Uniting Poles: Dragon, Cat and Sow

This year has been one of many changes, some of which I mentioned in my Samhain spread blog post. I sense the transition happening subtly (although sometimes it is very apparent, and gives me little surprises), under the surface, like an underground river flowing. In recent readings, the Lovers, Chariot and 2 of Cups have come up quite a bit for me.  What these cards all have in common is a sense of union between two aspects, or elements.  The Lovers and 2 of Cups relate to harmonizing those contrasting elements, while the Chariot is about harnessing that energy and bringing it forth into the world to achieve goals, and make things happen.  I've been sitting with those cards, pondering what those meanings might signify for me, and the truth is that that meaning has felt somewhat veiled, a little hazy and hard to put my finger on.

Last night I decided to forgo the Tarot and pull out my Druid Animal Oracle deck which I haven't worked with in a while.  I felt the desire to access the energy and wisdom of animals.  So I shuffled and cut, and laid out three cards: Air Dragon, Cat, and Sow.

Druid Animal Oracle
P. and S. Carr-Gomm/Will Worthington
Touchstone 1995

When I saw the Air Dragon I thought that was interesting, because I've never pulled that before, and lately I've been getting a lot of Swords (particularly the King and Queen) which are air cards.  While the Tarot swords are about intellect and decision-making, the Air Dragon is about spiritual journeying and spirit communication and, very interestingly, visitation.  It's interesting because this Dragon is also about flashes of insight, those lightening bolts that change the way you understand the world and the possibilities before you.  This reminds me of the Blasted Oak (from Wildwood Tarot) which has also been a significant card for me lately, because it also incorporates the idea of the sudden flash of insight that sparks significant change.  And the Blasted Oak/Tower has been meaningful for me in terms of my spiritual journey, so there were some synchronicities there.  

The Sow is a nurturing card.  The Sow is about connecting to the abundance of nature, the physical aspects of our nature as living beings.  The image shows a sow herding her group of piglets (is that what baby wild pigs are called??). The ground is strewn with morsels of food, and the background is lush with ripe wheat and vegetation.  As it relates to sensuality and fertility as well, this is like the Empress card in animal form. Very earthy and loving.

Finally, the center card was Cat.  Cat is considered to be an animal that connects to the spirit realm, and can see and communicate with both sides of the veil that separates the worlds. So it has one foot in this world, and one in the other. Another interesting element of the cat is its observation skills - it will sit and listen and watch quietly, only making its move when it's sure everything has come together in the right way. This also reminds me of the Wildwood Tarot Page of Stones (Lynx, which is also a wild cat). All of these meanings hold significance for me, and in fact the Page of Stones/Pentacles has also come up a lot lately in my personal readings.  I do feel I'm exploring a new wave of life, taking time to observe and learn about the best way to move forward in the material world with spiritual matters.

So after spending some time pondering this series of cards, I suddenly realized that it makes perfect sense! On the left the Air Dragon represents new insights and spiritual journeys, while on the right side the Sow represents our physical connection to nature and sensuality. The Cat is the bridge, the unifier, of both of these opposites.  And when I realized that, suddenly the Lovers and 2 of Cups and even the Chariot, made sense.  

When I was young I was very involved in spirituality and had a lot of meaningful experiences that have impacted me indelibly.  But as a child, spiritual experiences are ungrounded - in many ways you can't really live your spirituality in a balanced way until you learn how to live in the world.  And that's precisely what I did.  I had my first child, finished my college degree, got married, spent many years involved in developing a career, had two more kids (and few things are more grounding than having and raising babies!), completed my graduate degree. I distanced myself from more intentional spiritual practices, and really immersed myself in Life.  Six or seven years later (ending with this current year) I experienced a series of events that have led me back to spiritual practice and a renewal of my path, which has been wonderful and very much like "coming home." So I've gone through two major phases of life - one very airy/watery, and one very earthy - and now this year I'm learning how to integrate them so that both are equally important and balanced parts of my life, and who I am.  And that newly established and building inner-balance is impacting how I move forward in the world, and where my path is leading me.