Month: April 2013

Common Miracles

 

“The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miraculous in the common.”
–Ralph Waldo Emerson

 ;

I have a friend who talks every month of his long walks talking with the full moon. He speaks of his relationship with Mother Luna. The first time he spoke of this I was taken a bit aback until my mind shifted a bit and I realized how cool it was. Since then I have built my relationship with as many parts of nature I can. When I walk the dogs I feel the breeze or the rain with every inch of skin I can and embrace it. I too have listened to the moon’s wisdom and to what the rain could teach me. I have always felt the ocean gives me calm and direction when I sit by her. I have found my world lit up by a baby’s smile and by the touch of my partner. These simple miracles of which I have only listed a few here keep enriching my life and my spirit. What common miracles do this for you?
Blessings, G

 

Click on images to see full-sized

 

TrystTryst by G A Rosenberg

 

Purple NetPurple Net by G A Rosenberg

Tarot Post – Ten of Wands

 

Ten of Wands (Oppression)

 

Ten of WandsTen of Wands (Revised) by G A Rosenberg

 

Carying too much?
Continuing to the end
inspires others

 
__________________

Feeling Life’s Burdens?
Remove Problems From The Top
Avoid The Collapse

 
___________________

Tho I am weary
My Duty will keep me here
eternally trapped

 

Vanquished by my own success
Foes conquered and kingdom won
I thought I’d leave when all was done
I was begged to stay and rule
I said yes, Oh what a fool
Short time only, then I’d leave
When I told myself this, did I believe
that conflicts end when enemies dead
Diplomacy rears its ugly head
Aristocrats, Politicos
The people, yes what of those
Every day a new decision
every day some new derision
from trying to please everyone
and failing, oh what had I done?
Tyrant, now they call me
why didn’t I just flee
when I still had the chance
to continue on the adventurer’s dance
and monsters slay and maiden’s win
but here I stay would be a sin
to abdicate responsibility
would mean surrender what is me
So burdened now I rule unwell
and can’t escape this royal hell.

 

The suite of Wands deal with force-creative, spiritual, and vital. Tens show the ultimate completion of the energy involved leading ultimately to a new beginning. Here the creative spirit and force has no new battles to be won. The creative work has been accomplished. All the burdens we’ve taken on are there but none of the challenges that have brought us here. Our routine has become a burden to us and in many cases it has made us bitter towards those around us adding still more to the burden. If only we could lay everything down (throw it away or even let it collapse) and just take off to when every day was new and unexpected and we had to work for everything. But no, we tell ourselves, we have responsibilities. We know this can’t go on forever that one way or another it will collapse but even though we may be happier if we did, we dutifully stave it off as long as we.

 

Astrological Correspondence – Saturn in Sagittarius – This energy takes itself very seriously. It works hard and wishes to provide for others especially when it comes to imparting knowledge. It is resistant and slow to change. Saturn in Sagittarius has a strong sense of duty and can appear rather humourless at times. It can paint itself into a corner with its own logic but it will stay in that corner believing that to adapt a different viewpoint would be to abandon what it always believed and.

 

I Ching Correspondence – 54) Gui Mei – Marrying Maiden

___ ___
___ ___
_______
___ ___
_______
_______

 

The trigram for Thunder is over that of the Lake. Much as the water of the lake follows the force of the thunder and a secondary wife is under both the primary wife and her husband, this hexagram speaks of following one’s duties responsibly and submitting to them no matter what we may really wish to do. For the young wife to leave would throw the household into chaos and bring dishonour to her family. So she feels she must sublimate herself to her responsibilities.This hexagram says no favourable outcome and indeed it is the type of situation that will either end in unhappiness or misfortune.

 

When the Ten of Wands turns up in a reading it often means that we have taken too much on ourselves and find ourselves unwilling or unable to drop anything. Eventually if our burden is not lightened, we will collapse under the weight of what we have to get done. Sometimes when this card occurs it is more of a feeling of being overwhelmed more than a fact that we cannot do what is expected of us. Quite often this card tells us to drop what we are doing if only for a moment, step back and see whether there is really something that we can delegate to someone else.

 

The Ten of Wands reversed in a reading may mean that the oppression has been lifted and the responsibilities seen through. Will we dive right back into the fray and overburden ourselves again or will we have learned from the situation. The reversed Ten of Wands may also mean that the burden has been increased to the breaking point where if something isn’t lifted off of our shoulders, it will soon become disastrous.

Removing the Armour

“You haven’t yet opened your heart fully, to life, to each moment. The peaceful warrior’s way is not about invulnerability, but absolute vulnerability–to the world, to life, and to the Presence you felt. All along I’ve shown you by example that a warrior’s life is not about imagined perfection or victory; it is about love. Love is a warrior’s sword; wherever it cuts, it gives life, not death.”
― Dan Millman

 

What do you use for armour? I have used humour and I have used anger. I have used words,  sorrow and resignation. Each of these offered me various degrees of protection. They protected me from love. They protected me from awareness. They protected me at times from realizing that things were not as frightening as I believed they were. They protected me from exposing myself to my whole being. Now this warrior is weary. Piece by piece I dismantle my armour. I realize that even if battle killed my form that this is merely a suit of clothes that I wear. I have worn others in other lives. If I become hurt, then I will learn the lessons of pain and I will grow stronger. I will lead with my love and my thirst for understanding as open as I can and I know that no matter what transpires I will triumph.
Blessings, G

 

Click on images to see full-sized

 

Contemplating TransformationContemplating Transformation by G A Rosenberg

 

Emoting StarEmoting Star by G A Rosenberg

The Conquest of Joy

 

“Joy is sometimes a blessing, but it is often a conquest. Our magic moment help us to change and sends us off in search of our dreams. Yes, we are going to suffer, we will have difficult times, and we will experience many disappointments — but all of this is transitory it leaves no permanent mark. And one day we will look back with pride and faith at the journey we have taken.”
― Paulo Coelho

 

Imagine a time when all the scars you wear on your being fade away because you have dealt fully with all the wounds that left them. Imagine that we have found the joy in every moment that we have lived and say “Yes that too was for a reason, that too brought me here.” Imagine that we  have come to the point where we are living the best version of every dream that we have ever had for ourselves and facing everything that comes our way with an equanimity that we never knew we possessed. Perhaps this all starts with the conquest of joy. I have always known that being happy and feeling  joy was a possible decision at almost any point but perhaps when we find that decision to be the harder one to make we can conquer joy and make it anyway. I’m willing to attempt those conquests. How about you?
Walk in beauty and live in Joy.
Blessings, G

 

Click on images to see full-sized

 

GestationGestation by G A Rosenberg

 

The Routed HallsThe Halls en Route by G A Rosenberg

Tarot Post – Nine of Pentacles

 

Nine of Pentacles (Gain)

 

Nine of PentaclesNine of Pentacles (Revised) by G A Rosenberg

 

Residing in peace
Fulfillment well becomes you
On to the next thing

 

Once all your needs are fulfilled where will you go?
What new roads may you find in your garden?
New seeds sown and new thoughts planted
new paths sought
yet still the old beauty remains
Who else could have achieved this perfection?
Who else now to enjoy what you’ve earned?
Your hard work and  careful planning
inner beauty directed
and now the enjoyment begins.

 

The suit of Pentacles refers to the element of Earth and of practical matters such as money and partnerships both of a business nature and of the home. They can also represent nature, the Earth itself as well as our bodies. The Nines represent a coming to completion of the energy involved if not the completion itself. The Nine of Pentacles shows us a time when we have achieved our material goals through a combination of discipline, hard work and harmonizing with our environment. We can now enjoy the products of our labour at our leisure. We can also share with others this bounty and enjoy their appreciation. However there is only so long that we can sit and reflect on what we have done. Old achievements may pale without new challenges to guide us onward and we may need to go beyond the world of the senses to find this challenge. All of this we contemplate while walking in the beautiful garden of our success.

 

Astrological Correspondence – Venus in Virgo – This energy is attentive in all ways large and small. Venus in Virgo is always willing to help in practical matters. It is not overly emotive but it loves beauty and harmony and order. Venus in Virgo tends away towards spontaneity, believing that steadfastness is a more important virtue. It does not need a partner to achieve success, balance or harmony. Through attention to detail, it knows how to do the little things that matters to another so much and will often seem to be several jumps ahead in any relationship it finds itself in.

 

I Ching Correspondence – 51) Jian – Gradual Development –

_______
_______
___ ___
_______
___ ___
___ ___

 

The trigram of Wood is over that of the Mountain. This hexagram talks about a gradual growth and development until fullness is reached. Everything comes in its time and once it is reached then it can be truly enjoyed (appreciated in its fullness). If things are still for too long then stagnation can occur but as long as a steady progress continues then there is benefit. There is much in this hexagram that speaks of enjoying everything in its proper order and sequence including the end result.

 

The Nine of Pentacles in a reading may show that material success and enjoyment of this success is now a possibility in our lives. Through self-discipline and attention to detail we can now achieve our goals. This card may also mean that a project we have been working on is close to completion. The Nine of Pentacles in the past may refer to someone who ‘has it all’ but is not satisfied in their lives. They may need to seek something of a more spiritual nature to fulfill them.

 

When the Nine of Pentacles turns up reversed in a reading we may have reached a time when despite our best efforts, our work is not paying off. It can also refer to difficulty with learning to discipline ourselves and developing focus. This may be as a result of lack of confidence in ourself. Another meaning of the Nine of Pentacles reversed is that we have come to value spontaneity over careful planning and attention to detail.

In Love With Your Life…

“Be in love with your life, every detail of it.”
― Jack Kerouac

 

How do you love the parts of your life that seem hard or that you fight or that you wish never were?  When I was growing up my older sister used to complain about the shape of her face. My mother would advise her part by joke and part by rote. “I love my nose. I can’t change it so I will love it and accept it. I love my chin.” She shared this with me years later and while at first I laughed at the cheesiness, it made me think. What if I took it beyond the physical?  “I love my frustration. I love my irritability.” When something bothered me about my life that I felt I couldn’t adequately address I started telling myself how much I loved it. It was amazing how empowering surrender could be. By being aware of these negative emotions or circumstances not in a confrontational way but in a loving way I found myself becoming less frustrated and less easily irritated. That’s not to say these traits have left me completely but at least they are loved rather than used as a means to kick myself.

Blessings, G

 

Click on images to see full-sized
Rainbows at nightRainbows at night by G A Rosenberg

 

TransformationTransformation by G A Rosenberg

The Poet as Thief of Fire

““The poet, therefore, is truly the thief of fire.He is responsible for humanity, for animals even; he will have to make sure his visions can be smelled, fondled, listened to; if what he brings back from beyond has form, he gives it form; if it has none, he gives it none. A language must be found…of the soul, for the soul and will include everything: perfumes, sounds colors, thought grappling with thought”
― Arthur Rimbaud

 

Like Raven I will steal the sun to keep you warm
and to see its reflection in your eyes
as you awaken
On the night we met you had the stars
you fed them to me like grapes
as i became transfigured by your presence
We made elemental love
my fire banked in your earth
your water in my air
and birthed phoenixes in our destruction…

— G A Rosenberg

 

Blessings, G

 

Click on images to see full-sized

 
 

Embracing it AllEmbracing the All by G A Rosenberg

 

Vortex LandscapeVortex Landscape by G A Rosenberg

 

Tarot Post – Nine of Swords

 

Nine of Swords (Cruelty)

 

Nine of SwordsNine of Swords (Cruelty) by G A Rosenberg

 

Waking to despair
Swords of fear pointed towards you
Acceptance brings hope.

 

Awake with the horror
of what may happen
of what did happen
and feeling unsafe
and unwell
frightened and lost
It’s all in my head
that does not stop the visions tho
Why do I do this to myself?
All these little things that can happen
I pick them apart and find still more.
self-doubt, anxiety
circle like sharks
hungry to feed
It all can be lost so easily.
What if it is?
What if every disaster
I can see so clearly
were to happen?
What remains when all
the fears have run their course?
— G A Rosenberg

 

The suit of Swords represents thought, ideas, plans and conflicts. The Nines represent a coming to completion of the energy involved if not the completion itself. These energies come together in that dark night of fear and anxiety. The night that many of us experience when we lay awake with every doubt, fear and recrimination that we can muster. During these nights we tear apart every event in the past and milk it for shame. We look at tomorrow and see every possible misstep that we can make, every disaster that can happen and every way in which we feel unsafe. We clutch at straws looking for temporary safety, fully realizing that that is what we do. Eventually we give up even trying to do that. It seems that only way through this dark night is eventual resignation to whatever is to come.

 

Astrological Correspondence – Mars in Gemini – This energy loves to keep busy. As long as there is a lot to do, Mars in Gemini will run around getting the job done, figuring out the next step on the fly all while engaging in vigorous debate on any subject with anyone they encounter. It is when it is in rest that the difficulties come. The same mental acuity that is used to get the job done turns inward and enervates itself in downtime. The same rapier with that it uses to win discussions and debates become poniards with which it stabs itself.

 

I Ching Correspondence – 6) Sung – Conflict –

_______
_______
_______
___ ___
_______
___ ___

 

The Trigram for Heaven is over that of Water, two energies moving farther and farther away from each other leading to further rifts. This hexagram speaks of one who is always looking for conflict either with legitimate claims of injury or with an underhanded sneakiness and wit. When this is applied within, it leads to a constant undermining of the self where no matter what plan of action we have come up with, we immediately come up with all the ways in which it can fail. This can have its uses. If we know all of the possible arguments against our plan of action than we can learn how to counter them and avoid outer conflict. It is a matter of harnessing this energy in a positive way rather than using it to forever make us feel lesser than we are.

 

When the Nine of Swords turns up in a reading it often points to a lot of anxiety and sleepless nights. It can possibly be pointing to unresolved guilt from the past or a feeling that we deserve whatever abuse has come our way in the past. It can mean that we are going through what is known as the “dark night of the soul” where we are facing our shadow selves the most intensely. It may mean that we are torturing ourselves for the problems that caused a recent relationship to break apart. When this energy comes up for us, the best course of action is to let these feelings flow through because the more we feed them and try to argue against them, the longer and more intense the conflict may become.

 

The Nine of Swords reversed can mean that our inner conflicts have come to an end and we can now give ourselves a bit of a break. It may also mean however that we have been acting cruelly towards others perhaps without even realizing it. The Nine of Swords reversed may also mean that someone with cruel intentions is acting uncharacteristically nice to us to catch us off our guard.

The Essence of Caring

“The best storytellers are irredeemably mad, driven by a desire to express something that will actually make the world give a damn. As if the world cared! Such perversity lies beyond the understanding of most of us – of those not so enamoured with the creation of stories that there can be no thought of doing anything else.”

– Billy Marshall Stoneking

 

In a world where the key word so often seems to be apathy, what do you care about? Do you care about tragedies that touch your life peripherally? Does it  matter more that three people died in the city where you live or that 20 children were killed with money from your government? Do you care about how a particular tragedy went down or do you care about what in society is causing these tragedies in the first place? What is the story that is taking place? What are its themes? Are you stuck in details and missing essence? It’s so easy to get blindsided by fear or outrage especially when the media promotes these emotions. Listening to all sides arguing I hear a lot of what used to be called FUD (Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt). The fact remains people were killed and many were injured. Other people acted heroically according to the best of their natures.
We may never know what caused it yet it is strange, we live in a world where there are probably less acts of violence per year than at almost any other time. There is correspondingly more publicity and a lot more fear mongering when it happens. What in modern society seems to be encouraging people to think that the best way to make a statement is through violent means. There are specific questions in any given situation that most people will never hear the answer to.  There are more important general questions about the real causes that desperately call out for asking.
Blessings, G

 

Click on images to see full-sized

 

 

Energy ProjectionEnergy Projection by G A Rosenberg

 

CuriosityCuriosity by G A Rosenberg