The Woman's Garden
(Pg. 4)
MAY
The Aeon: Major Arcana/20
Awakening, Calling, Condemning,
Self-Judgement;
Rosemary, Sage, Basil;
Amethyst, Jade, Lapis Lazuli;
Rose, Lily, Any Kind Of Yellow Flower;
Frankincense, Lavender;
"Jah Work" (Ben Harper),
"New Years Resolution" (Donovan);
Seventh Heaven (Channel 10 - pretty much
any episode, but 1/5/04 is a good example).
Greetings Dear Readers,
Well it's certainly getting darker and cooler in the evenings now isn't it? Just kind of snuck up really - time to start stocking up the firewood, pull on tracksuit pants and ugh boots and snuggle under warm doonahs. As we approach the colder months, Mother Earth is getting ready to hibernate for a while - She withdraws her energy and everything just slows down. We are at a time of Harvest, of gathering everything together that we have worked on throughout the past months to sustain us through the darkness. This does not only include foodstuffs, but also the results of any eforts that we have been putting in to our jobs, our relationships, and ourselves. It is a time of reflection, of endings and inseparable new beginnings. The Aeon card comes at the end of the deck, the second last card in the Major Arcana. By this stage of our journey we've found out a lot about ourselves, and have been taking this knowledge out into the world. To move forward, we need to lose any unnecessary emotional baggage that we might still be lugging around with us - we need to let go.
Let go, let go! How many times have you heard somebody tell you that? And how exactly are you supposed to do this? Well, nobody ever said that Spiritual journeying was going to be easy - and if they did, they've obviously been spending too much time watching re-runs of "Different Strokes"! Integral to the Art of leting go is one of the hardest tasks that the Gods have set for us - the task of learning forgiveness - and self-forgiveness is the most challenging aspect of this skill. There is a fear tactic that is very deeply ingrained in society's collective psyche. It weighs us down, keeps
us stuck in grudges, unable to or refusing to understand, either ourselves or others. You know the one - that good old myth about sin and punishment; sinners go to Hell and everyone else gets to go to Heaven. We are held to ransom, holding ourselves back from living life, from fulfilling our destinies due to that voice saying "you can't", for whatever reason. Hearing our Calling, that which we were born to do, rather than that which we do to pay the bills, is difficult when we are struggling with giving ourselves permission to listen.
Ending our self-judgement is a joyful release into a guilt free existence, and leads to more of an understanding of the actions of others, thus lessening our judgement of them. It we can work towards not blaming the past, past people and ourselves for where we are in our lives, we can then live in the sometimes elusive but ever present NOW, accepting ourselves, warts and all, and being fully responsible for our life direction. "A good pilot is always compelled to...(take time out to reflect)...so that he can apply what he's learned" (Top Gun: Viper to Maverick). This is the time of going into Winter, going into the Womb, and the forces of nature are very supportive of helping us to chuck out all of the stuff that's not relevant to us anymore. It in turn is surrendered to the Earth Mother, becoming the fertiliser in our lives which is necessary in creating the ideal environment for our new projects to thrive, and for us to hear where we are being called to next - our next great adventure!
Stay warm and take care everyone!
AUGUST
The Sun: Major Arcana/19/
Ruled By The Sun
"Here Comes The Sun" (The Beatles),
"Universal Soldier" (Donovan),
"Within You and Without You" (The Beatles),
"Blow Away" (George Harrison);
Sunstone, Ruby, Pyrite, Rhodonite;
White Sage, Lavender;
Amber, Lotus.
Greetings everyone!
In these times in which we live we are constantly challenged to find a bright side to life. The news bombards us with horror stories - the war on terror, children being set alight in parks, whole towns swept away in floods. How hard it is to keep faith in humanitys' ability to do good, and in some Divine Plan. It has created a legacy of an us and them mentality; they're wrong, we're right, they're bad, we're good, we're justified in retaliating, they're not. Where does it end? With both sides refusing to see the other's point of view, and often ending up unable to.
Look at our dominant politicians' current dilemma over their declaration and support of a war on terror, a decision triggered by enormous fear and outrage at the incredible strike into supposedly impenetrable American territory (the two towers). For a moment in time we had found ourselves at a signficant crossroads in history; voices rose up callng for peace and for blood. Of course, we all know the path that was chosen. Now, after the all-consuming panic has decreased somewhat, and the dust is setling, these same politicians are faced with having to examine their re-actions and there is some pretty fast talking going on; the us and them game continues.
What does a wild dog do when cornered by a pack of hunters? Fights back for all it's worth, that's what. The instinct for surival is a primal driving force, expressing itself in many different ways, by means which confuse us, outrage us, sicken us, or humble and astound us. How will we, the people, respond, standing as we are at the crossroad that has been presented to us? Will we, too, demand our revenge or will we be brave enough to make the decision that the politicians could not? Will we see the corner they're backed into and find it within ourselves to feel compassion for them? Will we surrender the job of judgement to a Higher Power? An enormous Universal Healing is currently taking place and, though it is extraordinarily hard for us to fathom, this means that there is unexpected tragic death and destruction as the wounds of us all and of our overtaxed Earth, are purged and cleansed. How can a single individual deal with this? How can we help?
The Sun gifts us with the shelter needed to come back to that place of childlike innocence, of simple joyful play, a place which is safe and protected. Coming back to this place of purity allows us to put down our burdens, our biases, feuds and long held grudges and to see clearly, bathed in the glorious light and warmth of the powerful, healing Sun. Here, we are restored. Here we are enlightened with the knowledge that the us and them game has done its dash and that it is ok to let differences exist, and how wonderful it is that they do. There is great Power in embracing this knowledge in our day to day lives - the old adage "think globally, act locally" is fulfilled and the ripple effect of the Power of One is activated.
Until next time, journey well!
