October Eclipse Update—Part 1
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"Even each blade of grass has its own angel alongside
whispering, "Grow! Grow!"   ---The Talmud
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Hi everyone...
Well, I promised I would write about the upcoming eclipses on
October 13 and 27.  
But first, a little detour.  I watch maybe 2 hours of TV a week, so you
know it's unusual for me to use this newsletter to discuss that odd
galaxy. 
But the other night when I watching The Debate,  I reached the
highly evolved state of being about to throw my shoe really hard
at the screen...
So I changed the channel instead.  And behold, the media gods
blessed me with this divine interview with Richard Gere.  In fact,
I tuned in at the exact moment he was answering how Buddhism
has affected his acting career.
Sometimes, he said, he would struggle with a certain role,
and he just couldn't get it "right".  At that point he always
knew to back off, stop the effort, trust, and put his focus elsewhere.
Trying too hard  would strangle the character, cut off the air.
Invariably if he gave the role its own room to breathe and grow,
it would show him the way.  He would invite the role to reveal itself
to him. By taking the focus off the problem, off the effort, and having
complete faith that every benevolent force in the universe wanted to
help him know that role, the doors would spring open.  He spoke
about knowing that if indeed it was his destiny to play a certain
character, all the help of the universe would become
available to make it so. 
******
And so with the role we're each here to play?  His words are exactly
what I would suggest for the next two weeks.
(Now  when it comes to political effort, it’s obviously different. 
We're at a critical juncture; no need to remind you it’s time to take
every action that can be legally taken in the next weeks (including voting!).
The movies “Fahrenheidt  9/11” and “Outfoxed”  are both out on DVD now; 
I’m finding they’re good gifts to send to people in this final stretch--
(especially those in swing states who may have only been getting
informed from the supreme fantasy kingdom of Fox TV). 
But on the personal level, it's a good time to give yourself (amidst all this) 
some time to replenish and refill.  If you've been struggling with an issue
in your life, perhaps give it a rest till the end of October. 
We're in desperately needed breathing space.

The first solar eclipse on October 13 is a new moon in Libra. 
This brings new beginnings in the area of relationships (Libra terrain)
but also in whatever house Libra falls in your own chart.  So for each of
us, a new chapter is afoot.  You don't have to knock yourself out to make
it happen.  This one comes on its own. 
The astrologer Eric Francis  (www.planetwaves.com) says eclipses are
when universe shifts gears.  I love that.  You just have to show up and be
open.  Not much else is required if you've done your preparation. 
(What preparation?  Keeping your mind positive...creating space for the
new to come...
not sabatoging the new with lots of negative, depressing and restrictive
thoughts...
being grateful for the blessings that already exist..
.for more concrete details, come to the next Beta Mind workshop or
take a teleclass!  See below.)

The second eclipse on October 27 is little more gnarly. 
It's a lunar one in Scorpio, and this could be an intensely emotional, even
somewhat fearful, time. Scorpio is a water sign so stirs up the feeling life.  
Given that it will fall 6 days before the election, that's easy to imagine. 
However, many of you know I love this much-maligned passionate sign. 
This is a time made for emotional release.  These Scorpio eclipses usually
make us think about our mortality, although the actual death and rebirth
is often spiritual and emotional.
  
Here's a wonderful  forgiveness ritual to do on October 27 (eclipse exact at
8:07 PM PST).  Or you may find you’re drawn to do it a few times leading up
to that day. Of course rituals are great to create and customize as you go. 
This is just to get you started. (In fact if anyone writes with experiences from
doing this, I’d love to print them in the next newsletter.)
Write a list of all the feelings that hold you back, keep you prisoner, keep you small.  
Old moldy resentments towards others from your past, anger from childhood,
secret revenge plans, bitterness, disappointments, grudges towards yourself and
others, whatever.  Scorpio rules all the toxic, buried stuff. 
Write and write and write. 
If there's someone in particular you really resent (even if that's God), then write a
long letter letting it rip and say everything you've always wanted to say to them. 
Hold nothing back. 
Every simmering resentment (the low-end of Scorpio) is a psychic ball and chain
causing illness, victimization, and depression.  Here’s the chance to totally cut
free. But don't send the letter.
Once you've gotten this all out  (it can be surprising, many people can get
to the heart of this in even an hour), offer it all up to your own inner Divinity.  
To whatever you would call that force of love. 
How?  
Something as simple as “Okay God, I’m ready to be free from all this!” 
would work.  Or at least,  “ Please make me ready to be free of all this!”
Then consider:  if you knew you would die tomorrow, is this the junk that you
would want to be cradling in your arms as you go? 
SO OFFER UP ALL THE PAGES  AND SET THEM ON FIRE.  BURN THEM. 
And dispose of the ashes in running water (whether it's a bucolic stream
or a city sink).   It can be wonderful afterwards to take a cleansing bath in hot
salty water and imagine as the water drains any vestiges of this past are leaving. 
Ask that this transformative power bring only the highest and most inspiring
outcomes to yourself and the planet--
and, if you’re really evolved, to the other person(s) as well.
The Scorpio phoenix, the mythological sacred bird rising from the ashes of
destruction, LOVES this.  You'll never have a better astrological time to let all
this go, I promise you. If not now, when?
******

Quick updates:

WORKSHOPS
If you are ready to jettison fear, negativity and limitation from your daily thoughts
in a systematic way, come to the next workshop!  There are 4 spaces remaining
at the $129 level for Part 1 of the Beta Mind workshop in Alameda November 20/21.   
There are no spaces remaining at the $129 level for Part 2 on December 4/5
(most of the people from Part 1 in September already snagged them).  However you
are welcome to come at the $159 level if you have completed a teleclass or Part 1.
 Here is the link to register or for more info: 
http://www.toshasilver.com/080207_workshops.html
Cheela this morning suggested calling this work, "How to Turn Your Mind into
Your Best Ally."  "That's what I've gotten from them, " she said. "I went from
having a mind that undermined me at every turn to one that reliably supports
my highest efforts."   I thought that was a good description.
If you'd like to read (or reread) the Seven Top Reasons for taking these
workshops, here's the trusty link for  that:
www.toshasilver.com/newsletter.html
 
FINALLY, A NEW TELECLASS!!
Many of you are writing from locations outside Northern California (who can’t make
it to the in-person workshop) requesting a telephone class to do this spiritual course
of study.  (There’s one teleclass that's been going nonstop for about a year, a very
dynamic group).  But I finally feel ready to initiate a new phone class to cover some
of the same information as the in-person workshops. 
I am looking at starting an intensive 5-week class on Mondays beginning November 15
from 3-4:30 PM California time  (to accommodate all those of you in New York and Europe
who keep asking).  So it would be 5 pm for the Chicago folk, 6 pm for New York, and so on. 
The class would be limited to 15 people and the cost would be $245. We would finish before
Christmas.   If enough of you write to me in the next week to say you can do this date and
time, I will find the conference line to make this happen and set up a link for you to register. 
******

Okay, enough. 
Keep breathing, drink lots of water, get yourself in water, meditate, be kind to yourself and
everyone else you can think of-- the eclipses are about to begin. 
(And if you want a little internet inspiration, I suggest  www.onemillionacts.com, a website
set up to inspire people to initiate random acts of kindness.  Very cool.)  
And let these words of the Sufi master Hafiz rock you to sleep tonight:

Just sit there right now
Don't do a thing
Just rest.
For your separation from God,
From love,
is the hardest work
in this world.
Let me bring you trays of food
and something
that you like to drink.
You can use my soft words
As a cushion
For your head.

From 14th century Persia to your own heart,
With love, happiness and courage to you,
Tosha
(As usual, please do forward this email to whoever you think would be
grateful to receive it.  Thank you!)

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Newsletter # 4—August 18

Hi everyone...

I have great news about the upcoming Beta Mind Intensive on September 18th and 19th. I have found a terrific venue right in Alameda, the sweet beach town where I live (many thanks to Mary on this list who recommended it). It's centrally located, a 25 minute drive from Berkeley and San Francisco, maybe 15 minutes from Oakland (and for those of you coming from out of town, 45 minutes from SFO, 20 minutes from Oakland airport). It's a light spacious garden cottage able to hold 30 people comfortably, quiet, peaceful, very conducive to meditation, part of a metaphysical center (can you believe I've been living 10 minutes from a lovely spiritual center for 9 years and never knew it?)...Also only 6 blocks from the beach which there will be plenty of time to visit if you wish. (And for those from out of town, September is often one of our more exquisite Northern California months).
There is just one change (and mercury retrograde always brings changes...). The hours of the workshop would be slightly different than announced. Saturday Sept 18 would still be 1-5 pm but Sunday Sept 19 would change to 3-6 pm because of the center's schedule. The space is so special I felt it was worth shifting our times a bit.
Also, I'm extending the $139 reduced rate for another week for those of who were waiting to see which side of the bay the workshop would land in (I cannot tell you how many people wrote requesting it be in the East Bay after my last email... Okay, I got the message, I guess some of you never cross the bridge into the city! Ironically no one from San Francisco wrote to protest coming to the East Bay... this was really fascinating...)
Anyway, here's the link for the new updated information. The workshop is already half full and we're still a month away. Would you give me two afternoons to help take your intuition to a whole new level? If you sense this is for you, please register while there's space...

http://www.toshasilver.com/080207_workshops.html
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Well, by now you've probably gotten the hang of this mercury retrograde thing...yes, it's true--items get lost in the mail, computer problems abound, traffic snarls, all of that and more; you've probably been experiencing it plenty. I take it as a chance to see how much I can breathe, let go, and pretend I know how to be really, really patient.

However, as I mentioned in the last email, this transit has a positive side too, particularly with mercury being in Virgo, one of its rulers. This is a good time for saying things that have needed to be said but weren't, those conversations or letters that would be a relief to get off your chest. And for finishing up anything from the past that's been procrastinated over. Also, to remind you, it's an excellent period for detoxifying the body and diet. I've been on a wonderful cleanse for last 8 days; the Virgo vibration is of great help. Ridding your home of all unnecessary objects and reorganizing anything that is chaotic also is good under this aspect. (As some of you know, we work in the Beta Mind workshop with "creating a vacuum" for positive change so clearing your home now is a good prep).

And be sure to rest!
Whenever we get a strong retrograde cycle we are being given time to recoup, to recharge our batteries. When Mercury goes direct September 2 the cycle will speed up again so if you don't rest now it might be harder then.
But you may also find this Virgo cycle is increasing a tendency towards worry and anxiety (perhaps you thought it was only those ever-exciting terror alerts in the paper each week?). Virgo has been known to be a worrywart sign. But also Virgo is forever looking for healing and improvement, particularly with the mind.

After twenty-five years of giving an almost insane number of psychic readings (and still continuing to do some), I started these seminars to help people receive the answers from the inside. Many of the techniques I learned in my own training as a psychic years ago. But I also began the classes as a response to what I saw again and again: so many people felt gripped by their fears and anxieties, even people who had meditated steadily for some time with one tradition or another.
Here's an excerpt from a rather fabulous letter I recently received from a woman in the New York workshops:
"Okay Tosha, listen. I used to be a world-class worrier. I'm not kidding. I grew up in New York, I've lived here my whole life, and worry used to be like a sacred religious observance for me. If I didn't worry a good part of each day I felt even more nervous! So, if anybody said that I could feel the calm I've felt since our May workshop without the help of several serious drugs, I'd never believe it. But I'm using these techniques steadily each day, and I kid you not, this stuff works. My friends are amazed by the change in me." Ana B, Staten Island, NY
I myself spent many years filled with anxiety, particularly in my twenties and early thirties. But two big lessons came from that time. One is to never worry for other people. When you worry about someone you love you literally inundate their energy field with anxiety. But when you take the same focused intensity and send blessings instead, it's so powerful. They actually can feel, whether they consciously know it or not, your good wishes and protection. You can make an amazing difference.
Also, this may be obvious, but most worry comes from believing we are in the driver's seat. Ironically, because our thoughts create our reality, we are in that seat in a certain way. But once you invite the intimate help of the inner deity, the divine self, the pressure of being in control lets go. So much anxiety releases with inviting this help.
There are two reliable keys to opening the inner intuition rapidly One is using psychic techniques to protect ourselves from outside fear and negativity. The second is diving into a partnership with the inner self, the god within our own hearts that also yearns to connect with us. Once there is both outer protection and inner connection, the intuition arises spontaneously and powerfully. Then it can be trained to grow stronger and stronger. We focus on all this in the Beta Mind intensive.

*****
So enjoy these remaining days of summer and mercury retrograde. I'll be writing again sometime this month with a few more ideas about how to make the most of the current astrological weather. Looking forward to hearing from you soon (whether you can come to the workshop this time or not, I've enjoyed hearing from so many of you!)
Until then, blessings and love to you,
Tosha

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June 8, 2004 — Newsletter # 2

Hi everyone...

Well, I promised a part 2 to the transit report from last week. It was kind of amazing how that one got emailed all around. I started hearing from unknown people in places like Hong Kong and Winnipeg saying, "Wow, at least I know it's not just me!" That's one of the aspects of astrology that's so healing, breaking down the false sense of isolation so many people live with. Major planetary transits like the mars/saturn conjunction are the great equalizers...everyone gets affected by them to some extent, regardless of individual conditions.
Speaking of mars/saturn...as I was mentioning last time, it can create a feeling of real tension, since the planet of action meets the consummate planet of resistance...those two planets are finally beginning to separate this week altho it's slow going (sometimes it can feel like melting an ice floe with a hair dryer). Saturn literally does rule the freezing of things, and many people wrote about feeling frozen or suspended in different aspects of their lives. After June 10 mars and saturn are 10 degrees apart which should finally allow movement to begin to re-enter; particularly after June 17th, the new moon in Gemini, the energy opens up more and more.
Also, last night and today, this beautiful and rare occultation of venus and sun is occurring. I'll only write about it briefly because you could google "venus occultation" and read for the next six hours.
The crossing of the venus in front of the sun is so signficant...venus rules love, beauty, the inner voice of the heart, and also the power of the feminine, especially the divine feminine (one of my favorite topics of obsession). Back in 1882 when this last occurred the women's suffrage movement began to unfold. So some kind of new empowerment of women may be underway. And the divine feminine is such an interesting layer of this story...the idea that this transit may be invoking a powerful sacred feminine force to balance our seriously out-of-balance world. However this venus/sun aspect is happening opposing pluto, the planet of power and mass transformation. So don't just expect happy circles of people dancing to the Goddess with daisies in their hair. The energy may be like that t-shirt you sometimes see here in California, "God is coming...and is She pissed!" We'll see. But what a blessing to be alive for this transit...
But in the meantime, what a wonderful week for prayer, meditation, affirmations of the highest order.
When we are at big shift points like this a particularly helpful affirmation is simply, "Let the divine plan for my life unfold. However I can be of greatest use in this cycle, let it unfold. Let every gift I have be used for the greatest benefit of the planet right now."
Our culture tends to teach us to become more and more fearful and contracted in transitional cycles but it's really just the opposite. As soon as you affirm the highest, and particularly place the focus on being of benefit to the planet, miracles begin. All sorts of synchronicities and magic start to happen. By offering yourself over, you place yourself in the perfect flow of shakti, the divine energy, for the right changes to come.
It's also, as i mentioned last week, a particularly good time to continue cleaning out and re-ordering your home and belongings through the entire venus retrograde cycle until the end of june. And it's a good week to get some rest because once the cycle of movement really begins on the 17th, it will grow more and more active. So rest while you can. Many times cycles of obstacles simply happen to get us to rest (and then we spend them worrying! isn't that crazy?...later you look back and go, "why on earth didn't I just rest?")
Years ago I was sitting in a sushi bar reading my ephemeris (the table of planets) and this guy said, "Hey, what's that? Some kinda weird bus schedule?" And I said, "Yes, definitely, A weird cosmic bus schedule." The planets arrive and depart right on schedule but we have so many choices about how to handle the movements to keep our own energy as high as possible.
One reason I started the beta mind seminars and teleclasses was to help people feel empowered in their cycles, as opposed to victimized. I would so often hear someone say in a reading, "Oh my transits are so terrible" or "I have such bad karma." This would just break my heart. Simply to be born in human body and have a chart at all is such an amazing gift! Since the chart is the map of the karma we came to resolve, it's an incredible opportunity for healing and resolution.
I called the seminars "What you think is what you get" because we do magnetize to ourselves according to our thoughts. Someone might say, "Oh, I have Pluto in the 7th, I'll never have a wonderful relationship, the books say so." But this is so untrue! The chart often indicates where we need to change our thinking to create what we desire, where we need to shift our encoded mental tendencies, or (in sanskrit) the samskaras. The chart can show a mental pattern of energy which has persisted for so many lifetimes we assume it to be the truth. The spiritual and psychic work we do in these seminars to change these patterns of thinking can create very rapid transformation, even in the course of two evenings. No need to be at the mercy of your chart again!
Over the years I have read so many amazing, inspiring people with established spiritual practices, years of meditation, frequent spiritual retreats, years of devotion to this path or that, who were still very much struggling with the negative tendencies of the mind. The techniques we work with in these seminars are a wonderful addition to any spiritual path you're currently on. The group who came to the May workshops was extremely diverse.
Although all the early-bird spots for the Manhattan workshops June 27-30th are sold out, there is still some space in both workshops. The easiest way to register is by going directly to the linkhttp://www.toshasilver.com/080207_workshops.html
And have a wonderful, restful week feeling the tranquil, beautiful vibrations of Venus,
Love,
Tosha
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