The Devil is a juicy opportunity to dance with your shadow and free yourself from shame, says Sagittarius Season’s reader-in-residence, Brandon Alter … Cast using the Prisma Visions Tarot
Month: November 2018
THE 2018 VIRGO WANING MOON WANTS YOU TO CLEAR THE WAY
As we move ever closer to the Solstice and New Year, the 2018 Virgo Waning Moon tempers Sagittarius Season with a precious pause. It’s prime time to purify, refine, and clear the decks for personal freedom, says Jennifer Racioppi …
Waning Quarter Moon // November 29 2018 // 7:18pm ET // 7 degrees Virgo
As the Sun blazes through the mutable fire sign of Sagittarius and 2018 passes through its denouement, the Virgo Waning Moon invites you to embrace a life purification process.
While this Virgo Moon’s sense of organization, discipline, and attention to detail might feel contradictory to the larger-than-life influence of the current Sag stellium (the Sun, Jupiter, and Mercury are all traveling close to one another in this live-and-let-live sign of fun), leaning into Virgo’s austerity will accelerate your path towards the freedom you most crave.
With just a few weeks remaining before the Sun enters Capricorn, use this time to organize your life. You might consider purging your closet, refraining from making big year-end purchases, limiting your intake of alcohol and sugar, and letting go of toxic relationships.
Take a stand for your truth, and let the rest go. Staying disciplined now sets you up for success at the start of the new year.
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// The Cycle //
In personal development circles, the idea of “becoming our best self” often equates with a journey of acquisition. Gaining the job/relationship/status/fill-in-the-blank becomes the objective. However, this journey towards achievement requires sacrifice too. Sacrifice means to release something of value to create or receive something of equal or more significant benefit.
While the Waning Moon often goes unnoticed, this is a critical time between the last Gemini Full Moon, and the upcoming Sagittarius New Moon. When used intelligently, this Moon is the missing ingredient in manifesting your New Moon wish. It asks you to make a sacrifice in order to achieve the freedom you ultimately desire.
In purity driven Virgo, this Moon commands discipline. As we inch closer and closer to the upcoming Solstice, consider any indulgences that are holding you back from the growth you crave most, and eliminate them. Yes. Choose to change. Now. (Not after the clock strikes midnight on January 1st).
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// The Transits //
This Waning Quarter Moon happens at an exciting astrological moment. In the days leading up to this turning point in the lunar cycle, the Sun and Mercury (who’s retrograde) aligned in a perfect conjunction with Jupiter, the planet of growth, elevating the potential for expansion!
However, Mars the planet of action, squares this trifecta of awesome, and opposes the Virgo Moon, creating a t-square. This is a fancy way of saying that the freedom-seeking Sag Sun needs to slow his roll! Traveling through mutable Pisces, Mars ushers in a deeper understanding of the values driving the desires for gains.
While this might require a sacrifice in the short term, in the long term it will deliver on Jupiter’s promise of freedom during his yearlong transit through Sag. While sacrifice can sometimes feel punitive, here it offers liberation.
Mutable signs indicate change, and require you to engage with your transformation process (not just wish for it from the sidelines of your life). To support this, the Virgo Moon makes a perfect trine to Saturn in Capricorn and, simultaneously, Mars in Pisces sextiles Saturn. These harmonious angles with growth-through-sacrifice Saturn indicate that discipline trumps freedom now.
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// The Square //
Virgo vs. Sagittarius is a classic battle between austerity (Virgo) and abundance (Sag). Both signs are mutable, meaning they prepare us for change, yet beyond that, they share few similarities.
The Virgo Moon aims to purify, reminding us that our emotional needs can be met through release. This is amplified by the fact that it’s the last Waning Quarter Moon before the Solstice, and this idea of surrender syncs perfectly with the metaphor of dwindling light.
Sagittarius, on the other hand, resists discipline in all forms. With a go-big-or-go-home motto, the Sag Sun drives merriment, not surrender. Yet, given Saturn’s essential participation during this Waning Moon, take this time to tune into the Virgo opportunity for purification. 2019 begins with the Sun and Saturn conjoined, meaning Saturn’s influence isn’t going anywhere. So we might as well honor him now and get a head start on the journey ahead.
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// The Opportunity //
Like the Moon, which wanes back to new, surrendering the light of the Sun in the process, we have to learn how to yield to our rebirth, again and again, month after month. And often our resurrection depends upon our ability to let go of something we cling to, to make room for something we want.
With this Waning Quarter Moon in fastidious Virgo, forming a mutable T-Square with the Sun and Mars, our egos might feel a wee-bit under the gun—which makes total sense. However, honoring Virgo’s mission to call out old habits, patterns, people, and behaviors that once served you but now block you is critical to your growth trajectory—even if your ego despises this.
This Virgo Waning Moon presents the perfect cosmic moment to surrender into faith: to let go of something, or make a sacrifice, on behalf of what you most desire.
Your freedom hangs in the balance …
Discover more about astrologer and success coach Jennifer Racioppi and her work HERE and follow her on Instagram.
SEX DRIVE: A JOURNEY TO THE CLITORIS OF AMERICA
In an excerpt from her new book, Sex Drive: On the Road to a Pleasure Revolution, which chronicles her cross country search for a lost libido, Stephanie Theobald embarks on an “ecosexual” nature walk led by porn star-turned-performance artist Annie Sprinkle …
Annie Sprinkle christened San Francisco’s Bernal Park hill “the clitoris of America.” Researching my new book, Sex Drive, I knew I had to visit for myself, and so Sprinkle and I met in a local diner for breakfast. After demonstrating her ability to have an “energy orgasm” on the spot (think Meg Ryan’s infamous turn in When Harry Met Sally, but for real), she promised to take me on a Bernal Park “ecosexual” nature walk, where she would show me how to do it too …
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An X-rated nature walk
By this time, I’m quite keen to get up onto the Clitoris of America and try it all out myself. So off we set on a climb up the hill to Bernal Park and an X-rated nature walk begins. It’s not X-rated because Annie’s going to take her clothes off. The plants are going to be doing much filthier things. “Look at that,” she says, stopping in front of a cherry tree in full bloom. “Flowers are tree genitals. Basically, you’re looking at porn.”
We walk on until the siren call of another tree brings Annie to a halt. “Look at this trunk, it’s like a big penis. Isn’t it beautiful?
Hockey pitch nature walks with Miss Corbett at the convent were never like this. Annie says that I need to find my “E-Spot,” her ecosexy take on G-Spot. (She’s great at coming up with new words). I’m drawn to an exuberant hibiscus flower. “Oh yeah!” she says approvingly in her raunchy porn voice. “Hibiscus stamens!”
I wonder if David Attenborough shows ever give her that Deep Throat feeling. We approach the hibiscus and she says, “You can smell it casually. Or you can imagine this plant is a lover and it wants to give you a gift.”
She smells her new lover, pulls off one of its genitals and sticks it on her third eye. She sticks one on me too. None of this strikes me as stupid or odd. Cornwall isn’t a million miles away from California in terms of country weirdness. My eco or “E-Spot” as she calls it, kicks into action as I notice that a tree we’re passing looks a bit droopy.
“Don’t you think this tree looks a bit sad?” I say.
“It is a little heavy, isn’t it?” she nods.
She knows immediately what to do. “You just need a hug,” she tells the tree enfolding it in a bosomy embrace. “Oh, love you.” I participate in the love-in, realizing only afterwards that I have just hugged a tree in California. This is the sort of thing that people make fun of back at home, but American Stephanie doesn’t care. Annie looks wistfully at the tree then mumbles something about, “I may be projecting…” She slaps the tree’s butt. “You’ll be OK,” she cracks. “Hang on in there.”
It’s fun going on a nature walk with an ex-porn star. She’s not great on the names of flora and fauna, but she does things like saying hi to her favorite Eucalyptus tree. She plucks a leaf, thrusts it under my nose and chuckles, “Sniff that pantie!”
The sap must be rising from the ecosexy nature walk because I soon have a sort of sexual panic attack. I start gabbling about how I want to check out some seedy places in San Francisco and how I really want to get laid and, “you know that feeling when you want to have sex and you’re not having sex and…”
“Stay in the moment,” she puffs as we carry on up the steep road. They’re magic words and I immediately calm down. I think back to my interview with Barbara Carrellas back in New York a month ago. I arrived too early for the interview and the prospect of writing a book about masturbation suddenly overwhelmed me. What the hell was I thinking of?! I wasn’t even sure what I meant! So I just experimented with letting go: dropping into my body, unsticking from the world so that for a few moments I was just snow and boots and crunch. When I came ‘back’ a few seconds later, it felt like a shot of a week of the best sleep ever.
And then suddenly Annie announces that we’ve reached “the urethral sponge” i.e. we’re in Bernal Park but not quite on the clit. My main feeling is that the Clitoris of America has had a bit of a bikini wax. Its green pubic hair is a bit patchy. There’s a lot of uncovered soil. Maybe the dog walkers nobbled it. There are a lot of them. Annie says it’s the drought. It’s been a serious problem in San Francisco. Annie has actually married the main culprit along with a group of ecosexy friends.
“If you think about it, right now the sun is penetrating your pores,” she says in her incantatory broad-from-the-1950s voice. “They’re fucking your whole body.”
When I ask her how she knew the sun wanted to get married, she says, “We can only assume that things respond well to love and appreciation. Like, if you cruise a bunch of girls or guys, you’ll get the message who’s available.”
She and Beth have also married the mountains, the snow, coal and the ocean. I try and impress her by saying, “My favourite drugs are sugar and the sun.” She enthuses, “Oh, I love sugar too,” but adds that she has to lose weight for the filming of her and Beth’s upcoming ecosexy tour. “Saying it’s OK to be fat, it’s the one thing about feminism I don’t agree with.”
By now we’re sitting on the very top of the park, a bumpy grassy area that slopes down with massive views over the city on every side. Looking at the view, it suddenly strikes her that, “Maybe the earth is the clitoris of the universe.” She laughs. “Betty would say, ‘Oh that’s bullshit!’” She tells me that we’ll do the energy orgasm right here.
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Meditation + masturbation
She describes the technique as similar to something she used to call “medabation,” meaning a combination of masturbation and meditation. But mainly, she says, it’s like learning tennis because, “It’s a technique and at first it’s confusing and you’re like, ‘Woah! How do I hit it and how hard?’” She confides that it took her three years to learn how to do it properly.
I realize that this “energy orgasm” is her take on the heart wank that Barbara Carrellas told me about back in New York. Annie explains that the idea came about when she and Carrellas were investigating more spiritual ideas about orgasm during the AIDS years. “All of us had lovers who got HIV, so we had to figure out how to have safe sex.” They adapted the breath technique from a method taught by a Native American called Harley Swiftdeer. He calls it “Firebreath Orgasm,” but Annie doesn’t “because I didn’t take the very expensive training that initiates you.”
And so my tennis lesson begins. She starts by telling me to, “Say, ‘Yes’ to erotic energy. You have to allow it because it’s there just for the asking.” She points to the tree in the near distance and says that the ideal would be to, “Start feeling sexy and then direct your energy to the tree and see what happens.” She tells me to do some kegels (clenching of the vagina as if you want to stop a stream of pee) and undulating movements of the pelvis. “That’ll stoke the furnace.” After that comes the most important thing of all: the breath.
“You’re really sucking the inhale and relaxing the exhale.” She advises to make noises because that helps shift energy in the body. “The idea is to bring in energy through the feet and end up shooting it out of the top of the head. Fake it til you make it,” she quips in what she tells me is jargon from the porn world.
It’s a great lesson. It reminds me of the Transformational Breathing technique I tried out in my hippie journalism phase with the British teacher Alan Dolan. Basically you breathe quickly in and out, taking in more than usual amounts of oxygen until a wave of euphoria hits you.
And then there I am, lying on a hillside in San Francisco as the woman once dubbed “The Golden Girl of Porn” makes sounds ranging from deep Witches’ Sabbath to mid-range horny-bitch-on-heat to high-pitched damsel-in-distress to glass-shattering Kate Bush on the moors. “Wooo! Woo!”
Listening to the tape afterwards, I do sound a bit stuck in Witches’ Sabbath mode. Clearly I need to work on moving my energy up to more damsel-in-distress mode. Meanwhile, I am in the ludicrous position of lying with my feet towards the top of the hill and my head towards the bottom because I want to face the sun. But something is definitely happening. I get to the state where I forget to worry about what the dog walkers must be thinking of us.
I have a flash of some of the boring-looking dog walkers I’ve seen in Presidio Heights. I want to unzip them and show them some love. Tell them it’s OK. Occasionally I get distracted by the fact that I’m not feeling anything remotely like an orgasm although Annie is now sobbing. Wailing almost. We get in breathing synch. I try and keep up with her her “Ah! Ah!”s until finally she makes a prolonged, “Oh yeeeeeeah!” presumably when the energy passes out of the top of her head.
I open my eyes and the sky is indeed bluer. There is also dog shit on the bottom of my right boot. I think I won’t say this to Annie. She’s clearly having a moment.
“When I masturbate like this, I feel the pain of the world, I really do. The Boko Haram, The Charlie Hebdo shootings. The animals, everything. I become a channel sometimes. I just need to release the pain. It’s like truly connecting. It sounds really strange.”
“No, it doesn’t sound strange …” She’s right that the concept of words becomes shaky after this kind of tennis. I struggle to speak.
“We can’t really experience pleasure on a really grand scale unless we can feel the suffering and the blocks and the disconnect somehow.”
Watching Annie with tears streaming down her face, it strikes me that this is what a modern-day nun looks like. Sending an orgasm to promote peace in Nigeria and Paris isn’t that weird. Christians and Buddhists send off distilled thoughts known as “prayers” to try and alleviate world suffering every day. Yet the kind of energy generated during orgasm is jet fuel compared to the economy petrol that comes from a morning at mass.
Stephanie Theobald’s Sex Drive: On The Road To A Pleasure Revolution is out now. Join Stephanie in LA for the launch party on December 7th from 6-9pm at The Pikey 7617 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, and follow her on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, and check out mysexdrive.org for more details. **And discover more about Annie Sprinkle’s SexEcology HERE!
NUMINOUS WEEKLY HOROSCOPES: NOVEMBER 26-DECEMBER 2 2018
Get this week’s astro symbol for your sign with Sandy Sitron’s Numinous Weekly Horoscopes …
Sagittarius // Sagittarius Rising
Giving a flower. The full description of this dream-like image is “a bubble that has a hand gives a flower.” This symbol represents generosity, potential, and expansion. Generosity is the seed. Your ability to be generous energetically opens up your potential for new developments. And that leads to your expansion. So if you don’t know what else to do this week, start with generosity.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Capricorn // Capricorn Rising
A snowboard slices through snow. You want to find your momentum, but as usual you have to make your own path. Trust that you can get to where you want to go. Put yourself in motion, then enjoy the ride. Let your subconscious guide you intuitively. The more you can coast instinctively, the better. If you overanalyze every move, you’ll topple.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Aquarius // Aquarius Rising
Examine the distant sky. It’s easy to take the sky for granted. But staring at the distant horizon will improve your sense of vision, literally and figuratively. This is your moment for vision. How do you want to feel, in every important area of your life? What’s your vision for your contribution to humanity? Answer these questions with a vision board or brainstorming session. Know your direction.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Pisces // Pisces Rising
A beating heart. A heartbeat pulses through your entire body. It sets the rhythm in a subtle way. What pulses through you and sets the rhythm for your career goals? What is your purpose when it comes to the topic of your sacred vocation? Big question, simple answer. Stay focused on the core service you want to offer to the world. The central heartbeat. Everything else is just noise.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Aries // Aries Rising
A golden star. A star is always above. It’s something to look up to. Gold is symbolic of many qualities, among them: illumination, love, virtue, wisdom, magic, and prosperity. It’s time for you to lift up your mind and set your sights higher. There is no limit to your sense of love, wisdom, and prosperity. This week can teach you that. Open yourself up to a new way of thinking. Or if that’s too extreme, refine your current thought process. There’s room to grow.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Taurus // Taurus Rising
Rolling the dice. You have got to take a risk, especially in your personal relationships. Nothing is solid, ever. Nothing is guaranteed. Your strength is tangible and real when you trust yourself. When you know that no matter what happens, you’re good. Then you can take the risks that your heart yearns to take. Then you can create intimacy.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Gemini // Gemini Rising
Bird feet. The bird mostly travels by wing. The wings seem much more important than the feet. Although they’re far less obvious, the feet represent stability for the bird. What’s the hidden stability in your life? One factor to consider is your important relationships. Have you been taking them for granted? Do you need to make more room for stabilizing relationships? It’s time for adjustments to be made.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Cancer // Cancer Rising
Stones thrown into the pool. A ripple effect. Start with the basics and let your energy ripple out from there. Make sure you feel tidy and organized. The ripple effect will be stability and efficiency. Take preventative measures to help your body feel healthy. The ripple effect will be productivity and peacefulness. These are just examples, but the idea is to keep your focus on the core principle and then admire the results.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Leo // Leo Rising
A sewing project. There’s a step-by-step process to be employed. Choose the pattern and colors, thread the needle, attend to the details. There’s also the joy of creativity. Making something appear from nothing. Don’t hold back. There is something that you need to put out into the world. Identify your step-by-step method and make it happen.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Virgo // Virgo Rising
A child’s birthday party. The hats are decorated according to theme. The children play and have fun. When was the last time you felt this way? Enjoy an innocent celebration. Tend to your inner child by doing something fun and childish. Your inner child has a very specific way that they yearn to feel special. Find out what it is and celebrate it.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Libra // Libra Rising
Leaves fall in autumn. There’s a lot of motion. Everything is changing, but especially the way you think and communicate. It’s time to truly listen to yourself. You need to let go of something and you need to change the way you think. It’s a big deal! But it’s also very natural and just another phase. So ask yourself lots of questions and wait for the answers.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Scorpio // Scorpio Rising
Pine tree forest. The more that you can let yourself go at your own rate and speed, the better. Try not to feel rushed. Take deep breaths and lean back. The pace doesn’t set itself, and it shouldn’t be set by someone else. What does time feel like for a pine tree forest? Possibly ancient, slow, and unhurried. Soak up that feeling and set your watch by it.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
THE 2018 GEMINI FULL MOON WANTS YOU TO LIVE OUT LOUD
The 2018 Gemini Full Moon is a powerful opportunity to tune in to our environment, and let trust in abundant connection lead to compassionate communication, says Sandy Sitron …
Full Moon :: November 23 2018 :: 12:41 am EST :: 0 degrees Gemini
Listen to the blue jay sing. A splash of inspiring color against gray sky. But the bird is on attack. Caw caw caw. It scolds and picks with aggressive intensity. Then it takes flight and the whole interaction is forgotten.
On November 23rd, 2018, there’s a Full Moon in inquisitive, talkative Gemini. The Moon is opposite the Sun in truth-seeking Sagittarius.
There’s a potential to verbalize with this Full Moon. That drive to communicate can come through in different ways.
First of all, it’s fleeting (that’s something to be remembered in the midst of your next big conversation). What feels important is impermanent. Next, it’s vibrant. Fired up. A flash of interest, vitality, brightness. There is an urge to communicate with intensity.
That can result in sharing opinions that you’re not even sure you believe. Gemini likes to talk and Sagittarius likes to know. When it comes to conversation, who is listening? Notice an urge to nitpick or criticize, like the bossy blue jay. Maintain an airy sense of lightness. You can fly away from the conversation. You can let it go.
There are so many strands of information flying, so many truths to be determined with this expansive Full Moon. Be deliberate about the information you take in. Notice your environment. Who are you influenced by? Whose messages and opinions are seeping into your mental space?
If you aren’t deliberate, you’ll will find that you scatter your energy against the wind. This could happen through internet binges, continuously scrolling through social media, or asking for advice. How much do you want to take in?
The best results of this Full Moon energy come when you are driven by compassion. When in doubt, move through your world with an awareness that everything is interconnected.
The Moon in Gemini increases your desire for input. The Sun in Sagittarius pushes your ego to KNOW and to have your truth defined. This is an opposition of energies that can be solved by the T-square to Mars in Pisces. Translation? Take all of this cerebral processing and balance it with your drive to feel emotionally connected.
When your actions are guided by a feeling of continuous and universal love, all is well …
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Moon opposite Jupiter
Bundles of flowers overwhelm the aisle.
So much abundance, it’s hard to decide where it should all go. Of course that’s not a problem. Let yourself be lifted into a positive vibration by this radiant energy. You don’t have to maintain a limit on how much happiness you’ll allow. Notice if your joy is immediately followed by thoughts of worry and fear. If that happens, remind yourself that you really do get to be happy. Your joy won’t be counteracted. You won’t jinx yourself by talking about your good luck. And you aren’t taking up too much space. There’s always room for more flowers.
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Moon square Mars
Ice skating.
Just keep going and going. There doesn’t need to be friction. There’s so much movement in general with this Full Moon making a challenging angle to action planet Mars, and a slew of planets in mutable signs. Take up the pace you need to take. Go for it. Make all of your adjustments. Just remember to keep your center of balance. You don’t want to spin out of control. Mars is in Pisces, so your actions need to be filtered through a vibration of love and compassion. That will help it all mean something.
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The conversation starters below are to help you get deeper into what the 2018 Gemini Full Moon means for you. Find a friend and talk it out. For the most accurate reading, look to which house holds 0 degrees Gemini in your chart and use the prompt for that house. New to your birth chart? Calculate your chart for free HERE.
Aries / Aries Rising / Full Moon in the 3rd House
“The question I would most like answered is …”
Taurus / Taurus Rising / Full Moon in the 2rd House
“What feels delicious to me right now is …”
Gemini / Gemini Rising / Full Moon in the 1st House
“I feel most confident in myself when I …”
Cancer / Cancer Rising / Full Moon in the 12th House
“I am letting go of …”
Leo / Leo Rising / Full Moon in the 11th House
“This time next year I will be …”
Virgo / Virgo Rising / Full Moon in the 10th House
“My long-term career goals are …”
Libra / Libra Rising / Full Moon in the 9th House
“The trip I am longing to take is …”
Scorpio / Scorpio Rising / Full Moon in the 8th House
“I can’t stop obsessing about …”
Sagittarius / Sagittarius Rising / Full Moon in the 7th House
“The most important relationship in my life right now is …”
Capricorn / Capricorn Rising / Full Moon in the 6th House
“I am working hard each day to …”
Aquarius / Aquarius Rising / Full Moon in the 5th House
“I feel like a kid again whenever I …”
Pisces / Pisces Rising / Full Moon in the 4th House
“I can always care for myself by …”
NUMINOUS TAROTSCOPE NOVEMBER 22 2018: THE 4 OF PENTACLES
With Mercury now retrograde, the 4 of Pentacles asks us to release from the rigid and make space for magic, says Sagittarius Season’s reader-in-residence, Brandon Alter … Cast using the Prisma Visions Tarot
SAGITTARIUS SEASON 2018: LET YOUR FEELINGS SET YOU FREE
Sagittarius Season 2018 is awash with direct motion, urging us to burst forth into new ways of being in the world. Bring your freshest feelings along for the ride and keep your eyes and your mind wide open, says Bess Matassa …
Race straight into the great, wide open, and let the wind throw back your mane, Numiverse. Sagittarius Season 2018 is top-down and ready to ride, a reminder that life is pulsating with possibilities when we risk rolling the dice and losing the map.
Sag Season 2018 invites a pack of direct planets to the party, including Mercury going direct in Scorpio and Sag, Venus now moving forward in Scorpio, and Neptune and Chiron slipping and sliding in Pisces. There’s a surprising freshness and adolescent flair to all this locomotion, as we feel the range of big feels with the celebratory aliveness of a teenage dreamer. Meanwhile, the stage is set for unveiling some hard-earned truths.
With a perpetually-packed suitcase, Sag asks us to get out and collide with the world, letting ourselves be blended, shifted, and changed by all we encounter. This Sag Season, how can you fully immerse yourself in the experience of living … without having to fully understand it all?
Bow to a higher law, wild ponies, confident that when you commit to hitting the road without holding back, it will rise to meet your gold-dipped hooves at every turn …
Listen to the full Sagittarius Season 2018 report from Numi resident astrologers Bess + Sandy HERE and get the quick and dirty on the season’s 4 key astro events below …
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Sun in Sagittarius (11.22—12.21) Road Tripping
The Queen of experiential learning, Sag longs to stretch her muscled legs, powerfully poised to dance all the way past the end of the dirty and dusty roads. Though this is the energy of the seeker and philosopher, the most vivid treasures are found in the unscripted detours. Perpetually on the move towards the edge of the infinite, and ready to mythologize each tumbleweed that passes, Sag works best when unattached to the destination. Let this energy take you on an impromptu getaway, either real or imagined. Remind yourself of your innate ability to meet the moment, and the precious promise of a life lived far beyond the limiting beliefs of “right” and “wrong” turns.
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Mercury direct (stations direct in Scorpio 12.1; re-enters Sagittarius 12.12) // Say Anything
Mercury’s journey between Sag and Scorpio has reminded us that we can dance with our demons without having to signal the final death knell, relating to each season of our life with presence and curiosity. This final forward push of Mercury in Scorpio and into Sag finds us ready to share all of the hard-won gems that we’ve mined with the celebratory fervor of a lovestruck teen. A trip to the cosmic karaoke booth, this energy urges us to allow whatever’s on the tip of our tongue to come alive without fear. Let John Cusack’s unabashed boombox declaration to the neighborhood remind you that when we reach out from the inside, there is never any reason for regret.
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Neptune direct (11.24 in Pisces)// The Art of David LaChapelle
The zodiac’s dream weaving planet takes us far beyond the mundane and steeps us in the pure mystery of the unseen world. With Neptune stationing direct, it can sometimes feel like a rude awakening, as we’re forced to pull the blinds up on anything that’s been keeping us from clarity. This Sag Season, recapture the creative force in checking out to check back in, and turning your night sleeps into waking dreams. Bring heaven all the way down to earth with David LaChapelle’s glamorous escapism, which channels the Neptunian sensation of mixing the material and the mystical.
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Chiron direct in Pisces (12.9; trine the North Node in Cancer 12.2) // Bubble Wands
Chiron’s last direct pass through Pisces before it shifts into Aries in early February is an opportunity to take the full plunge into our iridescent, shape shifting feelings, exploring our most profound longings without judgement, and letting any shades of pain bring us closer to each person and creature in our lives. Pisces energy gifts us radical allowing, and paired with Chiron it invites us to widen our container and accommodate as many shades of sensation as there are drops of water in the ocean. Dip your bubble wands into the mix, and kiss the preciously ephemeral human experience with your breath.
HOW TO EXPLAIN YOUR SPIRITUAL AWAKENING TO YOUR RELIGIOUS FAMILY
When Fundamentalist threats of Hell left her wanting more, Kate Forristall turned to Now Age practices. But how to explain your spiritual awakening to your religious family? Kate shares her top tips for making the holidays less hellish …
Christmas 2017. Reaching for a beautifully wrapped present (the gene I didn’t get, sigh), I notice my sister Sally give our mother a nervous glance. Given my family’s tradition of one-at-a-time unwrapping, there’s no hiding what’s inside, but I have to smile as I open my package and see an intricately carved wooden box … with a pentagram on top.
I steal a glimpse at Sally’s face and feel her telepathically communicating with me in a desperate Tim Gunn voice, “MAKE IT WORK!” I lift the new repository for my tarot deck (pentagram covered by my palm) and wave it quickly, “A wooden box!”
“Who’s next?!” Sally chirps, as we simultaneously head into the kitchen to get coffee and put my gift away. When it comes to the spirituality we now embrace, we’ve decided pick our battles.
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Finding a faith to set me free …
At the age of 15, I began attending a church youth group known more for fun and community than hard line theology. Leaders preached the Gospel, but it was as simple as the original version (appropriate for humans without a pre-frontal cortex). The Jesus People movement had paved the way for a faith that was about loving God and loving each other, and I was happy to go along for the ride.
Unfortunately I got hijacked on the way.
In college I met Christians who could recite whole passages of the Bible and never seemed to struggle to obey all the rules the way that I did. They let me know that I wasn’t doing it right and by the time I graduated, the shame I felt over my failings was enough to send me right into the arms of Fundamentalism.
There were no sermons about the messiness of life, no Young Adult Group talks about how hard it was to be in your 20s. Floundering was considered moral failure and the threat of Hell was always looming. My goal became security, for myself, and eventually, my growing family, and I lost the delight and wildness of the God I’d met as a teenager.
In other words, I can help you explain things to your conservative mother, because I’ve been her. But while I forgot the kindness of the Divine, it did not forget me, and over the past 20 years I’ve managed to unload the toxic institutional religion that held me captive, while finding a faith that set me free.
Such faith means changed opinions about almost everything in life – politics, sexuality, social justice, capitalism, feminism – topics my family has often been less than thrilled that I brought up at the Thanksgiving table. But they were small potatoes compared to announcing I’d fully embraced New Age practices that we once believed were nothing short of demonic.
The new practices of my faith—meditation, spiritual direction, energy healing, multiple sacred texts, astrology, body work, and tarot—came from a period of darkness and spiritual searching, a time when I lost the ability to hear God and believed I’d been abandoned.
Now I can see that I was never alone, that my unknowing was, in fact the gift that pushed me through the Life-Death-Life cycle and into a belief that now sees the Divinity of all things.
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So as you prepare for Thanksgiving and the inevitable questions about why your life looks different than it used to, here are a few tips I’ve learned along the way …
1// “Preach … at all times. When necessary, use words.”
This advice from St. Francis is the best wisdom I’ve ever found for sharing experiences that have changed my life. If your example is one of serenity, service, love and hope, you’ll have no better evidence for the truth of the New Age spirituality you’ve embraced.
2// The Bible is your friend. Really.
I know, right? Whether it’s the Wise Men who used the stars to find Jesus, God noting the wheel of the Zodiac when conversing with Job, or Jesus feeling the energy leave his body when a hemorrhaging woman touched him, the Bible has an awful lot of examples of “New Age” faith. The word meditate is mentioned 20 times and if you do a Google search you’ll even find phrases like “centering prayer” from many corners of traditional Christianity.
3// Because science.
Meditation’s benefits are now proven by so much data that if your loved one can’t handle it, they probably believe in a six-day creation. Measurable energy fields of everything from the flowers in your garden to the heart in your body have uncovered a universe way weirder than science fiction. Neuroscience has revealed that our brains are supercomputers capable of affecting objects miles away (hello, pray much?) If none of that lands, find an empty room, light a candle … and meditate. At least you’ll feel better.
4// Try not to brace for impact.
This phrase has carried my family through many an anticipated rough situation. Neural communication studies show how much we convey before we ever say a word and I can tell you from experience that if you are telepathically shrieking, “I fucking dare you to make fun of my Tarot practice,” someone is going to comply. Moments like these are when the rubber meets the road. The Buddhist practice of accepting suffering while trusting its transitory nature has completely changed my life.
5// Baby steps.
I’ve always been an evangelist. Whether it was Jesus or toasted pecans in chocolate chip cookies, if I love something, I can’t wait to tell everyone I know. But when asking people to expand beyond a fear-based bias, I’ve learned that you need to move like an acrophobe in a skyscraper – one floor at a time. My mother now knows that I own a tarot deck. We’ve discussed the astrology of the moment on multiple occasions, and for her birthday, I gave her a book about manifestation. But it’s been seven years since I began this journey and my goal isn’t conversion. It’s that she too would find the path of greatest freedom for her life, no matter what it looks like.
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My resistance to the New Age movement wasn’t because I hated everyone outside my church. It was because I was terrified that it could destroy people I loved. Those who cling to fundamentalism are inordinately motivated by dread – circling the wagons to protect a God they can’t imagine being bigger than their sanctuary. Considering how vast and unknowable the Divine is, that’s a pretty sad perspective and I’ve given my kids unlimited permission to make fun of me forever for all the dumb stuff I did that was driven by fear.
Ironically, the greatest thing my New Age practices have taught me is how to deal with the fear I meet in this life. “If I go to the depths of the sea, You are there,” says the Psalmist to God, an understanding that no circumstance can separate us from Them—including, no matter how scary it is, spending the holidays with your family.
Kate Forristall is a writer, actor, mother, and lover of stories. Connect with her at #IRL Project, and on Twitter and Instagram.
NUMINOUS WEEKLY HOROSCOPES: NOVEMBER 19-25 2018
Get this week’s astro symbol for your sign with Sandy Sitron’s Numinous Weekly Horoscopes …
Sagittarius // Sagittarius Rising
Letters in the sky. There’s a message for you. The only question is whether or not you’ll look for it. Is there some area of your life where you’ve been going through the motions and ignoring what isn’t working? Start asking questions about it. There’s some message you need to hear. It’s likely that this new insight could have an impact on an important relationship.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Capricorn // Capricorn Rising
Hands overflow with lego pieces. You can’t hold onto all the pieces. You need a box or a shelf, some kind of system. Some new organization. This metaphor extends to any life area that is ready for some systematic overhaul. Stop absentmindedly picking up pieces and then dropping them. Get organized.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Aquarius // Aquarius Rising
Vibrational waves, ocean waves. A ripple effect is underway. Something that you put into motion is now stretching out to meet the world. Think of yourself as the center point and recognize what a great impact you have on those around you. What would this world be without you? It’s okay to build your ego up right now, if it strengthens your self-confidence. You are important.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Pisces // Pisces Rising
White rabbit holds a magical watch. You can get caught up in the constraints of time or you can believe in magic instead. Why constantly worry about being late if the clock is always running? Go through the looking glass and invert time. There is no time and every moment is now. Connect to the past and redesign it so that you feel healed. Soothe your younger self. Your current self will feel the effect.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Aries // Aries Rising
A spear. A simple tool. This symbol is embedded with reminders. Hold yourself up straight and tall. Go straight to the point in your relationships and conversations. Linear logic is important right now. Don’t avoid the truth, seek it out. If you bend or waver you will loose your momentum, so keep moving forward. Remember why you started. Don’t try to do too many things at one time, stay focused. And most importantly, work to connect with others.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Taurus // Taurus Rising
A very tall giraffe. To carry such a long neck, the giraffe body must be very strong and sturdy. Incredible power resides at the base and extension is achieved.This is your symbol because you need to take some time to examine your roots, your base, your stability. When you know deep within your heart that you are secure and safe, then you can expand your life with a sense of lightheartedness.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Gemini // Gemini Rising
Revealing a blank slate. A chance for a new beginning! Go after this fresh start with gusto and excitement. What a wonderful place to be— all possibilities stretch ahead. It’s easy to feel uncertain when you are just starting out. Instead examine your new project with an air of curiosity. What will you choose? What will you write on the slate? It’s all up to you.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Cancer // Cancer Rising
A labyrinth path is scattered with flowers. You continue to walk, lost, looking for the exit in the labyrinth. But there are clues under your feet. The flowers are there to help you navigate. You just need to know how to interpret love. How to understand hope. How to keep your mindset positive. Look for the good in everyone and allow compassion to be your best guide.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Leo // Leo Rising
A spider in the garden. There is whole ecosystem and everyone has an important role to play. You can focus on your role, but remember that you need everyone else too. The spider eats the bugs, so don’t kill the spider. The spider symbolizes creativity because she constantly weaves webs. What are you ready to make? You need to put it out in the world and collaborate. This is how your garden grows.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Virgo // Virgo Rising
Sipping through a straw. No need to awkwardly tip your glass when you have a straw. What you need can come to you. This applies especially to your work. Systematize and delegate. Use your tools and your brains to make things happen with less effort. It’s time to be a leader. It’s time to achieve. Get above the fray of the daily demands so that you have more perspective.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Libra // Libra Rising
A musician playing a flute. Follow the music. Go where the song leads you. Music can take you to a different vibration. There are many things that can shift your vibration; a nap, a walk, a smile, laughter, an inspiring affirmation. Seek those things out. An elevated vibration can shift you into new possibilities. Even if it’s just a tiny bit more elevated than it was before. Find a new center of gravity.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Scorpio // Scorpio Rising
Fruit pies. Delicious options. Keep enjoying life. Keep doing pleasurable things. While you do so, take the time to recognize that you are having fun. Celebrate. Make it meaningful. And then feel confident when the moment of pleasure resides. You don’t need to remain attached to the pleasure. By nature, it comes and goes. This is your chance to allow and let go. Release your expectations.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
NUMINOUS TAROTSCOPE NOVEMBER 15 2018: THE TOWER
The Tower asks us to let the storm sweep away what’s no longer solid, clearing space for us to rebuild even stronger, says Scorpio Season’s reader-in-residence Anna Toonk … Cast using The Slutist Tarot
THE 2018 AQUARIUS WAXING MOON WANTS YOU TO MAKE RADICAL PROGRESS ON YOUR DREAMS
As the new year draws ever closer, the 2018 Aquarius Waxing Moon wants us to step into our fullest power and make a radical stand for our mission-driven dreams, says Jennifer Racioppi …
Waxing Quarter Moon // November 15 2018 // 9.54 am ET // 23 degrees Aquarius
As the Sun moves through the fixed water sign Scorpio, and the last of the leaves find their way to the earth to decompose, the 2018 Aquarius Waxing Moon highlights transformation—especially as it relates to you rising on behalf of your mission-driven dreams.
With the Sun setting earlier and earlier, and 2019 becoming eerily closer each passing moment, the current astrological dance calls forth these transformations. Even for those on the other side of the world, where the Sun waxes instead of wanes, the essence of Scorpio season prevails; signifying a time to release limiting beliefs that hold us back from stepping into our full power.
The Aquarius Waxing Moon coincides with the end of Venus’ retrograde journey and the beginning of Mercury’s final backward spin of the year—stimulating radical action on behalf of your most heart-driven goals. Given that Mars’ and Venus’ respective retrograde cycles have commanded heavy doses of emotional sobriety, 2018 closes out with all of us feeling way more conscious and aware! Especially when it comes to understanding the extent to which we still live in a racist world, the fragility of our environment, and some of the bypassing undertones that infiltrate spiritual communities.
This Waxing Quarter Moon boldly highlights both how far we’ve come AND how much further we have yet to go …
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//The Cycle//
This Waxing Quarter Moon marks the halfway point between the Scorpio New Moon and upcoming Gemini Full Moon. On the most basic level, it asks us to recommit to the goals and intentions we set just a week ago when the Sun and Moon aligned at 15 degrees of Scorpio.
From a more nuanced perspective, however, this Waxing Moon directly relates to the energy of the Lunar New Year, and the New Moon in Aquarius on Feb 15, 2018. Aquarius, the sign of futuristic visioning, represents dreams, ideas, and collaborations. What were you dreaming of 9 months ago? Now’s the time to assess the progress you have (or haven’t) made on behalf of your deepest heart’s desires.
Then, ask yourself this: Are my goals helping to bring this world to a better place? Am I (sincerely) leading with love? Am I striving to create more equality, inclusion, and justice? How can I make my personal growth journey more socially aware so I can contribute on a higher level to society in general?
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//The Transits//
This Waxing Quarter Moon also conjoins Mars, who has spent an extended period in Aquarius due to his retrograde journey—the sign that represents progressive, global, values. Mars’ retrograde cycle happens approximately once every two years and asks us to eradicate self-serving ambitions. Since the Waxing Moon and Mars both trine Venus as she wakes up from her retrograde cycle, this particular cosmic moment highlights the need for societal change even more.
Venus has two phases, an “evening star” position, and a “morning star” position. When she’s in evening star, she rises as the Sun sets and is in her receptive position. When she’s in her morning star position, as she is right now, she rises before the Sun and is in her most fierce, righteous, phase. Venus, now awakening from her retrograde journey and rising before the Sun, pushes us to go after our values, beliefs, and dreams.
And given that she’s receiving a beam of support from both the Moon and Mars as she stations direct, it’s time to own humanitarian values—fully commit to your determination to make positive changes in the world. Venus, after all, relates to love. In her morning star position, she stations direct in Libra, a cardinal air sign that fiercely stands for justice. Use this to your advantage, and go after radical progress on your dreams!
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//The Square//
With the Sun in Scorpio squaring the Moon in Aquarius, we could find part of ourselves stubbornly resisting progress. Both Scorpio and Aquarius are fixed signs after all, and neither readily acquiesce. “Radical change” might feel impossible—if even desirable! With Mars in the mix, we might feel moody, possibly even a little aggressive/passive-aggressive. Depending on the level of consciousness we bring to the day, we might even feel defensive. On the plus side, Scorpio, beckons profound truth, while Aquarius is a sign that pushes us into alignment with our values. With positive self-talk and a righteous commitment to our values, we can find the necessary conviction to step out of our demise and into our resurrection.
The best approach? Use the friction of the square to give yourself a reality check. If you find yourself feeling defensive, name it. If you feel angry, express it. Then tap into the energy of Venus stationing direct and commit to your becoming. Make a vow to offer your journey and growth to the betterment of the world. Choose to face your future, as opposed to your past and your pain.
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//The Opportunity//
This Aquarius Waxing Quarter Moon, packed tight with nuanced astrological meaning, punctuates a long and winding road of retrograde challenges. Thankfully with Venus on the eve of her direct station, forming an ideal angle to both the Moon and Mars, we can use this opportunity to go high and trust in a radical leap forward.
Review the progress you’ve made over the last nine months, or since Venus went retrograde on October 5th. Or even since the Scorpio New Moon that happened last week. Use this as a springboard for your next big leap. As the Sun wanes and nature decomposes, trust that it’s leading you to your rebirth. This energy will magnify even more in the days following the December 21 Winter Solstice. For now, stay in your strength, and remain committed to the life you most want to live.
2018’s cosmic curriculum commanded maturity. The heavy retrograde activity overhauled mindless ambition, highlighting vapid behaviors, and asking all of us to embrace emotional sobriety and get to work on behalf of the world. Now’s the time to embody what you’ve learned. We are all in this together!
Discover more about astrologer and success coach Jennifer Racioppi and her work HERE and follow her on Instagram.
WHAT IS THE FUTURE OF MASCULINITY?
The “divine feminine” is often invoked as a Now Age ideal for our gender evolution. But how to really dismantle systems of patriarchal oppression? Trans man and diversity and inclusion activist, Aaron Rose, shares his vision for the future of masculinity …
From Parasitic Patriarchy to Abundant Symbiosis
When Now Age mystics speak of “divine masculinity,” what they are describing is simply: masculinity. Exalted qualities of heart-centered action, fierce loyalty, innovative logic, and earthly strength are what masculinity truly is. Everything else is an aberration, a mistaken idea, and a misuse of energy.
The divine masculine is complemented by the divine feminine archetype: the universal energy of intuition, receptivity, nurturance, creation, and collaboration. These energies are not inherently gendered. They flow within all of us.
So how do we reclaim healthy or conscious masculinity? How do we end our crisis of sexual violence? How do we build a world with true gender equality?
In the #metoo era, it can sometimes feel like the goal is total eradication of an inherently “toxic masculinity,” an embrace of androgyny, or an exclusive exaltation of the feminine. But the destination of our evolution is not about erasing our differences or course correcting from toxicity to divinity; it’s about reclaiming gendered archetypes while embracing an even wider spectrum of expression.
Patriarchy is the collectively held (and externally manifested) idea that men are superior to people of other genders, that there are right and wrong ways to be men and women, and that there are rewards for reinforcing these ideas, and penalties for violating them.
And if patriarchy is a result and a manifestation of parasitic scarcity consciousness, then we’re more than ready for abundant symbiosis.
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A Different Way to Be Human
When I first began my transition from female to male, I was terrified of becoming a man. It was who I was – a person who had been female-assigned at birth and who felt called to a male identity and masculine embodiment – and yet, I could not have been more scared.
As a woman, I had lived a life defined and constrained by male violence – from the abuse of family members, to the harassment of strangers on the subway, and the subtle discrimination at work. The manhood I saw around me did not represent the kind of person I wanted to be. And the people I loved were quick to reinforce this idea: You’ll become a tool of the patriarchy, they said. The world doesn’t need another MAN.
On a physiological level, I knew that taking testosterone (in the form of hormone replacement therapy) was right for me. My body needed it, hungered for it like a too-late dinner after a long day. But on an emotional level, I was paralyzed, wracked by immobilizing guilt.
I was afraid of losing the part of myself that cries at Pixar movies and gathers my friends into huge hugs and composes love letters to my beloveds. The part who really, really listens to my people when they’re hurting. I was afraid of embodying toxic masculinity. I was afraid of becoming (even more of) a stranger to myself.
This deterministic model of gender is one we’re all used to. We’ve all heard “that’s just how men are” and any number of absolutist statements that divide the population squarely down the middle, into two prescribed boxes: man and woman. I was just as trapped as anyone.
But equally, in making the choice to transition I knew I was signing up for a lifetime commitment to proving the idea that there was another way to be a man than what I had been shown. That ultimately, there was a different way to be a human altogether.
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Dismantling the Deal with the Devil
This commitment, this faith in the future of masculinity, has fueled my decade’s plus of evolving work in diversity and inclusion—a key part of which is leading conscious masculinity workshops in which men and masculine people of all genders have an opportunity to take themselves off of cultural autopilot and reclaim healthy masculinity.
Patriarchy invites men to make a deal with the devil: trade your eternal wholeness and humanity, in exchange for earthly and temporal power.
Time and again, I witness men become emotional in my workshops when we talk about gender equality and allyship. When I ask why, they say things like: “I feel like I don’t have anything else to offer,” or “What more do you want from me?,” or “Not everyone gets to be treated so nicely, you know.”
As the conversations unfold, we identify, again and again, that they are fundamentally bewildered about why or how they should be giving something to someone else that they do not feel they have themselves: gentleness, a reason to truly accept themselves, a full range of self-expression, emotional presence.
In my workshops, we inventory our masculinity stories, going all the way back to our first memories. And themes emerge, like the first moment of shame, often attached to a memory of playing with feminine clothing, hugging other boys, or crying when we were sad. We bring loving witness to these wounds, and then we choose again.
If the story was: “when I am emotional, the people I love reject me”—we elect to write a new story: “my vulnerability brings me closer to the people I care about.”
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What is your role in this process? Here are 4 ways we can all help bring about the future of masculinity …
1// Separate masculinity + femininity from gender identity and sex assigned at birth.
“Sex assigned at birth” is the label you were assigned at birth based on the external anatomy your doctor observed. Gender identity is your innate, internal, sense of your gender.
Within our current western gender model, which has its origins in European colonization and white supremacist social control, sex assigned at birth, gender, and gendered energy are all conflated. If you are male assigned at birth, it is assumed you will be a man, and that you will behave in a masculine way. This deterministic model belies the truth of our experience — the truth that indigenous people of many cultures have always embraced — that there are as many possible genders and gendered experiences as there are people.
For example, I currently have a pretty masculine embodiment – short hair, muscles, a deep voice, a flat chest, traditionally male clothing. However, my energy is a blend of masculine and feminine – I am a go-getter who is often charging forward on the next big idea AND I create space for the people I love to be vulnerable, where I too surrender into vulnerability with them.
We all contain both masculinity and femininity. The unique mix and balance of this energy within us is as essential as the flow of oxygen into our lungs and bloodstream.
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2// Conduct a patriarchal thought detox.
What are the stories you’re telling yourself about men and masculinity, and about gender overall? Do an inventory of your beliefs about masculinity and men, and choose some different stories.
Some of our big collective stories that you may have running on cruise control include: men should not be emotional, women are more emotional and nurturing than men, there are only two genders, men are just like that, what your body looks like determines your gender, and more.
Set a timer for 10 minutes, write these old stories out, and then decide what you want to replace them with. Write down your new narratives and reread them out loud every day for 21 days.
One my biggest autopilot scripts was that conscious men are few and far between, and that if I was really myself and spoke about gender the way I do, then I would have few connections with men, personally and professionally. I’m choosing to tell a different story now, to affirm that conscious stewards of masculine energy are all around me. And you know what? Bit by bit that community is emerging.
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3// Understand that this work is not just for “bad guys.”
When I discuss my conscious masculinity work, I often witness men immediately deciding that it’s not for them. Or women deciding that it’s not for their husband or their brother or their friend. Because they’re already “good.” They haven’t assaulted anyone recently. They don’t make gross jokes.
We have this mainstream idea that there are “those guys,” those really bad guys, who have really messed up, who really need to get their act together. They’re the problem. They’re the patriarchy. They’re the ones who need an intensive on conscious masculinity. But the truth is that this work is for ALL of us. We all have an opportunity and a responsibility to become stewards of a new era of masculinity, of gender, of humanity.
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4// Embrace and reclaim the masculinity within yourself.
No matter your gender, you contain an alchemical blend of both masculinity and femininity within yourself. How does your masculinity manifest? In the clothes you wear? In the role you play in your relationships? In the way you tackle a project or negotiate a deal? In the fictional characters you identify with and seek to emulate? How conscious is your masculinity? How much have you chosen it, rather than operating it on autopilot? What do you love about your masculinity? How does it symbiotically complement and amplify your femininity? What do you wish others could see about it?
Write a love letter to your masculinity. Honor what you learn about yourself in the process.
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5// Practice inviting others into this conversation.
Where do you see others running on autopilot about masculinity and femininity? Maybe you’re a mom and you see how other parents assume so much about their children based on their sex assigned at birth. Assuming how their child’s body looks determines what their gender will be. Assuming boys will be tough and girls will like pink. Assuming girls will be nurturing and boys will be adventurous.
Just the other day I spoke with a mother who was grappling to understand why her 8-year-old son had been described by a teacher as “sensitive” and “safe” for the other kids to play with, because of how gentle and unaggressive he was. “I would have no problem seeing my daughter this way,” she said. “But it’s hard to compute how a boy could be described like that. It’s not how I see him.”
Maybe you’re a man and you are aware of how conditioned you are to not call out other men when they say something sexist, or to shame each other for expressing emotion. Maybe you’re a woman who feels super supported by your community of women, but feels like your male partner, family member, or friend, isn’t conscious of his masculinity and how it impacts you.
It’s okay to call the people into your life into greater accountability and connection. To do this, get honest about what your unique role is, however uncomfortable or scary it might feel. Whoever you are, your voice matters, and others will resonate with it.
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A Manifesto for Conscious Masculinity
The work of remaking our relationship to masculinity and femininity is, like all other fundamentally spiritual work, ultimately about restoring our capacity to self-determine our identity, to trust our intuition, and to unconditionally love ourselves.
We are the generational clean-up crew, taking ourselves off of the autopilot our ancestors ran for centuries, mending the wounds they did not know how to tend. As we emerge from the shadow, it is our birthright to embody unprecedented levels of self expression, connection, and ease. It is the work of a lifetime, but it’s why we’re here. And we don’t have to do it alone.
The future of masculinity is not an erasure of the traditional masculine archetype (ie strong, rugged, powerful, action-oriented), but a conscious release of the shadow sides of these traits (domination, control, emotional suppression, violence) and a conscious choosing of what our masculinity means to us.
The future of masculinity is the reclamation of this true divine masculine archetype, by whoever resonates most deeply with that energy.
The future of masculinity is amends and repair for generations of harm done, the honest reckoning of personal and collective shame and grief for violence committed, or violence not stopped.
The future of masculinity is an embrace of action without aggression, of leadership without dominance, of impetus and initiation without steamrolling, of grace without repression.
The future of masculinity is creation without collateral damage, strength without silencing, devotion without obsession, responsibility without control, power with rather then power over.
The future of masculinity is the intentional embrace of intuition, rather than the unconscious whim of instinct.
In short, it is a human life, fully and bravely lived, with self-love and connection with a Universal intelligence at its core, with nothing to prove and everything to share.
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Ready for more support reclaiming a positive masculine archetype, for yourself, or someone else in your life? Registration is open for my online Conscious Masculinity Intensive. Use code NUMINOUS for 20% off all ticket levels through next Tuesday, November 20th. It’s open to men, masculine people of all genders, and allies; we even have a few parents of male-assigned-at-birth kids joining too! Join us in co-creating the future of gender, together.
NUMINOUS WEEKLY HOROSCOPES: NOVEMBER 12-18 2018
Get this week’s astro symbol for your sign with Sandy Sitron’s Numinous Weekly Horoscopes …
Scorpio // Scorpio Rising
Rolling out the red carpet. Provide a warm welcome. This symbol is about honoring yourself and others. You are someone to be respected. Know it. And use your position and stature to hold open the door to others who would follow in your footsteps. Show compassion with all of your heart. Everyone is a VIP. The more that you feel forgiveness and compassion, the easier it will be to respect yourself.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Sagittarius // Sagittarius Rising
A tiny cricket. Get hungry. Like the cricket devouring leaves, you need to devour information. Look within to nibble on the true wisdom of your Inner Guidance. Look out into the world for the serendipitous moment that triggers a new realization. The cricket symbolizes luck, so trust that what you need to know will appear, you just have to stay open to it.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Capricorn // Capricorn Rising
Many stairs to climb. You climb a little bit everyday. It’s easy to be hard on yourself, but trust that you are ascending. Put your attention on what you’ve already built. That will help you feel secure as you continue to climb further. You aren’t starting at the bottom of the staircase. Remember that as you dream big dreams for the future.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Aquarius // Aquarius Rising
A watermill. Energy is available. Use your creativity to figure out how to access it. Once you do, you’ll find that extra push that can help you succeed in your career. You can feel motivated, energized and fired up. Stay singular and focused, that will help. Stay inspired. Believe in yourself and your gifts. Then do the work you’re meant to do.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Pisces // Pisces Rising
Starfish stuck on a rock. If you can get unstuck, you’ll find massive powers of regeneration. Get out of the way. You shouldn’t be your own saboteur. This may be a moment to contact the depths of whatever it is you’re afraid of. Look at the fear and watch it dissolve. Then journey toward vision, inspiration and hope. It’s time for you to follow your own star.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Aries // Aries Rising
Playing a computer game. You can find unexpected ways to solve your problems. You simply have to treat this all like a game, in a fun and rather detached way. Don’t take the ups and downs of life so seriously. Let go. By releasing old emotions and finding forgiveness within yourself, you unlock a new perspective. Eventually, this will allow you to have more fun.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Taurus // Taurus Rising
Cooking over an open fire. Go direct to the flame. There’s no need for an oven or a stovetop when simple heat is all you need. In the same way, go straight in when it comes to communication. Be pure, honest and direct. Be kind and thoughtful, but don’t mince words. This will help your public image and teach you how to go after exactly what you want.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Gemini // Gemini Rising
Breaking your own chains. It’s time to reexamine your everyday routine. What habits have got a hold on you? What do you need to release so that you can experience more freedom? Think of this as a seasonal review that will allow you to recalibrate. Seek out new habits and routines that feel healthier. It may be a hard adjustment at first, but the end result will be a feeling of freedom.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Cancer // Cancer Rising
A dried up dandelion flower. Blow on the dandelion seed pod and make a wish. Watch the seeds scatter through the breeze. When you put all of your energy into something, it will take on a life of its own. Take the first step and set your intentions. Make a wish. The next step is to believe in yourself. Respect yourself. Don’t be shy or self-deprecating. Be brave and follow through. You’ll see where the breeze will take you.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Leo // Leo Rising
A leaf on the surface of the lake. A fickle attitude won’t get you anywhere. Spend less time trying to determine what you don’t want, and more time being present to the moment. You can’t change everything and everything is always changing. So just stay centered. Tend to your emotions and bob along the surface of the lake like a leaf. Acceptance is your greatest power.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Virgo // Virgo Rising
A row of diamonds. The sparkle is dazzling. You want to be dazzled. And the whole world is trying to impress you. So surrender to the beauty that’s all around you. Let yourself be wowed and then pass on that sense of amazement to the next person. As much as there is suffering, there is also perfection. Expect it so that you can see it.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
Libra // Libra Rising
A seat at the diner counter. Sidle up to the counter for a slice of pie. It’s so simple. Find the simple things that make you happy. This moment is not about uncovering the philosophical or metaphysical pleasures of life. This is about basic enjoyment. Walk in the sunlight, wear cozy sweaters, eat foods you like. There’s no need to block yourself from enjoyment. This is the time to revel in being alive.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandy here or follow her on Instagram.
BE THE CHANGE: THE NUMEROLOGY OF 11/11
The numerology of 11/11 is a time to get focused on what we truly want—and walk through the door to a world of new possibilities, says Felicia Bender …
In Numerology, the 11 is a Master Number.
So what does that mean? Master Numbers are repeating numbers (11, 22, 33, and so on). Master Numbers contain a higher spiritual vibration, for lack of a better term. A Master Number is a highly charged frequency made of energy that brings specific opportunities to us when it shows up.
So what’s the 11 all about?
First of all, the number 1 is all about new beginnings, independence, initiative, achievement, individuation, self-confidence, and innovative creativity. So when you see this repeating number—a double number one—remind yourself to focus on what you want in your life rather than what you don’t want.
The energy of the number 1 expands what we’re focused on. With this energy in our court, we’ll begin to manifest our thoughts and desires into reality with turbo-speed. It’s imperative to be disciplined and mindful about how we focus our thoughts and actions. If there’s any time to dive into your positive affirmation file, this is the time.
As Mother Teresa once said: “I’m not against war, I’m for peace.”
So rather than grid-locking our emotions around what we don’t like or what we don’t want, this is a portal to fully shift out of “I’m anti-[fill-in-the-blank]” and into “I’m for [Fill-In-The-Blank]. 11/11 is a doorway to significant expansion in the way we see ourselves and our place within the world—including within the current political landscape.
The 11 is also the higher level 2 energy. The number 2 is all about harmony, balance, cooperation, diplomacy, and love. Part of the challenge of the 11 is learning to align the personal will and sense of being with divine will or the higher realms.
As for the date 11/11, this can be seen as an opening—a doorway. If you look at the numbers, you can see this visual representation —since each 11 actually looks like a door. The two doors can be seen as an intersection between the physical world and the spiritual world.
And so, on this especially important 11/11, make sure to focus your thoughts, think of the bigger picture, and see what opportunities are opening up to you.
NUMINOUS TAROTSCOPE NOVEMBER 8 2018: 3 OF PENTACLES
The 3 of Pentacles (aka 3 of Coins) asks us to assemble our dream team by playing to everyone’s strengths and acknowledging what’s truly aligned, says this month’s reader-in-residence Anna Toonk … Cast using The Slutist Tarot
