Image by Ravynne Phelan
Today I drew 3 cards, representing the Past, Present and Future circumstances following a meditation on the question; “What does the next 6 months hold in store for humanity?” In a sense they tell a story.
I drew the ‘Destiny’ card back in May (see 28th May blog post) and that same card appeared today and lies in our past position in this timeline. So perhaps indicating that mankind’s destiny has already been set in motion and we must now see it through from beginning to end? What we face is now the ‘collective’, rather than the individual journey (as seen in the future card placement), and no matter how dark or rough the road appears to be … All of us are travelling it together.
In drawing the Destiny card in the past position… we are being asked to consider what we are not, ‘as a collective’, dealing with from our past history. Reflect for a moment on the 7 Sources of Humanity’s pain: Arrogance; Addiction; Violence; Hatred; Prejudice; Victimhood and Shame.
How many of us can relate to one or more of one of those wounds in our own personal history? I know that I can.
The Microcosm … and the Macrocosm.
Now imagine those sources of pain projected onto the world screen and each time we are faced with them via some event through the media and the press, consider the anxiety and fear they perpetuate in the unconscious memory bank of each and every one of us. These overwhelming feelings and the accompanying strong emotions have us running for the hills and wanting to take cover. Look at what the handling of the Covid crisis has already unearthed in many of us… our anger and judgment has been quick to rise and already we can see the cracks of division and separation… from the whole. Many people are living in a permanent state of fear, an almost existential ‘dread’ leading to depression, anxiety… and even feelings of desolation and despair … Some people are asking themselves; “What is the point?” If, as a ‘collective’, we are in a permanent state of flight or fight response, constantly preparing for a possible threat or emergency to our very livelihood… imagine the stress response we are putting ‘out there’ into the ether.
Deepak Chopra commented recently; “In a time of crisis, the impulse is to go into emergency mode, fear, concern and panic. Giving in to those impulses will engender an epidemic of soul sickness”.
Back in May, when this ‘Destiny’ card first appeared I quoted moral philosopher Toby Ord and referenced his book, ‘The Precipice’.
Ord pointed out that humanity’s inability to anticipate potential catastrophes which have no precedent in living memory, leaves us inept and unequipped, like travelling blindly through the darkness. “Even when experts estimate a significant probability for an unprecedented event,” he writes, “we have great difficulty believing it until we see it.” Many informed scientists predicted that a global epidemic was almost certain to break out at some point in the near future” and it was an existential threat that we were not prepared for. “Humanity”, says Ord, “is in its adolescence, and like a teenager that has the physical strength of an adult but lacks foresight and patience, we are a danger to ourselves until we mature”.
Global unity is the only way we are going to overcome what we currently face … and indeed any future threats to our survival, for mankind would be complacent in thinking that this will be the only one.
The image of the card sees a ‘Dolmen’, a stone monolith encasing what looks like static electricity. It reminded me back in May and the image still holds true … of the Ark of the Covenant, the sacred chest made by the ancient Israelite’s and in accordance with the command and design of God. The Ark, a symbol of God’s holiness is believed to hold the Ten Commandments and not abiding by these rules was believed to bring about His wrath.
Look at the eagle above the Dolmen; its talons are configured as tree branches suggesting the ‘higher vision’ needed to navigate our way forward as well as a return to the old, traditional ways of our peace loving ancestors. We see a woman (goddess) face encompassed within a darkening moon… a return to the sacred feminine and a respect for nature. Humanity is indeed grappling to find its way … we have failed to uphold the message of those commandments and whilst I have always believed in a benevolent Creator…it does pose the moral question; ‘have we strayed so far from the path of righteousness and in our treatment of the Earth, that we are now being held accountable for our actions?’
The ancient Maya talked about the ‘age of darkness’, heralding the 33 year period from 1987 as a time of warning. They implied that the mechanized world we live in and our dissociation from nature and its sacred cycles was bound to have repercussions at some stage in our evolution… both for the Earth and its inhabitants.
But have we been truly listening?
The second card in the ‘Present’ position…the Five of Earth carries a more confusing message. It asks us to use our discernment by reading between the lines and asking questions as ‘all may not be as it seems’. We see a ‘Devilish’ image representing the archetypal trickster… the beautiful con man who offers words of comfort, but beware it is easier sometimes to deliver soft lies than hard truths… Think of the card image as a kind of metaphor, because as with everything in life, there is duality, there is always a price and a pay-off.
Are we blindly swallowing everything that those in power and/or the media are telling us? Without questioning their judgment or motives and their ability to camouflage/manipulate the Truth?
Discern… discern…discern. Tap into your own inner voice… and listen.
The horned figure holds a set of cards in his hand. Cards are used by gamblers in ‘game playing’ and denote risk. Is this a foretelling of the risks to our physical and mental health that are at stake here? Are those in power gambling with our very lives?
One of the cards is the Ace of Spades, often considered the ‘death’ card and representing here the Death of the Year and the start of a new one, when the Samsara wheel turns again. I can’t imagine a being on planet Earth who doesn’t wish to see the back of this year. Human beings do not cope well with isolation – look at the vulnerable yet crushed spirit of the feminine image in the left hand side of the card? She is not weeping, but her demeanour is lifeless, drained… as though withering from the much needed solace of therapeutic touch (as she gently caresses her own shoulder). Her mental health is suffering…as are many people’s on the planet right now.
Perhaps the card’s message is saying that the need to restore social spaces as soon as it is safe to do so… is as much a psychological need as it is a financial one… to restore our well- being and encourage healing from this crisis through community and sharing. The virus has robbed many people of their lives… but it is also robbing others of their sense of hope and even their sanity.
In the Journey card in the ‘Future’ position we are reminded of cause and effect; consequences; trials and tribulations; choices and the dark night of the soul. Look at the path of darkness to the left of the picture and the path of light to the right. Which came first?
It was Albert Pike, the American author who wrote “We must pass through the darkness, to reach the light.”
Is this the Age of Darkness the Maya talked about?
Look at the youthful figure in the picture. He stands at a crossroads almost, a pivotal point on the pathway, emerging from the darkness and flanked to the right by the hopeful ray of light. A butterfly flutters and a dragonfly hovers around him, symbolising the growth, transformation and renewal he has undergone. He carries a small key on his belt, suggesting something ready to be unlocked and revealed…
In the message of the journey card we are reminded that during this crisis, there are moments we never want to forget and moments we do not want to remember. Have we matured on our journey and on our pathway to the light? Pivotal events in mankind’s history shape and change us. Perhaps the message from the ‘Journey’ card poses more of a question… Have the lessons and learning from this experience (which is far from over) been understood and will this past wisdom now influence the future choices that we (as a collective) make?
To support this Blog post it is my full intention to write a short visualization that we can all (if you would like) to participate in. This will be aimed at releasing positive, constructive and uplifting thought-vibrations out into the ether, as well as a visual to offer protection once more for the Earth. Whilst we all know that light travels at 1,86,000 miles per second, thought travels in a timeless universe. Collective thought has immense power. I hope you will join me. Watch this space! Visualization coming soon!
In Love, light and gratitude
Jacky.