Thursday, March 24, 2011

Eight of Swords/The Chariot reversed. The Eight of Swords (Jupiter, expansiveness and growth, justice, fortune, in Gemini, “I think,” curious, sociable talkative, dual) shows what happens when you abuse the power of the Swords through the intellect: that power turns against you. Am I thinking too much? Thinking is okay, but I need to take a moment every now and then to make sure that I am grounded. The Chariot corresponds with Water (cold/binds and wet/adapts, and sensitive, emotional and imaginative energy that likes to stay the same or follow the same course), Cancer (“I feel,” sensitive, tenacious, nurturing, moody), Cheth (the fence), and the Path between Geburah (the place where forms and structure are challenged or affirmed) and Binah (female receptive energy and the origin of form and structure), and is related to emotional control and the training of our emotions so that we can use them to bring greater good into our lives. This card is reversed, too; sounds like I need a bit of balance here.

My Thoth card is The Wheel, reversed. “Fortune” is what Crowley calls this card, which corresponds with Fire (hot/separates and dry/shapes, and spontaneous, impulsive and energetic change), Jupiter (expansiveness and growth, justice, fortune), Kaph (grasping hand), and the Path between Netzach (the stimulating factors of emotion and inspiration) and Chesed (the place where forms and structure are stabilized and nurtured). In an upright position, it tells of coming change and reminds us that sometimes change is inevitable, and happens in its own time. The interesting concept that Crowley presents is that the axle of the wheel does not move, which reminds us that while the manifestations of Fate may circle around us, we remain rooted within ourselves and as long as we are patient and versatile, we can deal with all turns of the Wheel, no matter where we end up on that Wheel. The Thoth Wheel also has ten spokes, which directs us to the sephiroth Malkuth, the physical world which is governed by fate. The fist at the bottom of the circle of the Wheel (Kaph, grasping hand) has six rays emanating from it, and tells us that the force that moves the Wheel is Balance, and all will be balanced in the end. I know I have presented this information before, but somehow I feel that it is important for me to remember this today, especially because this card is also reversed.

My Legacy card is The Emperor, flavored by The Tower reversed. The Emperor (Fire, hot/separates and dry/shapes, and spontaneous, impulsive, energetic change; Aries, “I want,” action oriented, assertive, competitive; Heh, window, illumination; and the Path between Tiphareth and Chokmah, dynamic male energy and the origin of vital force and polarity) represents the power of the mind and of intentions to shape the world. The Emperor is about taking responsibility, and he is about manifesting his good intentions through ethics and order and stability and structure and regulation. He is telling me that unless I remember hs message, I won’t be able to get rid of the effects of my reversed cards today. The Tower corresponds with Fire (hot/separates and dry/shapes, and spontaneous, impulsive, energetic change), Mars (action, spontaneity, aggression, drive), Phe (mouth or speech), and the Path between Hod (which provides analysis and communication) and Netzach (which offers the stimulating factors of emotion and inspiration), and if it was in an upright position it would be reminding me that there just might be some outdated facets of my life that need to be demolished and swept away. Since The Tower is reversed today, I may have passed the uproar stage, and since the dust is settling, I need to look to The Emperor for my next step.

My 6-digit date number is 11 (Archangel Uriel), which reduces further into the number 2, the number of balance and polarity.

My horoscopes: “A rather unsettling communication could cause you to dwell on the negative side of whatever you learn, Sagittarius. Don't fall into this trap. The positive side will become more apparent as the day wanes. You might decide to purchase some new equipment to enhance your communications, perhaps a phone or new computer. Try not to spend too much of your day learning how to use it!”

And: “When you see a chance to improve your life today, you have to take it -- there is just no question about it. This may require some major sacrifice in your time or patience, but it will be worth it. There is a chance for a new beginning right now, but the window is narrow and it will be closing soon. You know what you need to do to put things in motion, so just do it. If you need inspiration, call up an old friend or a cherished family member for a pep talk.”

And: “Things could be up and down for you today. You might experience some confusion as a result of communications snafus or computer glitches that affect financial issues you are trying to solve. Persevere and you will succeed. Don't be surprised if you are recruited to join a project that is totally new to you. You may be apprehensive at first, but you will do just fine. Go ahead and say yes.”

My Sun reading: “Once again it's hard to concentrate on the everyday tasks at hand. You won't get a lot done, but you will enjoy breezy rapport in the workplace. Socially tonight (where we should be overly friendly), people relax and generally have a good time under the Sagittarius Moon.”

Okay, I don’t want to sound like I am belittling the Dark Night of the 26th Path, but I think I am ready to move on. Really, this one shook my world. It was one of the most devastating Dark Nights that I have ever experienced, and my energy body was actually tender from the shocks that buffeted me, tender for several days afterward. I have spent some time remembering this Aha! Moment, reliving the total disappointment of having the rug pulled right out from under me and the following moment of enlightenment; I know that this moment was absolutely necessary. And boy, am I glad that it’s over.

The experience was absolutely necessary for my spiritual growth, and it needed to happen through being smacked in the forehead by that metaphysical 2 by 4 in order to be worthwhile.

The 25th Path (which runs between Yesod and Tiphareth) is the other Path that Ellen Cannon Reed’s Major Arcana assignment does not correspond with other sources. It is on this Path that she places The Tower, whereas all other sources use Temperance to correspond with this Path. The 25th Path is on the Pillar of Balance, the Middle Pillar of the Tree, so to me it makes sense that this Path correspond with Temperance. However, I can certainly see why Reed sees the connection of Yesod and Tiphareth as The Tower; after all, The Tower is about the forceful opening of the Third Eye, and going from the place of the birth and death of the personality to the place of abstract balance could be traumatic.

Okay, here is something else that is interesting. I see the Temperance card as being significant to me, in part because its astrological correspondence is Sagittarius, but also because the traditional image associated with this card is an angel. Yup, Archangel Uriel. And my 6-digit date number for today is 11, which also tells me that Archangel Uriel is around, plus it reduces to 2, the number of both balance and polarity. Temperance.

Uh oh. **braces self for something big**

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