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As I was updating my master deck list the other day, I realized that even though I have twenty decks, there are three or four that I use most often for myself. If I'm going to pull a deck off my shelf and use it, it's most likely going to be my Arthurian, Fantastical Creatures, Gilded, or Mystic Dreamer decks. Now, this is completely understandable. I've built up a relationship with the very particular sets of images on these cards, and many times the familiarity is a good thing. However, I do sometimes feel like a parent picking favorites. I wanted to give my other decks some out-of-the-box time, so I hit upon the idea of using this spread from Aeclectic that calls for two cards to be pulled from each deck. I'm going to try it several times over the next few weeks, time permitting. I want to see what happens when I combine some very different decks, and I hope to be posting pictures of my results.
The first two decks I tried this with are my Fantastical Creatures Tarot and my Rumi Tarot.
The way this spread works is that the 1st and 2nd card each come from a different deck, giving that deck's perspective on the question. Then, cards 3 (from the first deck) and 4 (from the second deck) are read together to give an answer that is the synthesis of the two.
Today, I was looking for some guidance about how to approach the entire month off I am going to have starting tomorrow. I don't often have this much unscheduled time, and I want to make sure that I use it effectively in terms of practicality, spirituality, and creativity.
The cards I drew are:
1. (Fantastical) Ace of Wands
2. (Rumi) Three of Cups
3. (F) Ten of Swords
4. (R) Page of Staves
The first card reminds me that this is a time that I can pursue things that I am passionate about. I can pursue writing that long story I never can spend time on during the year, reading that books I want to read, and getting a jump on the creative projects that all seem to crowd to the forefront of my brain this time of year. It's as if my long-neglected storytelling side knows when finals are coming up, because at the high water mark of all of my grading, I start getting ideas, playing scenes in my mind over and over again. It's as if my brain is revving its engines and getting ready to hit the ground running once I don't have anything left to do in terms of teaching. The image on this card is of a mythological bird, a Simurgh, spreading its wings and taking flight. That's what I need to do this month. Take a deep breath and fly. The high energy and passion of the Ace of Wands is definitely something I want to embrace this month.
The second card I drew, from my Rumi deck, is the Three of Cups. This card is much more focused on my relationships with other people, I think. It reminds me that this is a time when I have an opportunity to strengthen relationships by spending time with people. I really like that this particular Three of Cups is about a mixture of relationships and creativity. The three women are making music and dancing together. I live with/am friends with many other writers and tarot readers and musicians, and so this card reminds me that instead of going off by myself into a lonely artist retreat all month, I might want to do things with people, collaborate, share, and harmonize.
I was a little disturbed when I saw that the Ten of Swords had shown up as one of my "synthesis" cards. This particular version depicts Kali, who is a really fascinating but very intimidating goddess of both destruction and creation. I think, though, that she is appropriate for the Ten of Swords. The traditional RWS image is of a person at his lowest point, but the hint of sun in the background suggests a new beginning. After looking at it for a while, I realized that creatively, I'm in this constant cycle of extremely productice creative activity followed by periods of creative desolation while the semester is going. However, even at my lowest point, when I'm buried under end of the semester grading and I never want to do anything that involves using my brain ever again... that is exactly the time when I start getting ideas, bits of scenes, new plot lines, the urge to create agian. It's like something buried deep inside knows that it needs to be priming the pump, that very soon I'm going to have the time to create again, and is getting ready, and out of all those months of creative drought comes something really special. Also, each time I come to this point in the year, I'm ready to do things. I might have a hard time focusing and settling on what exactly I want to get done, but I'm there and on fire and willing to show up and do, with a newcomer's exuberance - much like the Page of Wands (Staves, in my Rumi deck...). I just need to find my focus and go. The fire and the passion are there and waiting.
And, as promised, the photo:
The first two decks I tried this with are my Fantastical Creatures Tarot and my Rumi Tarot.
The way this spread works is that the 1st and 2nd card each come from a different deck, giving that deck's perspective on the question. Then, cards 3 (from the first deck) and 4 (from the second deck) are read together to give an answer that is the synthesis of the two.
Today, I was looking for some guidance about how to approach the entire month off I am going to have starting tomorrow. I don't often have this much unscheduled time, and I want to make sure that I use it effectively in terms of practicality, spirituality, and creativity.
The cards I drew are:
1. (Fantastical) Ace of Wands
2. (Rumi) Three of Cups
3. (F) Ten of Swords
4. (R) Page of Staves
The first card reminds me that this is a time that I can pursue things that I am passionate about. I can pursue writing that long story I never can spend time on during the year, reading that books I want to read, and getting a jump on the creative projects that all seem to crowd to the forefront of my brain this time of year. It's as if my long-neglected storytelling side knows when finals are coming up, because at the high water mark of all of my grading, I start getting ideas, playing scenes in my mind over and over again. It's as if my brain is revving its engines and getting ready to hit the ground running once I don't have anything left to do in terms of teaching. The image on this card is of a mythological bird, a Simurgh, spreading its wings and taking flight. That's what I need to do this month. Take a deep breath and fly. The high energy and passion of the Ace of Wands is definitely something I want to embrace this month.
The second card I drew, from my Rumi deck, is the Three of Cups. This card is much more focused on my relationships with other people, I think. It reminds me that this is a time when I have an opportunity to strengthen relationships by spending time with people. I really like that this particular Three of Cups is about a mixture of relationships and creativity. The three women are making music and dancing together. I live with/am friends with many other writers and tarot readers and musicians, and so this card reminds me that instead of going off by myself into a lonely artist retreat all month, I might want to do things with people, collaborate, share, and harmonize.
I was a little disturbed when I saw that the Ten of Swords had shown up as one of my "synthesis" cards. This particular version depicts Kali, who is a really fascinating but very intimidating goddess of both destruction and creation. I think, though, that she is appropriate for the Ten of Swords. The traditional RWS image is of a person at his lowest point, but the hint of sun in the background suggests a new beginning. After looking at it for a while, I realized that creatively, I'm in this constant cycle of extremely productice creative activity followed by periods of creative desolation while the semester is going. However, even at my lowest point, when I'm buried under end of the semester grading and I never want to do anything that involves using my brain ever again... that is exactly the time when I start getting ideas, bits of scenes, new plot lines, the urge to create agian. It's like something buried deep inside knows that it needs to be priming the pump, that very soon I'm going to have the time to create again, and is getting ready, and out of all those months of creative drought comes something really special. Also, each time I come to this point in the year, I'm ready to do things. I might have a hard time focusing and settling on what exactly I want to get done, but I'm there and on fire and willing to show up and do, with a newcomer's exuberance - much like the Page of Wands (Staves, in my Rumi deck...). I just need to find my focus and go. The fire and the passion are there and waiting.
And, as promised, the photo:
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I recently picked up a new deck, the Archeon Tarot...it is awesome: gorgeous, spookily accurate, and in most cases much better for intuitive readings--I find myself looking up interpretations much less with it.
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I've gotten to thumb through the copy of the Archeon a friend of mind has, and I thought it was dark and pretty. I love it when I find decks that just "work" for me for some reason...