A Brutal Teacher

From the Granny Jones Australian Tarot, the Ten of Swords; from the Button Oracle, Arjuna:

Experience is a brutal teacher. But you learn. My god, you learn. 

— C.S. Lewis

Just when we think we have figured things out and have put our plans and strategies into action, we crash and burn. But we don't have to stay at rock bottom unless we refuse to change our ideas and see things through fresh eyes. The button shows Arjuna, an unrivaled archer whose story is told in the Bhagavad Gita. He finds himself in the middle of a war he doesn't want to fight because he will have to kill some of his relatives. Yet Krishna tells him it is his duty as a warrior to see that justice is protected and the greater good preserved. In other words, even though the right course of action is difficult, we at times must do what we don't want to do. Or we can keep lying on those cold, hard rocks.

Dangerous Travel

From the Granny Jones Australian Tarot, the Page of Wands; from the Button Oracle, Arjuna:

          This happy reporter reminded me of a friend who worked for the Associated Press. He often followed stories and events overseas and to dangerous places, but his spirit of adventure, determination and daring never gave him pause. But what is it's not danger but a moral dilemma that stops him short? The Arjuna Button is based on an archer who was reluctant to take part in battle, because he knew he would be expected to potentially kill many of his own relatives. A dialogue with Lord Krishna ensued about issues related to the war — courage, a warrior’s duty, the nature of human life, and yogic ideals — that form the pages of the Bhagavad Gita. I had my own dilemma recently at a get-together where someone brought a game called Cards Against Humanity (similar to the game Apples to Apples, but very politically and socially incorrect). There was not a single group which this game did not make fun of (even sick kids!!). I finally got up and told everyone that I couldn't play this game because it went against every value I held. Of course many replied that it wasn't supposed to be serious, but all in jest. But to me that felt like telling an ethnic joke when your ethnic friend isn't around to hear it. There are some dangerous places for the heart to which I refuse to travel.

It is an archetypical moral dilemma - Do you act like yourself and risk becoming an outcast?

~ Jodi Picoult

On the Right Road

From the Granny Jones Tarot, Temperance:

Temperance makes me consider the middle path rather than one extreme or the other - it is a path of moderation.  What caught my eye in this image is the cat looking at itself in the mirror.  It makes me reflect on the irony of reading some sort of self-help book about character defects and instantly thinking "I know someone who acts just like that" instead of considering my own behavior.  The first step to walking that middle path is realizing the path I'm on now.

From the Button Oracle comes "Arjuna:"

"If you can think about a situation, you can deal with it. The big struggle is to keep your head clear enough to think." ~ Richard Pryor

    Arjuna, a unrivaled archer, was reluctant to take part in the battle of the Kurukshetra war because he knew he would be expected to potentially kill the enemy, which included many of his own relatives. He was persuaded by his charioteer and close friend, Lord Krishna, to change his mind. Their dialogue about Arjuna's inner and outer conflicts formed the subject of the Bhagavad Gita.  If I can take Krishna's advice and choose selflessness while avoiding attachment, I think I'll be headed down the right road.