Ace of Swords - When lightening strikes...

Today's card is the Ace of Swords from the Wild Unknown Tarot. This card is all about sudden clarity and spontaneous insights. A card of truth and inspiration. The two lightning bolts emphasize both the swiftness as the brightness of this energy. You have to be mindful of these flashes of insight; ready to catch them if they present themselves to you. This means we have to create open space in our mind for the lightning to strike.
Yet too often we keep our mind occupied by repeating the same old, same old over and over again. So how do we go about getting this open space?
Creating free headspace doesn't mean we have to sit on our cushion the whole day long. It is more about being busy with our hands and/or moving our body. Everything which occupies our mind just enough to keep it from obsessing and moving in circles.
My brightest ideas come to me when I am going for a walk or when I am taking a shower.
Where or when does your lightning tend to strike?

New Moon of January

For today’s new moon I’ve decided to only draw one card as a focal point for this lunation. This because I also want to work with my monthly cards of my Year ahead spread and I don't want to make things too complicated. I’ve also noticed that I don’t pay that much attention to the release cards which I usually draw on the day of new moon. Perhaps it is better to draw such a release card on the full moon and to work it when the moon is starting to wane…

Anyway, for this lunation I’ve drawn: II inner Voice from the Osho Zen tarot. This is the equivalent of the High Priestess from  more traditional tarot decks. It is always a very welcome card to receive but also challenging one: Listening to our inner voice can be very tricky, especially when we have some many voices in our head chattering the entire day to us and even to each other. We all know they hardly ever shut up.

Maybe this knowledge is the pathway to listening to our Inner Voice because she doesn’t speak with words springing from our every busy mind but she speaks with the wordless language of the heart. 

She is both dark and light, crystal clear and veiled, playful and profound. She is Truth without having to explain herself. We only have to sit down and find her wordless whispers between the myriad of voices we hear all day long.

Strength - We try to make the best of it, day by day.

Today’s card is Strength;  a great card to get and to lift up my spirit. We all know we have this great fortitude within us. We are so much stronger than we give ourselves credit for, so it is always a good thing to be reminded of our own inner strength. I particularly like this depiction of Strength because the woman and her wolf have such a deep spiritual connection. Without words or touch they know they belong together and they are an intrinsic part of each other’s life. (Maybe some of you remember I did a painting of this picture about two years ago)

What is it that we need this Strength for, this drive to go on, even when everything else seem to be opposed  to our efforts.

And then I drew the Seven of Swords. This is the lonely warrior. The one who goes on because he knows he is fighting for the good of all. Seven stars in the night sky are symbolic for his beliefs and ideals. He is a peace keeper with a sword in his hand. Each time before he goes into battle he examines his heart: Is it still pure?

It is hard to stand up for your ideals and stay true to what your belief in, especially when those around you do not  share those. Each day we get up and try to life our life according to those ideas as best as we can and each night when we go to bed and revisit our day we know some things could/ should have been done differently. But we don’t give up or give in and when dawn breaks we get up and try again.

The Ace of Swords – Finding Truth

For today I’ve drawn the Ace of Swords from the Tarot of the Hidden Realm. Immediately some keywords come to mind: new perspective and ideas, mental clarity and truth.

Looking at this image I noticed that the Heron is looking to his left, which is often seen as the direction of the past, of everything what has been before.  Maybe we can find mental clarity and truth when we face our past and learn from all the experience we’ve had and the lessons we’ve learned.

By embracing and accepting our past new doors will open for us; new opportunities to find the truth or parts of it.

When we try to notice the smallest changes and movements around us and the whispers of our soul within us then we will be able to distinguish truth from illusion. Little by little we gather and learn...

So what will I find when I quiet down and listen.... The Three of Wands: whatever has happened or whatever will happen the love for my family is what drives me to be a better person then I was yesterday.

Truth calls for change

Today’s cards are “Listening for Truth” from the Sacred Rebels Oracle and a card from Soulcards 2.

“Listening for Truth” is about being open to hear the Truth beyond words. Words can be so misleading, even for the most seasoned and empathetic listener. Rather listen to your intuition, who always is in perfect alignment with your inner truth and you higher self. Listen to the movement of your feelings and the colors painted behind the words. Listen to the currents of you deepest knowing and the whispering of your soul.

Why then do we so often hear that undeniable strong and loud: NO! I don’t want to know! The person in Soulcards 2 averts his head and pushes the Truth away with all his might.

In my opinion it is not because we so afraid of discovering the truth and neither are we scared to be vulnerable because those are things we can hide on the inside; keep away from others. No the most scary part of listening to our truth is that we are asked to act upon it and action brings change.

We are often so much more afraid of change than of knowing the truth.

“we can’t change the truth, but the truth can change us”

Eight of Mirrors – The Noble Eightfold Path

In this Depiction of the Eight of Mirrors from the Chrysalis Tarot we see an old sage walking downhill along a path with eight mirrors. Over his head butterflies are flying as a symbol of transformation and enlightenment On the mountain words are written. Words of encouragement, Love and self-awareness. These words can be found in every philosophical or religious book because Truth it universal. And maybe universal Truth can be written in stone? The mirrors on this path are reflecting the wisdom of every great teacher the world has ever had: Selflessness, Truthfulness, Harmlessness, Mindfulness, Respectfulness, Goodness, Peacefulness, Righteousness.

This card reminds us to walk the path of these teachers, gain their insights through learning and practice without losing our own identify. Only then our own butterfly can spread its wings.

It feels like this card is the follow up of the Eight of cups. You may have to walk away from your cups in order to realize the beauty they hold so you can return more wiser and content with the same cups. Finding Happiness if often is only a matter of changing ones perception.

"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the way of practice leading to the cessation of Dukkha (suffering): precisely this Noble Eightfold Path” (Buddha)

1.       Right vision, or understanding: understanding that life always involves change and suffering; realizing that following the Noble Eightfold Path is the way to overcome suffering and be really happy.

2.       Right emotion: committing oneself to wholeheartedly following the path.

3.       Right speech: speaking in a positive and helpful way; speaking the truth.

4.       Right action: living an ethical life according to the precepts.

5.       Right livelihood: doing work that doesn't harm others and is helpful to them.

6.       Right effort: thinking in a kindly and positive way.

7.       Right mindfulness: being fully aware of oneself, other people, and the world around you.

8.       Right meditation, or concentration: training the mind to be calm and positive in order to develop Wisdom.