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

Thursday, July 20, 2017

Research and Discussion

From the Tarot of the Master, the Hermit; from the Paracelsus Oracle, Laetitia:
Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens. ―Carl Jung 
          The Hermit's keyword in this particular deck is 'research.' What does he study? The Delphi Oracle would reply, "Know thyself." Socrates thought it was ridiculous that people would try to figure out obscure things before they even knew themselves.
The ground of practice is you or me or whoever we are right now, just as we are. That’s the ground, that’s what we study, that’s what we come to know with tremendous curiosity and interest....If we are committed to comfort at any cost, as soon as we come up against the least edge of pain, we’re going to run; we’ll never know what’s beyond that particular barrier or wall or fearful thing. 
 ― Pema Chödrön
Laetitia means 'joy,' and this card adds the meaning of 'discussion.' The two cards together made me think of the Tibetan form of debate. The goal was not to win, but to discover the truth based on reason and reality, not dogma or opinion. We must learn to hold on to our truth loosely in order to consider other viewpoints. Research shows that we develop 25% of our understanding from listening to teachings, 25% from reading by ourselves and 50% through debating different points of view. So behind the playful aspect of debate (rather than a combative competition) lies a very powerful method of gaining wisdom.
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8 comments:

  1. EllenJuly 20, 2017 at 9:16 AM

    Reading you post makes it crystal clear to me: The Hermit is reading his own journal :)

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  2. Sharyn Mallow WoerzJuly 20, 2017 at 11:38 AM

    self study, the lifetime commitment

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  3. Carolyn TindorJuly 20, 2017 at 2:32 PM

    Whose reasons - Whose reality? Best to go with everything we really needed to learn we learned in kindergarten. Wait! I didn't go to kindergarten, now what?

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  4. Inner WhispersJuly 23, 2017 at 1:11 PM

    I'm sometimes amazed that even people who seem entrenched in their own fixed perspectives can come to a new idea, a new vision, and a compromise, through debate :)

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    Replies
    1. thesycamoretreeJuly 23, 2017 at 3:53 PM

      All we need is just to crack open the door of the mind just a little... :)

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