Shared Humanity

This week I'll be using the Golden Tarot, created by Kat Black and published by U.S. Games. Along with it, I'll be drawing from the Yantra Deck, created by Karl Schaffner and Maya Deva Adjani. It was published by Vayu Publishing. Today's cards are the Four of Wands and 'Devotion:'

          A few women prepare a basin for washing, possibly for all the barefoot dancers in the background. If there is music, dance, food and drink, there is sure to be some type of celebration happening. But my eye is drawn to the three archways - the one with a garland of fruit, the one made of stone and earth, and the entrance to the castle. From foreground to background, each one has been built with increasing care and skill. Arches are structures capable of spanning a space while supporting a significant weight. Symbolically, they are passageways (perhaps created by their ability to support). The yantra of Devotion implies a deeply felt commitment. The booklet suggests that when such love is present, hindrances become 'doorways to greater understanding' rather than obstacles of hardship. I see such devotion all the time in the way a parent cares for a disabled child, the patience of an adult child with his or her aging parent, and the love bestowed on an animal adopted from a shelter. What better reason could there be to celebrate than such tender, open-hearted commitments? 

Let’s not be afraid to receive each day’s surprise, whether it comes to us as sorrow or as joy. It will open a new place in our hearts, a place where we can welcome new friends and celebrate more fully our shared humanity. ~ Henri Nouwen