Wednesday's Free Tarot Class - Death

Hi and welcome to our Wednesday Tarot class. This week we’re going to talk about one of the most dreaded cards of the deck, the one that scares everyone when it comes up in a reading. Death! Death is a word we don’t use much in our culture. Instead we say, “he passed,” “she crossed over,” or “he made his transition.” That’s one indication of how scared we are of the word death. However when we get the death card in a reading, it very seldom means the death of a person.

Do you want to see something interesting? Take a look at the death card XIII in your Rider-Waite deck. See the flag he is carrying? There is a blooming rose on the flag. Now take another look at the Fool card, number zero. The Fool is carrying that rose in his left hand. He brought it with him all the way through his life adventures. It represents his clarity of purpose that he desired to bring into his series of adventures. Now the rose is open on the flag of the Death card. It now signified life, the mystical rose of life – mars and life force.

Now see, you don’t have to be scared anymore. Death just means change. When we make any kind of change, something has to go – a habit, a way of saying something - which equals a little death. Look at the card again. Do you see the sun rising between the two pillars? This represents a new dawn, a new day and denotes immortality. We are eternal, and just because our bodies die, doesn’t mean our soul our spirit dies. Old ideas and old ways of doing things have to pass away because if the didn’t we’d all become stagnant.

Another exciting aspect of the death card is that it represents the departure of the age of Pisces where those who needed to control us through fear; rigid rules and secrecy ruled the world. This is represented by the standing figure of a bishop on the right side of the death card. His body language looks like the shape of a fish – Pisces. Now we’re in the first stages of Aquarius when secrecy begins to fall away, trust emerges and people start helping each other instead of being so greedy and mistrustful. This is where we are now- we are beginning to see the openness that is budding, we keep hearing how there is not enough money for different programs that could help humankind. But this, too, is passing. Greed is toppling – as we are witnessing the fall of well known companies. We truly are entering into a new age and you and I begged our Guides and Angels to be allowed to be here at this time to help usher in this new age of equality, humanness, love. They told us it wouldn’t be easy but we said we could handle it we were strong enough. Now here we are and things are looking a little chaotic and scary, huh?

We can find a lot of help from thinking and remembering the other Tarot cards we’ve been studying. The fool has the courage to strike out on his own, our magician lays his tools in front of himself and learns how to use them, the priestess goes within and communicates with her guides and angels before taking action, our empress nourishes her precious creative imagination, the emperor develops these ideas and shows his pioneering spirit and courage, the hierophant continues to grow and learn, and the angel protects the lovers who learn to communicate. The charioteer learned to move through adversity with is mind, leaving fear thoughts behind, our hermit goes within to rest, being patient and waits for guidance. The wheel of fortune continues spinning, teaching us what goes up eventually comes down and visa versa. We can always call on our inner strength and while we’re doing this we just have to hang around waiting for the next phase of our adventure while letting go of our hang-ups.

So instead of fearing what is happening in our lives and in our world, we can call on these aspects of ourselves that we learned in the other cards. Sure, there will be turmoil, confusion and yes, it can be a bit uncomfortable at times as we watch change unfold. What do you need to let go of in your life that scares you? Are you scared because you just turned 30, 40, and 50? What transformation are you preparing for in your life or career? Did you just lose your job or did a love you were counting on leave? Are you trying to hold on to people or situations that don’t work anymore? We experience many deaths in our lifetime, so think of the death card as change and begin to embrace change in your life. Don’t be afraid because change means growth, moving on. The Hebrew letter for death is Nun meaning Fish. Fish is symbolic of the powers to regenerate and the water sign of Scorpio rules death.

Death’s Advice:

Shedding old skin
Letting go of old ideas, beliefs, regenerating
Expressing our feelings so we can release them
Get rid of clutter in our minds, bodies and surroundings to make way for the new
Rejoice in your new opportunities.

Next week we will look at Temperance. Until then,

Angel Hugs, Jean Maurie

Free Wednesday Tarot Class - Strength Card

Hi and welcome to the Wednesday tarot lesson. This week we are going to meet Strength! It is number 8 and if you look at the Rider-Waite deck you will see a beautiful woman with the number 8 floating over her head turned sideways. – The same as the Magician had over his head. Women can be magicians too! This sign is the symbol of infinity, or forever ness. It also represents the state of balance and how she is focused on right thinking, which leads to right action. After all, she is petting a Lion! She has moved beyond needing a wand because her power is in her hands. Using her spiritual courage, Ms Strength has learned how to control her passions, which the Lion represents. The Lion also represents our lower selves, the animal within us.

If you remember the Charioteer from last week, he was testing out his tools and skills by traveling, using his mind. He was outside of his protective city, venturing down the highway of life. Was he scared? I’m sure inside he was. Wouldn’t you be? Aren’t we all? Testing out our tools and spiritual knowledge is like taming the wild beast of fear which we all experience. That is where Strength comes in. We were all born with strength, even if we feel shaky and nervous. Remember the Wizard of Oz, and the cowardly Lion going to the Wizard to get strength? What did he learn? That he had it all along, just like you and I do. Think of your life and how you have or have not used your strength. Did someone give it to you, or maybe teach you where to find it? Some people live in fear, which sometimes develop into phobias. They are told to “act as if “they were brave, pretending until they actually felt their courage. This takes much practice.

The Lion is colored red which depicts passion. What are your passions? Are you afraid of them? Do you take the safe road instead of being daring like the fool? Leo is represented by the Sun and it rules the 5th house of our astrology charts. One of the meanings of the 5th house is creativity and play. Are you so stressed, overworked and fearful that you don’t play anymore? “I don’t have time to play,” I hear many say. That is an example of being unbalanced. Like the ruling planet, the Sun, Leo strength represents coming out, breaking through. What kind of breakthroughs do you want in your life? Become strong like the Sun and shine through your problems, which are like strong, dense energy forces. Give yourself new life, new ways to solve your problems, so you, too, can feel more creative and alive.

Leo also represents ruler ship. Who rules you or who do you rule? Strong, balanced people don’t need to rule anyone, nor do they allow themselves to be ruled. Strength comes from within and is based on knowing ourselves, believing in ourselves and being able to balance our lives between work, play, creativity and our inner spirituality. If we learn to be creative problem solvers, life would run smoother and we’d have more time for fun. So instead of fighting our beast within, we can begin learning to tame it inside ourselves. How do we do that?

We begin to realize that despite stress, family problems, illness, lack of any kind that with our Angel’s and Guide’s help we find the courage to keep going. Instead of fighting change, try to see life as an adventure and play with new ideas. Welcome new opportunities and see everything as a chance to grow and learn. Balance is dancing with the harmony of life, balancing our inner and outer selves. No it isn’t always easy, and I’m not implying that it is. But with patience, gradually beginning to change the way we view life, and practice – lots of practice, we can transform our lives so we are happier, more creative, attract love, peace and abundance to us. Can you imagine your life being that happy? You have the fortitude, inner strength, courage, passion, wisdom, endurance and patience within IF you want to tap into these God-given gifts.

Strength’s Advice:

Become more courageous
Be creative, state your ideas
Establish your territory, your boundaries, and act magically
Be yourself, its time to break through and create
Find your place of strength and create your power spot
Be the artist of your own life, so use your imagination and be creative.

Are you excited yet by your possibilities? Next week we will make friends with the Hermit. He has an interesting story to tell.

^i^ Angel Hugs,

Jean Maurie

Hi and welcome to Wednesday’s Tarot class. This week we will be looking at the Chariot. If you take a look at this card in the Rider-Waite deck you will see a man who looks like a king, standing in a carriage. If you notice, the city is behind him, so he is in uncharted territory The Chariot stands for the human personality. . The Charioteer is the symbol of the King who is victorious because he has received his initiation from the first 7 of the Tarot cards He holds in his right hand – the dominant and willful side of the body - a wand, just like the one that we saw on the Magician’s table, which represents bringing the magic rituals into practical experiences. He uses the wand and his mind to control the sphinxes, which seem to be pulling the chariot, but without reins. They are black and white - contrasting again, just like the pillars in the High Priestess card and the Hierophant card. So if the Charioteer doesn’t observe his mind and allows the sphinxes to have free rein, his chariot could start spinning in circles, due to the pulling in either direction from the Sphinxes. Also because of their polarity, know that the journey will be a combination of positive and negative experiences, just like our lives. Because the Sphinxes have human faces, they represent the evolution of the human spirit. The canopy above the Chariot is filled with stars representing the celestial influences he can use to gain his victory. This also tells us that we have guidance and protection in our journeys through the unknown. If we feel scared during our journeys and adventures, we only have to look up to our Higher Powers again. The charioteer can be either sex. Some see him as the son or daughter of the Empress and the Emperor. The Charioteer represents ourselves as we evolve through our human consciousness. In Genesis it says God rested on the 7th day. In olden times this card was named Victory. We are victorious when we realize that we are the vehicle that creates change in our lives. The Chariot’s astrological sign is Cancer, which is represented by the moon, intuition, sensitivity and receptivity


How can you become the Charioteer in your life? Do you dare take the message of the fool child to make changes in your life? Or are you stuck in the same old rut, unhappy, knowing something has to give, but living in fear? Remember in our study of the Tarot that we were given tools for our journey. We are the Magician in our lives. From the High Priestess we have learned to go within for answers and to wait patiently until these answers come. Our Empress taught us to know we have to nurture the seeds that we planted and that we need to use our creativity, imagination and realize our world of possibilities. We need to get in touch with our intuition and listen to its messages for our highest good. Our Emperor taught us that we can build our wonderful Empire by knowing and using our innate power to create and manifest and nurture our ideas. We learned to stop running around getting opinions from others and trust our intuition from our Hierophant. The Lovers taught us to love ourselves so we can love others and to communicate from our higher selves. As the charioteer we are ready to move out into the world and begin to create what we want our life to be about.

This week pretend you are the Charioteer, move out into the world, knowing you have all the tools at your disposal, and do something different. Remember, you can turn within for guidance, you can look upward to your Higher Self, and you can begin to trust the messages that come to you from your creative mind. You can listen to your intuition and begin trusting what you hear. Start keeping a journal if you haven’t already started and write about your experiences becoming each of these cards. No you won’t be successful every time – none of us are because we are on a journey, learning what each one of us needs to become happy, at peace with ourselves and successful. Each one of us has a different meaning of success and happiness. Use this study of the Tarot to learn what works for you and who you are deep within. Try not to let anyone discourage you. In fact, as you are learning it would be best not to discuss this with others unless you know they will understand. When we hear discouraging and negative messages it drags us down and that is not where we want to go. We want to stay in our power!

The Chariot’s advice is:

Have a goal; plan the routes you will use to achieve your purposes
Be centered and aware at all times despite changes
Be at home within yourself as you travel your spiritual path
Be adventurous, explore
Keep your options open so you can act quickly and efficiently
Create your future; allow new ideas to come through your dreams and meditations

Next week we will move to a new level of the Tarot and learn about our Strengths. Until then happy traveling.

Tarot graphic comes from http://www.usgamesinc.com/

^i^ Angel Hugs

Free Wednesday Tarot Class # 6

Hi welcome to our Free Wednesday Tarot class. This week we are meeting the Hierophant If you look at him in the Rider-Waite deck, you will see a male figure sitting between two pillars. Remember how the High Priestess sat between the pillars? He teaches the wisdom of the High Priestess. He is also known as the Pope and symbolizes ultimate power. He rules from the heart rather than the will. The word Hierophant comes from the Greek word Hiero which means “sacred” and phainein, meaning, “one who shows or brings light.” He shares his wisdom and teaches because the Hierophant has passed his tests of life. He wears a crown and holds a four leveled scepter. These all connect him to his clairaudience or “clear hearing”. When you have clairaudience you hear what is beyond the range of human hearing and are tuned into hearing messages from your Higher Self, your Angels and Guides... This symbolizes that we have the ability to tune in to our Higher Selves and access our own Kingdom of Wisdom with which we were born.

The Hierophant represents our intuition, our God/dess within. The number five is the number for Mercury, the planet of our mind, thinking and communication. His astrological sign is Taurus which is symbolized by the bull’s horns on the top of the pillars.

What does the Hierophant teach you? How can you connect with the Hierophant in your life? What challenges are you facing right now? Are you running around asking your co workers or friends what you should be doing? Are you taking advice from everyone around you even if it doesn’t feel right? Are you being criticized for being “different” from others and living your own life, rather than how they want you to live? Are you rushing around trying to accomplish everything and feeling like you are getting nowhere? Are you following a Guru or a teacher you think has all the information? To become the Hierophant in your life, it is imperative that you stop all this running and seeking everyone’s opinions. It is important that you ask yourself what do I want in my life. It is crucial that you put aside all the information that you have received from your friends, teachers, relatives and ask yourself, “What is right for me? What feels good for me? What if I go against what everyone else wants me to do? What if they don’t like me anymore or I disappoint them?” I am not advocating running into the hills to be a recluse, not at all, but if you are genuinely unhappy with your life, what can you do to change it?

Using our intuition means letting go of pre conceived ideas and teachings that we’ve received from others and going within to learn what works for us. Do you still live by the rules you learned as a child? Are they working for you? If they are, that is great and you should stick with them. But if they aren’t maybe you need to examine what is working and what isn’t. Maybe you think you know what you want for your life, but if you’re not happy with the decisions you’ve made based on what you were told you should believe, try relaxing enough to receive guidance from your Higher Self, which is always the truth. Even if you call on a psychic and what they tell you does not resonate within you, allow yourself to accept what feels right for you. Nothing is written in stone and it is up to us to accept or discard what works and what doesn’t. Each one of us creates our own worlds, for better or for worse. So don’t stay stuck in your “should’s and ought’s in life. Try not to let your old beliefs keep you repressed and affirm to yourself that you will trust your inner self, instead of running around obeying what others think you should be doing. I always like the phrase “don’t should on yourself.” Reexamine your beliefs, values, and traditions. Let your Angels and your Higher self speak to you and guide you. This may feel strange to you, but the more you practice the more comfortable you will feel.

The Hierophants advice:

Be in the present, not clinging to the past
Examine and let go of fixed beliefs
Continue learning, grow from your life’s experiences
Listen to your own inner Priestess and free yourself from unhappiness
Explore your traditions for what you want to keep and what you want to discard
Trust your own inner self no matter what others say.

Images are from http://www.usgamesinc.com/

Get ready for some fun next week as we meet our friend The Lovers.