Today’s Tarot Card for May 18th is Judgment

Judgment

This Tarot Deck: Visconti-Sforza

General Meaning:What has traditionally been known as the Judgement card, sometimes entitled Resurrection, represents the great reunion that the ancients believed would happen once in every age. This was the time when souls are harvested and taken Home to their place of origin, outside the solar system. Then the World is seeded with a batch of new souls and the process starts over.From a modern point of view, this great reunion — which includes every personality that you have ever been and every soul that you have done deep work with — reunites to consciously complete the process. In a way, we symbolically celebrate this returning to center every year on our birthday.

In personal terms, the Judgment cards points to freedom from inner conflicts, and so clear a channel, that the buried talents and gifts of past incarnations can come through an individual in this lifetime. This card counsels you to trust the process of opening yourself, because what emerges is of consistently high quality. You can effortlessly manifest as a multi-dimensional being, and assist in evoking that response from others.

Your Daily Number for May 16th: 2

You may find yourself more sensitive to the world around you today. Your intuition is heightened, and you may find yourself longing for knowledge. You’re feeling somewhat emotionally exposed to the world, so be careful to guard against insecurity and keep your feet firmly planted on the ground.

Fast Facts

About the Number 2

Theme: Adaptable, Tactful, Gentle, Cautious
Astro Association: Moon
Tarot Association: High Priestess

Today’s I Ching Hexagram for May 16th is 51: Shock

51: Shock

Hexagram 51

General Meaning: One hears thunder unexpectedly! First comes fear, then a sharpening of one’s vision. Recall a close brush with danger — a falling branch, an automobile accident barely avoided, an escape from a potentially violent confrontation. Such incidents arouse every nerve fiber in your body in a brief wave of terror, but soon, once the danger has passed, give way to a heightened awareness of the world. The same process also occurs with other types of shock — the loss of a job, the sudden departure of a loved one, business failure and so on.

The lasting impact of a major shock can either be stimulating or debilitating, depending upon one’s strength of character. The critical factor is the ability to shake off fear, thereby transforming anxiety into a laser-sharp perception of the world around you.

When overtaken by crisis, the wise search their hearts for inner strengths in order to face their life with courage. This often means daring to take an unexpected path — to bounce back quickly and self-confidently after failures, to have faith in the eternal when confronted with death.

We tend to think of shock only in the context of unpleasant events. We can also be jarred, however, by the sudden release of tension that comes with unexpected joy or success. To keep your bearings in the aftershock of either trauma or victory, it is essential that your inner compass be aligned with ‘true north’, that magnetic force which guides you toward fulfillment of both your deepest desire, and your highest destiny.

Today’s Tarot Card for May 16th is The Sun

The Sun

This Tarot Deck: Spiral

General Meaning:What has traditionally been known as the Sun card is about the self — who you are and how you cultivate your personality and character. The earth revolves around the sun to make up one year of a person’s life, a fact we celebrate on our birthday.The Sun card could also be titled “Back to Eden.” The Sun’s radiance is where one’s original nature or unconditioned Being can be encountered in health and safety. The limitations of time and space are stripped away; the soul is refreshed and temporarily protected from the chaos outside the garden walls.

Under the light of the Sun, Life reclaims its primordial goodness, truth and beauty. If one person is shown on this card, it is usually signifying a human incarnation of the Divine. When two humans are shown, the image is portraying a resolution of the tension between opposites at all levels. It’s as if this card is saying “You can do no wrong — it’s all to the good!”

Woden – Help Me Read These Runes Aright…

Woden – Help Me Read These Runes Aright…

Author: RuneWolf 

I’ve been trolling the Internet lately looking for new information and/or viewpoints on the runes and, I must say, I’ve gathered more than a few resentments along the way.

Now, I am a steadfast believer in the sanctity of individual spiritual opinion, practice and experience, but I also believe that making things different doesn’t necessarily make them better, and that some things are best left in the original packaging, so to speak. (That’s one of the benefits of being a non-dualist – one can be a liberal AND a fundamentalist at the same time without ones head exploding…)

I also believe that if the Old Ways (i.e. the way things were done prior to about 1990) are to be preserved, someone has to speak up when the drift becomes a bit too drifty. And, yes, some of us have to be arrogant enough to think that we qualify for that position. At the very least, I hope that the Pagano-Heathen community can still agree to disagree, and that those of us who “pine for the Good Old Days” have at least as much right to speak up and say our piece as the innovators and pioneers.

(And now, a brief pause for the Politically Correct Disclaimer: What follows is not The Truth, nor the One Right And Only Way. It is simply what I have come to believe in as a result of research, study, practice and UPG [Unverifiable Personal Gnosis]. I believe in it strongly, and will both state and defend it passionately, but that does not mean that I think your way is wrong. Mine is just righter…)

For the sake of brevity, I will address three of the most heinous aberrations I see in “contemporary runelore”: the so-called “blank rune,” orientational interpretation of the runestaves and, for lack of a better term, the “New Aging” of the runelore. I will explain each of these categories more fully as I address them.

Before I do so, however, a bit needs to be said about the process of divination with the runes, in order for my arguments against these heresies to make sense. Since this topic itself cannot be easily covered in a book, let alone an essay, I must again be as succinct as I can be and still communicate the basic concepts.

First, let’s clarify a little terminology. What we commonly refer to as “runes,” (i.e. the little bits of wood, ceramics, metal or stone with the angular symbols on them) are more properly referred to as “runestaves.” “Rune” actually refers to the Mystery represented by each of those little angular symbols. However, to avoid needless confusion, I will acquiesce to popular usage, and refer to the staves as runes (small r), and the Mysteries as Runes (capitol R).

Divination with the runes is a lot like tracking earthquakes with a seismograph. What we are attempting to sense, through the agency of the runes, are the tremblings along the Web of Wyrd that may lead to one outcome or another, depending on other tremblings of the Web. A casting or spread of runes is a snapshot of the vibratory patterns of the Web at a particular point in space/time. While it is possible to hone a reading to a very precise degree, what one normally sees in runic divination is a rather broad picture of the current situation, and the many possibilities that could emerge in the as-yet-unmanifest future. One also needs to understand that, unlike Tarot, a runic divination is not necessarily relevant to the querent. One may indeed be the focus of a particular reading, in which case the reading will tend to resonate or make a great deal of sense. However, one may simply be caught up in an impersonal “Runic current,” in which case the reading may seem – at least at that moment – to be way off base.

There are many contemporary methods for casting or creating a rune reading, but many of these are borrowed from the Tarot tradition. How the runes were originally used is unclear, except that, from the lore, we know that several at a time were cast onto a cloth or other surface, and then interpreted.

With these admittedly broad strokes as our launch pad, let’s look at those “issues” I mentioned earlier.

The (Dreaded) Blank Rune:

There is no such thing.

That should put an end to it, but I know better by now.

To the best of my (admittedly limited) knowledge, the blank rune was first popularized by Ralph Blum in the ‘90s. It may have been around before but let’s be fair: before Blum’s book, precious few in mainstream American had ever heard of a rune, let alone a blank one. While I bitterly oppose Mr. Blum’s New Agey interpretations of the runes and his apparent attempt to combine them with the Tarot tradition, I have to give credit where credit is due: he did succeed in bringing the runes back into the popular consciousness and imagination, although the jury is still out on whether that is a good thing or a bad thing. While many Pagans and Heathens were and are scandalized and offended by his work, there are many writers of whom that can be said, so in all, I bear no great animosity toward the man and his work. I was first introduced to the runes through his book, though I was lucky enough to be set straight later on by my Elders and the Gods.

But I digress…

Since its introduction, the blank rune has come to symbolize many things, and has even been called (shudder!) Odin’s Rune. And while I can tolerate a lot of hooey, I have to draw the line right there. Ansuz is Odin’s Rune; period, end of discussion. If you don’t believe me, just ask Him…

Usually, the blank rune is said to represent the Great Mystery (as if the preceding twenty-four Mysteries weren’t great enough), which has always seemed a bit, well, lazy to me. It’s a convenient “back door” for those who divine themselves into a corner, and a good prop to point to when you haven’t a clue what the whole reading means, but still want to seem powerful and mysterious. In short, it’s a gimmick, and there is no place for gimmicks in serious runework.

The other manner in which I often see and hear the blank rune used is as the “significator” in a rune reading, i.e. a representation of the querent. This is pretty blatant plagiarism from the Tarot tradition and, again, has no place in runework. The Runes do not revolve around you, no matter how special you think you are – it is up to you to fit yourself into the patterns they may choose to reveal to you. If you really MUST have a “significator,” then let that be the first rune that you draw, and cast the others over/around it. But even then, remember that it is a metaphysical seismograph, and the tremors it is picking up may be so faint, so deep, that you see no possible connection to you or your present circumstances.

Orientational Interpretations:

By this I mean the interpretation of the runes according to whether they are “upright” or “reversed,” with upright interpretations being mostly “good,” and reversed mostly “bad.”

This is, again, a direct syncretism from the Tarot tradition, and is alien to the nature of the Runes. The primal cosmic forces that are the Runes cannot be subjected to dualistic reductionism and parsed into polarities of “good and bad,” “light and dark” and so on. The Runic forces are far too fundamental to the structure and function of the multiverse to be thought of in such limited terms. Each rune represents not merely the two obvious sides of a coin, but the edge also, and, for that matter, the very molecular structure of the coin that exists between the visible sides! Indeed, implicit in the very existence of the coin is all that the coin is not! And so it is with the Runes.

In studying and working with the runes, one comes to appreciate the true non-dualistic nature of reality, and to comprehend, however poorly, the vast and complex interweaving of weal and woe (“good” and “bad”) that is existence. This is not a Pollyanna attitude of “every cloud has a silver lining,” nor is it an entropic nihilism that sees all that is good, beautiful and true as ultimately ephemeral and therefore pointless. If anything, it has more in common with the worldview of philosophical Taoism than with any product of the Greco-Roman philosophers and their later European adherents. One recognizes that the ways of Wyrd are neither good nor bad, that they simply are what they are and one is free to accept them on their own terms, or categorize them in whichever pigeonhole one wishes. In the end, our labels and categorizations are swallowed up in the flow of the Runic currents.

If the Runes are then, in essence, shades of gray within shades of gray, how does one make sense of a rune casting? As the man once said, all things are relative, and it is in the relationship of each rune in the casting to every other rune that one intuits the influence, for weal or woe or both, of the individual Runic forces and the combinations thereof upon the matter in question. When one looks at the runes scattered in a casting, one is literally looking at patterns within patterns, and this is the true key to effective runic divination.

The “New Aging” of the Runes:

Here I refer to the association or “correspondence” of each Rune to such things as astrological signs and alchemical symbols, herbs, trees, stones, gems, crystals and such like. While it is true that, in some of the ancient rune poems and rhymes, various runes are associated with various phenomena of the natural world, such as trees, stars, hail, the sea, ice, etc., there is no precedence for assigning each rune a correspondence or association in each such category. The associations that exist seem to be made based upon the nature of the rune itself and the associated phenomenon, and there appears to be no meta-pattern on which to base a systematic matrix. Unfortunately, as with orientational interpretation, this practice has been promulgated by otherwise impeccable Runic scholars, and has therefore fallen into more or less common acceptance. Personally, I find the whole concept to be a bit too neat, tidy and structured to apply authentically to the primal, fractal essence of the Runes. The Runes are the ultimate “patternless patterns,” and by their very nature defy such systematization.

In the end, as with all esoteric studies, one must find ones own way to ones own Truth, and I would be the last to attempt to dissuade anyone from pursuing their own wyrd. The Runes will reveal themselves to you as they will, but I urge you to resist the temptation to try to fit them into a neat little cookie-cutter grid of meanings and associations. But neither can we let our understanding of them become ossified. I simply suggest that working with these most profound of Mysteries is adventure enough for one lifetime. We do not need to clutter our work with gimmicks and gewgaws from other paths and traditions.

Your Daily Number for May 15th: 9

Success is yours today, and your feelings of accomplishment touch everything you do. Don’t miss this chance to pamper yourself and engage in some mind-body healing. It’ll do you good.

Fast Facts

About the Number 9

Theme: Encompassing a love for all, Compassion, Patience, Selfless
Astro Association: Virgo
Tarot Association: Hermit

Today’s I Ching Hexagram for May 15th is 42: Increase

42: Increase

Hexagram 42

General Meaning: Substantial progress and increasing prosperity is pointed to. In whatever forms it takes, periods of increase are exhilarating, as long as you go with the flow while it lasts and keep the interests of others in mind. Like white water on a river, periods of increase are often of short duration; it furthers one, therefore, to shoot the rapids now, while the opportunity is there.

A good sense of direction in times of opportunity involves commitment to the needs of one’s cohorts and dependents. Only by realizing that to lead is really to serve, can an effective leader contribute to a lasting increase in prosperity for all. In times of general increase, those who contribute most directly to the common good will also receive the greatest rewards.

When opportunities for increase arise, supreme good fortune comes to those who act swiftly and boldly, while avoiding the trap of letting their actions be only self-serving. If you aspire to a position of prominence, the most enduring strategy is to work to raise the tide of your entire pond, rather than to try to swim upstream on your own.

When the times favor prosperity, and when leadership is in the hands of the broad-minded, supreme good fortune results.

Today’s Tarot Card for May 15th is The Star

The Star

This Tarot Deck: Sacred Rose

General Meaning:What has traditionally been known as the Star card is about reconnecting one’s Soul with the Divine — the transcending of personality, family, community and reputation. It has to do ultimately with the freedom to be one’s Self. The Soul is responding to celestial influences — forces that can provide the personality with a stronger sense of purpose. The Star card helps us to remember our exalted origins and our attraction to a Higher Union.This card could also be called the “Celestial Mandate” — that which refers us back to our reason for being, our mission in this lifetime. The Star reminds us that, in a sense, we are agents of Divine Will in our day-to-day lives. If we let go of the idea that we are supposed to be in control, we can more easily notice and appreciate the synchronicities that are nudging us along. In this way, we become more conscious of the invisible Helping Hand, and we better understand our place within — and value to — the larger Cosmos

This Tarot Deck: Sacred Rose

General Meaning:What has traditionally been known as the Star card is about reconnecting one’s Soul with the Divine — the transcending of personality, family, community and reputation. It has to do ultimately with the freedom to be one’s Self. The Soul is responding to celestial influences — forces that can provide the personality with a stronger sense of purpose. The Star card helps us to remember our exalted origins and our attraction to a Higher Union.This card could also be called the “Celestial Mandate” — that which refers us back to our reason for being, our mission in this lifetime. The Star reminds us that, in a sense, we are agents of Divine Will in our day-to-day lives. If we let go of the idea that we are supposed to be in control, we can more easily notice and appreciate the synchronicities that are nudging us along. In this way, we become more conscious of the invisible Helping Hand, and we better understand our place within — and value to — the larger Cosmos

Today’s Tarot Card for May 14th is The Devil

The Devil

This Tarot Deck: Hanson Roberts

General Meaning:What has traditionally been known as the Devil card expresses the realm of the Taboo, the culturally rejected wildness and undigested shadow side that each of us carries in our subconscious. This shadow is actually at the core of our being, which we cannot get rid of and will never succeed in taming. From its earliest versions, which portrayed a vampire-demon, this card evoked the Church-fueled fear that a person could “lose their soul” to wild and passionate forces.The image which emerged in the mid-1700’s gives us a more sophisticated rendition — that of the “scapegoated Goddess,” whose esoteric name is Baphomet. Volcanic reserves of passion and primal desire empower her efforts to overcome the pressure of stereotyped roles and experience true freedom of soul. Tavaglione’s highly evolved image (Stella deck) portrays the magical formula for harnessing and transmuting primal and obsessive emotions into transformative energies. As a part of the Gnostic message of Tarot, this fearsome passion and power must be reintegrated into the personality, to fuel the soul’s passage from mortal to immortal.

Today’s Runes for Sunday, May 13th s Dagez

Today’s Runes

Spirit Runes are most commonly used for questions about mysticism, spirituality, and religion. Dagez means daylight, and represents divine light. This rune generally refers to dawn (the initial sparking of energy) or to midday (the climax of energy). Both dawn and midday are symbolic of change, but unlike the changes in the perpetual circle of the year which are slow and subtle, the changes over a day are much faster and more dramatic. The breaking of a new day is symbolic of the rapid illumination of dismal circumstances, and is suggestive of Satori. Be careful – although this rune generally suggests a positive change, the symbology of a peaking point suggests that there must be a change downward as well. Fortunately for some, this rune is cyclic and irreversible, and so permanence is not promised – the only thing you can be sure of is an exciting ride.

LESSON 6 – The Environment

LESSON 6

The Environment

The environment of a tarot reading includes the physical setting and your internal state. There are five inner qualities that are beneficial. These are:

  • Being Open
    Being open means being receptive. It is an attitude of allowing – being willing to take in what is offered without denial or rejection. By being open, you give yourself the chance to receive what you need to know. 
  • Being Calm
    It is hard to hear the whispers of your Inner Guide when you are in turmoil. Tarot messages often arrive as gentle hints and realizations that can be easily overwhelmed by a restless mind. When you are calm, you are like a peaceful sea in which every ripple of insight can be perceived. 
  • Being Focused
    Focus is very important for a tarot reading. I have found that whenever I feel a question strongly, I receive a direct and powerful message. When I’m scattered and confused, the cards tend to be the same. Your most insightful readings will be those you do when the desire is very strong. 
  • Being Alert
    When you are alert, all your faculties are alive and awake. A cat is alert when it is watching a mouse or bug. Of course, you won’t be pouncing on your cards, but you will find them difficult to read if you are tired or bored. 
  • Being Respectful
    Being respectful means treating the cards as you would any valued tool. You acknowledge their role in helping you understand yourself better. You honor the choice you have made in deciding to learn the tarot and handle the cards accordingly.

Even though these five qualities are important, they are not necessary. You can have a meaningful reading without them, but it may be more difficult. The best way to decide if the time is right for a reading is to look inside. If something feels wrong, postpone the effort, but if your inner sense says go ahead, then all is well.

Besides the inner environment, there is also the setting of a reading to consider. The ideal place is one that elicits feelings of quiet, peace, even reverence. You could do a reading in a crowded airport, but the noise and distractions would make inner attunement difficult. Since you will probably be doing most of your readings at home, let’s look at how you might create a agreeable environment there.

Set aside a place in your home where you will do your readings. By using the same spot over and over, you build up an energy that reinforces your practice. If you meditate or pray, you can do these activities here as well as they harmonize with the tarot in spirit and intent.

Try to create a sense of separateness about your spot. When you use the cards, you want to turn away from the everyday world and go into a space that is outside time and the normal flow of events. A separate room is ideal, but a corner set off by a screen, curtain, pillows or other divider can work too.

Try also to create an atmosphere of beauty and meaning. Place some items nearby that are special to you. Objects from nature, such as shells, stones, crystals, and plants are always appropriate. A talisman, figure or religious icon can help you shift your focus from the mundane to the inspirational. Consider pictures and artwork, especially your own, and appeal to your senses with such items as flowers, incense, candles, textured materials and quiet, meditative music.

These touches are nice, the only thing you really need is a space large enough to lay out the cards. You can use either a table or the floor. There is a grounded feeling to the floor, but, if that position is uncomfortable, a table is better. Choose a table of natural materials such as wood or stone.

If you like, you can cover the table or floor with a cloth to create a uniform area. The material should be natural, such as silk, cotton, wool or linen. Choose the color with care as colors have their own energies. Black, dark blue and purple are good choices. There should be little or no pattern, so the images on the cards stand out from the background.

Store your cards in a container to protect them and contain their energies. Any natural substance is fine, such as wood, stone, shell, or a natural cloth. I know of one woman who sewed herself a silk, drawstring bag and embroidered it with stars, moons and other designs. Consider keeping your cards wrapped in silk cloth when inside their container. Silk has a luxurious feel that will remind you of the value you place on your cards.

Tarot cards pick up the energy and character of those who use them. For this reason, set aside a tarot deck that is just for you, if you can. These cards are going to be your personal tool of communication with your Inner Guide. You want to bond to them closely.

When you do your tarot work in a place of your own, the experience can be quite powerful, but extra preparations are never necessary. All you have to do is use the cards. That’s the important part.

Exercises – Lesson 6

The Environment

Exercise 6.1 – Creating a Place To Do Your Readings

Spend some time thinking about where you will do your tarot readings. Consider some of the suggestions or use your own ideas. Don’t feel that you have to create a showcase location. Just see what you can do to create a setting that is pleasing and comfortable.

Exercise 6.2 – Quest for a Symbol

In this exercise, you will be announcing your intent to find or create an object that will be a personal symbol of your tarot practice. You can buy, find or make this object yourself. Once you have it, place it in your tarot spot as an inspiration for your work.

Read over the description of the Fool. This card often stands for the feeling of joy and freedom that comes from beginning a new adventure. It is in this spirit that you will seek your object. This quest symbolizes the quest for greater understanding you are undertaking by learning the tarot.

Hold the Fool in your hands, and close your eyes. Announce your desire to find or create a tarot symbol. Commit to working until you have it. The value you place on this quest will reinforce the value of your larger quest. Once you have affirmed your intent, let it go. You will find what you are looking for.

This exercise will strengthen your faith and commitment and leave you with a tangible symbol of your purpose. It will also help you learn that hidden within seemingly foolish acts is the experience of life as an adventure.

Daily OM for May 9 – Using Yourself as a Pendulum

Using Yourself as a Pendulum
Intuitive Guidance from Within

by Madisyn Taylor

 

Using your body as a pendulum is another tool you can use to access your higher wisdom.

Learning to trust our intuition is something that can connect us with our higher selves. Sometimes it might not seem easy to do this. Our thoughts and minds often get in the way. But by accessing our innermost self, we will find that the information we receive is usually what we truly need at that moment. One of the techniques that allows us to really get in touch with our deepest font of wisdom is using our body as a pendulum. The simple act of letting our physical being lead us in a certain direction can offer us extremely deep insights and help us find the answers we seek.

Many of us may have tried using a pendulum or crystal on a chain as a dousing tool to acquire the information we need to make decisions or even find lost objects. Using our bodies puts us much more closely in tune with our being. The process of using your body as a pendulum is to ask your higher self a question and wait for your body to respond in either a forward-tilting or backward-tilting motion. The first step is to really understand how our higher self communicates with us by centering our bodies, asking ourselves the directions for “yes” and “no,” and noting which way our body moves. For a lot of people a forward motion is “yes,” and your body tilting backward is a “no” answer. It is easier to start with simple questions at first to understand how our higher self communicates with us. As we become more used to the messages we receive and how we process them, we can start asking for more specific things such as what dosage of herbs to take or which foods would best nourish our bodies. Using this technique in the grocery store or when shopping for vitamins and remedies can be extremely helpful.

Since we are always present in our bodies, understanding how we can use our bodies as pendulums is a tool we can use at any given moment in our lives. Letting our bodies tell us what is happening inside of us will in turn help to guide us through not just daily but also major life decisions. The more we allow our bodies to open up and share with us the connection it has with our deeper self, the better able we will be to truly access the knowledge we hold so deeply within.

Lessons In Tarot – Lesson 4 (The Spread)

LESSON 4

The Spread

A spread is a preset pattern for laying out the tarot cards. It defines how many cards to use, where each one goes, and what each one means. A spread is a template guiding the placement of the cards so they can shed light on a given topic. It is within this template that the meanings of the cards come together so beautifully.

 The most important feature of a spread is the fact that each position has a unique meaning that colors the interpretation of whatever card falls in that spot. For example, the Four of Pentacles stands for possessiveness, control, and blocked change. If this card were to fall in Position 4 of the Celtic Cross Spread (the “Past” position), you would look at how these qualities are moving out of your life. In Position 6 (the “Future”), you would instead view them as coming into your life – a quite different interpretation.

Tarot spreads can be any size or pattern. Rahdue’s Wheel includes all 78 cards and creates a vast tableau of one person’s life. A spread can also contain just one card. In lesson 5 I show how a one-card spread is useful for daily readings.

Most spreads contain between six and fifteen cards. This range is small enough to be manageable, but large enough to cover a topic in some depth. The pattern of a spread often forms a design that reflects its theme. For example, the Horoscope Spread is in the shape of the traditional circle that forms a person’s birth chart. The twelve cards of this spread correspond to the twelve houses of astrology.

When cards are related to each other in a spread, an entirely new level of meaning is created. Combinations appear, and a story line develops with characters, plots and themes. The weaving of a story from the cards in a spread is the most exciting and creative aspect of a tarot reading. It is an art, but there are many guidelines you can follow. I discuss these in later lessons and give examples of the story-making process.

In these lessons, I refer to just the Celtic Cross Spread. I think you will be able to concentrate more on developing your intuition if you stick to just one spread at first. Once you know the cards well and feel comfortable reading them, you can expand your tarot practice by exploring other layouts. Before you continue with the lessons, read over the Celtic Cross Section. We’ll be using this spread throughout the course.

Exercises – Lesson 4

The Spread

Exercise 4.1 – Celtic Cross Spread

Spend a few minutes looking at the Celtic Cross Section so you understand how it is set up. Don’t worry about memorizing anything. The goal is simply to get comfortable with the information.

Now, lay out ten cards of your choice using this spread. Read the page for each position one by one. Think about the meaning each card takes on because it falls in a certain position. You will learn more about this later, but just speculate for now.

Exercise 4.2 – Designing a Spread

You can design spreads yourself to suit your needs. Create for yourself now a three-card tarot spread. Follow these steps:

  • Draw a picture of the physical layout – where the cards should go.
  • Number the positions to show order of placement.
  • Write a short phrase or two describing the meaning of each position.

 

This is a basic three-card spread that covers events in time.

Here’s a spread to use when you belong to a three-person team and want to know the expectations of the members (including yourself). The cards form a “Y” with the tops facing inward. This pattern suggests a meeting of the minds.

The Celtic Cross

Here is one approach to interpreting the Celtic Cross.

  1. Look at the six cards of the Circle/Cross section. They show what is going on in your life at the moment of the reading. 
  2. Examine the cards in pairs, perhaps in the following order:
    • Look at Cards 1 and 2 to find out the central dynamic.
    • Look at Cards 3 and 5 to find out what is going on within you at different levels.
    • Look at Cards 4 and 6 to see how people and events are flowing through your life.

    From these six cards, create a description of your immediate situation. 

  3. Consider the Staff section of the spread, perhaps in this order:
    • Look at Cards 7 and 8 to find out how more about the relationship between you and your environment.
    • Look at Card 10 – the projected outcome. How do you feel about it? What does it say to you?

     

  4. Review the cards to discover the factors leading to the outcome. See if one card stands out as key. Also:
    • Compare the projected outcome (Card 10) to a possible alternative outcome (Card 5).
    • Consider how the near future (Card 6) contributes to the projected outcome (Card 10).
    • See if Card 9 tells you something you need to know. Do you have a hope or fear that is relevant?

Lessons In Tarot – Introduction To The Tarot

LESSON 1

Introduction to the Tarot

Years ago, when I told my brother I was studying the tarot, his first comment was, “How can a deck of cards possibly tell you anything about anything?” I laughed because I thought his reply summed up pretty well the common sense view of the cards. I, too, had my doubts about the tarot, but I found out that the cards can make a real difference in the way you perceive and deal with the challenges in your life. In this introduction, I’ll try to explain why.

The origin of the tarot is a mystery. We do know for sure that the cards were used in Italy in the fifteenth century as a popular card game. Wealthy patrons commissioned beautiful decks, some of which have survived. The Visconti-Sforza, created in 1450 or shortly thereafter, is one of the earliest and most complete.

Later in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the cards were discovered by a number of influential scholars of the occult. These gentleman were fascinated by the tarot and recognized that the images on the cards were more powerful than a simple game would suggest. They revealed (or created!) the “true” history of the tarot by connecting the cards to Egyptian mysteries, Hermetic philosophy, the Kabbalah, alchemy, and other mystical systems. These pursuits continued into the early part of the twentieth century when the tarot was incorporated into the practices of several secret societies, including the Order of the Golden Dawn.

Although the roots of the tarot are in the occult tradition, interest in the cards has expanded in the last few decades to include many different perspectives. New decks have been created that reflect these interests. There are Native American, herbal, dragon and Japanese decks, among others.

The tarot is most commonly viewed as a tool for divination. A traditional tarot reading involves a seeker – someone who is looking for answers to personal questions – and a reader – someone who knows how to interpret the cards. After the seeker has shuffled and cut the deck, the reader lays out the chosen cards in a pattern called a spread. Each position in the spread has a meaning, and each card has a meaning as well. The reader combines these two meanings to shed light on the seeker’s question.

A simple process, but rarely presented in a simple way. In films, we always see the tarot being used in a seedy parlor or back room. An old woman, seated in shadows, reads the cards for a nervous, young girl. The crone lifts her wrinkled finger and drops it ominously on the Death card. The girl draws back, frightened by this sign of her impending doom.

This aura of darkness clings to the tarot cards, even now. Some religions shun the cards, and the scientific establishment condemns them as symbols of unreason, a holdover from an unenlightened past. Let us set aside these shadowy images for now and consider the tarot simply for what it is – a deck of picture cards. The question becomes – what can we do with them?

The answer lies with the unconscious – that deep level of memory and awareness that resides within each of us, but outside our everyday experience. Even though we ignore the action of the unconscious most of the time, it profoundly affects everything we do. In his writings, Sigmund Freud stressed the irrational, primitive aspect of the unconscious. He thought that it was the home of our most unacceptable desires and urges. His contemporary Carl Jung emphasized the positive, creative aspect of the unconscious. He tried to show that it has a collective component that touches universal qualities.

We may never know the full range and power of the unconscious, but there are ways to explore its landscape. Many techniques have been developed for this purpose – psychotherapy, dream interpretation, visualization and meditation. The tarot is another such tool.

Consider for a moment a typical card in the tarot deck, the Five of Swords. This card shows a man holding three swords and looking at two figures in the distance. Two other swords lie on the ground. As I look at this card, I begin to create a story around the image. I see a man who seems satisfied with some battle he has won. He looks rather smug and pleased that hehas all the swords. The others look downcast and defeated.

What I have done is take an open-ended image and project a story onto it. To me, my view is the obvious one – the only possible interpretation of this scene. In fact, someone else could have imagined a totally different story. Maybe the man is trying to pick up the swords. He’s calling to the others to help him, but they refuse. Or, maybe the other two were fighting, and he convinced them to lay down their arms.

The point is that of all possible stories, I chose a certain one. Why? Because it is human nature to project unconscious material onto objects in the environment. We always see reality through a lens made up of our own inner state. Therapists have long noted this tendency and have created tools to assist in the process. The famous Rorschach inkblot test is based on such projection.

Projection is one reason why the tarot cards are valuable. Their intriguing pictures and patterns are effective in tapping the unconscious. This is the personal aspect of the tarot, but the cards also have a collective component. As humans, we all have certain common needs and experiences. The images on the tarot cards capture these universal moments and draw them out consistently. People tend to react to the cards in similar ways because they represent archetypes. Over many centuries, the tarot has evolved into a collection of the most basic patterns of human thought and emotion.

Consider the Empress. She stands for the Mother Principle – life in all its abundance. Notice how her image conjures up feelings of luxuriance. She is seated on soft, lush pillows, and her robe flows in folds around her. In the Empress, we sense the bounty and sensual richness of Nature.

The power of the tarot comes from this combination of the personal and the universal. You can see each card in your own way, but, at the same time, you are supported by understandings that others have found meaningful. The tarot is a mirror that reflects back to you the hidden aspects of your own unique awareness.

When we do a tarot reading, we select certain cards by shuffling, cutting and dealing the deck. Although this process seems random, we still assume the cards we pick are special. This is the point of a tarot reading after all – to choose the cards we are meant to see. Now, common sense tells us that cards chosen by chance can’t hold any special meaning, or can they?

To answer this question, let’s look at randomness more closely. Usually we say that an event is random when it appears to be the result of the chance interaction of mechanical forces. From a set of possible outcomes – all equally likely – one occurs, but for no particular reason.

This definition includes two key assumptions about random events: they are the result of mechanical forces, and they have no meaning. First, no tarot reading is solely the product of mechanical forces. It is the result of a long series of conscious actions. We decide to study the tarot. We buy a deck and learn how to use it. We shuffle and cut the cards in a certain way at a certain point. Finally, we use our perceptions to interpret the cards.

At every step, we are actively involved. Why then are we tempted to say a reading is “the chance interaction of mechanical forces?” Because we can’t explain just how our consciousness is involved. We know our card choices aren’t deliberate, so we call them random. In fact, could there be a deeper mechanism at work, one connected to the power of our unconscious? Could our inner states be tied to outer events in a way that we don’t yet fully understand? I hold this possibility out to you.

The other feature of a random event is that it has no inherent meaning. I roll a die and get a six, but there is no purpose to this result. I could just as easily roll a one, and the meaning would be the same – or would it? Do we really know these two outcomes are equal? Perhaps there is meaning and purpose in every event, great or small, but we don’t always recognize it.

At a party many years ago, I had the sudden urge to pick up a die sitting on the floor. I knewwith great conviction that I would use this die to roll each number individually. As I began, the laughter and noise of the party faded away. I felt a growing excitement as a different number appeared with each roll. It was only with the last successful roll that my everyday awareness returned, and I sat back, wondering what had happened.

At one level, these six rolls were unrelated, random events, but at another level, they were very meaningful. My inner experience told me this was so, even though an outside observer might not agree. What wasthe meaning? At the time, it was a lesson in the strange interaction between mind and matter. Today, I know it had another purpose – to be available to me now, some 25 years later, as an illustration for this very lesson!

Meaning is a truly mysterious quality that arises at the juncture of inner and outer realities. There is a message in everything…trees, songs, even trash…but only when we are open to perceiving it. The tarot cards convey many messages because of the richness of their images and connections. More importantly, tarot readings communicate meaning because we bring to them our sincere desire to discover deeper truths about our lives. By seeking meaning in this way, we honor its reality and give it a chance to be revealed.

If there is a meaning in a reading, where does it come from? I believe it comes from that part of ourselves that is aware of the divine source of meaning. This is an aspect of the unconscious, yet it is much more. It acts as a wise advisor who knows us well. It understands what we need and leads us in the direction we need to go. Some people call this advisor the soul, the superconscious, or the higher self. I call it the Inner Guide because that is the role it plays in connection with the tarot.

Each of us has an Inner Guide that serves as a fountain of meaning for us. Your Inner Guide is always with you because it is a part of you. You can’t destroy this connection, but you canignore it. When you reach for your tarot deck, you signal to your Inner Guide that you are open to its wisdom. This simple act of faith allows you to become aware of the guidance that was always there for you.

We are meant by nature to rely on the wisdom of our Inner Guide, but somehow we have forgotten how to access it. We trust our conscious minds instead, and forget to look deeper. Our conscious minds are clever, but unfortunately, they just don’t have the full awareness we need to make appropriate choices day by day.

When we are operating from our conscious minds, we often feel as if events are forced upon us by chance. Life seems to have little purpose, and we suffer because we do not really understand who we are and what we want. When we know how to access our Inner Guide, we experience life differently. We have the certainty and peace that comes from aligning our conscious will with our inner purpose. Our path becomes more joyous, and we see more clearly how we bring together the scattered elements of our lives to fulfill our destinies.

I use the tarot because it is one of the best tools I have found to make the whispers of my Inner Guide more available consciously. The ideas, images and feelings that emerge as I work through a reading are a message from my Inner Guide. How do I know there is a message, and it’s not just my imagination? I don’t, really. I can only trust my experience and see what happens.

You do not really need the tarot to access your Inner Guide. The cards serve the same function as Dumbo’s magic feather. In the Disney movie, Dumbo the Elephant really could fly on his own, but he didn’t believe it. He placed all his faith on the special feather he held in his trunk. He thought this feather gave him the power to fly, but he found out differently when it blew away, and he was forced to fall back on his own resources.

The tarot cards may help you fly until you can reach your Inner Guide on your own. Don’t worry for now about how this might happen. Just play with the cards, work through the lessons and exercises, and see if you don’t experience a few surprises.

Just for kicks…….

For all you “Doggie of the Day” & “Kitty of the Day,” take a look at the bar at the top.

I don’t know if the site seems scary now or not. But it is still the same on the side bar. You have your categories over there. And at the top, the horoscopes and other interests of the day are super easy to find now.

Just fool around for a bit, I am sure you will come to love the look just like I do.

“Show Me Some Love, Baby!”

Well I have to admit I am nervous as hell. I have not had one comment about the new look or nothing. Heck, I don’t know if anyone is here or not. I am going to put back up that “Whose Among Us” gadget for sure!

Anyway, I hope you like it because I absolutely love it! I have had my eye on this theme for a long time. Then on one of my practice sites, I sort of got the hang of operating it. So I decided to get the nerve up to try it here. There are still a few things that I am getting use too. That is why everything is so late today. I sincerely apologize for that. Tomorrow I am going to start giving the horoscopes and other related items in the morning. I use to be able to do it, I just got lazy, lol!

Enough with everything, my nerves are getting the best of me. This is one way you can show me if you like the new theme or not by………….

“Showing Me Some Love, Baby !”

Just A Little Note From The Witch’s Desk……

Book & Candle Comments I have everything and its brother on my desk except the skull, lol! Didn’t want you to get the wrong impression. But, of course, if you have put up with me this long, no telling what kind of impression you have of me, lmao! Enough with that foolishness, now on to what I want to actually say. If you remember I made a post a few days ago concerning whether or not you would like to have a daily Tarot lesson or Rune lesson. These lessons would take the place of the Special Critters that I now post everyday. Well I got a good response on the subject. No one was interested in the Rune lessons. There was an equal response on the Special Critters and Tarot lessons, however. Since this occurred, I am going to continue to post the Special Critters as always. After them, there will be a Tarot lesson posted. I figure this is only fair to everyone. If you enjoy something, I don’t want to take it away from you. For the Tarot Lessons, I will be using the Rider-Waite deck, in case you would like to follow along. I believe the first day I am going to start with a brief history on the deck. Then afterwards, I will take each card one by one, put it’s image up and the meaning of the card. When we work our way through the deck. We will then go to the spreads. There we will discuss what each spread means and also what the placements of the cards means in the respective spots. I truly hope you enjoy this. I ask that you please have patience with me. I have never done anything like this before and hopefully all will go smooth. 

 

Oh, I almost forgot, over in the category section of the site, there will be a Tarot Lesson section. Just in case you miss a card, you won’t have to dig through the daily posts to find it. 

~Magickal Graphics~

I am thinking of new ideas for the blog……

I am in the process of racking my brain for new ideas for the blog. I know I generally post the “Doggie of the Day” and the “Special Kitty of the Day.” What I was wondering instead, how would you like it if I posted a “Daily Tarot Card” and “Daily Rune.” These would be no way similar to the Tarot & Rune for Divination each day. These would have a picture with them and also a description or meaning for each. I would start with the first card/rune and work my way through each respective set of Divination tools. Also I would start by giving you a brief history on the Tarot Cards and the Runes. It would be an on-line course for learning the Tarot & Runes. You would get the history, a picture of the card/rune and also the meaning. You could print these out and keep them for your own personal reference.

I think the “Special Kitty & Dog of the Day” are adorable. But I am not teaching you anything except how to recognize certain breeds of doggies! But it is up to you. I don’t want to do anything to run anyone off. I want to keep you all happy and do what the majority wants. Oh, these lessons would be posted were the “Special Kitty & Doggie” show up each day.

So what do you think? I will keep posting the Daily Kitty & Doggie till I hear from you. I just thought this other idea you might find beneficial especially if you want to learn the Tarot or Runes. I am waiting to hear from you. Let me know.

***If you don’t want to post a comment, just hit the hell out of the “Like” button, lol! And I will get the message loud and clear!***

Necromancy for Today

Necromancy for Today
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Author: Bluethorn

A truth of this divination can be found in many paths of the world, yet for myself I have discovered a way of bringing forth what lies in this realm from within. Although perhaps thought of when the implication of ‘within’ is stated as solely useable by the writer, in this case as in all cases of truth writing, this is not so and can be easily learned by anyone with patience and a true will for all things magick.

I state divination as magick because I feel that it is a power to be learned through true faith in its ideology, and because this power does not belong in the hands of the common mundane person.

Necromancy as a practice of spirit divination is something I will be explaining from my own personal account and of events that have taken place within one or more of my past incarnate lives.

As with all things magick in my life, I bring forth the spirit I seek from within myself, or I simply go to it, for I feel that although these methods perhaps do not follow what society tells us of necromancy, they are safe and practical.

First we must destroy within our minds this ridiculous idea that society has given us of what this divination is all about, there is no secret knowledge of an afterlife, no spirit knows more than you, no luck or special power can be called to serve you, and no spirit can be conjured up to do your bidding.

All beings of this world and beyond are contained within the same set of rules which apply to us as living entities and are with us at all times as we are all one with the world.

True necromancy is a divination of empowering the spirit of others into ourselves, of traveling in astral form through space and time to visit the carnate life of the spirit we take within. Indeed this power can be used in the same fashion to take our own spirit to this level, and reawaken the dormant past of our own previous lives, if we may wish so.

In most cases we find that the only things we can learn from within this magick are of lessons of pain, suffering and death, for all spiritual beings, which have died, have felt all of these things and more.

A great reason through for learning of these things is to prevent them from becoming our fate; for all beings of this world endure the most tragic of lessons in one or more of their lives, but to die and learn that lesson can bring forth a salvation of reliving that lesson ever again, in any of our reincarnations.

In the end; when all lessons of pain and suffering have been learned we are free to live a good life, far from any of these horrific things; yet to learn them is to experience them completely as they were learned by the spirit we take into us, that alone can be far too much for an unprepared person to conceive.

As an initiator of necromancy the preceding path is given solely as a construct for us to build upon, thankfully there are vast more pleasurable and positive aspects of life to be learned than there are of darker things. At the time when we have learnt of all that death can teach us, the spirit world no longer holds the barring darkness of pain out for us, and we can now be taught the rest, if we may so wish it.

A problem I see with taking this beyond where we are is that if a lesson of peace or love for instance is learned then we will not spend a lifetime enjoying and learning of it, as many of the goodly lessons take entire lifetimes (sometimes more) to learn.

If one was to say ‘what occurs when all lessons have been learned?’ a simple answer is that they truthfully have not, for in the end, the final lesson is to dissipate and be reborn as a new spirit, and simply to begin learning once again from scratch.

At this time I suppose that all sounds quite theoretical, yet you will see and begin to understand the reasoning I have for writing all of this soon enough if you can continue to read on under your own free will to the following sections.

Beyond the Theoretical 1 –

History tells us of many people who have delved within the realm of Necromancy, written of conjuration and selfish gain from such a thing, yet just like all history it is written solely with lies and hardly ever sparks any remote truth. A truth is that these people spoken of in most cases were very close to death, they believed this to be an ending extreme of magick, all looked inward on them selves as if it would be a bad or evil thing to work this divination.

In a world of manifesting reality such a thing became so for them, and perhaps a spirit did manifest and carry them away, yet it was not due to the divinatory aspects of what they did, it was due to their fear which manifested for them.

No great demon or throng of demonic spirit will appear if you can understand the reality and truth of nature, that being that these things do not exist unless we give them power to do so.

A great magick user could create such a reality if bent on doing so a lot easier than a thousand weak folk believing in a Hell, for this reason it is safe to practice such a thing if taken from the self if we follow the truth of it.

Not to say that magick of within is weaker, simply that when we learn it properly there no longer exists anything to protect ourselves from, as it is entirely from us, and not ‘borrowed’ from elsewhere.

In its entirely, the self is never ending and borderless with no limitation or barring rules to hold us back, it is the elements united, the path of the Stars, the day and the night, and all things great or small of all realms, for within us is a mirroring of all the great patterns and strengths of the world.

Drawing of power from within yields us the same result as without (or from some object or tool), except that since it is from within we have absolute control and understanding of it, and so in actuality our results are far more potent and can be indefinitely more powerful if we wish them to be.

I believe that a wondrous aspect of self magick is that we require no preparation, circle, candle, wand, or anything of that sort for there is no conduit beyond us, and no fear of failure, resulting in absolute dominance of our minds and magick with no doubt available whatsoever.

What doubt could arrive if we remove all tools and variables that could hinder anything from occurring? Without a doubt or deterrence we are free to live however we may wish, if this path draws us into learning then Necromancy is a tool which we can utilize for such self education.

Although self education may seem pointless in a world where a piece of paper is more substantial than an intellectual mind, when we see the true knowledge and begin to learn of it, there is no longer a cause to worry about such papers, as you become empowered with what it takes to succeed on your own terms.

No one educated by society is ever remembered as unique or as an innovator, it is when they tear away from society and grasp reality that they become great and empowered with what it really takes to shine in this world. Perhaps it may sound illogical to state that self knowledge can be learnt through a method of empowering the self with the spirit of others, but in actuality this path is self knowledge because the spirit world around us is one with us, unlike what people write in books with the idea of making money.

Arguably as the idea of learning or writing text books to actually teach goes, from those who write such things it may seem that their intent is to teach and they are rewarded with money, yet the reality of it is that these people would not write them if no one would read their work. No publisher would pay anyone to write anything that no one would read or buy, and so textbooks for classroom education would not be written.

With this idea in mind we can now see that all modern written learning instruments of our society exist solely to make money, and therefore self education is far more pure and enlightening path to follow. Self-education is a path of learning what we must know for ourselves, as we only learn what we care about and what is meaningful to us, as opposed to a bunch of useless facts to ‘plump up’ a book for publication, solely to meet page quotas.

Learn of this magick for yourself and you will be rewarded with the confidence and power to change the entire world around you for the better, and the prosperity of your life will easily become evident.

Beyond the Theoretical 2 –

True Necromancy begins as any form of divination, with a unification of the source you are working with, to drive a shade of that medium upon yourself. Although when many think of Necromancy they automatically think of graveyards, cemeteries and crypts, yet in reality death is all around us, most evidential in the Fall when crops die and trees go to sleep.

In the Spring or Summer it is difficult to utilize a Necromantic approach as the world is being reborn and living, yet it is not impossible to attain a shroud of death upon yourself. Essentially death is the reformation of the body to the Earth construct to which it began, by the removal of the Water, Fire, and eventually Air from the body, leaving only the Earth to rest, or to begin again.

It is essential to note that places of earthly magnificence are empowered by the initiating construct and prime to necromantic endeavor, since they contain little to none of the empowering elements.

Perhaps interesting to note that most spiritual seekers in the world find their answers in places most devoid of light (Fire), motion (Water) and of a sort of dank or stagnant Air formation, for in these places there is no great spiritual presence over any other except for that of the Earth.

In Necromancy there are many approaches that work successfully and I will explain a few of them briefly, including a few negative or positive aspects of each.

1. To become as the dead and take upon yourself this shroud is to remove much of the elements from yourself as possible. By not eating we remove energy and become weak (no Fire), by not drinking we move the Water, eventually we will find shortness of breath and lose the Air as well. A bad part of this is that it may be difficult to recover if we have not worked with elemental empowerment in the past, and by becoming so close to the Earthly construct we could die.

2. We could remove the elements from our surroundings and create within our rooms an aura of stagnant death that could then open up a greater presence of spiritual awareness. Doing so may include things like closing the blinds to your room, not touching anything for a long time or visiting it at all, closing all air vents and removing the production of any circulation in the air, creating a sense of how it would be like to visit a crypt type environment. A drawback of this is that it might take weeks to prepare, and leave lasting effects within your home such as odors or terrible air conditions.

3. You could visit a crypt at a cemetery, or a place that has been undisturbed for many months or years to work your Necromantic practice. A major set back I see of this is that divination goes hand in hand with meditation or trance work of this level, and may render you motionless for hours straight. The deeper you go the easier it becomes to get engrossed in its power and lose connection with your physical self for great periods of time. When experienced with this work however it becomes easier to regain your stature and return to your physical manifestation if the needs arise, however to begin with this is highly difficult.

4. A practice, which I utilize, is the containment of an aura of Earth within me through the elemental world, in this we awaken our senses to feel and see the aura around us, and replace our current aura wit hone of the Earth. I have written much of this in other guides however and do not feel it to be a necessity to go far beyond the scope of this topic. If you wish to draw upon the power of the elemental auras then I would insist that you explore those sections on the rest of my website.

Beyond the Theoretical 3 –

The bonding of the self towards a necromantic approach can be seen in each of these, some can be combined with others, as can easily be seen by reading them over. Basically the idea is to become at a point where the spirit world of the dead (or construct of the Earth), can enter our bodies through an astral or elemental channel. If we succeed in the attainment of this connection we will become as the spirit is, free from the physical and elevated beyond the ethereal plane, in a form of trance we will have attained the connection we require.

After this connection has been established it will be quite easy to travel or call upon elements of the spirit world for we will be quite similar to how it manifests upon the astral plane we are now part of. Although theoretics yield us the fundamentals we require there is an aspect of divine magick, which we must utilize, for it is not simply enough to walk within a place of spiritual awareness and become part of it, and so I will write of the steps I take.

The following however is my personal account of such a thing and as a personal path of self empowerment, it works for me because I have brought it forth from within myself and so it may perhaps not work for many others, yet the fundamentals are there to learn of.

The Drawing of Power –

From within the Earth a power of the spirit lingers, drawn by the will to contend with the people of magick to unite its ways with those of the living. As one with us all it is in a sense already with us, yet to draw on its power for an awakening to its nature we must empower ourselves with its manifestation. In the ways to which we would draw the power of the element of Earth within us, we will follow the path to this end as well, for as it is a unification with the Earth in a basic sense anyway.

The drawing of Earth power comes up and into us from our base just as the Earth to plant life occurs, beginning at our feet it travels up to our base and spread through us from there. At the time the power reaches our mind, it also reaches our hands and fingers, and so the unity of the mind to a conduit of physical transference is now reached.

If this is done in a place of death as prepared above, the spirit of the Earth will come within, instead of the element of Earth, and thus empowering us with the spirit. Assurance that it is a spirit of the dead comes by chanting something along the lines of:

“Bring forth a spirit whose death I haven’t known,
Empower me with a life to which I have yet been shown”

Of course this is a simple chant, yet it works all well for me, run it through your mind and voice as you begin, until you can no longer think of these words, as they are part of you.

These are my words and yet they may work for everyone, I’m not entirely sure, they rhyme solely because I find them easier to remember the deeper into this work I get, and just as this is, all things of this world will blur and eventually disappear the deeper you get into your trance.

There is of course more preparation, which must come into play to ensure true results beyond simply selecting a place, and calling some words, for most people’s minds are far too skeptical for this to work without some kind of persuasion.

We will create that persuasion through further drawing the shroud of death around us, in the end though this ‘buffer of persuasion” will no longer be required as we will never doubt it again.

Persuading the Mind 1 –

To persuade anything in our society into the minds of the skeptical we must create a manifestation of its attributes in a physical manner so that an understanding can occur. Many years ago this was not so, as people believed in many more things than today, nevertheless thought we can create a shroud of persuasion which will alter our perceptions into seeing and believing a truth of magick. Altered perception comes when we have enveloped all five primary senses to states where they can see, hear, smell, touch and taste a thing; in this case the spiritual manifestation of death.

1. Sight is perhaps the easiest of senses to persuade and the most awakening for its power to convince us of a thing almost in its self draws what we need. I think it is humorous to note that society has blinded us so much to what reality actually is that all we have to do is remove that blindness and restore our natural sight, yet for now we will use what we already believe as truth to persuade our sense of sight.

To allow a room to go untouched for a long period of time usually draws a blanket of cover over the air to produce a sort of ‘fog’ by casting odd shadows and interrupting our sense of sight from crystal clarity is a good step in the proper direction. Such a thing produces a sense of reality, which our eyes cannot focus on, especially if we are tired or have overstrained our eyes, which is a thing we will work towards accomplishing.

Although many say that hallucination often yields things that are not true to be seen, for that is the definition of hallucination anyway, though if we attune ourselves to a state where such illusions would occur enough, they become reality.

Stating such a thing may be odd, yet once you experience it through your own eyes the shadow and lights will no longer play tricks on them and you will see past the foggy air and find your focus on the spirit world.

2. It may, to begin with, be difficult to hear what we must focus on to alter our perceptions of reality in a positive degree, yet if we learn to close off the worldly distractions of our hearing we will find a sense of peace. To open this sense in the proper degree we must concentrate on listening to the natural in the mundane world, for although it is difficult to understand, it does exist in such a way that if we listen, it will speak to us.

When we close our hearing to distraction we find that we can hear our heart beating and hear the air touching us, these things come naturally and are tools we can use to focus on. I believe that hearing and touch go hand in hand with one another, as most sound simply touches our inner ear to certain ways, and the product of such a thing is that we hear it.

If we concentrate in the proper ways we can elevate our sense of touch to magnify our hearing, in essence whatever we may touch, we will also hear. Beyond simply hearing what we touch, we can elevate the power of this unity to a state where we hear noth8ing with our ears, only with our touch, and through that we can further block the sound interference by going further and into a trance like state.

Within the deduction of touch and sound we find that the less we feel physically, the less we become within the physical world and the easier it becomes to leave our bodies towards the beyond. We are left now with how this is a persuasion, well to find the unity of touch and hearing is to bring forth what holds us back from our goal in two more of the five senses of persuasion, together with the reality we bring from our hallucinatory condition we will now be able to hear the spirit world calling to us, and since we can hear it, if we bring back our sense of touch in the same degree, we can touch or feel it as well.

3. I’ve always found a quite close relation between smell and taste, and so I will explain the persuasion of these together as well. In actuality I suppose that all five senses are closely related in many ways, yet to separate them as I have done here creates an easier sense of the persuasion we can use, opposed to trying them all at once. To persuade these two senses in the proper direction is as simple as entering a room of stagnant air with low circulation, it sort of catches us and lingers on our skin in a quite odd way.

Going beyond this if we go a day or two without washing our mouths then something eerie and stagnant is bound to elevate our senses automatically with no persuasion, if you so wish it. I’ve heard and read that the closer a person becomes to actual death, the better for this work, even to a point of wearing a dead person’s clothes, and laying down in their casket for a sleep (although even I wouldn’t go this far). I suppose a way of persuasion is what it takes in any degree, yet a stable mind, focused on the magick and path ahead is far more potent a path than many other dramatic forms of persuasion.

Persuading the Mind 2 –

Beyond these small amounts of tips and whatnot lies the actual atmosphere around you, if for instance you feel more empowered by this work on a night of great rain, thunder, and lightning; then use that night as well. All of these things however, center on the same ideas of awakening within yourself what society has taught for all of your days as being wrong and foolish to pursue.

The real problem I see with society is that it does not wish you to become your own person and actually succeed in the world if you are not of a certain minority group. Society cares nothing at all for the middleclass, white male who obeys ‘law’, pays his taxes, and who lives his life going to work or school everyday hoping to one day get a break.

Although these people are invisible to the society of today by not oppressing themselves like minority groups solely for attention in one way or another, they still exist, and in the end no matter what a person believes or doesn’t believe, the fact is that these humans are born and die; when they die they all lose their life empowering elements, and decompose in the same way back to the Earth.

The body does such a thing as this, and as far as all religions go, they do not touch on that aspect of the worldly truth, the spirit may go on; but seeing as the body is always to the Earth, there is always a way to bring back some part of it, as the connection will exist for all eternity.

With this truth known, and the persuasion of magick achieved we are free to begin actual magick from the self, meaning that we are the guiding power of our magick, and the only tool we require is our own body. Within this work however there lies a certain fear perhaps of dying or being lost in the spirit world, we will create a buffer which ties our spirits to our bodies, and a warning system which will deny anything beyond what we want from happening, we can do this because we will be in total control of our fate. The buffer which will tie our spirit to our body comes by bringing with you objects which elevate your senses of taste, smell and hearing to levels which your body will sense as recognition and be glad to awaken to, of course these objects will lay around you yet the deeper you become immersed in this magick, the weaker your senses become to the physical world when traveling beyond ourselves.

By remembering and yearning for such tastes, smells, and sounds; our body will pull us back to our physical self. The denial of unwanted actions from occurring will come naturally to us when we have achieved a state where we leave our bodies, for in the same way this magick occurred we will go backwards from where we stand and the borders of where we go will always be evident, simply by stepping beyond our border permits us to step back in the same way.

A hardship of this is that it is addictive, and the further we go, the further we will want to go beyond that, and the longer it will take us to return; at some point if we are not smart enough to follow the correct path back, we may become lost; and our bodies may shut down after months or years if we take it to that degree.

Awakening the Spirit –

When we have succeeded at persuading our minds to believe what truth we seek, and have brought the shroud of death upon us we are ready for the next step. It is difficult to explain for certain of how this works as many times I’ve tried to teach of magick I’ve been met with blank, drooling faces, yet I will write of this and hope it is understood, by a logical person who thinks on their own I’m sure it will be no problem.

Drawing the spirit of others within is in essence a path we utilize to draw our own spirit to surface and be taught and empowered with the spirits around it. Though the previous writing of this guide tells of leaving the body, these things are as one; for to leave the body is to enter the spirit world, which is as well to be united and to learn from other spirits of the realm.

To draw upon the power to do so from ourselves we must first find the power in the physical world and become along the same wavelength as it; them we can draw it up from below us, in through our feet and into our minds.

An important thing to note before we begin is that we must bring some forms of healthy life with us to our magick, for upon the return from deaths surface, we must draw that power and life back into us or we will not succeed in returning.

To raise our arms above us as the mimicking perhaps of a great tree is the formation we will use to draw this power through us; just as the roots absorb the spirit of the Earth below, so shall we, yet in this case it will not be a nourishing spirit but one of decay and death for that is how the Earth spirit exists in our atmosphere and state of mind which we have created.

We will feel the spirit of death pulling our spirit from us the further it gets within, we will become weaker physically and be forced to either sit or lay down the further we go, if we do not sit or lay of our own will then we will be thrown to the floor.

The further still that we go, the further from our bodies will our spirit become, to a point of seeing it from just outside the body, to a ways away, and eventually we will no longer see or feel anything.

We will still be aware of our surroundings though as in the spirit world our senses work through our mind, and not our bodies; having no physical form permits no touch to be felt as would occur in the physical world, yet everything else will feel identical. The things will feel identical even to the point of walking upright on a solid ground (although this is simply how our minds perceive the spirit world).

The spirits we may come across in the spirit realm will be of a style towards which we would see ourselves, walking, interacting and speaking, just in the same fashion we would interact with one another. Having died perhaps in different ways, to speak with such spirits could create many quite unstable results.

Although it may seem as if we are merely speaking to them, the reality is that the spirit world manifests solely for us in our minds, and our perceptions have given us a resemblance of our physical world. In speaking or interacting to any point is to draw the spirit from our manifestation of the realm and into ourselves, upon doing so we find our experiences first hand of the lessons or knowledge that we seek.

In many ways we will not be aware of this interaction beyond speaking within the spirit world, yet upon our return to the physical we will be flooded with images, thoughts, feelings, and dreams of what the spirit we spoke with was teaching us. Within the spirit world we will have to face ourselves to separate from our spirit guide, to return to ourselves this can occur simply as saying “thank you” and walking away, when the release is accomplished and the spirit walks away in our manifest reality, it is leaving us in the physical world and our senses of elevation will be most evident to return to our bodies.

If this does not occur then simply waiting will tire our bodies eventually and pull us back with a guiding path to return with, if we disobey this path back and do not follow our senses of return then we may become lost, and join the realm with our own lessons to teach.

A Return –

Bringing forth the path of return from the spirit world is to essentially drive our spirit from the spirit realm back to our bodies. This can be tricky if not done properly for if we stay away too long in our awkward state, we may suffer brain or body damage and be forced to live with that unless we can heal ourselves.

A way to protect ourselves from having this occur is by keeping many living things of power close to us so when we leave our bodies, the living and positive energies will be available to heal us if we are gone and are unaware of what is occurring. Plants and caged animals serve this purpose well of staying near to us, as will certain large amounts of water in unmoving conditions, candles on surfaces where they will burn out before they set ablaze, and perhaps a window with sunlight or moonlight showing.

Things of living nature are essentially what we want for the spirit world is far from nature, and so nature will ease our return to our bodies as well as provide the nourishment we need to survive without our spirit. After the return to our bodies has taken place it is most essential to drink much water, to warm ourselves and to breathe fresh air, in essence to re-empower ourselves with the elements we have drawn out.

These techniques can of course be modified to suit anyone of any degree, and so just as this writing comes from myself, so will it from you if successfully achieved. If it has not worked then you are simply too attached to what society deems true, and when that falsehood leaves you, your results will be far more positive.

Calendar of the Moon for April 3rd

Calendar of the Moon
3 Fearn/Elaphebolion

Day of Bran

Colors: Black and crimson
Element: Fire
Altar: On a cloth of crimson and green set a vase with alder twigs, and the figures of many crows and ravens, or at least black feathers, one black candle, incense of rue, and a black stone.
Offerings: On this day, divination shall be done by those with the skill for any who ask.
Daily Meal: Poultry.

Invocation to Bran

God of the Alder-Tree
Whose roots go deep underground,
Whose path goes deep underground,
We call upon you today.
Lord of the Western Ocean,
Lord of healing and curer of wounds,
Lord of the setting sun,
We call upon you today.
Crimson-stained hero,
Beheaded god who lived on
As the skull of oracles,
Lord of crows and ravens
That eat all that dies and rots,
Lord of the black-feathered wings
Of destiny and nemesis,
Show us our fate,
Or what fate you deem it wise to show us.
And if it is our fate
Not to know what that fate shall be,
Give us at least a signpost,
A light along the path,
That we may not stumble foolishly
And lose the last few crumbs
Of the wisdom you have gained
From the dark places where your roots entwine.
Chant:
As the crow flies, So the truth lies
As the flame burns, So our fate turns

(Let all sit in a circle, and let divination be done by one who has the skill, for any who ask. And let no one speak on the message given to anyone else. Put out the candle and leave the room.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]