Monday, June 20, 2011

tarot Labyrinth-the Magician

As the Fool steps off the cliff, he faces many emotional, physical, spiritual and intellectual challenges but he will also experience many joyous moments along the way.

The first person the fool encounters on his journey is a man dressed in red who exudes mystery, masculinity and power. I should emphasize here that if a card depicts a male figure it doesn't necessarily mean the card is masculine. The same is true for cards with a female figure-it can mean many things and represent many people.  Each card is filled with symbols, male energies, female strengths...I Always find something new in a card that I've looked at 100 times.

For the purposes of this post, I'll refer to the Fool as he and the Magician as she.  The Magician is the first card of the Major Arcana hence the first road taken by the Fool. Whereas the Fool represents the possibilities in life, the Magician takes those possibilities and makes them real.  There have been times in my life where I have imagined the possibilities but let them pass me by.  Don't let that happen to you!

The Magician points to the the Fool and asks for his backpack and as she raises her right hand to the sky (or heavens depending on your beliefs) with wand in hand and directs her left hand to earth, the pack unfolds and reveals four tools that will be essential to the Fool throughout his journey.

These tools are a Sword which represents the element air, communication and mental thoughts; a pentacle which is earth and stands for money, work and skill; a Wand which is fire and represents growth, passion, creativity and action; and a Cup representing water, emotions, relationships, dreams and intuition.

The Magician is all powerful, all creative and all energy.  We want more power in our lives-we want to feel like we have control over ourselves, our futures.  Yet we don't realize that creativity is power and it can have a daily presence in our lives.  And being creative doesn't mean you have to draw a painting or design a dress or mold clay into something amazing-creating is anything done outside of yourself that has value and meaning to you.  Blogging gives me a powerful feeling-every time I hit the publish button, I know I'm sharing a part of myself to the internet virtual world.

When the Magician appears in your life it means that power is accessible to you.  The power lies in the motivation and excitement of a new beginning or a new project-the first steps of the Fool if you will.  Also, you have tremendous will to see this project through-your energy is focused on that goal just as the Magician takes the energy from the sky and directs (focuses) it to the ground or reality.   For the tools, take what you need from each one and learn from them.  And learn from your mistakes-we all make them.  For instance, I will communicate (swords) my needs more efficiently to certain people in my life.  Also, I will let my creativity (wands) flow and not force it because that only disrupts the energy.  I will organize my workload (pentacles) to something I can successfully and realistically accomplish each day.  And, I will trust my intuition (cups) because when something doesn't seem right or seems off, chances are they are off for a reason.

Another way to look at the tools is to see physical objects that you use daily to help you on your journey.    For instance, yoga and running are essential to my physical and emotional wellness (shown here by a yoga mat and Reek Raid Light Ups for girls).

Other tools I use daily are my sewing machine, a journal, books, a bike, tarot cards (of course!), fabric, a laptop, and pastels (art supplies in general).

Questions to ask:  What does magic mean to you?  What skills or tools do you need to take with you on this journey?  Where are you focusing your energies?  How can you utilize all four tools?  How can you integrate creative power into your life?

fashions and stuff
skin: Plastik, Vaila Skin
hair: Vanity Hair, Applonia
kimono: Sweetest Goodbye, Tonight
cross trainers: Reek, Raid Light Ups

Teahouse: Silk Road Hunt through June 30
magical/witchy stuff: The Grove