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In 2009, I traveled in India with my boyfriend at that time. At a certain point, we arrived to Kasar Devi, a place in the midst of the mountains, which is said to have a special cosmic energy.

It was hard to admit that traveling with my boyfriend was a nightmare.

But even the absurdity of this relationship could not take away the serenity I felt in Kasar Devi. I enjoyed swinging on the hammock of our guest house restaurant, reading books, overlooking the majestic mountains, where maharajas used to march atop their elephants.

It’s not surprising then, that this was the place where I read a sentence that changed my life forever.

“Through understanding the whole thing, we begin to trust our world, to realize that there is no such thing as a cosmic conspiracy. The world is a kind world, a rational world, there is no joke involved.” ~ Chogyam Trugpa

I know that Chogyam Trungpa is controversial, and I find many of his behaviors distasteful. But I cannot deny the magnitude of his words, which made me realize that I had lived under the assumption that the world was not kind or rational.

I believed that there were forces in this universe that wanted me to suffer. That’s why my brother got sick with leukemia, my mother died at 44, and I kept finding myself in disastrous relationships with men who treated me like sh*t.

Shifting my perspective to seeing that the world was working for me was the beginning of my life transformation, which led me to meeting my teacher, Debra Silverman, for an in-person astrology reading in 2013.

While Chogyam Trungpa gave me faith in the world, Debra gave me faith in myself. She reminded me who I truly was, and helped me own, embody, and celebrate my true, honest personality. I realized that it was not my boyfriends who thought there was something wrong with me, it was me. And the only thing that was actually wrong with me was that I had tried to be someone I was not.

Meeting Debra inspired me to want to help others in the same way she helped me, and so I decided to become an astrologer.

It was only natural to apply my belief that the world is for us to my astrology practice. If the world is for us, that includes the planets, right?

Unfortunately, there are many astrological traditions that stand in contrast with this approach. Just recently, I was hosted on a podcast and told my host about the current astrological influences in her life. She said, “I am happy, as long as Uranus is not doing this thing with my sun anymore. I don’t remember exactly what it was, but it was awful.”

I had to stop her right there. This is what makes people scared of astrology, and it is completely wrong. The most fundamental understanding that we must bear in mind when we practice astrology is that the planets are for us, always. They do not want to harm us in any way; they want us to evolve.

An astrologer told my host that her life was going to be miserable during a few years under the influence of Uranus opposite her sun. Instead of seeing that Uranus was trying to free her from structures that did not serve her well, my host felt she was going through hell. Now, when she looks at things in retrospect, she sees that this influence empowered her to step into her fulfillment with her own successful business.

Sometimes we need things to fall apart so that we can rise up and find a new direction that is better for us. Sometimes we need a kick in the butt to move from a place that is convenient but does not support our fulfillment and well-being.

I recently wrote about a traditional astrology interpolation regarding an influence I am currently going through. It said that I won’t be able to succeed in anything I do in the next two years. As I read it, I reminded myself that the planets are for me. As long as I am on the right path, I will thrive, and I am.

Isn’t it funny that my last Elephant Journal post won second place in the July’s ecosystem contest under this very influence? So here you go traditional doom and gloom astrology interpretation!

Please, I am begging you, do not think that the planets are here to cause you any harm. Please remember, the planets are always for you, even when they challenge you, even when they retrograde, and I promise you, that integrating this belief will transform your life.

~

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