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, July 30, 2024

Judicious Buying and Giving

From the Stone Tarot, the Queen of Pentacles; from the Buddhist Quote Card, Dhammapada 12:166:


I am of certain convinced that the greatest heroes are those who do their duty in the daily grind of domestic affairs whilst the world whirls as a maddening dreidel.
― Florence Nightingale

I am known as the 'practical' shopper in the house. I buy things because they have a purpose, either by being useful (and needed) or because they gladden the heart and are inspirational. The look on this Queen of Pentacles face suggests she's gotten a dull dust-around as a present. While she's grateful for the thought behind it, she probably would have preferred a gift card from Tractor Supply to buy some seeds to plant or feed the birds with. The Dhammapada quote deals with the flip side of the coin: generosity.

Don't give up your own welfare for the sake of others' welfare, however great. Clearly know your own welfare and be intent on the highest good.

In other words, we shouldn't be so generous with our time, money and energy that it leaves us unable to fulfill our obligations, in debt, or causes damage to our health. That would only create another person that needed to be aided. 


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