Tarot Blog Hop: Musical Guidance from the Cards

For this Blog Hop, our wrangler Jay Cassels, to “Unleash your inner Gleek and stand on the balcony and sing for forgiveness as you explore your relationship with Tarot and Music.”



I decided the best way to unleash my Inner Gleek was to go to the cards and pull out the cards that reminded me of songs, arrange them into a journey of sorts, and ask the cards for guidance on each of the songs. I used the standard RWS deck as my guide for each question and the Golden Rider for guidance.


One of the most interesting things about this exercise was that for three of the songs, the song I was originally thinking of for each card turned out not to be the song that inspired my readings, the original song was simply a stepping stone to the song that had meaning and that I was meant to read on. As I googled lyrics, the songs that were meant to inspire me found their way onto my screen. I’ve included both the song I ended up reading on and the original song I’d chosen.



The Fool: Leap of Faith (Lionel Cartwright)

Original Song: Can’t Stop Believing (Journey)
Question: How can I take a leap of faith?

The dashing Knight of Cups tells me that the time for protecting my heart is over. I need to open my heart and wear it on my sleeve. I need to be open to love and to the warmth it brings to me. I also need to be open to love coming in unexpected ways and through unexpected channels. The Knight of Cups also tells me that I might need to think about taking a quest to find the love I want instead of quietly waiting for it to come to me.

The Seven of Wands tells me to believe in myself and what I want out of life. This is not the time to slink of quietly into the night. It is the time to stand firm and believe that what I want will come to me. This is not a card about physical aggression or about looking for a fight, instead it is a card about believing in myself and knowing that I am worthy.

The Hermit tells me that all the knowledge I need is within my own soul.  I need to take time for myself and take time to listen to the wisdom of my heart.  I need to calm the chatter and to trust that my heart is wise and right.  I also need to be a beacon of hope for others in how I live my life.  However, this is not telling me to go out and seek students or actively live my life for others.  It is simply telling me that the way I live my life will inspire others.

All told, this was very good advice on how to take a leap of faith and trust that the universe will catch me.  I think the thing that we sometimes forget is that taking a leap of faith doesn’t mean going into the wilderness unprepared, it means taking time to prepare and when you are ready taking a leap of faith.



Three of Hearts:  When the Broken Hearted Love Again (Danielle Bollinger)
Original Song:  You Give Love a Bad Name
Question:  How do I love Again?

The Ace of Wands lights the way to new love and reminds me that I am a child of divinity who is creative and inventive.  The Ace is telling me to focus on my own creativity and not worry too much about love.  I have set my intentions and prepared for the journey and done everything I could before taking the leap of faith.  Now I just need to live my life and know that good things will come to me.

The next two cards, the ten and nine of swords, would seem to be negative cards in this reading, but I’m realizing that they are not.  The Ten of Swords is telling me that my heart has been broken and that there will be no pain that will be worth than what I have endured.  I have survived this pain and I will survive any thing else that comes my way.  The Ten of Swords is also a reminder not to be a martyr, but to get up and be a survivor.  And the nightmare card, the Nine of Swords, says it is my own fears keeping me from loving again and not anything concrete.  The Nine is also reminding me that there is a certain element of faith to anything that happens in this world and that I need to let go and quit beating myself up.




Six of Swords:  Come Sail Away (Styx)

Original Song:  Leaving on a Jet Plane

Question:  What am I sailing toward?


The World tells me I’m sailing toward my own self completion and being content within my own skin.  I’m sailing toward liberation and letting go of the past.  This is critical for me right now as I’m coming out of a period of letting go of old lessons and hold hurts.  The World is a reminder that I am good enough and that I am complete and whole into myself.


The Queen of Pentacles is a reminder that I am loved and that the universe contains all that I need.  Even though my own mother did not provide me with the firm foundation I needed, the Queen of Pentacles and the Goddess herself will provide for me.  They will nurture me and love me and provide for my needs.  The Queen of Pentacles is all about security and about knowing that there are people in my life who are there for me.


The Knight of Pentacles tells me that I am sailing toward people who will be there and who are trustworthy.  I’m leaving behind people who are flaky and unreliable and moving toward a world with people who care about me and are there for me.  I am sailing toward reliability.


Three of Cups:  Celebrate (Kool and the Gang)

Original Song:   Celebrate (Kool and the Gang)

Question:  What do I have to celebrate in my life?


The Six of Swords tell me that I get to celebrate moving on and leaving my past behind.  I have worked hard to let go of the things and people that are holding me back and that is something I should definitely celebrate.  It has been a lot of hard work, but it is paying off and I am becoming the person I was meant to be.

Although the Seven of Pentacles would seem to be an odd card for a celebration, it is the celebration of the stillness and the ability and willingness to take a pause.  I am a recovering drama addict and even today there are times when my mind would rather be feasting on drama versus stillness.  The Seven of Pentacles reminds me of how far I have come and that I can relish peace and quiet.   Buying a house has really taught me patience as I’ve realized that I do not have the time and money to fix the entire house at once.  I have to be patient and do things as I have time and money.

Life has its ups and downs as the Wheel of Fortune reminds me.  Sometimes life is amazing and wonderful and other times it is not.  The WoF tells me that I should celebrate life in all its glory.  I need to be grateful for all the good things that come into my life.  The WoF also tells me that in the short term, good things are coming my way.


The Sun:  Here Comes the Sun (The Beatles)
Original Song:  Here Comes the Sun (The Beatles)
Question:  What are the lessons of the sun?

The Magician tells me that I have the power to manifest my own destiny.  All the tools that I need are at my finger tips, I just need to choose to utilize them.  The Magician also tells me that I am a channel for power and that I must respect that channel and not take it for granted.

The Eight of Wands is about taking action quickly and not about analysis by paralysis.  The Eight of Wands also tells me there is a possibility of a love connection with someone I know or with someone who is just coming into my life. 

The Three of Cups tells me to celebrate the goodness and wonder in life.  It is time to put aside the worry that is weighing me down and raise a cup to the goodness of life. I deserve to have happiness in my life and I deserve to know that I matter.  I know from experience that even though sometimes it seems that keeping our nose to the grindstone is the right course of action, taking time to celebrate can often feed our souls and make us that much more productive when we do go back to work.

Although I had my doubts when I first read this prompt as to whether or or not I could do it justice, my guides came through for me and guided me to a reading that made sense for me.


Use the links below to navigate to the previous blog, the master list, or the next blog.


Happy Hopping!





















Shadow Work–Day 19

What part of my shadow do I need to use more?

Maker Four tells me I need to learn to say no to obligations, etc. that are not in my best interest.  I shouldn’t say yes to things that mean I end up spending the entire weekend working with no down time.  I need to learn to set better boundaries.  It also means I need to stop using work to escape into and as an excuse to not meet people.

Dreamer Three tells me that I need to feel the heartbreak and let it go.  I need to accept the cleansing relief that letting go of the pain can bring.  I need to lean into the pain instead of running away from it.

Dreamer Queen tells me to think things through and to use my logic and not just my heart.  Dreamer Queen is a stalker card as she has shown up multiple times.

Up until now my readings for this work have been spot on and have made a lot of sense.  I struggled with this reading as the cards did not seem to make sense for the question.  I’m going to continue to pray and meditate on it and the cards may make more sense later.

Three of Air

Three of Air
Dark Goddess Tarot

First Impressions:  The Blue Dakini is stomping on someone’s heart as she dances.  The lotus flower appears to have blood flowing from it.  This is truly a card of heartbreak.

Book:  If it is not real and true, sever all ties, heralding a vast awakening, healing through destruction, quickly cutting through obstacles.

Guidance:  Face the harsh truth, put something in place of your wound, open yourself to the experience

Journaling:

I really love this reading and this card.  It is a reminder to let go of what no longer serves me and to open up to the possibilities of life.  I’m at a crossroads and I know that in order to move forward, I need to make some hard choices.  One of those choices is to choose to let go of my hope that something is going to happen with X and I need to put him in my rear view mirror.  I need to do like I am doing with so much of my life and keep the good and the lessons that I’ve learned and let go of that which no longer serves me.  Being diabetic also no longer serves me and I need to get with the program and quit the sugar.

January 13, 2018

The three of swords is still not my favorite card in the deck, but I am learning to appreciate it and to see the value in admitting heartbreak and accepting it versus hiding it.  I’m also seeing the value in having the pain drain out. 

Daily Draw; Three of Swords

First impressions:  Heartbreak

Book:  Heartbreak, very dramatically and tragically expressed, ego is centered on emotional distress

Guidance:  Remove the focus from your emotions, proper perspective allows more clarity, empress can help with healing

Journaling

I love the reading on this card as it is a reminder to put things into perspective.  I tend to blow things out of perspective and make it seem as if I am the only person in the world to be hurt and that is not true.  Every person on the planet goes through heartbreak and pain.  It is not the tragedy we face that defines us as much as it is our reaction to it.  We can choose to curl up in a ball and wither away or we can choose to become hard.  Or we can choose to heal and grow.  Just like I love old furniture for its scars and patina, I need to embrace my own scars and imperfections.  I’ve led an interesting and varied life and I need to embrace that. 

I’m struggling right now as to how I can be there for my daughter as she is alternating between defiant and sad.  I guess I just have to let go and be there for her.  She needs a support system and not a jailer.

November 20, 2017

Interesting read as I am working on accepting myself and who I am in my own life.  I am not berating myself for clothing sizes, but choosing to love who I am.

October 27, 2018

Over the past year, I really have realized that loving myself and valuing my body is the key to losing weight.  I am actually motivated to take care of myself and to stop drinking coke.  It is really hard, but I know that I am starting to feel better since I’m no longer sucking down four cokes a day.  The pounds have not really started coming off yet, but I do know that I feel a lot more comfortable in my own skin.

Daily Draw: Three of Swords (R)

First Impressions:  Joy, moving on

Book:  Protecting the heart, letting go of pain, forgiveness, path to recovery, accepting pain and loss and moving on
Guidance:  Letting go and move on, accept the situation
Journaling
What a perfect card to pick today.  I definitely feel like I’m moving on and letting the past go.  I’ve accepted that I can’t help help her or change her unless she wants help and to change and it’s clear she would rather sit there and whine and be passive aggressive rather than move on and get help.
She is so insecure that she can’t contemplate being wrong because it would shatter her self image.  I feel so much empathy because I used to be like that.  If anyone accused me of something or told me that I was wrong, I put my shields up.  I thought if I was wrong about anything it reflected on my worth as a person.  I’ve learned to let go of that and accept that I’m human.  I had to want to change.  I guess I’m also uncomfortable about confronting my m
July 1, 2018
One of the lessons that I’m learning about life is that sometimes I need to choose to let go of my need to be right in order to keep harmony.  That doesn’t mean degrading myself, it just means accepting that somethings are truly not mine to control and that I need to let go of the need to control everyone to let other people have their own lives.
I’m doing that with Cam right now.  I have to let go of my need to harp on her job and to point out all the things that are wrong with her job.  Instead, I have to love and support her to the best of my ability.  

Three of Air

Three of Air
Gaian Tarot

First Impressions:  This card makes me think of Barack Obama sitting in a library studying and writing down tremendous wisdom.  This is a card of wisdom and doing the work of learning.  As I write this, I’m realizing that the Three of Air translates to the Three of Swords which is traditionally a card of heart break.

Journaling:

This card is about pouring your heart out on the page.  It is about being smart enough to know when to turn to book wisdom and smart enough to know when to look inside and to trust the wisdom inside my soul. 

I have spent a lot of time over the past few weeks pouring my heart out on the page and there is a huge part of me that says there is nothing more to pour out, but I know that is not true as there is always more to pour out on the page.  What I don’t know if continually digging into my soul is positive or negative.  Am I uncovering junk and releasing it or am I stuck in my own shit?  Is what I’m uncovering fertilizer that can help me move forward or quicksand that I will get mired in?  I guess at the end of the day, it is up to me as to whether it is mulch or quicksand.  I can choose to be a victim and be stuck in the past or I can choose to use it as fertilizer to grow my future.  I am choosing fertilizer.

Since I’ve been thinking about John lately, I need to put on my thinking cap and truly think about the lessons I learned from him:

  • Men who want to go out with their friends and get drunk rather than stay home are party boys and may never grow up.  It’s okay to go out sometimes, but a grownup wants a mix of the two and not constant partying.
  • Men who do not respect my boundaries are not for  me
  • There needs to be an equal division of labor in a marriage.  I should not have had to carry the entire financial burden and clean the house while he sat on his butt
  • Men who refuse to work because a job is beneath them are arrogant and lazy
What I want in a partner:
  • An equal partner
  • Someone who pays his own way
  • Someone who respects my boundaries
  • Someone who does not gaslight me
  • Someone with similar interests
  • A guy who likes to hang at home and have a few people over
  • A guy who will go to art museums and concerts in the park
  • A guy who will walk barefoot in the grass
  • A guy who kisses me in the moonlight
  • A guy who loves me despite my flaws
Other things I’ve learned:
  • That I need to open my heart to love and put myself out there
  • That I am worth knowing an loving
  • That John and I were probably wrong from each other from the start, but that he lied about who he was and what he wanted in a relationship as he said he wanted an equal and that he wanted a family, but that’s never what he wanted
  • I’m not really angry anymore an I’ve learned a lot of lessons
December 29, 2017
This was amazingly powerful stuff and the best part is that these are lessons that have stuck for the most part.  I have truly realized that I am worth knowing and loving and that I have to open my heart to love.  I’m still not exactly sure how or when I will meet someone, but I’ve put it out their to my guides and I’ve opened myself to be ready and willing to listen to their guidance and we’ll see what happens.