New Moon Reading

Using Eowyn's new moon spread again, because it will be interesting to see the difference a turn of a lunar wheel brings to life!


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1.- What lays on your dark depths. What is unseen. What we stumble against in the dark nights. Burdock
This being a card I dont draw very often I have to think about its symbolism to me..
Hmmm I did wonder if I was going to be 'alone' on my path for a while, but it seems I keep being drawn to attachments. People keep reminding me that I am loved, want to spend time and sacred time with me. Its fabulous! When you think your all alone in the wood you realise all the attachments you have, the people that love you no matter where you float off to in life.
And its so easy to forget that. Of course its imporant to keep an eye on who we have in our lives, unnecessary and draining attachments are not good.. but love is love!

2.- What will begin to show, to arise. The Banes
The full moon in this card really says to me that this will happen close to the moon. Yet I admit I am stumped on this card and this reading. From Burdock which was so positive, Banes seem somewhat negative. Ive drawn a clarifier and got Fern so this is saying its something out of the blue, its a shock to the system... a surprise...
I dont tend to like surprises LOL.

3.- What will illuminate the dark path. The key in the night.Flax
Well, whatever the unexpected will be, it will be something that can be worked to create something of beauty, like the humble flaxplant that becomes linen, which becomes the shirt on your back etc. Hmm ok beauty is not the word but beauty in its simplicity, its earthiness.

Its like the attachments in Burdock are reflected in the Flax as a web of love, of deep connections. Ones that arent easy to break. I have these in my life but to think I will be blessed with more in life is wonderous!

0.- Yourself. Shadow card, from the base of the deck.Comfrey,Rx Was surprised to see it Reversed because I dont usually have reversed cards in the pack. In the book it mentions about being loved yet not consumed in love, of finding my-self, in all the interconnectedness.

With going back to school today I have wondered if I will have all the time for all the things I want to do this year. Camps, meet ups with friends etc, tarot work, spiritual work etc. So I feel that sometimes its about balance, of being bloody elusive and not commiting completely to one or two things or ideas to make room for the things that are steadfast in my life.

Hmmmm... ya know, sometimes these plants just dont 'give' a lot in readings.

I think Im having a realisation here with this humble deck that my PDR experience with it may be coming to a close... wow, is this my attachment? My blot out of the blue? My connection and that to love something sometimes you need to give it freedom...

Wow - I am going to end my DPO PDR. It has been a very deeply healing process, a great deck of reflection, but ya know, I think its time to move on, and its a process that has been happening although I didnt want to admit it aloud, as I have been playing more with other decks like the DM and the TT.
But I love this deck. I love the healing, the insight and power it has! Although its not my primary deck, I will keep using it when I need to draw on its magic in my life. And I'll keep doing my Elemental herbs when I feel drawn to.


Wow.. Stir the cauldron of the Goddess in her Darkness and awen spits out... inspiration that changes and brings chaos and in that awareness. Eyes WIDE open.

I feel sad.. but its not farewell, merely adeiu.

Elemental Herbs.. Air

Ive been pondering a lot on herbs, the DPO and the elements. So I wanted to do a bit of a pondering on Air today, with the plan that over the next few weeks I'll go through all the elements :)

So - air, the element of the Swords and most things sharp and pointy. It links with communication, travel, protection, clean/fresh air, and even sleep and dreams - as good sleep and dream interpretation are part of a healthy mind as well. Also Air deals with the intellect, so the accumulation of knowledge and hopefully understanding. I often think of professions like Lawyers, and crossword lovers with Air, as its that precision of finding the right word, the turning of the grey matter and looking at things from every angle. Air is linked with all winged creatures, birds, insects like dragonflies and bees... Zodiac is Libra, Aquarius and Gemini, the planets of Mercury, Jupiter and Uranus. Sense of smell and sound and the throat chakra.

So what does that mean for plants?!
Well heres my lowdown of my interpretation of Air plants in the DPO..
Agrimony - of liberation and soul flight, feeling free to fly. It is also a herb of purification. I feel that Agrimony is a plant that just makes us think differently at life and lets us see the good rather than the negative. Also, Agrimony is a very tall plant, and height is associated with air and bringing objectivity.
Borage - acting within your own ethical framework, and sometimes that means fighting. The card has a sword in its scabbard saying you should be prepared to fight for what you believe to be right, after a good long think about it and trying to resolve it with words etc. Rosemary is another herb of purification and cleansing the mind of feeling blue, especially PMT induced moody blues.
Celtic Bean - communicating with the dead/ancestors, but also seeing clearly about the ancestors of land. Its easy in our very modernised world to think the ancestors lived a life so deeply attuned to the land and were happy - take off the rosetinted glasses! Also, it cleanses negativity and promoted intergration and acting within our integrity, else the winds will change on you and return what you put out.
Fern - a bolt out of the blue, what the winds suddenly blow into your way and becoming invisible like the wind. Fern also has deep connections to the lifeforce which in Yogic traditions associates prana with breath/air.
Meadowsweet - to celebrate and even instigate change and thinking of ways around a problem (like Gwydion thinking of ways around Arianrhod's wishes).
Mint - as it calms the mind and emotional anxiety and worrying. Also its good for freshening your breath and airways.. also like Menthol.
Mistletoe - its up high in the air, and I feel its energies are a plant to rule complementary therapies which are an 'all-heal' in that they look at everything holistically, no just the symptom/cause/disease of modern medicine (although thats a very useful tactic when feeling ill too!). It cuts what is waste out of our lives, and helps us to reap from our own knowledge and wisdom. Also mistletoe I think its a herb of oral traditions.
Vervain - the star herb of the druids that was meant to be harvested under the light of the rising Dog Star. It promotes good dreams, and frees our minds from our desires, focusing on what is important and not 'temptations', although at the same time Vervain is a bit of a trickster energy, for it is also believed to be an amphrodisiac! lol.



Others herbs of Air are..
Anise - for its powers of concentration and focusing the mind
lemon verbena - a strong cleansing smell, thats good for promoting messages/communication, especially between lovers.
lavendar - its strong scent calms the mind, and promotes sleep and dispells worries and replaces them with a feeling of contentment.
Parsley - for protection as well as purification, for it cleanses the palete and freshens breath as well as the mind.
Peppermint - great for bringing up trapped wind! I also think its a great herb for expressing what really is on your mind, the thoughts that you feel trapped by and unable to say.
Rosemary - for it cleanses the mind from PMT associated blues, bringing you a clear head out of a hormonal chaos, the 'i dont know why I feel so upset or angry' kinda feeling. Also, rosemary helps promote your memory!
Sage - has long been associated with Air, for its purifying incense/smoke, also Sage tea is wonderful for soothing sore throats, and it magically helps us pick our words carefully, thinking before we speak.
Wormwood - for promoting the ability to communicate with the spirit world and the dead. It also is a heavy protection herb, the Mafia of herbal protection.

And lets think of a few of the Tree Ogham for Air..

Birch - the tall silvery lady who bends in the wind. A tree of flexibility, who's bark can be used as paper to write and also great for catching flint sparks to create a fire. This tree blesses new beginnings, like the dawn of a new day.
Ash - A tree of your world view, but also for linking betweeen the worlds. Promotes travelling to them as well as recieving messages from the other realms. Ash always makes me think of arrows, cutting through the air, that firm focused energy out of the chaos.
Ivy - the life force, like prana.. also many pieces of pagan iconography show figures with ivy pouring out of their mouths. It also keeps us focused on our contracts, our word being our bond and keeping to our goals.
Pine/Elm - reaching new heights, climbing to see a new perspective, objectivity. Its also the tree of seeing things with a new revitalised look if you've look been on a path or job that is starting to feel stale, or trapped by a 'glass ceiling' of your own making.

All is groovy

Had some fabulous next day! Got a letter in the post and its made me very excited about what lies ahead for me. Its one of those mystical magical things that will diffuse throughout all your life and bring you all sorts of groovy stuff !

And theres project X and even project Y possibly happening on the horizon :D

BUT tonight is a time to really appreciate the full moon in all its glory. After finishing my shift yesterday, having a shower, having something to eat and just settling back to reality, I couldnt do what I had planned. But I did have a good look at the moon as mars chased it around the place. Reminds me of those Beltaine ritual plays of the God chasing and trying to capture the Goddess, only it was when the Goddess wanted to be captured that they met. hehe.. Mars really did try to have the moon :P

So.. tonights plan is to get down and magical and cleanse my bag and cloth that Sulis made me! Hopefully I'll get time to do some sort of reading with it.

I do have a confession though - my Deviant Moon came today and I am in total love. Its so 'bonkers' and twisted and I really love it, especially with its one of a kind wrappers :D I feel TORN.

I guess this is why we have a primary reading deck and not just a one deck wonder! But this is good, it means I get time to re-evaluate the experiment and see where I want to go with the DPO and this blog.

And coz I cant write here without having a quick shuffle, my thoughts at the moment point to Fern.
Im really drawn to the edge of the waterfall, there is that placid pool amongst the ferns on the top of the hill/mountain, and suddenly the water falls down the hillside. Its like that long trek on the rollarcoaster, straining to reach the top. Theres a moment of peace, of utter stillness as your cart is balanced on the apex, and then woooooosh your down and up and looping the loop! Like the eerie calm before the storm because its charged with energy for what is to come.
Thats how I feel, happy yet charged for all the stuff thats about to happen or even not happen. But I know that what happens is meant to be and what falls at the wayside will be deadwood.