I seek and find

An Astrological View of Michael Jackson's Death

Death always has a way of making time stand still.

Now, another "king"  is gone, and in the spirit of kings just like Elvis, Michael Jackson’s death made the world stand still as well as almost causing a halt to the enitire World Wide Web in the process.

In that stillness is a nanosecond of Grace. For a moment we are face to face with the mystery of our existence. That feeling is very uncomfortable. So, we deal with it by going to Google.

Most astrologers, on the other hand, when faced with life's mystery are automatically geared to search for the "meaning" of these mysterious events by running to their computers and drawing up an astrology chart.
It’s a field day for astrologers when they can have the luxury of going back in time and pasting whatever symbolism they want to explain events. Michael Jackson’s death time’s planetary events were almost textbook.

Astrologers can easily point their finger at the most obvious of aspects at this time, which is the Jupiter, Neptune, Chiron conjunction in Aquarius. We can even attribute the rest of the recent celebrity deaths to this aspect as well.

What follows is a little astrology lesson, instead of an analysis:

Michael's ruler of his Gemini Ascendant is Mercury and there standing in almost exact opposition is the 2009 famous trio of Jupiter, Neptune and Chiron. Uranus pitches in with an almost exact inconjunct to Mercury as well. Not to mention the cliché of Chiron (The Gatekeeper's) Return that usually happens around 50 years of age also right there opposite Mercury in the 4th House of Endings.

For you beginners, the ruler of the Ascendant is like the CEO or Manager of your Design. He's the guy that distributes the orders to the small physically embodied Self. He also manages the functions of the physical body.

So standing directly across from this Manager Mercury are the following Members of the Cosmic Council:

Jupiter:

On the upside: The Guardian Angel who clears a straight path to the Higher Worlds and takes a soul peacefully so they do not suffer.

On the downside: Creates grandeur and excess, pushes one beyond one's limits, over-confidence etc. with the intent of impressing society and influencing one's social status.

One might think MJ might have been pushing himself beyond his limits or delusional (Neptune) doctors (Jupiter).

Interesting to note how many times Jupiter is present during a Soul's transition. I assume he stands there to open a road through the veil; like adding rocket fuel for the eventual take-off.

Neptune:

On the upside: “The Uplifter” who actually opens the veil between worlds, raises the soul in transcendence and inspires one to a Greater Reality. Neptune gives inspiration from higher dimensions and worlds. He straddles the veil between this dimension and others.

On the downside: Disappointment from too high expectations and ideals, lethargy, refuge into substances that mimic transcendence (like drugs), that force the physical body into temporary states of God-like qualities and help download information and inspiration from higher worlds to the detriment of the physical body.

Physically, Neptune (Poseidon) rules the ocean; so waters and fluids that can surround the lungs (Mercury) and heart (Leo) can cause it to suddenly stop beating (MJ's cardiac arrest).

Neptune aspected deaths usually have drug related associations, drowning and suffocation.

One might assume under this aspect that MJ was "supplementing his diet" with drugs to enhance his physical performance and give him inspiration and super powers.

Uranus:

On the upside: The Awakener who electrically jump-starts Humanity (Aquarius). The Outsider or eccentric who expresses one's unique of (always remember the opposite sign Leo) within the mass consciousness of Aquarius.

On the downside: Sudden decisions, 180 degree switches, sudden deaths, electrical short circuits.

Uranus does create an unusual heart rhythm. Most people affected by Uranus appear to "dance to the tune of a different drummer." Not that Uranus in itself could be implicated in MJ's door to the other world, but its unusual heart rhythm could have been exacerbated by drugs (Neptune) and excess (Jupiter).

Chiron:

On the upside: The Wounded Healer who through his suffering and own healing learns to heal others of the same affliction through wisdom.

On the downside: Never getting the wisdom part of the equation and suffering from endless afflictions and venturing into hypochondriac type behaviors and utilizing endless cures.

MJ had a Chiron return in the beginning of 2009 which means Chiron made a full cycle and passed through every possible event written into one's Design needed for one's unique form of healing. After the return and hopefully the wisdom gained through the entire cycle, one can move on to be a Healer of Humanity instead of concentrating on healing only one's own affliction.

With his Natal Chiron in Aquarius and Uranus the ruler of Aquarius in Leo as well as Mercury in Leo one can deduce that the message of healing was to be able to maintain one's creative specialness without losing oneself in the mass consciousness of humanity or vice versa, not indentifying oneself with mass consciousness and using dramatic (Leo) tactics to emphasize and draw attention like a child (another Leo aspect) to one specialness.

The healing would be something akin to maintaining one's child-like innocence, passion for life, creativity and unique qualities (Leo) to share with all of Humanity and bring people to the realization that we all share a common Consciousness and origin (Aquarius).

At the time of his death at 7:26 pm EST, the Moon just passed over the Gate of Uranus onto his Venus which rules the 12th house (the area of our chart where we pierce the veil). Sweet Venus in Leo opened the veil while Mars and Venus stood guard at his Gatekeeper’s Mars in the 12th House. Saturn in a supportive trine to Mars and last but not least Pluto in a trine to Pluto in the 4th house of endings.

MJ was escorted out of this dimension in Leo royal style. At his moment of death, every single Planetary Being stood present and saluted in major aspect, honoring the transition of the Soul who transformed and uplifted our lives with his beautiful voice and dance.

Thank you MJ for bringing such beauty into our lives and filling our souls with music and love.

Now and then East West Living bookstore NYC

A New Yorker's search for metaphysical books, will inevitably lead them to the mystical portal of East West Bookstore.  In the early years, a whiff of incense rolling down Fifth Avenue and the subtle sounds of chanting, would tug at the consciousness of the unwary New York seeker of Truth into the wonderful world of Tarot cards, books of all the Eastern traditions and even Western metaphysical, theosophical and magic books all placed on simple white shelves. In the past, the soon-to-be initiate would be greeted by the smile of  a long-haired, mellow young girl in a long skirt or a serious follower of some Eastern Yogic tradition.

Most who ventured once into the store, would become frequent visitors, voracious for Truth or some semblance of meaning and purpose. East West books from then on, would become a signpost for the start of their journey, a journey that would lead hopefully to Awakening.

Recently, the East West bookstore has moved up the metaphorical ladder of consciousness and has morphed into a new version of itself called East West Living bookstore. The white shelves have been replaced by fine wood shelves, a vegetarian café in the mezzanine, a yoga studio and gallery.

Though one's innate sense of metaphysical drama might long to sift through the old East West Book's dusty shelves, for some arcane gem of spiritual inspiration in paperback form, the new store entices you with free seminars in their beautiful café.

Though the quaint purity of the old store remains a memory in many a New York spiritual seekers heart,  this new East West at a ripe 30 years of age, offers a new buffet of source materials, through stream-lined, polished and more mainstream.

Their event calendar is full of daily drop-in classes, free introductory holistic events, book signings, angel and tarot card readers, crystal healers and aromatherapy demonstrations; many of which are for free.
The avocado sandwich and vegan coconut cake is fantastic.  A whiff of some wonderful homemade soup fills the air and the falafel looks delicious.  They even have infused the tea with Rose Quartz crystals; an elixir to open the heart chakra.

Recently, East West Living transformed part of its yoga studio into a new gallery called CoSM, on the second floor.  The entrance is next door at 78 Fifth Avenue. It now exhibits selected pieces of visionary artist, Alex Grey’s works of art.  There is an interesting article on an amazing website owned by Jonathan Zap, called the Zap Oracle.  The article, "Alex Grey and Mind Parasites," is an interesting read.  Jonathan’s Zap Oracle is phenomenal.

The staff at East West Living is warm, friendly and they generously offer spiritual guidance and advice. Many people just walk in and “sychronistically” encounter just the right person, book, crystal or that much needed intuitive confirmation they were looking for.

UPDATE: East West Bookstore closed its doors on Fifth Avenue in NYC

• Zap Oracle
• Learning the Tarot

The Spiritual Life of Michael Jackson

"Michael: No matter what, the most powerful thing in the world is the human mind and prayer, and belief in yourself and confidence and perseverance. No matter how many times you do it, you do it again until it's right. And always believe in yourself. And not matter who's around you that is being negative or thrusting negative energy at you, totally block it off. Because whatever you believe, you become."

Michael Jackson spoke these words in an Online Audio Chat sponsored by GetMusic.com and RollingStone.com on October 26, 2001 with Anthony DeCurtis as the moderator.

His views on the songwriting process:

"Michael: Well, the songwriting process is something very difficult to explain because it's very spiritual. It's, uh...You really have it in the hands of God, and it's as if it’s been written already - that's the real truth. As if it’s been written in its entirety before were born and you're just really the source through which the songs come. Really. Because there is...they just fall right into your lap in its entirety. You don't have to do much thinking about it. And I feel guilty having to put my name, sometimes, on the songs that I - I do write them - I compose them, I write them, I do the scoring, I do the lyrics, I do the melodies but still, it's a...it's a work of God."

Michael’s views on talent:

"You give of your talent, of your ability... the talent that was given you by the Heavens. That's why we're here, to bring a sense of escapism in time of need. And, uh, if you're a painter you paint; if you're a sculptor, you sculpt; if you're a writer, you write; if you're a songwriter, you give songs; if you're a dancer, you give dance. You give people some love and some... some bliss and some escapism, and to show that you truly care from the heart, and be there for them. Not just from a distance, but show you really care. You know, take the long mile and be there for them. And that's what I did, and many others who cared and helped. And it's an important thing."

His views on dancing:

"You become.... Dancing is about interpretation. You become.... You become the accompaniment of the music. So when you become the bass of Billie Jean, I couldn't help but do the step that I was doing when the song first starts, because, uh, that's what it told me to do. You know, if I turn around, spin, stop, move my legs to the side and then lift up the collar of my shirt, that's for that moment is an accompaniment."

His views on a spiritual energy:

"Anthony: Now Glenn from Toronto Canada asks, "Do you feel a special spiritual energy when you're performing; do you feel you are connected to a higher force? Cause this is what you make many feel when they see you live?"
Michael: That's exactly what it is, you're connected to a higher source and you just go with the moment and you become one with, you know, the spirit. Not to sound religious or anything, but it's a very spiritual... very much like religion, and it's a God-given gift and you just go with it. And I'm honored to have been given it. And, uh, as fun to become one with the audience. It's a one-ness, you know?"

His views on music and the music of the spheres:

"And playing music, the grass and the trees and the flowers... They're all influenced by music. They become more beautiful and more vibrant in how they grow. Music is a very important and powerful substance, and all the planets in the universe make music. It's called music of the spheres. They all make a different note; they make harmony. So there's harmony even in the universe as we speak."

Interesting mix of views: Zen, Christian, New Age and ancient philosophy combined. Michael embraced a potpourri of mystical faiths. It’s not certain how deep his faith really was, or how much he applied his faith steadily to his life. We can speak “truths” or grapevine philosophies. We can embrace these ideals with our minds, bodies and souls for moments or for interviews or when questioned about them, but integrating them into the “whole” of ourselves, (creating a “united” Self with our many sub-personalities) and acting from that core, is another matter and a challenge we all face every day.

The most shocking point in the interview to read now, after knowing Michael’s long-term battle with pharmaceuticals is this:

"But in the music business some of these great artists have become stumped because they self-abuse themselves at a young age, with all these crazy things they drink and pills and things, and uh, that's just not good -- just not a good thing. I hate to say that to hurt anybody, but we should take care of our bodies a little more."

If that insidious sub-personality hadn’t gotten the best of him, we may have  been able to be inspired for many more years by his music.
Michael mentions:

"Um, like any painter or sculptor, they paint... they do their best work when they're in the 60s and their 70s. Fred Astaire did his best dancing when he was in his 70s. Angelo [Michelangelo] sculpted late into his 60s and 70s, doing brilliant ingenious work."

He dreamed of a long career and his most ingenious work at an old age. Imagine music more ingenious than Thriller in its time.

Strange cloud formations over NYC

Mammatus Cloud Formations over Union Square Park

These very strange cloud formations suddenly appeared in the sky around 8:30 p.m. when the sun was setting in Union Square Park in NYC today.

Moments before their appearance, people were casually sitting on the steps of the park entrance and carrying on as most New Yorkers do. Suddenly, there were sounds of gasps and one by one people held their cell phones up to the sky to photograph this strange occurrence.

These weren't the famed chemtrails, neither the Lenticular clouds that are mistaken for UFO's or the wispy metaphysical Sylphs often spoken about in spiritual circles.

These clouds weren't even similar to the new "Asperatus" clouds seen all over the world which the Royal Meteorological Society are trying to officially add to a new cloud category (an event of which hasn't occurred since 1951.)

It is interesting that these clouds appeared a few days after an interesting article appeared in Associated Press by Michael Crumb mentioning the woman in Des Moines, Iowa who photographed the apparently new formation in 2006.

Even if they turn out to be just a play of wind and light; the sight of them made quite a few New Yorkers stop their frantic pace, take their eyes off their Blackberry's and raise them up to photograph this magnificent sky.

Batman Returns Tim Burton to MoMA in NYC

Sweeney Todd 2007 Paramount Photo: Leah Gallo

The career of Batman Returns' director, Tim Burton is the focus of a new retrospective gallery exhibition and film series at MoMA (The Museum of Modern Art) this fall.

The exhibition will present 700 pieces of Tim Burton’s artwork from his childhood drawings, storyboards, puppets, sketchbooks and cartoons, to screenings of his 14 films over the course of the exhibit.
Tim Burton has directed some of the most psychologically revealing and meaningful films of our times: Vincent (1982), Pee-Wee's Big Adventure (1985), Beetlejuice (1988), Batman (1989), Edward Scissorhands (1990), Batman Returns (1992), The Nightmare Before Christmas (as creator and producer) (1993), Ed Wood (1994), Mars Attacks! (1996), Sleepy Hollow (1999), Big Fish (2003), Corpse Bride (2005), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005), and Sweeney Todd among others.

A spiritual hero isn’t only someone who can maintain his connection to spirit on a peaceful mountain top but  who can keep his connection even during rush hour in the middle of Grand Central Station. Tim Burton has maintained this personal connection to his authentic self within the miasma of Hollywood culture; a spiritual warrior in the midst of the mundane.

His strength lies in the fact that he only directed films that meant something to him. In his interview with David Breskin in the book, Tim Burton: Interviews (Conversations with Filmmakers Series) by Kristian Fraga, he says, “People don’t realize, because of the surface way the films look and the cartoonish nature of them, that the only thing that keeps me going through a movie is that these characters mean something to me.”

It is encouraging to know that MoMA is honoring the career of a man whose creative achievements and success arose out of a search for and nurturance of the importance of meaning.

Tim Burton said:

“When I went to see a movie as a kid, I would know a little about it beforehand, and I’d go enter a world that surprised me.”

Interesting metaphor for our soul’s entrance into this movie of our personal lives.

Tim Burton Exhibition MoMA: November 22, 2009-April 26, 2010
For more info: MoMA (The Museum of Modern Art)

Gay Pride Parade Missing Colors

The Rainbow Flag blanketed Fifth Avenue in NYC today with stripes of color. Against the multitudinous grey tones of New York City, the colorful flag stuck out more than the parade, the participant’s colorful floats and costumes combined.

Though diversity of orientation, profession, political stance and music stood out in hand-held banners, megaphone shouts and booming music; diversity of creative and artistic expression (so often a major part of the parades of the past) was sorely missing.

If one examines the history of the Rainbow Flag itself, one finds colors are also currently “missing” as well.

The original eight-stripe version of the flag designed by Gilbert Baker in 1978 had the following colors and associative meanings:




In 1978-1979 the hot pink (sexuality stripe) was removed because of fabric unavailability. Interesting symbolism to note.

In 2001 during the height of the AIDS epidemic, a black stripe was sometimes added that would be later removed if a cure for AIDS was found:

Finally, the turquoise (serenity-harmony) stripe was removed and indigo changed to royal blue (merging blue and indigo), simply so that it could fit to lampposts when hanging the flag vertically.

So, serenity and harmony are lost for something so frivolous as it's size's capability of fitting into a structure of the past (the lampposts). Was Gay Pride too big a concept for our societal structures?

Serenity and harmony were definitely drowned out today by weary-of-the-wait shouts for the gay community's long deserved rights. The indigo stripe of the flag still lost in the fight with the lamppost (city, state and country structures.)

If the indigo returns and new lampposts (laws) are put into effect, will the blue (magic and art) and the pink (sexuality) return to the parade?

Resources: Rainbow Flag LGBT Movement

Stick Stone and Bone Crystals in NYC

While you are in Greenwich Village in NYC, don't forget to stop by the crystal shop: Stick, Stone and Bone, that has graced 111 Christopher Street for almost 17 years. It's a fantastic little crystal shop with a big selection of the most powerful crystals in NYC.

From ancient times, precious and semi-precious stones have fascinated cultures all over the Earth. Not only is it their physical beauty that attracts us, but mystics and shamans from all cultures, have known of their healing qualities and powers for thousands of years.

We use crystals in our radios and computers. As the knowledge of physics expands, the concept that the world we live in, is a world of energy that vibrates at certain frequencies and creates the world we perceive with our physical senses, has fortunately started to filter down to our mainstream perceptions of reality.

Some with more simplistic sensibilities, project the idea that crystals and stones contain "magical" properties. The truth is that each crystal and stone is a receiver, transmitter and amplifier of frequency; each one tuned into its own special frequency or frequencies. It is nice to know there are physically manifested amplifiers the hold frequencies that assist us, heal us and reboot our connection on our journeys on this Earth plane and beyond. Crystals and stones are our true allies.

Stick, Stone & Bone gives you the experience of walking into a magical cave where crystals and dream-catchers line the walls and wonderful scents uplift a weary New York spirit. The staff are all crystal experts or empaths which makes walking into this store like an experience of walking into an alternate dimension in the middle of Greenwich Village. It is rare to find a crystal store where each and every stone or crystal maintains its integrity of frequency, but the specimens here are hand-picked and maintained and loved by the owners and staff. Their guidance is just as precious as the precious stones the store displays.

You can pick up all the free magazines (New York Spirit, Creations Magazine, New York Naturally, New York Open Center Catalogue) for the spiritually minded in New York before you walk out the door.
Don’t forget a smudge stick before you go.

Meetup with the mystical in NYC

Our paths to Knowledge are usually not straight and narrow paths through one specific road to Truth, but rather intricate and unique labyrinths that twist and turn through poignant books, life-changing seminars and classes, and meetings with remarkable men and women.

With the advent of the Internet, these connections and puzzle pieces of our lives were fortunately made more instantly available to us through forums and groups that tailored to our Spiritual journey. Many of us found our online spiritual companions.

Eventually though, it became all too obvious that something was missing. We overlooked the fact that we are in physical bodies, and these bodies contain information and resonate knowledge that can only be transferred, or more easily transmitted through being in each other’s physical presence, or at least being in the same physical space within each other’s energy field. These online contacts made our physical vehicles long for face-to-face contact.

There is a wonderful, relatively new website called Meetup.com (a SoHo start-up) that performs this function; by bringing online communities local. Their mission is to get the online communities to meet-up face-to-face in local groups in cities all over the world. Anyone can make a group and become an organizer. You log on, search your city, search your niche group and find others in your area that want to meet-up in person.

If you are looking to meet up with others in a specific Mind-Body-Spirit niche in NYC, search the Meetup.com website for metaphysical, holistic and spiritual groups in NYC. There are hundreds of groups in New York City alone, and most "meet up" every week or month. There are Meetup groups for every alternative, self-help, holistic modality under the sun, from Tarot, Reiki, Yoga, New Age, Astrology and Buddhism to groups where you can discuss your favorite spiritual movie and book.

Though online buddies are wonderful, there is nothing that compares to the experience of meeting face-to-face.