Intentions and Methods

From the Prisma Visions Tarot, the Knight of Pentacles; from the Secret Language of Color Cards, Yellow:

Sometimes our intentions are good but our methods are a tad nuts. This Knight, wanting to stay grounded while in the mystical forest, is barefoot. Hope he's had his tetanus shot. He was out looking for food - hoping for truffles - but the unicorn has found a patch of giant strawberries instead. Trying to feed others is a good idea, but I'm sure they'd prefer a healthy, wholesome meal to a few rare delicacies. Take the strawberries! Yellow, with its message to purify the body, reminds me of the fifth precept: "I vow not to intoxicate body or mind, but to cultivate a mind that sees clearly." Sometimes we feed our minds and bodies things that might seem delicious and enjoyable going in but have consequences later on. What we ingest either way should be questioned: Is this a realistic option? Will this produce the end result I hope for?

We receive as friendly that which agrees with [us], we resist with dislike that which opposes us; whereas the very reverse is required by every dictate of common sense.

― Michael Faraday

Caught Up

From the Prisma Visions Tarot, the Page of Wands; from the Secret Language of Color Cards, Yellow:

          An ethereal vine of inspiration has swept this Page off his feet. He'll probably forget to eat and will sleep little while caught in its grip. Little notes will fill his pockets and sketches or outlines will cover his desk. While it can appear as a bout of insanity, it may be both fulfilling and liberating for him. As Roy Bennett wrote, "Instead of worrying about what you cannot control, shift your energy to what you can create." Although inspiration might be the fuel that drives us, it can't sustain us mentally or physically. Yellow suggests we take time to cleanse the body and the mind. Motivation stays high when we take time to relax and play, to eat healthy food and stretch our bodies, and perhaps meditate. Besides, that's often when our best solutions or guidance comes.

Clarifying Impermanence

From the Prisma Visions Tarot, Death; from the Secret Language of Color Cards, Yellow:

          As the skeletal hand around the rose implies, loss and change are inevitable. Yet humans continue to believe we are not a part of this natural cycle; we think it is abnormal when it happens to us. We cling tightly to what we like and want, to what brings us pleasure. Yet we open our hands to find only ashes anyway. And then our suffering is doubled: first because of the actual loss and secondly because we refuse to accept it. Yellow has been given the keyword 'purification' - a way to remove any elements that debase or contaminate something. Age tends to increase one's losses - the physical decline of the body, the deaths of family members (furry and human) as well as the wear and tear of material things. But if my memories are focused only on how this loss affects me (clinging to what was), I have no space left to celebrate what has been, what is and is to come. I've polluted the gift with my self-centeredness. Impermanence can bring a sharp clarity; we don't really own anything, we just have a chance to appreciate it while it's here.