Gahl Sasson's Blog

The Astrological Origins of Hanukah and Christmas

On December 21st, the Winter Solstice, millions of Jews and their non-Jewish friends who just like to play with fire, will light the first candle of Hanukah.

Besides the fact that people and spell-checkers all around the world argue on what is the correct spelling of Hanukah, the holiday represents the christening of light, and the birth of a new cycle of light.

This year, Hanukah, Jewish version of the Holiday of Light, will begin December 21st, right on the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year, the day we encounter the least amount of light. It is a very auspicious synchronicity that Hanukah, the celebration of light, begins at the sunset of the darkest day of the year. From December 21st for the next eight days, Jews around the globe will light one more candle each day, thus helping light vanquish darkness. It is a ritual of light, a ceremony that is designed to put us at one with the heavenly cycles. It can be viewed as sympathetic magic – by lighting the candles we bring light, love and happiness into our life. The rabbis instruct us to place the candles in the windows so that everyone can see the light growing every night. So the question is: why do we celebrate Hanukah – the Holiday of Light at the darkest time of the year? Is the origin of Hanukah historical or psychological? Read More

My Sign..

I wanted to dedicate this newsletter to a question that some people asked me after they have read Cosmic Navigator.

The question rephrased sounds something like:

“So, if I am a Cancer, does that mean that I am a Cancer or I have to work on being a Cancer by tapping into the energies of Cancer?”

The answer is as always in embedded within the question. You are your sign but you also need to connect to the energies of your sign in order to live up to your full potential. It’s like asking a scientist: Am I a human, and therefore made of 71% water or should I drink a lot of water to be human. The answer is “both.” You are water and you need to drink water to maintain perfect health as a human. We are born into the sign that can teach our soul the most amounts of lessons possible. Since we develop and grow as souls, each lifetime can be dedicated to mastering another aspect of life, hence another sign. Some astrologers maintain that our rising sign indicates our Sun sign in a previous lifetime. This is a plausible theory but one must remember that to use the word past in the context of lifetimes is somewhat misleading since all of our reincarnations happen simultaneously. Your “lower” or more primitive parts of your personality are linked and influenced by your “first” reincarnations as human, while your moments of aha! and deep insights might be clues and hints you receive from a “future” lifetime where you are sitting under a tree about to attain enlightenment. Read More

Moon Void of Course - Her Lunarship and Her Regal Issues

Change is upon us all, regardless if you are in the USA or even if you can vote, the results of the Nov 4th election will affect directly or indirectly every person on this planet. In fact, looking at the ideological difference between the two candidates, this upcoming presidential election will affect Mother Nature herself as well as our already marred relationship with her.

A close look at the astrological climate on Election Day shows that the planets agree with the notion that we are at a tipping point. On November 4th, Saturn, the planet that rules traditional values, conservatism, caution, and maturity is precisely opposite to Uranus, the planet associated with reform, grassroots movements, computers and technology, humanism, hope and youth. Never before, has the opposition between the two parties and two candidates reflected the opposition between these two planets in such a precise way. Even though the poles show a strong significant lead to Obama, do not let the lead mislead you. When these two planets oppose you can expect the unexpected. Regardless of your political views, my suggestion is don’t trust the polls, go vote!

To add to the celestial drama her Lunarship is having issues almost all of next Tuesday. On November 4th the Moon will be Void of Course from 1:47am to 7pm EST. So what does that mean? Read More

No on Prop 8 - Without Sounding too Negative

Astrology and Financial Crisis

How to use astrology and especially the sign Taurus to improve your finance

The Astrological Remedy for the Economy – Add More Taurus!

We have just moved into Scorpio, the sign of death and transformation. If you are feeling some slight winter blues then don’t take it personally, the trees, nature and the earth herself (at least her Northern side) is there with you, shading the old and preparing for a renewal. It is in Scorpio that we celebrate Halloween, a celebration of death and transformation, a festivity of magic and spells. It is this time of the year that the Celts have insured us, we have the ability to look through the veils and see the other side. Who knows, maybe that is why the election in the US always takes place in the midst of Scorpio as to facilitate change and transformation. This email though will be dedicated to the opposite sign of Scorpio – Taurus

At last we are over the Mercury retro in Libra. It has been a rather intense period of time. The scales of Libra swung violently and the place where we saw it the most was in the stock market. 8 days of the worst slide in 7 decades and then on October 13th the highest rise in 75 years! My friend Evi Orologas send me this link from CNBC mentioning the Mercury Retro and its association to the financial situation. Economist are so desperate to explain what is happening in Wall Street that they are not afraid to be seen flirting with Astrology…
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=875316256

While Libra is governed by Venus the planet associated with money, it is the other sign ruled by Venus, Taurus, that is considered to be the zodiac archetype associated with money and finance. It is not surprising that when the market is doing well it is called Bull market and when it is sleeping it is called Bear. The symbolic logic of astrology tells us that if Taurus rules astrology, by connecting to that sign we can enhance our moneymaking abilities and attract abundance into our lives. Astrology asks us in times of recession to become a Taurus and do what we can to embrace that archetype.

So how do we do it? Read More

The Zen Question of the Presidential Debate

“What don’t you know and how will you learn it?”

I watched the Presidential debate hoping it will generate some ideas, thoughts, associations etc, something to write about or comment. But nothing. The political ping pong went on and on going someplace close to nowhere. It felt to me like both candidates could not say what they really wanted and therefore resorted to slogans, repeated statements and recycled jokes. I would like to suggest a new type of debate where the candidates are forced to take a truth drug before they begin. I promise the network much higher rating and America a better future…

But like in any good story, there was a twist at the end to save the day. The last question came from the internet. I love it! It is as if this collective body of knowledge, this cyber entity called www came up with a question. Tom Brokaw warned the candidates that the question had a somewhat “Zen like” koan quality: What don’t you know and how will you learn it. I think the internet is living up to its name. The internet speaks a binary language of yes – no, true – false, 1-0, no wonder it produced a question that is both true and false and illogical in its logic. If there is something the candidates do not know, how will they know it? And if they do not know what they do not know, how could they possibly know what they need to learn? But that was not the question. The internet came out with a rhetorical question which can be rephrased: Do you two guys recognize the fact that there are things you do not know, and if so, are you OK with that? Both candidates failed to answer the oracle of the internet. But, an interesting chain of events and synchronicities followed the question. Senator Obama started answering the obscure question by referring to his wife, Michelle, who was sitting dressed in a Republican red dress. Hmmm, I thought to myself at last, the plot thickens… Read More

Astrology & Symbolism of the Presidential Candidates Part 2

Astrology & Symbolism of the Presidential Candidates Part 1

Happy Mythological Birthday to Humanity – New Moon in Libra

Moses was told by God, that the newly freed salves wondering in the desert towards their Promise Land should start using a calendar. I guess the logic was that while they were slaves, time was not their own to spend. Now, as they were journeying towards their own piece of land, it was important they master time. Moses informed his trailing congregation that the year should start in Nisan – Aries, the first day of Spring. And so it was for centuries. But all things change, including time. Later on, as Judaism developed its own identity, the Rabbis transplanted the New Year from Aries to its opposite sign – Libra. They based the reason for this shift on a passage from the book of Leviticus: “In the seventh months (Libra is the seventh sign) on the first day of the month (the Jewish calendar is Lunar/Solar therefore the months begin on the New Moon) shall be a solemn rest to you, a memorial proclaimed with the blast of the horn. (Lev. XXIII, 24) The horn of course belongs to Aries the Ram. Read More

Power of Names II

Before I begin, happy Equinox! On Sep 22nd, we officially started the introversive and feminine part of the year. We are asked to mimic nature, shed off what we do not need and let go of our masks. This will help us become more intimate with ourselves and others. It is a wonderful time for insights, meditations, self discovery and study. Mercury is going retrograde from September 25th to October 15th. You know the drill, watch what you sign, don’t make major purchases and be careful what you say, write or communicate.

In this SpiriTalk, I would like to continue the subject of the Power of Names by analyzing the names of the Presidential candidates. I will start with the Republican nominees Sarah Palin and John McCain and next SpiriTalk work with the Democratic elected Joe Biden and Barack Obama. Read More

Power of Names

In the book of Genesis we read that once God finished his creation, he politely asked Adam and Eve to name the animals and plants. Since an early age I wondered how come Adam and Eve chose such complicated unpronounceable names such as Agathis Australis etc. That query put aside, names are considered to be of out most importance in many spiritual traditions. In Kundalini Yoga, the yogini starts her practice with the chant Sat Nam, which roughly translate to “truth is my name.” In Judaism, God is many times called Ha’Shem which means “the name.” Many traditions assert that our names contain our destiny, the DNA of our soul. In other words, our name can tell us where we came from, where we are as well as our destiny. Our names tell a story which takes as much time telling as our years on earth. Our names’ tale begins in conceptions and ends with our final breath.

While our name might change, add or subtract letters, shift, morph, misspelled or mispronounced, it will always serve as a lighthouse that shows the way even in the darkest most turbulent nights. In the introduction to Cosmic Navigator, I share the story of how I followed the meaning of my name all the way from Israel to the US and how it helped me connect to Astrology, Kabbalah, Yoga and everything that I am today. Read More

August 16th Eclipse and the whole 08-08-08 Business

On August 16th we will experience the second act of the drama that was unfolded on the Solar eclipse of Aug 1st. This coming Full Moon in Aquarius represents the completion of a process started on the New Moon in Leo two weeks ago. I received many emails and comments about how powerful, challenging and transforming the weekend of August 1st was on so many levels. It does not mean this coming eclipse will be adding gasoline to the wildfires the eclipse started, but it does suggest that whatever was initiated on the new moon will come full circle on the full moon. So, as the poets say, take heed!

This eclipse in Aquarius, the sign of humanity, friends, groups and organizations will ask us to let go of whatever is holding us back, as a society and as individuals from experiencing the full range of energies of the Age of Aquarius (see below the excerpt). It will ask us to examine all our friendships, clubs and groups we belong to and reassess our connection to our fellow human beings. On this full moon weekend, spend time with your friends or find activities that might introduce you to a new circle of friends… Read More

Bad is the New Good – Meditations on HellBoy

The tagline “Believe it or not, he’s the good guy,” started a train of thoughts that eventually lead me to this Spirit Talk.

The line is from the poster for the new film of master storyteller, Guillermo del Toro, Hell Boy. The poster depicts an image of what appears to be a red demon, an image that could have been taken from a manual used in the Middle Ages by clergy to identify devils and demons.

The poster actually counted on the fact that we might not believe he is the good guy. Immediately I thought about the graphic novel I am currently reading called Lucifer. In that story, the fallen angel takes residence in Los Angeles after retiring from running Hell. As you get to know the unlikely hero, you cannot help falling for the charming Devil and identifying with him. He is kind of intriguing, deep, and multi-dimensional. Common notions up until a few decades ago, would have made me a Satanist for reading such a thing. Read More