Thursday, August 30, 2012

21 Ways to Read the Tarot Card - Step Eight - Metaphor

21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card
Mary K. Greer
In step eight of our journey, we look at using metaphors to convey the meanings of the cards.

"Metaphors express what cannot be told in any other way, prompting pictures that trigger the imagistic unconscious mind and bypass the critical conscious mind. As a basic mechanism for understanding our experience, metaphors convey in very few words the essence of a card meaning by evoking emotions, sensations, and memories."

Metaphor as Transporter

"A metaphor is simply one thing representing something else; furthermore, it's not just a comparison but also a shared identity."

Some given examples:
  • 5 of Pentacles - crippled spirit
  • 10 of Swords - stabbed in the back
  • 5 of Cups - crying over spilled milk
Five of Pentacles
Artwork © Jennifer Galasso, 2011  

Activity 8:1 - Part One - Find some other metaphors for the Five of Pentacles based on the card in your deck.
  • Left out in the cold
  • Fend for yourself
  • Strength through struggle
  • Waiting out the storm
Activity 8:1 - Part Two - Find phrases relating to the number five and suit of pentacles.
  • Falling from glory
  • The storm before the calm
  • A test of faith
  • Returning to basics
Activity 8:1 - Part Three - Which phrases don't work for you? Cross them out. Which ones work well? Use these as the beginning of your own list relating to this card.

Here's the beginning of my own list.
  • Left out in the cold
  • Finding strength through struggle, a test of faith
  • Waiting out the storm to see brighter days
Artwork © Jennifer Galasso, 2011  
Activity 8:2 - Part One - List metaphors and sayings for your chosen card. Include expressions already used when describing the card.
  • Blinded by the truth
  • Caught between a rock and a hard place
  • Weighing the options
  • Assessing the situation
Activity 8:2 - Part Two - Finish the following statements, in as many ways as you can:
  • I am insert one of your metaphors.
    • I am blinded by the truth.
    • I am caught between a rock and a hard place.
    • I am weighing my options.
    • I am assessing the situation.
  • The situation feels like describe an emotion implied by the metaphor.
    • The situation feels suffocating.
    • The situation feels hopeless.
    • The situation feels important.
    • The situation feels major.
Activity 8:2 - Part Three - What do these metaphors suggest about your own situation?

Taking all four of these metaphors and the related emotions, I feel the decision before me is a very important and major crossroads in my life. My pause is due to not being able to see past the ultimate decision. The results of either choice seem daunting. To stand in one place, rather than take the step, leaves me in the moment, rather than moving forward, which is safe, for the moment.
--

If you haven’t already, grab a copy of the book for a deeper understanding of 21 Ways to Read the Tarot. Available in Print and Kindle.



Thursday, August 23, 2012

21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card - Step Seven - Synthesis

21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card
Mary K. Greer
In step seven of our journey, we synthesis everything we've learned in step five and six, forming simple statements for the cards.

"This is where tarot starts becoming an art, an intuitive and creative process, rather than mere formula."

Activity 7:1 - Step One - Synthesize keywords into statements for each of these cards, using number or rank, suit, element, and mode. (Refer to Appendices B and C for suggested keywords)
  • Page of Pentacles - A student of financial or legal courses.
  • Eight of Swords - An adjustment in one's thinking.
  • Wheel of Fortune - The completion of a life cycle, with lessons learned and new beginnings.
  • Ace of Cups - The beginning of new emotions or deeper insight.

Artwork © Jennifer Galasso, 2011  
Activity 7:1 - Step Two - Do the same with your card, trying different combinations. Which statement rings true? How does it relate to your life?

The Two of Swords - a need to re-access your thoughts and find a balance, careful consideration should be made before making a choice, a re-evaluation on where you stand in a situation. Out of these three, I'd say the first fits best with my current situation and life, but really all could apply.

Activity 7:1 - Step Three - Create a further synthesis including material from your description, emotions, and fairy tale.

The Two of Swords presents a need to re-access your thoughts and find balance. Your destiny is for you to choice, but you must first make that first step. You are calm with your immobility, it's time to shake things up. Allow the blindfold to fall and make a choose, follow your path.

--

If you haven’t already, grab a copy of the book for a deeper understanding of 21 Ways to Read the Tarot. Available in Print and Kindle.

Sunday, August 19, 2012

The Artist's Way meets the Tarot - wrapping up Week One

the Artist's Way
Julia Cameron
Obviously, week one has come and gone on our calendars. Time passes by, and we fight to catch up. Or, at least, that is my life at the moment. But, as we continue on our journey, we adjust to the world around us, both in the aspects of the Artist's Way and in life.

As we wrap up Week One, we take a look at Imaginary Lives.

Imagine for a moment, you have five other lives you could live. Anything is possible in these alternate worlds, anything. You could be President, the Pope, or even a landscaper or garbage collector. No profession is too large or too small.

Don't think too hard on this exercise, have fun with it.
  1. Artist - drawing and painting
  2. Actress
  3. Veterinarian
  4. Teacher
  5. Archaeologist
As I jotted this list down, I wondered what I had chosen years ago during my journey on Footsteps of a Writer. Artist, Writer, and Tarot reader made the list. Well, I'm actively doing two of those. Progress in small steps.

For a more routine Journey through the Artist's Way, feel free to drop by Footsteps of a Writer and follow through the course there. In 2010, my life was not so hectic and the journey follows, for the most part, on a daily posting. Click here to arrive at the Intro to the course.

Hope no one is standing up their Artist on the Artist's dates. Hands cramping from the Morning Pages? How are you doing in your journey overall? Do you feel the walls built long ago shaking as you begin to pull them down?

Thursday, August 16, 2012

21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card - Step Six - Mode, Suit, Element

In step six of our journey, we will be looking at the keywords related to mode, suit, and element.

First, let's look at what each of these categories mean.

Mode - court cards, number cards (1-10), Major Arcana, Aces.

Suit - Wands, Cups, Swords, Pentacles.

Elements - Fire, Water, Air, Earth

There are some different systems used in this area, depending on your deck. Choose keywords accordingly. Appendix C offers keywords.

Activity 6:1 - Step One - The Suit - Select one to three keywords for each suit in your deck.

Cups - Water - emotions, relationships
Swords - Air - mental processes, assessments
Pentacles - Earth - material items, physical
Wands - Fire - action, movement

Artwork © Jennifer Galasso, 2011 


Activity  6:1 - Step Two - Which suit/element keywords best fits your chosen card?

The Two of Swords is of the Sword suit and the Air element, giving it the keywords of mental processes and assessments.





Activity 6:2 - Step One - Modes - Examine the four modes and select one to three keywords for each mode. These will help you when interpreting a card during a reading.

Court Cards - Who? - a personality, an attitude, an individual

Number Cards - What? - life events, a situation, actions

Major Arcana - Why? - major events, lesson to learn, energies

Aces - Where? - area of greatest potential, new beginnings, strongest energies

Activity 6:2 - Step Two - Which mode does your card belong to. What does this suggest about its significance?

The Two of Swords is one of the number cards, which represents life events, situations, and actions. The significance of my chosen card being a numbered card is the highlight being put on today and what actions are taken toward the future.

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If you haven’t already, grab a copy of the book for a deeper understanding of 21 Ways to Read the Tarot. Available in Print and Kindle.

Thursday, August 9, 2012

21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card - Step Five - Number

In step five of our journey, we look at the number or court card rank of our chosen card. The principal of number is used as one layer of the card's meaning. Steps six and seven will develop on this concept providing a basic interpretation system for any standard tarot deck.

When working with numbers, you reduce to the lowest single digit (1 to 9). Tens are the exception, seen as both an ending and beginning. Appendix B of the book offers keywords for the numbers and the ranking of court cards.

An example of reduction: 16 = 1 + 6 = 7

Activity 5:1 - Say the name of your card and one to three keywords based on the number or rank.

Artwork © Jennifer Galasso, 2011

I've drawn the Two of Swords. Two's are about choices and balance.

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If you haven’t already, grab a copy of the book for a deeper understanding of 21 Ways to Read the Tarot. Available in Print and Kindle.

Thursday, August 2, 2012

21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card - Step Four - Story


In step four of our journey, we are to tell a story using our chosen card as the illustration.

"By doing this, you will see how the stories you tell yourself reflect an inner truth."

Telling your story in fairy tale form, begin with "Once upon a time." Remember this is a fairy tale, so animals can talk, rain can go up instead of down, and this doesn't have to make sense. Let your imagination go crazy.

Artwork © Jennifer Galasso, 2011


Activity 4:1: Begin with "Once upon a time..." and write or speak for ten minutes.

Once upon a time there was a young girl who lived in a cold, barren land. Her dreams were big, but her plans stayed small.

One day, she noticed tiny bump upon her back. Many months later, those bumps grew into a massive set of wings. She could do anything, go anywhere, yet she remained in her small world.

One early morning, she encountered two large ravens, each beckoning her to stretch her lovely wings and join them in the sky. Yet, she continued to hold her feet to the ground.

She closed her eyes and asked for guidance. A single feather fluttered out of her wings and came to rest before her eyes.

A beautiful voice said, “You must choose your own destiny, child.”

The young girl crossed her arms before her. “But I’m not sure of my choices.”

The two ravens spoke, their words tangling with one another. “Go east.” “Go west.” “You must visit the far away sights.”

“Silence,” she commanded the ravens to quiet their noise. This was her choice and she must make it alone.

She stood with her arms crossed and the feather covering her eyes. Her mind soared on the different paths she could take. She stood beneath the full sun wondering what she should do. She felt the snow shifting under her weight and the glare of the sun, as she wondered where to go. A chill took over as the sun went down, yet she continued to stand in her small world, her feet upon the ground.

Activity 4-2: Drop the 'once upon a time' and repeat what you said in first person and present tense.

I live in a cold barren land. My dreams are big, but my plans remain small. I notice bumps on my back, which later grow into massive wings. I can do anything, go anywhere, yet I remain here, in this little world. I encounter a set of ravens. They beckon me to join them in the sky, but I am hesitant. The ground is safe, so I remain. I close my eyes and ask for guidance. A single feather flutters from my wings and rests before my eyes. A beautiful voice whispers, “You must choose your own destiny, child.” I cross my arms before me. “But I’m not sure of my choices.” The two ravens speak, their words tangling with one another. “Go east. “Go west.” “You must visit the far away sights.” “Silence,” I command the ravens to quiet their noises. This is my choice and I must make it alone. I continue to cross my arms, and the feather remains in front of my eyes. I think of all the different paths I can take. The once warm sun cools, and the hard snow shifts beneath me. I continue to stand, as night falls, in my little world, my feet planted to the ground. The ground is safe.

Now the story becomes more personal and questions will be suggested by your story. For instance: What are my big dreams? Why do I wait to fly?

Activity 4-3: Connect your story to your own life. Some connections may be literal, but allow playroom for other possibilities.

Is the desire to spread my wings in respect to flying, dreaming, or just taking a step forward? Why east and west?

Play with the questions and thoughts you have. You may be surprised at where you end up and how true your story is to your own life.

If you haven’t already, grab a copy of the book for a deeper understanding of 21 Ways to Read the Tarot. Available in Print and Kindle.