Outside Fixed Patterns

This week I'll be using the Morgan Greer Tarot, created by Bill Greer and Lloyd Morgan and published by U.S. Games. I'll also be using the Celtic Book of the Dead, published by Grange Books, created by Caitlin Matthews and illustrated by Danuta Mayer. Today's draws are the King of Swords and the Island of Singing Birds:

The truth is outside of all fixed patterns.

―Bruce Lee 

The handful of wheat and the acorn-bearing oak branch make me think one of this King's favorite sayings is, "Nothing can grow strong or well without truth and without some semblance of order." He knows that where there is no honesty, there is no trust, and nothing to hold the community together. Structure and rules help people remember what is important, set priorities, and get things done. His Achilles heel is that he sometimes forgets that change and new information might require adjusting the current system in place. The Island of Singing Birds brought a chorus of harmonic sounds to the Celtic travelers, "as though a choir were singing the Psalms." The beautiful blending of bird song was an advisement from the Otherworld to listen to their inner guide rather than their ego. When reality shifts because of new evidence or great change, our perceptions and actions must follow suit rather than cling to our old ideas.  

Swinging and Singing

This week I'll be using the Transformational Tarot created by Arnell Ando and published by U.S. Games. The oracle I'll be using with it is the Celtic Book of the Dead, created by Caitlin Matthews, illustrated by Danuta Mayer and published by Edison-Sadd. Today's draws are Karma (Wheel of Fortune) and "Island of the Singing Birds:"

An ancient sundial is surrounded by a snake, a symbol of regeneration; a girl swings from the bottom, oblivious to the precarious laws of change. I suppose growing older allows us to objectively witness cycles and patterns, and hopefully we will realize that we're responsible for a lot of what happens to us. Sure, life deals out some stuff that we have no control over, but still a lot of it goes back to our actions (or nonaction) and words we have spoken. Clueless at the time, we often set the ball rolling for circumstances that will affect us later. Will we wake up and be accountable or keep mindlessly swinging?
The Island of Singing Birds is part of an immram, or mystical voyage. This island was not filled with the random, raucous calls of birds, but with birds singing in harmony as a chorus. There is an important message here that can only be heard by stopping and listening closely. It is quite likely a call to stop blaming life for what's on our plate and instead change our attitude or behavior.