Five of Swords/Death reversed. The Five of Swords (Venus, beauty, allure, relationships, pleasure, in Aquarius, “I know,” friendships, cause-oriented, the group, aloof) focuses on victory and defeat, but not your usual, run-of-the-mill versions of these two results. This card tells of a possible attack of some kind (not necessarily originating from someone else) and of victory attained by unethical methods, and whether I am on the winning side or the losing side of the issue, this card is telling me that there is a potential for harm, or even for me to have to deal with vengeance. Another danger associated with the energies of this card is disillusionment. Death reversed again; the Death card corresponds with Water (cold/binds and wet/adapts, and sensitive, imaginative energy that strives to stay the same or take the same course), Scorpio, Nun (fish head; liberation), and the Path between Tiphareth (the hub of the creation process where energies harmonize and focus to illuminate and clarify) and Netzach (the stimulating factors of emotion and inspiration), and tells of transformation or change, both voluntary and involuntary, the ending of an era and the fear of the unknown result of change. Because my Death card is reversed today and paired with the Five of Swords, I need to be very careful that I remain aware of consequences; while I should not fear change or even fear the presence of this Five, I do need to make certain that my intentions are good.

My Thoth card is the Four of Wands reversed. The Four of Wands (Venus, beauty, allure, relationships, in Aries, “I want,” action oriented, assertive, enthusiastic) in an upright position is about building enough to become established, as a beachhead, a pause before continuing, not as a finished product. Crowley calls this card “Completion,” and for a Wands/Fire card, it is pretty restricted. After all, Fire is not about order and rules; however, in order to tame Fire enough to work with it, I might need to tap into the energies of the upright card. A tiny bit of control won’t extinguish the flame.

My Legacy card is Justice, flavored by the Six of Coins. Justice is a card of adjustment, and isn’t that actually what justice is, in the end? Justice corresponds with the element of Air (hot/separates and wet/adapts, and quick, animated energy that usually brings problems or challenges that bring growth), Libra (“we are,” partnerships, balance, cooperation), Lamed (ox goad; training or teaching), and the Path between Tiphareth (the hub of the creation process where energies harmonize and focus to illuminate and clarify) and Geburah (the place where forms and structures are challenged or affirmed). This card is about cause and effect, and about the adjustments that happen when we think about causes, and try to make their effects as positive as possible. The Six of Coins (Moon, feelings and emotions, illusion, imagination, in Taurus, “I have,” Sensual, cautious, stubborn) brings an awareness of resources to the situation, both those that I have and those that I don’t have. The Six of Coins also reminds me to be generous; I have grown and evolved through the assistance of others, and now it is time for me to pay forward what I have received in the past. The success of this card is temporary, and I should not forget that, particularly because it is flavoring my Justice card today. No man is an island, and while my own actions have had a large effect on who I am at the moment, I have also been infused by the energies of others. Since I like who I am right now, I need to be grateful.

My 6-digit date number is 4, the number of depth and stability.

My horoscope: “Today may be serious, Sagittarius, with clouds looming over your parade. Although the clouds are dark and threatening, that doesn't necessarily mean that rain will pour down. Things are about to climax in your life. Today's message is that you should find the beauty and sensuality in yourself and others and renew your enthusiasm and sensuality in each new day.”

My Sun reading: “People remain happy and easy to communicate with under the Aquarius Moon. It's an opportune time to brainstorm ideas, bring them into reality, and solve outstanding problems. Tonight's social dynamic is about the spirit of genuine curiosity. Learn about and know where this new person is coming from.”

I read another article on the Alchemic Journal, and a single paragraph jumped out at me:

Water’s Divine Properties

Flower Remedies are traditionally prepared by placing the flower heads on top of water. The sunlight shines through the energetic field of the flowers and is imprinted on the waters own energetic matrix, the bonds between the molecules. Water has the unusual property that it can change its matrix under certain conditions. The water will maintain the energetic pattern of the substance being potentized even after the substance has been removed. There need not be any physical substance present to retain the energetic pattern, which is very useful when using substances or plants that might be considered toxic. This Divine property of water is what is utilized in making both Flower Remedy and Homeopathic preparation. The ability of water to shift its matrix under varying conditions is well documented by Dr. Masami Emoto in his book: Messages from Water.

Hmmmm . . . Cernunnos has been asking me to drink more water in order to flush out the lethargy that has been plaguing me this Spring. I wonder if I can make use of this? Yes, I have already been doing this, for each time I feel a bit lethargic, I pour myself a glass of water; thus, I am infusing the water with my intention, the washing away of the lethargy. But what if I consciously infused the water with this intent? Duh! I am a Third Degree Wiccan; I certainly should be doing this already. I need to also get a tumbled sunstone, so that I can infuse my water with the essence of Cernunnos. Time to “put my witch on.” LOL, thanks, Sherry, for that one.

I read further through this awesome blog and found this, within an essay called “The Alchemical Art” by John H. Reid III:

The first law of alchemy may well be stated “As above so below, as below so above for performing the miracle of the One Thing” (attributed to Hermes Trismegistus). One can expand the first law by enumerating what I call the five postulates of the First Law.

1) That the entire universe is divine in origin. Therefore Wisdom and Guidance must be sought from the source from which all creation flows.

2) All organisms, no matter how subtle or gross they are, have within them the divine spark of life and are interrelated with each other. It is therefore our task to understand this kinship, so that we may utilize inspired knowledge to aid in our understanding of how to prepare the quintessence of our matter.

3) All organisms are in a state of constant evolution as they continue their synthesis towards unveiling their inherent perfection. Upon reaching an understanding of postulate two (above), the true work begins, i.e., the aiding of nature by the art of alchemy to reach its highest point of perfection.

4) Humans are a part of the universe. Therefore, they are divine in origin and they can affect all organisms on all spheres of existence by their actions or inaction.

5) Humans, by understanding the basic laws that govern their beings and conversely the entire universe may learn to recognize the divine spark of vital energy in all organisms, isolate it, purify it, and manipulate it to speed up the processes of evolution.

While I am not certain that any human would have the authority to “speed up the process of evolution” in a general sense or for everyone, we certainly can affect ourselves this way, if we choose. But since the 22^nd Path has taught me about the importance of considering consequences, I am not certain that I would want to mess with things unless there was true need.

Consequences can go beyond me, affect others besides me, even if my intentions are focused solely on me. As I continue the work of the 22^nd Path and beyond, I need to remember that because I am connected to all, I have the ability to affect all. That is a huge responsibility.

I will end on a note of celebration (despite the reversed Four of Wands in my cards today): I have just completed Lesson 5 of Third Degree, and will be submitting my homework by the end of the day. Waahooo!!

Time for a bike ride.

$