Dawne Kovan’s Blog

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I was wondering how the ongoing square of Venus and Pluto would manifest on the world stage – remember ANY planetary aspect involving the outer planets  will have world wide implications. The aspect first began its 3 month long, extremely difficult relationship in the first week of February, 2009 and is still resonating in the skies right now.

It is the archetypal aspect of kidnap and abduction of a young innocent woman by a power that is determined to win at all costs.  

It took its time for us all to be alerted to the holding of Roxana Saberi by the Iranian authorities – apparently she was able to work officially in Iran as a journalist for 6 years, until her work permit apparently ran out at the end of January 2009. Then it seems she was arrested – accused first of all of buying a bottle of wine, which is illegal in Iran; then accused of not having a press permit; and finally denounced as a US spy, put on trial, found guilty and is now in prison, where she is threatening to go on hunger strike. 

For those of us who know the story of Persephone’s abduction by Pluto, Lord of the Underworld – embodied right now in the sky by Venus, the young woman, in hard aspect to Pluto ……. Pluto held Persephone below ground for months as she languished on hunger-strike until her mother, Demeter, managed to persuade Mercury, he of the slick-tongue, to speak on her daughter’s behalf, and bring her out of the darkness into the light of day. 

Interestingly, Venus is now at the beginning of Aries schmoozing with Mars, the warrior – could this indicate a very tricky situation with a great deal of sabre rattling between the US and Iran. Could she be the trigger for more action than we might need in the Middle East right now? Will Hillary Clinton, in the role of  Demeter manage to sweet talk the Iranians into letting this young woman go free – or not?

Well, well, well. The myths are truly alive and living in our midst, are they not?

If you haven’t already discovered this excellent video, take some time out and enjoy.  Though this is a serious subject  Sir Ken discusses, his dry wit will have you rolling on the floor in agony!

I have also written a review of his book “The Element – How finding your passion changes everything”. you will find that below the video.

This book is both inspiring and uplifting, written with great passion and love by a writer who is obviously in his “Element”. Robinson, or Sir Ken I suppose I should call him, is an educator; not a teacher – but someone who seeks to bring out the best in all young people and who sees that while some teachers may do this, education systems around the world do not seem to.

Although this may sound dry – actually it is anything but, as the book is peppered with the stories of those whom the education system failed and who climbed out of that failure to become world leaders in their chosen fields. People like Paul McCartney, with whom Sir Ken is on the board of directors of LIPA (Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts); Gillian Lynne, tutor and principal ballerina at the Royal Ballet and choreographer of Cats and Phantom of the Opera; Matt Groening of The Simpsons; and many, many, more.

The complete title of the book is “The Element – How finding your passion changes everything”.  Sir Ken expects that the aim of all education – private, public, state or home-based – should be to honour the Element within each child on an individual basis. If that is not achieved then the schooling children receive at age 5 may continue to teach them to be cogs in an Industrial Revolution model, but it may not fit them for careers that don’t even exist yet in a tomorrow that is way off our scale of imagining today.

The need for inspired young people, who live in their Element, their passion, is never more than now. However, the book is written with love and warmth rather than being a rant – worth reading, I think.

See below how to order your copy.

There’s lots of action – your favourite word! – happening in Aries right now. Mercury and Venus as well as the New Moon and Sun are happily moving through your sign. Mercury has his winged boots on again so is zipping through in about 3 weeks; Venus, on the other hand, is going backwards, so gets to bring you more than relationship and friendship fun for a lot longer than you would usually expect.

Venus is in Aries right now then takes a tiny visit back to Pisces for about 10 days in early to mid-April, and then re-enters Aries where she stays until early June. As a result you can expect your days to be filled with people – some new to you, and others coming from your past, who are likely to have a significant effect on your future. The fun really gets intensified through May when your ruling planet Mars comes along to join in -and we all know what can happen when Venus and Mars get together, don’t we?

Mars stays in a sign for about 6 weeks so can impact on your solar houses for about a year. These last few weeks Mars has been in your 12th solar House and will stay there almost to the end of April, so will have held your energies in check somewhat. This may not have been a bad thing, though a little frustrating sometimes, because it gives you the time you need to get down to doing the research that you’ve been putting off for some time.

Then, when Mars goes into Aries through May, this is a time of feeling right on target because you are armed with the information that you gleaned in April. It’s as if all your arrows are hitting the bull’s-eye dead centre – so focus your sights on whatever you choose and go for it! With Venus also being involved you will have to take someone else’s opinions into account, though – so get your negotiation skills activated – it’s a useful skill for you to learn.

June/July Mars is in Taurus, so you will be focusing your energies towards your financial status – or even take some old ideas out of the attic and revamp them to bring in some extra cash. Through the second half of July and through August, it’s the time for you to communicate your desires – maybe even learn some new skills to enable to teach what you already know.

September/October see Mars slowing down in Cancer – home matters are in your face – making you feel as if you’re on the back foot. You are having to curtail your own desires to help family members realise theirs. It could be a good time to take a rest and chill out – just let life happen around you instead of always driving things along.

From November until June 2010, Mars goes to and fro in your 5th house of creativity, children and enjoyment. So take the time to have some fun time, but just make sure that you keep a tight rein on all your expenses and maybe have a quieter Christmas than usual – we are living in straightened times this year and next. I say this because Mars also rules your Solar 8th House of joint finances and arrangements like mortgages – so you need to keep a good weather eye on what comes in and what goes out during this period.

It’s not all doom and gloom, though, you can still enjoy yourself as long as you don’t rush head first into 2010, tempting though it will be! It does promise to be a creative 6 month period for you and one that you will look back on in years to come.

NB – The readings below can either be read from your Sun Sign – ie your birthday – or your Ascendant sign, which is calculated from your time of birth. Try also reading it from your Moon Sign, as Hindu astrologers suggest.

Don’t know your Moon Sign? Get your FR.EE Sun/Moon combination reading  and discover how your emotions impact with your ambitions to create your unique life path.  Just email me your birth date, time and place and I’ll email it back to you FR.EE!!!

Aries : 21st March – 20th April – see above

Taurus: 19th April – 20th May – This month there is a real emphasis on hidden matters coming to light. It’s a time for researching your family tree, the old stuff in the attic and also clearing out those attitudes and beliefs that have been holding you back for so long. This could be a period of heightened imagination and dreaming. You may even find that your spiritual life is going through a change of direction, which could be due to someone coming back into your life who offers you some new world views. You may find that your long term objectives receive a good shake-up as well. This is not a month to sit life out on the sidelines. Make new friends, go out of your way to meet people, even if you’re tired after a hard day at the office, and stretch your mental faculties by taking a risk on the new rather than staying safe.

Read the rest…

This is a fairly quiet period for early to middle Pisceans (20th Feb – 5th March) – the decisions that you made over last previous year that came out of the upheavals of both Saturn and Uranus are now being integrated into your daily lives. The New Moon on 25th February will enable you to see how much you have gained and just how your life has changed as a the result of all your efforts in 2008.

This is now the picture for the later Pisceans to get ready for – as if you hadn’t noticed! It’s really time to let go of the people whom you feel you’ve outgrown. It’s a funny thing – and it can come as a surprise – but often those very same people are getting ready to let you go too, so no need to get into the famous Pisces guilt trip about it. Remember you can’t save the world.

It’s also time to do a check over all the other aspects of your life as well – but the key focus is really on your relationships, friendships, and  the efforts you make to achieve balance and harmony in your everyday life.  And if they’re not working for you then why not work to change them? A huge part of that is to let go of worrying about everyone else, and think about yourself for a change? So ask yourself what is it I want/love/need, etc? And when you find out – go for it!

Pisces’ traditional ruling planet Jupiter has recently moved into your Solar 12th House, acting like a magnifying glass on all your dreams and imagination. The Law of Attraction states that as you dream so you will achieve – and Jupiter will help you do just that. Your domestic situation this year can be a positive experience for you this year, and you may be ready to take another step into relating with someone you are attracted to – with a deeper and more nourishing result.

Your challenges will be an over confidence in believing that everyone who tells you something has your best interest at heart. Go and do the research before agreeing to play things their way – it could really expand your self-confidence and your world view. 

It is also a good year to finally sit down with a fitness trainer and dietician and work out a good plan for your long term wellness.

From now until June, Venus plays around in your 2nd house of personal earnings and values – you may have an offer to spend your hard earned cash on some beautiful and desirable goodies. It would be wise to wait until Venus moves on in mid-June, just to be on the safe side.

Love may be in the air in May and June, when Venus and Mars come together for a couple of romantic liaisons. This is a rare opportunity, as Venus usually nips hastily past Mars, but not this Spring(Autumn for my Australian readers) – they are on a mission to find a way of being together – and as they both meet up in Taurus in June, this could be it! Great time for communications and lots of lovely trips out – love emails abound!

For mid-Pisceans, the pressure begins to lift by June/July and you feel more freed up that of late. It has been an intense 9 month period that started end of 2008 – so you can breathe a sigh of relief. You will however have the gift of knowing exactly how you want your future to be and how to make it so.

For late Pisceans, the pressure begins to build up for you by September and you start to feel as if your skin is a little too tight for you – like the snake just before it sheds its skin. This is a 9 month period of on/off intensity until mid-2010. However, it is an extremely productive one and nothing to be emotional about – just do the work and carve out a new future for yourself.

Watch the monthly column below for further information as the year goes on.

NB – The readings below can either be read from your Sun Sign – ie your birthday – or your Ascendant sign, which is calculated form your time of birth. Try also reading it from your Moon Sign, as Hindu astrologers suggest. 

Don’t know your Moon Sign? Get your FREE Sun/Moon combination reading  and discover how your emotions impact with your ambitions to create your unique life path.  Just email me your birth date, time and place and I’ll email it back to you FREE!!! 

Aries : 21st March – 20th April – Lucky you, to have Venus in your 1st Solar House and Jupiter in your 11th house. These two planets are the teachers of the Universe and will bring many opportunities to meet new people and sort out your long-term objectives. This is a fun period where new relationships can be started and then follow the usual pattern of will they/won’t they? Just relax and let the Universe sort it out for you – you may be surprised with the outcome. Venus, ruler of your house of relationships, is making that square to Pluto over the next couple of months so you might find that some of the people you meet have a more demanding agenda than you would like. It’s an intense month for falling in love, so just make sure you don’t overspend on buying gifts that really could cost you more than you bargained for. If you go shopping with a new love – just take one credit card with you and cry poverty – then see what happens.

Read the rest…

You cannot have failed to notice Venus shining like a headlight in the early evening sky – Goddess of beauty, love and attraction. Over the winter months (in the Northern Hemisphere) she has climbed higher and higher each night to reach her maximum elevation – and quite frankly she looks stunningly beautiful.

On Thursday 6th February, Venus at 2 degrees of Aries took a 90 degree backward glance at Pluto – there’s nothing particularly unusual about that because Venus moves so quickly around the Zodiac that she glances at everything during her orbit. 

What does make it interesting is that this time Venus stands still on 6th March and begins to retrace her steps backwards to glance at Pluto again. She actually flirts with Mars as well, but that’s a different story…..

When a planet stops moving forward in its orbit and starts to move backwards, those of us who live in a Universe redolent with meaning have to ask why now? Why does Venus stop charging ahead as she usually does and what was it Pluto whispered to her that she needs to retrace her steps to make sure she heard him correctly? Especially as she does this twice more – 3/4 April and 3/4 May, to be exact. It is an intense relationship being played out in the sky, folks.

This celestial communication between the two planets has to be seen against the background of long Pluto’s sojourn in corporate, organised Capricorn.

Traditionally Venus is not comfortable in Aries, as the harsh get up and go of this Mars ruled, alpha male, fiery sign doesn’t allow her to take her time and schmooze as she is wont to do. It’s all too fast for Venus and it doesn’t allow her to negotiate as she’d prefer to do – decisions have to be made quickly.

So, during this period until May 09, could we see some government decisions being made, too hastily, that involves new roles for women? If we look back to the Fifties, when soldiers returned from the war, we see women having to give up work and get back into the kitchen so that their husbands could take over their jobs – something that did not necessarily sit well on some women – just see the effect of asinine domesticity on the female psyche in the TV series “Mad Men”.

Venus and Pluto are also about sexuality – maybe there will be nice juicy scandal to take our minds off the financial mess that’s going on right now?

Whatever comes to light over the next couple of months – lost things being found again – new truths emerging – big stories all – we can only wait and watch.

I am watching a wonderful two-part BBC Two programme on the history of religious music in Scotland. The development of a particular type of choral work, with its grace notes and flurries of great beauty, sung without accompaniment, seems to have been peculiar to Scottish churches during the early part of the 16th Century.

Then disaster struck – the music had to stop! No more singing! The written word became the way to God. And I knew at once that this was the influence of Pluto entering Capricorn – the Reformation had begun.

Now, for you assiduous readers of my column, you will see at once that the Church was the most powerful institution in 16th Century Europe, and that Pluto entered Capricorn at the time of the beginning of the Reformation. 

And so it is today – Pluto is once again repeating his sojourn in Capricorn and the most powerful institution is being reformed – but this time it’s the banks! Thus be thankful they don’t still burn people at the stake as they did then. And ask yourself this: what will be stopped – banned – by the authorities this time around? Remember, Capricorn is about corporate power…….

History is a wonderful study for understanding the patterns of human development flagged by the movement of the slow moving planets, with their huge long cycles.

This is an extremely intense period for Aquarians – the build up of planetary energy in your sign right now is nothing short of cosmic greed. Let someone else have them, and give yourselves a break!

Mercury has just re-entered, with Jupiter and the Moon Node, Mars, Chiron and Neptune – this gives a real whirlwind feeling and has you spinning on your heels. One good thing, though is that the recent spate of eclipses in your sign are over for another 18/19 years – so you can relax on that score. 

The Saturn/Uranus opposition has separated for a few months, which could ease some of the worse elements of this financial downturn. However, they will meet again by the end of 2009 and continue their face-off throughout 2010 – so it’s not over yet, folks!

I have just finished reading two books – I tend to read books in tandem, depending on my mood – it’s my mutable side!

The first is “A Secret History of the World” by Jonathan Black. This is a brick sized tome that is dense and  irritatingly written. The author has his reader up  and down rabbit holes and round and round labyrinths of confusion. However, if you hang in there, you will find some extraordinary ideas that have been taught throughout history to members of the various Secret Societies of the Western Tradition as the true  face of reality.

Many of the ideas are not new – we live in a culture where we can easily find out about Theosophy, the secrets of the Greeks and Romans, Gurdjieff and Ouspensky, for example – all we have to do is Google for the information. However, the beauty of this book is that Black takes us beyond the flat information we are usually fed that certain societies believed this or that nonsense – or alchemy was simply the forerunner of modern chemistry. He takes us into the mystery itself – and offers us a view of the world largely hidden from us by our materialist world view.

And, for Law of Attraction students, look no further than this book to gain a real understanding of how it all functions. That and a whole lot more!

The second book is “Eat, Pray, Love” by Elizabeth Gilbert. This is a delightful story of a young woman’s search for meaning in a New York kind of way. Her marriage ends, she suffers a New York Divorce, then follows a childhood dream and goes off to Rome to learn Italian and eat Italian food.

After she’s done that part, she’s off to Pray at her Guru’s Ashram in India – where she works hard and meditates a lot. She does have some genuine spiritual insights and it is this part that lifts the book out of the usual chick lit bracket into something else. It was my favourite part of the book, to be honest. Gilbert writes well and accessibly about the Ashram tradition and what it can mean for Westerners – and what it means for her in particular.

Then, she’s off to Love – in Bali, where she meets and explores the ways of the traditional healing culture there and happens, quite by ‘accident’, upon a lover.

Sounds like a romantic novel? Well, it is in a way, except it’s autobiographical -  and it’s more than that – it has wisdom, sadness and a huge dollop of heart. An easy read. Highly recommended.

You can buy these two books from Amazon by pressing on the pictures.

My colleague, Ann-Marie Caffrey, has spent 6 months developing a weight loss program based upon the Law of Attraction. I‘ll let her describe it in her own words:-

“Before I tell you all about it, did you know that statistically over 95% of all diets fail? Most people end up putting back on even more weight than they originally lost.

Ever thought about that in the context of Law of Attraction?? Suddenly, the reason over 95% of diets fail becomes very clear. We cannot push against our own desires and be successful long term. That’s a simple fact!

The real secret to losing weight (and keeping it off) is to turn the non-sensical ‘diet mentality’ on its head. This brand new program takes a totally different approach to weight loss. An approach that allows you eat what you want, when you want and still lose weight. Guaranteed!

Good news is it comes with a 60 day money back guarantee. If you have not lost weight after 8 weeks following this unique program, I will give you a full, no questions, asked refund.

Think about it – if diets haven’t worked in the past, this might just be the weight loss program that really works for you – and it’s effortless.

Remember, there’s NO risk. You have nothing to lose – except those excess pounds!”

You can go straight to the program now ‘Lose weight with the Law of Attraction‘ or read more about it by downloading this pdf file: Attract Weight Loss Document

If you haven’t already been sent this video do take a look now it lasts less than 2 minutes

Half way through something amazing happens.

Enjoy!

Dawne

“This article is used by permission from Ed Ludbrook’s free monthly

e-newsletter 100% Success available at www.edwardludbrook.com.”

Happy Chinese New Year!
 
They say that the 21st century will be the Chinese Century after the American 20th Century and British 19th Century.

If you live in Asia or where I do, you would not doubt it.

Many Westerners see this strategic reality as an enormous threat yet whatever you think, get used to it or, do as I do, embrace the whole concept as an exciting challenge.

I think of the British giving the world the legal, economic and administrative systems so important to cultured life.

I think of the Americans giving us the entrepreneurial managerial systems so important for wealth creation and life improvement.

I see the Chinese 21st century giving us the cultural, personal and family systems so important in an open and rapidly changing world. We can easily forget that the Chinese were developed peoples living in grand cities inventing technologies when our fore-fathers were in animal skins. They have learnt what is important in a world of change. 

Their lessons for us will always be based on ‘long term investment based on natural principles’ – Some lessons:

• Family is everything. We have lost sight of this so much in our modern open world and we wonder why we are having so many problems with our next generation. Their rule is that you do business with your family FIRST, or the business is not worth going into.
• Health is the base of all things. The Chinese will spend a fortune on natural health products. They laugh at our Western medicine philosophies. 
• Financial discipline is critical. They understand that this debt-spend binge of the West over the past decades will be our downfall. 
• Education is the base of all long term success. Their kids are taught to learn from day one.
• The greatest lesson the Chinese will teach the world is that you cannot force nature. Water will take the easiest downhill path. An extreme focus on beauty produces ugliness.

I welcome the Chinese Century. We, in the West, need their wisdom.   In fact, we need the wisdom that comes from all old cultures who have endured centuries of dramatic change, whether this comes from Sweden or Peru, Swaziland or Indonesia, Bulgaria or Mexico.

If you have any wisdom to send me from your culture, you bless me.

This is the year to build for the long term. To build it once so it lasts.

"This article is used by permission from Ed Ludbrook's free monthly 

e-newsletter 100% Success available at www.edwardludbrook.com."

NB – The readings below can either be read from your Sun Sign – ie your birthday – or your Ascendant sign, which is calculated from your time of birth. Try also reading it from your Moon Sign, as Hindu astrologers suggest. 

Don’t know your Moon Sign? Get your FREE Sun/Moon combination reading  and discover how your emotions impact with your ambitions to create your unique life path.  Just email me your birth date, time and place and I’ll email it back to you FREE!!! 

Important – Please note that during this month – February – there is an uncommon build up of planetary energies in Aquarius, including the Solar Eclipse  – which puts a huge emphasis on the Solar House that Aquarius occupies on your Solar Chart.

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Aries : 21st March – 20th April This emphasis falls in your Solar 11th House, bringing you many changes around the people, ideals and future prospects that you hold dear in your life – the things you live by, really. So, some of these may go through their own shifts and leave your life completely. wish them well and let them go. A parent may require help from you as well, so you’ll have to schedule in some quality time with them. This is an extremely busy time for you – it can bring about some cherished goal and really spur you on to making a real success of things – although, you may have to make concessions about some of your methods. You are looking to the future now – and it may not seem to be fitting an earlier ideal – that’s fine, as long as you don’t start stamping your foot – heated words and fiery confrontations could result and create more problems that they solve. Just take a deep breath and walk away. Start redesigning your next steps.

Read the rest…

There’s a lot going on for you this year, Aquarius: the entry of Jupiter, bringer of Joy, in your sign a couple of weeks ago can be a real confidence booster that will go a long way to alleviating some of the anxiety that Neptune has been stirring up over the last decade. Now obviously Neptune hasn’t been sitting still during this period – it has a 15 year stay in whichever sign it visits – so as it moves steadily  onwards, the following 5 year period will be for those whose birthdays are at the end of Aquarius – 12th-19th February.

The effects of Neptune can be confusing. However, for those more artistic creative, imaginative or mystical types it can open you up to visionary and intense spiritual experiences. Some people feel the quality of Love (with a capital ‘L’) flowing through your entire lives and can often make changes in your lifestyle and world view that will inform the way you approach reality and live your life forever. The confusion comes if you are identified with life being in a certain solid and unchanging way – when life becomes pliable and foggy life it can become uncomfortable until you widen your horizons to include all the new insights that are flowing in.

Jupiter doesn’t really make things happen, what it does though is to inject positivity into your psyche – and as those of you who are students of the Law of Attraction already know – a positive psyche attracts positive and life affirming experiences. So get ready for a real boost of expansive feelings – and as Jupiter is in your sign for 12 months – how good is that?

Read the rest…