tarot – Page 7 – Sage Sips / TaoCraft Tarot

Papa Hierophant

Sage Sips is coffee for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee.

Or comfy, cool and inside with the air conditioning. Either way, Distance tarot fits any schedule, even a hectic summer one. Sage sips iced coffee on occasion. Enjoy this sip from 2019. Feel free to browse the archives with the search bar to the right or in the menu on mobile.

Some cards come more naturally than others.

Tarot readers are people too, and have our emotional triggers. Some cards push our buttons more than others. Giving a reading touches our hearts and minds as much as getting a reading. The Hierophant card is a challenge for me when it is drawn in full pointy hat christian-heavy regalia. Just not my wavelength. Fairly or not, my life experience and point of view made the RWS Pope look wrapped in rules and judgement. Until – thank you social media – I read a framework for the card that made sense out of it. At the same time I found decks with artwork that fit the new conceptual fit. In short order, the dogmatic, pedantic pope-ish character morphed into a Grandpa.

Think stories by a campfire. Think shamen. Think wise elder. Think teacher. Think Yoda.

Whichever deck we use, when the Hierophant comes into a reading for a client, intuitively, it seems to take one of those two tracks, whichever best suits the client’s needs I assume. It either vibes with rules or traditions.

On one hand, it seems to have to do with social conformity, playing by the rules. It is compliance with a Papal Edict. Or, it could have to do with nonconformity, breaking social convention, rejecting other people’s expectations. It seems like the sense of it doesn’t follow whether the card is reversed or not. It seems more triggered by the clients nature. If the client is a natural conformist, then it seems to nudge toward being their own person, pushes them a bit toward freer thinking. If, on the other hand, the client is naturally a freethinker, or a rule-bender, then it may be a nudge to “play by the rules” a little more in some respect.

Now that the ‘keeper and teacher of traditions’ notion has crossed my path, it comes through at times even if I happen to be using the RWS deck. It seems to come through with that energy at times when the client is feeling a little uprooted, or disconnected, emotionally or spiritually orphaned somehow. When this is the energy, the Hierophant is a call to join the circle, learn of the past, learn of roots and connections. Just as we are each our own best minister or pope, we are at times our own hierophant, finding and adopting our own spiritual tradition on a path apart from our past or upbringing. Either way, it is about learning a new pattern.

It is a pattern of twos, of balance, in understanding the Hierophant. Comply with rules or find your own path. Embrace or rediscover your tribe and deep traditions or celebrate your initiation into a tribe of one, of you. Either way, the Hierophant is teaching us our path and spiritual tradition.

Action Eases Anxiety: Smooth Sailing

Sage Sips is Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee

Sage Sips on TaoCraftTarot.com and Substack is always free for you to read. Please visit the Ko-fi page where your private readings, memberships and virtual coffees all support the blog. Thank you!

In this simple layout is almost like a sentence: what it is and what it does – more accurately what you can DO with the collective energies around us all today. Actions eases worries, in this case worries about relationships or connections with people.

The ship hints at a time of prosperity & progress. The emphasis is on progress, on forward movement. The ship implies smooth sailing, much like with the smooth waters / go with the flow collective energy I’ve seen lately with the Six of Swords in collective and private readings alike.

The bouquet hints at affection and, more importantly, showing it. Not is not the time to bottle up feelings. If you feel kindness, compassion, love, amusement, or any good thing – now is the time to show it. Show it in no uncertain terms.

If you feel less pleasant things, show that too. Yes, by all means, communicate those feeling too, but the key here is to show it with emotional maturity and kindness. The Bouquet card with its pretty flowers reminds us of those wise old adages: “You catch more flies with sugar than with vinegar.” and “A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down.”

Again the phrase “emotional maturity” comes to mind. Pitch kindness, not a fit. A little calmness and reason will go a long way for you in this energy environment.

The outer world may be chaos, but it is a good time to show love and kindness. If it is returned, soak it in. Even when it is unrequited, you can feel good about loving in the first place. That moment, that feeling existed and added to the good in the world and still does.

When you love, you win.

We’re gonna need a bigger boat

Sage Sips is Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee

“Going with the flow” sounds relaxing, doesn’t it?. More often than not, the six of swords carries that kind of energy. Most of the time it talks about healing, progress, transition and placid waters ahead.

It isn’t always that way.

A roller coaster is going with the flow of gravity. A kayak expert in class V rapids is going with the flow too.

The more insane the spins, the stronger the current, the flowing it takes. Going with the flow can be quite a ride sometimes. Going with the flow can seem like crazy advice when life is at its most turbulent.

But on the other hand, can you imagine fighting a current like that?

Sometimes, it is OK to seek out a little comfort, sameness and nostalgia. It can be the bigger boat you need to flow with the fast waters of stressful times.

Which is why I’m going back to my emotional support cup of coffee. See you at the next sip!

Summer hours update:

I’ve been trying to give myself a little patience and grace as TaoCraft Tarot transitions from “freelance business” status to “it’s a hobby”. As it stands now, I don’t do in-person or other live readings. I still do private readings by email (let’s face it – those are my best readings anyway)

What all of that means is that the posting schedule will be more erratic than ever.

BUT

Private readings by email never needed a schedule in the first place. Order anytime. The delivery window is 48 hours but it’s worth it to get the equivalent of a one hour Tarot reading for about half of what most one hour live sessions would cost.

The proceeds from private email readings, ko-fi memberships, and ko-fi virtual coffees all go toward creating and webhosting Sage Sips as an inspiration and lifestyle Tarot blog.

Action Eases Anxiety: Above

Sage Sips is Tarot in the time it takes to sip your coffee (or whatever you are drinking this time of day)

Please support this free, no-paywall tarot blog through private readings and memberships on ko-fi.

What it is: Five of Swords.

The five of swords is about conflict, but not the big conflicts that is so in the news and so stressful to so many of us. This isn’t about a moral line in the sand. This is about selfishness, ego, squabbles with a big dose of pettiness. Be clear about what is important and what is petty noise.

What to do: Emperor

My first thought when I saw the Emperor was “look at the side eye on that guy.” The Emperor is associated with responsibility, reliability, confidence in your own power and competent leadership. Do you, engage with the important things, but remember you are not other people’s drama. Disengage from useless drama and nonsense. Rise above. Rule your own inner kingdom, protect your own inner peace, let the immature ones figure it out for themselves. Save your strength for when it really matters.

You can be yourself with me. Happy Pride!

Weekend Oracle: Keep Clearing

Sage Sips is tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee

Thanks for watching! Your likes, follows, subscriptions, shares and comments are always appreciated. Sage Sips is always free to read but needs your support. Proceeds from private readings, memberships, and virtual coffees all go toward creating and hosting the blog, newsletter, YouTube channel and free readings on the socials.

This is a direct continuation of the energy we saw in the Action Eases Anxiety: Clear Away post from Wednesday

“Keep cutting away the unnecessary to find (and protect) the blessings beneath” Precision and minimalism are your allies. It is a time for scalpels, not sledgehammers.” Intuitively comes through here.

The key point of this card, as I understand it, is that personal growth is a double edged sword. The reversal of the card feels significant here, pointing toward shadow work in particular. It is painful to face the darker side of ourselves, but leads to peace and emotional health in the long run.

Shadow work is the emotional equivalent of a blade that cuts through our defenses causing painful feelings – but opening the way to calmer, more peaceful, more fulfilling emotions as well.

“We cannot be more sensitive to pleasure without being more sensitive to pain.”
Alan Watts

This is the same energy seen in the Heart and the Crane Lenormand cards from our previous reading. Cut away the excess. Clear away the unneeded. Love exists, whole and complete but obscured, just like the beauty within Michelangeo’s sculpture:

“The sculpture is already complete within the marble block, before I start my work. It is already there, I just have to chisel away the superfluous material.”
Michelangelo

In this orientation, the sword on the Blessings oracle card resembles the Ace of Swords, which is associated with clarity and truth among other things. The Lenormand reading, the Oracle reading and the hinted-at RWS tarot card all point toward the same basic idea: simplify, clarify, do the hard personal growth work to uncover the obscured now and it will reveal great benefit in the end.

You can be yourself with me. Happy pride month!

Deck: Alleyway Oracle of Secrets by Seven Dane Asmund used with permission from Publishing Goblin LLC

Sage’s Sip: Essence of Balance

Sage Sips is Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee

The two of pentacles is the classic card of “balance.” Of course this echoes the classic Taoist idea of “balance” of opposites, or the harmony of opposites. It takes two to tango as the saying goes, so in a broad, general way, it takes at least two things to strike a balance.

Often that balance is between static and dynamic, stillness and motion.

Balance is an important concept. It has both a major and a minor arcana card to carry its message. Temperance talks about balance from a grand, life-lesson point of view.

The two of pentacles talks about balance from a practical, down-to-earth, an action-to-take-now point of view.

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.“
Albert Einstein

The two of pentacles is particularly about balance in motion. Life is movement. Life is change. To stay in relative balance – to stay functional, really – we are in a state of constant adaptation.

My favorite example is a unicycle rider who is always making constant small adjustments to stay in balance. If they aren’t moving full-on forward, they move little bits forward and backward in one small spot to stay upright.

Or think of a wrestler or a judo match. Planting your feet and staying still might seem strong and immovable, but staying rigid and not moving makes you susceptible to being tipped over if you are pushed. But if you take a step with the push – roll with the punches if you will – then you are less likely to fall flat on the mat.

One foot up, one foot down. Movement, or at least the ability to adapt and move, gives you greater balance overall and can protect you from a fall – literally and figuratively.

Tune in tomorrow for “Weekend Oracle” with the Alleyway Oracle of Secrets deck. Proceeds from your private readings, memberships and virtual coffees all support this free, no-paywall blog and the free newsletter on Substack.

See you at the next sip!

Action Eases Anxiety: Clear Away

Sage Sips is Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee

Please support this always free to read blog: All proceeds from your private readings, memberships, and virtual coffees go toward the costs of creating and web hosting Sage Sips.

It’s an ancient idea. Buddhist teaching long ago realized that taking action – or even making a decision or making a plan of action – can ease worry and anxiety. Practice and role play are a crucial part of emergency training.

Action eases anxiety, even in tarot. Knowing your energy environment and thinking about a good next step can go a long way to easing turbulent emotions.

Today’s Energy

THE HEART: Hope and love exist. It is near, but tangled in the maze and weeds of daily living. Don’t lose the forest in the trees as the saying goes. Don’t lose the love in the background noise, either.

Next Step

THE CRANE: Something new must deliberately be created. Clear away the mindless, the outdated, the harmful, that which has lost usefulness and the love and hope surrounding you will become clear. It is like Michelangelo’s sculpting method:

“The sculpture is already complete within the marble block, before I start my work. It is already there, I just have to chisel away the superfluous material.”
― Michelangelo

The love and hope energy is already there.

Clear away the extra and unneeded, and love will emerge.

Week Ahead Tarot: Personal Perspective

Sage Sips is tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee

Pause the video. Think of a question, topic or simply the week ahead of you. Choose the card that feels right or that you feel most drawn to. Even if you see the card first – even if you see the card AND read the interpretations before choosing your card, the choice is still valid. You can do all of that and still choose both. Or neither.

Your inner wisdom, your own good intuition still leads the choice. The whole point is that there IS a choice – and it is all yours. You’ll know the right guidance for you when you see it.

THE FOOL: Perspective is everything. A fresh look is a fresh start. Know all the angles before committing to an action or an opinion.

QUEEN OF WANDS: You are the ruler of your inner kingdom. Queen’s lead through example and nurturing. Keep yourself strong in order to be of greatest help to others.

Thanks for reading! All likes, subs, follows, and shares are always appreciated!

Weekend Oracle: One Touch

Sage Sips is Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip your coffee

“One touch of nature makes the whole world kin”
William Shakespeare

Yes, by all means, go touch grass this weekend. Or any time.

I forget the source, but somebody somewhere did a small study of the effects of looking at photos of natural settings on real time blood pressure. Just looking at nature in a photo will bring blood pressure down.

Imagine what a small barefoot walk in the grass can do.

I don’t know if anyone has gone full science on it, or followed up the long term effects of engaging with nature on one level or another, even a photographic one.

It seems to me that one touch of nature is a good thing for humans, both psychologically and physiologically. We are wired that way.

It also seems to me that human nature is part of the nature that Shakespeare mentions, even though I doubt he meant it that way as he lived and wrote centuries before the advent of modern psychology. The Taoists were down with the whole idea centuries before Shakespeare.

Feeling connected is a basic human need, for everyone everywhere, throughout time. This weekend touch grass. If not the literally, touch something that is part of your own nature to enjoy. Enjoy some small part of the environment you are in, including urban ones. When you enjoy any little anything, you are connected to not only that thing, but all of your fellow humans that enjoy that thing too.

An ice cream cone, a barefoot walk in the backyard, a bike ride, jog in the park, a little phone scroll, a cup of coffee and a good book, play your favorite song just a little bit louder than usual; whatever it is in your nature to enjoy, touch that. As long as it harms no one, do what you will to paraphrase a saying. Touch your happiness, and you can connect with the energy of all the others who have found a similar joy.

Private readings by email are open. No appointment needed. Most readings to you within 24 hours.

Find Your Tribe

Sage Sips is Tarot in the time it takes to sip your coffee.

Sage Sips here and on Substack is always free to read with no paywalls. It’s a labor of love and always will be, but it relies on your private readings and memberships on ko-fi to help support the costs of creating & web hosting. Members on ko-fi get free private email readings, exclusive content on the ko-fi blog and rando special offers. Please click HERE to learn more or purchase your own private email reading (all virtual coffees are gratefully accepted, too)

Today’s energy: Ten of Swords

Failures, obstacles, and betrayals take time to heal even as life demands that healing. The more painful the experience, the stronger the message that this is not the path for you.

You are not your failures, unless you accept them as such. Take them as a message and an opportunity to learn or to change direction then suddenly painful setbacks are just signposts along your way.

Next Step: Nine of Cups

This is a card of community and celebration. Found family heals. Found community supports. Your true tribe is a place of love and acceptance wherever and whoever they may be.

Your true tribe is the people and places that energize you, uplift you, comfort you, and make you feel most deeply at home. Only you can who your tribe is. No one can tell you who your tribe should be.

No appointment is needed…order your private readings anytime, 24/7 on ko-fi. Most delivered within 24 hours.