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Monday, December 14, 2015

VI - The Lovers. Integration of Opposites

    
     The sixth card of the Major Arcana is The Lovers card. This card is traditionally one of the most commonly known, along with the Death card and the Hanged man and is just as often erroneously simplified to the point of losing it's meaning. It is a card you will often see depicted in movies as being the quintessential card for romance and unions. The card actually has far greater depth than it seems at first glance, pointing to deep esoteric meanings...of course it can also mean romance! It's all in how you read it.
    The card itself depicts a woman and a man in the biblical garden of Eden, behind them the two trees of Life and Knowledge of Good and Evil. Upon the Tree of knowledge of Good and Evil sits a serpent. Above them, emerging from a cloud is an Angel who seems to be offering a benediction upon the two. Already we can see the card is heavy with allegory and religious symbolism. You may also notice a triangular aspect to the card, both with the three figures and the mountain behind them. This triangle is ascending upwards and so has a heavenly symbolic quality, suggesting something more than just a simple romantic coupling. The couple in the card are wearing no clothes, and while this can be seen as a direct interpretation of a biblical passage, I believe it relates to the lack of pretense between the two. That both elements come forward unadorned and free of ego.
     What the card is talking to is the integration of opposites, of male and female and of heaven and earth. The couples approach, heaven descends and the earth rises and all is well. Integration is strongly mentioned in the other cards such as Temperance and the Devil (which has many interesting parallels to this card if you lay them side by side!). Whereas the Devil suggests being bound by a union, the Lovers is about being set free by a union. That the Union of opposites in this case creates something far greater than just the sum of it's parts.
   When this card appears in a reading is concerned with bringing two opposites together. Those opposites don't always have to be male and female, it could relate to business mergers, to colours in a painting or sweet and sour in a dish. What is important is that this union is expansive and liberating, two parts that work better in conjunction. The angel is appearing because of the union of the two partners, symbolizing the higher aspect of the pairing. Unlike the Devil card, which is oppressive in it's nature and both elements are subjugated, bound and lessened by their union, this card holds powerful lessons in true synthesis as an act of expansive creativity. 
   The card is the sixth of the Major Arcana and the number six is a harmonious number, especially when it relates to the Kabbalah and the Tarot. Each of the elements has passed the halfway point and is well on it's path to completion. 
   For me in my life right now it symbolizes the need to further connect my spiritual life with my material life, that the two can come together to create something better each one lived alone. Many live their lives in only one sphere, hoping that when one is fixed they can then work on the other. It always leaves one feeling unfulfilled and lacking something. It also relates to relationships, of course, that when two beings come together it should be for something greater than what they can achieve individually. That such a union can create a powerful energy and magic, that can be used for creative and enlightening endeavors.
    The real meaning behind this card of course is Love, for Love is that powerful and energetic magic that appears between the two. That draws the Lover and the Beloved together, that springs not from either, but from their being together. As Jung said "The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemicals substances; if there is any reaction are transformed". It's positive aspect being The Lovers and it's shadow aspect being The Devil. 
   

Friday, December 4, 2015

Moving through barriers



    I recently had a dream that involved multiple layers of fences that barred my way. In the dream the fences were so thick and numerous as to present an impenetrable wall, but there was a guide with me who urged me on. This guide was hazy, but they felt like a friend or a family member. They took my hand and brought me closer to the wall. Once at the wall he showed me that there was a way through each fence, that there was a cut here, or it wasn't properly pinned down there. He pushed a section of wire fence aside to show me a way through, even though if I stepped back it was still an overwhelming obstacle. What at first seemed impregnable, now seemed as though there were a hidden path through the barrier, a pathway through the labyrinth of tangled wires. Even as I stepped forward, my goal was still obscured by a forest of wires ahead and progress was only possible with faith in my companion and the conviction to take a single step when it was impossible to move quicker.
  It mirrors what is going on in my waking world and that from an objective distance it seems as there is no way on, yet when I look closer, at each individual step, I see I can indeed continue on. I freely admit that my doubts have been stronger than my faith at times and cause me to hesitate, or even to take a few steps backwards.  It is so easy to want to see oneself as a powerful hero with the strength to push down our obstacles, rather than the receptiveness to follow and trust in the strength and wisdom of another. That giving in to panic or fear will only trap you and enmesh you in a tangle of your own making. Each step I am reminded that I am still only a child in many ways and the guide of my soul is the only one who really knows the way. Maybe those that do not see my guide see his strength reflected in me as I hesitantly push aside the veils he has shown me are loose or unpinned.
  I pray I can continue to follow in my guides footsteps without letting fear rule me and closing my eyes to the path ahead.

Saturday, November 28, 2015

California Dreaming


 So, it's been a while. The short story is I moved out west after hoping to secure a great job after a great interview. Truth is, it's been 6 months and I am still on the hook waiting to find out it I got it or not. In the meanwhile I took a job to pay the bills, a job I had to walk out of today. It didn't end well, but I am glad I stood up for myself and my health.
   In other news, I took a break from the healing work. It was getting to the point in which I was getting no pleasure from it and was giving too much. Not sure where I stand with things and with the Tower card showing up in a couple of readings it looks like a time of dissolution is here. It may have just been a signifier for the end of the job, but it could portend bigger things as things are looking kind of dicey here.
   Nevertheless I am here and intend to make a stand for myself. I am considering starting up writing on the blog here a little more, maybe crank out a few more card descriptions. It's late and I don't have direction for my talking other than life, so I will get back to this all soon.
   In the meanwhile...goodnight.