Free Will Magick

The Six of Cups is a very complex card, with a number of potential meanings in a spread, but its message is in general a positive one and so it is welcome when it appears. There is a strong aura relating to the past, to childhood, background and even culture, which encourages us to look back on these times and elements and to use them as a foundation for future success. It’s a card of happiness and pleasure, both child-like and mature. By honoring where we’ve come from we can often find happiness in where we are now. Because of its strong associations with childhood it can sometimes indicate a pregnancy and/or children coming into a life, but it’s important to note that because it’s a positive card this would only be its meaning if this event is planned for and/or welcome. The images on the card are bright and positive and because it often portrays one child giving another a gift, it can also indicate giving, generosity and all types of gifts, both physical and ephemeral. The spiritual nature of the Cups suit means that spiritual background, gifts and fertility should at least be considered when interpreting this card.

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The Star seemed an appropriate card to talk about at this time of year, both because of its imagery and because of its message. One of the most positive cards in the Tarot, the Star embodies hope, faith and a positive outlook on the future. In a reading for the New Year, the Star would be exactly what one would wish to see! When this card appears in a spread it indicates that problems in the past, or even those that are lingering in the present, will pass away when the time is right. It encourages the subject to maintain their faith in themselves and the Universe and to remember that a positive perspective always helps in clearing away old habits and challenges. The images common to this card include a pool, representing spirituality and the Divine and a woman who is connected both to the land, (that is, practicality and common sense), as well as to the water of intuition and mysticism. The Star itself of course appears and shines its bright light over the entire scene. This card is part of the Major Arcana and so its message is especially strong in any spread in which it lies.

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Tarot is likely the most popular form of divination in the Western world today. A lot of us have played around with a deck, even if we haven’t used one formally, but they can be deceptively complex and so a lot of people give up trying to work with them seriously. To truly read with a deck, (or with any other tool for divination), requires intuition and flexibility, because every card has multiple meanings and implications depending on the situation, its placement in the spread and the other cards present. However, there’s still a lot of groundwork that can, (and really should), be done before we reach that point. There are already a lot of resources out there, from books to websites, but everyone approaches the cards a little bit differently and so I’ve been thinking about doing a series here from my perspective. Like the rest of my “tutorial” blogs I want to stress that these aren’t meant to be exhaustive or authoritative, merely individual. As you work with the cards yourself you’ll come to your own set of interpretations, patterns and insights. This is only meant to be one in a long series of perspectives that you can explore as you begin to form your own :).

A quick introduction to the basic framework of a Tarot deck: First, you’ll see that there are two types of cards in a deck, cards that belong to a suit, (Cups, Pentacles, Swords and Wands), and cards which are named and don’t belong to any particular suit. The first type is called the “Minor Arcana” and the second is called the “Major Arcana”. Sometime people read with one or the other, while other people, (like myself), always use the full deck. Which method you use will be up to you and may even change over time, as you learn more and develop a stronger identity with the cards. In practical terms, the Major Arcana are the most “important” cards. When they come up in a spread, (assuming you’re using the entire deck), they have a stronger, more focused energy and their implications are usually deeper and less prone to free-will uncertainty and the like.

The Minor Arcana are grouped according to their suits, with each suit having a particular character and overall theme. For example, Cups are the suit of emotion, spirituality and intuition. They’re associated with the element of Water and if you’re familiar with elemental associations, that can be a quick way of remembering their general traits. Pentacles are the Earth suit and they deal primarily with practical, down-to-earth matters, like money, family and practical choices. Swords are a tricky suit because their primary traits deal with both truth and intellect as well as challenge and difficulty. Their element is Air and people often find them to be hard to deal with when they come up in the spread, because so frequently they herald experiences where we learn a lot, but it’s not necessarily fun ;). Finally, Wands are the suit of Fire, with strong, forward-moving energy and ambition. The suits are traditionally arranged in this order when sorting a deck, though of course for a reading the deck should usually be shuffled.

A “spread”, for those who don’t know, is the pattern in which the cards are arranged after being selected from the deck. In most spreads each position indicates the area that that card is meant to refer to, like the “Near Future”, “Health”, “Past Events”, etc. There are many different spreads out there, or you can make up your own as you develop your own reading style. I personally use about 6 or 7 different spreads on average, with some being spreads I learned and some being spreads I developed myself. Because I frequently do readings without using any tools though, you’ll find a lot of primary Tarot readers with much more extensive collections of both decks and spreads.

Up Next: Card-by-Card through a Tarot Deck! (in installments)

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It’s been a while since I posted a blog about spellcasting techniques, so I thought I’d talk a little bit about the use of spoken word in casting :).

While not all spellcasting methods involve the use of spoken word, many people, (myself included), find that using language to express what we’re doing and what we hope to accomplish is a great aid in focusing energy. Call it an incantation, call it a prayer, call it a poem, creating and then speaking aloud a statement about and request for your goal is one of the best ways to add your personal energy to spellwork. There are many resources with pre-written incantations for various purposes and they can be better than nothing in a pinch, but even if you’re using an incantation created by someone else, always make sure to add your own “personal touches”, like the names of those involved, a specific word to describe your specific goal, etc. Remember that the power comes from the energy and the intent, not from fancy language ;).

If you’re not sure how to start with writing your own spell-words, think about what you would say if you were praying for the thing you want. Another method is to write a short poem, or just a few simple lines describing your goal. When it’s time to use these words, relax and focus your mind on your goal as you recite them. Repeat the words once before you begin whatever form of spell you’re working, once during the process when you feel your focus has been engaged and once as you close your session. You will feel more power flowing into and from you than with any pre-written spell, memorized from a book, because it will truly come from your heart.

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Here I am checking in because I haven’t yet posted a blog this month. I blame a, (lovely and enjoyable), trip to visit my family and several, (not so lovely or enjoyable), medical issues for taking up my time and energy. I’m very happy to be working with everyone who’s been getting readings though and I’m hoping to have the time to post a real blog sometime this weekend at the latest.

…In the meantime, the spammers are winning the “comments submitted” race. Any readers out there who don’t want to sell me online pharmaceutical discount gambling pictures? ;)

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A lot of people think of “true love” like it’s an event, a specific person at a certain time where everything just becomes completely clear and where the outcome is inevitable. Given the number of relationships that don’t last forever, people who stay with partners they’re not truly happy with and all of the other ways that reality works, it would then seem that almost no-one ever guesses right about who their true love is. It seems to make more sense to consider that true love isn’t an event or a person, it’s an approach to relationships.

In many traditions, enlightenment comes when we recognize that we’re connected with every other living, (and maybe non-living!), thing in the Universe. There isn’t just one person out there who we could love perfectly; there may be millions! Successful relationships are formed by people who recognize that every connection requires work, energy, effort and care. If we build a lasting relationship it isn’t because we’ve just waited around for the right person to show up, but because we’ve dedicated ourselves to a connection with someone who shares our priorities of commitment, honesty and love. It’s still important to be able to recognize when someone doesn’t share our priorities, so that we don’t waste a lot of time trying to change them, but that’s still going to leave us with more than one potential partner, if our lives are open to making healthy, positive connections :).

More than all of this, even those people who don’t manifest a permanent, romantic connection with us can still become valuable and beloved parts of our paths. In this way, True Love can become a method for approaching the entire world, instead of just a far-off dream that we saw a movie about one time.

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http://www.etsy.com/shop/FreeWillMagick
I’ve just finished working on new batches of both old favorites and new items on my Etsy store! (And boy am I happy to be done scraping wax off of my counter-tops) ;). Love Spell candles are available again, plus I’ve just put together some “Sample Packages” of votive-sized spell candles. Each set comes with four candles: Love, Banishing, Success and Meditation for multiple spell and ritual needs! I specialize in spell candles, ritual powder and incense and aromatherapy toys.

If you have any questions about the spell tools I make and sell, or about shipping and ordering, just drop me a line and I’ll be happy to help.

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I’ve been thinking a lot lately about past lives and the baggage that we sometimes carry forward from them. People frequently ask whether problems that they have in their present lives come from a past life. From weight gain to infidelity, many of us want to find a reason for our struggles in the past. To me, this seems similar to people who want to find reasons from their early childhood for the mistakes they make as adults. The truth is that there are frequently antecedents to our current challenges, but at the end of the day, knowing what those are is only useful to a point. The problems themselves must still be corrected in the present. Knowing all about the past does not remove the need for hard work and focus in the here-and-now.

Imagine if someone worked as a cook and then quit that job and went to work delivering mail, but in their new job, they kept boiling all of the mail before they delivered it. Their problem would be coming from the fact that they’re refusing to admit that boiling things is no longer productive in their job, not from the fact that they used to be a cook. A lot of past-life issues that I’ve encountered seem to have much in common with this idea. We’ve moved on to a new lifetime and we’ve got an entire set of new lessons to be learned, but sometimes we’re still trying to use old methods to cope with them. Being aware of where these issues come from can be very useful, but only if we use that as a tool to make progress, not if we dwell on them, coddle them, or use them as convenient excuses.

Naturally, past lives are a lot more complicated than what I’m talking about here. However, one of the best ways to start any new project is by beginning with some simple steps and building up from there. If we’re finding ourselves hounded by a past life issue, sometimes the quickest way to find some relief from it is simply to put it in its proper context and not give it more power than it should have. If you want to be a better mail-carrier, then stop boiling the mail. Then, if you want to explore that old life and learn more about it, you can do so with a much clearer mind.

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I’ve been thinking about re-starting this blog for a while, but have had trouble finding the time. Business has been good, (thank the Goddess!), but it’s left little time for other things. Right now though I’m considering moving away from some of the auction sites that I’ve been using for promotion though and that means putting a bit more time and energy into this website, including the blog! I’m still anticipating that at best I’ll be more like a weekly poster than those loquacious souls who manage to put up something new on a daily basis. Maybe by setting a more realistic goal for myself though, I’ll at least manage a bit of consistency.

I’m also always hesitant about putting up blogs, for fear that people will think that they’re supposed to be authoritative, universal, or sacrosanct. Just a warning: I enjoy writing about different theories, thoughts and ideas, but there are a million other opinions and views out there just as valid as mine. Even with my own thoughts, I believe that there are exceptions to every rule and more to be explored even if a conclusion has been arrived at. Read for pleasure, or if you’re interested in the wide world of metaphysics, or if you need a good laugh once in a while, but don’t panic if you don’t agree with what you read; chances are I don’t either at least some of the time ;).

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