That'll learn ya, durn ya -- 9 of Wands

Do you have a card that makes you feel wary as soon as you turn it over? I guess that's a natural reaction to this card, as the figure in it certainly looks wary.

I'm hoping this is a residual effect of my very strange weekend in the world of Facebook. It all started late Friday night when a friend of mine mentioned her 'Bullet Journal' in a status update. I asked what it was and she sent me this link: bulletjournal.com. Now, I love planners and am always on the lookout for a new one to try. This system seemed streamlined and quirky and would involve buying a new blank book (because clearly the several on my shelves would never do!) I was in! I read the whole thing on the website, then watched this You Tube: How to Bullet Journal.  That was amazing! So simple and streamlined! No folderols and fuss. Completely adaptable. I liked it a lot. My friend directed me to a Facebook group called Bullet Journal Junkies. I visited, but was disheartened to see that hobby crafters had latched on to the Bullet Journal name and made it about buying loads of stickers and doing hand lettering, and not much else. Many people photographed their 'spreads' (which seemed rather a departure from the Bullet Journal concept I'd just been introduced to) and lamented their lack of time or commitment to actually filling them in. What? Okay. After looking for a group that was actually following the original method, I decided to just start one called 'Minimalist Bullet Journals.' Within 24 hours, over 500 people had joined. I was unprepared for this, I'd only just heard of the Bullet Journal concept that same day, and everyone seemed to have strong feelings about...everything. It's a dangerous proposition to jump into the middle of a fetish property, but seriously -- who knew? I quickly appointed 8 admins. By last night, there were 800 members. People were instant messaging me about 'stuff'. I decided this was all a bit too much considering all I had wanted was to chat about what amounts to a glorified 'to do' list, so I handed the reins over to the admins and withdrew from the group. That will teach me to jump in with both feet!!

So yeah, Wary Larry there has just been through some sort of wringer and now he's on the lookout. I feel ya, Larry! ;)

Confronting the stalker cards

'Stalker' cards are those that keep turning up over and over, no matter what deck you're using, what question you're asking, or sometimes even what person you're reading for! The lovely and wise Pearl Annie shared a technique for looking at stalker cards (she calls them 'cards that haunt me') in a group on Facebook called The Tarot Readers Development and Study Group. She shuffles her deck thoroughly and then divides it into five piles to determine what plane of existence the stalker card is attempting to deal with: Fire, Water, Earth, Air or Spirit.

I thought I'd just try that with my two recent stalkers, Knight of Wands and Chariot.

Three cards into the Fire pack, I found the Knight of Wands. I placed the two cards before him face down above the Fire pack, and placed him on top of them facing up. Then after two more cards, I found the Chariot! So I placed it and its previous cards below the Fire pack. 

(It doesn't matter what order you put them, that's just the order I said out loud as I laid them out so I stuck with that, even though normally I would have done Fire - Water -Air - Earth - Spirit. It's early, and I am a witch of dismal memory.) 

Both cards have fallen in the Fire pack, which comes as no surprise at all, but you never know until you ask. Knight of Wands is a Fire card of course, being Wands, and its elemental affinity is Air, so he is Air of Fire. The Chariot is a Water card, associated with the moon and Cancer. It's action that they're calling for, both in thoughts and feelings. I should act on thoughts and feelings, and not just think or feel them. 

I thought it would interesting to take this technique a bit further. What would happen if I looked to see what cards fell in the same spot in the other packs? Would that give me insight into how to support the Knight of Wands and Chariot across all planes? How can my other aspects aid this one that wants so much to come out?

I counted down into each pack and repeated the laying out of the cards as I did for the Fire pack:

Aiding the Knight of Wands

Fire - Knight of Wands, Water - 9 of Wands, Earth - Queen of Wands, Air - 2 of Cups, Spirit - 8 of Wands (confession, the 9 of Wands and Queen of Wands came out reversed, but I turned them over for the photo, so I'm going to read them reversed). 

I can aid the Knight of Wands' manifestation by watching out for feelings of being judged by others, being more sympathetic and forgiving of my physical body and habits, sharing ideas with others, and engaging in a daily spiritual practice. 

Aiding the Chariot

Fire - Chariot, Water - 7 of Wands, Earth - World, Air - 9 of Cups, Spirit - 2 of Pents Rx (confession, 7 of Wands was reversed so I will read it that way.) 

I can aid the Chariot's manifestation, again by avoiding defensive reactions, glorying in my physical self (note the glorified naked form in the card), thinking about where I am satisfied and successful, and accepting that being alive means not always (or even usually) feeling anything like being on an 'even keel'.

In summary 

My stalker cards want very much for me to make progress. The other cards show the blockages to these cards -- possibly they are the real reasons the stalkers keep stalking. They're not waving but drowning, as the poem says. They're stymied by attitudes in the other planes. The cards are telling me to stop seeking balance and get on with things. Lighten up. Stop looking for perfection in myself or my methods. Just DO something. Knight of Wands and Chariot will be satisfied if they see me do something, anything. So stop telling myself it won't be good enough.

Good insights. 

Daily Draw with the Mosaic Dream Tarot

Mosaic Dream Tarot by Bridgett Trejo, 2014  

Do this: 9 of Wands
Today I will have to go back to the drawing board with something, but I also need to remember that the hardest part of the battle is over. The resolution is nearly there and I should persevere. I must look to my strengths (9 of Wands is known as Lord of Strength) to assist me.

Don't do this: King of Swords
Today I must avoid being too coldly logical and expedient. The King of Swords would sacrifice himself or others to do what's 'right', but this is not the day for that.

Outcome: Fool 
If I am willing to do the painful work of a do-over, and I don't stick doggedly to what appears to me to be the best and simplest way (regardless of people's feelings about it), then unexpected solutions, cooperation and vistas will open up.

All good news. In actual fact, I am having to go back to the drawing board with something at work today. I've got a meeting to discuss it. No matter how hard-nosed I feel about it, I must not let that overshadow proceedings. I should dig deep and find my more subtle strengths of empathy and compromise.

Sherlock Holmes Tarot Week - Stick to it

Back to work today -- boo hiss. Today I've drawn 9 of Wands from the Sherlock Holmes Tarot (Connections, 2014). It has always struck me as an odd card, anyway. It seems so similar in appearance to the 7 of Wands, and used to confuse me very much. Because the man in the 9 of Wands card has a bandage on his head and looks wary, most contemporary readings of the card involve notions of watching out for yourself after trouble, the aftermath of battle, or something sort of like that; continuing on despite fatigue, not giving up, taking extra precautions, etc. (The Golden Dawn name of 9 of Wands is Lord of Strength, and the Thothier meaning is 'Change is stability'. That's Crowley for you.)

We can see the tenacity of the 9 of Wands, somewhat, in the Sherlock Holmes card, which depicts Holmes (in famous deerstalker hat and tartan coat) and Watson on the moors investigating the case of the Hound of the Baskervilles. Holmes' obstinate refusal to give up his attempts to prove that there is a logical explanation for the hound is comparable to the stick-to-it-iveness of the man in the RWS 9 of Wands. 'The keys to understanding this card,' says the companion book, 'are all reflected by the struggle against seemingly impersonal, and at time overwhelming, forces that seek to impede even the smallest progress.'

Well, yay. It seems time to fall back on the question, 'What does this card suggest I can do today to make me happy and have a positive impact on my future?' The obvious answer is -- don't give up! After all, Holmes does solve the Baskervilles case (even it is pretty scary for a while there!) and I will solve whatever problem comes my way today, too.

Chain breaker

Titania's Star Tarot, 2003

Wands can easily be mistaken for swords in the Titania's Star Tarot; one has to remember that the swords are curved scimitars. It's just one of several of the frustrations of using this deck. Another is trying to make sense of the colours chosen. Are they random? Or do they have some sort of significance to the deck creator? There certainly doesn't appear to be any Golden Dawn connection between the 9 of Wands and the colour purple. I'm also curious about the three-linked chain at the top of the card. So, I turn again to the companion book for hints.

Again, Hardie gives us a tidbit about 9s in general -- they 'relate to the most optimistic side of Aquarius' and that the number 9 is 'concerned with wishes'. Okay.

'The Nine of Wands shows a friendship that is true, wise, solid and perhaps also profitable. It might be a best friend, but also an indication of someone who is lucky in friendships generally. The key meaning is understanding.'

And that's the entire entry for 9 of Wands. I can't say that this deck and its companion book would be the ideal starter set for a tarot beginner. This interpretation of the 9 of Wands sounds very little like the traditional  Golden Dawn interpretations:

Golden Dawn - 'the Lord of Strength' - Okay, I can see how the chain could be a reference to strength
Rider Waite Smith - Strength in opposition; ability to meet an onslaught boldly
Thoth - 'Change is stability'; 'Balance is made difficult by not going fast enough. So also, one cannot draw a straight line if one's hand shakes.' (That's from Crowley's companion book, Book of Thoth)

All traditional interpretations aside, I tend to interpret this card as a wariness based on past experience, and a readiness to meet whatever life throws at you. So my view is closest to RWS. (It usually turns out to be!) Now, that's not very much like 'a friendship that is wise, solid and perhaps also profitable.' To me, Wands are about action, not friendship. I would be more likely to see Cups as referring to friendship. However, Hardie seems to see the number 9 itself as being associated with friendship, because her 9 cards have to do with friends (in fact her companion books says it is 'best friend to the world'):

9 of Wands - True friendship
9 of Swords - Frustration with friends
9 of Coins - Spending money on friends
9 of Cups - NOT about friends, but 'fulfillment of a wish'

So her interpretations are the opposite of how I would see them - only the cups card would default to a possible 'relationship' meaning.

If I were to draw this card, given my conception of the 9 of Wands, I would see the chain as being whatever obstacle, impediment or opposition that is faced or expected, and the configuration of the wands into three triangles look to me like three wedges or battering rams that would come up against it. If the first triangle breaks on the chains, there's a second and third to follow through. The army is in formation, ready for battle, should the need arise.

I don't think I will be coming up against any opposition today, unless it's my daily battle with food choices! I'm off to pick up my new prescription varifocals, so wish me luck that I don't walk into a streetlight pole or fall down any stairs on the way home! :)

Musings on the Celtic Tarot: Wands

Celtic Tarot, Aquarian 1990

I received my second copy of the Celtic Tarot (Courtney Davis) the other day, and have been admiring it since. I believe this is the most beautiful pips-only deck that I have seen yet. In the photo above, I have arranged them so that the bottom row is Wands, next up Cups, then Swords, and the top row is Coins, with courts in a pile at the end of each row. You can see that the suits are linked by colour, inner border style, and in the case of the Coins, by shape of the design. The Wands all feature the Sun, Cups are contained in circles on a blue background, the Swords are red and feature diamond patterns, and the Coins have a green background with Celtic knot discs in gold. Unlike some pip decks, there are many cues to meaning in the design and coloring of each pip card, so it seems like a good idea to have a closer look at them.