Chaining My Cheetah

This week I'll be using the Golden Tarot, created by Kat Black.  Today's draw is the High Priestess:

 Dozens of such New Age authors could bring their works together into one large volume entitled, “How To Become Aware of the Depths of Your Being Without Disturbing the Routine of Your Comfortable Lifestyle.”  ~ Lew Paz

My initial thought upon drawing the High Priestess was "Know Thyself," but not the kind of knowing that has to do with intellectual analysis.  Just look at her face; she's in the "zone" and her book is closed.  The wisdom she's pulling from is deep within, way past the ego and any "how to" books.  She encourages me to "chain my cheetah" - be still, quiet my mind, and listen to my Higher Self.  While all the distractions float merrily along on the surface, deep down below I'll hear what I need to know if I'm patient and receptive.  And though it may be beneficial to me, it won't inflate my ego.  Instead, it will have the potential to alter my attitude and behavior.

The oracle deck I'll be using this week is the Yantra Deck, created by Karl Schaffner and Maya Deva Adjani.  Today's card is "Grace - being guided:"

 In the companion book it states: "By stepping outside our ego we receive understanding and inspiration from an alternate perspective, which shows us direction and provides wisdom beyond words."  I like that "beyond words" part.  I can hear and read all sorts of suggestions, but what I need is to experience them from a source that is beyond the reach of all human ulterior motives (the High Priestess tells me how above).  As Krishnamurti said, "What will bring peace is inward transformation, which will lead to outward action. Inward transformation is not isolation, is not withdrawal from outward action. On the contrary, there can be right action only when there is right thinking and there is no right thinking when there is no self-knowledge. Without knowing yourself, there is no peace."


  

Standing on the Shoulders

From the Gill Tarot, the Hermit:

If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants. ~ Isaac Newton

Seeing this image of the Hermit from the back made me make a connection to another major arcana card - the Star.  Is it his lantern I see in the heavens when I am in that place of exhaustion and confusion, and I suddenly find healing and guidance?  I am reminded of how something has "clicked" for me by reading or hearing the words of friends, both in the physical and internet community of which I am a part.  Just a few words have created drastic shifts in my thinking and world.  Thank you my friends for shining your lights and giving me direction and hope.  May I one day stand on your shoulders and hold the lantern for another.

From The Circle deck comes "Love:"

Yesterday I drew the Five of Cups, a card of sorrow and anguish.  That evening I watched a loved one's struggle, bearing witness to her tears and frustration.  I felt my heart ache, yet there was a subtle anger underneath that wanted to say "Pull on your big girl panties and deal with it!"  But because I love her, I kept those thoughts to myself.  Love is a verb, not an emotion.  Sometimes the action of love is not to fix what is broken for another person (often impossible anyway), but to sit patiently, bear witness, and listen.  Knowing someone will stay in the boat while I ride out the rough waves can make all the difference.

 

Warning: Emotions without Intellect Ahead

From the Gill Tarot, the Five of Cups:

The challenge of grief and sadness shows itself in the tears and sad face of this card.  But the bright red background makes me think there is some hidden anger as well.  Whether the loss is the death of a loved one, the end of a relationship, or a career that's come to an abrupt halt, there is something that seethes underneath the the outward expression of anguish and sorrow.  It is the role of victim that can keep me in my deep, dark hole, making me stay in the past instead of being attentive to the present.  The heart locked away inside the stem of the glass indicates using various techniques to wall off my feelings in a vain attempt at never being vulnerable again.  And in that isolation, I'll just get more of the same instead of the encouragement and support that will be my ladder out of that hole.

From The Circle comes "Caution:"

A traffic light turns yellow, warning all oncoming vehicles to slow down and prepare to stop.  Good advice for me when I am running on emotion and the logical side of my brain has taken a sabbatical.  A crash is inevitable with someone else, because I'll react instead of acting to situations, making me behave and shoot my mouth off in ways that would be out of character for me otherwise.  Time to apply the brakes...
  

Choose the Good Ones

From the Gill Tarot, the Ace of Swords:

From the sharp point of the sword come four feathers, representing the four elements: air/ideas, fire/ambitions, water/emotions, and earth/physical reality.  Thoughts have so much more influence over my life than I give them credit.  Some of these thoughts can have positive consequences (seeing a need and offering help) while others may be negative (thinking I might lose something and feeling fear).  I don't really have much control over the thoughts that come, but I can can choose to focus on something else if they are detrimental to my physical, mental, emotional or spiritual development.  Gill gives this card the keyword "energy," meaning the ability to do work.  It is a nudge that if my thoughts are beneficial, I still must put them into action to reap the benefits.

From The Circle deck comes "Completion:"

I've done enough backpacking in my younger days to know that reaching the top of a mountain is not as easy as it may seem.  Steep, rocky trails, copperheads and rattlesnakes, freezing rain, and poorly marked trails can cause me to rethink my goal or destination.  Is it worth all the challenges?  Again I see the influence of my thoughts - they can be my most ardent cheerleader or worst critic.  But if I'm going to reach the summit, I'm going to have to choose the good ones.

Clear or Partly Cloudy

From the Gill Tarot, the Queen of Swords:

The queen sits on her throne made of a cloud, emphasizing her rational, logical way of thinking (her head is not "in the clouds").  The alchemical vessel beside her indicates that she boils away all that is not helpful in coming to a judgment about a person or situation.  Looking at this image makes me reflect on all the ways I am influenced by internal or external sources that keep me from making sane decisions:
1) My emotions - If I love someone or a cause so dearly, I may see only their good points and none of their flaws.  Likewise if I hate something or someone, I will see only what is bad about them and none of their virtues.  Fear and sadness can keep me from acknowledging an opportunity or other need for action.
2) My desires - It is amazing how deftly the human mind can delude a person into denying reality because of what they crave or long for.  For instance, the woman who wants so desperately to be in a relationship, she ignores the fact that the man she is with is emotionally abusive.
3) My preconceived ideas - As much as I would like to believe I am the most open-minded person in the world, I know I have a set of beliefs that keep my reality neatly boxed.  Even when someone shares an experience with me, I evaluate the information against what I "know," and decide whether any of it is useful or not.  There are many doors in my mind that might have opened had I even entertained these new ideas or been less attached to my tightly held ideas.
So how about you?  What keeps you from seeing clearly?

From The Circle deck comes "Conflict:"

Years ago I lived on a farm surrounded by acres and acres of pastures, groves and fields.  Because of its vast size, economical barbed wire fences were used to keep the cattle and horses out of the fields planted with crops.  I can remember being woken up late at night or early morning when the cattle had pushed down a fence (probably scratching themselves on a post).  A calf would become separated from its mother, and make poor bleating noises outside my window while its mom would moo deeply on the other side of the house.  Fences do help keep the peace, in more ways than one.  I am reminded by this card that the best boundary I can have in place to avoid conflict is respect - both for others and myself.

Inclusive or Exclusive

From the Gill Tarot, the Seven of Swords:

My first reaction when I drew this card was one of uncertainty - are those real swords?  Some of them look very bendy like they're made of rubber, and the diagonal lines on some remind me of feathers.  Sevens offer a chance to assess our options.  With this Seven of Swords, the framework of my perception changes everything.  Do I look at things from a selfish, self-centered perspective (How will this affect me?  Will I get what I want?)?  Or do I look from a wide, holistic perspective (How will this affect everyone?  Will it benefit all or just a few?)?  When I'm only looking out for my interests is when I feel the sharp points.  As Shantideva put it:

“Whatever joy there is in the world
Arises from wishing for others' happiness.
Whatever suffering there is in the world
Arises from wishing for your own happiness.”

From The Circle deck comes "Direction:"

Maybe I'm influenced too much by logic, but when it comes to a spiritual path (or any other path for that matter) I have a hard time just "going with the flow."  I feel like I need tools and a map to head in a certain direction or toward a specific goal.  I don't mean direction that is rigid or inflexible, but one that guides and gives direction.  Some structure can give me feedback to test the path I'm on and assess it for whether it is an authentic one for me.

Choosing and Doing

From the Gill Tarot, the Princess of Discs (Page of Pentacles):

Every time I see this card in the Gill deck with the bull in the background and the red of her skirt, I think this princess has enough stubbornness to learn to do whatever she sets her mind on doing.  But I think she must be a bit like me when learning something new - I can read all the instructions and books I want, but until I physically get started I'm still lost.  A friend sent my family a board game for the holidays called "Ticket to Ride."  Although it doesn't have a lot of rules to play, it wasn't until we all actually tried to play the game that we had a firm grasp on how to play it (and it was fun!).  If I'm going to attempt something new, I need to be persistent, read the "how to," and then give it a go so I can polish my skills along the way.  I'm definitely a "learn by doing" kind of gal.

From The Circle deck comes "Choice:"

Will it be door number one, two, three or four?  They all have a bright, inviting light shining through the doorway.  They remind me of all the things I want to learn about and do.  But its hard not to have a remote control mentality and switch back and forth, taking a piece of this and a piece of that.  If I want to seriously study or learn a new skill, I'm going to have to choose one, and invest my time in it for a while.