Friday 28 February 2014

Reset Your Intentions This New Moon To Deal With Another Retrograde

New Moon In Pisces

1 March 2014.  The new moon enters Pisces to allow you to re-calibrate your thoughts, dreams and ideas so that you may set new intentions or chart new directions to your goals.  This new moon forces you to step back, do some quiet soul-searching and reconnect with your spiritual self.   This is much needed particularly if you had come off a difficult period during the Mercury Retrograde in the last few weeks.  As Pisces is governed by the emotional tide of the Water element, use this period of meditative silence and introspection to shore up spiritual and emotional energy needed to turn your creative ideas and inspirations into viable action plans that can help you manage challenges in the horizon.  

Mars Goes Retrograde

Yes challenges would not leave you just yet in spite of Mercury going direct now.  This is because Mars will be stationing in retrograde, a phenomena  that happens every two years or so.   Mars with its fiery and aggressive energy promises to drag the challenges on for you by bringing out these same fiery emotions from within you.  Be prepared to get particularly piss off with the most insignificant things, snap at your unsuspecting partner, or start a row with colleagues and bosses who may have differing opinions from you.   That is why you will need to make a conscious effort during this new moon in Pisces to go sit under a Bodhi tree and make friends with your inner self.  Trust me, it will do you a lot of good, and I think it might also prevent you from impulsively saying or doing anything stupid.

"Peace of mind happens to a man only after he has developed deep insight, only after he starts seeing the things in the right perspective." ~ Sama Veda

Day 2 In Numerology

Today is numerologically governed by 2 and thank goodness it is a Saturday!  Finally with the weekend here,  just stay focused on spending quality time with the family and do not forget about taking care of yourself.  With the new moon in Pisces, I would not be surprised  if you had initially let your imagination run wild with thoughts on 1001 ways to spend your weekend.  However, just make sure that the rest of the family concur with your weekend ideas.   To ensure harmony at home today, it is better to just be present and be open to the ideas of the rest of your family members instead of attempting to take the lead and assume that everyone would go along with your weekend plans.  It would be best that with Mars going into retrograde, do try not to create any tension amongst the family members by being stubborn and inflexible.   

This new moon is somewhat special  because it gives you plenty of reasons now to set aside some "Me" time in your diary this weekend.  There is no better time to spend time on your own and listen to what your inner self has to say to help prepare you for the challenges of the week ahead.

"Meditation is the tongue of the soul and the language of our spirit." ~Jeremy Taylor


About The Writer:

The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and a tarot card reader by accident. She was awarded a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and is also a certified numerologist.  She is currently running a Tarot consultancy based in Singapore called Sun Goddess Tarot,  which provides confidential intuitive readings combining the metaphysical disciplines of Tarot, Numerology and Astrology via face to face and emails as well as readings at corporate and private events and workshops.  A member of the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), she is also a reader for the Free Tarot Network and mentors Tarot protégés on behalf of the American Tarot Association

Website: www.sungoddesstarot.com
Email:  Joanna@sungoddesstarot.com
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot
Twitter: www.twitter.com/SunGoddessTarot
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Tuesday 11 February 2014

Cosmic Sparks On Valentine's Day

14 February 2014 

Blessed Full Moon and a Happy Valentine’s Day to all of you!  For those who had been celebrating the Lunar New Year of the Horse in the last 2 weeks, today marks the 15th and final day of the Lunar New Year celebrations.  When I was very young, Mum used to tell me that the 15th day of the Lunar New Year was the Chinese version of Valentine’s Day. Young Chinese maidens looking for a soulmate would throw tangerines down the river in the hope of seeing the reflection of their future husbands in the water.   I did that when I was a young and slightly cherubic teenager looking for a boyfriend.  The cop on his bicycle nearby stopped me in my tracks and warned me that he would give me a ticket for littering if I did not get on my way.  So I never got to see who my future husband was then….hmmm…if only I was prepared for who he is now. (Just kidding, honey!)


Full Moon In Leo

Now, back to the topic at hand.  Astrologically, the Full Moon sits in Leo today, while the Sun sits in Aquarius.  Dynamic energy all around!   With the Full Moon in Leo, you are encouraged to embrace life with energy and optimism.  Pursue that person who has a special place in your heart, with enthusiasm and passion.  If you are single, go ahead and chat up that girl who lives across the street whom you had been eyeing, or ask that good looking bloke in the office out for a drink.  Yes it is a Friday!, Why not make it an early after-work drink!.  If you are in a relationship, let your sense of spontaneity take you on an adventurous ride full of rich experiences with your other half.  Do something different, Go somewhere different.  Woo her differently and surprise her.

"Till I loved, I never lived enough." ~ Emily Dickinson 


Sun In Aquarius

With the Sun in Aquarius, you might be working on plans to woo and surprise her, or write and re-write your chat-up lines.  However, when it comes to really doing it, you might spend more time scrambling for that piece of paper in your sweaty palms, or rehearsing your lines in the closet than actually doing it!   You might be thinking on one hand, you would love to sweep her up to give her the biggest kiss ever, but that little nagging thing in your head is stopping you just in case she mistook your gesture for you asking for her hand in marriage!

"Thoughts are like an open ocean.  They can either move you forward within its waves, or sink you under deep into its abyss." ~ Anthony Liccione
  

Mercury Retrograde

To make matters worse, when you have finally summoned your courage to whisper that sweet nothing in her ear, you might address her in the name of your ex-girlfriend.  When you send her that beautiful bouquet of red roses, there might be a possibility that the delivery man might make a mistake with her home address.  When you hold her hands and tell her “Darling, would you like to have a vegetarian dinner tonight?”  She might burst into tears thinking that you are hinting that she is fat.

And why is that so?  It is because we are still in the period of Mercury Retrograde!

"You never know, when a moment and a few sincere words can have an impact on life." ~ Zig Ziglar
  

Day 5 in Numerology

Numerologically, today is governed by 5.  Being overly partial to numerology, here is my advice.  The vibrational energy of day 5 is encouraging you to just go with the flow. No one can fault you for your spontaneity.  Even a home-prepared picnic at the park while watching kids fly their kites in the evening, can be so romantic.   If the relationship is newish, take on challenges with courage.  Treat each circumstance as an opportunity presented by the Universe.  Life and Love equally will always have risks.  Instead of focusing on the risks, think of these as an adventurous journey of growth.

 “All growth is a leap in the dark, a spontaneous, unpremeditated act without benefit of experience.” ~ Henry Miller


Valentine’s Day Tarot Spread

I have covered Astrology, Numerology and now I think I will inject a bit of Tarot into this blog post – my favorite subject.  It is Valentine’s Day so here is my Valentine’s Day Tarot Spread that I would like to share.

1)  Where do we want to be with this relationship?
2) What barriers are there to our current relationship?
3)  How can I remove these barriers and work towards improving our relationship?

Leave a comment to tell me your love stories.  If you are trying out this spread, let me know what you had gleaned from it.  Most importantly, always remember this...

"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength.  Loving someone deeply gives you courage." ~ Lao Tzu



About The Writer:

The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and a tarot card reader by accident. She was awarded a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and is also a certified numerologist.  She is currently running a Tarot consultancy based in Singapore called Sun Goddess Tarot,  which provides confidential intuitive readings combining the metaphysical disciplines of Tarot, Numerology and Astrology via face to face and emails as well as readings at corporate and private events and workshops.  A member of the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), she is also a reader for the Free Tarot Network and mentors Tarot protégés on behalf of the American Tarot Association


Website: www.sungoddesstarot.com
Email:  Joanna@sungoddesstarot.com
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot
Twitter: www.twitter.com/SunGoddessTarot
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2 of Chalices from the Tarot of The Pagan Cats deck by Lola Airaghi and  Magdelina Messina

Sunday 9 February 2014

I Am Not Your Tarot Reader On Tap


 

Before I continue with this blog post, I just wanted to apologize if I came across sounding rude to those who had been supporting my work at Sun Goddess Tarot.  However, to protect my clients and to help me provide a better service to those who came to me for Tarot readings because of genuine issues that would have had major implications on their lives, careers and families, I thought I had to share my thoughts on an issue that had been affecting me recently – querants who assumed that I was their Tarot reader on tap.

 

Self Care

 

 

As a Tarot reader, it is very important that we regularly take necessary steps to protect ourselves from negative energy as well as from spiritual, mental, physical and emotional exhaustion due to the amount of readings we do every day.

 

Since turning professional with my Tarot cards, I had to remind myself about self care every now and then so that I can render better advice to my clients.  When my father got struck with a stroke, I realized that I needed time not only to take care of myself, but also time for the family.

 

Volunteering As A Free Reader

 

Having had my skills and experience honed by the numerous readings that I did for free for family, friends, and querants when I was a Tarot rookie, I had not forgotten my promise to give back to the community.  So I volunteered as a free reader with Biddy Tarot and the Free Tarot Network and have been doing a limited amount of free readings a week so that I can balance my time and effort between free readings, paid readings for my clients, time for my family and of course, time for myself.

 

I Am Not A Tarot Reader On Tap

 

The balance of time and energy I had been maintaining between my volunteer work and my work as a professional Tarot reader was very important for me.  However, sometimes, querants who had contacted me in the past through Biddy Tarot and the Free Tarot Network would contact me directly to ask for a free reading. 

 

I had to put a stop to this because it was unfair to querants who had been waiting in the queue to have their Tarot cards read for free when they had completed a request form online via the respective websites.  It seemed even more unfair to my clients who had paid me good money to read their Tarot cards.

 

Without sounding rude and ungrateful for your trust in my intuitive skills, I would like to say “STOP! I am not your Tarot reader on tap.”  I would be doing ALL my querants a disservice if I had continued to entertain requests for free Tarot readings from querants who contacted me directly.

A single Tarot reading session always takes up a lot of time and energy.  It is spiritually, emotionally, physically and mentally draining.  I need a lot of time in between these sessions to meditate and ground myself.  Moreover, my paying clients are not just paying clients who engage me for a one-time consultation.  Over the years, they have become good friends whom I had spent a lot of time keeping in touch with and nurturing a relationship.  So my Tarot reading sessions do go beyond that hour with my client, hence more time and energy is put into these paid readings. 

 

With very limited time in my hands, I would not want to do you a disservice by agreeing to read your Tarot cards for free, only to end up providing you with a reading that is below average in quality.  I have too much of respect for Tarot to do that.

 

Where To Get Your Tarot Cards Read For Free

 

So, please do me a favour.  I have been juggling multiple commitments from conducting Tarot and Numerology lessons, to reading for clients, to volunteering as a free reader , to doing readings at events and charity fund-raisers' to taking care of my family.  From time to time, I might feel as if light had been zapped out of me.  I know it is just exhaustion hence self care is essential.   While I do thank you for your trust in me, my advice to you is that if you would like to get your Tarot cards read for free, please complete the online request form like everyone else at www.biddytarot.com,   www.freetarot.us or www.tabi.org.uk

 

There are wonderful teams of highly skilled and experienced Tarot readers within these platforms waiting to read for you with 100% passion and effort.  Should your request get allocated to me by these online systems, I would be most happy to put in that same 100% passion and energy into your Tarot reading the way my fellow readers would.

 

 

About The Writer:


The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and a tarot card reader by accident. She was awarded a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and is also a certified numerologist.  She is currently running a Tarot consultancy based in Singapore called Sun Goddess Tarot,  which provides confidential intuitive readings combining the metaphysical disciplines of Tarot, Numerology and Astrology via face to face and emails as well as readings at corporate and private events and workshops.  A member of the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), she is also a reader for the Free Tarot Network and mentors Tarot protégés on behalf of the American Tarot Association

 

Website: www.sungoddesstarot.com

Email:  Joanna@sungoddesstarot.com

Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot

Twitter: www.twitter.com/SunGoddessTarot

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Friday 7 February 2014

Screw Mercury Retrograde


Accck! Mercury Retrograde

 

Last week, I wrote a blog post about my thoughts on the Lunar New Year of the Horse and the Super New Moon.  Within that post, I mentioned that the Mercury Retrograde was at our doorstep as well.

 

So Mercury Retrograde came flying through my window and slapped me in the face this week, with a couple of squabbles at the office with PMS-stricken colleagues, a couple of barky dogs, an irate housekeeper that mistook an innocent instruction for an accusation that she was lazy and a fight with my son.  Wow!  It was a rather forgiving Mercury Retrograde.  I had it worse before when I was still wet behind the years about astrology, numerology and tarot.  Now that I had armed myself with a bit more knowledge about these “woo woo crazee” stuff, I was quick to ancipate these periodic irritations that came naturally with the Mercury Retrograde.

 

Without having to explain that Mercury really does not move backwards, but just appears to do so a few times a year, I will just get on with the purpose of this blog post.

 

A Fight With Joel

 

Last night, Joel and I had a fight about him making plans without communicating these plans to us.  As a result of that lack of communication, it had impacted me as I was planning to host a home-cooked dinner tonight for a group of close friends. This dinner was planned a month ago, and it was communicated to the family from that time so that they would not forget the date.  Obviously, either by the stroke of Joel’s inability to be farsighted and more communicative, or the Mercury Retrograde, he made plans to have dinner somewhere else.  So that sparked my anger and I was extremely disappointed by his lack of sensitivity towards me.

 

My Tarot Cards as usual, provided me with the explanation and a calming word or two to help me get over this disappointment.

 

“For goodness sakes, what is happening?” – The Fool

 

The Fool explained to me that the entire incident was borne out of an innocent misunderstanding.  Joel was possibly trying to please everybody in the situation and ended up pleasing no one.  The Fool encouraged me to just move on.  He said, “It’s a nothing thing.”  Enough said.

 

“Ok, so why was he so dumb?” – Page of Cups + 2 of Pentacles Reversed + Knight of Wands Reversed

 

Joel approached his plans with a lack of maturity.  He might have followed his hunches and made his plans without thought of the ramifications it might have.  He could have initially thought that it was a great idea to go ahead with his plans, and he had not realized that he would affect the plans and sensitivities of others in the process. Part of the issue has to deal with the fact that he had to juggle multiple commitments, and ended up trying so hard to please everyone but without success. 

 

 

“Got you.  So what must I do?” – The Empress + 4 of Swords

 

The Empress assured me that it knew where I was coming from with my reaction to this incident. The Empress is a nurturing card, like Mother Earth.  I was trying to be “the Mother”, making sure that I had the perfect plan, and played the perfect host, with my perfect family as I welcomed my friends to my perfect home. And for the home and family to be perfect tonight, I demanded the presence of my son and my husband, naturally.  However, the Empress is also one who could step back and go deep within herself, drawing upon her intuition to understand why her son would do what he did, with no purposeful intention to cause me grief.  Together with the 4 of swords, it was a bigger affirmation to just “go sit at my ‘time-out’ corner and breathe in deeply”.   Yes, step back I shall.

 

Screw The Mercury Retrograde

 

I do love my Tarot cards.  So if like me, you are impacted by the shenanigans of the Mercury Retrograde, do re-think your approach to things.  And if you worry that talking to your bestie might end up in tears because of the Mercury Retrograde, whip out your Tarot cards, and let them whisper some comforting words of advice to you instead.

 

 

About The Writer:


The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and a tarot card reader by accident. She was awarded a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and is also a certified numerologist.  She is currently running a Tarot consultancy based in Singapore called Sun Goddess Tarot,  which provides confidential intuitive readings combining the metaphysical disciplines of Tarot, Numerology and Astrology via face to face and emails as well as readings at corporate and private events and workshops.  A member of the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), she is also a reader for the Free Tarot Network and mentors Tarot protégés on behalf of the American Tarot Association

 

Website: www.sungoddesstarot.com

Email:  Joanna@sungoddesstarot.com

Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot

Twitter: www.twitter.com/SunGoddessTarot

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Saturday 1 February 2014

Welcome Spring Through Tarot, Healing And Creativity

THE IMBOLC TAROT BLOG HOP

This blog post was written as my contribution to the Imbolc Tarot Blog Hop which incidentally, would be the first Tarot blog Hop for 2014!  Christiana Gaudet, the wrangler for this particular blog hop had decided on this topic "Tarot, Healing And Creativity".  To visit the blog posts on the same topic written by my fellow Tarot bloggers, please visit the links below:


Blog Before     |     Master List     |      Blog After 


IMBOLC WELCOMES SPRING


Imbolc, was celebrated as an ancient Celtic fire festival that marked the mid point in between the seasons of Winter and Summer.  The festival was a celebration of the renewal of the earth when prayers were focused on welcoming Spring. Bonfires and candles were lit to hark back light, longer and warmer days.  Hopes were placed on creating abundance, from planting seeds that could reap crops in a few months, to the birthing of  cattle, lamb and other farm animals.   At Imbolc, Brigid was celebrated by my Pagan friends as the Goddess of fire, healing, creativity and fertility.  


The Christians celebrated  the feast day of St Brigit of Kildare. St Brigit was honoured for her devout faith and support of creativity.  A testament to this was when she founded a school of art and nurtured skills like metal work and illumination.   Another testament to her creativity was when she approached King Leinster for a piece of land upon which she could build a convent.  The King laughed at her and promised her that she could have a piece of land as big as her cloak could cover.  When Brigit spread her cloak on the ground, it grew miraculously to cover acres of grounds.  The King,  having experienced this miracle, gave her the land as promised and became a Christian soon after.  In more ways than one, she should be honoured for the new beginnings she had established through her creativity.


TAROT, HEALING AND CREATIVITY

I saw Imbolc as a period that celebrated new beginnings.  Most people would have come off the year-end festivities with renewed vision of what they wanted the new year to hold for them.  It was a time when farmers started to plant new seeds, and people started to plan for the for the rest of the year.  As they prayed for light and warmer days, they wanted to embrace the future with optimism and looked forward to manifesting their goals with all the past experiences they had garnered.  It was exactly the same with my clients, who kept me extremely busy these few weeks because they were in the throes of 2014 planning and wanted guidance on career and relationship so that they could navigate challenges through the year.

 I have always believed that my purpose was to use my intuitive skills to support the journey of healing that my clients took through the creative Tarot spreads that I enjoyed designing when I read for them.    However,  beyond the creative Tarot spreads that one could design, I wanted to explore the nifty idea of telling a story through Tarot.   I worked in Public Relations, and in that profession, it was all about story-telling for a purpose, and I see that same synergistic skill I had been using to do my Tarot readings.

I was quite inspired by Arwen Lynch's work when I attended one of her presentations at an international tarot conference a couple of months ago.  She spoke about Tarot for writers, and that was where I got the idea.  She also wrote a book called "Mapping The Hero's Journey" which aimed to help aspiring writers  finish writing that book within 33 days.  I would not attempt to tell a story here using my Tarot cards.  I would  instead be writing a poem guided by the Tarot cards that I had picked as I wrote this blog post.  I also had the  immense help of a few glasses of wine. 


This poem is called A New Beginning because the focus of my work this month, was to help my clients heal from their negative experiences in the last year, so that they could move on to embrace a better and more positive 2014.  Bear with me as this was my first time writing poetry by randomly picking my Tarot cards.


A NEW BEGINNING



STRENGTH


A laboured walk through darkness

I leave painful footsteps within the snow
With my last vestige of strength
I fight my weary way through the cold

KING OF CUPS


Where am I going

I don't quite know
Perhaps to find a place of calm
Or a clear path for me to run

KNIGHT OF PENTACLES


But I know that soon dawn will break

This journey is one I have to take
Even when the burden weighs heavy on my lap
As I struggle to take my next step

TEN OF SWORDS


With eyes fixed upon the horizon

I shall release all disappointments

ACE OF WANDS


To a new beginning I approach

When I am guided to find the right road

 ~ Joanna Ash,  Sun Goddess Tarot



Thanks to Christiana and Arwen, I learnt to be slightly more experimental with my Tarot cards and took them beyond my client readings.  I managed to write poetry with them too!  However, that book has to wait though, I now have a headache from the wine. 

Again, here are the links to the wonderful posts written by my fellow Tarot bloggers. 

Blog Before     |     Master List     |      Blog After 



About The Writer:

The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and a tarot card reader by accident. She was awarded a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and is also a certified numerologist.  She is currently running a Tarot consultancy based in Singapore called Sun Goddess Tarot,  which provides confidential intuitive readings combining the metaphysical disciplines of Tarot, Numerology and Astrology via face to face and emails as well as readings at corporate and private events and workshops.  A member of the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), she is also a reader for the Free Tarot Network and mentors Tarot protégés on behalf of the American Tarot Association

Website: www.sungoddesstarot.com
Email:  Joanna@sungoddesstarot.com
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot
Twitter: www.twitter.com/SunGoddessTarot









I picked these cards randomly to help me craft this poetry called A New Beginning.
These cards were taken from the Morgan Greer Tarot deck
created by Bill Greer and Lloyd Morgan.
The cards were laid out deosil around a candle used for my Imbolc prayer.