The Hierophant

"I would like a story," says the salamander to the Hierophant.


"And what would you like to hear, little one?" The words come slowly. Each syllable seems to be drawn from deep within, pulled up from an individual rootlet. The salamander is used to it, and patient.


Stephanie Pui-Mun Law
from Shadowscapes companion book


The Hierophant card can be seen as a positive card in a tarot spread... It represents someone in search of higher truths and who is spiritual in nature. Customs and traditions are highlighted and it suggests that we can all find comfort in our culture, especially during hard and difficult times. It is time to get back to basics, like the ancients from our past did.


The Hierophant is someone who is able to see through the superficial and get straight to the heart of the matter. He has a healthy connection with life and living, someone who has experienced life in full and now has the experience and wisdom needed in order to teach others, like that of the wise old tree we see in this card.


He is a spiritual teacher and represents gateways to a higher consciousness reached in a ritualized way.The Hierophant can be considered to the link between the higher plane... he teaches by word and example as the wise old tree to the salamander.


The Hierophant encourages us to find freedom through knowledge and exploration. He may indicate that it is a good time for you to seek counsel from someone that is more experienced. You may be longing for structured spirituality, perhaps in the form of religious services.


This might be a time where you are in the process of finding meaning for your life and you may be questioning you own behavior. In a tarot reading, the Hierophant encourages you to look within and explore your truths and it may be telling you to adopt a more conventional way of thinking.

Tarot Tuesday

"I would like a story," says the salamander to the Hierophant.


"And what would you like to hear, little one?" The words come slowly. Each syllable seems to be drawn from deep within, pulled up from an individual rootlet. The salamander is used to it, and patient.


Stephanie Pui-Mun Law 
from Shadowscapes companion book

The Hierophant card can be seen as a positive card in a tarot spread... It represents someone in search of higher truths and who is spiritual in nature. Customs and traditions are highlighted and it suggests that we can all find comfort in our culture, especially during hard and difficult times. It is time to get back to basics, like the ancients from our past did.

The Hierophant is someone who is able to see through the superficial and get straight to the heart of the matter. He has a healthy connection with life and living, someone who has experienced life in full and now has the experience and wisdom needed in order to teach others, like that of the wise old tree we see in this card.


He is a spiritual teacher and represents gateways to a higher consciousness reached in a ritualized way.The Hierophant can be considered to the link between the higher plane... he teaches  by word and example as the wise old tree to the salamander.

The Hierophant encourages us to find freedom through knowledge and exploration. He may indicate that it is a good time for you to seek counsel from someone that is more experienced. You may be longing for structured spirituality, perhaps in the form of religious services. 


This might be a time where you are in the process of finding meaning for your life and you may be questioning you own behavior. In a tarot reading, the Hierophant encourages you to look within and explore your truths and it may be telling you to adopt a more conventional way of thinking.

Tarot Tuesday

In this card, we can see the Hermit standing alone on a mountain top with a  lantern in hand. The Hermit has attained his spiritual goal and is ready to share his knowledge. Astrologically, this card is represented by Virgo (detail-oriented, strong analytical faculties, perfectionism.) It is numbered 9 in the Major Arcana and represents accomplishment, wisdom, the attainment of goals as well as the search for truth. 


In symbolism... the lantern represents the Lamp of Truth containing the star of wisdom and the staff  is the patriarch's staff which is the symbol of the narrow path of initiation. The snow at the Hermit's feet represents the heights of spiritual attainment and he wears the grey cloak of invisibility.

 In readings, the Hermit represents the need to slow down and absorb more of a peaceful and quite life.  He finds his knowledge and wisdom through exploration of the inner self rather then the physical world around him.  The Hermit separates himself from the more unimportant aspects of life in order to find true self-awareness. He does not just experience life but he uses that experience to understand why things are the way they are.  


The Hermit is learning about the self and the motivations behind his own personal actions and thinking.  He often represents a more meditative state of mind that  focuses on one's purpose. The Hermit is more self-conscious, so he has become more aware of any negative patterns or cycles he is repeating and strives to improve them for the benefit of everyone.


When the Hermit turns up for you, some helpful questions to ask yourself are... "When was the last time I stopped to take a break from the hectic daily schedules in my life...? "Am I  able to be quite and listen to my inner voice...? "Is the current path I am on still as significant as when I first started out?  Maybe this is a key time to stop and meditate on your goals and inner truths, take notice any negative patterns that might be hindering your progress.

How Blue Is The Moon.....

In our modern times, a blue moon is the second full moon of a month...but why call it blue? It doesn't look blue....So where did this term really come from? I did a little research and found that the term "blue moon" started appearing around the very early 1900's as a phrase "Once in a blue moon" meaning something rare or seldom occurring.  The moon has actually appeared blue in the case of major volcanic eruptions and when the ash rose high into the atmosphere, the ash clouds made it appear as blue.

I found out these blue moons occur, on average, about every thirty two or three months and in 1999 there were double blue moons as one appeared in January and because February only had 28 days, the second blue moon occured in March. Just in case you missed them the first time, this double delight happens about every nineteen solar years....so in 2018 and 2037  the  twin blue moons can be seen again.

Blue Moon Spell For Wisdom And Intuition:

Items Needed

* One blue candle (any size or shape)
* One white candle (again, any shape or size)
* Two matching candleholders
* A small representation of the four elements (Air, Fire, Water, Earth)
* A fresh white flower in a vase
* Matches
* A safe flat surface

Directions:

Set out these items in a way that is pleasing to you. Light the blue candle that represents the blue moon and the white candle next (which represents the moon goddess Selene.) Ground and center yourself and begin drawing down the moon. When you are finished, tip your face up towards the blue moon and request wisdom and protection by repeating these words...


"On this night of Selene's magical blue moon,
Lady, hear my request and grant me boon.
Bless me with intuition and wisdom both day and night.
Work your loving magick in each aspect of my life."


Close this spell with these words:

"I thank the goddess Selene for her time and care,
as this blue moon gently hovers in the night air."

Ground and center yourself and allow the candles to burn until they burn themselves out, keep the flower until it begins to fade and then dispose of it in a compost pile or bury it in your garden.

Bright Blessings!

Tarot Shadow Work- The Gift Of Wisdom

This week, I'm working with the card Justice in conjuntion with the World card as I will be applying it to "The Gift of Wisdom." Wisdom is not something that you can buy from Amazon.com or something that we are born with, it comes from patience, stillness, listening and experiences....learning from our mistakes.

In the Star of Discovery, (card one) The World ...I am comparing it with the Justice card in position six, I find myself asking how does this apply to me? What is the gift that lies within the shadows? The Justice card's Shadow Qualities are "using only logic to make decisions...being out of touch with your Higher self and an "All or nothing" viewpoint." I, myself am very aware of the last on the list, I have always had a black and white outlook on life and it's situations.

The problem that comes with this mentality is that I tend to miss out on all the wonderful "grey" areas that life can offer. There are so many things that I have missed out on up until now and by working through this book, a whole new perspective has begun to unfurl before me.

I had the idea to draw another card that will represent aggression that I need to bring into my concious and drew The Empress. Her Shadow Qualities are inability to let go of relationships...feeling emotionally barren or separated....dwelling on pains from the past and holding on to destructive situations. I completely understand how I exhibit these qualities and by addressing them in my concious will allow me to become better aquainted with them.  I am not trying to 'fix" these aggressions at this present time but by bringing them out into the light, I am able to see them for what they are and how they became anchor's in the here and now.

After the events of the past week it all seems to be coming together and working on my shadow is beginning to blend into all aspects of my life and I'm happy to say that I am becoming a much better person and gaining in wisdom by leaps and bounds!

Diary Of A Bookworm

I love books, as a child, my main goal for going to school was learning how to read...even as a kindergardner I knew that if I could learn to read that I could do anything. I was bitterly disappointed in second grade when I found out that I still needed to attend school for several more years but I never did lose my love of reading. I continued to read voraciously and even today I've been known to burn the midnight oil, curled up with a really good book.

Recently, while listening to Foxtayle's Pagan Podcast, she reviewed a book by Barbara Ardinger called "Pagan Every Day: Finding the Extraordinary in Our Ordinary Lives" in which she explains it as a short essay book of days jammed with facts about goddesses and saints, alongside an assortment of random pop culture references and personal musings.

Right away my interest was piqued and I immediately jumped to Amazon.com where I eagerly read for myself just what the hubbub was about. I perused the few pages that Amazon allows you to read in order to decide for myself if this book was truly what I might be interested in and of course it was better. Oooo, click on the "buy now" button, hurry...!

I'm now (im)patiently awaiting it's arrival any day and I hope the poor mail carrier doesn't start thinking I might be one of those weirdo stalker types when I anxiously stand by the mail boxes until she's done. (I'm really bad when it comes to waiting for tarot decks!) You would think they communicate that type of info..."Hey Bob, that one's just waiting for a package, no worries" Anyhow, I can't wait to get it and I'll post all about what I thought and maybe a few tidbits and words of wisdom I may learn.

Something To Believe In

I listened to Ariel's podcast last night and wow...what a great podcast! (of course they're all terrific as well as powerful.) Anyhow, one exercise he spoke of in his podcast on "Building your power base- the Water Body" was to take note of where we are placing our faith, in other words, what do we believe in? What a powerful question..."What do I believe in?" I'm not sure that I've ever paid attention to what I actually do believe in until confronted with a situation that is contrary or challenging to those beliefs. Just where does my faith lie... what are the places that I put my faith in daily, without even realizing it...where does that foundation of faith stem from? My head is spinning just trying to think of my beliefs...so, here it goes...

What I believe in:

~ The sun will rise every day and set each evening

~ There is always an answer, always a solution and always a choice to be made in every struggle

~No matter how dark life can get, there is hope...light at the end of the tunnel

~ The Universal Intelligence ( God, higher power, goddess, god) is around me all the time, present in all living things

~ No matter how long it seems to take....truth has no other option but to surface

~ Children are a privilege not a right

~ All living things deserve respect and compassion...yes, even people too

~ There is wisdom to gain from our elders

~ Most animals make better people than some people do

~ Say "I love you" to your loved ones as often as you can

These are just a few of the things that I believe in...what does that say about my faith? I think it simply reassures me that the path I walk... this journey I take, is the correct one for me. What are some things that you believe in...what foundation does your faith spring from?

P.S.- You can find Ariel's podcasts "The Witches Primer" on iTunes podcasts, I encourage you to listen.

It Takes Strength.....

*Higher Power, grant ME the Serenity to Accept the THINGS I Cannot Change.

(Addictions and the Destruction they Cause!)

*The courage to change the things that I can.

( Myself and the people I choose to Associate with In my Life!)

*And the Wisdom to Know the Difference.

( Putting the Responsibility and Guilt where it BELONGS, and LEARNING WHEN to Know the Difference!) *********************************************

This is known as the Serenity Prayer, I'm not sure if you are familiar with it or not but my best buddy who also practices the craft felt that it could be re-worked just a bit so that it would apply to a broader audience and therefore be accessable to all. I think it turned out very well and just had to share it with everyone...Thank you Coral!