The second new moon in January

This month we have two new moons. Some call this one the black moon. Personally I don’t feel this new moon has more meaning than any other new moon. Nevertheless, I have adjusted my ritual a bit to try out something new. I've visualized  my circle by calling the elements as I’m used to. It felt pleasant and familiar. For the first time I've incorporated mantra singing in my meditation and I loved it very much. I've chosen to chant a mantra for Tara,originally a Hindu mother goddess whose name means star. Later on she was adopted by Buddhism and now she is widely known as a goddess of o.a. peace, wisdom and compassion but it seems she has some fierce strong attributes too. This mantra has a peaceful feel to it. It is short and easy to remember and it did connect me very well to the Goddess. I didn't expect it to be such a fulfilling experience. I think I will try to do this in my daily meditation too and see if it is something that works for me.

After my meditation I drew two cards from the Osho Zen tarot

Release: Seven of Rainbows –Patience.  

At first sight, his card as Release card did confuse me. Just recent I had another seven of pentacles and I rather enjoyed its message. But then, that might be just the problem. This card is all about waiting patiently, being passive, but perhaps after my “hibernation” of the last few months patience can easily turn into sleepiness or indifference. And that is something I have to be aware of and let go. With the coming of Spring it time to shake off my indolence and become more active and alive

Embrace:  XIX Innocence.

My first impression is to encounter every moment with the innocence of a child and see all things as it was for the first time.

This old man has a playful conversation with the praying mantis . I wonder what they are talking about. The pink flowers are falling around him as a symbol of his innocence and of letting go of preconceived notions and ideas.

 “The innocence of children is beautiful, but ignorant. It will be replaced by mistrust and doubt as the child grows and learns that the world can be a dangerous and threatening place. But the innocence of a life lived fully has a quality of wisdom and acceptance of the ever-changing wonder of life.”

I like to understand this as a message to be open minded and open hearted for the changes of nature when we move into the next season and also for the wonder in everyone I meet and everything I see and experience. To except wholeheartedly the gift of change in my life. And most of all to be like a child; alive and awake in every moment. 

Imbolc Contemplation with the Wildwood tarot

The Ancestor

In two days the wheel of the year will turn to Imbolc. The first Holiday of the new year. This is the time when nature is stirring beneath the frozen earth. Slowly but undeniable Spring is working her way through the cold of winter. It hasn't been that cold this year in Holland so perhaps Mother Nature may still have some surprises up her sleeve. Bulbs are pushing their green shoots up and I've already seen some purple Crocus buds. Imbolc is the holiday of new beginnings and the returning of light and fertility. It is custom to burn a lot of candles with Imbolc and eat a dish with milk as ingredient, like pancakes or porridge. The latter is done to celebrate the beginning of the lambing season and the lactation of the ewes.  

The Wildwood tarot has assigned two Major Arcana cards to Imbolc: The Ancestor and the Pole star. The suit of stones, which was the winter suit, has made place for the suit of arrows. This is the suit of the East and of Spring: Everything starts with a thought.

The Ancestor is a mythological figure who is half human and half reindeer. She is dressed in reindeer skins. She is summoning us with her drum to start the journey which is set out by a  row of Birches, leading us into the forest. The new moon in the skye is also a sign of a new beginning; a new challenge

The Pole Star

The ancestor figure is inspired by Elen of the ways, a ancient British goddess with antlers, whose name means light and who travels along the old migratory paths from the reindeer. She knows the way and if we stray she will find us with her light

And it isn't a great surprise The Pole Star is the other Major Arcana Card. This star is leading the way when we enter the forest which was in the background of the Ancestor card. It is a card of spiritual knowledge, hope and inspiration.  We know on a deep level our journey will be successful if we follow this star. What  a wonderful compass to carry within

These cards are very timely for me.  As is the careful beginning of Spring with Imbolc and the second new moon this month. I am feeling rather excited by my quest for the Goddess. I see new ways of getting to know Her and I feel  more free to develop my own understanding of Her and also to create my own practice. I thought the drum of The Ancestor which is adorned with the triskele, is very appropriate, since this has become the symbol of my journey. I wish you all a very happy Imbolc.

Ten of Stones: Home is where the heart is

Wildwood Tarot

The Ten of Stones – Home, from the Wildwood Tarot made me immediately think of the title of this post. It does sound a little bit cheesy but nobody can deny  there is truth in this saying. But then perhaps it also means we have to “move” a lot in life. J

In the days when people lived in houses as depicted in this card (Iron Age) life was fairly simple. It was a society where everybody knew his place and did what was expected. The house was a refuge for cold and danger. There was a fire, food and a place to sleep. But the most important thing, what made this house a home was family. The togetherness of people who loved each other. A family gives care and emotional shelter; stability and traditions.

Nowadays life is much more complicated. Families are smaller and widespread and sometimes extended with or replaced by friends. Families are left behind to make place for new families More and more people are living alone and make a home for themselves. Security and stability have to be worked hard for. Sometimes it seems the home is literally where your heart is. In YOU. When you feel at home with yourself you can carry your fire and shelter anywhere you go. You can even invite and warm others by your crackling fire. It can be as simple as an idea of security within yourself or as detailed as a visualization of a house with everything you need to feel good and at peace or… everything in between. Does this mean I think the value of family is overrated? Not at all, but I've learned sadly enough that it is wise to have more irons in the fire: the cozy hearth in the middle of the longhouse where the family gathers and your own heart, where you are always warm and safe.

Seven of Pentacles – take a break

Crystal Visions Tarot

This morning I have drawn the seven of Pentacles from the Crystal Visions Tarot. The woman in the picture is sitting between the roots of the tree. It looks almost as if she is merging with it, like the dryads in the branches. Her eyes are closed. Is she looking at her bowl with picked fruits, or is she dozing off? Either way she is totally relaxed and trusting the Pentacles to grow and ripen by themselves. There is nothing urgent to do, no activities on the calendar. How wonderful that must be. Just taking a well deserved break of everything and watching the world go by.

It is not that difficult. Perhaps we have to let go of our notion we are indispensable. Let’s be honest. Who doesn't think; I know best, I will take care of them, I will solve that problem etc. We like to think we are needed but sometimes we also want break free from the everyday hustle and sit back, relax and take stock of our lives and ask ourselves: How can we be more at ease, less stressed out and overworked and most important how can we become less important in our own perception? Just try to let the grass grow by itself and trust everything will be okay in the end.

Salmon – Life is worth the effort

Druid Animal Oracle

For today another card from the Druidcraft Animal Oracle: the Salmon. The keywords are: wisdom inspiration and rejuvenation. We see the Salmon leaping from the water to pluck the seed of a Hazel tree (the tree of wisdom) from the air. For the druids the salmon was the oldest and wisest animal of them all. It is in the nature of the Salmon to return to the place of their birth to mate and spawn. It is a very dangerous and difficult journey to return to their source. They have to overcome many obstacles.

Sometimes it is wise to recapitulate your life’s journey to understand where you've come from and how you've got here. And through that wisdom you can be inspired to continue where you've  left off or perhaps make a change for the better.

Salmon is teaching us to use our intuition; to listen to our gut feelings and to be kind to ourselves and others when it gets difficult. Sometimes we do have to swim upstream to follow our bliss. Who said life was easy. But Salmon knows it worth it when she finally spawns. It is quite understandable the Queen of Vessels from The Wildwood Tarot is also depicted as a Salmon.

The Goddess with a thousand names

Writing the Goddess' name

I have been thinking a lot about my last post about how to get the know the Goddess by naming aspects, qualities and attributes; by coming up with suitable adjectives and epithets. I also thought it would be a good idea to do some collage. Up till now it is hard to find pictures which represent Her and at the same time don’t confine Her. So I find myself back behind my laptop with a new Word Doc.

How am I going to capture Her essence in words?

Which words can describe Her without limiting Her?

Since She is all encompassing, where do I start?

To be honest I speak a lot about God(dess) but momentarily I perceive God as Female. This differs from time to time but for now I will address God as She and Her. Feel free to substitute these words by He and Him or They and Them

In my opinion the goddess is represented by numerous goddesses/archetypes. In every culture there are for instance a mother, a warrior, a maiden, a protectress, a wise woman, a lover, an enchantress, a teacher, a healer, a storyteller, a weaver, a spinner, a witch, a wild, woman….. etc.

These words tell us something about Her, yet they remain colorless and abstract. With adjectives and epithets we can paint the nouns and give them more depth and layers. For example:

Teacher of a thousand ways –Diligent Weaver of lives – Gentle Healer with the softest hands – Lady who has dominion over all that is wild and ferocious. Brave warrior, full of strength and compassion,

Nurturing Mother with Her arms open wide…..etc

When you start playing and shuffling like this with words, the possibilities are endless. And isn’t that what She is all about. So for the time being I will shift my attention to writing about Her instead of trying to make a collage or a painting.

To boost my “creative writing skills”, I thought it might be a good idea to draw a single card  (oracle or tarot) which will point me to an aspect of The goddess

Robin Wood Tarot and Goddess statue

For example this morning I’ve drawn the Page of Wands. In my tarot journal I have written this quote from Leila Vey: “I am the spirit of innovation and self-expression. I see the world in a new way, and can hardly contain my excitement with its possibilities. I live for the spark of inspiration which plunges me into the joy of creating something new. Even when others disapprove, I cannot help but express myself with truth. I celebrate my individuality, my originality in everything I do.”

So I could name The goddess:

The creative confident Lady of exiting new possibilities

The fierce Adventuress who dares to take a risk

The brave and frank Speaker of truth

(I have to admit this is easier in Dutch J). So, these are just a few of my thoughts and I welcome any ideas from you how to get to know Her a little bit better.

Four of cups: seize this moment

This morning I have drawn the Four of Cups from the Robin Wood Tarot. This is the first deck I’ve bought after The Rider Waite. I remember how uncertain I was, if I would be able to read with it. In those days I was all about learning the meanings by heart and sometimes I even forgot to look at the pictures myself. I totally relied on what the books told me. And how confused I was when some of the books contradicted each other. I am so happy to have learned to look at the depictions more closely now and trust my own intuition so I can combine book knowledge with my own feeling about the cards. 

When we look as this four of cups it is quite obvious this man is not happy. While the facial expression of the man in the Rider Waite is rather flat, in the Robin wood there is no doubt about his discontentment with his cups. He doesn’t want to look at them and while turning his eyes away from the cups in front of him, he doesn't notice the opportunity handed out to him by a magnificent radiant cup.

Sometimes this card can represent turning inward or meditation. I think this can help us to become aware of the shining cup in the air. When we let go of the notion of how we did feel, want to feel, should feel and so on only then we can try to discover how we are feeling right now. If we are fully present in this moment we have limitless opportunities how step into the next moment. Living our life like that is an ongoing adventure