Death

The Black Death, or Bubonic Plague, swept through Europe like a wildfire. It originated in the east, and was carried to Europe on the trade routes where infected sailors arriving on ships brought the plague to European ports. From there is spread into Europe killing about a third of the population. Entire villages were completely annihilated by the plague.

 As gloomy a tale as this is, there was also a positive aspect to the plague. After the plague disappeared Europe entered an era of economic boom. Due to the shortage of labour – many of whom had been killed by the plague – peasants could charge for their labour, and were compensated, whereas before they worked for next-to-nothing. With the new boom, new ideas started blossoming and this introduced new perspectives into their world.

The plague was indiscriminate. It did not target specific groups, and nobody was immune to the long, black fingers of death. Almost everybody lost someone to the plague. Endings came to all, nobility and peasants alike, regardless of how prepared they were. However, in the end Europe came out stronger than it was before.

The plague also caused many peasants to question their religion for the first time, they became untrusting of their religion when ‘God’ had failed to protect them or come to their aid as the Black Plague swept through their villages, killing off a third of the population. The church suddenly no longer enjoyed subservience and obedience from the peasantry, and thus had to have a heavier hand in the suppression of its people. As a result of the questioning of their faith, movements and sects started to form and the church saw large flocks of members moving away from the church to towards these different sects as people were looking for more than the church could offer.

It does not matter how well prepared we are, sooner or later tragedy strikes us all. It is how we deal with it when it happens that is important, so that we can emerge stronger on the other side. When tragedy strikes we react, which is very normal. It is however wise to keep some measure of check on our reactions, we need to know when to stop grieving so that we can open the next door presented to us and step through it to into a new phase of our lives. Because with endings come new beginnings too, and this is in essence what the Death card addresses. Endings of all sorts, be it the ending of our current employment, our relationship or the physical death of a loved one. We should not stop living because we have lost someone or something, we should take the time we need to grieve this loss, yes, but then we should focus on lifting ourselves again to step over the next threshold to embrace the new things that life has in store for us.

As gloomy as the imagery on the Death card appears to be with bodies lying everywhere, a priest begging in vain for mercy while Death rides through on his steed; on the horizon the sun is rising. A bright golden orb of warmth and hope starts to dominate the sky again. Signalling new beginnings in the aftermath of the endings that Death brings.

Growth almost always comes from death and endings. Some things are forever changed, cures are found, prayers refined and people forge on towards the next chapter in their lives.

In closing I’d like to share a wise quote by Joan Borysenko, who said:

“The question is not whether we will die, but how we will live.”  

The Empress

The Empress is the archetypal mother. She who nurtures, feeds, embraces and loves us. She who honours the interconnectedness of All.

Metis was a goddess of wisdom, a divinity worshipped long before Zeus and the Olympians. She was Zeus’ first consort and it was predicted that she would have two children, a daughter with courage and clarity equal to any man, and a son, ‘a boy of all-conquering heart, who would become king of gods and men.’ When Metis became pregnant, Zeus feared that the child she was carrying was the predicted son who would unseat him. He therefore tricked her into becoming small and then swallowed her.

As it turned out the child she was carrying was not the son, but the daughter, Athena, who emerged out of Zeus’s head, as a full-grown woman. Athena had no memory of her mother, and considered Zeus her sole parent.

Metis, as divine feminine wisdom, was indeed swallowed by the patriarchy, and disappeared from the Western world. The myth reflects what happened historically as successive waves of Indo-European invaders, with their warrior gods and father-based theologies, subjugated the people of old Europe, who for 25,000 years had followed mother-based religions and developed peaceful, culturally advanced civilizations that were unstratified, agricultural and egalitarian. Because their cities were unfortified and exposed and because they lacked military skills, they were conquered by the horse-riding, sky god-worshiping invaders who imposed their patriarchal culture and religion on the defeated people.

The Goddess became the subservient consort of the invader gods, and her attributes and powers were absorbed or came under the domination of a male deity. Even the power of giving birth or creating life, which had been the natural realm of women and the Goddess, became co-opted, and the sky gods now created life through their words and will, or gave birth through the head.

Women forgot her, thus resembling Athena, who was born as a fully grown woman out of Zeus’s head, with no recollection of her mother Metis. Like Athena, most women are daughters of the patriarchy, who have recognized the divinity only of God the Father. Women have not (until recently) remembered a time ‘when God was a woman.’ Lost to memory was the existence of God the Mother, the Goddess, the feminine face of God. In the last few decades, ‘Metis’ is re-emerging and being remembered In a contemporary women’s journal, Women of Power, this renaissance is described:

The ancient spiritual voice of woman now speaks its long-hidden wisdom and becomes an active force for the conscious evolution of the interconnectedness of all life; the awareness that everything has consciousness and is sacred; the re-membering of our selves as sacred beings, and the loving of our psyches, bodies and emotions; the empowerment of women and all oppressed peoples; the creation of world peace, social justice, and environmental harmony; the activation of spiritual and psychic powers; the honouring of women’s divinity; and reverence for the earth, and the celebration of her seasons and cycles, and those of our lives.

Thus The Empress card today serves to remind us to recollect and to honour our connection to spirit, to the earth and to one another. As the great mother nurtures all, we too – men and women alike – should reaffirm our commitment to these feminine qualities, our intuition, our natural urge to birth and nurture life in our projects, work and relationships so that this archetypal goddess of wisdom may once again find a home within each of us.

 From: Gods in Everyman, by Jean Shinoda Bolen

The Tower

The Tower card often evokes fear, simply because it warns of a sudden, often destructive, change.

In biblical times mankind built the tower of Babel in an attempt to reach God. God did not approve and devised a plan to stop them. Overnight He changed the language that they communicated in, making it impossible for them to understand one another, all attempts at communication were wrought with misunderstanding and frustrations. They were therefore unable to complete the task. Thus the Tower of Babel became symbolic of man’s fall from grace during that biblical period.

A modern-day example would be the destruction of the Twin Towers in New York on September the 11^th 2001. This too was in-a-sense a fall from grace in that the aftermath of 911 saw controversial laws being pushed through and passed, for good or for bad. Laws that would otherwise have taken years to go through the senate. The passing of some of these laws has caused moral points to be raised.

In a personal sense The Tower could mean a sudden change of events for which we are not at all prepared. With the tower of Babel example miscommunication and frustration followed when friends and family suddenly became strangers in their failure to communicate with one another. When The Tower visits us it is therefore necessary to step back and to accept that what has happened has happened. It is too late to over-analyse the situation. We are urged to look at the bigger picture instead of being swept up by the confusion, panic, fears, and frustrations; and to ask ourselves whether we want to be part of the problem or the solution.

There are ways that we can make even these frightening situations work for us. If necessary, we can find other ways in which to communicate or we can work at developing the resolve and attitude to adapt to the new situation. We are cautioned against becoming aroused by the chaos that often follows the falling of our tower, guarding against allowing the sudden change to overwhelm us. Now is the time to calmly re-evaluate our position and to find a different approach or solution to the new circumstances or events.

It is often true that when we are forced onto our knees we somehow find ways to shine brightest. It takes courage and bravery but as the saying goes: “If you aren’t scared your actions can't be brave.”

A lot of good and positivity can come from the falling of the tower. The civil unrest present in many countries in current times is indicative of a power shift in the making. Ordinary civilians no longer want to stand by feeling powerless as their countries and large corporations rob them and lie to them. In such cases it is as if these civilians are rocking the tower, willing it to fall, so that irrevocable change may follow. It is probably no coincidence that The Tower card depicts the toppling of a crown as the tower starts to fall, possibly symbolizing the demise of those who abuse their power.

On a personal level, facing life’s challenges takes courage but also teaches us a great deal about ourselves. For it is not possible to find our life’s purpose without first wrestling with our life lessons – the very challenges that steer us towards purpose fulfilment once we embrace these lessons and make allies of our nemesis.

The Fool

The major arcane in tarot is a journey of self, starting with The Fool.  Therefore, we relate The Fool to beginnings. In today’s segment he symbolises the beginning of the year and the journey that we’ll take over the next 365 days. In this epic journey The Fool meets various energies and personalities to aid him on his quest to journey’s end.

The Fool is a youthful figure, energetic and adventurous. Today we seek the inspiration of youth, filled with new ideas and brimming with readiness for the year ahead.

On his journey The Fool carries with him only a modest backpack, reminding us that we too should only take with us into the new year what is necessary, leaving our old baggage behind. This is an opportunity for each of us to begin again, to leave behind patterns of behaviour and toxic energies that no longer serves us well, and to let go of unwanted hurts and pain.

The Fool holds a white flower in his hand, symbolic of innocence and openness. Sinicism and bitterness are best left behind as we enter this new journey with a spirit of openness, ready to greet each new day and situation while being mindful of the gifts that they bear.

Etched on the backpack that The Fool carries over his shoulder we notice the head of an eagle. An eagle can see his prey from kilometres above the ground, he has clarity of vision. Just like the eagle we too can now look ahead to see our future, as we design it, to see where the road may take us and where we are going.

By now most of us have made our New Year resolutions. Let us journey towards them without unnecessary baggage and what-if’s. Instead we’ll wear our Fool cloak as we greet 2012 with an adventurous spirit.

It is said that nothing ventured results nothing gained, and if we want to see a change we first need to make a change. What is it that you want to change in your life today? Perhaps you, like me, would like to shed a few kilograms, or quit smoking. Or focus on your studies, perhaps write that book that you have been thinking about writing for years. Or, perhaps it is time to rekindle old friendships and make new ones. Perhaps it is time to let go of old hurts and find it in your heart to forgive transgressions against you.

Whatever you have set your resolutions and goals to be this year, consider The Fool’s approach as he begins his journey. We can all learn from the freshness that The Fool radiates as he takes his first steps on this epic journey.

Let’s inject some laughter and silliness into our days ahead, let’s not take ourselves too seriously. We can rediscover the spring in our step and the song in our heart. We can smile, both outwardly and inwardly. Life is what we make of it and life is good.

I’d like to wish you all a very Happy New year, and end today’s segment with a fabulous verse written by the incomparable Lon Milo DuQuette.

The Fool


A pure buffoon skips towards his doom,


An abyss of profound uncertainties.


It takes a Fool to seed that womb


With all possible possibilities.



Innocence is the catalyst


The Fool's decree is clear.


By purity of heart you’ll be transformed


To greet the coming year.

Wheel of Fortune

At this time of year we commonly examine the year that has past to assess whether we have achieved our goals or lived-up to our previous expectations. This is also the time of year where many of us make new year resolutions in an attempt to improve ourselves in the coming year.

The Wheel of Fortune card shows the constellations of Aquarius, Scorpio, Taurus and Leo – the four fixed signs of the Zodiac. They tell us that the heavens are open to us, fortune is here.

We could use this time to change our fortunes, to make things work for us in the coming year. Instead of just empty words when we make our new year resolutions, we now have the opportunity to put some thought into what it is that we would like to attract into our lives or change in our lives so that the year ahead meets us pregnant with possibilities for improvement.

In the centre of the card is a large wheel. Upon the wheel is inscribed the Tetragrammaton, the four Hebrew letters that form the sacred – unpronounceable - name of God.

This card therefore further prompts us to use the inspiration of a higher power to generate something useful in the year ahead. As we contemplate our new year resolutions we could tap into the power of the Source for inspiration and divine guidance.

The alchemical symbols that are shown on The Wheel of Fortune card are water, sulphur, salt and mercury. Alchemists combine elements together to achieve certain results. These with the Zodiacal energies present on the card remind us that the energy is here, and that we should use it mindfully as we enter the new year.

Just as the alchemist combines elements to achieve certain results we also have the Sphinx represented on the card which in-itself is a coming-together of different forms to create a whole new one, like the lion body and human head combined to create something new.  We should take this opportunity as we stand on the cusp of the new year to use the available energies so that we too can create something new.

This card tells us today that everything we need is already in place, all we need to do now is to make it happen. Let us not procrastinate any longer, the snake depicted on the left-hand side of the wheel represents our darker nature sliding downward, let us strive to become the ascending figure on the right of the wheel instead as it moves upward to greet its fortune.

I’d like to end today’s segment with a poem by William Arthur Ward:

“Another fresh new year is here

Another year to live!

To banish worry, doubt and fear,

To love and laugh and give.

This bright new year is given me

To live each day with Zest.

To daily grow and try to be

My highest and my best.

I have the opportunity

Once more to right some wrongs.

To pray for peace, to plant a tree,

And sing more joyful songs.”

The Chariot

Standing high on his chariot being pulled by two sphinxes, this man radiates power, success and accomplishment. He is “on top of his game” as it were. In preparation of this instalment of Tarotelic we decided that he reminds us a lot of Ramesses II of Egypt, and here is why.

Ramesses fought the Hittites in the battle of Kadesh. Both the Hittites and Egyptians extensively used chariots in their battles. Chariots at the time were the best weapons, and only the best of the best became charioteers, much like today’s special forces. Both sides claimed victory but it was in fact a stalemate, resulting in a very clear definition of their borders and balance being restored once again. When this stalemate was reached in their battles an agreement was reached about where the borders of Egypt would be. This resulted in a situation where it was no longer necessary to fight or challenge one another any more. The black and white sphinxes depicted in the card symbolize the balance and equal victory that was achieved by both in the signing of the world’s fist official peace treaty.

Ramesses expanded Egypt to the strongest it had ever been and was also renowned for being a great builder. Many monuments were built and erected under his reign. In the Chariot card we notice many tall buildings in the background, behind a high wall that could represent a defined border.

Imagine if the two opposing sides did not concede that an impasse had been reached but pushed ahead instead in an attempt to defeat one another. This would most likely have led to defeat and ruin for both. In this lies today’s lesson that The Chariot card brings us.

To be victorious in our pursuits in life we need to acknowledge our limitations and then we need all our “horses” to be pulling us into the same direction. If we are instead pulled into different directions in pursuit of success we will soon find that we are getting nowhere very fast. This would lead to self-defeat and non-accomplishment. In order to ensure that we are well on our way towards claiming victory we need to know what direction we are going to be pursuing, and we need to make the necessary compromises or concessions to enable us to travel forward in our chosen direction. Pride and bullheadedness instead may very well trip us up when what is required is for us to know our limitations and to respect our boundaries so that we can conquer new territory within these in our personal pursuits. Because there are certain things in life that do limit us that we do need to accept rather than oppose at our own peril. Once we move beyond pride to see the bigger picture we can recognize that victory can be claimed within the limits that we have set or accepted for ourselves. It is then within these safe boundaries that we can build our proverbial empires and monuments, to become as successful as what we are willing and able to.

When we know that all our resources, abilities and instincts are working together to steer us in a common direction towards achieving our goals, we can surely be fearless as we stand aloft in our own self-driven chariots on a path towards glorious success.

I’d like to share with you an old occult riddle called the Riddle of the Sphinx:

What creature goes on four legs in the morning, two at midday and three in the evening? The more legs it has the weaker it is.

The answer of course is the human! Man who crawls as a newborn on all fours, walks upright on two legs as an adult and requires a cane in old age when his legs are weak.

There is a season for all things in the average lifespan of mankind. To know our strengths and to know our limitations will greatly assist us as we move from stage to stage in the unfolding of this glorious journey on earth.

The Emperor

The Emperor is a father figure. A stern disciplinarian. One who shows and gives us direction. He is loving but firm. The Emperor is not to be messed with or disrespected. Mars and Pluto are his ruling planets.  And as we all know, Mars is a symbol of war, it is anything but passive.

The Emperor – in the Zodiac – is Aries, the Ram. In the illustration of this tarot card we see the Ram repeatedly carved in on the throne of the Emperor. The Ram butts his way in, he does not require permission to lead the way, and is one amongst only a few animals who is not daunted by the sheer intimidation of mountains on his path.  The ram light-footedly leads the way up the very same mountains that many others would avoid altogether.

With Aries being the first on the Zodiacal procession, so too is the Emperor who looks to his right (namely the future) and leads the way.  As any good father he provides guidance and direction. Teaching us that order and discipline have a valid place in our world.

The Emperor is the 4^th card of the major arcane in the tarot deck. In numerology the number four is a fixed number, solid, inflexible, and square. It is associated with the element Earth. Thus, the Emperor is grounded, practical and pragmatic. When this card appears for us, there is nothing airy-fairy about the energy emitted from it. The Emperor demands in a no-nonsense way that we demonstrate order and structure, and that we remain grounded in our efforts to reach new heights in discipline.

There is much we can benefit from a structured and orderly discipline, especially as Pagans who often reject authority. However, in this context the authority that the Emperor is demanding we adhere to is the authority that we have over ourselves. The authority to push ourselves harder in pursuit of higher levels of attainment in our meditative and magical practices. None of these miraculously appear without adhering to a strict discipline of practice and routine. The no-exception rule of a daily regime of yoga or meditation or some other discipline that will strengthen us and enable us to travel as confidently and light-footedly as Ram does across the rocky mountains to reach the summit of self awareness.

Once we are trained and disciplined we become the Emperor who leads the way. The Emperor who displays discipline and structure, and who gives direction in an otherwise scattered world.

Today we ask ourselves what areas of our lives we need to take control of and exert discipline over. What areas of our lives do we need to firmly lead out of chaos and into order? It may be something as simple as straightening out our living environment, creating order and structure in our living space so that the energies may again flow freely instead of stagnating and causing blockages. Or we might be prompted to take a long hard and honest look at ourselves and come face-to-face with the reality of our ungroundedness. In doing so we may achieve heights that previously seemed unattainable to us.

Perhaps we should consider the message that this card brings to us today as a sign that we can address those issues in our lives that we have been putting off for so long. Let us not become overwhelmed, instead we should try to focus on only one thing that can be improved in our lives today if we were to commit to a routine or discipline for a set period of time. Do we want to lose weight and get into shape perhaps? Now is the time to take the Emperor approach to that goal. Or, perhaps we want to gain control of our finances again, eliminate our debt and get into a position where we can begin to save money every month.

Whatever areas we need to work on, I have no doubt that we will all benefit from the rewards that we will create for ourselves if we follow the advice of The Emperor, get off our proverbial butts, and take the required action to instil the necessary order, routine and discipline that is needed to achieve those goals.

The Hermit

A solitary, robed figure stands alone. Staff in one hand, a lantern in the other. The landscape around him is barren and wrought with difficult icy peaks. His hooded head is downcast, seemingly searching for a sign in the dim light of the lantern, to lead the way.

He is on a solitary journey, one that can only be travelled alone. Called by some the ‘Dark night of the Soul.’

In his lantern shines the six-pointed star, the essence of which seems unattainable and unreachable. The six-pointed star is known in some circles and the Seal of Solomon. Made up of 2 triangles, one pointing up the other pointing down, symbolizing the axiom, as above so below.

Just as one needs to engage in an exercise regime to keep the physical body fit and healthy, so too must one exercise the inner spiritual body to keep it conditioned so that we may benefit  from its wisdom and guidance. A Guidance – like the light from the lantern in the Hermit’s right hand -  that illuminates the path when all around us is dark.

The Dark night of the Soul is an ordeal often experienced by the seeker before gaining a higher consciousness and awareness. It is often a painful experience that requires courage and self-reflection and honesty to endure the ordeal. Many see this as an important initiation into the higher mysteries. As it is a necessary albeit painful step of inner reflection before we can step out into the light, in other words attain illumination.

This reminds me of the story of the Egyptian god Osiris, who goes into the underworld every night through various ordeals to triumphantly resurrect again the next morning. It was Osiris who was cut into many pieces by his jealous brother Set that Isis managed to reassemble all but one body part, the phallus. She used magic to impregnate herself thereafter and thereby gave birth to Osiris’ son, Horus. The cycle being complete.

This is the ordeal of The Dark Night of the Soul, experiencing a pulling-apart of ones soul, to be reassembled again once each part has been rediscovered. To be reborn with a fresh a new outlook, as symbolized by the newborn Horus. As spiritual beings on a quest for self awareness, this is a necessary ordeal to experience the reconstruction of the new you. Someone that has a fresh perspective on creation and destruction, for one cannot exist without the other.

Are we in a position to take the Hermit’s journey? This is not an easy path as it confronts many insecurities that lurk deep within. We  might ask why we would want to explore this path to begin with, why not steer clear from the ordeals that it promises. But we already know the answer to this as the Goddess in the Charge reminds us:

And you who seek to know Me, know that the seeking and yearning will avail you not, unless you know the Mystery: for if that which you seek, you find not within yourself, you will never find it without..

The High Priestess

The High Priestess card speaks of the inner mysteries. It speaks of secrets and the unknown. Hidden knowledge.

In the card, the HPS is surrounded by pomegranates. This is a fruit that, even today, still holds many – as yet unknown – healing properties. Properties that are only now starting to be discovered. It is still an inner mystery, hidden knowledge as-it-were.

In the story of the garden of Eden in the bible, mention is made of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. It is unknown where the notion came from that the fruit of this tree was an apple, as there is compelling evidence to suggest that this was in fact more than likely a pomegranate. In which case it makes perfect sense that Eve would experience a realization of duality for the first time once she partook of this fruit of the High Priestess. In tarot it is the Magician and High Priestess who together first introduce duality into the journey that the Fool undertakes. She is the passive, feminine and the shadow, the opposite of the qualities of her counterpart the Magician. The pillars depicted in the HPS card, one white the other black, show duality clearly too. Duality is in fact one of the great mysteries that the HPS represents to us.

The HPS worships the Goddess, of which the moon is a symbol. In a patriarchal society where focus has for a long time been on the God and therefore the masculine aspects of divinity, we do not yet fully understand the Goddess. She remains a mystery still – attainable only once we are able to eat of this symbolic fruit that holds mysterious properties so that we may cast aside the veil.

This card tells us that it is time to examine what is going on inside our heads, in our thoughts.  Things that aren’t out in the open, that are hidden from view. We can expect the unexpected, as is typical of the HPS, because all the tools we need are there, they are merely hidden from view. Explore the unobvious, and prepare to be surprised by what is revealed.

To entice the mysteries out involves work. We might need to examine reoccurring patterns in our lives. We would need to try to discover why these cycles repeat themselves. Therein lies a great mystery too. Once we understand the need for the repeating patterns in our lives, we need to work towards bending it in our favour, in other words, work at gaining clarity and understanding that these reoccurring cycles are trying to teach us. Seek to unveil the inner mysteries is what the HPS whispers in our ear,  if you dare… Yes, we may eat of her fruit to discover her mysteries, but we need to know that there is always a risk.  We risk expulsion from our very own gardens of Eden, gardens of ignorance, predictability, order and uniformity, possibly even monotony. States of being that lack challenge, duality, chaos  and… well, pretty much the knowledge of so-called good and evil, in other words the mysteries.

The HPS furthermore warns that once the mind has been expanded it can not be returned to its original state, hence the expulsion from the garden of it’s former dwelling.

Before Adam and Eve partook of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of duality (namely good and evil,) they knew eternal life only, no death. There was no duality, therefore there was no death.  The risk therefore when seeking the mysteries of the Goddess that the HPS closely guards is the risk of death. We could live ‘forever in ignorance’ in our own gardens of Eden, thus ignorance, or we could expand our mind and thus experience death of what we have known before.

The choice is ours to make, and it is not a light choice to make. Today this card asks us to examine whether we are ready to explore our own inner mysteries, despite what we may find there, the good and the bad. Or whether we would prefer not to ‘rock the boat’ as-it-were and thereby rather exist outside these mysteries.

Do we really want to know? Are we ready to partake in communion with the HPS as we eat the forbidden fruit. We had best be sure that we are ready if we do. For once we do, we will never again be the same. And dare I say that those of us who have tasted this forbidden fruit would not want to go back, even if we could.

Judgement

The Egyptian god Thoth, known as god of writing, medicine and death would – upon death - weigh the heart of a person against the feather of truth to determine the fate of the soul. The Judgement card tells us that we are at a point in our lives (or situation) where we have to pause… This is a time of reckoning… and of judgement.

Who is the judge that weighs up the truth of our hearts, the truth of our situation or intent? For the purpose of this examination it is we ourselves who are our judge. Our conscience will do the judging of our hearts, for we cannot avoid or deceive ourselves indefinitely. This, as mentioned already, is a time of reckoning…

Jesus rises Lazarus from his tomb

The judgement card reminds us that it is time to examine our intent. Time to ‘measure’ ourselves as-it-were. Self-examination has become necessary as we brave-up to our reflection staring back at us in the all-revealing mirror. In doing so and in the process of self-examination and self-judgement we see too that this is a time of rebirth. So much of the path we have walked thusfar has lead to this very moment of truth, and as Lazarus of Bethany in the Christian bible was commanded by Jesus to rise from his tomb four days after his death, it becomes time for us to rise-up too once we have died off the unwanted in our pursuit of self-examination and truth. The time has arrived for us to accept the challenge and rewards of renewals after we have closely re-examined our intent. Upon determining that our hearts are true and our intent sound, this does indeed become a period of renewals. Renewal of commitment perhaps, or approach.  

Thoth weighs the heart against the feather of truth

In some Magic groups, upon initiation one’s measure is taken, length and sometimes width too. This cord is kept and safely guarded by the guardians of the group to be used, if necessary, to keep initiates in check. Just so when we use self-examination either by listening to our conscience or our concept of a God judging us, we need to measure what is good and bad in order to embark on a period of renewals. Be it a renewal of commitment perhaps, or approach; or pulling ourselves into check to remain on the straight and narrow.

Thus, this process of honest re-evaluation is what is called for when the Judgement card appears for us. This of course can and should be applied to almost any area of our lives. Our relationships with ourselves and others being one such area that may need honest scrutiny. It is wise to do regular ‘housekeeping’ within our relationships. We might need to ask ourselves tough questions such as whether we are adding an element of toxicity to a relationship, or whether the relationship itself has become toxic. It may be time to honestly re-evaluate whether we are investing as much as we could in the relationships in our lives. And how DO we relate to others that we have attracted into our lives? Is there room for improvement? Having said that, we may need to find the courage to remove ourselves from relationships that harm or damage us. We need to know that we are far too precious to be abused in any shape or form by anyone, including ourselves.

Thus the death of many things may occur when we find the courage to invest in honest self-examination. But, as the truth of our hearts and our intent are weighed-up at these deaths we will triumph over negativity – providing we judge ourselves and our lives with utmost integrity along our pursuit to live a life characterized by the truth reflected in our hearts.