Ace of Pentacles/Two of Cups.  Aces present potential only, and the Ace of Pentacles (Aries, “I want,” action oriented, assertive, competitive, Taurus, “I have,” sensual, cautious, stubborn, and Gemini, “I think,” curious, talkative, dual, social) tells of the presence of potential that is connected in some way to the physical world.  This potential could be connected with health or the physical body, the home, employment or career, growth, or manifestation. I need to remember that I am the catalyst that will provide the manifestation of this potential.  The Two of Cups (Venus, beauty, allure, relationships, in Cancer, “I feel,” sensitive, family and home oriented, tenacious, moody) is about love and connections, usually about relationships and commonalities.  This card is about caring and kinships; both good.  Perhaps these partnerships and the support they offer are what I need to manifest the potential being offered by my Ace.

My Thoth card is the Six of Cups reversed.  “Pleasure” is Crowley’s keyword for the Six of Cups (Sun, the inner core of a person or situation in Scorpio, “I desire,” intense, compulsive, deep, obsessive), which when upright is a card of emotional balance and harmony.  Crowley sees this card as presenting fertile ground for emotional growth when upright, but my Six of Cups is reversed.  Perhaps I will end up missing out on the fact that any pleasure I may experience must come from within me.

My Legacy card is The Hermit reversed, flavored by the Two of Coins reversed.  The Hermit corresponds with Earth (cold/binds and dry/shapes, and material, practical and stable energy that is slow to change), as well as Virgo (“I serve,” practical, analytical, work and service oriented, orderly), Yod (open hand, touch), and the Path between Tiphareth (the hub of the creation process where energies harmonize and focus to illuminate and clarify) and Chesed (the place where forms and structure are stabilized and nurtured), and is about searching within for a deeper meaning.  Upright this card tells of a solitary Seeking, but my Hermit is reversed.  Today will be more about involvement with the world and experiencing the senses, in a good way.  My reversed Hermit is being flavored by another reversed card, the reversed Two of Coins.  The Two of Coins (Jupiter, expansiveness and growth, justice, fortune, in Capricorn, “I build,” ambition, caution, cunning) in an upright position reminds me that everything always ebbs and flows, and I need to do the same. This card presents the concept of dynamic balance (which is always moving, always changing, and in fact remains balanced because of movement and change), and since it is reversed, I may be a bit clumsy today, or maybe a bit out of sorts.  Perhaps the more integrating experiences being offered by my reversed Hermit are not related to or sourced from the physical world.

My 6-digit date number is 7, the number that tells of the pause that comes at the end of a period of growth, and the ensuing beginning of degeneration.

My horoscopes: “Recent successes could lead to new aspirations to increase your socioeconomic standing. You should be feeling especially determined and confident about your future. Your plans have worked out well. You're feeling close to family, as your intuition level is high and you can sense what they're thinking and feeling. Career and relationships look promising. Enjoy!”

And: “This is a great day for you, in which you may feel like you can exercise more of your freedom in the world. Break any shackles that seem to be holding you back. There is no reason for you to feel hindered. Your adventuresome attitude is brave, and there is a great deal of territory for you to conquer. Get focused and get moving. You have the green light to move ahead.”

My Shadowscapes Insight is regarding the Queen of Cups.  “She is poetry in motion, imagination incarnate.” The Queen of Cups is such a lovely card, and I just can’t decide which version of it I like best.  The Shadowscapes Queen of Cups appears to move in a random fashion, but that is an outward perception only.  In reality, she is hearing so many voices offering possibilities and guidance, voices from her own instincts and dreams, and voices from the undulating and deep ocean, the ancient womb of life of our world.  Listen!  Can you hear the voices??

How fitting that, with the Queen of Cups being my Shadowscapes Insight today, we discuss the planet Neptune.  Neptune is the ruler of Pisces, and the Twelfth House.  In Roman mythology, Neptune is the god of the sea, and the deep, ocean blue color of the planet Neptune seems to reflect this correspondence. Neptune takes 165 years to orbit our Sun, spending approximately 14 years (13.75) in each sign of the Zodiac. Neptune was discovered in 1846

Astrologically, modern Western Astrologers associate Neptune with creativity, idealism and compassion, but also with illusion, confusion, and deception. Neptune governs hospitals, prisons, mental institutions, and any other place, such as a monastery, that involves a retreat from society. Its discovery and appearance within Astrology coincided with the discovery of anesthetics and hypnotism, and a political focus on nationalism, socialism, communism and the welfare state.

In the art world, as Neptune was discovered, the impressionist movement began its trend away from literal representation, toward a focus based more on the subtle, changing moods of light and color. In medicine, Neptune is seen to be particularly associated with the pineal gland, the thalamus, the spinal canal, and severe or mysterious illnesses and neuroses. Neptune is also connected to the general bodily nervous process (Uranus is also connected to the nervous process, but rather than in a general way, it connects specifically to the electrical nerve impulses).

The vibrational level of Neptune does not connect with matter and is not of our Earth.  This planet is considered the higher octave of Venus; Venus is about connections and reciprocal love, while Neptune is about loving because it is our nature to love, and because all life deserves to experience love.  It makes sense, then, that Neptune is also connected to sensitivity, mystical and psychic experiences, dreams, bondage/addiction, and fog. 

Neptune’s house position in your chart shows where you are being asked to sacrifice something personal and emotional, so that you can feel a larger part of what it is to be human, or to identify with more of life or humanity. The lesson to be learned through the manifestation of Neptune is that through universal love, sacrifice becomes a joy, and there is no personal suffering involved because there is no personal self left to experience that suffering.  It may also indicate an involvement with illusion or deception, or the perception that there is some obligation being imposed.   

What a beautiful example of oneness, and the Sacred!

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