Cycle 8 - 2020 Daily Medicine Cards - November 23 - Dec 6
Day 91 - November 23
Dear Friends, First off I would like to thank our sweet, gracious and intuitively piercing readers: Kristoph, Ruth, Chris, Sarah, Amy, Ella, Sonja, Meara, Sue and Kate!!! <3 <3 <3 I only had a chance for a quick skim through yesterday as I’m taking my re-integration slowly, but already what a cool experience to read through. As Kate suggested may happen yesterday, many synchronicities did pop up! I’m excited to read through more thoroughly tonight! We are starting back with the Thoth deck today and our messenger is the Prince of Swords.
The Prince of Swords is here to ask us to bring clarity of awareness to our inner tendencies towards aggression, negative perceptions and even exploitation of others and situations. Despite this, he also serves the noble cause of mobility - especially when it comes to evacuating devastated places and migrating to new ones (be they internal or external).
Personal - In the process of cognitive development, this card represents the brilliant period when we are able to start enthusiastically seeking solutions, taking them from theory into practice. When we pursue a goal with an open heart, and dare I say even a cheerful demeanor, our necessary insight will be revealed.
Collective - The Prince warns us of the detriments that can occur when we let our chariot be pulled in all different directions. Focus is key here. The whole world is an unbalanced system. Two small rivers flowing together can become strong enough to re-establish the whole system. The path it chooses in this unstable condition is difficult to predict, so we may need to be very creative in allowing the terrain to take us where it will. As long as our end goal remains intact in our hearts, all previously defined rules will have the opportunity to collapse back into the Earth. This is “solve et coagula” (dissolving and binding) of alchemy.
In magic and medicine, yours truly
Gina Mauro
Day 92 - November 24
Good Morning All! We receive our blessing this morning from Caroline Myss’s Artist archetype.
As we’ve been receiving so many cards about creativity throughout this project together, it has served to really get me musing on the concept of the Artist archetype’s role in the mystical. As Myss mentions in the Light Attributes section, the artist expresses a dimension of reality that is just beyond the 3D senses. My two favorite quotes about art come from a couple dead white guys: Nietzsche tells us that “we have art so that we don’t die from the truth,” Picasso adds that “art is the lie that tells the truth.” So what is the big quantum deal with the “truth” anyway, and what does it have to do with art?
Personal - When we engage an artistic practice of any sort (from craft, to music to cooking) we embody a bridge between the mundane and the mystical. Even if it is a calming practice, an element of passion is absolutely required in order to move us into and through the journey of creation. It is this passion that shifts the quantum code within the theme of your project, for passion is love, and love is the only truth in our holographic universe. When we choose love (aka passion, aka art) we are saying YES to life, and YES is the only true prayer/spell there really is.
Collective - Art is an essential service to humanity, the Earth and all sentient beings. There is an artist archetype within every single one of us. In my brief early career as an art educator, we learned that children decide whether they’re “bad” at art or not between the ages of 7 and 10. I pray that as adults we can all heal any aspects of our younger selves who were driven by collective lies to either box ourselves in, or ostracize ourselves from a particular box. Healing our young ones is one of the greatest responsibilities we can take on in our lifetimes.
So let me put on my giant dangly wooden art teacher earrings and encourage everyone to do a bit of something today, even if it’s small. Make a collage, whistle whatever random tune your brain is producing, or color in the mandala that I’m attaching below. And know that when you are doing it, it is medicine for all.
In magic and medicine, yours truly
Gina Mauro
Day 93 - November 25
Hello All! SOOOO….today the Death Cap visits us from the mushroom kingdom. We are going to explore some metaphor surrounding its qualities as well as make some correlations between Tarot’s King of Swords
Amanita phalloides is perhaps the most common and prolifically growing poisonous mushroom known to human. Most infamously, Roman Emperor Claudius, Pope Clement VII, the Russian tsaritsa Natalia Naryshkina, and Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI were all assassinated using this mushroom.The King of Swords is considered the maintainer of the social structure of the community, representing not only power, but also justice and judgment. All Kings represent authority, and all swords represent intellect, but the King of Swords resides in the realm action. He is tough-minded and common-sense focused to a fault, and as Rachel Pollack says in 78 Degrees of Wisdom has “no time for mystic mumbo jumbo.”
Personal - Resembling many gourmet mushrooms, smelling honey honey-sweet and the supposedly tasting quite delicious, it can still take up to two weeks before the effects of this Amanita shut down the liver and kidneys causing death. What aspects of your personality correlate to this disguised appearance? This tantalizing aroma? This reassuringly delightful taste? We know we all have many layers, including shadow sides, we know we all indulge conscious or unconscious manipulations at times. What part of you comes out after someone has been lured into your life and reassured with your comforts?
Collective - If we overlay the some of the King of Swords qualities with some of the Death Cap’s traits and what we know generally about the interconnected and constantly communicating wisdom of the international mycelial biome, what do we get? What does this mushroom say about deeper wisdom? Would the King of Swords himself perhaps fall victim to this mushroom for not honoring the deeper mystical truths of what the mushroom can communicate to him?
In magic and medicine, yours truly
Gina Mauro
Day 94 - November 26
Blessings All! The High Priestess has come to speak with us today, and she wishes to share some lesser-known aspects of her archetypal profile.
General - The High Priestess achieves her wisdom through stillness. Passivity allows the gnosis of all inner truths to exist in the vessel that The High Priestess creates within her own beingness.
Personal - The High Priestess’s very deep state of intuitive awareness about the unconscious mind allows her to clearly see the powerful yet limited state of the conscious mind. The High Priestess archetype within each of us allows us to see this as well...if we really want to...if we are willing to see the “good” boundaries and “bad” barriers that the ego puts up around us.
Collective - Together, The Magician and the The High embody a Yin-Yang model duality of opposites. If we see The Fool as representing All-Is-One, we can then see The Magician and High Priestess as parts of the Fool’s self that he splits into rather than teachers/mentors that are outside of himself. This is the initial division in the journey of infinite divisibility that we call the Major Arcana. The final card, The World/Universe is achieved when everything is divided into parts so small that they are simply atoms floating in The Whole, and thus embodying The Whole itself.
In magic and medicine, yours truly
Gina Mauro
Day 95 - November 27
Hello All! Working with the astrology cards today, we receive a great practice problem for working with any chart. The card that revealed itself today was the 9th house. However, while the sign of Libra is passing through, there are no planets in the 9th house today. This is bound to happen in almost every natal chart or daily chart we encounter. Unless it is a very special moment in the skies, usually at least one house will be “empty.” However, we still go forth with learning what we can about the sign and house. Even in our own birth charts, this information will help us understand ourselves.
Along the way we may have heard about Libra’s commitment to justice, truth, balance and harmony. It is also important for us here to tune in to what I think is actually Libra’s primary role and the seed of all their better-known qualities - to bring love in. While a vacant house in a personal chart reading may mean that you’ve achieved full understanding of the placement in past lives, in today’s collective reading I read the void house as a call for us to align our scales through the intention of bringing love in to the scenarios at hand: spiritual values, long-range thinking of travel, figuring out what you’re open to sharing in your life.
Personal - The 9th house is determined by its representation as the opposite of its neighborhing 10th house (representing parental, especially masculine/paternal/authority roles) and especially the midheaven cusp- representing the specific person in your life who embodies that role for you). In the 9th house we expand beyond that individual to all the other sources of influence that we specifically seek out on our own, especially when it comes to the widespread dissemination of knowledge. What is something that you discovered through your own research that has influenced your approach to bringing love in for you more than anyone who has directly told you to align with a particular philosophy
Collective - The sentences that our two cards build today suggest that we look at our “relationships as if they came from all-there is.” How does this idea shift your perspective on the people who are in your life? We can take a further step towards this by seeing “the beauty of philosophies and laws.” Tuning into concepts of love and justice give us the opportunity to explore the quantum realm of the maxims which govern us beyond man-made law. And finally, our cards suggest we “do it with your partners and do it in a big way.” You can decide what that means for you!
In magic and medicine, yours truly
Gina Mauro
Day 96 - November 28
Blessed Sabbath All, Last Saturday when Sue read for us, The King of Wands emerged alongside The Hermit. Sue reminded us that “The Hermit card depicts an old man standing alone at the peak of the mountain with a lantern in his hand. The mountain denotes accomplishment and success. He is ready to impart that knowledge to everyone. There is also a deep commitment to his goal and a solid awareness of the path that he is taking. He is a lonely wanderer, searching for his inner voice. To hear it, he needs solitude (or, as our phrase suggests - peace). Let us overlay this message with a 9 minute scrying meditation on The Circle of Life Tarot’s Hermit.
We see right off the bat that this Hermit doesn’t carry his own lantern but encircles the crescent moon in the sky with the top of his staff. He also carries a book and there seems to be much more mountaintop surrounding him...is he on his way down? What do you see?
I find myself focusing on the Hermit’s footwear (why is he wearing sandals despite being intensely bundled?)...I understand this to indicate a dedication to having at least some part of his senses still exposed to and attuned to the Natural elements.
Collective - I note that this Hermit has a key tied to the end of his beard and also carries a book with him...I understand this to mean that a week later, after deciding to “impart his knowledge to everyone” that he has gathered the most important things - he no longer needs to carry his own light (he magnifies the light of the Moon), but he does need a very particular key for unlocking wisdom, and he leaves no question in our minds that the knowledge he will be imparting is heavy- we will have to study.
In magic and medicine, yours truly
Gina Mauro
Day 97 - November 29
Sunday Blessings Friends! A beautiful and simple Mudra Card is here for us today. Avahana Mudra whose theme is CONNECTION is a position probably accessible to most people’s hands, though I did find it hard to rest my hands in my lap in that position, so I sort of just held them up like a book at my chest.
I want to talk a little about “assimilation” as it is mentioned amongst the benefits of this mudra. It doesn’t matter if we learn the lessons in our minds, it doesn’t matter if we connect with the essence of tree or mushroom medicine’s connection to all if we do not assimilate. In vibrational and spiritual medicine, this does not just mean to be accustomed to, but rather to invite and infuse into all aspects of your being. You’re not trying to remember a lesson or message, you are becoming that lesson, you are living that message. It is in your cells, it is part of you.
Personal - “strengthens devotion and connection with one’s personal deity.” As some of you know, I work with the Elephant deity Ganesh- remover obstacles. So on the card’s suggestion to incorporate a mantra for the duration of your meditation, I engaged the the mantra Om Sri Maya Ganapataye Namah which I highly recommend if you are not sure what to focus on in this meditation.
Collective - When I work with Ganesh, I visualize him lumbering through the forest or jungle clearing the way simply by his beingness. So with this beautiful mudra which looks like the branches of a tree and symbolizes connection, I visualize Ganesh actually inside the tree clearing up any blockages that prevent the communication from roots to branches and beyond.
In magic and medicine, yours truly
Gina Mauro
Day 98 - November 30
Happy Chinese Medicine Monday! I’m loving our guiding message today. Liver 13 - “Chapter Gate” comes to give us some deepening perspective on some of the creativity stuff we have been discussing through these months.
In his book Clinical Practice of Chinese Medicine, Lonny Jarrett speaks at length about the idea of holding on to grudges or injuries as one of the most detrimental ways to block creativity. Liver 13 is the second to last point on the meridian, just one step away from the “Gate of Hope.” The concept of harmonizing by way of regaining perspective is at the core of this point.
Personal - How do we turn the page to the next chapter of our creative goals when we are becoming bogged down by the process of our work? It is easy to lose sight of the goals and purpose behind our creativity when the metaphorical mud or sand of earth element (re: this is also the spleen mu point) smothers our fire. There are many internal twists and turns we can take to resolve this, we can also attend to the issue through palpation of this point. The image is attached below, but you can also find this point by standing with your arm at your side, bend your elbow 90 degrees, now press the point on your torso/rib that is closest to your elbow- it should be somewhat sensitive.
Collective - Resentments can also be a major cause of creative blockages. “When we suffer an injury there will never be satisfactory resolution in terms of human justice. As long as we persist distinguishing between right and wrong, scars and lingering damage will result. No human resolution can entirely make up the loss created by injury. The only real healing comes from rolling the two of right and wrong back into the one of primordial dao in which all opposites are harmonized. Along these lines, the Daodejing advises us not to see justice but rather to ‘repay injury with virtue”.”
In magic and medicine, yours truly
Gina Mauro
Day 99 - December 1
Greetings and Blessings Friends, We revisit the Tarot today through the lens of Lettie Jane Rennenkamp’s Many Queens Tarot. Our Queen today is the Page of Swords. I just love the illustrations in this deck so much, I definitely recommend a scry/meditation with these cards
So we often tune into our cards by aligning with the suit/element and the number or court card. The Page of Swords requires a slightly different approach to analysis. The Page is just as sharp of intellect and spirit as the rest of the Swords, and they do take to some of the problem-solving proclivities of all the Pages, but they are not a messenger/communicator of the same ilk as the other Pages, and they do not use their intellect to directly approach and slice through issues like the other Swords.
Personal - The Page of Swords is known to approach problems through perspective - gaining higher ground to assess rather than charging into battle head-on. How has this approach benefitted you in your life? How has this sort of zoom-out led you into places of detachment that prevent you from dealing with a true issue?
Collective - When the Page of Swords approach of detachment and over-intellectualizing (to further separate themselves from the emotions of an issue) clicks over into paranoia, we know that it is time to question the benefits of detachment. Of course non-attachment in the Buddhist sense can afford us space to move through emotions before approaching something, but ultimately we still want to approach. When has the combination of curiosity and intellect lead you to seeing life as a specimen? Has an obsession with a problem that you’re struggling to solve led you to spying (either literally or figuratively) on others?
In magic and medicine, yours truly
Gina Mauro
Day 100 - December 2
Blessings All!
Wow, day 100 - and with it, a major shift in the vibe from our Animal Medicine guide, The Badger as we look at the importance of aggressiveness in our lives.
“Badger is the medicine of many powerful medicine women, for Badger is also the keeper of the medicine roots. Badger sees all the roots of Mother Earth’s healing herbs hanging in its burrow home...Badger medicine people are quick to act in a crisis, and they do not panic...Badger medicine may also point to the aggressive healer who will have the courage to use unconventional means to exact a cure. Badger is willing to persist...They are also the finest healers, because they will use any and all methods to ensure healing, and will not give up on the critically ill.”
Personal - “Badger may be telling you that you have been too meek in trying to reach some goal. Badger asks you how long you are willing to sit and wait for the world to deliver your silver spoon. In this medicine, the key is to become aggressive enough to do something about your present state of affairs. Badger is teaching you to get angry in a creative way...Be aggressive, but don’t cut others to ribbons on the way -- that is to much aggression. Use your anger to stop your lolling round, so that your doldrums of apathy are a thing of the past...Remember that Badger may be signalling a time when you can use your healing abilities to push ahead in life. Heal yourself by aggressively removing the barriers that don’t ‘grow corn’.”
Collective - “Badger people can be viscous gossips, or may exhibit a ‘chip on the shoulder’ syndrome if they are out of balance...If this applies to you, remember that all anger stems from anger toward the self. It is an anger of helplessness that is misdirected towards others. If you are angry at a coworker for telling the boss that you were looking for another job, you are really angry at yourself for not keeping your own secret. If you are angry at your children for disobeying, it is usually anger that stems from fear for the children’s well-being.”
In magic and medicine, yours truly
Gina Mauro
Day 101 - December 3
Dear Ones, It appears that our cards from the past two days, the Page of Swords and Badger Medicine, have joined forces to bring us Eagle Medicine today. The ultimate Animal Medicine guide and ally, the Eagle shows us how to keep balanced both the detached perspective-seeking of the Page and the ferocious tenacity of the Badger in order to achieve our greatest visions.
“From the mountain top of my being
I see a world of infinite possibility I open my wings, and let go of limits My Great Spirit lifts me higher. I bring visions of Heaven back to Earth.
2. Personal - “You did not come here to be tangled or suppressed by life. You did not come here to be weighed down by the details of your day-to-day, but to rise with the breath of your great spirit, to stretch your heart and vision beyond what may have once seemed realistic or appropriate - into the wide open field of all possibility.”
3. Collective - “When being courted by a prospective life partner, the female Eagle flies up with an object (such as a stick) in her talons and drops it, watching to see if her male suitor will be committed and fast enough to dive down and catch it before it lands. She knows this daring feat may need to be repeated live with her offspring one day, should they falter in their first steps from the nest.”
In magic and medicine, yours truly
Gina Mauro
Day 102 - December 4
Venus Day Blessings Friends! What a perfect Venusian love (tho