November 23, 2005
Astrologers for something more

Okay, so call me Aquarian... but I'm often struck by how every ad in The Mountain Astrologer is self-promoting. One would think, considering how insightful and healing we consider astrology to be, that at least a small percentage of the ads would be for something greater, for example saving the environment or helping those less fortunate. Because as a wise sage once said:

Outer work without inner work is deaf,
But inner work without outer work is blind.

Occasionally I dream of starting something called the 'Aquarius Moon Foundation', which would be a vehicle by which astrologers could contribute and/or donate, as a group, to some meaningful action in the world. And by so doing we could show the public that astrologers, as a profession and industry, are involved in more than just navel-gazing.

However, until that time, I would like to share my current passion (read more below). Be assured that it's Aquarian in that it's an unpopular cause. But with a little bit of thought I hope you'll see that contributing to this effort could go far in transforming our global 'trance' and leveraging change where the need is greatest. I hope you'll consider joining me and donating whatever, and even a little bit more than, you can.

keep reading »

Vinessa • 01:03 PM •

Comments

great piece, vinessa. i was also struck a few weeks ago by that medic's statement. we often understand why we should love our enemies in an abstract sense, according to a notional sense we have of the ultimate unity of the common good. rarely, though, do we discover that common unity within the moment. so the aquarian moon is always dreaming of someday. bless you for doing so - so that at some point in the future the aquarian moon might become the aquarian sun.

'navel gazing.' it's a great expression, made into little more than a criticism by negative association. what is the navel but the common center of all? it is no coincidence that omphalic delphi was also the oracle for all the greeks; for our future is contained in our origins. to change the future we must recover our past.

was it Hitler or Orwell who said as much? Orwell, i think: "Who controls the present controls the past; who controls the past controls the future."

And so when i look into that region of Pakistan i don't see our islamic enemy, but our spiritual ancestors. the origins of America, i believe, are in Islam. if the Founding Fathers were masons, the masons templars, the templars sufis... and so forth. we are born of the same tangled stream.... and war is the father of us all.

comment by tim at 06:08 PM on 11.23.05 [ link ]

Vinessa, Thank you very much for your Aquarian call to make a difference. It is very refreshing to see a socially conscious suggestion for the potential of our cherished astrological language.

With a heavily stacked 11th house, Aquarius ascendent and 5th house Mars and Moon, to boot, I feel downright bearlike when it comes to the neglect by our collective consciousness toward the children of our planet. They are our future and the legacy of war we perpetuate for them falls under Einstein's definition of insanity ( to do the same thing over and over expecting different results). Until we step forward and make commitments to make a difference for the 7 generations beyond us, we're worse than navel gazing, we're just blowing astrological smoke up our arses.

I completely agree with you, astrologers can step forward and demand social conciousness in TM, for one.
Here's another thing my Capricorn 11th house planets can suggest: Astrologers of a business mind can also work toward establishing an offshore IBC (International Business Corporation) from which to build a Foundation NOT beholden to the IRS - the IRS is an illicit corporation, NOT a federal agency, that is hugely instrumental in the widespread murder of innocent children all over the planet. What the IRS allocates its coffers to is largely the promotion of wars, "legal" and illegal.

I, personally, am disgusted with the wholesale acceptance by most Americans of an economy that is largely predicated on empire building, conquest on resourced nations for the usurpation of those resources and slave labor for the products that are purchased in "big box" retail outlets. Let's not forget in our daily choices to refrain from supporting multi-nationals that employ murder of labor leaders as a way of protecting profits, i.e. Coca Cola, bottler of a vast array of bottled waters, drinks, Odwalla juices (bought them 3 years ago) and a major player in the drive for the privatization of water on the planet (yes, corporations are vying to own watercourses and aquifers globally).

If any readers of this posting know of the most affordable way to establish an offshore IBC, please come forward with the knowledge, let's make Vinessa's shared dream a reality today.

Going to write a letter to the Mountain Astrologer now, thanks Vinessa, for blowing some dust off of the old astrological covers.

comment by Camila at 12:47 AM on 11.24.05 [ link ]

Hey Vinessa, this is a great idea. Unfortunately, I'm not able to donate personally, but I was able to convince my employer, Smith & Fong, to donate $2000 to Doctors without Borders.

Keep on keeping on!
Sven

comment by Sven at 10:26 AM on 11.28.05 [ link ]

Thanks for you writing on this subject. It does amaze me that the US News media is paying so little attention to this catastrophe. There was a conference on 11/20 where various world governments pledged $5.4 billion to aid Pakistan. You can find info on that if you google "Aid to Pakistan". The US has promised $510 million, but actually given only $156 million at this time. So along with our own personal contributions we could speak with our elected officials to make sure that our pledged money is sent as soon as possible.

Love,
Ann

comment by Ann D at 10:47 AM on 11.28.05 [ link ]

Woohoo, Sven!! All honor to Smith & Fong who are clearly committed to making a difference. I'm humbled and grateful. Thank you for orchestrating that!!

Also great point, Ann. We can also activate ourselves by pushing our representatives to follow through on our promises.

Camila, just to be clear, I do not fault the Mountain Astrologer (TMA) -- they are excellent at what they do which is producing a high quality professional journal for us. WE are the ones who purchase ad space and I simply think it's funny that we promote our services primarily to ourselves. And that we don't seem to involve ourselves much in activities that are not self-serving.

Not to blow my own horn, but a few years ago at UAC I paid for a full page ad in the conference program, in support of Kepler College, urging people to support it regularly and seriously. I didn't get anything out of it, it just felt like a good cause. I had also profited enough from astrology that I felt I could give something back. But I remember several people saying it was the first time they had ever seen an ad for something *not* self-promoting. I hadn't thought of that beforehand but I had to admit it was true.

Of course we should advertise our services in TMA as a central resource for all things astrological. I would just like to put a bug in people's ear. Maybe 10% of our income or effort can be for something more. If someone runs a full page ad every month, why not also run a 1/4 page ad every other month for something simply right and good? It would be nice to see just a little bit more selfless conscience when opening up the pages of TMA -- especially since we claim to be healers.

comment by Vinessa at 10:24 AM on 11.29.05 [ link ]
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