Card Reveal #1: Cards on the left – Five of Cups with White Owl

Five of Cups and White Owl from the Divine Feather Oracle

The Five of Cups image shows a person lamenting over the three spilled cups in front of him. While failing to see that there are still two remaining cups standing behind him. In fact, when one looks a little closer at this card, one can see the bridge behind him that crosses over the river (symbolizing overcoming the emotional pain and loss) that leads to a castle. This is a card about perception. All is not lost. It’s also a card about acceptance. What’s done is done. The past cannot be changed. Sometimes life gives us lemons, that’s for sure. But if we stay in the past for too long, dwelling on what was lost, past mistakes or grievances, we will remain stuck.

The term “there’s no use crying over spilled milk” comes to mind when I see this card.

What treasures lie ahead in that castle that is just beyond the bridge? If we do not turn around, pick up our two remaining cups, and cross the bridge, we will never know.

The White Owl is a powerful representation of the winged messenger that brings wisdom and light into the shadows. The message on this card, “The Wisdom and the messages of the divine are within you” encourages you to follow your intuition and allow those senses to expand as you do so. Just as the White Owl’s keen eyesight allows her to navigate easily through the darkness, your intuition allows you to do the same. Perhaps it is telling you that it is time to cut your losses and move on. That yes, you deserve to be happy.

Card Reveal #2: Cards in the middle – Ace of Wands and Starling

Ace of Wands and Starling from the Divine Feather Oracle

The Ace of Wands shows a Divine hand holding a wand with green leaves. This single wand signifies inner spirit, fire, passion, inspiration. This is the card of creators. What is it that gets you up in the morning? What is it that you are passionate about? Are you about to make a change? This card indicates the start of something new and exciting. Perhaps the time you have been spending in quarantine has given you some new ideas. The Ace of Wands is a confirmation that what you are thinking about starting or doing, is indeed something you should do! It is a sign to take that first step to bring your dreams into reality. Being a wand, which is a branch, is a reminder to start slowly. Trees do not grow overnight! Let things progress naturally, no need to rush. You may get in over your head if you go against the natural order in the way that this is meant to unfold. Start small and let it grow.

The Starling is an active, lively, social bird. This card’s message “Now is the time to get out into the world and connect in authentic ways” fits perfect with the Ace of Wands. As both of these cards are an indication of action, inspiration, motivation, group and community, this is a message to find like-minded individuals like yourself. Your ideas and/or talents are a gift! Share them with people that will appreciate them and inspire you to grow.

The Ace of Wands and The Starling are cards of encouragement. The message: Yes, take that first step!

Card Reveal #3: Cards on the right – Ten of Wands (reversed) and White Swan

Ten of Wands (reversed) and White Swan from the Divine Feather Oracle

The Ten of Wands is a card of burden. Too many responsibilities, too many commitments, a demanding job with long work hours, an overworked mom, etc. Career wise, it’s success that comes with a price. It’s also a card of not accepting help from others. But this card is reversed. And when this card is reversed, I interpret it as dropping the wands. Which is very interesting considering the current circumstances that we are in!

I am seeing this energy with a lot of people right now. We have had time to think, slow down, spend time with our families, children, pets, etc. Evaluate our lives and what is important. As well as evaluate all the things we commit ourselves too, that in the long run do not serve us. We spread ourselves so thin, that it affects our energy and our health, as is shown in the image of this card.

Does your career and/or lifestyle leave you exhausted from running and running trying to “keep up”? Perhaps it’s time for a change. Drop some of those wands and give yourself a break. Literally and metaphorically. Maybe hand over a few of those wands to other people and let them share the load. We are not here to just work, eat, drive the kids around, and sleep. This is also a message that we cannot do everything alone. It’s okay to give ourselves permission to ask for help when we need it. Don’t be a martyr.

The saying “all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” came to mind when I saw this card today.

The White Swan’s message “The power of divine grace is within you” is a reminder that we are all divine beings here to experience our life. We are here to LIVE LIFE!

If these were the cards that you chose, perhaps this message is resonating with you at this time. In the rush to get back to “what was”, ask yourself, what am I rushing back to? Is this what I truly want? Is what I was doing before making me happy? Is my career and personal life in balance? Is this the direction I want my future to take? Does my situation support me spiritually, emotionally as well as physically? What is the true cost of the material things in my life? Are they worth the price?

The White Swan is a powerful, majestic, beautiful bird. It is a reminder, that the divine is in all of us. We have the power to make changes and/or face challenges to align our path to where WE want it to go. The Swan is also a bird that signifies introspection, as it gazes at it’s reflection in the water.

The Ten of Wands reversed says that you are ready to let go of some of those wands!

Today’s card #12 The Hanged Man

The Hanged Man cards from The Naked Heart Tarot deck and the classic Rider Waite Smith deck

Today’s card: #12 The Hanged Man. These are The Hanged Man cards from The Naked Heart Tarot (I just purchased this deck and I LOVE it!), and the classic image from the Rider Waite Smith deck.

Quick keywords: Suspension, Surrender, New Perspective

Affirmation: I surrender to the moment and my attachment to the way I think things should be. As I release my grip, I allow for a new perspective and my consciousness to expand.

Your true sense of “seeing” will emerge when you pause and trust.

Introspection: Is it possible that I am being guided by ego and not making room for my intuition to speak?

Happy April Fools Day: Card of the Day 0 The Fool

The Fool card in the Major Arcana

Happy April Fools Day. Today’s card, number 0 The Fool from the Major Arcana.

Quick key words: new beginnings and/or a new phase, faith, trust in oneself, innocence, purity, naive, freeing oneself from constraints/burdens, spontaneity, free spirit, traveling “light”, opportunities, potential, an open mind, new experiences, personal growth, adventure.

Message from The Lovers and The Sun (springtime energy)

The Lovers and The Sun from the Wild Unknown Tarot

At the time of this writing, The Spring Equinox is almost upon us. It falls on March 19th this year, which in numerology, is the number 10. The two cards above, add up to number 9. I will touch on this later.

As we look at the images in these cards, the message that I received was that of migration. Returning to the sun. The Lovers and The Sun are urging us to do the same. Many of us have spent the cold, dark winter months in a personal hibernation. This gave us a time to reflect upon who we are and the experiences of the past season that have shaped us. But just as the geese realize when it is time to move forward, we can take our cue from them and do the same.

Embrace the warmth of the sun and allow it to nurture the seeds of new growth with it’s healing rays. Each spring is the beginning of a new cycle.

As I mentioned above, the numerology for these two cards is #9. This number is an indication that a phase is ending. What this means to each of us is as individual as we are. But it does urge us to ask the question of what is no longer serving us as we move into the new season of “light”?

This is why many of us feel the need to do our “spring cleaning” during this time. Instinctively, we realize that new space must be made so that new energy and alignments came come in. This is the time to put into action what we have been contemplating on during the winter months.

It’s interesting that The Spring Equinox falls on the 19th this year. As this equals the number 10 in numerology, which symbolizes endings, and also the number 1 which is the number of beginnings. The message here is for us to get moving! Clean out those cobwebs and embrace the energies of the new spring growth cycle! The Magician in the tarot is the #1 card in The Major arcana. He is the card after The Fool (number 0) which stands for new beginnings. The Magician is the architect that manifests creation by combining inspiration from “spirit” and the physical elements of earth. He is the first step in consciously “making things happen”.

So getting back to the geese and the sun, these animals come back to their home where it is warm once again to breed and raise their young. It is a time of creation, new experiences, love of self as well as love in relationships, home, new beginnings, integrating our ideas with physical manifestation, celebration, spiritual awareness, connection, fresh perspectives, nature and the outdoors.

These two cards embody beautifully, the energetic blueprint of the season.

“Spring is the fountain of love for thirsty winter”
― Munia Khan

Mercury Retrograde – Let’s take a look at The Magician (reversed)

The Magician corresponds to the planet Mercury in the tarot

We are in Mercury retrograde season (February 17-March 10, 2020). I’m sure you are seeing a lot of posts about this event which happens three times per year. Basically, it is when the planet Mercury, appears to move backwards in relation to the Zodiac. This is an optical illusion of course, which is why this phenomenon is referred to as “apparent retrograde movement”.

Mercury is the planet of all forms of communication (both honest and dishonest), logic, reasoning, messages, quick thinking, ideas, opinions, perceptions, the mind, focus, and short distance travel.

The tarot card which represents Mercury is The Magician. Since Mercury is in retrograde, let’s take a look at this card in it’s reversed position. This will give us some insights regarding the general baseline energies that we should pay attention to when Mercury goes retrograde.

Now there are many other factors to consider when assessing the particulars of each Mercury retrograde cycle, such as what sign and house Mercury is in at the time of the retrograde, the other planetary alignments, individual natal chart planetary placements, etc. If you are thinking of making a big decision during a Mercury retrograde, plug in the date to an astrological chart and compare it’s alignments to those of your personal transitory chart. This may clue you in on some potential pitfalls so you can take the necessary steps to avoid them. There are many sites online where you can obtain free astrological charts, or you may want to contact a professional astrologer.

As we move on, take a moment to study the upright image on this card.

This card is the conscious “masculine” aspect of the mind. The Magician is the “architect” that channels (aka communicates) with the universal energies of the divine and combines them with his will to create. He has all the elements he needs in front of him to manifest his desires. On the table, we see a pentacle (earth), a wand (fire), a chalice (water), and the sword (air). The Magician himself is the channel for “spirit” which is the catalyst that ties all the elements together to create life. He is balanced mentally and physically as he is shown with one hand holding a wand up to the divine for inspiration, and the other pointed down, grounded to the earth. When I look at this card, the first three absolute Universal Laws comes to mind: The Law of Mentalism, the Law of Correspondence, and The Law of Vibration.

A few key words associated with The Magician are potential, focus, manifestation, magick, the conscious “masculine” side of our minds, willpower, the phrase “you have all the tools you need to make it happen”, divine timing, confidence, balance, alchemy, competent, transformation, purpose.

Remember, when I said that Mercury in retrograde was an optical illusion? When we reverse The Magician, the positive aspects of this card are reversed as well. The Magician is no longer a conscious creator, he is an illusionist. His positive attributes are skewed. He uses slight of hand to distract his audience. He entertains us with one hand, while deceiving us with the other.

Since he is no longer using his powers to create, the tools in this position are falling off the table. And look at The Magician’s hands. Still pointing, but now the dominant hand with the wand is no longer channeling the divine, but is pointing down at the earth. Also note that the lemniscate is now reversed as well. This symbol, which corresponds to infinite creation and potential, as well as spiritual and material balance, is no longer the energy between the divine realm and The Magician. It is now the energy between the earth realm and The Magician.

This indicates that instead of receiving his guidance and inspiration from the divine, he receives it from the material, earth plane. And I think we all know what happens when people misuse their power for material gain.

Reversed, this card also indicates that the diving timing is “off”, and communications will have a tendency to be misconstrued. This is exactly what many experience during Mercury retrogrades. Some may experience technical issues with their computers and phones during this time as well.

There is also a potential for “slight of hand” tactics. In the form of communication, some examples of this are fine print in contracts, fast talking sales pitches and misleading advertising. The timing is off for interpersonal communications as well. I am seeing a lot of people right now that are not “getting” each other when communicating. A sideways look, or a misread word results in an immediate disagreement.

Not everyone is energetically affected by the movements and aspects of the planets on a conscious level. But for those who are, Mercury retrograde is a message that now is not the time for moving forward with a major decision or project.

This is a time for rest. Take care of yourself. Focus on calming the mind and body. And as The Magicians tools at this time are in disarray, this is a good reminder to clean up your surroundings. Get a jump on spring cleaning! It is a fact that a clear physical space, clears the mind as well.

Mercury retrograde also reminds us that this is a good time to take stock of your finances. Examine future purchases carefully. For example, at this time, many people are just now recovering from the holiday season. If you have some extra cash, it may be a good idea to put it in your savings instead of splurging on unnecessary material goods. Putting money in your savings is not flashy and fun, but you’ll be glad it’s there later on should an unexpected expense come up. And during a Mercury retrograde, this could happen!

Mercury in retrograde is an introspective energy. Take the time to consider all your options and to research thoroughly before committing to something. Making quick decisions during Mercury retrograde is not conducive to a successful outcome. Don’t fall for those “buy it today” deals. If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. The Magician’s slight of hand can make your money disappear quickly if you are not careful.

As for personal relationships, Mercury in retrograde can bring up issues from the past that need to be addressed or healed. You may see challenges arise that will test to see if you have truly absorbed the life lessons from the original situation. Emotions may be raw because of this. Mercury in retrograde gives us the gift of time, to regress for a little while, to give us time to once and for all, put the baggage behind us so we can move forward.

As I touched on before, choose your words carefully when you speak or write. Communications during a Mercury retrograde can be misinterpreted easily. This can trigger people emotionally as it brings up unhealed wounds they may have. Keep your communications short and to the point. Be positive as much as you can. Keep that ego in check! You may find that it’s not worth it to argue with someone to prove your point. Especially online where the shadow side of people likes to make it’s appearance behind the anonymity of the keyboard. People with mental illnesses can be especially triggered during this time. Best just to hide/block the comment instead of reacting. You’ll be glad you did!

Mercury moves out of retrograde on March 11th which is right before the spring equinox! This will bring an influx of renewed energies and perspectives just in time, to merge with the spring season. It will be like taking a breathe of crisp, clean, fresh air!

Personally, I think Mercury retrogrades are a reminder to take a pause to regroup ourselves. Everything that we need to be mindful of during a retrograde are things that we should always be aware of. Mercury retrograde is just a signal for us to pay closer attention to how we treat ourselves and others.

Happy Valentines Day from The Empress

The Empress tarot card – corresponds to Venus in the major arcana

This year, Valentine’s Day falls on a Friday which is the day of Venus. The planet which represents The Goddess. The energies of love, art, money, beauty, sensuality, fertility, abundance, nature, gaia, passion, home, creativity, birth, femininity and balance.

The card that represents Venus in the tarot is The Empress. If one takes a moment to study this card, one can see all of the qualities I listed above are embodied within it’s image.

The message of The Empress today is one of turning our focus to our relationships. Look at your partner with the eyes of love. What is it about them that you fell in love with? What do you appreciate about them? What qualities do they have that you admire? Our relationships are often a mirror image reflection of ourselves.

Take a few moments and write down everything that you admire and love about your partner. Reflect on this list. You may find what you admire about them are the very qualities you would like yourself to have. Or are attributes of your personality that need some nurturing. When one looks at their close relationships in this way, it gives us a chance to look at ourselves and grow. It also gives us a chance to look at our partner with a renewed sense of love and appreciation.

If you are not in a relationship at the moment, do this exercise about yourself. Go outside yourself and make this list from the perspective of you looking at you. Keep it positive! What aspects about yourself do you love and admire? What situations have you been through in which you handled yourself in a way that you were proud of? How did you grow from that experience? What qualities do you have that would make someone appreciate having you in their life? Don’t hold back! Look at yourself with the eyes of The Goddess of Love! If you work with the tarot, it may help you to pull The Empress card as well as a few other cards whose images resonate with your list. It is often difficult for us to reflect upon ourselves. Pulling these cards will give you a few physical images to meditate on.

Venus and The Empress are not just about the love for other people. Their energies are also a message about self-love. Are you taking care of yourself? As the goddess that rules over art and creativity, a question to reflect upon for yourself is, are you taking the time to pursue hobbies and/or interests that inspire YOU? When we live a life that inspires us, we inspire others. In the context of relationships, this love of self, is the “spark” that draws other people to us! Love for ourselves, raises our “energy vibration” and in turn our perception of our surroundings and other people. In short, when you love yourself, you draw loving energies to you. Including people that will love and appreciate you.

I know some people may dispute this, but it is true. If you are a loving person, but are drawing not so great people and situations to you, this is a message to reflect on yourself. There is an aspect of yourself that needs healing. This is what is called the “great work”. It is not going outside ourselves to find the answers, but it is doing the work that is within, that when healed and understood, allows us to emerge with a renewed sense (aka “rebirth:) of self. Once you do this work, you can’t help but to see yourself with the eyes of love. You fall in love with yourself! You do not need to be completed by someone else. You are complete within yourself. And when you are complete within yourself, you can truly devote yourself to another with the pure love of The Empress.

“Don’t fall in love with a person—fall in love with who you are when you’re with them.” ~Connor Chalfant

Knight of Wands Reversed. A few messages for personal, relationships, work/career.

Knight of Wands reversed. Can indicate lack of inspiration in one’s life, a not so great relationship, and/or issues surrounding work/career.

Upright, this card indicates someone who is charismatic, a fiery lover, motivated, self-inspired and inspires others, a “go-getter”, and is someone who is moving forward with purpose. Putting their creative ideas into action. When it is reversed, well, not so much. Wands represent the fire element in the tarot, so it can indicate the influence of the more negative aspects of the signs of Aries, Leo and Sagittarius as well. Here are a few messages for this card when it is in the reversed position. Of course, this is by no means a complete channeling, as the messages of any single card will be influenced by it’s position, and in how it relates to the other cards when it is a part of a spread.

Personal message:

This card is an indication that you have lost your passion/fire in some area of your life. You may be feeling uninspired by your current circumstances. This card can come up in the reversed position for those who are ready to make a change in their life, go a different direction, or perhaps wish to travel to widen their perspective and experiences, or as a message that they need to. It can also indicate someone who is depressed or has lost their way. The fiery charging steed in the card has come to a stand still. It’s time to re-evaluate what is causing you to feel this way and make the appropriate changes. What is it that inspires you? What gets you out of bed in the morning? Think back in your life to what you loved to do (and keep in mind, Knights represent movement, making things happen, and/or going on a quest to find or attain something). This is physically taking action, not thinking about it, doing it. Look at the image, it indicates movement. Remember when King Arthur sent his knights out to find the holy grail? This is physical action. The Knight of Wands upright is someone blazing a new trail in their life, moving forward with passion and a sense of purpose. Reversed, this Knight is not doing so well. The fire has dimmed down to a spark, but it has not gone out completely. This character is still a Knight! And The Knight of Wands is not one to wallow in self-pity for very long. This is just a setback. Get back on that horse, rediscover your inner fire, maybe do some traveling, figure out what it is you would like to accomplish, and get moving!

Relationship message:

This is not a nice person. The Knight of Wands reversed in a relationship reading can indicate someone who has to “win” all the time. They are “always right”. On a more extreme level, this is your narcissist that is also a gaslighter. A manipulator and a liar. Potentially physically abusive. This can indicate a person that turns on the charm to get his/her own way at the expense of others. This person may have an ill temper and is usually aggressive. They will use what they know about their relationship partner against them for revenge or spite. To get “even” for a perceived injustice. And notice I used the word “perceived”. This is an injustice in their mind, only because the other person did not agree with them or do whatever it was that THEY wanted them to do. As I mentioned before, this could be someone who puts on the false front of being a nice person, “a charmer”, but in reality has a black heart. This is a user. I see the wands suit as inner fire, “energy and spirit”. So this can indicate an energy/psychic vampire that drains the life force from the other person in the relationship. They belittle them, and they trigger them emotionally, to keep them under control so they have an energy source to feed on, and someone to take out their frustrations on. If this card comes up in a relationship reading, in particular a new relationship, keep your distance and be very careful. Read books/articles and watch videos on narcissistic behavior so you can be alert for the signs. Eventually their mask will slip.

This card can also indicate sexual dysfunction whether it be physical or emotional. As “fire” energy consists of the “hot” colors of red and orange which corresponds to the root and sacral chakras in the body.

Work/business message:

In the work/business position, this card reversed can indicate a lack of motivation and inspiration in your current profession or place of work. This is your message to update your resume, or perhaps to begin moving forward on an entrepreneural endeavor. Bring that fiery inspiration back into your career so that you have passion for what you do for a living. This can also be an indication of feeling stuck where you are. Maybe a job/career change, perhaps one which involves travel would be more suitable for you.

This can also indicate that there may be a co-worker or manager in your midst that takes ideas from others in the workplace and presents them to upper level management as their own to further their own career. It can also indicate a “charmer” at work that sabotages others behind their backs to make themselves look good. This person is a real piece of work. So when this card comes up in a work position, watch out for someone in your work place that may steal or sabotage your ideas, or will use underhanded means to make you look bad in front of your peers and boss. They are manipulators and liars. They will put on the front of being helpful, part of the team, etc. in front of those that they want to impress, but when it comes to dealing with them one on one, they are quite a different person indeed. When dealing with someone like this, the best course of action is to deal with them as minimally as possible. Document everything, and I mean everything, in writing. And keep your communications with them in writing as well. Don’t fall for the charm, do not reveal any personal information about yourself. This is not someone you want to chit chat with in the break room. Keep it all business and again, your interactions with this person should be kept to an absolute minimum. After meetings and conversations, be sure to follow up with a written confirmation of what was said and/or agreed to. And be sure to copy your supervisor, the other team members, and whomever else is overseeing the department and/or involved in the project.

If this is your supervisor, you may want to seriously think about looking for a new job opportunity either in a different department, or another company. It will be very difficult to advance your career while working underneath someone who has these traits.

1/24/20 New Moon in Aquarius: The Star & Five of Swords

The new moon in aquarius as represented by The Star and The Five of Swords

New moons are about new beginnings. The energies align for us to take action on our intentions. An interesting aspect of this moon is that it squares the planet Uranus which is known as “the great awakener”. This planet brings the energies of innovation, change and unpredictability to the Aquarius aspect of the new moon. In other words, expect the unexpected!

The combination of the Aquarian and Uranus energies are here to shake us up! If we have become complacent, or have lost our edge, this combination pops us back up on our feet to get us going again! Synchronistic opportunities may appear during this time as well. Be ready!

Aquarian energy is about friendships, community, working with others, hope, new ideas and breaking up the status quo. The Star card embodies these aspects as well as spiritual studies and personal growth. This moon cycle may be a good time to sign up for that class you have wanted to take! The energies here are also conducive to reaching out to others that share the same interests as you. To cultivate friendships, while accentuating your own individuality and independence. To be an individual contributing your unique talents to a collective group. With Uranus in the mix, prepare for some new, innovative ideas that will be brought to life through your actions!

Pay attention to your intuition during this time and be open. As I mentioned above, Uranus brings in an element of the unexpected. You may begin something with a set plan, only to have it take some surprising twists and turns! If you are paying attention, you will be able to discern how to make these “plot twists” work out to your benefit.

Another message with this moon is that of freedom / liberation. Look at image on The Star card. She is nude – completely authentic. This is who she is. The Star card appears after The Tower in the tarot. The Tower has collapsed and now The Star card appears to tell us there is hope, now that we are liberated from The Tower’s confining, limiting walls. I have done a previous post on The Tower card, where I go into more details regarding the archetypal symbolism of it’s image.

So here is where I see The Five of Swords coming into play here. In most instances, this card is considered a negative image. One of winning at all costs, the “I’m always right” card. But in this instance, I see it in another light. One of us standing our ground and overcoming challenges. And when we do this, we grow. We come to understand that we are stronger than we think we are. This image also indicates that we will no longer allow others to place limits on who WE want to be. When one looks at the image in this context, the smug character we were looking at previously, transforms into a confident character who is standing up for himself. The number five, which is symbolic of shaking up the stability/status quo of the number four, has unexpectedly taken a stand and revels in his moment of triumph. The other two characters, defeated, have walked away. They no longer have power over the main character.

When we know who we are and what we want to accomplish, we understand that sometimes we may need to stand alone just like the Five of Swords. We may need to set those personal boundaries with other people who may not understand us. To stand in our power and challenge those who want us to conform to what they think is “normal”.

Uranus, aka “the great awakener” is surely making it’s presence known, not only in our personal lives, but in society as well. Look at all the secrets that are coming out. Shaking us up collectively. So that we can see all the lies and deception that we have been blind too. 2020 is starting off with a blast of energy that’s for sure! We are awakening on a global scale!

“That is the real spiritual awakening, when something emerges from within you that is deeper than who you thought you were. So, the person is still there, but one could almost say that something more powerful shines through the person.” ~ Eckhart Tolle