Friday, December 20, 2013

Yule contemplation with the Wildwood tarot

The Hooded Man
About two months ago I’d decided to observe the turning of the wheel according to The Wildwood Tarot. I have the feeling this deck can teach me a lot about the hidden influences of, and help me find deeper, more spiritual and psychological meaning in the seasons and the holidays. I've tried before to be more structured in observing these yearly changes but as with so many things I am passionate about in the beginning, I have the obnoxious habit to let things slide and worse forget all about them.
This is one of the main reasons I've bought this tarot deck. To have a structure, a backbone to rely on when I am a little bit lost in the Woods J
So the first holiday  to study with this deck is Yule or Midwinter. The time of the shortest day and longest night, my favorite holiday (in combination with Christmas). I feel  a bit like The Wanderer starting my journey into the unknown….
The first archetypal energies, associated with midwinter, I encounter are:
The Great Bear
The Hooded Man (Hermit): A healing silence, withdrawal, inner light and wisdom. He is just about to enter through the door into the illuminated inside of the oak tree. There he will find the most  profound knowledge. This is a time for stillness, for listening, for regaining strength for the coming year. The light of his lantern will cast away the darkness, the fear.
 The great Bear(Judgement):  you reap what you've sown, rebirth , new beginning. This card represents a time for further waiting, transforming and contemplating but more focused on the coming spring
The Moon on Water (The Moon): reflection, intuition, the unconscious,  initiation, potential, creative energy, darkness. This is the major theme for the dark half of the year. The energy is inwards and full of possibilities waiting to be injected with intent and action.
The Moon on Water
Only by looking at these three cards I can understand why I have such a deep love for this time of year. The blues and grays are just stunning. I love the silent peaceful energy and the relief of letting go of old and outworn habits and idea’s. I love to reflect and write down my findings and feelings. For the first time in my life I have evaluated this year which has almost come to an end and I am going to write down my intentions and goals for the coming year too. In doing so I think I can connect better to The Great Bear card. And I must say it is so much fun to make these lists. I have subdivided them in all sort of categories: personal, financial, spiritual, creative etc. In whatever way you like, you can write everything down which comes to mind.
I know there are lots of workbooks on the market which are excellent, but I've just opened a Word document and started typing; Easy does it J! Perhaps I will add pictures of tarot and oracle cards which represent the intentions and goals I can think of. When I have finished them I will print them all out and put them in my journal.
My midwinter ritual will be small and simple. I will light one white candle, visualize my circle and meditate with these three cards. Nothing less nothing more.
I wish everybody  a very happy Yule and a merry Christmas 

8 comments:

  1. That sounds like a beautiful ritual, and I do hope you share some of your journal entries. :)

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    1. Thank you! I think the beauty lies in its simplicity.And ... perhaps I will :)

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  2. What a great idea to use the Wildwood to observe the seasons and turning of the wheel! I am a very visual person, so this makes perfect sense to me. :) And I have a feeling that journaling your thoughts and intentions will probably be more fruitful than any book you could buy.

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    1. What I like about journaling on my laptop (although I am a fervent notebook lover) is that I can keep adding and rearranging until it is finished and even after that. That is the disadvantage of these workbooks; they have a set amount of space to fill in your thoughts about a subject although their layout can be very inspiring :)

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  3. I agree with you.. I love these cards, and I love this time of year…and these cards really reflect what I feel from this time of year. I love your ritual and journal keeping for the year ahead. I keep my blog but my hand-written journal has sort of fallen by the wayside. Perhaps it'll be a resolution this year to start it back up :)

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    1. Since I have had troubles with my neck I can write only little bits in my handwritten journal. The rest I type in Word. I have to admit I've neglected my journal too since I am blogging. But with this list making for the new year I've realized again how much I love it :)

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  4. I've long loved the Wildwood, but never connected with its sense of timing. Perhaps reading your thoughts will help me with that :) Your ritual sounds wonderful, I hope it brings you wonderful moments of contemplation!

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    1. Thank you: I´ve really enjoyed my meditation and I did a reading from `Tarot for all Seasons` By Christine Jette, which gave me a lot to ponder about

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