Spring Equinox Spirit Guide
Get in loser, we're manifesting for spring
Grab your crystals, girls. We’re talkin’ astrology today. Between my status as Betches’ weekly horoscope writer, recently released list-based astrology book, and previous writings in this newsletter on the subject, you probably know by now that I fuck with astrology. Some people will think that makes me dumb, but that’s fine. There are worse things to be, and I’m also dumb for a whole host of other reasons, like my brain’s inability to understand how airplanes work. (I just don’t get it! Sorry!) This week brought not only a new moon in Aries, but it was also the Spring Equinox, meaning now is a very powerful time for manifesting your future.
And if it’s not - who fucking cares? So I wrote down some goals in a notebook! So I said some affirmations out loud while ringing a tiny bell! Some people’s hobby is literally guns.
Reminder that I literally wrote this book and you can buy it.
Separately from astrology, I’ve spent the past several years developing a Bhakti Yoga practice, mainly by attending classes, meditations, and kirtans at the Bhakti Center here in New York. I’ve been hesitant to talk publicly about my spiritual practice because I’m still very much in a learning stage, and don’t want to be perceived as that white girl who thinks she discovered eastern spirituality because she chanted Hare Krishna a few times. That said, developing a set of religious beliefs and starting a spiritual practice has brought a lot of joy and peace to my life, and I find a lot of the Ayurvedic practices around acknowledging and marking seasonal changes to be very useful and grounding. Frickin’ sue me already!
In Yogic tradition, 108 is a sacred number and yogis will often mark seasonal changes like the Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox by doing 108 sun salutations (if you’ve ever taken a yoga class, the sun salutation is usually the first set of movements you do in class). I tried this for the first time for the Winter Solstice, and this past weekend I went back to the Bhakti Center for a two-hour sun salutation-a-thon that welcomed spring into my life and left my entire body feeling kooky-crazy for several days afterward. I also did a three-day kitchari cleanse, which is the only type of cleanse I would ever do or recommend because you actually eat food. Specifically, you eat the same food (kitchari) for three days to give your tummy a break (Lord does she need it) and let the body reset. The kitchari is basically a mix of lentils and spices that are easy to digest and genuinely quite tasty. If you’re interested, I buy pre-made kitchari mixes here.
If anything I’ve said here is of interest to you, the Bhakti Center has tons of offerings both online and IRL where you can learn more about the practice from actual yogis/gurus/South Asian people. I can also recommend their Spirit Matters podcast and Wisdom of the Sages, which is another Bhakti podcast hosted by two ex-hardcore guys who are monks now. Now I simply must change the subject because I’m already feeling deeply uncomfortable over the aforementioned “white girl preaching an eastern religion she just learned about” concerns.
So back to astrology (aka another deeply-studied topic that I really have no business speaking on with authority). This year I bought a little moon cycle journal off Etsy that I check in with every new and full moon. At worst all I’m doing with this is checking in with goals twice a month. At best, I am harnessing the power of the moon to fulfill my life’s purpose. Kind of a win/win.
For every new or full moon, the book includes a few mantras to focus on for the next two weeks, and today in therapy we took each one of them and tried to associate it powerful positive memory that I can both feel in my body and visualize clearly. I found this to be very helpful for contradicting my nasty little habit of talking shit about myself to myself all day long.
I now pass these mantras along to you, that you may have a blessed and fruitful spring.
I stand for myself.
I am a creator.
I take action to manifest my goals.
I communicate my ideas clearly.
I am confident.
I am brave.*
That’s all for today. Happy Solstice!
besitos,
xoxo
alise
*The version of this substack that went out to everyone via email read “I am braise” which is an extremely funny typo for me to have as basically the last line of this week’s newsletter. What can I say? I *am* braise!