Reading in the Garden

A few weeks ago I offered tarot readings at a friend's garden tour.  It was a delightful day, perfect weather, good flow of visitors, a few readings and the coming together of two loves of mine, tarot and gardening.  When I wasn't reading I was helping Cynthia show off her garden.  I used the Gaian Tarot, which was perfect for the venue.

I had hoped the readings would all be gardening questions.  My first reading was perfect, "will my bamboo stay where it is?" the card was Awakening (20-Judgement), I was afraid it was bad news for the gardener.   That bamboo is going to keep spreading, rising out of the ground.  As the day progressed the reading became less garden centric and more personal, which was fine--but I was operating on a lot of coffee, and very little food, not a good combination for deep personal reflection.

Wheel of the Year Mandala

Last weekend I made my 2009 Wheel of the Year Mandala. This is the fifth year I've made a WOTY mandala, it's become one of my touchstone New Year's activities. I gather with a group of friends and we put our mandala's together. We each approach the project slightly differently. I first have to choose my primary deck, this year I used the Kitty Kahane deck. I love the way she interprets the RWS images. I pull one card per month, and one card for the year. I also pick a card from the Gaian Tarot majors only deck for my year card. I then pull the same cards from 2 more decks. I try to use decks that will help me expand my understanding of the card as it manifests that month. This year I used the Aquarian and Crone's Tarots. I also pick a card from a deck of inspirational phrases for each month and the year. It's interesting to see how these random phrases synchronize with, or seem to contradict, the card of the month.

This year's themes are the Empress and the 2 of Swords, and the phrase is "Look within".

January--Page of Cups "Open Your Heart"
February--King of Cups "Follow Your Joy"
March--King of Swords "BeYourself"
April--3 of Cups "Anything is Possible"
May--Magacian "Live Unconditionally"
June--10 of Pentacles "Celebrate Life"
July--9 of Pentacles "Release the Old"
August --10 Cups "Follow Your Being"
September --Wheel of Fortune "Embrace the New"
October --Lovers "Define Your Purpose"
November --Moon "Worry Not"
December --Queen of Swords "Change Viewpoints"

I feel very positive about the cards for this upcoming year. I see some cycles coming to completion (Kings and tens), change (Wheel), and personal control (Kings and Magician). It will be interesting to see how it all plays out.

Here, Kitty, Kitty,Kitty

It's funny, how a deck you think is just another quirky deck can be one that talks to you the most. Kitty Kahne's deck is the one for me. This predominately lavender and blue deck, populated with strange looking people speaks volumes.

In the six of pentacles we see that you can get what you want. This child dreams of life at sea, he wears a sailor suit and now he is getting the toy of his dream. a boat to call his own. I am reminded by this card that I want to make sure everyone has what they need, this can be a kindness or a pathology, depending on how it manifests. The questions to ask yourself are; is the gift given from a place of abundance, or a place of fear, are there strings attached?


The Moon card reminds me not to let my dreams fall by the wayside. Don't give to others at the expense of myself. I may find myself howling at the moon, asking where's mine?

Note the towers in the distance of this card, one capped with a woman's head--the other with a man. The Kitty Kahane deck is full of similar images, static objects bearing human heads, people with birds for hats, opening the way for a new slant on the card meanings. In the case of the Moon card I am reminded that people have their own stories which remain mysteries to us. We may not know a fraction of the inner lives of our closest companions, how little then can we know about strangers? Sometimes we are strangers to ourselves. Our lives are storied (many storied, as the towers are) and who has explored their own castle in its fullness?

I'm back

After a many months hiatus I have returned to regular blogging. My computer set up was less than ideal, but we've got a new machine, and scanner, and I'm ready to start blogging about tarot. In 2 weeks I'm going to BATS with my friend Deb. Looking forward to being part of a larger tarot community.

9 of Pentacles

I've been thinking about my garden lately. Our house has lots of potential in the garden area, but most of that potential is waiting to be discovered. I feel lost when facing a blank canvas, be it an actual canvas, a piece of paper, or an expanse of soil. The 9 of pentacles reminds me that a wonderful vibrant restful garden is the result of hard work, planning and time. And before I can get to the end, I have to start the process.

But look at the rewards!

Pairs Exercise 8 of Pentacles and Death

The dance of Death and the 8 of Pentacles is one of creation and destruction.

This month I begin participating on the Comparative Tarot e-list's Pairs exercises. In the Pairs exercise you are assigned a card to compare with the card of the month. The card of the month is the 8 of Pentacles, Death is my assigned pair card. What an interesting combination. I laid out this pair from a number of different decks and was struck by the way they relate to each other depending on the way the characters on the cards face.

In the Ator tarot (as in the RWS) Death and the craftsperson on the 8 of Pentacles face the same direction. When the Death card comes before the 8 of Pentacles it suggests that Death/change can come upon us unexpectedly. When the 8 of Pentacles comes before Death it suggests that even in the face of Death and endings, creation carries on.

In the Sheridan Douglas Tarot (sorry I don't have scans of these cards) Death and the 8 of Pentacles face different directions. When they face each other you see the tension between the two. The craftsman looks Death in the face and defiantly carries on. When they are back to back it seems that Death has passed by and the craftsman has been spared. Perhaps he has been too busy at his task to take note of Death's passing.

The Aquarian Tarot shows close ups of the faces of Death and the Craftsman. I am struck by the differences in their expressions. Death is dispassionate, looking straight ahead, while the craftsman on the 8 of pentacles is passionately engaged in the process of creation. So engaged that he does not realize who is creeping up behind him.

4 of Wands

Transitions, celebrations, passages. This is the 4 of wands. The image speaks of this and more. In the International icon we see two flower bearing celebrants in the background, coming from a walled castle to a flowered canopy held aloft by 4 wands. This is the gateway, how will you change as you pass through? What are you celebrating? What is your rite of passage?

This appears to be a joyous image, but passages and transitions can take all forms. You could be celebrating a wedding, as the Spiral Tarot image suggests. Or you could be acknowledging a death.

I often see this card as a seasonal turning point, the World Spirit version shows this best, with their reference to a May Day celebration.