A Review of HazelMoon's Hawaiian Tarot…and a Reading!

Artist Katalin Csikos has created a deck called HazelMoon's Hawaiian Tarot, a labor of true love and dedication based on her deep connection to the Hawaiian islands, their culture and legacy. She recently offered the deck to readers on a Facebook site for free, and I signed up - how am I going to say no to a free deck?? It arrived in two days, beautifully packaged, with a well-bound book and a box of 78 cards.

The cards are sturdy, and remind me of the finish of the Mary-El Tarot - a tiny bit sticky in their shiny gloss, but fine to work with, all the same. The backs are not technically reversible as they feature a sepia-ish photo of a palm tree, but it was subtle enough not to be an issue for me (which is important to mention, as I use reversals and tend to prefer reversible backs!). In fact I love the backs - they are a cream-and-brown that reminds me of cocoa butter and is rather soothing!

The artwork is very much what I would consider "naive art," aka folk art, in style. This is not "fine art", it's not a feat of advanced technical skills. It's the product of true love, and the beauty lies in its rough edges and imperfections. It feels like a love-letter to the Hawaiian islands.  The Minors are mostly pips in that the 8 of Cups shows eight cups in a row in font of a lush landscape, but the colors are rich. I thought at first that the relatively small paintings and the pips might make for a challenging intuitive read, but that proved to be an erroneous assumption. I did a reading last night for myself using this deck and fell in love! You really never know how much you like a deck until you read with it, and this was just another example of that…..

I made up a spur-of-the-moment spread: My Strength - My Lesson - My Advice
I decided to do this because I feel like I have a lot of positive things happening in my life right now, but along with it there are always challenges, and I wanted some insights into all this lovely chaos.

I pulled the Boy of Lava Stones, the Moon, and the King of Lava Stones:

HazelMoon's Hawaiian Tarot
Katalin Csikos

I was really stunned by how beautifully the imagery flowed, the symmetry, the symbolism, and it really was a very intuitive read after all. Let me discuss a bit of what struck me:

Boy of Lava Stones (My Strength): This is about opportunity that remains vibrant even in the dark of night when the moon of mystery and uncertainty shines above. It's interesting that my Lesson is also the Moon, and look how the palm branches shield me from it - it's there, it's present, it's an important part of the environment, but it's not overwhelming or overpowering the scene. This card represents opportunity that can be harnessed and developed and nurtured and grown. The bird reminds me of the heron (thought I am pretty sure it's not supposed to be one), bridging water and earth, intuition and practicality, which is interesting because in this reading water (the Moon) bridges two earth cards. The heron automatically connects me to the King of Vessels in the Wildwood Tarot, which simultaneously brings aspects of the Mirror - reflection, self-analysis, sacrifice, and connection to purpose and past lives. I know, it's a lot, but that's what happens… images create layers of meaning that make for a deeply rich reading, and that's what this deck has sparked for me.

Moon (My Lesson): This card is about not letting worry and fear own me; instead using it to fuel my creative energy. It's about mastering my intuition and opening myself up to the depths of my soul and my spirit connection to the universe. I think it's interesting that there are lava stones on the sand by this water, which reminds me that I can "put feet" under my intuition. Fear and illusion are often associated with the Moon, but I also see that fear can stem from misunderstanding our own intuitive power, and that's interesting because I've been in the process lately of learning not to shy away from my inner voice, but to trust in it, and embrace it, and dive deeply into it, to bathe myself in it. The Lava Stones are a way for me to then ground my intuition in the world (and I think a good example of how that is done is through card readings, incidentally!).

King of Lava Stones (My Advice): I appreciate the earthiness of this card, and I myself am an earth sign, so it feels fitting. And yet the image brings so clearly to me the image, once again, of the King of Vessels/Heron (perhaps because both images show a figure poised upright in water). This King stands like the Heron in water, the ocean, and the brightness of the daylight brings the idea that the moon (my Lesson) reflects the light of sun, and that difficulties and challenges are only temporary. This is a King of earth and water-  he can harness the fluid energy and give it shape. This reminds me of the need to acknowledge that power in myself and tap into that ability to manifest what is needed in my life. It's an optimistic card - it's about being ready and prepared to do what needs to be done, that through practicality, steadfastness, patience, and commitment to my Strength, I can be master of my material environment.

Whew! It was a beautiful and really intense reading, and endeared the Hawaiian Tarot to my heart due to how strongly it engaged my intuition and how profoundly it spoke to me. I look forward to using it more!

Taroscopes for February 2014

So this is a little bit late due to the madness of the weekend, but here are the February Taroscopes, as promised! I've used my new Golden Tarot (Kat Black) which I received on Saturday and am enjoying immensely (it's so lovely!).

Golden Tarot - Kat Black
US Games

Capricorn - 10 of Cups: Enjoy your family this month! Play games, plan some outings, or just sit back and watch some good movies over popcorn and hot chocolate. Your loved ones should be your primary focus this month, and Valentine's Day will probably glow with joy.

Aquarius - 4 of Coins: Budget, yes, financial planning is always helpful. Just don't forget to enjoy yourself a tiny bit this month in order to off-set all your planning. Open yourself up, and treat yourself to something special. Who cares if you're single? Make V-Day work for you!

Pisces - Queen of Cups: Love and be loved this month! Whatever support and encouragement you give to others is bound to come back to you three-fold.

Aries - King of Wands: Try not to get ahead of yourself this month - deep breaths! If you're finding it a challenge to get people to follow your lead, or things just aren't feeling up to snuff, simply take a moment to calm your mind and put things into perspective.

Taurus - Knight of Wands: A feisty card for you this month! Your creative energies will be flowing and will usher you into a period of faster-paced movement - you should get some things accomplished!

Gemini - 7 of Cups: So many options….this month try to narrow down your choices and make a decision! You can't act until you know which direction you're heading in, and this month the bubble just may *pop* leading you to some fresh clarity.

Cancer - 8 of Swords: You're only as limited as you think you are. Don't let yourself be hemmed in by self-imposed barriers this month - if you really want it, you can find a way to make it happen.

Leo - 3 of Coins: You may not be feeling up to working with others this month. You like your independence, but lately you've been playing well as a team member, which is great. However sometimes you just want to pull out and do things your own way, and February might just be that kind of month for you. Take some time to rehash your long-term goals.

Virgo - Moon: The great unknown looms about you, and can leave you feeling a bit uncertain about what your best options lie. If you feel frustrated or confused, tap into your dreams and intuition and use your own inner wisdom and creative flow to help guide you.

Libra - 6 of Cups: Trust that where you are now is where you're meant to be, and don't dwell on "what could have been" this month, even if you're tempted. Enjoy Valentine's Day even if you end up flying solo on the couch with your favorite box of chocolates and a glass of amazing red wine.

Scorpio - 10 of Coins: Don't make any rash decisions this month! If your tax return isn't what you'd hoped for, yes, that sucks, but readjust your perspective and see if there's another way to approach your goals. Reign it in this month, and be creative with what you have.

Sagittarius - Page of Wands: You're fiery and sometimes when your ideas don't charge forth with purpose and ease you can feel that flame dim. If you're having doubts about how to take your project to the next level, recalibrate your plans, tap into your abundant creativity, and let it guide you on!

Have a wonderful February, and make the most of your Valentine's Day!!! Peace!

Super Bowl XLVIII Prediction

Yeah… I don't follow sports and didn't even know who was playing until I looked it up on the internet today, but I thought I'd join the throngs of diviners who are making "for fun" predictions about the outcome of this big match today!

So apparently the majority seem to be showing the Broncos as the favored team, and I assumed that when I pulled my own cards I'd see the same result. But no…. At first I pulled three cards for each team:

Broncos

Queen of Coins reversed - 4 Swords reversed - Empress reversed

Yikes. That didn't look promising. In particular I see a lack of communication on the team, and things not coming together the way they'd planned. Their "bottom of the deck" card was Judgement which is a pretty intense card that could help them, however.

Sea Hawks

High Priestess - Emperor - 4 Swords reversed

So the 4 Swords made another appearance - very interesting!!! All the same, the other two cards are upright Trumps, and the Emperor at the center of it all shows strong leadership and organization, probably due to the coach and/or an important player (MVP). The High Priestess gives the feeling that there's an unknown element that will play to their favor. Their "bottom of the deck" card was the Wheel of Fortune, which is a pretty favorable card for them to receive!

Okay so I was feeling like the Sea Hawks had the advantage, but still wasn't willing to own it in public, especially with the Big Guns in Tarot coming out with readings favoring the Broncos.  So I decided to pull two more cards - one to gauge the Broncos' likelihood of winning, and the other to determine that of the Sea Hawks:

Broncos: 9 of Coins reversed

Sea Hawks: Queen of Coins

Golden Tarot - Kat Black
US Games

Alright so that did it for me. I am officially announcing that I feel the Sea Hawks will win this big game (just look at that Queen - doesn't she just *know* she's got it in the bag??)

Now I'll just sit tight and eat some potato chips and onion dip while awaiting the final score! :)

Update: the Sea Hawks crushed the Broncos.

Imbolc Blog Hop 2014 - Tarot Healing and Creativity

Previous - Master - Next

Welcome to the Imbolc 2014 Blog Hop! To access the blog of Arwen Lynch, click on "Previous," and to move on to Shauna Aura Knight, click on "Next." If at any point you'd like to see a full participant list, click on "Master"!

Our theme for this hop is "Tarot, Healing and Creativity," per our wondrous wrangler Christiana Gaudet from Tarot Trends. The title of my blog is "Tarot Healing", rather than "Tarot, Healing…" I made this subtle edit to highlight even more intentionally the healing benefits accessible through use of tools of divination.

First I thought I'd start off by talking about some Tarot cards that come to my mind most immediately when I think of "healing," and then I'll end with a short spread I put together with this theme of "healing through divination" in mind….

Four cards that speak of healing to me:

7 Stones, Wildwood Tarot

One aspect of the 7 of Pentacles relates to the benefits of taking time out to assess where you've come from and where you're headed.  This version from the Wildwood Tarot speaks of this brief "time out", and adds a healing twist. When I see this card it reminds me of the dangers of becoming so absorbed with your work that you forget to replenish your energies, and serves as a reminder of your true intent and purpose.

Wildwood Tarot
Matthews/Ryan/Worthington - Sterling Ethos

4 Swords, Deviant Moon Tarot

I like the 4 of Swords in general, but the depiction in the Deviant Moon is by far my favorite of all time. It speaks of burying yourself in the cool, dark, nurturing soil of the earth, letting that healing force support your rest and recuperation, giving you much needed time to realign yourself and re-assess your path ahead.

Deviant Moon Tarot
Patrick Valenza - US Games

Star, Vision Quest Tarot

I suppose this card's healing properties go without saying: pure faith, optimism, love, flowing energy and the knowledge that we're not alone, after all - we are all being guided. I like the inclusion of the Heron/Egret in this card, which brings to mind the idea of identifying our inner truths, and trusting that we are being led unerringly to where we need to be.

Vision Quest Tarot
Winter/Dose - US Games

Rebirth/Great Bear/Judgement

Really, there is nothing more healing than acknowledging and accepting your calling, finding the ability to be your true self, to give yourself the permission to be who you are meant to be, and to find courage to fulfill your purpose, whatever that happens to be.

DruidCraft Tarot
Carr-Gomm/Worthington - St. Martin's Press

3 Sisters Healing Spread

This is a spread I planned out in my sleep several weeks ago, and titled when I was awake (I am guessing I'm not the only person that this happens to??). When I think of the 3 Sisters I usually think of "corn, beans and squash." And some cultures believe the Sun to be male energy (though some, like in Norse mythology, see the Sun as female). For some reason that's the title that occurred to me, so I'm going with it!

Moon: What we must acknowledge in order to allow for healing to commence

Sun: The power/strength we draw from to help illuminate our shadow; the positive force behind our healing journey

Star: What guides us forward, inspires us onward, encourages our healing process over the long-term

Peace out, Happy Taroting, and Creative Healing to all!

Previous - Master - Next

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The Beauty of the Spread

Twice in the last week I’ve laid out cards for a reading and just sat there marveling at the beauty before me. Not just the meanings, or the flow of energy, but the images themselves, how they relate to each other, the story I see in how they connect, in their positions. Last night was one of these moments. I was doing a reading for a friend (who gave permission for me to blog about it) because he recently found that the trip he’d wanted to take to visit his mother next month might not work out due to some sudden financial obstacles. He was really counting on this trip, and wanted to know if it would be possible to make it work after all.  I drew three cards and also considered the card at the bottom of the deck for additional influences. I inquired about the energies surrounding the possibility of the trip happening and pulled:

5 Pentacles – 8 Pentacles – Sun reversed (Moon was the bottom card)

I used my new/old Mythic Tarot (Juliet Sharman-Burke, Tricia Newell, Liz Greene) which was a huge pleasure for me!

Mythic Tarot
Juliet Sharman-Burke, Tricia Newell, Liz Greene

When I lay out three cards without positions, the center card is always the “theme” for me, and the flanking cards give me extra information about the surrounding issues.  So looking at this spread I noticed that while my friend is feeling the pain of these new problematic developments, there is a chance that he’ll be able to work something out in the end.

The 5 of Pentacles speaks of feeling isolated, or closed-off. In this case it held double meaning as my friend was very keenly experiencing the separation from his mother (who lives in a different country), coupled with the deep sense of responsibility to visit her and help provide support for her. At the same time it represents the financial obstacles that were getting in the way of his plans. Suddenly he felt the wealth being stripped from him and held at a distance.

The Sun reversed felt like muted hope – things were suddenly muddled and unclear, the joy at the potential trip sort of started to flicker like a flame in the wind. I sensed a deep dampening of his spirit due to this new obstacle- not simply a momentary annoyance, but something deeper; a longer-term frustration at not being able to fully find joy in a new country without his mother, but also being unable to provide the kind of support for her that he has so often desired.  So the 5 of Pentacles really connected to the Sun reversed, the lack of resources and isolation mirroring the lack of joy bordering on mild depression.

Meanwhile the Moon shone above, lighting the rest of the cards with uncertainty and confusion…. All except for the 8 of Pentacles in the middle.

I love how the 8 of Pentacles forms the heart of the spread. It says to me that my friend can make his desire come true through hard work, perhaps some small sacrifices, a lot of dedication, and long-term vision. The man in this card is entirely concentrated on the task before him – he is disregarding the confusion, uncertainty, fears, and material lack. He knows that he can manifest his own wealth through focus, patience, and foresight. In fact the very same man wandering through the night in tattered robes in the 5 of Pentacles is featured on the 8 of Pentacles, creating his own way ahead.

Visually I love how the center card, the 8 of Pentacles, shines out from within the triangle of tribulations: the Moon sits above, the Sun to the right, turned on its head, the 5 of Pentacles sits to the left. The Moon card is reflected in the sky in the 5 of Pentacles – the moon shines down its illusion upon the poor wandering fellow.  The Sun and Moon are two celestial cards, and the Moon also reflects the light of the Sun. So I see a lot of mirroring going on here, where the lack of resources influences the sense of let-down and depression, which reflects back upon itself in the Moon, enhancing and perpetuating the difficult cycle.

And yet, back to the center card, the sky is bright, the man appears entirely unbothered by worries –  perhaps inside he carries a sense of anxiety, but he knows that only through perseverance and hard work will he reach his goal, and he won’t be deterred from the work at hand.  I love that focused, earthy core.

To me this is part of the absolute beauty of Tarot.  The cards carry meaning, but the images and positions provide so many layers to the story, that can be woven together, intersected and overlapped to create an almost painfully lovely response to the seeker’s question.

(Update: it was difficult, it required a lot of attention and creativity, but he was in the end able to visit his mother in March 2014)

Trying Not to Choke on My Glee

Yesterday a deck arrived for me in the mail. It was probably one of the happiest moments I've had in quite a while, and I'm still feeling the glory. In past posts I've mentioned that my mother's Tarot reading was my initial connection to divination at a young age. Recently I acquired the Medicine Cards (Jamie Sams) which were another divination tool she owned and that I held very dear, which has been really nice to have in my hands again. Well her Tarot deck (she only ever had one until recently I gifted her two more!) is the Mythic Tarot (Juliet Sharman-Burke, Liz Greene, Tricia Newell), one of the early publications from the late-80s, early 90s. This was the deck that sort of birthed me into the concept of Tarot reading, and I used to love it when she'd pull her cards out and do readings, working her way through the Greek myths and tying stories together.

I've been wanting to add that deck to my collection for a while, but when the original version went out of print in the early 2000s, it became very expensive and thus fell out of my reach. A new edition, called the New Mythic Tarot (Juliet Sharman-Burke, Giovanni Caselli) was published with a redo of the original artwork, which seemed to earn a lot of disappointed complaints from lovers of the original Mythic Tarot who didn't see a need for the reworking. I wasn't entirely opposed to this new version, but it didn't really attract me either. If necessary, it would "do" but it wouldn't really be the same. So I never purchased it.

Mythic Tarot
Juliet Sharman-Burke, Tricia Newell, Liz Greene
Fireside, 1986

The other day on one of the Facebook Tarot forums, someone posted an announcement about the original Mythic available on eBay for an unbelievably low price (about the cost of three grande lattes at Starbucks), and I jumped all over it. I couldn't believe it. It was a new listing and no one had snatched it up yet! It was my first foray into eBay buying, and I did so with some anxiety, but I figured that the worst that would happen is I'd lose a few cups of coffee, which didn't seem like a major risk. When all was said and done I received a well-wrapped package in the mail yesterday containing a tattered original box, a complete set of cards in great condition, a hard-cover companion book (also in great condition) and a reading cloth (which I probably won't use, but still!).

I think words failed me, hence the title of this blog post. I knew I would be excited about this acquisition, I knew it was important to me to own my mother's deck, that it would be nurturing and comforting and "right." But I had no idea just how fulfilled and joyful I would feel to be able to flip through those images, read through the book, do my own first reading with it. I sent a text message to my mother letting her know what I'd managed to do, and her reply was "I am glad, and touched." I suppose she never thought much about how or why those cards would be so meaningful to me. Hey, I think that in the end, I didn't really realize it either!

So I am full of rapturous joy on the inside, though on the outside probably look very calm and a bit sleepy. This joy is like a feast.

Determining Timing: Yea or Nay?

This post is NOT about how to determine time-frames using the cards - there are plenty of great resources online and in print for those interested in experimenting. The intent of this post is to discuss whether providing time-frames is truly beneficial to people in the long run (and I, for the most part, feel that it is not).

This issue of timing has come up a lot in social networking forums recently. Is determining time-frames possible? Is it accurate? Is it appropriate? There are a million different "tried and true" methods that various readers swear by. Some may be more calibrated than others, some may show higher levels of accuracy. I'd say that most competent readers will say that it can be difficult to pin down precise timing in some cases - the future simply may not be that precisely pre-destined. (And isn't that something of a relief?)  I thought I'd outline my own thoughts about it, which explain why I find "when" questions to be unhelpful most of the time:

1) What if the topic of the "when" question never occurs? Once I received this question: "When will my future music videos make it to national television?" This question was posed by a young college student who wasn't actively engaged in music in any tangible way. Maybe the student would never end up in music at all. Maybe the student would never create music videos, let alone have the opportunity to publicize them via television. This is something of an extreme example, but the point is there, I hope. Perhaps a better question would be "What do I need to know about going into the music industry?" Questions like this make a lot of implicit assumptions about the future, which is problematic.

2) What if the client feels the event is predestined, and therefore doesn't put in the effort to manifest it? Example: a woman wants to know when she'll find a job, and the cards indicate a time frame. She now expects that the job will appear before her at a given point in time, and stops looking for work or submitting her resumes. Consequently she doesn't have any job prospects at all, and feels the reading was wrong. In this sense I feel that doing timings can serve to disempower clients by leading them to believe that their actions don't impact their future.

3) What if the client finds the determined time-frame to be highly discouraging? A man wants to know when he'll find the perfect girl to marry - he's ready to go, can't wait to have a family of his own…he just needs that ideal lady.  The cards determine that he will likely marry an excellent woman…in about 10 years. Instead of feeling excited, he's now forlorn at the thought of having to wait so long. How many important relationships might he give up, believing that none of them could be the "right" girl? What if he would have met the lady in one year, developed a wonderful partnership, and then decided not to marry for another 9 years? Who knows? They may not like the time-frame they're given, and it could have detrimental impact on the course of their future (not to mention the time-frame could be off!).

When potential clients ask me a "when" question, I encourage them to change their focus: perhaps to determine likelihoods of the event occurring, to a focus on how they can best prepare themselves, or even what perspectives or energies will be the greatest help to them moving forward. In rare instances I'm willing to give general time frames, usually qualified with a brief summary of the points listed above. I am okay with, and practice, many forms of predictive divination, however I feel at times that when questions are exclusively predictive or even more importantly, exclusively time-based, they tend to side-step the greatest gift that Tarot and other card systems have to offer - a way to understand yourself better, and to improve your life in a way that nurtures your power of self-determination and choice.

In the end I don't believe this issue revolves as much around whether timing is possible (it can be, and it can also be accurate), as it does around the potential impact, and unintended negative consequences, on clients' lives, which is an ethical consideration first and foremost.