By: Michael

The search for meaning and purpose in one’s life

Astrology is the study of cycles, whether chronologically through time and space, developmentally in our respective and collective spheres of experience, or in the cycles and Path(s) of our Souls in their evolution for the advancement of Self and All. These first two areas are covered by the general study of exoteric, or traditional astrology which we can also call personality-based astrology. This type of astrology addresses the wants of the ego as in “When will I win/inherit a million dollars?” “When will I meet the love of my life?”, etc., whereas the latter part addressing Soul is the area for Esoteric or Soul-centered astrology. This is the type of astrology that answers, “what is my Purpose?” and, “why am I here?” as well as giving one the understanding of one’s place within the greater collective.

Before going any farther, we need to address some definitions, so we are all on the same page. Soul, Esoteric and Consciousness are words that are thrown around a lot these days as there is more awareness of and interest in these expanded areas of life.

The internet defines Soul as:

• the spiritual or immaterial part of a human being or animal, regarded as immortal.
• a person’s moral or emotional nature or sense of identity.
• emotional or intellectual energy or intensity, especially as revealed in a work of art or an artistic performance..
• the essence or embodiment of a specified quality.

Alice Bailey, one of the major voices in and founder of Esoteric Theosophy, of which Esoteric astrology is but a part, has an extensive answer to what is the Soul which can be found by clicking the following link to the Lucis Trust: Click here – Lucis Trust online

Wiktionary defines Esoteric as:
“Intended for or likely to be understood by only a small number of people with a specialized knowledge or interest, or an enlightened inner circle.” One can also consider its synonyms to be occult, secretive and arcane.

Miriam Webster defines Consciousness as:

1. a: the quality or state of being aware especially of something within oneself
   b: the state or fact of being conscious of an external object, state, or fact
   c: awareness; especially: concern for some social or political cause
2. The state of being characterized by sensation, emotion, volition, and thought : mind
3. The totality of conscious states of an individual
4. The normal state of conscious life -regained consciousness
5. The upper level of mental life of which the person is aware as contrasted with unconscious processes

Caveat: Consciousness and Love are one in the same.

Consciousness is in everything; therefore Love is in everything -as everything is of the One. Conscious awareness is earned and cultivated. While one who may have “less” consciousness than another, this is not an issue of value. A person with more consciousness is not better than or of more value than one operating with less consciousness. I consider consciousness to be something like a spiral staircase, with each of us at different steps or levels along the great spiral of existence. Those on a step that is above another has the responsibility in relationships -as they are the ones who are typically more aware. The more conscious you are, the more you understand that the work you do on yourself is not solely for yourself, but for the evolving improvement of the collective. Most importantly, consciousness is not a polarity issue, and therefore has no reference to good/bad, black/white, female/male, fat/skinny, me/you, us/them -because all polarities swim and exist in the Singular pool of One Consciousness. We have simply forgotten who we are when we don’t act for our highest good or for the highest good of others. In a way, it is about remembering who we truly are, isn’t it?

After reading the definitions for these three words Soul, Esoteric and Consciousness, you can easily perceive that this is a rarified area of exploration, confusion and enlightenment. While everyone has a Soul and everyone is likely to have some Esoteric aspects in their belief systems, not everyone is focused on this. Why? If one is dealing with survival for one’s self and one’s family, there is likely not be much time to devote to these less than material areas of our lives. A friend of mine provides hand analysis to people, which reveals their life’s purpose. She has told me that only 20% of people are even interested in learning their life’s purpose! This would imply that roughly 80% of the population are pretty much dealing with the ego/personality based aspects of life such as career, status, relationship, quality of life and pursuit of happiness from a materially-based frame of reference. This percentage of the population want a reading that is focused on these diurnal, or day time areas and themes of life. They are going to want to know the timing for their careers, relationships, finances. The esoteric, or soul-oriented individuals are going to be more nocturnal in their questions. They will to want to know things like “When will I be awakened?” or “When will I have my dark night of the Soul?” or “How can I release the traumas in my past to open the door for who I am and why I am here?”

For Astrologers

Astrologers are no different than someone from the general population in that each is going to have an expression of consciousness somewhere along a continuum of awareness. The astrologer’s job is to determine the level of consciousness at which the client is operating. This is possible for an astrologer who has more conscious awareness than her/his client, but not for an astrologer who is trying to read someone who is farther along the Path of Awakening than the astrologer.

When a client contacts you to do a soul centered reading, you are more than likely going to be working with someone who is seeing experiences and self operating in a complex and elaborate dance which does have meaning and purpose in an ever-unfolding process of Selfhood. What do you do with your other clients who do not ask for such a reading? First of all, what is the level or quality of clients who are coming to you? Are you drawing people of consciousness asking the deeper questions in Life or are you drawing clients who are caught up in the hooks and maya glamour of a personality-focused life? Secondly, you can do what I call “sounding”(yes, like the word for ascertaining the depth of water); asking questions in such a way as illicit answers that express your client’s level of understanding and Consciousness. These are most easily expressed around traumatic experiences and how the client has not only dealt with the issues, but how s/he understands the traumatic event in the greater context of life and experience. Just finding out whether the client sees crisis and trauma as punishment or opportunities for growth will tell you a lot.

For those attracted to the Path seeking an Esoteric reading and/or Teacher

Astrologers are no different than someone from the general population in that each is going to have an expression of consciousness somewhere along a continuum of awareness. One should pick an astrologer like one picks a therapist or a best friend; you need to trust and believe in the person. The astrologer should treat you with respect and not cast any negativity into your understanding of yourself, but rather plant seeds and guide you in ways to remind you of your Divinity and perfection. Reading astrologer’s blogs and books is a good way to feel into them as well as listening or watching one of their lectures.

Some important points of which to be aware:

1. How do you “feel” when you read, listen to or watch the astrologer in action?
   1. You ought to feel energized, uplifted and seen.
   2. If you feel down, more anxious or any other less than desirable feeling -ask yourself why?
2. The reading should resonate with your general understanding of yourself
   1. Pointing out the areas in your life which you know cause you problems, where you get stuck and some tools for you to create healthier expressions
   2. Revealing your easily accessible traits and tendencies and how to use them for your highest good
   3. Showing you where you will experience challenges between your ego and Soul and the tools to create improved communication between these parts of yourself.
3. Do you find the astrologer’s narrative relatable to you or is the reading many stories about the astrologer?

There is much to learn on the Path. Most of us have to go through learning from a teacher or guru (sanskrit word for Jupiter) where we give all of our power away to learn that the power is within us. This is a polarity or opposition at work, right? When one steps onto the Path, one may feel as though one’s glass of Faith or Understanding is empty while the teacher’s glass must, “of course” be full. This is not necessarily the case, but allows us to be in relationship to the questions that arise at this level of understanding.

This is a large topic and has as many wormholes as the Universe. I look forward to continuing the conversation in future writings and talks.

May Love fill your heart and bless us One and All,

Michael