Every morning as part of my daily practice, I shuffle tarot and animal oracle cards, then choose one of each, sight unseen. I also shake my bag of runestones, reach in, and retrieve one rune. It's fun, and too the cards offer a peek around a corner of time/space; they act as beacons for the day ahead.
That said, if I see a card or a rune I don't like, I'm always happy to choose another. After all, as my teacher said long ago, the cards are pieces of cardboard. If the image is helpful, great. If it isn't helpful, place the piece of cardboard back in the deck.
Is that cheating? Well ...
Perhaps, by choosing another card, I am shifting the energies at hand from discouraging to encouraging. Or maybe I'm cheating, who knows?
One of the runes I always throw back into the mix is Hagalaz. Yeah. When I see that rune, I can't throw it back soon enough. It is not a gentle portent, oh no. Hagalaz is the hailstone, literally. It represents a dynamic energy that breaks up the old to make way for the new. I tend to throw it back every time because I've seen enough drama, I've worked my way through so many transformations in this lifetime. I'm leaning into peaceful and content as a lifestyle from now on, or so I would like to. Enough is enough, yes? I say yes.
And yet, I pull Hagalaz often, you wouldn't believe how often, especially recently. I tell myself that the frequency with which I've grabbed Hagalaz lately reflects the current situation in the world: all of us are engaged in the process of personal and collective re-invention. I've thought of other excuses for the frequent appearance of Hagalaz as well.
I'm only mentioning it today because last night, on my way home from dinner with dear friends, the sky opened unexpectedly. Lightning flashed, thunder boomed, rain poured down and ... yeah ... just two blocks from my house, I was pelted with hail. It was gentle hail, only pea-sized, but c'mon. How many times must Hagalaz tap me on the shoulder?
Since I could not throw these hailstones back into the sky, I stopped, allowed myself to be drenched and pelted, and prayed, right then and there. What is it in my life that needs to be broken so I can start fresh? Is it a state of mind? Or something more manifest? A belief system? What? I'm going to take this seriously now, no more cheating, no more pushing Hagalaz away.
Exactly at the moment I typed that last sentence, someone outside the chateau started breaking up something (street? sidewalk?) with a jack hammer. You can not make this stuff up. OK I'm listening, I really am. My eyes are open. What needs to give? What?
15 comments:
change is pounding you on the head and I seem stuck in a rut.
You don't seem stuck to me, Ellen, but if I could send a big ole thunderstorm with LOTS of rain and maybe a hailstone or two in your direction, I would do so, happily!
reya thanks for this. for ever and ever i've had rules around tarot and runes posted on my mind's bulletin board. i know who put them there and i know why. they meant no wrong. it's just what they knew. fear instead of respect. anyhow, obviously i've need some sort of approval or kick in the ass from someone whose approaches i respect. here it is steven!!! thanks reya. really thanks. change can be good. often unexpected. somehow always right on time. steven
I guess that I'm wondering that maybe you should be looking at change as positive more than something to avoid. because obviously it wants your attention.
It's like our friend Rob says, the universe always gives us exactly what we need exactly when we need it. I guess a corollary would be that the universe always takes away exactly what we need exactly when we need it to be gone.
Ah, though, when we're comfortable how we like things just as they are.
Good point about trying to see this as a positive omen. When anything breaks, I find it rather traumatic, even if that thing is of no use or worth to me any longer.
Yes Dan, I love me some comfort, oh yeah!!
Steven, thank YOU
Oh, Reya, there is such wisdom in this post and in the comments!
If you open yourself to the possibility of dramatic change, it could mean a great crashing gift of goodness falling from heaven for you. Why not, as One Woman suggests, you stay open to positive changes coming your way?
Carry your umbrella for the next few days, too. :-/
Holy cow, yeah. Why the hell not???
I'm not whining. I'm just sayin ...
I've see So Much Dramatic Change in my life's unfolding. When do I get to settle down? Seriously. Others settle down, yes? Why not me?
:)
Aquarius corresponds to the rune Hagalaz so maybe you and I have a predisposition towards drawing it! Wonder what working with a jackhammer all day does to your etheric field Reya! These guys don't really look the types that would lose any sleep over it - disintegrate a hailstone just by looking at it!
Good to know Life provides all types to instigate change,things are not necessarily set in concrete, and clues may come from the most unexpected sources!
when i read this the beatle's song "Let It Be" sprang to mind...just let it be...have a listen and you'll know. sending love as always xxx j
Last night on our German TV they showed the film Evan Almighty, about a congressman in Washington DC who was told by God (Morgan Freeman, a wonderful God) to build an arch. Evan tried to hide (like probably Noah had, too) and not listen, but then he finally did it - and saved the whole neighborhood when the dam broke! It was a funny film, but somehow with a meaning I guess. We should listen.
This account put me in mind of Bruce Almighty. I'll be interested in knowing what you change!
Thanks to all for these great, insightful comments.
Of course Hagalaz is associated with Aquarius... DUH!!
I've seen Evan Almighty. What a sweet movie.
I'm thinking about the truth that hailstones melt. Good to keep in mind!
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