1 How to Use This Book
This book is not just another astrology book. Wonderful astrologer Linda Goodman, who inspired my own life's work, has already done a superb job of making astrology popular with her books Sun Signs and Love Signs. This, instead, is a book on enlightenment, a hands-on guide to using astrological tools. It is the result of over thirty years of study, thousands of readings for my clients all over the world, the observation of nature, and my own spiritual journey to enlightenment.
The Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary says to be enlightened is to be "free from ignorance and misinformation, based on the full comprehension of the problems involved." Enlightenment has within it the word light. Enlightenment comes when understanding and awareness dispel darkness and ignorance. As we realize that everything is connected, that what we do unto another we do unto ourselves, oneness is reached. It is a state of ultimate bliss, filled with tremendous peace, unconditional joy, and true love.
If you have thought of astrology as an entertainment column in your daily newspaper, you may wonder how it can possibly lead us to enlightenment. There are three ways:
1. Through a holistic redefinition of the planets and the signs.
The word astrology comes from astro and logos, literally meaning the "language of the stars." The earliest known astrological records were found in the city of Babylon in Mesopotamia in the Tigris-Euphrates Valley (present-day Iraq). They were dated back to 2000 bc. The Ancient Chaldean priests stared at the clear night skies and realized specific planetary configurations always paralleled the same world events. Their observations, backed by precise calculations, developed into the science and art known today as astrology.
Very concrete, down-to-earth, and grounded in physical reality, astrology was used to answer questions (horary astrology) or to forewarn of droughts, wars, and other calamities that would jeopardize people's security (mundane astrology). As society evolved in more complex ways, our minds took over. Psychology and the concept of dysfunctional behavior infiltrated this cosmic science. And when we started relying on mythology to explain astrological symbols, we completely lost our innocence. As we placed words between concrete reality and our experience of life, we forgot to observe nature and almost entirely stopped learning astrology firsthand.
My life changed forever when, in my early twenties, I discovered Krishnamurti's Freedom from the Known. To me, no other philosopher has mapped the road to enlightenment with such clarity and simplicity. Krishnamurti advocates liberation from the distortions of our memories and preconceived intellectual ideas. He reveals how our experience of "what is" could become continuously new and alive.
Astrological wisdom is based on tradition transmitted throughout the ages. But as with anything that's passed on through time, something can be lost in translation, as is the case with astrology. Over time, meanings were put together, blindly repeated, sometimes even distorted, and occasionally ended up contradicting themselves. Thus, their continuity doesn't always make logical sense. In the light of Krishnamurti's teachings, I asked myself if I could somehow clear astrology of everything that had obscured its magic and purity without having to read another book or memorizing another list.
After months of reflection, it became clear that the only way to truly learn astrology was to become as pure as the Chaldean priests who observed the seasons change, the leaves in the trees come and go, the Earth offer its harvest before returning to a barren state. I saw it was the eternal gems of nature's practical wisdom that could once again pave humanity's way to the next step of its unique and magnificent evolution.
2. Understanding John of Jerusalem's prophecy.
This very special evolution will not happen without a conscious effort from us all. John of Jerusalem, who lived over a thousand years ago, foresaw that before an incredible new world would emerge in the second millennium, a huge darkness would attempt to enslave humanity. Five hundred years before Nostradamus's Centuries, John of Jerusalem warned us of the great dangers already threatening our freedom.
He predicted with astounding clarity and accuracy everything that is now part of our daily existence: the discovery of America, AIDS, the creation of the European Union, the cataclysms that have recently devastated many parts of the world, the existence of a world shadow government, as well as the incredible advances of modern technology and so much more. This prophecy opens our eyes to what is surrounding us if we only care to look, making it obvious that the road to enlightenment is not an option, but an obligation.
3. Understanding how the Mayan calendar is confirmed by Western astrology.
The Mayan calendar comes to an end on December 21, 2012. That alone breeds many questions: Why 2012? What is the Mayan calendar? What is the meaning of its end? Does Western astrology confirm this? What exactly is going to happen? How can we concretely prepare?
Based on elaborate calculations, since 3114 bc -- the beginning of the cycle we are still experiencing -- the Mayan calendar has precisely mapped the evolution of consciousness. What makes it so important, and to some alarming, is that the calendar ends in just a few years: precisely on the winter solstice, December 21, 2012.
Those who fear the end of the calendar take it to mean the end of the world. I completely disagree with the doomsday scenarios. I feel that, far from being fearful, we should be excited. As one world ends, another one, a much more glorious and beautiful one, begins. What ends is a world based on fear. What starts is a world established on love, light, unlimited abundance, peace, and joy. We are already witnessing an incredible acceleration of evolution. To take one example, only a decade ago, the word karma would have meant little to people on the streets. Now it has become part of our common vocabulary, so much so that the popular television show My Name Is Earl is entirely based on the notion that what we sow, we reap.
All over the world, external structures are starting to crumble. The ways in which we perceive reality are changing. Our lives are being turned inside out. We are being thrust into the unknown. Although these transformations could initially feel scary, we need to look at the gifts they are bringing.
Real estate, for example, is going through a crisis, pushing many to relocate. Our economic situation is radically changing, forcing us to reevaluate what money means to us. The divorce rate has increased alarmingly. As more and more people awaken to the lies and the lack of integrity, governments are changing all over the world. Women leaders are appearing in many countries, creating more balance by empowering the feminine.
Natural cataclysms are wiping thousands of people off the planet in a few hours. Take, for example, the May 2008 cyclone in Burma (Myanmar), where over 84,500 people died, over 53,000 are missing, and more than one million are homeless. That same month, China was devastated by an earthquake that killed nearly 70,000 people and injured more than 375,000, while 20,000 people went missing and over 4.8 million became homeless. But if we care to notice, these dramatic events are always occurring in troubled places (in Burma, ruled by the drug lords; in Thailand, a landmark for prostitution; in New Orleans, where the crime rate and the practice of black magic are very high). In this time of massive purification, we shall continue to witness the most extraordinary events ever to have occurred on planet Earth.
The only secure place in this changing world is within. Our only and ultimate security is the peace and the love achieved through enlight-enment. During the next four years, not one, not two, but a mass of people will reach enlightenment. To some -- or maybe to many -- my predictions in this book may not make sense at first, but as we journey toward 2012 and our external reality shifts, mirroring the changes in our consciousness, I believe that everything will become absolutely clear.
Using This Book As you read the pages that follow, away from the coldness of our computerized society, far from microwaved canned food and the fear-based consciousness we need to leave behind, I trust you will once again hear the wind blowing through the branches, smell the flowers along the way, and feel the breath of God helping us bloom into all that we already are.
Copyright © 2008 by Michelle Karén, M.A., D.F.Astrol.S.
