8 of Cups. Card of leave taking

   The 8 of Cups is a gloomy looking card, it has a dark background and a sad faced moon overseeing the figure as he departs leaving his cups behind.
    I have found as I pursue this blog that the energy of the cards has began to seep into my life and so drawing a gloomy looking card is not always my favourite thing as I wonder what it is that I am going to leave behind.
    Whatever is in the cups, it is enough for the figure to have grabbed his walking cane, his cloak and leave without even a glance over his shoulder. The somber blue of the sky and the strange moon face give an aura of sadness that hang over the card. The face of the moon itself seems to be confined within a circle of its own and I can only imagine that it is representing the dark side of the moon, even if it remains bright. This unusual symbolism suggests what would seem to be dark and sad, might actually not be all that bad.
    The last few mornings I have woken with a kind of sadness over me, a resignation. My business has taken off a little more, but for some reason the lull I am experiencing at the beginning of this new month in my work has affected me. Saying I was mooning over this slackening in business would not be far wrong. By drawing this card it forced me to consider my line of work and what it means for me. The creeping sense of dissatisfaction and boredom is at the fringes of my awareness and coming close on the heels of the last card (ironically, the 7 of Cups) it has allowed me to sink into the boggy ground of a certain ennui. The obvious thought is that I am dis-satisfied with my level of income and how it has restricted me and Zoe in our life and that of course that is what I wish to leave behind. On a certain level that is true, I would like nothing more than to be able to leave that chapter behind.
    In the card the traveller, for that is what he is regardless of what he may have been before he left, is prepared to leave it all behind. The eight cups, precariously balanced upon one another give no indication of what they carry. The upper layer of cups has an unusual gap, in which the traveller stands. It is if a small break in the situation has given him the impetus to step away from it all and set out on a journey. The destination of the journey is not as important as what he has been left behind.
   When I first left the UK and my call centre job for a bank I had the opportunity to work with a rocket scientist. What he was doing at the bank in a call centre I do not know, other than maybe to keep himself occupied after the military. I had told him of my plan to leave the bank and to go travelling on a journey, but I was unsure where to go. He told me that with getting a rocket to leave the atmosphere of the earth, it was not so important as to where it was going, but in generating enough force for it to push away from the ground so it could break free.
     The mountains that make up the background of the card are jagged and large and although the traveller appears to have a paved road ahead, his journey is not likely to be an easy one. It is the leave taking that is going to be difficult. The moon and the tides of the waters are holding him back. Gravity and inertia are his enemies and the small break is enough for him to set his intention and to push away.  The red of his cloak shows his vigour and passion to make a break for good and his green trousers show that his heart is also in this endeavor.
     As I considered my feelings this morning in bed, one thing occurred to me. It is not the situation that is frustrating me and bringing me down, although that doesn't help. It is the feelings themselves that I wish to leave behind. I will doubtless encounter further lulls in my business and even in my life. I cannot seriously expect that everyday will greet me with the promise of exciting work or wonderful opportunities. If everytime I find a lapse or a lull in the flow of things I engage with these feelings, then I will find they play a larger role in my life than I would like. The feelings of disappointment, of boredom or inertia are the feelings I really wish to leave behind. Outside of those worries it is a beautiful day and there are plenty of opportunities to enjoy my life or to choose to engage in positive activities.
     This card challenges us to face upto those parts of our lives that have dragged us down, those emotions that we would rather project onto external situations and to leave them behind. It is about leaving negative behaviours, patterns, emotions or even relationships behind us and to push onto greener pastures, regardless of how hard it is to break out of their gravitational pull.

8 of Wands. Movement and speed.

   The Eight of Wands has no figures in the card, which makes it somewhat unique. Usually the cards will include figures in order to create a connection with the viewer, but this card harks back to older decks which didn't always include them. Instead we are treated to the eight wands angling downwards as if they were arrows falling from the sky.
    In the majority of the cards I have tried to connect to the element of each of the cards without recourse to looking for their meaning detailed by another. In the case of this card I found it difficult to connect without looking at what others had written about this card. In most decks and in other books on the Tarot, there is some discrepancy between the supposed meaning. When I first read on the Tarot I understood this card to mean quickness, movement and fiery electric energy. I have, however read that this card can also mean blockage or hold up. I don't particularly subscribe to this element, other than it could relate to this energy not being present and thus causing a blockage.
    Since the wands in the card resemble arrows falling to earth, at least to me, I connect to the meaning of things happening quickly and use it as such in my readings. When you do this, that is what the card becomes to you. There is also an element of uncertainty as everything in the card is up in the air.
     The way I understand the energy of this card, it is similar to the sense of timelessness one gets when you are watching something moving very quickly and it appears to hang motionless for a moment. The arrows in this card have been fired into the air and are rapidly moving to their destination, but while they are in the air there is a silence and timelessness. There is a beauty in these moments, the eternal pause while moving rapidly.  The card speaks of the energy of movement, yet not frenetic movement such as in the Knight of Swords who charges madly forward.
     There is a precedent for this type of energy in my life at the moment. All my arrows are in the air and I must wait and watch them speed to their destination. The moment of action has been set in motion and the energy is carrying forward without my influence any longer. All that remains for me is to see which arrows strike their target and which miss.
      In my life I have set forward in many different projects. I have begun to pursue my art a little more actively as well as launching many different ideas into motion at my workplace. They centre is planning to create retreats for tourists to a plot of land in the painted desert and it is already in motion. Along with several other side projects that have been initiated.
      The background of the card is pastoral and suggests relaxation and calm while your ideas speed their way to their targets. The card has a certain zen aspect of being in the moment and still even in the midst of action. It reminds me somewhat of my martial arts background in which great speed is achieved without thought, that instinctual moving followed by a calm observation of the moment that follows. Any other energy is extraneous and unnecessary.
 

8 of Swords. Bondage and the restricted self.

  The 8 of Swords is known as the card of bondage and one only has to glance at the card to see why. I have had a relatively chequered past with this card and it has come up with some regularity in my personal readings and those I have done readings for.
  Again there is symbolism related to covered eyes with the blindfold and this has been a regular theme in the recently drawn cards. This card is also usually viewed in a negative light, but again it is only an indicator and can actually be a blessing if the information is heeded. I see it like a flashing fuel gauge on your car, you might not like seeing it but it is there to warn you of a situation you should take note of.
   The woman in the card is blind, bound and entrapped by a circle of swords stuck in the swampy ground. Her surroundings appear drab and the situation hopeless. The swords in the ground symbolise the proliferance of thoughts that keep her in bondage. It is a situation that probably feels familiar to a great many people..stuck in the mud, surrounded on all sides by limitation and tied up to boot!
   Taking a closer look at the card one can actually see that things are not as bad as they seem. The fact that the card is minor arcana suggests that is an energy that is prevalent in the situation and not some divine punishment. The person is actually responsible for her thoughts and therefore just as capable of changing them. The bonds around her are loose and could be easily slipped off... if not there is a number of sharp swords close at hand! If she took off her blindfold she could see that the swords can be easily circumvented and that the castle lies not far off behind her. The castle itself suggests prosperity, security and shelter only a short distance away.
    This card is all about being imprisoned by your own thoughts or lack of perspective and this happens far too often. One thing to bear in mind is that although you as the viewer of the card can see all these possibilities, it is not on view to the one so bound. If you  have to deal with a person so trapped, one must be aware that their perspective of the situation is limited until they escape from their blindfold. Again we have all been in a situation in which the course seems obvious to one who can see and the other has fallen into hopelessness because of their perception of their situation. This kind of situation calls for compassion and a great deal of patience.
    This card urges me to have the same level of compassion and patience for my own bondage as well for others. I often find my patience stretched when having to deal with those from very limited perspectives and it reminds me that I have also been in those very situations and compassion and understanding not frustration and irritation was what I needed most.
    On a personal level this card is talking to me about my own bands of restriction. I have recently started a regular exercise regimen, involving weekly trips to the gym, yoga on occasion and football (soccer). I can feel bands of tension around my hips and shoulders where there is tightness. Wilhelm Reich talked about seven bands of tension that occur in the body and limit the flow of blood and vital energies. These seven bands correspond perfectly to the chakra system even though Reich preferred to keep other systems at arm's length.
      He postulated that the muscular tension was because of emotional charged memories stored within the body itself and that these suppressed memories could be released with bodywork. His ideas have formed the cornerstone of modern body-working and I have certainly encountered memories surfacing through massage or other bodywork. The idea is that when when our body organism feels threatened emotionally it responds by contracting the muscles to protect us. If this occurs on a regular enough basis the body will become chronically tense, even if the emotionally charged situation no longer threatens us. That is why as many people get stiffer and less flexible as they add more and more armouring to anything that even vaguely resembles the original causative factor.
     I do agree with Reich, although I believe if the emotional affectation can be reached and experienced, then the injured part will rise up in the consciousness bringing forth the memories for release. Once released they will lead the faulty or incorrect belief statement to awareness for examination. If this can be surmounted then the muscles will relax and will likely not relapse. I have directly experienced this myself.
    I don't believe physical manipulation is always necessary and if the belief structure is not altered then all it will do is relieve the current pressure until it builds up once more. I have made greater physical breakthroughs through meditation and depth introspection than I have in months of yoga. Yoga, exercise and body-work  is unparalleled for removing the toxins from the body and maintaining flexibility though and would thoroughly recommend it.
    I feel the bands around my hips slowly slipping away more and more each day...as for the bands around my shoulders..I have yet to understand their attribution.