An Unbodied Joy

Halloween Oracle

I drew from the Halloween Oracle this morning with the intention of drawing only one card but I pulled two stuck together and went with this pair with its suggestion of holding light aloft in the darkness. The Buddha speaks directly to this in his farewell speech to his disciples wherein he encourages them to "Be a lamp unto yourself. Work out your own salvation with diligence..." There are many translations of this famous teaching but I like this one for its pith.

Skull of Darkness ~ Blindspots ~ Halloween Oracle

A perfect card for this time of the year and the little verse that accompanies it resonates...

We may not wish to delve there
The shadows, the darkness,
the unknown.
Yet when we search we reveal
And our power thus has grown.

This season with its themes of shadow work and liminal realms is reflected naturally here. Says the LWB, "The beautiful and mysterious skull of darkness encourages us to look to the parts of ourselves that normally remain hidden or as unseen as possible." I love the description of the skull, the sacred container for the work, as being beautiful and mysterious and that it encourages us rather than forces. There is much to be learned from this gentle approach with its intimations of secrets gleaned.

Blind spots are literally that, mind states we continue with because we cannot see the conditioning behind them. The pattern is the symptom, the red flag that tells us blind spots are arising. This is where friends and wise counsel are so helpful. And it's also where the soft animal of the body can act as our familiar, a subtle guide. Am I holding my breath, is my jaw clenched, what are my hands doing? How soft is my hara? And my feet, are they in communication with the sacred drum of the earth? All these are lights that point away from the sleep of ignorance towards the birth of self-awareness. Like the candle on the crown center of the skull I'm reminded that these brief moments of illuminated consciousness, no matter how fleeting, are sacred.

Nightsong ~ Hidden Talents ~ Halloween Oracle

Looking at this card I'm reminded of Emily Dickinson's line, "Hope is the thing with feathers." That ruby-throated song that takes wing and blooms in the ink-dark night. A perfect guide for times when the shadows within loom.

'Should this beautiful but shy bird sing to you by appearing during your divination, know that you must unwrap the present of yourself.' This tells us much about the journey. The song needs coaxing and encouraging through the dark corridors of constriction towards the luminous gift of the self which awaits our receiving, our unwrapping, unveiling...'like an unbodied joy whose race is just begun' says Shelley in his beautiful Ode to a Skylark.

This pair feel like gentle guides on a day when that is needed. The possibility that blind spots are brought to light on the lyrical wings of our listening.