Astrology
By Jade Emory
March 2007
Grace
Bestowed
From the Bible to Shakespeare,
great writers have said that everyone yearns for Grace. Often people
want it from other people, but the true Source of Grace is the Divine
working through people.
The kind of people who say,
"Your needs are your problem. Why should I be expected to help?"
are people who lack alignment with their Lord, regardless of the religion
they claim to practice. I call them members of the "fan club",
but not real students of the Divine.
The kind of people who say,
"How can I help?" are true students of the Divine, because
they are emulating the merciful example that the Creator has given,
the loving willingness to ease the burdens of others without making
the recipient weaker. These people have strong placements of Jupiter
in their charts.
In India, Jupiter is called
"the Guru planet." It is prominent in the charts of enlightened
Masters and living Saints. It also is strong in the charts of sincere
students with the humility to seek guidance from attained realized beings,
and the purity of intention to accept their teacher's offerings by putting
those teachings into practice.
These students become responsive
to the needs of others, instead of selfishly reactive, contracting in
refusal.
But once we receive grace,
we can plummet downward if we become arrogant and self-righteous, inviting
losses, jealousy from others and opprobrium which makes us unworthy
of the blessings we have received.
Therefore, it is imperative
to be sublimely grateful and to share one's blessings with others.
Confucius, in his commentary
to I Ching Hexagram 55, "Abundance," said, "The
only foundation necessary to keep abundance from turning into its opposite
is to expand one's spiritual foundations and to include others in sharing
one's bounty." Herein is another test.
Some people proudly say they
would only give to their own family, or to people made over in their
own image. Kahlil Gibran, in The Prophet said, "Ask not
if the receiver of your gift is worthy. See first that you are worthy
of being a giver."
The "I Ching" uses
nature as the best example of worldly giving, saying the sun shines
equally on all; the flowers offer their fragrance equally to all. If
we can use the examples true Gurus and of Mother Nature, we can also
be bestowers of Grace and live up to the promises that our own placement
of Jupiter offers.
If a person chooses to cultivate
or emphasize their own Jupiter placement, then they should seek out
wise sages to help them become integrated with valid truths, as there
is no room for hypocrisy on the path to enlightenment.
Walk the talk.
Jade Emory holds degrees in psychology and education, has taught in
American and Canadian universities and has been a counselor since 1970.
Jade passed beyond
the earthly bonds of her body in 2020, and is studying astrology on
the other side.
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