Soul-Pause

Checking to see what needed a voice for this coming week. I decided to do what I call a 'Pausing for Soul Spread' using my Wisdom of the Hidden Realm oracle by Colette Baron-Reid. It's a simple four card spread.

1 Where am in my journey?
2. What does Soul want to release
3. What does Soul want to bring in?
4. What step(s) can I take to embody Soul's desire right now?

I like to lay the cards out in a cross comme ca...

******** 1 ********
**** 2 ****** 3 ****
******** 4 ********

Wisdom of the Hidden Realm ~ Colette Baron-Reid

I note the three male cards and one female card As I've been feeling the need to bring in more male energy I follow this a little. Living with my two guys as well as male dog and male cockatiel who thinks I'm his mate I don't often feel the need for more male energy. And yet something about the dynamic, more manifest energy is calling me these days.

Plenty of women have a good relationship with their inner masculine but I'm feeling some areas that need attention there for myself. My own little pup has helped to address the gender balance in the house and she and I are often in cahoots against lads. We are both quite capable of holding our own lol.

The other thing I noticed in this spread was the wing imagery in the cards forming the horizontal part of the cross. They're opposites in their energy, one expansive, wide flying and with a big perspective, the other earth-bound, focused on the small picture and unable to look up. And the positions they've landed in give them each the quality of a reversal.

The Fire Prince ~ Wisdom of the Hidden Realms

The Fire Prince feels spot on in his position of where I am in my journey. I am filled with a certain amount of enthusiasm these days and as Samhain and the dark time of the year approaches I feel myself actively working with a container in which to explore again this aspect of the divine self.

The keywords for The Fire Prince are optimism if upright, aggression if reversed. He's all about moving forwards with initiative and confidence, positivity and openness. This is encouraging as we move into a time of year when life seems less about action and more about reflection. I can take his message to suggest that I bring my full awareness to the moment as I move into the shadow work so naturally associated with this time of year. As such I've got my various decks out and ready to work with, my altar graced by energies I want to call in and on, books to support the mental aspect of this journey and...optimism.

The Eagle King ~ Wisdom of the Hidden Realm Oracle

In position two, what needs to be released I drew The Eagle King. This is one of the most positive and powerful cards in the deck so it took me a bit of journeying with it to understand its message. I've had some powerful encounters with this magnificent bird on the inner realms and to have him show up here in what needs releasing was a real puzzle.

The keywords are the big picture, angelic help. When I read through the LWB the phrases that spoke to me were...The Eagle King soars high above the mountains and valleys of life and is able to see the big picture when you seem to be lost in the fog. He makes a formidable Ally as he takes your prayers up toward the sun and releases them to the Divine for the benefit of all beings.

It occurred to me suddenly that his energy and power are what need releasing within me, not holding on to it but letting it soar, the sense of opening it. Gosh, how do I do that? Since one of his keywords is angelic help I decided to consult the angels.

Angel Tarot ~ Doreen Virtue

Eight of Air. Hmm, and yet the positively positive LWB offers some sage advice. As I looked at the card I felt the autonomy of the first unicorn boldly leading the way for the others to follow. This kind of initiative and confidence mirrors the first card, The Fire Prince. The key to freedom and success at this time, which is to say the key to releasing the bodhisattva within is to see clearly and act with faith in one's process.

Interestingly I received this card, Eight of Air, last week in my daily draw so clearly there is something for me to look at here. Both cards are non-traditionial in their depictions but both point to the power of the skillful use of mental activity. And I like to think the universe is trying to show me the different ways this can be understood. At the same time this card mirrors The Prison Waif suggesting that my thoughts and beliefs need constant awareness for the kind of realities they can shape. Left to run the show and The Eagle King stays dormant, exposed with loving awareness and his potential is released.

The Prison Waif ~ Wisdom of the Hidden Realms

This card fell in the position of what to bring in. Looking at this one and the previous oracle card I was tempted to switch the positions which made so much more sense to my egoic mind. But my egoic mind is precisely what needs taming so with a nod and thank you for its suggestion I continued with what was offered.

The keywords for this card are self-sabotage and poverty consciousness. Strange things to bring in. How could it be helpful to bring in self-sabotaging thoughts and hidden beliefs that undermine my efforts at expansion? Looking at the card I see an opportunity to visit some of these quietly held views about myself. This kind of awareness and attention is a key, a way out of the prison of self doubt. The LWB states...This is a sign that you need to spend some time with yourself addressing those beliefs that counter your work of unfolding. Take inventory of your thoughts and spend a few minutes outdoors in gratitude. Let yourself out of jail and step into the sun. Well that's fairly straightforward and feels do-able bit by bit. The key to moving into the next card.

The Lady of the Gift ~ Wisdom the Hidden Realms

From poverty consciousness to abundance, this a lovely card to end the reading with, to seed my week with. The Lady of the Gift comes bearing messages of generosity and receiving if in the upright position. I like the way she's blowing her blessing winds upon The Eagle King, the prayers he carries riding on the currents reciprocity, of giving and receiving, taking and sending.

In the same way The Fire Prince is focusing his optimism and initiative on The Prison Waif offering him the gifts of confidence and positivity to move away from constraint and restriction. Everyone's talking to each other in this spread. I love it!

The focus for this card is tithing but tithing of the intangible, non-material kind. The Lady of the Gift is inviting me into the mind-state of non-duality, of receiving each person I meet as worthy of equal attention and service. I love this line...you can only keep what you're willing to give.

So the week ahead will require some soul-searching effort, a time of using the optimism I'm feeling to do some excavating in service to the inner divinity that is able to embrace all beings as one Body. On a practical level I shall write a few overdue letters of thanks to friends and acquaintances who inspire me as they unapologetically go about living their lives, fully, authentically and generously.