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You Have the Right to Be Regularly Fascinated

How skilled are you at being pleasantly surprised?

Rob Brezsny

Aug 23, 2022

Life will send you whatever experience you need to stimulate the evolution of your consciousness.

—Eckhart Tolle

Some people have a wonderful capacity to appreciate again and again, freshly and naively, the basic goods of life, with awe, pleasure, wonder, and even ecstasy.

—Abraham H. Maslow

I'm going to make everything around me beautiful. That will be my life.

—Elsie de Wolfe

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WE ARE DISSIDENT BODHISATTVAS

We are dissident bodhisattvas rebelling against all those forces that feed fear and ignore love.

We are spiritual freedom fighters rising up to protect nature and foment peace and demand justice.

We are subversive mystics stoking the cool blue fires of poetry and lobbying for the liberated imagination.

We are militant ecstatics invoking the transformative powers of pleasure to sanctify and beautify our one and only Earth.

We are mutinous purveyors of grace who redistribute the wealth so that all creatures may have the means to thrive.

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TO SEE WHAT'S GOOD AND BEAUTIFUL IN OTHERS

Thomas Merton's notion of what makes a saint doesn't have to do with being a perfectly sinless paragon of virtue.

The more important measure of sanctity, he said, is one's ability to see what's good and beautiful in other people. The truly holy person "retires from the struggle of judging others."

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THE VALUE OF ENCHANTMENT

"If I had the influence with the good fairy who is supposed to preside over the christening of all children, I should ask that her gift to each child in the world be a sense of wonder so indestructible that it would last throughout life, an unfailing antidote against the boredom and disenchantment of later years, sterile preoccupations with things that are artificial, the alienation from the sources of our strength."

—Rachel Carson, The Sense of Wonder

"Our ancestors built temples to eros in realization of our absolute and unforgiving need for enchantment," says psychologist Thomas Moore.

So I ask: Where are you getting your enchantment these days?

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THE UNREAL IS POWERFUL

Chuck Palahniuk writes:

The unreal is more powerful than the real. Because nothing is as perfect as you can imagine it. Because it's only intangible ideas, concepts, beliefs, fantasies that last. Stone crumbles. Wood rots. People, well, they die.

But things as fragile as a thought, a dream, a legend, they can go on and on. If you can change the way people think. The way they see themselves. The way they see the world. You can change the way people live their lives. That’s the only lasting thing you can create."

— Chuck Palahniuk

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THE UNIVERSE IS MADE OF STORIES

Hear this as a musical spoken-word piece:

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The poet Muriel Rukeyser said the universe is composed of stories, not of atoms. The physicist Werner Heisenberg declared that the universe is made of music, not of matter.

And we believe that if you habitually expose yourself to toxic stories and music, you could wind up living in the wrong universe, where it's impossible to become the gorgeous genius you were born to be.

That's why we implore you to nourish yourself with delicious, nutritious tales and tunes that inspire you to exercise your willpower for your highest good.

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I PREFER A DIFFERENT GOD

I'm not interested in the "God" that the fundamentalists hallucinate. I prefer the Mystery that Peter Matthiessen refers to in his book The Snow Leopard:

"Like the Atman of the Vedas, like the Buddhist Mind, like Tao, the Great Spirit of the American Indian is everywhere and in all things, unchanging. Even the Australian aborigines—considered to be the most ancient race on earth—distinguish between linear time and a 'Great Time' of dreams, myths, and heroes, in which all is present in this moment.

"It stirs me that this primordial intuition has been perpetuated by voice and act across countless horizons and for centuries on end, illuminating the dream-life of primitives, the early Indo-European civilizations of the Sumerians and Hittites, the ancient Greeks and the Egyptians, guarded by hidden cults in the Dark Ages, emerging as Christian, Hasidic, and Muslim mysticism (Sufism) as well as in all the splendorous religions of the East."

And, I will add to Peter's list: in the spiritual disciplines of Hermeticism, Magick, Qabalah and Kabbalah, Tantra, Wicca, Paganism, and Druidism.

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Image by Ruslan Shtefan

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WE CREATE OURSELVES BY WHAT WE NOTICE

Margaret Wheatley writes:

We create ourselves by what we choose to notice. Once this work of self-authorship has begun, we inhabit the world we've created. We self-seal. We don't notice anything except those things that confirm what we already think about who we already are.

Meditative traditions refer to the observer self. When we succeed in moving outside our normal processes of self-reference and can look upon ourselves with self-awareness, then we have a chance at changing. We break the seal. We notice something new."

—Margaret Wheatley

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MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:

A Wandering Conservationist’s Quest to Protect the World’s Soil. Criss-crossing the globe, one man has secured pledges from 74 countries to preserve their soil through more sustainable farming. https://tinyurl.com/5276twwf

Pakistan’s Mangroves Are a Coastal Conservation Marvel. A far-reaching reforestation effort has dramatically turned the tide for a waterborne climate change warrior. https://tinyurl.com/2p8v9naj

Europe’s New Trams Are Reviving a Golden Age of Transit. Tramways were once a staple of European cities. Now, a new generation is enhancing urban life once again. https://tinyurl.com/4m7yejwj

Brooklyn’s New Food Hub Sells from Black- and Brown-Owned Farms. This is a hyperlocal model that supports the people who live in the area. https://tinyurl.com/bdcrup7z

For a lot more pronoiac resources and ideas, read my book Pronoia Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings

Available at Bookshop.org: https://tinyurl.com/548hp8y8

Available at Powells: https://bit.ly/PowellsPronoia

Available at Barnes & Noble: https://tinyurl.com/PronoiaBN

Available at Amazon: https://bit.ly/Pronoia

A free preview of the book is available here: https://tinyurl.com/PronoiaPreview

Please tell me your own nominations for PRONOIA RESOURCES: Truthrooster@gmail.com.

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I have made it possible for subscribers to my newsletter to pay a subscription fee to me for my newsletter, BUT ONLY IF THEY WANT TO AND CAN AFFORD TO!

I have offered my astrology newsletter free of charge for the past 22 years, and I will continue to do so for the next 22 years at least.

If, however, you are sufficiently prosperous and feel comfortable about donating money to me, I welcome it. Please know, though: I am TOTALLY FINE if you don't donate.

P.S.: No pressure, though! I understand that some of you don't have enough money yourself, and it wouldn't make sense for you to give some to me.

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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY

Week beginning August 25

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Whenever you are contemplating a major decision, I hope you raise questions like these: 1. Which option shows the most self-respect? 2. Which path would be the best way to honor yourself? 3. Which choice is most likely to help you fulfill the purposes you came to earth to carry out? 4. Which course of action would enable you to express your best gifts? Are there questions you would add, Virgo? I expect the coming months will require you to generate key decisions at a higher rate than usual, so I hope you will make intensive use of my guiding inquiries, as well as any others you formulate.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Libran blogger Ana-Sofia Cardelle writes, "I look back on past versions of myself with such love and tenderness. I want to embrace myself at different parts of my life." I hope you're inspired by her thoughts as you carry out the following actions: 1. Create an altar filled with treasures that symbolize major turning points in your destiny. 2. Forgive yourself for what you imagine to be old errors and ignorance. 3. Summon memories of the persons you were at ages 7, 12, and 17, and write a kind, thoughtful message to each. 4. Literally kiss seven different photos of your face from earlier in your life. 5. Say "thank you" and "bless you" to the self you were when you succeeded at two challenging tests in the past.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): You know more about how karma works than all the other signs. Scorpio-style intelligence typically has a fine intuitive grasp of how today's realities evolved out of the deep patterns and rhythms of the past. But that doesn't mean you perfectly understand how karma works. And in the coming weeks, I urge you to be eager to learn more. Become even savvier about how the law of cause and effect impacts the destinies of you and your allies. Meditate on how the situations you are in now were influenced by actions you took once upon a time. Ruminate on what you could do in the near future to foster good karma and diminish weird karma.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Kabbalistic writer Simon Jacobson says, "Like a flame, the soul always reaches upward. The soul's fire wants to defy the confines of life. It cannot tolerate the mediocrity and monotony of sheer materialism. Its passion knows no limits as it craves for the beyond." That sounds both marvelous and hazardous, right? Jacobson concludes, "Whether the soul's fire will be a constructive or destructive force is dependent on the person’s motivation." According to my astrological analysis, your deep motivations are likely to be extra noble and generous in the coming weeks, Sagittarius. So I expect that your soul's fire will be very constructive.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): In the Spansh language, there's the idiom pensando en la inmortalidad del cangrejo. Its literal translation is "thinking about the immortality of the crab." It applies to a person engaged in creative daydreaming—her imagination wandering freely in hopes of rousing innovative solutions to practical dilemmas. Other languages have similar idioms. In Finnish, istun ja mietin syntyjä syviä means "wondering about the world's early origins." Polish has marzyć o niebieskich migdałach, or "dreaming about blue almonds." I encourage you to enjoy an abundance of such explorations in the coming days, Capricorn. You need to fantasize more than usual.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): My Aquarian reader Georgie Lee wrote to tell me what it's like being an Aquarius. I offer it to you because you are potentially at the peak of expressing the qualities she names. She says, "Accept that you don't really have to understand yourself. Be at peace with how you constantly ramble, swerve, and weave to become more of yourself. Appreciate how each electric shift leads to the next electric shift, always changing who you are forever. Within the churning, ever-yearning current, marvel at how you remain eternal, steady, and solid—yet always evolving, always on a higher ground before."

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PRAYERS FOR YOU

An interviewer once asked me if there's any special ritual I do before writing my weekly horoscopes.

I told her that I say a prayer in which I affirm my desire to provide you with these three services:

1. that what I create will be of practical use to you;

2. that it will help you cultivate your relationship with your inner teacher;

3. that it will inspire you to tap into and use the substantial freedom you have to create the life you want.

If you ever want more inspiration generated in that same spirit -- beyond the horoscopes you're reading here -- keep in mind that every week I also create EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES for you. They're four-to-five-minute meditations on the current state of your destiny.

To listen to your Expanded Audio Horoscope online, go to https://RealAstrology.com

The cost is $7 per sign online. (Discounts are available for bulk purchases.)

"Your Expanded Audio Horoscopes provide me with the Rest of the Story. I'm not necessarily a believer in the scientific accuracy of astrology, but I do think you've got a lot of practical wisdom to impart."

—M. Tennenbaum, New York

"No one knows more about me than me. But you're right up there near the top of the list of people who do understand something about how I tick. How is that possible?"

—R. Goren, Albuquerque

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PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Here's a good way build your vibrancy: Use your emotional intelligence to avoid swimming against strong currents for extended periods. Please note that swimming against strong currents is fine, even advisable, for brief phases. Doing so boosts your stamina and fosters your trust in your resilience. But mostly, I recommend you swim in the same direction as the currents or swim where the water is calm and currentless. In the coming weeks, I suspect you can enjoy many freestyle excursions as you head in the same direction as vigorous currents.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): In the coming weeks, I urge you to flee from stale and rigid certainty. Rebel against dogmatic attitudes and arrogant opinions. Be skeptical of unequivocal answers to nuanced questions. Instead, dear Aries, give your amused reverence to all that's mysterious and enigmatic. Bask in the glimmer of intriguing paradoxes. Draw inspiration and healing from the fertile unknown. For inspiration, write out this Mary Oliver poem and carry it with you: "Let me keep my distance, always, from those who think they have the answers. Let me keep company with those who say 'Look!' and laugh in astonishment, and bow their heads."

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): A blogger named Chaconia writes, "I've cultivated a lifetime of being low maintenance and easy-going, and now I've decided I'm done with it. Demanding Me is born today." I'm giving you temporary permission to make a similar declaration, Taurus. The astrological omens suggest that in the coming weeks, you have every right to be a charming, enchanting, and generous version of a demanding person. So I authorize you to be just that. Enjoy yourself as you ask for more of everything.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): The witch Lisa Chamberlain writes about the magical properties of colors. About brown, she says it "represents endurance, solidity, grounding, and strength." She adds that it's used in magic to enhance "balance, concentration, material gain, home, and companion animals." According to my reading of the astrological omens, the upcoming weeks should be a deeply brown time for you Geminis. To move your imagination in a righteous direction, have fun wearing clothes in shades of brown. Grace your environment with things that have the hues of chestnut, umber, mahogany, sepia, and burnt sienna. Eat and drink caramel, toffee, cinnamon, almonds, coffee, and chocolate.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Cancerian poet Danusha Laméris discovered that earthworms have taste buds all over their bodies. Now she loves to imagine she's giving them gifts when she drops bits of apples, beets, avocados, melons, and carrot tops into the compost bin. "I'd always thought theirs a menial life, eyeless and hidden, almost vulgar." But now that she understands "they bear a pleasure so sublime," she wants to help the worms fulfill their destinies. I mention this, Cancerian, because I suspect you may have comparable turnarounds in the coming weeks. Long-held ideas may need adjustments. Incomplete understandings will be filled in when you learn the rest of the story. You will receive a stream of interesting new information that changes your mind, mostly in enjoyable ways.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): You should never allow yourself to be tamed by others. That advice is always apropos for you Leos, and even more crucial to heed in the coming weeks. You need to cultivate maximum access to the raw, primal sources of your life energy. Your ability to thrive depends on how well you identify and express the beautiful animal within you. Here's my only caveat: If you imagine there may be value in being tamed a little, in harnessing your brilliant beast, do the taming yourself. And assign that task to the part of you that possesses the wildest wisdom.

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Homework: What's the one past action you most need to forgive yourself for? Newsletter.FreeWillAstrology.com

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