Looking through my four fairy-tale themed decks and picking out cards that can be seen to represent supernatural helpers, I find that in addition to such like genies and fairy godmothers, there are a good number of animal helpers. The animals fall into various categories, including ordinary animals who are helpful in some way, extraordinary animals (like Puss in Boots), and animals who are magical in some way or magical by nature. A few of the cards in Hunt’s deck feature animals who are elevated in terms of being god-like or especially powerful beings, (such as in her Magician, based on the Chinese story, “The Thunder Dragon”). I don’t count certain stories, such as the Golden Goose, where the animal is treated as an object rather than an actor. Remembering that my last post was about the Inner Child’s experience in the fairy tale world, it appears that in a majority of the stories, it is not a child but a young adult who interacts with the marvelous animals. However, I think there is something about the animal world that engages the inner child’s sense of wonder.
One way to look at animals in fairy tales is from the psychoanalytic view, where the symbolism is similar to what you might encounter in dreams. In dreams, as with the tarot, animals can represent the instinctive nature. When our instincts are expressed in a positive way, we are more intuitive, discerning about our personal needs, and better able to sense danger. We see this in the Fool card, where the Fool’s little dog is barking to prevent him from stepping off a cliff. However, the negative expression of the animal nature is when we are ruled by our appetites—a condition which is underscored in versions of the Devil card, where two chained human figures sport horns and tails. If you got a card illustrating a tale where a person is turned into an animal against his or her will, that could be a warning that you are getting into a situation where you are losing your grip, much like being spellbound. As Sibylle Birkhauser-Oeri points out in “The Mother: Archetypal Image in Fairy Tales,” “the phenomena of magic spells are caused by autonomous contents of the unconscious taking possession of the person” [46]. On the other hand, tales where a person willfully shape-shifts into some type of animal, or accepts help from certain types of animals, can point to the ability to connect with certain instincts or animal qualities and use them to advantage. In all of these cases, the type of animal encountered or transformed into would be symbolically significant.
Cards illustrating animal transformations and animal helpers are most abundantly featured in the Lisa Hunt “Fairy Tale” deck, and Hunt is already well known for her “Shapeshifter Tarot.” (This deck is also similar to the Shapeshifter in that faces can be seen in some rocks and trees, suggesting the vivacious intelligence of the natural world.) I’m still familiarizing myself with these cards, because I don’t recognize all of the stories that are illustrated, but in the Hunt deck, I count a dozen cards that portray animal transformation, and a dozen that portray magical or other helper animals, though one of these also involves transformation. (One, “the Golden-headed Fish,” involves the transformation of a fish into a person in order to be helpful). The Mahony-Ukolov “Fairytale Tarot” has about ten cards with helping animals, and about ten cards where the story involves animal transformation. Of course, these different decks also have cards that feature animals in other roles such as “the Three Pigs” or “Country Mouse, City Mouse,” where the animals are characters, but not magical or helpers.
Whether with animal helpers or transformation into animals, one can’t help but wonder if some of these tales are echoes of old totemic relationships, or other types of guardian spirit relationships. When these images come up for you in a tarot reading, it certainly encourages you to explore these animal powers in relation to your inner and outer worlds.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Saturday, August 14, 2010
STORY THEMES IN OUR LIVES
I’m in the process of experimenting with some theme decks based on fairy tales, trying to come up with new tarot activities and techniques for the first Sunday in September, when we will look into some of the major archetypes that are met with in fairy tales, including the Inner Child, the Supernatural Helper, and also archetypes of skill and resourcefulness. Whenever I conclude one of my magical chat sessions, I immediately start worrying about what to do for the next one. So, for the next month, my mind is scanning, scanning, scanning/churning, churning, churning, until I come up with a workable agenda—which is usually not, however, until the day before.
The decks which I am playing around with are Lisa Hunt’s “The Fairy Tale Tarot,” Isha and Mark Lerner’s “Inner Child” cards, and “The Whimsical Tarot” by Mary Hanson Roberts. I have also just ordered another “Fairytale Tarot” deck by Karen Mahony and Alexandr Ukolov, so I won’t be able to comment on that one until it arrives. Hunt’s “Fairy Tale” tarot and the Mahony-Ukolov deck use illustrations from tales and legends for all of their cards, while the “Inner Child” and “Whimsical” decks use them for the Major Arcana and some, but not all, of the Minor Arcana. I also have a pop-up playset, called “Fairy Tale Village,” (by the design team of Welply, Deesing, and Batki), so I’m thinking about some interactive things to do with the cards and pop-ups. (In my article on the Dollhouse Oracle, [see my links to articles], I discuss potential ways that cards can be used with play-sets.)
So, I’ve been thinking first about the Inner Child, because so many stories center on the child, (in keeping with the child ego state which sees itself as the center of the universe). Although the term “inner child” gets tossed around a lot, there are a number of child-personalities within us, many of which are also illustrated in these various fairy tale decks. I can’t begin to enumerate all of the Inner Child personalities that can be active in us at different times, or that we encounter in the world’s myths and legends, but looking over the three decks in my possession, a notable type that emerges is that of the Child Adventurer, which overlaps with the Questing Child. This, of course, ties in with the Fool archetype, and also engages the idea of the tarot itself as outlining an adventure or quest as one engages the lessons of the cards.
An example of the child adventurer/questor is Dorothy from “The Wizard of Oz” portrayed by the “Inner Child” deck as the Seeker of Wands, and by the “Whimsical” deck in the Six of Wands. Another is Pinocchio: the “Whimsical” deck portrays him facing the puppet master in the Devil card, while the “Inner Child” deck features him as the Child of Swords. Pinocchio can also be seen as the archetypal child who is getting into trouble as he learns to tell truth from falsehood, and right from wrong, which is why the latter deck equates him with the Page of Swords, even though Wands might seem a more obvious choice for a boy made of wood. That aspect of the child nature that gets us into trouble when we are too inquisitive or willing to transgress boundaries is also portrayed by Goldilocks, in the “Fairy Tale” tarot’s Five of Pentacles, and in the “Whimsical” tarot’s Justice card. (The latter is very amusing: it shows Baby Bear pointing Goldilocks out to a Keystone Cop.) If you have ever done something mischievous, and then found yourself lamenting, “Oh, why did I do that!?” you may have been high-jacked by one of these aspects of the Inner Child. In a tarot reading, coming up with one of these or similar characters could be a warning against allowing such impulses to get the better of you.
Another well-known fairy-tale type is that of the vulnerable and victimized child, these decks having different versions of Cinderella, the Goose Girl, Hansel and Gretel, Red Riding Hood, and so on. Some people object to passive characters in fairy tales. However, if we look more closely, we see that many of them are also resourceful. In the less familiar version of Cinderella, (which is the version that the “Inner Child” deck portrays), Cinderella effectively acts as a sorceress, going to her mother’s grave to conjure the things she needs. (This actually echoes some old Norse sagas, where the hero goes to his mother’s grave mound or the heroine to her father’s to acquire magical implements.) The Goose Girl also uses magic to get information, (and interestingly, a horse’s skull was also used in Norse shamanic practices), and Gretel is quick to take action in her story. The so-called passivity of fairy tale heroines (and many heroes as well) has been explained by N. J. Giradot, who says, “Heroes and heroines in fairy tales … do not ordinarily succeed because they act, but because they allow themselves to be acted upon—helped, protected, saved, or transformed—by the magic of the fairy world” [cited in Marta Weigle’s “Spiders & Spinsters: Women in Mythology,” p. 211]. Although there is a lot more that could be said about child personalities encountered in these cards, for my next post, I will try to develop some thoughts on the Child’s encounter with the Supernatural World.
The decks which I am playing around with are Lisa Hunt’s “The Fairy Tale Tarot,” Isha and Mark Lerner’s “Inner Child” cards, and “The Whimsical Tarot” by Mary Hanson Roberts. I have also just ordered another “Fairytale Tarot” deck by Karen Mahony and Alexandr Ukolov, so I won’t be able to comment on that one until it arrives. Hunt’s “Fairy Tale” tarot and the Mahony-Ukolov deck use illustrations from tales and legends for all of their cards, while the “Inner Child” and “Whimsical” decks use them for the Major Arcana and some, but not all, of the Minor Arcana. I also have a pop-up playset, called “Fairy Tale Village,” (by the design team of Welply, Deesing, and Batki), so I’m thinking about some interactive things to do with the cards and pop-ups. (In my article on the Dollhouse Oracle, [see my links to articles], I discuss potential ways that cards can be used with play-sets.)
So, I’ve been thinking first about the Inner Child, because so many stories center on the child, (in keeping with the child ego state which sees itself as the center of the universe). Although the term “inner child” gets tossed around a lot, there are a number of child-personalities within us, many of which are also illustrated in these various fairy tale decks. I can’t begin to enumerate all of the Inner Child personalities that can be active in us at different times, or that we encounter in the world’s myths and legends, but looking over the three decks in my possession, a notable type that emerges is that of the Child Adventurer, which overlaps with the Questing Child. This, of course, ties in with the Fool archetype, and also engages the idea of the tarot itself as outlining an adventure or quest as one engages the lessons of the cards.
An example of the child adventurer/questor is Dorothy from “The Wizard of Oz” portrayed by the “Inner Child” deck as the Seeker of Wands, and by the “Whimsical” deck in the Six of Wands. Another is Pinocchio: the “Whimsical” deck portrays him facing the puppet master in the Devil card, while the “Inner Child” deck features him as the Child of Swords. Pinocchio can also be seen as the archetypal child who is getting into trouble as he learns to tell truth from falsehood, and right from wrong, which is why the latter deck equates him with the Page of Swords, even though Wands might seem a more obvious choice for a boy made of wood. That aspect of the child nature that gets us into trouble when we are too inquisitive or willing to transgress boundaries is also portrayed by Goldilocks, in the “Fairy Tale” tarot’s Five of Pentacles, and in the “Whimsical” tarot’s Justice card. (The latter is very amusing: it shows Baby Bear pointing Goldilocks out to a Keystone Cop.) If you have ever done something mischievous, and then found yourself lamenting, “Oh, why did I do that!?” you may have been high-jacked by one of these aspects of the Inner Child. In a tarot reading, coming up with one of these or similar characters could be a warning against allowing such impulses to get the better of you.
Another well-known fairy-tale type is that of the vulnerable and victimized child, these decks having different versions of Cinderella, the Goose Girl, Hansel and Gretel, Red Riding Hood, and so on. Some people object to passive characters in fairy tales. However, if we look more closely, we see that many of them are also resourceful. In the less familiar version of Cinderella, (which is the version that the “Inner Child” deck portrays), Cinderella effectively acts as a sorceress, going to her mother’s grave to conjure the things she needs. (This actually echoes some old Norse sagas, where the hero goes to his mother’s grave mound or the heroine to her father’s to acquire magical implements.) The Goose Girl also uses magic to get information, (and interestingly, a horse’s skull was also used in Norse shamanic practices), and Gretel is quick to take action in her story. The so-called passivity of fairy tale heroines (and many heroes as well) has been explained by N. J. Giradot, who says, “Heroes and heroines in fairy tales … do not ordinarily succeed because they act, but because they allow themselves to be acted upon—helped, protected, saved, or transformed—by the magic of the fairy world” [cited in Marta Weigle’s “Spiders & Spinsters: Women in Mythology,” p. 211]. Although there is a lot more that could be said about child personalities encountered in these cards, for my next post, I will try to develop some thoughts on the Child’s encounter with the Supernatural World.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Celebrating the Interconnectedness of All Things
In my last post, I mentioned that this upcoming Sunday we will be exploring some Ancestor World issues with the Faery cards and Tarot cards. Actually, I want to broaden that theme of interconnectedness to also be thinking about how we can reach forward in time, and also look at metaphors of interrelationship such as the connecting Web--all tied in with Lammas and the mysteries of the grain.
However, in line with the ancestor explorations, another thing to think about is an interest in the mystical as a potential legacy from some line or lines of ancestors. After all, the fact that you are reading a blog on tarot magic or setting foot in a New Age bookstore means that you are a mystically inclined person. Showing an interest in the metaphysical would attract extra support from the Ancestor World, because it signals that you are more receptive to spiritual wisdom and advice. So, when we do some of our card readings, it will be interesting to note whether cards like the High Priestess, Hierophant, or others that indicate a transmission of spiritual teachings come up. The Faery decks also have some cards that point to wisdom traditions.
Now back to the theme of interconnectedness: Alice O. Howell, in her book “The Dove in the Stone: Finding the Sacred in the Commonplace” (which is a collection of her musings as she explores the sacred isle of Iona), adds to our perspective on degrees of separation by pointing out that we are only a few “touches” away from many historical personages. She relates: “I had struggled to make history come alive for the sixth graders it had been my good fortune to teach. ‘How many ‘touches’ away do you suppose you are from George Washington?’ I asked them. Well, not as many as you think. When my father was a little boy, he was taken to the World’s Fair in St. Louis, and at that fair was a booth where there sat a very, very old black man to whom you could pay a nickel for a handshake. This man’s father had been a slave on Washington’s plantation and he had proudly let George Washington hold his son, then a baby. Now my own father had sat on his lap. So, from Washington to the old man was one touch, to my father was two, and to me three. Only three bodies stood between my students and the founding father of our country! I was giving them fourth touches as they eagerly stretched out their hands. Now they could run home and give fifth touches to others.” Howell goes on to say, “Since my father was always meeting interesting people, I was also only two touches from such as Mark Twain, Eisenhower, Queen Elizabeth, Goering, etc., etc. (I myself had been forced to sit in Mussolini’s lap.) The next day, the kids came in to give me touches from all kinds of celebrities themselves. This exercise made history far more immediate” [58-59].
So, what is magical about that? Well, it’s an affirmation of interconnectedness. It’s not that celebrities are better than anyone else, but knowing that we’re only a few touches away from various celebrated personalities helps light up the web of interconnectedness in our minds—it makes the criss-crossing strands more VISIBLE to us. And any time we become more aware of our interconnectedness, more synchronicities will occur for us.
If you’re coming out on Sunday, ask your friends, family, and coworkers about any encounters they’ve had with notable persons, so you can convey some touches. Also, if you get a chance to talk to knowledgeable family members, find out what your different grandmothers’ and great-grandmothers maiden names were, and we’ll find out if any of us are long lost cousins.
However, in line with the ancestor explorations, another thing to think about is an interest in the mystical as a potential legacy from some line or lines of ancestors. After all, the fact that you are reading a blog on tarot magic or setting foot in a New Age bookstore means that you are a mystically inclined person. Showing an interest in the metaphysical would attract extra support from the Ancestor World, because it signals that you are more receptive to spiritual wisdom and advice. So, when we do some of our card readings, it will be interesting to note whether cards like the High Priestess, Hierophant, or others that indicate a transmission of spiritual teachings come up. The Faery decks also have some cards that point to wisdom traditions.
Now back to the theme of interconnectedness: Alice O. Howell, in her book “The Dove in the Stone: Finding the Sacred in the Commonplace” (which is a collection of her musings as she explores the sacred isle of Iona), adds to our perspective on degrees of separation by pointing out that we are only a few “touches” away from many historical personages. She relates: “I had struggled to make history come alive for the sixth graders it had been my good fortune to teach. ‘How many ‘touches’ away do you suppose you are from George Washington?’ I asked them. Well, not as many as you think. When my father was a little boy, he was taken to the World’s Fair in St. Louis, and at that fair was a booth where there sat a very, very old black man to whom you could pay a nickel for a handshake. This man’s father had been a slave on Washington’s plantation and he had proudly let George Washington hold his son, then a baby. Now my own father had sat on his lap. So, from Washington to the old man was one touch, to my father was two, and to me three. Only three bodies stood between my students and the founding father of our country! I was giving them fourth touches as they eagerly stretched out their hands. Now they could run home and give fifth touches to others.” Howell goes on to say, “Since my father was always meeting interesting people, I was also only two touches from such as Mark Twain, Eisenhower, Queen Elizabeth, Goering, etc., etc. (I myself had been forced to sit in Mussolini’s lap.) The next day, the kids came in to give me touches from all kinds of celebrities themselves. This exercise made history far more immediate” [58-59].
So, what is magical about that? Well, it’s an affirmation of interconnectedness. It’s not that celebrities are better than anyone else, but knowing that we’re only a few touches away from various celebrated personalities helps light up the web of interconnectedness in our minds—it makes the criss-crossing strands more VISIBLE to us. And any time we become more aware of our interconnectedness, more synchronicities will occur for us.
If you’re coming out on Sunday, ask your friends, family, and coworkers about any encounters they’ve had with notable persons, so you can convey some touches. Also, if you get a chance to talk to knowledgeable family members, find out what your different grandmothers’ and great-grandmothers maiden names were, and we’ll find out if any of us are long lost cousins.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
LAMMAS SESSION UPCOMING plus a note to followers
Our next Magical Chat is a week from tomorrow, that is August 1st, so I’m planning activities for Lammas. I shall bring back the Animal Cracker Oracle, which was actually inspired by old Prussian New Year’s traditions, but which I have adapted for Lammas and its association with the Mysteries of the Grain. Tarot and Faery card readings will be built around Ancestor World issues.
If you are planning to come on the 1st, you might want to give some advance thought to the idea of Family Gifts & Blessings as well as Family Curses—and here I use those terms to mean repeating patterns and other things much broader than some good fairy or angry gypsy placing a spell on one of your ancestors, (though we can’t rule those out)—to be better able to identify such patterns if they come up in the bibliomancy or card readings.
Now, I’d like to say “Hi” to everyone who is following this blog. For those who have arranged to receive e-mail postings, I’m going to start tinkering in order to add some features to the blogsite, so I hope this won’t send you a bunch of empty mailings, and apologize in advance if it does. I’m pretty inexperienced with this, and I’m working with the world’s worst dial-up connection, so I’ll be trying to figure it out as I go along. Also, even though I haven’t gotten around to sending personal greetings, (and I don’t know whether or not this is a breach of blog etiquette), I am really delighted that you find Tarot Magic Adventures interesting enough to follow—so thanks to you all!
If you are planning to come on the 1st, you might want to give some advance thought to the idea of Family Gifts & Blessings as well as Family Curses—and here I use those terms to mean repeating patterns and other things much broader than some good fairy or angry gypsy placing a spell on one of your ancestors, (though we can’t rule those out)—to be better able to identify such patterns if they come up in the bibliomancy or card readings.
Now, I’d like to say “Hi” to everyone who is following this blog. For those who have arranged to receive e-mail postings, I’m going to start tinkering in order to add some features to the blogsite, so I hope this won’t send you a bunch of empty mailings, and apologize in advance if it does. I’m pretty inexperienced with this, and I’m working with the world’s worst dial-up connection, so I’ll be trying to figure it out as I go along. Also, even though I haven’t gotten around to sending personal greetings, (and I don’t know whether or not this is a breach of blog etiquette), I am really delighted that you find Tarot Magic Adventures interesting enough to follow—so thanks to you all!
Monday, July 19, 2010
Seashell Divination
On Sunday, July 4th, I demonstrated the Seashell Oracle as part of the Magical Chat session. Because I haven’t had time to write an article about seashell divination, I’ll explain a little about how I developed this, and what some other authors have done with seashells.
For a while, I had been demonstrating the Spinning Basket Oracle, which involves tossing small items and fetishes into a flat, round, spinning basket and then interpreting their symbolism in the context of the patterns they make, and I had included some seashells in that. (I haven’t brought the spinning basket out this year, as I’ve done it several years prior, so I don’t know if there would be enough public interest in seeing it again.) Then, Dawne made me a gift of “The Ocean Oracle” by Michelle Hanson, which consists of 200 cards with pictures of seashells. Hanson's cards’ divinatory meanings are based on the individual shellfishes’ behaviors, appearance, common and scientific names, etc. Hanson used to use her own massive shell collection for divination, but hit on the idea of photographing and turning them into cards for greater portability, as well as making them available to all. For the Oracle I demonstrate, I use a basket of my own shells, though because of the physical handling, I don’t include my more fragile specimens. However, there are still enough to make for some interesting readings, going around the group as we do. (I have not gotten around to counting how many shells I use.)
To use the “Ocean Oracle” card set, you look over the images and pick out the shells which seem most compelling, either because you are attracted to them or repulsed by them. Then, you turn over the cards to get the interpretations on the back. You can pick out any number of cards for this, and also arrange them in patterns. For my group demonstrations with my shell basket, I find it best to have the basket passed around the circle, with each person, in turn, picking out two shells. With your eyes closed, pick out a shell with your left hand, to represent unconscious motivations. Then, with your eyes open, use your right hand to pick out a shell that you are particularly drawn to; this represents conscious directions you are taking.
In making interpretations, I use Hanson as a resource, as well as Sandra Kynes’ book, “Sea Magic,” and Katlyn’s “Ocean Amulets,” [Mermade Magickal Arts]. As usual, I add my idiosyncratic views and personal experiences based on my material culture and medical anthropology knowledge bases.
Despite these varied sources of interpretation, there’s always so much more that could be said when contemplating the symbolism of the shell in the context of one’s own life. For example, at the afore-mentioned session, the most popular shell of the day was the “Common Sundial,” Architectonia nobilis, (which I found at Mustang State Park in Texas). This snail’s flattened, rounded outline and distinct spirals with checked markings suggest a sundial or a staircase. The specimen featured in Hanson’s cards is the Giant Sundial, Architectonia maxima, but similar meanings can apply. Hanson says this shell stands for “patience.” Kynes notes that sundial shells “can help us get out of linear ruts and move on” [113], and I made some comments about structuring one’s life and thinking about how we measure time. However, there are other points that could have been discussed. Like all seashells, the Sundial can advise that we have to live our lives in increments, but its appearance underscores the need to take things one day at a time, and take manageable steps—baby steps if necessary. Looking at the scientific name, there is a seeming contradiction in that the shell is called the “Common Sundial,” probably because it is fairly common on sandy Atlantic beaches, but the species name is “nobilis” instead of “vulgaris.” This could suggest that in trying to create structure, we can find noble qualities and refined pleasures in the common things of daily life. The shell also suggests Native American concepts of moving in a sacred manner by moving with the sun, and how this is utilized in healing practices.
Thinking about these shells also leads us to make connections with other things in culture. The idea of the sundial suggests looking at sundial inscriptions. In May, I mentioned how Harriet Beecher Stowe was inspired to structure her life according the motto on a sundial which read, “I count only the sunny hours.” A good source on sundials is the website http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/gatty/sundials/221.html. It lists (among others) a Latin inscription from the sundial in the Dresden Altmark that reads, “Correct the past, direct the present, discern the future.” Interestingly, this can also summarize some of the goals of divination, including tarot.
By the way, although, for practical purposes, it’s convenient to talk about seashells as material objects, in interacting with them, we must remember that these once housed living beings, and send them blessings, such as wishes for a good rebirth.
For a while, I had been demonstrating the Spinning Basket Oracle, which involves tossing small items and fetishes into a flat, round, spinning basket and then interpreting their symbolism in the context of the patterns they make, and I had included some seashells in that. (I haven’t brought the spinning basket out this year, as I’ve done it several years prior, so I don’t know if there would be enough public interest in seeing it again.) Then, Dawne made me a gift of “The Ocean Oracle” by Michelle Hanson, which consists of 200 cards with pictures of seashells. Hanson's cards’ divinatory meanings are based on the individual shellfishes’ behaviors, appearance, common and scientific names, etc. Hanson used to use her own massive shell collection for divination, but hit on the idea of photographing and turning them into cards for greater portability, as well as making them available to all. For the Oracle I demonstrate, I use a basket of my own shells, though because of the physical handling, I don’t include my more fragile specimens. However, there are still enough to make for some interesting readings, going around the group as we do. (I have not gotten around to counting how many shells I use.)
To use the “Ocean Oracle” card set, you look over the images and pick out the shells which seem most compelling, either because you are attracted to them or repulsed by them. Then, you turn over the cards to get the interpretations on the back. You can pick out any number of cards for this, and also arrange them in patterns. For my group demonstrations with my shell basket, I find it best to have the basket passed around the circle, with each person, in turn, picking out two shells. With your eyes closed, pick out a shell with your left hand, to represent unconscious motivations. Then, with your eyes open, use your right hand to pick out a shell that you are particularly drawn to; this represents conscious directions you are taking.
In making interpretations, I use Hanson as a resource, as well as Sandra Kynes’ book, “Sea Magic,” and Katlyn’s “Ocean Amulets,” [Mermade Magickal Arts]. As usual, I add my idiosyncratic views and personal experiences based on my material culture and medical anthropology knowledge bases.
Despite these varied sources of interpretation, there’s always so much more that could be said when contemplating the symbolism of the shell in the context of one’s own life. For example, at the afore-mentioned session, the most popular shell of the day was the “Common Sundial,” Architectonia nobilis, (which I found at Mustang State Park in Texas). This snail’s flattened, rounded outline and distinct spirals with checked markings suggest a sundial or a staircase. The specimen featured in Hanson’s cards is the Giant Sundial, Architectonia maxima, but similar meanings can apply. Hanson says this shell stands for “patience.” Kynes notes that sundial shells “can help us get out of linear ruts and move on” [113], and I made some comments about structuring one’s life and thinking about how we measure time. However, there are other points that could have been discussed. Like all seashells, the Sundial can advise that we have to live our lives in increments, but its appearance underscores the need to take things one day at a time, and take manageable steps—baby steps if necessary. Looking at the scientific name, there is a seeming contradiction in that the shell is called the “Common Sundial,” probably because it is fairly common on sandy Atlantic beaches, but the species name is “nobilis” instead of “vulgaris.” This could suggest that in trying to create structure, we can find noble qualities and refined pleasures in the common things of daily life. The shell also suggests Native American concepts of moving in a sacred manner by moving with the sun, and how this is utilized in healing practices.
Thinking about these shells also leads us to make connections with other things in culture. The idea of the sundial suggests looking at sundial inscriptions. In May, I mentioned how Harriet Beecher Stowe was inspired to structure her life according the motto on a sundial which read, “I count only the sunny hours.” A good source on sundials is the website http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/gatty/sundials/221.html. It lists (among others) a Latin inscription from the sundial in the Dresden Altmark that reads, “Correct the past, direct the present, discern the future.” Interestingly, this can also summarize some of the goals of divination, including tarot.
By the way, although, for practical purposes, it’s convenient to talk about seashells as material objects, in interacting with them, we must remember that these once housed living beings, and send them blessings, such as wishes for a good rebirth.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
A Day Dedicated to Undersea Mysteries
Profuse apologies for being so out of touch and not having posted anything in so long! I will be coming to the Triple Goddess this Sunday, July 4th, from 1 to 3 p.m. as usual. Even though it’s the Independence Day weekend, I find that people still drop by the shop on holidays, so I’ve made that commitment to showing up on holidays as well. This Sunday I will bring the Seashell Oracle and demonstrate some spells and other magical things you can do with seashells. I will also demonstrate reading techniques with the Tarot of the Mermaids, the Tarot of the Pirates, and the Shapeshifter deck. For our metaphysical discussion, we’ll entertain some ideas on the need to become hybrid beings as a way of surviving in this new world.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
House Charms for Sunday, June 6th
Just a short note that I will be showing up at the Triple Goddess on Sunday, June 6th, from 1 to 3 p.m. I will bring along the doll houses for the Dollhouse Oracle, and this time I will try to spend more time working with individuals on their house symbolism. I will also share some thoughts on applying Tarot images to your own house for use as house charms, in tarot spells, and in Feng Shui applications. For those who will be able to join us, if you want to bring along a floor plan of your house, (taking note of its compass orientation), we can apply several layers of interpretation to that. In fact, if you have the ability to enlarge your floor plan or sketch it onto a larger sized piece of paper, we can explore its use as a tarot layout. Also, we will continue to open with the bibliomancy, (as part of our “crowd sourcing to Spirit”), so this time we will want to be thinking about how the insights from the bibliomancy might carry over to the house symbolism. I apologize for not writing more, but for now and the next few months, family demands are keeping me particularly busy.
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