Spoken word artist and Moon Club founding member Lisa Luxx, has a powerful message for International Women’s Day. Voice of Earth is a poem about sisterhood, mother nature and the history of womankind. Written at a Sisters of the Wild gathering.
Material Girl Mystical World
NUMINOUS TAROTSCOPES: MARCH 2017
Cast by Lindsay Mack using The Starchild Tarot
PISCES :: PISCES RISING
Ten of Crystals
Happy birthday, sweet Pisces! What a gorgeous energy to be moving through during your astrological cycle. Ten of Crystals (or Pentacles) heralds a ripening of all that we’ve been tending to, a blossoming that is yielded from a period of deep effortful growth. It is such a deep and clear confirmation of all that you have released and nurtured in the last year. This card is bringing some pretty amazing gifts your way this month, in both tangible and etheric forms. You have worked so hard; this is finally a time where you will get to see some beautiful payoffs. These payoffs might reveal themselves as a financial abundance of some kind, or a career related expansion. If this is the case, you are encouraged to trust and embrace these gifts.
The fruits of this card might also show themselves to you as a new addition to your family, a big move, a creative project—any kind of physical, tangible confirmation of harvest for your efforts can be expected this month. Another way that you may experience the gentle ripple effects of Ten of Crystals in your life this month, Pisces, is in the invisible, energetic realm. It might manifest itself as a foundational feeling of a cycle completing, and a new one being birthed from your personal growth. Confidence, excitement, and new gifts can bloom out of such feelings. This is exactly the kind of frequency that you will want to set intentions for your upcoming year in, loves. Focus on your blessings and more will take root in your life. This month’s overflow of abundance is not fleeting; it’s the kind of foundational flowering that sticks. Harness this energy and even more will come from it.
This month will also be a time to bow deeply to yourself, honoring all that you’ve moved through and mastered in this past year. It will be a time to reflect on how much you’ve changed, grown, and expanded. Heap gratitude on yourself. Some of you moved through massive rebirths in 2016 and even in the first months of 2017, transforming your life through the very fire of your willingness to evolve. No matter how this turn around the sun has felt, it’s brought major lessons, and you said yes to them all with so much grace. It has been a profoundly powerful year for you, Pisces; now you get to celebrate.
Cast by Lindsay Mack using the Starchild Tarot. Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.
ARIES :: ARIES RISING
The Empress, Rx
The month of March will be full of gentle invitations for you, Aries. The Empress reversed is moving through this cycle of your life, slowly and kindly reminding you of what’s really important, what really needs your attention, and how you may be inadvertently blocked to allowing more ease and grace into your days. The emphasis of this card will be on deep restoration: of your heart, mind, spirit, and body. You will be encouraged to invite more ease into your life, and to emphasize a willingness to be receptive to anything and everything that Source wants to drop into you. Indeed, The Empress reversed is bringing some potent medicine your way this month, offering you the opportunity to upgrade your life profoundly in all ways.
The result, should you choose to drop into the invitation of the card, will be a heart opening cycle, rich in transformation, clarity, self care, self inquiry, and nourishment. You will get to melt into trust and receiving, allowing burnout, fear, overwhelm and strategy to be gently upgraded and released. The Empress is divine feminine, divine mother, the divine sensual. She is relaxed, open, constantly in the flow of receptivity to life. The Empress gives all, and is a master at receiving in kind. This card is lovely, but can present some intense mirrors to us if we are uncomfortable with this level of sensuality, ease and openness. When she shows up reversed, as she is for you this month, Aries, the discomfort is definite.
This doesn’t really mean that anything is wrong; it’s just information, a little clue that your output has been greater than your imput, and there’s probably a reason for that. What I am channeling for you this month is to be your own archaeologist of the soul. Inquire, deeply, around the root systems of your discomfort with receiving and ease. Perhaps there’s a fear of losing control, or that you’ll miss something if you let your guard down? Is your nervous system a bit too on alert to allow that kind of receptivity? What kind of inherited beliefs do you have about ease and abundance? Whatever it is, you are surely strong enough to see your resistance and blocks clearly — seeing clearly is the first step to change. Dig deep, clarify whatever blocks might be present, and gently allow The Empress’ sacred energy to flow into your life.
Cast by Lindsay Mack using the Starchild Tarot. Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.
TAURUS :: TAURUS RISING
King of Cups
March is a potent month for you, Taurus, bringing with it a powerful invitation to step into a newfound level of service. To be of service means that we become filled up by pouring our love into other containers. This could play out in a plethora of areas in your life, ranging from service to yourself, your family, your clients, the planet, or all of the above. An important wisdom that King of Cups is offering you this month, Taurus, is to remember that service doesn’t always look like service. We are not often taught that service to self is, indeed, the radical act of love that it it. We can be programmed to believe that self care is selfish, or that we should somehow be able to transcend the need for that kind of restoration. Indeed, service to self is being of service to the whole planet, and you get to blaze the trail on this new understanding, Taurus.
By taking the invitation of King of Cups and moving through the medicine of the card, you will begin to embody this higher understanding of evolved service. You will be able to gently prove, just by walking, talking, and being on the Earth, that sacred service can encompass anything from holding the face of a sick person to taking yourself to the movies; it’s just different colors of one rainbow. King of Cups has mastered holding space for others. He wears a kind of sacred mask in his life, equipping him to effortlessly and simultaneously hold his own inner experience and the emotional experience of others. If you are a parent, a partner, a helping/healing professional, or a friend, this will be a transformational month for you.
Allow everyone in your life to be a teacher, a living opportunity to choose sacred service and healing in your life. It might also mean that you shed any dualities in your life. We can call on King of Cups when we lead a “double life” that no longer feels good to us — think someone who who has a very draining day job, and moonlights as a Shamanic Reiki practitioner. This could be the month when you turn your moonlit dharma path to the light, releasing all the masks that don’t serve. If you are willing to say yes to the teachers that arise this month, Taurus, King of Cups can take you all the way to your truth.
Cast by Lindsay Mack using the Starchild Tarot. Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.
GEMINI :: GEMINI RISING
Three of Cups
You are in your element with Three of Cups this month, Gemini — such a shift from your double header with The Empress for the last two cycles. March will present a plethora of lovely opportunities to not only socialize with awesome, like-minded people, but to deeply reflect on your relationship to soul friends and collaborators. Is your life filled with people that you truly love, or are most of your days spent with people who you are either ambivalent about, or with whom you don’t fully click? This isn’t a bad thing if the answer is yes, and it’s also still relevant to you if you’re lucky enough to be surrounded by amazing people all the time. You’re being invited to upgrade your vibration, Gemini, and it couldn’t come at a better time. So much goodness is about to flow your way.
You’ve been doing so much releasing and receiving work as of late (whether you’ve been aware of it or not), and part of that work involves our relationships upgrading in various ways to match our growth. Relationships shifting and changing is an excellent sign that we are growing, or that we are being called to adapt or evolve in some way. Sometimes when we expand, we outgrow certain people. If that’s the case for you, Gemini, I advise you to let go and trust in the process, no matter how painful. If we are in the right relationships, if we are truly being filled up, nourished, restored and renewed by the people in our lives, we will grow, evolve and change together; parallel journeys, all the way.
Be willing to be really honest with yourself about who you are sharing your time with. If the people around you are not bringing you joy — or if you are not allowing yourself to be joyful with them — commit to shifting to a place of willingness — willingness to grow, and/or willingness to invite other people into your life. As you raise your frequency, and continue to commit to your personal growth, you will, in turn, shift the energy of the people around you. It’s a beautiful loop, growing, giving and receiving in equal measure, which is what Three of Cups is all about. It invites us into celebration, collaboration, and communion with kindred spirits. Think about where you desire more of this in your life, Gemini, then open your heart to the joyful exchange of receiving it.
Cast by Lindsay Mack using the Starchild Tarot. Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.
CANCER :: CANCER RISING
Akashic Records
This month will present a multitude of quiet opportunities for radical transformation — your invitation will be to embrace these opportunities with a whole heart. This is a huge cycle for you, Cancer. This is a time to nurture your dreams, and to intentionally release the patterning, old behavior and karma that holds you back from living fully in your truth. I’m talking about the big stuff: your path in this lifetime, how you want your life to feel, your purpose here on Earth. These are the kinds of energies that you will have the freedom to explore and manifest this month.
It is a potent time to plant those seeds, say yes to things, take great risks, be open to change and let your soul truth take root even more deeply in all areas of your life. You are in a major energetic vortex this month, Cancer—use it. Indeed, the Akashic Records card is a profoundly powerful and exciting energy, one that will have a big impact on the unfolding of your year — you just have to understand what you’re working with. Akashic Records are a kind of cosmic file folder, said to contain all the knowledge in the universe, everything that’s ever been. When we access the Akashic Records, we are able to tap into this folder and gain wisdom on whatever is in highest and best for us to know. What this essentially means for you, Cancer, is that you have access to some of the most powerful frequencies on the planet this month.
You have the ability to co-create a soul centered life with the Universe. The only thing this requires from you is courage. Courage to leap forward, perhaps before you’re ready. Courage to trust that everything you may be afraid of, dreading or unsure of will, indeed, work itself out beautifully. Perhaps it is time for you to say a radical no in your life to someone or something—perhaps it’s time to say a radical yes. You know what your truth is, and you know what’s right for you, even if your brain might trick you into believing your doubts from time to time. Root down, bow deeply to yourself and begin to gently unfurl, letting all the old patterning drop away, allowing the new path before you to take root. The more you commit, the more aligned, abundant and transformed your life will be.
Cast by Lindsay Mack using the Starchild Tarot. Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.
LEO :: LEO RISING
Three of Wands
This is such a rich, exciting month for your creative expansion, Leo! Three of Wands is moving through your March, infusing it with light, magic, new beginnings and grateful endings. I feel very deeply that your whole sign been building to this aligned frequency. It is such a wonderful testament to your hard work and willingness to grow and evolve through some pretty major contractions over the last year. Now, you’re going to start seeing little glimmers of clarity: why you had to go through the growth process that you did, where it’s taking you, and what new adventures lie in store. It’s a very exciting time! I wholeheartedly encourage you to take every new opportunity you can this month—if you’ve been thinking about taking a pottery class, now is the time.
If you’ve been dreaming of traveling to a certain place, of teaching a workshop, learning a language, birthing a new project, now is truly the time. There is quite a bit of miracle energy surrounding you in March, Leo; a lot of magical potential. If you can harness it and trust in the waves you’re about to surf, it will be an exhilarating month for you. No matter what, you can expect some glorious upgrades to your life in the form of a big energetic turnover: everything that wasn’t serving you is becoming compost to feed the new. Indeed, you’ve received this message before, but it bears repeating: the old ways have taken you as far as they can. It is time to trust and invite in a new way of being, living, sharing and receiving in the world. It starts with this courage, and a willingness to invite in the new, no matter how scary it might be. Indeed, change can be scary, but that doesn’t mean you have to let it stop you.
Three of Wands is a sparkly, crackling, exciting energy. It functions as a kind of heads up that we are at a crossroads of life, and it is time to choose a new path to walk. When we move through this card, it means that we have truly explored and experienced everything we possibly can in the frequency we are in—it is then time to upgrade and move to a new level. You are already at the crossroads, Leo. Take the first step toward your most cherished calling; trust that the rest will follow and manifest from there.
Cast by Lindsay Mack using the Starchild Tarot. Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.
VIRGO :: VIRGO RISING
The Sun
You are in the glorious energy of The Sun card this month, Virgo: bask in its warmth and light, allowing it to infuse you with clarity, wisdom and enlightenment in all areas of your life. The Sun is leading you down a quiet, lovely journey this month, back to the center of your being, rebirthing you in the light of your truth. A great deal will be revealed to you this month, Virgo—the knowledge you gain will be deeply affirming, supporting you in making shifts, changes and transformations to your life that are needed. The key to embracing the frequencies of the month will be to trust yourself and your intuition. The whole month of March will be full of situations, moments and little realizations that will melt away long held doubts, confirming your choices and hunches to you.
Your intuition knows that something is deeply at work right now, transforming your life in a multitude of subtle ways. You might be having certain feelings about a person, an organization, a job, or a path you’ve been walking or sharing energy with. If you’ve been unsure around any of the above areas in your life, expect to get some major clarity in March. A radically deep trust will be possible, answers will be available to you, and a rebirth into your truest self will be the only option going forward. The Sun card is a potent Major Arcana card, because it is the dawn that comes after a particularly dark night. It is a burst of awareness, of answers, of illumination after a time of confusion and contraction. The Sun card is like a joyful, celebratory Tower card, in many ways.
When we move into the light, we can see with all eyes, with all parts of ourselves. Once we see, we cannot go back to living with our eyes closed. The difference between this card and The Tower is that The Tower is a flash of understanding that shatters some aspect of our ego — The Sun is so much gentler. It’s a subtle, almost sweet understanding that becomes available to us. Answers ring true and clear, we drop old fears, and walk confidently in the path of our truth. Trust in your deep inner knowing, Virgo. You’re about to move through a cycle that will bring a lot into the light. Once you’re there, there can be a liberation and a rebirth of the spirit.
Cast by Lindsay Mack using the Starchild Tarot. Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.
LIBRA :: LIBRA RISING
Page of Crystals
This month is all about deep introspection for you, Libra. March is like a breath of fresh air that will help you to ground and center, preparing you for your next steps in life. Although there may be some wildly potent external leaps presented to you this month, it is wiser to choose a quieter, more internal flow as an everyday pace. The monthly energy will be much more centered around rewiring and upgrading in subtler ways. It is the perfect medicine for such a powerful month. This card is actually preparing you for the next great external expansion in your life by recentering you from within. It is truly only when we shift internally that our external life can shift around us—it never lasts the other way around.
That is why this card is here for you in March. It is creating a strong root system for you to flourish in your life, and is really going to be transforming the way in which you go about your days and months. If you can accept the invitation of this deep journeyer, there will be much to show for it on the other side. Page of Crystals, or Pentacles, is not only helping you to build a strong foundation for your next steps, but it is helping you to ground and trust in your own intuition. This card asks deep questions and goes to deep places — it is a double earth sign card, after all. It will be providing some much needed grounding to your air sign souls. It desires to know the deepest truths, to be an excavator of its own soul.
This card ponders, wonders, reflects and travels to the deepest part of themselves. They are interested in getting to the root and the heart of everything, all at a steady, easy pace. The benefits of this card are multitudinous in nature, and are providing some beautiful blessings to you this month, Libra. This card will help to slow you down, to reacquaint you with the blessings all around you, to reconnect with your heart. Isn’t that a lovely way to expand in the world? Page of Crystals sees with the heart of a child, the way a baby gazes at a blade of grass, a tree, or a puppy: full of wonderment, curiosity, and presence. This is the frequency you will be invited into this month, dear Libra. Embrace it fully.
Cast by Lindsay Mack using the Starchild Tarot. Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.
SCORPIO :: SCORPIO RISING
Queen of Wands
Once again, you are getting your groove back, Scorpio. What a profoundly potent, gorgeous energy to be moving through this month! Queen of Wands is the alchemist, and the witch of the deck, holding a space of sexuality, power, sensitivity and intuition, all just by being — by walking in a room and taking up space. Queen of Wands is ruled by fire and water, blending two incongruent elements together with her depth, both of passion and emotion in equal measure. She is a walking column of watery, fiery, sexual, sensual magic. This month is bringing a sweet and beautiful opportunity to reconnect with this archetype within yourself, to see yourself in these descriptions. Whether it’s caretaking your children, cooking a meal, renewing your license or leading sacred ceremony, you have the potential to bring Queen of Wands energy to anything you do this month.
You also have the potential to bring a healing essence with you wherever you go—and to actually be consciously aware that you’re doing so. Most of the time, I believe you do offer that to the people around you, Scorpio, but it might be a more unconscious frequency. In March, you have the chance to own this part of yourself, to strengthen it, accept it and use it for the greater good in your life and the world around you. You can infuse it into your sexuality, into your creative process, and around your interactions with people. It is going to be a really juicy month for you, all across the board.
Release all attachment to the ideas you might have about this energy. Queen of Wands doesn’t mean that you have to be a sex goddess, it doesn’t mean you have to be a healer, and it doesn’t mean you have to feel yourself 100 percent of the time. It’s about remembering that this magical essence is within you all the time, even on the days when you feel the grossest, and the most disconnected. Whatever connects you with your inner witch, prioritize for the month ahead. Also: I gently encourage you to release your comparisons around the word “witch.” For one person, it may very well be cooking. For another it might be creating a proposal for their job. For another, it might be performing sex magick at the Full Moon — for some, its all of the above. Be gently drawn to your inner witch this month; see where she leads you!
Cast by Lindsay Mack using the Starchild Tarot. Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.
SAGITTARIUS :: SAGITTARIUS RISING
Seven of Swords
Seven of Swords is a deep medicine, one that can come up strongly around our biggest, most tender places of strategy, insecurity, or doubt. It offers us a master class in trust and release of control, and it is a welcome medicine for you this month, sweet Sagittarius. Any seven in the Tarot has to do with inner work around something that looks external. If we are telling ourselves that “everything would be ok if I just had a partner,” or “everything would have been perfect but ____,” we are in a Seven. Everything IS perfect, because it is. This is the toughest and also the clearest thing about this life: reality rules,100 percent of the time. When we forget (and PS, everyone forgets. There’s no shame.), that’s when we suffer and become confused. It’s the origin of believing that something outside of ourselves can give us what we need.
The more we believe this, the further away we drift from what we desire and truly yearn for. When we forget this and drift off into future, into story, into shoulds and “what ifs?,” we will get a gentle tap on the shoulder with a Seven. And conversely, if everything looks super fabulous from the outside, but the inside is unsustainable, flailing, or untethered, we will receive a Seven to help get us clear. The deal with the Seven of Swords in particular, Sagittarius, is the invitation to explore the areas in which you might still be feeling like you need something externally to complete you internally. That can manifest in all kinds of different ways—might be totally subconscious, or it might be showing up in an alternative way.
It might center around money, love, travel, certain external mile markers—whatever it is, you are being invited to become present, and to drop into the fullness of trusting that you have everything you need already. What good is a soulmate, a beautiful trip around the world or a write up in a magazine if you are not here for it? Be here, trust that it will come at just the right time — then, it will. It’s the easiest, hardest thing to do, but I know you can do it, Sagittarius. You wouldn’t have gotten the card if you weren’t able to move through it. You don’t need anything other than what’s already in your heart, your hands, your home, your life. Once your nervous system understands that fully, everything outside of you will have room to flow in.
Cast by Lindsay Mack using the Starchild Tarot. Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.
CAPRICORN :: CAPRICORN RISING
Nine of Cups, Rx
Trust in your dreams, Capricorn. Whenever Nine of Cups reversed arises, we can move through some doubts around our most cherished manifestations and dreams. The doubt isn’t indicative of truth; everything is moving along for you quite beautifully, in fact. It just might not feel that way. This intense doubt might not be the exact situation for you this month, but regardless, it will be an important time to center deeply on what you are hatching and birthing in your life. It might also be a time to invite in a little more support to help you facilitate it. I’m really getting for you to assemble a sacred team of life doulas, so to speak.
If you’re looking to move, hire some professional space clearers to help you release stuff, invite someone in to clean your house and prepare it for moving, reach out to friends for encouragement and support — maybe even do a spell for manifesting your perfect space and the money to move into it. If you want to grow your business, release your pride and ask for help. Then be willing to take the advice given to you. If you are courageous enough to be humble and transparent around your insecurities, so much help, support and reflections of truth will flow your way. However, no one can help unless you ask for it. Turn to the right people and lay your heart bear, even if it’s for supportive feedback.
Nine of Cups is the wishing card. It fulfills hopes and dreams, and represents the promise of a harvest. At the time that we pull this card, the shoots and seedlings are extremely young and very fragile and tender. We must take care to protect them with all we’ve got. It’s easy to forget how fragile these dreams are, and when we forget, we can expose them to some tougher criticisms. Sometimes people share too much of their process too soon. We can also choose to share with people who are not able to support our seeds, trampling on them with a look, or comment. It can be so easy to fall into doubt and fear, worrying if we should give up. The reversal can represent this space of concern, confusion and doubt. The antidote is to go back to tenderness, to hope and faith. It can also be inviting in the right team. No matter what, your dreams are coming true, Capricorn. Do whatever you need to do to help yourself remember that truth.
Cast by Lindsay Mack using the Starchild Tarot. Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.
AQUARIUS :: AQUARIUS
Four of Cups
March is truly a month to go slowly and gently through your days, Aquarius. Four of Cups is going to be helping you to make room in your life and heart for new experiences and new cycles. It will help you to integrate painful events of the past, and to emotionally digest and clear what no longer serves. It will be important to go slowly and gently through your month because the invitation of this card might be so subtle, you could miss it. The more space you can clear for introspection, the better it will be. That includes, perhaps, releasing attachment to dating, socializing, or certain opportunities that are out of alignment for you—especially if any of these areas are a means for an emotional escape.
You are being very deeply called into an internal landscape this month; there is wisdom and treasure to be found when you allow yourself the opportunity to rest in it, rather than floating to various things. This card isn’t going to force you; you have to choose. If you are willing to make an empowered shift in the name of your self care, there can and will be a profound transformation in your life, Aquarius. Own your power, root down and integrate for this month of March. Your whole heart and soul will thank you. Four of Cups is often thought of as an energy or self sabotage, or of missing an opportunity, but it has always been channeled to me in a very different way. It is really a sacred digestion period, one in which we are not only being called to make room for the new in our lives, but to upgrade what we do allow in.
Embrace this cycle as a potent clearing away of everything you’ve been moving through that’s not in alignment for you any longer, particularly around patterning associated with escaping yourself. If you can make the choice to say no to the old ways of engaging, socializing, or taking on energy, there will be a massive shift. You actually have the potential to change your karma around self love, relationships, intuition and emotional intelligence this month, Aquarius. If you do refuse a cup, so to speak, not to worry—it will come back to you at the perfect time, when you have room to integrate it. Trust yourself, and your choices. They are leading you into transformative waters this month and beyond.
Cast by Lindsay Mack using the Starchild Tarot. Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Lindsay here and follow her on Instagram.
MOONERS & SHAKERS: MEET OUR MOON CLUB MEMBERS
Meet this month’s Mooners & Shakers, the Moon Club members using their spiritual practice to fuel their passion projects!
ABA GYEPI-GARBRAH
“This was a lesson in openness, patience and curiosity. It was also lesson in being present.”
The Project
Aba Love Apothecary is a handcrafted, small batch collection of plant-based skincare products and healing aromatics tailored for those who wish to experience the magic of plants in real life.
The Work as Spiritual Activism
I love this question. Thinking back to about my first experiences with aromatics, I made a choice to listen with all my senses and to let each essence unfold in their own time. This is how I began to create when formulating. I would approach each ingredient blindly and experience them without judgment. This was a lesson in openness, patience and curiosity. It was also lesson in being present.
It made me realize, wow—this is something we hardly give to others, sometimes not even ourselves. If we could practice the same openness, patience and curiosity with ourselves and others, we would be more connected to our uniqueness, our dynamism, all of our parts, sweet and not so sweet, and still value ourselves completely. This gave me a refreshed perspective, which I would gladly call my spiritual activism!
The Vision
I see Aba Love Apothecary becoming a beloved brand known for its artistry in plant-based skincare & healing aromatics. To continue to support and collaborate with other like-minded women owned businesses. It’s also my wish to engage small farmers, growers and distillers of organic, wild crafted and sustainably farmed ingredients in US and abroad.
The Moon Club Inspiration
The most beautiful thing about Moon Club is that it inspires me to show up for myself wherever I am at, plan by the cosmic clock, and go with the flow!
Shop the Aba Love Apothecary here, and follow Aba on Instagram.
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AMBER ADAMS
“Birth work is my calling. I have this ache in my heart that drives me forward.”
The Calling
I never planned to be a mother, so when I had a positive pregnancy test I felt my whole life crashing down. I had been preparing to move to New Zealand for a study abroad program in the fall, and having a human baby was definitely never something that crossed my mind. Despite my initial trepidation, I loved being pregnant and when it came time to give birth, I was relaxed and excited. I had never felt so powerful and divinely WOMAN as I did in those first precious moments after birth. Not only that, but because of my doula, I had felt for the first time in my life deep sisterhood and the magic of women helping women to give birth.
When my son was about a year old, my best friend and his girlfriend were in a similar situation, and I became their unofficial doula. She would come to me with questions and I had answers. I empowered her to follow her gut when choosing where to give birth and encouraged her to be an active participant in her process. I missed their birth, but three months later I attended my first birth as an official doula. After my second doula birth, I knew I wanted to be a midwife.
Birth work is my calling. I have this ache in my heart that drives me forward, pushes me through school, and keeps my feet on this path. I don’t think I could walk away from this work, even if I tried.
The Leap
I have been working at the customer service desk of a grocery store for the past 8 months. The pay is good and initially they offered enough flexibility that I could go to a birth here and there. Very practical…and ultimately very soul sapping. On February 18, I was lying in my bed with the simple intention of being very open, a sort of modification on a Moon ritual. There was a sensation of my heart opening and with it the thought: “Quit your job.” Along with the realization that if I truly want my life to become, then I must jump into the unknown.
The Future
I will be working toward the goal of owning my own birth center. My desire is to have a place where mothers of all stages can go for support, especially during pregnancy and postpartum. In the immediate future, I am expanding my birth doula practicing by adding childbirth education and placenta encapsulation to my services offered.
The Moon Club Inspiration
Moon Club has helped me by strengthening my connection to my spiritual self, as well as helping me to cultivate self care in my daily life. I love our community and how uplifting the entire Moon Club experience has been. My favorite part of Moon Club are the coaching events and live calls. I am always working on homework so having the calls helps me to get out of my own brain and connect in real time.
Discover more about Amber and her work at www.birthmindbody.com
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ALMA GROOME
“As I have started to awaken spiritually, I’ve felt drawn to look outside of the conventions I had limited myself to in the past.”
The Project
The Moon phase stained glass panels were the result of a friend encouraging me to make pieces that spoke to me. Six months ago I took a a class at a local glass crafters shop. I began with small sun catchers and little pieces but after a few months I began to lose the spark. On mentioning that, a friend asked me what type of projects I really wanted to work on, and I stated without a waver that I really wanted to do a big piece with all of the phases of the Moon. “Why don’t you then?” she asked. My only excuse was not having a window at home wide enough. She shrugged and replied “I have a window.” At that moment, a charge ran through me and it was all I could focus on until I had something on paper.
The Intention
The intention is simply to provide myself with a creative outlet, a way to express a side of myself I had long felt non-existent. I work in bookkeeping and Quickbooks consulting and consider myself a fairly linear thinker. But as I have started to awaken spiritually and explore the metaphysical realm, I’ve felt drawn to look outside of the conventions I had limited myself to in the past, to be open to new things and experiences, and to push my boundaries even, in those moments anxiety knots so hard in my stomach I can barely breathe.
Stained glass work, and this Moon phase piece in particular, has provided an outlet for me to let go and refuse to be bound by self-placed limits. It’s exhilarating, allowing myself to leap into things I never remotely considered as possible.
The Magic
Tonight, I delivered the phases of the Moon stained glass panel to its new home, hanging it in my best friend’s window and admiring the flow from left to right as the moon transitions from new to full and back to new again. The beveled edges caught the light brilliantly and projected rainbows of color. It’s an incredibly surreal to experience seeing something I created in another person’s home, to hear the excitement they have for it, and to know that it resonates with them on a deeper level than “that’s pretty.”
The Moon Club Inspiration
I knew in my heart the pieces I was being almost called to make were of the Moon phases, the triple Moon goddess, representations of the Divine Feminine, and sacred geometry. Being part of Moon Club, I have connected with a group of women who embrace these things as part of their path and inspiration. That connection has given me the courage to take hold of these ideas and go with them. In the past, perhaps I would have shied away from the challenge of being out of my comfort zone, but being a part of this community left me invigorated and inspired to go for it. I could not be happier with both the tangible and intangible results.
The Moon Connection
Recognizing a connection to the Moon has been a fairly new thing for me, and I’m very much still learning about what that can mean on a personal level. I’ve always felt drawn to the Moon often searching the sky for its position, phase, color, or the way the clouds might be playing against its reflection. Now though, instead of merely appreciating the beauty of the Full Moon, I’ve started to tune in to my feelings and emotions around each Moon phase, journaling to begin connecting the dots around each cycle. I look forward to continuing to expand my knowledge and deepen that connection.
Check out more of Alma’s stained glass work at her Etsy shop, and follow her on Instagram.
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Woah, heart swells! Discover more about Moon Club here, and get inspired to bring your spiritual practice out into the world!
WEEKLY NUMINOUS TAROTSCOPE: FEBRUARY 24—MARCH 2
The Eight of Swords is a card of transformation; it’s medicine is to remind us that for every locked door, there is an open window, says Lindsay Mack in her weekly Numinous tarotscope…
HOW I DISCOVERED THE BOOK THAT CHANGED MY LIFE
Material Girl Mystical World is out May 2 2017. Here’s how I wound up writing the book that changed my life…
Five years ago I moved to New York City, with high hopes that I was basically going to morph into Carrie Bradshaw—with a closet full of designer shoes, fabulous cocktail-fueled social life, and a column in Vogue. 15 years working as a fashion journalist in London had taught me two things: 1) my sense of self-worth was directly linked to the level of kudos attached to my job, and 2) you could never have too many shoes.
My first apartment was on Christopher Street in the heart of the chichi West Village, and even had a walk-in closet. It also had holes in the wall exposing live electrical cables, and was infested with vermin. With hindsight, this is pretty much a metaphor for the holes in my materialistic worldview. Because it turns out no amount of Cosmos was a substitute for the friends I’d left behind, and that as a lowly freelancer, working out of my dingy kitchen using my ironing board for a desk, I barely even got to wear the shoes.
As my SATC dream began to crumble, I found myself questioning everything. Why was my NYC adventure so fraught with anxiety? If none of the editors I tried to get meetings with ever called me back, did I even exist? And how come every Skype with my mum made me feel so angry? As if the physical ocean between us served as a reminder of how emotionally distant we’d become over the years.
Which is right about when I decided to create The Numinous, and in doing so totally flip the script.
Let’s face it, five years ago I was kind of an entitled, over-privileged asshole. And definitely not a happy asshole either. Today, I definitely still love shoes. But I’ve also remembered that, for me, true “success” means being connected to myself and others, and contributing something valuable to the planet. Less conspicuous consumption, more conscious creativity. A journey I’ve written about in my upcoming book Material Girl Mystical World. Yes, MY book is the book that changed my life!
My personal revolution has actually been a result of walking the talk and embracing with an open heart and soul the mystics, the teachers, and the healers I’ve encountered on my Numinous path. Diving head-first into the transformational experiences of the Now Age, many of which are chronicled in all their far-out, emotional, and often hilarious glory in my story.
All with the aim of showing how (contrary to the Eat, Pray, Love school of spiritual awakenings) you don’t have to travel to an ashram in India to find yourself. I found “me” in the heart of NYC! The birthplace of the American Dream—the capitalist ideology that tries to convince us true happiness comes in the shape of a Louis Vuitton handbag. And which, since the Mad Men have made it to the Whitehouse, it is increasingly evident is the root of so many of the evils of the modern world.
So how did I get here? In the book, among other heart-and-mind-expanding topics, I talk about:
- Astrology As Basic Life Skill. Raised atheist, astrology was the first thing that ever spoke to the deep human need in me to feel connected to something greater than myself. To feel like I have a unique role to play in weaving the fabric of humanity. This chapter explains the basics of birth chart interpretation as the path to Cosmic connection.
- Doing My Dharma. How I came to understand the concept of my work as an act of service—opposed to pursuing a career for the status, the financial security, and the shiny baubles alone. (*When you pre-order the book you’ll gain access to a special Dharma School webinar with me, to help you discover your dharma too!)
- Finding My Divine Feminine. A deep dive into modern feminism, and how this is intimately connected to the social, political and environmental issues of the 21st Century. Also, how connecting to my Divine Feminine has been instrumental in healing my sexual identity and my relationship with my mum.
- The Inner Beauty vs. Botox Debate. Why it’s possible to get Botox and still love yourself / identify as spiritually woke. But also how cleaning up your emotional life and doing your dharma, AS WELL AS the yoga and the green juice, is what will truly give you that “glow.”
- Healing As The New Nightlife. How I have slowly but surely replaced the cocktail highs with spiritual highs, and become a happier, healthier, more compassionate and more WHOLE human being as a result. Who. Freaking. Knew.
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The book is out May 2 2017 (yes, she’s a Taurus—the original “material girl”) and the above is just a taster. There’s so so SO much more juicy content—and in the lead-up to the pub date I’ll be hosting a series of Facebook Lives to introduce the different chapters, and take your questions. Keep following on Facebook and Instagram for more details.
There’s also a sweet BONUS PACKAGE when you pre-order! Including the Dharma School webinar I mentioned, an exclusive missing chapter on how to work with Angels & Spirit Guides, and a month’s free membership to Moon Club. Get all the details and order your copy here.
So there you have it. THE BOOK THAT CHANGED MY LIFE. I hope my story can help you re-write your own.
HOLY F*CK: RECLAIM YOUR SEXUAL POWER & HELP HEAL THE WORLD
Reclaiming your sexual power and potential is part of the collective awakening happening now. And it’s never too late, says Alexandra Roxo…Portraits: Alexandra Herstik
I’ve taken a few months off from really diving into topics of sex, eroticism, and partnership here in my column. Why? I must admit, I’ve been distracted by politics and found myself thinking: “How can I dare talk about sex, as the world is seemingly in dire need of discourse about so many other things?!”
Well, as my passion for sharing about love and sex wandered around my brain like a disenfranchised child with no home, who else but Sigmund Freud swooped in to validate it—and shove it back into the world!
Freud said that sexual repression is the chief psychological problem of humankind, and the root of many crimes, illness, war and woe. As if I need a dead white man to remind me of something I already knew! But I did. Touché Dr Freud, touché.
And his theory reminded me that it’s okay to continue sharing about love, sex and partnerships—even in a time when ICE raids are being done to innocent people, families are being separated and deported, and the whole structure of a country that felt like it was moving towards progress is being threatened.
Because this includes LOVE and SEX.
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THE SEXUAL LANDSCAPE YOU WERE BORN INTO
Let’s take a very brief tour of history. Some say that we once lived in a “partnership” society, where people co-existed in some states of harmony. This shifted into a “dominator” society. Have you seen the movie or read the book “Mists of Avalon?” In the book there is a battle between the “old” religion—a religion honoring nature, The Goddess, the many faces of the Divine—and the “new” religion, a religion honoring ONE man.
Pantheistic to monotheistic. This shift changed everything for humanity. When the Goddess religion/pantheistic religions went out, so did our connection to nature, to ecstatic states, to sex, to the Feminine. By denying sex we denied nature! As Terrence McKenna said in his book Food of the Gods: “The dark night of the soul for planet Earth began.”
The “Wild Woman” (seen as a reflection of nature herself) was then sought to be tamed. We saw the literal possession of women. Burning of witches. Corsets. Chastity belts. Women’s rights being taken away in many many cultures. The polarization of “the virgin” and “the whore.” And this, my dears, is what YOU were born into.
Fair enough, in this country we got it about the LEAST bad—we are able to vote, get an abortion, wear what we want. BUT this also created a dichotomy that can be VERY confusing.
You were told you can speak up and be you. But you must also be sweet and pretty and skinny. You were told it was slutty to enjoy lots of sex. But you were told also “Claim your sexuality!” You were told you could wear what you want. But when you wore it you were treated differently. At least when it was scandalous to show an ankle it was very clear. ANKLE = SLUT. Now the dial is all over the place.
If you were born into any religion that is monotheistic and patriarchal then whether you want to accept it or not, you probs have internalized all kinds of sexual repression with a side of shame, and a dash of guilt on top. (If you somehow escaped all this then…GODDESS BLESS!)
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SO, HOW THE HELL DO WE MOVE BEYOND THIS?
It’s going to take a lot more work. See my piece from last year about “Sexual Healing” for a refresh and jump start.
The biggest thing we can do is keep QUESTIONING. Everything. In sex. Redefining our experiences as our own. Making our own rules. Reclaiming what is our human right.
FOR EXAMPLE. Perhaps by society’s standards it’s not acceptable to sob uncontrollably during sex. HOWEVER, the energy of sex is MAD powerful, and when used to it’s full conscious potential can be a shamanic experience. So, if you are having conscious deep deep sex, and start releasing trauma or shame or guilt from your body you will probably sob. This can cause more shame because we’ve been taught that’s not okay.
My first girlfriend was a shamanic mover of energy and she knew it. The orgasms I had with her moved massive amounts of shame I had internalized growing up in the Christian south, out of my body. She held space for me. Made me feel safe enough to completely release into my body and use the energy of sex for deep healing. Sometimes that meant opening further and further when I thought I couldn’t anymore, but she helped me keep going, much like in a plant medicine ceremony, or even running a marathon. The altered state that one enters during sex can be a place where so much work can take place.
So how do you allow yourself to let go enough to work with the energy of sex, or even love or partnership, for healing and ecstasy?
HOW TO LITERALLY RECLAIM YOUR SEXUAL POWER
Create a conscious container. By container I mean a defined space. Whether you are coming together just for sex or also for a certain amount of time weekly for sexual exploration define the rules, the terms. How long? What do we do if someone wants to scream or cry?
Communication! If you want to have a soul sob with a deep cervical orgasm you have to make sure your partner can “hold” you through it. Instead of saying, “Hey babe. What’s wrong? Don’t cry,” educate them to hold the space for you, and say instead: “I’m here. Let it out. Stay with it. I love you.”
When you release some of the pain in your body that’s hidden deep within your cervix or womb of COURSE there will be tears, shouting, laughing—ALL OF IT! But you will feel so much lighter and freer afterwards if you let those emotions come out and you don’t hold them in. Not worrying about what you may look like or sound like. Instead, being like a raging river, embodying Kali, embodying Venus, the rivers of Oshun, the energy of a storm, the energy of the ocean. She is never ashamed for her moods and needs. She just IS.
If you look at sex as expansion beyond the “get in and get off” vibe we’ve been taught by movies and TV our whole lives, you will see it has massive healing potential to clear through chakras and move blocks—while increasing your radiance and attraction levels in a major way! It’s a super power and that’s why it has been repressed and controlled for so long.
If you think back to how you “learned” sex it was probably mostly through media. Women “sound” like this or that. They make these faces during sex. They lay on the bed in this or that way. What if that was all learned behavior and in order to reclaim your full sexual potential you get to go on the journey of FINDING OUT what your natural sexual state is?
What faces you make. What sounds. Maybe you sing when you cum! Or make low guttural grunts. Maybe you sob uncontrollably for A YEAR as you release shame from your body. Does that mean something is wrong with you? NO. HELL NO. Maybe you find your fantasy and realize you like to be flogged or spanked. Does that mean something is wrong with you? NOPE.
It’s a choice. You make the choice to embody Bridget Jones. Or Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman. Or Carrie in Sex and the City. Or…Venus emerging from the ocean. Kali emerging from a fire. Persephone diving into the Underworld and coming back renewed. You choose.
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RE-WRITE THE SEX SCRIPT
Here are some practical ways to begin to rewrite some of your sexual programming…
– Be Curious! Read books. Listen to podcasts. Don’t be ashamed if you want to learn about polyamory. Or multiple orgasms. Or whatever the hell you’re into. Nothing is too strange. Nothing is too weird. As you begin to delve, protect your little seed of curiosity before sharing with everyone. You don’t need anyone’s opinions about your desire to learn about 1950’s Occult Sex Parties or prostate massage. It’s your exploration. Keep it sacred.
– Look at your demons. Your shadows. Your shames. Have you engaged in healing around your sexual history? Chances are your first sexual experiences were rather “unconscious,” maybe with alcohol attached and not centered around heart opening and connecting. And if not, well, kudos to you! (Mine were pretty dope with candles and a fountain and fairy lights and soft music and eye gazing even when I was a preteen cause I was #BornThisWay. But then I’ve also had about 100 that were NOT like that at all…) If you feel you have work to do around love and sex then start journaling about your programming, stories, traumas. Engage in conversations. Do the healing work with a coach or in a group.
– Create the space to explore. If you’re in partnership then consciously communicate with your partner about wanting to make the sex more conscious and expansive, and work to bust through some of the cultural norms together. Perhaps this means engaging in some connecting work before sex. Eye gazing. Doing some tantric breath. Giving each other space to hear fantasies without judgement. That means if your lover says “I’m turned on by watching horses fuck” you have to listen and hold space for that and not be like “EW!” immediately. Trust is very important when opening in this way. If you’re solo then start getting in there and doing your own exploration work with your self. Learn your fantasies. What feels good and what doesn’t.
– Be aware of your words. Stories you perpetuate with your words which can cast magical spells. Sometimes I catch myself talking like Samantha from SATC and I stop myself. Some of that languaging and programming is NOT conscious at all. Sure, it’s fun, but it’s creating a reality that I picked up from TV. Not my own heart.
– Question everything. This can be fun! “Do I actually like to wax my puss? Or do I do it cause someone told me to?” Hmm well for me honestly I think it’s the later. “Do I actually like lingerie and Agent Provocateur?” Resounding YES for me on that one! “Where is my sexuality at on the Kinsey scale?”
– Talk to your friends. THIS IS HARD. One time when I brought up the transcendental power of fisting to catapult you into an altered state in a car of women there was RADIO SILENCE. It was awkward. But without discussion things continue to be taboo Unspeakable. Hidden away in dark corners. So moving past that awkward silence with some laughter and humility is enough to open the floodgates. Before you know it someone will be sharing how they once used a cucumber as a dildo and you won’t feel alone.
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If you want to work with a group on this, I’m doing a monthly HOLY F*CK workshop starting on the New Moon of 2.26! This is a little different than the salon I did last year as this is deeper work, and enough to keep you busy exploring and reprogramming and rewiring your sex energy until the next month’s workshop! Sign up HERE. And as always I do one on one mentorships and coaching sessions which you can book HERE.
NUMINOUS WEEKLY TAROTSCOPE: FEBRUARY 17—23
The Three of Cups is an invitation to join the collective and choose JOY, says Lindsay Mack in her Numinous weekly tarotscope…
A Self Love Prescription For V Day
Here’s to falling in love … with YOU! Tea alchemist and serial optimist Alicia Henry delivers a self love prescription for your V Day. Illustration: Soleil Ignacio
Valentine’s Day … Whether you’re single or in a partnership, this commercial “holiday” can bring on a wave of negative feelings. Some of us become plagued with thoughts of loneliness, heartache, and even begin to question our self-worth. But there is hope for turning this day (and everyday) into a positive, love-filled experience. And you don’t have to search any further than yourself.
Loving yourself is the most vital action you can take towards your overall well-being and vitality in this life. Not only will you come to the realization that you are a divine being, but you’ll begin to draw others into your life who are also aligned with nourishing their souls and evolving into the best version of themselves. A beautiful ripple effect of LOVE.
Like any new skill, self-love takes practice, determination, flexibility, and patience. It’s a practice we have to cultivate. This V Day is the perfect time to renew (or begin) your own self-love affair and I’ve concocted a self-love prescription to get you started. Here’s to falling in love with YOU!
1. Morning Gratitude + Affirmation Ritual: Our mornings can make or break the rest of our day, so upon waking, take a moment to acknowledge 10 things that you are grateful for. This could mean being thankful for your soft pillow that you lay your head upon, or your two healthy feet that work tirelessly to get you around all day long! This is the first step to simply becoming grateful for who you are.
*Pro Tip: I love to cleanse my space before beginning my morning ritual. My favorite way of doing this is to light Palo Santo—the aroma is sweet and soothing, and it opens my space for newness.
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2. Solo Date: When we’re feeling lonely, the first thing we tend to do is run away from the loneliness and fill the void with social engagements. Friends are definitely a major component to our happiness, but if we can’t be happy solo then our social circles become a mere distraction from ourselves. Try turning inwards. You may actually love what you find!
*Pro Tip: A solo date could just mean reading an empowering book, like Clarissa Pinkola Estés’ classic Women Who Run With The Wolves.
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3. Write Yourself a Love Letter: Letter writing is becoming a lost art, but that doesn’t mean romance is dead. Write yourself a love letter that you can open up any day you need it. The letter can include recognizing your greatest strengths, honoring what you believe makes you unique, and forgiveness for any negative feelings about yourself.
*Pro Tip: Create a romantic letter writing experience by lighting candles, burning incense, and using beautiful stationery. To get your creative juices flowing, check out this beautiful poem by the Romantic poet, William Wordsworth. Wordsworth describes his beloved as “a creature not too bright or good.” Who’s perfect anyway?
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4. Meditate: Our minds are constantly buzzing, and meditation is an invaluable and truly intimate practice that brings us closer to ourselves, our intuition, our truth, and what really matters in life (to us). Even if it’s 10 minutes per day, give this peaceful, quiet gift to yourself.
*Pro Tip: If you’re new to meditation, there are some awesome apps that will help guide you!
5. Practice Forgiveness: It’s all too easy to get caught up in the mistakes we’ve made, things we wish were different, our so-called imperfections, and other stories that we’ve created and hold against ourselves. But if it weren’t for our mishaps and wrong-turns, we would never evolve. Be tender and forgive yourself for anything that you’re holding onto that doesn’t serve your happiness.
*Pro Tip: The raspberry rose colored Rhodochrosite crystal (above) is known to activate the heart chakra, and promote self-worth and forgiveness.
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6. Dance: Want a ticket to instant joy? Dancing is a way to connect to our essential life force. Don’t worry about what you look like—just let loose and feel the music. Whether you’re dancing with friends, or using your hairbrush as a microphone in your bedroom, never stop dancing!
*Pro Tip: Start the solo party with my three favorite tunes for dancing by myself—Pat Benatar’s Love is a Battlefield, Banarama’s Cruel Summer and of course, Whitney’s How Will I Know.
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7. Take a Sexy Selfie: And see yourself through the eyes of lust. Sexy selfies don’t need to be sent to a lover, they can also be sent to your friends! A girlfriend of mine recently started a thread with her friends’ sexiest selfie submissions—it’s been such a beautiful, safe, body-positive experience.
*Pro Tip: The piece of lingerie I’m loving most at the moment is this black bodysuit by True&Co.
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8. Self-Care Spa: Taking the time to pamper your skin, hair, and nails is a rejuvenating self-care ritual that’ll give you that little extra pep in your step.
*Pro Tip: In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, here’s an easy recipe for a truly decadent body scrub: In a mason jar mix 1 cup coffee grounds (just scoop ‘em off the bottom of your french press—no waste, yay!) with ½ cup coconut oil and ¼ cup raw cane sugar. Add a few drops of your favorite essential oil and you’re good to scrub! I find that vanilla and/or essential rose oil are great accompaniments to the awakening coffee aroma. Keep your scrub in the refrigerator when you aren’t using it. Enjoy, beauty!
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9. Rest Sweetly: Never underestimate the power of a good night’s sleep. When we skimp on sleep, it directly affects our mental well-being. We wake up feeling groggy, our digestive and immune systems are thrown off, and we’re easily spun into negative thinking. Create a peaceful sleeping experience for yourself with kind bedding, a dark room, and a no-electronics policy.
*Pro Tip: Whenever I have trouble falling asleep, I add some lavender infused essential oil to my third eye and lower palms. I cup my palms over my face and breathe in slowly. When you focus on your breath and begin to slow your breathing, you’ll simultaneously slow your heart rate and bring yourself to a restful place.
Alicia Henry is an Herbal Alchemist and Founder of Naked Sage Tea, an organic tea company based in Venice, CA. A serial optimist, she is aptly part of the team that achieved The International Day of Happiness, which became a resolution of the United Nations. Follow Alicia and Naked Sage Tea on Instagram for more romance, adventure, and sweet self-love.
A SACRED SPACE RITUAL FOR VALENTINE’S DAY
Laurey Simmons of The Colourful Dot Boutique, shares a sacred space ritual to open your heart this Valentine’s Day…
Beyond the chocolates and red roses, Valentines Day for me is a precious reminder to keep our hearts open. As psychotherapist and spiritual teacher John Welwood says, our heart’s true purpose is really: “to be an open channel through which great love flows into this world.”
One of my favorite ways of opening this channel is by spending time in my sacred space. A sacred space is simply one corner of our home environment where we keep beautiful objects that are special or sacred to us. The space can be as large or as small as you want. Even if you only have a small section of a shelf, this too can be a perfect place to make your sacred space.
Keeping a sacred space is a precious gift to our soul, a reminder of how we want to be in the world, a mirror reflecting back to us our Inner Beauty.
Read on for a sacred space ritual for an open heart…
1. First thing to do is to cleanse the energy of your space. One of my favorite ways to cleanse is by burning Frankincense resin. Dropping a few pieces of the resin onto a burning charcoal disc allows for the heavenly smoke to rise and fill the surrounding air. Breathing in this aroma, I find my mind-chatter settles, my body relaxes, and my energies become grounded.
2. With the theme of Love in mind, I’ll be adding a few drops of Rose Oil into my diffuser. The combination of Frankincense and Rose Oil smells seriously divine! Rose of course exudes love and beauty, both visually and through her perfect scent. Did you know that Rose essential Oil has been proven in studies to reduce anxiety and produce deep levels of relaxation?
3. Now for some visual beauty. Nothing opens my heart more than beautiful objects from Mother Nature, especially crystals. Three pink, heart-centered stones I’m working with a lot at the moment are Rose Quartz, the mother of Love stones; Mangano Calcite, which radiates the energies of the heart in a very gentle, nurturing, and soothing way; and Pink Morganite, also known as the Pink Emerald, and a wonderful tool to help cultivate qualities of the heart, like compassion. I also love to add fresh flowers to my sacred space—in this case, either fresh pink roses or a bowl of dried pink roses.
4. The next step is to connect to the energy of those who radiate an open heart or Unconditional Love. It could be a spiritual teacher, a historical or mythical figure, a friend or family member. At the moment, the chosen beings of light in my sacred space are Ram Dass, Maya Aneglou, Thich Nhat Hann, Joni Mitchell, and Heqet (the Ancient Egyptian goddess and symbol of new life). Ideally, print off some small images of these people so they can beam their light right back at you from the heart of your sacred space.
5. An open heart is only truly open if we can keep it so in challenging situations. With this in mind, I like to have an object in my sacred space that symbolizes this challenging situation or person. This practice is taken from one of my spiritual teachers, Ram Dass, who spoke about his own puja table and how he’d have pictures of his teachers there, Buddha, Hanuman, Maharajah, Mary, and how every morning he would greet them with love. This included a picture of one of his most difficult people, Caspar Weinberger, President Reagan’s Secretary of Defense. An alternative to a picture of a specific person is simply to include a broken or damaged object. I sometimes use a decaying leaf to, reminding me of those spaces in my heart that sometimes struggle to stay open, allowing feelings of compassion towards that situation or person that challenges us.
6. To finish this ritual, I love to place my hand on my heart and set a little intention: to keep the people who inspire me and the beauty, especially the beauty of imperfection, in my heart throughout the day, so I can be a more compassionate and loving person in the world. I also recommend placing your hand on your heart throughout the day, especially if you ever feel it closing up. This simple gesture can bring you directly back to that inner space of Beauty and Love.
Discover more about Laurey and her work at The Colourful Dot Boutique, an online sanctuary for Inner Beauty. Pre-order her new book, The Inner Beauty Bible: Mindful rituals to nourish your soul
, today.
READING FOR THE TAURUS WAXING QUARTER MOON
The Taurus waxing quarter Moon asks you to tend to your innate need for material comfort and security, to gather strength to rocket into the future—says Jennifer Racioppi…Collage: Bethany Harper-Walsh
Waxing Quarter Moon :: Feb 3 2017 :: 11.18pm EST :: 15 Degrees Taurus
Following the last Aquarius New Moon, this Taurus Quarter Moon asks us to take a look where our rebellious nature conflicts with our desire for stability, pleasure, and security. This opening quarter moon also occurs one week before the upcoming lunar eclipse in Leo. Like furniture about to be rearranged, eclipses sweep through our lives with force, offering us new positions for the décor of our existence. So get ready, because this quarter moon prepares us for the sweeping change February 2017 (a month with two eclipses) will likely bring. Fortunately, the upcoming Full Moon Lunar Eclipse boasts some pretty bad-ass aspects. Nice.
But before we jump to the eclipses, let’s dig into to this opening square between two fixed signs: Aquarius and Taurus!
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::THE SUN::
With the Sun in Aquarius, the sign of the water bearer, rousing our progressive spirits, and the sky temporarily free of retrograde planets, we are pushed to align with our values. While Jupiter, the planet of luck and expansion stations to go retrograde on Feb 5th, and Venus, who will go retrograde next month in Aries, already in her shadow, this Taurus waxing quarter moon emphasizes a moment where we can reflect on our gains so far in 2017. Thanks to the upcoming eclipses and pending Venus retrograde cycle, our values (and our truth) will push us to transcend the surface, reaching for greater depths within. Fortunately, the Sun in courageous Aquarius supports us nicely as we prep for the winds of change ahead! Allow the Sun in Aquarius to guide you in the direction of your progressive ideals.
::THE MOON::
Yet, the Taurus waxing quarter moon at 15 degrees (halfway through the second decant of this fixed Earth sign) resists change, instead clinging to what feels comfortable. Taurus, known for having a stubborn state of mind, helps us to tend to the practical details of our life, and can’t be forced into change. So while the Moon moves through this fixed Earth sign our emotional needs may require some pampering and deep soul nurturing. A craving for routine and luxury may stall us taking a risk on behalf of our progressive ideals. With so much upheaval happening in the political landscape, take the time to tend to your inner needs at this time.
::THE SQUARE::
With the sun in rebellious Aquarius, a fixed air sign, squaring the Moon in security-driven Taurus, progressive forces conflict with the desire for stability. The Taurus moon prompts us towards safety, security, and luxury, yet the sun in Aquarius pushes us to reject routine, the status quo and take a risk. Like a rubber band stretched to its max in two directions, this Taurus waxing quarter Moon we are asked to reconcile our desire for safety, security, and luxury, in the context of our changing ideals and progressive needs. This clash between the desire for comfort and the need for change forces us to take a deeper look at our values (something we’ll be doing a lot of when the ruler of Taurus, Venus, goes retrograde on March 4th for almost six weeks).
::THE MESSAGE::
As we find ourselves amidst eclipse season things may swiftly change. The spirit of the sun in Aquarius prompts us to follow our progressive inclinations, yet the moon in Taurus wants us to nourish our inner, emotional needs. The Moon deserves our quiet attention. Take some time this Taurus waxing quarter Moon to give it just that—tender loving care of it’s emotional needs. With the full moon lunar eclipse right around the corner (occurring in the sign of Leo—ruled by the Sun), and having just acclimated to 2017 (a Universal 1 year in numerology) we stand on the precipice of receiving our new marching orders. With change happening at the speed of light, don’t override your emotional needs. Stay grounded, stay nourished and tend to your comfort. This will help to bolster our resilience: our secret weapon during tenuous political times and eclipse season!
For more Moon wisdom or to book a coaching session with from Jennifer visit Jenniferracioppi.com
HOLY F*CK: IN CONVERSATION WITH DANIEL PINCHBECK
Alexandra Roxo meets radical thought leader Daniel Pinchbeck, to talk spiritual materialism, future planetary solutions, and the rise of the extreme right…
Daniel Pinchbeck is a writer, thought leader, speaker, and one of few modern radical voices that come from a grounded, realistic, and holistic perspective. Today we are in dire need of leaders and thinkers who can articulate and envision a path towards union and healing that includes our political, environmental, cultural, AND our spiritual state. Daniel speaks of the whole picture, with a balance of right/left, masculine/feminine, science/art.
His new book How Soon is Now REALLY resonated with feelings I’ve been having for years about the nature of the world we live in, which I have explored in my own writing here on The Numinous and in some of my films. This includes the need to make a shift from focusing on the personal, to focusing on the global. To overcoming spiritual materialism. To escaping hyper-individualism and coming together.
Also, how plants may be aiding in our evolution on multiple levels. How our approach to love and sex is so heavily politically guided and conditioned. The need for rites of passage and the need for ecstatic connections to the cosmos and to each other, through experiences like Burning Man, with psychedelic experiences, and a reconnection to the Earth.
Beyond all this, Daniel’s book reveals to us how we can engage with the planetary shift and initiation that we all know at soul level is in progress, and in doing so be a part of the healing of our planet.
Even better, Daniel is going to be LIVE with us for Moon Club this Sunday Feb 5, which means you can join and ask him questions too! Click here to sign up.
I sat down with him for a little prelude to Sunday’s talk…
ALEXANDRA ROXO: So you’re an author, a TED speaker, a radical thinker, a writer. You wear a lot of hats in terms of your work. What’s the common thread?
DANIEL PINCHBECK: I think that the core of my work is a philosophical quest for the nature of reality.
AR: Word. Was there was a clear point at which this search began?
DP: I had a major spiritual crisis in my mid to late 20’s. I’d been writing for magazines, and it just began to feel very nihilistic. I felt this kind of total emptiness. I also realized ultimately that when people believe conscientiousness is only based in the physical hardware of the brain, then life has no particular meaning. I was like, ‘okay, how can I actually inquire into this?’ I remembered my psychedelic experiences in college as having suggested that there were these other layers of psychic reality that I didn’t really understand.
So I went back to them and went to West Africa, to do Iboga and I went to the Amazon to work with a tribe in Ecuador with ayuasca and so on. These travels informed my first book Breaking Open the Head, and then new questions kept opening up—because these experiences had completely transformed my world view.
AR: The subtitle of How Soon Is Now? is: “From personal initiation to global transformation.” To me it feels like that is what we’re all being called to now, on a micro and a macro level.
DP: I came from a leftist background, and I always had this uneasy feeling about our culture and the direction our society was headed. And then when I looked more into the ecological disaster that we’ve constructed and the amount of poverty and inequality that the system creates, I also saw this whole “new age” spirituality thing, with the meditation and the yoga, as kind of like a trap—because I felt that people were using it as just another distraction, getting so obsessed with their own little healing journeys.
AR: There is definitely the idea of: “I’m entitled to my healing and my enlightenment and I gotta just focus on that.” Healing individually is very necessary too—but how do you see us then finding a way to integrate this into healing the Earth?
DP: It would require for those of us who’ve been on this evolutionary initiation path to reach another level of our capacity to…hold a new frequency, to express it to people who are out of the loop. One thing that really began to upset me overtime was Burning Man. When I first went I was like ‘oh of course, this is the model for this new society. The point is to now bring this out into the world.’ But overtime I saw it become more like another entertainment complex. I saw the people who run Burning Man being really kind of pleased with themselves because all these rich people wanted to hang out with them.
But I think a shift is actually happening, because of this geopolitical emergency that we’ve unleashed. For example, I saw a really good thing on Facebook—this guy wrote that he used to have three different groups of friends that didn’t really integrate very well. One was artists, one was meditators, and the other was activists, and he was, like, thanking Donald Trump because now they’re all in the same group. We’re basically confronting a very, very severe existential emergency with this situation, that I think people are beginning to comprehend in kind of waves.
AR: In the book you use Burning Man as an example to show how if society praises you for good behavior, like cleaning up your own trash for example, and if we praise each other for good behavior, we can start to rewire the conditioning that says it’s somebody else’s responsibility to ‘do the right thing.’
DP: I feel that what Burning Man reveals and why it was such an ‘aha’ moment for me is that our social nature is extremely malleable and changeable, and humans will conform like putty to whatever reward system presents itself. So, say you get laid by becoming a Neo-Nazi and hating on the Jews, a bunch of people will do that. If you have lots of lovers or one lover or whatever you need, as a result of being generous, altruistic, and sharing your gifts open heartedly, you’ll do more of that that.
AR: So how did things tilt so far to the extreme right?
DP: Unfortunately, the extreme right has managed to marshal a lot of collective intelligence by expert use the media system, whereas the progressive community has been much more slow and much less strategic and tactical.
There’s actually been a phenomenon of people on the coasts in LA and New York having greater freedoms, better lives, more opportunities, but we haven’t really taken care to transmit these benefits to the rest of society. And, rightfully in a sense, the rest of society realized they were just being shafted and got extremely angry. I think that theoretically, the more conscious we are of this, we have to bear the blame when things go this wrong.
AR: That’s a tough wake up call for people. If you’re living in light and love all the time, you don’t want to hear “hey, this is your fault, take responsibility, step up to the plate.”
DP: But this awareness is spreading rapidly right now. In a sense, what I am trying to show with the book is that the progressive mystical counter culture hasn’t done a good job of articulating the world that we want to bring into manifestation, beyond our individual process.
For example, let’s take The Beatles at their word: “All you need is love.” But how do you actually create a society centered around altruism and sharing and empathy, what does that look like? In the book I am pretty rigorous looking at this in terms of love and relationships, in terms of monetary systems, even questioning whether private property is good for us. I’m sure many people will disagree with some or many of my conclusions but that’s good. At least we have something to disagree about, which can lead to debate and innovation.
AR: I write about sexual healing quite a bit and you share an anecdote about the community, Tamera, in Portugal, that’s so moving—how a young man’s first lovemaking happens with all the group gathered around the house, celebrating and holding space for him. I cried. There is so much internalized sexual shame in our society. I grew up in Georgia in a very, very Christian space and I was totally shamed from a very young age. When I heard that story, I was able to envision people not “losing” their virginity, but embracing this as a rite of passage—leading to us totally flipping the way that we approach love and sex.
DP: One of the founders of Tamera in Portugal said that sexuality is a superpower that radiates throughout all different facets of society, and we can totally see that with this last election. We saw it with Trump and the grabbing of the pussy, Hillary and Bill Clinton, Roger Ailes who was the Fox News head who was taken down in a big sex scandal, and all of their connection to Jeffrey Epstein, the pedophile…
In a system where sexuality is oppressed, alpha male types seek power and wealth (versus creating a system that spreads wealth evenly) so they can have sexual access, you know? Since the sexual revolution of the 1960s, society is more open about sexuality, but it’s actually been reintegrated into a system of domination and control. So it becomes MTV Spring Break or Sex in The City, that type of vibe.
AR: Yes, those pop culture markers reveal that on one level we can “have sex” and “be sexy” but on another level it’s absolutely not okay as a culture to accept our sexual nature.
DP: Rupert Sheldrake writes about the idea of “morphogenic fields” or “morphic resonance”—that actually, when a small number of a species is able to fully discover or integrate something new it can become generally available to the collective sort of non-locally. So if there’s a small number of communities that have shifted into this different frequency of collective care and responsibility and kind of a truly liberated Eros, or attitude to love and sexuality, then that could really propagate quite quickly. I mean Neo-Nazism didn’t seem to exist two years ago…and now it’s all over the place. Or look at something like Facebook, and how quickly everybody began using it. Ultimately, I think it’s fully possible that positive shifts towards empathic and responsible social system could also happen rapidly.
Discover more about Daniel and his work at Pinchbeck.io. His new book, How Soon is Now: From Personal Initiation to Global Transformation
, is out February 20 2017.
NUMINOUS WEEKLY HOROSCOPES: JANUARY 30—FEBRUARY 5
Your Numinous weekly horoscopes, direct from the third eye of Sandra Sitron—a.k.a. Strong Eye Astrology…
Aquarius :: Aquarius Rising
A meteor shooting through the sky. You are ready to burn through the atmosphere. You’re breaking into new territory. There is an updated way of thinking that’s becoming available to you. You may have to let yourself be surprised. Then you can search for deeper meaning and question a pattern. This new pattern of behavior is much more practical than the old one. In order to make it happen, you have to let yourself be unique. Your unique solution will help those around you shift into a new mode of thinking. Be brave, explore, burn bright and let yourself expand.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandra here or follow her on Instagram.
Pisces :: Pisces Rising
Flower petals falling from the sky. Ease. The ease that follows when you let go of control. It’s important for you to cultivate a sense of security right now. Try to feel like you are floating in a cloud of flower petals. Tell yourself- “It’s easy. I’m supported. I don’t have to control anything.” Imagine that there is a buffer between you and the things that are challenging. The new mindset of security and ease will help you become more present in your community. Your thoughts are currently centered on progress and activism. Make sure that you feel secure so that you have the energy to give to your community.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandra here or follow her on Instagram.
Aries :: Aries Rising
Weeding the rows of vegetables growing in a field. It’s time to get to work. Make sure that you feel grounded and that you’re taking care of yourself. You’re working on your career, or a new project. It’s time to get focused on learning good leadership skills. You may have to spend some time crouched in the field, with the sun burning at your back. If it starts to feel difficult, center yourself back on the task at hand. The work you’re doing now will help you understand yourself much better. And staying focused will help you feel truly productive. Make sure to ask for the support that you need.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandra here or follow her on Instagram.
Taurus :: Taurus Rising
Interlocking planes of color. The interlocking planes of color shift and glide like a kaleidoscope. They change into different shapes. You’re being granted more flexibility of mind. It might be time to seek out some new information. Form a new opinion. Make adaptations. Pay extra attention to your dreams for inspiration. Get ready for a burst of fresh air to temper your mindset. A meditation practice may help you expand into new planes of experience. Any small thing you can do to take care of your body will help support your mental journey.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandra here or follow her on Instagram.
Gemini :: Gemini Rising
Climbing the mountain along a narrow path. Pilgrimage. Walk and walk until you reach a place where you feel ready to make an offering. Dedicate yourself to your own inner wisdom. Feel the security of your connection with a higher strength. Let go of the things that you don’t need to carry. Lighten your emotional load so that you can make the journey. A walking meditation practice may support you now. It will help you feel centered when other input from society is rattling you up. The way through any chaos and confusion is to dedicate your heart to love. Give generously.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandra here or follow her on Instagram.
Cancer :: Cancer Rising
Eating sponge cake. Eating cake is a symbol of being nurtured by sweet love. Lean into self-love. Fill your cup. Make sure that you feel seen, heard and understood. Then reach out to a partner to share. Magnify your own love for yourself by seeing it reflected in the outside world. You are able to truly nurture yourself in a way that has possibly been difficult before. Write love letters to yourself and save them in a drawer.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandra here or follow her on Instagram.
Leo :: Leo Rising
Floating in the lazy river. Leaps and bounds in how you think about things will lead to an easier schedule. Revolutionize your mindset. Expand into new habits. Make adjustments that will allow you to be more organized, yet unencumbered. By automating key things in your life, you’ll be able to take a step back and relax. The goal is to go with the flow and be completely present in the moment. Find a way to take some responsibilities off your plate so that you can relax.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandra here or follow her on Instagram.
Virgo :: Virgo Rising
Downward dog pose, hands and feet on the ground. Get grounded so that you can expand. You are able to have a burst of creativity this week, and it will be supported by feeling grounded. Your focus this week is on giving. You need to be able to be generous with your heart, creativity and resources. Support yourself well so that you can expand and support others. Your sense of safety allows you to shine your light. And you can shine so bright right now! Stabilize and expand.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandra here or follow her on Instagram.
Libra :: Libra Rising
Breathing in cool air, then blowing soap bubbles. Your inner child wants to have fun. Your inner child wants to know how special they are. Let your inner little one know that they can be exactly who they are. They don’t need to conform. They don’t need to please anyone. By sending this message to your inner child, you teach yourself how to have better relationships. And you remind yourself that you’re actually fine the way you are. This is self-love.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandra here or follow her on Instagram.
Scorpio :: Scorpio Rising
A large flock of birds flies by. You are finding new connections. You’re not alone. You can do more with a team. Let your intuition guide you to the right people. It’s time to quit the habit of spending time with people who no longer match your vibration. You need to feel like you can communicate with those who really get you. Be seen, be heard, learn and grow with like-minded folks. Then move your message.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandra here or follow her on Instagram.
Sagittarius :: Sagittarius Rising
A long ride on horseback. Building something. Your ability to be dedicated will serve you now. Sure, it isn’t always easy to keep forging ahead. But you must. Do it for your society. Right now, you expand through feeling connected with a larger social group. It’s time for activism. It’s time for unbridled creativity and expansion. It’s time to persevere. Keep going. Maintain your optimism and inner strength.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandra here or follow her on Instagram.
Capricorn :: Capricorn Rising
Making the plans, putting pencil to paper. You are starting something new. Be very practical about it. Form a plan and stick to it. It matters, because the projects you are working now on are very personal. Your plan helps you define yourself. Keep chipping away at the plan, but notice if you start to burn out. Your brain is very busy right now. To help it quiet down a little, you can focus on work. Surprisingly, this will bring you more perspective. Working and planning are two of your favorite things, so this time should be productive for you, just be careful not to over-do it. Take breaks.
Want more wisdom? Book a reading with Sandra here or follow her on Instagram.
MOON CLUB: MOONERS AND SHAKERS JAN 2017
What does spiritual activism look like? We’re so inspired by our change-making Moon Club members and their passion projects! Our Mooners and Shakers this month are Danielle Russell and Rachel Hanberry…
DANIELLE RUSSELL
“Basically…we leaped. We saw an opportunity to use our passions and skills to serve a cause we valued.”
The Project
“The Women’s March on Washington Archives Project began with a group of archivists inspired by the massive political and social importance of the January 21st Women’s Marches. Taking into account both the marches’ historical context, and the new wave of grassroots activism that fueled it, we’ve dedicated ourselves to ensuring the preservation of women’s voices in this intensely controversial contemporary political climate. Our end goal is to create a digital aggregate that documents this diverse, women-centric, political resistance with the eventual hope that these materials will become publicly available.”
The Breakthrough
“After volunteering my skills to state-level organizers, I reached out to a group of professional archivists to explore both what they had done for similar protests in the past and how they were currently responding to this event. I was pointed towards Documenting Ferguson and the Baltimore Uprising Archive, but there hadn’t been any efforts yet for the Women’s March. My co-administrator created a Facebook group, and we just started planning from the ground up. I sent out cold-call emails and she collaborated with her mentors to collect oral histories on a national (and now global!) scale. We started laying the groundwork for photographs and physical materials to have homes, and we reached out to state and city-level organizers to lend legitimacy to our team’s efforts.”
The Wider Mission
“I firmly believe that archivists actively shape documentary heritage to reflect the broad spectrum of human experience, and that marginalized voices and experiences have been overlooked in the archival record. We have to pay attention to ‘hot spots,’ where people object to or suggest variations from the official narrative of state or societal structures. Ideally, the culmination of these documentation efforts is a comprehensive image of society that includes public hopes and dreams, frustrations and failures, and activities and movements, all preserved in their original voices.”
The Inner Work
“As archivists, we are not impartial caretakers, but socially conditioned, subjective humans who are trying to be very transparent in our work. While my co-administrator and I are both women who deeply feel the importance of this next wave of feminist activism, obviously we can’t, and the WMW organizers do not, speak for all feminists or the entire Feminist movement. While this next wave of feminism aims to be truly intersectional, we also recognize the controversy that surrounded the Women’s March on Washington having been conceived by white women, and we are beginning to hear more from voices that complicate and enrich the narrative. Acknowledging this personally, and within the scope of the Project, is so important to the growth of the movement, but also to my own growth as a scholar, a feminist, and an activist.”
Moon Club Inspiration
“This project was conceived because of my participation in Moon Club, and is directly born out of my quarterly journaling exercises. After we worked in Moon Club on the idea of developing a service practice, I started looking into archival activism. I wanted to figure out how my skills could be used in the causes and movements I supported. In addition, the open and varied discussions with diverse women (and some men!) have expanded my practice of deep listening. Listening to their voices talking about their lives needs to be a fundamental part of my activism.”
Follow Danielle Russell on Instagram and Twitter, and check out the WMW Archives Project on Facebook and Twitter.
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RACHEL HANBERRY
“Is being sober and sane the new sexy?”
The Project
“The Sobriety Club is a subscription club that supports and provides connection for people who have consciously decided to quit any kind of addiction. In this Age of Awakening, negative addictions make us less conscious. When we are free from addiction, the fog dissipates and we can clearly see the light-filled path towards our true selves. The Sobriety Club’s mission is to support individuals on that path. I know all too well that this can be challenging, and understand that connection to others on the same path can ease the pressure to conform to social norms of negative addictions.”
The Breakthrough
“Before finding my true calling, I lived the London party lifestyle—consuming copious amounts of alcohol and participating in occasional drug use. At first it was fun, but it quickly became a coping strategy and a way for me to survive my own life. I was drowning in despair, self-loathing and hatred. I knew that alcohol didn’t serve me or my purpose in life, but found it hard to separate fun from the substances. I was so conditioned to consume and often felt boring if I didn’t drink.
Yoga transformed me, and I discovered I was born to be a yoga teacher and coach. Through teaching and coaching, it became clear to me that others were suffering from the same issues. Yet even after many years away from my former London lifestyle, I would have periods of drinking, and gradually lose my own light the more my alcohol consumption increased. The Sobriety Club was born to help me keep my word to myself and to support others who want to be clean, light-filled, and focused but find themselves trapped in this cycle.”
The Wider Mission
“My wider mission in the world is to help others to evolve their own lives. Through yoga classes, meditation, coaching programs, workshops, retreats, and teacher training courses at Yoga Beach House I give people the tools to learn to live in the present, fully and abundantly without the constraints of the past or future. I enable other people to be their best selves.”
Moon Club Inspiration
“During the last Moon Salon, I was really inspired to reach out to Ruby after hearing her talk about alcohol. As we come together to share ideas, resources, and ourselves, it’s been so inspiring to witness Moon Club members encourage each other’s enlightenment and growth of consciousness!”
Discover more about The Sobriety Club, Rachel’s Organic Products, and Yoga Beach House, and make sure to follow her on Instagram and Facebook.
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Want to join the cosmic crusade? Sign-up for Moon Club, our monthly membership and coaching program where astrology, community, and activism combine to help you create a life of passion, purpose, and pleasure!
NUMINOUS WEEKLY TAROTSCOPE: JANUARY 27—FEBRUARY 2
The Knight of Cups, reversed, is asking us to speak less and enquire more—before we jump to any conclusions, says Lindsay Mack…
YES, I AM: A MANIFESTO FOR 2017
The antidote for anxiety is to create your own manifesto for 2017, says Dani Katz. All you need to begin is a passionate cry of “Yes, I am!”
Despite any and all mainstream propaganda to the contrary, I happen to know that 2017 is going to be amazing—chock-full o’ fun, joy, personal breakthroughs, real-deal love, next-level sex, and quantum leaps in consciousness, success, prosperity, and lifestyle.
I know this because I also know that I, and I alone, am responsible for how I choose to experience reality. To this end, it’s become a daily practice—aligning my heart, mind, body, and spirit with my values, my genius, my desires, and my dharma. It helps that I have created a secret weapon—Yes, I Am—a hand-drawn, transformational coloring book that supports me in being my very best me ever, and in making 2017 my most wonderful year yet.
The book is divided into twelve I Am chapters, each one focusing on a different intention. I chose the I am theme because “I am” is the most powerful phrase in every mystical tradition there is, was, and ever will be—these two words are encoded with the transformative power of the multiverse.
And so, because sharing is caring, and caring is cool, I am offering up this manifesto, inspired by that aforementioned book of intentional awesomeness, so that you, too, can make 2017 your very best year ever.
***
“I AM SYNESCOPIC POSSIBILITY”
I choose to remember that limitation is an illusion that exists to be obliterated. I don’t buy into anyone else’s attempts to limit me, and I devote myself to surpassing my perceived limitations, and surprising myself with all that I can—and will—accomplish, and be, and share.
***
“I AM LOVE”
I choose to align myself with love in every moment. I meet non-love with love. I love myself unconditionally, and al(l)ways, and I radiate that love outwards, towards everyone I meet and engage with (while remembering that boundaries and discernment are self-love, too). I know that love is a state of mind, and a way of meeting the world, and I commit to embodying this love more and more, and better and better, each and every day.
***
“I AM OPTIMAL HEALTH”
Because the external is ever and always a reflection of the internal, I am committed to cultivating optimal health. This means sweating, breathing, and hydrating. This means eating organic whole foods, and getting plenty of sleep, and flossing and cleansing and supplementing accordingly. It also means minding my media intake, extricating myself from toxic relationships, and not overtaxing my adrenals on yerba maté, regardless of how yummy it tastes.
***
“I AM AUTHENTIC”
While money, achievement and outward notions and acknowledgements of success are lovely, I am far more interested in being the very best, most integrated and expressed me I can possibly be. I embrace my uniqueness. I appreciate my individual quirks and characteristics, and all the ways they come together to make this once in a lifetime phenomenon called me. Fuck trends. Fuck in/out lists. Fuck envy, comparison, established standards of beauty and love and success and lifestyle. I’m carving out my own course, and I’m doing a bang-up job of it.
***
“I AM MAGIC”
Did you know that 99% of our reality is totally invisible? Yup. And so it is that I am living 2017 as a testament to unseen forces of good and love and fun and wonderful, knowing that the Universe is infinitely more mystical than I could possibly imagine, and that miracles happen every second, of every day. Bring ‘em on, I say.
***
“I AM CONFIDENCE”
I know my value. I embody my wonderfulness. I shrink for no one. I am an empowered badass warrior of light and love and giggles, and I model this elevated awesomeness for, and in service to, the world at large. We. Are. Welcome.
***
“I AM NOW”
I don’t lollygag in the past, or worry about the future, because those are mere conceptual traps that keep me from experiencing the present moment, which is where reality (and juicy magical awesomeness) reside. I don’t surrender the miracle of my now to dark, dreary future fears, or what ifs, or worst case scenarios. I meditate. I focus on sensation instead of mind chatter. I trust in divine timing. I am patient. I am patient. I am patient.
***
I AM A HEALTHY, BALANCED, THRIVING PLANET EARTH”
The earth isn’t just our home planet—our very own space ship, hurling us through space—it is a living, breathing, conscious intelligence. With this in mind, I honor her as I do all living creatures. I tread lightly. I conserve resources. I respect the gifts the earth so selflessly gives us—her oxygen, her water, her plants, her sunshine, and her gravity, as well as all the other beings sharing this ride with me. We are all of us earthlings. Every. Single. One. It is through this lens that I move through this magical world, ever and always grateful for these earth gifts with which we are so, so blessed.
***
“I AM ABUNDANCE”
Abundance is a state of mind that draws to it like-vibrating experiences and energies. And so it is that I attune myself to the abundance that surrounds me. I root myself in gratitude for all my blessings. I give. I receive. I know my value, which colors my every exchange. I welcome free-flowing prosperity, and abundance, and enough for everyone. And so it is…
***
“I AM OPTIMIZED”
Despite all illusory notions of time to the contrary, life is not a linear journey. It takes flexibility to flow moment-to-moment, and to hone in on what’s appropriate for said moments. And so it is that I choose to embody my most optimized version of myself, however that looks and feels in each moment. What I love about optimizing is that it requires a deep surrender to the wisdom of forces way bigger and more intelligent than I am. It’s the opposite of micromanaging. Aaaahhhh…so much easier.
***
“I AM GRATITUDE”
It was Meister Eckhart who said: “If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is thank you, it will be enough.” Gratitude is a magical frequency that transports us to the present moment, and infuses us with graciousness and humility and appreciation. I commit to an attitude of gratitude in 2017. I choose to honor the blessings of what is, instead of lamenting all that isn’t, and all the ways I wish what is was different. And when mood, moon cycles, weather, and mercurial boyfriends threaten my peace of mind, and I stray into the dark and murky waters of fear and doubt and grief and rage, I commit to getting grateful, and to staying grateful, armed with the knowledge that I am not a victim, that there are no victims, and that everything is happening for a blessing – al(l)ways.
***
“I AM WE”
I commit to Unity consciousness—to moving through the world armed with the integrated and embodied knowledge of our Oneness. I know that it is impossible to hurt another without hurting myself, as there is no other, and separation is an illusion. I devote myself to acting in service to the highest good of the whole of humanity, knowing that the only way to change the world is to change myself. I take responsibility for the reflections I attract, knowing that anything and everything that triggers me is merely a messenger who exists to point my attention toward shadows inviting acknowledgement and integration. I summon the courage, the will, and the fortitude to look said shadows directly in the eye, and to integrate them, in service to us all. We. Are. One.
Dani Katz is a human being. She writes. She draws. She dances. She lives in her native Los Angeles. Yes, I Am, her transformational coloring book chock-full of interactive inspiration, encouragement, affirmations, and awesomeness, is on sale here. Nab yourself a copy immediately!
