From There Come Maidens, Very Wise

Norns by Ludwig Burger {1882}

Today's Dark Goddess wisdom is the result of a slightly different focus question. After pulling cards for a week and posting the channeled response I was feeling less might be needed. There is so much info and advice 'out there' currently and frankly right now 'active silence' is the direction I'm drawn to. However I like to honor my commitments and I did commit to communing with this mandala of goddesses for the purposes of the collective. As such today's question focused around the need to continue sharing their wisdom, was it necessary, was it useful?

Dark Goddess Tarot ~ Ellen Lorenzi-Prince

Three of Earth ~ The Norns. They are the Norse Goddesses of Destiny, and their pithy message is, 'Small stitches weave the world. Do your part.' Doesn't get much clearer than that. These three mysterious female beings are goddesses of Fate for the Norse and Germanic peoples. Named Urd {What Once Was}, Verdandi {What Is Coming Into Being}, and Skuld {What Is Yet To Come} they shape destiny by carving runes into the trunk of the tree, or, in some sagas and poems, by weaving destiny like a web or tapestry.

They live in the roots of Yggdrasil, the World Tree and their task is to tend to the tree maintaining its health until 'world's end' by drawing water from the Well of Urth to nourish the roots. The health of the tree and the lives of humanity are intertwined for the tree contains the worlds that humanity experiences. A dragon lurks below and gnaws away at the roots.

According to Norse mythology The Norns shape what will happen through pouring the sacred water, etching runes into the trunk and by spinning and weaving. They circumscribe what can be done, putting boundaries in place, laying down primal laws, creating the warp and weft of livingness. Ellen Lorenzi-Prince suggests that when they appear in a reading the focus is on cooperative effort. She says, "Offering what you have and can do may be a blessing for another. Look for opportunities to share your skills." As I asked about how useful my collective card pulling and channeling was this advice feels very on point. It's not for me to determine the worth of an intuitive message or offering. That is really none of my business, my business is simply to get on with it by sharing the fruits of my attunements. She goes on to warn of saboteurs, one's own inner ones, and advises not to feed that dragon through conflict or doubt. Hum a lullaby, she says, keep them calm and distracted and keep doing what you do.

Yggdrasil ~ Artist Unknown

From the Poetic Edda,

There stands an ash called Yggdrasil,
A mighty tree showered in white hail.
From there come the dews that fall in the valleys.
It stands evergreen above Urd's Well.

From there come maidens, very wise,
Three from the lake that stands beneath the pole.
One is called Urd, another Verdandi,
Skuld the third; they carve into the tree
The lives and destinies of children.











The practical suggestion for this card is to "write down what you want to happen as if it has already occurred. Be wise with your wishes. Make one for you, one for another and one for the Tree. See how, in the story of you create of your own life, goodness can grow from what you do." Not a few moments earlier I had written down a wild dream I have of traveling to Bohemia with some of my tea and tea sets and Tarot decks. No itinerary other than connecting with the natural landscape and its people through tea ceremony and cards. This confluence of my wild intention and the card felt like a generous affirming, nourishment, watering something deep and as-yet-to be seen but conscious nonetheless.

Last night I finished Uprooted by Naomi Novak. The theme had to do with a dark woods and something called the Heart Tree. The serendipity is not lost on me. In this case however the Heart Tree had been poisoned by hatred causing an insidious corruption to take root and spread throughout. It is written in the style of a fairy tale and as I read over the information on the Norns and Yggdrasil today I found the parallels striking. Not so much the story lines, there are only a few stories really, which are constantly being borrowed and repurposed, but more the timing of my finishing of this book colliding with my direct question and drawing of this card this morning.

Perhaps we are the World Tree, the clear stream of consciousness running through the roots of our collective psyche and the need to purify it with continual attention to detail, to the heart, to silence and the messages it contains. To fight against doubt, against the divisive and poisonous fires of dualistic thinking. Something about interdependence, about the part we all play in each others' lives and the constant tending to and awareness of the grace of these roles, their sacredness, their vital life-giving energy.

Labyrinth of The World Tree by Yuji Himukai, 2014