Weekly Reading: Monday, April 15, 2019-Sunday, April 21, 2019
My boys are very supportive. I stopped writing my Daily Draws, and they asked me if I would pick it up again. They like reading them. I love to write, so to maintain balance in body, mind, and spirit I think a "Weekly Reading" will be a great way to jump back in.
Delightfully, this week's chosen Tarot Deck is the "Spirit Within Tarot" with art and book by Steven Bright. "The Spirit Within" is one of the most popular decks with my clients, and I have to agree with them; it's a wonderful deck. The beauty of the "Spirit Within Tarot" is that with only silhouettes anyone can place themselves into the characters, as gender, race, and age are ambiguous. Sometimes it's also not as clear which way a character is facing. Are they looking at us or away? Do they look to the present location or into the distant future? Are they happier where they are or where they are going? Before I buy an online deck, I spend a lot of time in Google Image search researching the art used. I've mentioned before that the art is how I connect to the cards and my readings and when I first saw these images, I was viscerally struck. The closer the character was to me the deeper I felt. Then the visceral became the intellectual which is so often how it is for me. "I should be able to see their face, shouldn't I? Why can't I? What are they hiding? Why am I so bothered by not seeing their face? What is this image revealing about me?" The images are also fairly modern. As Steven Bright so aptly describes in his enjoyable LWB that came with the box set, each character is recognizable as "shadows" of ourselves, today. For examples, the Page of Pentacles is a young soccer player, Temperance is a DJ, and Strength stares down a lion as a wild equal. All in all, this is a beautiful Tarot deck that I think will connect to beginners as well as professionals. I'm always pleased when a client chooses this deck for their session, and I always learn something new.
The card for this week is one that we haven't met previously. The Lenormand Snake has come up for us way back on November 28, 2018, but the 9 of Wands is all new. The 9 of Wands is found nearly at the end of the story of fire. I always say that if 10 is the end, 9 is that moment before. The pause between an inhale, and an exhale. It's that moment where we understand the end is near, and we gather ourselves in a moment of isolation and solitude to rest before we reach the end.
Since Fire rules inspiration, creativity and often business as an art form, by the time we get to the 9 of Wands we have seen a lot. We've had the creative spark of the Ace, the decision to move forward with our idea in 2, the effect of our view on our community in 3, the enjoyment of our success in 4, the challenges we feel when others get involved in 5, finally being honored for our achievements in 6, the need to defend our position in 7, our worldly power and move into the wide world in 8, and then, finally in 9, we have rest. Through our journey, we have pushed ourselves and our creations to the limit and now with the Moon in Sagittarius in charge, "I aim for my soul's desire and I feel worldly." Though Sagittarius is the great Olympian of the Zodiac, they are also the most philosophical and are willing to push themselves spiritually as well as physically. Usually, a competitor, this Sagittarius is bending his knee. He has no intention of fighting anymore. He has achieved in building his physical, spiritual and emotional kingdom. The sun rises on his empire, and he is content.
What does this mean for the week? According to the astrology of the week, the moon continues to wax and grow bigger and dons the costumes of the organized Virgo, the romantic (and full) Libra and the mysterious Scorpio all while the Sun travels through Aries, another fire sign and friend to Aries. However, despite the need to DO something in Aries while the moon waxes and turns full, our card is telling us perhaps its best to do nothing at all, at least physically. Be more aware of where you stand now. Take the rest before the next big thing.
Aries Sun has a hard time with resting but throughout the month Aries has helped us discover who we genuinely are and now the 9 of Wands is saying "Yes. It's paying off. You're almost there so don't push it. Bend the knee. You've been through a lot. You've done a lot. You deserve to recover and see how much you have achieved because the next bit will be harder than you anticipate, especially when the moon grows smaller and wanes next week. It will be less about adding to your life and more about retracting. So take this week to recover and plan." Since the snake has decided to slither through the grass, I think that she is saying that you should look to the powerful ladies in your life and see how they may affect your rest. She may be a helpful rat snake that will eat up all of your stress, or maybe she's full of venom. Either way, she will have an influence. It's up to you in how you will deal with her.
Have a wonderful week everyone. Enjoy the creative solitude that the 9 of Wands can bring to you!