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.

Ten of Rainbows - We are the World

Today’s card is the Ten of Rainbows – We are the world, from the Osho Zen Tarot. This card immediately reminded me of the Women’s March and  all the other occasions where we stood or will stand together for what is right and just. It is such an empowering card. No matter what color we are, we are all in this together ….

And that’s when it dawned on me. Even while looking at this beautiful circle of colorful rainbow people, I was excluding everyone who didn’t agree with my political or my spiritual convictions or with whatever I feel is important for my world, my country, my house and my body. Yes while watching this card, I was still thinking in terms of I, me, we, us, ours and they, them or theirs. 

These days, it is easy to feel connected to like minded people but what about the other part of humanity. Is our heart big enough to let them in too? We don’t have to agree with them to be able to acknowledge they are just as human as we are. What does it take to include every living soul in our heart?  What does it take to hold on to our viewpoints and opinions, without feeling superior over those who think differently?

As of yet I don’t have the answer but I am very grateful for the awareness of this issue caused by my card of the day.

Raidho and Six of Wands - Rise up!

When I pulled my rune for today, my first thoughts where: “Not Raidho again!" But then I pulled the Six of Wands from The Wild Unknown Tarot to go with it and I realized how a single rune contains such a wide variety of meanings.

Raidho is the rune of movement, journey and travel and since I am on a sort of spiritual quest as of late, it is a very fitting rune for me these days.

The Six of wands is all about success and victory. Now you might ask if this means I have completed my quest? No, not at all but I can say I have escaped the tangled branches and the lost feeling this dark place entails.  Now the butterfly is flying upwards into the light. Although it is a beautiful place to be and it is tempting to find a spot to stay there forever, the butterfly will have to keep moving on to become the best butterfly he can be.

How often do we resist to leave that safe place of victory? It can be so scary to continue our journey with the possibility of failing or getting lost again? I am positive that if we keep this moment of success in our thoughts, it will build up out inner strength and trust, and then moving on will become a bit less frightening

Of course this card also reminds me of the devastating storm our dear friend Bev of By theSycamore Tree and her family and community had to endure yesterday.  I hope and pray together they will be able to rise up (again) from this terrible experience.

Thurisaz and Two of Wands - The Gate will wait one moment more

Today’s rune is Thurisaz (thorn, gate, giant). For today I wanted to highlight the meaning of Gateway. Often  a gateway holds the promise of something new. This could be a.o: a new opportunity, a challenge or perhaps a new insight. In my case it is often fear which prevents me from walking through this kind of gates. I also realize that this fear prevents me from having new experiences, meeting new people and broadening my spiritual beliefs. So for today I asked my cards what might be a beneficial way for me to approach such a gate.

And I got the Two of Wands from The Wild Unknown Tarot . In this depiction we see the moment just before the two wands touch each other and call for action. Notice how they almost form a gate themselves. When we dare to go through this gate it might open up so many colorful opportunities for us. This is the moment to focus, to consider, and weigh our options carefully. What will be the reward of going through the gate? What could be the worst thing that could happen? Where does my fear come from ? More than often we learn that our fear to go through the gate has nothing to do with this particularly situation. Most of our fears originate  from very long ago.  But since each gate holds a promise and a risk, it is up to use to find out if the promise is worth taking the risk.

So it is advisable to take a moment and really assess the situation and then our wands can come together and give direction and focus to our journey and we will continue to walk out path and whether we got through the gate or not it is still our path.

“Still round the corner there may wait, A new road or a secret gate.” J. R. R. Tolkien

Fehu and The Star – Gratitude for feeling good

Today’s Rune is Fehu (cattle or "vee" in Dutch),the first rune of the Elder Futhark. This rune stands for wealth, happiness, creativity and the physical manifestation of everything good. So in what area of my life might this energy of Fehu come into play? After giving my new edition of the Wild Unknown Tarot a thorough shuffle, I pulled The Star. This is one of the most  beautiful cards in any deck. It is the card of Hope and Renewal after the devastating  force of The Tower.  But what does this spiritual Card has to do with Fehu?  Then I remembered how I feel when I am standing outside, looking at a starlit winter night sky. The splendor of it all and the promise of hope and fulfilled wishes always give me that deep physical sense of well being. Yes feeling good isn’t always about material things, although you should have seen me yesterday when I got my new deck, but more often it is this deep rooted feeling of gratitude for what we already have and what is making us extremely more happy than anything still on our wishlist.

Hagalaz and Six of wands – Hope in the face of Adversity

Today’s Rune is Hagalaz (hail). This is the rune of disruption, sudden drastic changes and loss. Nothing to look forward too. So instead of being scared of what today might bring and hide under the covers until this day is done, I asked: "What do I need to be able to cope with the energy of Hagalaz?" And I pulled the Six of Wands from The Fountain Tarot and what a gorgeous Six of Wands this is. It is almost as if the victor is lifted by light but when you look closely you see the other figures carrying him. When we are victorious it is also good acknowledge which part others have played in our victory.

The guidebook  calls this card: "Hope and Motivation" and this reminds us of everything we have overcome in this lifetime already. In some situations we were victorious in others we merely survived but we are still here; alive and kicking. From those past experiences we can receive hope for the future that whatever comes our way, we can deal with it one way or another.

For me today this card encourages me to keep walking my path even though it leads me through hail storms and icy weather.  I am confident that I will find my spiritual balance again because I have done so many times before. This card feels like an protective umbrella for any kind of bad weather

Three card spread with the Dreams of Gaia: To move beyond doubt

As usual I wanted to draw one card and share my thoughts about it but when I drew the Seven of Air from the Dreams of Gaia Tarot, I knew I had to add some more cards. This card represent so beautifully what I have been struggling with these last few months. This card is all about belief systems and the different teachings of wise and spiritual people.  

Ever since I was a young girl I wanted to belong to a group of people who shared the same beliefs as I did and I have never came across such a group. I tried to fit in with some of them but it never lasted long.  Gradually I have accepted that what I belief is personal and ever changing. But sometimes I feel the need for some conformation that I am on the right track. Sometimes I even envy the confidence of some religious groups who are “absolutely sure” of their spiritual convictions. This feeling is strongly connected to my word of the year: Trust. Do I trust myself enough to keep following my own path, even though it is leading me along deep chasms filled with doubt and steep mountains covered with insecurity. 

So after pulling this initial card I wanted to know how to deal with these feelings and I pulled Choice, the first card of the deck. This card is asking us to move forward, to make a choice which is fulfilling for both our heart and our mind. There is no way back. The past is gone forever and there is only this little moment in time. If we don’t choose, we are stuck there in a kind of limbo where we can mull over which door to choose so long that we might not even remember why we are stuck there in the first place.

Then I wondered what would happen if I would trust myself enough to follow my intuition, to chose a door, any door and continue to walk my path? The answer to this question is the Ace of Air, the gift of insight and clarity. Some keywords are, belief it or not: unlearn and let go, a new personal ideology, personal truth, new ideas.  So now I realize it doesn’t really matter which door I choose; the gift of The Ace of Air is always within me and I will take it with me wherever I my path will lead me. 

Raidho and the Queen of Cups - Trusting you inner Compass

Last weekend I have immersed myself in Norse myths, the Edda, and my rune studies. It seems that a light snowfall is all it needs to awaken my love for that part of my ancestral heritage. So with that in mind I wanted to pull a rune for today’s post and I got Raidho (wheel, travel). This rune is not only about physical travel and all the preparations this involves but maybe even more so about spiritual travel; about finding our path in life and following it. Both kinds of travels require some similar attributes which are a.o. resourcefulness, determination and flexibility.

So which aspect of ourselves can help us to keep moving forward in the right direction?
And I got the Queen of Cups form the Shadowscapes Tarot. I love that in this depiction she has risen from her throne and is walking the path with one carefully placed step at the time. She has no need to watch where she puts her feet. She is following her inner compass, which tells her exactly where her companions will emerge. It looks so easy, almost effortlessly. She is dancing on the waves for as long as she keeps moving forward because in movement we can find our balance.

I think our intuition is our most important guide on our journeys. It allows us to travel with ease. If we can muster the courage to trust this sometimes elusive part of our soul, we will able to  dance through life and over whatever waves we will meet. I also believe we can trust that we are carried when needed.

Nine of Wands – Guarding our space and time

On this Saturday morning, my card for the day is the Nine of Wands from the Shadowscapes Tarot. What a welcome card this is. For me today, it represents the necessity to guard my space and time from unexpected intruders. I want, I need this day to myself. The coming week is packed with appointments, birthday visits and whatsoever.  As you all know I am a Hermit at heart, so today is a perfect opportunity to stock up on some much needed solitude (if something like this is even possible??) I  have the whole day to myself and I want to keep it that way. It is so easy to be lured into someone else’s activities when you are prone to please everyone around you. No today is for me, myself and I.  (Ouch, that’s sounds selfish)

What I love about this card is that the sentinels are outward directed protective energy . It is that part of ourselves which is mindful  to what is going on around us while we can focus on doing other things. This in contrary to the Seven of Wands where our entire self is defending her right to her own space and time.  

Today I want to respond mindfully to questions asked, instead of jumping into pleasing mode right away. 

Five of Wands - Wait for the right time to go for it

Today’s card is the Five of Wands from the Shadowscapes Tarot. This card is all about competition; wanting to be challenged and more importantly wanting to win. It is my “go for  it” card.

  

Al the foxes want to catch the hare and are jumping over each other  and are obstructing the guy who wants to go the opposite way. It doesn’t feel to me like the foxes are doing this on purpose because they only have on thing on their mind : Hare!

Since the beginning of October I have not been able to do the things I love the most due to my neck hernia. I am happy to say my pain is decreasing gradually and typing gets easier each day. But writing longhand in my journal, drawing and knitting are still difficult. Now, since the new year, I have been ill. Nothing serious but enough to lower my energy levels and not feeling up to do anything productive.

Oh, how I want to run up that hill just for the fun of it. Not because I have to but just because I want to feel my blood running through my veins and feel the fulfillment of reaching the top.

As advice on how to deal with these fiery feelings I got the Page of Pentacles: Just sit this out patiently and enjoy what I can do. Read a good book and write a blog post. Find wisdom (owl) in waiting because my opportunities will keep slumbering for a while longer until I am really ready to wake them up.

Word, Card and Rune for 2017

Long before the New year, I had decided what my word for 2017 would be. It is one I struggle with a lot. The word I picked for this year is Trust: Trust in myself and trust in others. I hesitated about adding faith too but I feel Trust is a more active and empowering word than faith.  Faith is more like a spiritual concept and trust is a verb: “Trust is faith in action!”

So with that in mind I pulled my card for my theme the year. Whatever it would be I wanted to trust that it would be able to teach me a valuable lesson this year and I pulled the Nine of Cups ( pfff). This card is all about experiencing intense joy and emotional fulfillment on a personal level. For me the Ten is more about the well-being of community; the love and joy experienced with family, friends and loved ones. The Nine however is an invitation to discover everything which brings you joy, to fill up those nine cups. But also it is about accepting what life has already put in those cups and making the most out of it. Joy can even be found even in the hardest of times.

In the five we were grieving and not able to see the two cups standing upright, The Six reminds us that our happy memories are always with us, the Seven asks us to find out what our heart truly desires. In the Eight we try to leave our cups behind. (I sincerely doubt if that is ever possible) And then we reach the Nine where we learn to find gratitude and Joy in all aspects of life.

I pulled Perthro from my bag of runes to go with The Nine of Cups and immediately  I recognized the cup which would transform my Nine into a Ten, into completion. Perthro means dice cup and it is a symbol of mystery, of not knowing. How this cup will guide me from Nine to Ten is a question I Trust, I will be able to answer one day and maybe even before 2018.

Year ahead spread: January - Nine of Swords and Teiwaz

This year was the first time I did a Year Ahead Spread for myself.  For this kind of spread you basically pull a single card for each month as a theme or an energy you may want to explore for that month. The first card you pull is your  theme for the year. I also added rune to each card to give the reading  an extra oomph. I intend to post my card of the month in the beginning of each month. For this spread I’ve used the Wild Unknown Tarot but I might want to use the version of one of the cards I pulled from another deck instead. Or I might even take the card from several decks for comparison. We’ll see were this journey will lead me.

So for January I pulled the Nine of Swords which in this deck is a very disturbing looking card and it is definitely not a very uplifting theme to start the new year with. The Nine of Swords is all about anxiety, bad dreams, guilt and regret, destructive self-talk etc.

Luckily I got the rune Teiwaz (Tir) to go with it. Teiwaz is a warrior rune but also one of order, justice and rationality . You can compare this rune with the Emperor card.

I often am prone to this kind of behavior when I let negative thinking get the best of me.  The worst things could happen if you would believe my internal gibberish. So I feel the energy of Teiwaz can be quite helpful. It is the rationality of this rune which speaks the most clearly to me in this context.

This rune awakes the inner sentinel which will defeat my Fear by showing me what it really is: False Expectations are Appearing Real. Such a clarity bomb often works a lot better than trying to ignore these thoughts or pushing them away. Both of these methods will often make our negative thinking even more persistent and intrusive.

I believe working with this pair could be a very interesting experience.  

Motto: Since I do not know how not to think I want to be mindful of what I think.