The Witch ~ Tarot for 19 December 2017

The cards in this tarot reading are so cool. But then so is the entire Haindl Tarot deck. Two cards from the Major Arcana, The Hierophant and The Star, begin the reading followed by the Queen of Swords, retitled by Haindl as the Mother of Swords in the South which is stunning. Earth and Water are the elemental influences from the Major cards with Air as the influence of Swords. 13 is the overall numerology which I can either regard as the Master Witch number or reduce it further to four or structure and the influence of the Divine Feminine or Gaia. Which, upon further reflection, is the same thing anyway. After all, witches are the Goddess personified, so I think I’ll interpret the reading from the standpoint of how this reading relates to the witch herself.

Three generations are present in Haindl’s rendition of The Hierophant. Structure, tradition, and knowledge comprising divine wisdom come through in this card of Earthy Taurus. The light of divine wisdom shines above the family, the masculine side of the polarity we all experience in form. As card five of the Major Arcana, The Hierophant’s inherent numerology suggests change made evident by the triple aspect of this card. The rune, Raidho appears at the top right of the card indicating the journey we take through the cycles of our lives toward enlightenment.

The ancient Goddess meditatively washes her flowing red hair in a pool of water below in The Star, card seventeen of the Major Arcana. She is covered in a tattered cloak while a bright star encircled by smaller stars appears in the night sky above her. A card of Pisces, The Star invokes Elemental Water bringing intuition, healing, and hope to the reading. The rune, Eihwaz appears in the upper right corner reinforcing her status as the Blessed Conduit between Spirit and form. Our dreams become a reality when this card appears in a reading. Eight is the card’s numerology denoting the more practical nature of our lives along with structure and strength.

The Mistress of Air, the Queen of Swords is represented by dual representations of Goddess Nut (Nuit), the goddess of the nighttime sky. She is represented in various ways, but typically we see her arched over something depicting the sky above. Haindl draws both representations behind a field of golden stars. Powerful like Nuit, the Queen of Swords, not one to suffer any fools, walks her talk, asserting herself when necessary, ignoring the rest as she goes about her business. From Wikipedia:

 

Some of the titles of Nut were:

• Coverer of the Sky: Nut was said to be covered in stars touching the different points of her body.
• She Who Protects: Among her jobs was to envelop and protect Ra, the sun god.^[4]
• Mistress of All or “She who Bore the Gods”: Originally, Nut was said to be lying on top of Geb (Earth) and continually having intercourse. During this time she birthed four children: Osiris, Isis, Set, and Nephthys.^[7] A fifth child named Arueris is mentioned by Plutarch.^[8] He was the Egyptian counterpart to the Greek god Apollo, who was made syncretic with Horus in the Hellenistic era as ‘Horus the Elder’.^[9] The Ptolemaic temple of Edfu is dedicated to Horus the Elder and there he is called the son of Nut and Geb, brother of Osiris, and the eldest son of Geb.^[10]
• She Who Holds a Thousand Souls: Because of her role in the re-birthing of Ra every morning and in her son Osiris’s resurrection, Nut became a key god in many of the myths about the afterlife.^{[4] (Wikipedia)}

 

 

Witches observe the cycles of life whether we’re talking about the turn of the wheel or our own expression of triple aspects. If as women we live into our elder years, we experience the resonance of the Maiden, the Mother, and the Crone in our lives. Men experience the same cyclical process in their own right. The Hierophant, particularly in Haindl’s rendition, describes the ancient cycle of life, which the witch fully embodies and embraces as her own. This point is further reinforced by the Blessed Conduit in The Star. Witches have long been viewed as oracles between Spirit and form, again an ancient practice that resonates deeply within the heart and soul of the witch. As She Who Holds a Thousand Souls, the witch embodies the essence of Goddess Nuit, casting her intentions to the greater unified presence.

These three cards speak to the greater awareness possessed by the witch. Witches typically know the entire picture, that greater expanse of tradition learned over lifetimes lived. Understanding cycles, embracing awareness, and casting our intention are among the witch’s greatest abilities, particularly with respect to cyclical patterns. That understanding allows us to know when to act and when to wait, from wisdom gained over lifetimes lived, resurrected again and again by the witch each time she reincarnates into form.

A note about the number thirteen. The number thirteen figures prominently in my life which I’m going to have to do a post about at some point. Among other things, I was born on October 13th, my Templar ancestors were either arrested or burned on October 13, 1307, and for several years I would wake up at exactly 3:13 am every morning. Without fail. Apparently, the number 313 indicates that angelic presence surrounds me and that my intuition serves me well. It also suggests that my power lies in creating my own experiences and in living my truth. I think it was an angelic tap on the shoulder and I’ve paid attention ever since and why I tend not to reduce 13 any further. Hagalaz, the 13th rune of the Elder Futhark, is considered by some to be a witch rune, one that causes change within a structured framework. So leaving it alone allows thirteen to come into its fullness as a rune of great change. Like the witch.

Blessed Yule, everyone!

References:

1. Nut (goddess). Wikipedia.