The Love of Venus the Evening Star Apparition

The Roman goddess of Love rules the Major Arcana card,The Empress,  representing The Great Mother.

In the night sky, if you look up you'll find the Evening Star Apparition at it's best in years, Venus, which hovers near the crescent Moon in the beautiful twilight. It will be easily seen tonight and tomorrow, as the sun sets and will continually get brighter into the late Summer and into September.

Venus the goddess of Love being in Gemini, my Sun Sign, gives me a deep sense of affirmation and connection to all the elements and especially with the earth.

The Empress, the great goddess Demeter, the Earth Mother ruler of all nature is the protectress of young defenseless creatures. Adorned in her necklace, symbolizing the twelve signs of the Zodiac, she embodies the Great Mother. Without her within us, we can bring nothing to fruition. Hers is the wisdom of nature, which understands that all things move in cycles and ripen at the appropriate time.

All the sun long it was running, it was lovely, the hay
Fields high as the house, the tunes from the chimneys, it was air
And playing, lovely and watery
And fire green as grass. And nightly under the simple stars
As I rode to sleep the owls were bearing the farm away,
All the moon long I heard, blessed among stables, the nightjars
Flying with the ricks, and the horses
Flashing into the dark.
–Dylan Thomas (1914–53)

The Empress - Winter Solstice Blessing

The one thing I look forward to this time of year is the Winter Solstice. And when I think of this celebration of light, my thoughts go to the Major Arcana card the Empress. She is representative of the Great Earth Mother within, and the image of the great goddess Demeter, mother of Persephone (Proserpina), who freezes over and blankets the earth for six months of the year in desparate search of her abducted daughter for whom she mourns so deeply.

I've heard it said that the Winter Solstice is like the birth canal and the physical experience of mothering, but also the inner experience of the Great Mother: discovering that the body is something valuable and precious and that we ought to celebrate the pleasures in nature and in life.

We experience being part of nature and how we are rooted in natural life. Without Demeter the Empress and Great Mother, we cannot appreciate our physical selves. We are connected to the feeling of safety and trust in life and the wisdom of nature. There is a deep understanding that everything moves in cycles and ripens and comes to fruition at the appropriate time.

The Empress - Motherhood - Earth - Practical Wisdom

I believe the reason I love the Empress so much is because when I think of who she is, I want to do everything I can to feel grounded to the earth, seeking the practical wisdom she is known for, and she prompts me to work at having a strong sense of discernment to make the right decisions. I'm reminded to trust my intuition and to apply the practical wisdom that the sacred feminine exemplifies.

Last night I had a visit from a neighbour who has made me an offer, hard to refuse. No, nothing untoward or unseemly, but a business offer that left me feeling a little excited, almost giddy, nervous and thinking about the old adage, 'be careful what you pray for', because your prayer might be answered, and then what will you do?

Oh, I could say yes, I could say no. The pros to saying yes, could really change my life for the better, and be a very practical solution, relieving me of two major problems I've struggled with for many years.

One the other hand, what were the cons? I couldn't see any, as these were unknown, other then what was vaguely in my worrying imaginings.  And I'd say this is what made me fearful, the unknown. The thought of either answer left me feeling anxious, like I was in a kind of state of paralysis, not knowing what to do. I did know I couldn't make any decision in haste.
So I thought, the best thing for me to do would be to take a deep breath, turn it over to the God of my understanding, pray and I drew the Empress card with a question in mind.

 I knew I needed to call a friend today, who's opinion I greatly respected and trusted, and who possessed the practical wisdom of the Empress, a very grounded a very motherly kind of woman, whom I love very much. Calling her to ask what she thought, wasn't the first thing I did this morning, I simply continued with my usual morning rituals and routine to help me get grounded.

Finally, when I felt it was time, I called my friend this afternoon, who thought this offer was something I should say yes to, as it could be a very positive event in my life, and make things so much easier for me.  And she had good things to say about my neighbour. I felt in my heart and in my mind that she was right and I might not ever get another opportunity like this in the future.

So tonight I called my neighbour and asked if we could meet this Sunday to discuss the matter further and hopefully work out some of the initial details and come to a mutual agreement that we were both happy with based on practical wisdom.

The Empress - Beltane - Spring Celebrations

This morning as I went to draw my daily Tarot card from my Mythic Tarot deck, when I thought to myself, I wish I'd draw The Empress because she's been on my mind after spending lots of time getting ready for gardening and watching all the signs of Spring that I've been so looking forward to. Well the Empress it was! The exact card I drew from my deck, and was very happily surprized! It was a great affirmation.

Lately The Empress, the Earth Mother, the matriarchal goddess, ruler of all nature, the protector of all young creatures has been coming up in conversation and thought. In Greek myth she is embodied by the goddess (Demeter) who governed the cycle of nature and the life of all growing things.

 On Sunday, tomorrow, April 30th will be the eve of Beltane, that typically begins the evening before the last night of April. It is the very ancient Celtic celebration of fertility and Spring. Many cultures have celebrations surrounding Spring and fertility however I have a special personal affinity to Beltane because of my Celtic roots that run deep.

Beltane is a celebration of new life, fire, passion, rebirth and the fertility of Spring. It is the holiday of union between Goddess and God, between male and female energies. It's time to welcome the abundance of the fertile earth.

Am Beannachadh Bealltain (The Beltane Blessing)

Bless, O threefold true and bountiful,
Myself, my spouse, my children.
Bless everything within my dwelling and in my possession,
Bless the kine and crops, the flocks and corn,
From Samhain Eve to Beltane Eve,
With goodly progress and gentle blessing,
From sea to sea, and every river mouth,
From wave to wave, and base of waterfall.
Be the Maiden, Mother, and Crone,
Taking possession of all to me belonging.
Be the Horned God, the Wild Spirit of the Forest,
Protecting me in truth and honor.
Satisfy my soul and shield my loved ones,
Blessing every thing and every one,
All my land and my surroundings.
Great gods who create and bring life to all,
I ask for your blessings on this day of fire.

Wild Flowers - Catherine Meyers

Four of Swords - The Antidote to Self-Doubt - The Authentic Turn-On

Tomorrow I have an ultra sound. I've been stressing about it, along with the impending Winter, which of course is such a useless waste of my energy. I get frustrated and impatient with myself when I worry, and start spinning my wheels.
So after some reflective reading I've come to a more peaceful place in my mind, and am feeling better in knowing I can trust myself to be strong and overcome my self-doubt.

Something I received this morning was these wise words of Regena Thomashauer ( Mama Gena ). I don't know where she finds this wisdom, but I am grateful she does because her words, are timely and much appreciated. The email was about the antidote to self-doubt, and this morning I drew the Four of Swords, that indicates the following. characteristic behaviours.

• Inner reflection
• Balance
• Clarity of thought
• Wholeness
• Contemplation
• Letting go
• Introspection
• Inner vision

Here is what Regena Thomashauer means by having an authentic turn-on, and it is the antidote to self-doubt.

"But the experience of authentic turn-on goes much, much deeper:

• You feel a sense of your own aliveness and your life force
• You know that your spirit and your body are one
• Your native enthusiasm is intact
• Your ability to reach for pleasure is on—especially when it seems hard
• You’re in your right mind and your highest power
• You’re you—full, complete and whole

Once planted in her authentic turn-on, a woman begins to grow. Kind of like the way you just trust a tree to grow.

A turned on woman learns she can deeply trust herself. She pays attention to her desires, and treats them as her road map.

Indecision vaporizes.
 
She can truly feel her deep yes and her deep no.
She relaxes into the unknown, rather than forcing or muscling her way through life.
She knows she can handle obstacles, and understands that each one forces her to expand in new ways.
She experiences the divine in everything, especially herself.

Within you, within me and within each woman is the source of our own power. 
 
She is our antidote to shame, and the wellspring of our deepest intuition.
She is our divinity, our spiritual center, the timeless point of our attraction, and our power source.
She teaches us that our joy is serious business.
She is anchored to our truth.
She teaches us our unshakable confidence."



The divinity and our spiritual center Regena Thomashauer speaks of, is The Empress, the Great Earth Mother.

The Empress - "That's What Makes You Strong"

That's What Makes You Strong

If you love somebody then that means you need somebody

If you need somebody that's what make you weak

If you know your weak then you know need you someone

Oh it's a funny thing but

That's what make you strong

That's what make you strong

That's what gives you power

That's what lets the meek come sit beside the king

That's what let's us smile in our final hour

That's what moves our souls and

That's what makes us sing


And to trust somebody is to be disappointed

It's never what you wanted

And it happens every time

But if your the trusting kind

This don't even cross your mind


Oh it's a funny thing but

That's what make you strong

That's what make you strong

That's what gives you power

That's what lets the meek come sit beside the king

That's what let's us smile in our final hour

That's what moves our souls and

That's what makes us sing

  - Jesse Winchester

   I've posted this song by the late gentleman of leisure Jesse Winchester because I think it relates to the Major Arcana card I drew today, The Empress. Someone posted Jesse singing this beautiful, touching and truthful song today that I've listened to so many times, and today I made connection between the Empress and Jesse's song. He performed this song, not long before he died, which makes the words even more meaningful and poignant.

The Empress, my favourite card, speaks of having an open, trusting heart, of vulnerability and weakness because she loves deeply, opening herself to being disappointed. It truly is what makes her weak but like Jesse says, it is a funny thing but it is what makes her strong, and what gives her power.

She is very connected to feelings of safety and trust. The Empress (Demeter) is both the Good Mother, and the Mourning Mother, who knows she is weak, and grieves for her missing child, that she loves and needs, her beloved daughter Persephone.

Spring does comes again, and Persephone returns once more, so to do the flowers, as there is new life, in the cycle of nature and life. Souls smile, are moved, and she sings and so do we all.

Ace of Pentacles - I Vant To Be Alone

There is a report on a scientific study done, which was published in Science Magazine, that has found that there are people who would prefer giving themselves electrical shock over sitting alone in a room doing nothing!

Here's a quote from the article.

" In 11 studies, we found that participants typically did not enjoy spending 6 to 15 minutes in a room by themselves with nothing to do but think, that they enjoyed doing mundane external activities much more, and that many preferred to administer electric shocks to themselves instead of being left alone with their thoughts. Most people seem to prefer to be doing something rather than nothing, even if that something is negative. "

That sounds pretty crazy. But I am not really so surprised, knowing we are presently living in a busy society of human doings rather than human beings, in pursuit of stuff and things.

Many of us are not comfortable in our own skins, constantly trying to find peace, happiness, and contentment outside ourselves or on accumulating things. We don't believe that a withdrawal from the busyness, sitting quietly with our thoughts doing nothing, could ever be beneficial, especially because it feels so foreign and uncomfortable.  We often are defined by what we do, rather than by who we are as individuals

During Lent and leading up to Easter, is a time I naturally withdraw into myself in reflection, taking a kind of self-inventory. Easter seems to have gotten absorbed into more of a consumer holiday, filled with chocolate bunnies, candy, eggs, consuming copious amounts of food,  and even gift giving.

The Ace of Pentacles in the Mythic Tarot is embodied by Poseidon, who points the way. He is the father of all the waters, the god of the sea, and of the earth's surface, lord of all the universe rising out of the ocean, where we all come from, and he symbolizes the inner most representation of our creative selves. 'Husband of the earth' is the meaning of his name, the fertility god, who's creative energy is turned downward into our world.

The Ace of Pentacles is husband of the great Earth Mother, Demeter or The Empress. Pentacles, symbolic of the receptive Earth, which is the element of patience, stability, commitment, discipline, permanence and strength. These are all qualities needed that enable us to find our meaning, purpose and happiness, and we can find them, when we take time to be alone with our thoughts, with the right energy we can create the fertile ground, for the promise of good things to come.

Knight of Pentacles - Nectar & Ambrosia

 

With the arrival of Valentine's Day tomorrow, the Knight of Pentacles seems appropriate, on the day before.
I think many women admire this Knight of Pentacles. He is the Aristaeus, known as the " Guardian of the Flocks". The Earth Mother Demeter, fed him nectar and ambrosia as an infant. I can only imagine what that is! He's a real humble farmer, who loves the good earth. He's kind, responsible, steadfast, and always follows through on what he starts.

I'm of the belief most women want more than a country squire, steady and responsible, but that's just my opinion as I spent too long lovin' the bad boys, who never seemed to know how to love me back the way I needed. I have loved the country, Knight of Pentacles type in the past, but got bored after a while. Now a days a well rounded balanced type of individual is my preferred ideal, to admire, and desire. Unfortunately they are hard to find.

More importantly, I need to strive to be that person who could be loved by another, reflecting the personality strengths of all the Knights in my own personality, and being able to have a loving relationship with myself, before I can expect someone else to fulfill the well balanced, desired qualities found in the Knights.


I heard someone say today, Valentine's Day is really not so much those who have the ideal romantic, loving relationship, but for the brokenhearted. In many ways agree with this. Saint Valentine's Day is not about hearts, flowers sentimental schmaltz. Saint Valentine who lived in the 5th century, and there were several of them, was martyred, and very little is really know about him. Fiction seems to supersede fact, and it is actually thought that perhaps Gregory Chaucer may have invented Valentine's Day.

Well regardless, it's hard to resist flowers, chocolate, and love for that matter, and who would want to? So this Valentine's Day I am wishing you much ambrosia, the nectar of the gods. I have no idea what it is but it sure sounds good!