Ask the Crone

Here we are again, at the beginning of a week that could have ramifications that extend from our own personal survival to that of our democracy, and indeed influence the balance of power in the world. Yeah, I know. It sounds hyperbolic. But if we’re honest, anyone who’s paying attention knows it’s true. So in order to give us some guidance and perspective as we navigate this week, I decided to ask the Crone.

I sat with my Tarot of the Crone deck and closed my eyes. I held within an awareness of the challenges we’re facing this week and started shuffling the cards. I could feel myself yearning for some kind of light, some indication from Spirit of what we should hold in our hearts as we witness the coming events unfold.

Where We Are/Where We’re Headed

I chose two cards. The first was to help us understand where we are; what we’re experiencing. And the second card I chose was where we’re headed; what’s coming; what’s in store for us.

Visually, just laying the cards out beside each other was stunning. They are remarkably similar at first glance, but the differences, while subtle, are unquestionably meaningful. And it’s not insignificant that I chose two Major Arcana cards. (Out of the 78 cards in a tarot deck, only 22 are Major Arcana and represent powerful archetypal concepts.) The fact that both cards are ‘Majors’ reinforces my sense of this week’s importance.

I also found it meaningful that Where We Are is only one card away from the end of the Majors. It is number XX, and in this deck its name is “Calling.” It doesn’t escape me that in traditional tarot decks, the XX card is called “Judgment.” We’re pretty much at the end game in our democracy. Our system is being challenged in ways the founders almost certainly never imagined. And yet…the Where We’re Headed Card is the very first card of the entire deck. We’re headed – hmmm. Back to the drawing board?  Back to “Go” so we can redefine a more perfect union?

Even beyond the Constitutional crisis we’re approaching, there’s the horrifying reality of the surge in the pandemic creating vertical spikes in numbers of infections, which will inevitably lead to spikes in hospitalizations and, ultimately, deaths. Add to that the discovery of several mutations of the virus – the most recent, I believe, being in South Africa – and once again the eerie appropriateness of the “Calling” or “Judgment” card is obvious.

Where We Are: XX – Calling

“Come

It is time for you to wear the cloak

Accept your power

And accept your responsibility

Come

Be with me now

Show me your power

The Crone holds up a red cloak, asking you to wear it, calling you to join her. She appears as a shadowy fantastical bird. The background is the rich blue of the deep sky. The red and blue represent power and justice. These are the colors and this is the card of the superhero. How an ordinary human can become extraordinary is the mystery of this card and it has nothing to do with anything you’ve been told before.

When you get this card, your life is changing, whether you want it to or not. From this change arises an opportunity to become greater in person and spirit, to step up to another level. Something is asked of you and you feel urged to respond. If your response is resistance, know it will take more energy from you than accepting the challenge would. This is your big moment. Take your courage, the strength of your heart, and fly.”

It seems to me that we are all being ‘called’ at this juncture to step up. To be superheroes for the greater good – to demand the right use of power and reinforce our belief in justice. This is big. History will judge us by our reactions and responses in the coming days.

Where We’re Headed: 0 – Fool

“To know me, you must first know this ~

In the Beginning, as in the End,

There is Nothing

Behind your ordinary world

Behind all manifestation

Lies the Void

I am the emptiness surrounding the universe

I am the uncertainty of the electron

I am the nothingness hiding in your soul

In the Void you have no name

Words do not exist

You have no memory, no past or future

Time does not exist

You find no landmarks, you have no body

Matter does not exist

But You

You may still exist

A mere spark of awareness

But that is enough

That is where you begin

The Cloak of the Crone is all you hear, all you see, all you know of your everyday world. Only a Fool would try to see what lies beneath. Only a Fool abandons the known for the unknown and perhaps unknowable. Only a Fool risks becoming lost in the Void, becoming a tiny star in endless space.

A force beyond your small self opens a new space in your soul. You are impelled to start on a new path. One in which you cannot predict the final destination, or possibly even the next step, but feels inevitable all the same. Can you truly trust the Universe? In the Void, where there is no up and no down, you can do nothing else. Remember there is a part of you that wants this, that welcomes it, because it knows becoming formless and timeless is what you need to create a new future.”

It seems to me that where we’re headed is uncharted territory. This is the time when we have the power and responsibility to create and hold a vision of what we want to manifest as our future. We really are at that crux in time when our choices, our values, our vision matter most. What do we truly hold dear? How passionate are we about the importance of truth, honor, accountability, integrity? What kind of a world do we want to create going forward?

We hold the future in our hands.

(T-326)