Liberate Yourself from Unnecessary Suffering
Excuse yourself from irrelevant problems
What thought or trick do you use to help liberate yourself from unnecessary suffering?
What joke do you play on yourself when you're taking yourself too seriously?
How do you compassionately bust yourself when you realize you've been indulging in hypocritical behavior?
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VISIONARY ACTIVIST PRINCIPLES
by Caroline Casey:
0. Believe nothing, entertain possibilities. Therefore everything hereafter is offered playfully.
1. Imagination lays the tracks for reality to follow.
2. Better to create prophecy than live prediction. What makes us passive is toxic. Predictions make us passive, but prophecy is active co-creation with the Divine.
3. The invisible world would like to help, but spiritual etiquette requires that we ask. Help is always available; operators (and cooperators) are standing by.
4. The only way that the gods know we're asking for help is through ritual.
5. If something is a problem, make it bigger. If you cook rage into outrage, it takes it from personal tantrum yoga into the realm of useful action.
6. We only possess the power of an insight when we give it expression.
7. Creativity comes from paradox. We aspire to be disciplined wild people who are radical traditionalists.
Caroline Casey is here: https://coyotenetworknews.com/
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THE ART AND SCIENCE OF UNIVERSAL COMPASSION'
Has there ever been a time in the history of civilization when masses of people were actively cultivating a capacity for transcendental empathy? Have there ever been so many of us attuned to and concerned for the suffering of those we've never met?
In his book Blessed Unrest: How the Largest Movement in the World Came into Being and Why No One Saw It Coming, Paul Hawken argues that organized political action devoted to advancing the rights of others is a relatively new phenomenon.
The drive to abolish slavery was where it began. In recent decades it has grown exponentially, becoming a global crusade to improve social justice, economic conditions, human rights, and environmental health.
By Hawken's estimates, there are well over a million organizations engaged in the effort, which thrives without centralized leadership, charismatic front men, or a fixed ideology. Because of its grass-roots ubiquity, it is largely invisible to the mass media and underestimated by politicians.
Some day, maybe 500 years from now, our descendants will have installed the art and science of universal compassion as the first law of civilization. And I bet they will give honor to us, the people alive on the planet today, as the heroes who gave critical mass to their prime directive.
Read more: https://tinyurl.com/RadicalEmotion
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CONSIDERING HAPPINESS AS BEING STUPID
Ursula K. Le Guin wrote:
“The trouble is that we have a bad habit, encouraged by pedants and sophisticates, of considering happiness as something rather stupid.
“Only pain is intellectual, only evil interesting. This is the treason of the artist; a refusal to admit the banality of evil and the terrible boredom of pain.”
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HUMANS ARE HARD-WIRED WITH A NEGATIVITY BIAS
Kathleen Toohill writes:
"Neuropsychologist Rick Hanson says that humans are evolutionarily wired with a negativity bias. Our minds naturally focus on the bad and discard the good. It was much more important for our ancestors to avoid threats than to collect rewards.
"An individual who successfully avoided a threat would wake up the next morning and have another opportunity to collect a reward, but an individual who didn’t avoid the threat would have no such opportunity.
"Hanson describes the brain as like 'Velcro for negative experiences and Teflon for positive ones.' While some individuals may be inherently more optimistic than others, it’s generally true that in order for positive experiences to ‘stick’ in our brains as well as negative ones do, these positive experiences need to be held in our consciousness for a longer period of time.
"'The alarm bell of your brain — the amygdala (you’ve got two of these little almond-shaped regions, one on either side of your head) — uses about two-thirds of its neurons to look for bad news:
"'It’s primed to go negative,' writes Hanson. 'Once it sounds the alarm, negative events and experiences get quickly stored in memory — in contrast to positive events and experiences, which usually need to be held in awareness for a dozen or more seconds to transfer from short-term memory buffers to long-term storage.'"
More: https://tinyurl.com/2p83t2vn
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More by Rick Hanson: https://tinyurl.com/yda8htgu
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Why Does Your Brain Love? Negativity? The Negativity Bias.
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Our Brains Are Hardwired to Doomscroll: What Can We Do? Active effort will let you recapture your news feed and your emotions. https://tinyurl.com/3m9akv87
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Scientists believe that your brain has a built-in "negativity bias."
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On the tendency to emphasize the negative rather than the positive, Ray Williamns writes:
"Paul Rozin and Edward Royzman showed in their research that the negative perspective is more contagious than the positive perspective.
“A study by John Cacioppo and his colleagues showed that our attitudes are more heavily influenced by bad news than good news. Other researchers analyzed language to study negativity bias.
“For example, there are more negative emotional words (62 percent) than positive words (32 percent) in the English dictionary."
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"Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentimihalyi contends that unless we are occupied with other thoughts, worrying is the brain's default position.
“This is why, he says, 'we must constantly strive to escape such 'psychic entropy' by learning to control our consciousness and direct our attention to activities which provide "flow" activities which give positive feedback and strengthen our sense of purpose and achievement.'
“His views echoes those of Martin Seligman and Rick Hanson, who both make the point that while negative emotion always has the ability to 'trump' positive emotion, we have to learn how to keep negative emotion in check by amplifying positive emotions."
—Ray Williams, https://tinyurl.com/3jxsmmrc
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WHAT ARE SOME ANTIDOTES TO THE NEGATIVITY BIAS?
Need More Self Compassion? Researcher Suggests These 4 Simple Steps to Overcome Our Negativity Bias.
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Read my book, Pronoia Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings.
A free preview of the book is available here: https://tinyurl.com/PronoiaPreview
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Research shows that being kind helps counteract the negativity bias:
1. Exercising compassion stimulates the same pleasure centers associated with the drive for food, water and sex.
2. Practicing compassion with intention has a positive physiological effect on the body. It can lower blood pressure, boost your immune response and increase your calmness.
More: https://tinyurl.com/n2m3t2t
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Here’s a book to help you re-wire your relationship to bring out the best in each ither:
Wired for Love: How Understanding Your Partner's Brain and Attachment Style Can Help You Defuse Conflict and Build a Secure Relationship
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GOOD NEWS SOURCES
Good News Sources:
https://reasonstobecheerful.world
https://celebratesmallvictories.com/archives/
https://reddit.com/r/UpliftingNews
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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY
Week beginning September 29
Copyright 2022 by Rob Brezsny
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh was born under the sign of Libra. He said, "The root-word 'Buddha' means to wake up, to know, to understand; and he or she who wakes up and understands is called a Buddha." So according to him, the spiritual teacher Siddhartha Gautama who lived in ancient India was just one of many Buddhas. And by my astrological reckoning, you will have a much higher chance than usual to be like one of these Buddhas yourself in the coming weeks. Waking up will be your specialty. You will have an extraordinary capacity to burst free of dreamy illusions and murky misapprehensions. I hope you take full advantage. Deeper understandings are nigh.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): I invite you to be the sexiest, most intriguing, most mysterious Scorpio you can be in the coming weeks. Here are ideas to get you started. 1. Sprinkle the phrase "in accordance with prophecy" into your conversations. 2. Find an image that symbolizes rebirth and revitalization arising out of disruption. Meditate on it daily until you actually experience rebirth and revitalization arising out of disruption. 3. Be kind and merciful to the young souls you know who are living their first lifetimes. 4. Collect deep, dark secrets from the interesting people you know. Employ this information to plan how you will avoid the trouble they endured. 5. Buy two deluxe squirt guns and two knives made of foam rubber. Use them to wage playful fights with those you love.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): There's an ancient Greek saying, "I seek the truth, by which no one ever was truly harmed." I regard that as a fine motto for you Sagittarians. When you are at your best and brightest, you are in quest of the truth. And while your quests may sometimes disturb the status quo, they often bring healthy transformations. The truths you discover may rattle routines and disturb habits, but they ultimately lead to greater clarity and authenticity. Now is an excellent time to emphasize this aspect of your nature.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Let's imagine you are in your office or on the job or sitting at your kitchen table. With focused diligence, you're working on solving a problem or improving a situation that involves a number of people. You think to yourself, "No one seems to be aware that I am quietly toiling here behind the scenes to make the magic happen." A few days or a few weeks later, your efforts have been successful. The problem is resolved or the situation has improved. But then you hear the people involved say, "Wow, I wonder what happened? It's like things got fixed all by themselves." If a scenario like this happens, Capricorn, I urge you to speak up and tell everyone what actually transpired.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): To honor your entrance into the most expansive phase of your astrological cycle, I'm calling on the counsel of an intuitive guide named Nensi the Mercury Priestess. She offers the following advice. 1. Cultivate a mindset where you expect something unexpected to happen. 2. Fantasize about the possibility of a surprising blessing or unplanned-for miracle. 3. Imagine that a beguiling breakthrough will erupt into your rhythm. 4. Shed a few preconceptions about how your life story will unfold in the next two years. 5. Boost your trust in your deep self's innate wisdom. 6. Open yourself more to receiving help and gifts.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Author Colin Wilson describes sex as "a craving for the mingling of consciousness, whose symbol is the mingling of bodies. Every time partners slake their thirst in the strange waters of the other’s identity, they glimpse the immensity of their freedom." I love this way of understanding the erotic urge, and recommend you try it out for a while. You're entering a phase when you will have extra power to refine and expand the way you experience blending and merging. If you're fuzzy about the meaning of the words "synergy" and "symbiosis," I suggest you look them up in the dictionary. They should be featured themes for you in the coming weeks.
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ARE YOU THE HERO OF YOUR OWN LIFE?
"Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show." So begins Charles Dickens' novel David Copperfield.
I'd like to inspire you to create a story of your own that begins with similar words. That's why I provide these free horoscopes for you.
If you'd ever enjoy getting even more assistance from me, tune into your EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE, which I create for you each week. They're four-to-five-minute meditations on the current state of your destiny.
To buy and listen to your Expanded Audio Horoscope online, go to https://RealAstrology.com
Register and/or log in through the main page.
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The cost is $7 per sign on the On the Web. (Discounts are available for bulk purchases.)
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ARIES (March 21-April 19): Poet Susan Howe describes poetry as an "amorous search under the sign of love for a remembered time at the pitch-dark fringes of evening when we gathered together to bless and believe." I'd like to use that lyrical assessment to describe your life in the coming days—or at least what I hope will be your life. In my astrological opinion, it's a favorable time to intensify your quest for interesting adventures in intimacy; to seek out new ways to imagine and create togetherness; to collaborate with allies in creating brave excursions into synergy.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Social reformer Frederick Douglass (1817-1895) had a growlery. It was a one-room stone cabin where he escaped to think deep thoughts, work on his books, and literally growl. As a genius who escaped enslavement and spent the rest of his life fighting for the rights of his fellow Black people, he had lots of reasons to snarl, howl, and bellow as well as growl. The coming weeks would be an excellent time for you to find or create your own growlery, Taurus. The anger you feel will be especially likely to lead to constructive changes. The same is true about the deep thoughts you summon in your growlery: They will be extra potent in helping you reach wise practical decisions.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): "Conduct your blooming in the noise and whip of the whirlwind,” wrote Gemini poet Gwendolyn Brooks. I love that advice! The whirlwind is her metaphor for the chaos of everyday life. She was telling us that we shouldn't wait to ripen ourselves until the daily rhythm is calm and smooth. Live wild and free right now! That's always good advice, in my opinion, but it will be especially apropos for you in the coming weeks. Now is your time to "endorse the splendor splashes" and "sway in wicked grace," as Brooks would say.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): “Don’t look away," advised novelist Henry Miller in a letter to his lover. "Look straight at everything. Look it all in the eye, good and bad." While that advice is appealing, I don't endorse it unconditionally. I'm a Cancerian, and I sometimes find value in gazing at things sideways, or catching reflections in mirrors, or even turning my attention away for a while. In my view, we Crabs have a special need to be self-protective and self-nurturing. And to accomplish that, we may need to be evasive and elusive. In my astrological opinion, the next two weeks will be one of these times. I urge you to gaze directly and engage point-blank only with what's good for you.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Tips to get the most out of the next three weeks: 1. Play at least as hard as you work. 2. Give yourself permission to do anything that has integrity and is fueled by compassion. 3. Assume there is no limit to how much generous joie de vivre you can summon and express. 4. Fondle and nuzzle with eager partners as much as possible. And tell them EXACTLY where and how it feels good. 5. Be magnanimous in every gesture, no matter how large or small. 6. Even if you don't regard yourself as a skillful singer, use singing to transform yourself out of any mood you don't want to stay in.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): In the coming weeks, you should refrain from wrestling with problems that resist your solutions. Be discerning about how you use your superior analytical abilities. Devote yourself solely to manageable dilemmas that are truly responsive to your intelligent probing. PS: I feel sorry for people who aren’t receptive to your input, but you can't force them to give up their ignorance or suffering. Go where you’re wanted. Take power where it's offered. Meditate on the wisdom of Anaïs Nin: “You cannot save people. You can only love them.”
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Homework: What's the best change you could make that would be fairly easy to accomplish? Newsletter.FreeWillAstrology.com
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Submissions sent to Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter or in response to "homework assignments" may be published in a variety of formats at Rob Brezsny's discretion, including but not limited to newsletters, books, the Free Will Astrology column, and Free Will Astrology website. We reserve the right to edit submissions for length, style, and content.
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Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright 2022 Rob Brezsny
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I am always grateful for you, Rob. Pronoia and all of your eclectic gatherings of wisdom have positively influenced me - merging with my own thoughts and seeping into my visceral body - for many, many years. I apologize for not telling you this often enough.
Today, especially, I am grateful. The thoughts you offer are especially timely. I am working on relocating to Sicily and while folks find that novel, they are also largely incapable of embracing the limitless possibility of this move or of understanding my joy. I do not fault them for that. Only, sometimes it makes me a little sad. Reading your words today has allowed me to release the sadness. Only joy and gratitude. As Emily Dickinson wrote, "I dwell in possibility." Peace and joy to you today and always!
As soon as I notice myself creating suffering for myself, I thank that part of me for its efforts. I then ask it, :What else could we do to accomplish our goal with kindness? How else could we solve this puzzle?" If the source is outside myself, I see if there is anything I can do right now to solve the puzzle. If I find something, I do that. If I find nothing, I let it go. And I ask myself, "why is it all just so easy?" These are easy places to start. Misery is optional.