The Emperor/Six of Swords. 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, authority, and the archetype of the Father. I understand exactly what message is being offered to me today by The Emperor.  Sometimes being the leader means taking on the difficult tasks, or taking responsibility for failures.  That is the less-glorious side of The Emperor, but a side no less important than being lauded as a benevolent and effective leader. The Six of Swords (Mercury, reason, intelligence, education, communication, in Aquarius, “I know,” friendships, the group, cause oriented) is a perfect companion to The Emperor today.  This one is about balance, healing, moving towards a better place, and even about learning the science behind things that work (because understanding why they work makes them more effective).  Whether being lauded as a good leader or whether doing the uncomfortable tasks (because that is what leaders do), understanding why these things are necessary ~and~ having the fortitude and focus to actually get them done, will bring good results.

My Thoth card is the Eight of Cups reversed.  “Indolence” is Crowley’s keyword for the Eight of Cups (Saturn, discipline, responsibility, limitation, law and order, in Pisces, “I believe,” feeling, duality, suffering, soul growth) which upright tells of an ending or a decline or a change of direction, often one associated with emotions, and one possible response to that decline or change: moving on.  Uncle Al sees this as the hangover card, and since it is reversed, perhaps I can raise my expectations a bit.

My Legacy card is The Magician, flavored by The Tower.  Sheesh, there’s some power!!  And danger!! The Magician corresponds with Air (hot/separates and wet/adapts, and quick and animated energy which usually presents problems or challenges), Mercury (reason, intelligence, orderliness, communication), Beth (house; builder) and the Path between Binah (female, receptive energy and the origin of form and structure) and Kether (the source, limitless possibility).  The Magician is a card of action, and of confidence, and it is another of the cards that have a personal significance to me.   He is reminding me that I’ve got skills and I’ve got experience, and they are there for me to fall back on if I need them.  He is a bit more metaphysical than The Emperor and more likely to use unusual methods, and it is cool that both of these cards have appeared in my spread today.  But then, there is The Tower. The Tower (Fire (hot/separates and dry/shapes, and spontaneous, impulsive, energetic change), Mars (action, spontaneity, aggression, drive), Phe (mouth or speech), and the Path between Hod (which provides analysis and communication) and Netzach (which offers the stimulating factors of emotion and inspiration)) tells of a violent or explosive correction in the way things are going.  Granted, these changes could come about due to accidents as well as unforeseen and sudden breakthroughs, but today I am being told that the eruptions associated with this card are very necessary.  What I need to do is make certain that I am tweaking the parts of The Tower that are tweakable, and tweaking my own focus in order to take advantage of the parts of The Tower that are not under my control.

My 6-digit date number is 11 (Archangel Uriel), which reduces further to the number 2, and balance, polarity, and an understanding of “distance between.”  Yup, know what that means, too.

My horoscopes: “A delivery could come to your house that you find very emotionally moving, Sagittarius. Perhaps you've received a gift that represents a big sacrifice to the giver, and was all the more sincere for that. This could be on your mind for most of the day even though you have a lot to do. When thanking the giver, be warm and sincere but not too effusive. You don't want to embarrass your friend.”

And: “There are periods in life, just like the one you are going through right now, when we learn to think relatively about events or relationships. Something that someone close to you did to hurt you a few months ago hardly even bothers you today. This seems to be true in almost every aspect of your life. Have you become more philosophical about things? You have learned what really counts in life: knowing where you are going, though not necessarily with whom or how you are going to get there.”

My Shadowscapes Insight is regarding Death.  Like the rest of my cards today, there is a potent message attached to this one.  The Shadowscapes Death card, unlike many other Major Arcana Death cards, focuses on what happens after we’ve passed through the one-way threshold before us, rather than the anticipation (and yes, fear) of passing through that threshold.  Death leads to rebirth, and what better symbol is there for the power of this rebirth is there than the phoenix!

I think it is interesting, through this recent (and still very new) cycle of Shadow Work, how each time I deal with a new issue presented as a possible Shadow Work exercise, I get my answer or validation of my choice as far as actions, words, or feelings regarding that event through synchronicity.  Again, in reading some totally unrelated article on the internet, I find encouragement.  Here is part of an interview done by Decca Aitkenhead of The Guardian and, of all people, Russell Brand.

“Here's a bit of bargain basement metaphysics and new-age rhubarb. The idea that we live our lives in the past, the present and the future is illusory. We only live moment to moment. But we forget that."  Brand goes on to say the following.

"One of the things I've learned is not to live my life through others' perspective on me, as it is irrelevant. My experience of being alive ain't contingent – thank fucking God – on what people think of me. Now when you first get famous, there's nothing more gratifying or exciting than reading that people like you. What one quickly – or in my case slowly – learns is that it's irrelevant what other people think of you. It's none of your business. Now of course I require a certain number of people to like me for my livelihood. But I'm beyond the point where I need to do a head count. All I care about now is having an intrinsic relationship with what I do, as a performer, that's legitimate and real and authentic.  It's not like I don't care, in some super aloof cool way. It's the same reason why I don't go to nightclubs. Not because," and he adopts a comic posh drawl, "'Oh maa-an, this is so trash.' No, because I know what it will do to me, I know what it will awaken in me and stir up. So I don't look at newspapers no more. We've only got a short time here and I can spend my time stimulating my mind however I want. I can read whatever I want. I ain't ever reading another copy of the Sun until I've read the complete works of Goethe."

Okay, I did not expect to receive encouragement from Russell Brand, but he is basically talking about the very concept I am working on during this Shadow Work for my Lesson 8.  Is it 100% irrelevant what others think of me?  No.  I care about what my husband thinks of me, what my son thinks of me, and what my family and friends and work associates think of me.  But if I care about being ethical, of attempting to always Harm None (and believe me, this is truly an impossible task because harm happens), and if my intentions are to take the high road, and I have done my best in every situation, then why would I agonize because someone disagrees with me, or horrors, laughs at me behind my back?  If Russell Brand can be at peace about this, I certainly can!

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