As we move into June, the most generous astrological month of the year, with exalted Jupiter returning to Cancer and three benefics reunited for the first time in twelve years, it’s tempting to sit back and let the planets do the work. That’s exactly the trap I wrote about six years ago and it’s worth repeating now. When the news is good, we use astrology to avoid inner work just as much as when the news is bad.
The following article was written in April 2020. I’m posting it now, slightly framed, because the question it raises is the same one it poses this June. The same Magician Sleeves I wrote about in Zodiac life signs They are still at work. Even, and especially, when Jupiter is exalted.
Keep an eye on astrology: astrological bypass
Life is challenging now for many. Do we consider astrological forecasts as a way to justify our emotional challenges? How many of you use astrology and our intellectual constructs to avoid the hard work it takes to transform your soul and consciousness? Do you use astrology to over-intellectualize or blame your life circumstances? I must admit that this happens to me too often. My friend Kara coined the term “astrological bypass” today and it always strikes a chord.
Astrological omission is widespread in our community. Do we blame the planets if we do something wrong or hurt another: “Oh, it was Mars aspecting Mercury,” or do we accept responsibility for picking a fight or arguing and apologizing? Do we find comfort in knowing that Saturn passes over our natal moon and creates depression, or do we do something about it like meditation, yoga, and service to transform it?
Do we avoid doing something because we are in a bad period or a bad transit, and this avoidance prevents us from learning deep lessons? Sometimes a really challenging life situation does this for us in an intense and dramatic way and helps us change. It can be painful, but sometimes it takes something dramatic to achieve the necessary growth.
My colleague, Steven Stuckey, had some great ideas about whether we use astrology to avoid the drama of surprise that the most growth often creates for us:
“I think we need to be thrown into the unknown, so to speak, so that we have no ‘idea’ of what is going to happen next, so that something new (i.e. beyond thought) can come to us. Going into the ‘dark’ is very important for spiritual life and sometimes we may not get there with complete abandon, as we have become too ‘intelligent’ for our own good, and we know when a difficult transit (which often brings with it a spiritual experience) is going to end. Thus, the potential intensity of the moment, necessary for transformation, can sometimes be lost.”
So there’s value in living life without expectations, but in the end, I personally like to know ahead of time.
My own feeling is that Jyotish sheds “light” on our shadows and helps us eliminate guilt and “self-shame.” If we can see the puppet master pulling on our emotions and thoughts, then we can step back and stop blaming ourselves, and this can create a moment of zen observation that enlightens us to see that we are not our thoughts, our emotions, and our ego. In a sense, this is a Gyana technique to free ourselves from the bonds that normally bind us. I have used it like this for years and daily it creates freedom because I know when it will happen and what is causing it. I still have to do the work on myself, but I can be kinder to myself and not beat myself up as much.
Sometimes we feel too predestined by what the stars suggest, but for spiritual seekers and those involved in long-term spiritual practice, I suspect our consciousness is more flexible.
My friend Juliana Swanson pointed out that:
“When we awaken we realize that we are multidimensional and that at any given moment there are many possibilities. There are unlimited possibilities seen in the fact that each astrological combination is good for something and bad for something and has a higher versus lower expression depending on the consciousness of the person.”
Our consciousness is more powerful than the planets, as Divinity resides within us, and we diminish that Greatness when we become victims of the planets.
This reminds me of a seminal work by Robert Augustus Masters, Spiritual bypass: when spirituality disconnects us from what really matters. The work focuses on when spiritual beliefs allow us to avoid dealing with painful feelings, unresolved wounds, and developmental needs to avoid uncomfortable feelings in favor of “seemingly more enlightened activity.” On one level, I fully understand the value of spiritual practice as a means of transforming karma through meditation, service work, and spiritual insight, and it is a much healthier way to do so than through addictive behaviors that are traditionally used to avoid painful feelings. Still, can we really become Whole and “enlightened” unless we look at our shadows? One of my great teachers always reminded me that “mud is infinite.” How do we balance the good of spiritual practice and spiritual organization, which allow us to deal with psychological scars, with the need to dig deeper into our wounds at times to transform, release and heal them? Somehow a balance is needed.
In the end, for those on a spiritual path, Vedic astrology can create profound transcendence and shed light on difficult situations, and if we use that light to eliminate our shadows, we can have immense growth. I suspect that I ultimately lean toward spiritual practice as a way to live life without digging into murky waters. Placing our attention on our spiritual life and doing good for others gives us the opportunity to increase our awareness and let our mind focus on something more positive than the regrettable past, and that allows us to live in the present moment with more joy and presence with a higher quality of life.
The way out is through mechanics.
Here is the practical point. The way out of the astrological detour is not to abandon astrology. It’s learning it deeply enough that you can see the puppet strings, the planetary mechanics beneath the surface drama, and take a step back. Superficial knowledge keeps you reactive. True understanding makes you a witness.
That’s exactly what Modern Fundamentals of Vedic Astrology, Part 1 is designed to provide you. Sixteen weeks. Planets, signs, psychology of ascending signs, aspects, retrogrades, the deep map of what a card really tells you. Wednesdays 2:00 to 4:00 PM Central, all sessions recorded. Includes four of my free books, a value of $67, for a total of $395.
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