I had an absolutely magical day with a heart friend who was visiting this weekend. We had an epic and intimate talk, we serendipitously ended up at a very special place that I’ll share in a later post, and we hiked in one of our favorite woods where we did a tarot reading and met some fairies. Did I mention it was super magical?
Well, inspired by the day’s amazing mojo, I came home and did a tarot reading with two of my favorite decks for this time of year: the Bohemian Gothic Tarot and the Ghosts and Spirits Tarot. This reading feels both deeply personal and relevant to more than just my life, so I’ve decided to share it here. Enjoy!
The question: How can I resonate with the energies of Samhain (Halloween) and the thinning of the veil in a way that is correct and good for me?
The Sun
You are ready to face some of your childhood ghosts, subconscious beliefs that have been fueling fear and resistance in your adult life. Those beliefs may have served you well at one point in the past, but now they are as ill suited to who you are as the pony would be for a full-grown adult rider. There’s nothing inherently wrong with the pony; it’s just not needed in your current experience. Thank it for carrying you this far, and set it free.
The cityscape through the doorway is subtly distorted, and in the same way, these childhood ghosts are like a cloud through which your view of the world is subtly distorted. Welcome the gift of clear seeing in this time when the veil is thin and when your personal veils that you have been carrying since childhood are shed as well.
Nine of Pentacles
My eyes were immediately drawn to the skulls in the bottom right, and the phrase, “The bird isn’t aware of its own mortality” sprang into my mind. And then there was a rush of questions. How did this woman get here? She’s so incredibly far away from the house in the background. And how on earth did she travel over those cliffs?
New thoughts began streaming into my consciousness: The bird can traverse those cliffs quite easily. The bird isn’t aware of its own mortality, because it is, in truth, the soul–it has no mortality; it’s immortal.
We try to protect our soul from seeing the world as we see it through our physical lens–the harshness, the disappointments, the mess–not realizing that our soul cannot see it this way. Its view is inherently different, and this different perspective is precisely what we need.
When we choose to release the tether and hood from our soul, even the most foreboding looking landscape becomes possible to traverse. Through the physical lens it appears as impassable cliffs and tangled woods; to the soul, it is merely a diverse and adventurous landscape above which to soar.
Let your soul fly.
Four of Wands Reversed
The world is magic. We are magic. Everything is magic. Dive in with both feet!
The figure in the card is the Shellycoat, a mischievous Scottish spirit who will mislead passersby with calls that sound like a drowning victim. The travelers search and search to no avail until the Shellycoat has had its fun and gives up the ruse with a laugh.
When you uncover false beliefs, as the Sun foretells, it’s easy to fixate on the feeling of being duped, of operating under false pretenses and losing precious time that could have been wisely spent, “if only you’d known better.”
The Shellycoat means no harm; it’s only having a bit of fun. Its effect on you depends on your response. Do you fixate on being the victim, throw your hands up in the air, and bemoan, “Why does this shit always happen to me? How could I be so stupid!” Or do you smile back at the trickster, just as mischievously, and join the fun?
In Big Magic, Elizabeth Gilbert compares the martyr’s life approach to that of the trickster’s:
“[The trickster] trusts that the universe is in constant play and, specifically, that it wants to play with him. A good trickster knows that if he cheerfully tosses a ball out into the cosmos, that ball will be thrown back at him. It might be thrown back really hard, or it might be thrown back really crooked, or it might be thrown back in a cartoonish hail of missiles, or it might not be thrown back until the middle of next year–but that ball will eventually be thrown back.”
It’s your call: create a storyline of defeat or stay in the game, tossing that ball out into the cosmos, just to see what’ll happen.
The Star
Let all three layers of your being soar: your body, mind, and spirit. Can you engage in Divine play, not just in meditation, or on your yoga mat, or while laughing with a friend, but in all of life, with all levels of your being?
Divine play is not an illusory state, like a drunken night out on the town that fades as soon as the hangover sets in. No, the illusory state is when you believe that the Divine isn’t constantly engaging you, supporting you, loving you, is you. That’s the real illusion.
When we disbelieve that the Divine is real and that it wants to play with and delight in us, then we feel like we need to have a designated driver. One part of our being can play, but another part has to “be responsible” and drive our drunk ass home. So, we can play on our yoga mat, but it’s no fun and no games once we’re back to “real life.” Or we can bliss out in meditation, but it’s time to get back to “reality” when we’re at work.
The Star invites you to play and experience joy on all levels. No one needs to sit in the corner and make sure things don’t get out of hand. Spread your wings, be led by your heart, and let your body, mind, and soul dance with the Divine. Engage your entire being in the beautiful act of being fully present for your glorious life.
From the Ghosts and Spirits Tarot interpretation for the Star: “You feel a newfound freedom as you coast through the unfamiliar terrain without the constraints of fear and resistance holding you back.”
Have a blessed Samhain!
