When we know how to listen, the Universe has a message just for us. We enlisted the help of mysti-cool, eco-conscious jewelry line Alex + Ani to help us tune into the magic symbols sending us cosmic downloads right now …
“Let go of coincidences and believe that the Universe is constantly trying to communicate with you”—Alex + Ani founder, Carolyn Rafaelian
The Universe speaks to us through signs + symbols. It could be a repeating number, a chance encounter, or seeing the same piece of graffiti everywhere you go. The first step to hearing the message, is to believe that this is true …
Having based her (pretty freaking incredible) career creating powerful magic symbols infused with pure intent, Alex + Ani founder Carolyn Rafaelian’s vision is to help her customers tap into this cosmic conversation.
“If you quiet your mind and look around you,” says a spokesperson for the design team, “you’ll notice the signs. Sit with them. Let them resonate. Use them to course correct, or to be assured in your direction.”
And to ensure accuracy, the company even employs a “Chief Symbologist” to research each new or redesigned symbol used in the collections. This can be a lengthy process—for example, the team’s new Buddha symbol was sent to Buddhist monks across the globe to verify the correct alignment.
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So what message does the Universe have for you RIGHT NOW? Whether you’re drawn to the physical form of any of the symbols below, or by its intent, check out the descriptions of 13 magic symbols from let Alex + Ani’s navigational “meaning” wall help you work out the symbol that’s speaking your Cosmic language …
*Want to explore further? Use this personal blueprint tool, which uses astrology, numerology, and your intentions to curate a personalized jewel prescription just for you!
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TRUTH The Feather: Ancient Egyptians believed a pure heart weighed as light as a feather. This symbol asks you to keep your heart light and pure, and let truth be your guide. Be honest with yourself, is there somewhere in your life where you haven’t been one hundred per cent upfront? Now’s the time to come clean.
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INTUITION Crescent Moon:Ruler of watery cycles of change and transformation, this bright celestial body reminds us that light will always come, even when we feel like we’re totally in the dark. As we teach in Moon Club, life is about cycles, and the Moon symbol is asking you to trust that when you follow your intuition, you’ll be led into the next phase of your personal evolution. What is your gut guiding you to move towards in your life right now?
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PRIMAL POWER Wild Heart:Tap into animalistic intuition and fearlessness with this symbol for antimony, a silver crystalline element used in alchemy, emblazoned on a panther’s forehead. Where in your life does fear keep you small? What would it mean to take up some delicious space in your life and seize your power?
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DIRECTION Compass:North represents home and wisdom. South embodies passion and creation. East signifies new beginnings and inspiration. West symbolizes introspection and reflection. This symbol asks that you clarify what you’re seeking so the path becomes clear. Are your actions in alignment with what lives in your heart?What is your soul mission and how are you taking steps each day to achieve it?
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POTENTIAL Unexpected Blessings:Symbolized by an acorn, never forget that the mighty oak grows from this tuny seed—and that sometimes miracles come when you least expect them and often in the smallest packages. Are you comfortable with experiential, process-based learning? What tiny steps could you take each day to start moving towards your larger dreams?
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ROOTS Tree of Life:Like the tree’s powerful branches, we are all connected in an ever-evolving, mysterious cycle of life. This symbol encourages us to feel the eternal bond between mankind and Mother Earth, and to root down in order to grow towards the sky. What is your support system?What relationships and habits do you have in place that can let you grow wild and free?
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DESTINY Endless Knot: Embrace love that defies time and space, and trust in the unfolding, with this eternal pattern. What is everlasting to you? This could be a relationship that’s endured, but could also be a part of your self, or your world, that you deeply believe in. What would it look like to recommit to an enduring belief in life as an eternal process?
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UNITY Healing Love: Harness the healing power of love for yourself and humanity with this symbol that makes the world go ‘round. What does healing look like to you? Have you been spending enough time on self care? Are you balancing between giving and receiving? How could you bring this exchange of self love and external love into greater equilibrium?
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FRIENDSHIP Pineapple: A symbol of hospitality, New England sea captains traditionally placed a pineapple outside their homes as a symbol of a safe return. Let a genuine sense of welcome forge lasting connections. When is the last time you gathered your tribe close?Or smiled to a stranger? Feel into moments during your day when you can open the doors wide rather than shut down.
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SERENDIPITY Fortune’s Favor:Find yourself in the right place at the right time with a symbol that fuses the horseshoe, heart, and shamrock, and channels the Roman goddess of good luck, Fortuna. How would you act differently if you truly believed that life was on your side? What chances would you take right now?
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ADVENTURE Godspeed:Channeling the Old English blessing for the start of a journey, this symbol’s magical sincerity protects you on your path. What kind of journeys are you ready to take? Review the great adventure you’ve been on thus far and don’t be afraid to project that into the future. Mood board it and get excited about all of the paths not yet traveled!
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ALIGNMENT Cosmic Balance:Manifest your dreams by integrating the masculine and feminine symbols of the Sun’s light and Moon’s reflection. What does a balance of yin/yang, masculine/feminine look like in your life? How can you find a healthy equilibrium between acting and intuiting, between shining your individual light brightly and listening in to the subtler rhythms of the world as it is?
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ABUNDANCE Hand of Fatima: Originating from the Hebrew word hamesh, which literally means “five”, this ancient talisman channels feminine power and fosters miracles by deflecting the gaze of the evil eye away from the wearer. Where do you operate from scarcity versus an abundance mindset in your life?What kinds of “negative” influences sap your energy? Get crystal clear on where energy is leaking and how you can redirect it.
Want more magical messages? Check out Alex + Ani’s customized cosmic jewels HERE, and follow them on Instagram.
For our first ever Numinous Beauty Awards, Eunice Lucero reports on the most magical product picks to bewitch and beautify, from your third eye down to your toes …
Marie Kondo must have been a mystic; there’s pure, Venusian magic in beautiful, useful objects that spark joy—or glamour, or confidence, or whatever it is we want to feel at any given moment.
Whether you’re looking for the witchiest fragrance ever, in search of some serious love potions, or simply to live more mindfully in the new year, here are the products that have earned a much-coveted spot on our vanities and our altars …
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:: GO-TO GOOD’UNS :: Gentle, cozy and nurturing, these are our fluffy safety blankets for when life just doesn’t make sense (a.k.a. Mercury is retro).
Drunk Elephant TLC Sukari Babyfacial, $80. Everything you could possibly want in a “facial” treatment, from AHA/BHAs to a veritable Olympic team of acids and antioxidants, that’s also formulated to renew all skin types.
Rodin Olio Lusso Luxury Lavender Absolute Face Oil, $89. The OG of all oils, while French lavender blooms and Bulgarian lavender oil chalks this up as pure indulgence. It promises “calm, illuminated skin”—now, if only life would follow suit.
S. & Durga Debaser Eau de Parfum, $175, 50ml. Moody aesthetic notwithstanding, a heart of bergamot, coconut milk, fig and pear stem rounds out to an earthy, addictive fragrance that’s perfect for the city witch on the go.
Rodin Luxury Face Oil
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:: THE UN-STRESSORS :: If a weekend getaway isn’t in the cards anytime soon, having charming little enablers that help you de-stress in the comfort of your own home is probably the next best thing to actual nirvana.
REN & Now to Sleep Pillow Spray, $25. Lavender and frankincense come together for a deeply relaxing scent that promises to ease anxiety and worries at bedtime—which is, in the Now Age, so damn clutch.
doTERRA Peace Reassuring Blend, $37.33 ($28 wholesale), 5ml. One second you’re rubbing this minty blend of vetiver, lavender, ylang ylang and frankincense between your palms and on the soles of your feet; the next, you’re calmer, more collected, and actually, peacefully, sleepy.
The Pines Apothecary Luna Mist, $20, 2oz. Say hello to sweet, relaxed dreams with this pine, lavender and bergamot pillow spray, which encourages a few mistings on both the body and your beddings at nighttime.
Herbivore Calm Bath Salts, $18. Not only does this look way too chic on our bathtub rims, but the vanilla and ylang ylang elevate the now-ubiquitous calming and detoxing properties of Himalayan pink salt crystals, for the last word in total body relaxation.
doTERRA Peace Blend
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:: THE DE-TOXERS :: Never underestimate the power of a good detox. Products infused with energy cleansing Palo Santo or sage help clear out icky low/bad vibes and purge you of all that no longer serves you. Clean slates for 2018, amirite?
Urb Apothecary Copal Palo Santo Body Oil, $30. Our fave way to wear this mildly smoky (but super anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory) oil is right after a hot shower—cleansing on cleansing.
Skin Owl Clary Sage Beauty Drops, $30. Simplify your regular serum + moisturizer combo with an oil that does both, while plumping up skin that’s been through its paces. It helps refresh and brighten skin with only two ingredients: organic Argan oil and organic sage.
Yoshimomo Black Charcoal Cleanser, $34, 120ml. This takes our charcoal obsession even further, and its cocktail of willow bark (natural salicylic acid), thyme, lavender and lemon also brightens and calms inflammation, making it a hard-hitting detoxifier. Act fast, though: this famous Etsy cult fave sells out in a flash.
Plantfolk Sacred Space (Palo Santo + White Sage) $18.50, 2oz. Chock-full of revered ingredients renowned for their purification properties and ties with the spirit realm, this tiny powerhouse is an über-practical solution for sageing and clearing your space, whether it be at home or on the go, like your car, locker, or even at work.
Peet Rivko The Rituals Box, $84. Give the gift of fresh, new energy to your loved ones (or yourself!) with this charming, rustic set that includes all you need to detoxify both body and spirit.
Peet Rivko Rituals Box
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:: TIME-SAVERS :: For when you gotta get a move on, get some help from these multitaskers and 2-in-1 heroes that know the meaning of hustle and flow.
Egyptian Magic Cream, $39. The 21 Century answer to medieval snake oil, that acts as a moisturizer, soother, burn healer, makeup primer, and even a lube (!) As the website says, it’s made with olive oil, beeswax, honey and, yes, divine love. Because what’s a stronger healer than that?
Purequosa Shower On the Go Organic Cleaning Body Spray, $17.95, 8oz. Essential oils like sage and lemon tea tree refresh and are reinforced with colloidal silver to neutralize odor and, fingers crossed, ward off any werewolves that may come a-sniffing.
Glossier Birthday Balm Dot Com, $12. This cult fave all-purpose salve is the last word in low-key glam, a.k.a. MLBB (“my lips but better”). Note: The subtly sparkly Milk Bar collab is the perfect stocking stuffer for the holidays!
:: HIGH-VIBE SERUMS :: Top of our holiday lists this season? All that’s calm and all that’s bright—especially our skin, because we’d rather spend our energies on big-picture stressors (like, you know, attaining basic healthcare and equality for all).
KORA Organics Noni Glow Face Oil, $68, 30ml. Miranda Kerr’s rich, nourishing face and neck oil has enough equity (and antioxidant power) to give good face to our most impossible missions.
The Vintner’s Daugter Active Botanical Serum, $185, 30ml. 100% organic from conscious growers, but with the price tag to match, we so wanted to be skeptical about the hype. Unfortunately (or fortunately?), we can’t, and can only wish this super-serum finds its way to us somehow this year!
W3LL People Bio Booster Facial Serum, $28.99. The seven-in-one active botanical serum helps rejuvenate and resuscitate skin, while evening out our complexions and skin tones. Calms rosacea too!
The Ordinary Resveratrol 3% + Ferulic Acid 3%, $7.90. From the baby brand that took Instagram by storm in 2017, and with good reason: its insanely affordable yet high-potency skincare rivals even the most premium of labels. We love layering this slightly heavier serum under our moisturizer for a dewy, winter-proof plumpness.
Kora Organics Noni Glow Face Oil
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:: MULTI-PURPOSE MAGIC :: There are days when it seems like the Universe literally has your back. Now take that synchronicity and bottle it, and you get these super streamlined, multi-purpose products, where everything just flows …
ApotheCARE Essentials The Replenisher Cleansing Conditioner, $10.39. Up your co-wash game with this gentle, hydrating formula. Also, if the pharma-chic amber bottles don’t beguile you, the expertly alchemized formula—including that super-sexy vanilla scent—definitely will.
Philosophy Pure Grace Nude Rose Shampoo, Bath & Shower Gel, $25, 16oz. The Early Aughts saw us stocking our shelves with this staple, but what gives it staying power is its sophisticated, straightforward purpose: to get you blissfully clean, with no fuss. (p.s. The latest Nude Rose update to their classic Amazing Grace fragrance is also a study in modern chic.)
Philosophy Pure Grace Nude Rose Shampoo
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:: SKIN-SAVERS :: For when you can’t get over your past skincare sins, like sleeping with your makeup on or skimping on the SPF, these effective—and deeply nourishing—peels and moisturizers can help you along the way to self-forgiveness.
Josie Maran Argan Exfoliating Cleansing Powder, $40, 60g. A logical extension to her much-lauded oil, this gentle powder exfoliant can be emulsified with either water, or her signature Argan Oil for skin that’s buffed to perfection.
Tata Harper Resurfacing Mask, $58. City-weary complexions and clogged pores get a revitalizing fix with this award-winning BHA, 1oo% natural mask, which can be used several times a week to get the refinement you seek.
S.W. Basics Exfoliant, $19.99, 3oz. Those who love a good Pinterest D.I.Y. recipe will embrace the tactile experience from this kitchen-quirky USDA-certified organic exfoliant, which uses oat and organic almond flour to renew skin.
:: LOVE POTIONS :: These glamour spells in a bottle all include rose, the ingredient most rhapsodized in both romantic and occult literature for its seductive, love-enhancing properties.
Euphoria Aphrodisiac Love Tonic, $24. When you ain’t got time to mess around! A few drops of this 1oo% organic love potion (which has hibiscus, rose petals and goji berries, among other ingredients) is meant to stimulate blood circulation, and is best shared with a partner, an hour in advance.
Shiva Rose Celestial Body Butter, $65. Celestial rose opens the heart and crown chakras, while the formula envelops you in pure, luxurious softness. What better pre-game is there?
Witch Baby Soap Love Body Scrub, $8. One whiff was all it took for us to obsess over this spreadable body exfoliator, but it’s the ingredient list that blew us away: it’s formulated with roses, apples and poppy seeds, a.k.a. all potent love spell ingredients.
Fresh Rose Floral Toner, $40, 250ml. Clarifies without stripping our skin, and leaves it calm and hydrated for nearly one full day.
French Girl Rose Lip Polish – Rose du Maroc, $15, 1oz. This organic rose and mint scrub makes sure those puckers are always ready for the kissing, with a gentle exfoliating and plumping effect.
Witch Baby Soap Love Body Scrub
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:: MOON BEAUTY :: The age-old archetype of the Divine Feminine, the nurturing Mother Goddess and the mysterious, untapped parts of our psyche, these products help you navigate life’s tides by harnessing the magically intuitive energy of the Moon.
De Lune Menstruation Tonic, $9. Not one for Advil? This mineral-rich tonic helps ease uterine contractions and minimizes blood clots.
Kypris Moonlight Catalyst Serum, $77. Specifically used at night, this gentler retinoid option is the herbal way to go for those with more sensitive skin that can’t take traditional retinols, but crave similar smooth, refined, luminous results.
Fig & Yarrow Moon Mist, $24. This sleep-inducing mist has lavender and yarrow (a root associated with Cancer, the sign ruled by the Moon) to help relax and nurture before bedtime. Bonus: It has a sweet shimmer reminiscent of moonlight.
Aquarian Soul Lunar Bathing Stones, $12. It’s easy to get lost in Aquarian Soul’s wide mystical offerings, but it’s these clever, practical/magical crystals that earned it those precious three words: “add to cart.”
Aquarian Soul Lunar Bathing Stones
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:: THE PROTECTORS :: Whether from the ravaging effects of UV exposure or against psychic, karmic vampires you meet on the street, protection, as they say, is everything. Underrated but utterly necessary, the name of the game is establishing the right boundaries—via SPF or otherwise.
The Ordinary Serum Foundation, $6.70. Any foundation worth less than our weekday lunch earns a second look; that, plus a high-pigmented formula and lightweight feel, plus SPF 15? Now they’re just showing off.
Sister Spinster Ghosts Essence, $20.Lift the veils of illusion with this magical elixir that helps us see the truth, while smoky quartz and obsidian align and ground in the process. We like using three drops on our pillows at bedtime for an “a-ha!” moment in the morning.
Eunice Lucero is the Editor in Chief and Chief Content Officer for All Things Hair US. A writer, editor, and beauty and style obsessive for over 15 years, she is also a certified astrologer under My Path Astrology, and an empath and intuitive—a combo she attributes to her Cancer + Libra stelliums.
Get this week’s astro symbol for your sign in our Numinous weekly horoscopes by Sandra Sitron …
Sagittarius :: Sagittarius Rising A cluster of pinecones. The beauty of the seed is quiet and pure. The seed needs protection. Let yourself float gently through your day, without judgement or worrying. Focus on the central truth that you are sprouting and you don’t need to know exactly what direction that will take. Focus on hope and trust. You will meet your goals. Expect it.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Capricorn :: Capricorn Rising A car moves along the racetrack. It has a low center of gravity. This is a message for you to stay grounded and move confidently. You don’t have to question your worth, or second-guess yourself. Move instinctively. Follow your passion. As long as you stay centered, you’ll be able to take the turns with ease and speed.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Aquarius :: Aquarius Rising Pulling a cookie out of a box. Give yourself a treat. Let yourself enjoy. You don’t have to measure everything against reality. Being overly realistic can quickly turn into pessimism. Instead, raise your curiosity and creativity. What might be fun? What might bring people together? The answer is surprisingly simple.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Pisces :: Pisces Rising A horse is eating flowers. Bring your conscious attention to the bounty and strength that you’ve developed over the year. Your success will feel ephemeral until you define it. Only you can do that for yourself. This is your yearly review of your career, so take notice of everything that you’ve achieved. Celebrate it.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Aries :: Aries Rising A puffy cloud floats in the sky. The cloud changes shape and form and so do you. Adaptability is part of life. But the question you must ask yourself now is, “At my core, what am I made of?” At the core of the cloud, there is nothing. It is swept away by the wind. This is your chance to define your mission statement, so that you feel centered and clear about what you want.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Taurus :: Taurus Rising A beaver is felling trees. The beaver teaches that if you are clever, you can resolve what you need to resolve. This is your moment for reconciliation and resolution. Let it go, let the tree fall. Create the boundaries you need to create. Work with the emotions that are coming up so that you can heal.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Gemini :: Gemini Rising A rushing waterfall. What would it be like to be a “rushing waterfall” in your relationships? Here are some ideas that come to mind … emotionally open or emotionally swept away. Replenished or overwhelmed. Relaxed or losing control. There are many meanings and they can be interpreted in a positive or challenging way. What meaning does this image bring up for you? If you want to find more balance in your relationships, meditate on the positive meaning in this symbol.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Cancer :: Cancer Rising Washing your face in a spring. Purification. Create a ritual for renewal to practice before the New Year. What will help you feel fresh? What will inform your subconscious mind that you have pressed “reset” on all of your systems? You can find joy in a total overhaul of your daily routines. It’s time for new habits.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Leo :: Leo Rising Walking on stilts. It’s time to get taller. It’s time for you to lift yourself up off the ground. In which life area do you most desire “elevation?” Now is the moment. If you want to lift yourself up higher, focus on two things— fun and creativity. Let these two friends be your guides.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Virgo :: Virgo Rising Your heart center. Bring your mind and your heart together. Bring consciousness to your heart center. To do this, you may decide to ask yourself some deep questions about how you love: When has love felt like a strength? When has love felt like a weakness? Is love enough? Is love an emotion or a state of being? Do my answers to these questions bring me peacefulness and connection? Or do they bring me contraction and separation?
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Libra :: Libra Rising A porcupine rolls into a ball. Are you playing dead? Are you needing a break? The key is to turn down the pace of your thoughts. Do what you can to slow it way down, so that you don’t have to hide out. Meditate. Breathe. Get out of your head and into your body. There is a benefit to taking a step back and seeking restoration, just do so in an empowered way.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Scorpio :: Scorpio Rising Pulling straws. You have choices to make. If you don’t have faith in yourself or trust in your future, you can make hasty decisions. Alternatively, you can make grounded decisions that come from a stable center. How will you choose? Trust is a state of mind that you have to create for yourself. The more trusting you are, the easier it will be to feel secure.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
As we get ready to leap into 2018, the Virgo Waning Quarter Moon asks us to check what’s no longer working, and prepare for an upgrade, says Jennifer Racioppi …
Waning Quarter Moon :: December 10 2017 :: 2:51am EST :: 18 degrees Virgo
With Mercury Retrograde in full swing and Saturn, the planet of discipline, structure, and life purpose, getting ready to switch signs, we find ourselves between worlds.
Time is ticking as we count down the final days of 2017, and coming off the intensity of the Gemini Supermoon and straight into Mercury Retro, it can feel like a collective hangover. Yet while we may feel like we’re trapped inside of what Stranger Things’ fans refer to as “the upside down,” I assure you this is just how real life feels right now.
As we rest between what was and what will be, this Waning Quarter Moon provides a crucial checkpoint on the journey to becoming our future selves …
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:: THE SUN:: At 18 degrees of Sagittarius, the Sun makes an exact trine to the North Node of Fate in Leo, as Saturn also wraps up his nearly 3-year journey in Sag. Now’s the time to tune into the higher vision of your life. The message is to distill the lessons you’ve digested and learned over the past 3 years, and apply them to your overarching vision for your life and your journey going forward.
:: THE MOON :: Girl … you got this! With the Moon traveling in Virgo and making an exact trine to Pluto, the planet of power, tap into your determination to go the distance with your goals. Get organized and in tune with yourself and your needs. Doing so will prepare you for the power and magic of the year-end New Moon in Sagittarius on December 18.
:: THE SQUARE :: With the Moon in Virgo and the Sun in Sagittarius, our inner needs battle with demands from the external world. And in the final days of 2017 and Saturn in Sag, it’s time to reconcile the past.
Very soon we’ll shoot like a Tesla into the future, with no ability to turn back. Graciously, the Cosmos has provided us with a beautiful Mercury Retrograde before launching us forward. Lean into it and let yourself reconcile your recent history. Where are you at in your life? Where have you been? What’s worked? What hasn’t?
:: THE MESSAGE :: With five planets poised to enter the sign of the Archer for the December 18 New Moon in Sagittarius, we’re prepping for a crucial opportunity to claim our vision for 2018 and beyond.
On this Virgo Waning Quarter Moon, our job is to get crystal clear about what’s no longer working and surrender it to the divine. What are you ready to leave in the past as you look boldly to your future?
For more Moon wisdom or to book a coaching session with Jennifer visit Jenniferracioppi.com. And to learn more about how to work with each Moon phase, check out Moon Club, our community of lunar-loving cosmic change makers!
Want to mix your magic with your mojo? Lisa Levine, founder of renowned Brooklyn healing mecca Maha Rose, shares her top 9 tips for running your spiritual business …
I’m an artist and a healer who fell deep into the magic, challenges, and medicine of running a spiritual business. My path was anything but straightforward. After graduating from art school in 2002, and setting myself up as a massage therapist in my hometown of Pittsburgh, I decided to dive headfirst into the fashion world making jewelry.
This dive brought me to my knees and I searched for tools to maintain my sanity- yoga, then meditation, then Amma. My path with her and the practice of devotion brought clarity and a different sense of purpose. I closed my jewelry store in Williamsburg, completed acupuncture school, and officially opened Maha Rose in 2013 (though the roots date back to 2007). It’s been a wild ride and a beautiful one, ever shifting, quickly evolving.
I’m always learning and seeking to be of service to others in finding their path and purpose in this life. Read on for my top tips to keep your spiritual biz magically real …
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1// Cultivate a Beginner’s Mind. When we sign up to serve the divine, we are signing up for a lifetime of school. The Universe is always asking us to evolve, and the uncomfortable places are the places of learning and growth.
2// Commit to the Dirty Work. As a healer, the most important healing work we do is our own personal work. Do your spiritual and healing work, and everything else will radiate out from your own heart and fall into place.
3// Lean Into the Fear. Running a spiritual business is a calling- an agreement between you and the Universe. When you offer your life in service to the divine, opportunities will present themselves. If they make you feel excited and a little nervous, you are probably on the right track.
4// Find the Thing That Gets You Hot. My teacher David Elliott says, “The holy spirit is hot.” You can tell when you are in alignment with your path when your temperature rises, the hair on your arms and legs stands up, your senses sharpen, and your heart flutters: you’re on your path.
5// Head In the Stars, Feet On the Ground. Many of us healer/artists have resistance around legal, governmental, and financial structures. But if we signed up to make magic in the earth realm, we have to play by the rules of that realm. Free up the rest of your energy to make more magic by doing the work, calling the lawyer, buying the insurance. When the foundation is solid, then you can play and dance and heal for the rest of the day and night.
6// Trust Your Social Media Intuition.When you’re overwhelmed with how and what others are doing on social media, go inside and listen to find your unique expression. Play with social media and interact with it if it is uplifting and inspiring, but walk away if it is making you feel down or depressed.
7// Receive. Receive. Receive. Many healers are very comfortable in the role of giving but less comfortable in the role of receiving. When we are giving we are in the position of power. To receive we need to be open and vulnerable. This is challenging. But we must have this sacred exchange so we don’t get burnt out. Know that you don’t have to do this work alone. Who are your advisers? Who are your mentors? Who’s done this before you who can help you on the path? Let people support you.
8// Treat Money as Energy.My first massage teacher said to us, “You’re all going to have to get used to exchanging love for money.” It may feel weird at first, but we must charge for our time and because this is our life’s work. Figure out what works for you- this could be keeping your day job and doing work on the side, or bartering. But know that there must be an exchange. Otherwise, there is an imbalance in the Universe that leaves people owing you. And then things get super funky and weird in the energetic realms …
9// Don’t Push the River. When I first starting giving Reiki treatments, I still had my jewelry company and if I had immediately started pressuring myself to make rent and pay all my life expenses, it would have taken a lot of magic away from my sessions. You can’t push spirit. Let is grow organically and keep the magic as things evolve.
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And remember, we are channels. Just like healing energy comes through you, let your business do the same. Rather than thinking “I have to [fill in the blank],” think “We (the Universe and I) are [fill in the blank] together!” Just show up, and be available for the magic, healing, light, and love to move through you …
From January 2018, Lisa Levine will be writing a monthly “Ask a Spiritual CEO” column for The Numinous, in which she will respond to readers’ spiritual business Qs. Got a question for Lisa? Email [email protected] with the subject line: “Spiritpreneur Questions”
Tired of disembodied meditation and higher chakra holiness? Alexandra Roxo tells us it’s time to get down and dirty with our healing, and realign sexuality and spirituality …
How many times have you walked into a yoga class and had the teacher speak to your womb or your balls or your anus?
While you can find cute articles about sacred sexuality, breathing with your partner, and yoni eggs, the nitty gritty WHOLE body is largely left out of the modern spirituality and wellness conversation. And of our healing journeys as a result …
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:: Sacral Shutdown :: Right now, many of us are caught in a cycle of closing our “lower” chakras (a.k.a. our connection to Mama Earth and the body), as we focus on higher ones. This cycle often looks like:
PHASE 1: Make unconscious choices around sex, the body, and pleasure for a certain period of our lives (i.e. eating unconsciously, using sex for self worth). This phase is often impacted by everything from sexual trauma to eating disorders, which affect our ability to receive joy and pleasure.
PHASE 2: We find comfort as we begin our spiritual paths, manifesting in attempts to “transcend” the body with meditation, mantras, and other external spiritual tools (astrology, tarot etc.)
PHASE 3: Once “woke,” we wonder, why do I still not feel whole? Why am still not able to experience pleasure, and feel JOY on a regular basis?
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:: Returning to the Raw :: With millions of women coming forward as sexual abuse survivors through #metoo, many of us are more painfully aware than ever that trauma and shame live in the BODY, not just the mind. This means that more than ever, we have to figure out how to include sexual healing and a return to bodily pleasure in our modern spiritual journeys.
But this integration can’t come in a neat and fragrant package; we need to welcome the body and sexuality to the door in all its messiness—raw and bloodied, awkward, weird, and slightly unsettling. Because the conversation around sexual healing IS unsettling. IS raw. IS painful.
How do we start bridging this gap? I’m not suggesting you start masturbating on the meditation cushion (through you can if you want … I have!) But we do need to get more fearless and more courageous in our conversations about the body, sex, pleasure, and pain, and in the way we heal.
Here are 4 ways to start integrating your sexual story with your spiritual one, right now …
1// Woo your body back from numbness. If you spend 90% of your time on the computer and the rest in a seated meditation practice, most of your life is disembodied. I prescribe the Sofia Loren/ Italian housewife style of medicine, where you eat and dance and dress and fuck with such joy, that your pleasure begins to heal the Earth—because she’s so happy you’re enjoying her gifts!!
Practice: Make a Pinterest Board with your fave women who embody RAW pleasure. I love Penelope Cruz in Almodovar’s films, Brigitte Bardot, and Sofia Loren. Eat food as if it’s your LAST meal! Feel how amazing it can taste when you slow down and savor every bite.
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2// Explore. Last month I lead a retreat in Los Angeles that combined Japanese rope bondage and sexual healing (more on that here). And if you follow my work you know I dance with snakes too which awakened my sexy like WHOA.
While ropes and snakes may not be your thing (my Mars is in Scorpio, what can I say), find ways ways that feel safe and good for YOU to reclaim and LOVE your sexy side. Does taking a floor dance class sound fun and healing? Or learning how to make your body an offering to a lover with a sexy lap dance? Get curious!
Practice: There are conscious kink classes in major cities (Babeland in NYC has rad classes!) I also highly rec reading erotic books, and exploring practices and women integral to this movement like Vanessa Cuccia of Chakrubs, Cycles and Sex, and Kimberly Johnson, aka The Vaginapratcor.
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3// Talk. Hold an intentional sharing circle for sexual stories, embarrassing stories, and erotic tales. Implement a timed sharing policy with no cross talking so people can share their stories without needing validation, approval, or advice. Or hold a dinner party themed around fun and sexy talk, and draw anonymous questions from a hat.
4// Bring your shame and pain to the table. One barrier to embodied healing is compartmentalization. Often, we don’t think it’s possible to feel JOY while also experiencing PAIN. Or you may start an excited conversation about your new crystal dildo but also feel ashamed. Remember, your body knows that it’s possible for multiple feelings to exist at the same time—hold space for all of them, express them, and don’t shoo them away.
Practice: When navigating shame, I choose my 3 go-to shamanic tools—BREATHE, SOUND, MOVEMENT. Lay on the floor, breathe into your belly like you’re pregnant with air, and make sounds while moving your spine. Breathe the shame, sound it out with a HA, a growl, a moan. Cry in your car. In the tub. And then put on a song and dance!
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Bottom line is, the sexual and body healing that is necessary on this planet in our times is not going to happen from the MIND.
It will only happen when we begin to integrate and come home to the body. Seek pleasure. Make space for joy. Sensation. Rage. Crying. Screaming. Cumming. As we come back to the body, and release old programming about it being shameful and dirty, we will come home to Mama Earth and her environment, which has been abused for far too long.
*I am taking on 5 clients from February 2018 to July 2018 for a 6 Month Transformational Healing Experience around sexual healing, expression, and embodiment. It’s going to be a radical return to the body, pleasure, love, sexuality, and healing. For more info, please email [email protected]
Can meditation and visionary medicine break cycles of addiction, trauma, and poverty? Elyssa Jakim sits down with the makers of new documentary Curato talk alternative healing as a tool for empowerment …
Yolanda commemorating her son’s death at a ceremony led by Ananda Ray
“When you find this disciplined practice, you discover that you can support yourself—you can be a sovereign being. That’s the big takeaway from medicine work or any of these other modalities: they help you find a way to stand up for yourself and to know when to ask for help”—Yolanda Frausto
Cura is a feature length documentary in progress that tells the story of Yolanda and Donny, a Mexican-American mother and son breaking cycles of addiction, trauma, and poverty using community, meditation, and visionary and alternative medicine. When Yolanda loses her younger son while in police custody, she strives to save her other son, Donny, from addiction and the possibility of suicide.
ELYSSA JAKIM: You call Cura an “An evocative soul portrait of a mother and her son healing generations of family trauma with natural and alternative medicine.” What is a soul portrait?
ISMAIL ALI: With this film, we want to show people that there are methods to healing that are beyond the body; that require a relationship between the body and the mind, and even the spirit. As a form of soul portraiture, the film is a snapshot of the lives of Yolanda and Donny. So, it’s about their lives in a mundane way, but it is also about them as spiritual beings—a portrait of their spirits. We’re saying this is a look at who they are at their core, framed by them living in Oakland and coming from poverty.
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EJ: How did the title “Cura” come about? It seems like a word with multiple meanings. What does it mean to you?
YOLANDA FRAUSTO: To me “cura” means “here’s how we heal together. Here’s how you can find healing in yourself through my story.” There’s no one cure. It’s like the grief process—it’s a fact of life that we all go through it, but nobody can tell you exactly how it’s going to happen, you have to figure it out. I come from a background where it’s common for somebody to get stabbed or shot, overdose, or commit suicide and we don’t talk about it. So to be able to talk about grief is where the name “cura” helps. It means “let’s heal from what’s too hard to deal with and let’s do it together.” It plants the seed for healing.
Yolanda and her son Donny
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EJ: How did you discover natural medicine, Yolanda?
YF: I got sober from drugs in 2005. I needed to change my life because I was headed in a really bad direction and I just stopped using. Three years later, I was working in a hotel in San Francisco and I learned about yoga from a woman doing a teacher training there. I started practicing, eventually up to six days a week. Then I got really serious about meditation. About a year later, I found plant medicine and I was like “Oh, this is my jam!” I felt that my whole life happened the way that it did so that I could find this as a spiritual practice. All of these things fell into my path, I didn’t seek any of it out, but inside of me I knew I was ready.
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EJ: How has plant medicine helped you work through a trauma?
YF: It allowed me to have that one-on-one communing time with spirit that people can also find in prayer or in a deep meditation practice. I found the medicine around the time my mom became sick with ALS, and when I lost my son, I was already in the medicine community. Both times that I lost family members, I found that I had this community of people praying for me, showing up for me, bringing me food. I’d never had that kind of support before and they really taught me what it is to be supported. Also when you find this disciplined practice, you discover that you can support yourself—you can be a sovereign being. That’s the big takeaway from medicine work or any of these other modalities: they help you find a way to stand up for yourself and to know when to ask for help.
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EJ: Do you believe that you have this kind of medicine work or curandera work in your ancestry?
YF: I hear the land where my great grandparents come from is peyote lands. So somehow I have a funny feeling that my great grandmother has been guiding me throughout my life and brought me home to the traditions by showing me a path. I believe strongly in the spirit world and how they lead us back to what’s home for us. When I was a kid, my grandma would cure us with folk remedies. And now I’m that person. I know the recipes and natural remedies, I know what to do. I feel like it was something that was instilled in me, but that no one taught me. I’m always saying “There’s a tea for that!” My sons would say “Oh, you’re just a witch.”
Yolanda
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EJ: As plant medicine gets more popular, what kind of responsibility do people need to be taking when they take the medicine or administer it? Is it something you believe can find a place in a more Western medical mindset?
IA: Donny and Yolanda have experienced a tremendous amount of trauma as a result of simply being Mexican-American people who grew up in a place with huge amounts of drugs and violence, and which was not set up for them to have access to power or influence. I believe the strong pushes to decriminalize or medicalize or otherwise create access to pant medicines are in many ways responses to that harm.
So how can you leverage this harmful system to bring about some sort of benefit to the people who have suffered this exact kind of trauma? We need to take an honest look at what will be necessary to make this possible, and I think that during the next five or ten years we’re going to really crystallize what those systems look like.
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EJ: Does the film speak to the phenomenon of wellness practices and techniques being inaccessible to people who aren’t of a particular ethnicity, or of a particular socioeconomic background?
IA: That’s actually why I started working on the film. These beautiful practices often require you to have resources—at the very least to be able to afford to take time off to care for your own mind. So many people are limited in this way. So accessibility is real, colonialism is real, and being aware of all these concepts and then shifting our behavior in line with addressing them is really important. The film is really about two people who are deciding to do some really serious work to break the cycles of their lineage, despite the fact that they don’t have the time and resources.
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EJ: Did you find the process of filmmaking itself to be a kind of healing?
YF: I was able to process grief in a way that I did not know was possible. I reenacted the scene when I was driving and got the phone call from the coroner about my son. After we shot it, I cried for about an hour and then felt so much relief. I only got to process my grief in that visceral way because I was part of this film-making process. How else could you act out something in your life? Whenever things become challenging to film, I know it is creating space for me and my family to process. It’s hard to have these conversations but we’ve also found a way to communicate differently while filming.
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EJ: What would you most like to see for the film?
IA: We hope people will be inspired to involve their own communities in it. We want people to watch this and to talk to the people in their lives about what all of these themes mean to them. We really think that yes, all of these healing modalities themselves are great, but part of the reason that Yolanda and Donny are where they are now is because of the community in their lives.
YF: I believe it will speak to specific people, who find something in it to help them. Maybe it just means they’ll find a way to say, “I can talk to my family, this isn’t so hard.” Quite a few friends have told me, “for you to come out and tell your story really gives me hope, trust, and faith in a future for myself and my family.” The goal was for my story to help other people heal.
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Cura is a project of Hover Pictures, directed by Ethan Goldwater. Please support the film by visiting the Kickstarter page, and sharing the link. Be on the lookout for information about future events during the campaign in Los Angeles (December 13), and New York City (December 15), and make sure to follow the film on Facebook and Instagram.
Get this week’s astro symbol for your sign in our Numinous weekly horoscopes by Sandra Sitron …
Sagittarius :: Sagittarius Rising Handfuls of doughnuts. You can find yourself surrounded by sweetness. Or you can imagine that you’re trapped in a surreal ring of doughy binding. It’s your choice. If you want freedom look for the sweetness. Embrace kindness in yourself and others. If you want to feel trapped, you’ll find evidence to support that idea. Don’t let the monkey-mind take over. Slow down your thoughts. Seek out inspiring wisdom that feels supportive and true.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Capricorn :: Capricorn Rising A thermos filled with hot tea. You have strong reserves. You have the strength that you need. You know how to heal yourself. Your power is showing up in a currency that is less tangible and more emotional. Will you let yourself receive it? Will you let yourself believe in your strength and security, even if you can’t touch it, see it or taste it?
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Aquarius :: Aquarius Rising Riding a skateboard. Steady yourself and stay focused on the concept of balance. You are in motion. There is progress. The trick is to skillfully stay balanced and upright as you move over all kinds of terrain. You can’t control the terrain. Don’t get caught up in politics, bureaucracy, or the status quo. Stay one step ahead by steadily and meditatively moving forward. Whatever situation you find yourself in— focus on possibility and progress.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Pisces :: Pisces Rising The teacher at the head of the class. It’s time to take a stand and put forward your opinions. This is not always the easiest position for you to take, but you must be vehement about what you believe in. Especially when it comes to your career. Evaluate and consider the path that you’ve taken. As you review, you may find information that helps you align yourself with your true potential. Stand up for yourself! Take up more space.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Aries :: Aries Rising The wings of an owl. You are wild and wise. Find the gust of wind that will take you higher. But don’t flail about. Be clear and determined. Use your wisdom as you make decisions. Don’t react. Choose wisely. You may take this time to get clear about what you are hunting for. Use all of your senses and get some perspective on the situation. Get the bird’s eye view.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Taurus :: Taurus Rising A trail through a field loops back around. You’ve been here before. Many of us have a tendency to repeat old patterns. But what’s different now? Something has changed. Challenge yourself to find the things that are different. You can change the patterns. You can react differently. You can heal the past. You can find forgiveness. If you change your expectations, a new pathway will reveal itself.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Gemini :: Gemini Rising Blowing bubbles. You want to make love expand. But if you fill the bubble up with too much air, it will burst. So tread carefully when it comes to relationships. Speak your clear truth in full integrity. Find someplace to safely release any extra “air,” without burdening your partners and collaborators. What do I mean by extra air? In this case it could be half-formed complaints, ungrounded gossip, or overly verbose explanations— you’ll know it when you see it because it’s the kind of thinking and speaking that actually saps your energy. At this time you are creating structure and alignment around mindset and communication. Meditation could be very helpful.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Cancer :: Cancer Rising A salamander. Stay grounded. Make adjustments. This is an important opportunity to tend to your routines, health, workflows and organization. Let yourself be adaptable. Any positive changes that you make in your routine will help you feel strengthened. The salamander shares ancient wisdom— live purely and stay connected to the earth. Clear your spaces, organize and manage your time so that you find grounded expansion.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Leo :: Leo Rising Beach ball. Show off with your most bouncy, effervescent self. What feels like work? Can you make it more fun? What feels like resistance? Can you open it up? Find spaciousness, find lightness, find expansion in the very moment that you are in. If it’s not fun, then what’s the point?
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Virgo :: Virgo Rising Looking into a hole in the ground. Go inward and connect with your interior. Shine the light on yourself. What do you feel? What do you desire? What brings you pleasure? Nurture yourself with attention. Rebuild the structure of self-care that is the foundation of your life. Go inward to ask yourself— how do I know that I am nurtured?
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Libra :: Libra Rising A pear and a daisy. Fruits and flowers prove that there is bounty. Your focus this week is on your mental bounty, aka your mindset of abundance. Train your brain to magnetically attract what you desire. Make a plan for how you will approach your mindset shift. Make a commitment to yourself and stay in integrity.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Scorpio :: Scorpio Rising A waterslide at an amusement park. It can be so fun! Just stay in motion. Don’t let yourself get stuck. This symbol is simple. If you are brave you will enjoy yourself. If you are fluid, you will enjoy yourself. If you have trust, you will enjoy yourself. Life can be pleasurable and you deserve to experience good things. Let yourself be in the flow.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandrahere or follow her on Instagram.
Full Moon :: December 3 2017 :: 10:48 am ET :: 11 degrees Gemini
It’s time to run a series of diagnostic tests. Get out the stethoscope and check your heartbeat. Press your tongue down and say “Ahhh.” Be scientific. Be logical. But most importantly, maintain a state of heightened curiosity.
The key is to loosen your mind. Move away from expectation and move toward curiosity. Melt a hardened state of mind and begin to explore new ways of thinking. Just start asking questions …
With the Sun in Sagittarius, we are working to define our truth. What are we shooting for? What is our philosophy? The Moon in Gemini asks us what basics we’ve missed? Is there a basic mindset shift that needs to happen so that we can grasp the higher philosophical concept?
Let go of what you think you know. The Gemini Full Moon challenges us to give up the PhD program (Sun in Sagittarius) and go back to elementary school (Gemini). Regain a fresh and innocent curiosity that allows us to delight in the world around us. Finger-paint and eat paste. Learn the words for colors and admire the shape of a feather. Get to know our neighbors.
Because this is a Full Moon, your “need to know” may get emotional. Notice if your mind is on overdrive. With Gemini’s ruling planet, Mercury, stationing retrograde, and gauzy Neptune adding a dose of confusing magic to the equation—the answers may not be clear right now.
But you can certainly ask the questions. Run your diagnostic tests and let go of the outcomes ….
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Moon square Neptune A moustache. A disguise. The luminaries form a mutable T-square with Neptune as the focal point. Neptune is your dreamy third eye. Neptune is also fake news. Which will this aspect bring you—heightened intuition or foggy confusion?It’s up to you. Beware of things that aren’t as they seem. But also be on the lookout for magic in the mix.
Work with this aspect by taking pressure off of yourself to “know” the answers. Look inward to find your truth. Connect with your spiritual center and you will avoid brain fog. Meditate. Take time out for yourself. Rest and restore. Pay extra attention to messages in your dreams.
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Moon inconjunct Jupiter The last petal on a sunflower. Is it time to eat the seeds? This is an an uncomfortable aspect that can convince you there is no bounty. The truth is that your rewards are hidden, so you’ll need to take an extra step to discover them. Be curious and do your research. Look a little bit closer. At first glance, the sunflower looks wilted. Don’t throw it away. It’s actually time for the harvest.
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The study questions below are to help you get deeper into what the 2017 Gemini Full Moon means for you. Use them as journal prompts. For the most accurate reading, look to which house holds 11 degrees Gemini in your chart and use the question for that house. Do yours for free HERE.
Aries or Full Moon in the 3rd house What do you need to do to invigorate your sense of community?
Taurus or Full Moon in the 2nd house What do you value most about yourself?
Gemini or Full Moon in the 1st house How will taking the lead in a situation make you feel?
Cancer or Full Moon in the 12th house What does your heart want you to know?
Leo or Full Moon in the 11th house What will help you start to believe in your future?
Virgo or Full Moon in the 10th house How can you shine just a little bit brighter in your career?
Libra or Full Moon in the 9th house What is your big mission statement?
Scorpio or Full Moon in the 8th house Forgiveness is a process. What are you ready to begin to forgive?
Sagittarius or Full Moon in the 7th house What are you needing most in a partnership? How can you give that to yourself first?
Capricorn or Full Moon in the 6th house What process or system in your life could be more efficient?
Aquarius or Full Moon in the 5th house What can you do to break free?
Pisces or Full Moon in the 4th house What game does your inner child want to play?
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandra here.
A-gender trendsetter and spiritual mentor Andre J shares how a lifetime of fearless self-expression has been the ultimate self-love practice …
I was raised by a single parent in the Projects of Newark, New Jersey. Our building was a shambles and the hallways had a foul odor, but the interior of my apartment was always spotless. I was a late baby, my mother was in her forties when she had me, so I was truly conceived out of love. However, I’m also an incest survivor, molested repeatedly by my older male cousin for years.
Raised by my mother I had feminine tendencies, and growing up I was called a fag and a sissy. When you live in the Projects, it’s easy to become engulfed by this air of unhappiness. People are always nipping and pulling things apart, because unhappiness only breeds more unhappiness, or hopelessness. But that was not my story.
I didn’t see people the way that they saw me. I only saw them through the eyes of love, because that’s what I received at home, despite the abuse I suffered from my cousin.
It was aged around 10 that I remember catching sight of my reflection in the bathroom mirror, and the words just fell from my mouth, effortlessly: ‘Andre, I love you.’ In that moment that I understood the importance of loving myself.
It was almost like the Universe was saying to me, ‘Baby, you have a choice. Either you will be an evil man, probably a pedophile yourself, a repeat offender. Or you are going to find an inner peace within yourself, and you are going to take this journey, and you are going to live your best life.”
I always had great style, even as a kid. My first job was in corporate America, and I would wear a twill blazer that fit really well, with high-waisted pants and snakeskin shoes. An ascot around my neck. But it was working at Patricia Field, in sales and then as the PR director, that Andre J came about, with the facial hair and the women’s garments.
It’s what the Native Americans call “two spirits,” to identify beings that embody a balance of masculine and feminine. It’s only Western culture that tells us that these things are taboo, that gives us these labels and names.
There was one point in my life where there was no one, in New York City or in the world, who actually looked like me. I had created a whole new idea of beauty. The British stylist Joe McKenna saw me and put me in V magazine. Then I was cast by Bruce Weber for the cover of French Vogue.
But I wasn’t trying to get on the cover of a magazine. Dressing the way I do is truly just about me expressing myself. And what I have found, is that to stick out like a sore thumb no matter where you are, walking down the street, or taking the subway to the airport, takes courage. It takes strength, it takes tenacity, and it really takes self-love.
You don’t really notice how many people are on the street, until all eyes are on you, yelling at you from a taxi cab, coming at you from every angle. ‘The fuck?’ ‘Oh my God.’ ‘Faggot.’ ‘Sissy.’ ‘Your father must hate you.’ ‘You must have disappointed your mother.’
To still walk with dignity, peace, and courage, and kindness—instead of building thick skin, it actually really softened me, because it taught me how to love others. It was because I was so happy and so free, that BS coming from some strangers didn’t matter.
And I began to realize, not only are you not free, you’re a hater, and I feel like I really just need to give you a hug! I saw that the fear was not of me, it was of whatever was going on within themselves. As I learned in the projects, if someone is unhappy, they want you to be unhappy too.
My journey has led to me working with LGBTQ youth, who are not getting acceptance from their families. A lot of them cannot look at themselves in the mirror. When they do, often they will sob, to the point where they have no control. And if there are eight kids in the room, and that one child is crying, we rise and we console this individual, and build a community around them. Because schools are not teaching how to build community.
To see everyone console this young lady or this gentleman who is going through this emotional imbalance, not only is it teaching them how to share their pain in community, but it is also teaching them how to feel empathy for someone else. An understanding of what compassion is.
My work is to have them look in the mirror, and actually acknowledge themselves for the first time as an individual, as an adult, as a person taking responsibility for their own life. To say to them, ‘Too many times we seek love outside of ourselves, and well guess what. If your parent hasn’t told you or if you haven’t heard it from anybody else, today you are going to give love to yourself.”
Most of them are closed, and frigid. The only emotion they have is anger. Anger, anger, anger. And I want these kids to understand that the anger is not going to get you anywhere. The anger is only going to kill you. That you cannot receive anything if you are closed. I want for them to understand that they can feel love.
For me, this work is helping to transmute all the name calling, and the incest from my past. It is dissolving. I have been able to show these kids that I am as loving as I am, BECAUSE I know what it feels like to be hurt. To be ridiculed, and to be truly counted out. To be disregarded, as if you are nothing. And that when you learn how to shift it, it is possible to realize that this has never been about me. This has been about what everybody else is going through.
The message I am passing on to them, is that my job is to focus on my journey. That my job is to focus on my path, and to focus on what my purpose is. And that not only do I need to focus on it, I need to live it. And not only do I need to live it, I need exude it from every crack and crevice of who Andre J is. I choose to give this service back to those that do not know. And I sleep very well at night.
Andre J will be speaking as part of a Numinous panel discussion on “Inner vs. Outer Beauty” at Soho House NY on December 4 2017 (members only, 7pm). Discover more about Andre and his work @andrejworldwide
Happy birthday, sweet Sagittarius! This cycle is all about expression for you, letting your thoughts, words, and heart be deeply known at any given moment. This energy could extend in many different directions for you, ranging from a new love to an expansion in teaching or activist work. No matter where this lands in your life, there will be an audience to receive the words you share, as this card is so much about the healing aspects of emotional exchange. Chance vulnerability, Sagittarius, and let your heart’s truth flow.
The world needs it, your heart needs it. It is a gift for everyone when you open up and let yourself be seen. December is the perfect time to do this on a whole new level. Six of Cups has a bit of an interesting reputation, and is often thought of as a card of nostalgia. We can sometimes swim far into the recesses of our old, happy memories in this card, propelled by the heartbreak of the Five of Cups, unable to be present in the here and now. It makes sense in certain cases, and definitely follows a known emotional pattern. But this is not your truth, Sagittarius. Six of Cups is showing up for you this month as a radical heart opener.
Its invitation to you will be to sustain that openness, that trust, that vulnerability, in spite of your past. In spite of the fact that you’ve been hurt, splintered, broken, and repaired many times. It is showing up for you this month as a beautiful nutritive to the heart, infusing you with the desire to express, to share, and to connect with the world around you, dropping your armor completely. There is something wonderful coming your way this month, loves. Stay open and soft; you won’t regret it.
How can you play more this month, Capricorn? A somewhat silly inquiry for the hardest workers in the Zodiac, I know, and yet the invitation to consider the question is here in a very strong way. December is a potently important month for you. You are sewing many energetic seeds during this cycle, planting many intentions for the year ahead. How are you making room for play in 2018? Does it have a place of importance in your life? Sink into these questions deeply, looking at the patterning of your life, and the value placed on work versus play.
Page of Cups is your archetypal teacher for the month ahead, and it will be wise to bow over to this little one, listening deeply to what it has to whisper to you. This card invites us to value and emphasize imagination, magic, play, joy, and intuitive communion as much as we might value our earthly goals and worldly dreams. It is what the Lost Boys are to Peter in the movie, “Hook”: helping you to remember who you are. You are remembering the “Pan” in you this month, Capricorn, the magical essence at the core of your being. This part of you is precious and pure, and can get pushed aside very easily in daily life.
It is incredibly important to make room for play and receiving this month. It is softening you, helping to redefine your relationship to rigor and work. It is helping to work and nourish a different part of your brain. It is helping to shake some of the seriousness out of you. It is helping to get some light in the cracks. Don’t worry about what you will get from Page of Cups this month. Just make room for it, and you’ll have everything.
Let yourself be cradled by mystery this month, Aquarius. You are moving through The Moon card, a deep medicine in the Tarot, and the best thing to do is to flow with its rhythms. The Moon is a beautiful card, albeit a powerful one for what it asks of us: surrender in the face of what we can’t see. Indeed, this card can feel like deep ocean waves, or like velvety darkness, much like what we find in nature at night. To feel our way in the darkness, we must go slowly, heightening our other senses, letting our inner compass guide our way home. It requires us to keep a clear head and courageous heart as we walk in the darkness, afraid of what might lurk in the shadows.
To see by moonlight requires the perception of the third eye, a deeper vision and direction. This is getting flexed in you this month, loves, inviting you to trust these other senses within you, letting you walk through the world with them guiding your path. The Moon, which is ruled by Pisces, helps us to feel the fear of the unknown, and walk into it with intention and willingness. December will be a powerful month to look at your emotions in a whole new way. When we travel through this card, we must do so on feel and sense alone.
It offers us the opportunity to trust ourselves and our intuition like never before. This is a deep journey of the self for you this month, Aquarius. The psychic treasures of this kind of internal walkabout are amazing, so seek deeply, walk far, and dive into the fullness of the void. There is nothing but light on the other side of the journey, bringing wisdom, awareness, experience, hindsight, and a greater intimacy with yourself to you.
The moment you desire to be free, Pisces, any locked door in your being will swing open. This is the transformative power of Eight of Swords, as well as the magical potential it will be bringing to your whole sign this month. December is a very powerful transit for you, loves, one in which you can genuinely get “unstuck” from any place in your life that feels limited, including that of your own mind.
In this card, we can often feel that we are trapped and caught, usually in a prison of our own making, although it doesn’t always feel that way. That is the trick of this card: we may feel that an external source got us into this, and that we need a external source to get us out of it. Shattering that illusion is part of the liberation of the card. How we got behind those bars is of little consequence. Eight of Swords invites us to see beyond the mind’s projection, to begin to ask deeper questions of our perceptions. Are we trying to smash down a locked door without checking to see if the window is unlocked? Are we asking for help, clarity or awareness in moments when we don’t feel that we can see clearly? Are we pausing to listen to our inner wisdom?
When this card arises, it is a divine whisper in our ear, offering up the phrase: “ it can be easier if you allow it to be.” How easy can you allow your life to be, loves? How deeply are you willing to trust beyond what your mind is projecting to you? If you are ready to look deeper than what you can see, and what you may feel is imprisoning you, you will already be liberated.
Change is at your garden gate, sweet Aries. I highly encourage you to put on some tea, and welcome it in. Whenever we pull The Wheel of Fortune, we can be sure that a big life change is at hand. It may not show up today or tomorrow, but it is most definitely on its way. We don’t ever need to fear this card—Wheel of Fortune truly does not bring negative change. It is ruled by Jupiter, after all. Everything that this card wants to give to us, at the core of its essence, is beautiful.
Our job, as human beings, is to stay the hell out of the way so that Source can do its thing. The key to doing so with this card is to stay present in our lives. When we are firmly fixed in the mundanity of this moment, the wheel of life can turn freely because we are staying out of the future. It is truly that simple—at least when this card shows up. The Wheel of Fortune is a wildly spectacular card, one that holds within it so much mystery, medicine and wisdom, and yet when it shows up in a reading, it can often feel like nothing is happening.
It is made manifest by our willingness to take responsibility for the present moment, which is the crux of this card’s invitation to you this month, Aries. Look around you, loves. Look at all that you have control over, and all you don’t. Don’t worry about where you are going, or where these moments are taking you. If you are honoring this moment, working through everything that is arising — the pretty and the ugly — you will be ready when the Wheel of Fortune fully lands in your life. You are changing, Aries. Welcome it.
Temperance is such an incredible and mysterious card. In some ways, it’s almost tough to break it down for a monthly forecast — it rarely, if ever, unfolds within a month’s time. Ruled by Sagittarius, it represents the sacred rebirth after the Death card, and the end of the second line of the Major Arcana in the Tarot. Temperance is highly powerful, potent, magical and life changing, but again, it is really hard to zero in on in a thirty day period. What I will tell you, sweet Taurus, is that when the presence of Temperance touches a reading, it does so for many months, if not a full year. It is a blessing, a sweet omen, and a signal that you are in some for cellular level shifts.
Know that you might not feel this energy in your everyday life in December, but you can touch into it anytime you like—the more you do so, the better it will be for you. Temperance is a reordering of the body, mind and soul. It is a deep shift of our energetic makeup. Expect to get worked on this month, angelically speaking. Trust it, and let yourself explore whatever arises with curiosity. This card also, like Wheel of Fortune, heralds a massive, massive life change—always big and beautiful. The only way that this change can take place, however, is if we are willing to surrender it to Source.
Temperance shows us that the spectacular and impossible can unfold, if we are inviting in support and help. It is the shift from ego perception to soul possibilities. This doesn’t happen overnight—and it might not even happen in a month — but it does happen with time, persistence and the willingness to try a new way of working with the world around you. Surrender to the magic, and some amazing things will begin to take root in your life.
I’m gonna say this bluntly (and with love), Gemini: watch your tongue this month. It’s not a warning, but a plea for those closest to you, a plea for those who rely on you. Five of Wands is a card that teaches us to have patience with big feelings. Whatever the holidays might bring out in you, be willing to take a breath and pause if tough moments arise. You may not be able to take back what you say in anger or frustration this month, so this is very important.
Mercury, your ruling planet, can be the most epically beautiful energy, gifting you the ability to be quick and ingenious with your words and ideas. It can also imbue you with the sharpest mouth in the Zodiac, which you largely have under control in your day to day. That may get tested this month in the fiery Five of Wands, so be willing to really lean into your practices, and give yourself (and your loved ones) the gift of fearless honesty and compassion in your communication. Rather than yelling, it would be better to take a breath and state that you’d like to yell, but are working on not doing so.
This differentiation is how we can elevate Five of Wands from a contractive energy to one of wisdom. It is also how you can work with the upcoming Mercury Retrograde in a way that brings about grace. Take responsibility for your inner realm, and be willing to communicate about it to the people around you. This is your medicine for the month ahead. Breathe through any big impulses, use your words kindly and thoughtfully, and you will move into the new year with a ton of gratitude and peace.
You are right at home with the energy of The Empress this month, sweet Cancer. The Empress represents the Sacred Mother. Ruled by Venus, this card imbues us with a flush of sensuality, and an invitation to reconnect with nature and our loving, sexual centers. It is definitely a beautiful energy to end a year in, and an equally beautiful one to guide you into a new cycle. The presence of The Empress is heralding a new flow for you, Cancer. It is a true shift to a more receptive way of moving through your life—a way that is second nature to you as a water sign, but perhaps not one that you regularly employ.
This is a rest and review time. It is a time to sleep a little later, to become a little quieter, to make things around you a little more beautiful. Orgasms, beautiful food, and long walks are all highly encouraged for the month ahead. If any feelings of discomfort arise around this level of lushness with your life, that is probably where The Empress is doing the most work for you. The greater the discomfort, the greater the potential for growth and evolution will be. We just need to say yes to the invitation.
Feel into the medicine of The Empress this month, Cancer—potential triggers and all. The Empress, for all her beauty, can bring up a lot of funky stuff. If being receptive makes you feel selfish, that’s where you will do some deep work this month. This work is important, not just for the month ahead, but for your year ahead. As you expand in 2018, there will be a need to become more comfortable with receptivity. Trust that and let it take you deeper.
Sweet Leo, if one were to take a flying, courageous leap off of a cliff, would it be wise to attempt to spin around in midair and try to cling into the edge? The head might be saying yes, but your courageous heart most definitely says no. The intersection of the scared brain and fearless heart is where you will find yourself doing some deep work in December, all energized by the medicine of Starseed, or The Fool.
When we commit to a leap of faith, or a big decision, it is extremely important to watch any areas where we might be tempted to twist ourselves around out of fear or regret. It sends some very mixed messages, energetically speaking, which only creates more fluff and confusion for us as we expand in and on our path. Anytime that we take a leap of faith that is blessed by The Fool, it is larger than the decision itself. It is a commitment to ourselves, to our soul paths, to beginning a new cycle in our lives. It is totally fine to experience doubt and fear—it is when those feelings begin to bleed over into our words and actions that it becomes important to recenter, letting go of the edge of the cliff.
Trust yourself and your choices, sweet ones. Embrace the freefall. The Fool is here to support and gently remind you that you made the right choice, or will make the right choice, if that big leap is forthcoming for you. The reversal speaks to the fear that may be creating some stagnation at the top of the cliff. This is easily clarified by looking deeply at the root of whatever fear we are experiencing, rather than letting it stop us from moving forward. Trust yourself and your choices, you are exactly where you’re meant to be.
You are in The World this month, sweet Virgo, and it is glorious. This has been a year filled with change, new opportunities, and massive life shifts for you, much of which is going to give way to new blessings and expansions in 2018. It may not have felt like it, but in many ways you have gotten much of what you’ve wished for this year, which I encourage you to honor and celebrate. What you didn’t receive is well on it’s way to you, all in good time. Now, you get to ride 2017 out on the amazing wave of this card, ushered into 2018 on a whole new level. You couldn’t align the timing more perfectly.
The World card is the last card of the Major Arcana. It is ruled by Saturn, and represents the joyful and bittersweet end to an intense cycle, usually one of extreme lessons, and very hard work. When we reach The World, it means that we have done everything we said that we would do in that particular karmic phase. It also means that we are ready to move forward into something completely different, new and fresh, all borne from what we learned in the past year. When we receive The World card, whatever we are leaving behind is something we will never, ever revisit again. Ever. We are totally finished learning about whatever we moved through.
This can be both amazing and sad, as we grieve what we are leaving behind, even while we may walk forward with excitement. Take a moment and reflect, sweet Virgo: what old patterns have you had to repeat this past year? Whatever it was, you never have to touch on it again in quite the same way. There are new mountains to climb, and a whole new Fool’s Journey to move through. Bless what is leaving, and take the first step forward.
Speak your truth, loves! You have so much to say, so share it openly, brazenly and freely. The world needs it, whether you are getting that direct feedback or not. King of Swords is a divine communicator, a leader who has a truth to speak that brings a deep transformation and change for everyone that their words touch. It is not always easy to speak the truth that King of Swords holds; it is a deep task, given to those who can deeply see injustice, imbalance or areas that need to be recentered.
Where you deliver these words this month remains to be seen, loves. Just keep an open heart. You might offer them to your clients, or the community that you work or live in; your sacred truth might be directed at your ex or current partner, it might be offered to your children, or it might need to be heard by your parent, or family or origin. No matter what, trust the words that are burning within your heart. December is the time to let them be channeled through the voice and throat, letting them touch everyone who is meant to hear them. Let this be a sign for you. If you’ve had a piece of writing within you, write it.
If you have a podcast, or want to start one, this would be a golden moment. You have the potential to really charge ahead into your new year, more confident and clear than ever before. This card is so powerful, in fact, it ripples out to our casual communication. Watch what you say this month. Let it be truthful and heart centered, even if it’s blunt. The world needs your word now and always, Libra. The timing is exactly right, so bring it forward.
Plant your two feet on the ground beneath you, Scorpio. Trust that you are supported. You are exactly where you are meant to be, and your life is unfolding at exactly the right pace and timing. It’s perfect, and you are doing precisely what you should be doing. The other shoe isn’t going to drop—in fact, there’s never been another shoe. Everything in your life is serving some purpose in this moment, teaching you something powerful, even if it isn’t immediately clear to you. Don’t stress about whether you can sustain your current path, or whether you can trust your current path. Don’t stress about what will be.
Any moment that you place your profoundly powerful focus on the future, you’ve left the present. This moment is all there is; there is truly nothing we can place our trust in more than the here and now. King of Pentacles is very advanced medicine, and it is here to prove and support the above statements for you this month. I’ve always felt that King of Pentacles was, in a strange way, the last card in the deck. It brings a real master’s energy when it shows up in any reading.
For you, Scorpio, it’s bringing two big invitations: 1) to make room for greater abundance in your life going forward, and 2) to trust the path that you are walking at this moment in your life. King of Pentacles knows his dharma. He understands why he incarnated here, and he knows he is inherently worthy. Receiving this card in a reading means that he is working this magic in your life, helping you to understand why you are here, that you are worthy, too. This work is going to carry you into 2018 with so many expansions and gifts—let it in, starting with the present moment.
This month’s cosmic shifts give us the opportunity to pause, prepare for expansion, and rediscover a sweet sense of hope, says Melinda Lee Holm. Set your sights on new horizons with this tarot journey through December 2017 …
The theme for December is HOPE. After the inner work and expansion of November, we open ourselves back up to the world around us. And with a major slow down courtesy of Mercury Retro to kick off the month, we’ll have plenty of psychic space to stop and appreciate beauty, realign with what truly matters, and set our sights on the new hope of longer days to come.
Prepare for expansion with this tarot journey through December 2017 …
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//12/3 Mercury Retrograde: 4 of Pentacles While it may sound crazy, the forced slow down of Mercury Retrograde (until 12/22) is exactly what many of us need this time of year. This cosmic downshift begs us to get crystal clear in our communications, methodical in our actions, and to give ourselves plenty of extra time to get things done.
Get grounded and prepared with the 4 of Pentacles. In the 4 we get our first taste of true, earthy stability and we’re not giving it up easily. Generally, I advise people to be mindful of hanging on too tight to finances when this card comes up, but with Mercury in Retrograde, I say clamp down! Keep your spending in check and stay slow and steady to avoid upsetting the delicate balance of the material world that is earned in the 4 of Pentacles.
Calling in the 4 of Pentacles:
Wear or carry Garnet to help stay grounded in your body, the Earth, and reality
Eat mandarin oranges, symbols of abundance and good fortune
Be like Santa Claus – make a list of daily tasks and check it twice
Budget in cash – bring only as much money with you for the day as you can responsibly spend
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//12/10 Human Rights Day: Knight of Swords Human Rights Day honors the anniversary of the United Nations’ adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. This document’s anniversary invites us all to get familiar with the rights our fellow humans are entitled to, and to be empowered to speak out and act when those rights are violated.
The Knight of Swords has the energy and the will to speak up and speak out. Wielding the power of intellectual and communicative Air, the Knight rides boldly into battle to defend his convictions. The red feather of passion streams from his helmet as he charges forward, no longer content to stand on the sidelines, ready to take action for what he believes in.
Calling in the Knight of Swords:
Carry or wear Ruby to inspire passion to speak up for others
Donate to the Global Human Rights fund or any other charitible organization working to defend the rights of those in need of advocacy
Drink peppermint tea to suport internalizing positive change
Go for a run to feel the wind through your hair and the power of your own speed
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//12/13 Geminid Meteor Shower: Page of Cups Our annual show of racing lights, the Geminid Meteor Shower arrives on the 7th and peaks on the 13th. If you grew up wishing on “shooting stars,” this peak night is a beautiful time to reconnect to that childish sense of wonder and open your heart to the beauty, majesty, and magic of the Universe.
The Page of Cups provides just the right brand of unguarded emotional exuberance to help us fully enjoy and embrace the magic all around us. Not burdened by past woundings, regrets, or by any set of rules about how to handle the emotional element of Water, the Page is free to give and receive freely, unabashedly appreciating and loving the world around him.
Calling in the Page of Cups:
Gaze up in wonder at the beauty and magic of the Geminids in the night sky!
Wear lace or fanciful patterns – clothing that expresses the romantic within
Express your love openly – let your friends know how you feel
Add a little brown sugar to your coffee or hot cereal to sweeten your outlook on the world
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//12/21 Winter Solstice: The Star As we reach the longest night of the year, it’s time to celebrate the coming light, to look forward with bright hope to the new year ahead, and to begin to set intentions for what we will grow come planting time.
A card traditionally associated with hope, the 8-pointed star seen on most versions of The Star was originally known as the star of The Goddess. As an ancient symbol of Divine Feminine Power, this calming and peaceful card is a reminder that The Goddess is always with us and within us, lighting the way.
Calling in The Star:
Ingest or wear lavender for a calm, peaceful feeling, and to shield hope from negativity
Read Wonder Woman or Captain Marvel comics for inspiration – both superheros wear the 8-pointed star as their emblem
Treat yourself like the manifestation of the Divine Feminine you are with a trip to the spa or a home treatment
Make a list of all your hopes for the next 6 months so you can stay focused on actualizing them as the days grow longer
Want more tarot magic? Book a session with Melinda here, and make sure to follow her on Instagram and Facebook.
In a climate of deeply wounded masculinity, Nina Endrst was dismayed to discover she was having a boy. But she soon realized this was a calling to declare her credo for raising a conscious man …
I consider myself pretty intuitive. It’s been my work, especially in recent years, to release doubt and follow my heart in whatever direction I’m led.
Shortly after I became pregnant, I felt I “knew” I was going to have a little girl. I felt it in my bones. Saw visions of her during deep meditation and healing sessions. We were going to raise a little feminist.
Wrong. Well, sort of. My 22-week ultrasound revealed that I was in fact having a boy. A BOY?! Of course my only hope is and was to have a healthy baby—but I’ll admit I was knocked off my intuitive pedestal in that moment.
When we got in the car, I looked at my husband and said, “UGH! He is going to watch porn?!” I was totally freaked out for a good few minutes, going over all the things he definitely couldn’t do or be.
How the hell am I going to raise a man? Despite having strong relationships with good men, something about being responsible for ensuring that mine wouldn’t grow up to be a chauvinist asshole was daunting. It is impossible for me not to be enraged daily by the toxic masculinity that exists in our society, and around the world.
As I pondered what it would meant to raise a conscious man, I asked myself, where do I begin?
Then, I remembered a dream I’d had about an old boss (privileged, white, good looking by most people’s standards, probably rarely hears or understands the word “no”). This dream triggered a real memory of the sexual harassment I experienced while I was an employee and had “forgotten” about.
Because I, like most women, experience sexual harassment ALL the time. Many of us have also been victims of assault (I was age 9, and wrote about it here). The recent #Metoo shed some light on the epidemic, but this is not and cannot be perceived as “normal.”
So how do we heal such a deep and devastating wound? The conversation feels bigger than I can possibly wrap my head and heart around. And it raises serious doubts about how I will raise a conscious, sensitive, compassionate, FEMINIST man today.
Below is my individual process to tending to this wound daily—for myself, my son, and the whole. It’s where I am beginning my commitment to raise a conscious man …
1// I commit to regularly sharing with the men in my life how I am and have been mistreated as a woman. Practice: I will not assume that everyone is awake, watching, and listening. This does not mean I will excuse sexist behavior or abuse—this means I will educate men around me through my personal experience. I will share how it made me feel when I was cat-called earlier that day, when I do feel safe, and discuss the long-lasting emotional and energetic damage that I and most women have to continually work to undo.
2// I commit to teaching my son that women are not things to be “had.” We are human beings to be respected. Practice: I will surround him with strong females, both in real life as well as through literature and media. From the time he is born, I will introduce him to men that speak to and about women with love and respect, and will continue to work with my husband to show him what a healthy and equal partnership looks like.
3// I commit to helping my son understand that silence is unacceptable. Practice: I will speak up in his presence and explain to him that with privilege comes responsibility. That we are put on this earth to protect each other and it is not OK to sit quietly on the sidelines if and when we witness injustice or abuse.
4// I commit to speaking honestly to my son about dangerous and unhealthy body standards placed on women. Practice: I’ll raise him to look for intelligence, kindness, and humor in women, and people in general, before beauty. I will show him that beauty exists in many forms and do my best to limit his exposure to messaging that is damaging to women.
5// I commit to teaching my son how to show emotion—that sensitivity and compassion are part of what make him “a man.” Practice: I will ask him how he feels and listen to him with an open heart. I will allow him to express himself and his emotions fully and praise him for it.
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My son will be born in a few weeks. I feel mostly at peace and a little clueless and naive. I do not know how our lives will unfold from here, and am very aware that much of it is out of my control. But I do know that I will try every day to be the strongest, softest, version of myself, both for my son, and for our collective healing of the wounded masculine as it unfolds.
Nina lives her yoga and is inspired by traveling to places outside her comfort zone, both physically and emotionally. Currently based in Hudson, NY, she leads retreats around the world and welcomes students of all levels. Connect with her at ninaendrstyoga.com and on Instagram.
