Enjoy the Moment: An Ostara Lesson

Merry meet! I hope everyone is having a most pleasant Ostara.

For those of you still brushing up on the significance of the Sabbats, Ostara is the Spring Equinox. This Wiccan festival day is marked by the lengthening of daylight until day and night are equal, signaling the Sun King's growing strength.

Ostara is also all about balance. The length of daylight has already been discussed, but there are other things in balance too. The temperatures outside are becoming more mild, neither oppressively hot nor oppressively cold. Along with the night and day, masculine and feminine energies are at equilibrium.

I burn candles in my rituals as I feel that doing so brings me closer to the God and Goddess and allows us to communicate. In my Ostara ritual tonight, after setting out a circle of sunstone and moonstone, I lit a blue candle for the Goddess and a copper one for the God. The copper signifies the strength of the sun, and the blue signifies the water that balances the sun's fire, and the rebirth that occurs in nature with the coming of spring.

At first my candles did not burn, and I was somewhat alarmed, but a discussion with my mentor helped me to see that the slow pace of the burn was due to the God and Goddess telling me all was right in my world for the moment and I should enjoy the feeling of contentment rather than being out of sorts. Once I relaxed and began this blog post, they began burning normally.

Too often we do rituals because we feel as though there is an unspoken expectation that we will do so. When this happens, we simply go through the motions and the ritual becomes muddy and meaningless. Even if you feel a desire to simplify your rituals, for example, do so, for there is no requirement of large gatherings or opulence. A quiet simple ritual can be a thing of great beauty. If it makes you happy, so too will it be smiled upon by the God and Goddess. There is nothing to fear.

Blessed be.

Misha

The Wildwood Tarot: Initial Reading

For my first reading with the Wildwood tarot, I chose to do a past, present, future spread. This spread involves three cards laid out left to right. The card on the left represents the querent's past. The middle card represents the querent's present. And lastly, the card on the right represents the querent's future.

In this case, I was the querent, even though I was also the person shuffling and reading the cards. It is perfectly acceptable to do a reading for or on your self. I shuffled the cards and then spread them out in a  fan spread like you sometimes see magicians use. In selecting my three cards I did not draw directly from the top of the deck, instead watching for natural breaks in the fan spread with the cards were uneven. The uneven cards were the ones I chose. I placed them from left to right based on their position when they had broken up the fan spread. Once my cards were chosen, I set the rest of the cards off to the side. Most people think at this point they should ask a question. I never felt the need to, as I knew in my heart my question had already been asked to the spirits that guided the cards.

At this time I will share with you the results of my past present future spread.

 The card on the left which represents my past was the three of arrows. This card represents creativity. More importantly it represents the link between creativity and the spiritual world. This is a very accurate card for me. When I was younger I was much more active in choir and theater than I am now. Being that I was raised Jewish, I worshiped in the synagogue and my favorite part of services was when we would sing or chant. I have always felt that music brings me closer to whatever deity I am working with.

The card in the middle which represents my present, was the 10 of bows. This card represents instruction. Immediately I saw that this card represented the current relationship I have with my Wiccan mentor, my grandma. I am still very new to the Wiccan faith, and find myself relying on my kind and gentle mentor quite a bit. I also lean on the God and Goddess as well as other spirits, using many rituals to interact with them on deeper levels, or more direct ones, rather than trusting myself to interpret their gentle guidance on my own. This card is showing me that these relationships are important right now. But what is even more important is that I recognize my ability to grow through these relationships. I need to not only be listening to the instruction I am given but internalizing it and making it my own.This card also symbolizes my transition from child to woman.

The card on the right which represents my future was the eight of vessels. This card symbolizes rebirth. I nearly cried when I saw this card included in my spread, especially in such an important position. For so long I have searched for a way to move past my parents abuse. For so long, I have sought healing. The appearance of this card means that that healing will come.

One of the reasons I did this reading tonight, is because I had begun to feel out of touch with Wicca. I knew that this was normal, and that most solitary witches feel this way at one time or another. However, the trials I have faced in my past had me seriously doubting that even Wicca was the right path for me. This is what I was questioning when I drew my cards tonight. The results I received gave me a very clear indication.

The reading as a whole can be interpreted as follows. My creativity is a gift from the God and the Goddess. It is always been one of the most important links between myself and the spiritual world, even from a very young age. Now that I have found my true path, and am receiving formal instruction in Wicca, I am finally beginning to blossom and grow into my own person under the guidance of my loved ones,and I can begin to look toward the future. The future for me, holds a new beginning as a true Witch. I will finally be able to cast away the pain and sorrow from my past. But as I grow and am reborn, I must not lose sight of the lessons I am taught nor the creativity that is a part of my very essence. This reading signifies hope and promise, but it will take hard work to get there.

Blessed be.

Misha

The Wildwood Tarot

This post is going to differ slightly from others on this blog.Instead of addressing a key issue within the Wiccan community, I will be offering my thoughts on my newest tarot deck. Roughly a week ago I purchased the Wildwood tarot. It was conceptualized by Mark Ryan and John Matthews, and illustrated by Will Worthington.
This deck is actually a reimagining of the earlier deck called the Greenwood Tarot. The Greenwood tarot  replaced the stark imagesof early tarot decks with beautiful depictions of nature. This included the depiction of the archetypes of the major arcana as natural beings.

The Wildwood tarot features illustrations that are less ethereal and more naturalistic. The meanings of the cards are very clear, and even I, who is just beginning to be able to read the tarot cards was able to access this deck fully and completely. The companion handbook that comes with the deck is both beautiful and informative, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that once I attempted to work with the cards I was able to make my initial interpretation of the meaning of the spread on my own, and only had to look at the companion handbook for clarification and verification. In the end, I could have just trusted my own instincts as my initial interpretation of the cards was correct.

My first introduction to Wicca, was a guided meditation in which I visited a forest of spirits. These spirits, whether animal humanoid or otherwise, are in reality ancient guardians. I have been visiting this forest each night before I go to bed since last May. I was very pleased to find that the archetypes depicted in the Wildwood tarot were already familiar to me due to my guided meditations. Even the animals, which graced the court cards corresponded with my understanding of their role within the forest.

This deck is also, as is explained in the companion handbook, specifically structured so as to be in tune with The Wheel of the Year. Even after only a cursory glance at the deck, I find myself beginning to understand how each of the suits and the various archetypes correspond to the Wiccan festivals and the seasons. I cannot wait to explore this deck further.

In conclusion, I would highly recommend this deck to anyone who wishes to further their understanding of Wicca and its connection to nature. Contrary to other reviews, I would in fact recommend this deck for beginners, because of the clarity of illustration and the helpful nature of the text at the bottom of the car which not only titles it, but explains what each card in the minor arcana represents. This is something that older more traditional tarot decks do not do, and is one of the reasons that I struggled with the original deck I had.

I realize that this deck may not be for everyone, but I certainly encourage both newcomers and experienced tarot readers to consider it.

Blessed be.

Misha