Tarot

April and the Fool

April and the Fool

Happy April; happy Easter; happy April Fool’s.

There are few holidays that invite as much mischief and as much glee as April Fool’s Day.

In my mind, I have an ongoing list of my favorite pranks I’ve heard of, seen, or participated in. These pranks come from a long standing tradition. While scholars don't agree on the origin of this holiday (some say it comes from the switch from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar, wherein those still celebrating the new year on April 1 were thought to be fools; and some say it is the modern iteration of a Greco-Roman holiday called Hilaria), they all agree that the holiday has taken place for thousands of years.

This holiday has its beginnings in the West, and as such, draws up the western esoteric imagery of the Fool.

The Fool has links to astrology and yoga, and the Fool is a key concept to understand as we travel on our yogic paths.

CLAIM YOUR PERSONAL POWER with Yoga and Astrology

CLAIM YOUR PERSONAL POWER with Yoga and Astrology

 In the past 15 months, we’ve seen the climate in our country reach higher and higher levels of uncertainty. I’ve had conversation after conversation where I hear the same sentiment brought up—that feeling of being powerless in a world where power seems to be something that people take by violence and force. In a world driven by binaries, we see powerful vs powerless, domineering vs helpless. 

But there has to be a better way to see things than binaries that divide and disempower. I’m a yogi-astrologer, so I looked into yoga and its sister discipline, astrology, for answers.

A lot of the time when we use the word ‘power’ with yoga, we’re referring to a type of vinyasa-heavy flow that activates cardio and really BURNS SOME CALORIES.  But there is a type of power far more central within yoga and astrology that leads us down the path of empowerment.

The Winter Solstice: Yoga, Tarot, Astrology

The Winter Solstice: Yoga, Tarot, Astrology

Thanksgiving has passed, and winter is in full swing in Eugene, Oregon. The rains have returned to the Pacific Northwest, and we’re experiencing less and less daylight with each passing day. You've probably noticed shorter and shorter evenings (and for those of you who work traditional hours--darker and darker commutes).

Of course, this means the winter solstice is upon us.

Many of us know what the winter solstice is technically (shortest day of the year for the northern hemisphere), but what is its connection to yoga, tarot, and astrology?

The "Be Kind" Sign

The "Be Kind" Sign

Labor day is over and the first hints of fall are already starting to show in beautiful Eugene, Oregon. The maples are beginning to drop leaves, and the temps are just a bit cooler at night--finally blowing the smoke from the forest fires outside the town.

I was walking home this morning from my usual Sunday class at Mudra Yoga in Eugene, when I saw a man tear down an art sign that someone in the city had hung that said "be kind." This man tore it up, threw it on the ground, looked right at me, grinned, and rode away on his bike. 

I suddenly became very aware of myself and of others--what each of us puts out in the world. I realized that though I think of myself as "normal," I was, in fact, wearing yoga clothes, holding a potted plant, and wearing a hiking lumbar pack instead of a purse--in short, I looked 'crunchy.'

I realized that just as I was gaping at the man who in anger pulled down the sign, perhaps he was grinning at me because he thought I would be upset.

Review of the Joyful Heart Psychic and Wellness Fair in Eugene, Oregon

Review of the Joyful Heart Psychic and Wellness Fair in Eugene, Oregon

I started today like I do most Sundays, teaching my regular yoga class at Mudra Yoga by Eugene's 5th Street Market, and then working with an astrology client.

But, today was a special day, because it was the inaugural Joyful Heart Psychic and Wellness Fair. I confess...