- The Twelve Astrological Signs: Ambassadors of TransformationContinue reading →

An Excerpt from Sun Sign Karma by Bernie Ashman
The sign of the zodiac on the day of birth is known as our Sun sign, and it gives each of us unique personalities. Each sign guides us in its own way to make choices that steer us away from karmic patterns that can interfere with our personal road to fulfillment. There is the light of transformation in the framework of each of the astrological signs.

If you were born into the fire sign Aries tribe, you possess a natural expression for displaying fast actions and often can be a risk- taker. Patience and focus come as you gain greater insight into your most important goals. When you channel your inner restlessness productively, life is a happier experience. Your trail-blazing spirit can give you the inner strength to stare down any karmic pattern obstruction in your path.
If you were born into the earth sign Taurus tribe, you are attracted to life experiences that have a stabilizing effect. You likely have a tendency to move carefully with a sense of purpose. You resist change if it is not on your own terms. Your way of staying focused empowers you with a rugged determination to push through any karmic pattern.
If you were born into the air sign Gemini tribe, the universe has given you immense communication power accompanied by a strong mental nature. You are at your best when having multiple life paths to pursue. Your curiosity about a wide variety of subjects keeps your mind stimulated. Your ability to decipher ways to integrate karmic patterns into your life makes for a happier journey.
If you were born into the water sign Cancer tribe, you likely operate with a deep emotional nature. You have a tendency to move cautiously but with an underlying strategy to achieve goals. Finding the right home is highly valued. You are probably very particular about which people you will allow to get close to you. Your powerful intuition can guide you to successfully navigate through karmic patterns.
If you were born into the fire sign Leo tribe, you have a lion-like dramatic self-expression. Your charismatic personality can make you the center of attention. An ability to convince others of your ideas is what often leads to making your dreams come true. It is your willpower that gives you the opportunity to work your way through karmic patterns.
If you were born into the earth sign Virgo tribe, you are gifted with learning skills that bring you new opportunities. People likely perceive you as being analytical and hardworking. Realizing that perfection can be the enemy of the good keeps you happier. It is your tenacity at problem-solving that helps you figure out how to rise above karmic patterns.
If you were born into the air sign Libra tribe, you are likely partnership-oriented. It is not that you can’t be independent but more that you desire to share your life with others. A mental and emotional balance is highly valued. You get clear vision of the past, present, and future when you take the time to recharge your mental batteries. Your drive to seek a sense of inner peace is often the motivation to conquer karmic patterns.
If you were born into the water sign Scorpio tribe, you have a natural tendency to express yourself with deep emotions and passion. Your loyalty to people wins their love and friendship. When you are able to trust your intuition, life seems more user friendly. Your survival instincts are strong, allowing you to overcome obstacles in the path of your goals. It is your determination to experience a true sense of personal power that allows you to not let karmic pat- terns keep you from finding authentic happiness and fulfillment.
If you were born into the fire sign Sagittarius tribe, you were given an inspiring spirit that thrives on seeking adventure. It is your optimism that is the road to new opportunity. People probably perceive you as lucky, and you might wonder why others don’t have such good fortune as often as you do. When you develop a broad life philosophy, the universe rewards you with new stimulating experiences. It is your never-ending positive thinking that prepares you to successfully turn karmic patterns into energies of hope for a brighter today and tomorrow.
If you were born into the earth sign Capricorn tribe, chances are you have a serious demeanor with a strong focusing ability. Ambition colors your thoughts. You have a tendency to be serious about commitments. Your follow-through on a job has no sign rival. You attract responsibility, so you do need to be careful about how much work you accept. You like people you can count on when you need support. Your inner strength magnifies when you trust your ability to succeed. It is your determination to face the reality of karmic patterns when they arise that truly empowers you.
If you were born into the air sign Aquarius tribe, you are an individualist with unique insights. You likely live for the future as the present does sometimes bore you. Your mind tends to enjoy people with new ideas. You probably have a wide variety of friends. Romantic partners are likely friends as well as lovers. Some people see you as aloof, but you like to think of this as remaining objective. Your mental side probably outweighs your emotional expression. It is your unique way to see outside of the box that guides you to learn from karmic pattern energy and put it to creative use.
If you were born into the water sign Pisces tribe, you have a vivid, dreamy imagination that is moved to act on ideals. Some people could perceive you as passive, but you view this as your way of processing your thoughts. You are a romantic with strong feelings. Your inner being can be a poet and artist. Reality is not always what drives you toward success. You are more likely following an inwardly inspired path. You can fall in love with the ideals of a lover. It is your willingness to learn from the past that allows you to treat karmic patterns as teachers gifting you new wisdom.
Each sign has a unique way to inspire us to rise above karmic shadows. Sometimes the lighted path to a sense of rebirth is closer than you think. You will read in the sign chapters in Sun Sign Karma the keys to rising above karmic challenges.
In acupuncture and massage there are pressure points in our body that can be worked on to release bottled-up energies causing discomfort. In a similar way our signs can be tuned and used as a way to release us from the hold of karmic patterns. Each sign contains a magical formula to guide you to let go of shadowy karmic baggage that will lighten your load as you walk your journey through life and find greater relationship fulfillment.
Don’t ever underestimate the transformative power of each astrological sign. The universe works in magical ways through your own sign and the other eleven. Any karmic pattern corresponding to an astrological sign can be lifted out of a negative hold from past incarnations into the radiant light with a refreshed clarity in this life.
BERNIE ASHMAN (Durham, NC) is a highly respected professional astrologer who has been studying, practicing, and teaching for over thirty-five years. He is the author of several books and has contributed to the astrology magazines Dell Horoscope, Astro Signs, The Mountain Astrologer, and Welcome to Planet Earth. Bernie also gives personal readings, conducts lectures, and contributes to astrology software programs. For more visit www.BernieAshman.com.
Excerpt from Sun Sign Karma by Bernie Ashman © 2021 by Bernie Ashman. Used by permission from Llewellyn Worldwide, Ltd.
- Double Vision: Dreams of flying!Continue reading →

Since I was a child, I have loved to dream, because in my dreams, I could fly, and it was very real and vivid! As I got older, these dreams sadly became fewer and farther between. I'm now 37, and for the past four nights, I've been having the same dreams again but with a twist. I fly for a while, and then I feel hands on my shoulders, pushing me back down to earth! I look up, and there is a lovely lady with long hair smiling at me. I don't feel scared, but I want to go back up, and she won't let me - she keeps pushing me down. Why won't she let me up? I have never seen her before. What do you make of all of this?
- Darrell
Dreamchaser:
Darrell, what a clear-cut example of astral travel you have here! You also have a whole lot of lucid dreaming going on. Lucid dreaming is dreaming while fully aware that you are dreaming. Astral travel is traveling out of the body, either while asleep or while awake. You can learn to perfect either one of these methods. There are many books written on these subjects. Astral travel is a natural phenomenon: while we sleep, our souls leave our bodies to heal from today and prepare for tomorrow.
When we are children, we are not encumbered with grownup mentalities. We can fly free and play make-believe and tell wild tales and just be kids. When we grow up, we are expected to act more mature. Children experience both astral travel and lucid dreaming quite frequently because of their innocence and openness. As you grew, you shut it down and became more logical. You have already figured out that there is a reason for this phenomenon to be happening now.
First we have to deal with the lady. She's a spirit guide and a teaching guide. She governs your sleep time. When you are going into an area where you should not be going, so to speak, she is there to push you back onto the proper path. Apparently, you are easily swayed and distracted when you are astral traveling. You would run wild instead of dealing with the issues at hand if you were not monitored. Basically, that is her job.
She is also there to tell you when your time is up and it's time to go back to your body, as you have already learned. You woke up a few times as she was doing just that. The only time you will see her is if you happen to wake up during a dream again and she chooses to show herself to you.
The only question left here is why you are doing all this at this stage of your life. You have been going through some extremely trying times lately, Darrell. People you never thought would turn on you have stabbed you in the back. You are taking control back, but you have to work very hard on all four levels (physical, emotional, mental and spiritual) to make that happen. This woman is helping you work through the lessons attached to these very challenging times.
Things are going to bust wide open for you, Darrell, and you are going to be very happy with all the changes. Every area of your life will improve. Know that you will be rewarded in the long run for all the hard work you are doing now. I wish you many enjoyable flights!
*****
Astrea:
Dreams of flying are dreams of an Old Soul. You flew before in another incarnation a long time ago, so it's a memory you carry in your DNA. All of us who flew before dream of being able to do it again. One of my friends says that he'll be able to fly again here on Earth someday. It's all he dreams of at night. He says when he was a kid, he dreamed about it all the time too, but now, those dreams are fewer and farther apart.
This happens because when we're small fries, we have more past life recollections than we do as we get older, when our brains and psyches are cluttered up with all the things that we have to do just to live in the world and survive. The older we get, the more distance grows between us and our Before Times. Ask a five-year-old sometime what he or she remembers about before they got here. You'll get an earful!
The lady in your dream pulling you down to Earth is one of your guides who has been with you through many other incarnations. The reason she is trying to get you to stop flying is because there is something going on in your life NOW that you need to come back down to Earth to address.
If you have a house or a business for sale right now, that could be it. If you're having issues in your personal relationships, it could be that, too. If you're having money issues, that's another thing that would require you to come back down to Earth and quit flying around all night, having so much fun! The best way to find out just exactly why she's doing this in your happy flying dreams is to ask her the next time you see her. She wants you to ask! She will happily explain the situation in your life that you're not paying enough attention to.
Before you go to bed at night, take your shoes and put them under your bed, toes toward the foot of the bed. That will ensure that you'll dream of flying that night. When she comes to get you to come back down to Earth, put your hands on hers, while they're on your shoulders, and simply ask her why you have to stop flying right now. She'll answer you, but it might not be in words. Keep paper and a pen handy to write down her answer when you wake up. Write your message down right away. Three nights in a row should clarify whatever it is she wants you to stop avoiding.
Flying is fun. I miss it. I know you do, too. Maybe someday we'll all be able to do that again here instead of having to wait to do it together again in the spirit world.
Astrea:
Many times in life we hear, "You will always have what you NEED, but not necessarily what you WANT." Your spirit must have needed to experience the feeling of leaving your human body, and the suggestion in the next chapter of Sylvia Brown's book was all it took to get you there.
Even though you hadn't read it yet, your SOUL recognized the title of that chapter as something it had been seeking, and your soul, knowing that you had that reference to read after your experience, got with it and out you went!
While I don't usually recommend her books, Sylvia Brown has a wide reaching and powerful effect on lots of people. A Gemini like you would be able to relate easily to her writing and put it to good use. Synchronicity - you gotta love it!
I like your description of "getting caught." That's exactly what it feels like, isn't it? One minute you're free and hovering above the room, and the next minute, ZAP! back down into your corporeal form you go!
As a little kid, I loved that "feeling of return." With practice, most of the time we can control that event, but sometimes, when our physical ears hear a distracting noise or something else occurs to knock us back into reality, back we go. With practice you will be able to control your return better.
I find it interesting that you were visiting your mother-in-law and not someone in your own genetic family. Evidently, you and your husband got married for reasons that are even deeper than love. His family's interest in "psychic stuff" will nurture your children in such matters and help them to grow into their own abilities.
You'll never have to be concerned that when your daughter visits them, she'll be discouraged from exploring her own psychic life and power. My parents encouraged me to develop my psychic senses in a time when it wasn't nice to even discuss such things in public. Heck, it's STILL not considered a great topic at the dinner table in some families!
Your kids will get to talk about it ALL and ask questions and read and study. This is going to give them such an edge in life! Talk with your husband about how you want to present this to your kiddos, so that you are united in your approach and ready to tell them their experiences are all natural and okay.
A word or two of warning: Geminis often have difficulty staying grounded in REAL LIFE. Don't get so strung out on your ASTRAL life that you neglect what you're doing here on Earth.
You are at the beginning of a long journey to learn where your power really lies. Try to be patient with this process and take your time.
