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

Sunday, June 25, 2017

Spiritual Inventory

This week I'll be using the Victoria Regina Tarot, a deck and book set created by Sarah Ovenall with text assistance from Georg Patterson. This tarot set was published by Llewellyn. I'll be pairing it with the Alchemist Oracle (aka Connected and Free), a deck and booklet set self-published by Lauren Aletta. Today's draws are the Hermit and 'Healing':
          Holding a lantern and a pen, the Hermit isolates himself for the purpose of a spiritual evaluation. The withdrawal will provide distance from the daily, external distractions, allowing him to do a written inventory of his path so far. What does he believe and why? Has he tested his philosophy or faith against reality, or is he comfortable with only an intellectual version? Has this path made him more or less selfish and self-centered? If he can answer these questions honestly, he'll find some insights that might change the path he's been walking. The Healing card shows a hot cup of tea, a drink meant to be savored slowly. Sounds like the perfect way to mull over those insights, renew his intentions and heal (forgive) himself for any mistakes.
Every Yom Kippur, Jewish tradition requires a strict spiritual inventory. You aren't supposed
to just sit around feeling guilty, but to take action in the real world to set things right.
~ Naomi Wolf

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6 comments:

  1. Carolyn TindorJune 25, 2017 at 10:28 AM

    A complex and interesting Hermit. Instead of a staff it looks like a brand new ink pin, not yet dipped in the well. His lantern does not seem to illuminate his path. Is he in search of the story he will write? I guess it so with most of us; kind of in the dark about the story our lives will tell. For now I will have a cup of tea.

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    1. thesycamoretreeJune 25, 2017 at 12:43 PM

      Perhaps that lantern represents the clarity he will need to be honest with himself.

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  2. TriviumJune 25, 2017 at 11:16 AM

    My first thought that pen looks mightier than a sword. Then writing well requires illumination of an intellectual and a physical kind (I am reminded of the ideas I scribble down when I wake up in the night which I can never read in the morning). As you say forgiving our mistakes can also be lightening of our hearts and vital for repurposing our work in the world.

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    1. thesycamoretreeJune 25, 2017 at 12:45 PM

      If that pen represents knowing oneself, it might indeed be mightier than a sword!

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  3. EllenJune 25, 2017 at 1:04 PM

    Writing often brings clarity to a situation or in this case ones spirtual path. When writing uncensored the truth is bound to come up. Sometimes it seems that truth wants to be discovered

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    1. thesycamoretreeJune 26, 2017 at 5:31 AM

      Uncensored writing can be a great tool for looking at what is going on in my head and comparing it to reality!

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