Tag Archives: Rituals

Harvest Home Lughnasa Spread #Tarot #TarotReading #Lughnasa #TarotoftheHiddenRealm

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Harvest Home Lughnasa Spread from Tarot for All Seasons by Christine Jette
  1. The root of the matter, what you need to do to keep both your feet on the ground? 5 of Swords
  2. Career, attitudes about work – are you following your heart’s desire or just surviving? Page of Swords Rx
  3. Finances, attitudes about money – Money is energy; is your energy blocked or does it flow freely? Queen of Swords Rx
  4. Connections and sharing – how do you let your guard down to share with others? The Star
  5. Health & healing; how do you nurture & care for yourself? The Sun
  6. First harvest you have planted, the garden and the seeds of your life – What are you reaping for yourself based on your attitudes and behaviors?  What are you harvesting? 8 of Pentacles
  7. Fruition achievements maturation fulfillment satisfaction success – what are you thankful for? Life Renewed (Judgement)

The figure on the Five of Swords is fierce and determined. She looks like she’s going into battle convinced of the rightness of her cause and that others will follow her. In the context of this reading, I think she reflects that fighting for our truth, fighting for what we believe in, fighting for our ideals can help keep us grounded. The world is a very scary place right now and it’s easy to get overwhelmed by what’s going on. I think the Five of Swords shows that defending what we believe in gives us purpose. The unfortunate flip side to this is that those who disagree with us will be equally vehement in defending their beliefs and ideals. Sometimes, that’s the way it goes.

The reverse Page of Swords suggested right now might be a time to reassess what you’re doing on a professional level. Something isn’t sitting right for you at the moment. Perhaps you just don’t believe in the value of your job the way you once did. You’ve lost your sense of purpose. In the context of this spread it suggests that you’re letting the logical path (staying in a job you may no longer be passionate about because it’s a secure income) outweigh your desire to feel committed to your work; to feel that it has meaning and value.

The reverse Queen of Swords shows that right now your energy is blocked, especially as it pertains to finances. If we connect this to the Page of Swords reversed, perhaps this Queen is reflecting that you’re blocked because, although you’re getting paid, your current job not nurturing your inner self; it’s not allowing you to live up to your ideals and your beliefs. If that is one of your core values, then this might be an area that you address so all that blocked energy can be freed.

The Star reflects the hopefulness and trust we might need to bring to connecting with others. Let’s face it any relationship requires a certain amount of faith because we open ourselves up to others as reflected by the childlike figure on this card. That also leaves us vulnerable to being hurt and betrayed. What The Star shows us is that even if this is the case, hope will remain as a light in the darkness to guide us through it. As many public service announcements remind LGBTQ+ youth, it will get better. In this reading, I think The Star reminds us that if we close ourselves off to meeting new people, to exploring relationships with those that seem unfamiliar or have different viewpoints, we risk becoming isolated and rigid.

This was an interesting card in this position. The Sun is usually symbolic of celebrating ourselves and embracing our successes but in this case it’s reversed. I think that’s telling us that we can’t celebrate ourselves and embrace our achievements until we can value ourselves. Perhaps this ties in with the reversed Page and Queen in terms of one’s attitude towards their career and money. If someone sticks to a job they detest in order to maintain a secure income it might impact their self-esteem and sense of self; cause untold levels of stress that negatively impact one’s health. It’s hard to celebrate yourself and acknowledge achievements if these things have no value to you because they’re in a field that you no longer find fulfilling. So maybe the key to unblocking this energy is free the stuck energy reflected in positions 2 and 3.

The 8 of Pentacles is a reminder that we get out of this life what we put into it. If we continue forcing ourselves to pursue a path that no longer brings a satisfaction it’s going to impact our relationships, our health our sense of self. I love the energy reflected in this card because it seems a perfect melding of Earth and fire; of the physical and the energetic; of money and career. In order to get to this place perhaps we need to look at the other blocked areas and get them unstuck.

Life Renewed reminds us that there is a way out of the darkness. We can emerge from all this blocked energy filled with dissatisfaction and self doubt by changing our mindset. We need to reassess and reevaluate what we’re doing and see if it’s providing the benefit we desired. We don’t always have to work at a job that is our hearts desire as long as it fulfills a need and only you can decide what that need truly is. The important thing is to recognize whether you’re feeling trapped by the situation and if so what can you do to change it because only you can lead yourself out of the shadows and into the light.

The three Swords cards at the core of this reading suggest that healing this situation is going to depend upon changing our perspective and mindset. We need to communicate more effectively with ourselves and listen to our inner voice. We might also find it useful to communicate more effectively with others in our lives so they understand our thoughts about a situation and whether we are truly satisfied and fulfilled. And if not, what they can do, if anything, to help us change it. It’s useful to remember that others in our lives cannot read our minds. If we don’t tell them what we’re thinking, we can’t become upset when they don’t fulfill our needs.

COTD – 7 of Cups (Wheel of Change & Greenwood)

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Looking at both these cards I was struck by the idea of offerings – each image shows several bowls each filled with a variety of offerings.  The offerings might serve a different purpose but for some reason what struck me was honoring the ancestors or the gods.  On the Greenwood 7 of Cups a skull is surrounded by 7 cups and its keyword is mourning.   The Wheel of Change 7 of Cups shows 7 bowls filled with various types of foods surrounding a grinning, fanged statue – the Fire God of Flores.  These are offerings to appease the Fire God.  The offerings and statue all sit on a decorated carpet shaded by a parasol, and overlooking three craters and a volcano.  One of the craters is filled with burgundy fluid, the other has a greenish fluid and the third a milky blue fluid.  Across the plain a mountain reaches up towards the sky but is still in the shadow of the huge volcano.

The Greenwood image shouted “honoring the Ancestors” at me.  It reminded me of spiritual practices where people make offerings and give honor to the Noble Dead, the ancestors of blood and heart.  The skull at the center symbolizes those dead ancestors.  On the Wheel of Change 7 of Cups I was struck by the idea of someone making offerings to the deity of the volcano; sacrifices to appease the gods.  Regardless of what purpose the offerings serve, the main concept is that they are offerings.

That reminded me that I could spend more time honoring my own ancestors.  As part of ADF’s ritual structure and spiritual practice, honoring the Ancestors is required and recommended.  Beyond the ritual structure, there is no mandatory way to do this but many members find that daily devotionals offer a wonderful opportunity to connect with the Ancestors and offer them honor and recognition.  I have been somewhat remiss in this area.  I certainly think about my ancestors on a regular basis but I’m not always as diligent at daily devotions or making offerings to them.  The reality is that the more I honor them, the more likely they are to aide me.  But more than that, I do feel it is important to remember our ancestors, even if they weren’t very nice.

I have been doing some preliminary genealogical research over the past few months and it amazes me how many of the women in my line seem to have been married to rather useless men.  Of course I’m extrapolating this belief based on certain things I’ve found in the records – such as that my great-grandmother divorced my great-grandfather and the family stories I’ve heard about those I can remember.  I think in past generations when it was not as easy to divorce a spouse as it is today, many men and women stayed in unhappy relationships for a variety of reasons.  I don’t think such a sacrifice should be forgotten.  I also think honoring and remembering the ancestors and keeping family stories alive give us a sense of connection to something much larger than ourselves.  It allows us to see the patterns that have influenced our families and ultimately change those that are negative into something positive.  It can also help heal rifts.  For many years I had a rough relationship with my mother because I couldn’t forgive her for things that had occurred in my childhood.  When I was able to take a step back and look at her childhood and her mother’s childhood, things came into focus and my perceptions shifted.  This ultimately allowed me to start healing this rift and forgive her.

So although we have specific occasions for honoring those that died in war or serving this country, perhaps we need to get better at honoring our own personal dead.  We can offer thanks to the grandmother whose sense of humor was passed on to us and helps us get through the rough times.  Or perhaps we need to thank and honor the aunt who gifted us with her bright red hair or her no-nonsense approach to obstacles.  Whatever gifts they have given me and however they continue to bless my life, I think the 7 of Cups is reminding me that I need to make more of an effort to honor my ancestors on a regular basis.