Astrology and Awakening

Gina Lake
www.radicalhappiness.com
www.endless-satsang.com
ginalakenow@aol.com

Copyright © 2008 by Gina Lake

I. The Relationship of the Chart to Awakening.....................................2

II. What the Astrology Chart Represents

The Personality Costume for this Lifetime……………………………6

Talents and Weaknesses………...……………………………………..8

Psychological and Past-Life Issues…………………………………....9

Life Purpose…………………………………………………………..11

The Timing of the Unfolding of the Life Plan………………………..14

III. Appendix: The Signs of Astrology…………………………………16

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 The Relationship of the Chart to Awakening

The astrology chart is the picture of the sky at the time of someone’s
birth. Any number of people could be born at that time in the same location,
so many can and do have the same or nearly the same chart. Twins and other
multiples are examples of people born with the same or nearly the same
chart. However, multiples can be as different as night and day and have very
different life experiences. So, the chart alone can’t be an indicator of
whether or not this is a lifetime in which someone will awaken. This is
because the chart doesn’t describe the person’s level of consciousness, or
spiritual evolution, and the level of spiritual evolution does relate to
awakening. The chart only describes the personality and psychological
costume and conditioning for this lifetime, not the soul, although it does
represent the soul’s intentions and goals for this lifetime. The soul chooses
the chart and clothes itself in it, but the soul itself and the age of the soul is
not described in the chart.
Not everyone is meant to awaken in this lifetime. Most are meant to
do exactly what they are doing—learning and growing from whatever they
are involved with. Those who are meant to awaken, however, are likely to be
born with charts that emphasize certain astrological signs. Certain signs or
the planets that rule them are bound to be strong in the chart. These signs are
Scorpio, Pisces, and Aquarius; and the planets that rule them are Pluto,
Neptune, and Uranus respectively. Sagittarius, because it rules higher
consciousness and spiritual understanding, and its ruler, Jupiter, are also

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often strong in the charts of those who are to awaken in this lifetime. When
there is no such emphasis, the life is likely to revolve around other interests
and activities, and that is as it should be. These individuals won’t show an
interest in spiritual growth or awakening. It won’t be something they long
for or even think about.
Another commonality in the charts of those who awaken is stressful
aspects between planets that create challenging circumstances, particularly
early on in life. Such circumstances drive us to seek understanding and
healing, which lead to wisdom and the skills to help others transform their
difficulties into gifts. Those who will awaken in this lifetime are old souls
who know how to transform the worst of conditions into learning, growth,
wisdom, and other gifts. They have the inner resources for overcoming their
difficulties and coming out all the better for them. Their own journey gives
them the compassion and inspiration to dedicate themselves to helping
others in some way that relates to what they have been through. This is
almost universally true for those who have come here to serve, whether it is
a lifetime in which they awaken or not.
Another common trait in the charts of those who may awaken in this
lifetime is configurations of planets that indicate highly developed gifts.
Grand trines, kite formations, and stelliums often indicate gifts developed in
previous lifetimes and therefore an old soul. However, whether it is that old
soul’s lifetime to awaken remains to be seen. These configurations can
indicate profound talents or lesser ones.
More and more people are awakening than ever before in history. This
is because many of them are advanced souls who have come to the earth
from other dimensions to serve it and help it evolve quickly. They’ve come
to bring in new ideas and technologies and raise the level of consciousness

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on this planet because this is what is needed to ensure that humanity will
survive into the future. These advanced souls don’t need to be here for their
own growth but have volunteered to be here. They are awakening now
because it’s time for them to awaken. Until now, they have been busy having
the experience of being human, which has been necessary for them to be
able to relate to the issues and difficulties of being human and of these times.
Fortunately, it isn’t necessary for you to know your chart to awaken,
no more than it is necessary to know your chart to fulfill your life purpose.
You are likely to experience and do whatever you are meant to experience
and do because you will feel the drives represented in your chart and follow
them. However, because you are likely to have conflicting drives and
because you have other conditioning, you may hesitate to follow these drives
or not fulfill them in the most meaningful way. That is where astrology
comes in: it can help you trust your intuition and drives and follow your
Heart rather than the egoic mind. The Heart is what leads you to your
destiny and ultimately to happiness and fulfillment.
The greatest happiness in life comes from doing what we came here to
do, whatever that may be. When we don’t, we feel unhappy, depressed, and
apathetic. Life lacks meaning. Doing what we came here to do, on the other
hand, feels exciting, energizing, and inspiring. What keeps most people
from doing what makes their Heart sing is “shoulds” and other ideas they
have about what their life is supposed to look like. Those who have destinies
that are unusual or not focused on making money often have difficulty
trusting that what they want to do—what they are driven to do—is
worthwhile, and there are usually plenty of people in their life willing to tell
them that it isn’t if it seems impractical or incapable of producing wealth.
The values of the ego and of this culture run counter to happiness, so it’s no

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wonder so few people are actually happy, no matter how wealthy and
successful they are.
Because astrology describes the life plan and the needs and drives that
must be followed to unfold it, it’s an unparalleled tool for understanding
what will fulfill you and make you happy. It confirms and supports what you
already know to be true but what you may have difficulty following because
of conditioning. Those who are already awake don’t generally need this kind
of confirmation because being awake means being aligned with the life plan.
When you are awake, essence, or your deepest Self, lives your life, not the
ego and its conditioning. When you are awake, the chart continues to
function as the costume for this lifetime, but this costume is being used by
essence rather than by the ego. Nevertheless, shortly after awakening and
sometimes lasting for years afterwards, many experience the further
unraveling of their conditioning, in which case astrological understanding
and some healing work can be helpful.
In depicting where healing is needed, the astrology chart is relevant to
awakening because healing is relevant to awakening. Our conditioning and
unhealed issues and the negativity they generate keep us tied to the egoic
mind and its values and agenda, which can never bring true happiness. The
more healed we are and the more positive a mind we have, the easier it is to
move into alignment with essence, our true Self, and stay there for longer
periods of time.
Being aligned with essence is the goal of the spiritual path and this is
what happens after awakening. But the process of learning to live from
essence can be a slow one, as conditioning that is still identified with has the
power to keep us tied to the egoic mind. The more lightly we hold our
conditioning, the freer we are and the more we express essence naturally in

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our life. Astrology is a blueprint of the conditioning and the personality we
have been given in this lifetime. In order to overcome our conditioning and
have essence express itself through our personality, it helps to be aware of
what our conditioning is and how essence would express our particular
personality.

The Chart as the Personality Costume for this Lifetime

The soul chooses the moment of birth because it provides it with

imprinting (conditioning) that will suit its lessons and goals for that lifetime.
The planets don’t cause the imprinting but merely reflect the energy of that
moment, just as anything born at that moment reflects the energy of that
moment. Astrology provides a means for reading the energy of the moment
and therefore the personality imprinting. This imprinting shapes and drives
choices. It creates tendencies to behave in certain ways, but it doesn’t
determine choices or specific behavior. What you choose based on these
drives and tendencies is up to you, but the imprinting makes certain choices
more likely than others.
The signs that are strongest in the chart reflect drives, needs, and
tendencies to respond to life in certain ways. They represent ways of being
in the world, values, and a particular point of view or lens through which we
see the world. The soul gets to have a unique experience as a result of this
imprinting, and this imprinting also makes it likely that the soul will have
certain types of experiences and develop and use certain talents. What the
individual will specifically experience or how the talents will be used is not
predestined but up to free will. We do have free will, although how free it
actually is, given that we are highly programmed to behave certain ways, is

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debatable. When we are caught up in our conditioning and deeply identified
with the egoic mind, we don’t feel like we have much free will at all. We
respond automatically to our conditioning, without questioning it or
realizing that we could respond differently.
The personality is complex and often fraught with contradictory
drives and tendencies, as represented by the different signs. Nearly everyone
has a variety of signs that are strong in the chart, many of which are very
different from each other. This makes for inner confusion, inner stalemating,
inner tension, and self-judgment, which all beg for resolution. Conflicting
signs require effort and attention to manage and integrate, and they often
result in gifts once they are integrated. These inner conflicts and tensions
drive us to develop in certain ways. They are ultimately productive, although
uncomfortable.
Nearly everyone is a mix of fire, air, earth, and water signs. Although
a few people have only one sign strong in their charts, most of us have a
combination of the signs. Fire signs (Sagittarius, Aries, and Leo) give the
personality independence, courage, forcefulness, strength, leadership,
energy, and a drive for self-expression. Earth signs (Capricorn, Taurus, and
Virgo) give the personality practicality, caution, responsibility, reliability,
and a drive for security, safety, and productivity. Water signs (Scorpio,
Pisces, and Cancer) give the personality intuition, empathy, sensitivity to
others, compassion, and a drive to care for and merge with others. Air signs
(Gemini, Libra, and Aquarius) give the personality mental agility,
objectivity, tolerance, and an interest in people, ideas, and information.
Your personality is going to reflect the signs in your chart. It will also
be influenced by your gender, upbringing, environment, past lives, and other
esoteric factors, which are also part of your conditioning. The chart isn’t the

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only influence on the personality. If it were, then multiples would have the
same personalities and make many of the same choices. Past lives and soul
age have an enormous impact on how the chart is expressed. For instance, if
someone hasn’t been a Pisces before, he or she will have difficulty
expressing the positive traits of that sign, even if he or she is adept at
expressing other signs. In general, old souls are likely to express the positive
traits of the signs (except possibly in their youth), while younger souls are
more likely to express the negative traits of the signs.

Talents and Weaknesses

One of the values of astrology is that it pinpoints talents and

weaknesses, which might interfere with developing those talents or be
problematic in other ways. The talents and weaknesses are described in part
by the signs that are strongest in the chart. The talents or qualities of a sign
taken to the extreme are often its weaknesses. Libras, for instance, are
skilled at relationships because they love being in relationship. But because
they love relationships, they often give themselves away to others in order to
be pleasing and maintain harmony. Another example is Aries, which is
courageous, bold, and independent, but when these qualities are taken to the
extreme, Aries can be foolhardy, impulsive, uncompromising, and
insensitive to the needs of others. The negatives of the signs are reflections
of the sign’s gifts and positive tendencies but applied inappropriately or too
strongly.
Because of this, certain lessons are likely with each of the signs. To
access the gifts of a sign, its expression will have to be refined so that the
negatives don’t interfere. This evolution from negative expression to

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positive expression happens naturally as a result of life, which teaches us to
refine our behavior and responses. Our expression of the signs in our chart
evolves because we meet the consequences of the negative expression. Older
souls are more skillful at expressing the signs in their chart, although when
they are children or under stress, the negative side of their signs is likely to
show, at least to some extent.
Knowledge is empowering. When you know your weaknesses, you
are less likely to indulge in them. Knowledge allows for the possibility of
choice—of choosing whether to respond automatically in a negative way or
not. Without some self-understanding, we are somewhat at the mercy of our
conditioning and respond to it without feeling we have a choice. Just
knowing that we have a choice makes choosing possible. Although we are
conditioned to behave in certain negative ways, we don’t have to once we
are aware of that conditioning. Knowing what our talents are is also
empowering because this gives us confidence to use them and develop them
further.
Talents and weaknesses are also shown in the angles between the
planets. Past-life talents are shown by the harmonious aspects, and past-life
weaknesses are shown by the stressful aspects. The aspects between the
planets provide meaningful and deep psychological information as well as
information about challenges we are likely to encounter that are intended for
our growth.

Psychological and Past-Life Issues

The hero in this journey, which you call your life, is armed with
talents and other resources to accomplish the life purpose, but this hero is

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also saddled with challenges to overcome before that goal can be
accomplished. These challenges hone the hero’s skills, and develop
character and wisdom, all of which prepare the hero for what he or she came
here to do. Many of the challenges you face, as this hero, are psychological,
although some come in the form of situations and events. The psychological
challenges and the challenging situations and events you will face in this
lifetime are described in the chart.
Everyone’s chart represents a number of challenges, both
psychological and otherwise. These strengthen us and develop us in ways
like nothing else can. In fact, those who accomplish the most in life usually
have many stressful aspects in their chart, indicating inner and outer
challenges. While the ego’s goal is to have no challenges, that is not the
soul’s goal, which gladly takes on challenges for their ability to evolve us.
The psychological challenges that are represented in the chart reflect either
challenging early circumstances, which wounded us emotionally, or
traumatic events in our previous lifetimes, which still haunt us. In either
case, healing is needed to transform these issues into gifts. The hero’s story
has a happy ending: the challenge is overcome with effort, perseverance,
courage, faith, and cleverness, and so this can be everyone’s story as well.
We are all here to turn our challenges into victories and in so doing develop
the qualities of faith, persistence, wisdom, patience, courage, and so many
others.
Each of the planets represents challenges when that planet is
stressfully aspected. A badly aspected Sun represents difficulties with
courage, self-expression, and one’s sense of individuality and power and
effectiveness in the world. A badly aspected Moon represents wounding of
the nurturing bound, hypersensitive emotions (taking things personality and

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a lack of objectivity), and indulgence in or repression of emotions. A badly
aspected Mercury indicates a problem with thinking and communicating:
talking too much, talking too little, difficulty expressing oneself in words,
fear of expressing oneself, an unpleasant or off-putting way of
communicating, or a learning or speech problem. A badly aspected Mars
indicates problems with motivation, drive, and self-assertion: not asserting
oneself enough, asserting oneself in a way that is hurtful or irritating to
others, not knowing what you want, not going after what you want, or being
ruthless about going after what you want. A badly aspected Venus has
problems with love and relationship: giving too much, not giving enough,
withholding love, fear of relationship, or idealizing love and relationship.
Being aware of our psychological issues is the first step in
overcoming them. Without awareness, psychological issues tend to shape
our life in predictable ways. For example, if you are afraid of loving and
being loved, you will avoid relationship or have the same kind of difficulties
whenever you are in a relationship until you heal this issue. Fortunately, life
has a way of bringing us the situations and people we need to heal our
issues, but there are also many therapies and other healing technologies
available these days that can speed up our evolution. You don’t have to wait
for life to evolve you; you can become a more active participant in your own
evolution by becoming more aware of your issues.

Life Purpose

Everyone has a life purpose, and the life purpose can be seen, in a
general way, in the chart. There are many types of life purposes. Some relate
to the career and some don’t. Many people have a life purpose that relates to

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learning some lesson or developing a quality, such as patience or tolerance
of others, in which case their life purpose may not be apparent to them or to
others.
When we think of a life purpose, we often imagine something
important or glamorous, but only a few have life purposes that put them in
the limelight. Most people have life purposes that are personally meaningful
but may not have an obvious impact on the collective. Of course, everything
we do does affect everything else, so what we do is ultimately significant
and meaningful, even if not recognized by the collective. The good news is
that whatever your life purpose is, no matter how simple it may be, fulfilling
it will bring you fulfillment and give your life a sense of meaning. In fact,
doing anything other than your life purpose will not bring you fulfillment.
You can’t be fulfilled by someone else’s life purpose—only by yours.
The life purpose can be read in the chart by those who know how to
read this. A number of factors point to it, but one factor in particular
represents it, and that is the North Node. The house and sign of the North
Node generally define the area of life that the life purpose is involved with
and the traits or qualities you will use and develop while fulfilling it. The
North Node in the ninth house, for instance, represents a life task that
involves higher education, law, foreign countries or people, or gaining and
communicating spiritual, religious or philosophical understanding. If the
North Node is in the sign Aquarius, these teachings will be new and cutting
edge or technology might figure strongly into the life purpose. For instance,
the person might use the internet to disseminate his or her spiritual beliefs.
An astrologer can’t know exactly how someone with the North Node
in the ninth house in Aquarius is meant to express this, but in talking to the
person, the astrologer discovers how that person may already be expressing

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this or how he or she is drawn to expressing it. Exactly how the life purpose
will be carried out isn’t predetermined. The soul, or essence, has to play it by
ear, using the available opportunities and resources to fulfill its intent. The
person will be drawn to the life purpose by various means by which essence
reveals itself: through the intuition, inspiration, urges to act, drives in a
particular direction, and messages and opportunities presented by others.
Everyone feels their life purpose. They feel inspired to move toward
it, and life makes it easy to move toward it and not easy to move away from
it. Nearly everyone fulfills their life purpose in some way; however, certain
ways of fulfilling it will be more meaningful than others. The more tuned
into your intuition you are, the more likely you are to fulfill your life
purpose in the most meaningful way. Having some sense of what your life
purpose is increases the likelihood that you will fulfill it in a more
meaningful way. Astrology gives you many clues to what your life purpose
is so that you can feel more trusting of the intuitive guidance you receive.
Everyone’s life purpose unfolds in its own time. Most life purposes
take nearly a lifetime to acquire the skills and experience that allow it to be
carried out. As a result, most life purposes aren’t fulfilled until later in life.
And yet, we often have a sense of our life purpose decades earlier. The sense
of it is what drives us to fulfill it, but having a sense of it long before it is
fulfilled can cause us to feel impatient and frustrated. The wheels of life
move much more slowly than our egos would like. The ego can’t see the
whole picture or what is required to do something well. Essence, on the
other hand, designs life perfectly to gather all the wisdom and skills we need
to do our life purpose well. Astrology can give you a sense of the timing of
the unfolding of your life purpose as well as the timing of certain lessons
and experiences. This can help you accept that life is unfolding perfectly,

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which can counteract the impatience of the ego and any negative stories it
creates that cause you to feel frustrated or unsuccessful.

The Timing of the Unfolding of the Life Plan

The transits and progressions activate the natal chart and bring about
its potential. They bring about the challenges and opportunities that shape
life. As they say, there is a time for everything, and the transits and
progressions to the natal chart describe what it is a time for and how long
that will last until it’s time for something else. The ego doesn’t have a sense
of this timing. It has its own ideas about what it is time for, and this causes
suffering. The ego wants everything it wants right now. It lacks the wisdom
to understand the bigger picture, or even the ability to see that there is one.
But there is a bigger picture—a plan (although a general one), and this plan
has its own timing. Certain experiences and lessons need to precede others.
The plan unfolds intelligently and wisely according to what is needed, and
this plan can’t be hurried.
The plan can be sabotaged, however, by the ego, which resists the
experiences that are part of the plan. Our experiences are there for a reason.
If we don’t learn what we need to learn from them, then we will have to
learn some other way. Life continues to bring us experiences until we get
what is intended from them. We can take as long as we want to learn from
our experiences. Accepting them and trusting that they hold something
valuable for us ensures that we will learn what we need to from them.
Resisting our experiences or feeling victimized by them will only delay our
growth and the further unfolding of our plan.

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 The transits of the various planets bring us very different experiences.
Transits of Jupiter bring us opportunities, easy growth, benefits, expansion,
good karma, and blessings. Transits of Saturn, on the other hand, bring us
challenges, limitations, and hard work. These challenges and limitations
make us stronger and develop qualities like perseverance, practicality, and
responsibility. They teach us to manage material and physical matters.
Transits of Uranus bring new insights, new ideas, higher consciousness, and
possibly awakening. They make us restless to break out of restrictive
structures, to be free, to be the individual we were meant to be, to be the
unique self that we are. Transits of Neptune dissolve the ego and connect us
more fully to essence, to the Oneness. They dash our illusions and bring us
back to what is Real and true. They open up our Hearts and our compassion
and our desire to serve. Transits of Pluto often bring loss or some crisis,
which transforms us or our life in some way. After a transit of Pluto, we are
never the same, something has fundamentally and permanently changed—
some structure in our life, a relationship, a way of being, or an attitude.
The transits of Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto move us into new levels of
consciousness, and are particularly active during awakening or leading up to
it. They break the hold of the egoic mind and move us into greater alignment
with essence. They redeem us from the suffering of the ego, but the process
is sometimes painful, as the ego resists change and the dissolution of itself. It
doesn’t give up its hold easily. When we are undergoing such a transit, the
spiritual understanding that astrology provides can help us trust the
experience we are having and see that it is positive and leading to greater
spiritual freedom and happiness.

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 Appendix: The Signs of Astrology

Note: If you wish to study astrology further, a good place to start is Skye Alexander’s
Planets in Signs and Linda Goodman’s classic book: Sun Signs. For a more serious study of
astrology, any books by the following authors are recommended: Tracy Marks, Stephen
Arroyo, Liz Greene, Howard Sasportas, Robert Hand, Maritha Pottenger, Steven Forrest,
and Marion March and Joan Mc Evers. Appreciation goes to Tracy Marks for allowing me
to use some of her material in the following descriptions of the signs.

ARIES

Needs: freedom, independence, initiative, self-assertion, discovery, leadership, to pioneer,

to protect the weak, to champion a cause, to be first

Positive expression: initiating, pioneering, enterprising, direct, straightforward,

spontaneous, self-directed, self-motivated, self-reliant, independent, individualistic,
confident, a leader, risk-taking, courageous, active, energetic, dynamic, outgoing,
assertive, confrontative, passionate, creative, inspiring, expressive

Negative expression: impulsive, hasty, impatient, lacks follow-through, headstrong,

pushy, uncooperative, rash, reckless, careless, foolhardy, competitive, domineering,
restless, over-active, aggressive, argumentative, combative, pushy, quick-tempered,
egocentric, self-absorbed

Needs to learn: patience, cooperation, conservation of energy, completion

TAURUS

Needs: sensual pleasures, beauty, comfort, security, money and material possessions, to be
productive

Positive expression: loyal, affectionate, practical, honors tradition, conserving, self-

sufficient, productive, hard-working, knows how to make money, resourceful,
managerial, patient, persistent, strong-willed, determined, stable, steady, reliable, artistic,
easygoing, gentle, sensual, pleasure-loving

Negative expression: possessive, jealous, attached, acquisitive, materialistic, stingy,

greedy, security-oriented, ultraconservative, conformist, conventional, unoriginal,
unspiritual, slow, plodding, stubborn, obstinate, unchanging, dull, boring, lazy, self-
indulgent, hedonistic, gluttonous

Needs to learn: detachment, flexibility, a true sense of values

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 GEMINI

Needs: to know, to learn, to communicate, to teach, to write, to move about, to make

contact with people and the environment

Positive expression: adaptable, versatile, jack of all trades, many interests, lively, agile,
quick, alert, dexterous, sociable, congenial, tolerant, curious, logical, rational, scientific,
knowledgeable, verbal, articulate, eloquent, clever, amusing, witty

Negative expression: scattered, dabbling, superficial, two-faced, changeable, unreliable,

uncommitted, fickle, ambivalent, inconsistent, flighty, nervous, restless, high-strung,
lacking concentration, involved with trivia, imitative, overly logical, rationalizing,
unfeeling, detached, shallow, unphilosophical, lacking purpose or depth of understanding,
talks too much, chit chats, gossipy, manipulative, cunning, dishonest

Needs to learn: discrimination, to focus the mind

CANCER

Needs: to give and receive nurturing, roots, home, family, financial and emotional security

Positive expression: maternal, nurturing, protective, nourishing, helpful, sensitive, soft-

hearted, deeply feeling, psychic, intuitive, loyal, devoted, tenacious, domestic, family-
oriented, honors the past, self-protective, reserved, cautious, thrifty, conservative

Negative expression: smothering, suffocating, possessive, overly emotional, moody,

hypersensitive, easily hurt, maudlin, overly sentimental, overly impressionable, needy,
loses self in others, clinging, parasitic, dependent, passive, clannish, stay-at-home,
provincial, clings to the past, secretive, withdrawn, martyr, self-pitying

Needs to learn: objectivity, independence

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 LEO

Needs: ego expansion, independence, recognition, authority, admiration, leadership,

self-expression, creativity, love

Positive expression: confident, self-assured, strong, independent, dignified, charismatic,

capable of managing and leading, commanding, powerful, determined, strong-willed,
generous, benevolent, magnanimous, affectionate, warm, loyal, faithful, romantic,
playful, spontaneous, fun-loving, entertaining, dramatic, creative, self-expressive

Negative expression: egocentric, self-important, arrogant, snobbish, dominating, power-

mad, overbearing, bossy, extravagant, indulgent, womanizing, needs excessive love and
admiration, self-indulgent, childish, incapable of being serious, melodramatic, show-off,
ostentatious, must be the center of attention

Needs to learn: humility, cooperation, adaptability

VIRGO

Needs: to be efficient and useful, serve, heal others, analyze, discriminate, organize, attend
to details, do things well

Positive expression: exacting, methodical, detail-oriented, orderly, organized,

meticulous, systematic, efficient, diligent, industrious, thorough, devoted to work and
service, responsible, dependable, conscientious, studious, mentally sharp, discriminating,
analytical, modest, unassuming, humble, helpful, health-conscious

Negative expression: picky, finicky, petty, fussy, overly fastidious, perfectionistic,

always busy, workaholic, cannot relax, hypercritical, self-critical, nagging, intolerant,
prudish, overly analytical, worrying, anxious, negative, complaining, timid, self-
deprecating, servile, subservient, submissive, hypochondriac, food fanatic

Needs to learn: tolerance of imperfections in oneself and others, lightheartedness

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 LIBRA

Needs: partnership, beauty, balance, justice, harmony, peace

Positive expression: relationship-oriented, sociable, cooperating, mediating, pleasing,

agreeable, likeable, charming, hospitable, diplomatic, tactful, peace-loving, harmonious,
poised, elegant, refined, artistic, good taste, strong aesthetic sense, cultured, beauty-
conscious, sees all sides, fair, just, idealistic

Negative expression: other-oriented, dependent, overly accommodating, placating,

compliant, overemphasizing appearances, vain, superficial, vacillating, indecisive, unable
to accept reality

Needs to learn: decisiveness, independence, self-assertion

SCORPIO

Needs: self-mastery, power, control, self-transformation, intimacy, to explore and uncover

what is hidden or esoteric, psychological and metaphysical understanding

Positive expression: deeply feeling, intense, passionate, strong, courageous, loyal,

effective in emergencies, determined, strong-willed, persevering, self-disciplined, self-
controlled, thorough, penetrating, probing, investigating, resourceful, profound,
insightful, magnetic, mysterious, self-protective, reserved, capable of psychological and
spiritual transformation

Negative expression: overly intense, morbid, brooding, lustful, violent, possessive,

jealous, unforgiving, resentful, revengeful, willful, unyielding, obsessive, controlling,
extremist, ruthless, manipulative, scheming, exploitative, secretive, cruel, destructive,
subversive, judgmental, repressed

Needs to learn: forgiveness, letting go, sharing, correct use of power

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 SAGITTARIUS

Needs: independence, freedom, growth, improvement, goals, understanding, meaning,

philosophy or belief system, travel, exploration

Positive expression: purposeful, goal-directed, aspiring, seeking meaning and

understanding, philosophical, having faith, optimistic, prophetic, future-oriented,
idealistic, open-minded, self-improving, wise, profound, discerning, enlightened, well-
read, inspirational, guiding, teaching, ethical, principled, generous, openhearted, direct,
frank, truthful, likeable, jovial, enthusiastic, happy-go-lucky, carefree, exploring,
freedom-loving, outdoorsy

Negative expression: impractical, unrealistic, blindly optimistic, overly abstract,

didactic, long-winded, dogmatic, moralistic, intolerant, preachy, hypocritical, blunt,
tactless, outspoken, wasteful, extravagant, exaggerating, careless, irresponsible,
unreliable, overextended, restless, wanderlust, cannot tolerate restrictions

Needs to learn: tolerance, moderation, sensitivity, tact, responsibility

CAPRICORN

Needs: structure, control, leadership, responsibility, achievement, power, recognition,

status, security

Positive expression: serious, fatherly, earnest, reserved, realistic, practical, thrifty,

cautious, prudent, controlled, self-disciplined, self-sufficient, self-reliant, stoical,
persistent, persevering, responsible, reliable, scrupulous, dutiful, adheres to rules,
diligent, hard-working, achieving, ambitious, enterprising, successful, powerful,
managerial, executive capability

Negative expression: pessimistic, gloomy, brooding, cynical, materialistic, stingy,

fearful, distrustful, overly cautious, closed, repressed, inhibited, rigid, misanthropic,
insensitive, cruel, cold, harsh, conservative, ultra-conventional, obsessed with
rules/formalities, perfectionistic, status-seeking, power-hungry, calculating, authoritarian,
domineering, exploitative

Needs to learn: sociability, kindness, flexibility, lightheartedness

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 AQUARIUS

Needs: brotherhood, freedom, independence, individualism, group involvement, equality,

friendship, community, new knowledge, change, to invent, to reform

Positive expression: intellectual, scientific, friendly, humanitarian, kind, tolerant, open-

minded, unprejudiced, progressive, reformist, idealistic, politically active, independent,
individualistic, unconventional, innovative, inventive, original, unique, unusual, intuitive,
determined, strong will

Negative expression: coolly logical, impersonal, detached, aloof, remote, radical,

revolutionary, utopian, impractical, rebellious, contrary, unpredictable, erratic, eccentric,
bizarre, shocking, intolerant of rules and restraint, lawless, uncommitted

Needs to learn: to be intimate and personal

PISCES

Needs: transcendence, serenity, spirituality, ideal love, beauty, emotional closeness,

privacy, to serve others

Positive expression: flexible, going with the flow, surrendering, agreeable, easy to
please, mellow, accepting, tolerant, forgiving, trusting, gentle, kind, sensitive, psychic,
intuitive, sympathetic, compassionate, unselfish, giving, sacrificing, devotional, humble,
unpretentious, introspective, imaginative, creative, inspired, musical, poetic, spiritual,
transcendent, inspirational, mystical, idealistic, visionary

Negative expression: directionless, lost, easily influenced, overly impressionable,

undiscriminating, soft, weak, submissive, unassertive, timid, easily hurt, oversensitive,
martyr, overly sacrificing, dependent, parasitic, meek, cowardly, weak-willed, self-
deprecating, self-pitying, easily victimized, evasive, indirect, devious, deceptive, escapist,
daydreaming, impractical, unrealistic, deluded, spacey, confused, drug or alcohol
addicted

Needs to learn: responsibility, perseverance, independence, self-assertion

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About Gina Lake: After having a spiritual awakening in 1999, Gina Lake has dedicated
herself to helping others discover their true nature and uncover and heal whatever
interferes with doing that through counseling, intensives, and writing. Gina has a Masters
degree in Counseling Psychology and over twenty years experience as an astrologer and a
channel, with a focus on helping people find and fulfill their life purpose. She is the
author of seven books about awakening.

ABOUT CONSULTATIONS

Gina Lake offers two types of consultations: an astrological consultation or a channeled

session. Their goal is to help you understand yourself and whatever programming
interferes with awakening to your true nature and living the life you were meant to live.

Astrology for Awakening

You are the Self (the Divine) in disguise! And what a great disguise it is! Discover the
personality structure, strengths, and weaknesses of this character you are playing and how
it is serving (or not serving) you and the Self that is living through you. The Self has a
reason for creating you just this way. Every desire and drive is there for a reason. Find
out what its intentions are for you and how you (the ego and conditioning) might be
interfering with these goals. Waking up means allowing the Self to live through you as
this character, which is what it came here to do. An understanding of your chart can help
you express the joy of the Self rather than the suffering of the ego through this character
you call you. The chart also gives you a glimpse of the bigger picture, which will help
you understand whatever you are going through and embrace it for the gift that it is.

Channeled Guidance for Awakening

Gina has been channeling Theodore, a collective consciousness on the mid-causal plane,
since 1989. Theo will help you awaken to your true nature by exploring any personal or
psychological issues, misunderstandings, and beliefs that keep you tied to the egoic state
of consciousness. You may ask questions about the nature of life and about personal
issues, particularly related to your personal and spiritual growth. Predictions, past-life
readings, health readings, financial advice, or information about others without their
permission are not part of this exploration. These sessions may include a clearing of
negative energies, assistance in healing longstanding issues, and past-life regression.

For more information: www.radicalhappiness.com

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 Books by Gina Lake
Radical Happiness: A Guide to Awakening provides the keys to experiencing the
happiness that is ever-present and not dependent on circumstances. This happiness
doesn’t come from getting what you want but from wanting what already is. It comes
from realizing that who you think you are is not who you really are. This is a radical
perspective! Radical Happiness describes the nature of the egoic state of consciousness,
the mind’s role in maintaining it, how this interferes with happiness, and what awakening
and enlightenment are. Exercises are included to help you apply the information and
transform your experience of life—and become happier! $14.95

Anatomy of Desire: How to Be Happy Even When You Don’t Get What You Want will
help you relate to your desires in a way that reduces suffering and increases joy. It is
essentially about how to be happy regardless of your desires. It points out many of the
myths about desire, which keep you tied to them and the suffering they create. So, it is
also about spiritual freedom, or liberation, which comes from letting the Heart guide you
instead of the ego. It is ultimately about becoming a lover of life rather than a desirer
because these two things—love and desire—are at odds, and you must choose between
them. What do you really want? Do you want what you want or do you want love? –from
the Introduction $14.95

Return to Essence: How to Be in the Flow and Fulfill Your Life’s Purpose describes
how to get into the flow and stay there and how to live life from there. Being in the flow
and not being in the flow are two very different states. One is dominated by the ego-
driven mind, which is the cause of suffering, while the other is the domain of essence, the
divine within each of us. You are meant to live in the flow. The flow is the experience of
essence—your true self—as it lives life through you and fulfills its purpose for this life.
Exercises throughout provide an opportunity for practicing and integrating the
understanding. $14.95

Choosing Love: How to Find True Love and Keep It Alive. Having a truly meaningful
relationship requires choosing love over your conditioning, that is, your ideas, fantasies,
desires, images, and beliefs. Choosing Love describes how to move beyond conditioning,
judgment, anger, romantic illusions, and differences to the experience of love and
Oneness with another. It explains how to drop into the core of your Being, where
Oneness and love exist, and be with others from there. Exercises throughout provide an
opportunity for practicing and integrating the understanding. $14.95

Getting Free: How to Move Beyond Conditioning and Be Happy. To be free from your
conditioning requires a new way of thinking or, rather, not thinking. Getting Free will
help you change your relationship to your mind. Conditioning is healed when we
meet our true Self, but to do this we first have to become very familiar with the false
self. Getting Free will help you determine what is false and true within yourself. It will
also help you reprogram your mind; clear negative thoughts and self-images; use
meditation, prayer, forgiveness, and gratitude; work with spiritual forces to assist healing

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and clear negativity; and heal entrenched issues from the past. Exercises throughout
provide an opportunity for practicing and integrating the understanding. $15.95
Embracing the Now: Finding Peace and Happiness in What Is. The now—this
moment—is the true source of happiness and peace and the key to living a fulfilled and
meaningful life. Embracing the Now is a collection of essays whose common thread is
the now. Full of clear insight and wisdom, it explains how the mind keeps you from being
in the now, how to move into the now and stay there, and what living from there is like. It
also explains how to overcome stumbling blocks to being in the now, such as fears,
doubts, judgments, misunderstandings, distrust of life, desires, and other conditioned
ideas that are behind human suffering. $15.95

Living Your Destiny: How to Live the Life that Is Meant for You. Your life is a dance
between you as the Creator and you as a human creator, and it is not choreographed by
improvised. Behind all life is an Intelligence, and you are part of that and a unique
expression of it and the means by which it experiences and explores life. Your life
purpose is the intent of this Intelligence as it lives through you. Living Your Destiny will
help you identify this purpose and inspire you to be true to it. It explains the variety of
life purposes; how to recognize yours; how you are led to it; how the Heart speaks to
you; how to develop a connection with the Heart; how to become free of your
conditioning; and how to live your life purpose fully. $13.95

For more information or to order, please visit the “Books”

page at www.radicalhappiness.com.

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