The Shadow are Deep

Mind, Body & Spirit Reading with Shadowscapes-things to think about. I lay the cards out top to bottom and turn them over one at a time. No reversals-none are even discussed in the card descriptions with this deck.

Mind - Eight of Swords
A beautiful swan is surrounded by eight Swords and thorny brambles. The skeletons of others who have found themselves in the same place are under her feet. Her wings are spread out and she looks skyward at a hummingbird that hovers above her.

Looking at this card, I feel that the skeletons aren't "others", but previous times that I've felt this way, trapped, imprisoned by my thoughts - the self-critic that resides deep and tempts me with old unproductive habits(ways of thinking) that are a waste of my time and energies - at the first sign of weakness. The hummingbird is a symbol(for me) of taking small steps toward my "vision self", the woman I envision as my goal.
~From the book~ "The Eight of Swords is a reminder not to waste energy on the trivial. It is easy to freeze up in a crisis - to feel restricted, confused, powerless, and trapped by circumstances - but there is always a way out if you take a moment to breathe and reassess." While not a crisis for me, I feel that the time for change, creating my "vision self" is now, that the timing is right for this.

Body - The Hanged Man. The Hanged Man suspends himself, unbound, hanging by his knees from a gnarled tree branch. He's reaching his arms back and up toward his heels, free to change his position anytime. He chooses to be here doing this.

The thing about this card that is most apparent to me tonight(reading was done last night), is that "he has" the choice to move. For now, for whatever reason, he's chosen not to. And that's exactly where I seem to be, making the choice not to, coming up with reasons(excuses) for not doing enough, not moving forward.

Spirit - The Devil
What a unique Devil image. The woman chained in the pod/shell was what first drew my eye. She's crouched down, her right arm wrapped around her legs, the left around the back of her neck. Her head rests on her knees. The Devil is a skeletal looking winged faerie, dancing on top of the pod/shell. A red heart is suspended between his/her hands.

Tonight, for me, this card represents making the right choices for myself, in my spirituality as well as mundane decisions. I try too hard to look at all sides of a situation and find myself imprisoned by the lists of pros and cons. I make a decision, then doubt myself, knowing I had other choices. I put things off because of indecision to the point where time and circumstances take the decision away from me, and I just live with the consequences. Right now, I'm in that pod/shell cowering as the Devil of Decision dances overhead. I've got to learn to trust myself more and stop living in the limbo of indecision. (Don't ever go the ice cream parlor with me, if they offer more than vanilla and chocolate ;p)

~~Reading with this deck is a pleasure. I love the images and colors, and there are many creatures that join the main characters of the cards. Even as I learn to trust my intuition more, I still like to read the different descriptions and meanings that the artists/authors give for the cards. While not as serious and spiritual as the Druidcraft is, I'm finding depth in the images. Yet, I imagine this deck could be read with a lighthearted view as well.

I still want to do the New Deck Interview Spread with Shadowscapes and tomorrow night is the New Moon, so I'll be reading the New Moon Spread that Eowyn created. This spread and it's sister spread Full Moon Spread are both excellent spreads to do on an ongoing basis every month.

I've been sneaking in some daily draws with The Heart of Faerie Oracle, too. This is another deck I'm really enjoying working with, even though my experience outside the framework of tarot is very limited. I don't normally read for others, but I've been participating in a few monthly reading exchanges in the Oracles Forums as well, not doing too bad(I think).

Well, time to go plant some pansies, my Grandmother always called them monkey-faces, and stand where my veggie garden will be this summer and dream!

~Thanks For Stopping By~ Leigh

My Readings with Shadowscapes...

This may be one of those decks where the aid of the book is in order. I've been trying to sharpen my intuition by reading the cards first and then resorting to the book. My knowledge and experience with symbols is weak(need to find a good reference) and I found myself a bit puzzled. Anyway, here's my first MBS reading with Shadowscapes.

Mind-The Queen of Pentacles. This Queen is standing in/or is part of an oak tree, it's branches reaching out around her. The Sun shines over her head and she holds a glowing orb with an oak leaf inside. She's curvy and has red hair(reminiscent of myself before I gave up the tint bottle). As the matron of earthy energies, she is grounded, secure in who she is and what she has to offer the world, as the branches of the tree reach far and wide. She offers the guidance that by finding belief in myself I too can shine in who I am. I need to build more confidence in who I am and what I do.

Body-The Six of Pentacles. A young flute player sits on an overhanging wall or support beam, decorated in what appears to be as a dragon. Water with the six pentacles flows down onto thorny brambles. Directly underneath the stream is one bright green shoot, being nourished b the flow. The flute player seems rather unaware of the growth happening below him. This is a message to be more aware of what nourishes my body, paying more attention to giving it what I need for health. And this is so true of me, I am a rather mindless eater, meals I do okay with, but snacking is my downfall.

Spirit-The Moon. She stands alone(she thinks) in a forest glade inside a faery ring of glowing mushrooms. A crescent moon shines overhead casting a soft light on the forest. Her left hand is held up as if she's just released the dove that flies over her. In her right hand she holds a mask. She's gazing quite intently at it. Now that she thinks she's alone, (although she's not) she has revealed her true self by removing the mask she presents the world. However the faeries hidden in the glade around her, see her for who she is. Her secret is safe in this glade. There a many times when I don a mask of illusion, to protect my true spirit. I need to learn to remove it and let the world see me as more of who I really am. Which can be quite a scary prospect as there are times when I'm not sure I know who that is.

As I said, I'll need to use the book with this deck until I'm more familiar with it and have sharpened my symbols and numerology skills. I think this deck has much to teach me, I just have to listen and learn.

~Thanks for Stopping By~ Leigh

In the Shadows.

I've been neglecting my journal(blog) here lately. I get busy with other things, the day drifts away and then there isn't time left to devote to journalling. I've been a sporadic journaller throughout my life. It seems that the hardest, most emotional times were when I was most committed to sharing my thoughts-even if it was only with myself. I wish now that I had been more consistent. So, I'm making a new commitment to journalling at this time....

Over the last 3 months my readings-done for myself and by others-have all indicated changes, new beginnings. And while I get the itch every spring to make changes in my life, this felt very different, more intense. Like this was a last chance, or 'The Time' for major overhauls in my thinking, emotions, and health in general. So that's what I'm working on.

Which brings me to one of the reasons that I haven't been keeping up with this journal(I really dislike the term blog). My readings with the DruidCraft have been intensely personal, requiring careful consideration, and revisiting as more and more is opened up to me. At this point I feel very much like the Fool embarking on his adventures. With my sparse pack of "skills", I'm not sure where I'm headed, but I know that I'm in for a fairly intense period of growth and change.

I'd like to take this journal in a bit of a new direction. While I love the DruidCraft-which is listed as my PDR deck-I recently received the Shadowscapes Tarot by Stephanie Pui-Mun Law and fell in love with it. I'm switching my PDR deck to Shadowscapes and will continue to work with the DruidCraft, but only for personal spiritual readings, as it is a deck that speaks to my soul.

I'll be doing some 3 card Mind/Body/Spirit readings with my new Shadowscapes, and posting those here. I also need to play catch-up with everyone elses 'blogs' and see what y'all have been up to! I'll be back tonight with my first MBS reading. See you then!

~Thanks For Stopping By~ Leigh