Trionfi della Luna

The Sharp Teeth

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Today’s meditation was skipped.

Trionfi Della Luna Illustrated Pips EditionToday’s draw is the Judgment card, which is traditionally a representation of judgements, one’s inner calling and chosen life path, and looking back on one’s life to consider how they feel about the path they’ve taken and who they have become.

The imagery in this card makes me think of purgatory. Or, well, my idea of what purgatory is anyway, which is to say a moment (or eternity) of torment as you look over all those things you have done in life and find the results… lacking, or lackluster, or even something we feel that we are deserving of punishment for.

This card, instead of encouraging looking at these things and punishing ourselves for them, instead asks us where are we being too harsh with ourselves? Where are we judging ourselves with sharp teeth and harsh flames, instead of with understanding and care?

DECK USED:  TRIONFI DELLA LUNA ILLUSTRATED PIPS EDITION

Mr Lionhart’s Seasons of the Witch Challenge Prompt
Questions for October 18th thru 20th – The Deities

Light in the Darkness Oracle and Tarot of FearGoddess Circe of sorcery, what transformation would you suggest for me?

Knight of Swords and The Guide Home – Seize upon a direction before you leap. This time of year often involves a lot of anxiety for you. You can circumvent some of that anxiety by taking action and having a plan and direction in place, instead of being impulsive but directionless.

Goddess Hekate, your voice is heard, what in death be given birth?

The Magician and Your Light – You are entering into a time of darkness where the necessity to keep your head down and focus on your goals is key. Keep in mind that you also need to allow yourself a moment to breathe by looking up now and then to make eye contact with the world around you.

Goddess Lilith of liberty, show me where I should be free?

Strength and Sunrise – Your strengths rise to the surface when you give yourself the rest you need to come back renewed and refreshed.

DECK USED: TAROT OF FEAR AND LIGHT IN DARK PLACES ORACLE

#DiscordTarotholicsOct2022 Challenge Prompt
Question for October 18th: Gravestone – What part of yourself that needs to be revisited?

Trionfi Della Luna Illustrated Pips EditionReading Summary: Allowing apathy to take hold (Four of Cups) is the road to disaster (The Tower). Make sure you are keeping your eyes open and staying aware of what’s going on around you (Death’s Sword through the Eye) to preserve your hard earned stability (Four of Coins).

Take Away: When you ignore the world around you and retreat into yourself, you open up a chance for depression to slip in and begin eating away at your insides. You have the ability to slip into depression without any encouragement at all, so don’t give yourself the opportunity to lose yourself in it prematurely or encourage it when you can avoid it creeping in.

DECK USED: TRIONFI DELLA LUNA ILLUSTRATED PIPS EDITION

Daily Self Kindness

I used the motorized scooter thing at Walmart today instead of insisting on walking.

Hopes and Dreams

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Today’s meditation was skipped again today.  Maybe I need to tattoo on the back of my hand “don’t let your emotions cause you to bail on your responsibilities to yourself” or something.

Skele-Tarot and How to Be a Wildflower DeckToday’s draw is the Star card, which is traditionally a representation of hope, spiritual guidance, renewal, and the inter-connectivity of ourselves to the world around us and spiritual plane.

The dreams that we have when we’re asleep have an important purpose. Even when we don’t remember them or even remember that we dreamed at all… we all dream.

Daydreams also have a purpose. They are the spark of hope in the world, providing us with ideas and allowing us to imagine the things we’d like to see or experience in the future, or remember those things we’ve already experienced in the past.  Through daydreams we have a direct line to hopes and dreams, memories and past joys, and the guiding light of our own desires.

The message in today’s cards is that daydreams are important. They provide hope, giving us something to guide us forward and lift us up, even during the most difficult of times. Don’t discard them as unrealistic or a waste of time.  They have value.

DECK USED:  SKELE-TAROT AND HOW TO BE A WILDFLOWER DECK

Mr Lionharts’ #TheOctoberTarot #SeasonoftheWitchChallenge Prompt
Questions for October 27th and 28th

Garden Of Lucid Daydreams Oracle and Trionfi Della LunaThey took their brooms to seek the night, what knowledge can witches of the old provide?
The Bathers atop The Weed, Five of Swords and Death

Do not neglect the cleansing that needs to be done, for it will stave off conflict in the future. Take care in what you share of these methods, for that knowledge can be used to circumvent the cleansing that is done and the protections that are erected afterward.

And as the veil keeps growing thin, how am I to prepare for Samhain?
Consultation atop Desire, Ten of Wands atop Page of Swords

Get in extra time and let your communication and time together beat back a bit of the overwhelm that you’re already feeling. It won’t obliterate it entirely, but it will help.

DECK USED: GARDEN OF LUCID DAYDREAMS ORACLE AND TRIONFI DELLA LUNA

#DiscordTarotholicsOct2021 Challenge Prompt
Philosophical Question for October 27th: Can anyone on the other side make contact when the veil is thin?

Skele-TarotReading Summary:  From the newly passed (Ace of Pentacles) to those that have been crossed over for quite some time (Ten of Pentacles), any who need to reach across the veil to obtain the peace and satisfaction they need can do so (Nine of Pentacles).

Take Away: It makes sense to me that this was answered in all Pentacles, for it is a question about spirits reaching through the veil into the physical world.  The answer here indicates that it is through pursuit of “satiation” and completion that those that reach through the veil at this time of year do so.  Perhaps this is not the only reason, but the answer seems to make it clear that the “door is open” who all that need to use it before they will be able to move on.

DECK USED: SKELE-TAROT

Daily Self Kindness

I ate healthy food today including spicy tomato pasta with fresh herbs, my morning smoothy of probiotic with spinach and berries, as well as my tea with collagen peptides. It’s not all that I ate today of course, but I made the effort to stick to mostly healthy choices today instead of the cereal and cookies I’ve been leaning heavily on over the past week.

Standing Up

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Today’s meditation was just under ten minutes long and was an unguided sort of “pause and breathe” session.

Trionfi Della Luna and Thera-Pets Emotional Support Animal CardsToday’s draw is the Five of Swords, which is traditionally a representation of conflict, tests, and trials in the areas of communication, intellect, education, thought, and logic. This often translates into things that have to do with arguments and misunderstandings.

Sometimes? It can be hard to stand up for yourself.  Especially when feeling down in the dumps or struggling with your own inner demons and negative inner dialogue.

These cards are a reminder that even in those times?  It’s important to stand up for yourself anyway and not let people treat you badly. Don’t be a doormat and a victim just because you’re having a confidence crisis in the moment.

Show them that you deserve more. Don’t let them treat you like trash. You’re worth more than that.

DECK USED:  TRIONFI DELLA LUNA AND THERA-PETS EMOTIONAL SUPPORT ANIMAL CARDS

Mr Lionharts’ #TheOctoberTarot #SeasonoftheWitchChallenge Prompt
Question: Do Spread for October 15th

Таро Темного Пути

The power of the spirit.

The Magician – You have all the tools, knowledge, and ingenuity at your disposal to do whatever you want to do. You  have the ability to learn quickly what you don’t know, and adapt as needed to fulfill what is needed to continue forward toward your goals. Your spirit is… indomitable.

What foundation am I building upon, or what am I building towards?

Two of Pentacles – Balance. You have been focused on finding a better work / life balance for the past couple of years now, and although the trek has been slow, you are getting there and doing a little better with each month that passes.

What choices are or have been empowering me?

Knight of Swords – Movement. For a good part of this year you have felt stagnant and struggling. Over the past few weeks, this energy has shifted and energy is flowing once more allowing for movement and a charge forward towards your goals. This energy is a bit aggressive, but at the moment that is only empowering you further.

What emotions or feelings can make (or have made) me stronger?

King of Cups – This is a reference to your connection with Gideon and the fact that you look up to him and how adept he is at understanding emotions and nurturing them. With his help, you are learning to better understand and interpret your own emotions, and how to deal with them in a more healthy manner.  He helps you find steadier footing in the emotional confusion that comes from not burying your emotions as you have in the past, and this help from that corner makes you stronger.

What is a personal strength I can always rely on?

Three of Wands – Creatively, you will always have ideas to discover and new projects to explore. Sometimes this feels overwhelming, but it is a personal strength that allows you to always bounce back from failures and setbacks, and provides you with the ability to be the master and captain of your own future.

DECK USED: ТАРО ТЕМНОГО ПУТИ

#DiscordTarotholicsOct2021 Challenge Prompt
Topic for October 15th: Draw or write something free form inspired by the card(s).

Trionfi Della LunaOnce upon a time there was a little poppet in a shop who could only hold one or two pins at a time (Temperance), as he was only the size of the pad of a person’s thumb.

He was never chosen by the customers to be used because of his size, and people thought that if a little one could do, then a big one could do better (Two of Coins).

He sat on a shelf in the shop for a very long time with hope in his heart (The Bluebirds), waiting for the person to come along that might see the potential he holds (Ace of Wands).

Then one day a witch filled with the spark of purpose came in to the shop (Queen of Wands), and the poppet knew that this was the one he had been awaiting for so long (Seven of Coins).

She needed his help to aid a child stricken with sickness, and nurture that child back to health (Queen of Coins), and she purchased him on the spot.

She took him home with her, and in her wise and cunning ways, directed him to his path and purpose (Queen of Swords). Which he fulfilled with joy and enthusiasm, and the young child thrived as a result (The Sun).

DECK USED: TRIONFI DELLA LUNA

Daily Self Kindness

I took a nap today.  I really didn’t want to, but after the drive up north and back, I was so tired.  Instead of fighting it, I laid down for a bit and felt much better as a result.

The Whispers Are Lying

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I’ve fallen behind again… and I can’t remember whether I meditated on the 29th or not.   So I’ll leave this empty this time around (and tomorrow too) as I finish up these posts that got started… but never published on the blog.

Madam Lydia Wilhelmina's Tarot - Four of CoinsToday’s draw is Four of Coins, which is traditionally a representation of stability and security in reference to one’s finances, resources, and health.  It can also go to far at times and be a representation of greed and/or miserly behavior.

What really stands out to me in the imagery of this card today is the footrest.  And honestly?  At what is only about two inches tall, I don’t really see it’s usefulness.  Thus, it feels like a wasteful expenditure, and points out my own judgements concerning money and spending.  Judgements that are almost always directed more towards myself than others.

The message here is twofold.  First, it is that I need to be less judgemental toward myself and my spending. The second part of the advice seems contradictory, but it is more a compliment.  It’s okay to spend, when you have the funds to do it. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do so wisely. Search for the best prices, find alternative sources, check around and see if you really need to have the brand name of something and not the generic.  All of these things are just smart shopping, and something to remember along the way.

DECK USED:  MADAM LYDIA WILHELMINA’S TAROT

LionHart’s #TheOctoberTarot #SeasonOfTheWitchChallenge Prompt
Question: Treat – What can I treat myself with to conclude this magickal month?

Gothic Horror Tarot

Reading Summary: Patience (Seven of Pentacles) with the ups and downs (Wheel of Fortune) and time with Gideon (The Lovers) added in to help balance things out (Two of Pentacles).

Take Away:  As October draws to a close, to treat myself, now is a good time to spend some extra time with Gideon when it’s possible so that I don’t feel too overburdened by my responsibilities.  Also, I need to make sure that I’m treating myself and my business with patience.  Things are unusually slow the last two weeks.  Don’t panic, just keep yourself focused on where you want to go and accept that it takes time to get there.

DECK USED:  GOTHIC HORROR TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsOct2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: The last harvest is upon us. What needs to be discarded from my life?

Halloween Spirit TarotReading Summary: Worrying about a bunch of shit (Nine of Swords) that you just can’t know right now (Eight of Swords). And a vein of cruelty and pessimism (King of Cups Rx) over finances and running my business (King of Pentacles).

Take Away: What ifs and predictive worrying has taken over a lot of my worrying lately as a whole, and it’s something I need to let go of.  The things I don’t know… the things I can’t know right now… they need to be left alone instead of constantly worried over.  All it does is fuck up my confidence and my sense of well-being.

The other issue mentioned here is an echo of my COTD above.  It’s a reminder that just because business is slow right now doesn’t mean it will continue to be, or that the holiday rush is fucked and thus my finances through the first part of next year are as well.  This pessimistic attitude is not helping anything and needs to be discarded along with the anxiety and worry that have taken up a large footprint in my mind lately.

DECK USED:  HALLOWEEN SPIRIT TAROT

#MysticStarChallenge October Challenge Prompt
Question: What is my Halloween message this year?

Tarot de Marseilles par Pole Ka

Reading Summary: Too much work (King of Wands decapitated), and too much bitchiness (Queen of Swords Rx) results in unpleasant repercussions (Justice).  Get your shit together (The Emperor’s glare).

Take Away:  Leave it to the Pole Ka to speak to me bluntly and without mercy.  Although, I think it’s something I need to hear in the tone that I need to hear it in.  I get a lot of what feels like conflicting guidance lately, and yet it’s not really all that conflicting at all, just my pessimism and cynicysm skewing it in that direction in my head.

The Emperor here in this spread is making it clear that I need to pull myself together and out of the tangled mess I’ve slid into the last week or two.  It’s time for clarity and control, not a tug of war and anxiety driven actions.

DECK USED:  TAROT DE MARSEILLES PAR POLE KA

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: How do spiritual moments impact me?

Trionfi della Luna

Reading Summary: Spiritual moments provide succor (The Lioness) and peace (The Bluebirds) to help calm the chaos (The Tower).

Take Away: Due primarily to my own inner dialogue and the self directed cruel streak that lives in my head, it can be really hard for me to find and accept nurturing comfort and peace in my life.  It’s not that I don’t want the good feelings, but more that somewhere inside I feel that I do not deserve them.  

When shit hits the fan, therefore, I’m left wanting to fold into myself and my wounds because I don’t feel deserving of the comfort or the peace and good emotions that others can provide me.  I think it is also why during those times my intuition can sometimes become muffled, and thus I need to work on allowing myself not just my spiritual moments but a connection to them and my intuition…. especially during “tower moments” when the world feels like it’s falling apart.

DECK USED:  TRIONFI DELLA LUNA

Claiming Control

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IMG_7119Today’s meditation was ten minutes long and another guided meditation with interval timer.  The guided meditation today also included a chime which was intended to help keep the mind returning to the present and the breath.  This is because the topic of the guided meditation was just that.

That is to say, the topic was about sinking into the present and not allowing fixation with the past or the future to diminish your pleasure in the moment.  The thing is?  Most of humanity has a tendency to do just that.  To either get lost in thoughts of the past and memories, or distracted by plans for the future and daydreams.   These distractions take our mind away from the present, and make it difficult to fully enjoy all that the present has to offer.

Part of mindfulness meditation is the effort to train your mind to spend more time in the present, so that we can then carry that mindfulness of the present forward outside of meditation and into your day to day lives.

Tarot of Haunted House - Queen of WandsToday’s draw is the Queen of Wands, which is a receptive alpha energy, personality or person in the area of one’s drive, passionate interests, enthusiasms, and willpower.  This often translates into themes that have to do with determination, confident independence, and strong figures that encourage the drive and ambitions of others.

One of the lesser known interpretations of the Queen of Wands lies in the concept of dominant sensuality, as in the blend of dominance and sensuality.   And that is what I see in the imagery of this card today.  I see a confident woman filled with strength and aware of her power and allure.   I see control in her hold on the trident of flames, and sensuality in the piano behind her (that might be just me because of my synesthesia).

The message here is about owning your power.  It’s about knowing your strengths and playing to them instead of disregarding them as useless or yourself as unworthy.  The message in this card is about making sure I know to step into tomorrow with confidence and determination, and place myself through my behavior and my inner strength in a place of power and control… thus owning that control rather than allowing my aunt to have it.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF HAUNTED HOUSE

LionHart’s #TheOctoberTarot #SeasonOfTheWitchChallenge Prompt
Question: Ask your cards for something you are destined to explore or face. Draw as many cards as you see fit. Set an affirmation and conclude your reading with “… and so it is.”

Murder of Crows TarotSomething I am Destined to Explore/Face

When I look in the mirror, what do I see?  Do I see the man that I am now? Or the child I used to be?  (Six of Cups)
When I step into my entrepreneurial spark and allow it to fill my focus and time, do I carry with me the strength of the man I am?  Or do I hear my father’s cruel bark? (Ace of Wands)
Instead of listening to that voice of old, it’s time to learn a different way. I need to find the optimism I’ve lost and a way to inject joy into my work… something I had always been discourage from doing in my youth. (The Sun)

Affirmation

By collaborating with others, they bring support into the equation, and allow room to foster joy.  Let them help.  Let them provide that spark of pleasure, and allow them to give me the space I need to breathe and lighten my heart that had once been caged.   So it will be…. and thus so it is.

DECK USED:  MURDER OF CROWS TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsOct2020 Challenge Prompt
Topic: Do Spread #1
Question: How can I give myself more space for my emotions, even during the busy time?

Curio TarotReading Summary: This is a learning process (The Hierophant).

The two left cards look into the past, but the wand in the center leans into the future. This speaks to me about how my lack of motivation (Four of Cups) and the desire to bump that motivation into high gear (Queen of Wands) both live in the past, but the practical advice on actually moving forward into my goals and allowing my emotions to have their own space does not lie back there, it lives in the future (tip of the wand in the Queen of Wands pointing to the right).

There is a hint of blue in the first two cards, one over the cup being ignored, and one upon the forehead of the Queen.  This blue feels like the scars my past treatment of myself have created both on my emotions (the cup) as well as my inner dialogue (Queen’s head).

The Hierophant looks into the future and leans in that direction… but his hand is palm up in the direction of the past, as if to indicate that the past needs to be held back or to be given a pause.

Take Away:  To give myself room to feel my emotions (even during the busy time) I need to leave my past in the past. This applies to my past habits, but also the treatment and events that taught me those habits in the first place.  It’s only by allowing the past to be in the past.  This isn’t about burying the past, but rather about accepting where it should live.

DECK USED:  CURIO TAROT

#MysticStarChallenge October Challenge Prompt
Question: How will the lesson of staying focused on balance, instead of allowing old habits of overworking to have free reign, impact my life?

Hephoe Tapo

Reading Summary: It will allow me to have more focus on my work (Eight of Pentacles) without it damaging my intuitive abilities (High Priestess Rx)… which in turn will allow me to find a more stable center (Queen of Pentacles) and move forward towards my ambitions with clarity (Knight of Swords).

Take Away:  When I overwork myself, it has a habit of fizzling out a good portion of my intuitive side.   Things begin to feel unstable and I begin to feel lost and off center like I’m fumbling around drunk in the dark.

By staying focused on balance instead of allowing old work habits to rise up and take control, it gives me the opportunity to avoid being overwhelmed even while I continue with my work, allowing me to have that intuitive connection, stability, and direction that is lacking when I am flirting with burnout.

DECK USED:  HEPHOE TAPO

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: How important is my spiritual altar to me?

Trionfi della Luna

Reading Summary: It’s more of a reminder of tradition (The Hierophant), than something that I use all the time (Three of Swords). But, it has its place in my journey and in keeping me grounded, as well as in making me feel that I have what I need (Nine of Coins).

Take Away:  I don’t use my altar all that often.  I mean… daily for my daily devotional, but I don’t really need an altar to do that devotional.  Aside from my devotional?  I don’t use it at all actually. My spellcraft is not done at my altar, my research and studies are not done there either, nor do my rituals take place there other than the already mentioned daily devotional.

Ultimately, it is a beautiful spot that is a soothing display of my faith and my values.  I enjoy it and the centered and grounded feeling that standing before it provides, and its beauty as well… but I wouldn’t call it necessary.

DECK USED:  TRIONFI DELLA LUNA

Morning Bonus Read – Trick Or Treat Halloween Spread

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Because I am trying to show a bit more of my decks this month, as I have a whole LOT of October/Halloween/Samhain decks, I’m doing a few extra bonus reads over the month.  This is one of those extra readings.

Halloween Tarot Spread - Carnival at the End of the World Tarot

Card To Represent Something That Is Tricking Me
The Last Judgement and The Devil

These cards are a reminder that my values and self worth have absolutely nothing to do with my control (or the lack thereof) over my addictions. It’s like equating your self worth with the cleanliness of your home or the color of your shoes. They have nothing to do with each other, but sometimes we (as humans) get all these things mixed up in our head and emotions.

How I’m Being Fooled By This
Page of Cups

This tendency to equate one’s self worth with how we feel about a flaw or issue that we’re currently involved in is a sign of emotional immaturity. This isn’t a huge surprise, as I have spent a good portion of my life burying my emotions and muffling them behind thick walls.  Now that I’m opening up to them  more fully and willingly, little stumbling blocks like these are bound to crop up.

How Can I Gain a Clear Perspective and Stop Being Tricked?
The Sun

Allow yourself to have some fun.  You’re not hurting anyone,  not even yourself.  So there’s no harm in it. That in itself rouses a bit of guilt, although that has more to do with being raised that fun is a waste of time.  I know this is not to be the case, and The Sun card here in this spread indicates I need to remember to embrace my fun rather than allowing the past to influence me into shying away from it.

Card To Represent a Treat In My Life
Queen of Cups

Being able to better connect with and understand people on an emotional level than I have in the past.  I’ve noticed this a few times recently in speaking with others and how I relate to them.   What I used to see as my empathy for others I have now come to realize was far more logic based thane emotion based.

A Way That I Can Fully Embrace This Treat
Knave of Wands

Continue to make the exploration of emotional growth a priority and pour my interest and attention into it.  This might be difficult during the holiday rush that is quickly approaching.  But, ten weeks from now, that chaotic time will come to an end, and I’ll be able to delve back into that exploration with both feet.

Something I Don’t Yet Understand About This Treat
Six of Coins

It’s going to change how I relate to others that are more fortunate than myself, and others that are fare less fortunate than myself.  It’ll give me a new perspective on balance, and on my personal involvement with that balance.   I’m not there yet, but just as I understand empathy more now than I did before, so too will this come into focus as tome goes on.

DECK USED:  CARNIVAL AT THE END OF THE WORLD TAROT