I use tarot and oracle cards as tools for reflection and contemplation. Rather than divining the future, they are a way for me to look more deeply at the "now."
"The goal isn't to arrive, but to meander, to saunter, to make your life a holy wandering." ~ Rami Shapiro

Tuesday, March 8, 2016

Strength Askew

From the RochesTarot, Strength; from the Animal Shaman Vision Cards, the Salmon:
          Something seems off-kilter in this Strength card. I get the feeling that the man is trying to suppress his feminine side. Is he afraid to appear gentle, tender and nurturing in front of his colleagues? Perhaps he's in a profession that looks down on such traits, believing it makes him appear too soft and passive. Particularly among religion and politics, I've to noticed a swing back to gender-specific roles lately, as if a person should only act one way if you're male or female. But while someone might have certain physical characteristics on the outside, all of us have feminine and masculine traits on the inside. I don't think it's healthy to try and repress those traits simply to impress someone or fit in with a group. Could a person be happy and content with such an arrangement? I think he'd have more luck trying to get that cat to jump through the ring of fire.
          Typically, most salmon are born in fresh water, migrate to the ocean, then return to fresh water to reproduce. The term "salmon" comes from the Latin salmo, which in turn may have originated from salire, meaning "to leap." It is descriptive of the driving instincts of mature salmon to return to their spawning ground. Celtic mythology and poetry identifies the salmon as a symbol of knowledge and wisdom. This card implies that acting from both our masculine or feminine sides is natural. And the Celtic element reminds me of the ancient Greek maxim to "Know thyself." Being true to oneself can be freeing:
I am larger, better than I thought; I did not know I held so much goodness. ~ Walt Whitman
Yet in dealing with others, kindness and respect will always have an important place:
 No man is free who cannot command himself. ~ Pythagoras



6 comments:

  1. At first I thought it was a picture of Harry Potter. Your post is living prove that even from not so pretty cards we can derive a lot of wisdom. :)
    Becoming a whole person is the most beautiful gift we can give ourselves

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    1. We humans do have a tendency to slice off parts of ourselves to please other people. But I agree with you - wholeness is a gift!

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  2. I too looked at that Strength card and saw Harry Potter. Harry Potter was supposed to be a good role model for children and adults alike. But I guess even he had a bit of a dark side.

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    1. That's funny - I didn't even think of him as looking like Harry Potter, but now that's all I see! :D

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  3. even enlarged I don't get that Strength card...And I saw Harry Potter and the invisibility cloak first too. Which didn't make sense in cards already drawn this week.

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    1. This is the one card in the deck that I would like to question the creator about. I'm wondering if he is somehow coming at it from a Thothy point of view...

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