November 03, 2004

How to Use Predictions

For the more fatalistic among us, the question often arises: why bother with astrology if we can't change our karma and hence our future?  While I agree that most things have to happen, I believe that there is room where individuals can act to refocus the energy that is around them.  A prediction for a difficult or frustrating day needn't be so frustrating if we are forewarned about it.  Yes, things will likely not go the way we would like.  In this sense, there is no changing our future.   What we can change is how we react to it. 
 
If we know beforehand that we have a difficult day in store, then we it arrives we needn't get as flustered by it.  We will be stressed by overwork, or an over-demanding boss, but if we know this is the ineluctable nature of our planetary karma at work, then we may not feel to victimized by it.  We can build up our resistance to it.  As various spiritual traditions teach us, we can learn to be happier through acceptance of all that is.
 
One potentially difficult element of the negative forecast is ensuring that people do not take it too much to heart.  For the more sensitive and impressionable clients I encounter, this is a real concern that must be addressed.  Bad news, no matter now trivial, is usually not welcomed by these kinds of people.  That is why it is a good idea to communicate effectively just what sort of troubles may be in store. 
 
Like most astrologers, my aim is to help people, to make their lives easier, and to give them hope.  Forecasting troubles can sometimes accomplish this by lessening the shock or discomfort when they occur.  This is a template that best applies to relatively minor travails and even the most sensitive among us can benefit from this approach. 
 
For larger issues, the astrologer has to be extra careful not to upset the client.  Where some doubt remains in my mind as to the exact nature and timing of the unfortunate event, I generally keep the prediction more neutral in tone.   In some cases, I won't say anything at all.  There will always be occasions when the astrologer is flat out wrong and has worried the client unncessarily.   This is a scenario that needs to be avoided at all costs.  Even if a potentially dangerous period is upcoming, it is more helpful to suggest that certain types of issues may benefit from their attention.  If serious money or employment troubles lie ahead, then suggesting more saving and a reduction of expenses can be helpful without unduly alarming the person.  Even if the worst comes to pass, the astrologer has at least passed on some useful information that can be of some benefit. 
 
 
 

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