how you want to do it, and where you might be drifting off your present course. Seven of Cups often comes to us when we are experiencing some form of distraction…that we may not immediately feel is a distraction. A perfect example is shirking a deadline because you feel you absolutely had to clean the house before you sat down to write. I know that feels like a legitimate requirement, but in truth, you just have to write—messy house or not.

The impulse to clean before we write is a lure, one that is so sly we might not immediately see how it is tricking us out of the one thing we really need to focus on. This usually happens because there is a web of discomfort and insecurity about how to actually focus on the issue at hand, the next most important step. Your job this month will be to face your resistance so you can move through it. This is certainly not difficult, and is very easily shifted!

The point is to get present, clear and curious—to catch yourself in those little impulses and when you do, hang out with them. Ask questions. Consider why they might be here. Deal with the discomfort and resistance at hand, and you will move mountains. This is about how to infuse your dreams with empowerment, bringing you from thought to action. Seven of Cups is inviting you to snap out of a fantasy you might be keeping yourself in so you don’t have to deal with the fact that you’re stuck on how to move forward.

The benefit to popping this daydream bubble for yourself, Scorpio, is to deal with the resistance and move from there. So be really honest with yourself. Make sure your actions and next steps are rooted in truth—and are what you really wanted in the first place. This sounds simple, but it wouldn’t be coming up for you if it wasn’t something to think about. If you want change, progress and expansion in your life this month, keep your feet on the ground and less in the clouds. More here, and less there.

Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.

SAGITTARIUS :: SAGITTARIUS RISING – Five of Cups, reversed

To truly appreciate what’s in store for you this month, Sagittarius, we have to consider the imagery in the traditional Five of Cups tarot card: A man, brokenhearted and robed in black, is mourning three spilled and scattered cups in front of him. He is deeply lost in his story, his heartache, his darkness. He feels, as Five of Cups can often feel, like nothing will ever be okay again, he will never be happy. This card can truly feel like a hole of grief.

However—behind this grieving man, are two full, standing cups. We can see them, but he cannot. He must turn around, leaving his story, to see what the treasure might be on the other side of his pain. The medicine and the invitation of Five of Cups is life-altering; to come out of our grief long enough to consider this turn of the spirit, turn of the heart—to see that we stand to gain everything we believe we’d lost, and more. This is a very powerful experience, one that heals regret, helps us trust ourselves, and brings us into the next steps of our lives, full and abundant. It’s a heart healer. This is the soul of the Five of Cups, the teaching that it brings.

But, of course, you have the Five of Cups reversed this month, Sagittarius, which is wonderful news, actually! The reversal, in fact, IS the turn of the head toward what is full, and away from what is empty. It is the leap of faith that comes when we move and seek in a way we never have before, bringing us into great joy and surprises. The moment we wake up and our pain dissolves. You are going to be seeing the two full cups everywhere in October; it is a very emotionally abundant time for you, indeed. Personal transformation is possible, and it is a time of new beginnings.

Dive deeply into the blessings at hand, courageously turn away from what does not fill you up—what has been lost, scattered, is no more. Bow to it, grieve it, bless it for what it brought, and truly move on. Create space for what you want to nurture in your life. Deep and powerful insights can be gained this month. It might feel more quiet, and that’s appropriate. The more you turn from pain, the more fullness you will see.

Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.

CAPRICORN :: CAPRICORN – Five of Swords

This month is very important for you, Capricorn. You get to do a lot of really important work on the art of re-centering after a disappointment, especially one you thought would work in your favor. Doing so will help you to see the wisdom in your choices, and learn how to be lighter on yourself. It will also help you learn how to be more present and responsible for your actions.

Before you get bummed out: everyone on the planet needs to learn this at some point. It is absolutely a part of the human experience to make choices and have some of them burn—the genius in this, is that we get to learn how wisely respond with ease and grace.

No story. No victimhood, guilt, shame or fear. If you flush your medication down the toilet and start to feel really off, call your doctor and explain. If you ghosted someone and it makes you feel terrible, email them and apologize. If you GOT ghosted by someone who you were really excited by, mourn it, feel the loss of it—but don’t take it personally. While these can be painful emotional experiences, they do not get to drive the car, so to speak. If you can remember this, and have compassion for yourself, there will be the opportunity for major personal expansion this month.

The key to the energy you are in this month, Capricorn, is to investigate the source of these choices. It’s never just self sabotage, being unlucky, or being unable to commit. That’s lazy, and you’re worthy of more than this kind of emotional write off. That is why this card demands that we release our “story” about the situation, and get back to empowered action. There’s a reason why you made the choices that you did. Your opportunity is to dive deep and ask yourself why.

Were you looking for something external to fill an internal void? Is a certain amount of happiness and stability really frightening to you? If the answer is yes, it’s not a problem—it just makes you human. Shining, glorious, perfect in your imperfection. This re-centering is how people change, Capricorn. It is how people TRULY grow, genuinely evolve. This is how we can learn to forgive ourselves, and to forgive others. Drop the story, investigate, and gain softness in the face of your humanness.

Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.

AQUARIUS :: AQUARIUS RISING – Six of Wands, reversed

Six of Wands reversed offers you the opportunity to look deeply at where you resist being seen, Aquarius—for your gifts and talents, by your family of origin, or with a lover. Wherever you shrink. This month’s energy is really acting like a cleansing wave for your fears, insecurities and old stories, all in service of expanding the soul rather than the primal brain, the latter of which is the part of you that wants to stay hidden. Check out where these cycles unfold within yourself, face your fears, and step forward: ready and willing to share your gifts, publicly or privately, on a new level.

This process will unfold really subtly. There are no big shocks, internal or external. It is really about you investigating where you keep yourself in hiding due to an old belief or story, pure and simple. The important thing to understand is that as this internal work is unfolding, life is going to be handing you bigger gigs, so to speak. A real love. The chance to be really honest with a more difficult person. A chance to shine brighter, to share your knowledge with others in a new way, in a way that is deeply fulfilling and exciting for you.

The potential opportunities that come in will be illuminating the evolution that is possible, so you won’t just be working on these internal issues in a vacuum. You are absolutely going to be in the hot seat at certain moments this month, where you’ll have to make a choice: staying small out of an old story, or expanding from your soul. Say yes to anything that makes you a little uncomfortable, that stretches you out of your comfort zone, intimately, publicly, or personally.

This card will be focused on clearing out what whatever isn’t true so that you can take up space in a renewed way—sure of yourself, secure in your gifts, and free of the voices within you that tell you to play it smaller. Your soul wants more than that, is ready for bigger than that. October’s energy will present the chance to release what stands in your way so you can expand, liberating your soul in a way that it is yearning for. You might experience some fear around this, but there’s no other way but up and out for you, Aquarius. You might as well get used to it.

Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.

PISCES :: PISCES RISING – Transformation/Death, reversed

The Death card has graced you with its presence, Pisces: you are ready to move through a cycle of rebirth and renewal. This is amazing news, and always comes bearing a positive and wonderful outcome. The Death card is never anything to be scared of. It is, as the Starchild Tarot calls it, a transformation—an alchemical expansion of the soul, the voluntary sloughing off of some aspect of ego in favor of a deeper alignment with one’s self. Everything that dies off in the Death card becomes wisdom, food that nourishes whatever is ready to take root and grow in its absence. It brings nothing but goodness—even if it can be a little intense to move through.

The reversal of the Death card simply indicates a resistance to letting go. Why do we resist Death—and the resulting rebirth? There are a seemingly infinite number of reasons: the unknown, loss of control, fear that we will never have a better situation than the one we currently do. These are all things to question this month. The reasons we fear and resist the initiation of Death is always egoic, always brain chemistry—it is only these parts of us that fear the unknown, never the soul.

This is important for you to understand, so you can choose compassion for yourself as you explore why you might be less inclined to move through this cycle in certain areas of your life. Pour your attention and focus into the intention to surrender and trust. Surrender to the life/death/life cycle, remembering that there is no Death, no letting go, without rebirth. It is only a new beginning, never an ending.

The new beginning is here for you because you’ve worked for it! You’ve manifested, prayed, released, called in—now you’re ready to actually let go, and free fall into the Void. Whatever is leaving your life this month, Pisces—be it a job, a way of living, a relationship, an old pattern, a belief system—it is being replaced with something better and seriously upgraded. Period. Your job will be to foster the willingness to trust this, even if you cannot immediately see it. October will invite you to work on building this trust. In focusing on this, you will allow and make space for an easier death cycle, and a much more fruitful rebirth, transforming you in a way you never thought possible.

Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.

ARIES :: ARIES RISING – Serenity/The Hermit, reversed

Allow this month to be an exercise in empowered solitary time, Aries. Take gentle space from social activities, carving out spiritually nourishing alone time. Go within, spend tons of time outside, connect with nature, up your meditation practice; get back to basics with food, ritual, and self-care. Take a vacation and turn your phone off. It’s very important to not assume that swaths of time will just present themselves for this level of personal practice—for you, there’s always something to do, and to focus on. And so you must maintain excellent boundaries this month, letting there be ample time for reconnection and just be-ing.

No accomplishing, no strategizing, just being with and by yourself in a deep way for moments at a time. October will offer you the opportunity, no matter how full or busy your schedule might be, to take gentle action on behalf of your spiritual serenity. Doing so, honoring that this is the most important thing for you to focus on, will greatly improve your overall quality of life, and will deepen your connection to yourself and the world around you.

Serenity, or The Hermit is the Tarot’s “sacred pause” card. There is truly nothing to do other than to go within when we are in this card—time almost energetically curves to support that. There is no booking of flights, no big movements, no huge decisions in this energy, and that’s totally aligned. The focus is always drawn within, to “chop wood and carry water,” as the saying goes. The Hermit is so important because it offers us a time to not only refresh, but to temper the ego and brain down so that we get the chance to stop taking action in a harried, desperate way. We can come to understand in this card that there is no rush—that everything happens exactly when it is supposed to.

The reversal of The Hermit indicates that you’re leaking energy, allowing your time and thoughts to be taken up with stuff that isn’t filling you up and serving you. It’s also why you’ve been asked to be very empowered and thorough with your personal boundaries—to practice pausing and tuning in before you say yes to anything this month. I mean ANYTHING. The more you speak and honor your truth, the more spiritually nourishing space you will have for yourself. Your time is deeply sacred; start treating it that way.

Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.

TAURUS :: TAURUS RISING – The Empress, reversed

October promises to be a month of beautiful regeneration for you, Taurus. In general, most of your gas tanks are a bit low, and rather than continuing to push yourselves, it’s important to emphasize ease and grace in the upcoming month. During this time, you will be energetically encouraged to do anything that feels delicious to you: spending more time outdoors, getting away for the weekend, going out with friends, going out on dates, meditating, self-pleasuring, moving your body in a way that makes you feel fantastic—the sky is truly the limit.

The Empress reversed is asking you to remember who you are, Taurus: a sensual being, a lover of beauty, a seeker of alignment, ruled by Venus. You can’t be working 80 hour weeks without honoring those qualities in yourself on a regular basis! It just doesn’t work for you anymore. It never did. This month will offer you the opportunity to see how much more abundant, easy, peaceful and satisfying your life can be when you value self care over the grind. It is time to review your priorities.

The Empress is the embodiment of the sacred feminine; she is the divine mother, goddess, creator of all, and master of receptivity. She teaches us to remember that we are one with her in every way; she often comes to us reversed, as she is for you this month, when we forget this. You can reconnect with her through creativity and a gentle reevaluation of your self-care. Don’t be afraid to take this space, to be very clear with your boundaries this month, to go out of your way to make life a little more beautiful for yourself every day.

The other way back into The Empress is to dive deeply into any lingering issues around taking this sacred space—are you uncomfortable with too much goodness? Too much receiving? Has your heart been feeling more closed as of late? If so, what might be the reason? Many times, we can keep ourselves busy out of the unconscious desire to avoid some kind of worry, grief or anxiety. Is your busy lifestyle masking an emotional wound, or have you just gotten so busy that you’ve surrendered some of your sacred time to the grind? It is time to allow your life to be infused with just as much beauty, alignment and abundance as it is hustle and work. Ask the right questions, then take the first steps.

Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.

GEMINI :: GEMINI RISING – Ace of Swords

Remember when I mentioned in your September Tarotscope that October would be a wild month for you? Well, I hope you took the invitation of Queen of Pentacles and rested a bit—for as predicted, you are in for quite a ride! Power, potential and prosperity are all beautiful descriptions of this upcoming month for you, Gemini. Ace of Swords is bringing a ton of good energy your way! Think new ideas, new projects, and amazing collaborations. This kind of mental space will be ideal for getting things off the ground, moving with your inspiration and taking action as desired.

This is exactly the kind of frequency that you organically thrive in, Gemini, so be prepared to really be in your element and zone of genius for the entire month. Don’t be afraid to be bold as you move in the direction of your dreams. Any Ace card is extremely powerful, as Aces are essentially divine gifts in whatever element they present themselves in. In the case of the Ace of Swords, this energy is centered in the brilliance, alignment and perfection of the mind’s capabilities.

When we are in this card, we become a kind of divining rod for intuitive receiving; ideas flow to us organically, we understand things we couldn’t before, the next steps reveal themselves, and we become unafraid to make our visions a reality. When balanced and primed, the mind is the most magnificent tool we have available to us. When unfettered by worries and fears, we become clear, able to sense and see the next steps of our path. This kind of perceptive power is where the Ace of Swords is going to live for you this month, Gemini—in this realm of new beginnings and potent visions. October will feel like, as the Starchild Tarot says, “a heightened state of spiritual and mental clarity.”

It is also worthy of repeating that this is an action-oriented card, just as it is a card of inspiration. Apply your focus to planting your brilliant ideas and helping them take root in the world around you. Anything you work on during this month will have absolutely incredible impacts on your world and those around you—all for the good. Be willing to be less social if that calls to you, and say no to whatever doesn’t excite you. This is such a special, potent month; make sure you are fully available for wherever your intuition takes you.

Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.

CANCER :: CANCER RISING – Starseed, reversed

It is time, Cancer. Steel yourself, honor your fear, bow to your resistance, and leap into the great unknown. Jump, eyes wide open, into your next cycle of expansion. You know exactly what I am talking about—every one of you! You know the area in your life, the place in which you’ve been stalling on the edge of that cliff for too long. Well, there’s a “let go, or be dragged” kind of energy this month. Don’t wait to be thrown off the cliff—choose the voluntary jump. The leap is so much less uncomfortable than the resistance. So say yes, put your fear in the backseat, and just do it.

Are you tricking yourself into a kind of waiting game, Cancer? Are you taking your uneasiness, discomfort and fear as evidence that you shouldn’t jump into this next stage? If so, I’m here to shut that down for you completely. Anytime we experience profound uneasiness or extreme resistance toward an invitation to jump into our lives, assume that leaping is exactly the right thing to do. That kind of dance between brain chemistry and soul expansion is what we are talking about here, Cancer. The brain will do everything it can to keep you on the edge of that cliff—the soul is always ready to leap.

So, you must ask yourself: in which frequency would you like to live? Scared and stuck, or scared and willing? The answer to this is extremely important for you on all levels—karmically, energetically, spiritually and practically. Starseed, or The Fool, is a divine invitation to leap into the unknown. The Fool’s call is always a wonderful one, and there is never anything to fear from this card. The very essence of The Fool is magical; we are always in the right place at the right time with this card.

When The Fool is reversed, as it is for you this month, Cancer, it does not mean that the leap is ill-timed or unwise. It means that you may be afraid to look foolish—to fail or to regret your decision. It means that there is some divide between brain and soul, between fear and instinct. Remember that fear doesn’t equal truth. You cannot fail in The Fool. You’ve stood at the edge long enough—the only way out is forward. Take a breath and just leap.

Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.

LEO :: LEO RISING – Knight of Cups

This month is full of amazing potential for you, Leo, especially in the area of creative expansion. Knight of Cups is a truly beautiful, heart-centered energy, and I encourage you to let it be your totem and North star this month. Do everything you can to make room for new levels of beauty, alignment and abundance in your life; open the doors to your heart and invite it in.

How do you want your life to feel? This is the million-dollar question. Whether it be romantic partnership, a greater quality of life with yourself, more nourishing friendships or more satisfaction with your creative pursuits, questioning how you want your life to feel will shift your day-to-day tremendously. Be willing to consider that this alchemical shift will be easier than you ever imagined it could be. Let alignment in, and let pushing and forcing go. Allow the more effortful parts of your life to be replaced with a surrender and a trust.

This trust will be challenging, Leo, there’s no doubt about it—but it’s a challenge that will pay off if you’re consistent. Be willing to dream a little bigger and aim a little higher. Look with a patient eye at the places in yourself that are stuck, scared or hopeless. This month’s energy will offer a healing, restorative balm to those spots. Knight of Cups is a truly lovely frequency. It is going to bring so much magic to your October. Romantic, sweet and clarifying, the energy of the card brings with him a kind of activism borne of beauty and clarity. He balances the heart and mind so we can be available for new opportunities, new expansions and new steps.

And those things are coming for you, Leo; Knight of Cups is showing you how to be available for it. The invitation of the month will be to allow this marriage of the heart and head to infuse into everything you do. Your life has the potential to change this month—all for the better. It has the potential to become easier, more aligned and more abundant. This is the time to take stock of what you’ve built around you, and ask yourself if it’s serving you. Either way, Knight of Cups is the perfect ally. Dream big, invite in more sweetness, and the next direction of your life will reveal itself.

Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.

VIRGO :: VIRGO RISING – Strength, reversed

The Strength card is a spiritual, intuitive, psychological game changer. When it graces us with its presence in a reading, it is bringing an invitation to transform on a cellular level. Strength asks us to face something, in our internal or external world, that scares us. It asks us to choose to walk up to this thing willingly, rather than run away. The act of regarding our fears with such bravery, courage, and willingness is a quantum shift.

We begin to see that what we were afraid of isn’t anywhere near as terrifying as we thought it would be—the proverbial monster melts the beam of our truth, and we gain a level of self-awareness that is invaluable. We begin to trust ourselves at a level that is unshakeable—how could we not? The brain told us to run, but the heart and intuition told us to walk forward. When we honor this channel in a moment of such intense, primal conditioning, evolution occurs at soul level. We enter a new realm of intimacy with ourselves; life transforms.

Arguably the most famous image of this Tarot card is from the Smith-Rider-Waite deck: a soft, gentle woman dressed in white and draped in flowers has tamed a lion. She is regarding it with so much love and kindness, and it, in turn, is letting her pet him, tame as a kitten. This is what is possible in this card. The more we regard our fears with gentleness and love, the more they stop trying to hound us. We don’t need to muscle through our anxieties, trying to push them away. Our fears are not wrested by feats of strength like that. In fact, the more open and unarmed we are, the more powerful the loosening of our anxieties.

This is true strength. The wisdom to know that what we are afraid of is only a lost, broken, neglected part of ourselves, crying for our attention. This is going to be a powerful, powerful month for you, Virgo. Strength has truly blessed you with it’s presence, helping you to loosen the ties to whatever binds you. It is time to look at some part of your life squarely; it is time to be free from the prison of your fear. You already have everything you need in order to do this. The more you step forward into your fears with courage, the more your life will transform.

Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.

HOLY F*CK: HOLDING SPACE FOR MY SHADOW SELF

“Just like our sexual self don’t have much space to roam in this world, neither does our shadow self…” says Alexandra Roxo.

Which is a mask, which is a shadow, and which is my truth?]
Which is a mask, which is a shadow, and which is my truth?

Last week in my Holy F*ck salon I felt a heaviness as we gathered on the call, and so I asked: “How many of us are in pain today?” To which everyone replied: “Me.” Some quietly, some more boldly. We were about to do a round of storytelling around transcendental orgasms, but instead I decided: “Fuck talking orgasms today. Let’s talk shame. Sorrow. Rage.’”

I myself was in the deep throes of having let my shadow out to speak her voice at Burning Man, having been silenced for months. I’d literally called on my WHOLE healing team to help me process the experience. Coach Perri Gorman. Intuitive wizard Luke Simon. Michael Ventura, who’s been working with me on this for three years! And a psychologist I met at Burning Man, Justin Hartery.  Plus all my besties. LIKE WHOA IT TAKES A VILLAGE, and I’m so grateful I have help when I need it.

Somewhere during Eclipse season, at the Temple on the “playa”, some old wounds had gotten a fresh surface scrape. As a result I was oozing blood onto everything in my life. And as my wounds and the wounds of all the ladies of the salon were given a voice on that call, I realized—just like our sexual selves don’t have much space to roam in this world, neither do our shadow selves. But when they come knocking we have to answer.

We put on happy faces left and right and keep our shadow tucked away. We don’t want to “be a downer” at a party. So we tuck those feelings away. They get judged, while the “positive” feelings get center stage. Sometimes these are the shadow itself behind a clever mask, and sometimes the positive feeling is holding its hand over the “negative” one, creating a carefully curated dialogue.

“Who, me? No! I’m not insanely horny today! I’m great! Been meditating and doing Bikram!”  Or….”I’m fine! I’m not grieving the fact my dad forgot my birthday for the 18th year in a row. I’m a grown up. I should be over it by now, right?”

We walk around as if “doing okay” and “keeping it together” are badges that will earn us Love and Life Merits. We live by “shoulds.” I “should” be grateful. I ‘should” be strong (p.s. I have eliminated SHOULD from my vocab and I challenge you to do the same).

One shadow that surfaced in the salon was the overwhelming shame of being single. Of showing up to weddings and dinner parties alone. Of having people ask you, “Are you seeing anyone?” before asking about your work, your passions, your friends.

Another that floated into our call was about being in your 30’s and having your parents still supporting you. Many women I love deeply are supported by their families as adults, and since society says this is wrong, it creates yet more shame. When in truth their tribe is caring for them.

On the flip-side, another of my own shadows has been wearing the “Independent Woman” costume (ahem armor) that serves me so well at times, but had become hard to pull off, creating a tough barrier to deeper connections and vulnerability’—until it got ripped off at Burning Man that is.

As we gave these feelings a voice, they were like orphaned children being held tightly for the first time in a long time. How beautiful it was to each other say: “I pretend it’s okay. But I’m in pain.” As we each cried, the rest of us just listened. And I got to thinking…

What if we did this at dinner parties? What if we could eschew some of the socialization that keeps us separate and lonely by keeping these feelings—our truths—hidden away? And what if when I said: “I just feel ugly today”—instead of you replying, “Girl, you’re beautiful!” you just honored my feeling?

What if we just held space for that feeling like two wild witches on a Full Moon in the woods, and watched her fly around the room until she disappeared out the window and into the stars to be at home with all the other parts of our souls? And then we ate spaghetti with marinara sauce until it made our lips red, and talked about where we want to travel before we die and danced to Bowie.

Dancing with my shadows at Burning Man
Dancing with my shadows at Burning Man

How about we reclaim old rituals for honoring the shadows together, and make some new ones of our own? How about I just listen as you speak every fear to me…and I don’t try to fix them. I don’t offer you a solution. I don’t tell you “Everything is going to be okay.” I just hear you and see you and witness you and hold you.

After all, we came here to be wild. We came to make “mistakes.” We came to try things and fail. We came to let our hearts be smashed to bits and to carefully sew them back together. We came for glory. And we came for failure.

They tell us to keep it neat and pretty. To “be the light.” But your shadow is your asset. When you hide her away you teeter along as a half version of yourself, dragging a corpse of old, half-acknowledged feelings around. And so next time shame or grief comes calling, answer her. Make her a temple. Throw her a party. Give her center stage for once.

Will the shadow start running the ship? Most likely not. But if this fear exists, then create a container for these feelings. If you know rage could cause chaos, then take her moshing at a concert. Or give her a punching bag at a boxing gym.

In my Holy F*ck salon that day, I made a pledge to my group and we made a pledge to ourselves:

“When you cry I promise not to comfort you. I promise not to usher away your feelings with my ideas of what’s “right” and “wrong.” When you scream, I promise not to shush you and tell you it’s going to be okay. I’ll admit I don’t know if it will be, but I’ll listen and stand tall with you, and be by your side.”

I pledge this to you now and welcome you to share this with the people you call tribe.

This column is dedicated to those Wild Women and Men who are willing to go there with me and grieve and mourn and rage and laugh and cry and dream with me. Who don’t shut me out when things get ugly, and who aren’t afraid to get down and dirty in the name of growth and change. You know who you are.

Alexandra Roxo is a Spiritual + Creative Mentor, Writer, and Filmmaker living in LA.  Find out more on alexandraroxo.com and instagram.com/alexandraroxo/

READING FOR THE 2016 LIBRA NEW MOON

The Libra New Moon is an invitation to seek balance, by fully embracing the needs of yourself and others, says Sandra Sitron

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New Moon :: Friday September 30, 2016 :: 8.11 PM EDT :: 8 degrees 15 minutes Libra

The New Moon is a time to set intentions—and the Libra New Moon wants you to initiate balance. Libra represents connecting people and ideas. Take this moon as a reminder to listen and share, to give and receive. To breathe peace. Within this balancing act, acknowledging what you need is so important. This Moon is a reminder that you deserve to get your needs met.

But you also have a responsibility to expand your thinking to include the other person’s position. To become an expert at walking with one foot in your own shoes, and one in someone else’s. So be humble. But don’t deny yourself in your humility. Seek to be satisfied with yourself too. The Libra New Moon offers big bright bold expansive rays of love and joy. This moon wants to help you fill your heart with joy. And from that place of joy, do the kind thing for someone else.

Stretch yourself to be generous with your words. Look for ways to balance out injustice. This moment is a reminder to find joyful and exuberant balance. Just remember: balance requires discipline. Requires us to be steady. Through disciplined actions now, you can create a sense of balance that will help you to expand.

***

New Moon In-conjunct Neptune
The dart falls in the sand. 

So close to target, but getting lost in confusion. This aspect is important because it reminds us that we have spent the last year being prodded by the uncomfortable intersection between reality and illusion. The Libra New Moon reminds us that we are still coming to terms with our collective denial. The ills and unbalance that we have been denying in our society are being seen—and it is very, very necessary. This Moon reminds us that illusion is uncomfortable and we must demand truth. The scales of justice must be balanced. Denial is unacceptable.

***

New Moon Conjunct Jupiter
A frog’s bellowing love-song.

The Libra New Moon is so big and expansive, our hearts can grow three sizes now. We can use this energy to fill us up with so much love that we are truly able to see things with a new perspective. This aspect is about growth. Higher truth. Inclusiveness. Adventure. Generosity. Set your mind to your greater purpose. Use this lunation as a reminder that you are unlimited. This moment asks you to define your most inclusive and just philosophies on life. How can you show up as your best self?

***

New Moon Sextile Saturn
A pyramid glows in bright sunlight.

The Libra New Moon is a moment to seek stability. To judiciously create balance in your life. If there is a area where you seek moderation, this will feel like a practice of self-love, opposed to a denial. Discipline is your friend. Planning is your friend. Systems are your friends. There is real security to be found in this moment. This is wonderful time to get your goals figured out. To plan out your projects and start mapping the steps that you need to succeed.

In Summary

The Libra New Moon feels secure. You can allow yourself feel secure enough to simple be yourself. To connect to the part of you that is untamed. To defend who you are, and defend the rights of others to be themselves too. By knowing yourself you will be reminded to trust in the goodness of all humanity.

***

SELF-INQUIRY BY SIGN FOR THE LIBRA NEW MOON

ARIES :: ARIES RISING
What can I do to be more emotionally open in my partnerships? Am I challenging my assumptions about what it means to be in a relationship?

TAURUS :: TAURUS RISING
What is one thing taking up my time and energy that is not a priority? How can I change it to become more efficient?

GEMINI :: GEMINI RISING
How can I make more space for fun in my life? Am I prioritizing this enough? Am I celebrating my success?

CANCER :: CANCER RISING
Am I naming my feelings as they come? How can I allow myself more space for all of my feelings?

LEO :: LEO RISING
How am I engaging mentally with the world? When was the last time I was playful? When was the last time I was curious?

VIRGO :: VIRGO RISING
Do I believe that life is about the journey or the destination? If it is about the journey, then how can I allow myself to feel rewarded in the moment?

LIBRA :: LIBRA RISING
How am I showing up as a leader in my life? Am I truly saying Yes to what I want and No to what I don’t want?

SCORPIO :: SCORPIO RISING
Can I give myself some more free time? Am I prioritizing time for meditation? How easy is it for me to do nothing?

SAGITTARIUS :: SAGITTARIUS RISING
How can I make more space for my hopes, dreams and aspirations? What is my brightest future vision for the collective?

CAPRICORN :: CAPRICORN RISING
Have I defined my goals and the steps necessary to achieve my goals? How can I link the steps of each project to a desired emotional outcome?

AQUARIUS :: AQUARIUS RISING
What enticing new philosophies am I being exposed to? Do I trust myself to speak my truth?
Or is ti time to re-evaluate some of my beliefs?

PISCES :: PISCES RISING
Am I feeling all my feelings? How can allow myself to surrender emotionally? What makes it safe for me to let go of control?

STRONG EYE ASTROLOGY SEPTEMBER 26—OCTOBER 2

A weekly horoscope for your sign, direct from the third eye of Sandra Sitron—a.k.a. Strong Eye Astrology

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Libra :: Libra Rising
Flower Garlands. This is a time to dig deep into your heart and remember what it is that you want. This week brings you to a point of new beginning. Can you separate out what is your desire and what is someones else’s? Get really clear about what you want in all the areas of your life. What feels a little sticky or crunchy or just generally gooey? What is unresolved? During this week you are gifted with easy, expansive energy that will light up your personality and you are gifted with an internal check-in. Inner and outer beauty. You will glow inside and out as long as you make time to check-in with your deepest desires and make sure you are  planting the right seeds of intention.

You are being given garlands of flowers by the universe this week. String them into a crown of flowers and wear them proudly. You get to be the center of attention, and you get to celebrate! Pause here for a moment and think about how far you’ve come and the progress you’ve made.

Scorpio :: Scorpio Rising
A leaf floating on water. Feel free to let yourself surrender to your emotions. You are safe. Nothing bad will happen if you lean in to the feelings. Accept them. Really accept them. By accepting your feelings you will have true security. Your feelings are so profoundly human. Just the act of feeling unifies you with all people, even though it may seem sometimes as if you are alone in your feelings. Let yourself float and drift knowing that you are perfectly safe.

Sagittarius :: Sagittarius Rising
A giraffe’s kind eyes. Lead and explore. This is your week to strengthen your perspective. You are able to find the higher ground when you let go of your ego. Meditate on what kind of leader you want to be. Make an intention to bring your best energy to the group. This is a great time for you to put yourself out of your comfort zone and explore other ideas and perspectives. Put yourself into a new group of people and find out what they think. Expressing your ideas will bring you so much joy. The giraffe sees the big picture and you will be able to as well this week. So take the opportunity to explore new ideas and ways of being.

Capricorn :: Capricorn Rising
A hawk circles in the air high above. You are so ready to advance in your career. This is a moment of exhilarated career-planning and achievement. Take advantage of the energy that you have to get clear about your goals. You are on the brink of major expansion in your vocation. Think about where you want to go, how you want to feel, and what your mission is. Open yourself up to wonderful possibilities. The hawk in the air shows the great heights you already to achieve, the patience that you need to tap into, and it’s a reminder to be observant. Don’t let yourself burn out- pay close attention to where you are putting your energy. Make sure that you are giving yourself enough time to think so that you can align your decisions with your vision.

Aquarius :: Aquarius Rising
A firefly. Light yourself up this week with a single, determined flame. The flame of expression. Share your truth with the world. Focus on how you can be more yourself. Don’t imitate. Don’t be afraid. Be just yourself. Pure and light and whole. That’s what the world needs right now. More of you. More of your ability to connect and less of your ego. Lead by example and light yourself up with joy.

Pisces :: Pisces Rising
A fish disappears into an underground cave.  This week you have a very important mission. To let go. To accept your emotions. To feel all of your feelings. You have to be willing to disappear into the darkness. Go into the depths of your emotions so that you can merge with your entire being. The unexamined feelings that you may be holding onto just turn into extra weight to carry. Make intentions this week to let everything you no longer need slip away so that you can move forward feeling whole.

Aries :: Aries Rising
Ecstatic laughter. This week you need to put the focus on relationship. You have so much joy coming to you in the area of partnership. The questions you need to ask yourself to expand this joy now are: How can you bring it into balance? How can you truly connect more? Think about the energy that you bring into a room. How does your energy influence other people? How would you like your energy to influence other people? Set intentions this week to be diplomatic and watch your resulting joy expand.

Taurus :: Taurus Rising
Training a puppy. This week, it’s time to focus on improving health and productivity. Reassess your habits and begin to train yourself into new ones. Decide what is making you happy and what habits you need to upgrade. Be judicious and be firm. You are in a really good place to set up healthy practices that will last. Let your new practice support you. You may have extra energy this week to tend to the needs of others. So it is extra important that you are tending to your own vital needs as well.

Gemini :: Gemini Rising
Feathers drift through the air. You are free! Feel the joy that comes along with that. There is nothing that you need to prove to anyone. There is no-one you need to be but yourself. This week, focus on creativity and joy. What would be just downright fun to do? Bring “lightness” into your life as much as you can. Set an intention to shift your attitude so that you are moving through the world with lightness and joy.

Cancer :: Cancer Rising
Squatting down to gather rice. This week your focus is on something that comes generally easy for you— nurturance. Be very tender with yourself and your feelings. Don’t be hard on yourself. Tell yourself kind words. Focus on feeling centered. As part of this, slow waaaay down so that you can feel all of your feelings. Remind yourself that all of your feelings are valid. Set intentions to take very good care of your inner child.

Leo :: Leo Rising
A game of chess. You are in a good place this week to learn new things and to experience the joy of being a novice. Laugh at yourself. Have fun and play. The best way to engage your mind is to play. Make a game out of things so that you can maintain your focus and heighten your learning. Think a lot and talk a lot this week. Lay the foundation for what you want to learn in the next few months. Get clear about how you want to think about things. This is a fresh start for your mind.

Virgo :: Virgo Rising
Fireplace. Your focus this week is on building your sense of security and worth. You deserve to be alive. You are worthy. You are safe. You are well. Keep feeding each of these statements to yourself like logs to a fire. Keep building yourself up until you are burning as bright as can be. The world needs your heart fire. The world needs your love. You just need to feel safe enough to shine it.

MY MYSTICAL LIFE: AN INVITATION TO CHOOSE PEACE, EVERY DAY

Our #TuneInPeaceOut initiative is an invitation to choose peace, every day and in every way…

always choose peace ruby warrington the numinous

:: MONDAY ::
Got to see Deepak “the don” Chopra speak live for the first time, at the launch of his Radical Beauty book with nutritionist Kimberly Snyder. TOTALLY get why he is who he is. The charisma! The effortless way with a deeply spiritual insight! A fave takeaway were his quotes about our relationship to our bodies: “Your body is an activity, not a thing. It’s not a sculpture it’s a river.” And how, since our cells are in a continual process of rejuvenation: “I’ve had this jacket longer than the body I’m wearing today.”

:: TUESDAY ::
Another day, another book about feeding our body right with Nicole Centeno’s Soup Cleanse Cookbook. Nicole is the founder of Splendid Spoon, one of our sponsors at Club SÖDA NYC, and she’s all about the healing power of soup. As Nicole tells it, souping changed her life (a low-calorie way to stay fuller for longer, the mindfulness of making soup, AND a totally practical way to cook and eat big batches of seasonal veg). All I really need to know is, my body just sort of gives me a big, cozy hug from the inside just looking at some of her recipes—which feels like an intuitive “yes” to a lot more souping this fall to me.

Juquille, Eddie, Jaytaun, Tyrell and Raheem of the Urban Yogis choose peace ruby warrington The Numinous #tuneinpeaceout
With Juquille, Eddie, Jaytaun, Tyrell and Raheem of the Urban Yogis, and Erica and Prince of Life Camp.

:: WEDNESDAY :: (Lots to say here, you might want to go make a cup of tea first…)
So roughly three weeks ago, I had the idea for #TuneInPeaceOut—an initiative to celebrate the UN’s International Day of Peace. This following some work I did with my coach Cherie Healey, when I was thinking about the big, underlying message of The Numinous. “If I gave you the loudest megaphone in the world, and put you on top of the highest mountain, what would you say to the world?” she asked. The words came immediately: “Can everybody just stop fighting. We’re all human. We all have the same needs, and the same fears. Please can we remember that we’re here to help each other work it out?”

Because essentially (besides me just being a massive pacifist), all the practices, philosophies, and ways of healing that we cover on The Numinous are about forging a deeper connection to our true nature—and therefore a deeper sense of connection to ourselves, and to each other. Two things I believe are fundamental to any conversation about creating more peace in our (inner and outer) world. This since a) connection to self is what fosters the resilience needed to respond to life’s trials in a calm, non-reactive way; and b) it becomes pretty much impossible to want to harm somebody once you recognize that we are all part of one big human family!

And then “Summer 2016” happened. Week after week we were slammed with reminders of the rampant divisiveness, hatred and violence in our world right now, and often stemming from a place of separation, of “us” v. “them.” Which is not exactly anything new. Bombings, shootings, rape, hate crimes, and other acts of terrorism are happening all over the world, every day. But what struck me was the emotional charge in the way we responded to the events of this summer. How personally we all took each heart-wrenching episode of violence and injustice.

I think this is because we’ve reached a tipping point in how we consume our news. It used to be that we first heard of such inhumane acts as mass shootings and racist police brutality from people in suits, reading from scripts, in newsrooms far away. Now, this information first reaches us via our social media feeds—the same place we connect with our family and friends, and share our own lives with those we love. As a result, it has become impossible not to empathize with the people being violated against as we would our own brothers and sisters, parents, friends, and colleagues. The veil of separation dissolves…and we are reminded that we are all part of one big human family.

And with this, comes the remembrance that it is all of our responsibility to look out for one another. To speak up. Literally. Like, “WTF, that’s not how we do things in THIS family!!” No matter how scary, or how uncomfortable this might feel. And to take whatever (non-violent!) action we can to change up the status quo.

The above is pretty much how I introduced my event in NYC for #TuneInPeaceOut, which ended up being one of 20 or so IRL gatherings held by the Numinous tribe globally. Earlier in the day I also hosted a live webinar with Bri Luna from The Hoodwitch and my dear friend and collaborator Alexandra Roxo (you can listen to the recording here), in which we spelled out what this initiative is really all about—empowering all of us to use our voice and take action to choose peace, and help create more peaceful communities from the ground up.

After all, as a friend in the UK pointed out on one of my posts about #TuneInPeaceOut, since it was inaugurated in 1981, it would not appear that the UN’s International Day of Peace has actually done much to end—or even lessen—violence. Since September 21 was subsequently declared a day of of ceasefire and non-violence in 2001, US military spending has increased dramatically—rising from under $400 billion to almost $800 billion in 2011 (there has been a slight drop during Obama’s presidency, but spending is projected to increase again in 2017). I see this as yet another reminder that it is actually on YOU AND ME to demand a different way of resolving conflict. That the power, truly, must be claimed by the people.

This message is why I partnered with the amazing Urban Yogis for my event tonight, since here are some people who are walking the freaking talk. Based in Jamaica, Queens, a neighborhood where violent street crime fueled by prejudice and lack of opportunity is a way of life, the courageous and progressive human beings behind this initiative are bringing the tools of yoga and meditation into their local community. The results? Less reactivity. Less violence. More listening. Increased feelings of self-worth, leading to more empowered and empowering lifestyle choices.

And, most importantly, the slow chipping away of stereotypes (about the “kind of people” who do yoga, for example—or who perpetrate violent crimes) that are the sick, Monsanto seed of so much separation, fear, and hate.

“Real change needs all year round effort, not just a day,” my friend noted. And I could not agree more. Which is why it is my sincere hope that the conversations sparked by #TuneInPeaceOut will continue today, tomorrow, and every day going forward. That we will continue to choose peace every step of the way. On our webinar, we asked people to share what this looked like in their lives, and what they do to bring more peace to their communities, so we could all be inspired by each others efforts. I’ve created a post with the transcript from our chat. Check it out here—and add your feedback in the comments, so we can keep the conversation alive.

choose peace oracle card doreen virtue on The Numinous

:: THURSDAY ::
Pulled the above card in a mini meeting oracle deck reading with my girl Lisa Barner. Thanks for listening, angels.

:: FRIDAY ::
And all that said, with the Moon in Cancer today, sign of nurture and self-care, I shall be mainly tuning in…and peace’ing out.

A SENSORY EXPLORATION OF LIBRA SEASON

Libra season invites us to soften and play with polarities, say Cara George & Bess Matassa of Mojave RisingHomepage main image: Awave Awake

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Libra season asks us to strap on our lightsabers, corral our unicorns, and celebrate both the ever-elusive quest and the already-realized ideal. It’s a month for playing with polarity, equilibrating between extremes, and recognizing that we contain even that which we claim to disavow.

The zodiac’s high-minded empress reveals both the perils and pleasures of building castles in the sky, as she switches between rose-colored glasses and magnifying specs. Her ultimate gift lies in the gap between sleeping beauty visions and early morning reality, where the full range of our humanness lives.

So let’s make a wish, grab each other’s hands, and take a leap across the cavernous divide with all our glorious, dynamic contradictions in tow. The good, the true, and the beautiful may truly be in the eye of the beholder. But we’ve got the compassionate courage to stand face-to-face.

The keyword: synergy.

The song lyrics: Hey now, hey now/Don’t dream it’s over/They come, they come/To build a wall between us/We know they won’t win”—Crowded House, “Don’t Dream It’s Over.” Check out our Libra season playlist, complete with aspirational anthems, synth stylings, and polarity points. 

pink shirt awave awake fall 2016 on The Numinous
Awave Awake Fall 2016

The color palette: sophisticated, clear-headed shades and ballerina pastels. Think gray, navy, black & white, icy mints, pale violets, and slipper pinks.

The style: French New Wave meets Royal bridal shower—clean lines, classic cool, and simple trench coats collide with white satin, velvet brocade, ruffles, and empire waists.  

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The scents and flavors are eye-opening citruses, culinary pairs, and candied confections—lemon Pellegrino, sweet-salty snacks, and tea-time petit fours.

French fancies for Libra season on The Numinous

The healing: anything that’s energetically and aesthetically equilibrating—yin/yang yoga, art museum and topiary garden wandering, photography classes, and hot/cold saunas.

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Sensuous Invitation of the Month: Weather Patterns (by sign below) With Mercury and Pluto stationing direct in earth signs, Mars entering Capricorn, and Venus entering Scorpio, Libra’s high-minded idealism gets an infusion of crystalline clarity, and the willingness to work with the “real” world exactly as it is. It’s a month for invigorating our sense of responsiveness as we use current climatological conditions to build our castles in the sky.

ARIES
Libra season invites you to soften your gaze as you incorporate compromise that still feels courageous. Weather pattern: Morning mist—let yourself get a little bit lost in the haze as you experiment with slow navigation without forcing forward.

TAURUS
Libra season invites you to get full-on Venusian as you revel in the sweet sensations of ideological and sensual love in all its forms. Weather pattern: Blue skies—celebrate the majestic aesthetics of an absolutely perfect day.

GEMINI
Libra season invites you to settle some of your endlessly curious chatter and exercise judgment in a way that feels liberating rather than stifling. Weather pattern: Sunbeams—stand directly in the path of the sun’s rays and watch how these solar streaks illuminate a single patch of ground.  

CANCER
Libra season invites you to adopt perspective on closely-held emotional narratives and to step outside your story without losing any of your penchant for poetics. Weather pattern: Crisp & breezy—let the subtle dance of wind inspire you to become gently unstuck.

LEO
Libra season invites you to loosen fierce personal identifications as you recognize the self in the non-self. Weather pattern: Partly cloudy—trust that the sun still lurks beneath the ever shifting white fluff, even when it’s unseen.  

VIRGO
Libra season invites you to experiment with the sweet sense of collaboration without always having to work it out alone. Weather pattern: Humidity—notice how its closeness to your skin can feel safely supportive rather than oppressive.

LIBRA
Libra season invites you to acknowledge the polarities that exist within you as you sample both ends of the spectrum with ease. Weather pattern: Daybreak—bear witness to the darkness that comes just before the dawn.  

SCORPIO
Libra season invites you to balance your desire to penetrate beyond the veil with a little faith in wide-eyed magic. Weather pattern: Chasing rainbows after the storm—celebrate the gorgeous luminosity that can come after turbulence.  

SAGITTARIUS
Libra season invites you to fuse your penchant for emotional honesty with a truth-telling that considers the consequences for others. Weather pattern: Lightning storm—harness your electrical energy while understanding how these bolts work with the storm and lessen as it passes.

CAPRICORN
Libra season invites you to marry your keen sense of the difficult with a full-hearted celebration of goodness and ease. Weather pattern: Downpour—recognize the beauty in the overcast as sheets of rain soften and wash things away.

AQUARIUS
Libra season invites you to equilibrate your radical eccentricity with an occasional blending  that’s in service of the whole. Weather pattern: Nightfall—let yourself feel deliciously small as you witness the vast, star-studded sky.

PISCES
Libra season invites you to celebrate the mystical beauty of your most ethereal dreams while moving towards coalescing them into solid form. Weather pattern: Hail—Investigate how these mysterious waters congeal into solid shapes.

COSMIC CALLING: ASTROLOGY FOR ENTREPRENEURS

When it comes to astrology for entrepreneurs, it’s about knowing your cosmic career signature—and following a few hard and fast rules, says Rebecca Gordon

woman in business suit Astrology for entrepreneurs by rebecca Gordon on The Numinous
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I grew up learning astrology with my step-mother, and I simply could not get enough. As soon as I opened my first book on the subject, I knew that this was going to change my life in a profound way. Here was a timeless and symbolic language that seemed to describe all the happenings in our lives.

Astrology occupies such a sacred space, the space where the cosmos meets the soul and inner-psyche. I simply could not think of anything better to do with my life than to decode the wonderfully poetic language of our skies and use it to help others align with their own life-path.

Since launching my subsequent career as an astrologer, I have consulted many people on astrology for entrepreneurs—and my strategy has always been to simply apply what I know about astrology to running a business.

This could be as simple as scheduling meetings at the most ideal cosmic alignments, and using lunar cycles, planetary returns and so much more to inform business practices. But on a deeper level, it’s about letting the clues in somebody’s birth chart to help unearth their “calling.”

For when you are aligned with your natal chart, your own path, and the natural cycles, a feeling of great support and synchronicity pervades. We all have a specific role here on earth and something unique that we are here to share, and life is as much about the journey to discover this. Your path to your calling is truly what makes you who you are. Value each “misstep” as nothing but a teaching, all of which are vital parts of your unique journey.

:: DISCOVERING YOUR COSMIC CAREER SIGNATURE ::
How can we know the type of career best suited to us? The first indicator I look for is temperament, as seen through the balance of elements in the chart: fire, earth, air and water. Each element rules a different kind of function in work and life, and each unique combination of elements and signs has its most ideal work habitat and daily practice.

The other thing it’s important to note are the modes which are: cardinal, fixed and mutable. These tell me your strengths and weaknesses as an entrepreneur and your most ideal platform on any team. It’s really about knowing ourselves and finding a way to express what we do best.

Some people have a balance of all of these elements and modes, though most of us do not. So I am a firm believer in hiring out in the places where you are lacking. For example, if you have no air, you may need to hire a big picture strategist or consult with.

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:: THE CAREER HOUSES ::
There are three houses (sectors of your birth chart) that deal with ideas around work. These are the “Earth houses,” which deal with the practicalities of life, and are sectors two, six, and ten. Each of these houses deals with a different aspect of your work day; cash flow, daily practices, and your vocational calling.

Each of the 3 houses speaks to another aspect of career. The 2nd house is synonymous with the concept of “your farmland—your crops.” It represents the inherited skills, attributes, talents and also the attitudes around them and the ways which we may derive self-worth.

Your 2nd house will reveal attitudes around money as well as inherited and karmic wealth stories. If any entrepreneur wants to integrate astrology into their business plan, the first thing is to understand your own 2nd house and how it works.

The other house that deals with running a business is the 6th house. This house deals more with what sort of business atmosphere and work-flow suites you best. The 6th house also relates to the style in which you will deliver your service and what kind of service this may be.

The 10th house, in my opinion, is the most important because this deals with the concept of your ‘true calling’ or your ‘vocation’. Not everyone has their 2nd house (income) aligned with 10th house (vocation) though they can be congruent.

The 10th speaks about where you will find your dignity in the world and this is a key to happiness at work. I feel the 10th house must be awoken somehow for anyone to feel like they are on their true path. Think of the base of the chart (the IC) as your root system and ancestral stories and the top of the chart (the 10th house) as the fruit you bear—what you may emerge into when you follow your calling.

:: THE CAREER PLANETS ::
There is not one planet that rules career. Though I often look at the ruler of the 10thhouse, as well as the “conversations” that planet is in (how I refer to the different aspects it is making) and where it is positioned. Also, and planets in the 10th house speak volumes about your career interests. This and the ruler of the 10th will usually tell me a pretty in-depth story about your calling.

:: CHOOSING A TIME TO LAUNCH ::
Choosing a launch date for a business, product or service can be make or break, and it’s something I put a great deal of time and energy into. First there are a series of questions I ask because the chart of your business (calculated using the time, date and location of the launch) must speak to the mission statement and goals of the business.

What is a stellar chart for an online coaching business may not work at all for someone opening a restaurant! I also consider the entrepreneur’s natal chart, to make sure the timing also works for them.

There are also a couple of hard and fast rules when it comes to astrology for entrepreneurs:

– Stay away from Mercury Retrograde for your launch.
– Try to also have Mars, Jupiter and Saturn direct, if possible.
– Friendly aspects to Saturn show stability so I like to have some of those
– Jupiter and Pluto alignments with the luminaries (sun and moon) can bring wealth and abundance
– I try to make sure the important planets for your business type are in a sign they function highly in.
– Launch on a friendly New Moon, ideally one that’s near the top of the chart.
– Stay away from launching on Full Moons and especially not on a Lunar Eclipse. Full Moons and Lunar Eclipses are times of endings and culminations, not beginnings.
– I look for the Moon to be applying to a positive aspect, for example a conjunction to Jupiter or trine to Venus.

I have seen my clients launch under all kinds of personal transits, though Saturn and Jupiter are the two main ‘business planets’—as Saturn rules consolidation and stability, and Jupiter expansion. Both equally important.

Sometimes a Saturn transit gives someone the discipline they need to actually concretize something. Another person may need a Jupiter transit to give them the vision and confidence to let go of all of the preparation and studying and finally set sail.

BEST ASPECTS FOR CAREER TRANSITIONS…
I have also seen people change career paths suddenly under a Uranus transit or transform their life direction under a Pluto transit. One client I had a years ago had Pluto crossing her 10th house, and she left the cosmetic counter at MAC and went to study Chinese medicine. Now she’s a full time doctor and loves it. Pluto rules over medicine and research, so we used astrology to successfully time her transition.

BEST ASPECTS FOR LAUNCHING A WEB-BASED BUSINESS…
For launching a website or online business, I look for a strong Mercury because “communication” is the main focus here. Also I may emphasize the 3rd and 9th houses (axis of communication), although the details of the chart will depend on what sort of website it is.

BEST ASPECTS FOR A MARKETING CAMPAIGN…
If the marketing campaign is oriented to bring in revenue or sell items, I’d arrange the chart to have a healthy 2nd or 8th house depending on the revenue stream. Maybe both. Also I would like strong aspects to the 11th if there will be affiliate partners.

BEST ASPECTS FOR HIRING STAFF…
Hiring is definitely something to avoid in Mercury Retrograde as the agreed terms would change down the road anyhow. Hire when planets are occupying Earth and Air signs so judgment does not get too clouded by emotions and there will be clear communications about the role and expectations. Also hire when you are not under a Neptune transit or any challenging influence for that matter because whoever enters your life while you’re under that transit, will likely be another manifestation of the lesson it brings.

BEST ASPECTS FOR HOSTING AN EVENT…
You will get a much better turn out on a Full Moon then a New Moon, generally speaking, as a Full Moon has a more celebratory feel, making people want to go play in the magic and connect to others.

If you’d like to learn more about Astrology For Entrepreneurs, click here for more info. 

 You can also find Rebecca at rebeccagordonastrology.com

REMEMBERING THE WISDOM OF WILDNESS

Re-connect to the wisdom of wilderness, and perhaps our planet will save US, says Darren Austin HallArtwork: Stéphane Recoupé

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“To be whole. To be complete. Wildness reminds us what it means to be human, what we are connected to rather than what we are separate from.” — Terry Tempest Williams

The worst kind of loss is one you’re not even aware of. The loss of the wild and our allied wildness is one such loss, haunting us in a multitude of inner-howlings and muffled cries; deep, psychic pains and distant, all-engulfing yearnings.

We may taste it in the devastating awe of a sublime valley of meandering meadows and lakes surrounded by towering mountains. Or else in the skin-crawling terror that some city slickers can experience in the dark woods. We get little nudges of it, too, when we boldly take risks, calling upon unknown resources. In the ecstatic place when limits are transcended and we witness how much more powerful we are than we believed.

And we also find it in the rebellious streak that smirks at authority figures, sometimes playfully, sometimes out of a sheer desire to transgress any kind of ‘taming’ of our primal being, as if it were a grave betrayal. The story of our wildness—what it is, what happened to it and what to do with it now—is old and complicated, but it’s one worth remembering, for it harkens back to the most ancient wounds that usurp us all.

Our natural world, horrendously abused, is now in a state so perilous our very survival as a species is threatened. This is an example of just how deep the wound of separating from our wildness goes. At the heart of perhaps one of the longest and most insane of wars in our story as a species, it is also one we are largely ignorant of: the war against both nature and the wilds of our own human nature.

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I realized this returning to Toronto after a recent vision quest in Manitoba, and realizing what we’ve lost in choosing to pave over Her wild, ragged skin; to relegate Her rawness to sanitized city parks; to drown out the peaceful pulse of Her wilderness with the perpetual motion of the traffic and busyness that charge our cities with a certain kind of restless madness.

Moreover, how we have become cut off from something so vital and necessary; something that keeps us in constant alignment with what is true and good, on a path of virtue, and away from the suffering that modern culture wreaks upon us by way of social conditioning.

But all it takes to remember is to acknowledge the inherent wisdom that awakens within us when we’re in the wild, like a silent soul-switch.

In any moment of heartache, when you’ve felt called to take a walk in park or, better yet, hike in a forest, didn’t you experience an almost immediate peace-of-mind? And perhaps a subsequent yet even more powerful cascade of wise insights, resolve, and answers? In my one-on-one healing practice, I often send people besieged by turmoil to the park to sit beneath a tree, to ground into the earth and simply ask questions. I counsel them to enter a state of meditative receptivity and to wait to see what happens. It never fails.

One incredulous friend later admitted she thought it was some ‘hippy bullshit’—but that within minutes of sitting, she found extraordinary insights. On this note, one ancient name for Goddess Earth is Sophia, meaning ‘wisdom’—also at the root of the word philosophy: philo (love) of sophy (wisdom). Or Sophia, the Earth Goddess, whose quality is wisdom.

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I believe that when we encounter any kind of wilderness, even in a city park, an extraordinary resonance takes place between it and the wilderness buried deep in us. Suddenly, stagnant emotions, thoughts and experiences find flow because what is wild is always in flow, cannot be tamed nor contained. To take a hit of this means an immediate sense of liberation.

It’s a feeling we experience as teenagers: as our hormones thrust our bodies into adulthood, and we feel the unhinged energies of our being expanding. In traditional cultures, these were times to take the boys and girls into the wild to teach them how to navigate these new energies, so that their wildness could be channeled, and not devour them in arrogant hubris and inflated egos vulnerable to narcissism.

Nowadays, kids do drugs, and partake in other risky activities to test their mettle against these dynamic evolutions. All too often, it leads to disaster—disasters we often survive (we are sturdy folk). But some are are never able to escape this deep yearning for more aliveness, chasing the sensation for the rest of their lives in whirlwinds of drug and alcohol abuse.

For the great call of the wilderness is forever present.

If we choose, we can learn to ride the stallion of our desires using the tools of our spiritual practice, while fostering a quiet reverence for the wild, knowing that there will always be a part of us that lies beyond our control. For if we don’t figure out how to live in harmony with our wildness, we’re doomed. Something we’re reckoning with as a species right now.

And so I invite you to rediscover the wild in you and to find ways to connect more deeply and even sacredly to the wilds of the world.

  • Perhaps this means a month-long discipline of mini-vision questing a la urban shamanism, going to the nearby park every morning to sit in gratitude and receptivity for potential flumes of wisdom.
  • Perhaps this means shaking for twenty minutes a day and letting the voice vent into roars, yells and spontaneous songs.
  • Perhaps it means following our instincts more, our gut-truths, and heart-wombing wisdom; giving head to our heart.

Whatever your way of connecting to the wisdom of wildness, know that you are healing the great wound between ourselves and the Earth, a wound that has pushed us to the harrowing brink. Know that these small acts are in service of a greater movement that is sweeping through our species as we begin to remember a deeply eternal love for Earth, and for the wild.

In which we might just find the way to live one of the most splendorous truths imaginable; we might find the way to let the world save us.

Discover more about Darren Austin Hall and his work at Darrenaustinhall.com

STRONG EYE ASTROLOGY SEPTEMBER 19—SEPTEMBER 25

A weekly horoscope for your sign, direct from the third eye of Sandra Sitron—a.k.a. Strong Eye Astrology

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Virgo :: Virgo Rising
Fruit growing on a tree. This is a time of resolve and a time of clarity. Get ready to usher in new understanding. Get ready to pick the fruit of knowledge this week. It brings wisdom about joy and pain. And it brings acceptance. Your focus is shifting from invigorating your sense of individuality to building stability in your life. Allow yourself to feel worthy. Feel valuable. Focusing on creating wealth and accumulating resources so that you can do what needs to be done.

Libra :: Libra Rising
Golden rings. Rings made of gold. Rings made of light. Rings symbolize connection and cycles. You will be connecting people and ideas. You will be making connections within yourself that help you know who you are. Stay on the look-out for more and more subconscious clarity. This week, open up to receiving important information from dreams and intuition.

Scorpio :: Scorpio Rising
A spiderweb. Imagine that you are walking through tall grass. Blocking your path is a spider in a web. She speaks and says: Stop. It’s time to honor your creativity. She is talking about the kind of creativity that comes without conscious thought. The kind that comes when you stop thinking. So, get the juices flowing and follow the creative path. It will lead you out of confusion.

Sagittarius :: Sagittarius Rising
Pegasus’ wings are made of feathers. It is time for you to be bold. You have the ability to reach new levels of creativity as long as you are comfortable with being unusual. Take a risk and embrace unexpected change. You have more ability to focus on your career than you have had for the past three weeks. Let Pegasus’ wings take you up to great heights. Reach for a broadened perspective. Another way of saying this is to suggest you stretch your mind.

Capricorn :: Capricorn Rising
Diving with dolphins. You are ready to expand in your career.  Your career success depends on the critical components of grace and camaraderie. So often it is easy to forget that. So often the drive is all that matters. You will be noticing how relationships are really the secret to success. Focus on play, love, and friendship. Let the dolphins be your example. Joy leads to all good things.

Aquarius :: Aquarius Rising
Looking for a cave in the side of a mountain. You are exploring. Seeking. Finding a new way. In your personal life this may feel as if you are fired up to travel or change your environment in some other way. It may feel like anticipation. Or a need to break free. Promise yourself that you will meet the itch by looking for new answers and new input. Look all around you for a trail that will take you to a to the thing you are hunting. Don’t be satisfied with the status quo.

Pisces :: Pisces Rising
Newborn animals suckling life-giving milk. You are needing to nurture yourself. Give yourself lots of space and time this week. Let yourself be new. Be at the beginning. Allow yourself the shelter that babies need. You may feel fragile. You may strongly desire closeness. Give yourself these things. Sometimes you have to reach for it, but you will find it. Let closeness heal you.

Aries :: Aries Rising
A high five. This week it’s all about partnership and finding camaraderie. You will also want to keep reminding yourself about balance. About giving and taking. About union and walls. You may have a desire to really connect with another person. It might even be a strong or forceful desire. Just keep balance in mind. Lean toward another person and stay true to your own individual nature at the same time. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. You can meet in the middle.

Taurus :: Taurus Rising
Rubik’s cube. Ah, a brain teaser. How do you discover the correct algorithm to complete the puzzle? You just keep trying. As you practice, you learn the right way. Stay focused. This is your lesson right now. Dial it all down to the details. Settle in and look closely at how you are tending to your life. Are you taking very good care of yourself? Look around for ways to improve. Create order that allows you to build.

Gemini :: Gemini Rising
Friendship bracelets. You are ready to embrace love. Jump for joy. Go out and have fun. You are a playful creature, but it’s easy to become separated from that truth. In this moment you can actively remind yourself to have fun. Think back to how kids play in early childhood. That is the kind of fun you are shooting for. Just make it your number one priority. It will help you learn. Get your friends involved. Remember they are your rocks and they can meet you where you’re at. With true friends, you don’t have to be anything that you are not. Let them help you take yourself less seriously.

Cancer :: Cancer Rising
A waterfall. Lots of feelings this week and every feeling tells you a little bit more. Let your feelings teach you. Dig down into your gut and know your truth. Honor it. This is your work. Allow the waterfall to flow through you. Don’t build a dam. Feel your feelings, but be little bit clinical about it. Don’t get too caught up. The trick is to allow the flow of emotions, validate the emotions and discover what the emotions are trying to tell you.

Leo :: Leo Rising
Veins in a leaf. This week you will feel bright and lively, but slightly serious as well. You may be feeling very focused. Prioritize your connections and friendships. Be out in the world, circulating and learning what you need to learn from your peers. Gently balance between work and play. This can be a very productive week for you if you allow your curiosity to lead you on your path.

To book a private reading with Sandra email [email protected] or visit Strongeyeastrology.com

UNDERSTAND JEALOUSY: WHAT IS JUNO IN YOUR CHART?

What is Juno? The asteroid named for Jupiter’s “wife” represents our attitude toward relationships, including our jealousy triggers, says Shari ZollingerArtwork: Miyuki Sugimoto

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Astrologically speaking, besides the ten planets, there are five major asteroids that help us deepen our understanding of ourselves: Ceres, Pallas, Juno, Vesta and Lilith. These asteroids orbit the Sun in a belt located between Mars and Jupiter.

Juno, discovered on September 1, 1804 by Karl L. Harding was named (in the Roman tradition) after the wife of Jupiter. What is Juno in the birth chart? Juno represents marriage and partnerships and our attitudes toward commitment and equality in relationships.

Being the partner of a rather philandering god, Juno also tells us how to work with the shadow side of relationships like domestic abuse, inequality, possessiveness and jealousy.

Have you experienced that familiar feeling of jealousy? Does jealousy have any up side? When is it okay to feel jealous? HOW DOES JEALOUSY SERVE THE SOUL? These are questions we can ask Juno. And Juno can help us understand our jealousy triggers.

Jealousy is different than envy—envy is when we want what someone else has, and jealousy is when we fear losing what we already have. Juno’s jealousy often shows up in relationships, when something or someone becomes a threat.

In my chart, for example, Juno is in Libra. Libra is a social sign with a focus on balance: I am often socially competitive, expect people to behave in a certain manner, and am jealously triggered when someone tips the collective attention their way, especially my partner. Juno in Libra cautions me to work with a partner with similar social values and who is willing to become a social team rather than a competitor.

Juno through the signs helps us locate our insecurities, so that we can work to overcome them and become proud of our passions, our needs, and our strong feelings. Juno reminds us that when we feel jealous we are giving our power over to something or someone else.

Our jealousy reminds us to return to the self, to adjust and rediscover our unique powers. Our jealousies may even teach us about our boundaries.

And Juno is capable of great feats of forgiveness. She would ask us to consider our jealous tendencies, and bless us with strength to move through these intense emotions, anointing us as a tribe of initiated souls who dare to feel strongly. She would have us recognize jealousy as part of partnership, and encourage us to talk about it, work with it, understand it, and most importantly understand its place within the soul.

Where is Juno in your chart? If you don’t know please email Shari at [email protected]. Please include your birth information: Full Name, Birth Date, Birth Place and Birth Time. She will get back to you within 24 hours with the Zodiac sign in which  your Juno resides.

Once you have located Juno in our chart, here’s a look at her influence through the signs.

What is Juno in Aries
My jealousy is triggered in partnerships when I lose sight of my own strength, confidence and natural juicy warrior-ness. I like my partner to exhibit a level of self-sufficiency and self-confidence. I will not diminish myself for a partner.

What is Juno in Taurus
My jealousy is triggered in partnerships when I lose sight of my self worth. I will not let others dictate my worth. I revel in a partner who reflects my value back to me through genuine love, romance and gorgeous adoration.

What is Juno in Gemini
My jealousy is triggered in partnerships when I lose sight of my need to communicate and my natural curiosity. I like my partner to feel curious about me, asking questions that get to the heart of my superbly interesting story.

What is Juno in Cancer
My jealousy is triggered in partnerships when I lose sight of a sense of belonging and overall ability to care and be cared for. I desire a partner who views me as their tribe every single day.

What is Juno in Leo
My jealousy is triggered in partnerships when I lose sight of my authentic, creative self. I am meant to shine. I yearn for a partner who encourages me to roar, and splash out onto the world with gusto (and doesn’t feel threatened by this).

What is Juno in Virgo
My jealousy is triggered in partnerships when I lose sight of my ability to discern the truth. When things get messy I have the power to organize. I seek a partner who speaks as they mean and will follow through on promises.

What is Juno in Libra
My jealousy is triggered in partnerships when I lose sight of symmetry, beauty and balance. I value social grace. I crave a partner who values social dexterity and balance and walks into a room with me as my equal. We shine together!

What is Juno in Scorpio
My jealousy is triggered in partnerships when I lose sight of intimacy and my need for erotic pleasure. I pine for a partner who can keep up with me sexually as well as render themselves vulnerable at all the right times.

What is Juno in Sagittarius
My jealousy is triggered in partnerships when I lose sight of my freedom and strong voice. I wish for a partner who speaks directly and with confidence, who dares speak for the truth and can march passionately and actively with me.

What is Juno in Capricorn
My jealousy is triggered in partnerships when I lose sight of my inner authority. I am powerful. I need a partner who understands my ambition and thirst for success and encourages me to move toward my extraordinary dreams.

What is Juno in Aquarius
My jealousy is triggered in partnerships when I lose sight of the big picture. I am good at watching and learning. I hope for a partner who won’t overwhelm me with drama and who values my gifts of rational observation.

What is Juno in Pisces
My jealousy is triggered in partnerships when I lose sight of the soulful. I like to melt boundaries and long to merge. I seek a partner who is unafraid of intimacy and who takes pleasure in creating a spiritual union.

If you wish to explore further please book a session with Shari at www.sharizollinger.com

MY MYSTICAL LIFE: GETTING READY TO #TUNEINPEACEOUT

A week that’s been all about finding and using my voice, as we get ready to #tuneinpeaceout...

ruby warrington my mystical life #tuneinpeaceout The Numinous
The message, always!

:: MONDAY ::
OMFG finally did the Mayers Briggs personality test. OMFG mind totally blown. (And not just cos my personality “type”—Advocate—also includes MLK, Nelson Mandela, and Mother Theresa, lol. #TuneInPeaceOut)

:: TUESDAY ::
A Skype session with amazing Gail Schock, who’s work I’d been aware of, but had not connected with until we met in Croatia earlier this summer. Gail teaches Voice Freedom, and I need way more words than I have today to describe the serendipity of us finally getting to work together now, this week, with all that’s been stirred up for me during this particular Eclipse-season-Mercury-retrograde-999-portal.

Let’s just say, some karmic shiz been going down—much of it connected to all the ways I have not felt or allowed myself to be truly heard. Following some intuitive coaching, Gail took me into a Quantum Meditation, which she said would work to heal the memories keeping me stuck, quite literally, in my throat chakra, at a cellular level. And since we’re planning a couple more sessions, I’ll leave it there for now. To be continued…Read more about Gail and her work at: Gailschock.love

:: WEDNESDAY ::
And another angel floats into my life in the form of Carey Davidson, founder of Manhattan’s Tournesol Wellness. Again, there’s too much to write about this meeting of hearts, minds, and souls in this post, suffice to say (for now) that it seems this week for me is ALL about being heard, using our voice, and, yes, advocacy. Which makes a lot of sense since Friday’s Full Moon Lunar Eclipse is in my Pisces-ruled (healing/compassion) third house (communication). Having run several wellness-focussed non-profits, Carey has tasked herself with the not exactly humble pursuit of taking on the entire US healthcare system, to make alternative healing practices available to all. What can I say? I’m SO IN. Read more about Carey and her mission at: Tournesolwellness.com

:: THURSDAY ::
Published this amazing piece on how to heal your throat chakra by Emma Whitehair. Obviously.

peace in the city urban yogis world peace day my mystical week the numinous

:: FRIDAY ::
And would you just look at the line-up of events that’s coming together for next week’s #TuneInPeaceOut initiative for World Peace Day! You guys ROCK. And there’s still plenty of time to plan something—which could be as simple as a pot-luck dinner and gathering with friends to discuss ways to bring more peace to your family, community or workplace today. If you DO feel called to plan something larger then send details to [email protected] and we will share as many events as possible!

NYCPeace in The City with The Numinous + Urban Yogis NYC

ALBANY, NYTune In Peace Out with Shauntay SoulFlower Brandon

RHINEBECK, NY (the Omega Institute)—A Meditation For Peace with Sah D’Simone

NEW HAMPSHIRE—White Mountains Peace-Up with Jessica Fish of Shaktivism

ASHVILLE, NCKundalini Class for Peace with Ra Ma Kaur

SEATTLETune In Peace Out with The Hoodwitch + Holy F*ck

SAN DIEGOPeace Circle with TRIBE de MAMA (click here for more #TuneInPeaceOut events with TRIBE de MAMA globally)

LONDONA Guided Meditation to Radiate Love and Peace, with Chloe Isadora

WALESA Ritual to Create Sacred Space with The Wisdom Gathering

PARISPeace Out Paris with Alison Beckner and Melanie Moser

GLOBALFacebook Livestream from Sedona with Guru Jagat

DOWNLOAD#TuneInPeaceOut meditation from Wolf Sister

LISTENA Prayer For Peace from Elyssa Jakim

You can also sign up for a LIVE webinar + guided meditation for peace with Ruby Warrington and Alexandra Roxo of The Numinous, Bri Luna of The Hoodwitch, and Dori Varga of TRIBE de MAMA on 9/21. The broadcast will be at 12 noon PST /  3pm EST / 8pm GMT—and if the time doesn’t work for you, ALL those who register will receive a recording of the session. Click here to sign up!

JUST BE: READING FOR THE 2016 PISCES FULL MOON LUNAR ECLIPSE

Sandra Sitron explores all the elements of this month’s Pisces Full Moon Lunar Eclipse, with suggestions for celebrations by sign…

Pisces Full Moon Lunar Eclipse on The Numinous little mermaid
Click here to join a FREE virtual Full Moon ritual with Ruby Warrington and Alexandra Roxo on 9/17. 

 

Pisces Full Moon Lunar Eclipse, September 16 2016. Exact at 3:05pm EDT

PISCES FULL MOON LUAR ECLIPSE :: OVERVIEW

A whisper. A quiet murmur. Full Moons are usually loud and all fired up with the light of the Sun. Yet this Full Moon is a quiet and gentle offering that echoes through the mist. The whisper comes from your intuition. It says: look more closely, listen more closely, slow down, grow quiet. Let yourself dissolve.

This Pisces Full Moon Lunar Eclipse will offer many moments where you may want to instinctually push forward. Choose instead to step back. See what happens if you step away instead of push. If you meet a force, avoid the collision by bowing down and creating a blessing in your heart. If you are in right mind, you don’t have to be right. You can just be. Be connected to all things.

The Pisces Full Moon Lunar Eclipse brings us a heightened sense of spiritual connection, along with a heightened desire to improve our physical experience through purification and service. It is here to let us know we are making progress in this, and to provide us with an opportunity to start fresh in these pursuits. We reset our intentions once more.

Every eclipse marks a time to reset. This one is in the sign of Pisces, the last sign of the Zodiac. Pisces is the container that holds the wisdom and lessons of all the other signs. It is the summary. As is the number 9 in numerology—and this Pisces Full Moon Lunar Eclipse happens right in the middle of the 2016 999 portal (9/9—9/27). And so, at this time, we come to the end of a long story about human struggle and growth. We pause here. We listen. We wait. And as we begin again, something is very different.

:: THE ASPECTS AT PLAY ::

Pisces Full Moon Lunar Eclipse
The crow looks you in the eye and says “Don’t forget.”

Don’t forget what? Your humanity. Your desire to improve the physical world. (Virgo Sun) And your spiritual oneness with all that is. Your perfection in simply being. (Pisces Moon)

A Full Moon happens when the Moon is opposite the Sun. The Moon is in Pisces and the Sun is in Virgo. All Full Moons help us create greater awareness in our lives. The awareness we are learning now is about the balance between the physical world and the spiritual world. These are two sides of one ideal. Virgo teaches us how to improve our physical realm. Pisces teaches us how to improve our spiritual understanding—the understanding that we are already perfect.

The Virgo Sun asks you to get really tuned into your body. Do good things for your health. Eat right. Exercise. Meditate. And then do good things for your world. Offer small and big acts of service. Keep your body and mind active by helping others. The Pisces Moon encourages you to empathize and feel. Listen to and process your feelings. Remind yourself that you are loved. Remind yourself that you are connected.

Points of tension can arise when two luminaries oppose each other. The Virgo Sun is concerned with the details and can get caught up in analysis. The Pisces Moon has such deep emotions that empathy can overwhelm. If this happens it can become easy to slip away, like a fish. During this Full Moon, we have energy to define, yet a need to dissolve.

To create balance, we can slow down and make space. Lengthen the amount of time between action and emotional reaction with a mindfulness practice. Listen to your breathing. Slow down and grow quiet to allow the voice of the crow to come through. He may prompt you again. “Don’t forget.”

Don’t forget your humanity.
Don’t forget your spirit.

Who is the crow?

The crow is associated with life’s mysteries, with magic and transformation. He is also the embodiment of the trickster. This is very apropos for Pisces. With the current aspects, it is hard to know what is real and what is not. True clarity comes from deep within. Follow your intuition. Watch the crow for clues, as all the animals do. The crow will nudge you in the right direction if you slow down and grow quiet enough to interpret his voice.

The takeaway
Virgo Sun: Act in ways that are good for your body and your world. Think about purification and service.
Pisces Moon: Connect with your spirituality. Listen to your intuition. Feel all your feelings. Empathize. 

***

Sun and Moon in T-square with Mars
The deer runs from the hunter.

This is a dance, and an inevitable point of tension. Are you the deer? Tuned-in, agile, instinctual, pure, innocent. Or are you the hunter? Focused. Confrontational. Taking conscious action. Hungry.

You will be both in this T-square configuration. You will be asked to form opinions that are like arrows. You will be asked to dissolve those same opinions if necessary, and rush to the cover of another tree. You will find the same benefit from putting your opinions forward and from being open-minded.

This mutable square reminds that adaptation is the goal. There are always new levels of understanding to be reached and improvements to be made. Be wary of over-exertion, yet harness your drive to explore and take risks. Keep navigating toward the result that you desire. Stay out of conflicts. (This may be hard.) But remain confrontational with yourself. Ask yourself questions. Form opinions. Hunt out your truth. Push yourself out of your comfort zone.

And at the same time acknowledge your true perfection. Be gentle with yourself. Remember your innocent and singular childhood purpose—to be alive.

The takeaway
Use Mars in Sagittarius energy to help you define your opinions, but don’t get caught up in unnecessary conflict.

***

Full Moon Conjunct Chiron
The clock chimes.

Time passes and feelings that were once too difficult to process bubble back up to the surface. This moment offers us another chance to heal. This is a chance for many of us to reprocess the past. Sometimes we must experience challenging emotions in order to process them. Encourage yourself to feel all of your feelings.

You may feel very tender. If you feel especially tender, think about why. Are you being reminded of a much older wound? Monitor your reactions. If you have an emotional reaction that you can safely say is out of proportion to what is going on, note that you are being triggered. Think back to the first time that you had the feeling you are having. Maybe there is a clue as to what is triggering you. Or ask yourself where the feeling is located in your body. That information may provide a different clue.

With Pisces, the tendency is to get overwhelmed by feeling and to try to distract away from it. This Full Moon would be the right time to watch what you reach for when you want to distract yourself. Just watch. Common things that we reach for are: drugs, alcohol, sex, disordered eating, work, TV, video games, social media, the internet, or talking too much. The list goes on, to include anything that is habitual for you and distracts you from your feelings.

All you have to do here is notice. If you are reaching around for different distractions, take it as a chance to interview yourself about your current emotional state. Ask, “What am I feeling?” “Where is the feeling located in my body?” “When was the first time I had this feeling.” Or, “Am I lonely?” “Am I sad?” “Am I angry?” “Am I afraid?” Dig in to these feelings as far as you can. The clock is chiming and it is time to process the feelings of the past.

The takeaway
Feelings may come up that are lingering from past wounds. Process them fully.

***

In summary, at this Pisces Full Moon Lunar Eclipse, it is time to end one chapter and begin the next. It is time to reset. Honor your humanity and your spirituality. Work to improve, but remind yourself that everything is already perfect. Take care of your body and listen to your intuition. Form and defend your opinions, but don’t get caught up in conflict that doesn’t serve your highest purpose. Seek cathartic healing of old wounds, so that you can move fully into the next phase.

:: FULL MOON ACTIONS FOR YOUR SIGN ::

These suggestions can help you balance your emotions during the Pisces Full Moon Lunar Eclipse. If you know what house in your birth chart 24 degrees Pisces is in, also read for that house.

Aries :: 12th house
Write down a dream or sit quietly in meditation.

Taurus :: 11th house
Get together with friends and brainstorm ways to make the world a better place.

Gemini :: 10th house
Create a plan to get super healthy, so you can be a more confident leader.

Cancer :: 9th house
Explore a new place and allow your intuition to be your guide book.

Leo :: 8th house
Tell someone you want to connect more closely to how you really feel.

Virgo :: 7th house
Invite somebody close to share in your latest project.

Libra :: 6th house
Tweak your schedule to make it more moderate, nurturing and balanced.

Scorpio :: 5th house
Do something creative that really ignites your imagination.

Sagittarius :: 4th house
Nest in your home space and hang out with loved ones.

Capricorn :: 3rd house
Enliven your mind. Learn something new and then share it.

Aquarius :: 2nd house
Put your bare feet on the ground. Literally—it’s called earthing!

Pisces :: 1st house
Step out of your comfort zone to make your mark. Do something that feels like a risk.

To book a private reading with Sandra email [email protected] or visit Strongeyeastrology.com

10 WAYS TO CLEAR YOUR THROAT CHAKRA

Heal the instrument of your voice to not only speak but also live in your truth, says Emma Whitehair… Artwork: Dr Steve Hinkey 

clear your throat chakra art dr steve hinkey on The Numinous

The throat is a physical bridge between our body and mind, while its chakra governs our communication and search for truth. It’s the most powerful but also the most vulnerable of all seven chakras, and with so many of us struggling express our true needs, a blocked throat chakra is more common than a cold these days (even if the “symptoms” could feel the same).

If this chakra does not have a healthy flow, not only will your relationships with others be difficult but you will not be receiving clear guidance from your intuition. On the other hand, however, once beautifully balanced, negative experiences are transformed into wisdom and ultimately you are open to a higher level of consciousness.

My business is PR and writing, and no one who knows me would think I had any blocks in the area of communication. However, what can’t be seen is that I’ve had a pretty much permanent, choked up feeling for, I don’t know, months, years…lifetimes! It’s hard to tell as I only properly noticed it early this year, when I started to really get tuned in to Self.

At its most intense, it’s an energetic constriction like a noose around my neck, but mostly it’s a lump in my throat, like I’m on the brink of tears—even when there’s no apparent reason for it.

After googling ‘throat cancer’ and ‘thyroid problems’ then giving myself the all-clear (with a deep sense of relief!), I found myself drawn to a chakra workshop with James French advertised at the Yoga Loft in London—I was ready to find out if this throat funk was a spiritual malady.

On this two-day course, I discovered that Vishuddha (the Sanskrit name for the throat chakra) has a developmental age of 7 to12. Probably no coincidence that this was when my parents divorced and I was packed off to a strange boarding school. I also learnt that the corresponding sense of this fifth chakra is hearing, giving me the excuse I was looking for to connect with sound healing practitioner, Ashera Hart, who I had met a few days before.

Ashera had hosted an incredibly powerful sonic breath + gong bath event, that had been listed by The Numinous, which had helped open my throat and started to stir things up in that area. Wondering if my unbalanced Vishuddha could be realigned further with the power of sound, I made the most of the opportunity to have a one-to-one session with Ashera in my home, while she was in London (rather than her usual base of Bali).

After this session, I met up with my healer, psychotherapist Fiona Arrigo to help me process what my body had shown me. She explained that traumas to the throat chakra are often connected to early childhood issues; when, if we experience emotional pain, we encounter separation. She commented that my adult vocal personality—which “on the surface is ballsy, clear and wise” is in juxtaposition to the inner child—who swallowed down her tears, and never expressed how she felt.

I asked by subconscious to say out loud the stories I may have been holding onto, and one resonated deeply: “no one is taking care of me…I’m alone.” And with that tears of relief fell down my cheeks. It all suddenly made sense—that part of me, the child, who had swallowed her sadness, was physically manifested like a bitter pill, stuck in my throat for over 30 years.

Fiona reminded me “to meet the understanding that we ARE alone in this life.” She also explained that the feeling I encountered during the sound healing, of being held, was the Universal holding, and in that moment, I had flipped my scratched record. Rather than archived pain, I had experienced something way more profound—a spiritual embrace so meaningful it had helped heal that source fracture.

My journey with this continues. Read on for 10 STEPS I’ve investigated to help with starting to CLEAR YOUR THROAT CHAKRA.

clear your throat chakra art dr steve hinkey on The Numinous

:: STEP BACK IN TIME ::
What unexpressed emotion or story are you holding on to? Once that’s understood, then it’s important to try and change the record, in order to free yourself. Byron Katie’s The Work might do it for you. Alternatively, perhaps you story is more complex—could it be from a pre-verbal era, or another life?

I spoke to Sue Minns, who’s book ‘Bodies & Souls’ touches on the throat chakra (as well as the others) and she explained the following to me:

“Chakras are like micro-chips of soul information that are links to our past experiences on earth, and connection to where we came from. The throat chakra, if holding negative memories, will become a bottleneck, a block to our true Self expression. Many of us (especially as women) have had gruesome deaths as a result of speaking out, spreading the word, saying the spells.

The throat is the chakra of secrets and lies, whispers and screams—and of speaking your truth without fear. A historical ‘block’ will obstruct cosmic, divine energy coming through the Crown and Third Eye to reach the Heart. It will short circuit at the throat if it cannot pass through. The central column (Sushumna) needs to be an open conduit between heaven and earth so that we can remember both our source and our purpose on this earth.”

:: SOUL MANTRA ::
“The 1st Law of Healing—all disease is inhibited Soul Life. The job of the healer is to lift the downcast eyes upward unto the Soul, and the Soul does the work” – Dr Steve Hinkey

So how do we allow the soul to work its magic? Mantras should allow the soul to take position naturally and Steve gave me these to use to unblock the throat chakra:

Because ‘I am…’ is so powerful, and soul infusion the ultimate achievement: “I am the soul infused throat”.

To use if starting to experience, or resist tension in the throat: “I am wanting to know my soul’s process, as it expresses itself through my throat chakra”

As no-one evolves without loving what they have, including dis-ease, this as a good all-rounder:

“I love myself as I am”

:: SOUND HEALING ::
Ashera Hart hosts The Frequency Shift solfeggio journeys, which encourage a Theta brainwave state, through healing vibrations, helping you access intuition, transform limiting beliefs and most especially—clear energy blockages.

I attended one of her ‘Sonic Immersion’ events (at Kind Yoga in London) which was a blissfully relaxing 90-minute experience. With the Zobet (solfeggio) healing frequencies along with sounds of the ocean, the cosmos and nature, Ashera accompanied this with an ethereal vocal invocation, tuning forks, chimes, shamanic drum and percussion.

We were told we may have dreams that night, that might reveal what is unresolved and one of mine was quite interesting. The throat chakra’s traumas can include alcoholism and yelling—both themes which were visited while in an abstract and gentle dream featuring my much loved childhood pet dog…

:: CONSCIOUS COMMUNICATION ::
Which means honoring your feelings, understanding your needs and kindly requesting that they are met. With authentic expression however, comes responsibility. There’s also a delicate balance between being honest and tactful, and on some occasions silence is golden.

Voicing irritations and raising one’s voice, for example, can pollute the throat chakra, as can gossiping, blaming, criticizing, or any other type of negative communication. If you start thinking in these terms, try to raise the vibration before saying anything. Also use this checklist:

  1. Is what you are about to say true?
  2. If so, is it necessary to be said, and does it need to be said by you?
  3. If the answer is yes, ask yourself if what you are about to say is kind/compassionate/loving.

Hearing is the fifth chakra’s sense and therefore listening is one of its most important realms of communication. That means listening to both your inner voice, and the voice of others. I think I may have an overactive Vishuddha, as I speak super fast (often with no filter) and sometimes feel impatient while listening.

With this in mind, I have made a conscious effort to start listening more intently, giving the other person my full undivided attention, putting away any devices and waiting (patiently!) to hear the them out completely before jumping in. This helps me to read between the lines and decipher others’ real needs, in order to respond in the right way.

:: THE AH MANTRA ::
To cleanse and purify any impure energy of speech, let the “AH” sound fill your throat for a few minutes.

One of the most powerful mantras on the planet, this sound is found in the name of most deities: Tara, Buddha, Krishna, Yah, Yeheshua, Saraswati, Wakantanka, Quan Yin, etc., along with many of the sacred words (Amen, Alleluia, AUM).

‘AH’ is also a sound related to the throat chakra, so it’s no coincidence that ‘AH HEM’—is the sound unconsciously made when a person clears his/her throat. While on a more conscious level, the Buddhist mantra ‘OM AH HUM’ is explained by my yoga guru Cat as “translating to body, speech and mind—speech being an integral part of having a harmonious co-existence with all living beings and speaking up for those who may lack a ‘voice’.”

:: USE YOUR VOICE ::
As long as the intention is pure, ANY way that you use your voice will help draw fresh energy through your throat chakra. I touch on the benefits of singing in this story and you can also hum, whistle, groan, sigh—ask your body what sounds need to be released, and just go for it, dialing up the volume if need be.

:: TEAR JERKERS ::
The throat is where I store my tears, and those that came with discovering my stuck story were beautifully cathartic. And as I know there are more to come, as part of my healing I chose my moments to indulge in deliberately triggering a little cry, with film.

When we watch weepies, it releases not only emotion, but also oxytocin, aka the love or cuddle hormone, which also regulates crying. A boost of oxytocin gives feelings of bonding, empathy, trust and maternal behavior, and it can’t differentiate between actual human beings and flickering images of them. If, like me, you have stuck emotion to release, this 10-minute supercut of tear jerking movie moments should have you sobbing in no time, letting those loving feelings wash over you. You’re welcome!

:: MUSIC ::
As sound is Vishuddha’s sense, music can also be a powerful activator. Partly down to some of the lyrics, melody, story or my personal associations, these tracks seem to resonate with the emotions stored within my throat chakra, allowing me to feel and heal.

What would be on on your Vishuddha playlist?

:: YOGA ::
Correcting one’s posture is key when re-aligning chakra’s, and these two yoga asanas, should help open up and/or activate the throat:

Fish (Matsyasana): Not only does this stretch the neck, it also strengthens the neck muscles needed to balance and stimulate the throat chakra.

Shoulder stand (Salamba Sarvangasana): considered the Queen of all yoga poses, because of its amazing healing abilities. Doing shoulder stands regularly is an excellent way to keep your thyroid healthy and helps sufferers of asthma (like me).

Two Pranayama exercises that also bring heat and stimulate the throat chakra are the Ujjayi and lion’s breath.

:: HEALING ROCKS ::
You can re-balance Vishuddha by stimulating its reflex points in the feet and hands: the connection point of the big toe with the feet, and halfway down the thumb. I’m taking this a step further by wearing a memento mori, which I had made by Zoe & Morgan, that hits this point of my left thumb. A gold ring depicting a skull with diamond eyes on angel wings. A little reminder of both my mortal and immortal self—to help me be more conscious and stop sweating the small stuff!

Zoe & Morgan have also created this beautiful throat chakra ring. Featuring Aquamarine, the stone of the sea, which helps the throat chakra to open, and communication to flow like water.

Other stones that are good for rebalancing the throat chakra include: lapis lazuli, blue topaz, turquoise, chrysocolla, sodalite and my favourite—sapphires, which I wear on a necklace and ring. Try wearing these stones so they sit on your throat chakra for the full healing benefit.

:: TRUE BLUE BABY I LOVE YOU ::
Considered a hue for health, blue’s calming effect helps restore balance to the throat chakra, and for me, my blue healing comes from connecting with the ocean. My happy is getting out under blue skies (ether—the throat’s element) whenever I can, and in the sea at least every few months. However, when that’s not possible a pool also does the trick. So treat yourself to a spa day, and the immersion in water as a kind of soul soothing, spiritual cleansing.