I'm in love and enthralled with the Wild Unknown's Animal Spirit deck. I just threw together this very encouraging reading. I was thinking about each of my crystals: what they speak to, where am I at in this aspect of my life. I drew the two card spread suggested in the guidebook for each crystal and what it represented in my life, the first card representing the path and the second, my obstacle.
The beautiful, encouraging and healing rose quartz was my first draw. I thought about my path to healing and self love. I focused on the compassion I wish to cultivate, the healing work I do for myself and others, and the love I offer to myself and others. The Tiger asks for us to embrace silence and darkness without fear, for these forces are healing. Cards have been asking me to connect with the night, with the moon, and the darkness since I started studying the tarot. Two years ago I had one of the most vivid dreams I’ve had in my life about a panther whom I thought was coming after my dog, but looked straight into my eyes and told me that it was coming for me. Since that moment, my spiritual practice keeps reminding me of the dark, asking me to open up to it, to sit in it and feel it. Honestly, even after all of my research, effort, and study in my spiritual path, I still don’t quite grasp what that means.
Being challenged by the moth card, I realize as I type that my efforts have not been focused enough. I do get distracted easily, even within my passionate practice. There is much to learn and much to study, but I must remind myself of the inspiring wisdom that I can do anything, but I can’t do everything. This path also does not come easily and my frustration with figuring out what the cards want me to do with the darkness for my healing and loving, compassionate nature may not be something easily won. Yet, it is obviously necessary.
Next, I thought and energized with my amethyst. I thought of both my psychic powers and my substance abuse lately as amethyst understands and aids both. The dolphin, an ever encouraging card, especially for a psychic, represents my path. A strong, healing spiritual practice is absolutely necessary to realize my own power. I have been told many times of the ways that I have inspired people to be better and/or seek a happier life without actually meaning to. I can’t imagine what focused intent and belief in myself and my healing practice with other people would bring to the table. Like the dolphin, I prefer the spiritual realm (Pisces here!), it is the water to my fish. My time away and my reemergence in it have shown me the non negotiable value of spiritual practice in my life.
My challenge? Get my ass to work, as represented by the bee. Work doesn’t have to be a drag. It can be enjoyable and empowering. It can offer you the strides you need to make what you want in the world happen. I think back to the moth and the way it wants things to just be easier. Easy doesn’t get us to spiritual or material fulfillment. Easy doesn’t help us grow and challenge us to become better. Easy is not the answer. Hard work is necessary to develop my psychic self and spiritual practice. My substance abuse probably comes from the lack of attention spent with the dolphin and bee aspects of my personality.
Emerald speaks to the earthly elements. As I held and communed with this stone, I thought of my health, the state of my home life, and my lack of career. It is the earthly element of alchemy I both struggle with and revere the most. I love nature, this planet, and being alive. On the other hand, the human aspects of living and making money in this world have been a much greater challenge to my psyche. The panther, who I’ve dreamed up and of, reminds me that the havoc that has dominated this part of my life recently is here to push me to be better. I must seek wisdom from the unhappy, uncomfortable state I’ve been in and manifest it into the change I wish to cultivate in my life. The Panther gets rid of the unnecessary: the distractions, the pressures, and ideas that don’t serve me. My self-destructive tendencies have taken their tole and I cannot allow them power any longer.
To challenge me, the black egg hits home. I must write from my authentic, true self; I must find and vocalize my truth. I know this. I know this so deeply that it is absolutely terrifying to both avoid and to do. I want to write. I want to share my ideas with the world, because I know it may help make the world a better place. Yet, I’m so terrified of the criticism. It’s so much easier to play it safe, to go back to school or get a conventional job. But that isn’t my truth and even in my fear, my truth will not let me settle. I can feel it building, festering, wanting to break free. Damn inhibitions - so unnecessary sometimes (PANTHER POWER - get rid of the unnecessary!!!).
The next stone I can’t identify. I found it during a surprisingly spiritual trip into the woods in Canyon Creek near my past home in Lebanon. I fell in love with it’s color and shape. I used it to hold down my cards and had to keep it. It was my first trip bringing tarot into nature with me, during which I asked the tarot deck what my purpose with it were. I received the High Priestess and The Lovers. It was such a profound reading that solidified my quest into witchitude. Meditating with this stone I thought of my witchiness and asked the cards about my next direction and role as a witch.
Again and again, the deck reminds, assures, and pushes my spiritual power. Of course I would receive the crow. How many more validations from the universe do I need to let myself believe whole heartedly in my witchy powers?The crow is a symbol of magic and is an absolute encouragement to keep practicing, a reminder that I have the skills and innate ability. Self-studying is key, as are being healthy and surrounding myself with good people. My challenge is represented by the bear. It is time to wake up from my winter slumber, awaken myself further and transform and give myself the room to dive head first into personal transformation.
Lastly, the blue kyanite embodies the development of intuition, speaking with spirits, and remembering past lives. As I held and breathed with this stone I thought of my tarot reading with Paige. When she read my chart she told me that I was meant to do some work with the dead and with death. This idea frightens me and it may be exactly what the rose quartz part of the reading is asking me to do. I let myself open up to advice in this arena as I pulled the cards. The dragon and the firefly remind me that it is through getting to know and expressing my true self, the self behind the ego, the deeper spiritual part of my soul that this gift will be realized.