On the first anniversary of the death of Elizabeth 11
Original post 10 September 2022
“Our Queen Elizabeth has died at a good old age. She has been gathered in at harvest time, taken away in Virgo season under the watch of the stars of The Virgin and the planets Neptune and Jupiter. She, a queen of fixed Earth, a Taurus sun sign subject born 21 April, has been given back into the keeping of the mutable Earth of Demeter.
Now Elizabeth becomes a different kind of star in the firmament, a chapter between chapters, linking her father George and her son Charles, in a story and in a chain 1000 years long, broken only by the years of the Protectorate 1653-1959, forging the dramatic, complex and sometimes violent history of kingship in these islands.
George never expected or wanted to be king. Elizabeth did not ask or expect to be Queen, or to become Queen so soon and so young. Charles? Now he must change his life, and do it late in life, to assume that added weight of kingship.
Lady Colin Campbell tells us that the Queen died at 14:37 PM on Thursday 8 September.
The State Funeral will be in Westminster Abbey 14 September at 11 AM but then she will be taken to Windsor to lie in the Chapel there.
Elizabeth was crowned Queen of the United Kingdom of England, Scotland,Wales and Northern Ireland and was the Head of The Commonwealth, her unique world legacy after the end of Empire. No other former Empire has created its equivalent.
Much has been made over the years of the Queen’s German blood. But she died in Balmoral, in her beloved Scotland, and she was descended on her mother’s side from the beautiful and tragic Lady Glamis, Janet Douglas Lyon.
Lady Glamis was judicially murdered, burned at the stake in Edinburgh Castle in 1537 on charges of treason and witchcraft, cooked up by James v for reasons of personal malice, out of hatred of her family, and especially her brother, the king’s former regent, Archibald Douglas.
Balmoral 1800-1900 Unknown Author Public Domain
I was watching the live television as the Queen’s body was being driven from Balmoral down to Edinburgh, where it will lie in state tomorrow in Holyrood House.
It brought back personal memories too, of happy times up in Scotland when my own children were small and I was still physically mobile, and eager to show them some of the beautiful places I had been taken by my own parents.
There was something immensely poignant at the sight of the coffin, draped in its red and golden yellow flag, the Royal Standard, leaving the place of Queen Elizabeth’s last happiness. The ghosts there were powerful for her.
Now perhaps she will be leaving her own ghost.
Princess ‘Lilibet’ 1929
We know Balmoral was a place of many happy memories for the Queen. Being there reminded her, she said, of her childhood, playing in the garden at her mother’s home in Glamis, where the sun always seemed to shine. This is the human experience encapsulated in the The Six of Cups, old family times, old friends. Seasons in the sun. Simpler times, and the timeless moments when we were small, and the world seemed full of marvellous mysteries.
Well, it was.
And it is.
Life is inevitably sadder the older we get, our losses etched deeper and deeper.
But that doesn’t make the world any less wonderful and mysterious, and the greatest mystery and miracle is, that we are even here at all.
The Six of Cups: The Gilded Tarot: By Kind Permission of Ciro Marchetti
As for happiness:-
“Happiness we can only find in ourselves, it is a waste of time to seek for it from others, few have any to spare. Sorrow we have to bear alone as best we can, it is not fair to try to shift it on others, be they men or women. We have to fight our own battles and strike as hard as we can, born fighters as we are.”
–Axel Munthe, The Story of San Michele
Harvest Moon in Pisces
Harvest Moon by Samuel Palmer 1835
The Harvest moon 9 September 2022 was brilliant in the zodiac sign of Pisces, the sign of visions, ghosts and dreams, in the Twelfth House of Unknown Destinies.
Pisces is associated in the Tarot with- well, The Moon card.
From The Legacy of The Divine Tarot
This card talks about the cycles of Nature, the power of the wild and the wild creatures, fertility, contagion, danger, high tides, a hunter’s moon. Hear the barking of the dogs and the howling of the wolves.
We are experiencing a Twelfth House event. This is something more than the death of an old lady, however grand, at a good age. It is also the death of something in her people, a link to the past and Britain as it has become after World War 11.
Eminent astrologers see the reign of Charles as an event of ill- omen for the future of the Monarchy as an institution. I can see that potential and the Moon card is anything but comfortable whenever it appears. But this is a benign, deep, visionary Full Moon. His vision may outstrip his means or freedom to execute. At least he has vision. But though he will do his dutiful best, he no longer wants to hold this Cup, if he ever really wanted it.
In The Season of Virgo
The Queen Elizabeth has died in the second decan of Virgo, associated in the Tarot with the Nine of Pentacles, ‘The Lord and Lady of Material Gain’.
This card describes a life that has every appearance of luxury but it has come at great hidden cost. There has been untold personal sacrifice behind the scenes. Personal wishes denied. What has been lost or sacrificed has been normal personal freedoms, symbolized in the Tarot by the falcon sitting on the lady’s wrist.
The ‘Gilded cage?’ Balmoral was this bird’s escape.
From the Rider-Smith-Waite
Many of us had been inwardly preparing for this news, while hoping that the Queen would get to celebrate her Platinum Jubilee. Hoping that her last months, now that she was living this strange new life without Philip, her husband, ally, friend and companion of 73 years, would not be too greatly darkened by two particular family troubles involving scandals and rifts.
Tarot Predictions December 2021
It is not OK to issue predictions of death. Once upon a time, for reasons of state security, it was an act of treason in England, punishable by death, to issue a prediction concerning the death of a monarch.
However I had been expecting we would lose the Queen this year, 2022, based partly on feeling and observation. Many of us will have felt the same. The feeling was also based on what I had seen in the Tarot, and I dropped a broad hint, based on a Tarot reading written up in mid December 2021, which was later published at AskAstrology.com
The cards had indicated it would happen anytime between July 2022 and the end of the year. This was based on the appearance of the Three of Swords drawn against the position I had allocated to the month of July/zodiac sign/House of Leo. The Three of Swords is severance. Leo is the sign of Royalty and also corresponds with high summer-late summer. So my cards were not completely spot in in terms of the timing. But they came pretty close.
I was working with The Gilded Tarot, and as you’ll notice, this deck is pretty well used but I felt drawn to use it on this occasion.
Extract from an article at Ask Astrology December 2021:
Leo: 5th House (July-August 2022)
Heartland, creativity, passion, romance, royalty, children
Tarot card~ 3 Swords Reversed
The Gilded Tarot
This is always a challenging card, but is one of those cards that are actually better news, being drawn reversed or upside down. The Three of Swords is about grief, loss, bereavement, arguments, Drawn in the Fifth House, it suggests that tensions between certain countries may ease. On a personal level, we are coming to terms with a family loss, or quarrels may be settling down.
Loss, sadness or disappointment. No-one escapes these experiences. How we deal with them determines whether we learn something new, and grow bigger and stronger, or whether take things personally, and see ourselves as victims and dwell on our grievances, thereby adding to the damage.
Leo is the zodiac House of royalty. There could be national mourning in 2022 for a much loved figurehead.
Public Domain
Whatever people may feel about our constitutional Monarchy, or the Queen, the death of Elizabeth marks the end of an era in Britain.
There is not just a sadness but a profound strangeness on the land.”
Most of us know our sun sign or sign of the Zodiac, but what does the constellation look like in the night sky, and what’s the story behind it?
The season is the reason.
It’s time to meet Virgo again, and get to know her better.
Virgo Season 2023
We are entering the zodiac territory of Virgo 23 August and we’ll stay there until 23 September.
Virgo is a mutable Earth sign, representing the changing of the seasons as we approach the end of summer and the beginning of autumn in the northern hemisphere (or the end of winter and into early spring in the southern hemisphere.)
It is harvest time- ‘the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness’ (From An Ode to Autumn by English poet John Keats) Virgo represents the classical Hellenistic goddesses of wheat and agriculture. The brightest star in the constellation of Virgo, far brighter than our own sun, is Spica, aka ‘the ear of wheat’.
Virgo the Maiden is the sixth sign of the zodiac, and rules the sixth house and the concepts of daily routines; work, service, order, analysis and analytics, food, harvests, health, digestion, hygiene- and crafts
Virgo is traditionally ruled by Mercury, planet of communications, inquiry, science, commerce, trade and travel. This symbolic planetary influence brings to the Virgo-born subject, an enlarged curiosity and a combination of analytical ability, but also a certain contemplative, humanitarian or even mystical quality.
Traditional Associations
Zodiac symbol of Virgo
Date: August 23-September 22
Symbol: The Virgin
Element: Earth
Quality: Mutable (Sagittarius and Pisces are also Mutable, suggesting these subjects are capable and versatile; generally inclined to conform and go with the flow for the greater good.)
Ruling planet: Mercury (Travel and all forms of communication)
House: Sixth, ruling health, habits and routines
Colours: green, white and yellow
Body: The digestive system
Birthstone: Carnelian
Flowers: small bright flowers such as the buttercup
Tarot: Major Arcana card: The Hermit (introspection, perception, analysis, health, care for nature)
Minor Arcana cards: The 8,9 and 10 of Pentacles/ Coins.
The Hermit from The Golden Tarot, Kat Black
Astronomy
Via Wiki: Credit Till Credner
The zodiac sign of Virgo gets its name from the constellation of Virgo; the largest constellation in the zodiac, and the second largest in all the visible sky after the constellation of Hydra
It’s mind-boggling to consider that our own Sun is just one star of the Milky Way, and the Milky Way is part of a collection of galaxies known as the Local Group. This contains three large spiral galaxies: the Milky Way, Andromeda, and the Triangulum Galaxy, as well as a few dozen dwarf galaxies.
But The Local Group is just one member of the Virgo Cluster; a collection of 1200-2000 galaxies that stretch across 15 million light-years of space. And the Virgo Cluster is just one cluster in the Virgo Supercluster.
The Virgo constellation is visible from all around the world. In the northern hemisphere, it’s most visible in the evening sky from mid-March – the start of the planting season- to late June. In the southern hemisphere, look for it in the autumn and winter.
Own image. Free to share. Credit Katie-Ellen Hazeldine, True Tarot Tales.com
It’s a bit of a stretch, picturing a person. But add in a few more of her stars and now we can see her, lounging semi-recumbent, dangling something, holding it in one hand. This is the star Spica, a blue-white giant. Its name comes from the Latin, meaning an ‘ear of grain’- a sheaf of wheat.
The star Vindemiatrix, ‘the Grape-Gatherer,’ as soon as it was seen at daylight, is the sign, or used to be, that now was the optimal time to pick the grapes.
But if the constellation of Virgo is most visible late March- late June, then why are the birth dates for the sign of the zodiac August 22-September 23rd?
The constellations of the zodiac are not to be confused with the signs which were named after them. Once upon a time, the dates of the signs reflected the constellations directly overhead at the same time, but they have since separated.
This drift away from that real time matching up of constellations and zodiac signs is due to the effect of the Earth’s wobble over a long period of time; every 26 000 years, creating an effect known as the precession of the equinoxes.
This does not change the symbolic link between the constellation and the sign named after it. Western or Tropical astrology is based on a symbolic, and an arithmetic, and not a strictly astronomical model. The western zodiac as we know it today, the celestial wheel of 360 degrees divided by the 12 constellations fully straddling the ecliptic, and with the signs named after those 12 selected constellations, was codified in the second century AD by Ptolemy, Greek astrologer, astronomer and mathematician.
History & Mythology
Virgo from Urania’s Mirror, Public Domain
Shala was an ancient Sumerian (Iraq) goddess of grain -and also compassion. Why link these two things? Famine is suffering. A good harvest was seen as a blessing of the gods. What is planted in the spring must yield a crop in the autumn or famine follows. But this cannot be guaranteed from one year to the next.
From early times, more than ten thousand years ago, Shala was associated with the constellation of Virgo and vestiges of symbolism associated with her continue, such as the naming of Spica, the ‘ear of grain’, even as the deity’s name changed from age to age, and culture to culture.
The Shala Mons is a mountain on Venus named after the goddess Shala.
In 10th century BC the Babylonians called part of this constellation, “The Furrow,” again, referring back to Shala.
While this is only one myth of the origin of Virgo, she is seen as a bringer of crops throughout all myths. In Egyptian mythology also, the arrival of Virgo in the night sky meant harvest time. Ceres (we think of the word ‘cereal’) or Demeter, the Greco-Roman goddess of the harvest, was the mother of Persephone.
It was the same with the Greeks and Romans “Spicifera est Virgo Cereris” — “The Virgin with her sheaf belongs to Ceres,” The Astronomica“, Manilius, 1st century AD.
When lonely Hades abducted Persephone to live with him in the underworld, her distraught mother, Demeter, went searching, and was enraged to discover that Zeus had known all along where Persephone was, but had turned a blind eye to Hades’ abduction.
Demeter demanded that Zeus help her bring Persephone home, and when he didn’t, she went on strike and the harvests failed. The people and the livestock starved. Humanity might have perished altogether had not Zeus finally intervened and insisted that Hades send Persephone home, and sent Hermes to collect her.
Hermes descended to the Underworld where he discovered Persephone, no longer a wretched, weeping, homesick girl. She had become a woman, a wife. She was the radiant queen of the gloomy Underworld, the apple of Hades’s eye, and he had built for her the most beautiful gardens he could contrive, with underground pools, and gems and stalactites.
Persephone now loved Hades. But she missed her mother, Demeter, and she desperately missed the light, and if she hadn’t developed the most almighty vitamin D deficiency by now, she was either eating plenty of fish or the nutritionists don’t know their stuff.
So Hermes passed on the order from Zeus, “send the girl home, pronto,” and Hades agreed that Persephone could go home. But he had conditions. Persephone must not eat anything until she arrived home again to her mother.
Hades had no intention of giving up Persephone, Zeus or no Zeus, and he gave her a handful of pomegranate seeds, knowing how much she loved them. A few seeds didn’t count as food, he said. And Persephone believed him and ate some on her way home. Or who knows. Perhaps she knew perfectly well what he was up to.
Painting by Frederick Leighton, Public Domain
Persephone went home to her mother. But a deal is a deal, and because she ate the pomegranate seeds, she returns to Hades and her life in the Underworld for four months of the year, and then Demeter mourns her child’s absence, the winter returns and the land lies cold and fallow.
The Virgo Archetype
Public domain
All zodiac signs are archetypes, meaning something that is considered to be a perfect or typical example of a particular kind of person or thing,
The signs of the zodiac paint a ‘typical’ portrait of a person born at a particular time of year, in a particular season. A baby born in the summer arrives into a different physical environment from a winter born baby. Different conditions; temperatures, available hours of daylight, seasonal foods available to the mother and so on, with potential physical and constitutional effects.
The archetype of Virgo is the Craftsman, paying careful attention to every detail, taking pride in doing the job, whatever it is, to the highest standard possible. There’s no substitute for skill and hard work, according to Virgo.
The major arcana card in the Tarot representing Virgo is The Hermit, as previously mentioned, denoting a deep-rooted sense of connection to Nature. Here is wisdom, maturity and the value of solitude and self-sufficiency. The Hermit represents work and the principle of service – the desire to help Humanity.
Virgo is ruled by agile Mercury, the fastest moving planet of communication. Virgo’s brain is in overdrive most of the time, but they stay anchored and grounded in common sense by their associated element, Earth.
Virgo is practical but artistically gifted. They are hard-workers who love to better themselves. They think deeply, they love to analyse, and their perceptiveness means that they can always find or create order within chaos. They are honest friends although, being discerning, and analytical, they might have a tendency to analyse you, and point out your strengths and also your mistakes and weaknesses. This can undoubtedly be annoying, though it’s well meant. They may also give great advice because of those same analytical abilities.
The Virgo appearance is generally neat and well groomed.”Slob” is not in their vocabulary. The quest of self-improvement includes personal presentation. They can be incredibly concerned about the impression they give, and even worry about it, but at the same time, they are very ready to help others, maybe sometimes even too generous. Others may try to take advantage of Virgo in a way they would not with, say, Aries, Leo or Scorpio..
But of course there is no such thing in reality as THE Virgo personality. We are all unique individuals. Your zodiac sign (sun sign) is a major clue, the keynote, the baseline, but doesn’t claim to represent the full picture in real life – or even in astrology.
But the Decans tell us just a little more.
What are the Decans?
The decans are nicknamed the ‘thirty six faces of astrology,’ and though they are not regarded as powerful influences in a horoscope chart, they do provide added insights and texture. The first ten days of your zodiac sign are the first decan. The second ten days or so are the second decan, and the last ten days are the third decan.
The decans were a feature of Egyptian astronomy, later adopted by the Greeks and incorporated into astrology.
The visible area of sky as seen from earth is what we call the wheel of the Zodiac, and represents an imaginary circle of 360 degrees. This circle divided by arithmetic into twelve ‘slices’- the zodiac signs we know today.
Each of the zodiac signs represents a 30 degree slice of this imaginary ‘pie in the sky,’ as seen from Earth. Each zodiac sign can be further sub-divided into three blocks of ten degrees, equivalent to about ten days in length. This is not exact, and may vary by a day or two because not every month is the same length. These three sub-divisions of all the zodiac signs are what we call ‘decans,’ from the Greek word for ten.
There is more than one decan system. For the avoidance of confusion, we are using the traditional system, based on the seven planets known to the Ancients.
The Tarot cards shown below are from the Rider- Waite deck, which many Tarot practitioners now refer to as the Waite-Smith, in recognition of the artist, Pamela Colman Smith.
First Decan Virgo
Dates: 23 August-1 September
Planetary ruler: Sun
Tarot card: The Eight of Pentacles: ‘Lord of Prudence,’ art, craft, industry, skill, concentration, application, studiousness, apprenticeship, crafts, heritage, buildings
Look at him. This person is absorbed in his work, and he seems to be enjoying himself. This work has meaning and purpose for him. This is typical of this decan. There is a mixture of quiet warmth and a cool mind with a talent for acute observation and incisive analysis; however this is expressed artistically, commercially or scientifically or in administrative tasks. Virgo is a master of the spreadsheet.
They see more than they say, but they have a talent for communication via the spoken and written word; making many of these subjects potentially great teachers. They are hard-working, industrious. ‘We reap what we sow,’ goes the old saying. This is not necessarily always true or fair. Misfortune strikes plenty of people who have done nothing to ‘deserve’ it. And plenty of wrong-doers escape justice.
However, it is broadly true to say, we can’t reap what was never sown. Wild berries had to be first sown by the wind, or by birds. First decan Virgo understands this better than almost any other sign, except Capricorn and Taurus.
They are serious people but they are cheerful company, faithful friends and partners, devoted in their quiet way.
Second Decan Virgo
Dates: 2-11 September
Planetary ruler: Venus
Tarot card- Nine Pentacles: ‘Lord of Material Gain’ beauty, luxury, hard work that pays off, horticulture, agriculture, viticulture, gardens, vineyards
This decan is associated with Venus, planet of love, beauty –and money. A perfectionist; conscientious, devoted, and above all focused, they can turn anything they do into an art form in its own right.
Notice the hooded falcon on her wrist. She has ‘tamed’ wildness – or chaos. She has tamed her own impulses, learned patience and self-discipline. She will not trade away her tomorrows for today’s gratification.
She has cultivated a home, a garden, a business, and made it thrive, healthy and beautiful. She is financially self-reliant but that doesn’t mean it came quick or easy, any of it. To achieve this she has learned to control the wild falcon representing her impulses, wants and desires. She has learned self-discipline and self-control, the power of deferred gratification.
A squirrel will have no nuts in the winter if it scoffs them all at once, or if it can’t remember where it hid them, because it wasn’t paying attention. This, the second decan of Virgo is often the most capable, conscientious provider for themselves and for others, and they enjoy spoiling their loved ones. But though they have learned how to do without (and at times, life, they have probably had no choice) still, they do crave and value beautiful things.
Third Decan Virgo
Dates: 12-22 September
Planetary ruler: Mercury
Tarot card- Ten of Pentacles:keywords: ‘Lord of Wealth,’ commerce, messages, deliveries, Hermes, home, homeland, ancestry, genetics, inter-generational relationships, inheritance, gifts, legacy, bequests, town planning, art, museums, banks.
Third Decan Virgo is both a creative and a practical thinker. These are proud people, not vain, but dignified – big difference. They need to be their own masters and it’s not about the money, or at least, not for its own sake. These people are careful, prudent, but they are not misers. They have a winning way with people and may work in the public eye; such is their talent for communication; personal, professional, artistic, written and spoken.
Notice the old man surrounded by family, adults, children, and dogs too. Virgo cares for animals. What he or she has built, was created in order to share, to pass on, seeing themselves as part of a bigger picture, a link in a chain of legacy. This could mean money. It could mean ideas. It could mean a place that means everything to them, their own home or their homeland, with a sense of belonging, of being in the right place – to feel this way is a treasure beyond price.
These are family minded people. They enjoy family outings, a walk in the woods, or a trip to the seaside. And they will organize it. Realists with a ‘can do’ attitude, Virgo are makers and menders, and they are usually good with animals too, as shown by The Hermit cards. Eco-warrior is not really their style. But they do care about the environment. Virgo is about food for the mind and the spirit, as well as the body.
Virgo has both feet on the ground. And yet, it is something of an artist, something of a scientist. Like the Hermit himself, something of a sage.
Grounded, rooted in the earth, but looking inwards and upwards, moving to its own dance, steering by your quiet inner star.
Planetary influences this Virgo Season
The month of August 2023 began with three of the five outer planets (Saturn, Neptune, and Pluto) in retrograde, along with the inner planet Venus retrograde in Leo, and the “wounded healer” Chiron.
Mercury goes retrograde on the day of writing, as Virgo season begins on August 23, and then Uranus goes retrograde on August 28
So what?
Retrogrades symbolize a time for reflection and review. In this case, many of us may be feeling that a whole way of life is coming to an end, and we are feeling our way through it – at times it may feel like a veritable sh*t storm.
We may need a cool head and a calm nerve this Virgo season, and Mercury retrograde advises that when the going gets tough, we need to be very careful how we react, and to guard what we say in the heat and stress of the moment.
It’s not necessarily anything to worry about. It’s just, change happens, and sometimes a lot of it happens at once.
“I beg your pardon
I never promised you a rose garden.”
Change is inevitable. We take the rough with the smooth and we learn. We may be wiser and sadder but that’s just Life.
We have a Blue Moon in Pisces 30 August. A moon to dream on. To daydream on. We may experience powerful dreams or even have psychic experiences at this time. We are physically and psychically subject to the tidal pull of the Moon, and the Moon card in tarot is associated with Pisces; 12th House of deepest mysteries. This is a moon for seeing ghosts (though Pisces also rules the feet, and we can hardly get more grounded than that.)
Venus, planet of money matters, luxuries, pleasures, self image and relationships stations direct again 3 September, and The New Moon in Virgo 17 September, start bringing things more back to normal again. Back to school, and all that.
But for so many of us, this will be a new normal. Something has shifted so profoundly, that we know nothing will be quite the same again.
The Lion’s Gate Portal is an astronomical event that happens every year when Sirius, Earth, and the Orion constellation are all in alignment with each other. This happens every year between July 28 and August 12, and reaches its peak of closest alignment on August 8 (8/8) when in the northern hemisphere we see the brilliant star Sirius on the eastern horizon before dawn. Sirius has been out of sight since early in the spring.
But now it is rising again.
The Lion’s Gate Portal is seen by many as a particularly auspicious portal in time, but auspicious for what? Action, that’s the theory. Any action tending towards conquest, achievement or the creation of something new- and lasting.
But how and why?
Sirius, the brightest star in our galaxy, the Milky Way, is the stellar cornerstone.
Here, the photographer has captured Sirius hanging low; a brilliant blue white star, apparently following along behind the constellation of Orion, the Hunter.
The name Sirius comes from the Greek and means “scorching” or “glowing.” Its other names, Canis Major, or the Dog Star, derive from the ancient Greek myth that says that once upon a time Sirius was one of the two hunting dogs of Orion. (The other is the Little or Lesser Dog, Canis Minor.)
Wiki
See Orion running out of the right hand side of the picture? See the Belt of Orion, and the sword hanging down (or the hunting knife) and three stars that make up the belt; Alnilam, Alnitak and Mintaka? See Betelgeuse, the bright red giant star of his right shoulder? Some sources call it the left shoulder- it depends how you picture The Hunter. Do you see him with his back to you, or do you see him swaggering past, moving left -right with his face in partial profile?
Now see the brilliant white orb of Sirius, running along behind the Hunter?
As a girl I would go outside to the coal bunker (yes, coal) on a clear winter’s night, and fill up the coal scuttle for the fire, and look up and wonder where Orion was running to, with Sirius bounding along behind him.
Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky- within the Milky Way- and about 8.6 light years away from earth and is actually a double star, Sirius Alpha and Sirius Beta. Sirius Alpha is much brighter than the dwarf Sirius Beta, and has twice the mass of our own Sun.
We don’t know if there are planets in the Sirius star system, and it’s possible, there may actually be three, not two stars in the system but we don’t know for sure.
To the people of ancient Egypt, the return of Sirius was a welcome sign that the Nile flood was on its way, ending the long season of drought, when desperate desert lions would come looking for water in plain sight of the city walls.
This was an anxious time of year. No Nile flood in the seasonal time frame of Leo meant famine. The dawn re-appearance of Sirius was a welcome sign that the worst of the drought was now in sight, and the farmers all along the Nile- and everyone else -waited expectantly, almost holding their breath.
The auspicious star of Sirius was associated with the goddess Sopdet, the fertility goddess of the Nile, correlating with deities of other societies and other times; Isis/Ishtar and Demeter, as represented in the tarot deck by the Empress card.
Wiki
The Zodiac/Celestial Zoo
“As above so below,” the saying goes. But – and perhaps this is being pedantic- “as below, so above,” was how these ancient stories first began.
Astrology, astronomy, cosmology; it all started right where we stood. Some might say, what’s the fuss, any of this astrology stuff. It’s all just random patterns in the sky. But that’s exactly the point. We are a hunting animal. We are a pattern seeking animal. We look for patterns in everything, and we ascribe meaning to those patterns. In time, the pattern and the meaning become conjoined. Hardwired. They are now archetypes, and are part of our ancient collective algorithm, so to speak, lending themselves to anticipation, planning- and potentially, prediction.
People looked up, saw patterns, saw life on earth mirrored in the stars, gave them names. “Ooh, look up at that, will ya? Do you see it too? I can see a crouching ram!”
(If you say so) The brightest star shown here at the bottom is Hamal, the head of the Ram.
Shepherds in the Near and Middle East, looked up at the starry skies, watching their precious flocks by night and pictured the star Hamal as the head of the Ram, critically noting that it was always’seen’ overhead at lambing time. They saw that those patterns repeated over and over. And so in time we got Aries -and by a similar approach- all the rest of the zodiac pantheon based on the 12 constellations visible within a narrow arc of sky, the imaginary pathway known as the ecliptic.
The word “zodiac” comes from the Greek meaning “circle of animals.” The only non-living symbol in the astrological Zodiac is the scales of Libra, but even these are formed from the same stars that make up the claws of Scorpio, the celestial scorpion next door.
The Lion
The Gilded Tarot
My darling mother, a Capricorn sun sign native, first decan, and with a massive dose of Sagittarian vision and curiosity; beautiful, brave, self-reliant, wise, witty, and above all, a most determined person, was saying to me, not long before she died in February this year, that there was this theme tune on the box that made the hairs on her neck stand up every time she heard it.
She had been watching that drama series, Versailles, on the box. The theme tune was Outro by M83, as also used in the movie, Cloud Atlas, based on the novel by David Mitchell.
“I’m the king of my own land Facing tempests of dust, I’ll fight until the end Creatures of my dreams, raise up and dance with me Now and forever I’m your king!”
-(Outro- M83)
Listen here– as being used as the score for a film, “Melancholia” by Lars von Trier. (Don’t be thrown by the really long pause in the introduction.)
She greatly admired, and had a great sympathy with lionesses, for their courage, but also for their incredible devotion, duty and unselfishness, she said.
Number 8
The Lions’ Gate portal is a cosmic, and perhaps karmic expression of the power of the number 8.
The number eight is like a lemniscate- a symbol of infinity, only now it’s standing upright. Note the lemniscate above the head of the figure with the lion in the Rider-Waite tarot deck.
The Strength card in the Tarot is major arcana number 8. The Strength card is about moral fortitude and stamina as much as it is about physical strength and courage.
Strength is self- mastery. Self-control. Taming the inner lion. Leo rules the heart, and the passions of the heart.
The word ‘Karma’ means ‘action’. This is read by some as a celestial signal for Action. Plan, execute, and materially manifest. The glory and the grandeur of the Lion contain on occasion something lonely and forlorn.
For folk not familiar with a tarot deck, in a 78 card deck of cards deck we have five cards that bear the number 8. Besides the Strength card, major arcana 8, we also have 4 minor arcana cards bearing the number 8
(22 Major arcana cards=greater secrets or mysteries. 56 Minor arcana cards =lesser secrets or mysteries, but these are no less important in any reading)
We have:
8 of Cups (Pisces)- acceptance of disappointment in developments, walking away
8 of Swords-Gemini- mental impasse, drama, entrapment, indecision, refusal to face a problem
8 Wands -Sagittarius- speed of developments, generation of news and activities
These apparently immovable number eights all belong to the MUTABLE signs of the zodiac- the signs where one season gradually merges into another.
8 of Cups= Pisces, winter becomes spring, 8 Swords= Gemini, and spring becomes summer, 8 Pentacles, Virgo, summer becomes autumn/fall, and 8 Wands= Sagittarius, when autumn now segues into winter.
The eights are mutable, twining, stable because symmetrical and yet subtle, complex, shifting.
There are no easy answers in life. The miracle is that we are here at all. But we do know from all the entire known history of the human species that the experience of happiness is found through a sense of connection with others. Who wants a paradise all to themselves and all alone, except in small doses? The misanthropes can object all they like.
We were never meant to be a solitary animal, any more than the lion, who suffers trauma as a young adult male; when he leaves the pride aged two or three.He must leave or else he will be driven out, to go and fight for, and create his own pride; exiled from his home turf and everyone he has always known.
The lionesses do the dangerous work of hunting. But the lion controls the territory and all its resources on behalf of the pride.
We want- we need- to share our joys and sorrows alike. Part of the tapestry of all Humanity. But we come in alone. We leave alone. And sooner or later, if we are ever to become The Lion, then at some point, we will have to face- and outface- and defy- “tempests of dust.”
The zodiac sign of Leo rules the human heart. Leo can be loud. The dreams are big and bold. But Leo understands what it is to be lonely- or simply alone.
But like the lion in exile, who must fight tooth and claw for his own patch of turf, for his place in the world, for his chance of founding a pride of his own, and for his very survival, we will and must sometimes stand alone, in rising to meet a challenge.
Harvest Moon, Samuel Palmer,1833, Yale Center for British Art via Wikimedia Commons
Today, 1 August 2023, marks the start of Lammas, or “Loaf Mass”, marking the start of the Anglo-Saxon harvest season as first recorded in the 10th century.
Word origins Old English hlaf, ‘loaf’ and mæsse, ‘mass.’
Neo-Pagans and many others see Lammas as being one and the same marker in the calendar as an older pre-christian Celtic festival, Lughnasadh (pronounced Loo-na-sa), named for Lugh Celtic god of justice, victory, statecraft, crafts and the harvest. Lugh was widely worshipped in Europe before the advent of Christianity.
This connection seems entirely likely, though there is apparently no known surviving documentary evidence.
We are at the height of summer and now at harvest time we are entering the final stretch, but Haer-fest/harvest was the Old English word for autumn. August was also known in Old English as “weed month” (Weodmonað) meaning the month of long grasses. This didn’t necessarily suggest unwanted plants, only plants that were wild and uncultivated one, and this time of year is prime growing season as gardeners can attest.
Around 7 August is the half way point between the summer solstice and the autumn/fall equinox.
The Tarot cards associated with August are Strength (Leo), the Six of Wands, the Seven of Wands (Leo decans), the Eight of Pentacles (the first decan of Virgo) and The Empress, manifesting as Harvest goddess/Ceres/Demeter.
She is the principle of creation. Fertility. She is all things female. She is all mothers. She is Gaia. Mother Earth.
The Legacy of the Divine Tarot, artist Ciro Marchetti
Tonight is the first of this month’s two full Moons. Tonight’s full moon is in Aquarius. We have a New Moon in Leo 16 August which promises to be…lively and then we have another full supermoon 31 August, this one in the zodiac sign of deepest Pisces.
Not only do we have two full moons this month, so that August 2023 is a Blue Moon month, but these will both be a supermoon, coming closer to Earth than usual, 15 % larger and brighter in the sky.
It has been shown that we sleep less deeply and that we also sleep at least 20 minutes less on average during a night of full moon, and with 30 % less of that sleeping time spent in restorative deepest sleep, compared with other nights in the lunar cycle. One way to combat this effect is to reduce our exposure to blue light in the evening. Switch off your computer at least two hours before you settle to sleep tonight.
Or don’t. Test it out and see what, if any difference you notice.
Tonight’s moon rise is in the east at a distance of 222,159 miles (357,530km) when the supermoon will be visible shortly after sunset from around 9pm – if the skies are clear enough. At its furthest point away from the Earth, when it is in apogee, the Moon is about 405 696 km (252 088 miles) away
Let’s call the maximum range a difference of roughly 30 000 miles. But the Moon and the Earth are drifting apart at a rate of about an inch and a half every year. It’s the effect of gravity, it seems a ridiculously small change, and we need not concern ourselves about it personally, but multiply that effect over millions of years and they will become profound.
Once a year, Earth flies between the sun and Saturn. In 2023, this will happen August 27. Saturn, old Father time, the astrological planet of law and order, and of discipline and restriction, is also now getting closer and brighter…
Old heads on young shoulders. Wise heads on old shoulders. Money stuff, work stuff, and family responsibilities get serious
Image via Earthsky
Tarot Full Moon Guidance 1 August
Well, what do you know. We have only drawn The King of Swords.
So what?
Tonight’s Full Moon is in Aquarius,and the King of Swords is THE court card associated with the zodiac sign of Aquarius (the major arcana card of Aquarius is The Star and the decan cards of Aquarius are the 5,6 and 7 Swords.
Typical tarot. Real time synchronicity – or coincidence if you prefer.
From The Rider-Waite Tarot
The King of Swords may be male or female. This doesn’t matter for the purposes of guidance.
The Tarot is sensing a collective and individual need to stay especially cool, clear, calm and collected during the next few days.
You do not have all the information you need in respect of critical decision making right now. Seek advice, or further research is required before you make any far reaching decisions or enter into long term commitments.
This king operates strategically and judicially. S/he can be ruthless and intent on conquest, but his primary objective here is to guard and protect his/her space, resources and those things and people s/he holds most dear.
S/he is analytical, forensic, surgical in accuracy. In real life s/he may be a leader, a military person, a judge, a doctor, pilot, IT specialist and so on.
Volodymyr Zelensky is an Aquarius subject. Several people were tragically killed yesterday in his home city in a Russian missile attack, but now the Ukrainian counter offensive is underway and Moscow has finally experienced a taste of its own airborne aggression, although Ukrainian drones have not been targeting residential areas, so far as we know.
There does seem a strong likelihood that the war may achieve some formal ending or resolution before entering its second winter, and this is to be welcomed, but seems almost certain to be brokered in terms which neither side will find satisfactory.
Meanwhile, in general we can achieve a lot this month, with the caveat that we seem best served by staying watchful, keeping a cool head, looking every gift horse in the mouth, separating workable fact from opinion or wishful thinking, and cutting our cloth with care by the light of tonight’s full moon, and its afterglow in the next few coming days.
Clearing, sorting, sweeping clean, ordering our paperwork. We have 5 planets in retrograde by the end of August. Venus, Mercury, Pluto, Saturn and Neptune. This is a time for avoiding random choices , knee jerk reactions or sudden moves. The end of this month is a time for deep reflection, reviewing, reassessment, risk avoidance and judicious, methodical planning.
Your zodiac or sun sign is not the whole story of your horoscope. Your birthday decan provides further insights into your zodiac persona or archetype.
All zodiac signs are archetypes; something that is considered to be a perfect or typical example of a particular kind of person or thing,
The zodiac signs paint a typical portrait of a person born at a particular time of year, in a particular season. The idea here is that we are affected by the seasons in which we were physically gestated, and the season into which we arrive. This might seem like nonsense until we really think about it. A baby born in summer for example, arrives into a different environment from a winter born baby, just as a spring lamb is different to an autumn lamb. The weather is different, and the hours of daylight and the food resources vary, that are or were available to the pregnant mother, in the days long,long before shops and supermarkets.
The zodiac sign of Capricorn, for example, is associated with the knees. Why? Well, Capricorn is ruled by Saturn, also known as Old Father Time, and knee trouble is commonly associated with advancing age.
The winter born baby arrives into an environment with minimal hours of daylight and therefore experiences minimal vitamin D exposure, as perhaps, so does the mother in the later stages of pregnancy. Vitamin D, together with vitamin K2, is required for calcium absorption into the bones. Chronic deficiency is associated with osteo- arthritis—and arthritis of the knee.
Other zodiac signs may be more challenging to explain so easily in these kinds of terms. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t a symbolic, seasonal and ancient natural, biological, physiological or metabolic association with each and every zodiac sign.
What are the decans?
The visible area of sky as seen from earth is what we call the wheel of the Zodiac, representing an imaginary circle of 360 degrees. This circle was then arithmetically divided into the twelve zodiac signs we know today, as codified by the Greek mathematician, astronomer and astrologer, Ptolemy in the second century AD.
Each of the zodiac signs represents a 30 degree slice of this imaginary ‘pie in the sky,’ as seen from Earth. Each zodiac sign can be further sub-divided into three blocks of ten degrees, equivalent to about ten days in length. This is not exact, and may vary by a day or two because not every calendar month is the same length- again, for reasons of astronomy.
These three sub-divisions of the zodiac signs are what we call the decans.
The first ten days of your zodiac sign are the first decan, representing the first 10 degrees of your sign. The second ten days or so are the second decan, and the last ten days or so of your sun sign are the third decan.
The Leo Archetype
Leo, the fifth sign of the zodiac, is a fixed fire sign representing the height of summer in the northern hemisphere (and winter in the southern hemisphere.)
Leo is ruled by the Sun, bestowing radiance, warmth and vitality. The major arcana card in the Tarot representing Leo is Strength, Major Arcanum number 8, ruling the greater part of August, the 8th month of the calendar year, and denoting not only physical strength and courage, but moral courage; resilience, stamina and fortitude in the face of adversity.
There is no Strength without self control. The figure in this card has the lion on a loose chain. But it is on a chain all the same. The lion represents her own inner fire, passions and impulses, and she has them under control.
Image from The Gilded Tarot Royale.
But Leo is of course also associated with the Sun card, its planetary ruler. The image below is from The Gilded Royale Tarot deck, illustrated by Ciro Marchetti.
The court card representing the fixed fire sign of Leo is the energetic, capable and charismatic King of Wands.
There is of course no such thing in reality as THE Leo personality, and this applies to all zodiac signs. You are a unique personality. Your zodiac sign (also known as your sun sign) is a major keynote of your natal chart but it’s nothing like the whole story. These archetypes are based on thousands of years of observation, however, and your decan, which depends on where your birthday falls within your zodiac sign, digs a little deeper.
If you don’t feel like a ‘typical’ Leo, well, you’re not. You are unique, with a uniquely individual natal chart. But it may also because you are a second decan or third decan Leo, rather than the ‘most typical’ first decan Leo.
First Decan Leo
Proud, passionate, purposeful.
Dates: 23 July-1 August
Planetary ruler: Sun sub-ruler also Sun
Tarot card: Five of Wands: ambition, test of strength, contest, competition, stress, conflict, honest intention, summer thunderstorms (Gilded Tarot Royale)
This is Leo-Leo, ruled by the sun twice over, this could be understood as the most ‘typically’ or archetypal Leo decan.
This Leo born native, ruled by the Sun twice over, does not just enter the room. It makes an entrance, and can be charm itself, lively, confident, warm, talkative. Others who are quieter, or who are less confident or energetic may find these Leo natives too loud, overpowering, self-centred or even arrogant. And they may be all these things but the chances are, really, it is just a natural exuberance.
This decan is generally attractive to others and may well play the field, but once committed, is devoted to its own pride of loved ones. This Leo is hardworking, and likely to be something of a perfectionist.
This decan is cardinal in quality, which is to say, it likes to start new things. It is exceedingly determined and persistent, even more so than the other two decans, and that is saying something. First decan Leo will finish what it starts, whatever it takes.
They have high levels of energy and stamina, and set themselves exceedingly high standards and targets, though they tend to be fair minded and realistic in their dealings with others, and as employers, ask only that others do their best. First Decan Leo is a loyal, faithful friend, unless given cause to feel betrayed, which on occasion, indeed they may be, attracting to themselves, not only admiration, but envy.
Tarot card- Six Wands: victory, progress, pride in success, determined effort (From the Gilded Tarot, the predecessor of the Gilded Tarot Royale)
This is Sagittarius-Leo, co-ruled by massive and expansive Jupiter. Subjects of this decan may be literally taller and bigger than other Leo decans, and with a tendency for having rather noticeable square white teeth.
The influence of its sub-ruler, cheerful, outgoing Sagittarius makes this Leo the life and soul of the party when they are in the mood, but this smoothest-talking decan is somewhat restless, for travel, for adventure – or learning. This is Leo on a quest of some kind, with a visionary quality, hungry and ambitious to know more and less settled in temperament than the other two decans. They are still solid and tough, but versatile with it, and generally good at problem-solving.
Leo in general tends to be a cat walks alone. Yes, it loves people, but all the same it retains a certain aloofness. Its sub-ruler Sagittarius however, is about groups and communities, and it is this, somewhat more communal spirit, which sets the second decan Leo slightly apart from the other decans.
They too, are faithful to their loved ones, and they make loyal friends. Second decan Leo in particular may be an artist, writer or poet. They are something of a philosopher. They are interested in social causes, and keen to do their bit to champion the underdog.
Third Decan Leo
Fire, focus and curiosity.
Dates: 12 August -22 August
Planetary ruler: Mars sub-ruler Aries
Tarot card- Seven of Wands: courage, moral courage, stamina, endurance, outnumbered but fighting your own corner, defeating the odds(Gilded Tarot Royale)
This decan is sub-ruled by fiery Mars, Aries- this is Leo with a double dose of warrior energy. The third decan Leo is confident and competitive-combative on occasion. Driven, ambitious, sometimes this Leo decan loses patience and may not finish what it starts, due to restlessness, but it operates on its own terms, and is an excellent planner and problem-solver, finding failure almost intolerable.
This decan needs peace and quiet when its mind is working on something, to figure things out in its own way. It has the usual Leo warmth but with, possibly, an explosive temper at times. Leo in general however, is quick to forgive and forget and is not known for bearing grudges, though others may not necessarily be so forgiving in return.
The third decan Leo is particularly intense, and deeply curious about other people and other cultures. They also have a reputation for being excellent listeners. This is the sort of person who talks to perfect strangers and hears all kind of stories.
There is a new First Minister of Scotland, Humza Yousaf, and his first order of business, or so he has announced, is to sever Scotland from its historically hard won Union with England; a union forged at a great human cost on both sides after three hundred years of lawlessness both sides of the border.
Is this what the people of Scotland want? Outside of the cities too? And do we see the end of this historic Union on his watch?
There is plenty of commentary. But what does the tarot show us?
The cards show that it is possible. But the signs are not strong.
Carry on scrolling for the analysis.
From The Illuminati Tarot, Kim Huggens and Erik K Dunne
Top King of Cups-benchmark card. A key person/situation. Scorpio timing but may also refer to Cancer or Pisces. Element Water.
Left 10 Cups- The stakes/history of the Issue. Pisces. Element Water.
Bottom 3 Wands- Hopes/fears. Deciding factor/s. Aries timing. Element Fire.
Right 4 Swords- Near future/outcome/comment. Libra timing. Element Air.
#Tarot Humza Yousaf. Cards re: detected consequences of this selection. King Cups (HY) deep, secretive but is he ‘adrift at sea’? Lovers (the Party’s choice) Scotland’s choice? 10 Cups says Scotland prefers Union at least for now. Ending Union=4 Swords=retreat/tomb/stagnation
#Tarot#SNP What do cards show re new First Minister Humza Yousaf? King Cups, joy at selection but haunted by ‘water=’ Issues: Health, Overseas & Islands. The Lovers=Party’s Choice. Union? 10 Cups=staying ‘home’. Indy ref 2=4 Swords. Stalls. 3 Wands= Ferries=a key test.
The Cards in Close-Up
The King of Cups
The suit of Cups is about feelings, in this case, feelings of pleasure. This first card reflects the joy of being selected as First Minister astrologically correlates with a mature man belonging to the water signs of the zodiac, Pisces, Cancer or Scorpio. Astrologically, Humza Yousaf is an Aries sun sign, born in Glasgow 7 April 1985. His grandparents came to the UK from the Punjab in 1962.
Astrologically Mr Yousaf is not a water sign king, though his chart may reveal key water sign houses, transits and aspects. He is a second decan Aries sun sign native, an archetype known for drive and ambition. Leading is the thing. Teamwork, not so much. And the minor arcana card representing this decan astrologically is the ambitious, adventurous and restless Three of Wands, and coincidentally this card was also drawn in this reading. Ideas, not a problem. Starting things, not a problem. Seeing things through is the challenge for him.
So why has the King of Cups turned up in this benchmark position? Tarot does not limit itself to any one single meaning. We are all far more complex than the archetypal storyboard attached to our sun sign, while reading the cards astrologically is only one approach.
The King of Cups classically denotes a man of faith, a man of authority, a man of good intelligence who may give good advice. He may also be a good administrator at least on paper. But he is somewhat remote and not easy to approach. See him sitting on his throne in the middle of the sea? He has a good theoretical understanding, and he has ideals, but how to ‘land’ them? And He likes to give advice but not receive it. Hubris. Here is his challenge or Achilles heel.
There is usually kindness, but there can be a certain intransigence. ‘I am the chosen one. I am the keeper of the faith. Who are you to question me?’
More specifically, the King of Cups is picking up on two arenas in which he has not yet won his crown. Health and Transport. The NHS in Scotland is still facing big problems with ambulance delays and the critical Caledonian MacBrayne ferry issue is still ongoing after years of delay on the state commissioned delivery of two new hulls. The sea is his challenge. More about that later.
But what this card is showing is that Humza Yousaf is ‘all at sea.’ He is a popular choice in his Party and the vote was overwhelming. But still, the track record in office is not anything to show off. The King of Cups shows a lot going on inside, but without there anything of consequence being show for it, and this is the perception of his critics.
There is a greater Scotland beyond the mainland, and the cities. Perhaps Humza Yousaf feels that the economy and the welfare of Highlands and Islands need not be his priority, and that for his own objectives and purposes, his power base is reliably and numerically sufficient in the cities.
Readers must beware personal bias. Like many of the English- and I identify as English, though strictly speaking I am Anglo-Irish, I can understand and respect why Scotland might ultimately choose Independence. I have Scottish family too; close family ties with Scotland in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Brechin, Montrose and Helmsdale.
But I feel it would prove to be a very great mis-stepand a loss for both countries. This great Union began in 1603 with the coronation of the first king of a new kingdom called Great Britain, and this king was James 1 of England, James 6 of Scotland, a Scottish king on the English throne.
The history here goes deep, and ‘Braveheart’ with its several inaccuracies is only the tip of an iceberg in this epic story, not forgetting the later tragedies of Culloden, Glencoe and the Highland Clearances. Also not forgetting the horrors of the things William Wallace did to his own people, to those men he deemed were too slow to enlist, and to unarmed civilians in Guisborough and six other towns in the north. A capable and brave soldier, absolutely. A traitor, no, though he was betrayed by a fellow Scot. And his death was truly appalling and shameful. Edward 1 always was a hideous person.
But we need to beware hubris. The fixed stars in the second decan of Aries carry a warning for Humza Yousaf. They are in the constellation of Cetus the Whale. and these fixed stars absolutely reflect this card, the King of Cups, the man on his throne ‘on the sea’.
Eta Cetus, Theta Cetus and Tau Cetus are stars in the constellation of Cetus the Whale or Sea Monster. Cetus shares a word root with Cetacean, the word for whales and dolphins. The Cetus of myth was more monster than whale, like the Kraken that was sent to devour Andromeda only to be turned to stone by Perseus who rode in on Pegasus to rescue Andromeda, brandishing the deadly severed head of the tragic Gorgon, the poor Medusa, hunted to death in her own sanctuary.
The constellation Cetus is the fourth largest in our visible skies and is said to have qualities of the planet Saturn. There is an authoritarian feel about this individual King of Cups in the wider world.
The Lovers
The SNP has made its choice of a new leader and perhaps it was more difficult behind the scenes than the final vote suggests. The Lovers does just what it says on the tin, and signifies lovers, friends, allies, but also difficult choices.
It may indicate critical developments to come in Gemini season, late May-late June.
10 of Cups
The question while shuffling was, do we see Indy Ref 2 or do we see the end of the Union during the leadership of Humza Yousaf?
The 10 of Cups is a stable card. It talks about home and family. It is the card of Home Sweet Home. But this is a card of completion. It is about being settled. It is not a card of movement or change.
4 of Swords
This card is nicknamed ‘the hospital card,’ and it speaks of sickness, retreat and delay. This card may be reflected a personal health issue for Humza Yousaf, but is likely detecting his track record as Health Minister and ongoing issues in the NHS in Scotland during his time as First Minister. It seems likely that these issues will continue to dog or even overshadow his premiership.
This future card is not indicative of a change in the state of the Union. For this, I would be looking out for the appearance of any one of a number of other cards, including but not limited to, The 3 Swords, Judgement or The World.
3 of Wands
I have mentioned that this card is astrologically limked to Humza Yousaf in terms of his person horoscope.
Traditionally this card signifies foreign travel and trade; opportunity, growth and expansion. What is the vision and strategy of the SNP for this, beyond Independence?
It starts with Scotland’s own islands.
“The ships, known as hulls 801 and 802, were ordered by the state ferry procurement agency CMAL in October 2015 at a cost of £97 million and set to sail in 2018.
The cost is now around £300m and the boats are due in late 2023 and 2024.
From the outset, the contract was burdened by disagreements between the shipyard and CMAL over design changes and money.
Ferguson Marine went bankrupt and was nationalized in late 2019.
For more than half the time between the award of the contract and the public ownership of Ferguson, Mr. Yousaf served as Minister for Transport and Islands.”
The Highlands and the Islands of Scotland do not have anything like the population of the cities. They do not have the electoral clout. But the Scottish people are careful, prudent, and this card shows that they are looking for a bold, brave vision that goes far beyond identity politics, looking out on an international horizon, as shown by the international Three of Wands.
If the new First Minister still cannot deliver the first new ferry before the end of 2023, serving Scotland’s own islands, what would this signify for Scotland’s future on the world stage on his watch?
Author’s Own image. The approach to Mull taken on board the Caledonia MacBrayne
There’s a greater England beyond London and Westminster and the cities. There’s a greater Scotland beyond Edinburgh and Holyrood and the mighty Glasgow. England and Scotland have fought many cruel and terrible battles. We have also done great things together. Often we are literally, English and Scottish in the same family.
I am English, though technically I’m Anglo-Irish. My father’s family came from County Kildare to London in the 1920’s, and later my father came north, one of many poor boys who were in some ways actually saved by the War. He would never have gone to University had he not been evacuated out of Greater London to a family in Sevenoaks in Kent, and to a school, and in particular, one Head teacher, who encouraged my father with his education in a way his mother did not do, either with him or her five other children. My father never set foot overseas until he was 18 and he went to Austria to do his year of National Service, working in the map room because he knew French and German- largely thanks to that same Head Teacher.
I also have direct family ties with Edinburgh, Glasgow, Montrose, and going back further, there is a close connection to Sutherland, and to the families who were moved out during the Highland clearances to the fishing village of Helmsdale. Such family stories are nothing unusual. I love England. And I love Scotland. I see no reason in principle why Scotland should be denied full autonomy if that is the democratic will of the people.
But the story of Scotland is still also England’s story, and our nations have done great things together. On Sword Beach in northern France, there is a memorial to the Normandy landings on D- Day and to the Scots Commando Brigade under Lord Lovat who took heavy casualties, storming the beaches under fire on a mission to relieve the airborne troops holding the critical Pegasus Bridge
(And what a beautiful spot it is, and here again, how curious is this, we have yet another connection to the legend of Perseus.)
It was once rather grimly said of Lovat that he was “the handsomest man to ever slit a throat.”
Hitler offered 100,000 marks for his capture, alive or dead.
Simon Fraser, 15th Lord Lovat, Sword Beach statue. Photo Ian Rank-Broadley
The memorial on Sword Beach says, “Leur histoire est notre histoire. Respectez les.”
Their story is our story. You are to respect them.
Nothing worthwhile ever came easy. It always costs dear.
We could say the same of the Union. It is an entity greater than any of us, greater the sum of its parts. And as such it deserves utmost respect.
Question: what is the dynamic between President Putin and President Xi as shown in the cards, and what will be the consequences of this recent meeting in Moscow for the outcome of the war in Ukraine and beyond?
#Tarot#Ukraine STANDS. President Xi twitchy, non enthusiastic, doesn’t want China bogged down by Putin. But wants to give P just enough to defy western hegemony yet without alienating western business. Tricky tightrope for Xi. Turkey & Japan tense. Aries season will be LOUD.
2/ But if Xi is careful, canny, Water Rabbit year, carefully does it, he is quids in. He will have Putin/Russia over an (oil and gas) barrel, literally, and even though that particular pipeline is years off completion- Xi is securing others. Hierophant. Taurus Money king. #Tarot
TOP ROW: PUTIN 7 Pentacles- THE LOVERS- 7 Wands
MIDDLE ROW: XI 2 Swords -TOWER – 2 Pentacles
BOTTOM ROW King Wands-Ace Wands-Princess Wands-King Pentacles-4 Swords- comments, short term developments
It is striking to notice the symmetry of the sevens cards either side of the central card The Lovers, especially as it is mirrored by symmetry of the twos cards either side of The Tower on Xi’s row of cards.
7 Pentacles classically signifies great efforts with little to show for it.
The Lovers signifies Putin’s hopes of a partnership with Xi on equal terms. Russia, after all has the gas and oil that China needs. Additionally it may signify discussions that focus on ideas or decisions to be put into action during Gemini season-late May-late June 2023. Gemini can mean intel, surveillance,drones or weapons deployed for air attack.
7 Wands classically indicates defiance, determination, a sense of moral righteousness and can be detecting critical events to occur during the third decan of Leo season. This decan is ruled by active or downright aggressive Mars, and correlates with dates 12-22 August
The 7’s in tarot are laborious. They are slow. Heavy going. The fact that Putin’s row of cards both starts and ends with a 7 card suggests that he will get the minimum support from President Xi, for all the helpful noises Xi may be making as shown by The Lovers card. Empty words. Help may be forthcoming, and it may include military technology or hardware but if so, it doesn’t seem to do much if anything to accelerate Russia’s military progress or advantage in Ukraine.
The clear suggestion here is that the meeting between Putin and Xi will have little direct effect on Russia’s ability to escalate the war against Ukraine. That slow 7 does not speed up. We start with a 7 and we end with a 7. It speeds up a little. The earth suit card, the 7 Pentacles (Taurus) is slow. The 7 Wands (Leo) is fiery, somewhat faster. But this is no real uptick in tempo. Whatever Putin might be hoping for, he seems unlikely to get it from Xi based on this lack of change in pace or scope across the tarot storyboard, for all the friendly words between them, at least in public.
The inference. Xi does not NEED Russia to win in order for China to get what it wants from Russia. Cheapest oil and gas. Whether China helps Russia or not. Whether Russia wins or loses- however victory or defeat is to be defined in this situation- China will have a strong bargaining hand in trade with Russia, and Xi knows it.
Xi can afford to stand by-that 2 Swords and the 2 Pentacles. He is no hurry to see a Russian victory. He reckons that this disastrous war may actually buy China both leverage and a breathing space of time to build back its own economy post- covid, as represented by The Tower card (correlating with Mars=War and the Pandemic )
Does Putin see this? Surely he does. But he sees that he simply does not have the luxury of choice in this partnership, or certainly not at this juncture, to strain this ‘partnership without limits’ by bringing pressure to bear upon Xi.
Others close to Putin will obviously know it, too, and they don’t like it at all.
That final Four of Swords is a card of stalemate and retreat. A knight is in his tomb.
This the card of hospitals, while the 10 Swords (ruin, sometimes sickness) has made countless appearances in readings since February 2022, saying this will not end well for President Putin, personally.
The 10 Swords correlates with the third decan of Gemini. We may find that the dates June 11-June 21 may prove pivotal for Putin, though it might well be late in 2024 before this card manifests in terms of concrete developments in respect of Putin position in power.
The ‘Final’ outcome of this war of Russian territorial conquest : no one can say, and the future is mutable. But the cards have been consistent since February 2022 that Russia fails to take Kyiv. Ukraine survives as a sovereign territory. The territorial integrity of the entire Baltic region is at stake, even if this is a prospect way beyond Russia’s present capability, and is a direct threat only in principle. Finally, Ukraine is receiving the fighter jets it has been asking for- Migs supplied by Poland and Slovakia. Can Ukraine take back Crimea? The cards indicate that this might be possible if it was a question of Ukraine’s will to do it. But they won’t get the support. Ukraine is not only smaller but very angry that promises have been broken and betrayed.
“Three decades ago, the newly independent country of Ukraine was briefly the third-largest nuclear power in the world.
Thousands of nuclear arms had been left on Ukrainian soil by Moscow after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. But in the years that followed, Ukraine made the decision to completely denuclearize.
In exchange, the U.S., the U.K. and Russia would guarantee Ukraine’s security in a 1994 agreement known as the Budapest Memorandum.not only by Russia which then broke 2 peace treaties, but by the West, which promised Ukraine protection in exchange for their agreement to surrender of their own nuclear weapons capability.”
The tarot has not shown either an ultimate Russian or a Ukrainian victory. There are only losers here. Except that the signs all point to the survival of Ukraine as an entity in its own right. Russia fails to take Kyiv and for Putin, that means failure- that Ten of Swords.
This is only one reader’s interpretation, and of course, it needs no saying, tarot card readers are not omniscient. But tarot is what I know. And what I see, or do not see, is what I can share.
Thank you for reading. Back soon. In the meantime I’ll leave you with a video demo of the deck that we’ve been looking at today; the Tarot Illuminati.
Once upon a time there was a fertility festival called The Lupercalia. Men in wolf masks ran about the streets of Rome, and in honour of the fertility god Lupercus and in memory of the she-wolf who suckled Romulus and Remus, would symbolically thrash (lightly touching) any women they met of child-bearing age. Any woman not wanting to be fertile had better stay indoors. But some would deliberately loiter in the streets, hoping to encounter the wolf men.
Later Christianity claimed the festival, originally held on February 15th, renaming it in memory of poor Valentine, a physician who was cruelly beheaded in Rome after doing many a good turn to other people, including the daughter of his jailer, whom he apparently cured of blindness.
The violent death of a well-disposed person on religious grounds. What could be less romantic?
Painting Andrea Camassei 1635, Museo del Prado
True Tarot Tales 
