A Symbol Is Worth a Thousand Words

Hello, Library Friends!

 

It really hasn't been that long, I guess, since our last Tarot class, but it seems like forever!  We began a second presentation of the Jungian Tarot course last Wednesday, October 29^th.  It was so great to enjoy once again the wonderful energy flow created by all who had returned after the last class, as well as by a new member who traveled a considerable distance for our class.

 

We began by discussing the climate of the times when Jung began his work and delved into the need filled by his combination of scientific knowledge and esoteric interests.  Exploration of Jung's three-part model of the human personality led to the realization of the importance of Tarot's symbolic language in communication between the Conscious and Unconscious minds.  As we talked about the levels of knowledge held by the Collective Unconscious, we considered the ways to access this knowledge through Tarot divination and meditation. The use of a spread dealing with the Conscious mind, the Personal Unconscious and the Collective Unconscious completed the evening.

 

This Wednesday, we will go more deeply into the importance of Tarot symbols in the goal of personal self-understanding Jung called Individuation.  A card game called Symbol Seeker will help us to see these symbols as dynamic images bringing special meaning to each individual.  Subsequent discussion of the basic semiological image types in the Tarot will open our minds still further to this symbolism.  We will then focus more intently on the archetypal symbolism of the Major Arcana, particularly looking at the pairing up of these symbols to show us various pathways to Individuation.  Once again, we will conclude by casting a spread illustrating the concepts discussed.

 

As before, no prior knowledge of the Tarot is required for this class.  As we go on, we will talk about some of the universal symbols some people see in Tarot cards, particularly in the Major Arcana archetypal symbols.  But the primary focus is on individual intuition, and it is through trusting your own responses to the cards that you will benefit most from this class.  Previously memorized interpretations can be as much of a hindrance as an advantage in this process.  Also, no psychological knowledge is needed, since Jung, himself, said that the key to the self-knowledge of his life's work was nonlinguistic awareness, as opposed to rationalistic knowledge.

 

This continual focus on individual meaning also brings the awareness that the lack of knowledge from earlier classes will not make it difficult for you to benefit from beginning your attendance after the class has already begun.  We welcome new class members at any time!

 

I hope you will be able to join us soon.  If you can't make it this Wednesday, please come whenever you can.  We will be meeting weekly on Wednesdays until about mid-February, except for a few breaks in the holiday season (the day before Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve.)

 

See you in class!

 

Kathy

 

Merry Meet, Merry Part and Merry Meet Again

Hi, Everybody!

 

It has been awhile since I last reported on the progress of our Tarot by the Numbers group at the Metaphysical Library.  The summer months have been busy for everyone, myself included, and, while we have continued to meet every Wednesday, I have let too many weeks pass by without reporting on the activities of our little group.

 

What was originally planned as a 12-week course turned into a 21-week experience that was, I hope, as enlightening and enjoyable for those attending as it was for me.  We finished this class on Wednesday, September 3^rd, as each of us cast a personal Numeric Tarot Chart, tracing the pathways, challenges and spiritual gifts that form our life journeys.

 

I am happy to report that we were able to help our beloved library financially with weekly donations totaling $227.00. 

 

While the Tarot by the Numbers class has ended, we are looking forward to beginning again in late October of this year with another Tarot class entitled, 'Tarot from a Jungian Perspective'.  It will be held weekly, as before, on Wednesdays from 7 – 9 PM at the library.  As always, all are invited to join us, including both those new to Tarot and more experienced readers.  Further details will follow. 

 

In the meantime, I would love it if you could join us in the Tarot by the Numbers class I am currently leading at Edge of the Circle Bookstore on Pike Street on Tuesday nights.  In that class, we are currently in the process of examining the individual cards, and we will be looking at those symbolized by the number four when we meet next time.

 

At this time, then, I want to thank you for your support through the Tarot class that just ended, and I urge you to keep Wednesday evenings open and become part of our group when we begin again in October.

 

Blessed be!

 

Kathy

 

Elemental Numbers

 

Again, I bring Greetings from the Wednesday night Tarot group!

 

Our Tarot by the Numbers class continues to be a thought-provoking and fulfilling experience.  More than one person has called it a welcoming spiritual oasis in the midst of their hectic week.  As we work and learn together, gaining a deeper understanding of our inner selves through the symbolism of the Tarot, we are also bonding in meaningful friendships that promise to last much longer than this class, itself.

 

Last Wednesday, May 7^th, in our 4^th session of this series, we finished our look at the interwoven dynamics of the Major Arcana as seen through the symbolic Journey of the Fool.  We began to see the enormous role numerology plays in relaying these messages as we finished this initial journey of three levels of seven steps.  The seven triads also produced in the process brought the resultant creative and transformative energy explosively into view.  We then began our overall look at the Minor Arcana, the Tarot cards that carry the archetypal energies of the Major Arcana into our individual lives.

 

Session 5 of our class will be held this coming Wednesday, May 14^th.  We will begin where we ended last week, bringing into focus the historical development of the Minor Arcana as a process of creation that mirrors our contemporary trials and experiences.  We will briefly look at some of the varying Tarot traditions that have come out of this process, making the Tarot the force for perception and understanding that it is today.  The growing influences on Tarot of modern scientific knowledge, particularly of psychology, and of trends such as feminism, will complete our historical/contemporary investigation.  With a background of such richness, we will then begin our study of the symbolism that is the operating vehicle for both the Major and the Minor Arcana – the elemental and the numeric imagery.

 

If you share our passion for learning about the possibilities for self-development offered by The Tarot, we welcome you to join us.  This would be a great time to do so, because this class that is coming up will be the one where we 'set the stage' for our division of the Tarot into learning groups formed by elemental and numeric symbolism.  Part of the fee of $5.00 per session is donated to the Library. 

 

Hoping to see you on Wednesday night at 7:00 PM,

 

Kathy

April 30, 2014 - Tarot by the Numbers

Hello, Friends –

Our Tarot class at the Seattle Metaphysical Library is turning out to be more fun and exciting than even I had hoped.  Last Wednesday night, we hit another high in attendance.  This is a trend I’d love to see continue!  At this point, we have completed the third week of ‘Tarot by the Numbers,’ a course on the basics of Tarot interpretation. Since intuition and openness are at least as important as any prior knowledge of the Tarot, people new to the Tarot and to our group are welcome to join us at any time.  

Last Wednesday night we continued discussing the Major Arcana, the first 22 cards of the Tarot, as seen through The Journey of the Fool.  Through this symbolic journey, we saw the Major Arcana cards in relation to each other, and we found that learning the traditional meaning of each card became much easier than it would have been otherwise.  Just as importantly, we saw them as parallels to our own journeys through life. For the consideration of each card, we divided into small groups and analyzed examples of that card from several decks.  As always, the varied perspectives and experiences of the people in our group added worlds more depth to our discussion of these images than I could have produced on my own.   By the end of the class, we had finished the first two phases of The Journey of the Fool, and we will complete the third and final level of that journey this Wednesday.  

This Wednesday night, when we have completed our look at the transformative symbolism of The Journey of the Fool, we will go on to look at one more aspect of the Major Arcana organizational relationships, the creativity potential of the triads of cards formed by the three levels of that journey of symbols.  We will use the principle of permutation to uncover deeper levels of the creation messages formed by the triads.

From consideration of the Major Arcana cards of the Tarot, we will go on to work with the Minor Arcana, the remaining 56 Tarot cards.  In doing so, we will find that the Minors are not really ‘minor’ at all but are actually essential connectors between the universal energy of the Majors and our own individual lives.  Next will come a look at the rich history of the Minor Arcana, which developed separately from the Major Arcana.  We will then talk about the growth of the Tarot as a whole, after the Major Arcana and the Minor Arcana were joined into one incredibly rich system of symbols that address all aspects of our lives.  As we explore the Tarot’s appearance today, we will compare the two Tarot decks that have formed the basis for most of the hundreds of Tarot decks currently on the market – the Rider/Waite/Smith deck and the Thoth deck.

We would love for you to become a part of our group.  We meet on Wednesdays from 7:00 to 9:00 PM at the library, down in the bowels of the basement, at 2220 Market Street, Suite L05, Seattle, WA 98107. As this class is very interactive, we are finding that each new person adds a new layer of depth to our understanding of Tarot’s relevance to our own daily experiences.  The suggested donation of $5.00 is partly for the benefit of the library that brings the ancient wisdom of the Tarot to life for us every week.  If you have joined us for previous classes but been away for a few weeks, we’d love to welcome you back.  If you have never attended our meetings, please come whenever you can.  To those of you who attend regularly, we all love having you here and hope you know just how important you are to our group.

Bright Blessings!

Kathy

ANNOUNCING 'TAROT BY THE NUMBERS'

Hello, Everyone!

When I last wrote, we had just finished our Tarot Shadows class at the Seattle Metaphysical Library.  We were then anticipating the beginning of an informal discussion group that would continue to meet on Wednesday nights when the Tarot class was completed.  After a couple weeks of very uplifting and fascinating discussion, the members of our group decided that some sort of combination of that open, spiritual discussion with a continued exploration of the Tarot would be welcome.  Since the majority of our members are relatively new to Tarot, it was suggested that the next phase of our work should involve a look at the basics.

In response to these comments, I am happy to announce the start of a 10-week introductory course on the Tarot, to be called “Tarot by the Numbers.”  Each meeting will begin with a half-hour discussion period followed by a 90-minute look at the basics of The Tarot.  The following paragraphs will summarize the planned content of that Tarot exploration. 

The first three weeks of this class will provide an overview of the Tarot.  The first week, we will look at theories of its origin, its development as recorded in historical documents, its changing roles and purposes, the terminology of the Tarot, and the multi-level way it works. The second week will bring the focus onto Tarot’s current structure.  Major Arcana archetypal energies will be viewed through the Journey of the Fool as it depicts the experiences, changes and growth in our own lives.  The numbered cards of the Minor Arcana will be viewed as depictions of the elemental energies that are active in our daily activities.  The third week will provide a view of the Tarot in its own language – that of symbolism – as we work together in interpreting some of the numerous types of symbolism at work in Tarot, particularly in the personification cards of each suit, generally known as the Court Cards.

It is in the 4^th through 9^th weeks of this class that the meaning of the name ‘Tarot by the Numbers’ will become crystal clear.  During these weeks, we will ‘learn’ the traditional meanings of the cards the easy way – in numerical groups, going from 0 to 10. 

The 10^th and final class will show how all this fits together, as we look at the steps for conducting a reading of the traditional Celtic Cross spread.

The time and place of our meetings will remain the same as before, Wednesdays at 7:00 to 9:00 PM at the Seattle Metaphysical Library.  The suggested donation of $5.00 is also unchanged.

Hope to see you at our first meeting, Wednesday, April 16^th.

Kathy

 

 

Newsletter Blurb - Tarot Shadows, after Session 7

Greetings, again!

In keeping with our Tarot Shadows progress, our little group has grown and developed a spiritual energy of which I feel honored and excited to be a part.  Wednesday night we started on the final phase of our journey.  We felt the healing energy behind the shadow images of six more shadow cards, viewing the myth of Chiron, the Wounded Healer of Greek mythology, as an example of Tarot’s recovery through symbolism.  As we practiced writing and using affirmations to evoke this positive manifestation, the energy in the room became a force that was almost physically evident.  By the time we had completed and shared our experiences in Entering a Tarot Card, the spiritual force behind our experiences was no longer to be questioned.

At our next meeting we will complete the  8^th and final part of our Tarot Shadows work.  We began at Imbolc, the shadowy time of year still in the grips of winter, when the warmth of the sun was a hope yet to be seen.  At that time, we reenacted the old Celtic ritual of the candle wreath, adding the energies of the Tarot shadow cards as we invoked the return of light and warmth to bring healing energy behind the shadows.  On Wednesday, March 26^th, we will again reenact a Celtic ritual, this time welcoming the returning sun, at this time of year when the increased daylight hours bring us greater light and warmth.  This returning warmth parallels our celebration of the transformation of the Tarot shadows to the light of healing in our individual lives. Before ending our ritual, we will add the use of pendulum divination to discover which Tarot shadows have been areas of the greatest transformation for each of us since we began this work.

The transformation of shadows, however, is an ongoing task.  After completing the ritual, we will discuss the ways we can continually monitor our shadow status.  Since some of these shadows will become clear during Tarot readings, we will discuss the steps for the traditional Celtic Cross spread, with a few additions to bring into focus the light behind the shadows.  We will then perform one of these Healing Celtic Cross Spreads, including some of the methods for discovery of new shadows and their healing potentials.

Even now, as we plan for the final session of our Tarot Shadows class, new members are welcome.  The activity of the shadow forces is dynamic , and intuition, not prior knowledge, is key to understanding it.  I hope you will be able to join us.

The spiritual energy that has recently been felt in our group is not something that can be arbitrarily ended.  So, even though next week is the final date for the Tarot Shadows class, the group has decided to continue meeting.  The details of this continuation are yet to be worked out, but I am happy to say that we will be around for more exploration into the fascinating world of Tarot.  Please watch this newsletter for more details to come.

Blessed be!

Kathy

TAROT SHADOWS, End of Session 5, 3/7/14

Greetings! On Wednesday, March 5th, we resumed our Tarot Shadow work with our 5th group meeting. I was so excited to see that we had 5 new members this week.. All of the people in attendance were amazing – the sensitive, open and caring type of people who make our Tarot classes especially meaningful.

We began this week’s work by reviewing what we had learned in the Tarot class last year on the Jungian approach to the Tarot. It was Jung’s theories of the mind and of the shadow archetype that provided the original basis for Tarot shadow work.

Now that we have worked on the identification of the shadow as it appears through Tarot shadow images, we focused our energies on understanding how illness and injury can result form failure to address these shadows. Beginning with The Tower and The Wheel of Fortune, we looked at the shadow symbolism of the cards as seen in 4 different Tarot decks, We then discussed the illness or injury that could result from neglect of these shadows. We finished the examination of these cards by finding the symbols of the gifts behind the shadows that could be made available by working through the shadows. Then we divided into groups of 2, repeating this exercise with The 5 of Swords, The 5 of Pentacles, The 7 of Swords and The 10 of Wands. We completed the evening with completion of a group spread – The Wheel of Fortune Shadow Spread – to put these concepts into personal perspective.

Our next class will be held on Wednesday, March 12th. At this time, the shadow symbols contained in The Hierophant, The World, the 4 of Cups, the 5 of Wands the 5 of Cups and the 10 of Swords will be the focal points for our group exploration of the beginnings of healing. We will see how the Tarot images work with both the conscious and unconscious minds in this endeavor. We will complete a Cycle Spread, symbolically expressing the cooperative workings of the conscious and unconscious in identifying the symbols of action that will begin the needed healing.

In excited anticipation of our group work on Wednesday, I want to reemphasize how much I enjoyed seeing so many new people last time and how much I hope to see those people again this week. I would love to again have the problem of not having made enough copies of the handouts. That is definitely something we can easily remedy! Feeling the tremendous spiritual energy from so many who share my passion for this work is something I want to experience again. Every week, if possible! As I have said before, you don’t need a background in Tarot for this – just bring an open mind and let the Spirit provide the rest. Even the $5.00 donation is not a set-in-stone requirement, Whatever you feel is right is fine. See you Wednesday!

Blesses Be,

Kathy

Tarot Shadows 3rd Week report

To My Fellow Travelers on Tarot’s Journey of Life,

The third of our Wednesday night meetings at the library illustrated yet another way the Tarot Shadow images help us connect with our repressed feelings and the strengths behind them. The focus in this part of our journey was on becoming better acquainted with our shadows, seeing the reasons behind their original action on our psyches as well as the need to understand their current impact on our lives. This week we talked about the Court card shadows and their multi-level images that help us pinpoint both our projections onto others and the complex depths of our own personalities. Viewing examples of this symbolism from multiple Tarot decks, we saw how the court cards personalize those traits, providing images that symbolize the full range of related responses, from negative to positive.

We discussed the process of bringing those shadowy images into the light of awareness and of empirical reality. To do that, we applied to the 16 Court Cards the research-based 16 Personality Factor system developed by psychiatrist Raymond Cattell.

Armed with this knowledge of the Court cards’ projection analysis and of the scientific basis for their symbolic messages, we then each completed a Shadow Projection spread. Through this method, we were able to identify some of our projections onto others and to begin uncovering the positive qualities hidden by these projections.

During each of the next four Wednesday meetings, we will focus on several of the cards that were identified on our candle wreath the first week as the most ‘notorious’ shadow cards. In this way, we will explore the tremendous gifts associated with the most fearsome shadows, and we will use them to bring our own shadow experience into the realm of our control for our conscious transformation. As we do this, we will travel from the realm of physical and material loss through that of the mental, emotional and spiritual. Applying conscious intent, we will develop greater power over these shadows. In our last meeting of the Tarot Shadows group, to be held March 19th, we will celebrate this newfound power, welcoming the light and warmth of Spring.

For our coming meetings, I want to emphasize again that everyone is welcome, whether or not they have attended previous group meetings. We meet from 7:00 to 9:00 PM here at the library. Half of the $5.00 per session fee goes to the library. To those of you who have attended previously, thank you so much for making this such a meaningful experience for all of us. To everyone else, please join us in the journey toward greater personal power through accepting and understanding the shadow images in our lives,

Hope to see you this Wednesday!
Kathy

Tarot Shadows, Week 2

Hello, Everyone!

Having finished the second week of the Tarot Shadows group, it is time once again to review our work and look forward to the coming six weeks. We began Wednesday’s session by delving a little more deeply into the characteristics of the Tarot shadow image. Examples from the Tarot cards themselves gave us insight into exactly what made up the Tarot shadow image. These included The Magician, The Empress, The Hermit, the 10 of Swords, the 4 of Pentacles and The Devil.

Any definition, to be complete, must also involve a process of differentiation, so we looked at what the Tarot shadow is not. Through exploring both shadows and reversed Tarot cards, it became clear to us that the two seldom conveyed the same message. Shadows, we learned, could sometimes be found in reversals but could also be present in upright cards. Reversals could be about shadows but could also send messages about delays, denial , inner level activity, need for new perspective, the opposite of the upright meaning or something else entirely.

To clear away some of the confusion,, we talked about ways to recognize a Tarot shadow image. Intuition, of course, is always the most accurate and direct way. There will always be times, however, when intuition doesn’t seem to be providing the answers (if you’re tired, preoccupied with stress or worry, etc). For those times, we talked about getting more tangible signals from other cards in the reading, At that point, we completed a spread that identified our own shadows, their origins, and their triggers.

In the coming weeks, we will continue to learn more about our shadows as seen through the Tarot,. Next time, February 12th, we’ll get to know our shadows a little better by focusing on shadows that appear in others. This will be seen through the Court Cards. On the following Wednesday, February 19th,we will work on shadows of repressed hurts, easing their hold on us by bringing them into more conscious awareness. The next class, on February 26th, will help us deal with material loss by exploring the potential gifts hidden behind our shadows. The first class of the next month,, on March 5th, will be spent in the transforming of emotional loss by means of conscious intent, as we transform shadows to the gifts behind them. On March 12th, we will learn to ease our fears of the unknown future through ongoing shadow awareness.

Let me say again that we welcome any of you at any point during the course. None of the classes are dependent on the previous ones, and everyone is welcome, whether they are newcomers to Tarot or long-time Tarot enthusiasts. Hope to see you next time, or whenever you are able to join us!

Blessed be!

Kathy

January, 2014 - First Tarot Session for Kathy Eckert's class - Create a candle wreath

TAROT SHADOWS

Greetings!

On Wednesday night, January 29th, seven of us began our journey to discover the positive implications of the Tarot shadows in our lives. This first session of The Gift of the Tarot Shadows, an 8-week course to be held here at the Seattle Metaphysical Library on Wednesday evenings, contained an introduction to the concept of symbolic shadows. As part of that introduction to shadow work, we participated in a guided meditation relating growth through personal shadows to that symbolized by the turning of the Wheel of the Year. In late January and early February, many cultures throughout history have celebrated their hope for the return of warmth and growth, as seeds that have been dormant through the coldest part of the winter first begin to stir. For now, those seeds are still beneath the ground, as unseen as the shadows we hide within ourselves. However, before long, as the days grow longer, those seeds will burst with new life, just as we hope that in facing the shadows often associated with unhappiness and disaster, we can access the positive energy hidden within those ‘scary’ images. Repeating an ancient Celtic tradition associated with the seasonal celebration of Imbolc, we created a candle wreath, which is now hanging in the library. Throughout the next 8 weeks, It will be there as a visual expression of those hopes for the coming of new light as we face and understand our shadows.

As we begin, it might be helpful to provide an overview of the plans for the next few weeks. Next week, on February 5th, we will examine the methods for exploring the Tarot shadows, and we will personalize our work by completing a spread for identifying and contacting the shadow aspect of ourselves. Our work the next week, February 12th, will focus, using the Court cards, on the shadows as they appear in our interactions with others. On the next Wednesday, February 19th, continuing hurts from our past experience will be highlighted. The next two weeks will be devoted to loss that we are currently experiencing, with February 26th focusing on material loss and March 5th offering a look at emotional loss as seen through the Tarot shadows. On Wednesday, March 12th, fears of the future will be the topic addressed. The final day of this course, March 19th, will be the day before spring begins, and we will welcome the coming warmth and light, as well as celebrating our successes in bringing those qualities into our lives by facing our own shadows.

It was great to see once again several of the people who had shared our journey last year through the Jungian symbols in the Tarot. As before, I want to repeat the invitation to all of you to join us at ant point in our class, The material in any of the later classes is not dependant on prior knowledge of either the Tarot itself or of material from the earlier classes. Come to a few of the classes, all of them, or whatever is convenient for you. Your financial support is also appreciated, with half the proceeds again going to the library, but the suggested $5.00 donation is simply a suggestion, not a required fee. In any case, hope to see you soon! Bright Blessings, Kathy