Transformative and Inspirational Living with Lucy Harmer – November 2009

Each month author Lucy Harmer dedicates her journal entries to the theme of “transformative and inspirational living” – finding the fun, magic and laughter in everyday occurrences! She explores ideas, thoughts and quotes from her two books, Discovering Your Spirit Animal and Shamanic Astrology.

November 2009

Shamanic Astrology
Exploring the Personality of your Spirit Animal Sign

© Copyright 2009 Lucy Harmer

Last month in my journal (October 2009), I gave an overview of what Shamanic Astrology is. This month, I am going to explore the twelve spirit animal signs of the medicine wheel a little deeper, so that you can begin to discover the special qualities each sign possesses.

There are twelve astrological “signs” on the medicine wheel, which are represented by twelve different spirit animals. Shamanic Astrology teaches us that inner power derives from knowing the properties, characteristics, and qualities of each spirit animal (known as their “medicine”), and applying this in our own lives.

To get you started, here are some of the main strengths and weaknesses of each of the twelve spirit animals. It is really interesting to note that weaknesses are often just a mirror of our strengths and qualities. What we see as “weaknesses” can often be transformed into “strengths.” Take Falcon people, for example, whose “weaknesses” can be their tendency to be impulsive and headstrong. Transformed, these qualities become Falcon people’s strengths – their spontaneity and pioneering nature.

(If you are not sure which spirit animal sign you are, you can find out by looking your birthday up in the second table below – “Which animal sign are you?”)

Strengths and Weaknesses of the twelve spirit animal signs:

I always find it fascinating to look up the qualities of my friends, family and work colleagues. It is amazing how much their spirit animal sign can tell you about why they may behave in certain ways!

You can find out more about the personality of your own spirit animal and how you relate to the other signs, in my book Shamanic Astrology: Understanding Your Spirit Animal Sign. You can also discover the different spirit animal clans that you, your friends and family belong to, and your own special plant, stone, element, color and life path.

Which animal sign are you?
To find your spirit animal sign, just locate your birthday from the dates below, according to your place of birth. If you were born north of the equator (eg; USA, Canada, Europe), then look for your date of birth in the column headed “Northern Hemisphere.” If you were born south of the equator (eg; Australia, New Zealand, South Africa), then look for your date of birth in the column headed “Southern Hemisphere.”

This month, I wish you lots of fun and magic in exploring the strengths and qualities of your own spirit animal sign, and discovering those of your friends, family and work colleagues too!

Love and blessings,
Lucy

Shamanic Astrology is available for purchase directly through NorthAtlanticBooks.com, as well as major book stores and online retailers.

CLICK HERE to learn more about courses, seminars and workshops offered by Lucy Harmer.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Shamanic Astrology.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Discovering Your Spirit Animal.

Lucy Harmer’s Shamanic Astrology Forecast – October 23 to November 21: SNAKE

“Lucy Harmer’s style is simple and her astrological information amazingly accurate… her book is an inspiration to us all.”
– Mark Woodley, schools director of the British Astrological and Psychic Society

Welcome to Lucy Harmer’s Shamanic Astrology monthly forecast for the Northern Hemisphere! Each month Lucy will share inspiration and ideas for the coming weeks from her book Shamanic Astrology: Understanding Your Spirit Animal Sign.

Shamanic Astrology is based on the study of the movement of the sun and the moon during the different seasons of the year. There are twelve astrological “signs” which are represented by twelve different spirit animals. To find out your own personal spirit animal sign (the sign you were born under), please check the table of spirit animals at the end of this article. Shamanic Astrology teaches us that inner power derives from knowing the properties, characteristics, and qualities of each spirit animal (known as their “medicine”), and applying this in our own lives.

Each month I will focus on the spirit animal for that month, and describe the “energy” of the month itself and also the influence of the moon. I will also indicate which other spirit animal signs will find this month to be particularly beneficial, and why.

October 23 – November 21: SNAKE

Month of Frosts and Transformation

Spirit Animal Sign of the Month:
Snake is the spirit animal which corresponds to October 23 – November 21 (in the northern hemisphere). If you were born at this time, your spirit animal sign is Snake and you share Snake’s strengths of being imaginative, accommodating, passionate, strong, charismatic, discerning and tender. You may also share some of Snake’s weaknesses and can have a tendency to be headstrong, jealous, secretive, hypercritical, compulsive and grudge-bearing.

Medicine: Snake’s medicine is the ability to accept change easily, to adapt, and to live each experience to the fullest. This can be used in any situation to let go and welcome change with joy.
Element: Water
Stone: Malachite and Copper
Color: Burnt Orange
Plant: Thistle

Energy of the season:
Snake’s month is the time of frosts and transformation. The sun has now lost most of its strength. Dead leaves cover the ground, starting to turn into mulch to replenish the earth; the process of death and transformation has started. Growth slows down and energy is driven inward. This month is a good time for understanding the past and taking stock of the things that matter, so as to prepare for the start of the new cycle. It is a favorable time for breaking free from old bonds, leaving the past and moving in a different direction. It is propitious for reflecting on how to use your energy and inner resources in the future.

Energy of the moon:
Snake’s new moon started on October 18th and the full moon is on November 2nd. The period from October 23rd until November 2nd is the ideal time for recharging your batteries and transforming the things that no longer work in your life. It is a good time to clear clutter and transform old patterns of behavior. After the full moon, from November 3rd until November 15th, the time is favorable for taking stock of your relationships; it is a time for releasing any emotional bonds that are holding you back. November 16th brings the new moon in Owl; this is the ideal time for designing or launching projects that you have wanted to set in motion for some time. It is an excellent time for breathing new life into existing projects, as we move from a water moon into a fire moon.

This month is particularly favorable for the following signs:

Snake:
If your sign is Snake the energy of this month is very favorable because it corresponds to the month and the moon of your birth. A new cycle is about to start in your life and this is the best time to start planting seeds. Use the sun’s energy to take stock and head off in a new direction.

Woodpecker/Wolf:
If your sign is Woodpecker or Wolf this is a very lucky month for you, with lots of harmony because you are in your own water element. A multitude of opportunities will open up for you in this period and this is the best time to give destiny a helping hand!

Brown Bear/Snow Goose:
For Brown Bear and Snow Goose people, this is a very dynamic month, full of energy which favors the conception and birth of new projects. You will feel new motivation and a renewal of your energy at this time.

Table of Spirit Animal Signs:

To find your spirit animal sign, just locate your birthday from the dates below, according to your place of birth. If you were born north of the equator (e.g., USA, Canada, Europe), then look for your date of birth in the column headed “Northern Hemisphere.” If you were born south of the equator (e.g., Australia, New Zealand, South Africa), then look for your date of birth in the column headed “Southern Hemisphere.”

© Copyright 2009 Lucy Harmer

Shamanic Astrology is available for purchase directly through NorthAtlanticBooks.com, as well as major book stores and online retailers.

CLICK HERE to learn more about courses, seminars and workshops offered by Lucy Harmer.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Shamanic Astrology.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Discovering Your Spirit Animal.

Outstanding New Books for October

This month’s titles are all about becoming aware, releasing negativity, and embracing a more positive lifestyle. To understand more about yourself, the people around you, and how we all fit together, check out Shamanic Astrology to make sense of why we behave as we do, or Slow Sculpture for a science fiction approach to human (and extraterrestrial) interaction. Need to assertively yet respectfully confront a loved one about a delicate situation? Finding the Words will help you to find the right words. The Raw Food Lifestyle will give you something to gnaw on if you’re hungry for information about the health and healing aspects of the Raw Food Movement. Or perhaps your personal or professional space is littered with negative energy. Sweep it away with Spiritual Clearings. As you endeavor to become more aware, to let go of the negative, and to dwell in positivity this month, keep in mind the newest books that North Atlantic has to offer.

To order, please visit www.northatlanticbooks.com.

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Finding the Words: Candid Conversations with Loved Ones
By Susan Halpern

Finding the Words offers principles and practical suggestions for those moments in relationships when one wants to be kind but also must discuss a sensitive matter. In thoughtful prose, Susan Halpern explains how to communicate with care in order to strengthen and increase our loving connections. The principles provided in the book—speaking from the heart, stating intentions, and deep listening—enable readers to navigate difficult encounters.

Halpern draws on her years of experience as a psychotherapist, wife, and mother to suggest possible, scripted solutions and positive outcomes for a wide range of situations. An essential book for finding one’s way back to intimacy from conflict, nagging discomfort, and anger, Finding the Words teaches methods of responding, negotiating, and compromising. While there are numerous guides to relationships, no other book presents life situations—along with actual words that can be used to cope with them—with such vitality and wisdom.

$14.95 US/ $18.95 CAN
Trade Paperback
978-1-55643-838-7
248 pages; 5-1/2 x 8 1/2
On Sale October 6, 2009

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Spiritual Clearings: Sacred Practices to Release Negative Energy and Harmonize Your Life
By Diana Burney

A blend of spiritual and practical material, Spiritual Clearings offers a comprehensive checklist of circumstances that may require ritual clearing—whether the situation involves confronting illness, feeling “stuck” in life, having trouble selling a home, or high employee turnover. Diana Burney discusses different categories of energy, its presence in the invisible world, and the unseen influences or beings that may be drawn to discordant energy. Through spiritual clearings, Burney proposes, we can release our own negativity as well as guide unseen negative forces toward the light. The book’s clearing rituals include prayers that invoke the assistance of higher beings such as archangels and Ascended Masters, incantations and chants from different spiritual traditions, the visualization of divine light and the violet flame, and the expression of gratitude. Spiritual Clearings provides readers with a clear path to fulfilling their potential and creating a personal environment of confidence, creativity, love, and acceptance.

$16.95 US/$21 CAN
Trade Paperback
978-1-55643-815-8
184 pages; 6 x 9
On Sale October 13, 2009
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The Raw Food Lifestyle: The Philosophy and Nutrition behind Raw and Live Foods
By Ruthann Russo

Ruthann Russo has been a vegetarian and vegan for more than 20 years, and in 2007 became a passionate raw-food enthusiast. She brings that passion to the pages of this comprehensive introduction to raw and live food. In simple, encouraging language, she conveys a wealth of information, from the philosophy of raw-food nutrition, to how it affects the body, to how to transition from a regular diet to one that promotes physical, emotional, and spiritual health.

Using examples from her own life, Russo lays out a practical plan for making the switch that starts with realizing the need to change one’s diet (and health), and then stresses small dietary changes to discover what raw foods work, and assessing reactions. She profiles food preparation and supplements (superfoods, vitamins, green products), and emphasizes the spiritual aspects of the movement, exploring meditation, yoga, Buddhism, peacefulness, and fasting.

$16.95 US/$21 CAN
Trade Paperback
978-1-55643-837-0
256 pages; 6 x 9
On Sale October 20, 2009

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Shamanic Astrology: Understanding Your Spirit Animal Sign
By Lucy Harmer

In this thoughtful book, Lucy Harmer shows readers how to find their spirit animal. She provides detailed descriptions of the strengths and weaknesses of each of the twelve spirit animals—for example, falcon is enthusiastic and adventurous but can be impulsive and impatient, while deer is sociable and eloquent but can be lazy and superficial. Once readers determine their spirit animal, they can better understand their relationships with family, friends, and associates. Readers will be able to uncover the hidden treasures of their personalities and their secret talents, as well as the color, plant, and totem stone corresponding to each spirit animal. For readers who want to take shamanic astrology to the next level, the book includes the first complete lunar calendar for the Northern and Southern Hemispheres to help them determine their spirit animal rising sign and discover how the moon influences their daily life.

$16.95 US/$21 CAN
Trade Paperback
978-1-55643-826-4
264 pages; 6 x 9
On Sale October 20, 2009

Click HERE for the author’s website.

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Slow Sculpture: Volume XII: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon
By Theodore Sturgeon

Theodore Sturgeon was a model for his friend Kurt Vonnegut’s legendary character Kilgore Trout, and his work was an acknowledged influence on important younger writers from Harlan Ellison and Robert Silverberg to Stephen King and Octavia Butler. His work has long been deeply appreciated for its sardonic sensibility, dazzling wordplay, conceptual brilliance, memorable characters, and relentless treatment of social issues. Sturgeon also authored several episodes of the original Star Trek TV series and originated the Vulcan phrase “Live long and prosper.”

The last in North Atlantic’s series reprinting Sturgeon’s complete short stories includes classic works such as the award-winning title story, which won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards in 1971, and “The [Widget], the [Wadget], and Boff,” a creative exploration of the human ability to achieve self-realization in response to crisis. The book includes a new Foreword, Story Notes, and a comprehensive index for the entire series.

$35 US/$43 CAN
Trade Paperback
978-1-55643-834-9
312 pages; 6 x 9
On Sale October 20, 2009

A Tribute to Mahatma Gandhi

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (Oct. 2, 1869–Jan. 30, 1948)

In the wake of Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday on October 2nd, we wanted to take a moment to appreciate the contributions of this legendary spiritual, religious, and political leader. Gandhi’s enduring message of peaceful transformation is truly universal, resonating beyond cultural barriers, profoundly affecting the way our world is being defined today. Undoubtedly, Gandhi will continue to be an inspirational figure for countless individuals for many years to come. We were so inspired, in fact, that we felt compelled to highlight these books in celebration of his life:

The Way to God
Selected Writings from Mahatma Gandhi

Mahatma Gandhi became famous as the leader of the Indian independence movement, but he called himself “a man of God disguised as a politician.” The Way to God demonstrates his lasting significance as a spiritual leader whose ideas offer insight and solace to seekers of every practice and persuasion. Collecting many of his most significant writings, this book explores the deep religious roots of Gandhi’s worldly accomplishments and reveals—in his own words—his intellectual, moral, and spiritual approaches to the divine.

First published in India in 1971, the book is based on Gandhi’s lifetime experiments with truth and reveals the heart of his teachings. Gandhi’s aphoristic power, his ability to sum up complex ideas in a few authoritative strokes, shines through these pages. Gandhi’s guiding principles of selflessness, humility, service, active yet nonviolent resistance, and vegetarianism make his writings as timely today as when these writings first appeared.

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The Bhagavad Gita According to Gandhi
By Mahatma Gandhi, Edited by John Strohmeier

The Bhagavad Gita, also called The Song of the Lord, is a 700-line section of a much longer Sanskrit war epic, the Mahabharata, about the legendary conflict between two branches of an Indian ruling family. Framed as a conversation between Krishna, an incarnation of the god Vishnu, and a general of one of the armies, the Gita is written in powerful poetic language meant to be chanted. One of the world’s most influential, widely read spiritual books, it is equally treasured as a guide to action, a devotional scripture, a philosophical text, and inspirational reading.

The Bhagavad Gita According to Gandhi is based on talks given by Gandhi between February and November 1926 at the Satyagraha Ashram in Ahmedabad, India. During this time—a period when Gandhi had withdrawn from mass political activity—he devoted much of his time and energy to translating the Gita from Sanskrit into his native Gujarati. As a result, he met with his followers almost daily, after morning prayer sessions, to discuss the Gita’s contents and meaning as it unfolded before him. This book is the transcription of those daily sessions.

In the spirit of exploration, what does Mahatma Gandhi mean to you? We’d love to hear your thoughts!

CLICK HERE to learn more about The Way to God.

CLICK HERE to learn more about The Bhagavad Gita According to Gandhi.

Transformative and Inspirational Living with Lucy Harmer – October 2009

Each month author Lucy Harmer dedicates her blog entries to the theme of “transformative and inspirational living” – finding the fun, magic and laughter in everyday occurrences! She explores ideas, thoughts, and quotes from her first two books: Discovering Your Spirit Animal and Shamanic Astrology.

October 2009

Shamanic Astrology
Which spirit animal sign are you?

© Copyright 2009 Lucy Harmer

I’m really excited and delighted to announce the launch of my new book Shamanic Astrology: Understanding Your Spirit Animal Sign which is released on October 22nd. This month’s journal entry explores what Shamanic Astrology is, and how it can apply to your life.

Many ancient societies practiced a form of astrology based on their shamanic beliefs and practices, which consisted mainly in communicating with the spirit world and understanding the fundamental forces in nature. According to shamanic belief, each natural element – whether animal, vegetable or mineral – is a living being, closely connected to all the others by a circle of life, which the Native Americans call the medicine wheel.

The moment of our birth marks our entrance onto the medicine wheel. In the shamanic model, the soul enters the physical body before birth, bringing with it all the qualities, strengths, and potential we need to learn the life lessons necessary for our evolution. At the moment of our birth, our potential is complete; we have everything we need spiritually to follow our life path.

The position of the sun at the moment of our birth gives us life, and gives us the strengths and qualities that follow us throughout our lives. The moon’s energy at the time of our birth is connected to our emotional cycle. The combined “energy” of the sun and moon in the season in which we are born reflects our “true” being. This energy governs our emotions and the characteristics that enable us to evolve and develop our hidden potential.

The qualities and strengths which make up our personality are represented in Shamanic Astrology by a spirit animal that gives them form – such as Deer, Owl, Wolf, Beaver, etc. There are twelve astrological “signs” on the medicine wheel, which are represented by twelve different spirit animals. Shamanic Astrology teaches us that inner power derives from knowing the properties, characteristics, and qualities of each spirit animal (known as their “medicine”), and applying this in our own lives.

Table of Spirit Animal Signs:

Shamanic Astrology is based on the natural cycle of the seasons and the sun, which means that – unlike Western astrology – the shamanic astrological signs change from one hemisphere to another. The spirit animals and their properties differ in the Northern Hemisphere to the Southern Hemisphere. For example, the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere corresponds to June 21/22, when the days are long and hot; in the Southern Hemisphere, the summer solstice falls on December 21/22. Woodpecker is the spirit animal associated with the sun being at its most powerful position. Therefore, in the Northern Hemisphere, the Woodpecker period is June 21 – July 21; in the Southern Hemisphere the Woodpecker period is December 22 – January 19.

To find your spirit animal sign, just locate your birthday from the dates below, according to your place of birth. If you were born north of the equator (eg; USA, Canada, Europe), then look for your date of birth in the column headed “Northern Hemisphere”. If you were born south of the equator (eg; Australia, New Zealand, South Africa), then look for your date of birth in the column headed “Southern Hemisphere”.

Shamanic Astrology offers a method to help us discover our inner strengths, accept our weaknesses, and develop harmonious relationships with other human beings, as well as with the natural world and the spirit animal of our birth sign. It invites us to fully experience the energy of the seasons and of the lunar cycles, giving us a deeper understanding of who we are.

You can find out more about the personality of your own spirit animal and how you relate to the other signs in my book, Shamanic Astrology: Understanding Your Spirit Animal Sign. You can also discover the different spirit animal clans that you, your friends and family belong to, and your own special plant, stone, element, colour and life path.

Look out also, for my new “Shamanic Astrology Forecast,” which will be coming out on the 21st of each month (starting this month). Each month I will focus on the spirit animal for that month, and describe the “energy” of the month itself and also the influence of the moon. I will also indicate which other spirit animal signs will find that month to be particularly beneficial, and why.

This month, have fun in getting to know your shamanic astrological spirit animal sign! I wish you every success with recognizing and appreciating the strengths and qualities in yourself and others.

Love and blessings,

Lucy

Shamanic Astrology is available for purchase directly through NorthAtlanticBooks.com, as well as major book stores and online retailers.

CLICK HERE to learn more about courses, seminars and workshops offered by Lucy Harmer.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Shamanic Astrology.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Discovering Your Spirit Animal.