I’ve been revisiting my old book, Tarot Spells, which I wrote back in the 1990s, to refresh my memory as to what is in that book, as well as to play around with different tarot decks in my collection to see which of their graphics lend themselves especially well to these spells.
So, I decided to start with my rite “To Encourage Good Dreams,” (pp. 129-132 of book). The three cards used in this spell are the Ace of Cups, The Moon, and The Star. After trying combinations with different decks, I was pleased with the graphic resonance when I use the cards featured below, which are from The Green Witch Tarot Deck. This deck was designed by Ann Moura and illustrated by Kiri Leonard.
One thing you might immediately notice is that The Moon card is different than usual, as rather than having a wolf and a dog in the foreground, it instead has a woman who has her back to us as she looks at the reflection of the moon in the pond. That particular card works well for this particular spell, because the spell involves projecting yourself into the card, so to speak, as you visualize yourself standing under a moonlit sky.
There is graphic continuity from the fish jumping out of the river in the Ace of Chalices to the fish jumping out of the pond in The Moon. The Ace of Cups/Chalices is here symbolic of the Unconscious mind, (as the Ace of Cups represents new experiences in the inner world of your emotional and spiritual life), while the fish represents subconscious elements emerging from the depths, (similar to the fish emerging from the cup in the Rider-Waite-Smith Deck’s Page of Cups). Note that I capitalize “Unconscious” to represent the Jungian idea of the Deep Mind, as opposed to being unconscious due to being asleep or knocked out. The three cards also evoke the depths in featuring watery environments.
The cup is also significant because a common technique for dream recall, (used by people who do dream incubations), involves sipping half a cup of water before going to bed, and half upon waking, while affirming that you will remember your dreams. Doreen Virtue suggests holding the cup to your solar plexus while making an affirmation such as “My dreams are vivid,” before going to bed, and then upon waking, “I now remember my dreams in vivid color and detail.” For help with creative work, Jess Stearn advises drinking the water while saying, “This is all I have to do to find the solution to the project I have in mind,” and also closing your eyes and turning them slightly upward, because that helps you get into the alpha state. If the solution isn’t in your thoughts on waking, it may come during the day as a flash of insight.
But back to the tarot spell, I won’t type out the whole chapter, but the basic spell is below. In my book, I didn’t mention the practice of drinking half of the cup before bed and the other half before awakening, (because I wasn’t familiar with that technique back in the 90s), but you can do that to modify the spell if you like.
First, lay down The Moon card while visualizing yourself standing under a moonlit sky. Sense the moon as a nearby, kindly presence. Imagine that you see the moon take on the shape of a beautiful shining lady with a crown of stars. Know that she is the Queen of Night and will send beautiful dreams to you.
Next, set the Ace of Cups in place to the left of The Moon, while imagining that the Moon Goddess is presenting you with a chalice containing a magical elixir, which will give you wondrous, happy dreams. At this point, take up a cup which you have prepared in advance and drink from it. (It doesn’t matter whether you choose to drink water, milk, wine, or whatever.) Know that your drink has been transformed into the magical elixir through the power of your inner magic.
Finally, set The Star in place while imagining that the magical elixir enables you to float up into the sky and drift freely among the glistening stars. Know that each of the beautiful stars surrounding you will bestow on you a special dream.
Then, recite the following affirmation:
“I have tasted
the magical elixir
which brings
dreams of inspiration and wonder.
Every night as I
sleep,
my spirit is
drawn into realms of beauty and light.
Magic, romance,
and enchantment
shine through my
nighttime dreams
and linger with
me when I wake.
This magic is,
and this magic shall be!”
As always, you can modify the spell by using different cards, visualizations, and affirmations to better suit your needs.
There are some
folkloric aspects to this spell, because the ancient Thessalian witches had a practice
called “drawing down the moon,” and there is also the mystical technique of pouring
milk into a fancy cup like a chalice and then going out under the full moon to
catch the reflection of the moon in the cup to drink in the magically charged
liquid.
