​Vedic Astrology, Jyotish, (the science of Light) is the astrology of India. This is known as the 'eyes' of the Vedas and a sister science to Yoga and Ayurveda.  This Light is meant to illuminate the path of the individual, providing insight into one's karma, strengths and weaknesses, personality, career, health, family and relationships. With this light we can see clearly and realize our Higher self therefore aligning with our true nature.

This 5,000-year-old ancient science conveys Eastern mysticism, philosophies and understanding of the human spirit through the language of the stars. It weaves together psychology, astronomy, mathematics, science, spirituality, astrology, physics, geometry, numerology as well as the art of interpretation and skill of useful communication to the client.
  
Vedic Astrology uses the sidereal zodiac, is geocentric based and places great importance on the Moon.  The Moon is our mind, consciousness and reflects our perception of the world.  Because the sidereal system is used, and the precession of equinoxes is calculated, Vedic Astrology uses the literal and actual position of the planets relative to our place on Earth. 

The Nakshatras, the lunar mansions, are the backdrop of the stars and have great symbolism. The nakshatras are the oldest known form of any astrology in the world. They are rich in meaning and steeped heavily in the ancient mythology of India.

The natal chart, which is the exact positions of the planets and stars at your moment of birth, is your unique blueprint.  This shows the karmas imprinted on your soul. Of course, we always have free will, and Vedic Astrology can help shine a light, guiding your path for the choices you make that can serve to better align you. By studying in depth, the natal chart, current transits and the dasha cycle, profound insights can be gained and predictions made. Vedic Astrology can be a great life tool for everyone!

What's happening today for all of us...
Since the unfolding of the COVID19 pandemic, there have been many volatile conjunctions and transits of planets creating immense astrological tension.

Saturn made his way into Capricorn on January 24th, where he will reside for an arduous 2 and half years. Saturn is the planet of lessons, obstacles, delays, structure and hard work and functions well in Capricorn. He is currently joined by Jupiter, Mars and Pluto.

Jupiter can give opportunity and growth, but he is weakest in the sign of Capricorn. Mars is violent and aggressive and is an enemy of Saturn, creating a lot of friction. And Pluto is explosive, controlling and powerful but ultimately leading to surrender and healing. Capricorn is the Earth sign that relates to government, ambition and success. 

When Saturn enters any sign it creates restriction, slowing things down, a lot! And that is exactly what we have been forced (Mars) to do, slow down, reset and pause. What I find interesting is that these planets have been placed in the nakshaktra (lunar Mansion) Uttarashada.  Uttarashada means ‘later victory’, it shows what can not be suppressed. Often called the Universal Star, it shows the ability to stand up for what you believe in, responsibility, truth, sincerity and a commitment to humanity. By sheltering in place, each of us is practicing our commitment to all humanity. In this nakshkatra the true nature of humans come out regardless of what they need to face. The aim of this lunar mansion is moksha, spiritual liberation and I believe through all of this we will each have deep transformation. 

The nodes of the Moon, Rahu and Ketu have played a major role in the pandemic.  They been in a treacherous alignment for about a year, but really as of December 26th 2019, when the solar eclipse occurred, this is what set the ecliptic pattern. This difficult placement refers to the nakshaktras have they have been transiting though. Rahu, the north node, has been in Ardra, the symbol is a tear drop and is a place of destruction and sadness. Ketu, the south node, has been in Mula, also a place of destruction and great losses where material possessions are stripped away but lead to spiritual realization. The last time the nodes were aligned in these nakshatras was the tragic event of September 11th. 

Prior to that they were aligned during the AIDS epidemic, and dating all the way back to the Spanish flu pandemic, same nodal placements but inverted.  We began to see some hope and relief as Rahu moved out of Ardra on April 22nd.  However, the nodes will remain in Gemini and Sagittarius until mid-September this year, so we aren’t out of the woods yet. 

With this Great Pause we have been given, through its destruction, loss and sadness, we will rise again. We will transform and release these old ways of living that didn’t serve our higher selves. Profound change is happening, look within, embrace it and let it this transformation guide you.

Meet Nancy
Nancy Ellis has been a devoted student of Vedic Astrology since 2005. Her
main teachers are Dennis Flaherty of Northwest Vedic Sciences and Joni
Patry of the Galactic Center, each have been practicing astrologers for
over 40yrs.  Nancy deepened her studies in India, meeting Jyotish masters
in Pune and near Dharmsala.  Nancy has the deepest reverence for this
ancient science and is committed to offering this wisdom with highest
intention of good for her clients. 
Her readings are warm, insightful, wise and enlightening.  Nancy is a
longtime certified Ayurvedic Practitioner, Yoga Instructor and
Meditation facilitator.  She is also a Licensed Massage Therapist, specializing
​ in Thai Bodywork and owner of Saffron Sun Healing Arts. She is an educator, teaching the in-depth Ayurveda coursework for Yoga teacher trainings in Montana and the Pacific Northwest since 2008. To schedule a reading on your personal chart (which we highly recommend!) please email her directly at saffronsun108@gmail.com or visit www.saffronsunhealingarts.com. For 25% off all services in April, use the code metta.

​And as you walk down Central, you pass dark storefront, after shuttered shop windows, one after the other. A nicely decorated ghost town. Wouldn't you wish, in that moment, you could turn back time and bring back the places you loved?

Of course you would.

But what would we say in that moment? Hindsight is 20/20.

It's easy to say: That won't happen to our town. It can't.

But if COVID has proven anything to us, it's that we can absolutely expect the unexpected, at any time. So why not do something about it, and make sure we're not living in a shell of a town, six months from now, or a year down the road?

My point is simple: Your vote counts. Your support matters. Every purchase you make at a small business matters, and helps carry them one step further toward weathering this bump in the road. This, coming from a studio that has given out more free yoga passes than ever before for so many new community members — we're so grateful you're here and you tried our LIVE online classes! But after all the free, our aim is to generate interest for a sustaining commitment so you continue to get yoga because we can afford to provide it.

And remember: Abundance isn't about the "haves" and the "have nots" ... yoga teaches us this:

Your attention is your most valuable currency. 

We all have attention to give. It helps a small business when you spread the word, tell your friends, share on social media. All those referrals (especially in a small town) mean the world to us. 

If other business owners are anything like me, the decisions we're making right now are crucial. Each step, we're walking on egg shells as we determine what needs to be left alone, what we can feasibly maintain, and how to possibly move forward when the state/county/city opens. 

And here's one more important thing to consider: The need for your vote doesn't stop when we all open up. It doesn't stop a few months from now when you're wanting to spend your days out in the breathtaking wilderness rather than downtown shopping. 

It will matter for a long time.

A friend of mine who lost her son years ago to complications with type 1 diabetes wrote a book on grief and talked about the feeling after people stop bringing lasagnas over... the newness of the loss wears off, and reality sets in and the family is left to fend for themselves once again. I think the chapter is called, "More Lasagna, please." That idea has always stuck with me.

As a community (this includes you), our collective loss is forcing business models to change, and will inevitably prevent as many tourists from visiting our towns this summer. This impact will be felt for many, many months to come.

I'm also the world's biggest optimist (you all know this by now) ... but yoga doesn't ask us to ignore what's right in front of us just because "this too shall pass." Yoga requires us to examine everything. Take nothing for granted. And take decisive, correct action when the moment is right.

So my advice (which I'm taking myself) is to start investing in what your future will look like. How will you vote with your attention to keep our small communities thriving? This week, I'm proud to promote two Yoga Hive resources to you — Nancy Ellis is sharing some incredibly Vedic Astrology wisdom with us (scroll to read!) and is offering deals on her Vedic Astrology readings... and Maud Mangin, one of our teachers at YH Wisconsin and a gifted intuitive healer herself, is offering a fun virtual workshop for Intuitive Play in early May. Details are below!

I speak for all of our teachers here at Yoga Hive — the handful currently teaching, and the nearly 30 total teachers throughout the Flathead that are part of our team — we would be so honored to continue serving you through our memberships and punch cards as we eventually offer some in-person offerings, and continue offering live online classes via Zoom for the foreseeable future. You could even buy a gift card for a friend or family member — no matter where they live!

If the LIVE online class times aren't working for you, or if you live somewhere other than Montana, we're proud to announce:

Yoga Hive Connect is OFFICIALLY open for live streaming! 

For as low as $15 a month (plus a 7-day FREE trial!), you can gain access to this incredible, growing database of Yoga Hive classes, workshops and perspectives... proceeds from which support your local studio.

Through May 1st, as a gesture of gratitude, we're offering the one-time opportunity to become a founding member. By using the coupon code foundingmember, you not only get 7 days to try for free, but you can get 50% off the monthly unlimited rate of $20/month. So that's all the goodness of taking our classes whenever you want, for only $10/month... for life. Cancel anytime on your own — no need to email us!

This offer is only through the end of the month, with no extensions. Act now.

                                                             Take me to Yoga Hive Connect!

​I can feel it.

The nation is buzzing… waiting for someone, ANYONE, to give the green light to go back to “normal.”

And normal was on my mind a lot last weekend. There were a solid four hours on Sunday (FOUR HOURS!) where nothing related to coronavirus, the state of this business, or the weight of strategizing reopening the studios felt heavy on my shoulders.

It was bliss.

Sean and I returned Monday after a long weekend up at Arctic Hive — 63 miles north of the Arctic Circle in the heart of the Brooks Range, locking up so many things we’d left open and exposed in anticipation for our yoga + northern lights retreat that couldn't happen earlier this month. I felt so grateful to be able to ski up a snow-covered trail into Gates of the Arctic National Park… It felt so good to sit around the wood stove with snow falling outside and dream about our plans for a fall retreat this September. It was amazing to just sit in stillness, inside and outside. The quiet of that place never ceases to take my breath away.

And before I get to the meat of this story, check out these photos...

Ahh. Takes me back. (Click here if you want to be the first to know when we launch dates for the next retreat!)

On Monday, as we rolled back into town, I could feel the shift. Having had my own taste of “normal” over the weekend, it’s as if I could feel the rest of the world yearning for the same. More than usual. Wanting things to be comfortable again. Get us OUT of this uncertainty and take us back to the way things were. 

Here is what I know: We cannot unsee what we’ve seen over the last month. 

We will never go back to the way things were because the fact is: Everything has changed. And despite the best efforts of the media and Big Marketing Companies to convince us to drown ourselves in all the old vices we had to create “normal” outside of ourselves pre-COVID, it’s not going to work.

Greed, gluttony, deception… those motives won’t fly anymore. 

We’re different. We’ve experienced The Great Pause, 2020. We’ve gotten a glimpse of your life on the slow side. We’ve felt — either willingly, or kicking and screaming — the immense power of pausing. Of stillness. Sure, uncertainty is there. Loss is there. Different and uncomfortableness is there. But you are there. 

You are here. 

And when everything that makes you comfortable gets stripped away, you get to choose how to rebuild. Let me repeat: You have the ability to choose how you rebuild your life and your priorities. 

This is a fundamental teaching of yoga: When we strip away all our earthly desires and see life for what it is — a divine play — we realize that we don’t need all the “stuff” to survive. We are the audience and the actor and the entire experience of the great play of life. Nothing outside of ourselves is within our control, and nothing outside of ourselves is needed to self-realize. 

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: The only way out of this giant pickle… is in. 

Choose wisely. Spend wisely.  Recognize what makes you feel good from the inside out… not just what just makes you “feel good” for a minute before you throw it out. See the people in your life and recognize who lights you up, who you’re grateful for, and who you’re allowing to weigh you down. Choose who you want to rebuild with.

Not when businesses reopen. Not when you can walk the streets again with friends. Not when you can have dinner parties again.

NOW.

Now does not happen in some future you’re waiting for. Here’s the secret: The future will come to you. Best not to wait for it, because it’s coming whether you like it or not. It’s what you do right now that shapes which future comes your way. If you don’t change the way you live, love, do business, shop, eat, and make decisions after the biggest global shut down the world has ever seen… right now… you will spend your days wondering when your life will get better. When your bank account will get a boost. When you’ll stop fearing for your life, or the lives of your loved ones. Wondering why life can’t just go back to the way it used to be.

This endless worrying and fear is suffering. When we resist change (which is inevitable) we are resisting the very nature of being human. Time is the definition of change, and time is all we have as a constant, always moving… nature shows us this in her seasons, her moon cycles, her weather patterns — both destructive and beautiful on the same day. Another word for this phenomenon? Evolution.

As humans, we have the choice to evolve, or suffer. And nothing is inherently wrong with deciding to suffer! The choice is yours.

(But you can bet I’m going to opt for evolution.) 
Cheers to having virtual classes happen long after we start seeing some of you again in person!

Mollie

Real talk: How many times have you felt like a failure in the last 24 hours?

Me?

• I burnt toast for the 87th time because I got distracted on my phone. Fail.
• I accidentally sent someone the wrong Zoom link. Fail.
• I waited until the LAST POSSIBLE MINUTE to write this newsletter. Fail.

And I'm just one person holed up with her husband who hasn't left the house in weeks.

Those of you with kids... being (all at once) homeschool teachers, housewives/husbands, business people working from home, pet caretakers, responsible parents, the list goes on. How many times have you smacked your forehead today and thought: Ugh. I'm awful at this.

To my fellow business folk: When you look at your dwindling bank accounts, or hear back from an unrealistic landlord, or cup your forehead with your palm at your makeshift workspace in the kitchen surrounded by dirty dishes when you realize your entire business model isn't working. (This is the part where you drop a handful of choice expletives).

To the front-line healthcare workers out there, learning to fit new gear or retrofit gear when there aren't enough supplies. Having to make decisions about who gets a ventilator and who doesn't. Trying to comfort scared people when you're so stinking scared down to the tips of your toes. Fail. Fail. Fail. 
We have got to reframe failure. And fast. Lives depend on it.

When I googled failure, the internet told me: Lack of success. 

Lack of. Also known as "not having". Or missing out. Or incomplete. And when we're lacking the one thing our great nation touts as the most important trait we can claim as Americans (ahem: success)... how do we expect ourselves to feel in times like this?

That's the thing: Success is relative. And if failure is entirely dependent on success (or lack thereof), it stands to reason that if we reframe success, we reframe failure along with it. 

Let's look to yoga: The entire purpose of life, according to yoga, is to self-realize. That is, experience our world through our lens of collective memories in order to help us learn about who (and what) we truly are. That's it! No fluff. No nonsense. 

The purpose is not to "experience only good things that make us lots of money." It's not "experience only things that make us feel comfy cozy." Not even "experience things that bring out the best in us."

Just... experience. Without boundaries or expectations, for the sole purpose of discovering more about ourselves. When we define success as simply learning by doing, then we tint the lens through which we view all the aforementioned experiences. Our life — and the impact of this pandemic on what we thought life was — takes on a different quality. 

For example, facing the reality that you won't be able to afford to have all 29 yoga teachers to teach their usual classes each week on Zoom because you weren’t prepared for a world economy shutdown; this is a lesson in compassion — for yourself as the risk taker in charge, and immense gratitude for the incredibly understanding, resilient people you've surrounded yourself with.

Or... teaching your kids algebra. While your reasoning may be wrong because you've forgotten everything you used to know from high school, your kids get to watch you step up to the plate of being something you weren't just 1 month ago... they learn determination. And you learn a little algebra as they start teaching you!

To our healthcare teams on the front lines: I can only imagine where your heads might be at. But with each passing decision you make (however gut-wrenching), you're learning on how to make more efficient decisions moving forward. You get better and better each time you act... even if the outcomes seem more gruesome. This movement toward efficiency is helping our nation learn how to deal with this virus — this is evolution in action. 

As long as you're learning — wherever you're spending quarantine, you're on a path of evolution. So today, as you encounter yet another thing you would normally consider a failure, pause. Reframe the moment. See your opportunity to learn.

And if you still find that difficult to do, what about yoga? Why have you not joined us in a LIVE online yoga class yet? Did you know you can try it for free to see if you even like it? It's true: Use the promo code yogahiveonline for a 1-time 100% discount off a Drop-In Pass (with no mat rental!). This code is good through April 14th - 1 per person, please. 

And if you really need to pull yourself out of a pit of self-sabatoge/misery/pity/you name it... consider being a part of our 21-day reset with yoga, meditation and inquiry called BeAbundant. Details are all below... and if you're someone who can't attend the meetings, we record everything so you can watch on your own time.

No more excuses. No more failure. 

Cheers to learning, Mollie