Tag: path

Wisp dreams

their dreams were wisps of smoke
            they prayed for rain
                   through the understated mahogany of the trees

the dotted stars faded in the morning 
           but the wisp prayers still hung in the air
                   unable to be blown away  in new gusts of wind

only the softly falling drops that finally came three months later
          finally washed away the answered prayers
                   like salt being washed from a wound

the cleansing rain awoke a new dream
    this time reflected in puddles that would last until the rain stopped
          and the new dreams echoed into the sky
                  with the rays of the sun.

The Point

Slogging across dewy fields of tall grass she faltered 
searching through mossy swamps 
she got lost in the depths
of her own thoughts

She pierced herself on her own pointed arrow 
that she spent a good amount of her life staring at and sharpening 
with her mind

And she perished this way

And the world kept turning
and the grass continued to grow high 
and confuse those who wandered through it

This angered her
how could she not be the key to the grass and the swamp and the arrow
how could she spend her life dedicated to slogging through these fields
and sharpening this arrow 
when its point only directed her own path in the end

She was not the solution, she was only her solution
and this sorrowed her

She was missing something big
she had searched for that something big
until she perished and never found it
all the while not seeing that 
all she had to do was……

look up.

The grass isn’t meant to be sorted through…its meant to grow
There is no secret in the swamp
The arrow is not the way.

You are part of the path only if you look up
and see that you are not the only one walking it

look to the stars to see this
look to link souls with other beings to learn this
until you learn this
stop sharpening your arrow
and look up.

Weekly Reading, May 9, 2021

On this Mother’s Day, I first thought of doing a deep dive into the Empress, the nurturing archetype who is driven by the preservation of life. But instead I think its better to give a gift in this week’s reading to whomever needs it.

For this week’s reading I picked the Chariot which often signifies the journey for me. It’s the path, in all its forms. Here are some explorations of what it means to walk your path, and how you might see yourself on your current journey. I hope it nurtures you!

The Chariot is typically the seventh card in the Major Arcana, and before we get to some versions of this card with more literal chariots and journeys I’d like to start with this one from the Osho Zen Tarot.

This card is titled awareness, the journey to truly know oneself is often the most difficult journey of all. But what does that mean?

In many ways it’s the anti-chariot. Inaction or no-action is the only way to get there. Having no-mind, meaning dropping the memories of our past and burden of constantly trying to project our future is a difficult path indeed. It requires complete stillness in the present moment. And in order to achieve this clarity and achieving this no-mind requires awareness of what memories or projections we are carrying in the first place, and how they are affecting our lives today.

Once we take this most challenging journey we may eventually arrive closer to the present moment. Is this part of your current journey? If it is what tools are you using to create this awareness in your own life?

In this version of the Chariot from the Tarot of the Divine we see the protagonist from the Norwegian fairytale of the Three Princesses of Whiteland. Here he is shown on the last leg of his journey after many years and cycles of trials and tribulations. He has persevered and harnessed his emotions to finally follow a straight and clear path.

Some of our journeys are long and require perseverance to continue on them. We learn many things through all of the tests of this type of journey, so its a worthwhile endeavor even though it takes a lot of energy to continue on. Sometimes we may even need to take a rest and come back to continue the journey later.

Is this your journey? If so what have you learned so far, can you do a journaling exercise about that? Try writing down all of the tests and what you have learned, and also consider how you are practicing self-care to make sure you are maintaining the energy to persevere. The victory at the end of this journey is vast and I am excited for you to experience it!

Here is the Chariot from the Brady Tarot. Quite a journey indeed! Most paths for those seeing themselves in the card of the Chariot are on tough roads with tough choices. But its probably also true that this person loves the challenge of building this Chariot or team.

This chariot has an innovative design even if it appears precarious. There are intertwined horns representing emotions which are supported by roots representing the physical self and world. The “wheels” are birds in flight, a crane and a falcon bound together by the sashes of fire (sprit) and air (mind) to have a vessel for the journey. They are working together but potentially under duress. And then we have a magpie steering this most unusual chariot.

This might be the journey of a team just starting out, inventing a new way of travelling to get them on their journey. Everyone is contributing something to the chariot, and they have all taken on certain roles. At some point they will need to invent a more permanent and stable vessel if they want to make it to the end of the road.

How are you using ingenuity in your current path, do you have help from others? Have you thanked them lately? Is there a plan to build a stronger vessel?

And lastly here is the Chariot from the Voyager tarot. Some of the imagery here is that of a traditional chariot and Greek Charioteer. There are a lot of different types of roads here in many different environments air (the balloon), space ( the astronaut), water (the surfer) to name a few.

The Crab represents someone who is at home where ever they go because they have found security within themselves. One way to maintain a long journey is to first prepare yourself by knowing this security within.

There is also a lot of motion on this card – all of it either out or up, none of it slowing down or stopping, or in a downward direction. This kind of path is either exhilarating or exhausting depending on who you are. The person who is exhilarated by this journey has often found a stillness within to counteract the constant motion.

Is this your type of journey? Are you maintaining stillness within, or are you getting carried away? If you are on this journey and you find it exhausting, you can always pull the reigns on the chariot and find a different path. There is no wrong path as long as we are learning about ourselves and/or helping others learn about themselves.

I hope you have enjoyed this exploration of our different paths and Chariots, and that you have found something of yourself helpful in it.

If you cannot find your path then for you I give you this vision of fireflies, which inspire us by illuminating all of the many paths to choose from, and providing light in what might seem like darkness. One of them will lead you to a path that’s meant for you.