Daily Guidance
Daily guidance and meditation postings brought through from a daily reading with various oracle decks, tarot or runes.
Today’s Goddess Message
Sep 8th
At this point you’ve probably noticed a little bit of a slow down of things here on the blog and things being a little later than usual. I’m working hard right now on finalizing everything for both the online “In The Cards” class which will begin in a few weeks as well as an in-person intro to tarot class I’ll be teaching locally in October. So it’s been a busy couple of weeks so far and will likely continue to be until at least the end of October. So if things seem to come late, go slow, and so on, know that it’s just because I have so many other great things in the works and not a matter of neglect (really). So with that, let’s look at today’s message from the Goddess through The Goddess Oracle 
Yemaya
Surrender
(from the book)
Come with your cares
come with your woes
come when life is joyful
come when life weighs you down
come when you take on too much
come when you are spread too thin
come when you are danced out
come when you seek renewal
all I ask when you come
is that you surrender to me
mother ocean
my watery womb waits to hold you
nurture you
birth you anew
when you let go and give over all to me
I have to admit that it makes me excited to see Yemaya here in today’s Goddess message since she is one of my favorite Goddesses. And seeing the message shown in the book, I know that for me, today’s message certainly carries some weight and gives me something to think about.
In the card in the deck, Yemaya is depicted as a dark skinned mermaid (one of the forms she often takes in myth), deep in sea, with a crown of shells, holding a scepter of shells with a start in the center in one hand and another shell in the other. A sea turtle swims past her in the background and water lilies cascade around the back of her. It’s a little different from the usual images that you see of her but it’s clear from this image that she is very much the Mother Ocean, Queen of the Sea that she is known to be.
Yemaya’s name is a shortened version of Yey Omo Eja which means “Mother whose children are the fish”. This represents both her rule over the ocean waters but especially speaks to her position of Great Mother in Yoruba, indicating that her children and many and uncountable. She is an Orisha within Yourban and Santerian practices; the Orishas are spirits or deities that reflect one of the manifestations of God and are often seen through some sort of representation of the natural world, such as Yemaya and her connection to the ocean. She is a Goddess of renewal and a patron to pregnant women. She is especially called on by women when in need of “motherly” aid, such as help with the family, the home, children, and so on. While she has this motherly side, she is a fierce protector of those who she cares for and over the domain that she rules. This makes her a wonderful protectress to call for when children need someone to watch over them, especially daughters. Yemaya can be found in one of many forms in most of the African religions and is known by different names in different parts of the world. She can also be seen sometimes mixed in with other deities such as Mary Star of the Sea and Mermaid Goddess of the Sea.
The message with Yemaya today is one that carries both a need for renewal through surrender but also a need to protect ourselves from the dangers of doing too much. If you’re working on too much right now and feel that you’re coming into a place of not being able to control what is going on around you, it’s time to surrender some of those things to Yemaya and take a bit of a break. Sometimes we forget that surrender doesn’t mean giving in or giving up but it means asking for help. Whether that assistance is going to come in the form of another person helping to get a task done or asking for the Goddess to come into our lives and give us some sort of spiritual relief, we need to not be afraid, or even ashamed, to surrender when the time for that comes. We all know when we have hit that wall and it’s easier to ask someone to help lift you up over it than to try and run through it.
Today take a moment to reflect on what you might be carrying too much of and make the call to Yemaya for assistance by offering to surrender. This is very much an act of sacrifice; you can’t ask for help and then do nothing to change yourself and not allow her energy to come in and work with you. When you make the offer to surrender in exchange for spiritual assistance, be willing to let her do what she needs to for you and step aside. You’ll be amazed at what can happen if you’re willing to let go of some things that otherwise you hold on to so tightly. Surrender is also about trust so trust that the Goddess knows how to best help you in this situation and let her work her magick.
Today’s Affirmation
“I surrender to the Goddess and place my trust in her.”
Today’s Angel Message
Sep 7th
Today’s angel message once again comes from the Angels Gods & Goddesses
Angel of Union
“A partnership is blessed and destined for greatness.”
As I look at the card in the deck for this image the one thing that stands out the most for me is the white dove that creates a canopy over the two figures in the foreground of the image. The dove is what speaks to me the most today and that message is one which is a reminder about how much peace between two people matters in order to see thing accomplished. You and another person, be it friend, family, life partner or even a business partner, can have a great deal of care and respect for one another but if there is no peace to guide you in your union then nothing can really come of it. This can be difficult at times and just as much as we may love one another we can also have moments of great frustration that, if left unchecked, can become viscous and heavy emotions that can suck the real life out of any partnership.
In order to attain this greatness within whatever union in your life is most important, think today about how you create, contribute and maintain peace between you two. Is there a lack of balance of peace? Do you need to work to bring more peace into this relationship in order to feel truly united? The dove doesn’t just bring us peace but also acts as a guide, as a messenger and symbol of the Divine guidance and Divine peace that we all have access to. If we can only close our eyes, clear our heads, and truly listen from the heart rather than from the head we can find the messages of peace and guidance that will bring us to our ultimate greatness. Honor each other, honor the Divine, and bring love and peace into all you do together.
Today’s Affirmation
“I create peace for my partners in life, work and play.”
Today’s Faerie Message
Sep 3rd
For today’s message I decided to take out a deck that I haven’t been working with as much as I had anticipated. I’m a big fan of the Froud’s and all of their wonderful faerie offerings and artwork. I had used their first deck The Faeries’ Oracle
The Blessing
Blessings of the Day, Journey, Beginnings
The message with this faerie card is simple but important. We should begin each day and each new journey with a blessing. This means that we need to not only bless ourselves and all we do but also be open to receive blessings. This is very much about give and take, the exchange of energy between people and things in a Universe that is ultimately connected. Blessings and gratitude, if part of our daily lives and our every action will not only enhance our own lives but also the lives of those around us, even those people that we don’t know we are directly impacting. Every day and every journey has a start and an end and by starting from a place of blessing we will find the journey and the day takes us through blessed experiences and brings us to a positive end.
For today, make sure that you do what you do with a conscious awareness of how you approach people and activities. Do you give thanks for being able to get up in the morning and get out of bed? Do you give thanks for being able to care for yourself and others in your life? Even when you have the worst day ever, do you give thanks for being able to go to sleep and get up and do it again the next day? We need to remember to treat ourselves and others with kindness and gratitude, even when things are difficult. Be sure that today you keep yourself aware of how you treat others. Do you bless them or do you curse them? Do you enhance their day and their journey? And are you open to receiving blessings from them?
Today’s Affirmation
“I bless each day and each journey with love and gratitude.”
Today’s Goddess Message
Sep 1st
Greetings everyone and welcome to September! Can you believe it’s almost Mabon!?! The last few days have been exhausting for me and I had to take a little time for myself to rest, which ended up consisting of a lot of sleeping, much to my surprise. Today I’m feeling pretty good and decided that a little Goddess Guidance would be great for us all today. Once again I’m working with the The Goddess Oracle
Durga
Boundaries
(from the book)
When threatened by demons
I fiercely protect myself
with all that I am
with all that I have
from deep within
I call forth all that I need
I am the “Inaccessible”
for I place myself beyond the reach of all that would destroy me
all that would annihilate me
all that tries to wound me
I am the “Unapproachable”
for nothing can get at me that I do not willingly let in
I dance my dance of oneness
only with what supports me
nurtures me
loves me
For all that does not
I say: approach at your own risk!
Durga is a very powerful form of the Divine found in the Hindu tradition. Her name is pronounced “der’gah” and means “the invincible”. There are several different stories about how Durga came to be, but ultimately she was born out of a need to protect the Gods from evil demons that threatened their very existence. Each of the Gods extended some form of energy to help create Durga, giving her power and weapons in order to help defend them and defeat the great demon Mahishasur. In the Hindu tradition Durga is also sometimes known as Devi which means Divine. Some versions of her story talk about her name originally being Devi and she takes on the name Durga after the slaying of the demon (which in those stories has the name Durga) in order to never forget the battle that she won. She is often seen riding a tiger, which represents her strength and determination, and has multiple arms (typically 10 but I’ve also seen images of her with only 8 arms) which carry the implements given to her at her creation to defeat the demon. These include a trident given to her by Shiva and the third eye chakra for vision given by Vishnu. She also carries a lotus in one hand which isn’t fully in bloom and is said to represent the certainty of success but that is hasn’t been fully realized as of yet.
Durga’s representation here and her message goes back to her work to protect the Gods by telling the demon “No, you cannot have power here.” Sometimes we forget to take power over our own demons or other things that intrude on our happy and healthy lives. Durga comes to us to remind us that we need to create boundaries in order to maintain balance, peace and health in our lives and that there is nothing wrong with doing this! We sometime feel like we have to say yes to all the demands put on us and we forget that we need to stop and care for ourselves just as much as we care for those around us. If we don’t keep our boundaries in tact, if we don’t stop and say “today is not a day for you, but a day for me” we can easily become run down and open to attack by those looking to feed off our energy and our weak state.
Today take a moment to evaluate your own shield and boundary that you carry. Keep in mind that creating a boundary isn’t just about keeping things out, but filtering what comes in as well. Does it seem strong and firm? Does it even exist anymore? Are you in need of recreating your boundaries in certain situations or with certain people? It’s a great idea to take this time to reevaluate your energetic and mental shields on a regular basis because they often crack and weaken when we least expect and when we don’t realize. We get too caught up in the “go go go” of modern life, saying “yes, I’m right on that” and not thinking that we’re doing any harm to ourselves in the process. If you’re feeling sick, rundown, out of balance and out of sorts, it’s quite likely that this is where you’re able to do some work to fix that. Learn that “no” isn’t a bad word.
Today’s Affirmation
“I create boundaries to keep myself safe and healthy.”
Today’s Angel Message
Aug 30th
The angels have been quite for me the last few days, or it could just be that I’ve been so busy working that I haven’t been listening! This is never a good state to find yourself in and it’s always good to make sure that you’re taking a little time to stop and listen to what your angels and guides have to say. So this week we’re starting out with an angel reading using my favorite of the angel decks, Angel Therapy Oracle Cards
Archangel Raphael
“The healing angel is with you, supporting your healing work.”
The message that I get today from Raphael when we’re talking about this card is one of really being open to exploring the different forms that healing can take. Healing doesn’t have to be something traditional like seeing a doctor or therapist, and it doesn’t have to mean new age or metaphysical healing like Reiki healing or crystal therapy. Healing with the angels can be something as simple as taking a walk outside with a mindfulness of connecting to healing for any purpose or even just taking some time out for ourselves can be greatly healing. We often find ourselves thinking that if something is supposed to be healing we need to be in an active healing process, but with the angels, especially working with Raphael, we just need to set the intention and ask for the healing and he will begin the process for us. Our biggest part is to live in accord and let that energy flow within and around us.
If you have a need for healing in your life today is a great day to begin the process of welcoming that healing by connecting to Raphael and asking for him to connect with you through that stream of divine healing energy and light that we all have the ability to tap into. You may know it as Reiki or you may just know it as the power of mindful prayer. Whatever way you know of this loving, healing energy, ask Raphael to help facilitate your connection to it and then welcome it by living in a way that really allows the healing to come in and do its thing. If you are asking for healing for something specific you want to be sure that you’re not doing things that would aggravate or worsen the condition while the healing connection is happening. You can’t expect to have relief from a nagging cough or respiratory infection if you smoke a pack a day! When you ask the angels to help you need to also be willing to help yourself by working with them by making room for them to do their job.
Today’s Affirmation
“I ask for healing and make room for the energy to flow.”
Today’s Faery Message
Aug 27th
Today I felt drawn to bring out a faery deck for our message of the day. A lot of people have some very odd views on the fey, at least in my opinion. The fey are not always these sweet, glittering little creatures riding on rainbows and moonbeams coming to spread joy. The fey have a very deep and rich mythology with some fierce creatures and characters as well as some of the more commonly thought of variety. I think that when you’re going to bring yourself out to the faery world and try and walk with them and work with them you need to be open to whatever they are going to bring you rather than imposing a specific view on them. You might be surprised what they have to show you when you just let them give you their messages. So for today I have brought out Lucy Cavendish and Selina Fenech’s wonderful faery deck the Wild Wisdom of the Faery Oracle
Dragon’s Pet
Communication between species, Animals, Pets, Magickal companions, Guardianship
The Dragon’s Pet card is one the speaks strongly of the interconnected relationships that we have with not only the fey but also the other messengers around us. This can be your pets, your magickal companions that you may consider to be familiars, or those creatures in the world that you feel a kinship with and a need to connect to and protect. The Dragon’s Pet reminds us that we need to be open to these relationships because they sometimes happen when we don’t expect them or they happen and hardly even notice they’re forming. This is often the case with a relationship with magickal creatures, those who are in other realms who touch us in this one, such as the fey, dragons, and so on. When this card comes through it is a reminder to us that a magickal connection between you and another creature is forming.
However, this card in our reading today come out reversed, so here we see a blockage in this relationship. It’s possible that you aren’t listening, can’t understand what is happening, or maybe you don’t believe in faery beings, dragons, or that your cat or dog can actually communicate with you beyond “feed me” and “I need to go out”. The world around you, be it a world with humans, plants or animals, even animals in another realm, are all connected to you. The trick for you is to open the gate to let that energy and relationship flow naturally. If you just don’t understand or you don’t know what to do with them, express that to the Universe and ask for help in understanding and nurturing that connection and that relationship. This is when learning to open and develop our intuition, our abilities to hear and see beyond the physical, the ability to meditate and journey to other realms becomes so important. By opening up and not actively blocking out the messages and connections of the creatures around us, whether of the the fey or household pet variety, we find out more about the world, the Universal consciousness, and ourselves.
Today is a great day to set aside a little time to connect with these creatures of the other realms. Set up a small meditation altar where you can spend a little time undisturbed. If there is a specific creature that you wish to work with, for example if you prefer dragons to faeries, set up your altar to reflect the creature you wish to connect to with images, statues or figurines, and so on. Add flowers as an offering along with a white candle to meditate with and maybe even some incense dedicated to your creature; try a faery blend to reach the fey or burn some rose, lavender and elder berry for them. For dragons try dragon’s blood to call on their fiery energy. If you want to connect to your own pet’s energy burn something associated to your pet such as cat nip for cats. Working with dogs I would suggest working with dog grass (also known as Witch grass) but you could also work with herbs associated to Hecate since dogs were closely tied to her and her magick. Burn your herbs or incense, light your candle, and call on the energy of your chosen being and ask to better connect to and understand it. Welcome it into your life and ask to make magickal connections with it so that you can work together and move through the world as allies.
Today’s Affirmation
“I am open to connecting to the magickal beings around me.”
Today’s Goddess Message
Aug 26th
Today I have little in the way of a preamble to add to the Goddess message. I am working away, busy on the upcoming tarot class and getting things together for my own studies I’m currently involved in and just trying to have five minutes to myself (does that ever really happen for anyone?). I have a lot of blogging to do today so let’s get right into today’s Goddess message from The Goddess Oracle Deck & Book Set
Vila
Shape-Shifting
(from the book)
I dance from form to form
I shift from shape to shape
ever changing
ever expanding
ever becoming
I am flexibility
for by changing my form
I freely flow with all that comes my way
I am conscious
for by shifting my shape
I gain an expanded awareness of what is to Be
I waltz a whirlwind
tango a tree
salsa a swan
or just plain fox-trot
My dance is an affinity with All
for I am able to become All in order to know All
Becoming All dissolves form
Knowing All creates Oneness
The illusion is that you have a separate shape
Vila (pronounced vee’lah) is not just seen as a Goddess but also as a collective energy which can be composed of more than one being (when referred to in the plural it would be seen as Vily). Her origin is eastern European and she is seen as a Goddess of moving energy which connects all nature together and flows through it. Vila is a shapeshifting Goddess who is able to take the shape of many animals in nature including snakes, horses, and swans, as well as being able to take the form of a whirlwind. She is a protector of nature and in human form she is said to appear as a beautiful woman, usually with wings, and dressed in sparkling, flowing dresses. Vila resides in the woods and areas where the animals make their homes so that she can best protect them. Hunters who walk through the woods where she is said to reside are cautious because of stories of men being lured to their deaths while hunting animals there, supposedly Vila protecting the land and its residents from harm at the hands of a human. Vila is said to either bring those harming nature into a magick circle where she dances them to death or taking the form of a whirlwind and carrying them off to their death.
One of the key aspects of Vila aside from her job as a protector of nature is her connection to dance. It’s through dance that she shifts form and this is the message that she brings to us; if we dance and change our patterns we can also shift our lives and change our path. Expanding your awareness by shifting into another way of thinking can help you to feel the flow between you and nature or you and other people in order to better understand a specific situation or to get a better handle on the direction your life is moving in at this time. In meditation we can connect deeper with the trees and the earth by sitting with our backs against a tree and connecting our chakras to its energy and exchanging energy for a while; many people will use techniques like this to communicate with a specific tree in their yards or in a sacred space in order to see if it is in need of anything such as healing. We can try and shift our awareness to see a difficult situation from another side, the side of someone we may be having trouble dealing with, in order to better understand where they are coming from. Shapeshifting doesn’t necessarily need to be seen as a literal thing, but instead as something we do in our minds. The results of working with this shifting process can be amazing.
Today if you find yourself in need to seeing something from another perspective, try and shift your awareness to see things from another person’s point of view or from another energy point that you haven’t explored before. Take time today to also feel the flow of nature around you, whether this means taking a walk in your neighborhood or going out and doing some sort of meditation in nature. By connecting and shifting our awareness from that every day awareness we usually work with we are able to achieve many great things because we see the world, and ourselves, in a whole other light.
Today’s Affirmation
“I am shifting awareness to connect deeper to all things.”
Today’s Angel Message
Aug 25th
Today we’re back to working with my favorite, the “Angels, Gods and Goddesses” deck. With working the cards in the way that I do, sometimes cards pop out and come up in odd and interesting ways. Today’s card had decided to sort of stick itself up from the back while I wasn’t looking and begged to be pulled. When I pulled it and turned the card I felt a nice sense of confirmation since I have been getting started on a new spiritual path, in a sense, with a new course of magickal study. With the moon being just rounding it’s peak and being in Pisces, this was also a nice added touch.
Goddess of the Sacred Path
“Let go of logic and trust your intuition.”
Letting go of our logical mind and letting our intuition step ahead and take control can be a little scary for us, especially if this is something that we normally don’t do or if we’re still venturing out into the realm of working with our intuition. Like the saying “you can’t win if you don’t play” you also can’t know the power of your own intuition and psychic mind if you don’t use it. Letting this aspect of ourselves come out and play can be really important and can help us to build our confidence when it comes to working in a mystical or magickal way as well as with working with tarot, angel or oracle cards (should this be something you like to do). The problem is setting aside that logical mind.
One of the best ways to start working with learning to do this is to learn to feel the difference between logical mind and psychic mind. For most people this is first discovered by learning to meditate, especially learning to do guided meditation or meditations that are more of a shamanic journey. When we learning to work with these sorts of settings we have no choice but to let our magickal mind come forward and our logical mind take the back seat for the 15 or 20 minutes we’re meditating. You being to feel the difference between how the two feel on both an energetic level and even on a physical level. If you don’t have a meditation practice in place, now is the perfect time to start one! Start slow, 3 to 5 minutes a day, and then allow yourself to gradually build up to a longer session. Start with just working to clear your mind and quiet your inner voice. This is the begging of learning to set aside the logical mind. As you build up your practice, start looking for guided meditation CDs like the Celtic and Goddess meditations from Mara Freeman or find books with guided meditations that you can read through or have a friend read to you and guide you through. Michelle Skye has several books on Goddess work that include some of the best guided journeys for meeting and working with different Goddesses that I’ve ever read.
Another way to start letting your intuition come through more is to just follow your heart and not feel you have to judge and guide all that you do during the day. If you’re driving home from work and you just suddenly feel the urge to take a different route home, do it. Don’t feel you have to do things the way you usually do just because it’s routine. On more than one occasion I’ve had this happen over the years and come to find that my usual way to and from a place was backed up due to an accident or construction that I didn’t know about and by taking this other way I saved myself a lot of time and grief. You might also have the urge to suddenly call a friend you haven’t talked to in ages and when you do you come to find they are in real need of someone right now and you’re there to help them just in the nick of time. Much like any muscle the more we use it the more it works for us; the more you let your intuition take a role in your life, the stronger it will become.
Setting aside a little time today to meditate and honor your intuition will be helpful in connecting you deeper with your own divine path and allowing you to connect more with your spirit to what you truly desire. Again, the simple act of meditation and then allowing your intuition to do it’s thing without your logical intervention is the best way to do this since this is the way to truly honor your intuitive abilities.
Today’s Affirmation
“I am using my intuition with confidence every day.”
Today’s Goddess Message
Aug 24th
Today I am back to using the Goddess Oracle; I’m thinking that I’ll switch off Goddess and angel messages a few times a week to bring a little balance to these things since I know some people are completely turned off by the idea of the angel messages, which is unfortunate, but hopefully working with the Goddesses a few times a week will help that. I’ll be working with different decks here and there but this one particular one, The Goddess Oracle, is one that I really love. Hrana Janto’s artwork is really stunning and she does an amazing job blending her well known Goddess art with Amy Sophia Marashinsky’s interpretations of the Goddesses included. I can’t recommend this deck highly enough to those that might be interested in a Goddess centered oracle deck. The little ritual suggestions for honoring and working with each Goddess is a nice touch and many of the rituals presented are not only simple but offer some practical ways to work with these energies. So check it out if you haven’t already.
Maeve
Responsibility
(from the book)
I am a Warrioress
a Warrioress of the Heart
I am Queen
of the domain of myself
I am able to respond
in all situations
from the knowledge of who I am
My actions are who I am
My beliefs are who I am
All I do is who I am
That which is outside of me
stays outside of me
That which I choose to let in
I own and acknowledge
How can you be responsible
if you do not own all aspects of yourself?
How can you be accountable
without being Queen over your own domain?
How can you serve your consort, your children, your community
if you are unwilling to acknowledge and answer for yourself?
Today’s Goddess is one that I have covered before when I was working with Doreen Virtue’s (slightly odd) Goddess Guidance deck. Please take a look at this post for some of the historical and mythological information on Maeve. I don’t want to rehash that here and instead focus on her specific meanings and messages for today. But, in brief, Maeve, who’s name is something spelled Medb or Mebhdh (pronounced May-ve), is a Celtic warrior Goddess who’s tales is depicted in the myth called Tain Bo Cuillaigne, or The Tain. The myth is quite long, but you can find it here if you’d like to take the time to read through it. The story is one of struggle for power between Maeve and her husband with two bulls taking center stage. After a long battle, much heartache and bloodshed, and the eventual destruction of these two important animals, Maeve is left to deal with the issue of her roles and responsibility in the matter. It’s quite a tricky thing because of all that happens and the amount of destruction that occurs, but she knows that she is the one that needs to take ownership of a large part of what has happened.
As shown in the piece from the book, the issue of taking responsibility for yourself, your words, your actions and so on, is key to being able to take responsibility in other areas of your life as well as being able to best serve those around you. This doesn’t just pertain to physical actions but thoughts and emotions as well. There are some people in our world, as we all know, who are expected to be highly responsible but who aren’t willing to own up to and take responsibility for their personal thoughts, feelings and actions. For example a politician may be willing to take responsibility for a nation but not own up to the responsibility of their personal actions that are in the public eye (such as personal indiscretions, comments made, etc). How can we expect them to be fully responsible for a nation if they can’t hold themselves responsible for what they do on a personal level? The same can be said for friends and family as well. One of my favorite examples here is that of the cheating partner or spouse. If you got together with someone though the act of an affair (you were the “other” in the relationship) and they leave their existing relationship to be with you, should you really be so surprised when they cheat again, this time cheating on you, down the road? Should you really be so surprised that they leave you for someone they had an affair with and you can you completely place the blame on them for how you feel now? No. By accepting and owning up to your own actions, specifically knowing you were getting involved with someone who was known to be a cheater in the first place, you can’t say that it was a shock when things fell apart and that you had nothing to do with your current state of sadness.
We need to take responsibility for what happens in our lives and sometimes that means facing parts of ourselves that we don’t really want to face. We may have to admit to things that we try and bury because their considered ugly, bad thoughts or feelings by societies standards. An example here is the mother with a special needs child who feels anger or frustration towards their own child, seeing the child as a burden on their life, even though they live their child completely. The mother buries these feelings, telling herself it’s ego talking or something else and that she doesn’t really feel this way. How could she feel this way when it’s her child who she knows she loves? Feeling anger and frustration at her situation is just and fine as feeling the deep love for her child, but she needs to acknowledge those feelings and work through them, owning them and taking responsibility for feeling this way, rather than trying to tell herself it isn’t true and denying part of herself.
Today take a moment to take responsibility for your feelings and thoughts as well as your actions. If you find yourself shooting daggers at someone in a line at the store because they are holding things up and getting you angry, stop and think about what it is that you react this way. What about this person really makes you so upset that you need to react in that manner? Is there something reflected in this person’s actions or words that mirrors a part of you and this is what angers you? Make a list of your responsibilities and journal how you feel about them. This can be your home, your partner or spouse, your children or pets, your job, and so on. Then take a small slips of paper and boil these all down to single issues. For example on one you could have Job: frustration because you feel that you are held back from moving forward at work and it makes you feel frustrated. Do this with each of your areas of responsibility. Then get yourself a fireproof dish with something to catch the heat underneath, a little sand or dirt in the dish to absorb heat and ash, and a lighter or match. One by one pick up each of these pieces of paper and then say:
“I accept responsibility for feeling frustrated about my job and I release this to the Universe.”
Then light the paper on fire and toss it in the dish to burn down. This doesn’t remove the feeling or your responsibility, but it releases any blockages or holds that it may have over you. By acknowledging that you are the one responsible for this feeling you are also responsible for its impact on your life and now that you have accepted that you can move forward with ease and grace. Do this for all your slips of paper and then toss the ashes in a moving body of water or to the winds. With tonight being a full moon it’s a great time to work on this.
Today’s Affirmation
“I accept responsibility for my feelings as well as actions.”
Today’s Angel Message
Aug 23rd
Today I find myself extremely distracted. I’ve go so much on my mind and so many things going on in my personal life right now that I can’t seem to find the time to focus and stay on track today! It’s a feeling that I really hate, to be honest. So today I’m working hard at trying to get the tarotscopes done in a somewhat timely manner (which so far means late but not too late) and get all the other things finished that I need to before I have to leave the house tonight for another obligation. If you ever have any curiosity in what it happening with me in my personal life, something I have long said I just felt I needed to get separate from this blog (and I plan to keep doing that) you can always check out my personal blog (which is going to be updated this week as I’ve fallen behind there too…surprise!) you can visit that at “A Witch By The Sea“. So while I try and get myself together, let’s see what the angel’s have to offer as advice for today using the “Angels, Gods and Goddesses” deck.
Angel of Prayer
“Ask the Universe and the Angels for help and guidance.”
There’s a saying that you hear in a lot of Christian circles that I think we, as Pagans and other earth-based believers, could benefit from affirming every now and then. “Let go and let God.” Make it “Let go and let Goddess” if you wish, but the sentiment is still the same. We know that we have a very powerful, direct connection to the Divine and the Universe, but we often forget to let it work for us and instead feel that we need to do all the work and just ask for it’s assistance. The Divine, however you wish to see it, is there to work with you. The God and Goddess will work on your behalf in a way that the angels and the Universe necessarily can’t (you need to give the angels expressed permission where as the God and Goddess can always intervene). But we sometimes forget that, while we might want to see the Goddess come in and lend us a hand, she might not feel she needs to and thus doesn’t, leaving us feeling like we aren’t getting the help we want from the Divine. This can also sometimes put us in the position of working extra hard without the divine help that we might need.
So today, “Let go and let God/dess”. What is stressing you? What has you on edge? What has you feeling like you’re getting buried under a pile that you’ll never get out from under? Ask for the God, Goddess and/or angels to come in and lend a hand today. Ask for them to help take away stress and help with getting things done in whatever manner they can help. If there is something very specific, like a difficult decision that you need to make and you can’t pick a course of action, ask for help on that specific thing and meditate while listening for an answer or sign for your next step. The Divine, the Universe and the Angels are all there waiting to help and willing to help, but you need to let them know what you need and you need to give them room to work. Once you ask, make the space for them to do what they need to do.
Today’s Affirmation
“I am making room for Divine aid in my life.”
Today’s Goddess Message
Aug 19th
Today felt like another good day to bring out the Goddess cards and see what the Goddess may have to tell us. We’re getting ready to start another Mercury Retrograde cycle starting tomorrow and I was curious to see which Goddess would come through with messages for us the day before this fun and excitement started. As I’ve shared before, when I do the readings here, whether for the weekly tarotscopes or for the daily message reading, I shuffle and then fan the cards out. With a clairvoyant technique of seeing the cards I then pick the card or cards that want to come through. Today’s card, when I turned it face up, made me chuckle a little.
Changing Woman
Cycles
Here is the little bit of poetic reflection that corresponds with the card:
I am what comes round again and again
what can never die
I renew myself in the seasons
in the cycle of time
the great round
I bleed yet do not die
I keep my blood within and become wise
I dance the spiral
and keep changing.
Changing Woman has a really interesting story in the Navajo tradition and she is seen as one of the closest personifications of the cycles of the earth and Universe that has ever been created. When she was said to have grown from birth to puberty within four days, thus gaining her name of Changing Woman. She is also sometimes known as White Shell Woman or Turquoise Woman because of her changing colors and appearance when she goes through her various cycles. Changing Woman is said to be responsible for delivering to the Navajo people the Blessingway ceremony, a chanting ceremony for good luck and blessings that is performed for expectant mothers when they are nearing birth. Changing Woman is the personification of the cycles of the earth through birth at spring, maturing in the summer, growing old in the fall, dying in the winter, and being reborn again each spring. You can read a telling of her story on the First People site, a great site for legends of the Native American tribes.
The message of Changing Woman is that of honoring our cycles. Every cycle in our life has a meaning and purpose, even when that meaning or purpose seems to be cruel or unpleasant. We may not see the death of a loved one as a positive thing when we are in the moments of raw emotions but we know that in time we will be at peace with this cycle knowing that our loved one has found their own peace and is renewing to return to the cycle themselves. One of the big cycles that Changing Woman is connected to is the female cycles of menstruation and life change. When that time of the month comes, for many women, it comes as a curse and not a blessing. When a woman experiences her menstrual cycle, rather than taking up the patriarchal view of this being a time of being unclean, see it as a time of power because that is what it is, an expression of your physical power to give birth even though in this cycle you have not done so. Let it be a reminder that you have the ability to carry life and give birth. If you are a woman who is in her menopausal phase or who is approaching it with a bit of trepidation, see this as a cycle of holding this wise-blood within and growing in wisdom. While some societies may look upon an older woman and call her a “hag” look upon these women as “wise women” who have lived and experienced much and who now hold their wisdom within and share it with the right people.
The reason that I chuckled when pulling this card is that we are about to enter another cosmic cycle that we all often dread, the cycle of Mercury Retrograde. Sure, it’s not always the most convenient of times and it can be one giant headache for some of us, but it is a necessary cycle. So rather than work ourselves up into a frenzy about this cycle, let’s honor it. Mercury Retrograde may be looking for you to take a time out over these coming weeks and go inward. This isn’t a time for starting new plans so instead reflect on things that have ended before this cycle and see what ideas you may have deep within for new projects or new directions to take once this cycle has passed. Let this be a time for reflecting on your own wisdom and power within rather than working to send it outward. This particular Mercury Retrograde is in the sign of Virgo, so while you do your reflecting be aware of your self criticism and don’t be too harsh on yourself. With the perfectionist energy of Virgo it can be easy to drive yourself a bit batty while replaying things over and over in your head, looking for how you could have done things better. Instead, call on that lively and creative aspect of Virgo to help you plan for the future and know that this too shall pass.
Today’s Affirmation
“I accept and flow with the cycles within and around me.”
Today’s Angel Message
Aug 18th
Today I’m working with Doreen Virtue’s Angel Therapy deck once again. I was feeling under the weather yesterday during most of the day until early evening and wasn’t able to really work on an angel message with any coherence. Today felt like a great day to work with the therapy deck as a result.
Indigo
“The person you’re inquiring about is an “Indigo”, meaning a highly sensitive, natural-born leader.”
In the New Age community the discussion of Indigo’s is a big topic, especially when talking about children. This is when we most commonly hear the term, things like “She’s so in turn and perceptive for an 8 year old, she must be an Indigo” or “He has a hard time making friends with the other boys at school because of his sensitive Indigo personality.” The concept came about in the 1960s and 1970s when psychic and color therapist Nancy Ann Tappe began to notice a pattern in the auras and life energy colors of children being born around this time. She started to notice that the majority of children, especially those who were newborns and toddlers, had an evenly mixed blue and violet color surrounding them. In 1982 she published a book that outlined the concepts of Indigo children called “Understanding Your Life Through Color” which lead to another book specifically on Indigo’s to come out in 1988 by husband and wife New Age presenters Lee Carroll and Jan Tober called “The Indigo Children: The New Kids Have Arrived”. Since then Tappe has identified four different types of Indigo personalities, Humanist, Artist, Conceptualists, and Catalysts, along with a total of 17 traits to identify an Indigo.
A lot of criticism has come about over the subject, especially in the later 80s and early 90s when just about every child was being diagnosed with ADD or ADHD. With some of the traits for an Indigo being similar to behaviors common in children with these disorders it was often suggested that parents either didn’t properly treat their children and their possible medical conditions because they felt these were just the way their children expressed their Indigo personalities and yet other parents who were having their children treated by doctors and with medication tried to stress the Indigo personality issue with their children to, as some have suggested, make their children but more importantly themselves, feel better about the diagnosed medical condition. Many people have put the issue of Indigo’s to the test saying that the traits described are far too general and could really describe anyone, especially if they are in the least bit spiritual or creative. But on the flip side it is interesting to see that with the time frame that the Indigo personality began to be identified and expressed with purpose and the children born at that time, who are now adults and taking leadership roles in the world, all leading us into 2012 when we shift into the Age of Aquarius again, it leaves some very interesting things to consider and look at.
Whether or not you believe in the concept of Indigo’s isn’t so much the important message here as it is the general concept behind them. The angels message here is brought out through the message of the Indigo and that is “stand up, have confidence, take charge”. We can find that we let our imaginations run wild and we talk ourselves out of some of the great things that we might wish to do because we worry that the world is going to think we’ve lost our minds if we share our ideas and dreams. We need to spend less time worrying about what the world around us is thinking and more time focused on doing what we want to do, accomplishing what we wish to accomplish in this lifetime. Today is a great day to sit and connect with your angels, guides and Divine helpers and ask for guidance and strength in doing just that. Is there a specific dream or goal that you have that you wish to work on but you have some worry about bringing that out to the world? Ask for their help in making it happen and in giving you the strength to do what you wish to do. Don’t let the projections and fears of others hold you back or keep you from fulfilling your goals and being the leader you were born to be.
Today’s Affirmation
“I am working to move past the perceptions of others to be the leader I was meant to be.”
Today’s Angel Message…
Aug 16th
Today’s message comes again from the “Angels, Gods and Goddess” deck which I love so much. 
Goddess of the Earth
“An idea connected to imagination, creativity and nature is coming your way.”
Some of the best ideas that we might ever have can come from odd or out of the ordinary encounters with nature. A walk in the woods, sitting and looking at the clouds, even a day at the beach and stir our hearts and minds, and especially our spirits, in a way that nothing else can. The problem with this, however, comes with the fact that we don’t always listen to nature. Nature, especially in our highly electronic age, is something that is just sort of there. It lives and breaths and goes through its cycles virtually unnoticed by most people, even some of us good meaning Pagan and earth-minded folks can fall prey to the busy daily lives we life and forget to always stop and acknowledge the beauty of the changing seasons and the specific changes happening in our neighborhoods.
Today provides an opportunity to connect to nature to feed the creative spirit. Go for a walk this evening in an area that provides opportunities to connect to nature whether it’s by the beach or a lake or out in the woods (if it’s safe, of course). But here is the challenge. Don’t bring your iPod. Don’t distract yourself from nature during your walk. Focus on the trees, the ground, the sky above. Feel the heartbeat of nature around you and connect to that as you walk through its space. Open yourself up to hearing the messages and feeling the energy that the earth has to offer and let this bring forward whatever messages, ideas or information that the spirits of the earth have to give. Bring an offering of fruit, wine or juice, just a small amount, and leave it somewhere for the Goddess of the Earth, Gaia, Mother Nature. Thank her for being the ultimate sustenance in your life, both physical and spiritual.
Today’s Affirmation
“I connect to the Earth and hear her messages that feed my soul.”
