“The astrological sign of Virgo depicts The Hermit, virginity and solitude are thus labels of this card. His hood is shaped like Hebrew letter Yod. Yod is first letter of God's name - YHVH.
The Yod, symbol of the divine creative controlling intelligence, shows where is The Hermit on the spiritual ladder, still standing on material plane as the mortal man, but in touch with the mind of God…”
~ Meanings-tarot.com
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"Born Free" by Freydoon Rassouli[/caption]Happiness (in the form of Love) is an “Inside Job”. We have likely heard this many times, whether we believe it or not, whether we have experienced it or not. Happiness appears to come to some people naturally--they seem to be born with it (or with what we imagine brings happiness) or were perhaps raised with it.If we go by modern society’s edict, happiness is just a purchase or an exhilarating experience away…In fact, if we actually believe what we see on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, we might imagine what people project on the screens, what they want us to see, is actually what is going on with them! And why aren’t I as happy, beautiful, lucky, fun-loving as they are? First things first is to beg the question: are they really as happy as they appear?
..."only to thine own self " can we be true... When I AM comfortable with Me, I find that I Am equally comfortable with You!...The Hermit can only "See itself" in the vast desert of mind and it helps to carry the Light of Love...
~ Elitarotstrickingly.com
When we stop, look & listen; wait, see & hear what’s actually going on inside of us (and question what we are looking at outside of us), we realize that looking for happiness by comparing ourselves to others, or wanting what everyone else “appears” to have, is an exercise in futility and frustration.Because when we start to question this perspective, when we actually connect with those same people on a human, face to face level, we see that they are just like us. They have struggles and challenges, too, it's just that most people don’t post those to social media.
Slow down and feel the fullness of life
“The Power of believing in yourself comes from a knowing that your life is full of purpose (God doesn't create what God doesn't want) and everything that happens to you is for a life-motion expanding purpose..."
~ Elitarotstrickingly.com
This is what I have learned about looking inside for validation and answers to my questions, connecting with what feels right, what is in alignment with my higher self…The more I do this, the more grateful I become. And the more I look for the good in everyone and everything, the more good seems to reach out for and meet me.Some may call this a Pollyanna approach to the world, to others it appears that I am living under a rock, refusing to live in reality…But to me it’s the only way I can actually get out if bed in the morning; to face the beauty of the dawning day! I imagine, and believe, that there is more going on here in this world than what my mind (and the collective mind of society) perceives or asks me to believe.
Desiderata
Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time. Exercise caution in your business affairs; for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals; and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.
~ Max Ehrmann, Desiderata
Learn wisdom from the light within...
Why are we here? What are we doing? What choices are we making? What is our path? As a spiritual being having a human experience I know I came here on purpose. I chose this life, these life circumstances, parents, childhood challenges, struggles and joys, in order to bring/do/be to the world something that only I can.How do I know what that is? Where do I find the answer? After looking everywhere else, asking everyone else, reading all the self help books and taking all the self help seminars and trainings…I finally found the answer. It’s Inside. And it’s been there all along, actually guiding me through all of the above, waiting patiently for me to follow the path from the outside all the way around and back again to the inside--back to myself & my connection with my higher Self, the Divine, the light within.
The Divine spark of life exists in every cell of your body
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Hebrew letter Yod[/caption]
“The yod is an infinite dot, the essence of all life. It is the foundation of all foundations. Everything comes from it and returns to it. It is a hidden dot beyond imagination – formless, the source of all thought, beyond all thoughts, beyond time and space...
It is the Divine spark of life that is in every single being. It cannot be grasped, but is in every cell of your body, causing you to exist. In it is the power of the spirit to govern and guide the matter of the material world.”
~ Walkingkabbalah.com
This is the beauty of the hermit card in the tarot (and actually its secret relationship to the Star Card). It reminds us, like Desiderata, that each of us is “a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars”. It is our privilege to take exquisite care of ourselves, to find and honor the quiet place inside, where we are able to self-reference with the light of the Divine.If the one constant in the universe is change, then a good way to navigate that change is to constantly, regularly check our internal navigation system--the one place where we can truly know ourselves and feel the spark of the Divine, in our own heart.
“The Hermit is...connected to the Star card as both are about living your own life – here the Star is in the lantern of the Hermit. It means that when this card appears, we must walk the talk, recognize our position, and not still think we are distant from it, as in the Star. The Hermit is what happens when you reach the Star of your vision.”
~ Mytarotcardmeanings.com
But what if we don’t know ourselves? What if we haven’t had the opportunity to do all that self work, in order to recognize the spark of light? What if our vision is clogged with so much static and misinformation, emotional scar tissue and wounds, that we can’t access that still place inside that has so much wisdom to offer?
Love blossoms when you realign your perspective
“Happiness can only come from inside of you and is the result of your love. When you are aware that no one else can make you happy, and that happiness is a result of your love, this becomes the greatest mastery…”
~ Don Miguel Ruiz, The Mastery of Love
I just read The Mastery Of Love by Don Miguel Ruiz and I have returned to that place on a whole new level. His metaphors about Love from the inside and how to relate to it are wonderful and so very helpful. Towards the end of this little jewel of a book, Ruiz speaks of a way to heal the emotional body in order to create clear access to our inner navigation system of love. It involves 3 steps:TRUTH ~ cuts away the harmful sickness/infection (the kind of truth we speak of here is something akin to the work of Byron Katie about getting to what is actually true, not what we believe to be true)FORGIVENESS ~ cleans the wound to prepare for the regeneration and healing (forgiveness is really for us, not for the ones we forgive; we must let go of resentment and anger, bitterness, etc. in order to clear our own systems of the harmful residuals related to those emotions)LOVE ~ is the balm that accelerates the healing process (once we cut away the misinformation and clean out the unhealthy emotional patterns, there is a clear path for love to stream in and take us to another level)
“This is a card of attainment rather than a journey or quest as The Hermit shows us that we must have the strength to lose our man-made outer self...before we can find the Divine Self within…Being Lost and alone in our feelings, is the beginning of seeing the light... ”
~ Elitarotstrickingly.com
Here’s what happened for me recently: My current day job is at a wonderful place with wonderful people...It was serendipitously dropped out of a magical beneficent universe in March of 2018, followed by a fantastic affordable apartment within walking distance.(This occurred shortly after my last relationship ended with the "man of my dreams” who had essentially offered me the life of my dreams, and who then chose a different path due to complicated circumstances.)I was so grateful and amazed when this safety net unfolded, practically effortlessly, for me and I felt the hand of divine intervention encouraging me to take good care of myself; to heal and tend to my “wild and precious life”. And I have been doing just that.Then, a few weeks ago, I returned from a wonderful, peaceful, 10-day vacation with family; and I was ANGRY, at being back at work. I wondered how the heck I got here when the last thing I truly wished for was to be with my beloved, married and living comfortably in another country, which was where I still truly want to be. Why was I HERE doing THIS?! It was at this moment that I picked up The Mastery of Love from my bedside table where it had been sitting for several months, waiting for me.
“...the Hermit card represents the Universal Principle of completion, contemplation, and introspection. The Hermit symbolizes the "wise-way-shower" who lights the way of wisdom in the experiences of life and is an invaluable inner resource for assisting us and others in our daily lives.”
~ Elitarotstrickingly.com
As I read I realized how I have done a great deal of truth telling, forgiving and loving so far, and that this is not a one-time occurrence but a continuing, cyclical process. I looked at the truth of the situation and realized I wasn’t trusting the Divine--I was demanding that things happen the way “i” wanted them to happen…"i” wasn’t in touch with the “I” inside.I looked at how fortunate and blessed I am on so many levels and that the work I am doing right now, in this job and in my life is so very important for taking care of me, for honoring me, for cherishing me, for essentially becoming even more me from a truly healthy place.I went inside and felt how much love and guidance and magic is right here, in the still place inside and I got really, really GRATEFUL. And suddenly as my “i” and my “I” re-connected, everything smoothed out, I am willing and able to be here, now, enjoying my work, all of it, even the challenges, which don’t seem so insurmountable.
“Oh Beloved, Oh Beloved,
You have come…
Oh Beloved, Oh beloved,
You have come.
I feel you inside me,
Like the rising sun…
Oh Beloved, Oh Beloved,
We are One.”
(Listen to the Vocal Sound Healing version on Yuba River with Gwendolyn McClure)
And most of all, I tapped into the source of LOVE at the center of myself, I saw and felt how full of love my life is, even if it isn’t how I imagined, yet…and I realized how much I truly am loving and taking care of myself.I have up-leveled my relationship with the inner Divine, that unconscious part that actually makes the decisions while other parts of me appear to be over-thinking.I have re-negotiated my contract with the Universe as Yenta and am letting the Divine lead the way in finding and connecting me with my beloved. I am committed to being fully in alignment with my higher self, “my will in co-creation with Thy will” and what is in the highest & best interest of myself and everyone involved.And that feels so much better to me than it did to be pissed at what I imagined wasn’t happening. How can I possibly know it’s not happening--the story isn’t finished yet…and likely it will surpass my own small imagination by leaps and bounds, as my higher self/unconscious has always planned so much bigger for me than my ego/conscious self could safely endeavor.Dr. Paul Foster Case gave his students the following to help them work with the subconscious mind:
“Speak directly to the subconsciousness, as if to another person, and say:
Henceforth you are free from the influence of any other misinterpretations of appearances that may result from the inaccurate operation of my conscious thinking. You will refuse to accept any such misinterpretations, and you will be guided by the influx of superconscious life and wisdom.
Under this influence you will set my body in perfect order, through this wisdom you will guide me aright in all my affairs, and by the reflection of this boundless power into my personality you will give me ability and strength to accomplish all that I have to do.”
~ Gates-of-light.com
And so dear ones; let’s heed the advice of The Hermit as we head into Fall and take sometime to go within, as the seasons themselves (in the northern hemisphere) head into their time of repose and rest. Let’s align our Yod with our Virgo natures (we all possess at least a bit of Virgo) and settle in, touch down on the ground. Astrologically, the New Moon, Venus, Mars and Mercury are all joining us in Virgo as we get grounded together, in LOVE on this beautiful earth and head into the autumnal equinox.Speaking of the equinox, I’ll be offering readings here at Paradise Found on September 22 at the September Equinox Tasting event, come and experience many of the delightful readers that will be there offering their vision and insight for your delight.And I’ll also be offering readings on the 4th Saturday, this September 28th, 2019 at Paradise Found.May blessings abound.Blessed Be.Kristine Thandeka Marie
Oh Beloved,
take me.
Liberate my soul.
Fill me with your love and
release me from the two worlds.
If I set my heart on anything but you
let fire burn me from inside.
Oh Beloved,
take away what I want.
Take away what I do.
Take away what I need.
Take away everything
that takes me from you
~ Rumi
About Kristine
Transformative Tarot Card ReadingsKristine’s readings are interactive. Together we will enter into a conversation, ignited by the cards that show up for your questions, and empowered with her (and your) intuition, insight and guidance about what they bring up for you; the past, present, and future. The more you are willing to go deeply into your own process and share what the images and archetypes elicit in you, the better the conversation and the results will be...View Profile
