THE DAILY TRAVESTY | April Planet Waves
T H E 
    D A I L Y
        T R A V E S T Y
 
28 March 2000
Vol. 1, Issue 58
 
 
            I am certain of nothing, but the holiness of the heart's
        affections, and the truth of imagination.
                            -Keats
 

 
Planet Waves
 
By Eric Francis | for April 2000

P l a n e t W a v e s D i g i t a l M e d i a

ARIES (March 21-April 19)
Most concepts dividing the "material" world from the "spiritual" world are perfectly artificial, reflecting the mind's conflicts far more than those of any objective reality. Yet is it not clear that we view ourselves more as what we have rather than who we are? And as a result, is it not clear that in a state of material abundance, we can feel perfectly empty? And that in other times of what you could call spiritual abundance, we can feel financially impoverished? I'm not in a position go make any guarantees, but if you pay attention during the next four to eight weeks, you're in line with a series of revelations that will help you heal these divisions, now and forever, and get on with the real business and pleasure of life with higher integrity, and in greater comfort than ever before.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20)
What you are feeling, sensing or imagining is real. To say that you are moving rapidly toward one of the most significant turning points of your life, or certainly your life so far, is an understatement. Despite your fears, there's actually very little you could now do to make things turn in a negative direction. The real question is about freeing yourself, that is, freeing your mind, enough to take advantage of the possibilities. Somewhere, lurking in the midst of a lot of great notions and dusty dreams, is a real concept of not just who you want to become, but rather, who you already are, and who can emerge effortlessly into the world. Focus on this. Let nothing get in your way, or cloud your focusing inner vision.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20)
The speed with which you may find yourself thinking, moving and discovering will be matched only by the overwhelming sense of mystery that begins to consume your life, and by the rare and raging optimism by which you may allow yourself to be engulfed. Your optimism -- the sense of your hopes being real, of faith being powerful and fulfillment of your wishes being possible, amounts to nothing less than the wheels beneath you as you progress through these rare and productive months of your life. If you feel yourself living another life simultaneously in a "parallel universe," remember that you're really living one life, and if you step lightly or reach with a gentle hand, you'll easily cross a distance that is not there.

CANCER (June 21-July 22)
You can now work from your newfound base of security. You're surrounded by strong and benevolent friends, and even those scant few people you suspect don't have the most angelic intentions will prove to be harmless. This extremely rare setup -- the combination of luck, protection and good will -- presents you with an equally rare set of opportunities to change, to grow and to become something you've long been dreaming of but never quite imagined possible. In sum, it's a good time to push it; to push yourself to strive just a little bit more, to push your ideas to the next level, and to prepare your heart and soul for an extended phase of personal history in which change is inevitable, but also full of pretty amazing surprises.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22)
The light at the end of the tunnel is not an oncoming train, it is the light of day. It has been along journey under that mountain. But now the prevailing direction will be up the side of the mountain, and though climbing takes energy, it is a challenging and satisfying sport. You know you are here to shine, to achieve and to take a leadership role. This is never "easy," though any struggle inherent in the quest is surely worth the effort, and will contribute both your self-respect and the respect (bordering on reverence) that friends and colleagues have for you. It has been a long journey getting here, this I know. The rewards of the effort have been few -- so far. Now, watch what a little faith can do.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sep. 22)
In 1977, a planet named Chiron was discovered, and seen to have a very close affinity with Virgo. Described as a "maverick," it for was many years ignored by the majority of astrologers. But now, 23 years later, mainstream astrology is taking notice, and Chiron is the first and most important member of a class of 19-newly discovered planets in our solar system, called Centaurs. Research with these planets is bridging the worlds of astrology and astronomy, raising astrology to the level of a true science more than at any other time in our culture's history. Connections between long-isolated worlds are being created, old animosities are being left behind for the love of wisdom, and experience is becoming the most important teacher in our craft. And in its own personally unique way, all of this and far more is true for you as well.

LIBRA (Sep. 23-Oct. 22)
You'd be wise to contain yourself in the next few months, but only enough to stay aware. Unfolding aspects will put you under immense pressure -- more than likely, pressure to explore the far reaches of ecstasy and surrender, to trip out on love, and to blissfully lose yourself in other people. Harvard University-bred spiritual teacher Ram Dass once advised people exploring on psychedelics to never get so far out that they couldn't remember their own zip code, and that is what I mean by contain: feet on the ground, head about you, making sure that you have a few trusted friends who are both optimistic and realistic to keep you just a tad grounded when you feel that awesome urge to lose yourself in the universe. Write it on the wall: "Have fun. Pay attention."

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 22)
There are amazing developments unfolding in your life, as long sought-after opportunities in both relationships and your profession come to fruition. It is, to put it mildly, something to celebrate, and at worst, a high-class problem of being in demand. But despite a lot of really brilliant astrology upon you, a brewing Pluto-Mars opposition suggests it may become an excuse for lapsing into one of your famous power struggles; but to the contrary, I see this as an opportunity to resolve all-or-nothing situations and seemingly life-and-death choices, once and for good. Times are rich. People are real. Your hands are busy. Make sure you get enough sleep, eat real food, and take real time with no responsibilities to anyone or anything but yourself.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21)
Layer by layer, experience by experience, you're being guided, pushed and coaxed out of the world of pure ideas and into the world of experience and expression. It is not enough to think about what you want to do or who you want to be. But it is more than enough to take small but real steps toward initiating processes that keep you focused on creating your future. The opportunities you have are not ones to be casually missed. There are few people alive today in Western culture who do not agree that our sense of time is rapidly accelerating. Technology seems to be leaping ahead in "dog years" -- seven to ten years per year -- and our experience of a calendar year grows shorter with each one we experience. You literally have nothing to wait for, and a lot of great reasons to dare, and to explore -- now.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)
On one level, you may feel like you haven't the slightest idea what's really motivating you. Perhaps you're mildly aware of the furious subconscious forces that reach you in your sleep, or in moments when thought lapses. But you may also feel the plain and simple urge to build and to create. What you may not quite be getting is that both processes are directly linked. Rare mixtures of psychic chemicals and physical forces are enabling you to bring elements of Self into your creative work that for so long seemed utterly impossible, out of reach, or the domain of masters. To make use of these newfound powers, all you need to do is experiment -- and I mean this in all aspects of your life, from your artwork to your child-raising to your personal relationships. Miracles are in the cards.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 19-Feb. 18)
Nobody had a perfect past. Parents impart both their good attributes and their less savory ones to children, conveying both limits and virtues. We learn, hopefully, not just to deal with both, but rather to sharpen ourselves against their flaws, and to maximize the real advantages they gave us -- most notably, life itself. Having worked out so much in the past two years, you've come to a point where you can now see why the karma of your history is as good as you could ever hope for; the struggles put just the right limits on you, your advantages pushed you forward in just the right direction, and the two worked together to form a person who is, at this point, at just the right place and the right time to take full advantage of knowing you are safe and productive in a highly chaotic world.

PISCES (Feb. 19-Mar. 20)
Pisces have a reputation of being unrealistic dreamers. But is our society, with all its obsession with practicality, convenience and glamour, especially functional? And are not all true advances in thought and culture the result of either "accidents," or of visionaries sauntering past the limits of reason and logic, and calling forth ideas of how much better life can be? Please forgive me if I am repeating myself here, but this statement warrants emphasis: Your ideas are solid, worthwhile, and often, illuminated. You are in a rare position to take the contents of your mind, and the values you live by on a daily basis, and shape them into visions of a life, or of a life's work, that will only serve to benefit both you and the culture in which you live. Don't worry that what you are thinking is "different." In actual fact, the more different, the better.


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