Without- Within- Advice spread with the Mary El Tarot

For today I wanted to do a daily three card spread which I found it the guidebook of the Mary El tarot

Without - The world

It seems I have it all under control. I have a house, a steady income, good health, a loving family and I am able to cope with the ups and downs life will present me with. Life is good and I am content. My dreams are fulfilled and I have nothing to complain about.

Within – Six of Wands

This is the archangel Michael, slayer of demons and dragons. Yes, although life is good, I still have many demons to confront. The question this card is asking me is if I want to slay my demons or if I want to assimilate them to become a more complete person. I think the latter. My demons are my own, they are part of who I am, although perhaps they are a bit deformed and grown out of proportion over the years. Marie White states that in this card our higher self meets our shadow. I think that although this might be scary, it is a necessary encounter which we can’t escape forever.

Advice - Ace of Wands

Roar woman! Show your strength and think of a creative way to lure your demons into the light. Don’t be afraid of who you are because you are wonderful and one of kind. This card is the primordial spark of creation. It is the embodiment of courage and power; the seed of our creativity and our intent. What better card to call us to arms than this one.  It is one of the greatest gifts life has to offer us and we only have to reach out than grab it, because it is always and everywhere!

I feel that when I can harness the power of this ace and meet my demons with courage and confidence the energy of The World will become an intrinsic part of who I am.

New Moon in September

For this new moon, I have pulled one card from the Original Rider Waite Tarot as to what energy I should embrace during this next cycle of the Moon and I got the Six of Wands. This was quite surprising, because it is the exact same card as I pulled for the previous New Moon.

Honestly ,my good intentions to establish a free-flowing routine have  completely fallen by the wayside.  I became more and more reluctant towards building a daily routine. I just wanted to be free, to chose what I wanted to do and also when and where I wanted to do it. My whole life has been about maintaining a routine: School, work, raising children, and then work again. I realized that my freedom was more important to me than ticking of boxes from my to-do lists. The upside of this “failure” is that I now feel more in touch with myself than ever before. I have to check in regularly with myself  to discover what it is that I want and need at this very moment; what it is that will make me happy and content.

So over to the Six of wands for this lunation. I got the distinct feeling that even though I “failed” to accomplish my goal, I gained something very valuable too. But the six of wands is not a stagnant card. It urges me to move forward after recognizing and celebrating my victories. It is so easy to keep dwelling in a pleasant state of mind but life is also about  moving onward toward the next challenge (Seven of wands)

So for the coming lunation I will definitely be celebrating my new found sense of freedom but also focusing myself on how to become more and more the woman  I am supposed to be.   

New Moon in August

For this new moon, I have pulled one card from the Fountain Tarot as to what energy I should embrace during this next cycle of the Moon and I got the Six of Wands: Another Six after last New Moon’s Six of Cups. Six in tarot is a very auspicious number; it is all about Union, Harmony, and balance. The Six of Wands speaks of hope and motivation and is a very timely card for me because as of late I am trying to build a free-flowing daily routine for myself to get things done and get a more healthy lifestyle. A free-flowing routine might sound like an oxymoron to you but it does work for me.  I’ve started with one habit I want to keep above all, which is meditating for 15 minutes before doing anything else and all the other things on my list were mere suggestions. Now I am also writing daily in my journal and drawing a tiny sketch a day. For me, the success rate of my “routine” is very motivating. I feel very accomplished by doing these three things which will cost me about 45 minutes a day. Only when I feel these three activities have become real habits, I will add one more. Also, I have promised myself that taking a step back when I feel overwhelmed has nothing to do with failure but is, in fact, a kind and compassionate thing to do.

The whole premise of this experiment is getting motivated by success and to take one baby step at the time. Every little success is a like golden star on my chart. And every little setback a pink heart of compassion.

Six of Wands – Ignite your fire

Today’s card is the Six of Wands from the Tarot of The Hidden Realm. Traditionally this is the card of victory and success. Although this card often relates to experiencing a successful completion of a project, today I feel it is more about an internal victory. Sometimes, often without knowing, we lock ourselves in a mental stronghold, which seems impossible to break out of. The only tools to escape we have left are our inner resources, how scarce they may be. When the day comes we begin to feel restricted and imprisoned instead of safe and protected, we will have to ignite a tiny spark of courage inside us and feed it with brave and fiery kindle. It is okay to be afraid, this is in no means a sign of cowardice. Still your mind and nurture your flame so it will grow stronger with each breath you take. This fire inside you will forge the key to freedom. Nothing will be able to hold you back when you tap in to this fire.

And as we can see in this card, fire attracts fire(flies). So our inner fire will keep feeding itself with everything we do and with whatever makes us happy!

“Courage isn’t a lack of fear, it’s being afraid and doing something anyway” (guidebook).

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.

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

Shadow Work Spread

Today I’ve done the Shadow Work Spread from the Shadow Work October Challenge by @Mnomquah on IG. For this spread I’ve used the Deviant Moon Tarot by Patrick Valenza.

1 The Light – What you know and accept about yourself?

Queen of Cups. I know I am a loving an protective mother. Always listening to others and  trying to understand them and to feel what they need from me; to know how to help them. I also acknowledge my depression and I try to live with it as good as I possible can.

2 The Shadow – What is hidden from you about yourself?

The Knight of Wands. This is the same card as I’ve chosen for my “least favorite card of the deck”. Well now it is obvious why I picked this card. My Shadow wants to be heard loud and clearly. She wants to be adventurous and to try out new things. She knows no fear or at least she will not be held back by it.

3 Why do you fear you Shadow? What is preventing you from seeing and accepting you Shadow?

Six of Wands. I am afraid of the resistance of my loved ones. They don’t know that part of me. Accepting my shadow might cause conflicts and I don’t know if I am brave enough to face that.

4 Why should you embrace your Shadow? What are the positive sides of your Shadow that would benefit you?

Temperance. My personality would be so much more balanced if I could embrace my Shadow. It would be a very healing experience for me.

5 How to integrate the Shadow into the Light. What steps you should take in order to accept your Shadow?

Four of Swords. It is tempting to try to do Shadow Work only in your head. You have to feel and digest what you’ve learned too; really sit with is and let it sink in and take your time for it. This is the part when the real healing begins

6 The Outcome -The possibilities if you succeed in bringing the Shadow into the Light

The  Magician. I like this card in this position. The possibilities are endless, I can do anything I set m mind to, if I marry my Queen of Cups with my Knight of Wands. Yes so much energy will be set free if they live happily ever after

I am always a bit anxious when I am doing a large and very personal spread like this. Would the cards make sense? What if it is all abracadabra? A bit like stage fright perhaps. Anyway I loved how this spread worked out for me and the insights I got from it. Now I am going for a walk; some much needed Four of Swords time....

Tarot Magic for a more Healthy Lifestyle (Part I)

For today, instead of a daily draw, I want to show you the cards I’ve picked which motivate me and might be helpful for me to start living more healthy. I also want to include them in a not quite finished tarot spell.

Last weekend I was painfully aware of the fact that my physical well-being has been on the back burner for way too  many years. My diet is far from healthy and seriously out of balance and I hardly exercise at all.  I know I make up tons of excuses but  I feel without a doubt the aging of my body starting to hinder me to do the things I want to do.  I am well aware of the fact that some processes can’t be stopped but I do want to give it a go to slow them down a bit.

This notion is strongly influenced by having pulled the Mother of Pentacles two times in row. She is not only protecting her fawn but also encouraging him to grow up and be the strongest deer of the herd.

Over the years I have more than once tried to change my not so healthy lifestyle but never with long-term results.

So if the old way doesn’t work for me than I should try something new: Magic!!

First I’ve flipped through my deck to pull every card which reminded me of physical wellbeing and then I narrowed it down to four cards to create a bridge spell which I’ve learned from Chloe of Inner Whispers.

The cards I’ve chosen are:

Situation/ Issue - Ace of Pentacles

This card represents my potential to become a healthy strong woman. I love it how even though the tree is cut down to a stump, there is still a strong life energy burning in the center to bring forth new life and new beginnings on the physical plane, represented by the budding twigs and leaves.

Energy needed 1 – Two of Wands

This is for me a card which represents the choice, the intent to actually do job. And when I would slack,  I will pick up my two wands and make that same choice  over and over again as many times as needed. 

Energy needed 2– Eight of Pentacles

This spider is teaching me to do the work. To start each day with a positive intent to work on my web and make it strong and flexible.  Changing a lifestyle  is a long-term process and when challenges arise, like wind and rain for the spider,  I have to “hang there” in and keep going anyway.

Result – Six of Wands.

Look how gracious this butterfly has freed herself from the tangle of branches. She is strong and has moved from the darkness of self-defeating actions into the light where the sun shines over her to celebrate her success

These three cards will become the center part of my Tarot spell, which will be the topic of my next post!

I pulled one extra card to ask how I should proceed with this spell and I got the Mother of Swords, my favorite court card in any deck.  She is telling me today, that first I should choose the wording of my spell wisely and secondly I should approach this new intent with the same motherly advise I would give my girls: be gentle but truthful to yourself. Don’t  believe everything your inner resistance is going to tell you along the way but wield your sword of truth and awareness and be mindful to address yourself with encouragement and compassion. 

Six of Wands – Beginning is winning

Today’s card is the Six of Wands from the Morgan Greer Tarot. This is the card of success, victory and accomplishments. At first I thought it to be more a card for after my 40 Day Challenge. How could I be sure if I would stick to it to the end. But then I realized that beginning this challenge is a victory in itself. I had overcome my fear of failure and I've set out on this journey with confidence  and good intentions. Yesterday I wrote that I wanted to take it day by day, step by step. No use aiming for the finish line while forgetting to enjoy yourself along the way. And that is what I am about to focus on: joy. I want to find joy and fulfillment in the present moment and I want to be proud of every little thing I achieve

In other versions of this card, you see the crowd cheering him on, holding the other wands up high. I suppose in this card they are standing behind him, knowing the main focus should be on the victor. In these five wands I see my supportive tribe like family and friends all over the world. 

Chloe commented the following this morning on yesterday’s post:” If you want to do it, I'm sure you'll get a lot out of it. And if you don't, then that will also be a learning for you :)

So whatever happens there is always a reason to bake a cake!

Six of Staves –Moving on to the next chapter

Sometimes Tarot reads like a magical illustrated storybook. Since I’ve been reading with the Goddess tarot, the cards seem to follow each other up like the chapters in a book or in any case they seem to follow the windings of my journey perfectly. Today I've decided it would be the last day with the Goddess tarot. I knew I liked the look of this deck but I am surprised how wonderful we are getting along. The card I’ve drawn for today couldn't be more fitting: the Six of Staves. After the journey through the woods of two day ago, where it was so difficult to find our way and to choose the right path here we see a smiling woman returning into the world with a laurel wreath on her stave. She has victoriously overcome her challenges is and is now ready to enter the next winding of her spiraling journey. Notice how she is celebrating this on her own. There is no need for a cheering crowd. People may see the change in her posture or in her smile but only she knows about the secrets she has unraveled in the woods. She is her own hero….moving on to the next chapter of her life

“You don't just have a story - you're a story in the making, and you never know what the next chapter's going to be. That's what makes it exciting.” Dan Millman

Valentine’s day spread for Self Love

I have found a wonderful spread on Daily Tarot girl for self love to perform on, or just before Valentine’s day.  I have never been a  fan of Valentine’s day before. When my husband was still living with us it wasn’t that popular yet and nowadays you can imagine it is not something we pay any attention to. Until now! What a perfect day to celebrate Self Love. There will be definitely lots of chocolate involved and who knows what other goodies and treats I can come up with.

But first let’s have a look at this wonderful spread made by Kate. I have used the  Anna K Tarot. Not the most romantic deck I have, but it turned out to be a really good choice. It has become a beautiful layout especially with the yellow center card and all the blue cards around it. 

Anna K Tarot

1 Relationship to Self – What is your relationship with your Self like? 

The Six of Wands. I am glad to be able to agree fully with this card. When I consider where I’ve come from I really see myself as a winner. Doesn't mean I am there yet, but still.

2 Admirable Qualities – The parts of yourself that are easy to love  

The Hermit. I love to be on my own. I am a Hermit in heart and soul

3 Disowned Self – Your “shadow”aspects, the parts of yourself that need more love and acceptance from you 

The three of Pentacles. I see this as my creativity being locked in the basement. I have to accept that a difference between dream and reality is always going to be there and I shouldn't let it keep me from creating

4 Release – Judgements and expectations that you need to release in order to be more loving to you. Seven of Wands. I have to let go of the fighting against myself. Let go of my own stifling expectations and strive for perfection. It is smothering me, it is exhausting me and it is keeping me from doing anything at all.

5 More Love – Something loving and nurturing that you can do for yourself right now ! 

Page of Cups. Playtime! This page will help me to enjoy the creative activity itself instead of being focused on the result. With his mentality, I am sure I am going to have some fun on Valentine’s day.

I wish you all a very loving Valentine’s day

The Faeries' Oracle - Do I believe in Fairies???

Recently I have bought The Faeries' Oracle by Brian Froud and Jessica Macbeth. It was for sale at a Dutch online thrift store. Before I am going to tell you my findings about this deck I have to say that I never ever wanted an oracle deck about fairies because I didn't think it could add something substantial to my spiritual journey.

I was looking for a secondhand Thoth deck because I wanted to explore that system. The owner of the Thoth deck also had the Faeries’ Oracle for sale. And since she lived in my neighborhood I could pick it up myself (no shipping costs!). The Thoth deck also had a book to go with it and together with the Faeries’ oracle it was only  15 euro’s.

I have to admit frankly I haven’t touched the Thoth deck and I cannot keep away from the Faeries’ Oracle. When I started reading the intro of the guidebook, it was as if something deeply tucked away  stirred and awakened. The writing was mesmerizing. While reading I felt shivers running up my spine. I wasn't ready for this kind of bonding with yet another deck. I wanted to fully dedicate myself my study of the Wildwood tarot. But after picking up the cards that was out of the question. When I flipped through the deck I knew that if there was something like faeries they would be like this. There was some kind of recognition or deep remembering. And I felt my little girl inside was happy J

Now on my cupboard in the living room I have two cards from my two most precious decks standing side by side. I just had to give in.

Do I believe in faeries??? I don’t know for sure anymore. I do know I have a strong connection to this deck and there is definitely something pulling me  to get to know it on a more deeply level

Singer Of Transfiguration

For today I have drawn The Singer of Transformation

“This card in a reading signifies the joy of success after a time of struggle. A new way of life has been accepted and is being integrated. A sense of inner peace is growing. The struggle has all been worth it. This is a time of consolidation and joy, and is both a reward for past achievements and a time of preparation for the next climb up the path.”

Six of Bows - Abundance

and The six of bows-Abundance

“A time to reap the benefits of summer abundance and to accept the rewards and blessings that are the result of endurance. We humbly share the plenty of the ripening year…”

Without further exploring of the cards, they do make me think about the holiday season when everybody gets in the spirit of  peace on earth and  being grateful with everything you have gathered over the last year and above all share those gifts with the ones you love. (Don’t forget to include yourself J)

And on a level beyond our daily live I see the abundance( six of bows) that is waiting for me if I go through the door of my fears (transfiguration). 

Don't worry be happy!

October 18: Today is the feast day of St. Luke, the evangelist. Luke describes remarkably healing miracles in his gospel. Probably he was a doctor. Who or what can heal me?

 Universal Waite Tarot

Again a question from a more Catholic approach but nevertheless worthwhile to think about from whatever angle you consider it.

What does healing mean to me. It is so much more than being cured from a psychical illness or discomfort. For me healing goes deeper. Healing touches your hart and your soul. Perhaps in English it is all the same but for me there is a slight difference. So what or who can heal me. Let’s draw a card…..The six of wands. Mmm, not exactly the soothing healing card I had hoped for. But after some consideration I've realized that the suit of wands is just the kind of healing I need. Being active is the best way to quiet down a worrying, anxious mind. And since I've had too much time to sit around and do nothing (except brooding and worrying  and so forth.J), being active should be a very healthy thing for me now. I am happy to say that I experience slightly less pain than a week ago so I keep my fingers crossed this will keep getting better these coming days. The six of wands also emphasizes to celebrate what you have achieved; you successes. I have to remember that, because I tend to forget being proud of the things I do in a day. For instance I've been doing groceries with my daughter this morning. It seems so normal, but it isn't. To be able to do  this again is something to be happy about. And  being happy is the best healing medicine there is!