As a product of the Big Bang our universe is quickly expanding. When you take into account the Hermetic Principle-’As above, so below; as within, so without’-we can see a microcosm of this cosmological occurrence in the sense of separation and isolationism many people feel today. We’re all spiritually and mentally accelerating…away from each other.

Look at the e-mailing, web and computer dating phenomena. On one level, to quote AT&T, “we’re all connected,” but in fact there’s a cold, technological overtone to these ties. One person sitting in front of his/her computer typing words–just words–that reach another person at his/her computer, in the same town. Why not just meet up in person? It’s difficult these days because the online community provides such a convenient safehaven–why step out into the cold, cruel world where vulnerability comes with a slip of the tongue or prolonged eye contact?

Eye contact, instinct, vibes, chemistry-these are animal instinct that all organic beings are endowed with. Yet humans, on the personal evolutionary path, have started to phase them out as if they were the last version of Windows. Enter reality TV–a way that we can feel that we’re somehow emotionally connecting while being totally engaged by another technological ‘tool’–our TV sets. Somehow we think that if we laugh, cry or cheer when The Bachelorette proclaims her love for her suitor, we’re still human.

When I interviewed director Godfrey Reggio, he spoke of “The Los Angelization of the Planet.” From my vantage point, he’s right. Los Angeles is filled with actors–people who lie and pretend to be someone they’re not for a living. With celebrity culture at fever pitch and the proliferation of LA culture through our omnipotent media center, people around the globe have learned to be actors–playing the parts they think others will respond to best.

In the 80’s gen. X novel, “Less than Zero,” author Brett Easton Ellis starts his tome with the loaded phrase: “People are afraid to merge on the freeways in Los Angeles.” Sure, it’s a bit self-conscious and sophomoric but there is a grain of truth to it. Fear is definitely motivating this 21st century epidemic of isolationism.

Even when we find ourselves in real-time and space, hanging out with our friends, are we really present? Or are we just an iconic proxy of our true selves–like some online chatroom icon? Is there a way to rewind this tape and go back to our earlier, cohesive time? Back to a time when out of the invisibly pulsating universal nothingness burst forth an unfathomable explosion of creation–the unifying force of life.

Did you know that one of the reasons tropical astrology (traditional Western astrology) is ‘off’ sometimes and ‘on’ others, is that it follows a non-real fixed cycle? Let me explain. Each year, on March 21 (Spring Equinox) most Western astrologers automatically set their clocks at the first degrees of Aries. In actuality (looking at the sky and employing astronomical tools) the sun has not been in Aries on Spring Equinox for some 2000 years. It’s actually somewhere in Pisces due to precession. So the sign you thought you were is really quite ‘off’ (by about 23 degrees–a whole sign). The astrology I employ (sidereal) follows where the planets ‘actually’ are (not a symbolic placement). I also follow the Hindu astrology idea of using the rising sign. So, please go to astro.com, click on ‘extended chart selection,’ type in your birth data, then under ‘Zodiac’ scroll down to Hindu/lahiri and then ‘Show Chart.’ You’ll see your new sidereal chart. At the bottom of the chart it will say ‘AC:’ and then a sign. That is your true ascendant sign. Now check your horoscope. These are very general (since I don’t have your individual charts) but they outline some major themes for March.

ARIES
This month you feel spiritually motivated. Concepts, philosophies and spiritually are your chief concerns. You will be attracted to people or groups of people who espouse similar ideas and are more ‘on the edge’ of thought. By the 20th you will have exposed yourself to a whole new social circle. Whatever money issues were at a stalemate before can now move ahead (for better or worse). You may find that you’re more insecure than usual–or needing validation–until the end of the month.

TAURUS
Everybody loves a mystery, especially you this month. If it involves intrigue, sex and the uknown you are drawn to it (in yourself or another). You may also be motivated to re-invent yourself, especially where career matters are concerned (your chief focus this month). This is vital since you may have been working for a long time on a new sense of yourself on a much deeper level. You are about to encounter the last hurdles in your identity crisis this month. The lessons you learn will help you shape your experiences for many years to come.

GEMINI
You are in ‘the relationship zone.’ The current astrological climate shows that you’ll work better with a partner, sleep better with a partner and breathe better with a partner. Right now it’s all about how you relate to another. Any relationship started this month could feel like a spiritual match because of the new moon’s vibes. In fact every aspect of your life should take on a sort of ethereal, other-worldly quality at the moment. Your energies will turn inward and step away from the realm of the physical.

CANCER
You will feel healthier and more robust this month and ready to go. It’s time for you to put your aspirations on the track and run with them. With the type of discipline you’ll have in March there will be no problems doing so. In many ways you will feeling like you’re shedding old skin and starting a new cycle of productivity. Some of your friends may have difficulties with this. They may not be quite in the same place, but by month’s end they will accept this new you or you will simply find new social outlets.

LEO
You’re finally ready to step out of your cave and into a whimsical world of adventure. It’s your time to be the center of attention and romance and spontaneity should be in the air. All of this sounds great but watch out that it’s not at the expense of a certain pressing work situation. You may feel that you are reaching a head in a career matter and this could demand more of your attention than you are willing to give, seeing as you’re in ‘playing hookie’ mode.

VIRGO
It’s all about doing Virgo things this month–getting your life and your home totally spic-and-span organized. You’re just not in a position to get out there (just yet). Think of this as a preparatory month because next month will be quite social and extroverted. Now you are taking stock of things, getting yourself in (physical and mental) shape and thinking about the things you really want in life–setting new goals and trying to come to terms with what philosophy you want to live by. New beginnings will come after April, so prepare for them.

LIBRA
You’re quite extroverted and chatty these days–can’t get away from that phone, those e-mails, making plans, seeing people. Your mind is clear and alert and you’re going to have lots of opinions and charms to spread on people. The focus of this month is fun, romance and creativity. Your wit will be ‘full-steam-ahead’ as you’re the belle of the cocktail party. The only problem is you might have some problems getting intimate. You’re just more about the party right now, and the superficial aspects of it will intrigue you but you’ll have trouble dealing with intensity and all-encompassing psycho/sexual issues.

SCORPIO
Money issues are making your world go around these days. You will find yourself in a desperate search for security (whether it’s material or emotional) this month. You’ll feel like you want to be around familiar elements, close to home or in your own private space as you grapple with these and other pressing relationship issues in order to hit the finish-line at the end of the month. This is because deep down you know that next month will be extraordinarily busy and you are trying to amass all your issues and work them out behind the scenes, now.

SAGITARRIUS
You’re fiercely present this month. Your opinions, your magnetism, your being is out there in the center of the universe. You’re also very mentally alert and communicative. It’s a great month to get ideas accross to imporant people and use that charm and magnetism to move situations in your favor. You may have some troubles actually organizing specific projects or events. This is not a time to be the manager, but rather the charming, charismatic entrepreneur with big dreams and words.

CAPRICORN
You’re having a bit of trouble getting out there. Your sort of stuck in your own inner dramas at the moment. Secret is the word of the day. You’re not divulging too much and it’s as though you’re stepping out of the game for a brief pause. You feel the need to analyse situations rather than jump into them and you’re well aware that this is keeping you from the spontaneous fun and zest for life of your past. Fear not because next month everything changes and you shift to an outward stance. This month focus on issues of finance and your personal well being. There’s time yet to get back in that game.

AQUARIUS
You’re doing what you do best right now–meeting people and making new connections. It’s really all about you this month anyway. You’ll probably be out on the town most of March and very much central to every social circle. You may even have issues with your home that you are putting off dealing with. It could be a living situation or something to do with a family member. Either way, you’d much rather be out painting the town than facing those demons. But, like it or not, your social activities may touch upon those home issues anyway.

PISCES
You’re feeling very willful this month. You know what you want and you’re not going to let anything stand in your way. This could cause waves in your career if you’re not careful who’s toes you step on. Despite this surge of personal energy, it’s sort of a practice run because during this cycle you’re not really able to affect any concrete changes just yet. That’s because you’re having issues with communication and you’re still operating from within the context of your own realm and not seeing how your ideas fit in relation to others.

As both an observer and adherent, I have to proclaim the arrival of a strange frenzy amongst LA women. Nelly Sensitive New Age Guys (SNAG’s) are out (no pun intended). And macho men–to coin a 70’s phrase–are in. There’s a waning interest in whether a man can provide for a woman financially, for example. And an increased interest in whether he can do practical things like chop wood and stave off daunting assailants. Could he survive off nothing but his brawny wits and muscle in a crisis ‘end of the world’ situation? Is he damned proud of his precious knife collection?

The search for basic male traits has also spawned interest in a new physical type. Does he own a wife-beater T, flannel shirts, have a muscular physique, facial hair? These are the new and important questions we urban damsels ask ourselves. Because nothing brings us back to our simple rudimentary prescribed gender roles like an imminent war.

Genetically we are programmed to be attracted to manly men. The more manly the more of a challenge when we get combative with them (which we inevitably do). Matt Ridley, author of Genome, The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters puts it best when he says: “In other words, females gradually evolve so that they are turned off, not on, by the displays of males of their own species. Sexual selection is thus an expression of sexual antagonism between genes for seduction and genes for resistance.”

The most obvious archetypal images of resistance between the sexes are (unfortunately) rape, and the classic beauty & the beast image of a winsome, delicate, feminine woman being pawed and handled by a big brutish male animal. So women are pre-programmed to fight with men who we can’t possibly physically beat. But there is of course in this battle, a sense of sexual tension that is highly addictive.

The Chinese follow the concept of Yin-Yang–the light and dark, opposites that attract to form all Creation as we know it. So of course extreme sexual tension is requisite in the survival of the species (though Ridley implies otherwise). It’s sort of an ass-backwards way of looking at things but it works. We have antagonistic genes that put us into battle with men but that very battle is the seed of sex–the ultimate test of wills. Bio-artist Joe Davis says, “DNA is sex.”

Anyway, getting back off this scientific tangent, it all boils down to the basics again. In frightening times society gets conservative. Conservative means traditional. Traditional male= provider, hunter, gatherer, the hairy, muscular, strong gender. But if you look at the past decade of Ewan Macgregors and Hugh Grants, for example (especially in the film Notting Hill), the men have been gracious, delicate, quiet, sensitive sidekicks while the women kicked ass on the frontline.

Some might ask if women are comfortable returning to their passive and nurturing feminine roots. I think the more important question is whether today’s men are comfortable playing a manly role that they’ve never had to play in their lifetimes (but have only seen in old black & white movies featuring leading men who were gay and playing their interpretation of heroic, manly straight men).

You see, it might actually be healthy for post modern women to learn to find their strength in their softness, and take the difficult Zen challenge of passivity. I personally wouldn’t mind being a passenger instead of a driver for a change. Perhaps a balance is in order. If today’s men can be strong but emotionally complex–rough-’round-the-edges on the outside and sensitive on the inside–then we’ve got something to get excited about. And, to top it off, it’ll be a relief to see a guy build something (other than an Ikea side table).

The Man Who Saw Tomorrow:

Lyrics to “War Pigs,” from the Black Sabbath album Paranoid (1970)

Generals gathered in their masses
Just like witches at black masses
Evil minds that plot destruction
Sorcerers of death’s construction
In the fields the bodies burning
As the war machine keeps turning
Death and hatred to mankind
Poisoning their brainwashed minds… Oh lord yeah!
Politicians hide themselves away
They only started the war
Why should they go out to fight?
They leave that role to the poor
Time will tell on their power minds
Making war just for fun
Treating people just like pawns in chess
Wait ’till their judgment day comes, yeah!
Now in darkness, world stops turning
As the war machine keeps burning
No more war pigs have the power
Hand of god has struck the hour
Day of judgment, god is calling
On their knees, the war pigs crawling
Begging mercy for their sins
Satan, laughing, spreads his wings
All right now!