6: Pathfinding… creating

I create. Pictures with paper, paint, gems, clay, words, string, glue, tiles, stones, wire and anything that can be contained, constrained, contorted or consumed. I create chaos and peace. I create method and madness. I create. I create through inspiration, impulse, instruction, introduction, informality, intuition and in ways that are unimaginable. I create. What and/or how do you create?

The Tarot creates through providing ‘triggers’ that send impulse to our intuition and our need to create order and tell stories. We are shown cards with pictures, symbols, colours, words, faces, seasons, animals and clues that engage our imagination. We call upon our need to make sense of what we are shown and craft stories from what our senses tell us. It is not just about what we see, it is about how we feel. Visceral flashes of smell, taste, sound, light, dark, positive and negative collide and help us as we look for patterns, links, sequence and logical strands that inform our story to an acceptable conclusion.

Books tell us what we ‘should’ be seeing. Courses and groups tell us what we ‘should’ be doing and learning. We tell ourselves what we are seeing and learning. How we do, how we learn, how we see is an individual choice that, once we recognise it, is irrefutably the ‘way’ we always use regardless of how much we might try to conform to how things ‘should’ be. Embrace your ‘way’ of doing, learning and seeing! There is no right or wrong way with the Tarot. It speaks to each of us differently if we are prepared to listen.

Today, I have drawn the 8 of Disks (Reversed). I am using the Thoth Tarot illustrated by Lady Frieda Harris.

This card represents Prudence. Using Tarosophy, this is the coming together of money. However, it is reversed and this indicates financial affairs coming apart.

This can also be interpreted as focus and material so today may be a day of lost concentration or property or material things coming undone.

I choose the interpretation that today will be a day of lost concentration of material things I am working on being interrupted and somewhat chaotic. I choose to create today space and time and practice patience and letting go.

It is not a day to start anything new but to just relax and take things as they come and know that tomorrow will bring renewed energies and focus.

With that… until tomorrow, Love, light and blessings!

5: Pathfinding…

I received a book in the post a couple of days ago. Tarosophy: Tarot to Engage Life, Not Escape It, (Tarosophy) written by Marcus Katz, gives the reader an understanding of Tarot that is comprehensive, easy to read and progressive. It is divided into three parts: beginner, intermediate and advanced. While I scanned the book on the first day, I am now going through it bit-by-bit. I am in the beginner section of the book and while it is written is an easy manner, at least one of the exercises could be expanded upon as the fullness of the exercise is elusive. Exercise 4 would benefit from a more comprehensive undertaking, if not an example of use. While this is my personal opinion, this is where I got stuck, momentarily. I anticipate going back to this exercise over time to see if it makes any more sense than it did as oftentimes, given time and openness of curiosity, things do. If anyone who has done this exercise reads this post and can explain that exercise a little better, please do. I would be grateful for your understanding. I will touch base with Marcus and see if he would be kind enough to help broaden my understanding of this exercise. I have yet to cover the rest of the book and will, over time, share my view of it here. It is good to have this as a ‘textbook’ of sorts to use as I go forward with my study of Tarot.

Given that I have started using this tome for study purposes, today, I have drawn the Ace of Swords. This is from the Thoth Tarot deck illustrated by Lady Frieda Harris.

Tarosophy suggests that we look at the minor pip cards based on a few criteria.

First, the stage of the journey. In this instance, the stage is 1, the Ace. Tarosophy suggests that this is the ‘Beginning, creation, spark, seed.’

Secondly, the aspects: This is the Ace of Swords which indicates it is about the intellect (air, airy-fairy or high-minded).

Third, putting it together: Using the first and second steps, this suggests that this card is telling me that there is a beginning or creation, spark or seed of an idea or knowledge (education). So perhaps this card is indicative of the fact that I am starting to educate myself on Tarot and this is a positive indication for this enterprise as it is upright and not reversed.

How easy is that? It seems easy enough but, for my individual taste, I like to take in the details of the card as well. It is part of the fun.

What do I notice about this card? It is a beautifully attractive card as it is blues and yellows and green. The sword is remarkable as are the 22 rays of light that emanate from the crown at the tip of the sword. 22 rays are the Major Arcana. The sword itself is representational of the Tree of Life as the pommel is Daath (omnipresence), the guard is Chesed (kindness/love) and Geburah (strength) and the point is in Malkuth (kingdom). The guard is comprised of the waxing and waning moon back-to-back with two spheres between them. There is writing on the blade which is the Greek for ‘Will’ (Thelema) written in Arabic. The Ace of Swords is the beginning of intellect and represents the Ruach – inspired spirit – the mind is the enemy due to its need for rational thought.

So, now looking at the detail to this card, perhaps I can enhance what I learned from Tarosophy and think of this card as starting or beginning of education through inspired spirit – more the airy-fairy rather than the rational thought that usually accompanies learning.

Hmmmmnnnnn… what will tomorrow bring? Until then, Love, light and blessings!

3: Pathfinding…

I’ve been reading today about the Law of Attraction and Chaos Theory and have been pondering both for some time. I am generally optimistic by nature. I always look for the ‘silver lining’ and can always find something good in any situation. Everything is always easier to see in hindsight and yet we are always looking to ‘understand’ right now what is going on right now. Perhaps that is why Tarot is so intriguing? I find that, if you are willing to be open to possibility, Tarot will give you abundant possibilities and show you some things you may not have been seeing. There is nothing ‘impossible’ and the Law of Attraction and Chaos Theory are two such possible things. Tarot helps to broaden your choices, confirm your suspicions, give you insight and help you make sense of confusion. On the other hand, the opposite is also true.

Today, I have drawn the 8 of Wands – Swiftness. I am using the Thoth Tarot illustrated by Lady Frieda Harris.

There are so many glorious things about this card! The first thing I notice is the rainbow. I see sacred geometry at work here in the form of the tetrahedon-shaped diamond, the pyramid, the square and the triangle. There are lightning bolts of possibility shooting off in a myriad of directions. This card is full of colour, light, shadows and blends. There is merging of boundaries and re-emergence of forms within forms. It is confirmation and contradiction. It is all done at magnificent speed and with dynamic energy. It is Mercury in Sagittarius. Lightning speed communication and learning help speed things along.

This is a fabulous card for today. It shows me that today will be profitable as I learn more and more through my reading and my communications with others. It is a day that will point me in different directions, broaden my scope, help me see layers, shapes, forms, colours and textures that I may have missed and allow me the energy to look into as much as I can until tonight when I can assimilate it all while I sleep. My dreams should be quite interesting tonight!

I just received a book, Tarosophy: Tarot to Engage Life, not Escape It in the post! Signed by the author, Marcus Katz, I am eager to dive in and speed read it before I slow down and really digest it! Thanks, Marcus! Bring on the learning…

More tomorrow! Until then… Love, light and blessings!

As we begin…

so shall we go on. I think I heard that saying somewhere before but I certainly can’t remember who said it.

I woke up this morning quite ill so though I had fabulous intentions to begin this today, I will be a little delayed. It is for the best. I received Mary K Greer’s, 21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card, today in the post as well as Josephine Ellershaw’s, Easy Tarot Handbook along with a deck of The Gilded Tarot (this is absolutely beautiful and fits easily in my hand – it is lush!), and Lon Milo DuQuette’s, Understanding Aleister Crowley’s Thoth Tarot.

I connected with Tarosophy and the Tarot-Town today (awesome, fabulous site! – downloaded some fabulous resources and signed up in some groups) and revisited my TABI friends as well. I’ve downloaded Joan Bunning’s, Learn Tarot Course, and it can be found online as well and have downloaded some references from the Tarot Technique, Josephine Ellershaw’s website.

So, I’ve been a busy girl and still been able to do all of the above without too much brain power – it’s hard to work through a headache. I have some wonderful resources to use and will begin, I promise, afresh on Monday. I’m certain to be right as rain by then. Until then…

Check out the resources I mention, grab your Tarot deck and give it a good shuffle and allow yourself to draw one card – whether upright or reversed – accept it as it is and get ready for Monday. I’ll post on Monday and you can follow along and do your own diary or just live vicariously through me and watch me learn.

Love, light and blessings! Jean