For quite sometime I kept drawing cards that were alluding to the fact that I needed to rest. As such, I have not posted on any of my blogs since mid July, taking time off from my many projects, trying to REst and REflect. These are key actions during any period in which Mercury is in retrograde (what we are currently experiencing), signaling a time where no new projects should be started, instead you should rest and reflect on what you already have in place.
Given the fact that I am very heavily a Virgo born on a New Moon with a Stellenium in my chart all in the house of Virgo, I am heavily influenced by Mercury, always on a quest for knowledge...So, the last few weeks have been no different. And my intuitive research has connected me to Crowley's Thoth Tarot.
In fact, I have owned this deck for at least six years. But, I have never opened it. I was drawn to purchase it when I began to truly study the cards in depth, putting it aside (along with his companion book The Book of Thoth) and finally picking it up for the first time two weeks ago.
I realize everyday how our higher-selves guide us when we follow our hearts. Aleister Crowley is a very controversial occultist, and if you let his reputation proceed him, you can miss out on the magic that is his Tarot! Yet, I am so happy that I did not delve into this highly symbolic an esoteric deck until now, because I would have been in no way prepared to read these advanced cards. But, when you are ready the teacher will find you, and so now Crowley and his Book of Thoth have found me!
I have been shuffling, looking at, meditating with, and reading up on Crowley, Lady Frieda Harris (the artist behind the cards), and looking into the systems that lie at the core of this complex deck. I am so happy that I have finally begun to work with these cards, whose images really seem to be resonating with me. I love the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, but I was also ready for something more, and have found, what I wanted/had all along!
So, with this deck I did the daily card reading for today. I drew the Lovers which is a trump card in the Major Arcana. For me this card is always about choices. I was immediately struck by the contrasting children and royalty, using the imagery of black and white (duality/contrast). Crowley states that this card alludes to Gemini (the twins) ruled by Mercury. In fact Mercury is the hooded figure in the background overseeing the events in this picture. Crowley states, " he is closely shrouded, as if to signify the ultimate reason of things lies in the realm beyond manifestation and intellect."
We are taken back to the Garden of Eden, where Eve has fallen to the temptation of the serpent, and has bore his child Cain. Cain is the first murderer, and as such bears the mark of the beast (Crowley's nickname), holding the Hammer of Thor still dripping with his brothers blood. Yet, Crowley states that the first murder was necessary because, "God did not hear the children of Eve until blood was shed".
The marriage is of a Black Moorish King and a White Queen (opposites again). The egg of wisdom is at the bottom. For with choice comes change, and change is always the birth of something new...This card refers to the 6th stage of Alchemy which is distillation.
What have you been reflecting on during this retrograde period? What choices need to be made in the present, as you move forward?
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