Day 3 Tarot Excerise - Five of Wands

The first thing I noticed about this card was the Battle! But then after really looking at it, I saw the flower on the hill standing bright on top. A struggle to find the things you looking for or want in life. You have to fight for it and not have the attitude “wait and see”. Now lets break down the art on the card.

The First guy I want to focus on is the one on the floor in a green and gold outfit. He has been brought down to the floor but he is still fighting for what he wants. Not giving up on his personal goals.

The next guy in a brown skirt is beating down on the guy on the floor. He looks to know what to do to make the other guy land on his butt. Maybe a close person to the guy on the floor and he is standing in the way of the green dressed guy.

The third person in the card is rushing into battle with his wand up high. He has lots of energy and courage. He has a driving force and will not want to be stopped. He is going for what he wants and needs.

The fourth guy is standing back but trying to protect the guy in red. Not sure about what he is doing. He looks defeated but still wants to help.

What this card means to me is that there are battles in life and you need to fight for what you want and need. If you feel absolutely passionate about something than go for it. Don't back down when you are getting negative influence from others and do what you feel is right. Intuition is your friend. Listen to what it has to say. Take action for yourself! Remember you don't always need to have an aggressive approach to your goals. Like the man in black, he is protecting but not aggressively. I would say that if you feel hatred and anger towards the topic your asking the cards than do not act aggressively but if you feel ok with it then go full force into it.

Finding Your Elemental Directions

Tonight I was watching the wonderful Charming Pixie Flora on youtube and she had a video about finding your elemetal directions. This video was very interesting to me because I too feel that the elements can be located differently to everyone. You pick up a basic pagan reading book and most of them say: Earth is North, Air is East, Fire is South, and Water is West. Not until I watched her video did I know you could change it up. Since the beginning of my research I thought differently for elemental directions. Let me explain it to you, the way I look at it. Lets look at Air. I lived in South Dakota for 4 years while my husband served in the military. Almost everyday the wind would blow through the plains. Tornado warnings would go off during spring and summer. Big thunderstorms would roll in with huge gusting wall clouds. Sometimes the wind gust would be over 100 mph. Blowing snow storms during winter and covering the houses for sometimes days. To me when I think of the Element Air I think North. Now growing up on the Central Coast of California you would think I would say water but nope I dont even think water when I say west coast. First I remember the eucalyptus and oak tress. I remember riding my horses in those little forests of trees. I remember the rolling hills of grapevines, the fields and fields of fruit trees and traveling up highway 101 and 1 to Oregon and Washington. Ahhh I remember the first time driving through there with my windows down and the smell of pine trees. It smelt like Christmas. Its just so green, its earth to me. Have you ever realized when you are travel to the south it gets warmer? Every time this is the case. Hot weather like in Arizona, Nevada, Texas, New Mexico that's fire to me. Fire is warming those places up. Water now would be east coast for me. I traveled there one year with my husband to visit family. We stayed in a beach house and the first time I touched the water it was amazing. It was so warm and clear. Its what a beach should feel like to me. Not only was the water warm but the humidity out there is insane!!! There is water every where! So my elemental directions would be: Air is North, Earth is West, Fire is South, and Water is east.

What is everyone's thoughts on this topic? Do you believe by recognizing your elemental directions it would help your spell casting? And if you have different elemental directions already what are they and why?

Recommended Reading

Some have requested that I post a list of recommended reading on my blog for easy reference. If any of you have other books you recommend please leave them on the comments and I will add them to the main list.

Remember: "Seek out the wisdom of books, rare manuscripts, and cryptic poems, if you will, but seek it out also in simple stones and fragile herbs, and in the cry of the wild bird. Listen to the whispering of the wind and the roar of the ocean if you would discover magick, for it is here that the old secrets are preserved. Books contain words, trees energies, and wisdom books ne'er dreamed of. Ever remember that the old ways are constantly revealing themselves; therefore be as the river willow; that bends and sways with the winds of time; that which remains changeless shall outlive its spirits; but that which evolves and grows will shine for centuries." -Scott Cunningham 

For the Pagan Family:

Raising Witches by Ashleen O'Gaea
Pagan Parenting by Kristin Madden
Celebrating the Great Mother by Kate Johnson and Maura Shaw
Circle Round by Starhawk, Anne Hill, Diane Baker

General Reading:


The Magical Household by Scott Cunningham
Drawing Down the Moon by Margot Adler
Pagans and the Law, Understand Your Rights by Dana D. Eilers
Pagans and Christians by Gus DiZerega, Ph. D
The Spiral Dance by Starhawk
The Witches' Goddes by Janet Farrer
The Witches' God by Janet Farrer
Bonewits's Essential Guide to Witchcraft and Wicca by Issac Bonewits
A Pagan Testament by Brendan Myers
Lighting the Light Within by Dick Stephensen
Positive Magic by Marion Weinstein
The Study of Witchcraft, A Guidebook to Advanced Wicca by Deborah Lipp
Book of Shadows by Scott Cunningham
Out of the Broom Closet? by Gary Cantrell
Everyday Moon Magic by Dorothy Morrison
Everyday Magic by Dorothy Morrison
Grandmother of Time by Z. Budapest
Moon Magick by D.J. Conway
Grandmother Moon by Z. Budapest

Newbie Books:

Buckland's Complete Guide of Witchcraft by Raymond Buckland
Wicca A Guide for a Solitary Practitioner by Scott Cunningham
Living Wicca, a Furthur Guide for the Solitary Practitioner
If You Want to Be a Witch by Edan McCoy
Garden Witchery by Ellen Dugan
Earth Power by Scott Cunningham
Magical Household by Scott Cunningham
Earth, Air, Fire, Water by Scott Cunningham
Earth Magic by Marion Weinstein

Reference:

Crystal, Gem and Metal Magic by Scott Cunningham
The Complete Book of Incense, Oils and Brews by Scott Cunningham
The Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs by Scott Cunningham
The Sabbats by Edain McCoy
Animal Speak by Ted Andrews
The Complete Book of Shadows for the New Generation, Solitary Witch by Silver Ravenwolf
Encyclopedia of 5,000 Spells by Judika Illes
The Magic Candle by Charmain Day
Wheel of the Year: Living the Magical Life by Pauline Campanelli
The Simple Sabbat by M. Flora Peterson
The Complete Book of Essential Oils and Aromatherapy by Valerie Ann Worwood

Day 2 Tarot Excerise - Four of Pentacle

Four of Pentacles

First looking at this card I focused on the man and women in this photo. The man wearing a robe of wealth. Gold and Purple with one black shoe and one foot bare with his toes painted red. Gold meaning financial richness, success in investments, luxury, worldly power, need to over come bad habits and addictions. Purple indicating he can influence people in high places and has self assurance. The one shoe means to me that he is on a new beginning, he needs to take action, he needs courage, he can be a leader. The black on the shoe means he is shapeshifting into something new, riding himself of negativity, repelling the bad or old. Being barefoot gives you greater access to the earth's energy and can help you feel more grounded and with toes painted red the earth can grant him energy, strength, courage, action, survival and a driving force. He is clenching golden pentacles to his chest. He is hoarding his wealth and doesn't want any touching whats his. His face looks to me that he is unsure to move forward and needs to trust to move forward. Hand shadows on the bottom of his robe look to me as if people were begging him for help. The woman in the card looks to be guiding him to something new. She is naked hiding nothing. Wearing a black clock showing protection. She wears a clock in her teeth saying time is too short take ahold of it while you can. She is two faced, one half white and one half blue. The white representing purity, peace and spirituality. The blue representing good fortune, opening blocked communications, wisdom, calmness, and reassurance. The back ground of the card is split in half again. A palace in gold and a black room that opens into flames. Deep down he knows he has sold out for too safe an approach to life.

Day 1 Tarot Excerise - Three of Pentacle

Three of Pentacle

    The Symbol of the Triple Goddess. Maiden, Mother and Crone working with/on each other as a team. The maiden is white with angel wings and sculpting the mother into what she is going to be. The maiden means light, endless potential, ever-changing, becoming centered, virginity. Other words, she is innocent and has the world at her finger tips, anything and everything is a possibility. The Mother is light blue/grey, very curvy, being carved by the maiden and painting the crones face. The mother means protection, understanding, harmony in the home, peace, fidelity, wisdom, healing, and journeys. She is the mother, what the maiden has chosen to be, she is more wise, she is enduring journey’s, she heals her young, she is becoming wise through living life, she protects her family. The Crone, getting her face painted red from the mother, she wears black and her feet are grounded, she is painting new faces on the maiden. She is the Crone, she is wise from years of mental conditioning, she is passionate, driving force, she is what the maiden and mother once were. She leaves her imprint on the young. She is a teacher. The number Three on the top of the card means: Trinity, Union of Divine plus Human, Manifestation, Positive, Negative and Neutral, Expression, Subconscious Mind/Imagination, Creative, Optimistic, Enthusiasm, Expressive, Charming, Humour, Fun, Attractive, Friendly. The Upturned Moon means Artemis and is associated with the Maiden Aspect of the moon. Other powerful colors in the card are Purple/violet drapes that mean spiritual Growth, enlightenment, physical and mental healing, release of stress, wisdom, drive away evil, permanent life changes. All three artisans have their unique personalities but when they work and come together they make something better.

Tarot Card Deck Understanding

So I was told to really understand how to read Tarot and your own deck is to draw a card out every morning and really look at it. Write down everything that comes to you. The colors, the features, the writings and what not. Each deck can mean different things to different people. I know some Tarot readers to have up to 30 decks and they all have different meanings on readings. Now some believe that no one should touch another tarot readers deck cause negative energy can be passed over with the cards and you have to cleanse them every time. I have not yet determined this to be true cause I have no experience in that matter. What is everyone's opinions on this matter? I would love to hear how others have learned about their decks.

Anywho, I have decided to try this daily tarot card study. Everyday I will post my findings and what I believe the card says to me. The tarot deck I have chosen is Deviant Moon Tarot by Patrick Valenza. His art really spoke to me and its a joy to see his work. 

http://www.deviantmoon.com/wordpress/

Merry Meet!!!!

Merry Meet! My name is Uileann. I first started my interest in the Wiccan religion when I was fifteen years old. With my family being born again Christian's, it was highly frowned upon. I was told numerous times that I was going to the "dark" side. I tried to explain it to them in a positive way but I was defeated. After that I became a born again christian but never fully felt it was for me. Too many things didn't add up. After giving that a go I told everyone I was Agnostic. All this while I continued to research and believe the Wiccan way. I was lucky one day when my mom asked me to get her some books on Wicca for Christmas. It was a break through really. My oldest sister made the confession of believing in the Pagan way also, feeling that something was missing from her life and she truly believed this was it. I felt so happy to hear that some of my family had the same beliefs as me. It just took them a bit longer to understand them and be honest with themselves. Its a beautiful thing!

I’m starting this blog for my family and friends. Also to hear from other witches about their experiences and practices. I will be posting discussions, links, videos, research, gatherings and things from my Book of Shadows. I hope every one that comes across this site feels welcome to post their thoughts and share their knowledge also!!!!

Blessed Be!

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