Task of Sisyphus

From the Dark Goddess Tarot, the Seven of Earth (Ereshkigal); from the Tattwa Cards, Fire: Seed of Earth:

Shake your fist all you want, but dead is dead

~Steven Erikson

Ereshkigal, Lady of the Vast Place, was the Mesopotamian goddess of the underworld. In this culture, the afterlife was where everyone went after death - good or bad. Ereshkigal guarded the barrier between the physical world and the underworld. She may seem an odd choice for the Seven of Earth (Pentacles), until we realize how often we 'plant' things that are 'dead' to us; we keep trying to make them work or bring them back. Fire: Seed of Earth represents alchemy, and even this philosophy required specific elements, combined in certain ways to be useful. We can't force things or people to grow if it is not their natural inclination. Otherwise, we have taken on the task of Sisyphus.

Ardor and Fidelity

From the Dark Goddess Tarot, the Three of Water (Mami Wata); from the Tattwa Cards, Fire: Seed of Earth:

The orchestra whirls me wider than Uranus flies;

It wrenches such ardors from me I did not know I possess'd them.

~Walt Whitman

Mami Wati is the Igbo goddess of ardor and fidelity. The core of her worship is dance - rhythmic, abandoned movement rather than something choreographed. Who wants a religion that or philosophy that doesn't allow a little pure, ecstatic joy to balance out the seriousness of daily life? We all need to lay down our burdens occasionally. Fire: Seed of Earth represents alchemy, tempering our enthusiasm and optimism with an eye on our objective. We need release to clear our minds, but staying in that blissful state won't help us move forward.

Just Dance

From the Dark Goddess Tarot, the Three of Water (Cups); from the Tattwa Cards, Fire > Seed of Earth:

Not everything that makes sense works, and not everything that works makes sense.

― Rory Sutherland

          Mami Wata is an Igbo goddess of water and ardor. The core of her worship is dance. Most celebrations feature music and movement - dance is the body's way to express joy and lightness (even if it's a simple twirl). It's nearly impossible to harden your heart when your feet are moving and your body is swaying. The keyword assigned to Fire: Seed of Earth is 'alchemy,' the transmutation of one thing into another. Alchemists wanted to remove impurities in order to refine and improve things, whether that involved metals or humans. Sometimes finding our joy works the same way - combining things with a little energy, like music and dance or singing. It may not make logical sense, but who cares if it works?

To dance is to be out of yourself. Larger, more beautiful, more powerful… This is power, it is glory on earth and it is yours for the taking. ― Agnes De Mille

A Different View of Strength

From the Dark Goddess Tarot, Strength; from the Tattwas Cards, 'Fire - Seed of Earth:'

Those who try to put their lives back together exactly as they were remain fractured and vulnerable. But those who accept the breakage and build themselves anew become more resilient and open to new ways of living. ~ Stephen Joseph 

          This Slavic goddess combined with a Tattwas card that signifies alchemy implies the balanced nature of inner strength. Challenges, like the sapling that deepens its roots to withstand gusty winds, can help us develop it. Yet unrelenting force, the kind associated with various types of trauma, has quite a different effect. What doesn't kill us, in fact, doesn't make us stronger (according to researchers). If that were the case, many of us would be sporting Wonder Woman boots or Superman capes. Yet such physical or psychological injury may activate resiliency - the ability to be flexible with what comes our way. And trauma does change us, as David B. Feldman explains: "Up to 80 percent of survivors say that they grow in some way as a result of their tragedies. This phenomenon, officially known as post-traumatic growth can result in people redefining their relationships, deepening or altering their spirituality, or discovering a new philosophy of life." So perhaps resiliency and a wider viewpoint is a part of inner strength too.