Shaking Off the Yellow Leaves

From the New Era Elements Tarot, the Six of Water (Cups); from the Tao Oracle, Approach (Hexagram 19):

Sorrow prepares you for joy. It violently sweeps everything out of your house, so that new joy can find space to enter. It shakes the yellow leaves from the bough of your heart, so that fresh, green leaves can grow in their place. ― Rumi

In the Thoth system, the Six of Cups/Water is not nostalgia but unbounded joy after a crisis is past. Pieper's card shows children splashing and enjoying the fountain jets at a play park. It reminds me of our community emerging after the pandemic lockdown (we were a Covid hotspot in the nation with limited resources and many deaths). We were cautious at first, but then we were like kids running outside when school breaks for recess. Recovery after such an emotional trial brings a special kind of release and happiness. Approach (hexagram 19) suggests beneficial changes are happening and encourages us to move toward them. While we may drag our feet - being wary of vulnerable - it reassures us that this is a development that we should take advantage of without delay.

Battle of Wills

From the Art of Life Tarot, the Five of Wands; from the Tao Oracle, Approach:

The wisest men follow their own direction. ~ Euripides 

Hexagram 19: Land rising above a marsh.

          Instead of a battle of wills between several fellows, Livingstone uses a painting of a man walking alone. For those who find it hard to be assertive in a group, to speak out loud their version of how to get from point A to point Z, it can feel lonely. Yet the information in a problem-solving session needs input from everyone, no matter how far off the beaten path some might go. Different perspectives can give different views of the problem, thus a solution agreed on that incorporates wisdom from all sides has a greater chance of making a difference. Having the courage to adamantly express one's ideas might be the difference between solving a problem or putting a band-aide on it. The Tao card shows a doorway leading from a dark hall leading to a bright, spring day. There is a sense of almost reaching something that has been desired, but there is still a need to actively do what will continue the progress. In adding this card to the Five of Wands, I think of diplomacy, the skill of managing a situation tactfully. No one will listen if they are not given the courtesy of being listened to as well. Aggression has no place here, only respect; confident insistence without arrogance may open previously closed ears.

Pockets of Opportunity

This week I'll be using the Fairytale Tarot, created by Karen Mahony and Alex Ukolov.  Today's card is the Ace of Coins and uses the tale "The Superior Pet:"

In this story, a wealthy family loses their lands and money, holding on to only one possession - a silver spoon.  Their daughter, with no dowry, becomes a seamstress who lives in a "poor house" for unmarried women.  One day she rescues a white mouse that had been caught and injured.  She nurses it back to health, but when it is discovered by the other women, they tell her she must get rid of it.  Instead she strikes out on her own, away from the village.  Hungry and tired, she considers selling the one possession her parents left her - the spoon.  But before she can act, the mouse grabs the spoon and scurries into the bricks of a tumbled down building.  She begins tearing the bricks away, only to uncover a treasure chest with her silver spoon sitting on top.  When the story of her good fortune spread throughout China, white mice became symbols of luck.  This card reminds me that I make my own luck, through working hard, persevering, and continuing to do what is right.  These tools will help build doors that open to opportunity.

The other deck I'll be using this week is the Tao Oracle, created by Ma Deva Padma.  This morning's draw is titled "Approach:"

A  room made of stones opens up to the outdoors, letting in fresh air, beauty and warmth.  Life often feels hard and cold like this room; what a blessing it is when positive change happens.  Lately these pockets of calm and peace are few and far between, and sometimes I just want to do nothing but rest when I find myself in one.  But Padma encourages me to take advantage of them - rest, but don't become a couch potato.  I need to be enjoying these moments because they are where the real change happens.