I use tarot and oracle cards as tools for reflection and contemplation. Rather than divining the future, they are a way for me to look more deeply at the "now."
"The goal isn't to arrive, but to meander, to saunter, to make your life a holy wandering." ~ Rami Shapiro

Wednesday, May 18, 2016

Constellation Check

From the Margarete Petersen Tarot, Justice; from the Elemental Dice, Fire + Darkness (Stars):
          Petersen gives her version of Maat weighing each heart of a sea of souls. The booklet speaks of karma, a term in Buddhism that doesn't mean result (as most Americans think of it) but willful action. If I intentionally plant purple coneflowers, water and tend them, they will in turn create more seeds and more coneflowers. It's the same way with my words, thoughts and actions; the more I repeat a destructive action or attitude, the more the same "seeds" will sprout when a similar situation happens later. As Thanissaro Bhikku explains, "the present moment [is] being shaped both by past and by present actions; present actions shape not only the future but also the present." That last part is important. It means I can take the sword of Justice and cut off the head of the serpent (a destructive habitual pattern) and begin planting new seeds. Walpola Rahula taught that "our measure as human beings is not the hand we've been dealt, for that hand can change at any moment. We take our own measure by how well we play the hand we've got." The roll of the Elemental Dice produced Stars, which always makes me think of guidance. What do I use to navigate my thoughts and actions? If it is only looking out for myself without regard to others, the patterns produced will be self-centered and unbalanced. Even always doing for others can be selfishly motivated, if I am acting with the expectation of a result that benefits me. Perhaps its time to check out the constellations in my life.  

8 comments:

  1. "We take our own measure by how well we play the hand we've got" I totally agree on this one. So we try doing the best we can and work with the talents we got :)

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    1. Yes! So often we get the message that we're supposed to be like everyone else or be "special," but all be need to do is use what we have.

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  2. Just a good morning from a glorious day in Idaho.

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  3. Interesting combo. Love the context you place it in.

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  4. Orion is my favorite constellation. I think I have an incarnation out there on one those planets.

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    1. That is the one constellation I have been able to find easily (due to the "belt"). :)

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