The Equalizer

From the Morgan Greer Tarot, the Empress; from the Celtic Book of the Dead, the Island of the Mill:

Mother Nature is the great equalizer.

—Christopher Heyerdahl

The Empress represents creative energy that can bring warmth, joy and beauty. But this particular Empress holds a shield bearing the crest of the Holy Roman Empire, a sign of power. She understands that we live in relationship with all things, and if that balance is upset for too long, she'll give our bare legs a good switching. She loves all of creation, not just a small part of it. The Island of the Old Mill had a supervisor who called himself "hell's own miller." The mill ground corn but also treasures of the wealthy and stingy - a judgment on those who were selfish and greedy. As both Mother Nature and the psychologist Erich Fromm realized, "Greed is a bottomless pit which exhausts the person in an endless effort to satisfy the need without ever reaching satisfaction." Avarice hurts much more than it ever helps.

Coming Alive

From the Transformational Tarot, the Queen of Wands:

The Queen of Wands takes Joseph Campbell's advice to heart: "Follow your bliss.  Find where it is and don't be afraid to follow it."  Her passion is like the fire beneath the cauldron; it motivates her to do what she loves.  But like Campbell, her "bliss" isn't a form of hedonism - it is neither transient nor self-serving.  As Howard Thurman explained:

Don't ask so much what the world needs.
Go out and do what makes you come alive,
because what the world needs most
are people who have come alive.   

From the Celtic Book of the Dead comes the "Island of the Mill:"

Here Maelduin and his men saw people with large sacks of grain being delivered to a mill.  The crew learned these people were reaping what they had sown.  Those folks who proved themselves to be grudging and unkind ended up having to pay for their deeds by giving up a portion of what they had.  The message of this card is that while I may rationalize my "justified" resentments and punishing behavior toward others, it will come back to bite me in the rear every time.  If I focus on following my bliss, I won't even have time to think about payback.