Accept Responsibility

This week I'll be using the Hoi Polloi Tarot published by Hoi Polloi Inc. The oracle I'll also use is the I Ching Pack created by Richard Gill and Anthony Clark and published by Thorsons. Today's cards are the Hermit and Striving Upwards (Hexagram 46):

No one can accept responsibility for the spiritual life of someone else.

―John Beckett

It is telling that this Hermit has very little color in a brightly colored deck. I was talking to a friend the other day about how churches must entertain rather than teach these days. People seem to want only fun and excitement on their spiritual path, not the hard work of looking inward or doing service for others. Hexagram 46 reflects the seed's effort of pushing up through the earth. Effort and perseverance are required for any path. Beckett (a pagan) offers "Five Reasons You Can't Find the Right Spiritual Path," which may not sound like a vacation checklist but is definitely worth a read. Here are the bullet points:

• You don’t know your core values. 
• You’re so busy running away from something you can’t run toward anything.
• You’re looking for perfection. 
• You’re looking for external confirmation.
• You aren’t sticking with something long enough to see if it works for you.

Support Group

From the New Era Elements Tarot, the Hierophant; from the Tao Oracle, Pushing Upward (Hexagram 46):

God has given us many faiths but only one world in which to co-exist. May your work help all of us to cherish our commonalities and feel enlarged by our differences.

~Jonathan Sacks

The Hierophant is an authority of a belief system that instructs and guides; he or she tends to 

congregate people seeking spiritual wisdom. What's in it for the followers? If their leader is honest 
and kind, they receive helpful support for navigating a life that can be challenging. The group as a 
whole can also offer a feeling of belonging. Yet even the most sincere leader can make blunders; 
their knowledge may be advanced but they are only human. When in doubt of their advice, it may 
be beneficial to ask if following their counsel would result in relieving suffering or causing it (for 
others or one's self). Pushing Upward (hexagram 46) suggests we are making slowly making 
progress, helped along by support from a variety of sources and the past challenges we have met. 
Our backup and encouragement need not be based on just a single source but can originate from 

several streams.   

Scrapbooking

From Tarot by Caro, the Magician; from the Holitzka I Ching, Hexagram 46:

We are made of the same stuff as the stars, so when we study astronomy we are in a way only investigating our remote ancestry and our place in the universe of star stuff.

~Harlow Shapley

Using desire, single-mindedness, and the resources at hand, the Magician incarnates his vision. But the stars he is made of is a warning of interconnection, that all we say and do affects other people and things. Though on a very small scale, those effects can ripple outward. Since everything leans on something else, what we add or take away can either be of benefit or detrimental. Hexagram 46 is often called 'Pushing Upward' as in something that grows from the earth. Even if we aren't aware of the consequences of our words or actions, they will produce something - either briers or edible fruit. Time has a way of producing a scrapbook for us to peruse. On the plus side, we can always add different pages if we don't like what we've seen.

Fast Minds, Slower Bodies

From the Japaridze Tarot, the Two of Gardens (Pentacles); from the Holitzka I Ching, 'Hexagram 46:'

          It's never a good thing for me to wake up too early and spend that extra time thinking about all the things I need to get done in the hours ahead. The problem is that my mind moves faster and in many more directions than my body can at one time, but my mind expects it to keep up anyway. This fellow in the Japaridze card juggles fruit on a cloud (the mind). A few of those apples look like they're about to hit earth and become bruised or go splat. That's a good representation of what will happen to my body if it tries to keep up with my mind today. Japaridze suggests that instead of expending so much energy in multiple directions, I should prioritize and take care of the most important. Hexagram 46 is often titled 'Ascension' because a person receives recognition and a boost from someone with influence. Yet there is a caution to maintain self-discipline and keep one's feet firmly planted on the ground. There's no need to add to the responsibilities I'm already juggling, especially if all that comes of it is more stress.

Breathe, Just Breathe

This week I'll be using the Hoi Polloi Tarot published by Hoi Polloi Inc. The oracle I'll also use is the I Ching Pack created by Richard Gill and Anthony Clark, and published by Thorsons. Today's cards are the Four of Swords and 'Earth over Wood:'

          I actually slept well last night (more than 3 or 4 hours) and feel energized this morning. Seeing this knight lying so still makes me want tell him, "Get up! There are packages to track, presents to wrap and cards to send!" Tis the season to be running hither and thither, but this card advises me to slow down and rest not only my body but my mind. There's been a lot going on here at home besides holiday preparations, and so a day dedicated to rest, contemplation and meditation is actually a good idea. And the benefit of being well rested means I won't nod off while meditating. Besides, he's already got three swords on the wall, so there's only one left to deal with. Hexagram 46 suggests striving upward and making progress. It seems at odds with the Four of Swords, until I consider that the advancement has to do with internal development rather than external activity. Looking at the man making his way up the rocky path, I imagine he will soon be clear of rocks and trees with nothing but sky to gaze upon. Clarity and spaciousness is waiting at the top of that mountain, a result of spiritual effort exerted. As Anna Nalick sings, "Breathe, just breathe."