Lucky Numbers for the Week of April 30, 2021

Lottery ads tell us you only need a dollar and a dream. But it is also helpful to have a list of lucky numbers to help spur the good fortune ... or fortunes. So with that in mind, here are 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 of wealth.

Here are the lucky numbers for the week of April 30- May 6, 2021:

1, 17, 24, 35, 37, 41, 62, 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. Here's a guide to the best books available this month

Aura Photographs by Mystical Photographer Christina Lonsdale

 

 

 

 

 

 

Artist Christina Lonsdale grew up during the time of fascination with everything new age in the 1960s but as the internet grew, she entered the world of the Digital New Age. When the artist encountered “aura photography,” which is made with the use of a very special camera that can actually capture a person’s individual essence and electromagnetic energy, thereby illuminating their true selves, she found the perfect marriage of art and science. For audiences, this means a deeper connection with the subjects.

Metal sensors help capture a person’s inner vibe inside a specially-designed “dome” that looks like a small spaceship, wherein energy can be viably concentrated. Using a hand-modified Polaroid camera, the wavelengths of a sitter’s spirit are translated into vibrant and otherworldly colors. With her newfound tools, Lonsdale found that she was able to connect her formative childhood experiences with those of the burgeoning realm of social media to embark. Therefrom sprang the triumph of the Radiant Human project.

“As human beings, we carry electricity inside us,” Lonsdale said in a 2019 interview with Artnet News. “It radiates past our skin in what’s known as an electromagnetic field.” What emerges, in Lonsdale’s words, is essentially the OG Instagram filter. “Instead of doggie ears and Coachella wreathes, you have the color of your energy,” she says.

In the book, Lonsdale provides detailed case studies that describe what certain colors indicate about a person’s aura. Through hundreds of photographs, including remarkable images of celebrities such as Busy Philipps, Zosia Mamet, Chloë Sevigny, Joseph Altuzarra, and SZA, she pulls out the nuances of individuals’ personalities through the gradient colors of a Polaroid. Sometimes, the auras are almost imperceptible, but it’s exactly those discreet and subtle changes that make up the whole of a person’s aura.

“Perceptions can pivot with the click of a shutter,” Lonsdale says on the project’s website, “illuminating our truest selves, and giving new light to what was there all along.”

Here new book, Radiant Human: Discover the Connection Between Color, Identity, and Energy is out this month.

Read the full article here.

 

Horoscope for the Week of April 26, 2021 - Sun in Taurus

The Sun enters Taurus this week signaling a time of greater stability and confidence. What area of your life needs a bit of grounding? Where can you consolidate and stabilize?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Barbra Streisand has Sun in Taurus)

Never miss your horoscope again -- free sign up here. Here is my favorite book on astrology and a "must" for anyone interested in learning more: Secrets from a Stargazer's Notebook: Making Astrology Work for You and here's a guide to the best books available this month. This column is (c) 2020 MADAM LICHTENSTEIN, LLC., All Rights Reserved. For Entertainment Purposes Only. Madam Lichtenstein is the author of the best selling astrology book “HerScopes ” now in its 10th printing and available as an eBook.

ARIES (MARCH 21 - APRIL 20)
This is a good time to think deeply about what you really value in life. Maybe it is time for a reevaluation, Aries? The past year has been one of total adjustment and what may have figured prominently before is, maybe, not so important anymore. Move to the future of possibilities. You will not only benefit emotionally but also financially.

TAURUS (APRIL 21 - MAY 21)
You can do no wrong now, Taurus. That is because everything that you have been working towards is starting to fall into place. The world seems to open up before you. Put your long term plans into action and find powerful people to help you along. Your innate charisma and confidence is high and your abilities are sharp. Don’t lose focus.

GEMINI (MAY 22 - JUNE 21)
Don’t try to hide, Gemini. It just won’t work. A light shines brightly into any area of your life that you are trying to keep hidden. So embrace your eccentricities and foibles and enter the world with confidence that you are truly unique and beautiful. Take a path to wellness, mellowness and calm to ease you through any stressful situation. Ommm.

CANCER (JUNE 22 - JULY 23)
Are you finding that your social life is heating up and getting much busier? If so, go with the flow and find creative ways to connect with others. You may decide to get more involved in a variety of clubs or organizations that offer enriching projects. There is nothing you can’t do without a little extra help from your friends. The more the merrier, Cancer!

LEO (JULY 24 - AUGUST 23)
Leos have their eye on the big prize. And why not? You have been working very hard and have produced some excellent work. Now is the time to cash in either through a raise or a promotion. Explore long term professional opportunities and see if any lead you to a particular personal placement. Life is a chess game. Make your best moves now.

VIRGO (AUGUST 24 - SEPTEMBER 23)
It’s time to shake off any boring routine and enter a new and exciting space. Whether that means planning a long deferred vacation or dramatically changing something in your immediate environment, is up to you, Virgo. The most important thing is to get out of your old skin and into something shiny new. Maybe something sparkling, while you are at it.

LIBRA (SEPTEMBER 24 - OCTOBER 23)
As lovely as you usually are, now you are a force with whom to be reckoned. Who catches your eye? Who captures your heart? And equally intriguing, who is watching you? You may be surprised, Libra, at the way love and lust works its way through your life now. Take things slowly and carefully but expect surprises along the way.

SCORPIO (OCTOBER 24 - NOVEMBER 22)
The pandemic might have made you feel more isolated and lonely. But there is a fast solution. Focus on your most important relationships, Scorpio. Not only will they figure prominently in your immediate future, the special connections that you reinforce now can take you through a lifetime. No one is an island. Keep your outreach current and strong.

SAGITTARIUS (NOVEMBER 23 - DECEMBER 22)
There is a lot to get done and not enough time to do it all, Sagittarius. Spring cleaning continues as your need to declutter becomes paramount. But don’t sweat it if things are not moving as fast as you would like. Sometimes there is something cathartic just planning it out. Find ways to enjoy life more as you handle these chores. Can you make it a game...?

CAPRICORN (DECEMBER 23 - JANUARY 20)
Relaxation takes precedence over pretty much everything else now, Capricorn. So why ask why? Find new ways to just enjoy life whether it’s through the arts, festivities, a new absorbing hobby or even a little flirtation. Whatever helps you see life anew and refresh your outlook, do it. Life is too short and, currently, too stressful.

AQUARIUS (JANUARY 21 - FEBRUARY 19)
Aquarians are prepared to take a new, fresh look at their surroundings to see what might need some sprucing up. This can occur in your physical, emotional or psychic space. As spring gets underway there will be a reappraisal of where you are and where you need to be to feel free, safe and happy. Welcome the change and prepare for a new you.

PISCES (FEBRUARY 20 - MARCH 20)
Pisces have many things on their mind, some of which need to go beyond the thinking stage. What is it that you need to tell others or express to the world? You voice is amplified and your ability to engage others is strong. Make your message resonate and use your impressive ability to move yourself forward in any life path. If not now, when? If not you, then who?

(c) 2021 MADAM LICHTENSTEIN, LLC., All Rights Reserved. For Entertainment Purposes Only. Author of the book HerScopes. Contact at @thestarryeye
Astrology readings on tinyurl.com/TheStarryEye

Lucky Numbers for the Week of April 23, 2021

Lottery ads tell us you only need a dollar and a dream. But it is also helpful to have a list of lucky numbers to help spur the good fortune ... or fortunes. So with that in mind, here are 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 of wealth.

Here are the lucky numbers for the week of April 23-29, 2021:

2, 6, 11, 18, 21, 30, 57, 64

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. Here's a guide to the best books available this month

‘Healing’ Crystals are Having a Pandemic Moment

The Washington Post's Amanda McCracken recently wrote about the impact (or not) of crystals. You can decide for yourself.

When my friend, a massage therapist, learned I was pregnant last winter, he gifted me a stunning large, clear piece of quartz he had bought during a recent crystal-foraging trip to Brazil. I welcomed the gift and the positive protective energy my friend said he could feel with his hands. I even placed it on the dinner table the night of my induction. It couldn’t hurt, could it?

Although the market for diamonds has seen a decline during the pandemic, “near-gemstones” (crystals and minerals) have maintained their appeal among consumers, making it a $1 billion business. Even classy art giants Sotheby’s and Christie’s have joined the mom-and-pop incense-burning shops in selling crystals. Katy Perry claims her rose quartz helps her attract men, and Adele swears crystals decrease her anxiety onstage. According to trends on Google, there has seen a steady climb in searches for “crystal healing” in the past year, including “crystal healing shops near me.”

Purchasing crystal merchandise is not just a basic shopping trip anymore; it’s an experience. You can sign up for a crystal-mining adventure at Sweet Surrender Crystals in Arkansas, or attend a crystal altar offering to Mother Earth (Pachamama) led by a shaman at the Sumaq hotel before ascending to Machu Picchu. Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle brand, Goop, offers a “medicine bag” complete with crystals to encourage clarity, creativity and emotional strength. Perhaps you prefer your water with youth-energizing crystals: VitaJuwel’s Forever Young Gem-Water bottles have you covered.

Crystals aren't just having a moment

For centuries, these enigmatic rocks have captivated artists, writers, healers and religious leaders, many of whom believed the crystals contained a certain concentration of the earth’s energy. Egyptians sometimes carved crystal sarcophagi to protect the body from evil spirits on their way to the afterlife. The word “crystal” comes from the Greek “krystallos,” meaning ice. Crystal divination was described by Pliny the Elder, a Roman author and naturalist, in the 1st century A.D. 

Physical healing powers?

Science does not back the idea that crystals have special powers. “I am not aware of any [National Science Foundation]-supported studies into the healing powers of crystals,” Peter Heaney, a mineral sciences professor at Pennsylvania State University, said via email. “Such a proposal would frankly never survive peer review, because there is not any theoretical reason to expect crystals to have healing powers.”

Heaney recounted a story from his days as a graduate student, when his adviser was asked whether crystals have energy. “It is a tricky question,” Heaney wrote, “because the answer is ‘yes’ with respect to Einstein’s mass-energy equivalence (e=mc^2) or with respect to thermodynamic conceptions of free energy in crystals. But as my advisor noted, crystal healing posits that there is an energy transfer between crystals and people . . . and there is simply no scientific foundation for those assertions.”

Mineralogist Jeff Post, the Smithsonian Institution’s curator-in-charge of gems and minerals, said in an email: “The simple fact is that there is no scientific basis for any kind of crystal healing. No doubt, beautiful crystals can bring joy and some happiness just by looking at them, like looking at beautiful art or beautiful flowers, but I think that is the extent of their power.”

Stuart Vyse, behavioral scientist and author of “Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition,” said “there is no evidence that there’s a mechanism by which [crystals] could heal that’s understood by science. It doesn’t make logical sense from a scientific viewpoint.” He attributes the uptick in crystal interest to a desire to believe that crystals have some special power.

But believing in the healing benefits of crystals can be harmful to your health — and your wallet — if, for example, you depend on them to cure you of cancer instead of seeing a physician, or if you choose to carry a clear quartz crystal, known as the master healing stone, rather than wearing a mask to protect yourself and others from the novel coronavirus.

The placebo effect

Many psychologists attribute perceived crystal healing to the placebo effect, according to Thomas Plante, professor of psychology and religious studies at Santa Clara University and adjunct clinical professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University’s School of Medicine.

 

Your belief in anything you think might help you — whether it be crystals, herbal supplements or experimental medical treatment — may do so, even if there’s no active ingredient involved. “When these beliefs are supported by friends and family or various social media blogs, they become more powerful,” Plante said.

“It’s hard to argue against people who believe in the psychological effects of crystals,” said Zhuo Job Chen, a professor who specializes in the psychology of religion and spirituality at Clemson University. “Those are genuine experiences we have to respect.” His research looks at how people around the world use spirituality to enhance their well-being. “We have to separate the difference between the stone’s symbolism and the material,” Chen said.

So people who wear a necklace strung with tourmaline stones to decrease anxiety might feel a sense of peace, not because the stone itself is physically endowed with power, but because they believe in the stone’s meaning. In a similar example, rosary beads facilitate prayer, but people don’t necessarily believe the stones themselves have power, Chen said.

Believing in the healing benefits of crystals can be harmful to your health if, for example, you choose to carry a clear quartz crystal, known as the master healing stone, rather than wearing a mask to protect yourself and others from the coronavirus. (iStock)

Role in spiritual development

Like rosary beads, crystals can help cultivate personal spiritual development. During an era in which our brains are burned out by digital distractions, having something to hold can help you focus during meditation, said Marisa Galvez, a professor of French and Italian at Stanford University studying the use of crystals in medieval poetry. “A crystal combines the earthly with the spiritual. It helps you reflect on yourself and your place in the world while also helping you transcend the world,” Galvez said. “This found object refracts light, which lends itself to reflection. Its brightness and weight endow it with a presence, but its transparency allows it to disappear.” This paradox is part of crystal fascination, Galvez said. “It belongs to the common earth, but also can be personalized depending on how you interact with it.”

Crystal community

At the same time that you might be cultivating your individual spirituality with crystals, you can join a greater community of those who believe in the healing powers of the earth. “The social connections that people create and maintain through these associations may be far more important than the beliefs themselves,” said Phil Stevens, an anthropology professor at the University of Buffalo. Based on his research on New Age thinkers, Stevens argues that people persist in these scientifically unfounded beliefs largely because of their social associations: “People are clinging to whatever will connect them to other people.”

Research shows that people who believe in paranormal phenomena, including crystals, demonstrate a higher level of patternicity: a tendency to detect patterns in randomness. This can be a boon or a curse, Chen said. Studies show these individuals are better at word associations and facial recognition, but they’re also more likely to believe in conspiracy theories or see ghosts.

Crystals and covid

The Terror Management Theory says that when individuals are confronted with the threat of mortality, they develop new ways to cope, and for some Americans, that way may be by turning to crystals.

“During times of uncertainty, people seek clues that will give them a sense of being, seeking ways to create coherence and make meaning out of the world — transcend the person to something greater. Crystals can be a source for some,” Chen said.

People’s fears, anxiety and depression are “through the roof,” Plante said. “We are talking about a mental health tsunami. People want to be consoled.  They are clutching whatever brings them solace.” This is especially true of those unaffiliated with religion, he said, a number that is growing in the United States. “Religions tell you what to do, and people don’t like that, especially Americans,” Plante said. “Those who don’t come from religious traditions are more susceptible to unregulated things like crystals or tarot cards, because you can do with them as you wish.”

The pandemic also is forcing people to reinvent themselves, and as they do so, they also may be changing what provides them solace. Some people might find pandemic comfort in turning to swirling agate for rebalancing, for example. 

And, finally, while our suitcases gather dust, crystals allow us to travel. Galvez describes crystals as a “passport” to a higher spiritual plane. “They give you permission to go somewhere else,” she said. “And if people can be more meditative or develop a spiritual practice, that’s a good thing.”