Tag: Major Arcana

Global Year Card 2020: The Emperor In The Tarot

the emperor in the tarotThe Emperor in the Tarot (key 4 in the Major Arcana) is our planet’s year card for 2020 based on numerology (2+0+2+0 = 4).

This card symbolises power and control issues in both beneficial and challenging ways.

For many people, the world has become an unsettling place – fascist leaders taking control, inequality, rise in crime, radical climate change activism, environmental catastrophes around the world, the sheer volume of plastic waste, unsustainable consumption, war in the Middle East, fake news, political corruption and gaslighting…

It all started in 2017, the Wheel of Fortune year, in which Trump took office in the White House.

Since then, our heads have been spinning caused by a dazzling speed of change beyond our control.

But 2020 is the year of the Emperor – a reminder we need to step back into our power and become leaders of light and hope in our families, communities, at work, in our relationships and also for ourselves.

This means we have to get fully engaged with the world, get active, speak up and debate, join and support groups to contribute towards making a difference.

Taking responsibility that we are all to blame for the state of the world, and now it’s time to make amends by radically changing our ways.



The Emperor has a vision of where he wants to be in the future. He is passionate, ambitious, driven and doesn’t shy away from confrontation.

He is in control by making plans and getting organised.

He is creating a solid foundation – a springboard – from which he can progress, move forward and grow.

At a global level during 2020, we will see more people questioning old structures and institutions (Meghan and Harry, Iran protests, healthcare funding, climate emergency…). This will continue into 2021, the year of the Hierophant.

There will be power struggles between governments and new grassroot movements demanding change.

The dark side of the Emperor will show up, and we have to face it head on: narcissism and control issues.

Look at neo-fascist populist leaders taking control all over the world by spreading misinformation and character assassinations on a global scale through social media.

The population is being controlled by lack of funding for education. The government doesn’t want our children to become digitally intelligent. This would expose government’s lies and damage their power.

We have to take education (including critical thinking and fact-checking) in our own hands.

The Emperor is linked to the zodiac sign Aries – what will be started, may not necessarily come to a conclusion.

Projects borne out of passion or anger may be aborted midway due to intense emotions diminishing, lack of interest, energy, a short attention span.

Without a good plan and preparation, even the best intentions and ideas despite enthusiasm may not lead to anything and just dissipate.

I’m watching the Labour leadership election and development of Extinction Rebellion (and other environmental protest movements) with the Emperor in mind. How is the Emperor energy reflected in your part of the world?

The Emperor is this year’s global year card, which means that while this masculine, yang energy has a strong influence on our personal lives, it also works combined with our personal year cards.

The global year card represents our external influences – opportunities and challenges, global events and developments we cannot control.

Our personal year card represents internal energy – strengths, weaknesses, attitudes, beliefs, values, choices, desires, our actions and responses to global year card energies.

How does your personal year card interact with the current global year card?

Take these three steps to start exploring:

1. What’s your first impression when looking at both cards together?
2. What element/s are represented? (earth, air, fire, water…)
3. What astrological correspondences? (planets, zodiac)

Elements and astrological correspondences can give you an indication, whether your combination is friendly, supportive, neutral, conflicting or challenging.

You can then explore how to harness, resolve and align these energies to your advantage.

This work isn’t done in a day. It’s an ongoing project that lasts a whole year.

Over on Patreon, we will check up on a monthly basis, how the Emperor is influencing global developments, which is just one of many mindful tarot activities you can participate in as a member.

Learn more about membership HERE. I’d love to welcome you to my Patreon community. Together, we can grow strong.

Warmest wishes,

Christiane

 

22 Side Effects You Experience When Learning The Tarot

high priestess housewives tarot
High Priestess, Housewives Tarot

If you are interested in learning the Tarot, you need to be aware of some serious side effects you may encounter.

You see, learning the Tarot isn’t about memorising card meanings. It’s actually living the whole damn thing every day and every moment.

It’s a way of life.

It’s about doing a lot of inner work that turns your insides out and puts it all back together again, but differently.

It’s breaking and healing.

If you think that spiritual awakening is all love n light, you’re mistaken. If you don’t confront and deal with your darkness, you just live in an illusion.

But worry not. The side effects you experience when learning the Tarot will help you become a better person and live your best life.

Here are the most commonly experienced side effects as reflected in the 22 cards of the Major Arcana:



The Fool: You start to discover new aspects of yourself.

The Magician: You realise anything is possible.

The High Priestess: You learn to access your inner wisdom.

The Empress: You become more creative.

The Emperor: You feel empowered.

The Hierophant: Amongst family and friends you start to feel a bit of an outsider…

The Lovers: …but you will also meet like-minded souls and make new friends.

The Chariot: You will leave your comfort zone behind…

Strength: …and have the courage and passion to persevere.

The Hermit: You start enjoying your solitude.

Wheel of Fortune: You worry less about what you cannot control.

Justice: You learn to balance logic with intuition when making important choices.

The Hanged Man: You begin to see the world differently.

Death: You become a new person.

Temperance: You stress less and live more in the flow.

The Devil: You recognise and deal with the dark stuff in your life.

The Tower: You question everything.

The Star: You begin to see the bigger picture.

The Moon: You will fall in love with the moon.

The Sun: You realise that happiness is a choice, and confidence is a daily practice.

Judgement: You rise above drama.

The World: You look back at your life and see how far you have come.

These are only 22 side effects most people will experience, but there are also reports of reduction in anxiety and depression when exposed to the tarot over a long period.

Have you experienced any side effects not listed here? Let me know!

Warmest wishes,

Christiane

Turning a Crisis into a Transformational Journey

turning a crisis into a transformational journey
From the Tower to the Star…

At one point in our lives, we will all encounter a major crisis point – bereavement, divorce, relationship breakdown, unemployment, ill health, financial hardship, mental breakdown…

When you experience a significant Tower moment, the initial shock and feeling of numbness usually develops into a variety of painful emotions, from anger to depression.

What will keep you going is your focus on moving towards acceptance of the situation to allow for subsequent recovery and healing.

Each person deals with pitfalls and setbacks in their own way and in their own time.

While some people quickly get back on their feet, others take much longer to come to terms with their situation.

The Tarot is an excellent tool to help you on your way to recovery and renewal. A simple healing spread used regularly can help you improve the way you feel and transform your life over time.

Turning a crisis into a transformational journey is an 8-card spread that can assist you on your way towards healing.

You can use as little or as many cards as you like.

Choose from the following prompts, which are most relevant to you, or use all of them as a powerful healing meditation:

1. Where I am on my healing journey at this moment in time
2. A strength of mine that will help me today
3. A weakness I need to overcome
4. What is blocking me
5. What I need from others to help me heal (you don’t need to do this on your own)
6. What I can do today that would make me feel better
7. Spiritual Lesson
8. Affirmation

As you can see, there are eight positional meanings for this spread. Eight is the number of regeneration and rebirth.

The Star, numbered 17 (1 + 7 = 8), usually depicts an eight-pointed central star.

cosmic faery's healing cards meanings
Printable healing cards inside Cosmic Journaling Through The Year

You can lay out the cards in a star-shaped arrangement to help you manifest the healing and transformational powers of the Star and this spread.

Numerically, the Star is linked to Strength, numbered 8 in Rider Waite Smith based tarot decks.

In addition to this healing meditation, you could also explore, how the energies of Strength can benefit you on your healing journey.

Would you like to learn Tarot for self-development and healing? Check out my Discovery Tarot Course.

Warmest wishes,

Christiane

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Tarot Journey: Return To The Light

the sun, cosmic faery tarotAfter a dark and gloomy January here in the UK, February has finally arrived.

I can sense a sudden exhilarating shift in my mood as if a button has been pressed in my brain.

The days are getting longer, the snowdrops are blooming, the crocuses are on their way, I’m looking out for buds on shrubs and trees…. on our tarot journey, it’s the return from darkness into the light. Yay!

The return to the light is symbolised by the Sun in the Major Arcana. Before we embrace this positive energy of joy and enlightenment, we can put closure on the darkness with this little spread:

from darkness to light tarot spreadNow that we have put the darkness to rest (at least for a while), we can focus on the lighter side of life – creation, success, clarity, simple abundance, vitality.

In the Tarot, when the Fool reaches the Sun, he has reached his goal. He is exactly where he wants to be.

In the RWS deck, his achievement is symbolised by the red feather on his head on both cards and the sun in the sky, which has turned from white (beginning) to golden (completion):

rider waite smith fool and sun
Buy the borderless Smith-Waite Centennial Edition

In the Cosmic Faery Tarot, I have illustrated the Fool’s milestone as a seedling growing into a beautiful sunflower:

cosmic faery tarot fool and sun
Cosmic Faery Tarot

Working with the Sun, ask the following questions:

  • What has come to fruition?
  • What commitments have I made?
  • What do I now understand?
  • What can I celebrate today?
  • What is making me happy right now?

The Sun is very much about living in the moment, the here and now.

Just for a change, there is no need to make plans or think about the future.

What is most important is to savour the present and just be.

The Sun’s energy is linked to various cards in the tarot, most notably the Ten of Swords (Sun in Gemini), which depicts quite profoundly the emergence from darkness into the light.

If you are curious about your own tarot journey and want to learn more, check out my courses and ebooks, grab my freebies, or just hang out with me in the Cosmic Spirit Wellness community.

Warmest wishes,

Christiane

Tarot Shadow Work: Descend into the Underworld

Cosmic Faery Tarot Shadow Major Arcana Cards
Cosmic Faery Tarot Deck

With the dark season approaching and the spirit of Halloween in the air, it’s a good time to light some candles, burn some incense, play some atmospheric music and work with the shadow cards of the Major Arcana for some serious self-exploration:

The Hanged Man, Death, The Devil, The Tower and The Moon.

The late Hajo Banzhaf (Tarot and the Journey of the Hero) assigned these cards to the Arc of the Night of the Major Arcana, the descend into the underworld, which starts with the Hanged Man and ends with the Moon.

These are not the most welcome cards when they appear in readings, but when we face them and examine our dark side (including those past experiences we’d rather forget), they can help us turn our darkness into light.

The best way to do that is through self-enquiry. Here are some questions you can ask yourself for each card:

The Hanged Man – What do I keep avoiding? Where am I stuck in my life? In what situations did/do I find it hard making decisions? What sacrifices have I made in order to make progress? What do I refuse to give up?

Death – Endings in my life that were painful. Changes that were unsettling. New beginnings that resulted from these endings/changes. What do I need to let go of now (habits, things, people…)? How can I transform anguish, loss and grief into a new sense of purpose and understanding? What transformations have I experienced in my life?

Tarot spread: 1. Me now / 2. Me a year ago – What has changed?

The Devil – What is controlling me / what am I controlling? Where do I feel trapped? How can I break free? Where am I complacent? Where am I wasting too much energy that isn’t worth it? What am I obsessed about? Where have I been despondent? A taboo in my life / family / society.

The Tower – What am I angry about? When was the last time I showed my anger? What incident or situation shook my world? How have I recovered? When did I feel that my life was falling apart, and how have I rebuilt it? What has gone out of control? What have I destroyed on purpose in order to start again differently?

The Moon – When did my imagination last run wild? What are my fears / insecurities and doubts? What am I confused about? A nightmare I can remember I once had. My lunar fantasies: visions and illusions (pull a card for each). What is obscured and needs to be revealed? Where and how am I deceiving myself?

Make a date with your shadow and descend into the underworld with these cards. Enjoy!

Warmest wishes,

Christiane

PS: Learn more about how to use the cards for self-exploration and healing in my Discovery Tarot Course.

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The High Priestess in the Tarot of Quotes

high priestess in the tarot of quotesThe High Priestess in the Tarot is one of the most mysterious and fascinating archetypes.

She embodies the feminine energy that is inherent within us all – intuition, inner wisdom, silence, stillness, reflection, gut instinct, patience.

The High Priestess is your inner spiritual advisor, counsellor, guide and psychic muse. If you don’t know what to do or what to say, you follow her instead.

She represents inner knowing that doesn’t come with tangible proof but with feelings and perceptions that trigger your sixth sense.

Following the High Priestess requires a huge amount of trust in her abilities but also plenty of self-knowledge to distinguish sound advice from deception and illusion.

She encourages you to dig deeper in order to see the bigger picture, to work with nature’s rhythms such as the moon phases and the seasons, learn from your dreams, and follow your aspirations (those goals that seem to call you).



The High Priestess in the Tarot of Quotes is a lighthouse in the darkness, the guiding light that shows you the way safely to your destination.

The surrounding sea is the vastness of feelings and emotions within you, and just like an explorer you need to navigate on the surface to find your way and dive in to find all the treasures (talents, secrets, answers) hidden in the deep.

Astrologically, the High Priestess is linked to the moon. The waxing moon (new moon) represents intentions, conception and manifesting.

In practical terms, when this card comes up in a reading, you may want to observe rather than take action, wait and see, be silent rather than chatty, listen rather than speak. Let something work itself out or a situation unravel in its own time.

If something doesn’t feel right, don’t do it or stop doing it.

high priestess cosmic faery tarot
Still waters run deep – Cosmic Faery Tarot Deck

Follow your inner guide or ask someone you trust for advice.

What to avoid: moodiness, being irrational, unpredictability, isolation.

I welcome your views and opinions on my cards. Please feel free to leave your comment below.

You can buy the Cosmic Faery Tarot deck here.

Warmest wishes,

Christiane

cosmic faery tarot guidebook
Grab the Cosmic Faery Tarot Guidebook

 

The Cosmic Faery Tarot Major Arcana Special Edition

cosmic faery tarot major arcana special editionA milestone has been reached in the development of my own Tarot deck. It started off as the Tarot of Quotes and evolved into the Cosmic Faery Tarot.

The Major Arcana special edition with two bonus cards is no longer available, but you can now purchase the Cosmic Faery Tarot, which includes the Cosmic Cat.

The Cosmic Cat

This card depicts my little familiar of 14 years, who now resides in the spirit world.

I adopted Mondy when she was five years old, and she died at the age of 19, a ripe old age for a cat, which makes me believe that she felt content living her life with me and my family.

After all this time with her, I still sometimes see her from the corner of my eye in the house or in the garden at her favourite spots (where she is also buried), and I know that she is still around.

cosmic faery tarot major arcana bonus cardsWhen this card comes up in a reading, it indicates that a loved one (person or pet), who has passed on, is still watching over you.

They may want you to know something important, so you can pull an extra card to see what message they want to convey.

The Cosmic Cat may also represent your spirit guide or guardian angel, so do pay attention to what they are trying to say to you.

The Happy Bunny (no longer available)

Whatever challenges or strife you are currently battling with, the Happy Bunny indicates that all will be well in the end.

Despite your worries, fears and insecurities, don’t forget to enjoy the little and simple things around you that can lift your spirits even in the darkest of times.

Life can be short, the future is unknown, so make the most of what you have in the present.

The Happy Bunny may also ask you to be vigilant. Protect yourself by not being too trusting and apply some healthy scepticism. You will be okay as long as you keep your eyes open to any harm that may just lurk around the corner.

I hope you enjoy using these two additional cards in your readings. Please do feel free to add your own interpretations to these cards.

For more information on the deck and to buy, please click here.

Warmest wishes,

Christiane

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