April 29, 2010 - Seven of Wands

By last night I had slipped and slid into a major funk.  A year out of my heart surgery and so much the same, I wonder if I've made the necessary changes in my life.  Am I truly living the whole-hearted existence I've been called to?  Some places in my life are still so unsettled, so messy, so painful.

My question today then was what did I need to know to help me find consistent happiness and the Seven of Wands.  This card urges the querent to be aggressive, defiant, and show conviction. It tells you to go after what you want, go on the offensive, seize the advantage.  It also says, "don't yield."  And finally, show conviction.  Be sure, know you are right and act resolutely.  There's something combative about this card that just goes against my grain.  I also wonder what I'm supposed to be fighting against.  The rough places in my life are more nebulous.  Not quite bad, but not really good either.  I feel like this river needs to chart a new course and while I can't tell you what that new course is, I know this isn't it.

Joan Bunning talks about this in her discussion on the Seven of Wands.  She writes: 'The Seven of Wands is all about taking a stand. Taking a stand is a forceful act that changes the energy flow of the world for good or ill. Most of the time we flow with our lives as if on a river. Events and feelings carry us forward with little effort. Sometimes, though, we are not content to drift. We want to resist the flow, or change its course entirely!"  This is not the first time I've had that image of a river changing course completely, wondering if it is possible, and what happens to those who reside by its banks.  We're not talking flood and flow.  We're talking a major shift in direction, the kind of thing that changes everyone.


In the Jane Austen Tarot,  the Seven of Wands (Candlesticks) depicts Elizabeth Bennett giving Lady Catherine de Bourgh a piece of her mind.  Elizabeth has refused the proposal of Lady Catherine's nephew, Fitzwilliam Darcy.  That she has come to a place of realizing how wrong she was about this man and that she may indeed love him, hardly matters.  By this point in the book she can have no hope that he will ask again.  So when Lady Catherine comes and demands that Elizabeth deny the rumors and promise never to enter into an engagement Elizabeth refuses.  Lady Catherine's rudeness was handled deftly, as only Elizabeth Bennett can, and the great lady leaves with no assurances.


The Seven of Wands comes up when it seems you are facing defeat.  Even with everything stacked against you, if right os on your side, then the battlefield is even.  This is not a time for pessimism and doubt but courage and conviction.  It's also about taking responsibility for your actions.  You may make some powerful enemies when you take a stand like that, and that is the price.  Are you willing to pay that price for what you believe in? 


So here I am, a bit funky, and with the Seven of Wands telling me to to consider carefully and if I choose yes, then take that stand.  Not sure what it all means exactly, but I'll keep you posted.

February 22 - The Seven of Wands

Today started low, a little hopeless, and so my question was low and a little hopeless too, wondering what the point was even as I asked, "What do I need to know today to bring true happiness into my life?" What came up is the Seven of Wands.

The man depicted on the Seven of Wands is attacking and under attack. It's a card of asserting yourself, refusing to yield, being sure. I can safely say these days that I am not sure about anything. There is what I wanted once, which I still want but I'm not sure whether it is habit or true desire. There is what I have that is fine enough, but I have little passion for. I don't know myself well enough to take a stand, or at least that's how it seems.

(Because I had such trouble with this card, I drew another, Justice. This clarifies things some. Justice is about acting ethically, assuming responsibility, understanding cause and effect, and setting a course for the future. It comes up either when you need to set a course or are facing the consequences of a path you took before. Hmmmm.)

In the Jane Austen Tarot, the Seven of Wands depicts Elizabeth Bennett holding her own against Lady Catherine de Bourgh, an imperious and rather supercilious aunt of Fitzwilliam Darcy, who learns of Darcy's proposal and wants to make sure a union between Darcy and Lizzie doesn't happen. At this point, Elizabeth has no idea of Darcy renewing his proposal. Still, with verbal deftness and resolve, she holds her own Lady Catherine and stands up for herself and her family. The Seven of Wands/Candlesticks suggests that even if you are feeling outmatched or fighting a losing battle, you have right on your side, which evens the battlefield. It is not a time for pessimism or negativity, but one of purpose and courage. The hardest battle is always against my own perceived limitations. This, I think, is the lesson of the Seven of Wands for me today, to believe in myself and my lovability, to believe I deserve the good things of life including love, especially love.

What Would Jane Do?

"Courage is an easy quality to assert when the playing field is distinctly to your advantage, but valor can only be claimed when you are truly challenged by your circumstances. A weak position stems not only from an inequitable distribution of weaponry, but a more dangerous defect: a failure to recognize your own worth. Once you realize your strength comes from your inner value and not your valuables, your opposition's superiority begins to dissipate." p. 67