The Longest Day : Herbs of Midsummer

The day grows long and when the Sun enters the sign of Cancer the Crab, the festival of Midsummer or the Summer Solstice has arrived. The Summer Solstice is a dance of fire and water where we bathe in dew for beauty and burn bonfires for protection. The following herbs are some of my Midsummer favorites for both their magickal and medicinal qualities. 

Hypericum perforatum flowers via wikipedia

St. Joan's Wort (Hypericum perforatum) ☉

An herb of the Sun, St. Joan's Wort is a wonderful herb to incorporate into your Midsummer festivities. Traditionally, the flowers of St. Joan's Wort (also known as St. John's Wort) are collected on Midsummer day to be made into remedies. It is said to be best to harvest the flowers while naked. The Summer Solstice is a prime day for love magick and charms including the use of St. Joan's Wort in charms and spells. Since the herb is very protective, use it in charms to protect against heartbreak and to develop a courageous heart.

A brave nerve restorative, St. Joan’s Wort steadies the spirit and calms a nerve-wracked system, making it very useful for conditions such as neuralgia, anxiety, and tension. St. Joan's Wort combines well with other nervines such as Skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora) and Mullein (Verbascum thapsus) for nerve pain and relief of tension. 

Lavandula officinalis by author

Lavender (Lavandula officinalis) ☿

The cooling blue flowers of Lavender are a welcome relief to the Summer Solstice's heat. The flowers are a traditional Midsummer strewing herb, bringing peace and serenity to the home when cast into the bonfire. An herb of Mercury, Lavender brings peace and compassion, calming without creating drowsiness but instead cultivating focus. A prime cooling remedy, Lavender works well to soothe the nervous system when experiencing agitation, nervousness, and insomnia and especially when overheated conditions such as anger and irritability are present. Lavender is a great herb for colic-y and cranky kids (and adults, too!). Add some tea to their bath water or better yet, give them Lavender hydrosol sprays to play with during their evening bath (I’ve done this combined with flower essences to excellent sleepy-time results).

Artemisia douglasiana aka Dream Plant by author

Mugwort (Artemisia spp.) ☾

While Midsummer is certainly a celebration of the brightest day of the year and the warmth it brings, it has a lunar leaning, too. The holy day is marked by the Sun entering the sign of Cancer whose Guardian Planet is the Moon. So it is that Mugwort, known as the oldest of herbs in indigenous Northern European traditions and a Moon herb, finds its way into the Midsummer magick. The Summer Solstice is a time of divination and Mugwort opens the psychic pathways. Drink a brew of your local Mugwort tea to awaken your vision. When night is shortest and hours usually hidden are revealed to us, Mugwort's magick works in revealing veiled mysteries. Cast Mugwort into Midsummer fires for energetic cleansing and healing. Mugwort has an affinity to womyn beyond the confines of gender. Mugwort is womyn as culture and has a special affinity for queer women and gender rebels of all sorts.

The herb has long been used as moxabustion in which the dried leaf is burned either close by or directly on acupuncture points to move energy and relieve pain. Place a few leaves beneath your pillow for prophetic dreams and burn in your bedroom to transform it into a dream incubation space. 

My friendly, neighbohood Verbascum thapsus by author

Mullein (Verbascum thapsus) ♄

The mighty Mullein is also known as Hag's Tapers as the thick stalks were dipped in fat or wax and burned as a primitive candle for late night witcheries. The bright yellow flowers glow with the power of the sun and the soft leaves are an excellent remedy for many a skin and musculoskeletal complaint (hence its Saturnian guardianship). Burn Mullein in your Midsummer bonfire for protection and gather the ashes to use in protection and healing charms throughout the year. 

Like many other Midsummer herbs, Mullein has a relationship to Midwinter as a primary remedy for clearing phlegm from the system. As a remedy, Mullein opens and clears the lungs. It combines well with Elder (Sambucus nigra) and Peppermint (Mentha piperita) for a lung-opening, immunomodulating blend. Topically, the mucilaginous Mullein is excellent for dry skin conditions but also as a healing compress or salve for boils, bruises, inflammation, hemorrhoids, eczema, sciatica, and joint pain. Mullein and garlic ear oil is a trusted remedy for ear infections helping to relieve pain and infection.

Sambucus nigra by author

Elder (Sambucus nigra) ♀♇

If you are brave (or foolish) enough to sit under an Elder Tree on an important night of the year (namely, Midsummer and Samhain), you just might see the Good Folk march by in all of their finery. The spirit of the Elder is a gatekeeper between the realms of life and death - she is fiercely protective and very no-nonsense. Astrologically, Elder is a plant of Venus and Pluto for its beautifying and harmonizing qualities, its sweet scent and taste, and it dark underworld berries.  Midsummer is a time of celebrating not only spiritual but physical beauty. Find an flowering Elder tree on Midsummer morning and wash your face with the dew on the flowers to beautify your features within and without.

While the Flower is associated most with Midsummer - it's heady scent saturating the air is a sign that summer has arrived - the Berries are a Midwinter medicine. Read about Elder's medicinal qualities in my Tree of Medicine post. 

Wherever your Midsummer festivities finds you, I wish you an abundance of magick and wonder that our longest day can so often bring. 

Be sure to research about your local Midsummer blooms and learn about other traditional herbs of the Summer Solstice including Vervain (Verbena officinalis), Calendula (Calendula officinalis), Sunflower (Helianthus annuus), and Yarrow (Achillea millefolium). From an astroherbology perspective, Sun herbs are particularly potent at this time of year.

If you're looking for some divinatory inspiration, check out my Bonfire Offerings : Summer Solstice Tarot Spread. For my southern hemisphere darlings, check out my post on Winter Solstice Herbs. Enjoy!

 

Astrology as a Queer Resilience Strategy

The following post is by my good friend Maria Turner-Carney who is the wonderful therapist behind Feminist Therapy for All Genders.

We just celebrated our first decade of friendship (may there be many more!) and she is one of the funniest, kindest, and insightful folks that I know. She's been writing up a storm lately and recently wrote about why astrology matters for queers and she graciously let me share it on my own blog. It should be noted that the images and their accompanying captions were chosen and written by Maria, too. Enjoy!

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Astrology is something that lots of queer folks are into, though some folks find it to be unscientific and objectionable. Today I am less interested in exploring the spiritual veracity or scientific un/likelihood of astrology. Today we’re going to explore astrology as a resilience strategy, particularly for women and queer folks.

And then I was like, oh, he’s a Capricorn, no wonder he sent me that text. found here.

Many people in the United States are raised some degree of Christian, and upon departure from their parent’s house, attempt to reconcile this belief structure with the larger world. Many of these people have a complex relationship to faith and spirituality. There are some folks for whom a totally atheistic worldview works, including a departure from astrology. (though I do know an atheist astrologer, she’s a friend from college).

The Same But Different

However, there are also a lot of people for whom some relationship to spirituality, an ephemeral sense of something ‘bigger than them’ existing in a benevolent way can be a comforting way of articulating the random events that play out in our lives. It can give meaning to a chaotic and confusing world, especially if we don’t feel like we have much control. Sometimes this offers some continuity when we feel an uncomfortable distance from the spiritual framework of our childhood but aren’t comfortable with a life totally absent of spirituality.

What Matters Is What It Means To You

It’s not uncommon for people to explore spiritualities different than the ones they were raised with- and sometimes this can lead to some gross patterns of cultural misappropriation. When I work with folks who are trying to let go of some of these patterns of culturally misappropriating things for their own spiritual ends, we talk a lot about articulating the meaning of certain objects and rituals and shifting them to less problematic objects with similar inferred meaning.

In a similar way, astrology and tarot are things that many queer folks are drawn to. Humans are very busy in the work of meaning-making, and my original interest in tarot lies in my background in media studies, and semiotics, and the cultural practices humans have of inferring narrative from visual images and physical objects.

this symbolizes your future of a crown and octopus legs. found here.

Things like astrology and tarot can be argued to have an ancient history (since humans have been looking at stars and making attempts at divination for most of human history) or very historically recent (things like the Rider Waite tarot deck only becoming popularized in the last 100 years). What I find makes these things really special and significant is that people are using them as tools for meaning-making, comfort, guidance, and hope. Whether you are someone deeply embedded in spiritual practice or someone for whom the horizon is totally absent of spiritual goings-on, we are all engaged in practices of cultivating hope and meaning.

We’re Self Taught

The final aspect of these practices that remains resonant for queer folks in particular is that there are people within our communities that have become experts through self-teaching, and independent study and practice.

As with being queer: most of us are self taught. Some of us had mentors in the community who showed us the ropes, but a lot of us fumbled through the beginnings on our very own.  Many of us seek answers and meaning that we had to find on our own outside of institutions and beauracracies. Sharing this knowledge with one another develops a shared language that cultivates our shared investment in each other, and deepens the connection.

This Doesn’t Have To Be Your Thing

There are a lot of things that people engage in that we don’t have to necessarily find interesting or appealing. You may hate spoken word, but people who participate are in their own process of engaging in resiliency strategies of articulating their experiences and seeking a witness, which can be deeply healing for them. There are people who desperately need to hear other people’s truths, to cultivate the belief that someone in the future will value their truth. There are people that need to have someone else pull cards with arcane symbols on them, to help them articulate their strengths and potential.

This is what I found when I googled “tumblr witch.” You’re welcome. found here.

In conclusion, if you are into astrology, that’s great, but let it be your truth and it doesn’t have to be everybody’s. If you’re not, that’s fine, but keep in mind folks are engaging in resiliency strategies. If they keep it out of your face, don’t yuck their yum. But astrology people- let this thing you love be deeply meaningful for you! If people can’t relate, consider trying different conversational avenues.

If you are interested in the process of meaning-making and cultivating resilience and need some help, give me a call.

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Excited to learn more about the amazing world of astrology and astroherbology?

 

5 Magickal Ways to Engage Plants Everyday

Herbal medicine and healing can be as mysterious, mundane or magickal as you please.

Myself, I tend towards the everyday magickal infused with moments of enchanted wonderbliss. The following are five simple ways to engage with herbal medicine magickally to grow your relationships with your plant kindred. If you're looking for a more in-depth way to connect with your plant allies, check out my Plant Ally Project: Thirty Day Challenge. And if you want to know more about practicing engaged herbalism, come this way.

Journaling with herbs 

I’m a fan of journaling. I think it is an easy, inexpensive, and therapeutic form of self-reflection that can help us to release tension, re-member who we are, and develop new habits and practices. Journaling with herbs adds a twist to the practice that can help us to integrate the wisdom of plant medicine into our lives.

I suggest that you start by writing a journal entry in the voice of a chosen plant friend. I and plenty of herbalist will speak about plants from a first-person plant perspective when we’re teaching or working with clients. As someone who writes a lot and has kept a journal since I was a little kid, writing about a plant is one important way that I begin to really understand a plant and its healing qualities in a way that allows me to communicate that knowledge to others. Otherwise, it gets a bit Pisces over here with lots of hazy galaxy swimming but not necessarily a lot of comprehensive and shareable words pouring forth. In all of my plant profiles I include a section about the type of personality and life circumstances that a plant consistently serves well and it is in this section that I most often hear the voice of the plant speaking to me loudest. They are able to share with me, through their unique perspective and personality, the ways that they bring healing and restoration about. Consistently journaling keeps my plant writing skills supple. 

Try some of the following prompts to get you started!

• In conversation with the plant, complete these sentences with their words:
  • I want you to know right now…
  • I would love for you to consider…
  • My gifts are…
  • I work best for those who are…
• Write down a recent healing experience with a plant ally.
• Turn your healing experience into a teaching story such as a fairy tale that you could easily share with others to communicate the healing qualities of your plant ally to someone else. 
• Ask your plant ally something and write down anything that comes through without restricting yourself in the similar vein to automatic writing.

Casting Cards

Clever ones, if you practice any sort of divinatory arts, whether card-based or not, I highly recommend connecting with your plant allies through your chosen oracular medium. My journey with plants and tarot have been intertwined and a so I love connecting with my plant allies by casting cards. It can be as simple as asking the plant a question (i.e. what guidance do you have to offer today?) or a more complex spread such as my Wild Tongue: Plant Ally Tarot Spread. The process can be quite illuminating and meditative, easily forming the foundation for a daily devotional practice if you so choose.

If you’re interested in learning more about the connections between our plant kindred and the wondrous world of tarot, be sure to check out my Herbal Tarot Wisdom series.

Adorning the Soul Shrine

There is a certain understanding of the body within indigenous Celtic practice as a soul shrine which I find to be beautiful and resonant with plant medicine. Rather than separating the body from the sacred the body is imbued with and is itself a temple and sacred vessel of the soul. Herbal medicine works not only on the physiological level in the body but our plant kindred work with the intangible spirit of our beings. With plants, we can clear, cleanse, and adorn our soul shrines with healing energy. The following is simple list of ways to do so:

Bath Tea
Herbal baths are simple, sweet, and effective remedies. You can take a full bath or a foot or hand bath as space and time allows. My favorite way to brew a bath is to start a strong infusion of herbs in the morning (A handful of herbs to about 4 cups water) and strain them in the evening when I’m ready for my bath. I draw my bath, sometimes adding in salts to the water, and then add my bath brew. This way there are no herbs to clean up afterwards and the strong infusion means I am taking full advantage of the healing gifts of the plants. Check out my recipes for my Post-Apocalyptic Bath Salts and Temple Bath Tea for some inspiration!

Shower Rinse + Bundles
Create an infusion as you would for a bath tea, but use it as a rinse in your shower. Aromatic herbs, like fresh Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus), can be bundled and hung from the shower head or shower curtain rod while you bathe. The steamy conditions will help release the aromatic scent of the plant bundle which feels like taking a bath in a garden - how divine!

Body Sprays
Create a body spray with essential and herbal oils, hydrosols, flower and gem essences, and healing water (bonus points for creating a Moon infused water). Body sprays can also double as room and altar sprays. I’m a fan of the simplicity of body sprays and have made a variety over the years including one for each day of the week according to astrological correspondences (so a Moon spray for Mondays and a Venus spray for Fridays, etc.). Add a piece of quartz crystal to the bottle of your body spray to enhance the energies of all other oils and essences in the blend.

Herbal Oils + Scrubs
Herbal oils (as opposed to essential oils) are a lovely and easy form of plant medicine adornment. Create a calming Lavender (Lavandula officinalis) herbal oil for a calming and meditative rub or a skin-healing and pain-relieving Comfrey Root (Symphytum officinale) herbal oil. You can add essential oils to your herbal oil if you like, but it’s not necessary. Herbal oils can be mixed with sugar, salt, almond meal, earth clays, and other materials to create easy and exfoliating herbal scrubs. I use honey in my recipe for my Beautiful Buzz Honey Scrub which would be even more luxurious with the addition of a Rose (Rosa spp.) herbal oil.

Singing the Spirit Home

I love singing with the plants, clever ones. I sing when I visit them in the garden and wild places. I sing when making remedies. I sing with clients and my community in consultations and rituals. Most of the time the songs are wordless tunes in concert with the plants, but sometimes there are words. I have a remedy-making song, a trance song, and sing many songs that are passed around the Pagan culture I am part of. 

Here’s the thing about singing with plants. It’s not about singing the “right” notes but about making a sacred sound. Your sacred sound which is unique to you and embodies your lived experience. It is that sound which hums through the universe as the signature of you. It is the sound that most readily mingles with the sound of the plant allies you are working with.

Next time you are studying a plant, whether in a garden or from a book, take a moment of quiet stillness. Ask the plant to share its song with you and let the sound arise. Give the sound an easy conduit and let it flow through you. You might squawk or crack or tremble, but let the sound catch and carry you. Trust your sound and get into the flow of you and plant singing together.

Some plants may share specific melodies, others might share words. I have known plants to point you in the direction of an already written song that they inspired someone else to write whether a pop song or a old time ballad. Open up to the possibilities of whatever sound might emerge.

Wearing Charms

Before you head out the door, why not carry some of that herbal magick with you in the form of a plant charm. You could add bit of herb to a small pouch or bundle to wear around your neck, waist or tuck into a pocket. Tuck a few flowers or leaves into your hair. A small bottle can contain bits of herb, lucky stones, and a small written sigil that you can wear on your person or keep in your bag. I’ve even charmed a necklace with the essence of an plant and worn that as my daily amulet. Whatever form your charm takes, be sure to set your intention with the charm by working with your plant ally to determine the work that you will be doing together that day. A bundle of Rose petals and thorns (Rosa spp.), for example, may help to open your heart while still protecting it from unnecessary drama. Have fun and experiment!

That was fun!

I hope you're inspired to live a bit more magickally in relationship with your plant allies. What are your favorite ways to connect with your plant allies on a daily basis? Share below in the comments!

 

Crone Wisdom : The Full Moon in Sagittarius

The following is an extract from my bi-monthly newsletter, The Moonlight, that all of my Lunar Apothecary students receive. Each month we explore a Moon sign and phase, as well as associated herbs, and different aspects of herbal medicine, magick, and practice in addition to the material of the yearlong ecourse. If you're thinking "heck yeah, I want more of that!" you're invited to join the Lunar Apothecary.

The first of TWO Full Moons in Sagittarius happen at the end of the week. The next Full Moon in Sagittarius is in June so we have a lot of fiery lunar energy happening over the next two cycles. When the Moon enters into the sign of Sagittarius adventures are on the horizon and with two Sagittarius Full Moons back-to-back energies are getting stirred up and wanderlust, whether of the physical, emotional or spiritual variety, comes into bloom.

While it is traditional to associate the elder energies of the Crone or Old Wise One with the Dark of the Moon, the Full Moon in Sagittarius has a Sage quality to it - both when speaking of age and of the herb (Salvia spp.). Sagittarius is associated with the Ninth House of the birth chart which is the House of adventures and travel, but also of philosophy and the perspective gained from a life that is lived. In other words, the Ninth House does a lot to shape who we will become in our elder years. Since the Full Moon is a time of maturation and Sagittarius the sign of wisdom gained from experience and age, I always feel a distinctly Crone energy during this time. Sometimes the Crone is a gentle grandmother welcoming us in for a warm hug and other times the Crone is a fearsome visage of all that unsettles us. And hey, if we pay attention to our fairy tales, sometimes the kind grandmother and the fearsome one are the same.
 

Black Sage (Salvia mellifera) by author

Sagittarius is also a mutable fire sign which means it embodies a fire that is flexible, adaptable, and changing. So while Leo is a intense fixed fire sign of solar heat and Aries is the sudden cardinal fire of a lightening bolt, the fire of Sagittarius is the heat of our blood running through our veins and the moving flame of a poi spinner's light. Mutable signs teach us adaptability and as a mutable sign Sagittarius teaches us that wisdom does not come from sitting in one place and following the rules - wisdom is gained by being uncomfortable, in charge, following the wind, coming undone, and any other myriad ways we experience life. In short, it is the wisdom gained by growing up. 

image by gabriel santiago

What wisdom have you gained through age, clever one?

Sage (Salvia spp.) is in many ways a mutable herb with a strong fiery element. As a sun-loving plant often found in dry and desert settings, Sage shows its ability to adapt to harsher environments than many of its herbal companions. Indications for the herb include similar signs to the environment that the plant enjoys growing in - look for dryness and heat with signs of sometimes accompanied by signs of mental burnout. Sage is quite resinous which is one of the reason that it is so excellent as an expectorant in cases of chest and head colds where there is excess mucus. Overall, Sage helps to regulate the fluids of the body, especially in cases of stagnant conditions (such as poor circulation) or excess secretions (such as too much sweat from hot flashes or wanting to dry up breast milk for weaning), but because the herb has mutable qualities it can help where there is lack of fluids and secretion as we'll see in a moment. The herb also helps with the oils of the body, improving the digestion of oils and fats (in part, because of its bitter taste which stimulates digestion and the production of bile). As a restorative for the mind, Sage helps to clear out mental fog by improving circulation to the brain and oiling the tracks of memory. It is an herb of Jupiter and it seems in its Crone wisdom to temper the excesses of Jupiter in order to let the benefits of Jupiterian energies shine through (i.e. longevity and the wisdom that comes with age). 

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A Note on Sage + Smudging

In North America, White Sage (Salvia apiana) has become an increasingly popular herb to use for smudging or cleansing by smoke. The herb has historical and modern-day use amongst American Indian groups primarily located along the southern Pacific Coast, but since becoming popular in New Age and Pagan communities, White Sage has been overharvested to the point of endangerment and, clever ones, there is nothing sacred about wiping a plant out so that it can sit about collecting dust on the shelves of shops. 

So what to do? First, if you're able, grow your own White Sage as it can help in small ways to turn the tide of its endangerment. Second, you only need one leaf at a time to effectively engage White Sage's clearing properties - no more mega bundles! Third, but maybe most importantly, find other plants to smudge with. There are plenty including Juniper (Juniperus spp.), Mugwort (Artemisia spp.), and Lavender (Lavandula officinalis) to just name a few. Have fun getting to know your local and ancestral smudging plants and give White Sage the space and support it needs to regenerate in the wild. 

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White Sage (Salvia apiana) by author

When using Sage in your practice, know that the herb has different qualities when prepared either hot or cold as a tea. The cold tea restricts while the hot tea stimulates. In other words, the cold tea is good to curb excess sweating (such as menopausal night sweats) whereas the hot tea brings out the aromatic qualities of Sage and stimulates secretions. One of my favorite ways to prepare Sage as medicine for cold and 'flu season is to make a simple Sage honey by infusing the leaves in local, raw honey for a cycle of the Moon. You can strain the leaves out, but I typically leave them in, eating them as I go along. Add a teaspoon to water for an instant cup of cold care and sore throat soothing tea with antimicrobial qualities. 

The flower essence of Sage is sweet and simple: it helps us to connect with our wisdom. Through working with Sage we gain perspective which is a crucial component for growing our wisdom. Use the essence during times of transition (such as a school graduation) to help integrate all that has been learned for the path ahead. I also enjoy using the essence when someone feels clouded or confused about their self-worth - Sage helps us to connect with our own unique wisdom even if we didn't know it was there in the first place.

Ready to practice herbal medicine and magick? Be sure to sign-up for my free and fully enchanted Magick Mail to gain access to exclusive content including my Sage Wisdom Tea and Crone's Blessing ritual!

If you enjoyed that little preview from the Lunar Apothecary I know you'll love the rest of the course.

My students get even more astroherbology-inspired content including profiles on Guardian and Remedy herbs for the sign of Sagittarius, rituals and recipes for all Moon phases in the sign of the Archer, and a full astroherbology profile on Sagittarius' Guardian Planet of Jupiter. Sign up today!

Happy Full Moon Magicking, clever ones!

 

The Triangulation Tarot Spread

When I read tarot cards, whether in-person or for my awesome Tarot Stella or Solstice Star clients, I often feel like I am not so much interpreting the cards as I am eavesdropping on their conversation between one another. For me, the tarot deck is a living book of wisdom that is constantly moving and shifting parts, telling new stories, and uncovering old paths. Some cards are more talkative than others, but when they are cast in a spread they begin to talk amongst themselves about the question presented to them. 

"The pain of this heartbreak is real and cannot be ignored any longer, no matter how many times we are told to 'get over it,'" says the Three of Swords.

"I know," nods the Eight of Swords, "it has led to us to being trapped by our own thoughts and ensorcelled by our feelings. Everything feels darkened now, hopeless and unsteady."

"But the fire of love is not gone," the Three of Wands gestures to a vast landscape of possibility. "It has simply moved. Elsewhere and unseen at the moment, but not truly lost."

In my class on card casting and creating custom spreads, we talk about the importance of the question. The question helps to set up the space for the conversation that the cards can have. Sometimes when we get confusing cards in our spread that seem to make little sense given our question, it's not that the cards are wrong or our ability to interpret them is lacking (though, sometimes the cards are cleverer than us and it is important to continue to cultivate a student's mind throughout your work with divination), but that the question did not allow for the answer to come through. 

There is also the actual structure of the spread to consider when seeking information and insight. If you imagine, for example, each card in your spread to be a chair at the dinner table, what cards do you want to be close enough to each other so that they are able to talk without yelling from one end of the table to the other? In other words, what are the conversations you wish you could be having in order to gain further insight and how can you bring this to play in your spread.

It was in the spirit of experimentation and trying to recreate the complexity of conversations between multiple parties (whether the inquiry is along the lines of a she said / they said question or a question from our conscious mind to our subconscious mind or having a chat with our future self), I came up with the idea of a spread of moving pieces or The Triangulation Spread. While I very much enjoy simple spreads, there is plenty of space in my practice for stretching my divinatory muscles with a more complex piece of casting that I'm about to describe with the Triangulation Spread. Yet, what is fun about the spread is that it can be as simple or complex as you like and you can decide that as you go along as opposed to ahead of time giving the reader greater flexibility in gleaning knowledge from the cards.

The basic structure of the Triangulation Spread is three triangles of three cards each, with each triangle representing one segment or aspect of the inquiry. For the following sample reading, the querent is seeking insight into how to turn their interests - which are many and varied - into a career. The question is:

How can I focus my creative passion into a sustainable career?

All cards shown in this post are from the World Spirit Tarot.

Since our querent has many passions, the first triangle is one of self with a focus on the querent's strengths in order to help them figure out what passions may be best turned into a career path. The first triangle is the foundation stone of the spread - these cards will not move but will still interact with the other cards pulled which will be explained as we go along. For their triangle of self, the querent pulled the the Sibyl (or Queen) of Swords, the Two of Wands, and the Ten of Wands (inverted).  I've given some brief interpretations as a full interpretation of this spread would be a long post indeed! The Sibyl of Swords crowns the triangle and speaks to the querent's underlying theme of storytelling in all that they do as well as a maturity to their craft . The Two of Wands both represents the querent's ability to help others find hope and possibility through telling their stories and re-membering (literally, putting back together) who they are as well the possibilities ahead of the querent in regards to turning their passion into a career. The inverted Ten of Wands recognizes the querent's overwhelm at having so many interests, which has left them feeling stuck and burdened, but since it is inverted the energy is diluted and there is a recognition that the querent is focusing their creative fire (as represented by the wands) as opposed to being completely overrun by it. The Ten of Wands is a reminder for the querent to continue to understand their own story and to own it as part of their work of discovering the path ahead of them.

The next three cards make up the triangle of chrysalis which gives specific insight to help the querent begin to transform their passion into a career. The three cards of the triangle of chrysalis are the Seven of Pentacles, the Five of Pentacles, and the Hanged Man which overlay the last three cards of the triangle of self.  First, we look at the conversations happening between the Sibyl of Swords and the Seven of Pentacles (it's time to actually harvest what you've grown with all of the hard work you've already put in - you're not starting from ground zero even if it feels like it at the moment), the Two of Wands and the Five of Pentacles (it is difficult to help others find possibility and hope if the querent has a limited vision of possibilities about their own success and feel that they are in a permanent state of scarcity), and the Ten of Wands and the Hanged Man (the Hanged Man recommends that the querent transforms the feeling of stagnant stuckness to focused stillness in order to understand that they have all the tools they need for the task ahead even though it requires them to sacrifice self-limiting beliefs and practices).

Once the initial conversations have been listened to, move the cards clockwise the next position. So the Hanged Man sits with the Sibyl of Swords, the Seven of Pentacles states talking with the Two of Wands, and the Five of Pentacles strikes up a conversation with the Ten of Wands. Further insights can be gleaned now with the same cards in different positions. The Five of Pentacles, for example, reveals that part of the overwhelm experienced through the Ten of Wands is trying to figure out what passion will be most profitable which feels limiting and confusing to the querent. The cards are moved one final time to complete the circuit and have their third conversation, and then they are moved back to their original position before the final three cards of the last triangle is cast. 

The third triangle is one of action, recommending next steps for the querent to take on to create a sustainable career from their storytelling passion. The three cards pulled were the Seer (or Page) of Pentacles, the Three of Wands, and the Six of Wands. The Seer of Pentacles, especially in this deck, has a powerful air energy moving through it (see the creatures flying out of the tree above the head of the sitting person) and speaks to the Sibyl of Swords' ability to help guide folks through their reflective journey to finding their own stories and becoming grounded in their truth. The Seer of Pentacles serves as an affirmation that the path of the storyteller will not only be a prosperous and sustainable one for the querent (since Pentacles are a suit of security, abundance, and long-term planning), but the card also illustrates the type of work environment that the querent can create in order to be successful. The Seer of Pentacles is also speaking with the Seven of Pentacles and, in fact, represents the harvest illustrated in the Seven of Pentacles. The Three of Wands is a great continuation of the conversation started by the Two of Wands and continued with the Five of Pentacles - it shows what the cultivation of hope and the exploration of the querent's money and success story can do when it comes to expanding their prospects. The Six of Wands shows the transformation of the figure in the Ten of Wands into the Hanged Man and finally returning home again to community that wants and needs their skills and insights. The Six of Wands reminds the querent that they have a vast support network that they need to tap into when it comes to promoting themselves and developing their business. Again, as with the triangle of chrysalis, these last three cards move around the spread conversing with new cards, gleaning more insight into steps to take for the path ahead. You can move the cards in the triangle of chrysalis again, too, if you like. Imagine the conversation that could be had between the Sibyl of Swords, the Five of Pentacles, and the Six of Wands about clearing out a scarcity complex as part of the work of bringing together community.

What I like about the moving parts of the Triangulation Spread is the fact that it reflects the complexity of the shifting parts of our lives. Moving the cards around can be helpful when a querent feels stuck in one place and has no clue how they're supposed to get to a hopeful card that has shown up later in the spread. The act of physically moving these cards together (which is a play on traditional spellwork in which components of the spell are moved closer and closer together to attract a certain outcome) can be such a simple act but still provide a surprising amount of revelation. As you can imagine, there are many ways to ask questions and shift cards within the context of a Triangulation Spread - I hope you have fun experimenting and share your experiences in the comments below or by using the hashtag #TriangulationSpread in your various feeds (I'm on instagram most often if you're looking to chat). Need more tarot in your life? Come this way!

Have fun triangulating!

All cards shown in this post are from the World Spirit Tarot.