Intuitive Transformation with Our Dear Friend, Death, Part 2

Our Tea with Death continues with Mabon - Culling to Find the Path Forward

Mabon is upon us - the first signs of Autumn are here. Out here in the high desert, after over four months of intense heat in Joshua Tree, the desert is transforming into cooler winds, sacred daturas (which grow wild out here) begin to turn brown, and everyone seems to emerge out of the confines of our air-conditioned homes. Autumn is here. The countdown to Halloween is here. But first we must continue our Great Work. Death is waiting for us with a fresh pot of tea, and he is ready to converse.

Before you continue, you really should read part 1 if you have not done so already:

The Great Culling to Find the Path Forward

Death in our lives is terrifying, most of the time. It may not feel like a gift, but in the end one chapter closes and another opens after. Between these two events, we grieve - deeply, fiercely, and sometimes with a sense of utter numbness to everything around us. Everything seems to close in on us, so we close our eyes and pull the covers over our heads. Go ahead - I fully endorse this. Everything conflicts within us from our emotions to our our in/actions. This period of rest is dictated, according to my guides, by the Great Culling.

At first I was taken aback by that word. Culling. It feels so intense. But I made the critical connection later that day - Death’s scythe is the tool, the primary methodology of our culling. He makes an appearance in our table, and who am I to refuse him? We need to listen, and pay attention to what the he is telling us - something is unbalanced, doesn’t work, and needs to change.

For the context of this post, I will define our Great Culling as the intentional cutting away of the energetic cords that bind us to aspects of our life which create imbalance, stress, grief, and other unpleasant circumstances/people. These things need to go, so let’s stop feeding these cords. Whether we are shattering our world to start fresh or events have occurred around you by circumstance, the concept is the same. Don’t worry about the next step forward just yet, but look at what is going on today.

I ask you to look within and ask yourself, and be really honest: What needs to be cut away in order to move forward? Journal about it, and try to see it from what is best for the future, rather than what your grief wants to hold on to. It’s hard, I know. No one but you will know what you write, judge these private thoughts, and you can certainly burn the pages later. Wouldn’t that be cathartic?

The Great Culling results in loss - perhaps a relationship, a toxic behavior, an addiction (to anything), a death of a loved one - and whatever it is, you will feel it. Taking action on this culling is the hardest part, in my opinion. I cannot dictate for anyone how to do that. But once you take an action, I encourage a period of rest, quiet, and reflection before starting your next chapter. We are vulnerable at this point, and recovery is essential - this is when our friends Acceptance and Forgiveness come to the table. We need to show up for ourselves and those we love. Be the best human we can be. I expanded on this in the prior post, so please go back and read that section if needed.

Mabon’s Gifts Tarot Spread

This Mabon Tarot Spread (credit: Emerald Lotus Mystic) was found via a random google search and it struck a chord with me - this was the one. Of course, I expanded on it. I pulled out a deck I don’t often use, the Gold and Black Rider-Waite deck. Black cards with gold leave lining for the illustrations of the classic deck from 1909. This deck doesn’t misbehave like my Wild Unknown deck, but my first pull did not feel right. So, the table swirl method was the way. Whatever card fell out of the group joined the stack of cards. One card repeated, 8 of Cups Reversed, in the same spot in the spread as my first pull. Wild.

Here’s the cards as they laid out, from this lovely gold and black deck:

1.        What does Mabon hold for me this year?

8 of Cups (Reversed) - The energy of this Mabon season will find us in the search of both inner and outer balance. Whereas the upright position of this cards typically indicates walking away, the reversed indicates resolution. Instead of leaving, we are walking that higher road to find our joy. The cups are upside-down in this position, having spilled out what no longer serves. This is the essential thing to remember – those cups are ready to be filled once again with what we need, the nourishment of our soul.

2.        How can I connect with my ancestors during Mabon?

Knight of Swords - make direct contact with mental and verbal methods - talk to them, implore for guidance. Meditate to try to find a peaceful place within yourself while doing this, for our Knight can be hasty, and impatient. This card serves as both your action and a warning to pace yourself. Remember my harping about rest? The is not the time to charge in with your emotional sword in hand.

3.        What should I release at this time?

4 of Swords (Reversed) - It feels like we are awakening from a period of mental fog and this new clarity serves us well. Emerging back out in the world and out of our isolation will bring new energy. To find what needs to be released, the awakening will require introspection. Talk with your guides, whether in the astral plane or a chat with a trusted confidante. New clarity will emerge from this exploration.

4.        What blessings can I receive during Mabon?

7 of Swords (Reversed) - Do you recall that journaling exercise I suggested? This is the time to really dig in. Stop hiding from yourself and recognize the gifts you already have, but feels hard to see because of two things clashing in your mind - your desires versus vulnerabilities. Past actions/circumstances need to be released from a place of forgiveness and acceptance. Write in your journal and embrace a graceful honestly with your prose. The shadow needs to be recognized - it is not your enemy, but a partner for your inner work.

5.        What can I expect during the last few months of the year?

The World/The Androgynous & The Sacred Union (Jungian Archetype) - The World card indicates that by the end of the year, the sense of balance from our inner work will bear fruit. Don’t get overexcited, for the new path is barely started, but perhaps we can breathe a sigh of relief as the worst is hopefully behind us. In “Tarot Reversals” by Mary K. Greer, she says this of The World card, and it is gorgeous:

“Emerging from the womb of your former life, and stand at the edge of an exciting leap into and unknown of infinite potential”

This is a nice way to end 2024, don’t you think? There is another aspect of the world, which I think is important. The World card encompasses the universe at balance, where before there was imbalance. I pulled out my Jungian Archetype Oracle cards to explore this relationship.

The Androgynous

The Androgynous encompasses all things in balance, and in flow. It not just one thing - only male, only female, or one elemental aspect of life. It is all things swirling in harmony. The overall theme of this archetype is: Change and fluidity define life. In this poetic guidebook, I found this passage:

“The sages tell us that in the beginning of things, before a deity brought order to the confused origin of creation, high and low, wet and dry, cold and heat, Justice and Iniquity lived in the same body, so the Androgynous in his perfect nature realized in the world the coincidence of opposites . . . [he] traverses with liquid phantom nature, rites, ceremonies, and festivals for which the world is reflected and rotates. Anima-Animas, feminine in the masculine and at the same time masculine in the feminine . . . “ (Jungian Archetype Oracle guidebook, p. 33)

What I understand from this archetype within The World card is that to embrace change one must be fluid. When we stop fighting the gifts the world gives us, whether they feel like gifts at the time or not, we can forge a path forward to find our balance once again. Holding onto ideas about our reality that no longer work creates blockages, and the world seeks to re-balance this. The person on The World card floats in the middle of the card, balanced and serene, the ideal state of flow.

The World’s Three Gifts for Mabon

My intuitive extension of this wonderful spread, as dictated by my guides, is to recognize that we are blessed with three gifts this Mabon season. My mind wanted to assign each card to the last few months of this year, but my guides sternly corrected me – these are the gifts we are given: direct energies we will experience, shadows we must confront, and the archetype we must embrace.

Each gift also brings a Jungian archetype for clarification on the influence of these energies. What do we embrace, and what do we let go? These three cards bring powerful influence in the last stretch of this year. Appropriately, it expands the nature of the shadow work we must do to reach The World card.

What are the three gifts of Mabon and the archetype it embodies?

1.        Direct energies we will experience

The Hermit (Reversed)/The Spirit of the Depths - Oh, The Hermit reversed. This is a troublsome card, but its on point to what we are discussing today. This card indicates that we need to find our inner light, which has likely been lost deep within ourselves. See your own flaws, but also your potential. Appropriate for this season, the reversed position of this card harkens back to the Greek myth of Persephone, whereby she leads souls to the underworld in the winter and then leads them out in the spring. She is the wife of Hades in the underworld for 6 months of the year as her grieving mother Demeter is miserable without her (and subsequently takes away the fertility of the land), and the other half of the year she is out of the underworld with Demeter, away from Hades. This myth has so much to it, I cannot fully express the depth of this (I could write an entire post on just the Persephone/Demeter/Hades debacle). The spirit of the depths archetype (one that is resistant to becoming) embodies The Hermit Reversed. It tells us: The abyss is the path of those who seek the light.

2.        Shadows we must confront

King of Cups (Reversed)/The Shadow - Another dicey card, but appropriate for a shadow. The shadow we must pay attention to in this season is excessiveness of the past - this no longer serves. Whether one still lives in excess or perhaps harboring unresolved shadows around something from the past, this must be explored. Excesses could be about anything we take too far - drugs and alcohol are probably common, but it could be as simple as over-consumption (of literally anything), toxic behavior, an unhealthy relationship we need to leave (but have not). Whatever it is, start the process of working with your unconscious patterns of behavior. Break out that journal and explore a few questions: When did it start? What triggers this behavior? What is the pattern? Again, no one is judging what you write. Be gentle and only do what you feel comfortable exploring. Slow emergence and rest, remember? The message of The Shadow is: That which is shadowless lacks in depth.

3.        The archetype we must embrace

Page of Wands/The Herald - I am so glad to see these cards in this position. The Page of Wands is considered a free spirit and one that is full of passion for self-growth. He moves with fearless grace. Most importantly, he is the bringer of news and messages, and especially those meant to catalyze positive change. Pay attention to what you do and see - look for signs of life from that which has been hidden from you. The hopeful point of light in our future, The Herald tells us: the journey begins for those who cannot return.

I want to end this very long-winded diatribe with a hopeful (and poetic) note on the journey Death sends us on when change impacts our lives:

“[The Herald is] the prime motive for every change, it transforms the Soul, who accepts the adventure with fear and hope, the journey and the descent into the underworld, between the lakes of the ice and sulfur, into the horrid, deep belly of the mysterious monster. As the eternal child, Hermes the messenger, he flies and swiftly breaks through the subtle limits of the worlds: his is a siren song, calling to the soul that listens. Vocal prodigy, in the circular, changeless world, he reveals to the dormant soul the luminous paths of no return.” (Jungian Archetype Oracle guidebook, p. 22)

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I am cognizant that this is a very heavy topic. The psychology of Jung and its intersection with tarot has been a lifelong fascination. The more I explore it, whether from others or my own investigations, the deeper it goes. There is a valuable lesson to be learned from each card.

I hope this was an interesting post, that it helped someone out there, educated a mind, or opened up new possibilities with tarot for some folks after reading this. Please comment any thoughts you may have, or simply if you enjoyed reading it or found it interesting. I love to hear from all of you.

Much Love,

Erica

Read on to Part 3: