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

Monday, September 16, 2019

Benevolence and Restoration

From the Tarot de St. Croix, the Six of Pentacles; from the Archetype Cards, the Healer:

          The two entwined figures of the Buddhist yab-yum is not related to sexual practices but instead depicts the union of dual forces. The male symbolizes compassion and skillful means while the female represents insight and wisdom. We all have something to share - time, energy, skills, knowledge - even if we're not financially well off. When we combine our assets and resources with others, we create a healthier whole. The Healer archetype is one that serves others by helping alleviate and transform their pain. We don't necessarily have to know Reiki to do this; sometimes simply listening deeply to another can help. The themes of benevolence and restoration remind me of a poem by Danusha Laméris called "Small Kindnesses:"

 I’ve been thinking about the way, when you walk 
down a crowded aisle, people pull in their legs 
to let you by. Or how strangers still say “bless you” 
when someone sneezes, a leftover 
from the Bubonic plague. “Don’t die,” we are saying. 
And sometimes, when you spill lemons 
from your grocery bag, someone else will help you 
pick them up. Mostly, we don’t want to harm each other.
We want to be handed our cup of coffee hot, 
and to say thank you to the person handing it. To smile 
at them and for them to smile back. For the waitress 
to call us honey when she sets down the bowl of clam chowder, 
and for the driver in the red pick-up truck to let us pass.
We have so little of each other, now. So far 
from tribe and fire. Only these brief moments of exchange. 
What if they are the true dwelling of the holy, these 
fleeting temples we make together when we say, “Here,
have my seat,” “Go ahead—you first,” “I like your hat.”

4 comments:

  1. Makes sense. I thought people said bless you so the witch doesn't take babies up the chimney. Fairy Tales...what can I say. Bluebeard still gives me nightmares. and people think video games are bad.

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    1. I've never heard about warding off witches who take babies up the chimneys!

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  2. I always heard that "Bless You" after a sneeze was because of a fraction of a second your heart stopped because of the intensity, and 'bless you' because you are still alive.
    Amazing the different beginnings of belief

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    1. Now there's another new one I haven't heard of before!

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