Four of Wands/Nine of Pentacles. The Four of Wands (Venus, beauty, allure, relationships, in Aries, “I want,” action oriented, assertive, enthusiastic) is about building enough to become established, or celebrating the successful efforts of the Three of Wands.  My Four of Wands is reminding me of the Justice card, and that work has its rewards. The Nine of Pentacles (Venus, beauty, allure, relationships, in Virgo, “I serve,” practical, analytical, work and service oriented) also tells of accomplishment through the imposition of discipline, and the enjoyment of the fruits of our labor.  Okay, I like this theme!

My Thoth card is the Ace of Cups.  Lovely!!  “Love” is Crowley’s keyword for 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.  This is a very spiritual, compassionate and empathic card, and Crowley sees it as not having very much manifestation in the physical world.  Yet.  This is the seed of emotional and intuitive experiences, and the seed could germinate into an awesome beginning!

My Legacy card is the Two of Swords, flavored by the Page of Wands.  Hmmm . . . an inner-focused card, flavored by an outer-focused card.  Balance, perhaps?? The Two of Swords (Moon, feelings and emotions, illusion, imagination, in Libra, “We are,” partnerships, balance, cooperation) can represent a time of not looking or of shutting out the world.  This one can also refer us to the Justice card; after all this one represents two ideas in equal yet opposite balance.   The Legacy Two of Swords is less negative than the same card in most decks; for this version, the time of shutting out the world is necessary.  The Page of Wands (Cancer, “I feel,” sensitive, tenacious, nurturing, moody; Leo, “I am,” passionate, dramatic noble egotistical; and Virgo, “I serve,” practical, analytical, work and service oriented) encourages me to use assertion and action to attract adventure and excitement. Totally opposite to the Two of Swords, LOL but then again, my Page is flavoring the solitude of the Two, telling me to be excited and enthusiastic, and to be a catalyst. Perhaps that quiet time will be a stepping stone to move forward.

My 6-digit date number is 9, the completeness of manifestation, experience or effect.  Cool!

My two horoscope sources apparently have combined; my horoscope today: “You may feel like a skipping record, Sagittarius. You've been scratched and mistreated, and now you continue to repeat the same thing over and over until you've driven your point home. This isn't your doing, so don't be concerned if you hear protests that you're sending others over the edge. This may be the very thing necessary for all of you to advance to the next step”

My Shadowscapes Insight is regarding the Queen of Cups.  What an appropriate card!  The Shadowscapes Companion says this about the Queen of Cups: “She heeds her intuition and follows her heart.  She listens to the whisper of the stars, for she knows they are much wiser than any being on this earth.”  Very personal message for me today!  This Queen tells us that those voices we hear have validity (unless they are telling us to cause harm), and today we need to be aware of them.  We need to coast between the physical world of logic and the astral realm of the subconscious, and we need to listen!

I just finished reading a very interesting book called “Wicca 404: Advanced Goddess Thealogy,” by Esra Free and the Cosmic Goddess Coven.  This book asks important questions about the future of Wicca, and offers a possible answer to those questions, an answer that seems to resonate for me.  Particularly right now.

I have been experiencing some difficult times over the past few months regarding my spiritual path.  I’m not leaving Wicca, but I have reached a point where I am feeling a sort of “general malaise” about my chosen Path.  I’ve been asking myself some important questions, and they seem to revolve around achieving a greater understanding of Deity, and discovering the next level of understanding of what Wicca’s Purpose (yes, with a capital “P”) is, going forward.  Is there a unifying core belief we can all embrace?

And oh boy, I may have found an answer.

Esra Free offers a tantalizing explanation of how she perceives Wicca and Deity (and my description is short; I apologize to Ms. Free if I misstate any part of her book).  The Cosmic Goddess Coven sees our Earth as being alive, and that is not an unusual belief within Wicca across the board.  We humans, and all life on our world, can be seen as cells in the “body” of the entity that is our planet.  This makes sense to me, for I have always seen Nature and our gloriously beautiful world as a perceivable manifestation of the workings of the essence of Goddess.  And that metaphor, of being cells in Gaia’s body, works for me. 

But this book takes all this a step further.  Think about the human body for a moment, the physical body, made of countless cells.  They are alive, but do they have an awareness?  Not that we can perceive, but does that mean there is no awareness?  After all, each cell in my body has a Purpose, and that cell manifests in the physical plane its specific Purpose, and lives out that Purpose.  Not the Purpose of the cells a few inches away, but its own Purpose.  That is a kind of awareness, even if I can’t perceive it.

Now think again about humans being cells of the body of Gaia.  We do have an awareness of who we are and where we are going.  If Gaia is made from cells with awareness, does Gaia have an awareness, too?   According to the Hermetic concept of “As Above, so Below; as Below, so Above,” the answer to that question would be yes. 

This also means that like us, the entity that is our world is also growing, maturing, and evolving.  And here is the cool part.  Our planet is also one of the cells that makes up our Solar System, and that Solar System also has an awareness.  The Solar System is one of the cells of our Galaxy, and our Galaxy is one of the cells of our Universe, and our Universe, along with every other Universe in every other possible dimension, are cells in the body of the Great Goddess, All That Is.  Now THAT is a Deity!  Ms. Free calls this the “Ladder of Being,” and that is a perfect name

I think I’ve been circling around this idea since I first considered the concept of humans being made in the “image of God,” and how ridiculously vain that concept was.  That was when I realized that all life was an “image of Deity,” that actually DNA could be considered an “image of Deity,” for all life has DNA and it is that DNA that is an “instruction booklet” for the creation of that individual life form.  I circled around again when I wrote that essay on the Royal Stars of Persia, and began evoking the Watchers using their Persian names when casting a Sacred Circle.  I even circled around this when I wrote my own first book, “The Emerald Tablet: My 24 Day Journal To Understanding” [http://www.lunastationpress.com/book/the-emerald-tablet-my-24-day-journal-to-understanding/].  And all this circling was done with the goal of achieving a more complete understanding of Deity, and of my chosen spiritual path, Wicca.

Could I have found the answers?  Was it that simple? 

I no sooner had that thought, when I heard my dear Lady Danu’s delighted laughter.  “Is it that simple?” She asked.  “Yes, it is.  Life is that simple.  It is humans who make it all complicated.”  My Patroness smiled, and then continued.  “Humans are programmed to ask ‘Why?’ and ‘How does it all work?’  You are supposed to ask these questions, for it is through seeking their answers that you evolve.  But when humanity asks the question, and then actually perceives the answer, the tendency is to proclaim that personal version of the answer to be the only valid answer.”  Danu sighed, and continued.  “This way of behaving is holding humanity back.  As you can see, Others depend, at least to some extent, on humanity’s progress.” 

I asked Danu what I could do.  What steps do I take to help humanity fix itself?  Her response was that I can’t fix humanity; I can only fix myself.  “I want you to prosper, My Daughter.  However, like the cells in your own body, you must manifest according to your own Purpose.  I am with you always, and you may always ask for help; after all, if your physical body is ill or injured in some way, the cells of your body rush in to help.  As Above, so Below; you will get a response if you ask.  But you are responsible for your life.  It is what it is.”  And She smiled; that last phrase, “It is what it is,” is an inside joke, and it really tickles me that Danu used it.  Just goes to show; She’s always listening.

I thought for a bit about my own body.  I can consciously connect with the processes of my physical body (and I am always in awe of those processes and their efficiency), but I don’t think I can be aware of every cell at once.  However, I care for each of those cells, and the “communities” they form within the “world” that is my physical body; I love them and nurture them to the best of my ability.  After all, they are me.

If we see Deity as being the same, as perceiving Her cells the same way, that means even when I am not in direct communication with my Goddess, She is loving me and nurturing me.  I was suddenly filled with the most amazing warm, vibrating pressure emanating into and from my heart chakra, so beautiful that I was moved to tears.  Oh my . . . an Aha! Moment!  I have not had one of these for a long, long time, but they are back.  I have found new meaning to my Path, and things to ponder that are filled with amazing possibilities.

Does all this make me feel small and insignificant?  Not by any means.  I feel a part of something valid and valuable. 

Validation that I am on the right track once again!

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