Ace of Cups reversed/King of Swords reversed. The Ace of Cups (Libra, “We are,” partnerships, balance, cooperation, Scorpio, “I desire,” intense, deep, mysterious, obsessive, Sagittarius, “I seek,” philosophic, fun-loving, adventurous, blundering) tells of the potentials available to me for experiencing deep emotions, a connection to my Inner Voice, compassion for myself or others, attunements and connections.  Because my Ace is reversed, I may not be able to depend on my feelings today, and any inner messages may need to be examined carefully. The King of Swords (cusp of Capricorn, “I build,” ambitious, cautious, cunning, authoritative, and Aquarius, “I know,” friendships, the group, cause-oriented, aloof) in an upright position is a good judge of people and situations, and he is also ethical.  My King is reversed, so truth, ethics and reason, both referring to myself and to those around me, may need to be questioned carefully today.  Sheesh, can’t depend on my inner voice, and can’t depend on my intellect.

My Thoth card is the Ten of Swords reversed.  “Ruin,” reversed thankfully. The Ten of Swords (the Sun, the inner core of a person or situation, in Gemini, “I think,” curious, sociable, dual, talkative) is a card of interference and restriction completely manifested.  Thankfully, it is reversed, so the “Ruin” or ultimate breakdown of the thinking process predicted by this card will not have a lasting effect.  Which makes me feel a bit better, after those first two cards.

My Legacy card is The Lovers reversed, flavored by The Wheel of Fortune. The reversed Lovers (Air, hot/separates and wet/adapts, quick and animated, intellectual, problems or challenges; Gemini, “I think,” curious, talkative, sociable, dual; Zayin, double-edged sword; and the Path between Tiphareth, the hub of the creation process where energies harmonize and focus to illuminate and clarify, and Binah, female receptive energy and the origin of form and structure) can tell of the possibility of rejection or separation, but it could also be reminding me that for today, I should make use of established beliefs and tried-and-true methods rather than doing what I personally want. The Wheel of Fortune (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)), tells of destiny and fate and their ebbs and flows, and their effects on our lives, and it is flavoring my reversed Lovers.  This actually validates my thoughts on the reversed Lovers, for it tells me that no matter what happens, the catalyst for any events (whether pleasant or uncomfortable) is not originating from within me.  This means that my actions or words or thoughts won’t be able to change the events so I should not attempt to do so.  Instead, I’ve gotta ride the wave and take advantage of the currents that are swirling past me.  It also points back to the Ten of Wands.  Reaching the deepest, darkest bottom means there is nowhere else to go but up.

My 6-digit date number is 7, the number that tells of a pause, and possibly a choice, as growth begins to change into degeneration.

My horoscopes: “Today, Sagittarius, you might begin work on a project that you've wanted to do for a long time. This may be career related or personal, but either way it should advance you in whatever direction that you want to go. The only downside is that you might be a bit too hard on yourself and far too critical of your work. Try to be objective and view your own work as fairly as you would view the work of others.”

And: “Stress, strain, and a little conflict within a partnership - business, romantic, or creative - could have you toying with the idea of ending this commitment. Don't! At least, don't do anything rash right now. Wait a day or so and then think about it. This is likely to be a temporary situation, and if you break it off now you'll probably regret it tomorrow. Spend some time alone today if you can, and give your partner some space.”

My Shadowscapes Insight is regarding the Four of Wands.  The energies of this card are like the first Spring day.  We head outside and celebrate, but we always keep in mid that Winter may very well be back by the end of the week.  We enjoy the moment, but we also get ready to go back to work.

We went across the street for a great New Years Eve party.  As usual, the girls took a walk to the beach right after midnight.  The sky was incredible!  Crisp, clean, no moon, sparkling stars; we even saw a shooting star.  New Years Day was perfect.  It was a cozy, nap-on-the-couch day, with an early bed time.

Yesterday morning, I watched while a slew of starlings and wrens descended upon my yard.  Twice as many of both types of birds were in the trees around my yard.  All of them were busy gobbling up the last of the seeds and bugs, probably ahead of the cold front that is coming through tonight.  Four robins had lunch on my firethorn, which before this weekend was festooned with orange berries.  I love the fact that my yard has become a stop-over for birds this late in the season!  Before I turned away from the window, easily 20 more robins stopped at a planter which contained water from the rain of the night before, for a drink.  Robins everywhere!

Today, I am finally turning my mind toward the Great Work of psychological alchemy. Let’s start with some definitions. 

What is alchemy?  Western alchemy is considered a “protoscience” which spawned or contributed to the development of modern chemistry and medicine. Alchemists developed a framework of theory, terminology, experimental process and basic laboratory techniques that is still recognizable today. But alchemy differs from modern science because it includes the Hermetic Principles and practices related to mythology, religion, and spirituality.

What are the Hermetic Principles?  There are seven of them; I have posted these before, but I will include them again here.

1. THE PRINCIPLE OF MENTALISM.  The All is Mind; the Universe is Mental.

2. THE PRINCIPLE OF CORRESPONDENCE.  As above, so below; as below, so above.

3. THE PRINCIPLE OF VIBRATION.  Nothing rests; everything moves; everything vibrates.

4. THE PRINCIPLE OF POLARITY.  Everything is dual; everything has poles; everything has its pair of opposites; like and unlike are the same; opposites are identical in nature, but different in degree; extremes meet; all truths are but half-truths; all paradoxes may be reconciled.

5. THE PRINCIPLE OF RHYTHM.  Everything flows, out and in; everything has its tides; all things rise and fall; the pendulum-swing manifests in everything; the measure of the swing to the right is the measure of the swing to the left; rhythm compensates.

6. THE PRINCIPLE OF CAUSE AND EFFECT.  Every cause has its effect; every effect has its cause; everything happens according to Law; chance is but a name for Law not recognized; there are many planes of causation, but nothing escapes the Law.

7. THE PRINCIPLE OF GENDER.  Gender is in everything; everything has its masculine and feminine principles; gender manifests on all planes.

So alchemy is about science?  Yes, in part. The best known goals of alchemists were the transmutation of common metals into gold or silver, and the creation of a “panacea,” a remedy that supposedly would cure all diseases and prolong life indefinitely; and the discovery of a “universal solvent.” Modern discussions of alchemy are generally split into an examination of its exoteric practical applications (applications that can be understood by most people), and its esoteric (or more secret or difficult to understand) aspects. Exoteric applications would be of more interest to historians of the physical sciences; esoteric aspects would be of more interest to those who study esotericism, to psychologists, spiritual and new age communities, and hermetic philosophers.  Despite the split in focus, an integration of esoteric and exoteric approaches is usually stressed, as to an alchemist, the exoteric aspects cannot be completely appreciated unless seen through the tenets of the esoteric aspects.

What is the Great Work?  Aleister Crowley defined it this way in Magick Without Tears: “The Great Work is the uniting of opposites. It may mean the uniting of the soul with God, of the microcosm with the macrocosm, of the female with the male, of the ego with the non-ego.”  The Great Work or magnum opus is applicable to both kinds of alchemy, both exoteric and esoteric.  It involves the union of spirit and matter, the raising of lead to gold, both literal and symbolic.  It allows us to see beyond the obvious, the physical, to the Creative Force that represents all that is, and that is not.  This is the process described in The Emerald Tablet!

The process is described as “Solve Et Coagula,” or “dissolve and coagulate”; the process purifies the soul and body so it can re-join the Creative Force, free from imperfections.  The cool thing about this is that we can study psychological alchemy and learn about the physical world, or we can study physical alchemy and learn about the human psyche!  The important thing to remember here is that progressing through the Great Work will dredge up whatever needs to be dealt with, so we had better be ready to face them.

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