Dear Friend and Reader:
The Sun continues its trip through Taurus. Wednesday we arrive at the midpoint, which is officially Beltane — the celebration of the Goddess and the tipping point between spring and summer. This is also called Mid-Spring Holiday.
Tuesday at 8:05 pm EST, the Moon forms a conjunction with Jupiter in the next to last degree of Aquarius. This is a reminder that Jupiter is about to ingress Pisces on May 13, in a little over a week from now. (For historical reference, the last time Jupiter entered Pisces was Jan. 17, 2010, in a quad-conjunction with the Moon, Chiron and Neptune.)
Between now and May 13, Jupiter will be moving through the last degree of Aquarius, which I consider one of the most profound of the wheel. It involves an individual emerging into universal consciousness after undergoing a personal metamorphosis.
This highlights what group consciousness is as opposed to mass consciousness: groups are formed of individuals. Tribes are not groups. Crowds at concerts and sports events are not groups. Where people have a sense of their own being and connect with their motive for participating, that is a group. An example of this is a council of elders, where every voice is heard and respected, and that constitutes the true power of the group.
After we get past food, water, shelter and safety, the need for belonging dominates. This includes friendship, family and sense of connection, as well as status and recognition.
Unmistakable Influence of Aquarius
Society is now feeling the distinct influence of Aquarius, in a few different ways. One is about the pressure to conform: to what we are told “the public” wants but really, it’s a few people driving the movement. Anyone who asks questions will be called a denier, or selfish.
This approach to social control is coopting several different human needs, one of which is to be accepted. The need for acceptance is so urgent, most people will do anything to fulfill it. Twentieth-century psychologist Abraham Maslow mapped this out. After we get past food, water, shelter and safety, the need for belonging dominates. This includes friendship, family and sense of connection, as well as status and recognition.
Like hunger, the need for belonging can be marshaled, manipulated, coopted and turned against people. It can be coaxed and swayed, or whipped into a desperate frenzy. This need is particularly deep now because we have spent so many years playing another false game, “Every man for himself.”
I have heard heartbreaking stories the past few weeks of people who took an irrevocable action with their body because their family pressured them, or even coerced them by being told that they would never see their mother again unless they do this one thing.
To me this was typified in the “Army of One” series of recruitment ads, which made it seem like an individual soldier fights the whole war. What we are seeing now is the backlash against decades of phony rugged individualist capitalism. Today, many people are desperate to get together for some common cause; any one will do.
Yet this can take a twisted form when people use the promise of inclusion and the threat of exclusion to get them to do something they would not ordinarily do.
I have heard heartbreaking stories the past few weeks of people who took an irrevocable action with their body because their family pressured them, or even coerced them by being told that they would never see their mother again unless they do this one thing.
The excuse, the alibi that is almost always granted, is the common good. Don’t do this for yourself. Do it for the rest of us. Yet is it true? Who cares; it sounds good. And anyone who doesn’t buy in risks being left out in the cold, hungry and excluded — or so they are made to feel.
Deep within ourselves we need to express actual commonality; we know we are all in this life together. Yet when the pressure is on, and it is right now, it’s difficult for many people to resist falling for the counterfeit.
To any circumstance where there is true affinity, people bring their individual motivation and then tap into or co-create a group motive in a conscious way.
True Affinity
There is also such a thing as true affinity. It is rare, though it exists. The reason it’s rare is that people who find this with one another have gone through an unusual process called self-actualization, or they are on the way. At least, tools of self-awareness are being forged.
To any circumstance where there is true affinity, people bring their individual motivation and then tap into or co-create a group motive in a conscious way. Groups become so powerful over individuals that even under the best circumstances, it takes some blend of moxie and chutzpah to maintain one’s integrity. You might need to do this in any form or size of a group, right down to the couple.
True affinity is based on actual common values, something I covered in the article The Taurus Test. I am friends with a man named C.T. Butler, author of Food Not Bombs. He is also a leading consultant on a method of organizational leadership known as consensus.
He once explained what a real consensus is. Typically it’s confused with people being bowled over and going along with the group. C.T. said that consensus is based first on forming an agreement about values and goals. That is where to invest the energy; that is what you want to hear, and find out where people align.
Mostly, though, I would call upon anyone reading to cease and desist from pressuring anyone to do anything. And I would call upon those who feel needlessly or unfairly pressured to stand up for yourself, speak your mind and make your own choices.
The rest follows naturally: once the values and goals are agreed upon, then all that’s left is the means to making it happen.
This takes time, care and thought of a kind we need more of now. Mostly, though, I would call upon anyone reading to cease and desist from pressuring anyone to do anything. And I would call upon those who feel needlessly or unfairly pressured to stand up for yourself, speak your mind and make your own choices.
It is difficult at first, and then you might decide the difficulty does not matter. There is no other sane way to live.
Meanwhile, Jupiter passing through the last degree of Aquarius will be highlighting the matter of true versus false affinity; group consciousness as contrasted with mass consciousness.
With love,
*I am going deeper into Alice A. Bailey’s work on the Seven Rays, or what you might call the seven expressions of God on Earth. What we are talking about with Aquarius here seems to be an expression of the Sixth Ray, or that of idealism and devotion. I have two takeaways from reading this chapter today: one is she said that the influence of this ray is waning, in our time in history; and the other is that it has been used to cause much cruelty to humanity (think of the crusades, historic and modern). As I learn more about this, I will share what I put together as best I can.
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Instant Access: Aries Astrology Studio 2021-22
Aries (March 20-April 19) — Mars is hot right now. Over the past week, it’s unlocked many secrets, and is stirring up a sense of restlessness in you that is long overdue. You may be experiencing a blend of emotions, from agitation to anger to desire to drive to curiosity and maybe a touch of grief. Take these in homeopathic doses, or maybe a little tincture, rather than fully indulging in them. A little is all you need: what Hakomi therapy calls touching the edge of the feeling (rather than diving in, as is done in some traditions). Notice what you’re experiencing. See if you can get a sense of where the feeling is coming from, and who or what is associated with it. Mars moving through the 4th solar house (4th place) of your chart may be taking you on a tour of your past emotional responses. These might specifically involve certain places from your distant past. If you have any opportunity to visit the scene of anything significant that happened to you in the past, I suggest you do it and notice how you feel. Old homes, old schools, and a tree you were friends with all count. So too do relatives you have not seen in a while. Then look, feel, listen, learn.
Self-assertive, sometimes bold, Aries is always up for an adventure. A new adventure awaits — preorder your affordable reading by Eric Francis today.
2021-22 Aries Astrology Studio: The Continuing Adventure of Chiron in Aries
Taurus Astrology Studio 2021-22
Taurus reading ready! Purchase here; sample below
Taurus (April 19-May 20) — You don’t have to work so hard at your career. Rather, stick to your vocation. There is a difference and not so many people are aware of it, or have given it a name. Career means “to run at full speed,” related in its word-root to a chariot. Vocation (which we usually associate with school where they teach you how to fix engines) is a “spiritual calling.” Yes, it includes the notion of an occupation or profession, but the idea emerges directly from the Latin word for being called by a voice: vocation relates to vocal. Most people hear their calling but do not listen; they say they do not have one. Remember that to be called is not necessarily to do the thing you want to do. Joan of Arc said she would rather sit at the spinning wheel with her mother in her peasant village. She had a different calling. Yet when you answer your calling, the notion of preference can have a way of disappearing, and necessity can rise in its place, doing a much better job at guiding your life. So as you listen, and decide whether you want to answer, bear that in mind. And perhaps ask yourself whether you were not called to do the very thing you are doing now. That would give it much more significance.
Calm, collected and attractive on the outside, raging like a tempest on the inside, Taurus is the blacksmith shop of the soul. Forge your path with this reading.
2021-22 Taurus Astrology Studio: How to Grow, Change, and Become
Gemini (May 20-June 21) — A mix of factors is encouraging you to up your game where your finances are concerned, the better to get out of the cycles of feast and famine that sometimes take over your personal economy. This is associated with having the sign Cancer in the 2nd place, that is, the 2nd solar house (the next one after Gemini). Whatever happens in, with or to the sign Cancer is going to be cyclical, and you need to work with those cycles. Right now you’re either in a harvesting cycle, or a high-motivation to build phase. This is described by Mars in Cancer. Mars is the money planet: not Mercury, as some old textbooks suggest. Why is this? Success with money takes drive. You have to be motivated to get anything done. So I suggest you proceed and take advantage of the rare current running through you (Mars is in Cancer only for a couple of months every two years). So make contact, and absolve yourself of all guilt about success. If, however, you have done anyone wrong any time recently, expect that issue to surface; and you would be wise to address it voluntarily sooner rather than later. Square up your accounts. It’s good for everyone.
Geminis ask a heck of a lot of questions, and much of what you are curious about is yourself. Find some answers in your affordable reading by Eric Francis.
2021-22 Gemini Astrology Studio: Crux of the Mirror
Cancer (June 21-July 22) — You are more of a social influence on your environment than you think. Humans being what they are do not always reward or even acknowledge what helps them. So you may not hear much. (Personally, I find this frequent lack of gratitude to be strange, given how much fun it is to thank people for what they have helped you do, or become.) Many effects of what you’re offering will also ripple out into the universe and create effects that cannot readily be noticed. Now, much of this is happening through your example. It’s not necessarily about what you say, though sometimes that can serve as exemplary. Mostly, it’s the fact that you might say something or do something that differs from the norm. There is way, way too much peer pressure going around now: people practically forcing one another to do things (rather than the usual guilt and manipulation). There’s part of you, maybe all of you, that is intent on standing free in society, and not allowing yourself to be pushed around by anyone or anything. Be leery of any argument that begins with, “This is for the good of humanity.” That is usually a lie.
Nurturing, loving, devoted, cuddly, milky and self-centered, Cancer has it all. You can even have instant access to your reading when you purchase today.
2020-21 Cancer Astrology Studio: I Feel, Therefore I Am
Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — This week of the year is always a turning point for you. I suggest you look back over the past four seasons and mark your progress from where you were last May. This has been a tough year for a lot of people. Yet not all was lost, and some was gained, and I propose you want to know about all of that, in some detail. Yet start with a wide assessment, and be grateful that you’re on your feet and in business, to the extent that you are. And, whatever you have been through, it’s time to grant yourself the privilege of more ambitious goals. You can connect with your life plans, though make sure that you have noted all the ways that events since one year ago have shifted your priorities. Ensure that you are working with your new objectives and sense of purpose rather than some outdated model. Being stuck in old goals is one of the more stunning wastes of time on this planet. As for contrast between old and new, outdated and updated: I reckon that your fully evaluated and current idea of what you want is greatly simplified, perhaps even one essential priority and a few that might follow with it.
Leo is THE sign of human vitality and in many respects the source of strength, light and creation. How’s this for a bright idea: get your reading by Eric Francis!
2020-21 Leo Astrology Studio: Notes on Love and Courage
Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) — One particular idea can help you and the people around you, and you’re likely to be the one who has it. Therefore, be not afraid of the most serious seeming problems, puzzles or issues. Know that the most challenging or complex of these can yield to the dissolving power of thought. You would also be wise to stay involved, and track the way any idea you offer is applied and developed, since that’s the part that counts for a little more. It’s also the part that takes doing, experimenting, trial and error and getting it wrong. Ideas are only potentials, and what you need now is the expression of potential, by which I mean: get people on board, and then make an earnest effort at getting the thing to work. Do not lose your gumption if it seems to fail in any way; that’s part of the process. Remember to continue going back to the original question or issue and keeping your focus there. You may discover that the issue has changed, and if that is true, note that consciously. This and all documentation will help you avoid unconscious mission creep.
As a Virgo, it’s your role to make the world a better place: to offer, if not solace, then solutions. Find both for yourself when you purchase your reading.
2020-21 Virgo Astrology Studio: I touch the Earth. The Earth touches me.
Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) — You are being called upon to take leadership and to do so imminently. Yet this is going to require the utmost sensitivity in personal relationships wherein certain individuals are set to hair-trigger and are, as a result, feeling blocked. You need to not let them get in your way, and the best way to do that is going to be to handle them gently. This will be equally true in personal and business affairs; in relationships where you are “superior” and “inferior”; and in particular, those that have been strained by miscommunication. You will discover that one of the keys to success is learning how to speak and understand the language of others. This, generally, will work for you — especially now. Get that discussion going sooner rather than later. Be at your conciliatory best, as best you can. Approach the situation horizontally rather than vertically, that is, from level ground rather than from above. Remember that people need recognition, affirmation and praise for what they do right more than they need money. That is the most valuable thing you can offer right now.
Aleister Crowley said that the essence of the sign Libra is the drive for justice. Tap into your essence with this reading, and bring balance to your world.
2020-21 Libra Astrology Studio: Notes to Myself
Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) — Your ruling planet Mars is burning its way through your fellow water sign Cancer. This could have you on a real bender trying to prove something you believe is right. Tune in and you will notice that this is entirely driven by your emotions, without a hint of rationality, reason or intellect. Feeling right does not mean that the numbers add up. It does not mean that you have your facts, or have them assembled carefully. Sooner or later, probably sooner, you are going to encounter the need for documentation. I suggest you go there immediately, and start getting your files in order. Be aware of what you know, what you don’t know, what you suspect, and also, what you happened to be wrong about, as you discover those things. Pay attention to any sources of pressure to accept what is not verifiable, or what is known to be untrue. To do this, you will need to come up with questions; that is your first sign of understanding. If you can formulate a question, you are starting to get a grasp on something. By the New Moon on May 11, this is going to surface in an impressive way. Get ahead of it.
Scorpio is an odd hybrid, both a product — and an instigator — of evolution. Purchase your latest reading to delve deeper into the mystery of yourself.
2020-21 Scorpio Astrology Studio: The Scorpio File
Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) — You are in the process of reinventing your way of thinking. This involves what is going on in Aquarius, which is your astrological house or “place” of mind. It’s a good one, too, because it means you are capable of holding many ideas in your mind, and have the ability to be detached from common perceptions and prejudices. However, if you slip on those things, you can have a hard time getting back on your feet. Recently I’ve quoted Carlos Castaneda, referencing a teaching of the shaman don Juan Matus: the one warning about false clarity, or thinking you know. Your whole learning process now is focused on identifying and dismissing everything you believed was true but is not. This takes courage and discernment. It takes getting your ego out of your intellect and not being attached to being right. This process works best when you have some fun being wrong, admitting you were conned by an idea, or thinking in a way that was conventional and banal when you thought you were tapping your brilliance. True intelligence is a reduction process. There are many counterfeits for truth and for valid arguments. Once you spot them, you can have much more fun.
Sagittarius, yours is the sign of the quest, the far away and far-out. Purchase your reading today and continue your adventure with the stars as your guide.
2020-21 Sagittarius Astrology Studio: Live from the Galactic Center
Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) — You are still being driven hard by the need to be included, when your psyche is aching for you to express yourself in a daring way. What counts for creative does not include political; that drives originality, Eros and passion into the dust. It is entirely safe territory these days, and socially acceptable, which helps you avoid the one kind of risk you need to take: that of tapping your actual ideas whether or not they are acceptable to others. In any time, actual art is anti-environment: it goes against the grain of what society is saying and doing. It is a probe, serving as a nerve extended into the chaos. This is why art, intellectual curiosity and sex are all considered so dangerous. To do them, you must open up, be vulnerable and that means hypersensitive. All of this happens off-script; there are no stencils or algorithms. Nearly everything that occurs in our era is pre-scripted, and designed to meet expectations of what is supposed to happen. You could go either way: and naturally, being the astrologer that I am, I’m going to suggest you ride the storm front of the entirely unfamiliar.
We depend upon Capricorn to hold things stable. But you’re not as boring as you like people to think you are. Unearth your inner revolutionary with this reading.
2021 Capricorn Astrology Studio: One Night Only Kala Sarpa Yoga
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — You are in a transformation process so deep that once you are through it, you may not even remember that it happened. The important thing is you allow this to take place; that you not interfere or intervene. Keep your fear under control, mainly by keeping yourself occupied with what you are called to do in any moment. It is vital that you stay as close to the present as you can, because that is where your changes are taking place. It is tempting to project yourself into the future, and many people try to live there, booking out their appointment calendars six months in advance. Conserve your energy and stay in the real world of actual activity, and of decisions you are making now or that are imminently pending. If you keep an agenda, stick to one month and still live one day at a time. The primary benefit of this exercise will be to get you out of the abstract world and bring you into the tangible one. Your abstract ideas about existence are still too driven by fear (in the form of Pluto in your 12th place/house, provoked by Eris) and are therefore not reliable. Keep your feet on the ground. Appreciate every bite of food that you take. Stop and meet every animal.
You’re not after progress for its own sake; Aquarius is the discriminating embracer of innovation that works. Get your reading and be brilliant.
2021-22 Aquarius Astrology Studio: A Reading For Our Moment
Order Pisces Astrology Studio 2021-22
Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — You are the original world-walker. You can go from place to place, and from each phase of your life to the next, and still remember who you are. Sometimes this is called shapeshifting. Yet the essential factor is not forgetting as each shift evolves; as you make each transformation, something about you remains essentially the same, and you remember who that is because you recognize the feeling of being that person. This sensation will be accentuated this week as the Moon passes from Aquarius into your sign (which may reveal a deeper truth about an issue you are tracking). Then May 13, your ruling planet Jupiter enters Pisces for the first time in 12 years, and that has a big burst of remembering at the same time it allows and encourages you to change forms. Meanwhile, much activity in Gemini is encouraging you to explore alternate possibilities, places, settings, and circumstances. I have long advocated Pisces having some sort of second place to hang out, or to live, because you thrive on the feeling of an alternate or parallel reality. For most people this is about forgetting who you are. For you, it’s about remembering.
The hidden realm is vitally important to Pisces: in a sense it is your home. Find your way back home, guided by your latest reading.
2021-22 Pisces Astrology Studio: Every Decision You Make
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