Tarot Diva, page 22
you look at the card what your first step is, then write
it down and take it!
•
Card two is a suggestion of what to do next.
•
Card three suggests you’ve got that ball rolling and
what you should do to keep up the momentum.
Repeat this spread as often as you need to, and keep climbing
those stairs!
Ten o f Cups
SELF-LOVE SPELL
We see the nuclear family rejoicing under a rainbow in the
Ten of Cups. The card of contentment and culmination, the Ten
of Cups is the “happily ever after ” card. Our fairy tales lead us
astray when we discover there is much more to be lived and
learned after our supposed happy ending.
We long to fulfill our dreams. Our happy ending may be professional (“I’ll be happy when I get that promotion”), personal (“I just want to get married already”), cries for fame (“If I’m
famous, then I’ll really be loved”), or cries for fortune (“I’d be
happy if only I were rich”). It is a stinging slap on the cheek
when we pursue a goal, achieve it, and then don’t feel any different. Satisfaction in our lives does not depend on outward circumstances or supposed happy endings. Happy endings he inside yourself and do not hinge on outward circumstance.
The key to living out the Ten of Cups is connected with your
own feeling of self-love and worth. We all come equipped with
our own happiness barometer—the place where we hover in
terms of emotional satisfaction. Outward circumstances, say
winning the lottery, do not make for long-term happiness if the
person winning is not already a generally happy person. Conversely, a person with a high happiness barometer, even after suffering the loss of a limb via freak accident, will generally retain the same level of satisfaction after their misfortune. A year or two after a life-changing event, people tend to resume their
same happiness level. Where does your happiness barometer
hover?
Let’s take the Ten of Cups card. Return to the first page of
your story. Start with yourself.
Perform this spell, if possible, during the daytime and in natural light. Remember, the Ten of Cups is a happy daytime card.
Plus, a daytime bath is the ultimate in luxury ... like a trip to a
spa.
Purchase children’s body paint for the bath, found in any
drugstore.
I don't understand why people talk of art as a luxury when
it's a mind-altering possibility.
Jeanette Winterson
Draw a bath and fill with cleansing salts and yummy flavors.
Slice up a lemon and toss into your bath water. Strip naked and
look at yourself in the mirror. Examine every inch of your body.
Talk to your body. Tell every inch that you love it.
Take your body paint and write I love me, I love my elbow, I love
my boobs, I love my thighs over said body parts. Get creative and
write whatever feels good to you. Draw arrows to what you really love. Point the way. You may even want to photograph yourself in the mirror to remember this loving feeling.
Now, step into your bath, all written up like a novel. Use an
exfoliating scrub on yourself. Scrub under your arms, between
your legs, between your toes; work over every7 inch of your body.
Imagine as the rough skin flakes off that you are born again.
The words are scrubbed off and you are set free. Feel free to
shave and perform any body primping that makes you feel gorgeous and light.
Let the water run out of the tub while you remain in the bath.
As you feel the water ebbing, feel your body being born again.
Let your skin air-dry. Like a queen or a princess, primp and
enjoy your happy ending.
[contents]
Suit of Swords
Ace o f Swords
Aces in tarot always represent a fresh start, a new beginning, a
gift. An ace is the beginning, the first card of the suit. An ace is
where everything is established. Think of a novelist. Every book
begins with one thing: an idea. The writer takes this clever concept and diligently writes about it. In tarot, the novelist’s idea can be seen as an ace, while the finished manuscript is a ten.
Many aces in tarot depict a hand emerging from a cloud, and
this hand offers a gift. The Ace of Swords offers clarity, thinking, communication, ideas, and your ability to experience all of it. The Ace of Swords can signify a stellar idea (you’ve found
inspiration for a project), a new way of understanding a situation (you need a vacation), a solution to a problem (you can afford a cleaning person), and cutting through to the heart of the matter (you need to let go of negative people in order to move
forward).
The sword pictured on the card (your mind) pierces through a
crown (your genius idea). Think of a moment when a good idea
hit you and you knew you were onto something.
GRATITUDE EXERCISE
The easiest way to usher in Ace of Swords energy is through
this gratitude exercise.
Do This Exercise When You Are:
•
In need of inspiration
•
Wanting to communicate better with others
•
Trapped in negative thought patterns
•
Seeking clarity of thought
•
Writing
Your own words are the bricks and mortar of the dreams
you want to realize. Behind every word flows energy.
Sonia Choquette
Experiencing gratitude takes the attention off yourself and
places it on the world and gifts around you. You’ll feel lighter,
better, happier, and ready to experience the smart ideas, calm
mind, and excellent communication of which you are capable.
To invite Ace of Swords energy, place the card where you can
see it. Fill in the blanks below, writing your answers on a
separate piece of paper or in a journal.
I'm a great thinker because I
. and I am grateful be-
cause
I make excellent decisions because I
. and I am
grateful because
I feel clever when I
, and I am grateful because
My mind feels calm when I
, and I am grateful be-
cause
I get it right when I
, and I am grateful because
Fresh ideas come to me when I
. and I am grateful
because
I sleep well when I
, and I am grateful because
I communicate well when I
, and I am grateful be-
cause
Opening my mind to new ideas
. and I am grateful
because
Two o f Swords
FORGIVENESS M ILK M OON BATH
The Two of Swords speaks of venturing deep into one’s inner
self for meditation and contemplation, closing one's eyes to the
outside world via the blindfold and protecting oneself via two
swords. The water in the background evokes the High Priestess.
When the Two of Swords appears in a reading, it means there is
a deeper issue at play. One must figure out what it is.
A diva wants the freedom to be herself. The entire suit of
swords illustrates the way our mind, our thoughts, can hold us
captive. Do you harbor anger over past issues? Are you
smoldering over events that occurred long ago? Past issues
sometimes clench us in their grasp and we don’t even realize it.
The seriousness within the Two of Swords requests we venture
deeper to find out if we are holding tight to an issue. We may
be reacting to events without realizing it.
The milk moon bath is not a complete recipe for forgiveness;
rather, it’s a first step. This exercise may yield surprising results. You may discover suppressed issues that shockingly rise to the surface. Know that this is the first step to living a life free
of the bonds of the past. You can forgive a person without inviting him or her back into your life. You may find forgiveness for people who are dead and long gone. Finding peace with others
and with yourself, you set yourself free.
Draw this moon bath on an evening when you will not be disturbed. Prepare to do serious thinking. The moon pictured on the Two of Swords reminds us of our connection to our deepest
self, the self connected to the High Priestess.
Embody a water nymph and draw on the mysterious female
power of the moon to aid you. Have you ever bathed, danced, or
made love in moonlight? It is a magical experience. You needn’t
have a pool in the back yard or tub next to a window, but if you
do, all the better. The milk in this bath mix creates ivory water
and fills you with the luminosity and brilliance of the moon.
The mix will offer enough for four bath soaks.
Prepare this mix;
2 cups dry milk
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons each dried lavender and thyme
Mix ingredients in blender and place a half cup in your
bath. Unclothe yourself and enter the white waters of your
tub.
•
As you soak, think about your parents. Are you still
holding anger about what they did or didn’t do for you
as a child?
•
Consider the relationship you hold with your lover.
Are you holding grudges over past arguments and issues?
•
Consider your children. Are you angry or disappointed
with them in any way?
•
Consider your friends. Are you upset by the way they
tr eat you?
•
Consider your relatives. Are you still angry over the
way they act toward you?
•
Consider the world in general. Are you angry over
something a politician has done or angry at the universe for your current situation?
•
Consider yourself Are you angry at choices made and
actions taken?
When you have gone through your mental list of relationships
and grudges, see if you have it within yourself to forgive these
things.
Nobody can make you feel inferior without your permission.
Eleanor Roosevelt
If so. unplug the bath. Let the waters flow down the drain and
feel anger slipping away, down the pipes. As the water flows
away from your body and your skin feels the air, feel yourself
being reborn.
Exit the bathroom. You might choose to wear a white nightgown like the figure pictured on the Two of Swords. Open your tarot journal.
Write down the thoughts that occurred to you in the tub.
Were you surprised by your findings? If you detected old anger
floating around, how do you think you might alleviate it? How
do you think you might begin forgiving them? See what comes
up. Choose a path of forgiveness. You may choose a mantra, a
daily meditation, and dedicate your physical exercise practice to
it. However you choose to bring forgiveness to your life, know
that forgiving has little to do with the other person and everything to do with yourself.
Three o f Swords
JULIA CA M ER O N ’S M O RN IN G PAGES EXERCISE
The Three of Swords typically describes heartache, distress,
and pain. A quick glance at three swords penetrating a heart is
simple enough to interpret. At times, the Three of Swords
represents a love triangle, causing emotional distress. Look beyond textbook meanings o f the cards and recall how swords relate to issues of the mind —your mind. How often do we hold ourselves captive with our mental thoughts and anguish?
Artist, author, and teacher Julia Cameron offers an amazing
series of exercises in her book The Artist’s Way to set you free of
mental constraints and blocks. The cornerstone of her book, the
most important of her exercises, are morning pages. Morning
pages work like magic to alleviate any swords— ideas or issues— stuck in your heart or head.
Julia, a darling teacher and fierce diva whom I've had the
pleasure to study with, recommends you wake up first thing in
the morning and record three pages of freehand, free-thought
writing. These pages need not make sense, need not be grammatically correct, and need not be anything other than your stream of conscious. An example would be, “Im so sleepy just
want to go back to bed dont feel like facing the world and I really like the song playing right now why does my back hurt I need a massage ...”
Everything begins with language. Language begins with listening.
Jeanette Winterson
By performing this exercise on a daily basis, you literally remove any swords that are piercing your heart and mind. You have a chance to vent your anguish, thoughts, and fears before
you've even had your coffee. On the opposite end of the spectrum, you may be recording euphoric, exciting, and thoughtful entries. Regardless of the context, you enter your day lighter
and freer by having already expressed yourself. I can’t think of a
better way to combat the pain pictured on the Three of Swords.
What You Need:
A notebook specifically for morning pages
Pen
20 minutes of alone time as soon as you wake up
Each morning, as you rise, write three pages in freeform
thought. You may have to set your alarm twenty minutes
earlier, but it is well worth it. You may do this activity to
clear your mind before selecting your card of the day. Send
those swords flying away and embody the peaceful state of
mind found in the Four of Swords card.
Write your morning pages every7 day, not only when feeling Three o f Swords energy7. The marvelous quality7 of this exercise is that it helps you work through whatever emotional state y7ou wake up with, helping to exercise it and free your mind.
Four o f Swords
IN N ER PEACE MEDITATION
The suit of swords mostly depicts scenes of strife and confusion. The Four of Swords offers peace, respite, and the stability implied by the number four. The stability available in this card
is the stability of the mind— a pause in thoughts, and rest. You
see the figure resting inside a church, a building that implies
safety and protection. Light shines through the illuminated
stained glass window, denoting qualities that are bright on the
outside when you've found peace on the inside.
The hands of the figure resting are in the sign of Christian
prayer or the Hindu gesture of namaste, an expression of reverence in cultures spanning the globe. When the Four of Swords
appears in a reading, it implies you can rest easy. We can use
this card to encourage peace and calmness by engaging upon a
simple meditation. You will embody the figure depicted in The
Four of Swords. Lie down in a comfortable spot. Place your
hands beside you, although you may assume the prayer position as the figure on the card does. You may also place a pillow beneath your feet to increase comfort and blood flow to the
heart.
Close your eyes. Feel your way through your body, beginning
with the top of your head, and find relaxation. Tense or move
parts of your body and release to usher in relaxation and release. Working down the inches of your spine, find complete release.
When you are thoroughly relaxed, imagine that you are surrounded by the expanse of a great cathedral. You hear the quiet echoes of a grand expanse of space. You smell candles burning
and the trace of warm incense lingering in the air. You feel the
peace reverberating in a space that has been used for prayer and
meditation for eons. You are completely protected from the outside world.
You venture deeply into the recesses of your mind. Repeat to
yourself;
My decisions are good, and I am protected.
I find peace. I find love.
You may repeat this mantra as often as you like. You may let
your mind wander to explore other things that pop up. If you
become distracted, know this is normal and human and return
to your mantra. If you should fall asleep, surrender to it and
enjoy the gift of restorative slumber.
Return to the world gently and in your own time. When you
are ready to rise, sit up with your hands in prayer. Bow gently,
hands to your heart, and offer thanks to the Four of Swords.
Now, don’t you feel better?
Five o f Swords
MEDITATION ON HOW YOU TREAT OTHERS
The Five of Swords suggests humiliation and defeat— a fight
that has ended badly. Fives are notoriously challenging cards in
the tarot, and the Five of Swords is no different. When the Five
of Swords appears in a reading, it is helpful to determine which
figure you identify with on the card. Are you the victor grasping
your swords? Are you the mediator, looking to console the humbled figure in the background? Are you hanging your head in defeat and dejection? Pick, right now, which figure you identify
