Vedic Astrology Outlook for January 2014

Capricorn

Transiting Jupiter is throwing a strong, beneficial, optimistic aspect to the Sun as we begin 2014.   This aspect will continue until January 14 when the Sun moves into Capricorn and loses Jupiter’s aspect.  Recall that Capricorn is a practical sign.   However, enjoy the Jupiter/Sun aspect that conveys optimism, the desire to expand, grow and believe that things will ultimately work out for the best while it lasts.  This is a great way to start the new year.  Unfortunately it isn't with us for very long. 

The Sun will strongly influenced by Saturn after January 14 while it transits Capricorn (Saturn’s sign).  The Sun energy will become much more pragmatic, serious, focused on productivity and getting things done.  All of the expansive optimism that a new year brings, along with the Jupiter/Sun aspect will quickly disappear and it will be time to get back to work.  This looks like it sets the tone for the rest of the year.  The card, hold reality of Saturn will take hold so remember that results speak louder than actions, and that actions speak louder than words.

Mercury enters Capricorn on January 8^th and then moves into Aquarius on January 26.  These transits bring focus again on the practical nature of this month.  You should notice that your mind is more logical, pragmatic and focused.  It’s a good time for studies, communications of all types, and getting mechanical issues resolved or improving technical equipment during this month.  Mercury turns retrograde on February 6^th in Aquarius so get organized now and get your projects underway before that date.  This is especially true if your projects involve communication, analysis and calculations.  

Venus  is retrograde from early Capricorn back to Sagittarius for the entire month of January.  It then then turns direct on February 1^st in Purva Ashadha nakshatra.  For most of January, Venus will also receive the malefic aspects of Saturn and Mars, rendering Venus weak.  This is not a favorable time for relationship matters, artistic, and financial affairs, all governed by Venus.   In addition this is not an auspicious time to begin a relationship, get married, begin a major house renovation or purchase real estate, for example.  On the other hand, this is a good time to resolve these matters, whether they are marriage difficulties, decorating mistakes, or financial weaknesses.  Take time this month to review past errors in these areas so that you can learn from past decisions and mistakes.  

I expect that we will see water-related problems this month because of the affliction to Venus in Purva Ashadha nakshatra, ruled by Apas (deified waters).   Expect a tendency for excessive widespread snowfall, rains and flooding throughout the month and even plumbing problems.

Venus rules teeth, the eyes (vision), sugar (diabetes), urinary system, kidneys and the sex organs.   Health problems involving these domains are more prone to act up and reveal themselves during this month if you have already had problems in any of these areas in the past.  Dental problems may be more prevalent the first half of the month while Venus is in Uttara Ashadha (it exits on January 13).   Be aware of health issues this month and take care of yourself.

Where is the Center of Your World?

As we start this new year I thought that I would ask you to think about the center of your world.  To the Pre-Colombian Incas Cuzco was the center of their world, the umbilical of the world.  When I was a child my father was involved in highly technical research and we moved almost every year has he chased equipment from one side of the country to the other.  I remember feeling like there was no one place that I could call home and then one morning I woke up and realized that the Center of My World was where my family was and that it wasn’t place dependent, it was people dependent.  I still fee that way.  However, if you grew up in one place that one place may be the center of your world.

The One Tree, the World Tree is viewed by some as the center of the world. 

Yew Tree at St. Peter’s Church

Tandridge, United Kingdom

Take a few minutes and go outside and slowly turn around.  Take in the vista that surrounds you, the earth, the plants and animals, buildings, whatever you find there, and the sky.  This is your local world and you are standing in the center of your world.  This is the place where you act and where you matter.

My view of the Center of My World has changed a little over the years.  It is no longer just where my family is, although they still fill my heart.  I have adopted more the Lakota view of mitakue oyasin or “all my relations”.  Our energies are all woven together and so we are related to everything in the universe.  Taking that more shamanic view of the world and my place in it has changed my relationship with beings in my local world.  Now my world doesn't just consist of my family, but every living thing that surrounds me.

I believe that the world around me is alive.  Really alive.  Obviously the plants and animals are alive and have spirit, but so is the stream, the earth, the rocks,  the Blue Ridge Mountains that I hike every week, and the James River.  All of these are part of my local world.  As a shamanic practitioner I feel responsible for the spirits that indwell all that is alive.  That doesn’t mean that I don’t use the material resources around me.  My bed frame, for example, is made of wood, as is my front door and I wear leather shoes.  However, it does mean that when I use any part of nature I make the conscious decision to do so and only after considering the necessity; and I  do it with deep respect and thanksgiving.

For example, yesterday I wanted/needed Cedar smoke for a ritual.  I went into the forest to an old Cedar tree, sat at its base and we had a little talk.  I told the tree what I needed and why and asked permission to gather dead, broken branches from around the base of the tree.  Feeling that I had permission, I collected only what I needed, left an offering of corn meal, and returned.  [Aside:  if you are as old as I am you might remember the old Smothers Brother’s routine with the song, I Talk to the Trees, and yes, I really do talk to the trees and they listen to me.]

May you find peace this day and always in your local world.  May the spirits of your world uphold and support you, and may you find oneness with all the surrounds you.  May your ancestors and mine guide and direct us, teach us what to do and what to say so that our world is a better place for all living things.

Peace,

Dr.Dave

Best Shamanic Journey Ever

I usually don’t share my shamanic journeys but this one was special and because I haven’t written much lately I thought that those of you who read me deserve a little view into my journey life.  I won’t share all of the messages that I received, those are private, but my shamanic journey was one of my most wonderful every.  Hope you enjoy.

12:09 (lunch time) I laid on the bed, covered with a blanked and covered my eyes with a couple of new handkerchiefs.   I had placed a six-sided, clear as glass, Tibetan quartz crystal on my chest.  I had decided to use my tree entry into the lower world and crossed the street and walked into the forest on the other side.   I was listening to a Michael Drake 15 minute drum track on my iPod.  Rather than walking I immediately started to move forward in what I assume was a Native American dance; something I had never done before.  I arrived at my tree and danced around it three times before entering the opening at the bottom of the trunk.  I grabbed onto a root and spun around it while quickly moving downwards.  Almost immediately I arrived at the dark end of a tunnel, hit a torch that was leaning on the tunnel wall against the rocks of the tunnel and it sprung to fire.  With that in my hand I started to dance once again down the length of the tunnel.  I don’t know what I did with the torch when I arrived at the other side, I just didn’t have it any more.  I was meet by Deer and Hummingbird.  I put my hand on Deer’s back and turned and spoke to Hummingbird.  I told it that I wanted to visit the spirit of my quartz crystal.  It said, “This way.”

I danced down a curving path until, around a corner I came face-to-face with a glass-like, translucent, female, elf-like being.  She was slender and about five feet tall.  I asked her if she was the spirit of my quartz crystal and she nodded “yes”.  I then asked if I could hear her voice.  She opened her mouth and a sound came out that I can only describe as a feeling rather than a sound.  I’m from Colorado and use to hike in the Rocky Mountains.  Her voice sounded like the water rushing in a refreshing, snow-melt stream.  The kind of stream that is so cold that it hurts to stand barefooted in it but is incredibly refreshing when you drink it.  I asked her if she had a message and she nodded “yes” again and then opened her mouth and the refreshing feeling came rushing out again.  I thanked her and asked if I could visit with her again and once again she nodded “yes” and then faded away.

I turned to Hummingbird and thanked him.  I then asked if he could help me find the spirit of petrified wood.  I have been collecting rocks since I was six years old and still have the mental image of the first piece of petrified wood that I ever found.  Hummingbird said, “This way.” and rather than proceeding down the path I was flying with or on Hummingbird.  We darted in what appeared to be a random path inches above a field of green; not grass but more like patches of green moss on top of rocks.  I had a mental image of what the spirit of Petrified Wood would look like.  I was expected something squat and heavy.  I was wrong.

We came upon a tall, tall spirit being. It was slender and so tall that I was surprised to be able to see his face.  He was supple and bending back and forth slowly like a tree bending in a breeze.  I said, “Hello spirit of Petrified Wood, I am David.”  The tree responded with an unexpected voice.  I had expected a booming, gravelly sound and was wrong again.  The spirit had a voice like the wind.  It responded with, “I know who you are.  I have been with you your entire life.”   I asked Petrified Wood what it was like to be a rock and he responded, “I use to be a tree, now I am a rock.  Everything transitions.  Everything changes.  Don’t fight change, be free, go with the flow.” continued to sway back and forth.  I asked if I could give him a hug and expected to hug his leg.  He said, “Yes” and bent down, lifted me up to his neck and I hugged his neck, so high in the sky I could hardly see the ground below.  We swayed back and forth for the longest time and I felt like I was six years old again.  He finally put me down and I asked if I could visit him again, to which he responded, “No need, I am always with you.”

The drum was calling me back.  Rather than repeating the Native American dance that had taken me to the Lower World I did handsprings, not a conscious choice and I’m too old and with a bad back to try this for real, I just did it all the way back to the tunnel, through the tunnel and then shot up through the earth, paying no attention the root that I had rode down and about 20 feet up into the air and then landed softly on the ground.  I removed the covering from my eyes, opened them slowly and was back.

Best journey every!

Post Script . . . I went for a walk in the forest after lunch with my wife.  When we got to "my tree" I asked her if there was anything unusual about the tree.  She said, “No, but it looks like someone has been running around the tree.  See how the leaves are all crushed in a circle around the tree.”  Interesting . . . 

Where Am I? Really.

I was doing some soul searching and reflecting today while thinking about the different practitioners of Wicca, shamans, shamanic practitioners that I have run across over the years (I met "my" first shaman in Bolivia in 1971 so I've been at this for a while) and thought about where I would put myself on my taxonomy of practitioners.  After doing that I thought that it might be useful to at least share my taxonomy with you, just in case you want to do some to the same kind of self-examination.  The same taxonomy might apply, to some degree at least, to religious and spiritual figures of any tradition.   So first, the taxonomy:

1.  Beings of Darkness – those who use their position of authority or ability to manipulate energy to harm others.  In Wicca these are the practitioners of Black Magick.  I ran across quite a few shamans in South America who made their living casting spells to cause harm.  In general they were quite well off, but with few if any friends . . . individuals who were feared by not loved or respected.  Obviously I don’t want to fall into this category, and I hope that neither do you.
2. Light (Spot Light) Seekers – Some people, and you probably know some, are only interested in gaining power and authority.  These individuals have a strong need to be the center of attention and to be the most important person around.  Often they want to be the big fish in a little pond, and those with high aspirations want to be the biggest fish in the ocean.  The spot light seekers appear frequently as media personalities (think movie stars and talking heads on TV) and in politics.  Unfortunately religion seems to attract a good number as well.  If you think that the message is more important than the messenger then you lucked out . . . you’re not in this group.
3. Bound by Tradition – these individuals tightly cling to tradition.  Their way is the only way because it is the way that things have always been done and any deviation from the tradition is categorically wrong.  This approach, to me at least, seems to negate one of the primary benefits our spiritual tradition.  Wicca and shamanism are paths of direct spiritual experience and individual revelation.  Consequently Wicca and shamanism are polar opposites to book religions that believe that all that Deity has or ever will revel is contained in their book.  It would appear that being tightly bound by tradition blocks the possibility of direct spiritual experience and individual revelation.  To me this is sad and limiting approach to spirituality.  Tradition is beautiful, but being open to the new and different is exciting.
4. Lightworkers – I’m a little reluctant to use this phrase because it has become overworked and trivialized.  However, it fits, and these are the practitioners of Wicca and shamanism who work for the good of their society.  They aren’t ego-bound; they do what they do because of an inner drive to serve others with no thought of secondary gain.  They help when help is needed and teach when a student is ready.  They are able to manipulate energy and call upon Deity and helping spirits as needed in the service of others.
5. Light Beings – In twenty years I have only met one shaman, an old man in the Bolivian highland above the altiplano that I would call a light being.  He had evolved to the point where he was light energy.  He didn’t need to call upon Deity, spirit helpers (the Apus), or any outside force to heal.  His look or his touch was all it took to heal physical, spiritual or emotional issues.  I think that he had aligned himself so completely with Deity through a lifetime of service to his community that energy flowed through him like a “hollow bone”.   Unlike the workers of darkness who are feared but neither loved or respected he was loved and respected by all and feared by none.  Give me another hundred years and maybe I’ll get there too.

If you have read all of this then you probably can guess where I hope that I am headed.  Nice goal and we in the West are very goal oriented.  I’m not there yet, not even close, and don’t know if I will ever get there.  However, I am convinced that (1) the journey is as important as the destination and (2) the direction that you are headed is more important than where you are on the journey.

 

                 

So I guess my closing thought is not where are you, but which direction are you headed?

Make Your Medicine Bag

I have been writing about Peruvian (Andean) shamanism and you might recall that the shamans carry a bundle of sacred and power objects.  This is common in most, if not all, shamanic traditions.  In many societies shamans carried a medicine bag rather than a bundle (I use both).  A medicine bag has the advantage of being easy to carry, after all its a bag. 

Medicine bags have traditionally be made of leather or woven fabric. If you want to make a medicine bag then select a bag that fits you in terms of size, design, and material. My favorite medicine bag is a small cloth bag that I purchased in Bolivia. This bag contains a rattle, a kinfe for cutting herbs, power stones, rune stones, a bison bone carved to represent an eagle feather and a few other meaninful items.  I also carry tea tree oil and jojoba oil for healing.

Select items for your medicine bag that represent your power to heal and your connection to your spiritual nature.  Once you have identifed the items you want to carry and the items that call to you then set about to collect them.  The items that you carry will change from time to time as you grown on the path.  Before adding items to your bag then bless them; I cleanse my objects with sun light and sage smoke. 

As you carry your medicine bag your awareness of your own sacredness will increase and the bag becomes sacred too. Because my bag is sacred to me I never let anyone else handle it or its contents (in fact I'm a little reluctant to photograph it but I did and you can see it below).  My medicine bag has become a scrap book of my spiritual life and my travels.  Some day I will pass my bag on to one of my sons.

You will note in the second image below that there is a small, leather bag next to the rattle.  That is my miniature medicine bag.  I wear it under my clothes when it would be inappropriate to carry my large bag with me, like we I lecture at the univeristy.

Make your own medicine bag, you will be directed as you meditate on what to carry.  Make it part of you.

 

Peace