CARD OF THE WEEKEND: January 8-9, 2022

The Guardian Angel

from The Tarot of the Orishas

by Zolrak with art by Durkon

 

January 8-9, 2022: Having been raised in the Roman Catholic Church, I know the relationship with one's official guardian angel is a pretty big deal. As a spiritualist/pagan adult who maintains a relationship with the ancestors, the Mighty Dead, and Spirit within and around, I don't spend a lot of time thinking about a specific guardian angel. But the concept of a one-and-done vigilant pal who knows you well and has got your back is one that can simplify things for many people.

The artist Durkon's Guardian Angel image--from The Tarot of the Orishas, based in Afro-Atlantic traditions--also has Tarot Temperance vibes, introducing ideas of finding refreshment, balance, cooling, and healing. For this weekend, then, the idea might be to devote time to appeal to your "better angels" for counsel and direction when matters seem especially fraught and heated.

What attitude, decision, or action will bring the most balance to a situation? What will foster restoration of harmony and promote healing?

Of course, straight-up protection from harm--from others or, frankly, from one's own self--might be the prayer. Some angels are warrior angels.

May your loving angel or angels guide you appropriately and well this weekend and always!

****** 

Catch up with updated CARD OF THE DAY posts here: https://hummingwitch.blogspot.com/2021/11/a-good-weekend-to-catch-up-with-our.html

"Contact Eva" form to the right! 👉 👉 👉 

Subscribe to get Eva's posts by email! 👉 👉 👉

CARD OF THE DAY: December 7, 2021

 

 II of Air (Two of Swords)

from The Tarot of the Orishas

by Zolrak with art by Durkon

 

December 7, 2021: The relationship I have with Tarot--and with Spirit, with the ancestors--has a good measure of humor. As I casually looked at a few cards from Zolrak and Durkon's Tarot of the Orishas before shuffling this deck, the II of Air (Two of Swords), in particular, caught my eye.

Something told me to be sure to shuffle the deck real well before drawing our Card of the Day, and I did. You can guess the rest, right?

II of Air. Wink!

If it's not enough that II of Air was the same card that drew my attention earlier, consider this: Two swans. What did I write, just yesterday, about a possible preference for animal imagery? Quite a jest from the orishas!

Although I am strongly interested in The Tarot of the Orishas from a cultural perspective, the quality of this deck's art design does not satisfy me. But the relationship a reader forges with a deck and its aesthetics is personal and, for some who share my interest in Afro-Atlantic traditions and practices, this deck might be exactly the one that works.

Here's another good sample, IV of Fire (Four of Wands). For Zolrak and Durkon, this represents family, community, unity, and could square with my usual interpretation of the Four of Wands, a symbol of collaboration and support:

 

IV of Fire (Four of Wands)

from The Tarot of the Orishas

by Zolrak with art by Durkon

Let's swing back to our II of Air swans, though. Durkon depicts them facing each other in a secluded, safe place. Zolrak notes how the trails of their movements--in time, in space, in life--have formed a heart in the water. Now that's a very striking difference--the deck creators' vision of harmony and loyalty--from the stark way we usually interpret the conflicting, clashing swords of Tarot's Two of Swords.

Let me take a moment to note that swans are way pretty but not to be messed with.

So, here's a prime example of a card that, due to these conflicting, clashing interpretations might give you something to chew (and possibly break your tooth) on.

I happen to adore both beauty and fierceness in birds. So, I'm going to go with...both!

And I'm going to counsel you to do the same and bring both your beauty and your fierceness into your day. How can they collaborate and support each other?

See what I did there? Sure! Feel free to take that IV of Fire as s bonus!

Spirit in Afro-Atlantic culture

Que viva Chango!: West African deities in the Americas
by Denise Oliver Velez, Daily Kos, December 4, 2011

My "Moment in Time"

(c)2010, Eva Yaa Asantewaa

At 11am EST today, I took this photo and submitted it to the New York Times's A Moment in Time project. It contains images of Mary of the wounded sacred heart; Yemaya, the Afro-Atlantic goddess of the sea; and endangered animals. Mindful of the oil spill tragedy in the Gulf of Mexico, I call this assemblage The Wounded Heart of Mother Earth.

A Pilgrimage to Sorte Mountain

Rites in Venezuela
Devotees of the María Lionza religion, a mix of Catholic, West African and other customs, make a pilgrimage each October to Sorte Mountain in Yaracuy State, Venezuela, home of the high altar to the religion's central figure.

Posted via email from Eva Yaa Asantewaa's posterous