I celebrated this full moon by doing some divination. My preferred method of divination is tarot; I like the pretty pictures. I have about a dozen decks, some for particular kinds of questions, others for general and everyday use, and one or two that are just to pretty not to own. For general questions I tend to use a favorite deck for six months to a year and then switch off either to a new one or an old favorite. One of my current favorites is the Shadowscapes Tarot
and that is the deck I chose for my full moon reading.
A word about me and tarot readings. When most people think of tarot readings they envision a long haired woman in a room draped with altar cloths, air thick with incense, laying cards in particular layout and the cards having specific fixed meanings. There's nothing wrong with that approach to tarot; I don't happen to use it. I take a more intuitive approach to tarot. I let the cards tell me how many need to be read and what they want to mean in any given reading, using the traditional meanings as a jumping off point. This means that the Two of Cups might mean the meeting of soul mates in one reading, emotional satisfaction in another, or being shut out of happiness in a third. This kind of reading gives me a huge amount of flexibility, but it also means I really have to pay attention to what I'm doing. You can't fake an intuitive reading - you either feel it or you don't.
For this reading I asked the question, "What do you want to tell me about the coming moon?" I shuffled the cards and several cards jumped out of the deck, with one in particular separate and above the rest.
The card the crowned all others was The Moon, and this card was to guide the meanings of all those below it. When I look at this card I think of the line in Midsummer Night's Dream "Ill met by moonlight proud Titania." In this reading, this card is all about dreams. Dreams are odd things, they can be beautiful and horrifying, light and dark, real and unreal all at the same time. This card was telling me that this reading was about my dreams, not the dreams my brain conjures at night, but dreams for myself and hopes for the future - particularly those concerning my magickal life.
The cards that I drew underneath The Moon were: Page of Wands, Four of Cups (rev), Ten of Swords, Queen of Wands, Knight of Swords (rev), Four of Swords, and King of Pentacles.
The reading really began with the Page of Wands. This card shows a young woman playing a violin to an audience of foxes and trees. It represents creativity and charisma. It is the effective communication of a creative message. I took this to represent my efforts in magickal communication, particularly my classes and my book (you'll hear all about it soon enough). I have a lot of hopes and plans in this arena and it definitely occupies my mind more often than anything else, so it's not surprising that it came first in the reading.
The next card is the Four of Cups reversed. Right-side up this card represents a lack of grounding and narcissism. Reversed, I take it to be a gentle warning not to get too wrapped up in my own marketing. I may be experiencing a fair amount of success and recognition right now, but that doesn't mean I don't still have a lot to learn. If I can keep myself grounded and humble I'll be better off.
Next is the Ten of Swords. In most circumstances this card would mean calamity, death, or a major fall. However, I have a rather quirky relationship with the nastier cards. Instead of meaning something bad is going to happen, for me they're about release. In this reading this card reminds me that sometimes I have to let go and let myself fall, to experience the darkness in order to come out the other side. This also reminds me that I have chosen the more difficult path and that I shouldn't bitch too much when the going gets tough.
The Queen of Wands is similar to the Page of Wands, just turned up to eleven. Where the Page is taking her first steps into leadership and mastery, the Queen is already sovereign. The Queen takes mastery and leadership to a new level; her very presence invites respect. In this reading she is telling me that I have the ability to do everything I hope to do, I just need the courage to own my mastery and step up - a scarier thought than it probably should be, which means I really needed to hear it.
The Knight of Swords reversed. Were it right-side up it would represent impetuous arrogance and domineering force. Reversed, this card encourages me to use delicacy and tact in my actions. Sometimes strong like bull equals dumb like ox, and that just doesn't work for me. It's ok to be the quiet one who waits for all the idiots to blow themselves hoarse and then step in and quietly, calmly point out their misconceptions and present the best solutions - Yes, I'm a trained mediator and I use those skills in everything I do.
The Four of Swords represents the eye of the storm. The woman lies back, almost in an attitude of death, with lotus blossoms floating around her. She's very calm and restful, but she'd still got a grip of her sword and can use it at a moment's notice. This card tells me to enjoy the calm moments I have, to rest and recharge while I can, because it's about to get very, very busy.
The final card is the King of Pentacles. This card represents strength, success, material wealth, and dominion coupled with generosity of both riches and spirit. This card tells me that I am poised to have all the success I desire, I just need to be willing to put in the work necessary to manifest my dreams and bring them into reality. Now is not the time to slip into pleasant day dreams and let time slip by. The opportunities I want are right in front of me, but they'll come to nothing if I don't stand up and grab them.
The real message of this reading is that I can be everything I want to be and do everything I want to do, I just have to seize the opportunities as they present themselves and never for one moment say, "I'll do it later, it'll come around again."
and that is the deck I chose for my full moon reading. A word about me and tarot readings. When most people think of tarot readings they envision a long haired woman in a room draped with altar cloths, air thick with incense, laying cards in particular layout and the cards having specific fixed meanings. There's nothing wrong with that approach to tarot; I don't happen to use it. I take a more intuitive approach to tarot. I let the cards tell me how many need to be read and what they want to mean in any given reading, using the traditional meanings as a jumping off point. This means that the Two of Cups might mean the meeting of soul mates in one reading, emotional satisfaction in another, or being shut out of happiness in a third. This kind of reading gives me a huge amount of flexibility, but it also means I really have to pay attention to what I'm doing. You can't fake an intuitive reading - you either feel it or you don't.
The card the crowned all others was The Moon, and this card was to guide the meanings of all those below it. When I look at this card I think of the line in Midsummer Night's Dream "Ill met by moonlight proud Titania." In this reading, this card is all about dreams. Dreams are odd things, they can be beautiful and horrifying, light and dark, real and unreal all at the same time. This card was telling me that this reading was about my dreams, not the dreams my brain conjures at night, but dreams for myself and hopes for the future - particularly those concerning my magickal life.
The cards that I drew underneath The Moon were: Page of Wands, Four of Cups (rev), Ten of Swords, Queen of Wands, Knight of Swords (rev), Four of Swords, and King of Pentacles.
The reading really began with the Page of Wands. This card shows a young woman playing a violin to an audience of foxes and trees. It represents creativity and charisma. It is the effective communication of a creative message. I took this to represent my efforts in magickal communication, particularly my classes and my book (you'll hear all about it soon enough). I have a lot of hopes and plans in this arena and it definitely occupies my mind more often than anything else, so it's not surprising that it came first in the reading.
The next card is the Four of Cups reversed. Right-side up this card represents a lack of grounding and narcissism. Reversed, I take it to be a gentle warning not to get too wrapped up in my own marketing. I may be experiencing a fair amount of success and recognition right now, but that doesn't mean I don't still have a lot to learn. If I can keep myself grounded and humble I'll be better off.
Next is the Ten of Swords. In most circumstances this card would mean calamity, death, or a major fall. However, I have a rather quirky relationship with the nastier cards. Instead of meaning something bad is going to happen, for me they're about release. In this reading this card reminds me that sometimes I have to let go and let myself fall, to experience the darkness in order to come out the other side. This also reminds me that I have chosen the more difficult path and that I shouldn't bitch too much when the going gets tough.
The Knight of Swords reversed. Were it right-side up it would represent impetuous arrogance and domineering force. Reversed, this card encourages me to use delicacy and tact in my actions. Sometimes strong like bull equals dumb like ox, and that just doesn't work for me. It's ok to be the quiet one who waits for all the idiots to blow themselves hoarse and then step in and quietly, calmly point out their misconceptions and present the best solutions - Yes, I'm a trained mediator and I use those skills in everything I do.
The final card is the King of Pentacles. This card represents strength, success, material wealth, and dominion coupled with generosity of both riches and spirit. This card tells me that I am poised to have all the success I desire, I just need to be willing to put in the work necessary to manifest my dreams and bring them into reality. Now is not the time to slip into pleasant day dreams and let time slip by. The opportunities I want are right in front of me, but they'll come to nothing if I don't stand up and grab them.
The real message of this reading is that I can be everything I want to be and do everything I want to do, I just have to seize the opportunities as they present themselves and never for one moment say, "I'll do it later, it'll come around again."
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