Category Archives: Monthly Horoscope

Monthly Horoscope

Planet Waves Monthly Horoscope – July 2009

Dear Friend and Subscriber:

Eric Francis in Brussels.

Chelsea asked me to write a brief explanation of the Tuesday edition. On Tuesdays, we distribute the monthly horoscopes, when there is one. The long edition of the monthly is issued the first Tuesday that the Sun is in a new sign, such as today (generally, the 22nd of the month or later). Between one and three other monthly horoscopes are also in the cycle, though (due to magazine schedules) some are not written every month.

Inner Space is written every month and will appear the second Tuesday of the Sun in a sign. Eriscope and the Alt Monthly will appear subsequent Tuesdays when those are written.

On the days when there is not a horoscope, we will send out an archive article or an invitation to Planet Waves Radio. Lately I’ve been doing live radio programs most Tuesday nights at 10 pm Eastern Time. This is a generous addition to our lineup of services, and I would encourage you to take advantage of it, whether you listen live or stream it from the on-demand archive. Some readers manage to download the program each week get it onto their iPods.

Pre-Order Your Special Midyear Horoscope Edition

I am currently preparing a midyear horoscope special edition that will cover all 12 signs with an introduction. These are extended horoscopes for the individual Sun and rising signs that look closely at the astrology of the [Northern Hemisphere] summer and early autumn. They also work great for those down on Oz, South Africa and New Zealand, like all our products. We are offering packages of Aries through Virgo, Libra through Pisces, or all 12 signs. The report will be published July 1. Here is a more focused description of the project and why it is special.

Astrology Sessions

Photo by Danielle Voirin.

We are in one of the richest astrological moments I have ever seen, and the sky is getting more of something — interesting, intense, fruitful, challenging — with each passing season. This astrology engages and activates each of our charts in a unique way. Looking at the astrology offers us opportunities and a perspective might have otherwise missed.

The current reorganization of society is creating both turbulence and opportunities for all of us. Despite the rampant pessimism we’re exposed to in the media, I view this as a time when we can focus on our true agenda, cut waste and re-craft our lives in the direction of what we truly want to do.

If you are a prospective astrology client, there is limited time this year to get a session. Each year I pause in early November to facilitate finishing the annual edition, and I recommit for the following year after the annual edition is published. This letter explains my availability. Please call Chelsea for more information.

One last — we are looking for a new Facebook assistant to help update the Planet Waves group page. We need someone who really understands and loves Facebook for about 10 to 15 minutes of work a day, several days a week. We will work together on the strategy and content planning for these updates. Please email Chelsea if you are interested. Thanks!

And now, housekeeping completed, here is your monthly horoscope for July 2009.

Yours & truly,

Dear Friend and Reader:

This season we have two New Moons in the sign Cancer, the second of which is a total solar eclipse, and two penumbral eclipses of the Moon (each at the time of the next two Full Moons).

Image by Jude Valentine.

This highly unusual combination of solar/lunar events will seem to spin the world on its finger. The first Cancer New Moon coincided with the Cancer ingress of the Sun by one day, on Monday, June 22 (the Cancer solstice). This was conjunct the asteroid Vesta, the revered erotic high priestesses of Roman mythology.

The second Cancer New Moon is a total solar eclipse in the last degree of that sign on July 21, which will be covered shortly in a Friday edition of Planet Waves Astrology News.

While not an eclipse, this week’s Cancer New Moon is no ordinary lunation, arriving close to the solstice and consequently touching the Aries Point in a square aspect. Energetically, it is very close to an eclipse, in part because it sets off the degree of a powerful total solar eclipse that occurred on June 21, 2001.

All told, this is astrology that pushes us into an acceleration curve. You will need to devise strategies for feeling like you are in control of your life. You probably are, but the feeling that you are not may stalk you at times.

In the background is the feeling of reaching for deeper and more meaningful connection to the larger world. The sign Cancer is one that is associated with pushing our way into physical incarnation, which we do mostly with our feelings. Yet Vesta teaches an element of detachment, as if we are being called upon to express devotion without much promise of a result.

Apropos of Vesta, I would be cautious about offering yourself up for too much sacrifice, and I suggest you keep questioning the whole concept, which the Course in Miracles tells us is the one and only thing standing between us and our freedom.

Yours & truly,

BY ERIC FRANCIS

Aries (March 20-April 19)
You may not be able to get your emotional needs met right away, but you’re in an unusual position to find out what they are. I suggest you put some energy into considering your feelings carefully, though the real grounding comes first from being explicit with yourself about what is important to you. The next step in the process is understanding how it came to be that you have so many injuries associated with the things you hold to be the most valuable and precious. You know your needs are simple enough. But there seem to be so many social pressures that pull you in other directions or set limits on your happiness that it’s necessary to look at the connections to the larger world around you. For example, do your relationship ideas really come from you? Do others support you in your desires, or do they enforce society’s expectations? Are you willing to push people whose friendship you depend on, or do you generally take a more passive approach and keep quiet about the most sensitive subject matter in your life? Many factors point to how the time to have a new policy has finally arrived, particularly if you want to make your way toward healing the inner divisions that stand between you and your happiness.

Coming Soon: the Planet Waves Midyear Horoscope Edition. Here is signup information for the midyear edition horoscope by Eric Francis. And if you haven’t read your Next World Stories annual edition, it’s still waiting for you! Sign up here.

Taurus (April 19- May 20)
If you’re going to keep looking over your shoulder, make sure you’re also looking ahead. I’m not sure the past feels more appealing, but due to its complexity it may be more compelling, at least for now. Also, it seems to be a known factor, whereas the future seems to lack this quality. I would propose you know less about the past than you need to know, and you know more about the future than you’re letting on. In any event, I suggest that you build highly conscious relationships to both. However, this very moment is the one that’s calling for your attention. You’re at a tricky spot in your personal growth and in your personal healing journey. You may be discovering that you carry your personal story with you everywhere you go. You contain every relationship, and the paradoxes it arrives with. You contain every potential as well. The ongoing choice you have is which internal factor you identify with, paradox or potential, and how you draw information from either side of the equation. Though this choice often masquerades as ‘dealing with the past’, it’s much more about how we handle the emotions that our memories and history are stirring up. The question for you remains, as ever: to dare, or not?

Gemini (May 20- June 21)
A vitally important subject that you’re probably not talking about is showing up as insecurity or an unusually strong self-critique. You may fear that if you open up your mouth and say the wrong thing, or reveal something about yourself that’s too deep, you’re going to have irreversible consequences. You have so many needs that you keep secret, yet you feel like you have so much to express. What exactly is stopping you? Well, it’s a particular kind of urgent fear, mixed with a tinge of grief. I would propose that this is the chance of a lifetime: to have something you say actually make a difference in the world, and in your life. This topic relates to the women on your father’s side of the family, and how their journey has impacted your life and influenced who you’ve become. They experienced things in other times and places that have as much of an influence on you as anything in the room with you now. You seem to know intuitively what this is about, though you have little in the way of proof; only a complicated set of feelings that are aching to be worked out. In the most immediate sense, it all comes down to one question, which is: do your desires matter? If the desires of others did not matter, why should yours? There is an answer to that question.

Cancer (June 21- July 22)
A great deal will hinge on a single fact. You may well know the fact, and whether you take it into consideration is part of the issue; the rest involves how you apply it strategically. Pay attention to what you think is too trivial to make a difference. Look off to the sides of your consciousness. Listen to your intuition and your dreams for clues. As you maintain vigilance for this one seemingly small thing, you’re going to come into a lot of other data, and you need to pay attention to that as well. Live as if there is no such thing as a secret, particularly from yourself. I know plenty of other people live as if what they don’t admit to themselves doesn’t matter, but this has never been a luxury you could afford. Part of what you are looking for involves some hint from yourself about what you want the very most from life, and by that, I mean your life as an experience that nourishes you in the deep way that you nourish others. The issue seems to surround a fear that there exists some inner block too intractable to ever resolve. It’s usually considered simpler to pretend that it’s not really your most profound dream. In one sense, this is the story of our times, but it doesn’t need to be the story of your times.

Leo (July 22- Aug. 23)
Once I was listening to a speech in Harlem, and whoever was talking was doing an excellent job of explaining a complex situation; and someone in the audience called out, “Break it down!” The speaker was taking apart mystifying concepts and revealing them as the simple truths they possessed. Hearing analysis of ideas presented as something to get turned on about was eye-opening for me as a writer. Most of the writers whose work you read are more often ordered to keep it down to 1,200 words. I don’t suggest you do any such thing. Certain complex aspects of your life are beginning to reveal their elements. They don’t seem so daunting when you see them in pieces, or in layers, rather than as one mass. You’re certainly being assisted by people around you who are willing to analyze and account for their own complex minds. Bear one thing in mind, however. One or more key individuals in your life is being provoked by a force they don’t understand to reveal more than they normally would. Though this may qualify as ‘too much information’, I don’t suggest you respond that way. What they are revealing about themselves affects everyone; it is tribal property and deserves to be honored both as an individual process and as part of a necessary collective one.

Virgo (Aug. 23- Sep. 22)
If only you could get your relationships to do what you want them to do. But here is a question: are you willing to do what they want? I would think the feeling, as in most things relational, would need to be mutual, and mutual has been something that has not exactly worked out as well as you need in recent years. You seem to have a set of minimal, rock bottom requirements, and you can’t wonder why creating something so basic is fraught with so much challenge. The people who approach you often have various wild ideas that not only seem untenable, they threaten your delicate sense of stability and moreover, your predictions of the future. You tend to steady yourself with mental constructions that are not as solid as you think; when you get to a point where you feel some semblance of balance, it often turns out to be a kind of theory that can be shaken by another theory. You will find real stability as you embrace your process of coming to terms with yourself, your intentions and your deepest needs. But there is something else. Though few people are willing to come out and say it, the older models of relationship are not what’s going to get us into the future. Something else will, and part of what you are doing is helping co-create precisely that.

Libra (Sep. 22 – Oct. 23)
All careers involve service, but the question is to whom, and for what purpose. Then there is the bigger issue. Though we often speak of this, we rarely pull it off: the need to serve our own creative needs in a way that blends with the needs of the larger community. There are very few people whose daily work involves experiences that provide nourishment and fulfillment to both sides of this equation. We might wonder why this is so difficult, but the coming season presents an opportunity for you to align with just such a purpose. What is not often said is that the purpose starts with your own mission. It’s about abandoning every sense of ‘should’ and every false prophesy that was given to you. We are almost always told that the one thing we need or want to do is the one thing that’s not going to work. The formula, basically, amounts to this: What you are the best at, or the most devoted to, is the point of compatibility with the world around you. The difficulty is getting over the belief that precisely the opposite is true. There’s another challenge in that to do something even vaguely original, you’re the one in the position of building a structure around your intentions. Get used to the idea, and sketch your plans. One basic concept is enough for now.

Scorpio (Oct. 23- Nov. 22)
The planets seem to be playing an odd game with you. You keep seeing yourself in someone else, then you morph into them, then you morph back — as if you’re having both sides of the relationship yourself. (Note to Taureans, this may apply to you as well, and I suggest that Scorpios check in with the Taurus entry.) There is an often-described mirror effect in relationships, and it’s going to be having some decidedly unusual effects this month. They all involve not just your ideas about relationships (which, in our society, are usually based on too much unfounded theory and not enough action) but also your concepts of sex and of gender. You not only contain your opposite, you are your opposite. I suggest you work with any question of relationship as an inner phenomenon as well as an outer one. You can start with the most pressing questions that have affected your relationships over as long back as you’ve noticed the pattern. How would anything you’re experiencing in relationship to another person, particularly where sex is involved, translate to an inner emotional or psychological dynamic? There is more to this question than you may imagine, particularly as you aspire to the Holy Grail of sex: experiencing it as a spiritual phenomenon that draws all people to one common ground. Not two people: all people.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22 – Dec. 22)
Let’s talk about sex as an essential form of nourishment. It serves many other functions, and only rarely do we come around to this extraordinarily basic one. Parallel with this is a need for sexual healing that we all have, and that we tend to avoid. Our issues can seem so old and intractable that there is little hope of ever resolving them. Who, exactly, could help us? Even most therapists have no concept of how to work with deep sexual themes; so how could we expect someone we meet in a social environment to do so? I suggest you start by being open to the possibility. One clue I can offer you is that sex and sexuality must be considered outside the context of a relationship commitment or relationship model. Sex and relationships are almost always conflated in our society, and this is an intentional result of the most carefully cultivated social engineering program in Western history. While the two often arrive together, to make any progress on healing either, I believe that it’s necessary to handle them separately. The first barrier that nearly everyone has to go through in dividing them is their own guilt/shame complex. When you get there, don’t stuff it under the bed, or under your awareness; leave it out in the open, where healing is possible.

Capricorn (Dec. 22- Jan. 20)
Others are willing to give, to share, even to make sacrifices for you: as long as you are willing to be influenced by them. That influence may be profound. Yet in order to offer you any gifts, blessings, favors or a sense of authentic contact, bear in mind that they too must open up and be vulnerable as well. We could say that the planets this month and indeed the rest of the year portend a mutual opening, a desire to connect and the ability to create a common language. The communication factor is paramount now, and that involves developing the willingness, and the ability, to communicate about the most taboo topics. These have a tendency to be self-concealing; our lack of comfort and familiarity with them usually makes for short conversations, when long ones are called for. We also think we know a lot more than we do. Most women will tell you that most men have little interest in going down this kind of introspective path, and to the extent that this is true it’s going to take all of us to create space for the conversations that need to happen. At the bottom of this is a radical reformation of your values system that is eventually going to affect all aspects of your life. But the foundation is this: If you want to cultivate true self-esteem, start with how you feel and what you believe about your sexuality. Question everything.

Aquarius (Jan. 20- Feb. 19)
Sometimes in extraordinary times, life isn’t so extraordinary. The astrology certainly has been, and as you know it’s been focused on your sign through much of the year and in particular the past month or so. To be so up close to the Aquarius alignment of Jupiter, Chiron and Neptune, which is still cooking and will be cooking through the year, may feel like living underneath a spiritual microwave tower. The intensity of the Aquarius alignment is dropping off for the next few months, though as other planets make aspects, it will have little surges. This is likely to be more pleasant weather, though soon enough other factors (such as the next rush of Saturn opposite Uranus) will have you on your toes again. Why are you going through all of this, and will it ever end? You don’t want ‘it’ to end. What I suggest you aim for is to vibrate faster than the energy is coming at you, or rising up from inside you. This stretch of your life is about creating energetic mastery over your senses, your intentions and your ability to make choices. Ask yourself what you need to feel better. When in doubt, make a decision. If after a reasonable test that didn’t work, make another decision. Keep worry, regret and boredom as far out of the picture as you can. Just keep deciding.

Pisces (Feb. 19- March 20)
The Sun’s ingress to your empathic water sign Cancer will come as a relief, and with a dash of faith, open some doors for you. On many different levels you’ve been spreading your psychic wings; yet at the same time, you’ve been processing a lot of feelings, data and karmic material. This has made it difficult for you during the past few weeks to get any emotional grounding. The planets are now providing a gush of water and direct attention. They’re also reminding you that if you want satisfying contact, with yourself and with others, you need to tend the space constantly. Start by keeping your physical space as impeccably clean as you can. Listen to your emotions for signs of when you are feeling trust or mistrust; when you identify a need; and when it’s appropriate to take a chance. I suggest you make a yoga of taking risks without the expectation that any one of them will work out — just that it’s worth trying, if for no other reason than without reaching out you can be sure. Part of the flame you’re being called upon to tend involves balance; it involves being aware for when there is reciprocity in a relationship, and emphasizing that experience above the others that may seem to be available. The results, as always, will speak for themselves.

Planet Waves Monthly for June 2009

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Dear Friend and Reader:

The great god Mercury, messenger, trickster and the planet of Hermes (one of the founders of astrology) stations direct in Taurus on Saturday, May 30. This occurs while we are in the midst of the triple conjunction that offers us the opportunity to shape and recreate our world. Everyone agrees that things need to change both on the planet and in our personal lives; we are standing in a vortex where that change is not only possible (that’s always true) but readily accessible.

Sgt. Forte rides in the Memorial Day parade in Kingston, NY with his mounted machine gun. Photo by Eric Francis/Book of Blue.

An extremely rare, indeed, almost impossible alignment is now taking place in Aquarius, and involves Jupiter, Chiron and Neptune. This once-in-a-lifetime event reaches its first peak through late May and into June, and its energy will be available well into 2010 before it begins to trail off. Dive into the energy while the conjunction is in the flush of its youth. This conjunction is about accessing creative energy on multiple levels, drawing from a deep spiritual source in a way that is real — not abstract or intellectual (like most of our spiritual stuff).

Because the main activity is in Aquarius (in a close aspect to the Galactic Core), we are experiencing a collective shift that is changing the rules of society as we experience them. We have a cosmic opening to explore who we are in the context of the people around us. The key to this process is visioning, visioning, visioning; then stating your intentions to the world out loud; and then taking action. Delay only as long as it takes to align with your long-term vision and your sincerity.

Yours & truly,

Planet Waves Radio will be webcast tonight, Tuesday, May 26 at 10 PM ET on Blog Talk Radio. We’ll talk about the Gemini New Moon and it’s connection to the Nuclear Axis chart. Check out the daily page for an introduction to that subject. I’ll also be taking some questions about your personal astrology — if you want to get on the air, please call in early!

Aries (March 20-April 19)
You’ve been blessed with such unusual social penetrating power, it’s as if you had a backstage pass to everywhere — and if you haven’t noticed, you still do. The key now is being selective where you go and what you do with that privilege. The depth of this new power gives you more than you’re likely to be noticing. Consider how the patterns of the society around you usually dictate the course of your life, and by ‘society’ I mean your friends, their friends and the big world. In all these ways you have unusual mobility right now. Yet this applies to levels of your existence that are normally invisible. In truth, a universe of potential is opening up for you. The way to activate that potential is by focusing on specifically what is the most important to you; and by this I mean making a conscious effort to identify your deepest and most meaningful priorities, then sticking to them. It would make no sense to squander these opportunities on something you don’t really want, but I must caution you because that’s so inherent in human nature. Yet guilt, peer pressure (including in primary relationships), conditioning, fear, shame and lack of awareness, can make focusing on what you want seem like a very big deal. So the question is, given the opportunity to go beyond these things, would you?

Read your 2008 annual for Aries. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aries and Aries rising here.

Taurus (April 19- May 20)
Mars has entered your birth sign, which is putting some fire in your belly. I trust you will give that famous Taurean complacency a run for its money. I know a lot of people born under your sign, and I do mean know and love. They all admit the same thing: it’s difficult to make changes. The comfort zone can feel like climbing out of a canyon. On the most basic level, Taurus grounds stability for the whole astrological system. Yet deep beneath the crust of the Earth is a tectonic power that you know you have, but rarely tap into. That strength would enable you to make vast changes as if this were no big deal at all. What I believe entices you to keep things stable, is less about fear of the future and more about an attachment to the past. But fear plays a role you need to address. On and off for the past several months, you’ve had a tour of what tends to freak you out. There’s another aspect to fear, however, which is feeling the emotion but losing touch with what creates it. Here is the key to your astrology this month: use fear as a source of energy. Go right into it and confront it directly; or let it propel you to make the decisions that you need to make. If fear is not an issue for you per se, then make a list of your perceived limits and, one by one, take them out.

Read your 2008 annual for Taurus. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Taurus and Taurus rising here.

Gemini (May 20- June 21)
Often people try to be spiritual without addressing this elusive thing called the unconscious. But since it’s unconscious, it’s understandable how we might not be conscious of it. At the moment, you seem to be waking up to this level of awareness, which most would regard as deep, dark and too complicated to be much fun. Yet awareness of this dimension is precisely how we grow. It cannot be taken in especially big chunks, though at the moment if the unconscious is a country, you now have access to the equivalent of a major city. Taking this equation in parts, consider that we usually deem spiritual growth being more open to love; and this, most people struggle with. But who in a spiritual process would show reverence for the darker emotions? Usually the first impulse is to get rid of them. So what might you be encountering for the next few weeks? One is attachment. Beneath that breezy personality of yours, you can cling tightly, and that has a way of driving people out of your life. Another is a fear of change that seems to directly contradict the breezy, open-ended way you prefer to live. The two are related, and if you can get sight of that relationship and acknowledge it honestly, a dimension of love will open before you even know what happened.

Read your 2008 annual for Gemini. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Gemini and Gemini rising here.

Cancer (June 21- July 22)
In a world where people try to impress others with how many Facebook friends they have, I am here to remind you that popularity is not what you need, and it’s not what matters. The only, and I do mean only, thing you need, at least as far as I’m concerned as an astrologer, are clear agreements. An extremely popular New Age philosophy has grown up around the concept of ‘sacred contracts’. Your astrological moment now points to an opening for the energy of grace. This quality has the power to dissolve old agreements and help you form new ones that are far more humane in nature. I suggest you look closely at your life and determine who profits based on what you do and what happens to you. Ask yourself, day to day and hour to hour, if what you experience is equitable; if you have enough of what you need; and look at the arrangements where those limits are contained. If you pay attention, you will discover yourself in relationships that contain a kind of infinite potential. You will get a look at how those relationships work at their best, and most significantly, you will see the ways in which you can turn the old-style experiences into something where actual benefits to everyone involved are available not only to the direct participants, but to everyone. Indeed, you would be stunned if you could see the potential — and I trust that you will.

Read your 2008 annual for Cancer. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Cancer and Cancer rising here.

Leo (July 22- Aug. 23)
Put your highly evolved sense of justice to work, for yourself. Be demonstrative about your firm understanding that mutual respect is the only way that the world is going to function, or work its way out of its current hole. The truth has a way of perpetuating itself. We like to think this is true of lies, but whether a person places their faith in one or the other says just about everything you need to know about who they are. There are the people who cannot tell the difference, and worse yet, those who don’t care. Yet integrity is obvious, if you are looking, listening and paying attention to the information sent by your third eye. If certain people who show up seem to have a broken mind be very discerning about how you handle them. Meanwhile, everyone knows the rules are changing, and that the structure of society is being recreated as we speak. For you this translates to relationships. Along with that new model is your coexistence with two factors — your work and your health. The people admitted to your life must be committed to both, as they apply to you and to themselves. We have come through a time when the decay of integrity and accountability have rarely ever been more severe. You at least are accountable to yourself. Others who share this value are gradually arriving in your life — notice them.

Read your 2008 annual for Leo. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Leo and Leo rising here.

Virgo (Aug. 23- Sep. 22)
You have the ability to move mountains, and the way you do this is by being committed to labor and unceasing toil. Your charts say that your real gift is organizing; that is, getting others to work in coordination, to get a large job done. Your only reluctance to put this talent to full use is that it might give you the feeling that you’re not working enough. I know you well enough to know that even if you had fifty people coordinated on a project, you would save a slice of the most challenging work for yourself. So you can scratch that off of your list of things to worry about. I consider you one of the social engineers of our planet. You know, and I mean you really do know, that the only way we are going to move through our very serious, dangerous and rich with potential phase of history is to fully embrace the need to cooperate. You are also something of a natural-born psychologist (rivaling only Scorpio in this regard) and you know that many people have their reasons why they think it’s better to take an ‘every man for himself’ approach to existence. Please help lead humanity out of this darkness. Remind the people around you that all we have is each other. Remind yourself often that you are part of something much larger than your own life.

Read your 2008 annual for Virgo. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Virgo and Virgo rising here.

Libra (Sep. 22 – Oct. 23)
Venus has finally worked its way out of the retrograde that had, until lately, dominated the year’s astrology, and you have learned one thing: not to live your life based on what you think that others think. This includes your lover or lovers, or any relationship interests; it involves your parents and it involves the way you present yourself to the world at large. Most people spend their lives either trying to impress others by being who they think others want them to be, or by arrogantly being whoever they feel like being without regard for anyone’s feelings. There is a vast middle ground, which involves factors like empathy, rapport, respect and authentic individuality. I would guess that by now, you’ve figured out that unless we make space for all of us to be who we are, there is not much space for anything else. One of the things you appear to have done is to create space for yourself in the context of your relationships. I strongly suggest you keep doing this, that is, pushing open a wider and wider space for yourself to exist within the lives of the people around you. This should not be a problem, but be aware that with your creative powers maturing, the only people who are going to seem spacious are those who are committed to their growth and their own creative process.

Read your 2008 annual for Libra. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Libra and Libra rising here.

Scorpio (Oct. 23- Nov. 22)
You must be emotionally grounded to be free; to be emotionally grounded you need to either feel like you belong somewhere, or be consciously, firmly devoted to it not mattering whether you do or don’t. Ultimately, most environmental issues relate to some internal factor. The planets are conspiring to help you work out what that factor is, and to align you with a kind of therapy process to get you to where you want to be. You seem to be edging ever-closer to actually anchoring yourself in a measure of creative freedom — closer, but (so far) never quite getting there. My point is that you most certainly will, and you will sooner than you think. But the territory you are covering now is essential to making sure you are actually stable enough to be freer than you are today. Part of that freedom involves your emotional world. While nobody would doubt that you are an emotional person, the theme of the planets is how you structure your emotions, and the extent to which you try to hold a consistent pattern. To the extent that any lingering old patterns remain, you are now being keyed into the existence of another kind of strength; one that does not require control so much as it requires awareness. This includes awareness of where you will not let your feelings go, and an invitation to enter precisely that space.

Read your 2008 annual for Scorpio. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Scorpio and Scorpio rising here.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22 – Dec. 22)
Stop trying to prove that you exist in theory and get down to practical reality. One attribute of that is about either deciding where you want to be on the planet, or getting yourself to where you know you need to be. There is no distance on the planet that is too great to cross or to cover. No matter where you are, you can get yourself somewhere else, though at this time, that is not about making a random choice; there is an element of precision to the conjunction of Jupiter, Chiron and Neptune that is so closely related to your sign. If you are finding yourself running ragged, slow down and reassess your priorities. Notice the decision points in your life, and take each one as consciously as a chess move. I suggest that you raise the level of the game above whether you win or lose, and notice whether you are paying attention or not. The current astrology could be so psychically overwhelming that you somehow fail to notice just how amazing it is. There is one other point of potential distraction: you may be looking to others for confirmation of who you are. Most of the people around you think slowly or in reverse compared to yourself, so you don’t want to do too much comparing, or seeking advice. The theme of your life now could be summed up in two phrases, “Know what you know,” and “Action is the fruit of knowledge.”

Read your 2008 annual for Sagittarius. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Sagittarius and Sagittarius rising here.

Capricorn (Dec. 22- Jan. 20)
Turn up the passion. I’m not kidding. Turn it up twice as high as you think ‘high’ is supposed to be; if you play guitar get an amplifier that goes up to 11; make sure people notice you and for Goddess’s sake, make sure that if you love someone you tell them about it. Early in the month you get some positively luscious opportunities to make moves, as long as they are driven by something very pure and lusty. To the extent you’ve been typecast as a calculating, stoic person, the time has arrived to break the mold. I am suggesting this at a time when you are under less pressure rather than more; at the moment you are being delivered a saucy dose of inspiration, gusto and thirst for life, rather than the usual kinds of complications or confrontations with authority that make life on Earth so special. The kinds of steps you want to take will thrive in an atmosphere of free choice rather than mandatory action. This makes a truly interesting and, after about a day, fun psychological exercise. Each time you reach a juncture of choice, decide whether you’re doing it because someone says you should be doing it, or because you want to. Sort out desire and necessity — at times this can be subtle, and at times it can be glaringly obvious. Most of all, really, truly understand what is important to you; then write it on the wall.

Read your 2008 annual for Capricorn. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Capricorn and Capricorn rising here.

Aquarius (Jan. 20- Feb. 19)
I would not be surprised if you felt your life has been running out of control, or at least if your mind has been. This year has melted from one kind of intensity to another to another, all designed to leave you where you are today: out on the edge, in totally unfamiliar personal territory, and moreover in a place without a map. I think you need this absence of familiarity as much as you need food. However, the map known as astrology reveals several things: one is that you are breaking through the shell of your personality, only to discover that not far beneath the surface is this too-often elusive thing known as soul. This awareness necessarily requires a kind of ego death, where the familiar version of yourself and all its references to the past start to melt like ice in the light of the Sun. The second thing is that while you will be occupying this edge for a while, you are retreating a bit now, and this ever-so-slight pulling back is on time. Last, it is not air or an abyss beyond the edge of what you know, but an ocean; a world of feeling and experience and indeed a whole new cosmos beneath the waves. It may be a while before you sail out on the high seas on your own; for now, some of that energy is coming to you in waves, to acclimate you to this new cosmos you will soon see is your life.

Read your 2008 annual for Aquarius. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aquarius and Aquarius rising here.

Pisces (Feb. 19- March 20)
We’ve all had these experiences, you’ve probably had a hundred of them, where the normal rules of life suspend themselves and suddenly something highly unusual seems possible. Or indeed something impossible seems perfectly plausible. It’s amazing when it happens and it can be frustrating when you reach for the metaphysical key and cannot find the key or the lock. Yet at the moment, the planets are aligned in a way that is highly auspicious for Pisces, if you can handle the energy, and if you have the nerve to dare. If you are the kind of Fish who gets stuck on the negative emotional bandwidths, this would include the nerve to dare holding a positive wavelength and remembering that of all the signs, yours is the one that knows the only actual purpose humans have is to love. I don’t mean to put on the groovy; I mean to state the most basic metaphysical law that there is, and the one that opens up all the other dimensions and potential realities. On the practical level, know what you want and make sure you get it. Don’t be afraid that one desire will come at the expense of another; this is time-bound, linear thinking. Be clear what you want to happen in your life and leave the door open. When the people and things you want to attract come to you, welcome them, and let your fears fall away like a tight old shoe.

Read your 2008 annual for Pisces. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Pisces and Pisces rising here.

Alt Monthly Horoscope for May 2009

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BY ERIC FRANCIS

Aries (March 20-April 19)
There is a certain social magic that will work for you, if you don’t try to prove anything to anyone. Rather, let those you meet demonstrate their true identity before you assume you know who they are. Though it may be challenging, the less you say, the better. You know yourself better than most others, and one criteria for whether someone is suitable as a friend or as a lover is how comfortable they are in their own skin.

Read your 2008 annual for Aries. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aries and Aries rising here.

Taurus (April 19- May 20)
It’s the feelings you are not aware of that are potentially the most damaging now. Awareness is the key: I suggest you contact your passion, your anger and your motivation, because you are broadcasting to the world so powerfully now that you must simply be aware of what’s going out over the airwaves. Know thyself has been the resounding message of the last couple of months. I would add, know, and don’t forget.

Read your 2008 annual for Taurus. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Taurus and Taurus rising here.

Gemini (May 20- June 21)
What is stopping you from going where you want to go, or being where you need to be? Nothing, except for counting on unreliable people. You have reached the time in your life when there is no substitute for having faith in yourself, and you seem to have reached the point when you have no practical choice except for that. You can safely stop pretending that someone else has the answer; then you’ll figure out where it’s really at.

Read your 2008 annual for Gemini. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Gemini and Gemini rising here.

Cancer (June 21- July 22)
Now that you know what you’re worth, in dollars and in the spiritual sense, decide what master you’re serving. It is possible to pursue two agendas, but far easier if you keep their common points in mind, and remember the overarching purpose. Here is the challenge. We are so accustomed to working against ourselves that we often don’t really know what it’s like to play on our own team. Now is your chance to figure it out and get it right.

Read your 2008 annual for Cancer. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Cancer and Cancer rising here.

Leo (July 22- Aug. 23)
Can you eat faith? Some would say you can, because in one sense the world runs on faith. Love definitely helps, and the more people you can exchange that with, the better. The further we go from your immediate circle, the more we sustain ourselves on trust that the world will come through for us and be there if we need it. You are an ambassador of this point of view. Don’t be surprised if you have to try six different languages before people understand you.

Read your 2008 annual for Leo. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Leo and Leo rising here.

Virgo (Aug. 23- Sep. 22)
The world seems to be going nowhere fast, and you may be wondering how you’re going to get anywhere. Consider this. When you iron a shirt, you start with the yoke. Nobody really sees that part. But you’re getting warmed up, the iron is getting hot and gradually you work your way to the visible parts. This is the feeling of Saturn in your birth sign: pressing out your wrinkles and making you rethink who you are, with a touch of that satisfying kind of painful.

Read your 2008 annual for Virgo. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Virgo and Virgo rising here.

Libra (Sep. 22 – Oct. 23)
It may seem as if you’re viewing the world through a thick glass window, seeing something beautiful that you cannot touch. If you skew things a little by deliberately thinking from a different viewpoint, you will gain access to something more important than a special relationship: specifically, a sense of community dedicated to healing. Most of our communities are designed to make money, though as we are seeing, this only goes so far.

Read your 2008 annual for Libra. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Libra and Libra rising here.

Scorpio (Oct. 23- Nov. 22)
It may seem as if an old issue has crawled out of the lagoon, just when you thought it was gone for good. Consider this encounter a chance to take some responsibility for what you see. Not full responsibility for the whole situation, but rather enough to admit you’re the one with the power to do something about it. Difficult as it is, you will benefit the most from doing this the moment that you feel inclined to blame someone else.

Read your 2008 annual for Scorpio. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Scorpio and Scorpio rising here.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22 – Dec. 22)
Passion, this thing we say we love so much, has its roots in the idea pathos, which is the Greek word for pain. The two are connected, much as we try to keep them apart: to isolate pleasure from pain, and to claim that we don’t love to struggle. Even if you just witness the point of contact, you will take a step toward setting something free — an ancient pain, and a profound pleasure.

Read your 2008 annual for Sagittarius. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Sagittarius and Sagittarius rising here.

Capricorn (Dec. 22- Jan. 20)
So much seems to be happening to you that you don’t see the ways that you happen to other people. It’s finally time to make peace with the effect that you have on others: you come through their lives like an unstoppable force. There are people who quite literally try to bend their personality around yours, in hopes of gaining some greater sense of contact with you. This may also be how you feel about yourself.

Read your 2008 annual for Capricorn. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Capricorn and Capricorn rising here.

Aquarius (Jan. 20- Feb. 19)
This is one of the moments you’ve been waiting for. In fact, it may feel like the very moment you have been waiting for, forever. You really do need to ask yourself what you would do if you had the chance to pursue any opportunity. Many times in life we don’t know what choices got us there. Now you have an opportunity to choose — and you will no longer have that particular excuse. Nor do you need it.

Read your 2008 annual for Aquarius. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aquarius and Aquarius rising here.

Pisces (Feb. 19- March 20)
One of the frustrating things about spiritual laws is how we know they’re true but they don’t seem to work dependably. However, there is one that you need to keep in mind, which is that reality manifests from the inside out. Try it and see. Align with who you are; align with your purpose; commit to your most important goals. Say the words and then act on their behalf. This counts a thousand-fold right now.

Read your 2008 annual for Pisces. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Pisces and Pisces rising here.

Monthly Horoscope for May 2009

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Dear Friend and Reader:

The astrology of May is some of the most unusual of our lifetimes, and this time will stand apart in history from any we have known. It’s also gentle arrangement, working primarily on the level of awareness rather than of physical events. Involved primarily are Chiron and Neptune in Aquarius, which have been building toward a conjunction for many years.

Eric, early in the 21st century.

Neptune arrived in Aquarius in 1998 and faster moving Chiron arrived in 2005. As Barbara Hand Clow explained, Chiron and Neptune work together like the opposite ends of a funnel; Neptune is the wide end, and Chiron is the narrow end. Chiron focuses the watery, misty and difficult to perceive energy of Neptune, and (as it so often does) makes the qualities of the outer planets useful and accessible. There are two sides to Chiron aspecting Neptune: one is seeing the rampant deception that we have been subjected to since Neptune entered the sign of the collective, Aquarius; and also seeing how far we have come as spiritual seekers.

There is a lot in this configuration about discovering how much we have learned, and taking in what our more perceptive senses have to say to us. Later in the month, this conjunction is joined by Jupiter. Chiron to Jupiter grounds the questing spirit of Jupiter in a focused, useful way. Part of Jupiter’s problem is that it can be all promise and no action; Chiron becomes the working end of the equation, focusing the journey to knowledge, to truth and to love as a practical endeavor, ever mindful of the problems of idealism.

Allow the world to take on a transparent quality; see through the unnecessary, torturous maze of ego and remember that each of us is capable of expressing who we came here to be. Certainly you are feeling this potential, and it’s more than spring in the air. We each get there differently. In the immortal words of the Grateful Dead, “Some rise, some fall and some climb to get to Terrapin.”

Yours & truly,

Aries (March 20-April 19)
You’re learning something special, which is how to embrace opposites at the same time. By that, I mean the opposites which comprise who you are. Few people would describe you as a person who strives for balance. Yet if you wonder why you spend so much time running in circles, consider that your left and right sides need to both do the work of living and traveling on our small planet, in harmony. The other message coming through abundantly is that despite Aries being the quintessential insecure soloist of the zodiac, you are not here alone; there is nothing solo about your life. However, the non-solo portion is less about the presence of a significant other or the dramas of relationship (interesting though they have been lately), and more about the presence of a community. Or rather, you recognizing your presence in the people, events and society that surround you. I suggest you specifically not wait for an engraved invitation; that you stand up and engage the world, and that you do so recognizing commitments that you have already made. And you have made a few; some in conscience; some unconsciously; and some with a mild sense of trepidation. The time has come to call yourself not just present, but accounted for.

Read your 2008 annual for Aries. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aries and Aries rising here.

Taurus (April 19- May 20)
You’ve had a look at your life as the transparent thing that it needs to be, and that it can easily be. You have begun to feel your head soften and your heart open. What will it take for you to recognize these as ongoing options rather than as a momentary awakening? Maybe pleasure will speak your name; it’s the one thing that will usually get you to look up. There’s nothing pleasurable or flattering about being hardheaded or stubborn, and you know it no longer suits your nature. Resistance is not a pleasurable experience for long. Persistent, devoted, dedicated — all of these work for you. The key to staying open is to turn them toward yourself. What I am suggesting is that if you want to have the life you say you want, you need to be open to it, and being open to ‘it’ means being open in general. I suggest you be open to yourself about three things: one would be your fears. Keeping your fears secret is one of the best ways to shut down. Second would be your values. Remind yourself every day what is important to you, and take one documented action in support of what is important to you. The third would be ‘fessing up to yourself about what risks you are actually willing to take, and then taking them.

Read your 2008 annual for Taurus. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Taurus and Taurus rising here.

Gemini (May 20- June 21)
You may feel a strong temptation to be self-sacrificing for a partner or loved one. Generally, this is considered the height of nobility and heroism, indicative of the most exquisite degree of spiritual growth. However, beware of the supposed need to prove yourself, particularly if you’re doing it to get a result, and especially if that result is from a person. You may feel that someone is holding out on you, like they have more to offer than you do. Alternately, you may be in a particularly competitive mood, only this is competitiveness with the odd psychological spin of giving something up. But life is not a game of Top Chef, or Bottom Chef for that matter. You will know you’re in this loop because you’re feeling frustration. That’s your cue to make some decisions, and to look in another direction. Is it pleasure and passion that you want? These things have no feeling of either game or sacrifice. They are about openly sharing and receiving. You will know you’re in the right place when you begin to feel your horizons open up, or rather when you notice how open they already are. If you open up and feel fear, give the fear a voice. It is fair to say that there are few circumstances on this planet that should result in your feeling prolonged fear. Most, however, would say the same thing about pleasure. The choice is yours.

Read your 2008 annual for Gemini. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Gemini and Gemini rising here.

Cancer (June 21- July 22)
You are only limited by your beliefs, and this is not an easy thing to live with. We know it’s true, and we’ve all seen it work: believe in yourself and suddenly something is possible. Find your confidence and suddenly the world opens up. Feel beautiful rather than try to look beautiful and you get exactly the date you want. The problem is that beliefs and mental patterns have a way of being intractable, particularly beliefs about yourself. In your case they are closely intertwined with the beliefs, values and ideas of others: and this can extend to a very wide scale. Over the next few weeks, here is what may seem to happen: the world is suddenly changing its ways and catching up with what you’ve been thinking and feeling all along. You get a glimpse of how easy life is when people stop resisting and start cooperating. In fact, the opening is happening within you. This is an important distinction to make because if ‘the world’ subsequently seems to shut down, which it does on a fairly regular basis, the opening within you will still be open. And despite appearances, ‘the world’ will be every bit as accessible to you. I say this recognizing that it’s usually not easy to take responsibility for transcending your own limits from the inside out. You’re about to show the rest of us how it’s done.

Read your 2008 annual for Cancer. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Cancer and Cancer rising here.

Leo (July 22- Aug. 23)
There is an extremely dangerous line where partnership becomes a vortex of commitment, or worse, of obligation. It is supposedly the thing we all crave. Yet I can assure you that it’s not a value that we typically question, nor that we usually wish to question — and I assure you that it’s time to start asking. The key concept behind this theme is expectations, and I believe it was God, in Conversations with God, who reminded us that “expectations kill relationships.” You don’t need any such substitute for the spiritual, psychic or physical intimacy now. You are compelling, you are attractive, you have something to say for yourself and you have the capacity to be genuinely open. Those who try to push situations to a supposedly deeper or higher or better level are often filling in a gap where only love and authentic communication belong. You have no need to be defensive here; the reason being is that there is basically a triple dose of life-affirming mojo working the zone in your chart where these themes come up. Obligation and loyalty are different things. Far from needing to set dates, plan the course of events or guide things into a contractual structure, I would propose that you are at the perfect moment to let all of these things go and to trust the flow of events in the universe of your life.

Read your 2008 annual for Leo. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Leo and Leo rising here.

Virgo (Aug. 23- Sep. 22)
Relationship is often temptationship. That is to say, what we call relationship is often a magnet that pulls us out of ourselves, or gives us an excuse to give up some aspect of our experience of living. It is possible that a relationship situation you’re looking directly at, be it potential, existing or imminent, is a distraction from the deeper work you are doing now. It’s also possible that you will have a collaborator. Assuming this applies to your life circumstances (and it is just as likely to apply to your concept of relationship or partnership as an existing situation), does the situation feel old or new? Would it involve progress, or regression? Since you cannot project into the whole future (which has many probable options) I suggest you read your emotions and see how you feel. I suggest you do a short-term experiment with anyone in your life who seems to have extra significance, and decide what direction they guide you: deeper onto your inner path, or taking you away from it. Our relationships are hand-in-glove with our spiritual growth; or rather, they need to be, if we are to get anywhere, and have any sense of satisfaction. Now is the time to make sure that the two are in alignment.

Read your 2008 annual for Virgo. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Virgo and Virgo rising here.

Libra (Sep. 22 – Oct. 23)
There is a line in any astrological chart (the one that marks the border of the 5th and 6th houses) that stands between creativity and work; between play and healing; between what is considered a risk and what is considered safe and predictable. In my view, this is the place where we do the real inner work, and can most accessibly seek the deeper reconciliation with ourselves. It’s where we morph and blend creative process and healing process; and just as meaningfully, between fun and work; between playful sexuality and intentional eroticism. (In each case, I am describing a 5th house property and a 6th house property in that order.) This is the line in your chart that’s currently the scene of the most spectacular conjunction of our generation. You are not merely learning something or having an experience; you are becoming something, and that something has the strength and integrity to reach out into the world; indeed, to shape the world. Yes, it’s likely to come with something of a crisis, since when we express ourselves we can find out how held down we were; when we dare to feel alive we might have to admit how dead we felt. The most significant risk is the feeling of being misunderstood. Strive for being in harmony with yourself, and in this very moment, choose your friends well.

Read your 2008 annual for Libra. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Libra and Libra rising here.

Scorpio (Oct. 23- Nov. 22)
How exactly can you shift the dynamic of your life? We spend a lot of time doing emotional work, relationship work, spiritual work and every other kind of work. Yet this rarely is the thing that makes the actual shift; more often it is what prepares the ground (and sometimes digs us deeper). You are being pulled, and I mean powerfully, in the direction of casting of your ideas about life away, and being drawn in the process of life as one vast experiment. You are still oriented on the emotional side of the equation; the side that is concerned with security, and at the same time, dealing with the patterns that have taken root in your life. But what you don’t necessarily see is how much inner territory you have covered, and how thoroughly. And you may not be aware how close to a whole new set of destinations you are. Be aware that what we call emotional work can have an obsessive quality to it, and the process of breaking patterns can have a pattern all its own. Now it’s time to let yourself be pulled in the direction of what is less predictable, and more about experience that is simply not possible to describe or categorize. In sum, your deepest release will come from allowing yourself to be drawn into your passion, your talent, your erotic core. Yes, I know about the rules; and it’s time for new ones.

Read your 2008 annual for Scorpio. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Scorpio and Scorpio rising here.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22 – Dec. 22)
Our world teaches us to focus on the physical and mental trappings of life and all but disregard the matter of soul. Of course, soul is controversial in nature; the true structure of the human psyche is only known in theory and from limited experience, and is not proven. Even if we acknowledge the existence of this quality of being, you cannot teach soul in a classroom or lecture hall; very few practitioners can make contact with it in a workshop; it does not lend itself well to being written about or illustrated. Hence, since it doesn’t come as a song lasting under three minutes, it can’t get the airplay that it deserves. At this moment, your very existence is broadcasting the essence of your soul energy, and by that I mean the people around you (both locally and energetically) can feel this happening. The connection you are developing is to your sense of purpose, your sense of place and most of all, deciphering your original instructions for this incarnation. You may be manifesting this as feeling like your mind is glowing with blue light; you may feel like you’re walking on clouds; you may wonder why you’re feeling so strange. Yes, in this world, beautiful can be a little weird but we both know that’s how you like it.

Read your 2008 annual for Sagittarius. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Sagittarius and Sagittarius rising here.

Capricorn (Dec. 22- Jan. 20)
What are the stories you tell yourself over and over again? In particular, what stories about who you are in the world, and what your purpose is? These are the ones that are the most likely to come true, whether they are ‘true’ or not. And what is truth? In the course of a human life, it’s something we experience in context, and looking at your charts for this month, here is what that involves. Do you make your choices in accord with your own values? Said another way, do you act on what is true for you? The unusual quality of the moment is that you not only see what is true for you, you see its value, its beauty and its reality. As A Course in Miracles so aptly stated the point, “Every decision you make stems from what you think you are.” In a sense, this is the ultimate value: your definition of yourself. I am here to tell you that far from being a fixed entity, your definition is something that is entirely flexible, subject to change and asking to be rewritten based on the deepest contact you can attain with yourself. Contact sounds a little like contract, and what you are doing is precisely renegotiating and acting on the contract you have with yourself. If you have made any promises to yourself that you’re overdue in keeping, now would be the opportune moment to pay up.

Read your 2008 annual for Capricorn. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Capricorn and Capricorn rising here.

Aquarius (Jan. 20- Feb. 19)
It’s taken you a long time to figure out what you’re about to discover. Like many inventions or developments, be they spiritual or technical, the breakthroughs are preceded by a long, seemingly endless process of trial and error that doesn’t really get underway until we are completely at home with the experiment. From that place of equilibrium, the results can be surprising, and it would seem an understatement to say this is the direction you’re headed. The main thing I see beginning to work itself out for you is a feeling of doubt that has nagged you for years. Years of Neptune in your birth sign has been relentlessly eroding your confidence, and taking you through many strange spaces where you seemingly had to deny who you are. Chiron arrived more recently (in the mid-2000s) and that pushed the issue in another direction entirely: you could say, a crisis of overfocus, and of pushing the questions of identity to the surface faster than anyone but you would be comfortable dealing with them. In the coming weeks and indeed through this season, the story begins to make a lot more sense. Your past begins to make sense. Your future takes on an odd new dimension: as something real.

Read your 2008 annual for Aquarius. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aquarius and Aquarius rising here.

Pisces (Feb. 19- March 20)
Yes, everything seems to happen at once. Perhaps it would be awesome if the benefits of life arrived when we felt like we needed them the most, but what comes to you this month is quite literally coming home to you. The emotional and psychological place you discover within yourself looks like finding the seat of your soul; your true inner orientation. What shows up as the most beautiful discovery is how the most exalted states of mind, and the true clarity of your awareness, is just one thin veil beyond normal consciousness; one thought away. As you begin to find your place in the world, you may begin to realize the extent to which you’ve been crimped and hobbled by a lurking sense of insecurity and isolation. What you are seeing is a contrast, and that quality of thought or vision can be one of the most useful tools we have, while we need it. I suggest, though, that you begin to take stock of all that your anxiety and insecurity have taught you. This amounts to more than you may think. I would also propose that whatever may have transpired in the outer world in recent years, you have grown to know yourself to a depth that is truly unusual for this world. As the once-in-a-lifetime events of this spring unfold, I trust you will recognize this is the gem you sought, and the one you found.

Read your 2008 annual for Pisces. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Pisces and Pisces rising here.

The Equinox: A Crisis of Confidence

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Dear Friend and Reader:

The Sun is in Aries and a new season and a new astrological year have begun. Before I get into the equinox chart, we need to look back, because Thursday was the 6th anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. It was just six short years ago that a great portion of our country’s population, most of its politicians and nearly every mainstream news outlet, believed we just had to do this. I have this vague memory of a former celebrated general with experience in Iraq advising the then-decider, “You break it, you bought it.”

Pro-war “protest” in 2003. Photographer unknown.

Don’t you feel like calling American Express and demanding a chargeback? It was a defective, fraudulent product. The thing is, we really, really wanted it. I mean, we needed it. And we used the wrong friggin’ credit card — American Excess. Their customer service is a joke. We really did need a good laugh. But it was a sick joke, and it was on us.

Six years ago, our country drowned our ever-mounting (manufactured) fears of terrorism, our need for someone to blame, and unresolved grief about Sept. 11 in the supposed satisfaction of bombing a population, an act of aggression evil enough even if it hadn’t gradually turned out to be based entirely on lies. I seem to recall that the invasion was popular even among many ‘progressive’ and ‘spiritual’ people. I remember David Byrne complaining that his friends were turning into zombies. Personally I was stunned that so many who understood the definition of karma, or knew it exists, went along with the feast.

There was another side to the discussion, but it spoke (or rather was listened to) for only a day. Just a month earlier, on Feb. 15, 2003, people and a heck of a lot of dogs came out in cities around the United States and around the world protesting the imminent attack. I often wonder, where did that energy go? Why does nobody mention the F-15 protests? It’s like they didn’t happen.

Today, few people actually support this war. It’s brought us nothing but debt, death and bad vibes. The lesson has come at the cost of 4,259 devastated American families who lost relatives in combat and service, the more than 100,000 who suffered casualties, and the untold millions of lives shattered or lost within Iraq.

Yet there was one last great deception: the crime of the millennium, which took place, early-bird style, during its first decade. Capitalism may be the thing we love and the thing we supposedly are, but at the moment it’s eating its own leg for dinner.

I now recognize that the war was a ruse, a real-time, real-life, supersized Wag the Dog episode to distract the nation from the corporate crimes we are now seeing the results of. It is not just that there’s nobody to hold accountable for the war (unless you want to list every senator who voted for it, including Hillary Rodham Clinton, who knew better because she and Bill, as the ex-First Family, get CIA briefings).

Thousands of anti-war protesters march up Sixth Avenue in New York, March 20, 2004. Anti-war protests took place in many cities around the world on the anniversary of US-led war in Iraq. REUTERS/Chip East.

The actual other side of the Iraq War story would now appear to be what we were distracted from in that orgy of violence, presumed dominance, supposed revenge and false pride: a government that stole the wealth of a nation while shredding its civil rights, and a banking system that gambled it all away.

Remember, we’re not talking about money or “the economy” here; we’re talking about whether our check cards work at the supermarket. We’re talking toilet paper and laundry soap. I assure you that everyone who uses one of those cards has wondered at least once about whether it will work when we need it. We’re talking about the dry roof over our heads. It was not merely the nearly $700 billion plus interest that this war has cost the American people, for no good. My own sense, at the time the war was started, was that it was an intentional move designed to drive the economy into the ground.

The chart for the United States’ attack on Iraq is an obvious quagmire. I say this because the Sun is in the last degree or two (depending on the time you use) of Pisces. Anyone who wants to start a war they plan to win would wait a day or two until the equinox. Aries is the god of war; if you want a war, you summon him, not a couple of fish having a love affair. The last two degrees of any sign are called the anaretic degrees. In the old days astrologers would say they were associated with death. Today we might say that these two degrees will be associated with persistent evolutionary lessons. Look for any anaretic planets in your chart and tell me if you think this is true (I have Saturn out there).

The Moon is in Libra (a peaceful sign) conjunct Vesta (an asteroid associated with sacrifice). This is in the 6th house, of the military. We were about to sacrifice our army on this disaster, and that is precisely what we did.

Pluto in Sagittarius is in the 8th house of death and surrender, suggesting that we faced a fearsome enemy and had better get the lesson sooner rather than later. Mars, Chiron and Nessus are in Capricorn in the 9th house, suggesting that we would engage the enmity of world opinion, including the opinions of other governments. Does anyone remember Freedom Fries, a name given so we would not have to utter “French” because the French knew better (they learned something in Algeria). Mars conjunct Chiron was a hint that the underdog had the big advantage.

Author Thomas Ricks said in a recent interview that the Iraq War “was the biggest mistake in the history of American foreign policy,” adding that “we don’t yet understand how big a mistake this is.”

We won’t, until we start to connect Iraq to the global economic crisis.

We are Now in Aries Point Country

With the Sun at the vernal equinox, we are in Aries Point territory. The Aries Point is the vernal point, and today the Sun is there. This is the astrological intersection between personal and collective responsibility. As a conscious thought, this is something that rarely happens; we’re usually too worried about our taxes, parking tickets and problems at our kids’ school to think about the world at large; much less to act on an issue.

Child supports his dad at a pro-war rally. Being in support of the troops and in support of the war itself were conflated in this conflict. Most anti-war people openly express support of the troops themselves, including proper equipment and bringing them home.

The Aries Point is amplified by the presence of Pluto in early Capricorn, which makes a square and cranks up the energy. On March 23, the Sun makes an exact square to Pluto, which brings in all three elements; and two additional ones as well. They don’t appear on conventional astrology charts; I found this information in the ephemeris at Serennu.com.

The first extra point to consider is a hypothetical planet called Kronos. This is a super-Saturn. It represents people in positions of public trust, regardless of how they use that trust. The integrity inherent in this point is something we have to aspire to, rather than fake or take for granted. One delineation I just read gives a novel, intuitive idea: Kronos represents ordinary things that, when you suppress them, come out in consciousness as something extraordinary.

It’s a slow, slow moving point, orbiting in 521 years. There is no planetary body connected to it; there is an idea, and that idea is in the sign Cancer at the moment, exactly opposed by faster-moving Pluto.

It’s as if our concept of trust, and the idea that we can trust a person in a position of corporate, fiscal or government authority, is being slowly deconstructed by Pluto. To me Kronos also represents the idea that capitalism is legitimate. We’ve all watched this week as the very AIG executives who brought the world’s largest insurer to its knees are collecting million-dollar-plus bonuses. The cost here is not just taxpayer money; the real cost is the cynicism that says we cannot do anything about this, or anything productive at all for that matter. Being cast as perpetual victims is the actual cost.

The other extra point involved is Achilles. This is a weird little asteroid (categorized as a Trojan asteroid) out by Jupiter. Years ago someone on one of the Centaur groups wrote to me privately and handed me a delineation that has proven to be sage. Setting aside the mythical baggage, Achilles is about false confidence and false lack of confidence. We know what false confidence is: you get all pumped up on a war you don’t personally have to fight. False lack of confidence is when you’re supposed to have some courage (due to your experience, age, talent, experience or such), and you have none. You know you should have some pluck, but you just sit there paralyzed. If you have this problem, look carefully at Achilles in your chart, and maybe stop giving your parents so much credit for who you are.

So the alignment is: Pluto in Capricorn, opposite Kronos in Cancer, squared by the Sun and Achilles on the Aries Point. Gee whiz. What a picture of our situation. How did these Kronos-types get so powerful? Did we let them, and if we did, how ever will we trust ourselves again? And are we succumbing to the appeal of fascism because it relieves us of our responsibility?

Baghdad, occupied Iraq, on the anniversary of the war’s beginning on March 20, 2004. Wire service photo.

If we want to make this T-square into a grand cross, we have two points in Libra to help us do that. First is an asteroid called Circe, which is within one degree of the alignment. Martha Lang-Wescott says of this point, “Helping, being of assistance and coming to the rescue; acting as a facilitator; understanding the motives for help.” This could be “helping” the banks and the insurance giants; it could be “helping” the Iraqi people; and lots of big boys helping themselves to the American Excess card, Treasury Bills. Oh, and it’s about the help that we owe ourselves.

Circe is conjunct a centaur called Okyrhoe. The daughter of Chiron and Chariklo, and she is a fighter. She personifies helping ourselves out of this mess. The thing we haven’t figured out yet is that the problem is not on television and the solution is not going to come from television.

At a certain point we’re going to have to confront our fears (less television and more art, sex and exploring the world would help with that). At the moment, we have fear connected to everything. Let’s see, it’s connected to money. It’s connected to what we do, our jobs. We’re all under some level of threat (please keep renewing, you need us like you need orange juice). We’ve got fear connected to having fun; we have gigawatts of irrational fear connected to sex; it’s associated with our relationships, which often had a way of being under stress in great times. We’re scared of love and scared of intimacy and scared of being alone and scared of abandonment. We’re afraid for our health and our kids and the future and the country and the world and the environment. I know too many women who are scared of their own pussies. Is there anything we’re not scared of?

We seem to have this fear that we don’t know who we are. We’ve spent so long looking for who we are in our relationships that we seem to have forgotten. This Aries season is star-spangled with Venus retrograde. As I have said a few times, Venus is moving back, and back, and back; it will back into a square with Pluto in Capricorn (our parents’ fears, and our fear of change), tiptoe backwards, slowly and quietly, over the Aries Point (the fear of being part of something larger, and losing our identity there), and then dip into Pisces, where it will pause for 10 days and help us do precisely that. Pisces is collective water; the ocean refuses no river, and it contains every element on Earth.

About 2,000 people converged in Crawford, TX in August 2005 for the “Cindy Doesn’t Speak for Me” rally. The logic of pro-war “protestors” always is always twisted; here, the implication is that because someone expresses a constitutional right, everything the military does is acceptable. Photo by Jeff Patterson.

Pluto in Capricorn, by the way, is not all about this ongoing, slo-mo financial and moral holocaust we’re witnessing and experiencing. This is about learning to have fun. Venus square Pluto is about being so isolated that you decide one day, what do I have to lose by doing something that I actually like?

If the square to Pluto doesn’t remind us that life is not an ego trip or an emotional drama; and if it doesn’t remind us that our lives are precious; and if the journey over the Aries Point doesn’t inform us that we have more in common than we have separate interests; then the plunge into Pisces just may do the trick.

Pisces is where this Venus retrograde comes home. Pisces is the sign that we think of as both spiritual and erotic, as the party and the heart-center; as delusional and creative and filled with omniscient denial and a craving for passion. When you get done with all of that, Pisces is where your soul comes home, and where Venus returns to the salty seas where she was born and where we can, if we want, find our biological instincts revived. If we can connect with primordial existence, with the mere fact that we are actually alive, hey, we might decide it’s okay to say have a conversation with somebody we don’t know; because why not? Oh, because old J. Edgar Hoover said not to talk to strangers, they might be Queer or Communists (probably both) and then you’ll get kidnapped, blacklisted and converted.

Somehow this crisis of confidence has to end. You can end it for yourself by rejecting fear as your religion. It will end the moment we figure out that we’re alive. We may notice that we’re currently living our actual life in our actual moment of history — and that we’re just passing through, able to truly experience only what we dare. Just imagine if a whole bunch of us woke up one day and decided that there’s something better to do with our time than waiting for something to happen.

For Planet Waves at the vernal equinox,

By Judith Gayle | Political Waves

THE SEASON’S TURNING, much as a kaleidoscope shifts to reveal stunning new shapes and colors. Here in the Patch, the freesias and the daffodils have added yellow accents to a faintly greened countryside and I saw a flowering pear tree dressed in pale white blooms the other day; the redbuds will be right behind, pinning Spring into place. We’ve enjoyed a few mild days and more sunlight than usual — even more telling, the ants have invaded my kitchen — so that must mean that Equinox is here. The Mother is speaking loud and clear: we begin again.

Louise Hay.

That is very welcome energy in a nation whose heart has contracted under the winter onslaught of cold fact and cool projection. My prayer list is burgeoning under the weight of those with heart problems and brain tumors; a long-time Louise Hay fan, it’s effortless for me to interpret that as trouble with our hearts and heads. If ever we needed a renewed sense of beauty and possibility, of a world warming to the Sun’s kiss and a return of Spring’s enthusiastic, initiating energy, it’s now. The cycles remain dependable, if nothing else is.

A good many of us would very much appreciate an opportunity to begin again, and under different circumstances. I live in a devastated neighborhood; I will soon be one of a scant handful of people who has hung on, not been forced out or had to relocate due to economic stressors. Endings and beginnings happen simultaneously but very often we come to them at circumstantial gunpoint; on a global level, ethereal as well as literal guns are waving in the air. And in this springing of the year into a new cycle of life, a larger death-cycle is shaking us in its teeth as the paradigm closes; we’re birthing something bigger than just a shift of seasons.

In a perfect world, a new beginning would have a sparkly, exciting feel to it, yet in this vast end-cycle of ours too many of us are dragging past ‘failure’ along with us; unable to slough off sad circumstances, unyielding loss and debt. No matter how productive or willing we’ve been in these last months and years, great numbers of us have fallen behind. And of all the scams being perpetrated upon us by a corrupt system, that sense of failure — which we willingly embrace as errors in personal judgment — is the biggest fraud of all.

Continued at this link…

Coming Up in Daily Astrology and Adventure

A crying baby tugs at a person on a very deep level. But, it turns out, some people can learn to hear more in that cry — and perhaps, by extension, other audible cues — than they were able to when they were younger. The key? Musical education.

Studying music can change the way a brain is wired, new research finds. (ABC News Photo Illustration).

A study by Northwestern University, located in Evanston, Ill., which found that musical training can apparently change the way our brains are wired.

In short: A group of people — half with serious musical training, half with none to speak of — were hooked up to electrodes that measure electrical activity in the brain, then they each watched a nature film on a monitor. Occasionally, an infant’s cry was played over the headphones the participants were wearing, and the reaction of the listeners’ brains was measured.

What the research team discovered was that a baby’s cry is actually composed of different types of sounds, including “brief bursts of complex sounds that vary in intensity, frequency and strength,” according to Dye’s report.

And musicians were able to pick out those complex sounds, the study found. Not only that, but they could also tune out less urgent sounds like so much background noise.

Nina Kraus, director of Northwestern’s Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory, told Dye that the study provided “the first biological evidence” that the study of music really can alter how the brain works. As for further applications, she noted that the processes enhanced by musical studies are the same as those that have been found deficient among certain children with language disorders, indicating musical training could possibly be developed as a therapeutic treatment for such disorders.

As Lee Pullen reports for Astrobiology Magazine, during the International Society for the Study of the Origin of Life Conference in Florence, Italy, a new theory was floated about where in the solar system life first originated.

Photo by Danielle Voirin.

Not Earth. Not Mars or any of the other usual celestial subjects, but the main asteroid belt — Ceres, its largest member, to be specific. Ceres accounts for a third of its total mass of the asteroids between Mars and Jupiter. Even so, it is just a tiny dwarf planet: At 590 miles in diameter, Ceres would fit comfortably in America’s heartland, spanning the distance from Kansas City to Denver.

In astrology, Ceres represents the nexus of food, family and emotional issues. She is our connection point to the harvest, and the results of our cultivated emotions. She is also about seeking balance, such as the balance of the seasons. Taking a more mythological view, she’s the goddess who feeds us and sustains our lives.

Joop Houtkooper from the University of Giessen finds merit in the idea that Ceres, which has a rocky core believed to be covered in a vast water-ice shell topped with a thick crust, was a point of origin of the biological process. In the article, Houtkooper says, “This idea came to me when I heard a talk about all the satellites in the solar system that consist of a large part of ice, much of which is probably still in a liquid state. The total volume of all this water is something like 40 times greater than all the oceans on Earth.”

And since Earth’s oceans include hydrothermal vents that produce chemicals and, in chilly depths, sustain life, Houtkooper reasoned that the same could be true on icy bodies within the solar system. “In the ocean, there could be life,” he told Astrobiology Magazine. “On the surface, it would be more difficult. But there are some possibilities. There could be hydrogen peroxide-based life, able to withstand the low temperatures.”

There are still holes in the theory — for instance, it is not known if hydrogen peroxide is to be found on the dwarf planet, and then there’s the problem of how such life could have reached Earth. Some of the scientific questions, at least, could be answered in 2015, when the DAWN Mission from NASA reaches Ceres.

Parliamentary elections in India begin on April 16 and extend into May, but astrologers on the subcontinent are worried that the timing of the 15th Lok Sabha poll will be inauspicious. According to a March 12 article from The Times of India, astrologers have predicted that unrest and even violence may follow the elections.

Astrologers of India. Photo by Prakhar.

“This election is not good for the Indian constitution. The country has seen too much criminalization of politics and it does not point to good times ahead,” astrologer Jagannath Mishra, associated with the Arya Samaj Mandir at Harit Vihar in the capital, told the newspaper. “The period post-election will be marked by terrorism, treachery and violence.”

However, he also predicted smaller political parties could do well in the polling, possibly leading to another coalition government for India.

The Times also spoke to astrologer Ashok Sanoria of Vivek Vihar. He predicted, “Around September, when five planets converge in Scorpio, the climate will prove fickle. Storms, those that originate in water, will ravage the US and will also affect India.”

Possible natural disasters — from earthquakes to “mini-tsunamis” — are also foreseen in the astrological portents, the paper reported.

Not all astrologers saw only bad signs, though. The newspaper also spoke with Bejan Daruwalla, a well-respected astrologer, and while he hadn’t calculated the positions of the planets during the elections, he was quoted saying, “I think India will ultimately do well.”

“I had predicted last year that the country would win an Oscar either in 2008 or 2009,” the astrologer was quoted as saying.


Monthly Horoscope April 2009, and Weekly Horoscope #758 – By ERIC FRANCIS

Aries (March 20-April 19)
At a certain point we all learn to stop judging ourselves. It could be sooner; it could be later; but in terms of saving time, emotional energy and conserving opportunities that only come once, the sooner the better. One thing you might have to get over is the notion that the kind of self-critique you’re accustomed to makes you a better person. I don’t think it does. I would say that the only possibility we have of being better people is awareness, and the gradual, repeated choice to surround ourselves with aware people. In the trapeze act of life, we need to work together and the main thing we need support in is consciousness. What you seem destined to learn over the next few weeks is that having a fixed concept of who you are, or who you’re supposed to be, is the basis of your overly critical opinion of yourself. Judgment requires criteria, and when those are unconscious, unreasonable or unrealistic, then the assessment is more of a mental or emotional trip than it is a growth process. You’re working toward an extraordinarily rare moment of being able to let go of the self-concept that is at the heart of this crisis. With it, you may find yourself letting go of certain ideas of why exactly you deserve so much attention. You do, but it’s for reasons other than you think.

Read your 2008 annual for Aries. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aries and Aries rising here.

Taurus (April 19- May 20)
Visualization is one of the tests of what is possible in the world, or rather, what is possible for you. If you can imagine something, then you can assume it’s possible. One reason we stop ourselves doing this is because we assume that if we fear something, then it may happen; then we shut down the process of imagining, even of the things we want or worse yet, what we actually are. This is a way of letting fear rule your life. I want to propose two exercises that involve the theme of how you see yourself. The first involves observing yourself now: how you move through your day, and how your mind navigates the ocean of consciousness. Notice your moods and what affects them; how you respond to people and how they respond to you. Notice every time you make a decision, and observe the basis of each decision you make; that is, the information you’re working with that leads you to action. This is an exercise in mindfulness; that is, paying attention and staying awake. The second involves envisioning yourself in the future: not what you will look like or what you will be doing, but rather how you want your presence in the world to feel. This is subtle, but not so subtle as you may think.

Read your 2008 annual for Taurus. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Taurus and Taurus rising here.

Gemini (May 20- June 21)
Every time you tell yourself how open-minded and flexible you are, I suggest that you question this assessment. I’m not saying you’re wrong; but you won’t know if you’re not asking. Every time you discover that you’re actually less progressive than you think is an opportunity to make a choice to open your mind to other influences. Part of the problem is that we currently have exceedingly few examples of what it means to actually be open. Our entire social climate is so guarded right now that the smallest modicum of depth or authenticity feels completely radical. This is a distortion. If you’re on a path of self-development, seeking your freedom and willing to explore, I suggest that you open yourself to the ideas of other cultures and other times in history. What is normal now is not what is or was normal at other points in space and time. We live in a unique moment, most notably because so many people feel so paralyzed and indeed passive, waiting for something to happen. You seem to be among those who have decided that you’ve waited long enough. One thing to look at closely is everything you avoid; check out what you pretend you don’t want; make a little note every time you decide something is impossible. Then, ask yourself how you came to be in this place.

Read your 2008 annual for Gemini. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Gemini and Gemini rising here.

Cancer (June 21- July 22)
The ethics of a professional situation may be weighing on you, but I would propose that’s a waste of your imagination and thus your potential. You seem intent on proving yourself right, or demonstrating who you are; give it up. You’re as right as you need to be, and it’s only a point of emotional confusion, based on the past, that is leading you to believe that you’ve got a problem that you do not have. So what’s really going on? You want more, with urgent, yearning, lustful passion. You may not even know what that passion is pushing you toward. This seems to conflict with a self-image of certainty that you’ve been trying to project. This image, however, is different than the substance of what you actually want. True, you may be thinking in terms of status and social acceptability, but your real quest involves expanding your horizons. I suggest you think less in terms of results and more in terms of your potential. That will mean devoting yourself to new things rather than sticking with the ones you’ve been pushing with such determination. You’re much closer to connecting with one of those fresh experiences than you imagine. The key is this: give up on whether it’s right or wrong by an external standard. Connect with the calling that only you can articulate to yourself.

Read your 2008 annual for Cancer. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Cancer and Cancer rising here.

Leo (July 22- Aug. 23)
Long ago you decided that the simplest way to deal with life’s complexity, and with the many agendas people have, is simply to be authentic. This has proven to be an excellent policy, though it’s had results you were not expecting, one of which is bringing out the deeper truth that others close to you were not planning to reveal. You’ve only seen the beginning of this process. Your life has simplified somewhat from the circus of the past few months. This has cleared emotional and mental space to work through a key matter in a relationship, and to put to good use the information that you have spent so much time acquiring. There’s a point of discussion that has for months seemed non-negotiable. It’s as though you or someone else was taking a kind of parental authority over the matter. You may therefore be surprised to discover that soon enough it will be up for discussion. This is an emotional or spiritual matter, which will open common ground that previously seemed impossible to reach. Give it time; let the new environment settle into place, and prepare to proceed in this relationship with an entirely new understanding. If you take the opportunity to get clear, a side benefit of that clarity will be making you aware of shared financial resources that were there all along.

Read your 2008 annual for Leo. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Leo and Leo rising here.

Virgo (Aug. 23- Sep. 22)
Yours is one of the signs that puts the most profound emphasis on finding yourself through relationships. I know this is nowhere in the traditional delineations of Virgo. If you’re wondering why you feel so volatile or unstable at times, this involves the many ways in which your sense of self is invested in what you think other people expect of you, and how you think they define you. As Venus moves retrograde in Aries and many other developments take place, you’re starting to see the extent of this situation. The idea is not to divest yourself of deep or risky contact with others. You will always be relationship-oriented and you seem determined as ever to clear the haze and fog where you seek clarity. Venus is suggesting that you stop deciding in advance what other people think, and more to the point, why they think it. You don’t really know their true thoughts and you don’t know their motives — that is, until you find out. You’re more sensitive than most to this dimension of existence. The more people express themselves, the more there seems to be the potential for misunderstanding. Therefore I suggest you give yourself the benefit of the doubt in any situation that’s bothering you. The chances are when you discover what someone you care about is really thinking, it will be a lot happier than you feared.

Read your 2008 annual for Virgo. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Virgo and Virgo rising here.

Libra (Sep. 22 – Oct. 23)
By one measure, the purpose of life is healing. It’s not the only measure, and healing takes many forms. Not all of them are boring or arduous; many are inadvertent results of exploring honest pleasure. Your current involvement in a relationship is a good example of this. There seems to be an undertow of some kind pulling you toward some destination that you were not expecting and could not have predicted. This is including an inner confrontation that is potentially coming with a sense of loss or sacrifice. You might ask what you’re having to give up, and more significantly, what you want that would have an even greater emotional value. The situation you’re in is compelling you to assess what is important to you in a deep way, particularly where a key relationship is concerned. You know you cannot go forward from this point without being absolutely honest with yourself; and the bottom line is that if someone close to you is not willing to be equally honest, there’s not much of a meeting. You haven’t seen the end of this particular discussion, so I don’t suggest you predict how it’s going to go — only that you be real with yourself from day to day, and make sure you have some of the beauty and pleasure you seek in the present, not in the future.

Read your 2008 annual for Libra. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Libra and Libra rising here.

Scorpio (Oct. 23- Nov. 22)
You seem to be having a difficult time understanding why someone in your life is being so self-centered. The ongoing result has been an emotional disconnect that for you is the next worst thing to sleeping on a bed of ice. This is particularly true with Mars, the planet that best sums you up, moving through emotional, impassioned Pisces at the moment. The phenomenon of so close and yet so far may be the most difficult part of the situation. Given the astrology, I can offer the following suggestions. First I would counsel patience, and remember that historically, you’ve kept plenty of people waiting. Do your best to vent any frustration in a constructive way. You can get all intense, but that’s not going to help. This is a significant risk at the moment, but the truth is that all this energy and creativity you’re feeling is a rare resource. If you have to express sexual energy, figure out how to do it in a way that won’t create alienation. Also, you can go cover a lot of territory simply by expressing your basic needs with the understanding that if there’s a meeting place, that’s excellent and if there is not, you will live. Your situation is moving toward a meeting point, and it’s closer than you may think; and in fact, it’s a mutual turning point: a place to have a real conversation about what you both want.

Read your 2008 annual for Scorpio. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Scorpio and Scorpio rising here.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22 – Dec. 22)
In a word, participate, and keep at it. Involve yourself in your close-to-home community and with the most important people in your life. I suggest you not concern yourself with the rewards for doing so, but rather count the opportunity to share and grow as its own magnificent benefit. You’re learning so much that I cannot imagine a better environment for you to put that knowledge to work. There’s something about your current life journey that has only begun to come into focus, or for that matter, into manifestation. You consider yourself an idealist, a problem-solver and someone who respects a beautiful idea when you have one, or see one. Your role is therefore pivotal. You are able to process information into knowledge; you’re in a central position to many people and have the ability to create a rare nexus point. This will continue to focus through the year, so I suggest you make friends with being in for the long run; that’s how you will get results. The other way that communities and organizations get results is by sticking close to the common values that you share. Close partners are intent on one thing, which is doing what they truly have faith in; and this is a baseline truth that you can depend on, and that will nourish you deeply.

Read your 2008 annual for Sagittarius. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Sagittarius and Sagittarius rising here.

Capricorn (Dec. 22- Jan. 20)
You’re under enormous pressure, and you’re turning it into power. There is one simple truth you must face, which is that you are now in a position where you establish or at least observe the basic terms of reality. Give them the space to agree or disagree and you will discover that you have far more in common than you thought. Even disagreements, psychological tension and your own inner emotional struggle can be turned into common ground. Do this and you’ll focus the considerable impact that you can have on the world. We both know that ‘the world’ is involved. You may not be president, a news anchor or a Supreme Court justice, but your choices have impact that is greater than anything you’ve known, experienced or imagined. You’re also being influenced by external forces in a way that few people would admit or even notice. There are other influences on you that could cause you to be hot-headed, or leap to false conclusions. If you keep your fear in its place, you will have access to some of the most stunning intuition that a human is capable of. After all is said and done, this will turn out to be the key, and the gift: understanding the role of fear.

Read your 2008 annual for Capricorn. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Capricorn and Capricorn rising here.

Aquarius (Jan. 20- Feb. 19)
You need to be careful with your finances, and conscious where debts in any direction are concerned; but I suggest you recognize that your true wealth is not in cash or assets bur rather in ideas, intelligence and your perceptive abilities. You may be thinking that you cannot take ideas to the bank, but some would say that once you graduate from the chicken factory, that’s all you actually can take to the bank. However, at the moment, the most important ideas you’re having are about yourself. The past year has been full of ‘aha’ moments. There have been hundreds of them. You’ve probably filled two notebooks. You keep figuring it out (yourself, that is), then you figure it out again. The look of your charts over the next two months suggest that some perceptive gift is coming into focus for the first time. When you start to notice this shift, you will also notice that it’s been dawning for a long time, but like eyesight itself, the brain takes time to get accustomed to it. I could also describe this evolution in terms of events, which promise to be highly unusual and shift your whole sense of existence. But this is truly one of those moments when you don’t see things as they are; you see them as you are.

Read your 2008 annual for Aquarius. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aquarius and Aquarius rising here.

Pisces (Feb. 19- March 20)
If you think you’re getting no results, have no fear. Not only are you a Pisces, but your sign is the dominant energy in the sky right now, owing to many aspects involving Jupiter and Neptune in Aquarius. What happens in Pisces or involving Pisces planets takes longer than most things, but the outcome is more complete, it goes deeper and it lasts longer. Processes involving water, emotional energy, creativity and turning ideas into tangible form have little in common with pure logic, and if they cooperate with linear time, it’s usually a coincidence. So don’t depend too heavily on time as a metric, though it will be a powerful tool when you need it the most. In recent months you have been seeking something, or working to create something, that seems to be all investment and little in the way of results. You can see the process unfolding, but so far you haven’t been able to put the pieces together. In a sense it’s like you’ve been assembling a puzzle blind. And you have no way to tell if all the pieces are even there. The puzzle you’re assembling has an odd property: the pieces mold to fit one another. The image is fluid, like an animation. But there is a solution, and you’re rapidly approaching the moment when you know you’ve found it.

Read your 2008 annual for Pisces. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Pisces and Pisces rising here.

Eriscope for March 2009

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By ERIC FRANCIS

This is Eriscope, a monthly horoscope with a psycherotic touch. March is a big month for Venus and Mars; in fact, this is a big week. On March 5, Mars is conjunct Chiron, which brings out about as much male warrior energy as we can muster in our cool, gleaming technological civilization. Yes, we have come a long way since 2.9 million years of hunter-gatherer activities that we gave up not so long ago; and Mars still needs a job. You need to give him one, or that energy goes toxic pretty fast. Chiron will raise awareness of the drive to focus, create and conquer. And Chiron conjunct Mars tends to favor the underdog, that is, the one in any competition who supposedly lacks the better advantage. As for Venus, she’s in Aries and is about to station retrograde the following day, which will take us through April 17. Venus in Aries is the journey of self-inquiry we all wish we were brave enough to do. Now that the cosmos is getting into the act, we will have our chance.

Aries (March 20-April 19)
Looked at one way, sex is about oneself, often to the point of obsession. We typically make a big show of it being about the other. Yet deep down we know that the attention, affection and energy of the other is usually craved or worked for so that we may reaffirm our sense of who we are. Realize that people do indeed have karma with one another, and this plays out in relationships; but that’s a big part of the problem. The unconscious drive for affirmation, plus the unconscious tendency to hook up with people we have karma with, calls for a phase of sorting out. This will happen sooner rather than later with Venus retrograde in your sign between March 6 and April 17.

Read your 2008 annual for Aries. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aries and Aries rising here.

Taurus (April 19- May 20)
You are one who harbors many secret feelings about yourself. In a sense you keep your own identity hidden from your awareness, as if it represented some kind of taboo to be conscious of who you are. This is an old story in human history, and the planets are aligned such that you can finally break this taboo on self-knowledge. Unusual movements of your guiding planet, Venus, suggest that much of what you discover will be in the form of what you need sexually. Usually we only think about this at night, with the lights off, and we don’t dare breathe a word to anyone. Being honest with yourself is a good start. Then, believe it or not, you just might crave being authentically open with many other people.

Read your 2008 annual for Taurus. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Taurus and Taurus rising here.

Gemini (May 20- June 21)
Old friends and lovers might be showing up faster than you can count them. The thing to remember is this does not necessarily mean the long-anticipated perfect love affair has finally come back to greet you. Of course, it always could, but the kind of astrology we are under is more like being in an echo chamber of emotion. You might have some hot encounters, revisiting old situations. You might run into friends who remind you who you were at an earlier time in your life — and it’s a reminder you need. You’re not as old as you think and this will help you figure out how young you are.

Read your 2008 annual for Gemini. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Gemini and Gemini rising here.

Cancer (June 21- July 22)
You don’t need to pretend you don’t know who you are. You know perfectly well. You also don’t need to pretend you have no idea who someone else is; they have revealed themselves and continue to do so. Fantasy is alluring right now, but reality is hotter. I agree, the line between them is growing thin, but if you anchor yourself on making contact with actual people in bodies — rather than, for example, long-distance and/or in some digital form, you will have more satisfying experiences. Remember that lately and for the foreseeable future, you want your sex deep, spiritually meaningful and profoundly naked. Just make sure there is water in the pool before you dive off the deep end.

Read your 2008 annual for Cancer. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Cancer and Cancer rising here.

Leo (July 22- Aug. 23)
Propriety, pride, reticence — these are virtues sometimes, but now they will only block you from sharing intimately, from having the fun you want and accessing the passion you want. You may well be wondering, with all that is being offered to you right now, why you would want to keep a stiff upper lip? Keep asking that, but while you’re doing philosophy research, consider your actual options. You have many, and you have the option to relax and experiment. I know we live in a time when everything comes with a security code and requires authentication, but the best things in life usually involve taking a chance.

Read your 2008 annual for Leo. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Leo and Leo rising here.

Virgo (Aug. 23- Sep. 22)
You seem to be so busy with commitments that you don’t have time to explore. Therefore, when someone arrives and gives you an opportunity to do just that, I suggest you make time and space. More to the point, make being available a priority. I mean really available, unplugged and potentially undressed; but mainly psychologically and spiritually available. Far to the contrary of what most “on the go” types say, this is an option, and usually we opt out by being too busy because we don’t want to be vulnerable. Remember, being open to pleasure means being open to pain. Being open to love means being open to fear.

Read your 2008 annual for Virgo. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Virgo and Virgo rising here.

Libra (Sep. 22 – Oct. 23)
One of the greatest turn-ons for humans in bodies and egos (that would be all of us) is a powerful sense of identification with the other; that is, with a counterpart of some kind. The planets are arranged in such a position as to make this inevitable; you are likely to see a little of yourself in everyone, including how you perceived yourself when you were younger. You may feel like you’re standing in a time machine. The thing to bear in mind is that the time is in fact right now, not yesterday. Andy Warhol once said that all sex was about nostalgia. I’ve noticed many times that this is true, but it doesn’t have to be.

Read your 2008 annual for Libra. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Libra and libra rising here.

Scorpio (Oct. 23- Nov. 22)
Who you want and why you want them sometimes verges on chaos. If I am not mistaken, your fetish for bad boys or girls, as the case may be, is acting up. What about yourself are you looking for in someone who has issues following the rules, or who is motivated by something besides love? Think of everything you do as an expression of how you feel about yourself. You don’t want to put other people in the position of getting their kicks for you, nor of taking your risks for you — or of acting out any lingering negative feelings you have about yourself. Attraction is an invitation; you don’t have to answer. Send an invite or two of your own.

Read your 2008 annual for Scorpio. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Scorpio and Scorpio rising here.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22 – Dec. 22)
For years, there has been a movement to “reunite” sex and spirituality. I think this would come in the form of love. We might wonder how they ever got separated in the first place, and that is a long story. It’s a story of greed, of feeling separated from the divine source we say we love, and most of all it’s based on a model of relating that says we can only love one person. If we only love one person, how do we really feel about everyone else? If sex is spiritual, and God or Goddess is real, then everyone is equal; and if we pretend that one person is special at the expense of another person, we’re doing something really weird, in my opinion.

Read your 2008 annual for Sagittarius. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Sagittarius and Sagittarius rising here.

Capricorn (Dec. 22- Jan. 20)
You have a lot to share and you know it. If there is something stopping you from doing so, I suggest you check it out. Remember that we live in schizophrenic times where sex is concerned: surrounded by hyper-eroticism on one side of the equation, and told to wear promise rings on the other. I suggest you get a handle on what is guiding you to make the choices you are making; is it about doing what you think others think is right — or is it being yourself? You have a lot of pressure on you to conform to expectations, and trust me when I say that religion damaged you more than you have figured out. It’s time to start thinking for yourself.

Read your 2008 annual for Capricorn. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Capricorn and Capricorn rising here.

Aquarius (Jan. 20- Feb. 19)
Recent weeks and months have been a profound time of self-discovery, and I’m sure you’ve been doing more sexual experimentation than you usually do; unless you are feeling injured and keeping to yourself. What you are learning about now is the relationship between being hurt and being powerful. These two concepts need to be in a dialog, informing one another of their respective truths. Most people refuse to be conscious of both their pain and their power. If you can be aware of both, you will heal a long struggle and begin to find your inner voice with greater strength and clarity.

Read your 2008 annual for Aquarius. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aquarius and Aquarius rising here.

Pisces (Feb. 19- March 20)
By now you’ve noticed that your visibility, your energy level and your sense of presence in the world are running high and in vivid colors. This must be a refreshing change from feeling invisible. Beware, because this is the point where most people turn around and run for cover. You have nothing to be afraid of, and people who meet you have no reason to doubt you. Work for a measure of consistency; that is, be yourself all the time, though you don’t have to take on your own doubts as a measure of your identity. If you refuse to let them take over, you will discover that you resonate with people, you will draw them closer to you and you will have something to share.

Read your 2008 annual for Pisces. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Pisces and Pisces rising here.

Planet Waves Monthly for March 2009

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Dear Friend and Reader:

Today is the Pisces New Moon. It’s the last New Moon of the astrological year, Pisces being the last of the 12 signs. It’s a brilliant aspect, but just the beginning. March 2009 will stand out as one of the most extraordinary months in the astrological history of our era. The choreography of the planets and the energy that is rippling out through our small dimension of reality are at once reminiscent of the 1960s, of many similar eras, and of a time we have yet to encounter, 2012.

Vermilion Rockfish. Photo by Bev Dulis.

There is energy in the air; we can all feel it, but you can be sure that many people won’t know what to do with it; many will be intimidated. Don’t fall for this. Now is the time to push your boundaries, stretch your limits and express what you’ve been holding back. You may need to push others as you do this, at least to the point where they give you space to be yourself. But don’t wait, or struggle — take your space, and use it well.

Though the Sun is now in Pisces, the core energy remains focused in that crystal known as Aquarius. We are in an Aquarius alignment the world has not seen the like of since 1962, back when John Glenn first orbited the Earth. So let this astrology send you into orbit, and take a good look at your life, and the planet and our time in history.

At the moment, the Aquarius alignment includes the Moon’s North Node — which points to the future, and recent eclipses across Leo/Aquarius. Jupiter is pushing us out of our intellectual boxes (they are usually pretty small) and reminding us of the need to emerge from our technological isolation (and mania with trivia). We love technology but we don’t see how superficial it can make us. Jupiter is inspiring us think bigger and to exchange original ideas in community. If the people around you are boring, get some new people.

Nessus (a centaur planet) and Juno (an asteroid) are pointing out the problems with our obsession with the “special relationship.” We dream and dream of one kind of relationship, barely noticing when it doesn’t work; we usually do this to the exclusion of other forms of intimacy. There are many, and while something in your mind may say it’s a sin to explore them, that is for you to decide, not some childhood programming to dictate.

On March 5, there are two conjunctions. The first is Mars conjunct Chiron, which is focusing warrior energy on the level of making the world safe to be individuals, together. And Mercury conjunct Neptune is reminding us that we already know what we need to know. Action is the fruit of knowledge.

March 6, Venus stations retrograde in Aries, and stations direct April 17 in the last degree of Pisces. I’ll have more to say about this soon.

The Virgo Full Moon is March 10, which is very close to the Saturn-Uranus opposition and will certainly come with an interesting (to put it politely) cascade of news and other developments. So stay tuned, antennae up, eyes on the road (and the scenery).

Yours & truly,

Seeking Astrology Interns. To my readers – I am seeking astrology interns for a one-year commitment. I need people who are creative, dedicated to their astrological studies and fully committed to making Planet Waves a stunning success in the world. The requirements as stated are pretty stringent, but if you feel you might be qualified I would encourage you to apply. Find out more information here. Thank you. — efc

Aries (March 20-April 19)
As people and situations disappear off the radar, you might ask where they are going. And while you are asking, I suggest you take their fading out as an opportunity to simplify your life. You have good reason to do so, namely that it will provide you with the opportunity to focus on one aspect of your personal goals that will lead you to the most satisfying and moreover authentic success. But herein reside the core issues, of which there are three. There is one dimension of accomplishment that is connected to what you feel you deserve; there is another with how high you set your goals; and another connected to how much discipline you can muster. You need to work on all three aspects of yourself at once. There is one additional challenge — your most meaningful objective or goal may, at the moment, be mixed in with much other activity that obscures it. So the first thing you must focus on is discernment, and part of that is about knowing yourself. This is the thing that is given lots of chatter in our world, and many people claim to possess this pearl of great price. This month, I will leave you with a question: assuming you feel you possess deep self-knowledge, how would you know if you did not?

Read your 2008 annual for Aries. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aries and Aries rising here.

Taurus (April 19- May 20)
Your sign is renowned for its ability to resist, and to persist. Yet there are times you may find yourself resisting what you want the most, and persisting at what you want the least. Events of the next two months (and indeed the next two weeks) seem determined to teach you one thing, which is your true objective in life. Will you notice it when you finally have the information, or the gut feeling? This is a question of awareness, but also a question of how you deal with originality. Here is the Paradox of Originality, as I see it. When you finally figure out that you want to do something that’s never been done, you reach a juncture. This is the place where you must decide if you’re capable of doing something that has no preset plan; no precedent; no pre-approval by the world; and no guarantee of success. In a sense, one problem is solved and another few are created. Your commitment level is tested, and you can confront the moment of being in a place without a map — and that includes rich inner territory without any prefabricated guide. The truth is most people would rather run. It’s easier and generally works better, that is, if you don’t care.

Read your 2008 annual for Taurus. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Taurus and Taurus rising here.

Gemini (May 20- June 21)
The angle of your chart that is pumping megavolts of power is the one where you meet the wider world of ideas and of possibilities. It’s the house of going past your mental limits. To get there, you need to do at least two things. One, throw away, dissolve or step out of the contracts in relationships that do little other than create those limitations. Your life in that case consciously would become about something more than hooking up with that one special person. This supposed goal takes the place of every other goal, which keeps you locked in your past and terrified of the future. The second thing, as far as I can see, is figuring out the extent to which you allow yourself to take action on ideas you suspect other people won’t approve of. As in most matters, you will be coming at this from two distinct viewpoints: for example, one that wants to blaze out and be absolutely yourself; and another that will want no part of anything like that. Please don’t make the mistake of spending more time fighting yourself than you do expressing yourself. Remember that just because something is acceptable to others does not mean it’s not worth your time. Just because part of you rejects an idea does not mean it’s wrong for you.

Read your 2008 annual for Gemini. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Gemini and Gemini rising here.

Cancer (June 21- July 22)
If I am not mistaken, the whole concept of making deals probably revolts you. It’s not that you don’t like success; it’s that you don’t like thinking of it in terms of a hustle or a game where one person wins and another person loses. And it’s likely to be even more irritating that so many people walk around with such an idea of success — that it implies failure by someone else, or anything other than a situation where everyone benefits. A lot of people do in fact lose in these situations, and plenty more cheat to get a piece of the action, and this does in fact hurt people. And most of it is simply an addiction not to wealth or excess, but rather to the feeling of greed. Therefore, your primary objective this month needs to be thinking some other way. There are in truth many other ways available to us. What you may discover, as you experiment with them, is not so much a distrust of win/lose situations, but rather a distrust of situations where you come out ahead at all — and the time has come to leave this particular worldview in the recycling heap of your psychic history. To accomplish this, note that you don’t have to do things a lot differently, only a little differently. And this is not about being different — it’s about being who you are.

Read your 2008 annual for Cancer. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Cancer and Cancer rising here.

Leo (July 22- Aug. 23)
Clearly this is an unusual time in your life, though the universe has yet to reveal its true colors. You may not understand the motives of someone close to you, or why they need to be so zealous about what they are trying to accomplish. Remember that not so long ago they had that moment when their ideas seemed like sage wisdom; but you may be having your doubts. This is understandable enough. Most of us would rather live in a laid-back world where things just happen. In the human realm, nothing just happens; everything is connected to intention and volition. Even the choice to be unconscious is an option. The situation you are looking at is rapidly driving itself in the direction where awareness is the only option, and that awareness would be very useful coming from you. You will feel more in control of your vehicle the more you apply your own intention and energy to the situation — gently, dancing with the flow, but consciously. There is an incomprehensible amount of energy moving, but the thing to remember is that it is beginning to focus like a laser. That calls for all the more care in how you handle it; all the more refinement; and with Mercury and Neptune together in the picture, the east-facing, forehead-to-the-ground honoring of your intuition above all else.

Read your 2008 annual for Leo. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Leo and Leo rising here.

Virgo (Aug. 23- Sep. 22)
The myth is that you are taking your time, needing to think the situation through left, right and in reverse; and that others are provoking you to immediate action. This story has been going on so long they are starting to etch it into the side of the Great Sphinx, right where they hid the water damage with new masonry. There is at least one deeper layer to this psychology (with psychology there always is). Your caution and indeed your reticence to act is a veil thrown over your fear that your impetuosity will not lead to a flood, but rather a fire. Beneath your stoic exterior, your mind is on burning up. You seem to get into these cycles of thought, and I am sure there have been moments recently when you doubted your sanity. You may also be wondering whether some of your ideas are as brilliant as you think they are; as brilliant as they seem when they burst out like a solar flare or push you as you walk, like a firm gust of wind. I don’t think your mind is damaged; not in the sense of broken. What you have experienced has revealed elements of weakness and imbalance, but you’ve also experienced this sense of an interior opening where something truly different is escaping into your awareness. I suggest you feel, and think, and take notes; you will not burst into flames.

Read your 2008 annual for Virgo. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Virgo and Virgo rising here.

Libra (Sep. 22 – Oct. 23)
Creative power quickly turns destructive if it’s not focused with the utmost intention. In truth (at least in my spiritual view), all toxic energy or matter, and all destructive or self-destructive actions, are composed of misdirected creativity. It is easy to see this fact if you look closely enough and compassionately enough at any situation. However, there is another side to this. Any true (at least true in my opinion) artist will tell you that they draw enormous strength from their shadow material; from the places inside themselves that are filled with the things most people avoid vehemently: their pain, fear, regret, shame and their sense of the past. Creativity is about ideas, yes, but it’s also about burning all this shadow stuff as fuel. There are spiritual traditions that call this burning off karma, which is a close enough approximation. It’s not surprising how much of this stuff gathers around sex and relationships where sex is a factor. This dark erotic matter is some of the most potent source material for the creative process. There is just one thing: to go there, you have to get your hands dirty. The kind of art you are making is not airbrush or Adobe Illustrator. It’s more like finger-painting or sculpting with hot, wet clay — which would be you.

Read your 2008 annual for Libra. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Libra and libra rising here.

Scorpio (Oct. 23- Nov. 22)
Family of choice is rapidly becoming a more important influence in the world than family of origin. This makes sense to me, because the nuclear family is basically a creation of marketing culture, and humans are inherently tribal. It is this aspect of your life that is coming into focus now. The implication of your charts is that you are discovering, perhaps once again, that you are profoundly different than most of the people you know. By my reading you may feel you’re so different in the context of your values around home, family and tribe that you have long feared that you would never fit in. Everyone reaches this point at some time in their life; you have been here so many times that it’s starting to perplex you as to why. There are really two ways you can go, at this juncture. One is to try to conform; to seem normal; to set aside some of the things you might count as frivolous in exchange for something perhaps more necessary — such as a relationship as society defines it. The other way to go is to plunge all the way into what about you is absolutely different, and vow to be that person. As with so many simple things that it took Bob Dylan to remind us, “If you try to be anyone but yourself, you will fail.”

Read your 2008 annual for Scorpio. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Scorpio and Scorpio rising here.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22 – Dec. 22)
I feel like I’m starting to repeat myself on this subject of your ideas, your ability to work with them and their influence in your life. Remember our society’s profound phobia of being different, of thinking differently, and even of having an original thought. It is a phobia (generally with its origins sometime around kindergarten) that borders on manic, though in appearance it is often subdued. Be aware of this as you pursue a concept that you know is profoundly important to you. You don’t need anyone’s permission for what you are thinking or doing, and indeed this is an opportunity to step outside the notion that you do. This may be the easy part, anyway. The real struggle we face is what to do with freedom. Like many commentators on human potential before me, I am of the view that freedom is the most terrifying state of mind for “civilized” people — in part because it implies a) the necessity to take responsibility and b) being wrong, or a potential lack of civility. Freedom must, by its nature, embrace every possibility. Mars conjunct Chiron this month reminds us that what has the power to heal will also have the power to do harm, and this is why consciously directed intention, connected to conscious action, is the safest, most productive place you can put the focus of your mind right now. No other will ever suffice.

Read your 2008 annual for Sagittarius. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Sagittarius and Sagittarius rising here.

Capricorn (Dec. 22- Jan. 20)
With the world in the throes of money problems and the media delivering daily promises that the economy will seize like an engine without oil, this is your time to be resourceful. You do have resources; it’s a question of whether you know it or not, and whether you are willing to take a chance putting them to work for you. These resources will come in two forms, people and ideas. Despite its reputation for high achievement, your sign is one of the more retreating ones in the zodiac. But Pluto is pushing you to come out of your shell and express your passion. This would include focusing on aspects of your life that have deeper personal meaning than most Westerners are accustomed to ever experiencing. There may be many important values, goals or needs that are surfacing, and have been over the last couple of months, and the prevailing question is: where do you start? How do you do it all? It will not be long before one of them can be seen to be more important in its own right, and hold a key to the rest. This will take discernment and focus, which may be in short supply right now. That is the place to start. If you know what is important to you and moreover why it is important, you will see the obvious choices for what they are.

Read your 2008 annual for Capricorn. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Capricorn and Capricorn rising here.

Aquarius (Jan. 20- Feb. 19)
For a decade of your life, that is, dating back to approximately 1998, the prevailing influence on your personality was one that created a sense of obscurity about who you are. At best, this often came with a sense of being lost; at its worst, the feeling that you were living a lie. Yet the doubt and fog served a purpose, which was to melt away psychic patterns that, had they persisted, might have created a toxic mentality from which it would have been extremely difficult to escape. The process has started to change over the past few years, and very recently something seems to have thrown itself into a whole new direction. And I do mean thrown: the current astrology has come at you like a gale-force wind, with many changes, rapid inner and outer developments and perhaps a good splash of chaos for seasoning. In the midst of this, something is coming into high-resolution focus. I could write a book describing this one particular aspect, but in the simplest terms it is about mastering the ability to direct your willpower, your intention and your sense of presence in the world — all as one entity. Feel that. Let this become who you are. The fog has cleared, the past is over, and you are sailing on the high seas.

Read your 2008 annual for Aquarius. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aquarius and Aquarius rising here.

Pisces (Feb. 19- March 20)
You have no idea — or maybe you do. The upsurge of energy that has been building behind the scenes of your life has now given way to one of the most interesting and high-energy performances on the cosmic stage. This is an extremely chaotic time for many, and no doubt you are feeling the pressure. Yet this is a cosmic moment that was made for a Pisces, because so much of it involves vast developments that transpose between the hidden world and the manifest one. You are gifted with a kind of psychic radar that few people around you have, or understand. Over the next few weeks it’s going to be providing you with extremely precise information; with keys to solving long-standing problems; and with a perspective on life that will reveal opportunities that are directly relevant to your talents and mission. You need to be an extraordinarily careful observer of yourself, of the people around you, and of the flow of events. You are as protected as you may be overwhelmed, so you can afford to trust the flow of events, and your perception of them. You can trust that the people you need, and who need you, are the ones who are now coming into your life. Most of all, you can trust your intentions. This is a rare, glorious and dangerous time to be alive. Let’s do it well.

Read your 2008 annual for Pisces. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Pisces and Pisces rising here.

Eriscope from Planet Waves – for February 2009

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By Eric Francis

Aries (March 20-April 19)
The sad truth is that most people will act not based on what they want or what they think is right, but on the supposition of what they think their friends might think. You can afford to stay centered on your own values, or your own message to yourself, and make some actual decisions — in particular about who you love, and what you want to do about that love. I suggest that for the foreseeable future, you experiment with the notion that love is not altruistic or about someone else, but is inherently narcissistic. In other words, your story is about you. If someone else fits the theme or pattern of that story, so much the better — but these are encounters rare enough to find. Until then, the only way to send a clear signal is to be yourself, which means knowing your own desires and stating them honestly.

Read your 2008 annual for Aries. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aries and Aries rising here.

Taurus (April 19- May 20)
Your fantasy life may be hotter than your physical experiences now, but I wonder what is standing between the two. What is the barrier? Is it inhibition, or is it the feeling that reality will never match the intensity of your imagination? Or is it a sense of control that you get in your mental world that could never quite happen in your 3D life? I would propose that now would be a fine time to take one thing that’s existed in fantasy and take steps to grounding it in real life. You will learn something about yourself when you do: for instance, you will see how these partitions mediate between the ‘separate’ aspects of who you are. In actually dealing with your inhibitions, you will observe that they’re there in the first place. Then maybe you will see the value of moving through several more of them.

Read your 2008 annual for Taurus. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Taurus and Taurus rising here.

Gemini (May 20- June 21)
Mercury is about to take a trip through Aquarius, and this should turn up the kink factor for you. You may currently feel bogged in the necessities of commitment. Yet those contracts only affect what you’re supposed to do and feel, not what you actually want. What you want is part of a wide vision that includes having a full-spectrum existence. Be honest with yourself about what you’re not getting; and claim back any ideas that you’re projecting onto others about why you can’t get those needs met. If you ask me, your charts are saying that you need to have the spiritual aspect of sex be on the same par as the physical one. Trading one for the other is not a deal worth making, and nobody who understands the false nature of the compromise would ever do it.

Read your 2008 annual for Gemini. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Gemini and Gemini rising here.

Cancer (June 21- July 22)
An eclipse of the Moon in Leo is here to tell you there’s something vitally important that you’ve never admitted before. Are you ready to be absolutely honest about one of the most valuable qualities you possess? In terms of sexual relationships, the implication is that you are finding your way to your core truth about yourself, and that truth involves a simple scenario about how every relationship you have is an extension of your relationship to yourself. There’s a shade of embarrassment that can arrive with this discovery, since relationships are allegedly about everyone else and not you. We all know this is a charade; that we strive to get our needs met whether we’re honest about it or not. Yes, you are your lover and there are many people aware of this fact. They need the example you’re setting.

Read your 2008 annual for Cancer. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Cancer and Cancer rising here.

Leo (July 22- Aug. 23)
One of the strangest properties of the cosmic physical plane is how we take on one another’s injuries. We also tend to project our own sense of injury onto others. New people walk into our lives and it’s as if they were always there, playing out the drama that’s always been played out. Events of the next few weeks will help you see these metaphysical dramas for what they are: basically, a lot of nothing. I am not sure how the rather unusual eclipse in your birth sign is going to manifest for you, but it looks like a great time to allow your sexual pain to be yours, and that of other people to belong to them. In the same gesture, claim your pleasure, and some sense of entitlement to own what you want. You may not feel the right to have that pleasure, not yet, anyway — but you can certainly claim your right to desire.

Read your 2008 annual for Leo. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Leo and Leo rising here.

Virgo (Aug. 23- Sep. 22)
This strange concept we have of “possessing a self” seems to be meaningful mainly in the context of surrendering that self. We own this cumbersome set of definitions, attachments and needs and then when the time is right, we let them go, usually using an experience with a partner as the factor that induces us to melt the ego’s boundaries. You may feel a profound need to do this, a craving so deep that it doesn’t resemble anything you’ve ever felt before. This drive is being fuelled by a deep healing process, though you may not see the way that indulging in deep sexual surrender could have anything to do with helping set your life in order. In fact you may think it’s the very last thing you need. The truth is you will not know either way for sure until you are deep into the experience.

Read your 2008 annual for Virgo. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Virgo and Virgo rising here.

Libra (Sep. 22 – Oct. 23)
Creativity is not a neat process, and neither is sexual involvement. Messy does not need to mean toxic. It just means that you dance with the chaos in a way that can seem unsettling to your tie-up-the-loose-ends personality, or which can feel like finally letting yourself settle into a moment of unpredictability and chaos. If you ask me, this is the true nature of sex: it’s a portal to a moment of uncertainty, where (as is the case in true art) nobody is certain what’s going to be created. Forget your routines. Forget your prior expectations. Most of all, I suggest you let go of your considerable pride. Let an experience of passion be bigger than you, more complex than you can understand, and powerful enough to blow away any of your expectations.

Read your 2008 annual for Libra. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Libra and libra rising here.

Scorpio (Oct. 23- Nov. 22)
You’re entitled to one moment of profound insecurity right now. But that is it. You are in the process of conquering the world, but you can’t do that if you’re dragging around a lot of tarnished old pseudo-self-esteem. If you can really go there, that is, if you can lay down your considerable worldly confidence and allow yourself a true moment of existential panic, you will blossom emotionally. And you may recover all that fear as a burst of erotic energy that lights up every other aspect of who you are. The thing is that few people would feel that consciously embracing fear could lead to anything productive or positive. They are clueless.

Read your 2008 annual for Scorpio. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Scorpio and Scorpio rising here.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22 – Dec. 22)
It is often said that the sexiest organ is the mind. But who really believes this? Most people would choose the big bulge in the pants or the cameltoe before they went for the superlative IQ. While I’m not sure about the view in the direction of your blue jeans, I can tell you that your mind is in high gear and is definitely the thing to watch. The thing to watch out for is running rings around people. Be smart, but be physical, emotional and sensory. In fact I would stick to the sensory level and allow the brainiac stuff to stay in the background. Your intuition is far more dependable, and you will be more than noticeable for your wits. What the people around you need to know is that you’re grounded in reality, and that you really care.

Read your 2008 annual for Sagittarius. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Sagittarius and Sagittarius rising here.

Capricorn (Dec. 22- Jan. 20)
You may not feel comfortable with the power with which you’ve recently been bestowed — and you may not be aware of it quite yet. Try and tell me if it’s true. Your words have penetrating power now. People are listening to you, and you can get their attention easily. But it’s not really your words; the effect is hormonal. It’s going on way below the level of the conscious mind; your process now is to make it conscious, and bring the unspoken world to the level of full awareness. You’ve recently acquired a new kind of sexual and emotional power, and you need to use it responsibly; and that means with your full attention. Notice how people are responding to you. Don’t let false modesty get in the way of that simple observation.

Read your 2008 annual for Capricorn. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Capricorn and Capricorn rising here.

Aquarius (Jan. 20- Feb. 19)
You feel you’re special, but this can be extremely distracting. Neither does it work if you pretend you’re ordinary. And it does not help if you declare that everyone is special. They may be, but most people are adept at one thing at least, hiding how special they are. What I suggest you do if you are looking for deeper points of connection is to be aware of ways that you are unique; consider the ways you’ve been hurt in the past; and stay in contact with what you uniquely need right now. I suggest you treat every encounter with a new person you meet as the drawing back of a curtain. When you meet someone, imagine you’re looking at a veil. It’s only a matter of time before that veil gets drawn back; and in that moment you will see who you’re talking to and be able to reveal who you are.

Read your 2008 annual for Aquarius. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aquarius and Aquarius rising here.

Pisces (Feb. 19- March 20)
This is one of the most visionary times of your life — or perhaps one when you’ve never felt more trapped inside of a vision that you cannot manifest. I can say this: you’re a lot further along in your process than you imagine. If you’re developing an idea for how you want your life to be (and I do mean your most passionate erotic and creative life), then keep your focus inwardly. You have yet to discover the tipping point where what you align with in your internal world expresses itself as a tangible development in your outer life. This really is a matter of connecting deeply with the truth of who you are, which is often the first thing that we deny or evade. Let yourself be drawn to the strange, the unruly and mostly to the unknown. Gradually enter the space of the unspeakable. Make eye contact with others as you do this. Look for the people whose eyes seem to be questioning you back.

Read your 2008 annual for Pisces. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Pisces and Pisces rising here.