Month: February 2016

TAROTSCOPES: MARCH 2016

Posted on by Lindsay Mack

Cast by Lindsay Mack using The Starchild Akashic Deck…

:: Pisces/Pisces Rising :: The Hierophant

Happy birthday, sweet Pisces! WHAT a powerful cycle you have ahead of you. There is an abundance of Major Arcana cards for many of the signs this month, heralding some massive shifts and expansions for many of us. This is totally in line with the astro weather right now; we’re in Eclipse season, after all.

The Universe is doing some pretty major energetic housecleaning for Pisces this month. Your job will be to surrender to it, and allow it to happen as thoroughly as is required. The Hierophant is working with Pisceans in two ways: it’s facilitating a big clearing AND it’s aligning you more deeply with your soul path. This will reach a big peak for you on the New Moon Eclipse in Pisces on March 8.

It’s been a quietly tough few months for Pisceans. All seems well, but there have been some tremendous waves under the surface. This isn’t bad or good, just an acknowledgment of the energy you’ve been moving through. The good news is that while these waves might feel scary or overwhelming, they’re actually the contractions in the spiritual labor you’re in. They’ve been serving you the whole time, getting you ready to birth something new.

The Hierophant card is a big evolutionary energy, and is going to kickstart your labor, so to speak – inviting you to release some really, really old and outdated beliefs this month so you can make room for the new and the true. Why? So you can fully step up and be of service in a way you never have before (and for many of you Piscean healers, that is saying something).

The Hierophant is a clear channel for the Divine, which is important for Pisceans to understand. The key to hearing our guides, living in our channel and being aligned with our soul’s path is being able to distinguish the truth of our channel from the noise of the brain. Clearing up the chatter so we can hear the channel better is the actual word that’s being done for Pisces this month. There are going to be some amazing expansions as a result of all this clearing. Big career shifts, inspirations, new ideas and much more. Think a true alignment with your path and what you’re here to do.

Follow Lindsay Mack on Instagram @WildSoulHealing

:: Aries/Aries Rising :: Six of Cups

Release the past and gently resist floating into the future. Be here now, and come home to the present moment. Ground down, open the heart, and let all that doesn’t serve you be released. March is a very intense month, but the intensity is totally appropriate. It’s spring! Buds are bursting, animals are birthing; and all this awakening makes for an uncomfortable, messy time, energetically.

Anytime we might want to get some answers as to why things feel so crazy, we need only to go outside and look around us. See the trees getting ready to bloom? Now consider all of the invisible activity facilitating this underneath the Earth’s surface. Nature is our greatest teacher, and we are all waking up now, honoring the organic rhythm of the moment.

This is such important medicine for Aries and Aries rising this month. You guys may want to move through the discomfort of this time quickly, but there’s nothing to do but BE RIGHT HERE. Trust in this, because this moment is all there is. When we drift off into the past or the future, we’ve dropped out of that energetic co-creation of our future with the Universe. There really is no future without our participation; we are birthing it in every moment. So if you float away, just keep coming back home.

How? Get outside and move your body as often as possible, no matter how cold it might be. Just bundle up and go for it! And make sure you’re really nourishing your body, keeping caffeine and anything that taxes the adrenals to a minimum. This is a VERY potent month for emotional excavation: sharing, laughing, crying, orgasming, walking, sweating, screaming – leave all the dead stuff in the winter.

Remember: healing happens in spirals and layers, and while we might feel as though we’re moving up and down, we’re only ever going forward. If ancient traumas or unpleasant memories arise this month, it is in the service of releasing some old shrapnel or splinters so we can be unencumbered in the year ahead. Your willingness to do so is the key to your journey and expansion in the rest of 2016!

Follow Lindsay Mack on Instagram @WildSoulHealing

 

:: Taurus/Taurus Rising :: Judgment

In the Starchild Tarot, the Judgment card is known as AWAKENING. I can think of no better word for Taurus’ journey this month, since March is launching Taurus into an entirely new level of self love and self acceptance. You will be offered so many opportunities to rewire old beliefs and resentments, welcoming love and compassion in their place. It’s a huge evolution, bringing you back into the awareness that embracing your self is part of your birthright.

And when we love ourselves, we invite the whole world to love itself, too. It’s an energetic invitation that is so intoxicating, and Taurus, you are leading the charge for us all. This month holds some extremely important work for you – not only for your expansion, but for those that you love, teach and honor with your presence and friendship. As you evolve, you’ll energetically invite them to evolve, too.

You might come face to face with some old judgments about yourself or others this month. Don’t mistake this for a backward step – it’s coming up for you to rewire and rewrite the story. You must first acknowledge whatever is ready to be released, right? Hold this truth close to your heart this month as you navigate these old, cobwebby places.

Awakening/Judgment is a huge energy, and carries with it a supremely important truth: there’s only so far we can go without truly freeing ourselves from judgments of the heart and mind. This card’s energy is about the transition from judgment into love, and Taureans will see this on every level this month, both for yourselves and others. This is a necessary step for Taurus in the evolution of your year.

Expect some really big and powerful learning experiences, on a micro and a macro level. How you view your body, how you feed and nourish yourself, how you compare yourself to others – what others did to you and what you’ve done to yourself. Everything is up for review; everything is ready to be released, embraced, and forgiven. The invitation is to be free from carrying the weight of resentment, bitterness and old stories. Write a new ending to that story this month. Keep bowing and stepping forward into love.

Follow Lindsay Mack on Instagram @WildSoulHealing

 

:: Gemini/Gemini Rising :: Page of Wands

This is a time of big movement for Gemini! Wow! At home in the buzz and excitement of early Spring, you guys are really going to flourish in the intensity of this month. You’ve been doing SO much clearing and releasing – now the spark and desire to move forward is really going to take root. Page of Wands is all about rushing into the future with the wisdom of the past. There is a youthful feel to this card – a fresh and welcome energy for Gemini coming out of winter.

Trust this time of movement. You guys live for this kind of electric energy, so use and infuse it into your life and what you want to manifest next. The Page of Wands is Air and Fire; the blending of the two creates these wild explosions, perfect for you this month. Create, have fun, and take big leaps. They’re going to pay off beautifully. It’s important to blend action with dreaming now, so get your hands in the dirt, so to speak. It’s a really good time for any business or travel ventures, too.

The only area to tread more cautiously in is the realm of crushes. You guys fly fast and hard with infatuations normally – all part of your charm and allure. This month, however, stay SUPER grounded with your love interests. Don’t rush into anything that’s not really rooted for you. This isn’t to say that if you’re nursing new feelings for someone it’s not going to work out beautifully. Just don’t elope – yet. Pour that passion and desire into your life’s work and into your self expansion.

Stay flexible, stay patient, and stay focused in the realm of fun and play. Be wary of impatience. Allow your mind, always brimming with ideas, options and thoughts, to be on the back burner this month. As you move and groove, you might find yourself thinking:, “Okay, well, this is awesome, but what’s next?! Can I get there faster?!” – and if you find yourself in this place, just breathe and come back to square one. You may have to do this a lot this month, but it’s going to be so good for you. It is deeply healing for Gemini to be in the present moment, even while stirring the cauldron for whatever exciting steps lies ahead.

Follow Lindsay Mack on Instagram @WildSoulHealing

 

:: Cancer/Cancer Rising :: Six of Wands

This month is full of really fabulous expansions for you Cancer. Like Gemini, you guys have been working your asses off since the fall – now there’s some lovely sweetness on its way to you. Make no mistake: this month is intense for everyone, but Cancers can expect some really wonderful energetic rewards during this time.

These rewards, so to speak, come in the form of attention, respect and acknowledgment for your hard work. There is a sense of victory for Cancer this month, externally and internally. The Six of Wands offers us an experience of being celebrated or “seen” – and while that idea of being out there on display might sound like a nightmare for some particularly hermetic Cancers, fear not. This isn’t an uncomfortable way of being seen; no vulnerability or raw emotions are involved.

This is a joyful energy, and about allowing yourself to be honored as you move through an advancement. Whether you’re stepping up a level in your career, advancing in your field of study, or even taking a big leap in your work, love, or home life, you’re getting the news and confirmation this month that there’s a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow you’ve been chasing.

For Cancer, this month is a mental game changer. An awareness in YOURSELF about how amazing and appreciated you are is the core of March. You can get excited! You can be proud of yourself. In fact, the hard work of the last few months has been in service of beginning to nurture a new sense of harmony within you, which is all about you being more aligned with your soul’s path.

You are born beautiful nurturers, but it has been crucial for you to start giving the same level of care and attention to your own needs. It’s been tough, but you’ve been saying “yes.” You’ll begin to really see this month that true nurturing is a wellspring that can only start from you. Keep going and enjoy!

Follow Lindsay Mack on Instagram @WildSoulHealing

 

:: Leo/Leo Rising :: Two of Pentacles

Balance, balance, balance – and did I mention balance? You have full permission to be as spiritually selfish as it suits you this month, for you are in the beginning stages of some really crucial life path expansions. Whether this applies to you as a parent, an entrepreneur, an artist, or just as a human being, this is an enormously important soul path month for Leo.

What I’m talking about is nurturing unconditional self-regard in whatever you are currently moving through; not taking ANYTHING additional onto your plate unless it serves your highest good. If work, friends, family or loved ones take a backseat this month, that’s totally aligned for you. And if there are some loves in your life you’re used to offering energetic support to, let them carry their own weight this month.

Trust in this and keep going. Be gentle but firm with those who don’t understand – you’re simply mirroring a process of personal responsibility and an empowerment that’s probably not coming easily to them. In fact, you’re offering them a healing by letting them be a little uncomfortable!

The Two of Pentacles is actually a wonderful card; it speaks of fresh, new beginnings, and of much needed changes. Changes you have been working towards, so it’s a beautiful testament to your hard work. But this work is a balancing act. It is imperative that you only surround yourself with people who do not emotionally drain you. Bringing any heavy energy in now, everything will tumble. But if this does happens, simply re-center, pick everything up and start again.

Of course, taking care of yourself and getting proper rest and nourishment comes first and foremost this month. Again, be gentle and unapologetic. Take the time you need, whether for work or breaks. Your priority now is to develop a strong sense of self. This time is sweet and fleeting; savor every single moment of it.

Follow Lindsay Mack on Instagram @WildSoulHealing

 

:: Virgo/Virgo Rising :: Strength

Between January’s Mercury retrograde and the Full Moon last week, Virgos have really been really knocked around by some major astro weather recently. This intensity is still hanging around for you in March, but the Strength card suggests you’ll experience it in a different way. Known mostly for your practicality, loyalty, and keenly critical eye, I think Virgos are often misunderstood, and in a fairly limiting way – even to themselves. All of those aforementioned qualities lie atop a powerful and innate intuitive ability.

Yes, you CAN see everything – you’ve just never known how to work with it. In fact, the intensity of Virgo insight can sometimes fry your nervous system, sparking up the self-criticism and paranoia that can be part of Virgo when it’s out of balance. It takes practice for anyone to distinguish between their brain chatter and their true channel. Once Virgo masters this, you have some of the clearest psychic connections of all the signs.

Strength is ushering this in for all Virgos, and it can’t come a moment too soon. Our fragile planet literally needs your sense of justice, specificity and care right now, which is why Virgos have really been stripped and rebuilt in the last year or so, most strongly in the last few months. It’s time to wake up to who and what you truly are; born healers and helpers.

Strength is inviting you to understand your magnificence from the inside out –speaking to an emotional, psychic, spiritual Strength. Soul Strength. The energy of the Strength card about knowing who you truly are and letting yourself shine. Strength can stand with the lion, unafraid, because her channel is clear. She knows it’s safe, even though it might look risky or scary to an outsider.

That is the perfect metaphor for what Virgo is moving through right now: a process of trusting yourself and your instincts in a way more than ever. But proceed gently, as you nervous system might be quite worn out. Take it one step at a time, getting plenty of rest and drinking lots of water. You’re essentially being reprogrammed, so it’s wise for you to rest as much as possible while your new upgrade is being installed.

Follow Lindsay Mack on Instagram @WildSoulHealing

 

:: Libra/Libra Rising :: The Sun

Joy, gratitude, and illumination are the key words for Libra this month. The Sun card is the invitation into the light. We are able to truly see our lives through objective and loving eyes. If life hasn’t made a lot of sense to you lately, lean into the Sun’s energy. Soak up its warmth, and say yes to its invitation. This is a beautiful shift for Libra following a few crunchy months. Life CAN feel a bit smoother this month – if you are willing to allow it to be.

The Sun comes after The Moon. It is the light of a new dawn after a period of darkness; the sight of land after a long journey at sea. And so this month is about coming back to Earth after a time in the Void, allowing the Sun’s energy to infuse your life with its wisdom and energy as you process the shift from air to earth. You’ve been learning and balancing, now you get to bask a bit and see the “why” behind all that effort.

The other invitation for Libra this month is JOY – as there’s so much available to you this month! Even in the moments you might be feeling shitty, joy will be an available and unlocked door for you. From joy, there will be yet more ease and grounding – letting your roots stretch down even deeper, while your branches soar ever upward. It’s a beautiful relationship, and one that will enable you to open to all the clarity and gratitude that’s currently swirling around you. You just have to open that door.

So consider how worthy and deserving you feel about embracing the Sun’s joy and light. Do you trust it? Are you willing to let the light in? Are you willing to truly see yourself and others bathed in this light? If any resistance arises, look at it with compassionate curiosity.

Any lack of worthiness or discomfort we feel in the face of our joy suggests an area to lavish some attention on. In order for you to move forward holding that well deserved joy in your heart, you have to check out the places that feel uncomfortable for you too. Smooth them out with the grace of your loving attention.

Follow Lindsay Mack on Instagram @WildSoulHealing

:: Scorpio/Scorpio Rising :: The Star

March is a massive heart opener for Scorpio. This month is huge for you guys – a major energetic clearing. Scorpio, like Pisces, has been feeling the intense vibes lately, and has been privately moving through some big stuff. For many Scorpios, the last few months have been a time of big trauma resurgences. Know that all of this is coming up to the surface to be released; another layer of shrapnel gone.

For many of you, this is a beautiful time to seek a lot of loving support. Whatever that means for you, make sure you’re honoring yourself and sharing your experience as often as possible.

The Star comes after The Tower for a reason. It’s the cooling rain after a forest fire, and is the most profoundly healing card in the Tarot. It soothes our wounds, shining some beautiful maternal light onto us, inviting us to crack our hearts open and trust in life again. It’s in this heart opening that all of these old pieces and emotions can be released, washed away by starlight and healing water.

If the recent mood hasn’t been so intense for you, this is still a gorgeous opportunity for some sweetness and nurturing as you step forward into the next phase of your life, unburdened by anything you no longer need. For all of you, relish any time you are near water. Be IN water as much as possible. Baths, showers, pools, rivers, oceans, hot springs – whatever you gotta do, seek them out! And make sure you’re drinking a ton of it, too.

You can also hang out with lots of Rose Quartz and Aquamarine this month; soft pinks, blues and greens are going to be so lovely for your heart. Also, howl like wolves. Travel. See new places. Quit that job you hate. Get all of this old stuff out of you. The light is dawning on a new, lighter and more peaceful time for you, Scorpio – flow with this energy and the release will feel like a resurrection.

Follow Lindsay Mack on Instagram @WildSoulHealing

 

:: Sagittarius/Sagittarius Rising :: Ace of Crystals

March is a month for aligning your abundance with your soul’s path, Sagittarius – it’s a beautiful time for you! New and exciting beginnings abound. The Ace of Crystals is a gorgeous energy, signaling all kinds of abundance: financial inheritance of any kind, a new job, a baby (yes, a baby!), or any kind of “seed.” Each Ace of Crystals is a seed that contains the fullness of a beautiful and bountiful harvest. It will come in many different forms to you this month, Sagittarius, so be open and receptive.

In fact, receptivity is the key word for you this month. Be open to this new, beautiful energy. Trust in it. Walk through life with your palms open and your words full of gratitude. Let go of ANY expectations and let yourself be surprised by what drops in. Consider that the entire month will be full of this bounty. The Aces are a beautiful gift, but like all gifts, we must be open to receiving them.

And regarding that whole “aligning your abundance with your soul path thing”: the Universe means business with this. This month is really clearly directing you toward a whole new level of this energy in your life. But this is an Ace energy; it’s the seed. Remember: a baby grows in utero for nine months before coming Earthside. These alignments take time.

So this is the time for planting the seeds, for receiving the seeds. The Pisces New Moon eclipse on March 8 is going to be particularly potent for you too, and I highly recommend you harness its energy to direct toward what you’re manifesting in this new cycle.

If we water the garden of our dreams with our willingness to be receptive and abundant, there is NOTHING that can’t take root. And for you, it really can be that simple this month. No begging, no praying, no spell casting required: it’s all right there for you. You’re just being redirected back to the wellspring that is your energetic and abundant birthright. The question is, will you accept it without judgment? Will you trust that a lowly seed – perhaps one you weren’t even expecting – could be the one to transform your garden into a lush paradise?

Follow Lindsay Mack on Instagram @WildSoulHealing

 

:: Capricorn/Capricorn Rising :: The Moon

You’re in for an extremely powerful month, Capricorn. You, like Virgo, are going through a big Earth sign expansion – coming even more deeply into your surrender, your shadow side, and your psychic abilities. This is such a good thing! Fabulous in fact, and I highly encourage you to lean deeply into the energy of the month. Let it gently crack you open, infusing you with powers and abilities you never knew you had.

This is not a month of big action for you, Capricorn. The Major Arcana cards cast a macrocosmic net over things – working on the big picture. The Moon is VERY big picture, but also very vague – much like the physical moon herself. The of overall energy you’re hanging out in this month is largely subterranean. It’s more feminine, more psychically charged, more deep and mysterious. So all of the external, active stuff coming your way this month will be steeped in this energy.

The Moon is a really potent card. It’s the card of the Void, or the unknown. Not a whole lot makes sense in the Void, because it’s extrasensory. That’s why this month is so powerful for Capricorn, internally and psychically. You must trust it. 1000 per cent trust it. Take a seat in the Void and pull up a blanket. Get comfy. Let your third eye adjust to the dark, much like a jungle cat.

SO much information is going to come to and through you this month. So as your guides whisper to you, quiet yourself enough to actually hear them. Work with Tarot cards, your pendulum, or crystals. Be outside as often as possible. Allow for lots of magical alone time. Totally surrender and abandon the need to have specific answers this month. Let them come when they do.

I think the key for hanging out in the Moon card comfortably, is practicing surrender. And then to embrace and even relish this time, knowing the medicine it brings. Remember this energy, like everything else, is temporary – so dive in while it’s here.

Follow Lindsay Mack on Instagram @WildSoulHealing

 

:: Aquarius/Aquarius Rising :: Five of Cups

You’re moving through some wildly important and contractive energies with the Five of Cups this month Aquarius. Think “emotional mastery” on a whole new level! Five of Cups can come with feelings of loss, regret and grieving. It can spiral us into some pretty major emotional experiences. However, remember that experience is different from truth. When little children throw screaming tantrums because you take away their stuffed toy to be washed, they’re having an experience – real, but not TRUE. Well Aquarius will be getting a master class in this idea with the Five of Cups.

A screaming child is the perfect metaphor and teacher for working with this energy. Know that we CAN become the loving, patient adult who holds space for the child’s experience. We don’t have to match them, or believe them. In fact, this is exactly what the Five of Cups is teaching us to do, its true medicine, as it actually helps us to become the watcher of our feelings. To not be as identified with them. This is a beautiful life wisdom, and also something Aquarius is particularly ready to master.

For you, this month will be about the continual flow between having an experience to becoming the holder of that experience. It’s about knowing you are safe, that nothing is permanent, and nothing is ever lost to you that you are meant to have – these are all universal truths. So you can trust them, and keep scooping up your inner child and reminding them of this. Even better, every time we do this, we have the chance to literally rewire our brains.

So no playing the “what if” game with yourself this month. Just stay present, breathe, and know that a big expansion is coming, cresting on the wake of all of the growth and wisdom that you will gain from moving through the Five of Cups. Even if you are set on having a particularly light and lovely month, remember that even the smallest doses of moving away from identification and victimhood with your experiences will be POTENTLY transformative.

Follow Lindsay Mack on Instagram @WildSoulHealing

WEEKLY TAROTSCOPE: FEBRUARY 29 – MARCH 6

Posted on by Lindsay Mack

Our guest Tarotscopes queen, Lindsay Mack of Wild Soul Healing, has pulled Oppression (The Devil) for this week’s forecast! Don’t be scared – this is the perfect energy to help us face our demons ahead of next week’s detoxifying Pisces New Moon eclipse…

COMFORTABLY NUMB: AN AMNESTY ON COOL

Posted on by Kate Atkinson

Enough with the hiding your real self behind your artfully composed selfies. It’s time to call an amnesty on cool, says Comfortably Numb columnist Kate Atkinson.

kate atkinson comfortably numb an amnesty on cool for The Numinous

 

I want to declare an amnesty on modern cool – realizing this is one of the most uncool statements I could write, and more than aware that several people will probably be cringing reading this. If you are, call me anti-millennial and grind away. But if you’d have hoped we’d left it behind in high school, it seems like “cool” is an extremely contagious epidemic no thanks to the digital revolution.

What exactly is cool anyway? It’s an intangible phenomena that you can’t really touch, a state of being that defines the way you walk and talk, what you wear, the music you listen to, where you’re eating, and whether something is on trend – that is, worthy of likes on Instagram. It’s visceral. You can just feel it. And when it comes to true self-expression, I have to say, the modern version is a straight-jacket.

I also want to preface this story with the fact that while, yes, I do have tattoos, by no means am I an expert on cool. I was on the debating team at school – enough said. But I have got up close and personal enough with this insidious contagion to know how it works, and the more I examine its motives, it’s beginning to feel like cool is the root of an identity crisis that’s plaguing our generation.

A girlfriend put it perfectly when I asked what it means to be cool: “it’s the desire to be accepted, the need for validation, the urge to seem radical, despite longing to fit in.” And so it goes. Oh, the dichotomy of being human. Our narcissistic tendencies AND our insecurities are fuelled by cool, especially at a time when platforms for inclusion and exclusion are at an all time high.

Are you aspiring to be an “influencer?” This breed is all about being seen and accepted, “liked” on the interweb. For them, Instagram is basically a digi-friendly version of the high school cheerleading team. Things are sold to us now by “seeding” them with cool people. Brands, celebrities, and destinations are made by their manufactured “cool factor.” What I want to know is, what happened to under-the-radar cool of yesteryear?

In his 2013 book “The Cool School”Glenn O’Brien talks about the new tastemakers. But his cool  “squad” were, put simply, incredibly creative weirdos. Homeless Jazz beatniks, bohos and roaming beat poets. Anyone who made people uncomfortable basically. Something tells me that they wouldn’t be invited to Kim and Kanye’s dinner party.

kate atkinson comfortably numb an amnesty on cool for The Numinous

We live in an age of such style over substance that it’s incredibly hard to rage against the machine and do your own thing. In fact, a study commissioned by smartphone maker HTC late last year revealed that 52% of the approximately 1000 Brits surveyed admitted to posting images of possessions and items with an intention of making their “friends” jealous. What the hey?

Wasn’t this cool thing supposed to be people going against the grain? Rather than just sticking up photo-shopped images captioned: “I ate, I pooped, I wore Celine!” Now pardon my French, but WTF? If this isn’t numbing what’s going on in our down and dirty daily human reality, I don’t know what is.

Because cool these days is about hiding the “sad” half of your life and projecting the best bits. Ambivalence is also key – pretending not to care, even (especially) if you do. Which is basically saying to your soul that your true hopes and aspirations count for nothing unless they fit with whatever’s trending this month. And yet, as the late Philip Seymour Hoffman’s character puts it in cult classic Almost Famous: “The only true currency in this bankrupt world is what you share with someone else when you’re uncool.”

A moment please to consider this: when the cool castles in the sky come crashing down around you and you’re left with the reality of your life, who out of your carefully curated online “tribe” will actually be there to help cushion the fall? Because what you’re really doing when you shield the real you with a glossy veneer of cool, is construct a bulletproof force field that deflects true intimacy.

So beside a total social media detox and cancelling our memberships to Soho House, how can we wake up from this aspirational bullshit existence that we’re creating for ourselves? By taking the time to get conscious to how we while away our days, and creating meaning in every interaction. By walking our talk, with our roots firmly entrenched in reality.

It sounds so obvious, but social media is the great distractor when it comes to following your own expressive intuition….and it’s there for seeking approval when you do actually create something. The old greats weren’t preoccupied with showcasing their creativity, they just did it.

It’s a mythic delusion and a safety net to communicate and earn accolades in this way – as well as a way to mask what’s actually going on. Surely giving away change on the subway is also worth a few “likes” – so why aren’t we posting on Instagram about that? “Saw a nice guy dish out change today on the subway – what a dude!” Shouldn’t he be the real “influencer?”

kate atkinson comfortably numb an amnesty on cool for The Numinous

These stories DO come up on social media – and when they do it’s meaningful, the positive slant on modern technology. But too often, they’re engulfed in a stream of exclusivity: “I ate this, my bae wears that” – with resulting countless digital high fives and @s to follow.

I know my feed rarely delves beyond the aesthetics. And yes, fashion week happens, and friends stay in epic mansions. There are days at the beach with the clearest water ever. Again, I am not counting myself out of ANY of this malarchy, I am as partial to a well-posed selfie as the rest of us. But the lack of reality is what’s wrong with this whole picture, and it’s beginning to be all I can see.

Can’t somebody invent “Unstagram” for the days you’re feeling a bit off? For when you get dumped, you spent the last two days in tracksuit from Target, or you have an embarrassing medical problem?

Because you know what’s really cool? Being real. Not some projection of me me, me, me, I’m so fabulous, watch me eat, watch me sleep! Watch me break my arm! Look at me tagging historical references to show how tapped in and culturally aware I am.

Are we really this dumb? Is there no end to our ridiculous need for validation? This is the worst kind of cool that there is, and what’s more, this culture of exclusion is not social by any means. It’s actually scientifically proven to be making people chronically depressed.

So in a recent discussion with a friend on a rather significant life choice that involved making a potentially un-cool move, when she advised me to: “Fuck cool” – I decided I whole-heartedly concur.

NOT by Ernest Hemmingway

You are not your age,

Nor the size of clothes you wear,

You are not a weight,

Or the color of your hair.

You are not your name,

Or the dimples in your cheeks,

You are all the books you read,

And all the words you speak,

You are your croaky morning voice,

And the smiles you try to hide,

You’re the sweetness in your laughter,

And every tear you’ve cried,

You’re the songs you sing so loudly,

When you know you’re all alone,

You’re the places that you’ve been to,

And the one that you call home,

You’re the things that you believe in,

And the people that you love,

You’re the photos in your bedroom,

And the future you dream of,

You’re made of so much beauty,

But it seems that you forgot,

When you decided that you were defined,

By all the things you’re not.

MY MYSTICAL LIFE: LOVING OUR LOUNIVERSE, AND TALKING TM ON TV!

Posted on by Ruby Warrington

A very special crystal, calling in my taxi angels…and I how I found myself talking about TM on national TV

Ruby Warrington transcendental meditation The Doctors on The Numinous
Just a little bit excited to be talking TM on national TV on Friday…

:: MONDAY ::
WOW. We miss her too, and we felt so much love for our Louniverse (Tarotscopes queen Louise Androlia) when everybody was asking where her weekly video went this week! The official word is that beautiful Lou is taking a mind, body, spirit healing break (i.e. taking some of her own magical advice) and so will be on haitus from Tarot duties for the month of March. In the meantime, we’ve lined up a super talented guest contributor to fill in – who’s first video will be up Monday, with the monthly reading for March. Sign up for our newsletter so you don’t miss them – and please send Lou all LIGHT & LOVE as she navigates this portal in her healing journey <3 <3 <3

Louise Androlia tarotscopes queen The Numinous
We love you Louniverse!

:: TUESDAY ::
So innovation + inspiration planet Uranus has been transiting Aries (my sun sign) since March 2011 (uuuum right about the time I had the idea for the Numinous) – a transit that lights a fire, opens doors…and then shoves you through them. LOVING EVERY MINUTE. And now is when things get super juiced, since today it hit 18 degrees of Aries – and will be RIGHT ON my natal sun until March 13. I’m buckling up for a wild ride – and also planning to hand in my book manuscript, launch our e-commerce platform, and start coaching with incredible Cherie Healey during this exact window. Gulp. And p.s. How do I know exactly where Uranus at? Thanks to my favorite new toy – Planetwatcher.com – which allows you to track the moves of the celestial bodies day-by-day. You’re welcome.

 

:: WEDNESDAY ::
When I love my job the most is when I get to meet incredible healers like Kallisa Augustine, who I saw today for her signature Crystal Bed Therapy session. Kallisa had been recommended me by three of my favorite women (independently, in the space of three weeks) so obviously I was super intrigued – and with everything that’s going on right now (see “Tuesday”, and then there’s all the internal behind-the-scenes stuff too lol) the timing felt perfect. The session itself fused sound and energy healing, a badass Marcel Vogel crystal – as well as the crystal bed itself. Most of all I fell in love with magical Kallisa herself, who I could have talked all things spirit with for hours. Which I know we will, so expect more from her on here for sure.

 

:: THURSDAY ::
Last week (that crazy Friday when I got about five texts asking wtf was up with the astrology?) I missed a flight for the first time ever. And I’d even got to the airport early. And today…it almost happened again! First the car I booked didn’t show up (but told me 25 minutes after they were scheduled to arrive), and then it was nose-to-tail all the way to JFK. So as I was running into the street / RAIN to find a yellow cab (anybody who’s tried this in the rain in rush hour in Brooklyn knows my state of mind) I decided to ask my taxi angels for some help. Within SECONDS they’d sent me Michael Chan…amazing Michael Chan, who’s been driving a yellow cab in NYC for 30 years, knows ALL the shortcuts, and got me to my gate literally as they were calling final boarding #thankyouangels

taxi angels on The Numinous

:: FRIDAY ::
As you know I recently learned TM (transcendental meditation) – and today I got to go on national TV and talk about my experience on The Doctors! One of the hosts Jennifer Ashton also studied with Bob Roth of the David Lynch Foundation, and has had such a positive experience she wanted to get the message out. So me and Bob (my new most favorite person and the BEST advertisement for what 47 years of regular meditation can do for a person’s attitude) hopped over to LA to get our preach on. The segment with us talking about TM will air in April – keep reading for updates!

HOLY F*CK: CAN CASUAL SEX BE SPIRITUAL?

Posted on by Alexandra Roxo

In the second installment of her column Holy F*ck, Alexandra Roxo questions if modern-day hookup culture can co-exist with a Numi gal’s desire for conscious dating and sex…

Alexandra Roxo can casual sex be spiritual on The Numinous

As I sat next to my two friends Malia and Loulou watching Marianne Williamson speak to a crowded LA auditorium, I slumped further and further down in my chair as she discussed that which had been keeping me busy post breakup for nearly nine months…CASUAL SEX. Her words: “When a man puts anything in any of your orifices he has unspoken claim on you”, stung me. And to add insult to injury she went on to state: “Some Buddhist teachings say after sex the energy of the other person doesn’t leave your aura for seven years.”

Shit. My aura was starting to feel real crowded.

Not to mention that on my way to see Marianne talk I had casually mentioned to my new friends how I had recently had phenomenal sex in the back of a Prius under the Hollywood sign with a TV actor in an open relationship after drinks at the Soho House. (#Cliché.) I laughed about it, but now I felt a little uneasy…

Last year when I broke up with my girlfriend of nearly two years and decided to try dating dudes again, I had a period of being “free.” Meaning I hit Tinder hard. I was still meditating. Practicing affirmations. Reading Marianne and Louise Hay. But I was also determined to learn how to have casual sex in a casual way. Remember the “Sex and the City” episode where Carrie tries to have sex like men and can’t? That was me.
​
But there I was on Tinder, wondering: is conscious dating and/or sex even possible through online apps? Can you explore deep sexual bliss with a stranger you drunk swiped on? In fact, can you explore sexual bliss with a stranger at all?

Obviously sex and religion is a whole big Pandora’s box I will not attempt to open, except to say that I do have massive PTSD from spending too many hours at “youth camp” where I was saved/told I was a sinner for being a sexual being. I’ve been healing from that for years as a non-religious “spiritual person,” but still many of the same judgements and questions continue to come up. Is casual sex an obstacle towards enlightenment or can it be an aid?

My friend Karley (a.k.a. Slutever) who is a sex writer and creative collaborator, turned me on to Dr. Zhana Vrangalova, who did a rad TED talk on how casual sex can be super healthy, which inspired me. In the last year I decided to fully commit myself to this quest. Oddly (or not – cause the Universe knows what it’s doing) I attracted quite a few “spiritual” dudes down for the cause. According to Dr. Zhana, healthy casual sex must be sober (at least pretty sober) and feel authentic to you. Once alcohol, drugs, and sadness enter, then it’s a whole ‘nother thing. Thing is, I couldn’t seem to get naked with a stranger without at least three drinks. (If this isn’t a sign I dunno what is!)

Alexandra Roxo can casual sex be spiritual on The Numinous

Then I started seeing someone. I thought maybe this was gonna be someone I would partner with for a long time. We meditated together. We have the same agents. We write and direct comedy. It seemed perfect. And it was – but only on paper. In person we didn’t get along and never laughed. So cut to the breakup, and the same night that a friend asked me to go a “very progressive” sex party. She said I could just watch and that it was going to be a great experience etc…I mean…how could I turn that down?

So in my fragile, broken state I put on a tight black dress and lipstick and got myself into an Uber, and embarrassingly sang the Weeknd’s “Hills” to the driver getting into my “empowered single woman” space, i.e. hot mess space. When I arrived at the sex party I stood on the sidelines until a man with a top knot and a jar of organic coconut oil offered me a Thai Massage. This seemed harmless enough. But then again I was drinking large amounts of Patron. And nothing under the influence of tequila is harmless.

As I was being twisted into yoga poses I heard strange gurgling sounds. When I opened my eyes I saw the woman next to me was double deep throating. I was shocked, and took another deep sip of tequila. Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against deep throating – it was just that in my vulnerable state, it was all too much for me. It just didn’t feel like my truth.

I like to think that I’m “sexually progressive,” and open, and sex positive. I think I said yes to at least 2 out of 5 threesomes last year…but maybe that’s just not me anymore. Not my authentic truth now. Though, at this party I kept downing tequila hoping to “make it my truth,” and the next thing I knew I was laying in some couple’s arms, naked. I still have no idea how I made it home, though I did get a text from the wife who is a yoga teacher inviting me to class and telling me: “Congrats on no longer being vanilla!” If she only knew…

The next day I decided to stop drinking. To stop smoking weed. And to stop having casual sex. At least for now. Because none of it seemed to be serving my highest good anymore. (Did it ever?) I had put so much pressure on myself to “be free” and have fun, but the truth was I was covering up loneliness and a feeling of separation from Source.

Alexandra Roxo can casual sex be spiritual on The Numinous

I can see that my true freedom now lies in healing my wounds, in meditation, and safe self exploration. But my fear was…does this make me…boring?! (Um, if anybody’s watched Be Here Nowish season two I basically wrote a character that I have become! Yoga pants and celibacy!) But you know what: I don’t give a f*ck about becoming boring. I haven’t drank or done drugs in over a month, and I’ve danced, laughed, and sung a ton recently, and felt myself surrounded by beauty and magic.

I’ve also just come off a 3-day meditation retreat where I chanted and sat in a circle for three eight hour stretches with amazing humans deep in spiritual search, which is something I’ve been actively in, off and on, for the last 15 years. I realized how sometimes I veer so far from this part of myself, and thank GODDESS something always brings me back. This time in the form of a best friend who I’ve known for 14 years, Rebecca, beckoning me to Berkeley. And hours of meditation and chanting and crying and healing brought me back, yet again, to myself. The self who is held by Source, and doesn’t need to be held by random strangers.

The truth is, as much as I want to believe in the glories of casual sex, I don’t think it brings me personally closer towards Bliss, Peace, and Spirit. If it works for you then that’s beautiful and more power to ya. For me, I hope and think that having sex with someone I love deeply in a soul partner way will do that.

Until then I’ll go back to what I’ve been doing more of what I’ve loved since I was 19 years old…chanting my kundalini mantras, singing Steve Winwood’s Higher Love at the top of my lungs, making Shiva+Shakti cosmic union collages and altars, getting high off raw chocolate, and doing my girl Elyssa’s soul mate manifesting meditation.

Alexandra Roxo is an LA based filmmaker and actress who is currently developing a holistic coaching business. She has a company called Purple Milk that makes all kinds of fun stuff including the popular web series Be Here Nowish. Follow her on Insta here and read her past Numinous articles on Now Age love and sex here. 

SIT WITH IT: A NEW WAY TO WORK WITH DEPRESSION

Posted on by Erin Telford

Depression can be a signal of deep discontent from your soul. As tough as it is, try diving into those feelings through meditation and self-reflection to clear your psyche, says Erin Telford…

a new way to work with depression rainbow in the dark by erin telford on The Numinous

 

“Winter is a great time for depression,” I joked at a Breathwork group last month. I was met with some very nervous giggles. As with most things, it’s only funny because it’s uncomfortably true.

All humor aside, I got really depressed last winter.

It wasn’t an unfamiliar feeling. The first time I remember feeling depressed was when I was about 14 years old. It felt like being trapped in a glass, banging on the walls with no one listening, fatigue and a vague sense of loss and hazy unmet needs.

When I started to sink down and enter that deep gray landscape, I just felt tired and defeated. You again? After all this work?

I was involved in a group-coaching program at the time. I was honest with everyone about the despair I was feeling. They came full force with the positivity. You got this! You just need a spa day! Self-care! Find your gratitude!

“Seriously?” I thought. I was surprised by how fiercely irritated I was with their advice. And it hit me. I did not want to be cheerled out of this. I wanted to go down into the dungeon of my psyche and find some f*cking answers.

My response to feeling depressed in the past was to wait until it was over. Back pedal out of the icky feelings. Utilize the usual anesthetics. Self-medication. Self-isolation. Online shopping. Staying busy. Hitting the crack pipe rabbit hole of social media.

This time needed to be different. I’m not a confused teenage girl anymore. I’ve been waking up for a long time and I have an arsenal of tools in my bag, perfect for this emotional renovation. So I made a commitment to going down and in – and not coming back out until I found what I was looking for.

So what did that look like in real life? I turned my phone off. I sat in my favorite spot in my apartment, this little nook with a bunch of plants, great light, and a big window, and I checked in. I sat with myself. I did some writing. I asked many times and in as many ways as I could, “what is underneath all of this pain?”

I was really gentle with myself. This line of inquiry did not involve self-criticism, curse words, belittling myself or my process or any feeling of needing to hurry up and get back to “normal” life. I did not take time off but I did give myself all of the time that I had and needed.

What I found was a deep well of sweetness for myself.

The supposed truth that had taken me down to these depths was uncovered as just another clever way that I had fooled myself into believing that I was separate, that I was unloved, that I was unsupported. I discovered that I had the power inside to be able to break a life long pattern by looking at my wounds with tender curiosity rather than frustration or disdain.

***

Depression is often framed as something that just happens to us like getting a cold or a bummer draw of a genetic card. While environment, brain chemistry, and family lineage can be part of long-standing major depression; many of us experience it simply as a response to what’s going on in our lives.

We sell ourselves short by saying, “I’m just depressed.” As if it has nothing to do with the emotional pain that we’ve endured, the unattended wounds, the countless hours spent confused and alone or in groups of people who fail to see or help our hurt. The real life existential crisis that is: “I was told this would make me happy and I’m not. That must mean something is wrong with me. “

Very few of us have been taught any kind of practical way to channel and work with emotional pain. Most likely the instruction we covertly receive is to tuck away the unlovable, messy parts of ourselves. Shove them way, way, way into the back of the closet so we never have to look at the shame or hurt or confusion we feel. Or, let anyone else see it!

There is a single seed of discontent within you that is begging to be acknowledged.

It could be linked to:

Wrong job
Wrong friends
Wrong city
Wrong relationship
Wrong environment
Wrong…paradigm

Only you know, and facing it down is what I call Constructive Depression. It will require your participation. It will require fierce internal responsibility. And it is your job and your job alone, since no-one else can connect to your deepest parts but you.

The longer you’ve been feeling this way, the more wildly uncomfortable you may be with the truth that is banging on the door of your heart, begging for bread and water. How honest are you willing to be with yourself when your wellbeing is on the line?

So how to you do this?

You can think of Constructive Depression as a soul expedition. So what do you need for an internal journey? Nutritious snacks, great music, paints, journals, talismans, crystals, instruments, quiet, something to burn away the energy. Gather all of your supportive resources.

This is not an intellectual exercise. This is a reckoning. You with you.

This is a slow immersive dip into your soul. A psychic cleansing. Mental decongestion. Moving toward rather than away. Your resistance to this idea is equal to your commitment that all of this is due to the outside rather than inside forces. You ARE up to the task.

We experience the full range of human emotions for a reason. We feel sad because something is breaking our heart. We feel angry because something isn’t right and it needs to change. We feel fear because we are threatened or being asked to expand.

Depression is an opportunity for internal exploration. You are not depressed because you are a bad person or you skipped too many days of yoga or gratitude journaling.

You are depressed because something is not working for you. There is a yearning. An emotional chasm. Something that is crying out to be witnessed and seen like it’s never been seen before. Our wounds are rarely greeted with the exact kind of care and response that we are craving. When we accumulate a lifetime of hurts that have gone unnoticed or unattended to by others, the responsibility falls back to us to determine what we need.

So meet yourself with all of the tenderness, all of the sweetness, the hugs, the love, and the acceptance that you hold within you. Go inside, find your golden nugget of truth, and only come back out when you are ready – holding your treasure high.

*Mental health can be very tenuous. If you feel like this is something you can safely undertake, please do. If it feels like too much, please seek professional support for this internal exploration.

A SENSORY EXPLORATION OF PISCES SEASON

Posted on by Bess Matassa

Welcome to The 12th Sense – a luscious monthly exploration of the current cosmic energies for your sign, by Cara George & Bess Matassa of Mojave Rising. THIS MONTH: create an altar for Pisces season…

An altar for Pisces Season on The Numinous

We often speak of the Pisces/Virgo axis with a world-weary sense of psychic overwhelm; these highly sensitized signs are associated with the hollowed out, solitary feeling that we’re all just miniature specks. Yet one of the most sparkling, sunken-ship treasures of this axis is the capacity for these signs to elevate and transform our everyday experience.

Pisces season asks us to find pageantry in the minutiae and the slow unfolding of our lives. And with the North Node and Jupiter now in Virgo, Saturn in Sagittarius squaring the Pisces New Moon on March 8, and Mars primed to enter Sag territory on March 5, we’re being asked to activate a proprietary blend of pragmatic mysticism in order to find a different way to pray: one that allows for a sensuous seamlessness between our higher selves and our everyday environment.

And so this month, we invite you to set up an altar using seemingly frivolous objects, and to mix them with the most obviously sacred and self-consciously important. From boudoir vanities to austere, sacrificial shrines, we can dialogue with the divine using lipstick tubes, found objects, and sacred tomes alike.

Watch in wonder as your steak knives, lingerie, old love letters, and spice cabinet being to whisper that they’re worth believing in and that you’re worth believing in, too. And in the midnight hour, you’ll start to feel your own power in all its glamorous, gentle, ferocious divinity.  

Keyword: “Veneration”

Song Lyrics of the Month: “Life is a mystery/Everyone must stand alone/I hear you call my name/And it feels like home”

Now click here for a Piscean Playlist and read on for our tips for creating an everyday altar for Pisces season by sign.

everyday altar by mojave rising on The Numinous

 

:: Aries ::
Pisces season invites you to experiment with trusting in your potent, singular identity without having to prove it, and to calm your passion for friction as you revel in a strength borne through soft-focus edges. Select a precious object that you consider to be fiercely, distinctively “you” and experiment with placing it under a piece of fabric or inside a box as you move towards a faith in its inevitable survival – without visible proof. Throw down a symbol of strength or toughness and infuse this item with gloss and glitter. Think hot pink boxing gloves or a tool belt filled with feathers.

:: Taurus ::
Pisces season invites you to loosen up and play with the concept of security as you widen your field of value. Place an object that you treasure deeply next to one you consider meaningless and challenge yourself to see the worth of each. Celebrate your love of sensuous feasting with some Piscean synesthesia; mix a scent, taste, and color in a textured vessel to create a potion that feeds all facets of olfactory and visual delight. Think lavender ice cream or a rose margarita served up in a vintage Old Hollywood gold-leafed goblet.

:: Gemini ::
Pisces season invites you to celebrate the world’s dazzling array of information sources as you revel in the possibility of not having to understand it all. Place books in languages you don’t speak, maps of places you’ve never been, and menus of cuisines you’ve yet to sample on your altar as you honor global wares in all their jet-setting mystery. Take a walk and discover a found object of unknown provenance to add to your spread. Think Basque rock lyrics, maps of Pompeii, or an eccentric plant you pass every day without knowing its genus.

:: Cancer ::
Pisces season invites you to loosen your highly personalized grip, and to practice honoring feeling nature of everything that surrounds you. Choose a souvenir from childhood or a deeply charged object from a former emotional situation and experiment with blurring its boundaries; place it alongside brand new objects, melt it down or burn it, and venerate its remains. Or leave a treasured object exposed to light, wind, rain, and snow on a balcony or near an open window and watch its gentle erosion and changes through time. Think everything from exes’ love letters set aflame to Malibu Barbie through the seasons.

everyday altar by mojave rising on The Numinous

 

:: Leo ::
Pisces season invites you to challenge attachment to your tastes, and to rediscover a sumptuous internal fantasy life that needs no hook in the external world. Place jewels or makeup on your altar that aren’t quite your style, or look for an otherwise “ugly” object you can recognize each day for its unexpected, evolving shades of glamour. Pen letters to yourself or to an imaginary lover as you move towards your passionately internal world. Think those earmuffs from Aunt Linda you thought you hated, or a sweet message to your 5th grade self decked out in sparkly decals.

:: Virgo ::
Pisces season invites you to expand your love of divine detail and order as you practice embracing the gorgeous messiness of mixing, matching, blending, and fusing. Place a collection of essential oils on your altar and experiment with instinctually mixing them into a fragrant concoction. Or spend the afternoon decanting newly discovered wines in preparation for a tasting party that celebrates both individual flavor profiles and taste collisions. Think frankincense meets orange blossom, and full-bodied Spanish leathery red meets crushed-seashell Loire white.

:: Libra ::
Pisces season invites you to sample in-betweenness rather than having to choose, and to wander through shifting perspectives as you soften your search for the ideal with tender non-judgment. Play with the visual as you move your altar to different heights and lights and watch for changes in the shadows throughout the day. Adorn your altar with candles in recognition of the hybrid interplay between states of solidity and liquid. Think melted wax at midnight and firm, luminous clarity by daybreak.

:: Scorpio ::
Pisces season invites you to mix the intensity of penetrating and purging with the sumptuously tender act of allowing. Place an object on your altar that you’ve been hoarding but which causes you pain to look at. Repurpose this pain as you lay your object atop a luxe satin pillow, or wrap it in your favorite fluffy sweater or decadent piece of lingerie. Watch the boundaries between pain and pleasure dissolve. Think that caustic performance review shredded atop a heap of blue-violet hydrangeas, or purifying that garter belt gifted by the one that got away in preparation for a girl’s night out.

altar 3

:: Sagittarius ::
Pisces season invites you to stoke your adventurous wildfire without having to externally seek in the physically nomadic world. Let the sounds of the ambient environment form the backdrop for an altar peppered with woodsy incense as you watch scent and smoke travel through space without having to leave your room. Think tripping out to the sounds of traffic on a regular weeknight as you burn Palo Santo and tobacco.

:: Capricorn ::
Pisces season invites you to relax into the sensation that not everything has to be accomplished or take effort. Place the remnants of a project that’s partially complete on your altar and honor where you are in the process. Bookend it with a jar of sand as you realize that you don’t have to build a castle to enjoy the shifting, soft sensations of all these tiny grains. Think rainbowed sand art placed in the bathroom you’re mid-renovation.

:: Aquarius ::
Pisces season invites you to break down rational systems of thought and to move towards the realm of irrational sensation as you blend your radical streak with Piscean mystical dreaming. Take an object apart and value its constituent pieces in a place of prominence. Or construct an altar to items that make no “sense” together but which carry an intuitively emotional charge. Think Ikea furniture instructions surrounded by talismans gifted from friends, and wondrously weird snapshots of your past and potentially future selves.

 :: Pisces ::
Invite yourself to explore the Virgo sitting opposite as you ask your slippery fishies to venerate the process of discernment, boundary construction, and divining what is singularly precious from the sea of possibility. Strip your altar down and practice choosing just one valued object from your bottom-drawer jumble of treasures and trash. Or add every precious item possible and then ritualistically remove them over the course of a week until only one beloved piece remains. Think fistfuls of plastic jewels from that lost weekend in New Orleans slowly untangling themselves, or a fishbowl containing a solo geode exposed to the light.

To find out more about Cara George and Bess Matassa and their work, visit: MojaveRising.com

DREAMS BECOME REAL: A READING FOR THE VIRGO FULL MOON

Posted on by Hannah Ariel

The February 22 Virgo Full Moon is our annual opportunity to ground our wildest dreams into our everyday reality, says Hannah Ariel.

Reading for the Virgo full moon 2016 by hannah Ariel for The Numinous

“When you are far away from reality, your fantasy won’t work.” – Yogi Bhajan

February 22 there will be a Virgo Full Moon, a sign that is exacting in its every endeavor. Virgo energy works out of necessity. This mercurial sign is the very fabric of our reality; Virgo does exactly what makes the most sense based on the current circumstance – and yet, acknowledging that circumstances are always changing, can change its mind accordingly to fit each twist in the tale with masterful perfectionism.

A Virgo Full Moon is precious in its ability to clue us right into the heart of the matter. It reveals what works to make our lives a better experience while clearly showing us also, what is obviously not working. Keeping an ever so discerning eye on the lookout for where an adjustment is needed, with the ability to point out any singular detail that may be otherwise overlooked, Virgo can be our BEST FRIEND when it comes to manifesting.

Opposite to the moon, the Sun will have just entered Pisces where we can also easily experience the fluidity of our imagination and tune into higher realms of consciousness. This in turn can inspire us to follow our intuition as we take action to adapt to all that is changing in our lives. When it comes to actually manifesting anything of lasting value, once a year we tap into the most formidable tool in our cosmic toolbox – the VIRGO/PISCES axis – an inspired balancing act between the mystical and the material.

While Pisces can foresee and imagine all possible outcomes, Virgo takes direct action, focusing on what can be clearly understood in plain daylight, here and now. Together they are masterful co-creators of an ideal reality. One cannot exist without the other. This week, find how they can come together in synergy. Create your own divine intervention in one form or another. Fine-tune the details of your reality, your relationships, to work with our most outrageous visions.

Coming off a brilliant New Moon in Aquarius, this Virgo Full Moon will bring us down to earth, deepen our integrity, help us take practical step-by-step measures to keep us committed to making changes we may have been inspired to embark on during the past two weeks, strengthening a realistic resolve inside of us.

Virgo in its full capacity knows well that no matter how cosmic your vision, no matter how revolutionary your realization, or how noble your intention; it amounts to nothing without both feet on the ground, managing the details, managing the outcome. This week we will be shown how things can really come together for us in our everyday lives.

So much of this is about simply adjusting what we do and with whom we do it. Every circumstance that has outstayed its welcome will complete itself now. Every circumstance that needs to be salvaged will begin to be fixed. You will know which is which because at this time, our intuition will express itself as simple common sense. We find what FEELS out of alignment and we have a golden opportunity to get CONSTRUCTIVE about it. Also be mindful that this Virgo Full Moon means we will feel every nook and cranny of our current reality.

We will be pulled into our bodies. Our nervous systems will speak to us clearly. We will receive acute signals that have the power to change everything. Pay attention to ALL your interactions and all your experiences this week, and listen to how they make you feel. This will be as simple as noticing what is really happening and what really needs changing – for good, for the future’s sake.

Though the moon has moved on, Mercury and Venus will be lingering just a few degrees from one another in Aquarius, still coordinating the futuristic intentions of the last New Moon. This adds to a cosmic scene that’s allowing us to experience unmistakable lucidity. It will suddenly be obvious how things can and will come together at this Virgo Full Moon, if we stay rooted in reality.

So keep your feet on ground, but remain flexible. Breathe deep. Tune in. It’s the little things that will make a MASSIVE quantum difference at this time. Expect your every fantasy to be served well and moved into the future.

To book a personal reading with Hannah contact: [email protected]

AN EMPATH’S FASHION WEEK SURVIVAL GUIDE

Posted on by The Numinous

Attending the international catwalk shows left former Garage Magazine fashion editor Chloe Kerman feeling utterly depleted. Here’s how she learned why – after leaving the industry behind… PLUS: Chloe shares her Fashion Week survival guide.

Chloe in her fashion editor days
Chloe in her fashion editor days

I was a Fashion Editor for 10 years. I had a great job at Garage Magazine, produced beautiful shoots, working with incredible photographers such as Paolo Roversi, Ellen Von Unwerth, and many others. On paper, it was my dream job, but honestly during that time I was so unhappy. I felt like a hamster caught in a spinning wheel, running over the same old ground over and over again. I was very low, I had no passion, no drive, and felt like I was wasting my life.

Of course, my job also meant I attended the international catwalk events in New York, London, Milan, and Paris, and I saw almost all the shows. A dream come true for anybody who claims to love fashion. However, before the shows I would go into meltdown. I felt immense pressure to buy new clothes while the insecurities I felt about my body would be heightened at this time. My mood would be all over the place and I would dread the weeks ahead. By the end of the month, I was so emotional I would cry most days, which I put down to being over tired, suffering from stress and anxiety, and burning the candle at both ends!

Searching for some relief and some answers, I was still working for Garage Magazine at when I began studying Shamanism in October 2013. But on the last day of my course, Alberto Villoldo, my teacher and founder of The Four Winds Society, told me: “Don’t be surprised if your life changes when you go home.”

His prediction came true. Just hours after arriving home, my boyfriend at the time ended our three-year relationship – and the following day I was fired from my Fashion Editor job! In the space of two days, I’d been completely stripped of my identity. But all of a sudden, I was given the opportunity and freedom to change my life.

It was definitely a very challenging and emotional time, however now I see these events as huge gifts, as I took the opportunity to leave London and begin a magical journey of deep transformation, growth, healing, and study.

I have spent the past two years traveling and studying in the East and West Coast of America, Peru, Chile, Thailand, and India. I have studied Shamanism and Crystalline Consciousness, I’m initiated in herbalism, I studied at the Oneness University, and I’m currently working with the Divine Feminine empowerment movement, creating workshops and offering private sessions.

Chloe’s new life
Chloe’s new life

I live a very different life from my fashion industry days, which has enabled me to see how every experience is an opportunity to grow, leading me to approach life as a constant adventure. I have learned to understand exactly how I co-create my reality, which means whatever happens for me I take responsibility for manifesting it. And how exciting and empowering it feels to choose to take full ownership of my feelings and my daily experience.

When I started my shamanic training I also discovered that I am an “empath” – meaning someone who easily picks up on other people’s emotions, and who taps into the collective consciousness around them. That’s when the penny dropped as to why I had such a hard time during the shows – not only had I been dealing with my own feelings of insecurity, inadequacy and stress, but I was experiencing the strain of taking on a lot of other emotions that were swirling around me.

Being an empath is a beautiful gift – when you’re able to identify as one. However, until then life can seem very overwhelming, simply because we’re so sensitive. And when I worked in the industry, I knew nothing about how to prepare myself energetically for the shows. One very simple tool I’ve since learned, and which you can use anytime you’re feeling overwhelmed, is to ask yourself: are these feelings mine? If you get a no, they will automatically defuse.

Here, I’ve compiled a list of my top tips for staying centered, aligned, and starting my day in the most loving way possible for myself and those around me.

1. As soon as you wake up, invite all the things you are grateful for to come into your mind. Let this be spontaneous: I’m grateful for this comfortable bed, that I had a deep sleep, etc. When you start the day like this your frequency automatically bumps up in vibration.

2. Follow this with some kind of practice to connect to yourself. This can be meditation, yoga, a walk in nature, conscious breathing, focusing on your heart, etc. Even 10 minutes of this can really change the flow and mood of your day as it will connect you to your own center.

3. Choose to make every decision in love, with honor and respect for yourself and the people around you.

4. Dab a couple of drops of organic Bulgarian rose oil on each of your seven chakras – starting at the root, and moving up through the sacral, solar plexus, heart, throat, third eye, and crown. Bulgarian rose oil holds a very high vibration that maintains the integrity of the energy centers.

5. Wear a clear quartz crystal at your heart or solar plexus.

6. Do a chakra clearing daily, either morning or evening or both if you have time. I love Chakra Dyana.

7. Eat the most nourishing food you have access too – proteins and good fats are great for energy levels, and root veg for grounding. Avoid the foods and drinks that you know yo-yo your emotions i.e. caffeine and sugar (a hard one when you’re racing between shows!)

8. Movement. Anytime you feel stuck or low in energy its time to move, either physically or choosing a different thought pattern. This circulates energy and keeps us in flow and open to new opportunities.

9. Create an act of kindness for someone else daily, plugging into the energy of unconditional giving.

10. Book in with an energy healer after the shows to rebalance, nurture and refuel your system.

And, remember that anytime you feel stressed or overwhelmed, you can use this as an opportunity to practice coming back to your center – which means simply taking a moment to focus on your heart and on your breath, practicing compassion for yourself and the experience that you are having, and inviting gratitude into your awareness again.

I say practice because staying present is a choice we have to make consciously throughout the day, with all the adventures that come our way. With this said, I invite you also to consciously decide to ENGAGE and ENJOY the fashion week craziness!

To find out more about Chloe’s work and book a session contact: [email protected]

MY MYSTICAL LIFE: CHATS WITH GURU JAGAT, AND THANK TM FOR THAT

Posted on by Ruby Warrington

Also the week of 5am wake-up calls (thank TM), a cosmic soup diet, and a message from Mother Mary…

Ruby Warrington founder Aries Arise sweatshirt The Numinous
Aries Arise sweatshirt: standard issue book-writing attire

:: MONDAY ::
Skype time with the one and only Guru Jagat, kundalini queen of the Ra Ma Institute in Venice. We were talking all things yoga for some research for MY BOOK (have I mentioned I’m writing a book? Only 2 more chapters to go *wipes sweat from brow*), and her parting piece of advice for anybody getting serious with their spiritual practice is to set your alarm for before sunrise (“any time from 3-5am is great”) to do some kind of meditation. Well…as the cosmos would have it, I’ve been waking at 5am on the dot (no alarm needed) for the past few days. I’m blaming the TM.

Guru Jagat on The Numinous

:: TUESDAY ::
So I’ve been eating a lot of soup – because basically the Universe said so. As in, a few days ago I overheard 4 different conversations where people were talking about soup and how great it is (seriously – like in the yoga studio, on the subway, in the street), the same day I saw some thing about this book called THE SOUP CLEANSE. Had to be a sign, right? So I had soup that night and it just felt so GOOD! And so nourishing, and so and right for my nutrition needs right now. And so not fancy, I’m getting mine from Amy’s Organic. The Universe delivers her guidance in mysterious ways.

:: WEDNESDAY ::
Got my first Goddess Guidance Oracle Cards! Yep, more book research, and also because I had a mini Goddess reading with lovely Erica Wiederlight of We The Light last week and the cards that came out were SO inspiring I was like, yes I’ll have more of you in my life thanks. Funny thing is, Mother Mary keeps coming up – which is weird for me since I don’t connect with the myth of Christianity on any level. But I do like her message – “Expect a Miracle.” As as for the immaculate conception…well it does feel like I’m currently birthing a #bookbaby (did I mention I’m writing a book?)

Doreen Virtue Mother Mary Goddess card on The Numinous
Scenes from my desk

:: THURSDAY ::
Got the first peek at samples of the sweatshirt line we’re launching on the site next month! So so good, I literally can’t wait to get share them. Even better than my Aries Arise “Don’t Be Square” shirt (see main pic), which has become my standard book-writing attire (did I mention…?) Also, something strange. I’ve always been majorly selfie-averse (upcoming 40th birthday etc), but for some reason I had no qualms whatsever posting this “make-up free” pic today. It honestly feels like something has shifted in the way I see myself this past week. Again, I think I’ll blame / thank the TM.

:: FRIDAY ::
So this is the year I’m really, fully, embracing sobriety. Not in a total abstinence sense, more of a “this feels like the healthiest choice for me and actually it appears to be making me really happy” kind of way (p.s. I’m also working on a really exciting project to further this conversation – watch this space!) And so today I’m on my way to the left coast for…a sober Las Vegas weekend! I used to have this thing about certain destinations (Vegas, Ibiza) being off-limits if I wasn’t drinking, but how lame is that? I’m excited to see what the bright lights look like through the lens of absolute clarity. Oh and ALSO it means I’ll finally get to visit Vegenation – the downtown Vegas vegan joint I’m totally obsessed with on Instagram… #sobervegas!

Taco time at Vegenation las vegas on The Numinous
Taco time at Vegenation

MOVE, SIT, WRITE: 10 REASONS TO WRITE AND MEDITATE EVERY DAY

Posted on by Tatum Fjerstad

As she prepares for her Move, Sit, Write tour of the US, Tatum Fjerstad explains how learning to write and meditate every day is about sparking a conversation with your higher self. Artwork: Brian Lynch

Tatum Fjerstad on the Numinous

Call it an exercise in trading comfort for terrifying uncertainty (she does, in this brilliant blog post), but when something broke in Tatum Fjerstad in December last year, the only option was to pretty much quit what she’d been doing and start again. Which looks a lot like setting off across America to teach her twin (okay triplet) passions of yoga, meditation and writing – a.k.a. her Move, Sit, Write tour, which will take place in 15 studios in seven states, beginning March 3 in Portland, Oregon.

Up until this point, Tatum had been making her life / career decisions a lot like: “If I do this, people will think it’s cool. If people think it’s cool, then I’m cool. If I’m cool, people will like me and then I don’t have to work so hard to like myself because everyone else will be doing it for me.” And if you too suspect, on any level, you might also be living this life: “Get out now,” she advises. “It will bring you to a very dark place where you will feel so very disconnected with your own wants and desires that you’ll start to have bleak feelings about how we’re all just atoms bumping into each other and everything is meaningless so what’s the point.” Our point, in general, precisely.

It’s been through her own move, sit, write practice that Tatum has learned to re-connect to and value her sense of self – and since it’s often our own wounds that lead us down the path to our dharma, who better to guide others to do the same. Here, she shares 10 reasons to write and meditate every day…

For more details of Tatum’s Move, Sit, Write tour check out her Go Fund Me page  or book tickets at Tatumfjerstad.com

1. Take An Inventory: When you create the space to listen to your patterns by meditating on and writing down whatever is bouncing around in your head, you (and only you) can decide what you want to keep and what you want to release. This doesn’t happen after one go at it. You have to do it every day.

2. Own Your Shit: When things are rough, this practice can help you get super clear on your hand in the matter. All of us are walking around with a LOT of baggage, no matter who you are, and we can’t unpack it by ignoring it.

3. Sleep Harder: I started meditating twice a day everyday and journaling once in the mornings almost a year ago. Since then, I have had some of the best naps, dreams, and deep sleeps. When you give yourself the time to slow down during the day, your body settles much easier when it’s time to do so.

4. Deeper Connections: When you become a better listener to yourself, you become a better listener to others. It’s a lot easier to put your phone down during a conversation and make eye contact with another person if you know how good that feels when you do it for yourself.

Tatum Fjerstad on The Numinous

5. Forgive Freely: This soft quiet practice initiates the nurturing of your inner teacher, who happens to be pretty benevolent, empathetic and compassionate. You’ll start to be more lenient on yourself and that will trickle down to others because you’ll realize that we’re all doing the best we can with the tools we have.

6. Treat Yourself: So many of the people I teach think this sort of work is too indulgent or they say they don’t have time. If you have time to scroll through your Instagram feed in bed in the morning, or wash your hair every day, you have enough time to get up a little earlier and do yourself this favor.

7. Increase creativity: When you sit and watch your thoughts and freely write them down you are sitting at the seat of creativity. You can’t force that shit. It has to come on its own with space and sweetness. What better space than writing and meditation?

9. Inspire Others: The longer you do this, the more your friends will want in. They will see your softness emerge and they will ask for your secrets. Share them.

Tatum Fjerstad on The Numinous

10. Get it Out: Omg, it feels so good to write a bunch of shit about someone who is pissing you off. It feels WAY better than telling them this stuff and then immediately regretting it. I’ve solved entire friendship dramas without speaking a word to them and having the conversation with myself until I was done with it. Sometimes that takes a few days, sometimes much longer.

11. Be Your Own Best Friend: You know that feeling when it’s whatever-night-of-the-week and you don’t have any plans and everyone is doing cool shit and you feel like a big loser full of FOMO? That goes away because you’ll start to really love those cuddly moments with yourself when it’s just you, a good book and some great music.

MATERIAL GIRL, MYSTICAL WORLD: ELLA GRACE DENTON

Posted on by Ruby Warrington

Uber-blogger Ella Grace Denton uploaded her first YouTube video in 2011; five years later, she has become a compassionate Vegan with a mission to inspire us all to LIVE MORE. We got an invite into her mystical world…

ella grace denton

THE NUMINOUS: What inspired the name for your blog – why do “we need to live more”? 
ELLA GRACE DENTON: We Need to Live More originally started as a kind of statement to our generation. The online world can be very overwhelming, face-paced and all consuming, and I believe it’s stopped us connecting to the natural world around us and each other in deep ways!

So much of the online world, Instagram and Twitter, for example, allows young people to get lost in the seemingly incredible lives of others and disconnect from their own passion, purpose and life. And so my blog truly started as an online space to inspire others to live more meaningfully, to follow their passions and dreams and to live for themselves, rather than to aimlessly follow and get lost in the material world.

TN: Your site is dedicated to womankind – which women are you most inspired by and why?
EGD: Yes, in the last year my focus has shifted slightly and I’ve really found an interest in exploring womankind, the constraints and pressures we feel, why we compete with one another, and our power when we come together and learn to love ourselves again! I love nothing more than being with strong, free, natural, women.

Some women who inspire me:

Tavi Gevinson:  total babe, actress, and founder of Rookie Mag, an amazing online space for females to share and create collectively. Just an incredible advocate for womankind.

Elizabeth Gilbert: writer of the recently published Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear. For me, she represents womankind in such a strong way. She actively creates ideas and pursues her dreams whilst empowering other women to do the same. 2000% living in her truth, and that’s inspiring.

Elle Luna: artist, designer and author of The Crossroads of Should and Must: Find and Follow Your Passion –another must read. ALSO listen to her Do Lecture called ‘The Importance of Doing What You Love’, it made me cry!

TN: We know you love astrolgy, how do you work with the cosmos in your everyday life?
EGD: I’ve just come into astrology! I’m religiously watching and learning from Kay Pacha and his YouTube videos. I’ve also become fascinated by the different stages of our moon cycles as females and what that means for our bodies and energy.

Ella Grace Denton on The Numinous

TN: Which crystals are you working with currently and why?
This week I’ve been working with a beautiful white agate, a new amethyst and a golden spirit healer quartz:

– White Agate: for purifying and calming
– Amethyst: for grounding
– Golden Spirit Healer Quartz: for aligning and bringing me back to the sun energy in my solar plexus

TN: What does a truly well-lived life look like to you?
EGD: Being surrounded by a community of people who care about me, pursuing my dreams and ideas passionately and openly, and making positive change in the world.

Now a look into the mystical world of this material girl…

:: MATERIAL GIRL ::

My label
Anything second-hand

Chanel Jacket from Nasty Gal
Vintage Chanel Jacket, Nasty Gal

My shoes
A pair of boots made of silver satin I found in Oxfam…

800px-Oxfam_International_logo.svg

My fragrance
A mix of seabuckthorn, jojoba, rose otto, geranium, immortelle, neroli, lavender, palmarosa oils.

Lavender Essential Oil, Do Terra
Lavender Essential Oil, Do Terra

My jewels
My YCL Jewels hand crafted crystal choker, a crystal necklace I was given for my 21st by my mum, an ‘E’ necklace from my dad and my great great grandmother’s ring

My pampering
A hot bath, with candles, incense, and essential oils

My home
The island of Ibiza

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
Es Vedra, Ibiza

My food
Mango!

Ella Grace Mango Salad
Ella’s Beetroot and Mango Salad

:: MYSTICAL WORLD ::

My awakening
My awakening was always rumbling in my soul, it started in 2012 but came into full swing when I watched the documentary ‘Cowspiracy’ exactly a year ago (trailer below!)

My sign
Scorpio

Scorpio Necklace, Laura Lee Jewellery
Scorpio Necklace, Laura Lee Jewellery

My mantra
“I am exactly where I need to be”

My healer
Nature

My reading
Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert

My transformation
Going vegan – which means living compassionately, by killing and eating no other beings

My mission
To empower others to live openly from their hearts

To read more from Ella Grace Denton visit Weneedtolivemore.com 

WEEKLY TAROTSCOPE: FEBRUARY 15-21

Posted on by Louise Androlia

The Ace of Swords brings clarity and confidence in our own abilities, helping us see beyond the challenges of the week ahead, says Louise Androlia.

You can watch last week’s weekly tarotscope at the link – did Louise’s message resonate with you? Share in the comments below, and connect with us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter!

AN HONEST RELATIONSHIP: HOW TO LOVE AND BE LOVED

Posted on by Hanna Bier

Step fully into your light for an honest relationship that shows you how to love and be loved, says Hannah Bier. Artwork: “Lovers” by Marina Gonzalez via Behance.net

mindful relationship abstract lovers by Maria González on The Numinous

They told me that true love was sweet and sticky. They told me that if I manage to stay obedient and pure, a Prince will come and save me. He will wear tight-ass leggings and put me in a castle, where we will have mediocre sex until the end of time.

Well, my dating life used to be land mine after land mine and I know all too well about the brain fuck of modern societies’ views on romantic love. And it’s time to stop shitting ourselves and get real about what truly enlightening love looks like.

Here’s what you need to know if you want a mindful relationship where you’re free to love fiercely and be loved rapturously:

1. LOVE THEM SO MUCH THAT YOU PISS THEM OFF
Relationships that are either dysfunctional or incredibly boring share one common trait: the lovers dance around one another trying not to piss each other off. The truth is, the best thing you can do is to be your wildest, most obnoxious self, especially around the people you want to keep in your life.

We’ve been through tremendous amounts of family programming, plus the societal conditioning that piles a ton of limiting beliefs on top of the unhealed trauma we’ve amassed over the years. As a result of our lived experiences, we develop vices and behavioral patterns for dancing around our true fears and desires. It becomes easier to surround ourselves with people who join in this dance with us, and to never even try to get off auto-pilot.

Being your awakened and audaciously high-maintenance self means dancing in the way of your lover, and interrupting their pattern. It means being the one who loves them enough to not enable them to keep re-living their past. So do not restrict your own beautiful range of expression to accommodate their sleep-walking.

Just being you, you are going to piss people off who’d rather not wake up—especially those closest to you. But it is an act of fierce love to make them deal with their shit instead of trying to make it easy for them.

It is your business to love, not to look the other way. But too often this is misunderstood, and people make it their business to keep the people they love comfortably numb. If you want to support the spiritual evolution of a person you’ve come to care deeply for, let yourself be difficult and speak your truth.

mindful relationship abstract lovers by Maria González on The Numinous

2. TELL THE TRUTH
The #1 reason relationships end is because the lovers prioritize their own sense of comfort over the relationship. The glue for any mindful relationship is emotional intimacy, for no intimacy means no connection, and therefore no point to the partnership.

In order to keep the juices flowing, you need to continuously gather the courage to say the things you almost daren’t. You have to have the courage to be vulnerable and to make yourself look like an idiot. You have to value the relationship more than the desires of your own ego.

You can either be comfortable or be loved. Because if you don’t step up and show yourself in all your messy glory, it is simply hard to love you. We need to see you, to be able to love you. Don’t blame your shallow conflicts about who bought the wrong toilet paper for the deterioration of your relationship.

Every conflict is an opportunity to stand up and tell the real truth. To throw your lover on the bed and to show them how deeply you want to be with them. Fuck them until they know how much you love them. Or to keep screaming and making up stories, so that you can stay comfortable and lonely. It is completely up to you to show up and give it your all.

mindful relationship abstract lovers by Maria González on The Numinous

3. HOLD THEM THE WAY YOU WANT THEM TO HOLD YOU
It is your job to see people for who they truly are. We all have a tendency to downplay our brilliance, to dim our lights, so that we can keep living within what feel like safe boundaries of being. If we never reveal our true nature, we will never make ourselves vulnerable, and we won’t be subject to any criticism.

But you know this won’t work.

By covering up what we really want and settling for something less, we are directing our creative force against ourselves. Playing small is lethal, because every heartfelt dream contains the energy to make it happen. If we pull back instead of going full blast, the energy intended to help you take massive action ends up being trapped in your body where it will slowly kill you.

Don’t let the people you love hurt themselves like that. See them for the genius they truly are. Remind them of how you see them and make a vow to only speak to their higher selves.

How do you want the people you love to show up for life? Don’t you want them to be empowered as creators, infinitely brilliant artists, and deeply loving souls? Hold them the way you want them to show up. Humans are forgetful, make it a habit to remind people of what they really need to understand about themselves.

This, is fierce love.

UNCONDITIONAL SELF-LOVE: A SACRED ROSE QUARTZ RITUAL

Posted on by Laurey Simmons

Learn how to use a Rose Quartz ritual as a tool for self-love and beautification. By Laurey Simmons of The Colourful Dot.

Rose Quartz ritual by The Colourful Dot hearts on The Numinous

What is it about children and their innate attraction to sparkly and beautiful things? I remember so clearly walking along the beach as a child, looking for the prettiest pebbles, just feeling so full of LOVE, even at this young age, for the beauty of Mother Earth and her magical powers.

This kind of instinctual love can become more difficult to access as we get older and our hearts carry more scars. And with Valentine’s Day approaching, this is a sacred moment for us to remember our innate sense of LOVE ENERGY – which Mother Earth can effortlessly remind us of, if we are open to receive.

Crystals are my direct path back to that instinctive childlike enchantment, and as a make-up artist and spiritual adventurer I have found magical ways of using them to help my clients embody inner and outer beauty. After all, nurturing our innate beauty is not an exercise in vanity, but actually a practice in bringing us closer to the divine.

For me, unconditional self-love is an essential ingredient of inner beauty. And one of my favourite tools to activate this aspect of our self is a Rose Quartz ritual. This gemstone works with the energies of the heart, gently nurturing compassion for self and other.

So how can you use a Rose Quartz ritual to awaken your inner goddess? A simple but very nurturing ritual I love weaves Rose Quartz into a bathing experience. Here’s how:

  • I always begin with spiritual cleansing of myself, my space and my crystals. I love to use the smoke of burning Palo Santo, a ‘holy wood’ from South America that was used in ancient ritual and ceremony to ward off bad energy.  It’s really important to make sure you open a window while cleansing, so that any energy you are wanting to be rid of can leave. Trailing the burning wood around myself and the Rose Quartz, I watch as the smoke travels and fades mystically, as if in a sacred dance. I instantly feel lighter. As I breathe in this rich, heavenly scent, I visualize the smoke spirits soaking up any negative energies, and kindly transporting these energies away.
  • Placing some flowers or a plant at the end of the bath will also allow you to drop deeply into the present moment. I often just gaze at the flowers, absorbed intimately with Mother Earth and all her natural beauty. I have this beautiful quote about flowers as a reminder:

“When you take a flower in your hand and really look at it, it’s your world for the moment.” – Georgia O’Keeffe.

  • To elevate your sense of smell, have a relaxing oil burning. I like to use Rose and Geranium oil with this specific ritual. As the aroma fills the air, I enter deeper into a meditative state, visualizing the molecules of scent travelling up through my nose, down my chest and into my heart centre. Here the scent is absorbed by a delicate pink rose, slowly opening its petals to reveal a white healing light.
  • With this image firmly rooted in my heart, I mindfully place the Rose Quartz pieces around the bath. I will usually have a blessing which I will speak when placing each stone. A great blessing for this ritual is: ‘“May I be bathed in the light of unconditional love.” I will also add some Rose Quartz tumble stones (small polished stones) to the water, so that when bathing, I’m fully immersed in the absolute and unconditional love of Mother Earth. Once in the bath, I then imagine the crystals surrounding me linking with each other in a loving, active embrace.
  • When your bathing ritual is over, it is important to ground yourself. I like to visualize tree-like roots anchoring me down to the core of Mother Earth as I dry myself.

Beyond bathing, I also recommend adding some magic to your morning beauty routine. Did you know you can use a Rose Quartz massage stone to apply moisturizer? In ancient times, Egyptian women added powdered Rose Quartz to their beauty potions to prevent wrinkles and to restore a glowing complexion. So, with gratitude and respect for the ancient beauty wisdom of our sister goddesses, I will apply the cream with my stone and visualize my face glowing with a white nourishing light, restoring my inner and outer beauty. An extra little tip to give you Rose Quartz energy on-the-go is to add one or two small Rose Quartz tumble stones into the cream itself, making sure you have cleansed and blessed the stones beforehand.

I hope this Rose Quartz ritual brings you the space to relight the flame of self-love and inner beauty. Here is one of my favorite passages on inner beauty to send you on your way:

“Beauty is life when life unveils her holy face.
But you are life and you are the veil.
Beauty is eternity gazing at itself in a mirror.
But you are eternity and you are the mirror.”

– Kahlil Gibran, excerpted from The Prophet (A Borzoi Book)

@NUMINOUS_BOOKS