Healing Rituals of the Tarot Court: Queens & Knights

I find the tarot to be a useful tool of self-reflection and community connection, with the Court cards being some of the most intriguing archetypes to work with. But the Court cards can also be confusing to a lot of folks (myself included in my early years of reading the cards), so I thought I’d share the ways that I’ve found these cards to speak to me and offer insights on the path of healing.

Having already explored the foundational meaning of the Court, alternative ways of naming the Court cards, and the meaning and rituals of the Pages and Knights, it is now time to turn to the Queens and Kings.

Playing Cards by Master PW (c. 1500)

Connecting & Collecting: The Queens & the Kings

The Queen and the King are the two elders of the Court cards, whether this elderhood is defined by actual chronological age or lived experience and skill, depends on the reading. Like the Pages and the Knights, their energies are inexplicably linked - one is not able to do much without the other. One of the ways that I distinguish between the energies of the cards is that I see the Queen cards as either peers (i.e. working with someone who shares similar levels of knowledge and experience which allows you to work together easier) or expressions of mystical individuation (i.e. the oracle who acts as a bridge between the mundane and magickal, but have to maintain a sense of self to be able to perform such a mystical duty safely; the mediator who is working with others but must maintain an air of separateness; or the artist who is focused on their individual self-expression). The Queens are interested in the sharing of information and preserving and creating the systems by which information can be exchanged.

The Kings are mentors and teachers - they are meant to represent knowledge and experience greater than your own. The energy of the Kings focuses on how they are going to create structures to protect the legacy of wisdom not only that they are leaving behind, but the wisdom of their communities. The Kings are interested in collecting information, sorting it, and storing it for future generations. If information of the Queens is free-flowing like a river, the Kings are the ones creating quiet pools and dams for information to pool, be studied, and easily accessed. Both are working with the flow of information and how it is accessed and shared.

The Hermit from The Neutral Vibes Tarot

For a different approach to understanding what I just shared about the Queens and Kings, take a moment to imagine the traditional Smith-Waite image of The Hermit. For me, the Queens are the Hermit themselves, often accessed in the wild and fierce places of our psyche, while the Kings are the lantern which protect the light of wisdom - both of them have worked hard to nourish and make sure that others will see and be warmed by the light of wisdom for generations to come.

The Rituals

These rituals were written with the solitary practitioner in mind but can be easily adapted to group needs. Add to, adjust, and leave out whatever you need from the rituals as you are called. I try to create rituals that are simple enough for most folks to show up to but can also act as a foundation for folks to build upon. I hope you always feel inspired to make them your own.

Deck names listed below

The Queens: A Ritual of Reconciliation

Oracle · Companion · Artist · Visionary · Sybil · Mediator · Organizer
Primary Element: Water
Plant Ally: Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis)

Working with the Queens is an opportunity to reconcile different aspects of your life into a woven whole. When Queen cards show up again and again in our readings they can indicate a need to acknowledge, honor, and make space for an important aspect of your identity that has been denied, hidden away or not properly recognized for its brilliance. Another way to understand Queen energy is to imagine your energy or your sense of self as a river and to notice where that energy is blocked and stagnant versus free and flowing. The reasons why Queen cards so often act like mirrors to our own state of flow is because they are interested in the exchange of energy and knowledge which can only happen when we are able to access our own energy and knowledge and allow it to flow between ourselves and others. Queen energy helps us to recognize the parts of ourselves that we worry or believe "hinder" the more acceptable parts of ourselves (whether that is acceptable by our own standards or the standards of the people and cultures around us such as it might be seen as acceptable for us to embody the energy of the constant helper but unacceptable to be the confident leader). 

In the following ritual we'll begin by identifying one aspect of ourselves that we hope to embrace, to call home, to reconcile with.

For your ritual, you'll need all four Queen cards from your tarot deck of choice. Alternatively, you can spend time drawing, collaging, or otherwise creating your own personal Queen cards to use in ritual. Depending on the aspect of yourself you're seeking to embrace, you'll need items that you can use to build an altar for that part of yourself, including images and items which celebrate that part of yourself and make that part of yourself feel at home (i.e. a flag that corresponds with the part of your gender or sexuality you are embracing).

Take a moment to contemplate one part of yourself that may have been denied but deserves reconciliation. For some of you this will be clear, but for others this might need some extra consideration, maybe even a tarot spread to help you connect with the part of yourself that feels missing. You can also ask yourself questions along the lines of:

• What is a part of myself that I hide away from others because I worry what they'll think?

• Who would I be more of if I wasn't afraid of the perceived or real consequences?

When you're ready, begin by laying out the four Queen cards face down in front of you. Holding the image of the part of yourself that you are calling home, speak the following invocation:

Queen of wisdom
Queen of might
Wrap me in your dark and light
Guard the path that on I go
That what I call
Comes safely home

Then choose one of the Queen cards - this is the Queen that has stepped forward to guard the path between you and the part of you that you are calling home. Set the card in a central place on your altar. You can set the other Queen cards either behind your guardian Queen or on other parts of your altar as you feel called. 

Now, build your altar, speaking sweet things to the part of you that you are calling home as you set up a space of honor for them, for you. You can be silly or sincere or some space between - speak in a way that feels good to the part of you that you're calling home, maybe even using a name or title either given or chosen that feels personal and special to the part of you that you're calling home. You might say things like:

• Oh my sweet young self, with all your playfulness and silliness, come on home, I have your favorite book right here.

• Hello, art kid, it's time to pick up your pencils again. I can't wait to create art with you.

• Hey, there, tenderheart. It's ok to cry here, your sensitivity is so beautiful and I've missed you.

• Beautiful one, I'm so sorry I've had to keep you hidden away - it's safe now for us to start dressing more like who we really are. 

As you build your altar and speak your sweet spell of homecoming, whenever you start to turn to the image of the Queen on your altar and speak the invocation, calling their power in to protect you and support you as you reconcile with this part of yourself that you're calling home. 

When you feeling settled, you can speak the following charm:

Holy, holy, holy
Holy is the way
Found myself here again
And here I'm going to stay

If you want, you can end with a tarot spread that acts like a reintroduction to your reconciling self. This can be as simple as a three card energetic check-in or more complex like an Ancient Self or Future Self spread. Keep your altar up for as long as you like, either adding or subtracting from it as your reconciled self becomes more settled and more able to shape your world in a reflection of your wholeness.

Deck names listed below

The Kings: A Ritual of Legacy

Archivist · Queen · Mentor · Shadow · Architect · Sage · Teacher
Primary Element: Fire
Plant Ally: Sage (Salvia officinalis)

Working with the Kings is an opportunity to create little legacies for our future self to benefit from. The legacies that we are creating, both personal and communal, aren't just about what we leave behind when we pass on to the next life, but those that we and others are creating that are useful for us in the present and not-so-distant future. While the magick of the Queens in our lives mean that we might be identifying and tapping into currents of energy that we desire (i.e. the ecstasy of a runner's high and the pleasure of a mental and physical challenge), the magick of the Kings in our lives help us to create the structure for that energy to thrive and flow (i.e. scheduling time for runs each week and researching the best shoe for your needs). 

The following ritual helps us to create small reminders for our future self of our present wisdom to help us reach a specific goal or for our general wellbeing. 

For your ritual, you'll need all four King cards from your tarot deck of choice. Alternatively, you can spend time drawing, collaging, or otherwise creating your own personal King cards to use in ritual. You will also need at least four pieces of paper (I like to use index cards) and your favorite writing supplies.

Begin by setting out the four King cards in the cardinal directions around you. You can follow the directional correspondences of the tradition you follow, but here's the recommendations for many western esoteric traditions:

• East: King of Swords

• South (Northern Hemisphere) / North (Southern Hemisphere): King of Wands

• West: King of Cups

• North (Northern Hemisphere) / South (Southern Hemisphere): King of Pentacles 

Call in the energy of each King by turning to the appropriate direction and speaking the corresponding invocation. If you like, you can also light a candle in each direction, trace an invoking pentagram, offer incense, water, etc. Create as much structure and ceremony to the ritual as you feel inspired to. I have used the title "King" for each of the invocations, but you should feel free to substitute the title for the one you're most connected with.

King of Swords
Come you near!
Thought and skill
Gifts you bear!
Place of rising
Space of light
Bring your magick
To this rite!

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King of Wands
Come you near!
Respect and trust
Gifts you bear!
Place of action
Space of might
Bring your magick
To this rite!

᠅
King of Cups
Come you near!
Hope and healing
Gifts you bear!
Place of feeling
Space of sight
Bring your magick
To this rite!

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King of Pentacles
Come you near!
Love and growth
Gifts you bear!
Place of courage
Space of life
Bring your magick
To this rite!

Once you have called in each of the four Kings, it's time to work with pen and paper. As each King represents a different area of your life to create the types of structures that work best for you, you'll be creating a series of cards that help you connect with a piece of wisdom and follow up steps for each area of your life. For general wellbeing affirmations and accompanying actions  inspired by the King of Swords in your life might be:

• Affirmation: I trust my powers of discernment.

• Actions: Practice five minutes of square breathing. Speak my decision or real experience of a situation out loud. Feel that discernment in my body.

If you are working towards a specific goal such as developing a sustainable running practice your affirmations and accompanying actions might be something like:

• Affirmation: I am strong and focused - I know I'm a runner.

• Actions: Choose an affirmation to say throughout your run. Paste a copy of it to your mirror. Practice a five minute run visualization (i.e. visualizing your run path and how good you'll feel afterwards).

I like to write affirmations on one side and actionable steps on the other, but you can create your cards however you like including illustrations, inspirational quotes, and more. Make at least one card for each King, but feel free to make as many as you like. Below I've listed a few correspondences for each of the Kings, but get inspired by your own intuition as well as the art specific to your tarot cards to help you write your affirmations.

When all affirmations are written, it is time to charge your deck. If you have a preferred method of charging up magickal items, proceed as you like. Otherwise, pick up the card(s) inspired by the King of Swords and turn to the appropriate direction. Hold them between your palms and begin to move your arms towards the East and back towards, tracing the path of a lemniscate or infinity symbol. As you do this, visualize gathering up the energy of the King and Swords and your own energy into an interwoven point in the palm of your hands where it charges up the card(s) you have created. Once the card(s) feel charged, you can speak the following:

By the Sword of Kings
and the magick I hold
So the path is laid
for wisdom to unfold 

Repeat this process with all of your cards and all of your Kings, again, replacing the title "King" and/or "Sword" if you like with ones that more deeply resonate with you. 

By the Wand of Kings
and the magick I hold
So the path is laid
for wisdom to unfold 

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By the Cup of Kings
and the magick I hold
So the path is laid
for wisdom to unfold 

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By the Star of Kings
and the magick I hold
So the path is laid
for wisdom to unfold 

When you've completed your circumnavigation, gather up the cards you've created. You can place them in a place of prominence where you'll remember to use them when you need extra encouragement or guidance on your path.  If you liked the King ritual and making your own set of personal affirmation and action cards, you might also like to create your own oracle of care.

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If you want to keep going with your tarot explorations, you might read my post on the Pages and Knights to complete your Court card journey or find a spread to fit your needs. Interested in a deeper dive into the correspondences of the court? Learn more about the four sacred elements from a traditional western herbalism perspective that each Court card is associated with.

Ready to read the tarot as a book of healing? Come this way.

I hope that this series has illuminated the sometime opaque tradition of the tarot Court and inspired your own practice of embodied healing.

This post was made possible through patron support.
❤︎ Thanks, friends. ❤︎

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Decks Shown
A Deck of Cards by PW (c. 1500)
Neutral Vibes Tarot
Tazama African Tarot
The Future Ancestor Tarot
The Shining Tribe Tarot

Sweet Remedy: Red Clover Plant Profile

I’m so happy to be writing about a plant that I grew up with and spent many a happy hour as a child creating crowns with. A field of Red Clover (Trifolium pratense) is a sight that fills me with happiness and I hope to share with you some of the ways that this common flower can be used in your herbal practice. You can find a printable version of the guide below in The Plant Ally Library.

So what does a flower associated with luck and the Good Folk have to offer when it comes to healing? Let’s learn!

image via @lesterhine

Red Clover
(Trifolium pratense)

Common + Folk Names : Sweet clover, bee bread, cow clover, honeystalks, marl grass, peavine clover, meadow honeysuckle, meadow trefoil, purple clover, three-leaves grass, trefoil, trifoil, trébol, cloeferwort. 

Tarot Cards : The Suit of Cups, the Star (learn more about the connections between the tarot and herbs)

Element : All Elements

Zodiac Signs : Cancer (Guardian)

Planets : Venus, Moon, Mercury

Moon Phase : New Moon

Parts used : Flower and leaf

Habitat : Native to Eurasia, North Africa, and North America, and widely naturalized in grassy areas and roadsides.

Growing conditions : Full to partial sun with moderate water.

Collection : Collect in spring and avoid collection in autumn due to issues with toxic mold.

Flavor : Sweet

Temperature : Cool

Moisture : Moist

Tissue State : Dryness (Atrophy), Tension (Constriction) - learn more about traditional western herbalism energetics.

Constituents : Protein, beta-carotene, B-complex vitamins, vitamin C, chromium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, selenium, silicon, flavonoids, phenolic glycosides, volatile oils, polysaccharides, isoflavones, salicylates, coumarins, cyanogenic glycosides.

Actions : Alterative, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, antiseptic, antispasmodic, antineoplastic, antitumor, antitussive, aperient, blood thinning, cardiotonic, deobstruent, depurative, diuretic, expectorant, galactagogue, laxative, nutritive, phytoestrogenic, sedative, vulnerary.

Main Uses : When I ask folks in my classes about early experiences with plants, one of the common memories mentioned is making crowns out of Clover blossoms, myself included. I grew up listening to stories of the Good Folk and woodland creatures savoring the sweetness of Clover and made plenty of Clover crowns (and necklaces and bracelets) as part of my childhood adventures. I've yet to live anywhere that I haven't spotted a variety of Clover growing in an open field or roadside and I find myself drawn to the blooms again and again whenever I have a chance to spend time in stillness out in a park or grassy area.

Before I started my formal herbal studies I knew of Red Clover's magickal qualities (more on that below) and learned about its value as a nutrient rich cover crop through my permaculture studies. It wasn't until I was a few years into my practice as an herbalist that I began to really appreciate the healing qualities of Red Clover when looking for herbs to support fertility. Since then, Red Clover has become one of my most trusted and reliable herbal support for folks hoping to conceive. The herb has a number of qualities which makes it so useful to supporting fertility including having an estrogenic effect on the internal reproductive organs which can be helpful in many ways including having a positive influence on ovulation. Red Clover can also be used for improving sperm count. I feel like Red Clover also helps with conception because it is nutrient rich, helps reduce stress, and assists with cleansing out energetic congestion. 

image via @j_blueberry

In addition to clearing out energetic congestion, Red Clover has a prized place in traditional western herbalism as a blood cleanser, helping to clear conditions of toxicity, and supporting the elimination of toxins from the body as a diuretic. Red Clover has an affinity for the blood and can be used for a variety of chronic blood conditions including anemia. Famed Appalachian herbalist Tommie Bass used Red and White Clover as a blood building tonic and it's an easy herb to add to your spring tonic blends to rebuild energy and the immune system after a long winter. The herb also supports the lymphatic system and helps to expel excess phlegm through its quality of thinning out and expulsion. A stiff neck that improves with heat is one of the indicators that Red Clover might be a useful and needed ally.

I really like Red Clover for menstrual cycles that are heavy and painful. Start using the herb as a tea a week before the menstrual cycle begins and then throughout the cycle - do this for a few months for best results. You can consider combining Red Clover with uterine tonic Raspberry Leaf (Rubus idaeus) especially where cramps are overpowering. Crampbark (Viburnum opulus) or Black Haw (Viburnum prunifolium) can be used as needed for cramps, too. Red Clover is also a useful ally for menopause, helping to reduce uncomfortable symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats, and general irritability. The herb can be used as a tea and douche for vaginal infections.

In cases of coughs and congestion, Red Clover can be used to break up phlegm, soothe coughs, and clear bronchial passages. The herbs antiviral and anti-inflammatory qualities help to prevent the cold and flu from settling into the body. Use in post-cold blends and for recovery from fatigue-based diseases as a nutritive tonic and to help rebuild strength - especially wonderful in foot baths post-recovery to improve circulation and cleansing the lymph system. Red Clover has traditionally been used to treat hard swellings, cysts, nodules, and persistent inflammation in the body, including cancerous swellings and infections, especially of the lymphs, breasts, and ovaries. 

Red Clover is a wonderful skin ally, addressing issues of acne, eczema, psoriasis, and general skin inflammation. A lovely ally for teenagers as a tea and skin wash for acne. Use as a wash, bath, and/or salve for old skin wounds that are slow to heal and a hair rinse for an irritated scalp. A good choice for athlete's foot, all sorts of bites and stings (Culpeper notes its use as a remedy against adder bite), arthritic pain, burns, and general wound care. Herbalists Jalue Bruton-Seal and Matthew Seal recommend combining equal parts of Red Clover with Curly Dock (Rumex crispus) in tincture form for chronic constipation, general toxicity, acne (or other inflamed skin conditions, and swollen glands. Use as an eyewash for conjunctivitis and a gargle for sore throats. 

image via @switch_dtp_fotografie

Magickal Uses : Red Clover is primarily a plant of luck and good fortune, helping to protect against baneful forces. Use the herb in all spells of luck and abundance. A four leaf clover is a lucky charm, especially if you found it yourself. Scott Cunningham has advice for each variety of leafed Clover:

"Two-leaved: If you find a two-leaved clover, you shall soon find a lover. Three-leaved: Trefoil, or three leaved clover, is worn as a protective amulet. Four-leaved: The four-leaved clover, if worn, helps men avoid military service. It also protects against madness, strengthens psychic powers, enables you to detect the presence of spirits, and leads the wearer to gold, money, or treasures. If two people eat a four-leaved clover, mutual love will result. Seven grains of wheat laid on a four-leaved clover will enable one to see fairies. If you put a four-leaved clover in your shoe before going out you will increase your chances of meeting a new love. Five-leaved: The five-leaved clover is powerful for attracting money, and should be worn for this purpose."⁴

With its strong association with the Good Folk, you can incorporate Red Clover (and all varieties of Clover) into rituals and magick involving Them. Red Clover is also a lucky charm to keep on you for cultivating fortuitous chance encounters. You can set the intention for this by writing down the type of encounter you're seeking (i.e. I want to meet someone who will help me get the job of my dreams) and folding the paper around a Clover leaf and blossom.

The Red Clover Personality : Red Clover folk can have the appearance of energetic and physical weakness due to feeling overwhelmed by the world around them. In other words, they are in the midst of a storm and are losing a sense of their center and who they are. There have been repeated experiences in their life that have led them to feeling unsteady in their sense of self which can further compromise an already inherently sensitive disposition. While not a strict rule, I would say that most Red Clover folk I've met would qualify as highly sensitive people. The lack of support and trust in their sensitivity often has been taught to them by caretakers, peers, and other people they are in significant relationship with, and they then proceed to perpetuate their own self-restricting cycles of denying, being frustrating with, and/or worn down by their sensitivity.

While there are many plant allies for sensitive folks, Red Clover folk seem to have a particular signature of denying their psychic and intuitive gifts which leads to a state of listlessness and an energetic cloudiness or congestion that feels impossible to clear. There might even be a fear of their own psychic gifts, sometimes stemming, in part, from frightening psychic experiences in their childhood. One of the beautiful paths of healing that Red Clover folk can take is to cultivate their psychic gifts while simultaneously connecting with the spirit of the Land they live with as well as ancestral Lands. Red Clover can help them to feel strengthened and grounded in their sensitivity through this approach of Land-centered intuitive practice so that they can flourish in their many ways of experiencing the world.

Contraindications : Avoid with blood thinner medication or if you have a bleeding disorder. Avoid at least a week before surgery. Avoid altogether or use only in pregnancy and breastfeeding in small doses with guidance from an herbal practitioner. 

Drug interactions : Caution with anticoagulants, salicylates, and Warfarin.

Dosage : Standard dosage.

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If you’ve connected to the story of Red Clover as an ally for folks with heightened sensitivity, check out my other recommendations for highly sensitive folk. You might find plant allies like Chamomile (Matricaria recutita) useful, too.

I hope you find a lot of joy and play working with Red Clover!

This post was made possible through patron support.
❤︎ Thanks, friends. ❤︎

📚
Footnotes

1. Rebecca Beyer, Mountain Magic: Explore the Secrets of Old Time Witchcraft (New York, NY: Wellfleet Press, 2023), 51.

2. Nicholas Culpeper, and J. J. Pursell, Culpeper's Complete Herbal: A Compendium of Herbs and Their Uses, Annotated for Modern Herbalists, Healers, and Witches (Portland, OR: Microcosm Publishing, 2022), 89.

3. Julie Bruton-Seal and Matthew Seal, Backyard Medicine: Harvest and Make Your Own Herbal Remedies (New York: Castle Books, 2012), 141.

4. Scott Cunningham, Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs (St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn, 2001), 87.

Healing Rituals of the Tarot Court: Pages & Knights

The Tarot Court cards (also known as face or coat cards) play an interesting role in any tarot deck. Traditionally, the Court cards depict people (whether archetypal or relational) in your life, unlike the rest of the Minor Arcana (aka as the pip cards) which explore events, activities, and situations one might come across. In some ways they represent a subdued energy of the archetypal characters you might meet in the Major Arcana - but more on that in a bit.

Many tarot readers of all experience levels find Court cards challenging to interpret, not least of which because the traditional names of the cards - Page, Knight, Queen, and King - can feel unrelatable and limiting. The hierarchical naming of the cards can seem archaic, unnecessarily gendered, and difficult to interpret in a reading when you're trying to figure out why the Page of Swords is showing up for you and who the heck the King of Wands is supposed to be in your life. Also, these cards often have less "action" in them when compared to most of the other cards in the deck (of course, this varies from deck to deck) making them more challenging to interpret when compared to the rest of the Minor Arcana.

And yet, through their both too specific or too vague energy, I love the Court cards. I think this love comes from the way that I was first introduced to reading them - which was less about actual people showing up in your life and more about the arrival of archetypes and the opportunity for embodying energy that would benefit one's development. When the Court cards are approached from the perspective of archetype and embodiment, there is greater opportunity to interact with tarot as a tool of directed development of consciousness. For me the Court cards embody the tarot's ability to greatly reduce "haphazard movement and spiritual chaos" in one's spiritual journey, as tarot scholar Pamela Eakins writes.¹ In other words, the Court cards help us to connect with purpose, untangle spiritual knots in our energetic flow, and learn how to embody the consciousness needed to develop as individuals within the collective.

So how do we connect with the Court cards through archetype and embodiment? Let's start by meeting the Court cards and exploring their structure within tarot. Then I'll share with you a series of healing rituals for the four archetypes of the Court to help you embody the wisdom they represent beginning with the Pages and Knights in this post and following with the Queens and Kings in the next post. 

Playing Cards by Master PW (c. 1500)

The Structure of the Court

One of the oldest forms of representation of people in tarot decks, proto-tarot decks, and the playing card games that influenced tarot is that of royalty or at least upper class individuals. The reason for this is varied but includes the fact that early tarot cards were luxury items produced for royal Courts and wealthy individuals, so the Court cards reflected the lives of those they were being produced for.² The images in early tarot were based on images and archetypes that would have been familiar and recognizable to players from books, plays, pageants, and frescoes.³ That said, the images of the tarot cards may have followed a familiar format, but the details of the Court cards and other cards with people in them, changed with Courtly fashion, cultural differences, and artistic license. This practice of evolving the image of tarot cards continues on today, with the expansion of Court card culture and naming, but the basic structure of the Court cards that inform most modern decks are listed below. I've also included some simple and traditional interpretations of each card.

• Page - Youth, curiosity, naivety

• Knight - Young adulthood, exuberance, brashness

• Queen - Middle age, confidence, vision

• King - Old age, authority, legacy

The traditional structure of the Court cards roughly follows a path from youth and inexperience to age and experience. If you were to only work with the Court cards from this perspective, there's a lot of use and wisdom to be found. We start with the student, whether a child or young adult, in the form of the Page as they are just starting or in the midst of their studies about life. The Knights move into the combination of awkwardness, idealism, and sometimes hubris of teenage years and young adulthood, where there is more freedom of movement to explore the world and begin to formulate and test out one's ideas about what they find. The Queens represent adulthood moving into middle age and help to understand better our vision of a life and a world that we want to be in both understanding our limitations and potential better. Finally, the Kings represent middle to old age and are as much about looking back as they are looking forward, having tested out and determined what foundations are needed to leave behind a legacy while supporting generations to come. Take out the unnecessary gendering of these cards allowing each Court card to be any gender or agendered and you have a system of interpretation and engagement with the Court cards that can be of use to most any querent.

In modern decks there has been expansion around the names, presentations, and ideas around the Court cards in tarot decks, a practice that was primarily born from the (often lesbian and queer) feminist tradition of re-imaging and reclaiming tarot that began in the 1970s.⁴ I love the ways that the language around the Court cards has continued to expand and as I share some of the alternative names below, I encourage you to work with the ones that you resonate with the most, applying them to any deck you work with. Tarot is meant to help us find our story, and our choice of language for each of the cards is one of the ways that we can do that. 

With that in mind let's explore the archetypes of the Court cards.

The Archetypes of the Court Cards

What are the archetypes of the Court cards that we are being invited to embody when they come up in a reading or when we use the cards in ritual? A great place to start to understand the archetypes of the Court cards is to explore the many ways each card has been named. As mentioned before, modern tarot culture has expanded on the traditional language of the Court cards, relying less on a hierarchical and royal Court structure, and more on trying to connect with the spiritual path and life stages of a querent (i.e. the person being read for) that is more broad and inclusive. I've gone ahead and included interpretations of the Court cards by six modern decks to help show you the many archetypal energies that the Court cards can represent. I've listed each alternative name in order of Page, Knight, Queen, and King (i.e. Child is the Page card in The Amazon Tarot and so on). 

The Amazon Tarot ~ collaboratively made by Billie Potts, et al

• Child

• Amazon

• Companion

• Queen

The Collective Tarot ~ collaboratively made in Portland, OR

• Seeker

• Apprentice

• Artist

• Mentor

Future Ancestor Tarot by Alexa Villanueva

• Student

• Explorer

• Listener

• Maker

Tarot of the Crone by Ellen Lorenzi Prince

• Beast

• Witch

• Grandmother

• Shadow

The Shining Tribe Tarot by Rachel Pollack

• Place

• Knower

• Gift

• Speaker

The Slow Holler Tarot ~ collaboratively made predominantly by queer and/or BIPOC southern US Americans 

• Student

• Traveler

• Visionary

• Architect

World Spirit Tarot by Lauren O'Leary and Jessica Godino

• Seer

• Seeker

• Sybil

• Sage

The Herbcrafter's Tarot by Joanna Powell Colbert and Latisha Guthrie

• Hijas

• Adelitas

• Madres

• Curanderas

I work with all of the decks I've listed above and all influence my practice to some degree. I would add the following names for each Court card:

• Page: Student, Scholar, Philosopher

• Knight: Messenger, Rebel (with or without a cause)

• Queen: Oracle, Mediator, Organizer

• King: Archivist, Teacher

In addition to renaming the individual cards in the Court, we can choose an alternative to the word and concept of Court itself, whether choosing traditional terms like Face or Coat Cards, or alternatives such as:

• Circle

• Family

• Witches

• Coven

• Collective

• Community

Having these alternative names for the Court cards means that when I pull a Queen card during a reading I can choose to work with the particular interpretation of Queen energy with the deck, but I also know that I have a library of Queen-type archetypes to work with. In some readings it makes more sense for me to connect with the Mediator energy of the Queen where in other readings, it is the energy of Queen as Visionary that I can connect with. As a reader and student of tarot I encourage you to focus on the archetypes of the Court cards that make the most sense for you at this time and expand on those concepts as you feel called and ready. There are no "correct" archetypes for any of the Court cards and knowing which archetypal energy is calling to you is part of the intuitive process of reading tarot from a healing perspective.

I also want to mention that I've focused on the empowering aspects of the Court cards and less on the challenging energies of these cards - there's a whole other shadow work aspect to the Court cards that is beyond the scope of this post. Shadow work and the Court cards is a post for another day, but is another useful aspect of healing work with the Court cards. If you're looking for more general recommendations about shadow work and the tarot, come this way.

Another way to help understand the Court cards is to compare them to each other and specifically the Pages and the Knights to one another and the Queens and the Kings to one another.  

Yearning & Seeking: The Pages & The Knights

For me, the Pages and the Knights are closer to each other energetically than they are to the Queens and Kings and I think that this helps to interpret the meanings of these cards. You'll find that the Knights and the Pages share a name "Seeker" in some decks and I think this is a helpful way to understand the similarities and differences between these two cards. The Pages are seeking knowledge, but are also seeking to be embraced within a (often learning-based) community. The Knights are seekers, too, but are often seeking to break out of the confines of the community spaces they've grown up in (family cultures, school systems, work spaces) and are more interested in the outward expression of what they've learned as opposed to the desire for an inward drawing of knowledge as expressed by the Pages.

Another way to understand the Pages and the Knights is to think of the Pages as trying to find their place by being in a place (they are trying to learn new things but familiarity is still comforting and being part of a community is a focus), while the Knights are trying to find their place by exploring what they perceive to be "other" spaces.

The Rituals

These rituals were written with the solitary practitioner in mind but can be easily adapted to group needs. Add to, adjust, and leave out whatever you need from the rituals as you are called. I try to create rituals that are simple enough for most folks to show up to but can also act as a foundation for folks to build upon. I hope you always feel inspired to make them your own.

Deck names listed below

The Pages: A Ritual of Stability

Student · Child · Seeker · Beast · Seer · Philosopher · Place
Primary Element: Earth
Plant Ally: Milky Oat (Avena sativa)

Working with the Pages is an opportunity to embody stability in your life. It is hard to move forward with an idea, take on a new project, connect with others, or understand our wholeness without a supportive foundation from which to work from. Imagine the life of a young child and student - the emphasis on learning is less about independent study and more about providing foundational knowledge and supporting the curiosities of a young mind. In ideal child-centered and compassionate learning environments, certain boundaries and systems are put in place to protect and nourish the world of young learners. Swimming lessons, for example, shouldn't start with throwing a child into the deep end, but by introducing children to water safety, the feel of water, the difference between shallow and deep, and lots of play with experienced swimmers around. The Pages help us to imagine and embody these feelings of stability and safety so that we can proceed with the work and play of learning and exploration.

For your ritual, you'll need all four Page cards from your tarot deck of choice. Alternatively, you can spend time drawing, collaging, or otherwise creating your own personal Page cards to use in ritual. We will be placing each of these cards in one of the four cardinal directions and if you like you can built an altar for each card in each direction that helps to call in the energy of each Page and/or simply light a candle next to each card. Again, do what you feel called, able, and inspired to do - this is your ritual to support your unique embodiment needs.

Begin by creating sacred space and perhaps a breathwork practice (such as the Tree of Life technique) to help you settle into your body. Set the Page of Swords in the East, the Page of Wands in the South (if you're in the northern hemisphere) or North (if you're in the southern hemisphere), the Page of Cups in the West, and the Page of Pentacles in the North (if you're in the northern hemisphere) or in the South (if you're in the southern hemisphere). Of course, these are the directional correspondences of the tradition I work in, so adjust them to fit the tradition you work with if needed.

Next, spend a few moments setting your intention:

• I embody stability in order to…

Examples of calling in stability might be:

• I embody stability in order to show up more deeply to my intuition.

• I embody stability in order to be more present in my relationships.

• I embody stability in order to support my creative flow.

Once your intention is set, speak it aloud or express it nine times, paying attention to the sensations that arise in your body as you recite your intention like a charm. You're not trying to analyze these feelings or connect them to anything in particular, just let them arise and flow through you as you practice awareness of them.

Turn to the East where the Page of Swords is located. Speak to them and call forth the power of the Page of Swords:

Blessings to the Page of Swords
Beyond and within me
Help me embody stability
That I may carry the sword of clarity

Spend some time visualizing and feeling the sword of the Page in your hands. Take time to move and breathe until you and the sword feel balanced together. When you are ready imagine the sword flowing into your energy, able to be summoned whenever you need it.

Turn to the South where the Page of Wands is located. Speak to them and call forth the power of the Page of Wands:

Blessings to the Page of Wands
Beyond and within me
Help me embody stability
That I may carry the wand of creativity

As with the sword, spend some time visualizing and feeling the wand of the Page in your hands. Take time to move and breathe until you and the wand feel balanced together. When you are ready imagine the wand flowing into your energy, able to be summoned whenever you need it.

Turn to the West where the Page of Cups is located. Speak to them and call forth the power of the Page of Cups:

Blessings to the Page of Cups
Beyond and within me
Help me embody stability
That I may carry the cup of sensitivity

As with the sword, spend some time visualizing and feeling the cup of the Page in your hands. Take time to move and breathe until you and the cup feel balanced together. When you are ready imagine the cup flowing into your energy, able to be summoned whenever you need it.

Turn to the West where the Page of Pentacles is located. Speak to them and call forth the power of the Page of Pentacles:

Blessings to the Page of Pentacles
Beyond and within me
Help me embody stability
That I may carry the star of tranquility

As with the sword, spend some time visualizing and feeling the pentacle or star of the Page in your hands. Take time to move and breathe until you and the pentacle feel balanced together. When you are ready imagine the pentacle flowing into your energy, able to be summoned whenever you need it.

Finally, pick up each card and place them in a stack over your heart, while saying:

Protected by the sword
Warmed by the flame
Held by the waters
Nourished by the land

Take a few moments to feel these words and energies within you. When you are ready, seal the ritual by saying:

All this and more I embody
All this and more I call to me
By love and will, so mote it be

After the ritual you can either return your Page cards to the deck or set them up on an altar or some place where you will see them regularly. In the days and weeks ahead pay attention to when similar sensations arise for you as you experienced within this ritual and know that you can call upon any or all of the tools of the Pages when you need extra grounding and stability.

Deck names listed below

The Knights: A Ritual of Discernment

Messenger · Amazon · Apprentice · Witch · Traveler · Seeker · Rebel · Knower · Explorer
Primary Element: Air
Plant Ally: Peppermint (Mentha piperita)

Working with the Knights is an opportunity to embody discernment in your life. The Knights are the messengers and seekers of the tarot Court, ready to spring beyond the classroom of the Pages and into the unknown. When the Knights show up for us in readings again and again, they are often indicating that there is an important message being delivered to us or information that we need to seek out. The key to successfully connecting with that message is the power of discernment. There is so much to see and do and experience in the world that it can be all too easy to get caught up in the movement and consumption of information, without learning how to discern and distill knowledge into wisdom. The Knights help us to trust our own inner knowing and find the resources to better develop our abilities for embodying discernment. 

For your ritual, you'll need all four Knight cards from your tarot deck of choice. Alternatively, you can spend time drawing, collaging, or otherwise creating your own personal Knight cards to use in ritual. You'll also need four coins - any type of coin is just fine and that can be all the same, all different or a mix. Coins have been used in folk magick for generations as symbols of luck and protection and they'll act as conduits for both of those energies as well as tokens to "pay the messengers" within the ritual.

Begin by creating sacred space and perhaps a breathwork practice (such as the Tree of Life technique) to help you settle into your body. Place all four Knight cards before you (on your altar or otherwise) and hold the coins in your hand. 

Wherever I travel
Wherever I go
No fear removes
My ability to know

Wherever I travel
Wherever I go
No pressure blocks
My ability to know

Wherever I travel
Wherever I go
No river drowns
My ability to know

Wherever I travel
Wherever I go
No words confuse
My ability to know

You can keep these coins on your altar, your wallet, or in a charm bag that you carry on your person. I like to keep mine in a jar that I shake when I need to dispel unwanted energy and call in some good fortune.

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You’ll notice that I listed some correspondences for the Pages and Knights, including the elements. If you’re interested in learning more about the elements from a traditional western herbalism perspective, come this way. If you’re looking for tarot spreads, I have a few.

I hope that these thoughts and rituals about the tarot Court inspire your own practice and I’ll be back next month with the Queens and Kings.

In the meantime, may your travels through the tarot arcanas be full of illumination and inspiration so that your life may be filled with more clarity and peace.

This post was made possible through patron support.
❤︎ Thanks, friends. ❤︎

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Decks Shown

A Deck of Cards by PW (c. 1500)
Tazama African Tarot
Amazon Tarot (1979)
The Weiser Tarot
The Herbcrafter’s Tarot
Tarot of the Spirit

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Footnotes

1. Pamela Eakins, Ph.D., Tarot of the Spirit (Boston: Red Wheel/Weiser, 1992), 4. The full quote reads: “As such, when the divine tool of tarot is correctly employed, the potential for haphazard movement and spiritual chaos is reduced.”

2. Tim Husband, 'Before Fortune-Telling: The History and Structure of Tarot Cards,' The Met, April 8, 2016, https://www.metmuseum.org/blogs/in-season/2016/tarot (accessed June 2022).

3. Sherryl E. Smith, 'Italian Tarot in the 15th Century,' Tarot Heritage, July 24 2014, https://tarot-heritage.com/history-4/italian-tarot-in-the-15th-century/ (accessed June 2022).

4. Decks like The Amazon Tarot, published in 1979, followed by a number of decks in the 1980s including the New Amazon Tarot, Daughters of the Moon and The Book of Aradia Tarot (the latter two inspired in some part by Shekinah Mountainwater's Matriarchal Tarot), Thea's Tarot (inspired by A New Women's Tarot by Billie Potts who was one of the primary editors of the Amazon Tarot and New Amazon Tarot), and The Motherpeace Tarot. Some of these decks were collectively made, others by individuals or in partnerships, but all were part of the growing intersections of lesbian organizing, Goddess spirituality, and feminist rebellion.

Night Allies: Herbs for Sleeping and Dreaming

There's plenty of advice out there on how to get better sleep, solve insomnia, and become a level 54 lucid dreamer. While I'm not going to repeat a lot of what is useful (reducing caffeine and alcohol intake, unplugging before bedtime, getting yourself into therapy, and participating in the sudden onset of world peace that alleviates our collective existential anxiety), I do want to look at the ways that herbs can support our sleeping and dreaming practice. I'll highlight some common sleep complaints and then share with you some of my favorite relaxing and gently sedating herbs in a way that might help you find a plant ally to work with.

There are a lot of reasons that our sleep gets disrupted, some of which is in our control (choosing to turn off our phone instead of scrolling before bed) and some of which is less so (stopping your neighbor from throwing logs in the back of their truck outside your bedroom window every morning at 5 AM). Hormonal changes, aging, autoimmune illnesses, thyroid conditions, seasonal allergies, physical injury, changes in the weather, and so on can lead to restlessness, insomnia, and difficulty accessing deep states of rest. It's also important to remember that any herbs that we incorporate into our healing work for sleep are best used in conjunction with other practices, a few which I'll mention below. For our purposes, I'll be focusing on herbs that help to support our nervous system and emotional health which in turn can help to address many varieties of sleep issues and bring us easier nights. 

Our journey to better nights, however, begins in the morning.

image via @anniespratt

Good Mornings for Good Nights

When we've fallen out of rhythm with our nights, starting our days with supportive plants can be very useful. I generally recommend a daily routine of nervines such as Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis), Milky Oat (Avena sativa), Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla), and/or Rose (Rosa spp.) as one of the first things ingested upon waking up. Beyond exhaustion, restlessness and insomnia can heighten stress and anxiety in our lives. By beginning with gentle nervines that help to relax tension and alleviate stress, we are practicing being restful throughout our day, guiding us to a place of deeper rest and sleep as night comes on. 

Below I've listed some feelings focused key indications for some of my favorite relaxing nervines - these are just starting points and it's important to follow up with more research, including contraindications, or working with an herbalist to find the best plants for your needs. As stress can be an underlying symptom of many sleep issues, these herbs can help us to release physical, emotional, and mental tension while inviting in relaxation.

• If you're feeling burnt out and like your nerves are frayed Milky Oat (Avena sativa) might be a good ally to work with.

• If you're struggling with the pressures of social technologies, of missing out, and a general sense of anxiety, consider Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis).

• If you're feeling cranky and out of sorts, your digestion is struggling, and/or you are struggling with feeling emotionally regulated, Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla) might be a good option.

• If you're feeling spiritually restless, tenderhearted, perhaps even dealing with issues of grief and loss, Rose (Rosa spp.) or Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) can be a beautiful allies to connect with. These are good plant allies for boundary-setting, too, in your sleep practice with yourself and others.

• If you're really struggling with feelings of anger and frustration and like you could really use a compassionate parent in your life, Motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca) might be the friend you need.

In addition to starting your day with helpful herbs, you might consider incorporating breathwork or meditation into your morning practice. A few minutes of breathwork here and there throughout the day is another way that we remind our body that we know how to become restful, especially at low stakes moments (i.e. not only using breathwork at the time when you're trying to fall asleep, but practicing breathwork when there is no goal of sleep immediately ahead of you). 

image via @bunibrunetti

Winding Down and Settling In

As the day gives way to night, it's time to help our body find its restful rhythms. Much of my practice of herbalism is woven together with the idea of homecoming. To invite ourselves home to a feeling of peace and resiliency, of restoration and homeostasis is about creating an environment within and around us that supports our unique needs. Of course, this process of creating an environment where we thrive is not just an individual project, but as with all healing work, is about how we are part of our surroundings, including our community in whatever forms it takes. In other words, take care of what you can manage on your own and get help with everything else (which is going to be, appropriately, a lot because we are a social species meant to rely on one another). 

Working with herbal remedies in the evening is a signal to our body to begin to ebb and settle after a long day of extension and flow. Any ritual we have, whether preparing a cup of evening tea, changing into our pajamas, bathing, and so on, can act like a doorway and sacred boundary between one aspect of our life into another. With sleep-supporting herbs we are inviting ourselves to cross from a space of waking and doing to one of resting and returning. 

• For a general end-of-day restorative tonic that helps us transition from waking to sleeping, Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) is one of my favorite plant allies to recommend.

• If you struggle with overwork and excess expectation of what you should be doing, struggling to just be and rest, Blue Vervain (Verbena hastata) may be a good ally.

• If your thoughts are busy and racing, waking you up as you feel like you're on the edge of sleep, you might begin and end your day with Skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora).

• If you struggle to fall asleep and are prone to anxious, looping thoughts, you might want to work with Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata).

• For general restlessness accompanied by tension and a disposition towards excitability, consider Hops (Humulus lupulus).

• If you can fall asleep but struggle to stay asleep and consider yourself a light sleeper, and/or if you've tried Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata) without success, California Poppy (Eschscholzia californica) might be a good ally for you.

I often like to imagine that our sleeping self is something we call home to ourselves every evening. Sometimes our sleeping self gets lost or confused as to where it's supposed to be - sometimes our sleeping self has the energy of a toddler going through a sleep regression. While you're seeking ways to support healthy sleep habits in your life, it can be a useful exercise to take a moment to imagine your sleeping self, what that part of you feels like and needs, and the waymarkers and environment it needs to come back home to your waking self. You might ask yourself questions like:

• What helps me feel not only relaxed but safe to be vulnerable?

• What parts of my sleeping self do I struggle with (i.e. taking "too much" time to sleep is "selfish" or I'm not being "productive" when I rest and sleep)? 

• What are some of my most cherished memories of sleep and rest? 

Alongside these more internal searchings for sleep, make sure to address the practical solutions, too. Get those earplugs, turn off the screens, create your sleeping rituals, and be patient and loving with yourself as your sleeping self finds its way home to you. 

The Dreaming Self

Along with supporting our sleeping body, herbs can be wonderful allies in supporting our dreaming self. Supporting the dreaming self isn't about being able to remember our dreams or become lucid dreamers, though both those aspects of dreamwork can be aided by plant allies, but I think of dreaming herbs as serving nourishing the bridges between our nervous system and the collective nervous system. Nourishing our dreaming body is to tend to the intangible connections we have with other people and places, memories and futuredreamings. Many of the herbs I've already written about in this post support the dreaming body (Melissa officinalis, for example, is one of my favorite dreaming herbs for adults and children when it comes to helping the dreaming body explore freely without the stress of the waking body, Passiflora incarnata can help us have more vivid dreams, and so on), but there are a few more I want to mention.

• For general dream health, Mugwort (Artemisia officinalis) is a long-trusted plant ally, helping us to sleep deeply so we can dream deeply, protecting us from nightmares, and assisting us in connecting to our intuition as we sleep. While Artemisia officinalis is often recommended, I love working with local Artemisia varieties (like A. californica) and if you have a safe one that is local to where you live, consider working with that in conjunction or in place of A. officinalis.

• If you struggle with indigestion in the evenings and suffer with nightmares, digestive herbs like Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla) can be a good option.

• If your dreams are anxious and stressful, Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) might offer relief.

• For those interested in a plant ally to support your lucid dreaming practice, Mucuna (Mucuna puriens) might be a good ally for you.

image via @anniespratt

What About Valerian?

If you've been reading about herbs for sleep, you've probably come across Valerian (Valeriana officinalis). Valerian is a lovely anxiolytic herb and for some folks it is an excellent choice for helping relax the body into a state of deep sleep. It's also an herb that is sedating without the addictive quality that other allopathic sedatives can have. 

For many years, I recommended Valerian without hesitancy to my clients. But I started to notice that a number of them were experiencing the opposite of what was supposed to happen with Valerian. Instead of a feeling of restfulness and gentle sedation, they were experiencing restlessness and agitation. Many herbalists have observed similar experiences with Valerian amongst some of their clients. Different herbalists have theories as to why this might be - in my own observation I think it's a mix of physiological reaction in the body (i.e. in the same way a percentage of the population becomes drowsy with caffeine, some folks become agitated with Valerian) and an emotional response to moving into a state of relaxation and deep rest which doesn't feel safe to everyone, especially if there is a history of trauma involved. Valerian, while gentle, is one of the more powerful herbs in the traditional western herbalism materia medica and I've also observed that highly sensitive folks, a population that I work with often, can sometimes feel overstimulated rather than relaxed by Valerian. Yet, there are plenty of highly sensitive folks for whom Valerian is a beloved ally.

So should you work with Valerian? Valerian is an herb that can be really great for many folks, but agitating for others. It can be disorienting to work with an herb thinking that it is going to be relaxing but then find yourself in a state of restlessness instead of sleepfulness, so I try to recommend it carefully. If you want to start working with Valerian, I recommend starting with small doses such as 5 to 10 drops of tincture once before bed or a very mild tea of a ½ teaspoon or less per 8 ounces of water. You can always work with an herbalist one-on-one to help you find the best herbs to support your sleep rhythms.

Preparing Remedies

My favorite way to prepare herbal remedies, especially when we are seeking to restore balance to our nervous system and bodily rhythms, is to make a tea of them (i.e. one heaping teaspoon of herbs to eight ounces of water and steeped for 15 - 20 minutes). The process of making and drinking tea can be an invitation to mindfulness and is a way to engage all of our senses in the experience of making and taking a remedy. Other forms of herbal remedy that work well in supporting the resting body are herbal baths and showers as well as herbal oils (i.e. whole herb oil infusions). Of course, you can use the form of remedy that makes most sense for you and the herb being prepared, such as tinctures or glycerite, so feel free to find the type of remedy that works best for you and your rhythms.

I've created a simple one-page guide to making different types of herbal remedies (i.e. the different proportions and preparation techniques between an infusion or decoction and so on)  for everyone who signed-up for my infrequent but intentional newsletter if you're interested in incorporating healing herbs into your sleep practice.

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Sleep is such a precious thing and so vital to our health that it can cause a lot of despair when it's disrupted. I hope that you've found some inspiration for supporting your own sleep practice and that you're feeling encouraged to ask for help and seek out further resources. If you're interested in a lunar healing perspective on rest, come this way.

May rest be an ally, sleep a beloved companion, both easy to find whenever you need them.

This post was made possible through patron support.
❤︎ Thank you, friends. ❤︎

Into the Arms of the Wild: The Wisdom of the Wheel of the Year

The Wheel of the Year is an annual spell. Every Sabbat a knot in the cord and when we arrive at the ritual feast we can tend to the threads of the year, the places that need repair, where new weavings are needed, and old ones can be returned to the earth again.

The structure and seasonal holidays of the modern Wheel of the Year is largely based on both real and mythical Pre-British, British, Anglo-Saxon, and Celtic agrarian cultures (I explore more of this over in Spiraling Into the Center: The Wheel of the Year and the Lunar Sabbats). I feel relatively safe in assuming that most of the folks reading this post and practicing in some way as modern Pagans do not live with the lands that birthed these cultures. Even if you do, the Wheel of the Year, like most everything in modern Paganism was never meant to be an unchanging dictum from whoever is claiming to be the King of Witchcraft at any given time.¹ One of the great delights of modern Paganism is that it is a religion by and for the people, meant to grow and change as we grow and change, to reflect the many places and cultures we live in, and a practice that is as much a part of the diasporic experience as it is the lands it was first dreamed.

So let's explore how the Wheel of the Year can be engaged as a more open framework to make it intimately relevant to your personal practice. In another post I'll explore how you dream into being your own Wheel of the Year, but for now we'll continue to reference the eight Sabbats while expanding beyond their original cultural references. Much of modern Paganism is about the return of the old ways and the re-membering of traditions disrupted and hidden away - so adapting the Wheel of the Year to meet your needs as a Pagan living in the cultural diaspora of the Wheel's land-based origins is one of the ways we thrive as a Pagan people. We are coming home again to our practices wherever home might be for us.

image via @matthiasoberholzer

The Sacredness of Every Season

The Wheel of the Year reflects seasonal changes on a practical level that help us to connect to the land, sea, and sky, pay attention to important rhythms for growing crops and animal husbandry, and, especially in this day and age, measure time beyond the confines of capitalism's dangerous obsession with work and productivity. 

But the Wheel of the Year also reflects the transition of life that we all go through, from birth and death, to transitioning identities, new responsibilities, periods of learning and teaching, and all the spiritual and emotional experiences that come along with these things. The Wheel of the Year is a way, around every six weeks, to pause, recalibrate, and reconnect with that which you find most sacred in your life.

Pagans are by and large not a faith-based but an earth-based and relationship-based people. When compared to other liturgical calendars the goal of the Wheel of the Year is less about worship and more about re-weaving ourselves back into the world and honoring the holiness of all things no matter where they are in the process of being.² All is holy, for example, at the time of darkest night at Midwinter and all is holy at the time of the long day of Midsummer. How we recognize, engage with, and remind ourselves of that holiness changes from Sabbat to Sabbat but is reflected in ritual choices, spellwork, community work, and more. The holiness of a harvest festival may be recognized by honoring all that has been worked for and achieved in the past year, while the holiness of Imbolc might be centered around the sacredness of vow-making and choosing a path ahead. In other words, for many modern Pagans, we aren't as concerned about growing our faith in our God/dess/es but growing our awareness of and honoring our deeply interconnected relationship with all that is.

Most importantly, as you explore the Wheel of the Year it's important to ask yourself  Why? Why observe the Wheel of the Year (or similar variation)? What purpose does it serve in your life? How does it make you feel? What's the point? How do you need to be held throughout the year?

image via @matthiasoberholzer

For me, the Wheel of the Year serves as points of stabilization, where I can ground and center, and reconnect to what is most meaningful and valuable to me and my life. In the overculture I live in, the Wheel is a radical way of measuring time and feels like an easy and joyful rebellion to choose, that enriches my life and my practice. I have found solace in the Sabbats when my life has felt full of contentment as well as when things are tumultuous - the Sabbats are expansive points of space and time that can hold space for whoever I am and whatever I'm experiencing when I show up. I encourage you to take a moment and reflect on what the Wheel of the Year means to you and why you want to participate in its turning.

When you're ready, let's look at the broad underlying spiritual framework of each Sabbat. I've touched upon the mythology of the Wheel of the Year from a (mostly) Wiccan perspective to give you some mythological inspiration, but remember that this is only one tradition within Paganism that follows the Wheel, and there are as many myths as Pagans for each of the Sabbats.

Samhain: The New Year, a time for endings and beginnings, the third harvest when the veil between the worlds is thinnest. Connecting with ancestors and ancestral traditions. An auspicious time to divine backwards and forwards in time. Honoring those who have departed in the previous year. Making space for the holiness of grieving, especially being able to grieve as and within a community. A time of reconciliation. Making space for quiet and reflection. The death of the Old God, the Goddess as Crone and Midwife of the Dead. The Maiden begins her training in the mysteries of the underworld.

Winter Solstice: Celebrating moments of "a light in the dark" and the birth process whether connecting to birthing offspring, birthing a new idea or concept or birthing a new cultural movement. Recognizing the interconnectedness of life and death, honoring our fragility and vulnerability, as well as the people, places, and systems which help us feel safe. A time of honoring parents, especially those who identify as mothers. The Crone Goddess as Midwife, the Goddess as Mother, the God as the Child either in the womb or being born (the Oak King). The height of the Holly King's power.

Imbolc: Celebrating the spread of an idea, concept, movement, breakthrough. Honoring potential. Honoring the waking land as winter slowly recedes. Celebrating transitions of moving from one stage of learning and understanding to another (i.e. graduating high school and entering college or starting a new degree study as a Priest/ess). The Child God, the Crone Goddess returning to the lands of winter and/or is reborn as the Maiden Goddess bringing the promise of spring.

Spring Equinox: Honoring the lively and greening land. A time for cleaning and cleansing. An auspicious time for celebrating what is re-emerging and re-turning home as well as newly claimed identities. A time for celebrating youth and blessing young ones (i.e. baby blessings, namings, etc). A time of the Young God and Goddess. The death of the Holly King and the beginning of the reign of the Oak King.

image via @jleeems

Beltane: Honoring the Good Folk. Relationships of all sorts, including romantic ones. Celebrating the diversity of sexual identities and the way that our sexual identities change and grow. Fertility of all kinds, including of people, and the land. The holiness of physical form. Connecting with descendants and what traditions we are passing on and creating for our descendants. The God/dess/es as Lovers. 

Summer Solstice: Honoring the abundance of life. Celebrating a time for (re)energizing movements and movement building activities. Celebrating community groups and mutual aid projects. A time of honoring parents, especially those who identify as fathers. A time for celebrating middle age. The God/ess/es at middle age. The height of the Oak King's power.

Lughnasadh: Celebrating the first harvest and the coming end of summer. (Re)commiting to supporting groups which work hard to make sure our communities feel secure. Recognizing what it is we have to share and what it is we need more of in order to thrive. Honoring those who have struggled for the betterment of the community and performed extraordinary feats of self-sacrifice and compassion. The God/dess/es of the Harvest are celebrated. The death of the Earth Goddess of Summer or Tailtu and emergence of the Crone. 

Autumn Equinox: Celebrating the end of the harvest and what will sustain us in the year ahead. A time of feasting and gathering together. Affirmations and further development of personal and community resiliency. Cutting cords with things, thoughts, people, that no longer support your ability to thrive. Balancing what needs to be balanced in your life. A time for celebrating old age. The Old God is dying and the Crone begins to guide them to the Summerlands. The Maiden journeys to the underworld. The Holly King rises to power. 

image via @heftiba

With these broad spiritual themes you can start to adapt these Sabbats to your own life, cultural myths, and seasonal changes. You can explore how you already celebrate the different themes and ideas of each Sabbat in your life and ways that you might want to incorporate others (i.e. developing an ancestor-honoring practice and anchoring it to the season of Samhain). Transform any of the key concepts in the descriptions of the Sabbats above into sacred questions such as "How am I honoring the abundance in my life?" to better understand the Summer solstice. Another comforting aspect about the Wheel of the Year is the way that I feel connected to followers of the old ways all around the world during particular points of the lunar month and solar year - it is a grand spell against loneliness and one that brings me a lot of peace. 

The Wheel is an external reflection of our own internal circumnavigation of our soul's temple. How do you tend the Wheel of the Year and how does it tend you?

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The title for this post, like the first in the series exploring the Wheel of the Year, was inspired by a Beverly Frederick song:

Humble yourself in the arms of the wild
You've gotta lay down low and
Humble yourself in the arms of the wild
You've gotta ask her what she knows and
We will lift each other up
Higher and higher
We will lift each other up
Higher and higher

I hope that you're feeling inspired for your own practice and how you travel the Wheel of the Year. May the ever-turning of the wheel bring you peace and reunion with all that you know you love and all that love you’ve yet to know.

This post was made possible through patron support.
❤︎ Thanks, friends. ❤︎

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Footnotes

1. According to my calculations the current King of Witchcraft is the mildly feral community cat who lives on my street and goes by the name Hyssop (or Hap for short). Feel free to honor him at the beginning of any of your rituals as you see fit until a new King is elected by the mysterious gentleforces that be.

2. The big caveat here is that modern Paganism is very diverse and for some traditions the wheel of the year is very much about faith and the worship of the God/dess/es.