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GREETINGS fellow dream animals! Welcome to the Astrodharma Podcast. My name is Hunter Reynolds and I invite you to join me as we sip the tea of self-inquiry, sit proud in our infinity and bow reverently to the way-showing wonders of this waking dream.
We begin this month with a contemplative prod.
Mantra #1: The choice is simple: shivers of resurrection or meat sack attack.
Contemplation is form of prayer or meditation in which a person seeks to pass beyond mental images and concepts to a direct experience of the divine. This one is purposefully provocative. By portraying life as a choice between two extremes (the sublimely transcendent and the morbidly corporeal) it jabs at our spiritual complacency and ups the ante:
Are you a lonely little animal or eternity-with-eyes? Mind on a countdown or a psyche of cosmic dimensions?
Mantra #2: The choice is simple: shivers of resurrection or meat sack attack.
What do I mean by “meat sack attack?”
On a purely physical level, it refers to the body; the “meat sack” that will one day attack us from within and take us down.
More importantly, there’s the ways “meat sack consciousness” attacks our timeless presence: reactivity, distraction, numbness, and getting locked into automated role play.
In Astrodharmic terms, attacks on presence are understood as “archetypal possession:” allowing the energies of our birth chart to enslave us, instead of shrewdly navigating them.
Finally, there’s what “meat sack consciousness” does to the planet. The collective ego blindly tearing itself down.
Here I am referring not merely to physical violence and war but to the way we seem to be drifting into a dystopian future where citizens spend more and more of their lives in virtual reality to escape the increasingly bleak, Blade Runner-like status of the offline world.
Why are we so limply succumbing? Simple. Ego survives on a diet of manic distraction and anxious role play. Divine pauses and meditative relating are dismissed as pointless and irrelevant because they expose the insecurity and artifice of our egoic posturing and reactivate our hunger to rise above “separate somebody status.”
“Returning to zero” is taboo and rarely allowed because “beginner’s mind” is not faithful to our conditioned idea of who we are and, thereby, threatens our hard-won place in the system. Caught in the spell of the “meat sack,” ego trades mystery for belonging: the solace of the sad, but like-minded.
Mantra #3: The choice is simple: shivers of resurrection or meat sack attack.
Remember when minds made sounds that were original and arresting? Now it’s the same old tweet, over and over: “Belief is bloodbath. Communion: sublime. Belief is bloodbath. Communion: sublime.”
At first, it’s a conversation killer. Over time, blood-bath turns into revelation. As we release the greed for a sexier path and humbly accept God’s challenge to weave timeless presence into the play of egoic conversation, “ideas about ideas about ideas” evoke more mercy than malaise. The endless hiss of me-stories becomes the cushion on which we meditate: a place to receive the sacrament of “causeless happiness” and overflow.
Mantra #4: The choice is simple: shivers of resurrection or meat sack attack.
Shiver Zone
For most people, mind-killing shivers during meditation and prayer are rare- a kind of grace or visitation. There is no shame in this, of course. Contentment is more than enough. It is, however, worth noticing how we veer away from the “shiver zone,” and why. After all, a deeper part of us is well aware of this shivery predator circling our perimeter. Time to get curious and ask:
How long before this perfect moment violates my pleasure threshold and I shut down the mounting swoon? When, exactly, does the magnificence of the merciful witness turn into “someone being happy?”
It takes courage to face the subtle carnage unfolding on the floors of our subconscious. Someone has made us pregnant, swollen with well-being. How long before ego (the original abortionist) steps in for some “meat sack attack?”
Mantra #5: The choice is simple: shivers of resurrection or meat sack attack
Toxic Mansions
To be shiver-friendly, we must be embodied, vibrationally sensitive and alive. Sounds simple. But most are unwilling to pay the price of admission. Here’s an example from my own life.
Recently, my wife and I checked into a beautiful Airbnb in Okinawa. For fourteen days, it was, perhaps, the most spacious beautiful home we ever lived in. So we locked in a non-refundable month and half.
A week later, I developed a chronic pain just below my ribs, above my heart. In addition, I was having restless, disturbed sleeps that had me yawning all day long. Later, I discovered that my wife was feeling the same chronic tiredness.
It all came to a head one morning, when I woke up with my heart racing. Instantly, I recognized it as a symptom of advanced EMF exposure- probably from surrounding routers and cell towers and decided we would leave immediately. That night, we moved into a remote country cabin in the mountains (with zero surrounding wi-fi signals). Instantly, my symptoms disappeared and we’ve slept like babies ever since. Plus, we got all our money back!
Looking back, we see it as a gift from god. We were given an impossible to forget, possibly life-threatening metaphor demonstrating how the “look” of things can eclipse our felt sense of it.
Experiences like this remind us to unplug our mental “router,” re-sensitize to the signals in our bodies and experience (if not, “shivers of resurrection”) the resurgence of life-force that happens when we release a deadening preconception so the Great Mystery can shower us with its inconceivable upgrades.
We all have “toxic mansions” crying for an overnight exit. What’s yours?
Mantra #6: The choice is simple: shivers of resurrection or meat sack attack.
Yes, the choice is simple, but there needs to be someone “home” to make it. Enter Astrodharma.
Only when personality traits are recognized as the Supreme Being in various stages of self-remembering are the insights of astrology truly helpful. Minus this acknowledgment of the Magnificent incandescing every ego, the study of astrology hardens the play of personality by providing more and more sophisticated evidence of separation.
The Divine hand is flapping the jaw of a fleshy sock puppet. Isn’t it time we smiled and gave it a hand of applause?
In support of this soulful encounter, let’s see how deeply we can feel the inner atmosphere of each being as they voice this month’s mantra.
Ask yourself:
1) What are their egoic challenges and where do they naturally shine?
2) If their existential mood was a color, what would it be?
Mantra #7: The choice is simple: shivers of resurrection or meat sack attack.
Listen closely. Can you hear how mediumism wrestles with me-story? Ah, the human condition in a nutshell.
Mantra #8: The choice is simple: shivers of resurrection or meat sack attack.
Imagine that God, through this podcast, is directing your attention to one of these voices so it will mirror back to you an unloved part of your psyche. Which voice is it?
Mantra #9: The choice is simple: shivers of resurrection or meat sack attack
Ah, soul-seeing: the day job no market crash can take away from us.
Bedrock of Benevolence
Voices are a de-cloaking devices. If we knew how many wounds and gifts we were exposing whenever we opened our mouth, we’d probably return to grunts and nods. Fortunately, a mad faith in life steps in, saying, “Whatever they say or do with my dirty laundry is God’s business.” So great is our subliminal inheritance of faith.
It’s easy to imagine we have lost faith in the goodness of people’s souls. But it’s rarely the case.
As we casually comment on this or that, some part of us knows that our most embarrassing insecurities are being dumped out onto the interpersonal internet. Yet, still, we talk! Does this not point to a bedrock of self-compassion and a trust in the benevolence of humanity?
Clearly seen, talking is a staccato style of singing and, as everybody knows, people won’t buy the music unless Holy Spirit steps in to deliver something transportive.
Talking Styles
The only way to feel warmly okay with our approaching death is to continually deepen our sense of eternalness. This is where Astrodharma shines. By learning to savor the divine intent leaking through every color and shade of personality, the ageless innocence of our soul is continually mirrored back to us.
One way of staying intimate with the eternal is to learn how to compassionately decode the twelve talking styles. After this short break, we’ll start with the sign of Aries.
Aries
The speech of a strong Aries personality is jabby and angular, like rock formations. They think fast. The awake ones are pioneers, leaders, protectors. The lower octave types are intellectually testy and competitive, projecting an aura of impatience that pushes you to get to an actionable point.
How does one build trust and rapport with this combative talking style? Astrodharma votes that you honor their passion for life by playfully boxing with their opinions and matching their daring flare even as you highlight the fact that passionate assertion of individuality can easily migrate into self-centeredness, turning people off and turning Aries into a lone wolf full of angry independence that is actually lingering de-pendence.
Taurus
Listen for a hearty, authoritative and practical tone with deliberate, sparing speech (“yup, nope”) and short summary statements (“the bottom line is…”). The neck and throat being ruled by this sign, they tend to make good singers and orators having powerful voices with deep grounded laughter that relaxes and spreads out.
How does one build trust and rapport with a lumbering, pragmatist? Astrodharma votes that you honor their groundedness by matching their realistic bottom line statements even as you highlight the fact that many, many people live miserably secure lives and that a genuinely satisfying life (and love) suffers destructive tectonic shakes that, unsettling as they are, are benevolent, vitalizing and essential for our transformation.
Gemini
Friendly, charming and emotionally cool, Gemini’s words fire off in short machine gun blasts. Effortlessly articulate, with many subject changes to avert boredom, Gem’s talking style is often discursive, innocently interrupting and eager to sum things up into clever sound bites when they’re not glued to some instantaneous form of media: cell phone, text, email.
How does one commune with this changeful, multi-faceted voice? Astrodharma votes that you honor their appetite for experience by matching their ranging, soundbitey style even as you offer intelligent observations that synthesize their free ranging commentary into deeper, overarching themes and truths that inspire them to contemplatively pause and integrate.
Cancer
Warmly nurturing or clipped and self-protective, Cancer’s often speaks of the past as if it was emotionally present. Depending on mood, they’re either empathizing and holding space for other’s vulnerability or they’re introverted, brooding or taking care of loved ones at home.
How do we draw closer to this empathic, nest-loving voice? Astrodharma votes for a vulnerable tone that honors their commitment to personal care even as you encourage them to realistically assess which souls vibrationally reciprocate their clannish devotion, highlighting the fact that concern for the well-being of another sometimes means releasing them to make painful mistakes and that familial bonds, no matter how strong, eventually dry up unless they keep expanding and maturing into an existential sense of belonging that only God’s love could provide.
Leo
Full-toned, commanding and shamelessly self-celebrating, this is a talking style that needs to impress, teach and give free advice. Marked by a strong, deliberate tone that seldom talks fast and is prone to overgeneralizing and exaggeration for effect, then backtracking to cover the subtler details, Leos are usually guileless and instantly disarmed and made vulnerable by compliments.
How do we build trust and rapport with dramatic displays of confidence? Astrodharma votes that you jump up on the stage with them and say “yes” to the embodiment of healthy divine pride even as you pray earnestly and aloud that our God-given authority and charisma is humbled and put into service to a vision that effectively ignites and unites the larger community.
Virgo
Distilled, focused and often witty, Virgo is enamored by details, often pointing out how imperfections and inefficiencies could be corrected. With a fondness for facts and figures, health and efficiency, Virgo is prone to nervous hair-splitting and often too self-critical to casually accept critiques from others.
How do we build trust and rapport with one so devoted to integrity, order and efficiency? Astrodharma votes that you admire their commitment to purity even as you balance attention on the need for faith in the unimprovable essence of the soul and the importance of trusting and relaxing into the larger order of things, allowing karmic justice to cleans up the mess.
Okay! We’re now half way through the 12 talking styles. Let’s continue with the next six after this short 30 second break.
Next up: Libra
Libra
Look for a velvety, sometimes seductive intelligence. Full of polite questions, and a melodious yet commanding style they walk the line between kindness and manipulation and are the epitome of the iron fist in the velvet glove.
How do we establish trust and rapport with such suave diplomacy? Astrodharma votes that you match their polite, peace-loving tone even as you blend in a few artful interventions that demonstrate how reliable, longterm bonding is achieved by enduring periods of healthy confrontation and ego-outing friction that affirm each other’s sovereignty and honor each other’s differences. In this way, we let truth- not attachment- decide the form of the relationship.
Scorpio
Tight-lipped, then stingingly straight-forward, Scorpio is psychologically shrewd and sarcastic, displaying an acerbic wit that cuts to the bone and follows through on commitments. Fascinated by themes such as sex, death, transformation and anything taboo, they explore truth from a gutsy, visceral standpoint.
How do we build trust and rapport with a penetrating shadow hound? Astrodharma votes for an aura that you honors their commitment to visceral truth and direct eye contact that demonstrates you are unintimidated by their intensity, whilst inquiring into the potentially addictive nature of having to prove to ourself and others that we’re strong enough to confront the dark underbelly of life even if it deprives us of peaceful relationships and a sustainable quality of life.
Sagittarius
Sag presents a nonchalant truth-slinging charm, enjoys heated, philosophical arguments and advocates for ideals that are often bendable in private life if their freedom seems too threatened. Over-identification with beliefs and opinions sometimes undermines their effectiveness as teachers due to becoming dogmatic, condescending and offensively blunt. Searching, clumsy—like a puppy and prone to exaggeration and travel stories, Sag is the professional or armchair philosopher/priest.
How do we build trust and rapport with a truth-seeking, panoramic mind? Astrodharma votes to approach them as intellectual equals, honoring their commitment to make meaning out of suffering even as we highlight the importance of formulating targeted questions vs. being didactic: the urge to give unsolicited feedback, naturally subsiding, once one attains a socially accepted position from which to overflow our teacher/mentor karma.
Capricorn
Listen for a sensible business tone, smooth and persuasive along with calculated, grounded expressions that veer away from personal emotion into all things strategic and professional. Skillful in debate, Cap is master systematic reasoning and dialectic.
How do we forge trust and rapport with an a hard-headed realist? Astrodharma votes for an affirmation of their business acumen as a gift from beyond whilst emphasizing the importance of balancing work with vulnerability, public image with familial belonging and the development of a sense of personal worth independent of social status and success.
Aquarius
Look for buzzy, brilliant discussions about the future— particularly social reform, technology and consciousness. Due to their need to circulate through and freely interact with the larger community, Aquarius is genuinely friendly but truly vulnerable only a few well-established friends.
How does one establish trust and rapport with an activist/visionary? Astrodharma votes for a spontaneous, unpredictable approach that prioritizes aliveness over convention, shows interest in their personal vision of community and brainstorms ways to effectively community-organize and infiltrate the matrix instead of reactively rebelling against it.
Pisces
Look for a soft-spoken, imaginative, inductive speech, a lulling compassion and a difficulty saying “no” to other’s needs and desires or give simple, straight answers. Often drained of vital energy by listening too long to other’s problems their non-conflictual nature can cause them to isolate. Reason for doing things: “it felt right.”
How do we build trust and rapport with an impressionable, otherworldly soul? Astrodharma votes for a meandering style filled with divine pauses that allow insights to rise up like steam from a bath, with a focus on purging relationships and ways of helping others that are tainted with self-sacrifice and escapism.
And so ends our journey through the 12 talking styles.
We end this month’s podcast with a prayer called “Whispering Stillness.”
Whispering Stillness
Whispering stillness, deliver us from the unrest of outward searching and lead us not into the temptations of trying but into the terrestrial elegance of Your shepherding presence.
We confess that we’ve made a bargain with the devil: agreeing to be the same basic person others have known us to be so as not to unduly surprise or disorient them; safeguarding, at every turn, our cumulative investment in the friendship.
In the name of security and kindness, we’ve aborted our presence, neutered our chi and burdened our lives with unnecessary bouts of boredom by pretending to be happy while existing as a separate self.
Clear now Your temple of these wicked merchants!
Help us live with the seriousness of a child at play: fascinated, absorbed, wiggled-free from the vice grip of other’s expectations, untouched by the world’s mounting anxiety, moving easy through the twilight of orphaned ego, the waves of dormant buddhas, relaxed and fluid like a smooth flowing river, unvexed by what lives beyond its banks, so sure it will arrive where it is meant to go.
Mantra #10: The choices is simple: shivers of resurrection or meat sack attack.
© Hunter Reynolds
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