Two of Cups: Two-ness/Mirror

 Two of Cups: Two-ness, duality and the Loving Cup

 

Cup:a vessel for containing something. In Tarot, Cups usually signify emotions, especially Love.

 

The Two of Cups card in Tarot – Two-ness

In Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness, in the Two of Cups card, we see an upright cup and below that, an upside-down cup, which appears to be a reflection or mirror of the upper cup. In this card, we are introduced to two ways of viewing and understanding TWO-NESS. Earlier, in the Ace of Cups, we became aware of One-ness. Now, when we get this Two of Cups in a reading it symbolizes states of reality and/or unreality. This implies there is one real cup, but the second upside-down Cup is only a reflection of the top cup. When this card is reversed, we are confronted with how we are dealing with dualism and things that are in opposition to oneness: truth/lies, good/bad, light/dark, peace/war, friend/foe, and so on. What is being shown here can be compared to seeing the Moon reflected on a lake. The Moon is the only real object and the other Moon is a mirrored reflection seen on the water of a lake. We know there is only one Moon; the image in the water is only it’s reflection and, we know that it is not real. The message here is to not be fooled when some people interpret our life experiences from a dualistic point of view of equivalence. Since the mirrored cup is false and represents an opposition to the one cup, it is false view because it isn’t reality, just as you know the image of yourself in the mirror is not the real you. That is the truth of the observation. 

2 of Cups

In my previous blog about “TWO-NESS” (June 2, 2013), the essay is mostly about dealing with polarities and dualism where: *“… we are confronted daily by an array of colossal forms of opposition. The most obvious and immediate concerns are seen in the futuristic optimism of a desire for peace but opposed by the never-ending condition of violence and war.” 

 “When looking at the mirror world, it seems obvious that millions of people have given themselves over to fantasy, to make-believe, to play-acting” “The point is that on either side of the reflective glass, we are not having disagreements and different interpretations of reality—we are having disagreements about who is in reality and who is a simulation.” 

Naomi Klein, Doppelganger, (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2023)

 

In the Rider-Waite Tarot deck, we see the Two of Cups depicts a man and a woman holding large cups in front of one another in a loving and friendly manner. This is what we see in most Tarot decks. The whole suit of Cups in a reading is usually interpreted in emotional, psychological or mental symbols.

Over time, there have been many different references and interpretations of the meaning of Cups in the Tarot Minor Arcana. As we contemplate these possibilities, we see a person’s lot In life, or fate, can be described through the symbol of a cup in many ways: Love (Loving cup); Victory (Trophy cup); Friendship (Party toasting cup); Ritual Liturgical cup (Eucharist, Passover); Abundance (Overflowing cup); Rescue (Cup of salvation); Calculation of the future (Cup of divination) and Anger (Cup of wrath). 

*To pursue this further see my blogs of Jan. 26, 2013 and April 20, 2013.

Originally, the suit of Cups in Tarot probably had a biblical basis: The Harpers Bible Dictionary says this about a cup:

“…everything that exists is a world of limited good; everything that exists is perceived to exist in limited amounts…”  “In this perspective all persons can be said to have their ‘cup’ i.e., the limited amount of whatever God has to offer."

In the biblical story of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, Joseph’s cup was used for divination in foreseeing the future (Gen.44:5).Other cups mentioned were filled with blessings, or salvation (Psalms 23, 116:13) such as Jesus’ “bitter cup” at his Crucifixion (Matt. 26:42). Then there was Jesus’ cup at The Last Supper (John 13) and the legendary Medieval story of the search for The Holy Grail in adventures with King Arthur and the Knights of the Roundtable. (See At the Table of the Grail, Ed. John Matthews, Routledge, Kegan & Paul, 1984)

 

Let’s take a closer look at each of these types of cups in relation to their deeper meaning for your life. What are some of the questions that come up for you if you get the 2 of Cups in a reading? Which cup aligns with your inquiry and does it provide any answers?

 

Love and the Loving Cup

We see the loving cup presented as a pledge of fidelity to one another in many marriage ceremonies, wedding celebrations, and so on. 

How are you sharing your life with a loved one in honesty and truth? Are you still sharing the loving cup and feeling good about your relationship? Do you give yourself a reality check every now and then? How do you express your love?

 

Friendship Cup

In old Germanic Hall celebration stories, a cup of friendship is passed around as an evocation of “the good life”, goodness and light, as in Beowulf’s “win of wunderfatum” after he subdues the monster Grendel and the forces of evil. 

What friendship groups are you part of? How do you celebrate friendship with family and friends? Are you having positive relationships with others? How do family celebrations affect you? How are you dealing with so-called “monsters” in your life? 

 

Trophy Cup

This is a cup for celebrating and acknowledging a winner, such as the “America’s cup,” the oldest International sporting trophy in yacht racing, or the “Stanley Cup” in Hockey. 

What are your good intentions and expectations? What are the achievements, victories, and successes in your life that you are proud of?  Are you taking risks and overcoming the seemingly impossible? How are you achieving your goals? What have you overcome and “won”? 

 

Liturgical cup

A Eucharist cup of wine is used in Christian Communion commemorating the blood of Christ, which was shed for the salvation from one’s sins (a symbolic cup from The Last Supper and/or Crucifixion) There is also the Four cups of Passover of the Hebrew Seder (Celebration of the Liberation of Israelites from slavery in Egypt) 

What is your spiritual path? How do you practice your beliefs? What are your religious beliefs if any and how do you carry out the observances and rituals associated with your religious practice? How do you use the Cup as a sacred object?

 

Cup of abundance

Harvest festivals, fairs, Carnivals, Thanksgiving celebrations 

Are you expressing gratitude for the abundance in your life, no matter how small? Are you sharing your richness and joy with others in giving and receiving?

 

Cup of Salvation

Salvation Army, Red Cross, Social Workers, Missionary social work, helping others

Are you expressing kindness and compassion for the trials and tribulations of others?  Are you emphasizing the will to live and focusing on the creative life force in self-help and helping care for others? How are you helping those in need?

 

Cup of divination

The oracle of Tarot calculations for the future

Are you looking toward a beneficial future? Are you accepting change as part of the experiences of the future? How are you dealing with unforeseen events in your life?

 

What if the two of Cups is reversed? 

“It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury signifying nothing” Shakespeare, Macbeth

 

Cup of Wrath

Someone or something is being blamed and/or punished with spiteful contradictions. What about the wrath of people expressing vengeful anger, rage and fury and even instigating horrific events that leave you emotionally drained? 

Are you being threatened by someone or something? Are you in a love/hate relationship? Is someone making up lies and unfounded conspiracy theories in a fantasy world that intimidates you? How are you combatting forces which seem beyond your control? What can you do to stay calm and rise above stressful situations?

 

 

Justice Today

 Justice for All:  Weighed in the balances

Justice TOCC
            What does the Tarot card Justice mean for you?Are you looking for some kind of Justice in your life?  Pictorially, the woman illustrated in the card represents the Roman goddess, Justitia, and she is holding up a balance beam with two pans with which to weigh things. We see this in the Biblical story of Belshazzar’s fabulous feast where a floating hand appeared at the party and wrote on the wall the words – “mene mene tekel uparsin,” which the Hebrew Prophet Daniel interpreted as being - “weighed in the balances and found wanting” (Dan. 5:27). Belshazzar’s Father Nebuchadnezzar died that night. 

Justice TOCC

So morally, are we weighed down with injustice, or uplifted by pursuing justice in our everyday lives? What about the statement “…with liberty and justice for all”? Schoolchildren have been reciting this in The Pledge of Allegiance in salute to the USA flag since 1892. (June 14^th is Flag Day.) Where do we look in the US Constitution for a follow up on these words? The Bill of Rights? No, they are not in the Constitution, but are hinted at in the 14^th Amendment, which is about Civil Rights. It was established on July 9, 1868 right after the Civil War in which the Confederacy, and its illegal president, was ended. It states that no person shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion - or give aid and comfort to the enemy. A very great injustice to people of color was being overcome. 

Flag Day! Right now, there is a lot of tumult going on in politics over several prominent flags and who can or cannot fly them. In the January 6, 2021 “insurrection” at the US Capitol building, a participant strode through the rotunda carrying a Confederate Battle Flag. And now, there has been a lot of commotion over the LGBTQIA rainbow flag and further discrimination against Gay people. Recently, we have seen on TV so-called Nazi flag bearers displaying the Nazi Swastika Flag in front of Disneyland in Florida. What kind of craziness is this? This is America where our Grandfathers fought in WWII to put an end to the Nazi Regime while spending millions of dollars in the “war effort.” And for what? For this?  - Illiterate young men who drag out a hateful and deadly flag in front of children? Meanwhile, what about the disparaging situation for women?

            Women’s Suffrage: How can we fix an unjust system? How can we end racial injustice and overcome extremist ideology from hate groups which are poisoning our country? Ask yourself where you stand on all this? There is a need for Justice on several counts. Since the repeal of “Roe vs Wade,” a lot of American women, especially disadvantaged women and women of color, have lost the right to medical care for their pregnancies and may even be prosecuted while their doctors go to prison for abortions. What? The 19^th Amendment states that women’s rights shall not be denied on account of sex. The right for women to vote was established on August 18, 1920. That was the beginning of Justice for women.  Injustice now prevails in several states where a gross misunderstanding has led to trampling on women’s right to determine what goes on in their own bodies. Why are politicians making it so the government can decide for them? This includes decisions made in certain state governments which incite threats to mothers, doctors, midwives. This even brings in “bounty hunters” and criminal lawsuits for people helping women to have a so-called “illegal” abortion. Is this the right thing to do? No, Why? This is injustice pure and simple. 

            Now, gerrymandering and voter suppression has begun in some states that are trying to restrict the voting rights in areas where people of color live. A reminder: Some states in the South during the Jim Crow Era did not allow women of color to vote until 1965 with the enactment of the Voting Rights Act in congress. A continuation of this oppression is still going on with restrictions on voting rights and voter ID required, and so on. 

            Truth vs lies: We need to think about what the truth really is. And what is a lie, lying? The Dictionary says, “A lie is a deliberate falsehood.” This can include excuses, denials, claims of a hoax, cover-ups and distractions. When and how can Justice prevail over this behavior? How can we rectify the social inequities of the disadvantaged? Achieving Justice involves repentance, redemption or punishment in order to have vindication or deliverance.

What can you do in resolving injustice as a whole in the nation? What about your own need for justice in your daily life? What are the injustices you see happening? What can you do? Start by first  weighing the facts and evidence and giving thoughtful and careful deliberation to what is going on in order to come to a beneficial and just decision. Examine your past behavior and reflect upon what you need to do in the future to bring about change.

 

“What is happening to you comes from situations and decisions made in the past.”

“The card signifies absolute honesty”

Rachael Pollack, Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom (Aquarian Press, 1980)

 

 

 

Truth

 TAROT:“It’s in the cards,” Finding Truth

 

The Fool (0), The Empress (3), Justice (11) and The Universe (21) cards: 

These four noteworthy cards, which are included in Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness, bring up questions about truthfulness relevant to what’s going on around the world at the present time. This Tarot quest is not just about uncovering and pointing out serious problems; it’s about finding possible solutions and discerning the truth of the state of affairs in difficult situations.

  

(1. Seeking the truth: — When we search for truth, we expose the lies and misinformation of liars and pranksters, and all the thoughtless absurdities exemplified by The Fool card. 

 

(2. Uncovering the truth of the Earth: — The Empress card inspires us to explore the truth about life on Earth and cultivate an understanding of Nature and its abundance. Daily, as “Earth Riders” and “Stewards of the Earth,” we experience the fecundity of flora and fauna all around us and now realize the importance of protecting the environment and conservation of all species. With this card, we aspire to understand the truth of the Feminine Principle in regard to reproduction, cell-division, growth, and complexity of life processes. The Empress card helps reveal much deeper information about our relationship to the Earth and Nature’s ever-changing cycles. 

 

(3. Telling the truth: — Knowing the truth about what is true or false, helps expose the injustice we see every day in the proliferation of lies, abuses, prejudices, malfeasance and hidden corruption. Truth defeats criminal activity and the Justice card helps us uncover wrong doing and unlawful crime in our own lives. By hearing and telling the truth, law-breaking and lawlessness can be eradicated. Malicious behavior can be corrected through penalties, reformation and rectification processes, not just in courtrooms of law and order, but also in our homes and workplaces.

 

(4. Practicing the truth: — Through our spiritual practices, we can experience the freedom and joy illustrated by the dancing figure in The Universe card. With spiritual preparation and right action, we can experience freedom and joy and dance in Cosmic Awareness. As we advance on our spiritual path, we are finding our rightful place in the Cosmos and fulfilling the promise of happiness and joy.

 

The Fool card: The Fool card awakens unknown possibilities for spiritual discovery.

Where is the best place to begin working with Tarot? It is with The Fool. You might ask “Why”? In Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness, we begin by considering that The Fool card is illustrated as zero — representing nothing — no-thing. In the Rider-Waite deck, a young person is foolishly about to walk over a precipice. At first, The Fool card represents a prelude filled with expectations before “something” happens. Imagine yourself as an artist or writer staring at a blank piece of paper or canvas and contemplating what to put on it. In life, we all start with nothing – zero – nada – zilch. From a physical perspective, we come into this world with nothing but a little ready-made living body and a consciousness. The Fool card, found at the beginning of the Tarot Major Arcana, is usually interpreted as the jumping off place into an unknown. Most of all, it can indicate starting on a path of self-mastery during your life journey. By studying and working with Tarot, we are exploring the path to wisdom. Be aware, but never fear that we might make silly fools of ourselves along the way. Avoid any red-flags of pretentious behavior. Contemplating this card requires a lot of self-examination as you move forward on the path to Cosmic Consciousness.

The Fool card painting in Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness, depicts an oval which is symbolic of no-thing. To the Tarot enthusiast, it implies anticipation of good things to come. In the best sense, it represents the positive, hopeful aspects of achieving Cosmic Consciousness — a wish for spiritual fulfillment. Shimmering silvery clouds swirl in the center of The Fool card symbolic of unknown possibilities. Rainbow colors radiate outward around the edges. When viewed from the highest perspective, the 22 Major Arcana cards in Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness refer to a metaphysical system epitomizing the fool’s steps on a path toward spiritual ideals. In consulting the Tarot, we are yearning for “Oneness” with the spiritual Universe. As we discern the meaning of Tarot images, we have begun the search for the origins of Cosmic Selfhood. When carefully studied, these Tarot paintings are models that can trigger memories that help you discover and retrieve information about your path in life. Study these four cards as they are important guides for you on your spiritual journey. My teacher, Gail Fairfield, refers to using Tarot cards as “mnemonic devices” in her book, Choice Centered Tarot (Weiser, 1997).Of this she says:

 

Fool TOCC

“The key to the Tarot is the symbols on the cards. They are the triggers            

and catalysts for our insights into ourselves and our lives.”

 

When we get The Fool card in a reading, what will we learn? Fools and their outlandish behavior have been teasing us for centuries. Foolish behavior and foolish people were written about in the literature of early civilizations (such as Homer’s, Odyssey). Biblical fools are mentioned throughout the Old and New Testament at least as far back as 6^th century B.C. (see Prov.18:6–7). It’s no different today, foolish stunts and actions continue and there are still a few people who make fools of themselves. We see them often, especially on the daily TV “news.” And we laugh at the comedy programs nightly on TV. Although some people may remain in a foolish, naive state for the rest of their lives, others grow in wisdom garnered from life’s laughable or reckless “lessons learned.” Lucky for us, those people usually relinquish their past foolish behavior and move on to better things.

 

“He dares to be a fool and that is the first step in the direction of wisdom.” 

James Gibbons Huneker

 

Some play at being a fool, the joker, the trickster, the mock-king, mock-president or priest, which, inadvertently, helps us examine our own actions and come to grips with our own occasional irresponsible behavior. Questions always come up about the kind of lives we lead, and one always has to deal with the question of “Who am I?” “Where am I going”? “What am I doing to get there”? In Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness, these concerns are about seeking one’s spiritual selfhood and experiencing the “I AM” of the Cosmic Universe. As most of us are always engaged in the work of improving ourselves, this implies a transcendence of Ego. Finding one’s Cosmic Higher Self involves silencing the “monkey-mind.” On the path to discovery of one’s true spiritual Selfhood, ask yourself, “What is the Ego-Self in contrast to the Cosmic Self ”? As we consult the Tarot, these cards become “doors” to a better understanding of ourselves. As we improve, it is possible to move forward in finding a peaceful “Oneness” with all things. In the 21st card, The Universe, or World card, we dance in the promise of bliss for the future.

(See my post about The Fool in the The Good, Bad and Dangerous 5/25/2020 at https://tarotofcosmicconsciousness.blogspot.com.)

 

“The way to that goal, the steps and music of the dance, lies in the living images of the Major Arcana”

Rachel Pollack, Seventy-eight Degrees of Wisdom (Aquarian Press, Ltd., 1984)

 

The Empress card: This card symbolizes the formative Cosmic Mother Principle of creation and

 prompts us to ask, “What is the truth about Nature and life on Earth”? What is the “Life-force” that animates living beings? How do we answer that? For the religious — “God did it!” For the more mechanical minded, it happened in a muddy, primordial, soup-like puddle. The famous “Rider-Waite” Tarot deck, depictsThe Empress card as a woman surrounded by water, plant life, and a wheat field. Her attributes are abundance and fertility, love, and the processes of birthing and nurturing. Religious implications of Waite card are shown in her crown of twelve stars (refer to Rev. 12:1). In Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness, The Empress card represents Mother Nature’s complex organizational abilities and requires our admiration of Mother Earth. On December 28, 1968, Apollo Astronaut, William Anders, took the first pictures of the whole body of Earth from the Moon. It looks like a giant blue marble covered with swirling white clouds and solid land masses, and somewhere, you are there — a “space traveler” among millions.

The Empress TOCC

Through scientific research, we know that the earth is populated with billions of self-organizing, self-replicating, self-perpetuating living organisms. Yes, we know a lot about DNA and cell-division, but what about “aliveness”? What kind of Life-Force impels those cells to self-actuate, to grow, develop and reproduce themselves? What is the Life-Force in living beings?  “Prana” or “Chi”— represent invisible inner forces, which are offered as explanations for “aliveness” in Eastern thought. We are aware of most every living thing on Earth today, from micro-cellular creatures, to multitudes of flora and fauna, which includes apes and mankind. When we contemplate The Empress card, questions come up about the origin of life. What is the truth behind how we came into being? Ask yourself: “How do I view my own aliveness”? Every gardener knows that when you plant seeds in the ground, little green plants emerge as carrots or peas, beans, kale, and so on. Their living forms emerge and are on their way to fruition and creation of seed-packets that, yet again, yield more cycles of future life forms. For life to begin, tiny cells must arrange themselves by mingling together according to a specific plan or so-called “blueprint” in order to transform into a complete Being. By merging and combining —Voilà! — there is a dog or cat, or cow, and the cow is always a cow, not a horse or a chicken, and so on. Why is that? 

(See my post The Empress, Another View, October 1, 2021 https://tarotofcosmicconsciousness.blogspot.com.)

 

The first thing to consider about The Empress card is gratitude — being grateful for your aliveness and the sense of aliveness in all other beings, from the tiniest amoeba to the grandest elephant. Express your gratitude and love for Earth’s abundance. Ask yourself, “Do I understand the total awesomeness of the creative process? Am I in tune with the Great Creatrix of the Universe?” How am I nurturing, caring for and providing sustenance for others in my life? What am I doing to maintain the environment and protect endangered species and public lands? 

In political terms, as “Stewards of the Earth,” do I support the “Endangered Species Act” and all that entails? What about a women’s freedom to be in control of what goes on in her own body during reproductive processes? After the repeal of the “Roe Versus Wade Act,” who is trying to control what women do in privacy and why? These are some of the questions brought up as you contemplate The Empress card. Democracy needs your answers and activism.

 

Justice card: Justice will be done.

In order to bring about justice for wrongdoing, we must first acknowledge what defines “injustice.” What does this mean? What are the inequities? What are the criminal acts? What questions do you need to ask to rectify lawless and immoral situations and find justice? Who is being wronged, mistreated, lied about or misrepresented and why? 

(See my blog posts 2/10/2018, and November 2022, The Fool and Misinformation.)

  

Justice TOCC

In the biblical story “The Judgement of Solomon,” two women were fighting over a baby, each claiming it was her baby. They went before King Solomon for a solution. His ruling was to divide it in two by giving one half to one woman and the other half to the other. The first woman was sorrowful as this would kill the baby, so she said to give it to the other woman. The other woman said to cut it in two. Solomon gave it to the first woman saying she was its real mother (I Kings 3:16–28). That’s how absurd it can get in our search for truth. This confabulation echo’s our contemporary times like what we saw in the storming of the US Capitol building on January 6, 2021. For several hours, excess violence and threats of death obstructed the final process of electing a President. Since everyone watched the attacks and violence on TV, it doesn’t make sense for certain news reporters and legislators to say they were “just tourists.” Say what …?  Who is fooling who?  The truth has been revealed about what actually occurred that day and criminal penalties have been enforced for about 1,000 extreme right obstructionists. 

The symbol of Justice is a woman who holds scales to weigh the good versus evil aspects of human behavior. Finding justice implies weighing the evidence in the balances and seeing the difference between truth and lies. In the past, the list of injustices in the establishment of Democracy in the USA was very long. In the struggle to determine what was right and what was wrong, justice was served with the Civil War. But there is still some bad news. Today, there is still ongoing discrimination and abuse of civil rights, although with some improvement. The “air” is still filled with concocted conspiracy theories and maligning falsehoods. In some states, there is voter intimidation and misinformation, persecution and attacks on LGBTQ people, and even bounty hunters for women and doctors over abortion rights. And, we have seen countless cases of disrespect for persons of color. Attacks upon others based on white supremacy ideology and Nazism are occurring in an open disregard for law. The worst part is the gunning down of people in offices, parks, parties and parades, including children and teachers in schools. This form of murder has been carried out by crazed individuals using military style rifles. Wake up people! What is going on here? What happened to “Liberty and Justice for All” and “Love thy neighbor”? What are the steps we need to take to stop this crazy senselessness?

  

The Universe (The World) card: Liberation

In the Rider-Waite deck, a woman dances in joy within a large oval. In Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness, the woman is now a swirling prismatic figure. In the painting, the dancer is shown transformed into a radiant spiritual being. She embodies freedom and liberation, which symbolizes the outcome of the adventure into unknown inner space and Cosmic Awareness. The Universe or World card signifies the possibility of freedom and liberation from an Ego-centered selfhood. The colorful figure represents merging into Oneness with the Cosmic Universe where one is free from mental anxiety and fears. She is swirling in the joyousness of a new higher reality and expresses freedom, self-determination and Love.

What should we do when we receive this card in a reading? At night, we see millions of stars “out there” and wonder if there are other planets like ours. Are some of those planets covered with water and life forms like our beautiful Earth? Are you wondering if we are alone in the Universe? Yes, what if we are truly alone and this planet is unique? The first thought is to be grateful for our sense of “aliveness,” and our living presence here on Earth. This is the time to express immense gratitude for our lives and for all other living beings. With this card, it is a time to ponder and meditate on “the meaning of life.” Do you love yourself, your family, friends and neighbors? Do you love your enemies? Do you love and care for the Earth?

 

“I find under the boughs of love and hate, in all foolish things that live a day, 

The Universe TOCC

Eternal Beauty wandering on her way.”

WB Yeats,“To the Rose upon the Rood of Time”

 

As we face the reality of living on earth in dangerous times, we can’t be frozen in great fear about an atomic war, which would be the ultimate destruction of Earth. We must have hope and continue to work together toward a peaceful settlement of conflicts. And even though it seems this is the scary time frame we are living in today; we can find solutions in our committed sensible stewardship of the Earth. Its “riders” who are dedicated to truth are needed now more than ever. 

 

Jane Goodall,in her book with Marc Berkoff, The Ten Trusts (HarperSanFrancisco, 2002) she takes up the issue of destruction of the planet, where she says:

 

“We have destroyed and polluted so much of Planet Earth in sixty plus years since I was a small child. So many plant and animal species have gone forever. It is so desperately important that the children of today learn to be better stewards than we have been.”

 

Look for answers to these pertinent questions.

1.    How do I approach my life experiences? How do I deal with relationships with others who are on the same path and those who aren’t?

2.    Are there some people in my life I think are fools? How am I dealing with them?

3.    Whom do I trust? Whom do I doubt? Whom do I fear? 

4.    What is my truth? Am I telling lies? What am I lying about? Am I just a fool?

5.    What is distracting me from reaching my goal? Am I just being selfish?

6.    Am I happy in my daily living? What makes me joyful or sad?

7.    How do I deal with disappointment and frustrations?

8.    Am I working with those who demonstrate good stewardship of earth’s resources?

9.    Am I helping to protect the environment?

10.  Am I telling the truth? Do I express love and forgiveness?

 

 

For further exploration of what you can do with Tarot cards see my see blog posts:

https://tarotofcosmicconsciousness.blogspot.com

 

THE FOOL AND MISINFORMATION

                                        Fools+ Misinformation, Lies and Conspiracy Theories

 

“Saturnalia,” an ancient Roman celebration of Saturn began on December 17 and lasted through December 23^rd. A “Lord of Misrule” [The Fool] presided over a feast of silly fools honoring the ancient god, Saturn, patron of the crops. In a gleeful carnival atmosphere, it was celebrated with robust partying complete with a loosening of all moral restrictions. The “mock king” oversaw unlimited feasting, dancing, gambling and masquerade parades. People spoke freely in story-telling, stating lies, giving gag gifts, spreading misinformation and ridicule. Like a fantasy circus, this dystopia was all carried out with no social norms. It was a few days of an elaborate evasion of reality. Eventually, some of the activities of “Saturnalia” were transferred to the Old Europe celebration of the “Twelfth Night,” the last night of the Twelve Days of Christmas from December 25 to January 6^th. Over the centuries, a bean was baked into a cake and whoever found the bean would be king (Lord of Misrule) for the night. * In Tarot, The Fool card can represent a character who plays tricks, talks in riddles, creates chaos and invents paradoxes in order to subvert ridged systems. In a different context, The Fool can be the prequel to the beginning of an adventure on the Tarot path to enlightenment as he travels through the other 21 Tarot cards—Tarot symbols of certain arenas of life’s experiences. But here we are concerned with the silly crazy-making trickster—an unpredictable clown generating chaos and confusion.

 

“Foolery sir, does walk about the orb like the sun. It shines everywhere.”

Shakespeare (The Twelfth Night)

 

“As pagan mysteries found refuge in carnival clownishness, so the fool was preserved by his know-nothing character, like that of pagan heroes before their enlightenment.”

Barbara G. Walker, The Secrets of the Tarot, (HarperCollins, 1984)

 

 How does this relate to us In our time today? It seems the USA has been in a similar Saturnalia-like state of political disorder since the election of the 45^th President in 2016. We have witnessed the spreading of contemptuous lies and unbelievable conspiracy theories via social media and fake and obtrusive websites non-stop. We have been constantly bombarded daily with made up stories concocted by divisive groups in a reckless subversion of any sort of order and promoted by TV news and social media sites.

On January 6, 2021, the cumulative effect of election lies resulted in a state of stochastic violence carried out by rioters in a violent attack on the US Capitol building. Screaming people overloaded with conspiracy theories were breaking in while shouting about a so-called “stolen election.” Ultimately, the “Pied Piper” led brain-washed “lemmings” over the cliff of reality concerning the voter’s legitimate election, into a state of divisive unreality by trying to stop the certification of the election for the President of the United States. The sadistic protesters were also threatening to kill those who were overseeing the count of the electoral college results. Fomented by lies and fear, everyone there just stepped into a quagmire of mindless mob rule and insurrection. The unmitigated violence sent congressional members into hiding. On TV, viewers witnessed plainclothes men and Capitol Police standing behind blocked doors with their guns drawn. Then a rioter was shot and killed. Police officers were mangled and beat up. Later, one died. It’s a wonder more rioters weren’t shot. 

Confronting misinformation:

“We must confront the truth with candor, resolve and determination.”

(Bennie Thompson said this as he opened the Jan 6th Hearingsabout the attack on the capitol.) 

 

Naomi Klein in her book, The Shock Doctrine, The Rise of Disaster Capitalism, (Knopf Canada, 2007) was mainly talking about an economic dystopia, but some of the concepts iterated can be applied to what we see going on in a USA "political dystopia." She says of this that it: “Centers on the exploitation of national crises (disasters or upheavals) to establish controversial and questionable policies while citizens are too distracted (emotionally and physically) to engage and develop an adequate response and resist effectively.”[Wikipedia review of The ShockDoctrine] The time is now to deal with lies and not be held in bondage by the “Shock Doctrine.” As someone said on Twitter: “Speech is free but lies you have to pay for.”

 

Rather than meeting friends and family members when they post conspiracy theories on Facebook, start a conversation about the serious damage that rumors and falsehoods are doing to our lives…”Clare Wood, (Scientific American,November 2020) “How to get through this Election.” [Most of the November 2020 Scientific American deals with confronting misinformation, including vaccine mistrust.]

 

On another note: “The Southern Poverty Law Center has exposed 838 active hate groups in the United States.” See (www.splcenter.org/hatemap). These groups have been racially motivated in feeding lies and false information while training and poisoning the minds of young people who don’t know or understand the history of previous wars fought by their grandfathers, particularly in bringing down the fascism of Nazi Germany in WWII.

 

Concerning the Internet:

“Now the field is open to any ideological tactics including impersonating individual politicians, create mass fake accounts and coordinating harassment of journalists through the use of streaming platforms, chat rooms and message boards, bots’, trolls and fake accounts.” Joan Donovan “Truth Activism” (Scientific American, Nov. 2020, "How to get Through this Election”)

 

The Fool in a Tarot reading:

How can you relate a Tarot reading to all this “noise”? In the context of the fool as a trickster, and you have receivedThe Fool card, it’s time to consider how someone or something is trying to “fool” you. Ask yourself why someone else is trying to tell you what to believe? What is their source of information. Who said what to whom and why? How are you being impacted by rumors, conspiracy theories and outright falsehoods? 

Now is not the time for false hopes. For instance, are you being intimidated to vote a certain way? Turn off the TV. Work on solving doubts in your own mind. Research the facts. Who is telling lies? Why? Who is telling the truth? Network and discuss how to deal with forces that are up to no good with your friends and relatives. Don’t be “fooled.”

 

*Edna Barth, Holly, Reindeer and Colored Lights (Clarion Books, 1971).

Queens in Tarot

Queens: Leadership and Autonomy 

 We need fiery women’s leadership to keep women From Bondage! 

      

     As mentioned before in my earlier blog of 2015, a Queen card in Tarot no longer represents the aristocratic power of a kingdom as in the “bow and scrape” type as it was during Medieval times. Yet, today, Queens in a Tarot deck still signify the status of power and leadership nonetheless. 

      

     As Gail Fairfield in says her book, Choice Centered Tarot (Weiser 1997): 

 “All the Queens represent competency. They show that you’ve achieved a deep level of fulfillment, skill or maturity … and you are given the respect or status that is due to you.”

     Today, we acknowledge that a modern-day woman in the USA is capable of competency and powers of leadership in her own merit, especially in the days since she won the right to vote August 18, 1920. For The Supreme Court to take away the 1973 act, “Roe vs Wade,” this has ended the rights of women to govern their own bodies and to no longer have a choice of whether not they will bear a child. This is a grievous mistake. In Texas, to punish others through civil lawsuits who are involved in supporting a woman’s abortion including doctors, is downright cruel and demoralizing, and reeks of patriarchal authoritarian punishment. 

      What does it mean to be a woman of “child bearing age?” Obviously to most women, the men of the Supreme Court, plus one conservative woman, enacted a ruling that smacks of the attitude that women are just “breeders” who need control—as in cattle husbandry. And there is a lot more hidden behind this concept, because now, several state legislatures are deciding what is best for pregnant women in their state. The huge problem here is that someone else will make the decision for a woman about whether to bear a child or to keep it, and punish her if she doesn’t follow their rules. We can see that certain state legislatures that lean far-right are beginning to impose a repressive agenda and assert control over women by rewriting state laws, some that even threaten to prosecute women for murder with execution for having a miscarriage. And prison for doctors? What is this? 

      The assumption is that a woman cannot make a private decision herself about her own pregnancy, even if it is still a miniscule fetus. If the states are bound to criminalize and punish women, their doctors and their supporters, why aren’t they talking about punishing the men who get women pregnant in the first place, including cases of rape and incest, particularly for teenagers. In those states, there is no legislative support for that child when poor women are forced to bear it if they can’t afford it. There are no resources for maternity leave and affordable childcare if they are working, for example. 

      On the other hand, a miscarriage is Nature’s process of correcting something that has gone wrong in the mysterious growth processes of a womb. “Murder?” Is this some kind of madness brought on by fear of death and Nature’s ways in the 21st century on the part of these legislators? Are we living in Medieval times again? Burn the witches? 

     A lot of anxiety is expressed in the attempt to control women, especially when it is based on a misunderstanding of the processes of natural reproduction. Just look at your garden. In Nature’s methods for promoting growth, flowering and reproduction, so-called attempted “murder” is going on all over – insects eating your tomatoes; cats killing and eating birds; birds eating the bugs; humans spraying poisons on the worms, rats carrying off what they can eat. It’s kill or be killed and worse … eaten! 

     This is patriarchy trying to control something they don’t understand. Only a pregnant woman and Nature knows what’s going on in her body and what the consequences will be. We are treading on very scary ground here loaded with ignorance, fear, terror, and misunderstanding of the creative process and especially about what goes on in a woman’s womb. There are many reasons women have abortions including what can go wrong medically: ectopic pregnancy, uterine fibroids, prolapse, endometriosis. Then there is rape, incest, being poor, lack of money to raise a child, job loss, abandonment of husband, illness. 

 “Our bodies are our gardens, to which our wills are gardeners” Shakespeare, Othello 

      Imagine being sued in some states by an unknown person because you helped save a woman’s life during a disastrous miscarriage when you took her to the hospital, or you got sued because you drove your sister or wife across state lines to an abortion clinic to get help for an ectopic pregnancy. Or worse yet, what about the 10-year-old girl who was raped in Ohio and was driven across state lines to Indiana to have an abortion? Now the doctor is being investigated. This is obscene. Luckily the rapist has been arrested. 

Taking action to stop this: 

      Who are the Tarot Queen leaders taking on leadership roles in finding ways to help right now? How are they challenging and changing this unwieldly oppression which is obscured in a maze of rules, regulations and legal fences. What are women and the men who support them going to do about this? 

      Well, first, women who want to end a pregnancy will do as they always have in the past before Roe was enacted in 1973—they will resort to so-called “backroom abortions” or worse yet, to “hangars” and various concoctions to induce an abortion. I’ve lived long enough to hear many horror stories from many women friends about those unfortunate situations, some impossible to believe and have met medical personnel who spent time in prison for helping women. With Roe vs Wade, women could make a choice of what they did with THEIR bodies and with their doctors, versus previous “state control” over their bodies. 

      Who will help combat this situation? We see congress women, lawyers, women GYM’s, doctors, authors, journalists, sports figures, artists, playwrights and so on, stepping up to support a woman’s “Freedom to Choose.” We need a massive protest agenda that will allow women and their doctors to take action on ways to protect themselves now. The medical profession as a whole must step up and protest what can happen to doctors as they are sued or jailed by those states that are in control of women’s bodies and the doctors. So far, in Ohio, 1,000 doctors have signed a letter of dissent against restrictive bills which are now being voted on in the Ohio State Legislature. 

 Michele Goodwin Professor of Law made it plain in an article in the New York Times (June 26, 2022) “No, Justice Alito, Reproductive Justice is in the Constitution;” she wrote that “Ending the forced sexual and reproductive servitude of Black girls and women was a critical part of the passage of the 13th and 14th Amendments.” 

 Washington Senator Patty Murray on the Senate floor has stated: “Roe vs Wade” is no longer settled law, but we aren’t going to stand idly by while they rip away abortion rights of go after birth control. We are going to stand up and fight back with our voices and our votes — to protect the right of every woman to make her own health care decisions.” She introduced legislation condemning the criminalization of the full range of reproductive and sexual health care. 

 On July 8, 2022, President Joe Biden signed an executive order aimed at protecting abortion rights.

 Representative Cori Bush from Missouri stated: “At this moment, we must show up. We must stand up. And we must support those in our community. It’s not over. It’s changed but it’s not over.” 

 Dr. Amy “Meg” Autry from the University of California, San Francisco, has started a nonprofit program “PRROWESS,” to protect reproductive rights of women by creating offshore aquatic clinics in federal waters. This plan has been tried by “Women on Waves” a Dutch nonprofit that has provided abortions off the coast of Mexico. This plan is still on the drawing boards as they work out the ramifications and legal issues. 

 For more information, see the latest Mother Jones Magazine “Lock Her Up” (August 2022) and Ms. Magazine “We Have Had Abortions” (Winter 2022) and “patriarchy” (Spring 2022). 

 Ms. Magazine also sponsors podcasts: “On the Issues” with Michele Goodwin. msmagazine.com/podcast

The Empress: Another View

 The Empress—Women and Nature

 

Part I:The Empress and The Processes of Nature

     What do you think of when you get The Empress card in a Tarot reading? In the Waite deck, it depicts a woman sitting in a garden surrounded by Nature’s bounty of grain, water, flowers and forests. In Tarot, The Empress card is sometimes interpreted as representing the Great Earth Mother Goddess and viewed primarily as a symbol of fertility. Here, she is the appropriate card to inspire you to participate in further contemplation of Nature and its processes as in The Empress card in Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness. This card indicates, first of all, that now is the time to re-evaluate your relationship with Nature and your understanding of Nature’s biological systems of growth and development. Ask yourself how you get in touch with Nature: By gardening? Birding? Fishing, Hunting, Hiking, Camping? Traveling? Through environmental concerns, management and conservation of Nature’s resources? 

 

    It’s necessary now in view of “climate change,” that we earth-dwellers give these questions serious consideration pertaining to the way we actively deal with the beauty and wonders of Nature’s creations, which flourish all around us. In the highest sense, The Empress represents the Feminine Principle—The Formator. She signifies Nature’s incredible ability to create living entities from the so-called blueprint for self-replication, which, in an earthly sense, implies the formation of all the plants, animals and humans roaming the earth. We know these are formed in the female womb or egg or seed at the start. (Think of the old quote: Which came first, the chicken or the egg?)This concept applies to all female creatures and feminine processes, all of which have the ability to form another being or life form like themselves: plants, trees, humans, animals, apes, horses, chickens, snails, fish, frogs, snakes and rats. This has enormous implications.

     After the spark of life from the Masculine Principle has activated the process of growth and development—the wonder of cell-division occurs and living organisms begin to assume form. As I have mentioned before in my blog, “The Hierophant Now,” (10/26/20) the art of scientist/artist, Ernst Haeckel, shows the amazing beauty and intricate design of nature’s underlying organic structures in jellyfish, diatoms and radiolarians. These micro-organisms have manifested their forms though what looks like preplanned cell-division; where each cell is predetermined to replicate some part of the whole structure and then these cells merge as the complete creature. The final results of this process demand our utmost respect and awe.

     

Haeckel's drawings

The planted bean (seed) forms another bean plant like itself. Rabbits make more rabbits, and more and more! This formative process takes place mysteriously in the wombs and eggs and seeds of all female creatures and plant species: Women, mares, cows, hens, ewes, sows, does, nanny goats, lionesses, can all do it. Yes, and that brings up the old adage “…walks like a duck, looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, so it must be a duck.” Then the question arises why do ducks look the same over and over again with

Empress TOCC

each new flock?  A duck doesn’t look like a cow or a pig. Why does every creature and plant seem to be able to replicate an image of itself? Anyone who has planted a seed in their vegetable garden in the warm, moist ground, can watch this process unfold over time. A green petaled form pops up and grows into a large plant and … presto! …Zucchinis appear! (And we are left figuring out a hundred ways to eat them.)

     But now we have some other questions to consider—man’s so-called intervention in nature, for example: In animal husbandry, the cows’ reproductive capabilities have been managed by the farmer. Every year, thousands of cows are artificially inseminated, a calf is born, and then we have the production of milk which we drink and the beef we eat. Then there are the processes of GMO crop growing. Genetically modified organisms (corn, for example) are grown in the US. Their genetic material has been modified and does not occur in nature. In horses, the natural processes of breeding without interference mostly occur just with thoroughbred race horses, although chickens and rabbits are pretty good at it too! We know that most plants and animals can replicate themselves  without such interference from man.

     Now comes the difficult part: in contrast to the living wonders of creation — times up! The plant withers, leaves turn brown, crumple and die, and return to the ground with the onset of Fall and Winter. For most plants, first, it’s life, then death, and the whole process starts over again because of the seeds left behind, which sprout and grow into a new plant in the spring. It sounds like a simple but obvious observation of a very convoluted process. Natural processes versus man’s interference certainly requires much more discussion, scientific study and explanation. 

 

Part II:The Empress: Now from a completely different perspective—a Woman of Power 

       In this part, we are interpreting The Empress Tarot card based on the meaning of the title—Empress—she signifies a woman who is a ruling sovereign. How do we apply this aristocratic presumption to today’s woman? How do we view the status of women in the world today? In this context, “Empress” implies rank. When we think about the word – Empress – it denotes a woman of high rank, if not the highest in the aristocracy of the earlier European ruling dynasties. Queen Victoria was declared “Empress of India” when the British occupied the country (1876 until her death in 1901). She was the Imperial Head of State (title was dropped in 1948 when the British left India and it became an Independent Nation). I won’t go into all the difficulties of their rule, mostly because it was unpleasant and destructive. So, in naming the card The Empress, this implies “Power.” How do we apply a better concept of “a woman’s power” to today’s world, especially now when women in the US are seeking gender equality and equal rights? Now we get into the political and seamy side of what is happening to women’s rights in the different states. Especially concerning are attacks on a woman’s right to reproductive freedom.

       With passage of “Roe Vs Wade,” (1973) the purpose of the ruling was to allow women the choice of what they do with their bodies as a personal health-care matter, not a government control matter. Today, the latest concerns are about a woman’s freedom to determine what happens within her own body versus what the states think should happen morally. Let’s start with the importance of understanding that her medical decisions are personal matter and nobody else’s business. In fact, there are laws that protect doctor/patient confidentiality. 

     Now comes the really difficult contrast to the wonders of creation: a woman’s right to a medical procedure performed by a doctor to remove an embryo from her womb, to put it bluntly. A frightening prospect to some in dealing with life and death, to say the least. 

 

“The protagonist recognizes her body as both revelation and incarnationof the great powers of life and death. ‘My body also changes, the creature in me, plant-animal, sends out filaments in me; I ferry it secure between death and life, I multiply.’”

Margaret Atwood, Surfacing, (Simon and Schuster 1972)

 

     The most explosive part of this conversation is in regard to those who are pondering the question of women’s rights and the cellular changes within a woman’s own body: Who is in charge of the embryo? What part does the government have in this? And most importantly, what about the woman herself — what are her rights? There are many questions and answers in discussing “women’s rights” and the political implications of such a medical procedure. There have been all sorts of justifications, demonstrations, pontifications, accusations, and even deadly violence over this. And today, we see activists carrying signs both for and against abortion: Pro-Choice or Pro-Life in demonstrations across the country. 

     Much has been written about women’s power, or lack of it, or attempts to quash it.  We know some of the answers depend on women’s knowledge of contraception and the need to control fertility. What happens in the future depends on women’s autonomy and their ability to make sensible personal choices. That is why family planning services and educational programs have been so important both here and internationally. This has also been recognized by certain knowledgeable supportive men. 

     

Author, Carol Christ on the issue of abortion: 

“The affirmation of a woman’s right to control her own body and choose abortion has been fundamental in the women’s movement.”

Diving Deep and Surfacing(Beacon Press 1980)

 

     As these arguments go on today, the Texas Legislature and the Governor have passed a bill (S.B.8) to ban abortion after 6 weeks and essentially place draconian bounties of $10,000 in lawsuits on women seeking an abortion (punishment) AND their doctors, nurses, families, caregiver, neighbors, and taxi/ Uber drivers who take them to abortion clinics (more punishment). This is really stepping into the sh….t. This smacks of the WWII Nazi government’s evil intent in Germany, demanding that ordinary people report on the whereabouts of Jews to the Gestapo. Their final outcome (punishment) was that they were hauled off to concentration camps and murdered. Even though that genocidal finality is not happening here in the S.B. 8 law, women and their supporters are threatened to be punished with bounties and lawsuits from ordinary anybody if they are seen going to an abortion clinic.What kind of madness is this?So, what’s next? Somebody suing you when you take your dog to the vet to be spayed? This is a blatant attempt to launch patriarchal power through punishment laws in the legislatures and courts to assert control over women; which adversely affects pregnant women in ill health, poor women, and women of color, rape victims, and teenagers, and those who can’t afford to care for a child, and all that entails. Women and their doctors know what is best for them.  Some women don’t even know if they are pregnant before 16 weeks. 

     In view of this draconian law, here’s what has happened in the past in the US. I’m old enough to remember when abortions were illegal and were secretly carried out in clandestine places—back rooms, underground clinics or, if you had money, you went to Switzerland. I have heard many strange horror stories from my women friends about these illegal practices, including the notorious use of a wire hanger or drinking some poisonous potion and awful after effects. I heard from a nurse who spent 2 years in prison who worked in a secret illegal underground abortion clinic and a young man studying to be a doctor whose men friends constantly asked him if he learned how to do abortions yet. Even if abortions are banned, women will return to these old illegal methods of solving the problem. 

 

     Philosophy Professor, Kate Manne, discusses the ongoing attempts to establish patriarchal power over women’s lives in her book, Down Girl,(Oxford University Press, 2017).  She deliberates on the logic of misogyny and states that:

“…misogyny enforces patriarchy by punishing women who deviate 

from patriarchy.”

 

      In a review by Ashraya Maria, (Author of Feminism in India) she says of Manne’s book Down Girl: 

     “The naïve conception of misogyny shifts attention from systemic conditions toward perpetrators psychologies, thereby giving rise to what Manne calls “himpathy.” Himpathy refers to excessive sympathy given to male perpetrators rather than the victims of sexual violence. It reverses the narrative of blame and gives rise to testimonial injustice.” She continues:“Misogyny is a way women are kept in patriarchal order by imposing social costs for those breaking role or rank and warning others not to.” 

“Manne calls the policing system of patriarchy is premised on the idea that it is acceptable for women to owe men certain obligations such as domestic, reproductive and emotional labor which confines them to occupying designated places in a man’s world.”

 

     In the current Scientific American, (October 2021) is an article by Elizabeth Nash of the Guttmacher Institute in Washington, D.C. where she states:

“A significant body of scientific literature shows that the adverse consequences of withholding abortion care are serious and long-lasting. Forcing someone who wants an abortion to continue a pregnancy requires them against their wishes to accept the great risks of pregnancy and labor-related complications which include 

preeclampsia, infections and death.”

 

     Senator Patty Murray from Washington State said in a recent Tweet: 

    “Any law that restricts the right to abortion and allows anyone —including anti-abortion activists who have no connection to the patient to act as “bounty hunters” is unacceptable. Your choices about pregnancy are up to you —not politicians or 

strangers.”

 

The Empress card in a reading: 

     When you receive this card as a woman or man, it’s time to apply the concept of “woman’s power” to your life and to today’s world. What power do you have over the affairs of your own life? It’s important to take stock of your own personal power to manage what is most important to you.  Ask yourself how you are taking care of yourself. How are you leading, caring, nurturing and tending to the most important matters in your daily life —your family, your friends, your co-workers? Always remember that no matter the circumstances, you are in charge of your own life and your ability to reproduce or not. That’s why there has been so much hype about Pro-choice. It’s a woman’s right to choose what is happening to her own body, not the government, and right now, that’s the law with Roe vs Wade. You don’t have to argue over this situation for months. This is what gender-equality is about, which leads to sustainability in a supportive atmosphere. Affirm the fact every day that you are in charge and you have the power and the forces of nature to guide you. 

For a touch of humor in all this, if you watched “Downton Abbey,” 

remember what the Dowager Countess (Maggie Smith) said to Edith (Laura Carmichael): 

“You are a woman with a brain and reasonable ability. Stop whining and find something to do!”

(Julian Fellowes, Author)

 

Women are marching on October 2, 2021 in the US.