I am now in Sydney, Australia and available for in-person consultations from Tuesday, May 25th until Friday, June 4th, 2010. Contact me at whitesagetarot@gmail.com for more information.
As I wrote this post on the morning of Monday, May 24th (and realize it is still Sunday, the 23rd at home), I did so in honour of World Tarot Day. I was also visited by a cockatoo as I woke to greet the day. That doesn’t happen in Canada:)
World Tarot Day is on May 25th and was created almost 10 years ago, in a means of promoting the Tarot and its uses worldwide. As I do most m0rnings, I drew a card. The two decks I brought with me were the DruidCraft deck and the RWS commemorative Pamela Coleman Smith deck. This morning, I used the former (since I think I’ll save the latter for my upcoming client work). I didn’t ask a particular question but hoped that the one-card draw would bring forth a question or two.
Today’s draw was the six of pentacles. It shows an older man, staff in hand, with alms for the outstretched hands below. His surroundings are both vibrant, as in the image of a majestic green tree, and sparse, as in the image of the hibernating branch.
The questions this brings to mind are: What can the Tarot offer in times of abundance and vibrancy? What can the Tarot offer up in times of scarcity and hibernation? How can the Tarot demonstrate it generosity? How can we help share it with others?
If your curious, google World Tarot Day. You’re bound to find all sorts of interesting articles, blogs and musings.
In a little over a week, the wheel turns once again and those of us living in the Northern Hemisphere shake our snowy coverings and look forward to the emergence of spring. In the spirit of the “Back In Time” Tarot method (Thank you, Janet Boyer, for a refreshing look at the Tarot. I’d grown tired of revisiting some of my older tomes.), I have selected several cards from a variety of decks that, in my opinion, represent the appearance of spring.
The ‘transformation’ of winter into spring – The Wheel – The Gaian Tarotwww.gaiantarot.com Spring and Aries rest at the top of this card but they do not do so alone. They are linked as part of a greater whole. Aries is surrounded by Pisces and Taurus. Each of the four seasons is rooted to the centre, joining spring to all other points on the wheel. Spring can’t happen without the other three seasons. It is only through the death of winter that the spring of life re-emerges. The butterfly, Nature’s ‘transformer’, symbolizes the life-death-life cycle for me here. In my opinion, this card is a beautiful depiction of the four seasons and a wonderful starting point for this exercise.
The Fire emerging from within – The Ace of Wands – DruidCraft Tarothttp://druidcraft-tarot.druidry.org/ The Fire that appears to be emanating from the point of the wand is indicative of the burning desire for life to emerge at this time of year. The moss on the rocks, the buck looking for love J, the blue sky and the tree’s delicate blanket of budding leaves are all spring-like images. I look at this card and I can almost smell the cool, dampness I associate with this time of the year. It reminds me of April in the Muskokas.
Here Comes the Sun (do, do ,do ,do) – The Sun – Robin-Wood Tarotwww.robinwood.com – You can’t help but notice the large, bright Sun that dominates the top third of this card. There’s a ‘giggly’ youthfulness to the rider that’s contagious. The sunflowers (also prominent in this deck’s Ace of Wands) are about to turn to the Sun and bask in its growing warmth.
Fertility and renewal – The Empress – Gilded Tarot. http://www.ciromarchetti.com/tarotzodiac_gt.htm OK, faithful readers will know why I chose this particular Empress J. The Empress herself has traditional links to Demeter, Gaia and Venus, goddesses associated with fertility, sensuality and abundance. I also like to think of the Empress as a card of renewal. And spring is nothing if not a time for sensuality and renewal.
Rebirth – Queen of Rainbows – Osho Zen Tarotwww.osho.com – Flowering is the growth of the seed into new life. Spring wakes us up and tells us that we are not meant to remain inside. And ‘going outside’ for each of us can represent either that reconnection with nature or a more symbolic shedding of our own cocoon and subsequent metamorphosis into something completely different. Both of these transformations represent the true power of springtime.
From cars with their tops down (the Chariot, maybe) to the return flight of birds (perhaps the Eight of Wands), feel free to select your own and share via the comments section.
OK, one month between posts was not my intention when I started this blog almost six months ago. But, wow, has my ‘other’ job ever taken over. I suppose I forgot how busy a school can get in the last months before summer. You’d think after five years in the office, I’d know better.
But Tarot hasn’t taken a back seat completely. I’m still looking to schedule a beginner’s workshop and will post details here as well as publish details in local print publications (I’m going to give that a try this time around). I have been transfixed with the images of the Druid Craft Tarot http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/druidcraft/ and have been exploring its meaning and images when I draw my daily cards. I did draw the Wheel (X) and Rebirth (XX) a few days ago and left them out and visible; I loved the transformational energy of these two cards together! They reminded me that change will come and can provide an opportunity for rebirth. Since I am exploring future career paths options, this was welcome news. I find it helpful at times to leave cards out for several days after drawing them to help me focus on where I intend to go.
And finally, I have registered for two workshops and a reading with Mary Greer! To put this into perspective (OK, maybe a little ‘out-of-perspective’ since I am a big fan of her work and have several of her titles on my shelf, including a very well-used “Tarot for Your Self”), Mary Greer is to Tarot as Wayne Gretzky is to hockey. She is coming to Toronto in June and I have just sent my payment to James Wells, who is organizing this event. A Fathers’ Day gift to myself!
If you’re in the Orangeville area and interested in learning about the Tarot, email me at whitesagetarot@gmail.com or call at 519-217-SAGE (7243). This fun-filled, interactive look at the Tarot is always enjoyable.
