The Hierophant/Knight of Cups. The Hierophant is an Earth (cold/binds and dry/shapes) card, and so it is physical, practical and slow to change. It corresponds with Taurus, my rising sign, and the concept of “I have”; its energies are sensual, physical, and stubborn. It is also Vau, the nail which holds tradition in place, and it is the Path between Chesed, which crosses Da’ath, and which is the place where forms and structure are stabilized and nurtured, and Chokmah, dynamic male energy in the electric sense, the origin of vital force and polarity, on the Tree of Life. The Hierophant is indeed a Spiritual Guide and Teacher, and he deals with maintaining and sharing tradition and culture; that maintenance includes allowing the right amount of evolution while still holding onto the intent of culture and tradition, as well as formulating and maintaining the most effective ways of sharing concepts which, at least in my own spiritual path of Wicca, can tend to be experiential in nature, and thus not easily learned, taught or shared. The Knight of Cups is geared toward focusing on creative inspiration and on emotions and feelings; he strives to bring creativity, understanding and emotional fulfillment in order to create and maintain overall health. His presence along with The Hierophant tells me that today may be a good day to share some of the less tangible yet very important parts of life and living in order to benefit myself (because in order to teach, I must understand what I believe and also have an enthusiasm for being a student), and those around me (because my own perspective might be a key to understanding to those around me, even those who do not believe what I believe).

My Thoth card is the Prince of Cups reversed. Crowley’s Prince (Knight) of Cups is reversed, and since I see the Thoth Tarot as connecting with my own energy body and its interfacing with my environment, I will need to strive to balance this reversed Prince and the upright Knight from my Welsh cards. Crowley sees this Prince as appearing serene, but this outer layer of serenity hides the seething emotions and ruthless focus beneath the surface. Because the card is reversed, I may be able to more readily access the more positive traits of this card as presented in the Welsh Tarot, and shut out the more negative aspects presented in this Thoth Prince.

My Legacy card is the Knight of Swords reversed, flavored by The World reversed. In the Legacy Tarot, the Knight of Swords in an upright position is about idealism. The thing about idealism is that it really is a two-edged sword; hence its association with the mercenary, I-will-manifest-my-sign-in-the-purest-fashion-at-any-cost personality of the Knights in general, and this Knight, which is of the suit of Swords, the element of Air and the intellect, in particular. Because the Knight is reversed, and because it is being flavored by The World reversed (which in an upright position tells of connecting with ones place in the Universe), and because it accompanies The Hierophant in my card throw for today, I need to keep in mind that while idealism can be a marvelous fuel that allows incredible achievements, if I force my own ideals on another, no matter how noble my intentions, that idealism immediately becomes manipulation. And that,, my friends, is a no-no in Wicca.

My 6-digit date number is 2, the number of balance and manifestation.

My horoscopes: “It won't be surprising if you're frustrated with a close friend or partner who's far less ambitious than you, Sagittarius. The energy in the air can emphasize your dynamic ways of reaching goals and achieving success. Others who are passive or fearful may be difficult for you to understand. Yet people have to do things in ways that are best for them. Try to be patient.”

And: “Your people may be getting a little sick of excuses. They want face time, and they want it now -- even if you do have to get up early in the morning. They probably do, too! They haven't had the right kind of fun for too long -- and it's your job to entertain them, so go for it! Get out and play tonight -- if not for yourself, then for your (somewhat needy) admirers. When was the last time you made time for your fans?”

And: “There is no end to what needs to be done. Today you might find yourself feeling overwhelmed by the minutia of everyday life. You are busy helping children with their homework, helping out with household chores, all the while trying to keep your own projects afloat. You'd like to have a nervous breakdown, but simply don't have the time for it. Keep your sense of humor. Recognize that you already have what matters most in life.”

I have been filled with the most lovely energy since Tuesday. I see this energy as a pure connection to the Sacred Feminine, the energy and awareness that is Goddess. The sensation connected with this energy consists of a hum that resonates through my entire body and through my non-physical sheaths; the vibration of that hum enhances my awareness of the workings of all four of my bodies, physical, mental, emotional and spiritual, and provides a vehicle which brings an ability to sense the true harmony that is offered when each of those bodies is resonating with the others in a healthy manner. These are the moments of The Sun of the Tarot (and LOL, anyone who follows my blog on a regular basis knows that I think in Tarot analogies); warm but not too hot, bright but not hurting the eyes, calm but aware, relaxing but energized, beautiful but realistic. I always remind myself to add to that list one other concept: potent but temporary.

The Sun of the Tarot corresponds with the element of Fire, which is about transformation and change. Fire is one of the pure elements which has to do with extremes, with separating and with shaping, and it not only has the power to act, but it naturally rises and expands. The Sun corresponds with our own sun, the center of our solar system and the reason that we are able to exist on our world, and thus, it corresponds with the inner core of a person or a situation, and with my own deepest self and my personal power, which has the ability to influence my surroundings. It corresponds with the Hebrew letter Resh, or the face, which is connected to the concept of reason; and it corresponds with the Path between Yesod, where patterns and images emerge which have the potential to manifest into the physical world of action and physical, outer reality, and Hod, which provides the ability to analyze and communicate, and thus to understand, on the Tree of Life.

This feeling I am experiencing is also directly connected to the alchemic Great Work, and the Rubedo phase. The Rubedo is a time of integration, where I make use of and experience the skills and knowledge and wisdom and connections that I achieved during to the other phases of the Great Work.

Numerologically, this time corresponds to the number 6 in Crowley’s Naples Arrangement, a time of both vertical and horizontal balance, a temporary condition achieved through awareness and strength, but one that is lovely to experience. The cool thing is that my 6-digit number for today is 2, another number of balance, but this is a more immature or accidental balance, as opposed to the vertical and horizontal balance of the number 6, achieved through experience and awareness and power. That means I’m not at my peak just yet.

My Tarot cards today do not seem to directly reflect what I am feeling, at least on the surface, but when I look at the past few days and the Major Arcana cards I threw, the place that I am right now makes sense. First came The High Priestess, and the initial connection with and identification of this lovely hum. Then came The Star, where I used this energy of the Sacred Feminine as a catalyst to create healing within me. Now, when I am reaching the point where the balance is beginning to age and will soon be counterproductive to me if I try to hang onto it, I throw The Hierophant, the Teacher, the Spiritual Guide who shares his own learning, knowledge and wisdom with others, and in the process crystallizes for himself what he knows and believes.

I absolutely adore this incredible connection to the Sacred Feminine. I am wallowing in it. But I do realize that it is temporary, and like the energies of the number 10 as described in the Naples Arrangement, and like the description of who and what The Hierophant really manifests as, the time has come for me to take The Sun and its energies and use them as building blocks to create something new. That is the only way to own them; that is the only way to gain the authority to use them, and that is the only way to step up onto the next rung of my own evolution.

I guess striving to understand the source of my uneasiness of late has brought positive results. Change is indeed stability, and stability needs change in order to exist.

**smiles, closes her eyes, and tips her face upward; as her skin warms she plans her next move**

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