#tarot study challenge

[chocolates-and-daisies]

Ace of Swords

Today's entry for @a-witch-named-crow's tarot study challenge!

Suit

Swords represent our mind and how we think. Their positive sides include analytical thinking, intellect, and mental resilience; negative sides include guilt and toxic thought patterns. Their corresponding element is air, season is fall, and time is weeks. Some crystals are tiger's eye, amethyst, turquoise, and lapis lazuli. (source, and Benebell Wen’s Holistic Tarot)

Upright

According to Tina Gong’s book Tarot, the upright Ace of Swords represents ideas, breakthrough, efficiency, and new perspective. An epiphany or Eureka moment, I suppose. Go forward with determination and logic, and you will find success. Clarify your goals, break them down into manageable chunks, and do what you need to do.

Reversed

When the Ace of Swords is reversed, it represents such things as confusion, hostility, and obstacles. There may be uncertainty, misunderstandings, or pointless quarrels. Make things right, be fair, and look at situations logically. Be clear about and learn what you need to, or try again from a new angle. (also from Gong)

[stormcrow513]

Ace Of Coins

In my deck its coins rather than pentacles, the image is a sprout with a ball of light over it, golden colored, the background is all black.

Books keywords are: Potential, Prosperity, Beginnings, Opportunity

All the suites basically have an element, the coins/pentacles are earth. Mostly they seem to be used in consideration towards money from what I've seen, or career. Seemingly they are the stuff suite.

Which of course makes sense when you consider their element: Earth. Earth is very much the material element, the element of solidity, of the material world more so then any other element.

After all it is the only element you can stand on (supposing your not Jesus, and as most of us aren't Jesus my point stands((just ya know not on water)) all the other elements hardly seem real at times, fire and water fucking move and you can't even see air. Obviously all elements are real and even the earth is just molecules.

But still its the most material to our senses. So I'd argue that we should include our bodies our health as just as much a part of this suite as money (maybe its that way else where but in my book its concern is money and carer oriented)(I'll have to Wikipedia it later but right now my brain sucks)

So the Ace Of Coins is to my mind the card of growth (which is especially relevant given the nature of the art of my card) and positive growth at that. It could be anything to do with the material world, money, jobs, health, etc. But it is the beginning of that growth, which means it, like the sprout needs some help some tending to before it can give you your flowers.

The Tarot Study Challenge via @a-witch-named-crow

[warlocket-grimoire]

Ace of Wands a Study

"Passion is energy. Find the power that comes from focusing on what excites you."

Tarot Study Challenge by @a-witch-named-crow

Aces are usually about a new beginning, a fresh start, or the start of something new.

The suit of Wands is usually representative of energy, spirituality, inspiration, creativity, ambition, and ideas.

In the Ace of Wands card, a hand emits from the clouds holding up a single wand surrounded by light, offering new ideas and opportunities to grow. A rich and vibrant expanse of land offers fertile soil showing the potential for incredible growth. I view this as the beginning of pure potential and energy. In a reading, it would signify a time to follow your passions and your heart or if you've had a project that you haven't been totally sure on this is the time to start. The ace of wands reversed may be a sign that there are barriers between you and your progress and passions. It may be your own uncertainty or it could be external forces but the overarching theme is maybe not right now.

[river-witchery]

Tarot Study Challenge: Ace of Cups

"The realm of the cups is filled with new promises. They represent hopeful people who build harmonious relationships with their fellow citizens."

Focus Deck: Deviant Moon Tarot

The Ace of Cups is happy by itself because it knows that it is never truly alone. Through warmth and love and compassion, it has built fulfilling and abundant relationships. It has beautiful things to look forward to, and is filled to the brim with hope.

This card reminds you to look towards your past gently to see how far you've come, especially when you find yourself at a new beginning. But it does not push you to move forward, instead lingering a little longer in the past and present.

[stormcrow513]

1. The Magician

Tarot Study Challenge via @a-witch-named-crow

The Raven Prophecy - Maggie Stiefvater

The art for this card is a hand fingers spread the hand has images of each suite tattooed onto it, with and infinity symbol sorta in the middle.

Keywords: Ability, Versatility, Control, Connections

As a magical practitioner I feel a certain connection to this card, while I'm a witch rather than a magician, it feels like this card comes in to smack me in the back of the head when I'm getting lacks in my practice, he beckons me forward dares me to be better.

My book mentions the Magician as having balance through a connection to all the suites, I feel there's a truth to this.

I think given that the Magician is a part of the Occult, and that the word Occult if I'm remembering right means hidden knowledge, that the Magician himself may also deal in hidden knowledge, maybe even the type of knowledge we deny ourselves the kind we don't want to know.

The Magician deals in knowledge and break boundaries, its not always a comforting card.

The comfort comes in the knowledge that we can be the Magician, we can find the strength, the control, the knowledge and confidence in ourselves to carry us through the dark times, the courage we need to walk down tov the crossroads and change our lives.

[chocolates-and-daisies]

Ace of Cups

Hello!! I'm participating in @a-witch-named-crow’s tarot study challenge, and the first day is Ace of Cups, so here we go :)

Suit and Numerology

The suit of cups represents our emotions and heart, how we express emotion, and how we connect with others. Positive aspects include relationships and intuition while negative aspects include loss and emptiness. Since it's a cup, the associated element is water.

Aces represent new beginnings, potential, and opportunity.

Ace of Cups

This card represents many things, such as relationships of all kinds, emotional release, and spiritual fulfillment.

It's a time to accept your emotions, whether they are new or being repressed. Be open to them and don't lock them away. This can be through thing such as emotional release or a new relationship.

Ace of Cups is a good omen for creativity and growth in new projects. It also represents a time to explore your spirituality and is a reminder to have joy in the present moment.

Many people also associate this card with fertility and emotional changes in life, such as pregnancy and marriage.

My Interpretation

I use the Cosmic Slumber deck and what I saw varied greatly from the general meaning of Ace of Cups. I love this deck, don't get me wrong, but it had more of a negative vibe for me.

The card is set against a deep ocean. An overflowing golden goblet is being held over it by a hand with a red sleeve. There's a magenta-robed blonde in the cup who's reaching up out of the rim for someone/thing out of view.

Before I looked at what the books said, I tried to intuit it. I saw the blonde as someone who feels like she is drowning, unaware of the hand supporting her from below. She's waiting for the help of someone who's long-gone, rather than leaning on the one already there. Despite her not recognizing what help she has, she is still being supported. To me, this says to be grateful for what you have and to not look too far into the past or future.

Wildly different from the definitions above, I know. Now that I've done my research, let me try again.

The ocean could represent her emotions, same as the water in the cup. She's getting overwhelmed by her emotions because she's been repressing  them; she needs to face them. The hand supporting her could represent other people in her life that she could turn to. It's not the time to be stagnant and waiting for something that may never come.

Sources

https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/1057712662456218131/

Holistic Tarot by Benebell Wen

Tarot: Connect with Yourself, Develop your Intuition, Live Mindfully by Tina Gong

The Ultimate Guide to Tarot by Liz Dean

[stormcrow513]

Ace Of Wands

Day two, Card two, of the Tarot Study Challenge via @a-witch-named-crow

The image in my deck is of fire, to me it has always looked like a camp fire but pretty sure it's a branch on fire.

Fire is the theme of the Wands suite in this deck. Maggie also has it down as the artist suite, the suite of creativity.

The Ace being the beginning of such creativity that first spark of an idea of passion.

Keywords are: Creativity, Energy, Passion, and Enthusiasm

Now the Ace Of Wands is a favorite of mine, it fills me with comfort when I see it. It always feels so versatile to me, like anything is possible. Maggie has it as down as a 'jump in' card, that your never going to feel ready so jump in even if you end up burned.

I'm not sure I agree with that completely, I mean yes we never feel ready and that shouldn't stop us.

However to me this card is potential, you've got fire in your hands you could make a nice bonfire toast some smores (have esoteric rituals etc), you could light your enemies house on fire (metaphorically, for legal proposes don't do arson) or you could snuff it out, you don't HAVE to use this energy if you don't want it but it's there if you do.

Of course if you stare to long into the flame it fucks with your vision makes it hard to see around you.

It's rather easy to burn yourself or others if your not careful, that's something to consider as well.

I also think of it as viability, typically when I get this card I'm asking about something I'm working on or thinking about starting. When I get this card in that situation it feels like a yes this thing has potential, you've got something here. Not that a guarantee that its going to all work out but it has a potential to. It is a great first step. It is starting off on the right foot.

[stormcrow513]

0. The Fool

The Tarot Study Challenge via @a-witch-named-crow

Day 5 whoop whoop!!!

Deck is: The Raven Prophecy by Maggie Stiefvater

The image for my deck is The Fools silhouette, his arms are out stretched wide he is in mostly darkness with a aura of color(mostly purple a little green) around him and a glowing ball of light overhead.

The Keywords from the book are: Fearlessness, Folly, Innocence, and Potential.

Most people I know consider the Fool card an insult, understandable considering no one wants to be called a Fool, it is historically an insult.

Though within the tarot the Fool is absolutely broader then that.

After all historically speaking the Fool was the only man who could insult the King.

The fool is nowhere as dumb as he seems at first glance, there is a fearlessness and a tricksters spirit to him.

I'll let you in on a little secret, I actually quite envy and admire the Fool. Sometimes I wish I could be that fearless. That ignorant of danger. I am always on guard, hyper-vigilant.

Growing up in my household in my life I learned to fear truly viscerally fear at to young an age. Let me tell those of you who don't know, when you learn fear that young it fucks you up. The moment we understand that there are consequences to our actions, there is no going back its not a lesson you can unlearn. I never climbed a tree as a kid, I wanted to so bad, but I knew that you could get hurt(my sister broke my arm when I was 3) I knew that broken bones were bad and I knew from listening to my parents from my sisters hospital costs costs that it cost money, I knew my father didn't like spending money on me, he'd be angry. So I didn't climb trees, I'm a careful person, I learned to be scared of taking chances.

That being said The Fool shows up a lot to kick me in the ass to dare me to 'fuck around and find out'.

Of course he could also be leading you over that cliff in the traditional image. He is after all the Fool.

He also leads the deck, he is the ultimate beginning of the Deck. So as my book puts it he is a sign of the beginning of a new cycle, the next chapter of your life is about to start, is starting, or needs to be starting. Sometimes he shows up to tell you its time to get your ass in gear and move on.

Or that you are being a dumbass, he's a contrary mother-fucker, see what I mean about that trickster spirit.

Either way whether he's telling you to move your ass, shake things up, be a little fearless. Or telling you your being a bit to fearless and your ass is about to be handed to you. You know white in the air when The Fools about.

Note: I keep forgetting to mention that I don't really work with the cards reversed, I don't care for it, it bugs me and when I got this deck and the book said she doesn't have reversed meanings cause she doesn't get the point in them since the cards have both positive and negative meanings already, I was like you can do that? Just not mix em around and not do reversed cards!? And I've stuck to not doing reversed ever since. I'm just happier this way. For now at least!