Various Paganism, Tarot, Etc

Impact of One’s Path

/ Twist the Leaf / 1 Comment

So… I think that Pagan Perspective is taking a week off this week, as there’s no new question to work with.   Due to this, I decided to snag a question from one of the pagan/witchy type groups I’m a member of on Discord and use that instead.

sun

Topic for the Week of 12/16: How has your religion impacted your overall well-being? Has it changed how you see the world and other people?

The first part of this question is immeasurable for me. I get a great sense of peace and overall well being from connecting with nature, and the communion of that practice. It is a part of me at my very core, a part of not just who I am but of my internal makeup and my soul.  Because of that, it’s impossible for me to differentiate myself from that enough to really clearly delineate my path from myself and my well-being.  They are simply too integrated to be able to separate them.

I also can’t really say if my path has changed my outlook on the world or other people, as I’ve been (essentially) on the same path my entire life.  Yes, I transitioned from Wicca to a non-theistic Paganism when I left my parent’s home, but not a lot of my inner beliefs really changed in that shift, as I never really connected with deity in the first place.

What I can say is that the deeper I go into my spirituality, the healthier my emotional and mental health become… which in turn improves my outlook on just about everything.

 

December Story Time (Part 2 Continued from December 9th)

/ Twist the Leaf / 2 Comments

IMG_1176The Adventure Continues

Still in his youth, our intrepid traveler steps onto the path of adventure, his mind wanders back to his boyhood and the reason he has chosen the path he he now treads upon.

Given as an apprentice at a young age, his time before that was quite tepid and boring (Temperance), and his time since has been filled with hard work (Two of Coins) that took not just inner strength (Strength) but also an openness to work with others and at times allow others the praise and sense of accomplishment that he himself desired (Three of Coins).

As he worked through these tender years, he spent his time dreaming of the accolades he could achieve with his freedom (Six of Wands), and with each dream of these adventures and accolades his secret desires for them grew and grew (High Priestess) until it became a burning need in his heart and his greatest wish (Page of Cups).

And thus he took action to free himself from his apprenticeship in order to move forward and seek out his heart’s desires (Knight of Cups).

(To be continued…)

DECK USED:  DARKNESS OF LIGHT TAROT

 

December Story Time (Part 1)

/ Twist the Leaf / 2 Comments

Just a little creative writing and story telling exercise.  I will be starting something like this with you once your basic lessons are done with the tarot suits.

Parameters for Part 1:  Draw (at least) five cards. Use one card per sentence to tell us a fun fictional tale.

Wayhome Tarot

The Adventure Begins

There was once a young man at the end of his rope stuck upon a path that split in two different directions (Two of Swords).  He stood at the head of the path in indecision, unsure which way to go and seeking insight from his surroundings to give him a direction (Hanged Man).

One path lead to stability and responsibility, but would take a good deal of effort and balance to make work (Two of Pentacles).   The other path lead to adventure that would require a great deal of bravery and resistance (Nine of Wands).

What he really wants is success and accolades, though, and the path that contains adventure appeals to him the most because of this (Six of Wands).  Thus this is the path he chooses as he steps from the cross roads to seek the spark, gathering his energy and strength in close as he prepares to step into the unknown with the open receptivity for what is to come, but the stability of good sense to assist him in keeping him on his path (Mother of Swords).

DECK USED:  WAYHOME TAROT

 

The Right Path

/ Twist the Leaf / 1 Comment

This week’s question from the Pagan Perspective YouTube channel is about finding your path.

Topic for the Week of 11/25: What let’s you know you have chosen the right path?

Is it strange that I’m having trouble formulating a reply to this question when I am so certain of my (somewhat unconventional even in the pagan community) path?

The thing is… it’s my heart and my gut that tell me I’m on the right path. I feel it deep inside where the soul lives.

I think that to get to that point, though, you have to get to a point of acceptance of the knowledge that everyone’s path is going to be different. Spirituality isn’t a “cookie cutter” experience, but rather highly individualistic. There is no right or wrong other than what is right for you (and of course, you know, legalities).

Once you can accept that each and every person is a unique snowflake and their spirituality is going to echo that individuality, then as you start exploring different practices, beliefs, faiths, and dogmas… you will find that some just feel right… and others don’t.

Take what resonates with you instead of trying to fit into a mold someone else had decided should be yours, and you will find it easier and easier to identify those things that work for you.

SocioEconomics and Eco-Justice

/ Twist the Leaf / 1 Comment

This week’s question from the Pagan Perspective YouTube channel is about how socioeconomics and eco-justice tie into our beliefs and path.

field

Topic for the Week of 11/11:

from soul seeker:
“I am wondering if and how your path supports socioeconomic justice and eco-justice?”

from Rebekah Getchell:
“…in reading the book ‘For Earths Sake’ I found the argument and perspective that the domination of nature and women go hand in hand in our patriarchal society. it submits as evidence pointing to this fact, that we refer to nature in a feminist view, mother nature, mother earth, the now stopped practice of naming hurricanes after women. It supposes that we cannot fix one without fixing the other. Curious your thoughts and beliefs about this idea and argument.”

Okay so honestly?  I’m kind of confused by this question.  I did some research on the topic and it sounds to me like this is primarily a question on how my personal path supports equality and outreach to assist and lift up into equality those that qualify as minorities and the less fortunate.  (The word “eco-justice” confused me as well, because I was thinking ecology… but it’s in reference to economy.)

The thing is?  I am very disconnected from my community.  Aside from supporting balance and minorities through the way that I vote, supporting public services and small businesses in struggling areas,  etc. I don’t really have a lot of contact with others.

I do enjoy spending time sharing my path through online to those that can reach out through that medium, and providing ideas and perspectives in those areas online where I share such information.   These include places like Discord, where I often run into people new to the path that are unable to find learning resources through their local environment.

As for no longer naming hurricanes after women.  This is incorrect.  They have simply begun including the names of men into the practice as well.

As for the “mother” nature view.   I am devout to the energies of creation, evolution, and balance.  These energies are neither male or female.   I lately got myself nipped by a woman in a chat that justified the fact that there are hundreds of exclusively “sacred feminine” tarot decks out there and no “sacred masculine” tarot out there by the fact that women have been suppressed for centuries.

I disagree with this viewpoint, because if we are seeking balance in these things, then at this point we have swung out of balance far and beyond rectifying the imbalance between how the two genders are treated and the equality that is lacking.    So yes, maybe “mother” nature is not fostering balance in this area…. but I think that there are a lot of women out there that are very much pushing for what is not balance, but restitution and atonement for those hundreds of years in the past.

I may be male, but I as a Korean man in America?  I am also very much a minority.  (Not to mention I looked like a tall twelve year old until in my 20s, which means that I dealt with that issue as well.)  I know how that feels, and I know it can breed resentment.   But I do feel that there needs to be less of an expectation of being “owed” recompense, and more of a focus on balance and equality.

It feels like I’ve gotten off topic, but I have a little confusion as to the topic as a whole to begin with, I think.  I guess because I never considered my faith and practice as something that was a part of this particular topic.   I hope that my answer made some sense, though.

#shoppingfortarot (non) VR to LadyKnight of Avalon

/ Twist the Leaf / 1 Comment

Back in October, LadyKnight of Avalon on YouTube did a video where she talked about deck collections and how we go about the process of curating our personal collections over time.    The fact is that I have a rather large deck collection, and not just of tarot but also playing cards, oracle cards, lenormand, and other game cards and cartomancy cards. I love decks of cards.  I love the diversity of artwork available and the variety “voices” that the different styles of artwork speak with.

Anyway, she devised this list of questions for those that shop for and collect decks, no matter the size of your collection.  So here we go….

sage

1. What was the last deck you bought and why that one?

The last deck I bought was the Divine Muses Oracle.  I actually saw this one on Kickstarter when it was being launched, and I waffled on it and ended up not backing it because some of the cards didn’t appeal to me all that much (Ancestors, Astral Ascent, and the Muse of Art cards, for example).   But since then I have seen this deck on many videos and images, and I’ve been SUPER attracted to it and had some of the cards really stand out to me super strongly (such as the Totem of Water, Lattice of the Soul, and Raven King).  In the end, I decided that the cards that really spoke to me outweighed the cards that I was a bit “meh” on and I picked it up to see how I could get on with it.

2. What’s your decision process when you buy a new deck?

Does the imagery on the deck speak to me?  Will the words get in my way? If so, can they be removed?  Is it worth (to me) what they’re asking for the deck?  Can I afford to buy it?  Is it something I want to buy right now, or do I want to wait and see if I still want it in a few weeks?

3. What are deal-breakers in a deck that keep you from buying it?

Well at the top of the list is if I can’t connect with the imagery.  If the imagery doesn’t speak to me then there’s just no point in buying the deck.   Other deal-breakers include a Hanged Man card or Two of Pentacles card that I just can’t work with, super crappy cardstock (I’m a riffle shuffler… if it can’t handle being riffle shuffled then there’s no point in me owning it), too few cards for too much money, or well… too much money in general because if it’s out of my price range?  Then it’s out of my price range.

4. Little white book or big guide book?

I don’t really care as long as there is quality content.  I’ve seen some spectacular little white books…. and I’ve seen some big guide books that are just sheer crap.

5a. Do you have new deck rituals?

Yes.  When I get a new deck, I like to do a cleansing and a deck interview.  Unless I allow others to handle the cards, or for some reason the deck’s communication starts to feel “muddled”, chances are  that this is the only time the deck will ever be cleansed while in my possession.

5b. How do you break in a new deck?

By using them.   Also, meditative shuffling.  And, sometimes, with deck modification as well such as edging and/or trimming the deck if  feel that it needs it.

6a. Have you ever been disappointed after getting a deck because it looked/felt different than expected?

Yes.  Usually this has to do with how it communicates with me.  There have been times I’ve purchased decks and when I get them in my hands I just can’t get them to communicate as clearly as I’d like.   The most prominent example of this is the WildWood Tarot, which has artwork of a theme and style that I felt should have spoken to me very clearly, but even after years of trying, I couldn’t manage to work with them very well.    (It turns out, cutting off the titles on the cards so that it is artwork-only finally solved this issue for me.)

6b. Have you ever been pleasantly surprised by a deck after getting it?)

Yes.   Most recently?  The This Might Hurt deck, which I backed on Kickstarter in the spring and just arrived this week.  It was far and above the quality I was expecting and I’ve been avoiding walk-throughs and other images of the cards, etc because I wanted it to be a surprise.

7. Do you interview new decks?

Usually just when it first comes into my collection, although if I feel that the “tone” of a deck’s readings have changed over time then I will do it again to re-familiarize myself with the energy of the deck and it’s “voice”.

8. Do you ever buy decks for a specific purpose (only using it for that one?)

Yes.  I have a few decks that are solely for my personal use.  I have a few that are solely for shadow work.  And I have a few that I’ve purchased solely to use in one-card draws.

I have also occasionally bought a bootleg deck or two for the purposes of spellwork, because often in those cases the deck is destroyed in some way in the process of the spell casting.  Destroying a $5 deck in a spell is one thing.  Destroying a $50 deck in a spell is quite another.

9. Do you differentiate between decks you buy for yourself and decks you would use for other people?

Only in a few special cases.   The vast majority of my decks are open to be used for both.

10. What is one thing you wish deck creators would do, do more of or stop doing?

Do:  I wish more deck creators would consider cardstock as a top priority. (Hello Llewellyn, I’m talking to you.)

Do More:  I’m all for more illustrated pip cards.  I hate it when you have glorious and beautifully done Majors, and then the Minors are just sparingly done pips; or else they are illustrated, but in a way that makes it clear not as much effort was put into them as the Major Arcana.

Stop Doing: This one is specifically for creators on Kickstarter.  A lot of creators on that platform add on “Stretch Goals” which is great, but I really wish that they would focus less on little trinkets, pins, fancy boxes, etc….. and more on upgrading cardstock and making the actual CARDS nicer.