Tarot Reading For Bernie Madoff

The New York Post reported yesterday that Davinia, a British psychic, read Bernie Madoff's tarot cards a few years ago. The New York Post recruited her for a follow up tarot card reading to see what might be going on in Madoff's mind and in his future. Here is what she said, according to the article:

An eternity of isolation and "really bad nightmares" are in the cards for a cowering Bernie Madoff. Davinia, a British psychic who read the Ponzi schemer's palm six years ago, predicted the dire future for the "really afraid" fraudster as she read his tarot cards at The Post's request.

"He's really afraid of what's going to happen," said Davinia, who perused the fraudster's palm at the 2003 Christmas party for his London office. "He's used to being very buoyed up by other people's idea of him, and that's just cut away," added the psychic, who read the cards on a table at her Bristol, England, home.

The first card, the Five of Swords, suggests that "people hate him. The second, the Judgment Card, shows that "what you give will come back to you in the end," Davinia said. "And I've got the Emperor Card, which is somebody that's very arrogant and self-centered and very sure of himself."

Now maybe it's just me but I read the Five of Swords, Judgment and Emperor cards differently. If I saw those three cards I would say that a legal issue will get him out of his troubles so he can set new foundations. So I decided to mix my own deck of cards and ask the question - what is going on around Bernie Madoff now that he has been sentenced. Here are the tarot cards I got along with a quick reading:

8 of Wands - be political and diplomatic, roll with the punches

Ace of Pentacles - a lump sum of money

Emperor - laying down the foundations for the future, a strong and aggressive force

6 of Cups - good feelings

10 of Wands- New ideas, new people

So I say that Bernie thinks he has an out - maybe on appeal, maybe in a few years - and is stashing some money in a place where he thinks no one will find it. He is biding his time, waiting things out, being diplomatic and saying that he is sorry but I think that is just part of the game. I expect to hear more in the next few months about new strategies, money in hiding and ways that he, his family and associates are consolidating things to protect and profit themselves for the future.

Stay tuned....

Tibetan Buddhism

The Washington Post reported on the rise of a new form of Buddhism called Tibetan Buddhism. This movement is clashing with the Chinese government, as would any religious movement in the Socialist country.

The article talks of the fish release ritual: "Buddhists came by the busload to this partially frozen reservoir about 55 miles north of Beijing. In the morning, they released 53,000 fish into holes cut in the ice. In the afternoon, they walked clockwise around a bonfire in the courtyard of a windswept rural hotel, chanting incantations against evil as volunteers threw cooking oil, beans, fruit and cigarettes onto the flames.

The participants were 200 Han Chinese, the ethnic designation of most people on the mainland, but their teachers, or "masters," were Tibetan monks, including Yixi, a lama, or senior monk, from Shigatse, Tibet, who presided over the unusual and unofficial ceremony last week from between two enormous vases of tulips."

Their spiritual leader is the Dalai Lama and the religion precepts include meditation and the attainment of enlightenment. While there are close ties historically between Tibetan Buddhism and different types of Chinese Buddhism, they are practiced differently. Tibetan Buddhism encourages lamas to counsel students individually, while the teaching in Chinese monasteries is usually reserved for monks, studying in groups.

For those who want to know more, read Tibetan Buddhism From the Ground Up: A Practical Approach for Modern Life

A Sweet Good Luck Charm

How is this for a brilliant idea? In Japan's insanely competitive retail environment, one of the world's most familiar confectionery products, Nestle's Kit Kat, created a sweet new good luck charm.

Kit Kat Mail

In Japanese, Kit Kat -- Kitto Katso means "surely win" -- and the tradition of sending students good luck wishes before they take tough higher-education entrance exams. So Nestle partnered with Japan's postal service to create "Kit Kat Mail," a postcard-like product sold only at the post office that could be mailed to students as an edible good-luck charm.

I wish someone thought of these edible postcards when I was a student taking exams..... I guess I will have to console myself with the non-postcard version.

Horoscope for Month of July 2009 and Week of June 29

Turn your ha ha ha into ha cha cha when any steamy thought or comment boils over. Mercury in Cancer opposes Pluto in Capricorn and packs a jolt. Aim your missives carefully ... and shoot from the lip. Planning some beach time? Take along this great book featuring a horoscope-addicted heroine: Mercury in Retrograde: A Novel.

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ARIES   (MARCH 21 - APRIL 20)
Even if your home life is not perfect there is a great deal to recommend it. Rams find that good thoughts take them far with relatives and in their home surroundings. And, with domestic knots untangled, you can focus on manifesting transformations on the job front. Enlist a friendly helping hand to assist you in your corporate climb. Don’t step on their fingers.

(Judy Garland had Mercury in Cancer)

TAURUS   (APRIL 21 - MAY 21)
Stop talking to yourself or to just  your small coterie of rabid fans. Life now demands that you get your ideas pushed out into the blogosphere as soon as possible. Many of your opinions have the potential to change the global landscape while others are mere potholes that will trip you up. The questions is - do you know which is which, Bull?

GEMINI   (MAY 22 - JUNE 21)
Many Twins lapse into mindgames when they really should take a risk and deliberate action.Confound the experts and get up off your contemplative pose this week. Express yourself with the powers-that-be. Glad handing potentially well endowed benefactors might wind up delivering you a lump sum. Some folks have all the luck!

CANCER   (JUNE 22 - JULY 23)
Crabs may chaff at the leash. Not only do you ache for some time alone, you need it in order to re-approach, refresh and reassess certain cloying relationships. Are partnerships giving you what you need? Honesty will be the best policy ... unless it is brutal honesty. So be sure to add some sugar to every bitter pill to avoid indigestion.

LEO   (JULY 24 - AUGUST 23)
Keeping secrets to yourself will not move the needle on the job.  Lions with ambition need to be forthright in their opinions, especially when it has to do with their role in the organization or with the expectations of their co-workers. Are you meeting or exceeding your agreed upon goals? If not, prepare for some big changes this month.

VIRGO   (AUGUST 24 - SEPTEMBER 23)
Sitting at home and eating in front of the television may have its charms at other times of the year but now the fates demand that you expand your social reach and get out of your safe cocoon. Virgins can meet new and interesting friends now who will prove to be pivotal to your future happiness. Press and impress... and I don’t mean the couch cushions.

LIBRA   (SEPTEMBER 24 - OCTOBER 23)
You are brimming with great professional ideas. Can you get anyone in authority to listen to you? All bets are off unless you find important and powerful folks from other areas of your life to come to your assistance. Libras are charmers so turn up the heat on your charisma and see how brightly you can burn. Stop at warm before you become toast.

SCORPIO   (OCTOBER 24 - NOVEMBER 22)
They say “those who can’t do, teach” but that is plain wrong. Scorps not only can “do”, they are also able to impart their wisdom effectively. So use this time to spread your word and see how lucrative it will be. Even better, use your knowledge to become and effective leader. Create a new ground swell and use it as fertilizer for your own victory garden.

SAGITTARIUS   (NOVEMBER 23 - DECEMBER 22)
Archrs are known for their reckless extravagance and now is no exception. You are full of love and have no qualms about lavishing your affections and money on a certain delightful someone. But limit your budget to affordable treats. Sometimes you can win hearts through good deeds rather than grand trinkets. Sometimes ....

CAPRICORN   (DECEMBER 23 - JANUARY 20)
You, me or we? That is the question. Caps expect to find all the answers to their life course within another person. But the surprise conclusion is that you have all the answers you need for your personal happiness all within yourself. Of course a second opinion from you-know-who can sometimes be appreciated. But it is all icing on the cheesecake.

AQUARIUS   (JANUARY 21 - FEBRUARY 19)
There are no secrets at work so avoid long lunches and mental health days. And if you decide to cheat on your diet there will be no calorie-free option. The gremlins will gleefully add on the pounds. Aquarians can’t seem to get away with anything this July, try as they will.So don’t even try. Be honest, thrifty and clean ... until August.

PISCES   (FEBRUARY 20 - MARCH 20)
Turn your attention to creative pursuits. Pisces can expand their artistic impact by enlisting the help of friends. But an even better, more effective way of making your mark on the landscape is to join new relevant organizations that place you in touch with the experts. Ask advice, listen carefully and then  show the world how it is really done.

(c) 2009 THE STARRY EYE, LLC., All Rights Reserved. For Entertainment Purposes Only. Lichtenstein is the author of the best selling astrology book “HerScopes, ” now in its seventh printing.

Lucky Numbers for Week of June 26, 2009

Lottery ads tell us you only need a dollar and a dream. But I think it is also helpful to have a list of lucky numbers to help spur the good fortune ... or fortunes.

So with that in mind, I decided that we could use some lucky numbers that can be used in any helpful way. I gazed into a pool of water, Nostradamus-like, and contemplated the cosmos. Then I mixed the tarot cards and allowed the spirits to guide me to the cards that represent the lucky numbers for this week. Nothing is guaranteed but who knows ....?

I choose eight numbers because 8 is the number of wealth.

Here are the lucky numbers for the week of June 26 - July 2, 2009 (Get your free lucky numbers every week -- just click here and receive your numbers by email):

1, 10, 18, 26, 29, 39, 43, 77

There are many ways to delve into your own consciousness to find luck and intuition. Try reading Dream Power/Improve Your Luck (Super Strength Series) and see if your dreams give you any clues and premonitions.