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9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
No Interest whatsoever, April 26, 2010
This review is from: Astrology of 2012 and Beyond, The (Paperback)
While the book's title would lead us to believe it is about world astrology, it puts a big emphasis on the Hopi prophesy, something that was the basis of the beautiful movies Koyaanisqatsi and Powaqatsi. Those prophesies are not dated, making difficult the comparison with Astrological precise way of looking at world affairs.
Not only is it big on the Hopis, but it is also full of "New age stuff", like the fall of Atlantis, Blavatsky's works, UFO, the Age of Aquarius, the HAARP progam..etc with claims that China and USA are engineering weather disasters against each other ( backed by eminently serious references such as "...the alternative press makes this clear..." (cf p 66).
We learn on page 69 that it is "pretty obvious" that far east countries will trigger WWIII...and that a pole shift will happen at around the same time. Good news is: there is nothing in astrological cycles allowing such predictions, nothing... Not even looking at the Square Pluton/Uranus, something which happens every 80 years or so anyway. Granted, there may be unusual sismic activity in 2010-2012, maybe some nuclear accidents 2010-2015 or local wars, but pole shift and WWIII... I would like to read what was indicating WWII in 1939 for a start.
Seeing nothing signifying "the end is nigh" type of thing in the sky, looking at the usual planets used by astrologers, Mrs Garrison makes use of Hekate, Prosperina, Siwa, Pysche and Toro, without any backtesting of their influence throughout history. This is pure speculation, to remain polite. When you read things like "Mother Earth core has shifted and the Christ Consciousness grid is aligned to hold space for the rise of what Drunvalo call the Female Light" (p 82)... you know you are about to enter another dimension...
Although the book had more than 100 pages to go, my interest dimmed seriously after this. On page 181 we "learn" that Pluton Square Uranus is a cataclysmic aspect... granted, the last waxing square that took place in the USA (1877-78) saw a depression, the waning square of 1931-32 as well, but the poles stayed where the were, and the big idea that the square is happening on the Aeries/Capricorn axis is enough to tilt the Earth is totally unsupported. In April 42 (that is close to 2000 years ago) Pluto was zero degree Capricorn, squaring Uranus which was opposing 0° Aeries... and the Poles did not shift much, did they ?
The book is surfing on the 2012 scare mongering wave, it has little to do with Astrological research, and my prediction is : it will soon become outdated and forgotten. By 2012 to be precise...
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Amazingly Clear Formulation, May 18, 2010
This review is from: Astrology of 2012 and Beyond, The (Paperback)
I had learnt astrology some twenty years ago and thought it was a nice tool to play with ideas of how people were made and how they related to each other. However, I also knew how far astrology could go. Which was not far at all. Oh yes, sometimes I could even make intelligent guesses as to what to expect in a particular situation. Sometimes I was spot on, many times, I wasn't. But all the time, I knew that I was on slippery ice when I attempted to predict the future for somebody. The parameters in astrology, viz. the planets, the zodiacal signs and the houses, are too few and represent far too many situations. We don't always have clues as to how to interpret what some configurations can mean. And, when honest mistakes are made, the outer world of people who don't believe in what you do, are quick to criticize what they deem to be 'mindless pursuits' and 'waste of time'.
Being acutely vulnerable to the kind of criticism mentioned above, and wanting desperately to get somewhere in life, made me set aside totally, all astrological concepts that I knew in my heart to be true in its fundamentals. And it was in deciding to rewrite that chapter in my life, that I chose to buy this book from a long reading list and despite dwindling financial resources,'in order to take a new look at something I had put aside for many years.
Reading this book made me feel that the gamble had paid off, both price-wise and time-wise. Cal Garrison is a great writer, her writing feels like a gurgling stream of clear spring water, with all the punch of a fast read. Her ideas are formulated with great precision and finesse, the prose flows freely, with ebbs and twists as she brings together the puzzle pieces of the planets and asteroids together to interpret the patterns that they and their mutual aspects unleash on an unsuspecting civilization, rooted in fear.
Cal bases her detailed astrological analysis on asteroids and Sabian symbols for each degree of the zodiac. These are elements of astrology that are lesser well known, and therefore, less often used in the standard texts. Using esoteric interpretations attributed to the outer slow moving planets and asteroids, and the Sabian symbols for specific points in the zodiac, she interprets what can happen in windows of time when the planets and asteroids transit them with malefic and/or negative aspects.
Cal is realistic enough not to provide specific dates for the impending disasters that have been prophesied around the magic date. Instead, she provides windows of probability, when the tension generated by malefic aspects between the planets is expected to be highest, interpreting their positions by their Sabian symbols. Nor does she lose sight of the positive planets and their role in the prophesied end game. She emphasizes throughout, that humanity has an important role in the divine game-plan, and that we can 'cushion the negative effects' of the imminent dangers facing us, even if we can't totally avoid them. Cal's consummate handling of the issue of dating events, is enough reason to buy the book, the clarity is mesmerizing. Reading her clear sighted punch-in-the-back analysis, made me re-experience , howsoever fleetingly, the joys of astrological thought-play that I had engaged in so many years ago.
The most relevant dates that Cal has provided this year are May 28 and July 22 for maximum stress. These may be true. On the other hand, they may not. Does that mean that this book is not worth reading? The watched pot does not boil. The human factor is always present. We are being made to learn, as a species, how to wield our collective power. Miracles can, and have been achieved, as a result of our having done so. I refer to the book called 'Fractal Time' by Gregg Braden, who mentions just such a window in 1984 when the possibility of a global catastrophe due to political complications was successfully averted by saner forces. It seems that the powers-that-be want our blundering and confused species to survive, despite our going through some very close calls.
To all those who want to reignite their interest in astrology, I recommend this book. It will take the edge off'your cynicism about the subject. Not only that, it provides clear answers as to the way of our salvation (they do not lie within our professional and public institutions).
Warmly recommended
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9 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Save your money, December 1, 2009
This review is from: Astrology of 2012 and Beyond, The (Paperback)
I managed to get through half of this book until I could stand it no more and skimmed the rest. I have studied astrology for 20 years and found her approach to be glib and almost childish. By anthropomorphizing the planets she is doing astrology a disfavor. The planets are not entities nor do they have a sex. They are celestial bodies and that is all. Astrologers use the position of the planets to forecast events and to help individuals understand their purpose in this lifetime and some of the obstacles they will encounter. The planets would be better viewed as symbols of the type of energy you will be encountering during a transit to your natal chart, or in this case the worlds chart.
Her writing is amateurish and her story telling is a tangled mess that kept me confused about whether she had said this before or was this a new thought. I finally realized she was going in circles because she really does not have a good grasp of what planetary energy in 2012 is indicating. I have my own beliefs but they are not relevant to this review.
Finally, she makes no mention of several key facts: 1. Uranus conjoins the Aries point every 84 years which is the length of that plants cycle 2. A brief look at the Ephemeris will show you that in 1931 and for several years Pluto in Cancer and Uranus in Aries squared each other. Saturn was in Capricorn and also took part in the T square that announced the beginning of the great depression no the shifting of the poles 3. In terms of the Hopi literature she cherry picked the passages that thinly support her own theory about the end of time or is that the beginning of time? She flip flops so many times it hard to tell what she is really saying.
Her mentors in Astrology are hardly noteworthy as there are many other highly respected astrologers that would never put this much gibberish into one poorly written and conceive book.
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