'Just a few more days for to tote the weary load' -- no, wait! Forget that!

Robin Wood Tarot 

There's absolutely no way I accept this card for today, 10 of Wands from Robin Wood Tarot! I am working from home today and I have my work day planned and I am finishing at 14:25, so I will pick up no burdens today -- I say, no thanks. Not doin' it.

(Ten minutes later)
I've just tried to log on using the laptop I've been given and I can't map my network drives, but I don't care. I am not picking up this burden. I will go to the library and use one of their PCs if the laptop doesn't work today. I will phone IT support as soon as they are open and get them to fix it and if it doesn't work I will access my work at the library. I refuse to pick up any burdens today! Well, okay. I might pick up a burden today, but I can carry it. I can carry it steady and strong and I can put it down at 14:25 today. That's all that matters! Plus, I don't even have to carry it. There are people I can pass it along to; they can help me carry it.

Astrologically, the 10 of Wands is associated with Saturn in Sagittarius, which apparently has to do with learning the lessons of patience and perseverance:

Saturn in Sagittarius is conservative, and change only with much resistance. It may be narrow-minded or have tunnel vision. Saturn in Sagittarius needs to learn to trust. Whether open and honest or careless and rebellious, if it doesn't open up, it will continue to suffer. It may need to judge more carefully or learn what is appropriate and what is not. (~Always Astrology)

Sagittarius is a sign that envisions all kinds of possibilities, it thrives on experience and ultimately meaning. Saturn is the planet associated with father time and is seen as being hard-working, persistent and disciplined. (~Astrology Place)

So Saturn in Sagittarius has strong ideas about working hard, persistence, and doing the right thing. Do you see how this can lead to picking up too many burdens, putting too much pressure on yourself, trying to do too much, of somehow feeling that things going right hinge on you and you alone? Oh, the drama of it! That's what the 10 of Wands has always meant to me, and I see that it is confirmed by the astrological associations.

The Golden Dawn call this card Lord of Oppression. It has to do with doggedness. As usual, I love the advice given at Angel Paths Tarot:

On a day ruled by this card, there are certain processes you need to go through in order to work out what the problem is. First, consider whether this is a fleeting effect which will pass. However, if you find you've been feeling frustrated for a while, today is the day to get to grips with that.

I believe I've taken that advice before I even read it. I encountered what could have been a burden and refused to see it that way; instead, I immediately began thinking of alternate routes, solutions -- people to hand a few of my ten wands to.

So I think I've already identified what I can do today to make myself happy and positively impact my future. Ten wands is too much - and I don't have to carry it. You don't either!

Happy chappy - 9 of Cups

Robin Wood Tarot

Oh good. It's nice to get a good card, though some people seem to have a negative view of the 9 of Cups. This one is called 'Lord of Material Happiness' by the Golden Dawn. Even Crowley gives in and calls it 'Happiness', and you know how downbeat his card titles can be.

The card suggests a sense of inner fulfillment and quiet joy. It is time in which life can fill you with wonder and delight. The number is 3x3, a powerful number, which hasn't quite reached the tipping point feeling of 10, and so to some, is the number of perfection.

The 9 of Cups is associated by Golden Dawn with Jupiter (a planet of good fortune, abundance, wisdom and expansion) in Pisces (a watery sign which we looked at yesterday - emotional, romantic, imaginative, impressionable, intuitive).

Qualities of Jupiter in Pisces:

spirit of charity
genial and benevolent manner
subtle sense of humour
innately visionary
broad perspective
inclined to mysticism
interested in metaphysical issues
inclined to introspection but tending not to dwell on things too much (Pisces intro vs Jupiter's expansiveness)
can have difficulty keeping grounded
can gets hopes up only to be let down
sometimes inclined to use prayer or faith where action would be a better choice
~Solar Charts

I think all of these would be a good description of the happy chappy in this card. Some people interpret this card to mean smug self-satisfaction, but I don't really go along with that. Numerologically and astrologically, this card just means happiness.

It's okay to be happy sometimes, you know. You don't always have to go searching for the turd in the punch bowl.

That was okay, now somebody get me down from here

Robin Hood Tarot 

I'm working from home today, so maybe this is why I've got that 'Hanged Man' feeling. (That and the fact that I'm just so awfully tired.)

The Hanged Man is an odd card, not terribly popular, though some identify with it. In popular contemporary interpretations, it has come to mean 'self-sacrifice', but I don't really look at it that way. The Hanged Man I see in most decks doesn't at all appear to be suffering. In fact, in most he looks positively beatific, and certainly not a victim.

Take this card for example. Our Hanged Man looks like a professional acrobat or performer from the circus, in his cherry red tights and gleaming white poet shirt. His pose is quite athletic. He hangs from the tree branch with one leg bent over the branch and the other ankle hooked over the shin for security. His hands are pressed behind his back as he grins at his audience. I can imagine him giving a little swing, launching off the branch into a flip and landing on his feet with a big 'Ta Da!' from the band.

That's how he looks, anyway, but he could also be an odd guy who finds it very relaxing and invigorating to hang upside down. In that case, he's probably enjoying the blood rushing to his head, the feel of the breeze, and the sounds of the rustling leaves and the birds of the forest as he hangs in quiet contemplation.

He seems like a lad who has a lot of patience, certainly great physical endurance, and one who doesn't mind, in fact possibly enjoys, being in an 'unusual position'. New things don't bother him. He likes looking at things from a fresh angles. In fact, his point of view is almost always different from everyone else's, yet he doesn't mind; in fact, he rather likes it. He doesn't care -- he's a nonconformist.

The Hanged Man is associated with the planet Neptune and the astrological sign of Pisces. Neptune, as you would imagine, is the ruler of Pisces, and when the two come together, it is a watery time! Neptune is associated with illusion, delusion, glamour, spirituality, boundary-less experiences, psychic experiences, sacrificial love, deception, dreams, religious feelings, empathy, scandal, and the transcending of egos. It is the planet of fog, mist, oceans and oil. Neptune, in its highest manifestation, is associated with compassion for those who suffer, as well as a tendency to glamorize or idealize people, ideas, or even objects (The Astrology Room). 

Neptune went into Pisces in 1848, shortly after its discovery in 1845. It remained in Pisces 14 years (it has a 14-year course in every house of the zodiac). Neptune is currently in Pisces and has been since 2011. It will move out of Pisces in 2025. During its 19th century course, there was an increase in spiritualism and interest in esoteric, Eastern, mystic philosophies, as well as interest in psychoanalysis, dream interpretation, etc. I may be biased, but I think we are entering a new phase of spiritual awareness as we become more and more interested in equality for all--equal rights and acceptance for all sexualities, concepts of universal human rights, ecological conservation, animal rights, and so on. It seems that there is a blossoming of interest in paganism and other earth-based spiritualities, and a movement away from old dogmas. 

So, the Hanged Man is a contemplative chap. He takes his time. He looks at things from new angles. He doesn't mind seeming weird to the majority, all those people hurrying past him doing all their hurried and 'important' tasks. He's just hanging out, thinking things over. 

I could take a lesson from him. 

Save now, enjoy later

Robin Wood Tarot 

Looks like a good result from yesterday's efforts at being the Empress!

Today's card from Robin Wood Tarot is 10 of Pentacles, the Lord of Wealth. This is the manifestation, or fruits, of our labours. It's the payoff for all that hard work. In the card we see three generations of a wealthy family, enjoying their lovely home and garden, surrounded by their faithful family pets. What a wonderful reward for the old one, and affirmation for the young adults, as well as promise for the future generations of this family.

Mercury in Virgo, as you can well imagine, enjoys structure and security. It can get nervous and high strung if things seem out of control or not going according to plan, but it doesn't panic - actually is quite good in a crisis, but just prefers stability.If there is a good solid plan and things seem to be going according to it, Mercury in Virgo will chip in with a right good will, which explains how all this wealth and stability has been amassed. A Mercury in Virgo type would have the patience to take a small amount of money and figure out how to turn it into a tidy sum through investment and business ventures.

The card is encouraging me to make positive choices, having done my research. Which is actually particularly timely advice right now, as it's time to select a new cash ISA to transfer my balance into! Well done for the reminder, tarot!

'She looks well to the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness'

Robin Wood Tarot by Robin Wood

This is a nice Empress. I like that she's not some sexy vixen like we see in some tarot decks. She's very matronly, all wimpled up and spinning. Very domesticated. There are the usual symbols of fertility and abundance -- she's pregnant, her gown is trimmed in green, she sits under a tree, there is a basket of fruit and veg and a bee hive at her feet, she spins wool into yarn, she is surrounded by lush green countryside, and so on and so forth. On the tree over her head, we see the sign of Venus on a valentine heart, as in the RWS image. Empress is ruled by the planet Venus, which rules over Taurus and Libra.

Libra and Taurus may seem as different as chalk and cheese, yet they are both ruled by the same planet: Venus. The mythology of Venus seems to reflect this dual nature. The Greeks saw Aphrodite as a goddess of love and beauty, which reflects Libra traits. The Romans saw Venus as an agricultural goddess of gardens and vineyards, which sounds more like Taurus.

Taurus is an Earth sign, and as such is connected to the body and the physical world. The Taurus side of Venus is rooted in sensuality, pleasure and celebrating the blessings of the material world. This includes money, possessions and resources of all kinds that collectively represent what you "have." The Taurus bull's horn becomes a Horn of Plenty, overflowing with Venus' gift of luscious abundance. ~Evolving Door

The Empress then, embodies the totality of womanhood. Well, they say that's the totality of womanhood. I personally think there's more to us than being both sexy and handy around the house. But this is probably rebellion against the Proverbs 31 woman I was encouraged to look up to  in my Bible belt youth. 

Well, I'm done trying to be a Proverbs 31 woman, but I would like to have a nice, balanced day today, and this card suggests that what I can do today to both bring me pleasure and bode well for my future is to turn my hands to my tasks with skill and patience, and strike a balance between my many life roles.