10/26/13

Seven of Cups reversed/The Hierophant reversed. The Seven of Cups (Venus, beauty, allure, relationships, in Scorpio, “I desire,” intense, controlling, obsessive, mysterious) in an upright position represents the distraction, sensory overload and dissipation that can happen when we are presented with too many enticing choices.  This card in an upright position can tell of delusion and addiction; thankfully it is reversed so I might be able to be realistic today.  LOL, how unlike me. The Hierophant corresponds with Earth (cold/binds and dry/shapes), Taurus (“I have,” sensual, cautious, stubborn), Vau (the nail which holds tradition in place), and the Path between Chesed (the place where forms and structures are stabilized and nurtured), and Chokmah (dynamic male energy, the origin of vital force and polarity).  This card is an archetype of Spirit (with The Emperor as archetype of the Sacred Masculine, The Empress as archetype of the Sacred Feminine, and all three representing the supernal triad) that reminds us of the value of tradition, ritual and ceremony.  Upright, this card combines benediction with orthodoxy, but it is reversed, and thus, is hinting at fanaticism  I should not follow rules today just because they are rules!

My Thoth cards are the Eight of Swords (“Interference”) and the Six of Cups reversed (“Pleasure”). The Eight of Swords (Jupiter, expansiveness and growth, justice, fortune, in Gemini, “I think,” curious, sociable talkative, dual) in an upright position tells of a confused and restrictive response to obstacles, or maybe perceived obstacles.   The image on the Thoth Eight of Swords shows six Swords alternating horizontally, and two Swords over the six, both with point down, possibly indicating a sort of paralysis of the intellect.  Uncle Al offers another source: a bit of bad luck. The Six of Cups (Sun, the inner core of a person or situation in Scorpio, “I desire,” intense, compulsive, deep, obsessive) is a card of innocence, emotional balance and harmony, of simple joy that begets even more simple joy by infecting all that is around us at this moment.  This is a card filled with harmony and an awareness of blessings, and Uncle Al sees it as one of the most fertile cards in the deck.  My Six of Cups is reversed, however, and I just might need to work a bit harder to obtain its pleasures.  I guess I had better make an effort to not allow little inconveniences to get me down, eh?

My Legacy card is the King of Cups, flavored by the Four of Wands reversed. Finally, an upright Cups card.  The King of Cups (cusp of Libra, “We are,” partnerships, balance, cooperation, and Scorpio, “I desire,” intense, controlling mysterious, obsessive) is the expert on emotions and the subconscious, mainly because of his life experiences.  He is able to observe and accept the human condition with empathy and compassion, and he shows us by his own example how to love others.  This King is good at caring for others, but he is pretty passive about his own emotions, to the point of being disconnected from them.  My King is being flavored by the Four of Wands reversed. The Four of Wands (Venus, beauty, allure, relationships, in Aries, “I want,” action oriented, assertive, enthusiastic) in an upright position is about building enough to become established, about the results of harmony and effort and creativity combined.  This is often considered a fortunate card because it tells of effectively planning that has manifested as a sturdy foundation. The Legacy Four of Wands is also seen as representing the creation of sacred space; my card is reversed today, and I am seeing this reversal as an indication to be alert to all possibilities and not to assume I am finished with what needs to be done.

My 6-digit date number is 4, the number of depth and stability.

My horoscopes: “You may feel inspired to make certain changes in your home. Your imagination is especially acute, so it's easy to visualize how the rooms will look afterwards. You could seek others' opinions, too. Now you need to sell your family on the idea. Don't worry - you can do it. Your persuasive powers are at an all-time high.”

And: “Transformations that are taking place in your life right now are apt to have a dramatic effect on your romantic relationships. The good news is that these relationships should change for the better. Regardless of where you are with a close partnership, you should expect that it will grow deeper and much more meaningful for you at this time. Even if you find yourself breaking up with someone, keep in mind that this is probably for the better.”

Another Wild Unknown Tarot card: The Father of Wands.  What an awesome image!  This card shows a cobra coiled and upright, with a wand, point upward, nestled in its coils, and a lightning bolt colored from deep red to a yellowy-green splitting the nighttime sky behind the snake.  Snakes represent Fire (and real-world dragons), and this snake is regal, and he is coiled and ready and in control of his instincts and passions.  This Father of Swords is ready to entrance his adversaries, and he is ready to create a situation that will bring him a very beneficial outcome.  Because he Wills it so!

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10/24/13

Temperance/Five of Cups reversed.  Temperance corresponds with Sagittarius (“I seek,” philosophic, adventurous, blundering) Fire (hot/separates and dry/shapes, and spontaneous, impulsive, energetic change), Samekh (the tent post), and the Path between Yesod (the place where patterns and images emerge that may manifest into the physical world of action and outer reality) and Tiphareth (the hub of the creation process where energies harmonize and focus to illuminate and clarify), and this card presents one version of the concept of balance: balance achieved through knowledge and experience of extremes.  I know that I have experienced the energies of this card often, and each time they manifest I learn something new about myself.  The Five of Cups (Mars, action, aggression, drive, in Scorpio, “I desire,” intense, controlling, mysterious, obsessive) in an upright position tells of an emotional setback or disappointment, or perhaps the belief that a wrong choice has been made.  The good thing is that my card is reversed, so any emotional setbacks will not be debilitating.  The message here, offered by these two cards, is that there is value in every life experience, whether pleasant or uncomfortable.  Today, running away is not an option.

My Thoth cards are the Ace of Cups and the Two of Wands. 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 potential to experience deep emotions, a connection to my Inner Voice, and a connection to those around me.  Looks like emotions and feelings and an inner connection are valuable to me today, and I am already tapping into this awareness.  Maybe several times during the day, I should take a bit of quiet time to ask myself how I feel.  Not what I think, but how I feel; and maybe if I listen quietly, my Inner Voice just might offer a bit of encouragement. “Dominion” is Uncle Al’s keyword for the Two of Wands. The Two of Wands (Mars, action, spontaneity, aggression, drive, in Aries, “I want,” action oriented, pioneering, assertive, enthusiastic) tells of power, influence and authority.  This card tells of the purest of Will, in the “now” and undiluted by past or possible future events.   I feel this energy already, a confidence in my ability to react to the world around me. 

My Legacy card is The High Priestess, flavored by The Lovers reversed.  Oh this makes sense to me! These last two cards clarify the other four.  The High Priestess (Water; the Moon, feelings and emotions, illusion, imagination; Gimel, the camel who safely crosses Da’ath, the Abyss, and thus, has the secret of life; and the Path between Tiphareth, the hub of the creation process where energies harmonize and focus to illuminate and clarify, and Kether, the source, limitless possibility), is one-half of the Major Arcana representation of the Sacred Feminine, with The Empress being the other half. The High Priestess is the source of the power of The Magician, the feminine version of The Hierophant, and the Keeper of the Mysteries.  This card is telling of more than just an intense connection to my intuition; my High Priestess is also telling me that there is plenty of information and advice available to me.  I do need to remember that the knowledge offered by The High Priestess is spiritual knowledge, which cannot be measured or contained.  No physical-world proof!  The 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) tells of duality, union, and personal choices.  This card is about love, but it is also about our personal values and how they affect our choices, and the promises we make to others.  The Lovers present the two halves that when united are greater than the sum of their parts, but today, spirit and the mind might be in opposition to the physical world.  Because my reversed Lovers card is flavoring my High Priestess, there may be issues with the manifestation of what I know and what I feel.  My first card today, Temperance, is offering a valid focus. Oh-kay!

My 6-digit date number is 11 (Archangel Uriel), which reduces to 2, the number of balance, polarity, and the energy of “distance between.”

My horoscopes: “Being around others should be especially gratifying for you today. Most people should be friendly, and you'll enjoy their company. The downside is that your psychic faculties are acute, so you might pick up some unsettling feelings from those you talk to. You're likely to find that many smiles hide turmoil inside.”

Aaand I did not get my second horoscope. 

My next Wild Unknown card: The Ten of Pentacles.  This card is alive and vibrant with fertile energies! Ten Pentacles arranged in a diamond shape, with circles of the colors of the elements or of a rainbow as a background.  The diamond for me is personally powerful for it is one view of the octahedron, the shape of the physical world and the concept of “as above, so below.”  The circular colors go from indigo on the outside to blue, green, yellow, orange and red, moving through the chakras from the spiritual realm to the physical world.  What powerful symbolism!  Can we bring our bounties into the physical world and maintain our connection to gratitude and generosity and love?  That is the goal of this card, and indeed the whole suit of Pentacles.  Those blessings cannot become stagnant; instead we must maintain them in the position between the physical world of manifestation and the astral realms.  We do this by assuming the role of catalyst in order to activate the fertility to be found within those blessings.

Today, I received the most amazing gift from my sister and mentor, Lilyth.  I am preparing to visit my High Priestess in order to be initiated as a Sacred Mists Third Degree Priestess, and Lilyth knows this.  In fact, I will be staying with her when I go to be initiated. 

Lilyth was given three naturally shed deer antlers, and she was drawn to create a lovely wand for me!  It came in the mail yesterday, and I waited until this morning, after Hubby went out, to sit by my altar and open the box.  Oh. My. God.  Powerful!!  A clear quartz point, a sunstone, and a scarab!! All held into place by green leaves and vines accented with orange.  And there are even a few strands of hair from the deer!  What an amazing magickal tool; I had trouble putting it down to write this blog post. 

Just holding this wand has cleansed me, has sent in a fresh breeze to clear the cobwebs.  My connection to Nature and the physical world has been intensified, and I am seeing the blue sky, hearing the calls of a flock of Canadian geese as they pass overhead, with new intensity, similar to after my Reiki attunements.  And I haven’t even consecrated it to me yet!

My heart is filled with gratitude.  I am privileged, greatly privileged, to be accompanied by such awesome Travelers!!

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10/23/13

The Hanging Man reversed/Two of Swords reversed. The Hanging Man corresponds with Water (cold/binds and wet/adapts, and emotional, sensitive and imaginative energy that tends to move deep, and attempts to take the same path as in the past), Neptune (inspiration, spirituality, magick, enchantment, dreams, altered states), and the Hebrew letter Mem (water, stability and balance, the reflective quality of thought), and presents the kind of balance that comes to us through surrender, and through deliberately attempting to see things in a different way.  My Hanging Man is reversed, so I most likely will not be comfortable with fatalism; instead I may need a more hands-on method. The Two of Swords (Moon, feelings and emotions, illusion, imagination, in Libra, “We are,” partnerships, balance, cooperation) validates my Eight of Pentacles, because this card represents a time of not looking or of shutting out the world.  The serenity of this card happens because we choose to not receive or acknowledge as valid the information that comes to us from the outside.  Because my Two of Swords is also reversed, it is validating the hands-on method indicated by the reversed Hanging Man. 

My Thoth cards are The Moon and the Knight of Swords. The Moon of the Tarot Major Arcana corresponds with Water (cold/binds and wet/adapts, emotional and sensitive energy that strives to stay the same), Pisces (“I believe,” feeling, suffering, soul growth, duality), Qof (the back of the head), and the Path between Malkuth (the physical world of action and physical, outer reality) and Netzach (the stimulating factors of emotion and inspiration), is about feelings and emotions and instincts and the subconscious.  All of these things can work for us, when we imagine, or they can work against us, when we fear unreasonably.  This card is telling me that today, nothing is as it seems.  The Thoth rank of Knight equals the rank of King.  The Knight/King of Swords (cusp of Capricorn, “I build,” ambitious, cautious, cunning, authoritative, and Aquarius, “I know,” friendships, the group, cause-oriented, aloof) is a good judge of people and situations.  He uses his intellect to analyze, so he may not be compassionate but he is trustworthy, and he can be trusted to fiercely stand by his decisions.  These two cards together make me uneasy; hopefully my King can be cunning and a good judge of situations, for those situations may not be what they appear to be on the surface.

My Legacy card is the Page of Swords reversed, flavored by the Five of Coins reversed.  The Page of Swords (Capricorn, “I build,” ambitious, competent, cautious, cunning, Aquarius, “I know,” friendships, the group, society, cause-oriented, and Pisces, “I believe,” feelings, duality, soul growth, spirituality) in an upright position tells us to use our mind and intellect to analyze our situations as well as our emotions and feelings. My reversed Page could be indicating a bit of indecision today, or perhaps a need for compromise rather than bold action.  My Page of Swords is being flavored by another reversed card, the reversed Five of Coins.  The Five of Coins (Mercury, reason, intelligence, education, skill, communication, in Taurus, “I have,” sensual, cautious, stubborn) in an upright position tells of some loss or need within the physical world.  Sometimes this card can indicate an inability to balance personal issues with professional issues; whatever the issue, the upright card presents the hidden reminder that there may be light in unlooked-for places.  My Five of Coins is reversed, however, and it indicates the possibility of revived energy in my physical world, perhaps a direct result of the compromise and pause before taking action represented by the reversed Page of Swords.

My 6-digit date number is 10, signifying the end of a cycle; this number can be reduced further to the number 1, representing potential and position. 

My horoscopes: “Don't blow things out of proportion today. You're apt to have a tendency to exaggerate everything to such a degree that you completely lose touch with the true reality of the situation. You could be painting a terrible scene in order to elicit pity from others. Be honest about the situation before you create more enemies than friends.”

And: “Just when you thought things were going fine and that you had everything figured out, a curve ball comes your way to make you think otherwise. Be on the lookout for ways in which you can stay on top of the situation so that if indeed you are faced with problems or opposition, you have your arsenal in line and ready to go. The key is to not let your guard down at any time.”

Onward; another Wild Unknown Tarot card: The Daughter of Swords.  The image on this one is of a young owl perched on a Sword, with a dark night sky behind the owl sprinkled with multi-colored stars.  The owl is alert and watchful, but does not seem frightened or agitated.  To me, she is seeing things clearly with eyes that have not been prejudiced by past experiences.  This ability to see things as they are right now, without imposing expectations or intentions, can offer powerful insight!

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