Seven of Pentacles reversed/The Wheel of Fortune.  Oooh, lovely cards for the first day of the next cycle of the Mayan Long Calendar! The Seven of Pentacles (Saturn, discipline, responsibility, law and order, in Taurus, “I have,” sensual, cautious, stubborn) in an upright position tells of pauses and choices and assessments.  Sometimes, these assessments end up bringing a direction change, or at least a time of considering making a change in direction. 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)) represents the actions and effects of fate and destiny, and not of anything that we in the end can control.  My Wheel is reminding me that sometimes I can’t affect the ebbs and flows of energy that are before me; they are just too strong.  I am better off getting out my boogie board and riding those waves, tailoring my own efforts to mesh with the direction of the prevailing energies.  These two together offer a powerful message!

My Thoth card is the Seven of Disks reversed.  Bookends!  “Failure” is the keyword Crowley offers for this card.  Upright, he sees this one as being a bit more negative than most interpretations.  To Crowley, the pause indicated by the Seven of Disks is happening because of sloth and lethargy.  Any effort or focus has been lost, and even the tools have been thrown down.  Hence, the “Failure” as a keyword.  But because my Thoth Seven of Disks is reversed, this more negative interpretation may not have an influence today.

My Legacy card is the Two of Coins reversed, flavored by The Emperor.  Whew, another powerful pair! . 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. Reversed, this card could be telling me that I need to keep both feet on the ground and both eyes on the road, and I need to follow the map.  No juggling or unexpected outcomes today.  The Emperor corresponds with Fire (hot/separates and dry/shapes, and spontaneous, impulsive, energetic change), Aries (“I want,” action oriented, assertive, competitive) and the Hebrew letter Heh (window, illumination), and represents confidence and authority.  The Emperor actively seeks balance by imposing order on his world and erasing chaos.  He not only follows his own rules, but he also acts as a shining example to others of the benefits of living an orderly and structured life.  My Emperor is flavoring my reversed Two of Coins, and these two cards are also offering a powerful message!

My Pearls of Wisdom Yule card is the King of Swords. The King of Swords (cusp of Capricorn, “I build,” ambitious, cautious, cunning, authoritative, and Aquarius, “I know,” friendships, the group, cause-oriented, aloof) represents a good judge of people and situations who is able to use his vast and varied life experiences in order to effectively lead others.  He may not be very compassionate, but he is ethical, inspiring, trustworthy, and not afraid to take action, or even to use force if absolutely necessary. 

More about my Bookends card.  The number 7 is a card of pause, and this pause happens usually as growth slows and degeneration approaches.  The suit of Disks corresponds with the element of Earth; the dignities associated with Earth are cold/binds and dry/shapes, and Earth is seen as being material and practical; a stable energy that is slow to change.  It is easy to understand why Crowley sees this card as being so heavy and immobile. Most other readers interpret this card as indicating a time of assessment of our efforts, mostly in the physical world, and after an assessment, a crossroad is usually presented.  Do we feel that we can still achieve more?  Then we keep striving and working and tweaking what we have.  Do we feel that the fruits of our labors are at peak ripeness and thus ready to harvest?  Then we stop here, and begin to reap what we have sown.  The thing is, each choice offers a risk.  If we choose to not yet harvest because we believe more can be attained, and in actuality the time of peak ripeness is upon us, we may miss the opportunity.  If we feel that the time is ripe and we take in all our harvest, and in actuality the peak ripeness has not yet been attained, we may not be able to access the opportunity.  Sometimes this card can be interpreted as a self-identity crisis.  It might be time to look at the endeavors and relationships into which we are pouring ourselves, to see if the results are still beneficial.  And of course, if we are really stumped, we might need to get some professional advice; but we can’t wait too long, for after all, not choosing is also a choice.

My 6-digit date number is 10, which represents the end of a cycle (how fitting), which reduces further to the number 1, which represents potential and possibility and position (which is even more fitting).

My horoscopes: “Sagittarius, you may put your integrity under the microscope today. We all have deep convictions that we would never let go of. But society pressures us, and it isn't always easy to live in perfect harmony with our ideals. The question to ask yourself today is just how willing are you to change your most heartfelt beliefs in order to live in society? Do you have the courage of your convictions?”

And: “Expect a lot of phone calls today. A relative or neighbor could suddenly announce that they're moving to a distant state, or even out of the country. Or someone close to you who lives far away could suddenly come to visit you. Whichever it is (possibly both) you're likely to have a busy day, full of interesting news and maybe even some disconcerting gossip. Don't believe everything you hear, however. Check out the facts first.”

My Shadowscapes Insight is regarding the Nine of Pentacles.  Lovely!  This card presents solitary energies because in order to attain this moment of serenity and connection to all, we need to work on our own.  Our focus is to connect to the physical world, and to connect to the spiritual realms, and then be a bridge between them.  I have seen this symbol once already this week; my name tag at the Solstice Salon (painted by my beloved E) showed a bridge!

Well, Yule turned out a bit different than I had planned.  My High Priestess was unable to lead our two Yule rituals (our Community is online with many members all over the world, and thus we have an afternoon ritual and an evening ritual to accommodate the different time zones), so I presented the Yule ritual I had written last year as part of my Third Degree Training.  I really, really do enjoy leading our Sabbats, and since I had already presented my ritual before (and I had already made it mine and hand copied it into my personal presentation BOS), I was familiar enough with the ebbs and flows of energies within the ritual to really enjoy it. 

The icing on the cake was that the Tarot group I belong to, the SMPDA, presented online readings after the Sabbat was over.  I love working with this group.  When we read, we tend to connect to each other so our readings echo each other, threading a common message throughout.  We had a few new members working with us last night, and one of them told me how amazed she was that two other members interpreted a card by saying the same exact thing she was saying, at the same time.  I laughed, and told her this was a common occurrence.

I am still buzzing nicely from all the great energy!  And the cherry on top of the cake is that the world did not end yesterday, as predicted by the “monster criers.”  The sun is shining, a gusty wind is blowing, and there is a nice cozy feeling in my living room. 

I attended a Yoga class this morning whose proceeds will be donated to Hurricane Sandy victims.  Tonight, we are getting together with friends for a Holiday get-together.  Sounds like a great first day of the next cycle of the Mayan Long Calendar!  Today is the first day of the rest of my life, filled with purity, pristine possibility, and untouched potential; I intend to make the most of it.

Yule Blessings and Blessed Be!

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