As Above, So Below for Monday, 7 August 2023
Reading Notes:
Significator runes: Mannaz (20th rune, Earth, man, integration, individual within society, mind/body/spirit connection, thought rune, collective memory; and, Via (path, way, direction)
Cards: Ace of Cups (1, Water, Minor Arcana), 8 of Swords (8, Air, Minor Arcana), 4 of Swords (4, Air, Minor Arcana). Additional Card: Queen of Swords (Air, Court)
Overall numerology/patterns: Overall numerology for the cards is four, but with Mannaz it becomes six, or empathy, guidance, assistance, harmony, and shared experience). Two patterns exist: a run on Swords, and as you’ll see in the picture below that illustrates the change in order, there is a magnification or increase in power from the four to an eight.
Looking first at the significator runes, Mannaz describes the individual within society and how we integrate with others. Contained within Mannaz, you’ll find Isa ᛁ, Wunjo ᚹ, Laguz ᛚ, Gebo ᚷ, Ehwaz ᛖ, and Dagaz ᛞ, so Mannaz is not only the 20th rune from the Elder Futhark, it’s also a powerful bindrune that suggests integration with others from a higher perspective. Via suggests a new path is opening, so, together, Mannaz and Via could be indicating that the current path you’re on is no longer satisfying you’re ready to pursue a different type of integration with others.
Moving on to today’s cards, the Ace of Cups, we see an hand reaching out from a cloud holding a golden cup. A white dove drops a disc into the cup that illustrates a cross which I interpret as the balance between soul and physical reality. Five streams of water pour from the cup to the water below nourishing the lilies that grow there. The Ace of Cups describes the genesis of new emotional awareness or resonance that fosters empathy, kindness, love, generosity, and healthy integration with others.
Next, the 8 of Swords shows a woman in a red dress standing in some wet sand surrounded by eight swords. She is bound and blindfolded as she goes within to reassess her thoughts or perceptions in a dispassionate manner. She’s away from her home, the castle on the cliffs, to keep family from influencing her as well. The swords can either indicate the influence of others or the influence of her own perceptions, but either way, she’s turning off the noise within and without and coming to a decision.
Lastly, the 4 of Swords shows a casket in a mausoleum that on top depicts the individual within the casket. A stained glass window appears in the upper left hand corner while three swords point downward as one appears horizontal on the casket itself. The 4 of Swords is about letting your thoughts settle so that you can experience some respite and grounding.
A preliminary summary of the reading suggests that you may be reevaluating a relationship in your life, and you’ve come to the conclusion that a new direction is necessary that promotes a more positive integration with others. At this point, I decided to draw another card to give more information: The Queen of Swords.
Continuing the run on the suit of Swords, the Queen of Swords sits on her throne surrounded by clouds. She reaches out her left hand beckoning others to speak to her while holding an upright sword in her right hand as if to say, come to me in truth or do not come to me at all. So it could be that you’re realizing that you’ve experienced deception on your current path and you’re ready to move forward in a direction that you can trust.
It was then the actual order of the reading became clear and appears below.
Final Summation
The new order of the reading becomes the 4 of Swords, the 8 of Swords, the Queen of Swords, and the Ace of Cups.
You’ve allowed your thoughts to come to a rest so that you can have some respite from what you’ve been going through. You take that process one step further and turn off the noise of your own thoughts/perceptions and those of others, to make a decision in as dispassionate a way as possible. When you realize that you need a different direction, you then assert your own inner authority by demanding truth and integrity from others around you. And from there, you experience the genesis of a higher level of integration with others that involves expressions of love, generosity, healing, empathy, and compassion. The overall numerology of six also reinforces this new path.
Well, that’s cool…
Blessings to all!
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Thank you... Jan Erickson
