10th: New Moon in Virgo
23rd: Mabon, Autumnal Equinox
24th: Hlaefest
26th: Harvest Moon, Full Moon, Feast of the Guardian Spirits
26th-Oct. 2nd - Greater Eleusinian Mysteries
The Wheel of Fortune takes another turn this September. The key energetics build from widening capacity for pleasure, to the experience of pleasure itself. We reach a peak in delight, in ecstasy, before settling down with the cooling effects of the fall. This September is where we indulge in the last of summer’s fruit while it’s still in season, fingers turned purple from the act of plucking so many berries that the belly is filled with them. We desire every bite we take, and no more once we are satiated. Through this nourishing act, we appreciate the fullness of life.
Large-scale lunar activity kicks off on September 10th, with the New Moon in Virgo. This is a great time to reset or refresh daily habits and routines to match our sacred pace and the needs of our nervous system. We can forego the urgency of never-ending to-do lists in favor of maintaining sustainable microgoals and maximum goals. Small tasks we can easily finish each day to boost our sense of accomplishment and self esteem. On the 23rd comes Mabon, the fall equinox, which initiates us into a bountiful harvest season. We would do well to tune in with and express gratitude for nature’s abundance that surrounds us every moment. These energetics are amplified the next day with the onset of Hlaefest, a celebration that per Friends of the Forest centers on “grain, bread, community, and sustenance.”
Two days later, we experience the Harvest Moon, which triples our connection to the universal cornucopia of life. We bring it stale fruit (energies and connections that no longer align), in exchange for a plethora of fresh apples, squash and pumpkins that actively nourish us. The 26th also opens the portal to the Greater Eleusinian Mysteries until October 2nd. Per Friends of the Forest, they tap us into the death and rebirth cycles of Persephone and Demeter. Finally, on the same day we celebrate the Feast of the Guardian Spirits, to honor our personal guides.
This month we use the original spread “Eros,” inspired by love and pleasure as modes of healing I’ve been practicing lately. The spread concept begins with establishing safety, stoking excitement, building energy until climax, regulating after, and the increased sense of connection and intimacy found after.
Building Safety: Reverse King of Pentacles ~Get Lost in the Music by Ambar Lucid~
We establish safety by assuaging our fears and the tightness we feel around finances. We may have beliefs influenced by patriarchal paradigms that tell us wealth and abundance has to fit within the framework of capitalism, royals, inheritance, and old billionaires who disconnect from their humanity. It’s time to root our feet into the ground and come alive through the wealth of the body, our greatest asset through which we experience all things. How is our body? Is it rich with health? Do we have strong habits, routines, lifestyles centered in wellness? Do we see ourselves as the treasure? Our thoughts are the framework that inform us of its state, and transform whatever we desire into gold.
Excitement: Reverse Moon ~This Strange Effect by The Shacks (cover)~
Excitement happens when we flee civilized constructs to dance under the moon, wild and feral. We follow our heart, our desire into the great unknown darkness and give into our lunacy. The parts we don’t feel are allowed because they’re taboo and would be disapproved of by the rigid King of Pentacles. Lunacy offers a richness and freedom that the city towers cannot. Following our wild impulse may seem nonsensical to others, but it’s the vehicle of our fulfillment, our turn on, our satisfaction with life. It’s risky, much like the movie scenario where characters run into a fork in the road and can choose either the safe path or the one leading into the treacherous forest. We might run into “rodents of unusual size” or quicksand like Princess Bride, but it lets us hold our heart’s desire near. Or like Edward in Big Fish, it might lead us to the coveted beautiful fish. Either way, we know the risk is worth the reward, that wonders await us there. If we dare to enter our inner wild woods, thick with thorns and brambles, we emerge from the adventure more powerful than we began.
Rising: Ten of Wands ~Sunny Came Home by Shawn Colvin~
We’ve built a tight narrative, an entire tapestry around what is possible for us, how far our ambitions can go which keeps us limited in reach. We tell ourselves how far we can advance towards our purpose, how close we can reach our heart’s desire before we pull back. But what might happen if we let go of these preconceived notions? How high could we fly? We underestimate our capacity, just how much we’re doing, the weight of our many staffs. How powerful might our energy be if, instead of diving it ten ways, we distilled it to up to three? We have immense capacity and desire that could light up a whole city. This is the power of our weaving, the power of what we can carry. We’ve been training ourselves by carrying an assortment of heavy burdens. This isn’t a sign of how weak or “behind” we are, but a testament to just how strong we’ve become. When we let go, we become ten times lighter. We take into the air and run for miles and miles. We have stamina like we wouldn’t believe, and might be amazed to find all that we can do.
Climax: Ace of Pentacles ~Keep it Comin’ Love by KC and the Sunshine Band~
Sensation and pleasure are experienced through the body. It’s where we feel our “hell yes.” From a divine feminine perspective, desire curls around and around until it ripples through us, in long and sustainable fashion (the great culmination and release is in the realm of wands). This is life’s true affluence, the real wealth we seek. To be so radically aligned with ourselves that we enter union with our heart’s desire and embody it in its truest form. It accepts and desires us as much as we desire it. It wants to commune with us, be known through us. It is the cosmic egg that bursts forth from our being, the germinated seed. An entire world can be born through us, that people will flock around to admire and adore. But first, we experience the ecstasy of its possibility, known and conceived to us alone, possible only through us and because of us. We are the fertile ground through which it is known, pure and potent magic. The force of loving ourselves so firmly that we hold ourselves in glory. A beauteous and numinous imperfect being seen up close, loved and accepted in our purest expression.
Falling: Three of Wands ~Electric Dream by Bien~
How light and unburdened are we when we reduce the load to three wands. Three principal passions. We aren’t used to this liberated version of ourselves, who has the spaciousness and the capacity to really try things. To see what happens when we are messy, play, risk failure, explore expression fully. We rebuild our foundations and make them really strong, instead of losing ourselves in the many complexities and old conflicting stories we held before. Who are we really? What is our true capacity, and what can we become if we give ourselves permission to express fully and authentically? Now that we’ve held ourselves in wildness and imperfection, what can we grow and create from this space? What things are we willing to spark, once we are no longer afraid to be seen in all our shadow and form, in our fiery transformation? Everything that isn’t us burned away, until we are a glowing ore, the one we have always been and wanted to be. Aflame, alight with ardent desire.
Increased Intimacy and Connection: Three of Swords ~You Gotta Be by Des’ree~
By the end of September, we can meet our wounded self with love and compassion. Increasing our capacity for pleasure means the same for pain. We are no longer afraid to meet this part of ourselves, because we’ve created safety in our body, used our cunning to make it through the dark first, released our burdens, embodied ourselves in our truest expression, and came alive with play. This gives us the strength and the courage to unify with the hurt self, the one that was frozen at the beginning of the year because it knows the pain of rejection that can come from embodying who we truly are, ostracized even by ourselves. But we’ve since accepted ourselves, developing a greater intimacy with the self and personal security. This loosens the soil that holds the swords in place that were there to protect us. If we dare to lift them, we can see what springs forth from the ground.
~Angel Alignment
More than a prediction or a forecast, I’ve come to believe tarot is a tool that can help bring us into alignment with our desires. I have more I want to share in a future post, but for now I’m sharing the new name of my spiritual business!
~ Zoe