So I play with tarot cards...

Earlier this summer I bought a tarot card deck.

I totally bought on impulse to use as a pre-made flashcard to memorize the leaf shape and uses of herbs. (1) I'm not pagan, I just find traditional uses of various herbs fascinating. What harm ever came from trying something new?

Somewhat surprisingly, I discovered that divination is fascinating. It’s completely unscientific and nebulous to use a tarot card deck, yet accurate at the same time. I can only do this when I have a quiet moment, I have to calmly breathe, clear my mind, and only vaguely focus on my question at hand. I tend to be quite consistent in my personal readings. Interestingly, no matter how I shuffle the cards each time, I tend to end up with the Minor Arcana focused cups and wands. I rarely pull the Major Arcana, have never pulled the somewhat frightening Death or Suspended Person. Tonight’s reading was no different in that department. I decided to try something different tonight and attempt a 10 card pattern divination reading (instead of my normal medicine wheel pattern). However, my results are somewhat more disconcertingly accurate than normal.

10 Card Spread, Herbal Tarot Card Deck - 18 Aug 16. Personal divination reading for the future (and success or failure) of my business & my online blog.

1. Present position: Page of Cups, Damiana. The person in question is a young passionate person easily roused to action at any level, be it business related, idealistic, aesthetic, or otherwise. She is fishing for something new in her life, is dipping into her emotional stream of consciousness to get a feel for something that might be coming her way. Fresh youthful idealism and a willingness to take chances is necessary. Be watchful of your dreams and intuition. Avoid flippant superficiality in relationships; look for opportunities to serve others in a joyful loving way.

2. Immediate influence: Knight of Wands, Aconite (poisonous): When a woman draws this card, it represents a Brünhilde, a female warrior whose enthusiastic personality tends to align with and always champions various causes. The Knight of Wands is bold but must guard against becoming insensitive and does best when she directs her competitive spirit to overcoming personal shortcomings rather than trying to dominate others of a more yielding nature.

3. Goal or Destiny (for myself, for my business.) Mugwort, Five of Pentacles. Unexpected or misfortune-like events bring tremendous lessons. The woman has either consciously chosen to simplify her life due to external circumstances or she has to accept a drastic change of circumstances due to external conditions and being thrown back on oneself helps discover innate capabilities. Don’t torment yourself about your relationship, money, home life, status, look for the light at the end of the tunnel and have faith that all things that occur are for enlightenment. (So my business destiny is misfortune and lessons learned. Great.)

4. Distant Past Foundation: Squawvine, Nine of Cups. The woman sits with an attitude of self-satisfaction, the three feathers in her cap represent past achievements. The mountains in the background represent that you have come from far and overcome much, but do not pat yourself on the back too much or become so complacent or lazy that you stop creating. Share your love and joy with others and allow your inner light to shine through you. Avoid greed, hoarding or self-satisfaction.

5. Recent past events: Burdock, Four of Cups. Sometimes, in spite of achieving all of the rewards of friendship, family, and children, something is missing. Help is at hand, needed intervention in daily life has occurred, without knowledge of where it came from. Do not overlook the gifts offered to you and be grateful for the smallest blessings in life.

6. Future influence: St. Johnswort, King of Swords. The King of Swords sits on a rock, as he is grounded and is established in his thoughts. His yellow garment indicates his willingness to be expressive and creative with his words. He is a natural philosopher and diplomat, who can use communication talents in ways that can be truly inspiring to others. A fanatical seeker of truth, the apex of integrity in all worldly pursuits, he must use his clarity of mind with tolerance and patience to assist his associates.

7. The Questioner: present position or attitude within the circumstance. Four of Wands Fennel Seed. The questioner (me) seeks agreement and satisfaction of all parties involved, while balancing opposing spirits and wills. Take the time to be together with friends & family to play, and allow your talents and skills to flow and be shared.

8: Environmental factors (influence on other people): XIX The Sun, Angelica. “Angelica” is said to be the herb of angels and to enable one to communicate with the angelic realm. Warmth, openness, friendliness, contentment will influence others most. Our inner Sun asks us to be joyful, light of heart, benevolent. The Sun represents the full flowering of the self. It is time to regenerate “the self” and follow your hearts path.

9. Inner emotions: inner hopes and secret desires which will come to the mind of the questioner in the future: XX Judgement, Goldenseal. It is now time to make responsible choice of ourselves based on the new awareness we have embraced. This is not a time to be critical or sit in judgement of others or yourself, but instead seek renewal, changes, awakening to truth, new possibilities.

10: Final results, culmination: Six of Wands, Hawthorn. The Warrior appears triumphant after a minor victory in battle, as all have deserted the battlefield leaving their staves (wands) behind. Perhaps the prize is not worth the battle? Be sure what you are struggling to achieve is worth the price of time and energy expended, that the possible gain is more than the potential loss. The exception to this is the value of undergoing a challenging or difficult task for the purpose of personal growth and realization. We must choose the opportunities that offer the most good for all (which I interpret as my family) persons involved.

In summary, my reading tonight wasn’t excessively negative. I, a young passionate person, am seeking a new path. My warrior (aggressive, veteran officer) side seeks to dominate my decision making but needs to be focused on personal growth. My personal business destiny is still that of struggle and lessons learned, and I shouldn’t let my past achievements in school and the military cause complacency. I should keep creating. I should also avoid greed and not focus on monetary gain. In my recent past, I have received assistance on this topic from an unexpected source (which is true, my dear friend Aubri built my website and surprised me with it, and taught me everything about websites and blogging!) I should not overlook gifts offered to me and must be grateful for life’s gifts. For my future, I need to harness my philosophical and analytical talents to communicate (online in writing) and inspire others. I need to take time to communicate and play in person, as well. Allow myself to “shine” and communicate as a form of renewal, while avoiding judging myself or others too harshly in the process of following my hearts path. I need to be sure what I am struggling to achieve is worth the price of time and energy expended and that the possible gain is more than the potential loss. The prize will be worth the struggle if my focus is truly on personal growth and realization through creative expression and not on greed or financial gain.

(I'm bummed that I'm not going to get rich. But hey, if one of my posts helps one person, that's worth it, right?)

Resources:

1. Tierra, Michael and Cantin, Candis. The Spirit of Herbs: A Guide to the Herbal Tarot. US Games Systems, Inc. 2014.