Ten Things I’ve Learned in 10 Years and 10,000 Charts (Part 4)

Transcript:

0:06
Hi, everyone, this is Acyuta-bhava from Nightlight Astrology and today I'm diving into the fourth part of a 10 part series that I'm doing called "10 things that I've learned in 10 years of professional astrology." If you listen to this, and you like it, I recommend going back to the beginning of this series and sort of tuning in and listening to each part individually, because they each kind of build every talk in this series builds on the previous one in a sense, but you could jump in very easily. And this talk should make sense to you anyway. Now, it was basically in July that I realised I've been a professional astrologer for 10 years. And I was like, wow, that's, you know, it's kind of a milestone and, and then I realised that it was a good time to start reflecting on what I've learned over the past 10 years. And so this series was kind of born of the desire to reflect upon what it's been like to be a professional astrologer for 10 years. And in the process, I figured out that I've done all different kinds of readings, and all different kinds of settings, all different kinds of lengths with all different kinds of people, over 10,000 different types of charts and readings that I've looked at. So I thought wow, that's, that is kind of a milestone and not that I would consider myself still feeling like a newbie really. But I started reflecting in a journal about what I've learned, and I thought it would be fun to share what I've learned in a series. So this series was born of the desire to reflect on those experiences. And hopefully you find these interesting and useful for yourself as you're a student of astrology or someone who's interested in astrology. Hopefully, this helps you to kind of crystallise your own insights and reflect on what you've learned and what astrology has meant to you. Each talk, I come up with a basic phrase are kind of like a catchphrase that serves as one of the 10 insights that I'm presenting in this series. So in this one, the phrase is "Doing good, isn't the point" or you could say "becoming good, isn't the point." So that's what I want to talk about today. And again, this particular insight was borne out for me over the course of so many readings.

2:54
So doing good isn't the point becoming good isn't the point. In, let's say 10,000 + charts, one of the most common things that I have noticed is that when people walk into a reading, it starts off with, I want to know what I'm supposed to do. That's one of the most basic repeated questions that I get all the time is, what am I supposed to do? And there's a lot of assumptions built into this question. So let's talk about maybe one of the most, you know, kind of mundane examples of this question. Especially in Western culture, we are raised with this very heroic notion that each of us has, like a very special career path that we're supposed to find or like a professional or vocational calling that we are supposed to pursue. And you're taught this from a very young age that you have to grow up to, you know, fulfil your dreams become what you were born to be something like that. And usually, this translates into having a kind of job that you love to do making a positive difference on the world having a positive impact on others being well liked or appreciated, being masterful at something, and so forth. So the first thing that I want to do is just sort of dispel this myth when it comes to astrology.

4:19
What I've seen is that largely, people are not ever finding this. I know that sounds a little depressing. But here's what I usually see. I don't usually see, whether a person is 25 or 65, people coming in feeling like Yep, that's it. I found it. I found the thing that I'm supposed to do. I found my calling and it has completely fulfilled me. Sometimes I do talk to people who are very happy with their jobs who really feel like they found their niche, you know, when it comes to a vocation or a skill, or something like that. So I'm not saying it doesn't exist, but by and large when it comes to finding your sense of purpose, or what I ought to be doing with my life in some vocational sense, people may get some, they may get a little close to it, for example, you may do something that you don't feel terrible about. Right. And that's better than what a lot of people can say, because a lot of people work jobs like laying bricks, delivering the mail, and doing all sorts of things like everyday things that are probably not that glorious, like, I'm going to be a doctor who goes into war torn countries and heals the children or, you know, something like that. I don't know, whatever the fantasy might be. But a lot of people from start to finish live lives where they work jobs that if they're lucky, they are not just something mundane, that they tolerate, or worse, they can't stand, they might be something that they feel does some good, has some enjoyment feels like it utilises certain elements of their character or their skills. But by and large, they will still feel a certain level of dissatisfaction with and there's always questions about when that might get better, or when that might change. And I've seen that, again, like that. That's a sort of a general truth, whether you're 20 or 60. I have really, really good clients, though, who don't always come in living with that kind of myth that I'm, I'm not happy until I find like a vocation or I become very masterful or well recognised in some area in life professionally, a lot of people are really realistic and knowing that, you know, maybe I'm never going to be perfectly happy with a career and that like, that's okay.

6:45
The deeper question that I usually get is it goes one step deeper. It's not just like, What am I supposed to do as in a career vocation? But it's what am I supposed to do as in, What am I supposed to get better at? What am I supposed to improve upon, people usually come in with a sense of that they're deficient in certain ways, psychologically, or morally, or, you know, in terms of their some area in their life, like I know that I need more of this, or I need to become something that I'm not, or I'm deficient in some area, and I need to get better at it. But people sometimes come in with pretty clear ideas about what they think that that is. And then they'll say, like, how do I do that? Or how do I get better at that? Or people will come in saying, I just want to know what my homework is sometimes even phrased that way that word is often used homework, like, What am I supposed to in this lifetime? What are the lessons that I'm supposed to learn? Or what are the things that I'm supposed to, like improve upon? Okay, so what I want to start off by saying is that, first of all, this is normal, I don't look down my nose upon it as a reader, obviously, when people have these questions. And they're legitimate questions, because there is a dimension of our lives of our destiny paths that involve things that we are deficient at, or areas in life that we aren't necessarily good at that that we might want to get better at. And so self improvement and looking at the chart, and being able to see what you're good at, or what you might need to improve upon is definitely an aspect of astrology and a very valuable one. However, again, what I've learned over 10 years in so many charts, is that self improvement is not the point.

8:33
So I want to kind of elaborate upon that as they go along. Self improvement isn't the point, it isn't the thing that makes people happy. Even people who managed to improve themselves or improve upon some area of life and taste the fruits of success and something that they were previously deficient at, that even these people are not happy that there will still be problems and areas of life that are still unsatisfying. And also, even more than that. For ancient astrologers, self improvement was not the point of life, nor was it the point of astrology. So let's unpack this a little bit. When people come in, they are generally living with an assumption. And this assumption is programmed into us in some of the same ways that we're programmed or taught that we should find the most heroic professional path or vocation or something like that. It's programmed into us from the time that we're little that what it means to have success in life is to show measurable progress along a linear line, like I was here, and then I got here and you can measure it somehow. And because of this, people are living with a kind of unconscious belief that spiritual growth is tantamount to doing good deeds and getting rewards. Whereas spiritual stagnation or regression or, you know, somehow spiritual failure, let's just call it generally, is the equivalent of not being able to demonstrate some kind of measurable progress in different areas of life. Okay, let's just give an example people come in basically thinking I will spiritually progress in this lifetime. If I figure out how to get better at relationships, I tend to be really independent, and I have trouble, you know, compromising with others. And so I need to get better at compromising and being more of a we person rather than a me person, or vice versa, someone might come in and say, I tend to be such a weak person that I count myself out, and I need to be more of a me person, I need to take better care of myself or something like that. And then the belief is that I will get rewarded, and I will find more happiness, and I will grow spiritually. And you know that all of the good things that I'm looking for, will come when I get better at that thing. And this isn't like an unconscious paradigm that's operating for, I would say, most astrology clients. In fact, most of us, I'm not above it, either, I think this way, all the time. And there's a way in which reality reinforces this belief. Because there's a sense in which all of this, this whole paradigm is true. We tell kids, for example, hey, you know, do the right thing and you get a cookie, do the right thing, and you get a privilege, do the wrong thing, and you get something taken away. So we have this way. We have this way of imagining that spiritual growth is like a measurable linear process where we demonstrate tangible measurable growth with regard to certain lacks or deficiencies that we have.

12:11
Okay, so that's the first part, that people walk in, and then they and then they tend to categorise it along these lines. And these lines, or astrological lines, I'm going to break down into the most common areas that I see with people. I already mentioned one of them, one of them will be typically, I need to become more independent, I need to become more empowered, I need to be more assertive, I need to be you know, I'm less of a pushover less passive or less, I can't let people walk on me, I can't give too much to others, I need to take care of myself and put me first. I don't know, if I had to guess I'd say one out of every six clients comes in telling me that that's what they believe that they need to do in order to grow spiritually and become happy. On the other hand, you will get people who will often say, I need to, I need to be less independent, and I need to learn how to coexist with others and be in relationships. Or people will say in this lifetime, I'm looking to have a successful relationship because I'm used to traumatic relationships with others, or unhealthy power dynamics and relationships. And so in order to grow, I need to have a successful relationship. And if I have one that will be the measure of my spiritual growth in this lifetime.

13:30
Others have questions about money and resources, I need to be more self sufficient. No, I need to be more okay with receiving help from other people. Okay, you can if you're following along, if you're if you study astrology, you know that these are tracking out along the house lines, right? It's like house two and eight. previous one was like house one and seven. So in house two and eight, it's like, Yo, I need to be better at accepting help from others or giving help to others. Or maybe I need to learn how to be more self sufficient, and clear and clear about my boundaries and what I consider to be my own time, money, energy and resources versus what I share a gift to others. And someone else may say, I need to learn how to accept help from other people, because I tend to be way too self. You know, I don't trust other people enough for something like that. That's the measurable that they're looking for, they want me to look in their chart and figure out what it is that I'm deficient in that I need to get better at, and built in is this assumption that if I get better at these things, I will feel happier. And that this is like the evolutionary or sort of like karmic lesson that is somehow built into my chart.

14:49
Now, I'm not going to deny that there are strengths and weaknesses in charts and areas where charts can guide us towards self improvement. That's another amazing facet of astrology but it's not the point of astrology. Others say, I need to have more of my own mind. Oh, you know, I need to learn how to submit my mind to something higher than myself, for example, I need to find teachers. On the other hand, I might need to question my teachers, you can see this, or you could say that this is someone who needs to develop confidence in their own voice, their own intellectual intelligence, their own discernment, their own discrimination. On the other hand, one may need to learn how to take guidance from other people. One may be looking for their teachers or their paths or their religion or something like that. And they may tend to resist such things just out of distrust. On the other hand, one may need to question things and not, you know, blindly follow people or paths as they have in past lives or something like that. Right. And people again, very predictably think, if I get better at this, that's how I know I'm improving or progressing spiritually, and that's where happiness will be.

16:03
Now, some people will be like, I need to have more of a base, find where my home is in the world put down roots be more grounded, other people need to go out more explore, take more risks, you see how there's these dichotomies all the time, I'm more of a stay at home person and to get out in the world or I'm so work all the time, you need to learn to appreciate home and hearth a little bit more.

16:26
You have people who will similarly look at whether or not they should belong to a group or march to the beat of their own drum, socially, just in general, you'll have also you'll have people who say, I need to leave the world behind. And you'll other see other people who say I need to get more involved in the world, I need to be more hands on more of a servant with my hands in the mud. And you'll see other people saying I need to leave for the mountain, I need to, you know, head to the hills and do some reflection and distance myself a little bit further from the world. Again, I'll just repeat it one last time. I would say 75-80% of my clientele over 10 years in 10,000 + charts will walk in and they'll go, I know that there's some area in my chart that I that I suck at, you know, or that I'm like, where I'm deficient, and what is it please because if I know what I have to improve upon, then I can go out and get better at that. And that that is somehow the marker of my spiritual progress.

17:30
Okay, and just to reiterate my response, yes, there is an element of your chart where you can see deficiencies, and there is going to be natural ways of compensating for those deficiencies along all of these different polaric lines. And that is one part of life. There is you know, when when one thing becomes too strong, oftentimes the opposite gets neglected or marginalised. And we have to learn how to keep a kind of fluidity between, you know, strike balances between all these different kinds of moving dynamics in life, self reliance versus dependency, and on and on and on. And it's very valuable to have that kind of insight but ancient astrologers and the spiritual practices of astrology is not primarily about that. So what is it about? And how have I handled this particular element of astrology because so many people come in thinking that this is what astrology is supposed to help them with?

18:33
So, for ancient astrologers, that the truth of the matter is that we are each eternal spirit souls and as eternal spirit souls, who we are and what we are, and what reality is, in and of itself 24/7 without fail, no matter what is happening. That reality is, that what we are, is the source of love, beauty and happiness. And so, for ancient astrologers happiness was found when we become more situated in on the throne of the heart, when we become more deeply comfortable and alive within our eternality within our our own soul, and when we start to see that same soulfulness in the world, in all things, whether they are deficient or abundant, whether they are light or dark. Then we start to experience the, the fruit of spiritual reality which is bliss, happiness, beauty, truth, knowledge and so forth. So, for ancient astrologers, the byproduct of spiritual life, a life lived in a tending of the soul, is that if we tend to it, the karma around us tends to get better, which means the things that we are deficient at, which the birth chart might point out, that those things tend to become better but as a byproduct, not as the point or not as the focus.

20:34
It's kind of like saying, like, how do you know, again, like you, some of you guys who watch my channel for a while, you've probably heard me use this analogy before, but how do you measure the progress of intimacy in a relationship? It's not by Oh, we've kissed 60 times. And so you know, we're at level six of intimacy. But if we kiss 40, more times than reach 100, then we'll be at level 10, or something like that. So it's it, intimacy, the possibility or the potential for intimacy to deepen is infinite. All of the, you know, especially the yoga philosophy of the ancient seers tells us that any and all experiences in reality, when lived from the seat of the soul, become the means by which intimacy and love and depth of communion is perpetuated. So, if you were to tell a person, a very enlightened person, not me, because you know, I'm definitely not there, right. But if you're to tell a very enlightened person, hey, look, you're going to have 50,000 more lifetimes after this one, or even a million more lifetimes after this one. And they're going to be filled with all different kinds of experiences, and all different kinds of things that you get really good at. But then new deficiencies that crop up simultaneously, that show that there's still a lot of things you suck at. Right, and that's just going to keep going forever and ever. The person who is driven by the feeling that bliss spiritually is tantamount to mastering lessons and goals and becoming very accomplished and good, will really freak out. Because it's like from the standpoint of trying to constantly improve, you're just telling me that I have I think I'm close to the end of a marathon. But actually, I'm not even in the first like quarter mile. Right. Whereas the person who is starting to be established in the reality of the soul, when you say 50,000 more lifetimes to them, that means 50,000 more dates, and 50,000 more dates means 50,000 more opportunities for intimacy to grow, and for love and bliss and the erotic mysterious thrill ride of existence to continue, because when you're living life, with the priority of of the awakened spirit, soul, and it's loving, intimate relationship with source and with all things, then you're not you're no longer looking to kind of mount your experiences and master them. Right? It's not like that. It's not like because, again, How comfortable are any of us with the idea that intimacy is a goal that we should be running towards or measurable that we should be trying to achieve in our relationships?

23:27
I'll never forget one time, when I was in the Amazon drinking ayahuasca in the first night that I was in Amazon, and I was listening to the, the sounds like in the jungle at night, and they were like, they were so terrifying because there were, there were things like stalking other things and things killing and eating each other. There were also these deeply mysterious, like, weird, like bugs and birds and like all sorts of really bizarre stuff and noises. And, you know, when I was in ayahuasca ceremonies, one of the things that was so that came through so very clearly is that this is reality. It's like the idea that our life is supposed to be like a perfectly pristine rose garden is not, it's not true to the nature of reality in this universe. Because, you know, look in the Amazon, the most beautiful flowers grow next to the most invasive species, and the beauty walks along with the ugliness side by side that they're all they're all a part of the texture of this amazingly exotic and profoundly terrifying and beautiful experience, and it's all there all at once. And the difference between people who experience any, any aspect of creation as inherently blissful, beautiful, insightful, meaningful, and those who don't is basically in some ways, it's as simple as saying, are you living life from the perspective of being an eternal being who has nothing at stake, that is just here to deepen the experience of love and connection, or are you are you a being who is trying to master something and get somewhere because in that paradigm, what's underneath that master something gets somewhere improve, you know, get rid of the uncomfortable things, whatever. Underneath that is essentially, a discomfort with the way things are. With the way reality is with the way that the soul is with the way that light and dark coexist with one another. There's just discomfort with that.

25:41
The weird thing is that we have to live in a world at the exact same time where we have a vested interest in light versus dark. Now, ancient seers, were very aware of this. So they weren't just saying, hey, look, turn a passive eye to evil because evil / good, it's all the same, you're just trotting along in the jungle of existence. Right? It sounds nice. But actually, there's a lot at stake in this world as well. So it's not that we're supposed to check out of self improvement. It's not that there aren't deficiencies in our character in the world that we aren't supposed to try to do something about. However, we also have to do them, we have to try to improve, while understanding that nothing is actually at stake, that's part of the play. You You have to participate in the play, you can't duck out of it this, that because reality is this way doesn't give you an excuse from ducking out of moral investment in the character that you're playing and in the destiny that you're walking, and so forth. And that makes it that's what tends to confound people so much, is that because we, we, we tend to lose sight of this, this bigger picture, and this eternal truth about who we are. Because we lose track of that, then we tend to get overly invested in the stakes of the game that we're currently playing. Even though there's nothing actually at stake, we're like a method actor that gets so invested in the plot that they actually they may lose sense of themselves acting. And that's a little dangerous. We have to be very careful of that we want to be we're actors on the stage, we're participating in the sport of creation. But we can't lose track of the fact that we're actors as well, we have to keep a sliver of that awareness with us. Cultivating that more gives us the ability to have more agency and more depth of experience and meaning and bliss within our our destiny path, the more that we keep awareness of who and what we actually are and what is actually real in the big picture. So all of this is to say that people will come in to a reading thinking, look, the chart has to tell me what I suck at and what I have to improve at, what are the lessons that I have to learn in order to somehow level up. But I'm telling you right now that I'm people who play that game of thinking, my happiness is tantamount to me getting better at something, are never happy, because the weeds just keep coming up. You can pull weeds, you know, and you can be really, really good at pulling weeds. But eventually, you have to sit back and go, like, flowers come with weeds in this jungle of creation, like they coexist. And I better get comfortable with that. You could say that living a happy life, as far as I've seen from working with so many people and seeing what kinds of people are happy and what kinds of people aren't, is the equivalent of like, hey, look, if I see someone that's pulling weeds, and doing their best to pull weeds in their own life and in the world, while trying to tend and bring out the beautiful things, but they're very aware of the fact that weeds are always going to coexist with flowers, those are the happy people because they know the difference between spirit and matter. And therefore they can understand the right relationship between the two. And that's like that's if I had to say the secret to happiness that I've seen in people's lives like that's it. The people that are happiest are always the ones that are coming in, they might be interested in improving themselves and I can help them with the chart, you know, too and saying, hey, look, this area may be a little deficient, look at some lessons over here and so forth. But look, you know, are you tending to the life of your soul? Do you have a daily way of communing with what you are with what is both in you in your environment in your life? And in the world? Do you have a way of just communing with it and finding and feeling that love that is in all things in this beautiful, amazing garden? Because if you do, you will be a lot happier you will be whistling while you work pulling those never ending weeds and that's the person who says 50,000 words lifetimes, that just means 50,000 more dates, it doesn't mean 50,000 more relentless weeds I have to pull, it means 50,000 more lifetimes of whistling while I work. Because people know that the work of creation is the work of love. Right? And that's the bit that's the essential difference. So, all right, here's some planetary lines that people tend to freak out around. Let's do Moon-Saturn. It's like, Where do I belong? Where do I feel at home? Who cares about me? Where do I feel connected and safe? Saturn is where do I feel misunderstood, kicked out abandoned, hurt, left alone. And people always think I just have to figure that out. I have to solve that somehow. Well, yeah, maybe that's part of the maybe that's part of your experience right now. But that's an eternal experience. Those are like two lights flashing in the garden of creation constantly. And they've always been doing it and they always will be doing that. And the difference is whether or not you're experiencing the alternation of those themes, from the standpoint of eternity, or whether you're experiencing it from the standpoint of a limited being that's very frustrated, afraid, feeling isolated, not sure, in doubt, and tending to think I've got to solve something, I got to figure something out. Otherwise, I'm going to be I'm not going to be in a good way.

31:27
Similarly, let's talk about the Saturn in the Sun. If you have Saturn in the Sun, one of the big things that Saturn in the sun is always Am I being validated? Am I seen for who I am? Am I authentic? Am I special? Saturn, Am I ostracised? Am I misunderstood? Am I an outsider or it could be a relationship with the status quo, damn the man, screw the way it's been, screw the establishment, I'm doing something different. You know, like that. And these experiences are they they are so vital. I'm not at all demeaning them because they are, this is the lila right? This is the play. But again, stand back and imagine that these are like birds calling back and forth to one another in the jungles of infinity. And if you if you can sit sometimes and just hear it that way. Hear the themes that way and cultivate the listener within cultivate the observer within 10 to the what is the soul. You know, Heraclitus, he said, "the soul is explored forever to a depth beyond report."

32:32
James Hillman describes the soul as the "the ground in which different gods and archetypes play." And when the soul allows for these different complexes and gods and energies to play in it, hold space for it in love, then the character of the soul starts to show itself. Turns out that we're like an invisible bird walking through paradise. And the more we hold space for our own infinite experiences, the more that what starts to shine forth is our true form, our true spiritual form, we are an animal in the garden of creation as well. And we have our own unique song and our own unique call. We are our own unique archetype, you could say, and how does that come forth? Well, it only comes forth by being in relationship to things because we can only discover who we are in relationship to other things, to other gods and people and situations and energies and experiences and failures and successes and losses and redemptions, and all sorts of things. And as we go along, the more and more that we start to call it all good, that we start to raise the proverbial Buddhist boon and say yes, to all of it, the more that our own plumage starts to come out, the more that our own golden feathers and Halo starts to appear. And we start to take up a divine participation in that reality that goes beyond the, the fixation with the alternations and trying to solve them or get out of them or something like that. It's just we're just getting comfortable here. That's, it's just like, in some ways, it's that simple.

34:14
What about other planets like Mercury and Jupiter? Mercury says you need to question things more, you need to be more rational. Be an inquiring mind, don't just take what this person's saying, you know, just think for yourself, kill the Buddha, if you see them, you know, these are Mercurial things. Jupiter, on the other hand, says, look for the way, look for the wisdom. Look for the descending spiritual masters, you know, they're both divine. What about let's say, Venus and Mars look for the peaceful pleasant experience. No, no, Mars says, you know, put put some spikes around your collar, you know, get a spiked collar on and headbutt life. Get a mohawk and you know, throw your fist into it. You know, you know what I mean? Don't, don't make me try to participate in your denial of the edge and blood redness of life. Don't make me participate in your Sound of Music, you know, delusion here, you know, I'm here to get punched, you know what I mean? Or to punch someone. That's kind of a caricature of Mars versus Venus. And people will endlessly try to resolve those things thinking, Well, in this life museum past three lifetimes, I didn't stand up for myself, I just was so passive and I preferred peace. And so you know, in this lifetime, I'm sure the birth chart is just telling me that I've got to become more aggressive etc. and it's like, Yeah, but stand back and and think of what ancient seers told us. Karma is anadi. Beginningless. And it so how many previous lifetimes? Have you been doing things? Turns out you can't even count it. And how many future potential lifetimes Could I have involved in the same things? Innumerable. And these things don't go away, experience doesn't go away. You don't just blend or merge into white light, when you reach enlightenment, not not according to the ancient seers, no. Instead, what happens is, it's like waking up and realising you're at the most amazing concert ever happening ever in the history of ever, and you're, you know, you're jamming along with the band, you know what I mean? And that that's the reality that you're waking up to, you always have been, and you always will be, and there's nothing at stake. It's okay. There is something at stake. I mean, there is. But it's just like, if you've ever listened to Mozart's Requiem, or Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, or if you ever watched a horror movie, you know, something really dark and heavy and something like that, you get so invested in it. And that's real, that's a real experience of that. The kind of unenlightened version of that is, we think that that is absolutely it. And we think that the outcome of that experience is, is kind of its, it will determine our state of being or mind or happiness once and for all, everything is at stake. The enlightened person goes, you know, while you're in it, there's something at stake. But also the stories go on and on and on and on. And it's that it's that ingredient that sets you free to experience the full depth and range of emotion.

37:33
It's like being able to truly enjoy the ride as deeply as you can. So yeah that's the I know, I'm getting a little like, I'm getting like pretty far out now. So I'll try to rein it back in. The main thing I wanted to communicate today was that people come into readings, and they generally think there's got to be something I've got to solve, there's got to be something I've got to fix. I'm going to leave you with a very simple story at the end here. In yoga philosophy, there is something called the modes of material nature. And the modes of material nature are goodness, passion and ignorance. So these three modes of material nature, are always blending, mixing, dominating, suppressing one another. And it's the combinations of these material forces that are creating the endless varieties of experiences that we have, that we've been describing through the planets and houses and signs and all the dichotomies and so forth. Well, another mistake that people make is in thinking, hey, it's all about creating goodness. But it turns out that goodness is like the byproduct of spiritual life, not the point of spiritual life, but the byproduct of it. So what does it look like if you're moving through the jungle of creation, and you meet a soul who's truly gotten comfortable in this infinite amazingly profound, like, like, landscape? What do they look like? What is their? Like? What kind of energy do they carry in terms of the world and all these energies that are circulating in it? Well, they carry goodness. And what is goodness look like? I'm going to read you a little quote from Hildegard von Bingen. She's describing the Holy Spirit here. "She is so bright and glorious that you cannot look at her face or her garments for the splendour with which she shines. For she is terrible with the terror of the avenging lightning and gentle with the goodness of the bright sun. And both her terror and her gentleness are incomprehensible to humans, but she is with everyone and in everyone and so beautiful is her secret that no person can know the sweetness with which she sustains people, and spares them in inscrutable mercy."

40:23
That's a description of the Holy Spirit, which is a really nice description. But it could also be a description of the mode of goodness in this world. So imagine that you get up in the morning, you meditate. And you're going to exercise or something. There's just that feeling of everything being clear and strong and bright, and yet very calm. As a yoga studio owner, over the past 10 years, I have seen this. So consistently after yoga classes, what is in the space of a yoga studio after a yoga class? The material mode of goodness, it's it's peaceful, it's elusive. It's strong, but also delicate. It's like a beautiful pond, that's very clear and still reflecting the sunlight. So you have that feeling of just this, like, amazing strength, but it's also it's very calm and serene. And it's, there's a fragility to it. Now, this energy, if you carry it out of the yoga studio with you, what happens? You get on the phone, you tend to have a more mindful conversation. And if there is a little bit of stuck karma, you'd be surprised how much a simple the vibration after a simple yoga class or meditation session, like how effective it can be at moving that energy in a constructive direction.

41:48
But just like a yoga class, the remember that ancient Yogi's, what were they doing with yoga with yoga asana, with the postures and things like that? They were specifically using that energy that was generated through postures and breathing techniques, to situate themselves to sit for very long periods of time in meditation. Because the point of cultivating this consciousness, this sort of this, this cosmic awareness, this cosmic consciousness, you could even say, is that, you know, it's that that that that mode of goodness that you develop through different practices that is conducive to Communion. So in other words, why do you get up in the morning, and run or workout or do some exercises or something like that, specifically, so that you can sit and so that energy can be used to drop into the heart, to drop into stillness and awareness of your very being? Right. But frequently, people think it's the opposite. Frequently, people think that the point of spiritual life is to get into that space where that kind of lucid serene energy is generated. So then you can go out and use it to do something constructive, effective, manifest something, get something improve upon something. And the tricky thing is, the reason that it's so seductive, is because when you feel that way, when you feel that kind of high, runners, feel it to people who work out, feel it, anytime you're taking care of the temple, the mind the body, you're getting clean, you're putting water in, you're getting good sleep, the mode of goodness starts to develop. And that that energy has a way it's very powerful. And it tends to radiate this kind of light, bright clearness. And that does things. And don't get me wrong, those things are really nice. Like you can genuinely again, make improvements or get things done or, you know, suddenly the karma in your life starts getting better. And for ancient philosophers, this mode of goodness really was good. And it really could do good things in your life. But again, just imagine that you're doing all this good, and you're getting all this good, this good energy is creating good things. But it can only last for so long. Right? It can only last for so long, because it dissipates eventually, if you ever been to a yoga class, you know that the high you feel the next day, two days later, if you don't practice again, you know, it's not there as much. And then people go like, oh, I've got to go through another purge or another detox, or I've got to get clean and clear again. And that's because they're living from the sense of like, I need to be harnessing that power of that energy of goodness, so that good things can happen and good things can get done. But that's backward. And the reason that it's backward again is because what are we actually supposed to be using the mode of goodness for to when that mode is generated, that mode is the most conducive to going right into the soul.

44:46
So if you if you can generate that energy through healthy living, through exercise, through diet, through, getting up early in the morning, whatever you do, and you feel that like that vibrancy, that peace, that clarity, when you feel that what you're supposed to be doing with that ideally is that's when you sit down to pray. That's when you sit down to listen, that's when you sit down to talk to God to chant your mantras to meditate to, to do whatever you do to commune with the soul, use the energy there to commune with the soul. Because what you want to do is not go out in progress and get a bunch of good things. Eventually, that pious karma credit runs out, and then you have to go back and keep doing that. And it's an endless hamster wheel. And, you know, and it's exhausting. Eventually, what you're looking for is you're looking for the the most sustainable place to draw upon. And that is actually who in what you are not what you do, not what energy you generate, through effort and what you go and do with it, even if it is really high vibrational stuff, which again, yoga philosophy, very clear about this, the mode of goodness is good, but it's not the point, you're supposed to transcend even the mode of goodness in order to find the enduring and eternal qualities of the heart and soul.

46:04
So now, here's the story. I'm not I have to be slightly anonymous with this. But I know someone in my life. And it's just been, it's been really cool to see this happen. So this is someone who for a long time in their life thought, I suck at this thing. And I've got to get better at it. I lacked discipline, I tend to get sloppy and forgetful and all over the place. And I don't finish things that I start. Can anyone relate to that? Right? I know I can sometimes. And so I've got to buckle up and get disciplined, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And along with this came this one particular vice, which was smoking, smoking cigarettes. So this person's like, I can't keep smoking, along with my other disorganised habits, I can't keep smoking. And they thought, I know that I'm going to be happier. And that I'm going to advance spiritually when I get better at these things, when I get better control of my life more disciplined, and when I quit smoking. Now, on one level, I want to be like, you go, like, you know, like, do it because it's true, you will be happier if you cultivate those qualities. But you won't be as happy as if you prioritise the awakening of the indwelling Spirit. And the reason for this is that it is that indwelling Spirit that will naturally start sloughing off the things that drag it down and start inhabiting the things that make it happy. Otherwise, it's like again, you're pulling weeds in a garden where they're, never ending. So this person is someone I've been counselling. And I suggested, like taking up a spiritual practice every single day, make it the priority of your life every single day. And just recently, they contacted me and said, You wouldn't believe this, but I quit smoking. And I said, Well, that's amazing, congrats, how did it happen? And then like, I don't know, I just one day, I just sort of, like, I'm looking at the cigarette and I'm going, wait a sec. Why am I doing this? See, the only way you can look at your habit. And rather than going like it's a problem that I have to fix. And if I fix it, I'll get happier. Instead, you have to look at it and go, you know, who am I? And who do I think I am? That I would do this? Right? Or even so basically the quality of their there. Instead of saying, I've got to fix problems, they started asking the questions through daily prayer through daily practice, who am I? Why am I here? What is real? What is true? What is real happiness? Not just temporary goodness, which is powerful, but what is like never ending a biting piece? Is that even a possibility? Do I believe in that, like, really legitimately spending time with those questions. Every single day. And as this person started to do that, instead of being like cigarette is a problem, they went like, cigarette is an eternal thing. You know, like, cigarette is paper and like tobacco and chemicals, but like, how did chemicals come about? and cigarettes come about? And how, how does habit, how do habits form and why do people do this? And what are they seeking? And why am I seeking this and you see what I'm saying? It was only from the standpoint of that relationship with cigarettes that this person finally naturally just said, I don't want this. And when and the thing that they described it was really incredible as they said, it was like it was never even a problem to begin with.

50:01
It was never even a problem to begin with. Wow. And now they don't they also don't have to look at cigarettes now from a condemning perspective, because they're going like, maybe it's too late, maybe I've already done irreversible damage. And that will kill me in this body, in this lifetime. But at least I somehow know in my soul now, I've asked the deeper question, and I've accessed something deeper and truer about who I am. And so even if cancer were to eat my body, it can't eat my soul. You see what I'm saying? That's like, a really profound breakthrough for someone to have. And so again, like, generally speaking, when I work with people, people come in, and they have a lot of assumptions about, well, if I fix something and get in, I could just get more control and get better at it, and so forth. I can give people all the insight in the world through their birth chart, you know, as far as I'm capable of what in their chart might be deficient, what to get better at, because there's tonnes of them, you can very clearly see which weeds might need to be pulled. But if you don't have some, if you're not teaching someone to whistle while they work, if someone is not focused on that, it really doesn't matter what weeds I tell them to pull, you see what I mean?

51:27
Tthe second story that I wanted to share, which is very similar, I had a woman come in for a reading one time. And she said, you know, she knew a bit about astrology. And she was like, I've got all these seventh house issues. And I know that in this lifetime, I'm supposed to learn how to be in a positive relationship. I'm supposed to be in a relationship. Like, okay, well, first of all, in, you know, I'm not going to say this necessarily. But first of all, in the big picture. No, you're not, like in this in the big picture, no, this doesn't, it doesn't matter that much doesn't matter as much as you think it it does. The fact that you think that you should be in relationship that you're so adamant about that is probably more important than whether or not you are or aren't, that's probably more of the problem than whether you actually end up in a successful one or not. But anyway, the chart may tell us that there is relatively more difficult karma in the area of relationships. So okay, maybe there's weeds over there, and maybe a person would be happier, pulling some of them and getting better at relationships, right? So I'm gonna, like, just acknowledge that and said, Okay, so she wants to know, when is the relationship coming? That will be this experience that I'm going to sort of level up from, in other words, when is my soulmate coming so that I can grow and learn in the ways that I'm supposed to, and this is like, what a brave soul to say, like, I know, it's not going to be easy. I know, I've got a tonne of to learn. But I want to know when that person is going to come in, and when I'm going to learn all this stuff from it. Fair enough. So they ended up having a transit that was about a year out that I said, the next relationship, meaningful relationship I can see is about a year out. Okay, so then I'm in about, you know, and we, we met every six months actually to discuss their chart. And I proposed to them at that time, I said, Okay, look, here's my advice for you. Yes, you may have a lot to learn about relationships. So there may be a lot of experiences in relationships. But I promise you that what will make these experiences truly rewarding for the sake of your soul's sojourn, its infinite sojourn, is whether or not you're cultivating it's, it's conscious. It's whether or not you are tending to it. And that will require a daily practice. So we talked about some different practices, she ended up taking up prayer journaling, and maybe some exercise or something like that. So in about six more months, when I met with her it was it was really profound to see what had happened, basically, what what had occurred was she had said, essentially, what I had said at the beginning, which was that, I'm realising that come what may if a relationship comes or if it doesn't come, I realise that that's not really the point, who only took six months of someone having a daily spiritual practice for them to let go of what up until, you know, mid life had been this feeling of being sort of cursed because they hadn't had successful, happy relationships and the feeling like they they're not going to level up until they have one. Six months later, have a daily spiritual practice. And they're saying, I still want one. I still feel like I have things to learn. But I'm also really deeply letting go of whether or not I ever have one or ever reached this place. You know what I mean? Okay, so then six months later, now it's a year, and a relationship, in fact, did come into her life, and now she's got a year of spiritual cultivation of spiritual practice.

55:04
Long story short, now she's mortified, you know, oh my god, that relationship is here. And now I'm starting to get really anxious about it again, is it going to go like every other relationship? When is it going to be another failure? I feel this pressure that it has to be successful. And what did we say? We said, Well, you know, here are the dates, here are the times when the relationship will get more intense, or the fruits of this karma will blossom in this relationship. And another was another year out. I said, Look, just in my opinion, go go for the ride. And don't worry about if it's good or bad, just chop wood carry water, so to speak, and keep your spiritual practice going. A year later, she came back for the reading and they had just broken up. Okay, so I, when she told me I just immediately like I assumed like, great, she's probably devastated. She's probably let go of her spiritual practice. But no, it was the complete opposite. She had maintained her spiritual practice more or less. And at the end of that year, you know, they had broken up. And I said, I'm really sorry to hear that I know that you really wanted it to work out. And she was like, Nope, I feel like this was the most rewarding relationship experience that I ever could have had, because I realised now that even if I die, and I never marry someone, that it's okay. Right? Because, these experiences are enough. Like all of them, whatever they might be, they are all so beautiful. And I was just, I was really blown away, because it wasn't what I was expecting. And we're talking about a span of basically two years between the first time I talked to her and this breakup, and having a daily practice in her life. It changed her entire paradigm on what defined her success or her happiness. Is life perfect. Is she you know, levitating? No, like, you know, neither am I, and neither are any of us really, who have spiritual practices. But if I had to conclude this talk with one thing, it's that doing good, becoming good, even creating the best possible world that we can, it's not the point, it is good to do. Just like the mode of goodness really is good. But from the perspective of the spiritual, being, all experience, all experience without exception is good.

57:31
So there's a way in which astrology can help us improve ourselves and help us understand the difference in some ways between what's good, and what's bad, what's painful, and what's filled with joy, and so forth. But we can't put the cart before the horse. So my advice for you is, whether you're an astrology student, or you do readings for other people, or you're just getting interested in astrology, the simple two pieces of advice that I have are this cultivated daily spiritual practice and stick to it. And you will find that the way you study and relate to astrology is profoundly more valuable and less anxiety producing, and overall helpful. Right, that's my first piece. And the second piece is try to ingest astrological information from people who are not constantly preaching a gospel of some kind of heroic, redemptive, end state that we're all trying to get to by constantly making ourselves or everything around us better, good or lighter, good or isn't a word or trying to make it all lighter and better in in some measurable way.

58:41
And if it helps you, you can think about yourself walking through this, you know, this infinitely beautiful, mysterious, dark, exotic garden. And that the real happiness is found when we're when we we find that it is good to be here, regardless of what's happening. Because ultimately, even though so many wild things happen here, there's ultimately nothing is at stake and love sustains us always. It always has and it always will.

1:07:52
All right. Well, that's what I've got for today. I hope you guys have a great weekend and that you're enjoying this series. Please feel free to leave your insights in the chat box. I'd love to hear from you guys now or afterward. info@nightlightastrology.com is my email address. My course Ancient Astrology for the Modern Mystic is coming up in November. It starts November 14. 30 lessons in ancient Hellenistic astrology, about 10 of them are spent with live clients, implementing the theory that we learned in class with live clients and seeing how it's done. We learn a lot about the spiritual philosophy of ancient astrologers. And there's 12 guest lectures you can participate remotely or live there is need based tuition if you need it, especially if you're struggling due to COVID-19 and also we have an early bird rate that's in effect right now. You can check all that out on my website nightlight astrology calm. Also, I was on Stormie Grace's YouTube channel today doing a talk on the mystical Saturn the mystical and often misunderstood Saturn. So if you are interested, you can go check that out. as well. If you know stormy, she's really cool. Alright, take it easy, everyone. Bye.