Update on the Work Reading

I did a reading about work the other day using a Lenormand Line of Five, in which I predicted that my husband's job would not be put in direct jeopardy by cost cutting measures being taken by his employer. He found out today that his section is secure until April 2015, when the plan will be reassessed. He texted me from work to say the reading had been 'spot on'. :)

That's a relief. Things can change and evolve in all sorts of ways in the course of 18 months.

The thunderbolt

Several of the Roots of Asia cards depict a figure in sitting meditation. Today we have the Judgement card. The figure has expanded to gigantic proportions, his head breaking through the outer atmosphere and into space. His body descends and breaks into the bedrock of the earth. He has become earth and heaven in his meditation, and his personal sense of self seems to have broken down entirely, merging with the elements of the earth and sky. There is a huge chasm down the middle of the figure, and rocks drop with a waterfall down toward the figures lap, in which rest his folded hands. At the figure's solar plexus chakra, there is an evergreen tree with a glowing orb at its centre. The figure's face is similarly lit up, identifying features obscured by the light, but also by the clouds and the darkness.

All in all, this image appears to show the disintegration of the self and merging into the whole. In other words, enlightenment.

I have notes written in my LWB, I can't remember where they came from but someone somewhere posted suggested card titles for each of the majors. I think these come from the deck creators themselves. The suggested title for Judgement is 'Conditioned Arising.' This is a Buddhist doctrine also known as 'Dependent Origination.' Understanding of Conditioned Arising ('Pratitya Samutpada') is the means to enlightenment (or the end of suffering). Thus it would appear that in this card image, we witness the moment of understanding the nature of Pratitya Samutpada.

Share a Spread Sunday: The Esoteric Cross (with Chakra Cleanse)

This spread is a variation I created based on an idea by Rachel Pollack. It is unusual, for me, in that the cards are laid out face down and each card turned over and considered on its own before moving on to the next card. It's a good card for deep personal reflection.

4

5---6/1---7

2

3

Card Positions

1) Who am I?

2) Where do I come from?

3) What deep energy powers me?

4) What higher truth guides me?

5) What is my task?

6) Who is my hidden self?

7) What will I learn when I leave this form?

Instructions

Shuffle the cards and lay them out face down, tucking card 6 horizontally underneath card 1. Turn over each card one by one, taking time over the 6/1 combination in particular. Place card 6 horizontally on top of card 1 to interpret. Then consider the entire spread as a whole. 

'Bonus Chakra Cleanse'

Rearrange the cards as chakras by moving them thus:

Crown chakra --     7) What will I know when I leave this form?

Brow/Third Eye --   4) What higher truth guides me? 

Throat --                 5) What is my task?

Heart --                   6) Who is my hidden self?

Solar plexus --         1) Who am I?

Sacral --                  3) What deep energy powers me?

Root --                    2) Where do I come from?

I first tried this spread out here:  Who am I?

And I did the chakra variation here: Esoteric Cross: Chakra Correspondences

If you would like me to read for you using this spread, please send me an email at rowan_tarot@yahoo.co.uk. As this spread is quite detailed and involved (the sample readings in the links that I did for myself are quite short in comparison to a 'real' reading I would do for you), the charge is £50. 

A creed outworn

Roots of Asia Tarot, AGM 2001

This week I'll be blogging with the Roots of Asia Tarot by Amnart Klanprachar and Thaworn Boonyawan (AGMuller, 2001). The deck is now out of print and hard to find, but when I bought it, it was cheap. In fact, shortly after I bought my deck (a few years ago), I saw absolute heaps of them in a bargain bin in a bookshop in Glastonbury, going for £5 each. If I had been a clever clogs, I'd have bought several of them and later made my fortune. Ah, not really.

I was always rather fond of this deck, but deeply disliked the green borders, so one day I impetuously cut the tops and sides off, was appalled at the result, and, ashamed of myself, put the deck in the box and let it languish in the back of my collection. There were plenty of other decks to play with. Recently I nearly sold it; only someone's reticence to use Paypal kept it in my collection. It was when I was preparing it for packaging to be sent that I got to looking at it again. Since it didn't sell, it will remain with me now for a while longer. In fact, I believe I will keep this one. I have to admit, the artwork doesn't do much for me, and even now the strong chemical smell of the AGMuller decks is still clinging about it -- but the LWB is really rather phenomenal. Each card takes the opportunity to teach important lessons in Buddhist thought.

For example, let's look at today's card. In the Rider Waite Smith tradition, the 8 of Cups is often looked upon as making a break from old patterns of thinking or feeling, or actually setting off on a new path, leaving behind outworn habits or literal people and places. The Thoth Tarot calls the 8 of Cups 'Indolence', and suggests it represents the point at which we feel we can't endure our current situation anymore, and begin to feel the need to leave the 'bogs of numbness'  -- so more or less the same meaning. (People seem to think that RWS and Thoth are radically different from one another, but they are both derived from Golden Dawn, and the two paths nearly always converge! But I digress...) The Roots of Asia 8 of Cups is also about change, but approaches from a different angle still:

'Eight of Cups: Awareness of Change and Impermanence. As nature has the motion and changes of the seasons of the year, so too our lives hold various changes and times. We wish to hold on to those seasons of happiness and run away from those seasons of anxiety. Our goal is to learn how to move freely within and between the seasons that continue to come to us. The eight seasons of our lives are: time of accomplishment, time of loss, time of dignity and fame, time of obscurity, time of being blamed, time of being praised, time of happiness, and time of pain. Divinatory key: Searching for insight. Introspection.'

So we see the Roots of Asia Tarot teaching us gentle lessons about change. You don't change from path A to path B and that's that. Things come back around. It's natural. It's to be expected. It's to be accepted. To me, the best thing about this deck is its LWB, and whenever I've used the deck, I've happily referred to the LWB for its lessons in mindfulness and its gentle tone.

Looking at the card image, we see someone in contemplation, the creatures of the sea and the cups and the flowing water reminding us of the water element represented by the Cups suit. The LWB of Roots of Asia Tarot expands on this and explains that the Cups suit represents the 'emotional pathway', where we seek to open our minds to let go of old beliefs, and make way for new learning for the attainment of supreme wisdom and development of trust, generosity, stillness and self-reflection.

What outworn belief can I let go of today?

A Work Reading

Today there will be an important meeting, part of which could well have a bearing on hubby's job. I thought I would draw a Line of 5 to see what might be the impact of this meeting on hubster's situation.

Lenormand Oracle Cards, LoScarabeo

The cards here seem to me to suggest that while some sacrifices must be made, well-established posts will be preserved where possible. 

Where do I get this?

The central card is the most important one in the spread, and Fox is often associated with work. Because this reading is about work, I decided to us that interpretation. (I also associate Anchor and Moon with work, so I would have treated them the same if they'd landed here).  Fox+Lily+Tree suggests a long established post (Lily can mean older person, and Tree can mean longevity). Cross+Key can mean a sacrifice -- a hardship or burden is the solution to a problem.

The sacrifice or hardship may directly affect him, but there's no way here to say what that hardship might be. It could be anything at all, and just pulling an example out of the air, it could be something like no salary increase for a set time, or having to go through an assessment procedure to keep his current post, or even being put in a redeployment pool. Or it could be none of those things.

The most important message here would seem to be that he is not in the direct line of fire.

I shuffled very thoroughly and drew another Line of 5: How will the sacrifices that need to be made by hubster's employer directly affect him?

It amused me after a long and careful shuffle to see 3 of the same cards pop up. And I was rather amazed that 'sacrifice' was my focus and it landed right in the 'focus' position of the spread. Not sure why I was amazed. I am a card reader and I believe in the cards. But their behaviour still amazes me. 

The happiest part of this spread is the answer to the question seen in the last three cards - Cross+Rider+Bouquet -- Good news is on the way! So the answer would seem to be that hubby will not be directly affected by the meeting today. 

Whew! Now to see what 'really' happens...I will of course let you know. We will find out on Monday when we return to work from our holiday.

What am I set to reap?

In the Mabon Tarot Blog Hop, Andy Boroveshengra wrote a heartfelt post touching on the predictive powers of tarot, and suggested that the readers of his post deal themselves three cards and 'see what we're set to reap.' So, here goes: What am I set to reap between now and Samhain?

Tarot Illuminati, 2013

Now, this is meant to be a purely predictive tarot reading, looking at what is going to happen to me between now and 31 October. Keeping it as cut and dried as possible, I can see two ways of reading this draw:

1. It will be a time of inaction (4 of Swords), confusion (Moon) and lack of direction (Fool). My inner fears (Moon) cause me to become very passive (4 of Swords), while also causing me to make reckless, possibly self-sabotaging choices (Fool).

2. It will be a time of reflection (4 of Swords) and introspection (Moon), a time when my 'beginner mind' will refresh my enthusiasm (Fool). I will face many of my inner fears (Moon) through journeying within (Fool) using new (Fool) meditation techniques (4 of Swords).

Actually either of these could be true. Or both of them could be true. I can see several scenarios where the first, negative reading could happen. And I can equally see how the second, positive reading could happen. It is entirely possible that in different areas of my life, both will happen.

I maintain, though, that even though this is a predictive reading, these outcomes are still dependent upon my choices. I can choose not to allow the negative reading to happen, and I can equally back off and prevent the positive outcome from happening. I admit, though, and can see how if I remain on my current trajectory, these things will manifest. It would take a conscious effort on my part to change this. If nothing else, it has been useful for me to look upon the cards in a wholly predictive manner, because it forces me to see the negative and positive, rather than trying to wring a 100% 'empowering' meaning from the cards. The truth is empowering. The truth is, either or both of these outcomes could happen. And the important thing is to watch out in my life and make sure I really get the outcome I want.

Green Man Tree Oracle: Alder

Green Man Tree Oracle

I don't have any personal associations with alder trees. I am not familiar with them. It is not a native species to North America, so I've read, but was brought there in colonial times. It is native to Britain, and occurs throughout most of Europe, but in America, it is naturalized only to the northeastern USA and eastern Canada. Chances are I never saw one in my childhood, and I certainly never heard anyone referring to an 'alder tree'.

So I am entirely dependent on the companion book for ideas. John Matthews writes in the companion book to Green Man Tree Oracle that the Alder card represents defending your territory or keeping the way clear before you.

I found a lovely page about the alder tree at
Goddess Tree: Alder. It provides lore about alder trees gathered from several sources, with citations.

All the sources agree that the alder tree has something to do with battle and defense. So, that would have to be my interpretation, though I have to say the sleepy, sorrowful looking green man in this card doesn't make me think of battle and defense. I notice a standing stone next to the tree on which is carved a raven, which is associated with the alder, apparently.

In a drawing, I suppose I would say this card suggests keeping defenses up, setting clear boundaries, but if I hadn't done this bit of research first, I would have been at a loss, as I have no personal associations with this tree.

While I've found it interesting to look into the tree lore and I think the cards are lovely, this deck is probably never going to be one I turn to regularly. I'm glad I've got it, though.

Tarot: taking stock

A stock take of my decks. I've made up categories for them. I couldn't be asked to put them in alphabetical order. I've marked with an out-of-five star rating. I put my favourites in bold red. :)

Rider Waite Smith
1. Diamond Tarot**
2. a brightly coloured one that I've trimmed the borders off and threw away the box so can't recall name
3. Giant Rider Waite Tarot *****
4. Original Rider Waite Smith***
5. PCS Commemorative *****
6. Yellow Box Rider Tarot (it may be unPC to love this one, but tough)***
7. Universal Waite***

Oracles: Taking stock

A stock take of my oracle deck collection. Favourites in red.

Lenormand
1. Mystical Lenormand **
2. Lenormand Oracle Cards *****
3. Postmark Lenormand ****
4. Pixie's Astounding Mlle Lenormand Cards ***
5. French Cartomancy Cards ***
6. Blue Owl Lenormand **
7. Titania's Fortune Cards ****
8. Fairy Tale Fortune Cards **
9. Highlanders 1864 Poker Deck*****

Green Man Tree Oracle: Birch

Birches

BY ROBERT FROST

When I see birches bend to left and right

Across the lines of straighter darker trees,

I like to think some boy's been swinging them.

But swinging doesn't bend them down to stay

As ice-storms do. Often you must have seen them

Loaded with ice a sunny winter morning

After a rain. They click upon themselves

As the breeze rises, and turn many-colored

As the stir cracks and crazes their enamel.

Soon the sun's warmth makes them shed crystal shells

Shattering and avalanching on the snow-crust—

Such heaps of broken glass to sweep away

You'd think the inner dome of heaven had fallen.

They are dragged to the withered bracken by the load,

And they seem not to break; though once they are bowed

So low for long, they never right themselves:

You may see their trunks arching in the woods

Years afterwards, trailing their leaves on the ground

Like girls on hands and knees that throw their hair

Before them over their heads to dry in the sun.

Green Man Tree Oracle: Holly

Green Man Tree Oracle, Matthews & Worthington

Today's draw from Green Man Tree Oracle is Holly. In this card, I really have to look hard to find the Green Man, but he's there. His eyes are a bit squinchy and the downward pointing leaf right in the centre makes up his nose. Can you see him?

I am going to continue my technique of  personal explorations of the card before looking at the companion book. For myself, I associate holly with winter and with Christmas. As a child I was taught that the holly represented Jesus. The pointy bits on the leaves were like the crown of thorns and the berries like drops of blood. The vivid green represented everlasting life, the triumph of Jesus over the grave.

Funnily enough holly berries are highly poisonous to humans, but not birds. I think there is some lore about not planting a holly tree too close to a house, and also about not cutting holly trees. This is interesting because I pass a holly tree every day on my walk to work that is not only planted right up against a house, every year they also chop it back to a degree that seems quite insulting to the poor tree, and yet if they didn't the pavement would be impassible, because it does seem to grow back every year. I know that holly is important to Druids for some reason, but I don't know what that reason is. The Bach Flower Remedy, Holly, is used to treat spite, hate, suspicion and envy, to encourage generosity of spirit and acceptance of others.

John Matthews' divinatory meaning given in the Green Man Tree Oracle companion book seems aligned with the Bach Flower Remedy interpretation. 'Since holly burns fiercest and hottest of all woods, it creates a passionate fire. At one extreme, action can be fueled by anger...and at the other extreme [it] can create dynamic changes.'  I thought I'd check up on this:

Square of Nine for Autumn Equinox

Lenormand Oracle Cards, LoScarabeo

I pulled this Square of Nine for Autumn Equinox, thinking it would cover roughly the period of Autumn Equinox to Winter Solstice. I did not pre-select the card for position 5 (the middle).

The central concern of the coming period is love and emotion (Heart). It's no surprise that a very important factor for me will be my husband's recent worries and troubles (Dog+Cross), but it looks like a positive outcome is going to turn up (Key+Sun).

There has been some confusion lately about the housing situation of my MIL, which seems clearly suggested in House+Cloud+Bear, but the addition of Star makes me believe there may be a resolution, or at least that things will begin to look more hopeful. And that is no doubt at least one of the positive outcomes referred to by Key+Sun.

All in all, things are looking positive for the coming weeks.

Rowan Scissorhands

Lenormand Oracle Cards, LoScarabeo 

This morning I got a wild whim to give my favourite Lenormand deck a 'radical borderectomy' (as Judy Kerr called it) to get rid of the distracting white borders. I got ten cards in and realized I wanted the dark inner borders gone, too. So I did it!  I love them. I've always really loved the images in this particular Lenormand deck, but the cards were a large size (for a Lenny) and I didn't use it as much as my smaller decks (Pixie's Lenormand and Postmark in particular). But NOW?? Now that it's so wonderfully petite and beautiful in all its denuded beautifulness? Ha! I will be using it a lot.

Mission of week: Find a tin to keep this little treasure in.

Here's a Square of Nine I've drawn for Autumn Equinox. Haven't looked at it yet. In fact, I drew and laid it out face down on the scanner, so in fact I haven't even seen it yet:

Share a Spread Sunday: 'Hammer Kit for Depression'

This clever card layout was posted by Espirito on Aeclectic Tarot in 2012. Its shape is meant to resemble a hammer or mallet. 'Pick up this hammer and finish your depression,' so it says.

                                     4--5--6

                                     1--2--3----------0

                                     7--8--9

The first card -- numbered 0 in the spread -- is the handle. The pattern of nine cards to the left makes up the business end. Cards 1-3 are the handle that runs through the mallet head. 4-6 are the top of the mallet, and 7-9 compose the striking surface of the mallet head. 

Card positions

0. This can be pre-selected, or drawn. 'My hand on the hammer' -- it represents who I want to be

1. My thinking

2. My feelings

3. My current state (result of 1 and 2)

Green Man Tree Oracle: Honeysuckle

This week's deck is the Green Man Tree Oracle, art by Will Worthington. I bought this deck for Will  Worthington's art and nothing else. I never really even intended to use it. That's unusual for me. I ony buy decks I want to use, and only keep decks that I actually end up using. The book is by John Matthews, and I have to admit, I am not a big fan of the work of John and Caitlin Matthews. It's not that I don't respect their scholarship, it's just that I have found that most of their deck systems have been overly complicated to use, requiring study of lore and tradition (which is not a waste of time) or study of a system created by them (which, in my opinion, is). The Templar Vision Tarot, Arthurian Tarot, and Camelot Oracle, to name but a few, are examples of complicated Matthews creations. Actually, I rather like Templar Vision and Arthurian, but there's no denying they are much harder work than a plain old tarot.

Anyway, this week I thought I'd take a look at the Green Man Tree Oracle. I don't know if I'll end up using the companion book in my interpretation of these cards. I think it might be more useful for me to use what I know of tree lore and my own personal associations with the cards, particularly if what is offered in the book doesn't 'make sense' with my own feelings about the tree (or plant) in question. So just be warned! :)

Ancient Italian Tarot Pairs: Day 7

3 of Coins                                           The Tower Rx

I don't usually bother with reversals, but I thought I'd leave this one and take a look at it. This is the last day of the week with Ancient Italian Tarot, drawing in pairs: 'Embrace - Release.'

I've drawn the same 'Embrace' card today that I drew on Wednesday, 3 of Coins. I am seeing the combination today as advising me to embrace my work and release fears about losing my job. (Or for that matter, of husband losing his.) In a way, it could be taken as a repeat of yesterday's message, to attend to the moment and not be carried away by worries about 'what if this happens, what if that happens' scenarios. Now the Tower being reversed adds a new dimension to the combination. I don't take reversals to be a simple opposite meaning. I see them as a deepening of the meaning. I decided to consult Jonathan Dee's 'Tarot: Interpretation and Divination' because not only does he feature the Ancient Italian Tarot in that book, he devotes a page each to upright and reversed meanings of majors. (Plus, I usually agree with most of his interpretations!). He writes: 'The initial indications of the reversed Tower may be even more disruptive than its upright meaning. You may be accused of something; there may even be a form of forced isolation included in the oppression. On the other hand, you may be rebelling against some form of tyranny, showing a side of your personality that will come as a shock to others.'  So, the reversed Tower would indicate expecting the worst, and possibly worse than the worst! Suspicions of scheming, tyranny, undermining and overthrowing. Well, the draw today tells me to release all that, and instead to embrace 3 of Coins, letting my talents shine, and making the most of opportunities, particularly at work. Interestingly, Jonathan Dee says the presence of only one 3 card in a draw can show 'a lack of energy.' I wonder why he says that, where that idea comes from.

Oh, well, so for today, I will focus on my work and release any 'sky is falling' thoughts or feelings. :)

Ancient Italian Tarot Pairs: Day 6

'Ask yourself what "problem" you have right now, at this moment. 

Not next year, tomorrow, or five minutes from now. 
What is wrong with this moment?'

~Eckhart Tolle

3 of Cups                                                Ace of Wands

Whoa! Remember yesterday when I said there were no wands this week? Now here I am with the mother of all wands cards -- in the RELEASE position! And in the embrace position, 3 of Cups.

The image that dominates this draw from the Ancient Italian Tarot is that humongous chunk of wood in the Ace of Wands. It's gigantic and the hand is gripping it with purpose, like it's about to be used as a weapon to bash something (or someone) to smithereens. So I'm reading this draw today as:

Don't beat yourself - or anyone else - up today. Celebrate instead.

This is good advice because it's a tense time for us right now, waiting to find out what's going on with hubster's job. I only just found out last night that it could be at risk. Now we have to wait until Monday after next to find out what's going on with the budget and so on. 

BUT...

This draw seems to be telling me to live in the moment and be happy. Not take a stick to my own back. Now normally I would see swords as being overthinking, but I'm going with my most instinctive response to that image of the Ace of Wands today. Because when I look at that card all I can think is, 'Take cover!' 

Eckhart Tolle says, when we find our minds racing forward or back, to come to the present and ask ourselves, what is the big problem right at this moment. I think most of us can safely say, nothing is actually wrong at this moment. Unless we're being chased by wild animals or our butts are on fire or some other serious threat to life and limb, nothing's wrong. Surely if you're sitting there reading this blog entry, you are in a quiet, safe moment. So celebrate it. 'In this moment, I am safe. I am whole, I am breathing. I am alive. I am known. I am loved. I celebrate these things. Any challenges that may present themselves, I will deal with by accepting that they are happening and taking necessary steps one at a time. But again, right now at this moment, all is well.'

Some people reject present moment thinking. I encourage you to just try it. It really does help bring you back from the edge of 'Oh my God, THERE IS NO HOPE!' to a saner, calmer place. 

Ancient Italian Tarot Pairs: Day 5

'Life isn't as serious as the mind makes it out to be.'

~ Eckhart Tolle

3 of Coins                                    9 of Swords

Another 'Embrace -- Release' draw from the Ancient Italian Tarot today. Today's advice is to embrace 3 of Coins and release 9 of Swords.

Three of Coins always makes me think of work, because it is a card of craftsmanship, and to a degree also of team working. The Nine of Swords is usually about painful overthinking, to the point that your worries invade your dreams or even keep you awake at night.

All week the cards have told me to embrace cups and coins, and to release swords. In other words, to embrace reality -- the reality of my physical life and of my emotions -- and to release worrying, stressing, overthinking, or attempts to outmaneuver the body and heart through doublethink. It's interesting to me that wands haven't popped up so much -- I'm usually stalked by Knight of Wands or Queen of Wands, the cards of fire and action. This week seems to be pointing me inward, not to my mind, but to the breath and to the spirit.

On a more mundane level, this combination of cards advises that I trust in my own skills and get on with my tasks, and not worry about it. It's not the day to have 101 contingency plans. Today's the day to just do something, trusting that I know what I'm doing.

Ancient Italian Tarot Pairs: Day 4

'Nobody's life is entirely free of pain and sorrow. 

Isn't it a question of learning to live with them rather than trying to avoid them?'

~ Eckhart Tolle 

King of Cups                                        The Emperor

Today the Ancient Italian Tarot (LoScarabeo) advises me to embrace the King of Cups and release the Emperor. It's more important to master interpersonal relationships and my own emotions than to take a distant, perhaps lofty or superior stance.

Perhaps the draw is a simple message:  feel more, suppress less. There's a difference between mastery and control. The King of Cups is a man in authority, a man of mastery, but he has not lost touch with his emotions. He acknowledges and accepts them. The Emperor, on the other hand, is in a position of authority, but handles it differently. He doesn't like to be seen as a creature of emotion, with possible exception of wrath. He can be dictatorial, ruthless, unbending. He takes pride in showing little emotion, in his iron rule of his empire.

Of course this draw must have to do with my own personal 'tapes' and thoughts about myself. But it could also be in my dealings with others.

Ancient Italian Tarot Pairs: Day 3

'Forget about your life situation and pay attention to your life. 
Your life situation exists in time. Your life is now. 
Your life situation is mind-stuff. Your life is real.'
 ~ Eckhart Tolle

Embrace                                      Release

The Ancient Italian Tarot (LoScarabeo) offers two aces this morning for my 'Embrace -- Release' daily draw.

Aces are pretty amazing beasts. They contain the full, untapped potential of the energy of a tarot suit. The message here is stark and clear. Today I am to embrace all aspects of the fleshly, physical, earthly plane aspects of my existence, and to release all aspects of the logical, planning, organizing, thinking aspects of my existence. It is an unmistakable message. It is almost like someone grabbing your face in both hands and looking straight into your eyes and shouting:

'STOP THINKING! START EXPERIENCING!'

Stop thinking about what everything means. Stop looking for signs or patterns. Just notice what it feels like to be alive. Use your five senses. Pay attention to the flesh. Pay attention the tactile, material, solid, concrete world. Experience how your body interacts with, engages with, and merges with the all. 

Our bodies do not exist separate from the material world. This is obvious, but easily forgotten. We take in air--without it, we quickly die. We take in food and water. Air, water and food are all made up of the same substances that we ourselves are made up of. In this way, we are merged with the totality of existence on the material plane. And with the fire of our awareness, the air of our breath, the water of our blood and flesh, and the earth of our very physical manifestation, we can sense and feel this continuous interplay going on at all times. 

So for today, feel the air going in and out of your body. Experience being air. Feel the food in your mouth. Experience being made of the same carbon-based atoms. Feel the warm morning shower rushing over your skin, the moisture of your eyes, the saliva in your mouth. Experience being water. Feel the heat of your body, and watch the movement of your thoughts. Experience being fire. 

Pretty big stuff for a Monday. :) 

Share a Spread Sunday: 4 Aces Method

'Share a Spread Sunday' is a new feature at Rowan Tarot. Every Sunday I will share a card layout. Sometimes I will include a sample reading, sometimes just the spread. (If you are interested in volunteering a query for a sample reading, just send me an email at rowan_tarot@yahoo.co.uk. Be aware that your reading will be published on the blog, with feedback from yourself, though of course I will leave your name out, upon request.)
I learned the 4 Aces Method at the London Tarot Conference, 9th October 2010. It was taught by Jonathan Dee. This spread provides an overview of your life at the moment, and is useful for general readings. It is somewhat old-fashioned in that it involves dividing the deck before drawing.

How to Use the 4 Aces Method (a 12-card spread)

Ancient Italian Tarot Pairs: Day 2

The Sun                                      8 of Swords

Today's 'Embrace -- Release' pair from the Ancient Italian Tarot is The Sun and 8 of Swords. I should embrace happiness and freedom, and release feelings of being trapped or unable to help myself.

I believe this draw is telling me to allow myself to be happy, and not to brood or overthink or fret today. So I won't. Today's the day to give myself a break.

I like that I drew Sun on Sunday. :)  Maybe linking the day to the card will help me savour and enjoy the day more each week.

Ancient Italian Tarot Pairs: Day 1

This week I'll be drawing two cards a day using the Ancient Italian Tarot (LoScarabeo). The deck is a reproduction of an Italian tarot from the 1880s, in a style known as Soprafino (a word meaning 'very refined').  I've decided to draw two cards a day using a popular variation on the 'Do this - don't do this' tarot spread: 'Embrace - Release.' For each day, the first card drawn is the advice of what I should embrace for the day, and the second is the advice for what should be let go.

So, today's draw is:

 The Tower                             Knight of Coins

Embrace the Tower. Release the Knight of Coins.

Well, that is a smack upside the head this morning. To embrace the unexpected, the unplanned for, the lightning strike coming out of the blue that shakes you to the very foundations. And to release good old Mr Faithful, the plodding planner who can never be hurried along.

Where exactly I'm meant to take that advice, of course cannot be said. The nature of the Tower precludes it. To try to second-guess or orchestrate a Tower event would be to take a Knight of Coins approach to it. Can't be done. So, all I can do today is be open and receptive to the chance to say 'Yes' to anything that I would normally say 'No' to.

Oh, the very idea fills me with trepidation! I am a world champion sayer of 'No'. I love routine and hate disruption. Just the extreme regularity of this blog ought to be evidence of that! I don't have a clue what the universe may offer me today, and I'm already girding up my loins to bellow 'NO' to it. I love the Knight of Coins, love his stability, his regularity, his confidence, his humility, his laconic and phlegmatic nature. He might not be exciting, but he's dependable. And you can't say that about the Tower -- well, it's dependable all right, you can depend on the fact that whatever the Tower brings is going to be mighty unsettling!

Okay, so my goal for the day is to watch out for any opportunity to say 'Yes', no matter how subtle, to something that I would ordinarily say 'No' to. *biting lip* Oh, man.

Tippy tables

The last draw of the week with Druidcraft Tarot (Carr-Gomm & Worthington) yields the 9 of Cups. It offers an interesting perspective on the card image. In the traditional RWS, we see a portly, self-satisfied looking fellow posing as for a portrait before a draped display surface on which are arrayed his collection of 9 golden chalices. But in this 9 of Cups, the man is sitting on his own at a banquet table laid out with nine cups and a fish. Is he alone in the banqueting hall? There's a tapestry across the hall that has a face on it which reminds me a bit of the Gundestrup Cauldron. I like the way it is weighed down with hagstones at the bottom. :) I can't help but notice the very dark space under the table by the man's feet, and wonder what could be lurking there. My eye seems to be continuously drawn to it this morning. And is the man looking at someone approach from the other side of the hall? Or is he imagining someone is there? Or does he just not care that no one else is there?

RWS

Life feels good for the man in this card, but there are all these hints that he may soon realize that something is missing. That's also part of the nature of the 9s, and all odd numbers in numerology. They are unstable, they are tippy. Unlike 2s, 4s or 8s, which are even numbers and thus have some stability behind them, the odd numbers by their nature cause imbalance and impetus to roll forward or fall back. Just think of the number of legs on a table. You can have 2, 4, 6, 8 and have a pretty stable table, but if you have 1, 3, 5, etc, it's likely to tip over. So with the Nine of Cups -- he's happy and fulfilled, but there's a sense it won't last. It's likely to tip into a new realization or new phase or new cycle.

BUT, for the moment, he's happy, and that sounds good to me for a Friday. (Even if it is Friday the 13th. See--there's that tippy bit!)