The Vision Quest Begins Dear Friend and Reader: We are nearly done with Vision Quest, phase one. Last night I finished the written sign readings. We plan to have the readings ready by Thursday morning. They are each the equivalent of about 22 book pages; each took about two days to write, based on many months of research.
As for the details, I cover Saturn in Sagittarius square Neptune, the conjunction of Uranus and Eris, Jupiter in Virgo, the Pisces alignment, Pluto in Capricorn and many other aspects. Really, I am writing about life. I've made some adjustments to how I do the annual this year, in part addressing the upcoming Mercury retrograde starting Tuesday, Jan. 5. Usually we publish the first week of January, but being an astrologer, I thought the better of it. So, I rearranged the schedule, divided up the written and the audio schedule, and thought, let's see what happens. This turned out to have a huge advantage: more time to work on the written readings -- about 28 working days in all -- and then publishing them prior to New Year's. This is an absolute first in Planet Waves history.
Every sign comes with original music, and people who purchase all 12 signs get the equivalent of a double CD of our drum groove, meditation music and other stuff fresh from our little studio. Because the written readings are posting first, if you leave queries in the comment area, I can answer them in the recorded readings. OK, all that said, we are very excited about Vision Quest. Some additional details are below. You may choose to order all 12 signs here, or individual signs here. With love,  PS -- The new set of glyphs below were just completed by Lizanne Elaine Webb, once again the most brilliant astrology art I've ever seen. They are included with a sampling of topics and an excerpt from your reading, compiled by Amy Elliott and Amanda Painter. Aries: Opening the Doors of Perception First Two Sentences: To find your true vision, you don't need to do need to much besides get your outmoded concepts out of the way of your thought process. This is a time-honored spiritual method involving the clearing of perception. A Few of the Topics Covered: Uranus conjunct Eris: Inner Revolution Pluto in Capricorn: The Chaotic Opening Mars Retrograde: Is It Religion, or Is It Sex? Saturn square Neptune: Go Deeper The Revolution Will Be Strategized Excerpt: It's distasteful and frightening to let go of past ideas, or to have them taken away from us — or worse, to have them proven wrong. The problem here is that without concepts, many people feel like their reality is groundless; that it has no foundation.
For example, one might cling ardently to the belief in marriage and monogamy, only to find that their marriage is boring and that they or their partner 'cheated' on someone because their emotional and sexual needs were more powerful than their obsession with a concept of the right way to relate to someone. (Often, the notion of 'commitment' is really obsession with a concept rather than a real offering to another person.) It's not like people to question their beliefs before they lead them directly into problems, but it would be wise for you to do so. Your beliefs and concepts are being questioned by something deeper within you, your source of direct contact with reality. It's as if your beliefs are encountering your faith, faith being the much deeper quality. So, you're not standing on nothing; but you are being compelled to test your concepts against what you know more deeply is true for you. Leo: In Search of Surrender First Two Sentences: Your charts this year vibrate with one theme: vulnerability. This is set in the context of the seemingly different healing projects that you have going on, involving partnership, money, family and potentially healing your body. A Few of the Topics Covered: Pluto in Capricorn: Getting Underneath It All Before Your Eyes: A Gathering in Pisces From the Moon to Pluto The Earth Signs: Your Working Assets Beyond Appearances: The Art of Embodiment Sort Out Your Life Gradually Excerpt: What is it with all these guns, and the fascination and mania about them? South Park parodied this in a recent episode, wherein the entire town, including the children, are armed. Everyone has a gun, and everyone is trying to make everyone else do what they want them to do. If the whole concept of a gun feels like a blend of emotional whiplash and the gnashing of teeth, that's the control part: you can make someone do anything you want.
The South Park episode ends with everyone figuring out that the only way to make life better is to communicate more, and to care about one another. That, you could say, is what your charts are describing. The power you have is not power over anyone; it's the power to change yourself. At different times in your life you discover this really exists. This is a bigger deal than it may seem in the life of a person with such a strong fixed-sign chart. Leo, for several reasons, is the essence of that particular astrological quality, which is about stability. So change can seem particularly daunting or tumultuous or frightening. Yet you've had to do a lot of it lately. And as any biologist can tell you, that which does not change is doomed to die. That which adapts is much more suited to continue living. Sagittarius: Return to the Cosmic Ocean First Two Sentences: Sagittarius is the sign of The Visitor. To me, this is the quality of energy described in astrology — and in the many Sagittarians I've hung out with — that portrays someone who has traveled a long distance to get here, is not quite at home, but is clever enough to make life on Earth into an interesting camping trip. A Few of the Topics Covered: Background: Pisces, the Ocean of Experience Background: The Sagittarius Alignment, 1995-Present Saturn in Sagittarius: The Grounding Principle Centaurs and Neptune in Pisces Success Beyond Perfectionism Excerpt: You will be gifted this year with the potential to defy circumstance on a large scale; not only to plan the next phase of your life, but actually to enact those plans. Certainly, the choices made must carry the weight of responsibility that comes with being a self-directed, largely autonomous person.
This requires preparation and awareness, and a real measure of impeccability. Yet at the same time you must hang loose and overcome a kind of perfectionism that can be vexing to you. On the one hand you will need to do your homework, as much as possible -- primarily about everything that could be motivating you. On the other, it will be helpful to dance with the fact that preparation only gets you so far where things are happening for the first time, and in truly unexpected ways. Both art and science require you to be clear, focused and thorough; yet they also require an open mind and the ability to hang loose; the ability to observe and respond to what you see and feel. This is another way of saying: be honest. Taurus: Space is Intelligence First Two Sentences: At some point a few years ago, I encountered the idea that 'space is intelligence', and I've been working with it every day since. On one level it needs no explanation -- you can meditate on the idea and see what information comes to you. A Few of the Topics Covered: Your Relationship to Space Venus, Uranus, Eris Conjunct in your 12th House Opinions: Illusions of Density About All Those Other People Sagittarius + Pisces = Jupiter in Virgo Excerpt: What would you do if you suddenly had a lot of space to work with -- like two or three times as much as you have now, or more? What would you put where? What would you expand? What would you do that you don't have space to do now? How much space would you leave clear and empty, just for the sake of having that empty space to look at, or to leave in a state of potential? The temptation of space is to fill it up.
That is to say, it's a healthy time to not make up your mind with any urgency, particularly if you're in the process of figuring out what does not work for you. Each discovery you make helps you open up additional inner space, whether you want to leave it clear to sit and stare at, or choose options what to do with it. I suggest you stay in a state of inquiry as much as you can. Any time you question a belief presumption, you are making yourself additional space for new ideas and new information to enter -- or you might say holding that space open in a state of potential, on the theory that space is intelligence. It is not the psychic content that is your source of knowledge, but a kind of cultivated emptiness." Virgo: Of Relationships, Projection and Perception First Two Sentences: Your charts for this year are about relationships. That is the focus -- on your engagement with the world, and with healing the patterns of your intimate contacts, even the very darkest ones. A Few of the Topics Covered: In the Nature of Tantra: We Are Not Healed Alone The Inner Marriage: Mercury and Jupiter The Other Two Essential Elements of Tantra The Pluto Factor: Relaxing Into Your Creativity The Security Question: What You Were Taught Excerpt: How do you see and experience a person for real, rather than as a figment of your imagination? When we fall in love, how much is falling in love with our made-up version of the person, how much is loving ourselves, and how much is about actually recognizing who someone is?
It's clear that projection is one of the most dominant effects of the relationship environment we share. Even if the equation is as simple as how men often project their femininity onto women, and women often project their masculinity onto men, it's worth looking at. That does indeed happen. Men and women are biologically different, but have more common ground than marketing culture would make us think. Difference is pushed with divide-and-conquer ambitions, with the result being to divide and weaken people, and cash in on their enhanced sense of incompleteness or inferiority. Then people are left seeking in others what they do not find or believe exists in themselves. The search is always external. Which leads to...the marriage within. Capricorn: The Quest for What You Know First Two Sentences: As I begin this writing on Nov. 30, a climate change conference is happening in Paris. This is being billed as our 'do or die' moment -- as our last chance to hold warming down to under two degrees centigrade. A Few of the Topics Covered: Saturn in Sagittarius The Neptune Factor Uranus Conjunct Eris: The Emotional Dimension Mars Retrograde in Sagittarius and Scorpio Know When You Don't Know, and When You Do Excerpt: There is nothing about your charts that is static or stable, but that's not another way of saying you must be a flake. In fact, you will seem less flaky to yourself and others as you learn to adapt more promptly and with the reduced resistance to change that's all about vibrating on a more expanded level. Said another way, the more open you are, the less the prospect of change, of creativity, or of creative people, will make you feel nauseous or panicky.
One thought that comes to mind is how much of this energy you are dealing with is sexual. Sex is more than a concept, something to talk about and something to think about. It is, rather, a natural feature of the landscape, like a river, a waterfall or in your case, a volcano. Pretending it's not there does not help. Living in harmony with it -- which means in awareness of and sensitivity to its power -- is the only thing you can do. That might mean tapping into the energy you possess, and of course that's essential. It would help if you remember the extent to which what you feel as emotional movement is pushing you to express yourself creatively. Emoting is not really expressing. You begin to express when you are articulate, and above all honest, about what you are experiencing and what you want. Remember: Articulate AND honest. This is not about some inner, silent knowing, but rather actually connecting with yourself, and with others. Gemini: Leadership From Within First Two Sentences: Wanting to improve one's lot in life, wanting to achieve useful or even excellent goals, the desire to change the world -- they have all fallen under tough times. Part of the struggle is the sorry shape of the planet and of our society right now. A Few of the Topics Covered: The Search for a Clean Place Astrology Interlude: This is About the 10th House Self-Parenting: Taking Charge of Your Life Practical Matters of Profession and Vocation Relationship with Purpose, by Agreement The Mercury Retrograde Factor Uranus Conjunct Eris: Define Yourself Excerpt: You are on a leadership mission, but it's also a healing mission. I recognize that you may feel ambivalent about this. I recognize that you may not feel that your influence, or your desire to contribute, will amount to much. How could it, when even the righteous and the powerful have so little influence?
But you must treat these experiences that are, at first, your own dream, and then that extend into the collective or archetypal realm. In other words, this is not about fixing the world — your role is to heal your relationship to the world, by participating in the world. And that participation will be on the level of responsibility first, which is the prerequisite to leadership. We might say that the plight of the world right now involves leadership without responsibility or accountability, which is of course a recipe for disaster. It's therefore necessary that, above all else, you hold yourself accountable for your actions, and for the actions of those whom you would in some way guide, influence or direct. And you must take accountability for their influence on you. You might think of all of this as an expanded, real-time therapy process. And if you're looking for the clean place, that would be you -- if you invest your energy in being honest, clear and into staying in the moment. Libra: Of Creative, Constructive and Destructive First Two Sentences: Patric Walker, a Libra, once famously said to his fellow Libra John Lennon that, "Life is what happens while you're busy making other plans." Lennon got credit for the line, but it took an astrologer to notice. A Few of the Topics Covered: Pluto in Capricorn: The Security Crisis Uranus in Aries: Beyond Codependency Parallel Worlds: An Inner Dilemma Know What You Believe The Outer Parallel The Chiron Factor Excerpt: I am not suggesting you be a skeptic. Far to the contrary. In English, the earliest known usage of this word is attested to the 1580s: "member of an ancient Greek school that doubted the possibility of real knowledge."
This is a time in your life when you will benefit from seeking real understanding. I would remind you though that understanding is not a form of fixed, static knowledge, but rather something that changes and evolves as you learn more -- and learn to think more deeply. This doesn't seem too popular most places, though it's a hunger we will cultivate or our civilization risks extinction. The real challenge with understanding is that it requires personal inquiry, which means investigating one's own ethics. Again, not popular. Failure to engage ethics is extremely convenient. In the simplest terms possible, I am suggesting you remain open-minded and introspective. Many things you never imagined possible are indeed in the realm of your immediate potential, a condition that will gain momentum as the next six or so seasons progress. Being open-minded means noticing facts that affirm, confirm or deny what you are thinking. Aquarius: In the Country of the Blind First Two Sentences: My teacher and Aquarius Moon brother Joseph Trusso has suggested for years that I read an H.G. Wells story called "The Country of the Blind," originally published in 1904. It's one of Wells' most famous works (others being The Invisible Man and The Time Machine). A Few of the Topics Covered: Narcissism and Inner Vision Creating Your Niche in the World Jupiter and the Exchange of Resources Of Individual, Group and Mass Sex, The Awakener Community is the Thing Excerpt: Note that as events develop this year, it might mean an international opportunity of some kind. As mentioned, the 8th house involves sex and your feelings about it. This is a profoundly rich field of discovery for you right now. Yet as other aspects imply, this starts from within. Most people think their sexuality evolves through meeting another person who really scratches their itch. It's true that can happen, though what looks more likely is that you begin to make discoveries about yourself.
The reason that sounds not just conspiratorial but also unlikely is that most people have not made the connection to politics, and further, have no idea what it feels like to be sexually free. They are therefore unlikely to notice the painful state of being that they are in. Yet we're all in this to some real extent. There are some who can sequester themselves from society, but everyone is under pressure to some degree, because this is a factor of the whole environment. From numerous viewpoints, your charts are urging a more open and honest approach to your sexuality. This starts merely with being more conversant about who you are, what you want and what you feel. That is another way of saying: get the conversation going. Cancer: On the Path of Dharma Yoga First Two Sentences: The sign Cancer is often thought of as retreating, private, obsessed with security and being self-focused -- but despite this, I've seen that this is one of the signs that's the most likely to take action in the world. A Few of the Topics Covered: Aries on the 10th House: The Freedom of Self Stay Grounded and Beware of Fame Chaos Theory 101: Seeing the Patterns Pluto in Capricorn: Relationship For Progress Saturn in Sagittarius: Journey Through Deep Space Saturn Square Neptune in Pisces Excerpt: You are now in a breakthrough phase where long delays in the past give way to rapid developments, yet persisting is absolutely necessary. The more things seem to happen to you (including advancement and progress), the more you must take control.
You have the drive; the focus is what you must bring to the table. Thankfully you have help, in the form of both astrology and what it symbolizes. Yet it would seem the most necessary element is making sure you have some cohesion to your vision. This can mean an evolving vision; there is nothing 'fixed' about your chart right now. Vision is more like animation than a dusty diorama in a museum. One theme of your astrology is the message coming to you over and over that anything is possible. It's true that anything is always possible, but at certain times certain things seem more possible than others -- or there are more potentials available. It's partly the sense that so much is possible that is going to require discipline. Yet it's also the potential sensation of too much available to choose from that will require you to not just make decisions, but also get good at doing so quickly and efficiently. Scorpio: Ethics and the Search for Values First Two Sentences: Your charts are bursting with energy. It's not like you're sitting on a volcano; it's more like you are one. A Few of the Topics Covered: The New Saturn Review From Saturn to Pisces: What You Express The 5th and Sexual Experience Mars, Pluto and the Fire Signs What Venus is Reminding You Excerpt: When you are holding or directing intense amounts or levels of energy, it's necessary to be precise, and to act with calculated intention. I recognize this is not popular. I am painfully aware that there are people who wear shoes that don't keep a grip on the ground, knowing they might slip, or trip and fall; you might say they are not using the energy of walking with intention.
Yet we live in reckless times, where actual, conscious caution is shunned. All of our over-caution about 'surfing safely' (the internet that is) is obviated by various risks taken while driving (I am figuring out that 'buzzed driving' is the norm, second only to texting while driving), leaving firearms in reach of children, toys left on staircases, the clutter next to the oil burner, wasting money, wasted opportunities and flirting with disaster. Surf safely! Yes. You are packing a lot of power. You need to understand that power, and you need to learn how to control it. Moreover, it's essential that you direct your power creatively. Consider your power in every form it takes: financial, sexual, persuasive, analytical, benevolent -- and what activists call nuisance power: your ability to disrupt and to do damage. Part of why you want to bring consciousness to your power is that if you don't, you are inviting the shadow side to come in and take hold, which is rarely a productive thing. Pisces: The Church of All Worlds First Two Sentences: Once I was reading a writer in Scientific American describe a concept from quantum physics. You might remember the famous quote wherein our Pisces cousin Albert Einstein complained that, "God does not play dice with the universe." A Few of the Topics Covered: Chiron, Sigil of Mentorship and Awareness Neptune, the Abundance of Creative (or Destructive) Potential Borasisi and Manwe: Planets Named for Fictional Entities Nessus: Accountability for What You Feel Saturn in Sagittarius: The Achiever Jupiter in Virgo: One With the World Excerpt: Mentorship is one of the most vital (and forgotten) concepts associated with Chiron. Mentorship is a form of one-on-one teaching, typically expressed through some form of modeling. At this time in your life, it's essential you have people who you look up to, people with more experience, and probably of significantly greater age.
One take on the mentorship angle is that it can be isolating. With strong Chiron in your chart, which you now have, you often must stand apart from the crowd as a matter of integrity. This is not about being a nonconformist. It's about conforming only to that which you truly respect and resonate with. One way to measure this is to assess the level of devotion to healing and service among the people in any group, or any individuals you encounter. Energetically, Chiron is a kind of condenser of reality. It takes the vast, wide, streaming potential of Pisces and focuses it into a vantage point. Imagine the existence of the internet without a computer to actually get in. This is how Pisces feels to many people. Chiron provides the point of mental access. In a sense you might say you can use this tool to narrow and focus your potential.
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