Leela J WilliamsWhile at university, I took a class called “A History of Magic.” The lecturer had a wonderful way of shifting people’s perspectives to help them understand the logic or rationale of other times and cultures. This was often communicated through exercises and thought experiments. Although I had been working alongside psychics for decades, I had a greater appreciation of the nuances of the craft after the course.
In one lecture, a blurry image was projected onto a screen. We were tasked with jotting down our interpretation of the image. Little by little the image was brought into sharper focus. At each step, we were to write down our thoughts about what we were viewing. Most of us viewed this as a guessing game and tried to work out what the image was. Once we were confident that we had figured out what the image was, every student stopped writing down their interpretations. We knew what the image was – what more was there to say. Overall, we felt a bit clever for correctly guessing what we were looking at well before the picture was obvious.
However, our triumph was short-lived. We had done and felt exactly as our lecturer wanted us to do. He then revealed that when the same exercise was done with shamans and seers from diverse cultures they offered radically different narratives for each slide, regardless of the image’s clarity. Even when presented with the final, completely focused image, their interpretations bore no resemblance to the literal picture. Ah, of course!
This revelation echoed my experiences with tarot and oracle readings, where every session unveils a fresh narrative that transcends the confines of a fixed meaning. Divination tools serve as gateways to the ethereal realms. This is as true for crystal balls as it is for tools that have set meanings, such as palmistry or tarot. Everything you know is a connection point that can open to a deeper journey.
When reading your tarot or oracle cards, turning to the guidebook and stepping into the perspective of the author can help you see outside of what you know. Embrace the wisdom in their message and strive to expand and soften your perspective of your situation. Let your gaze relax. Rather than fixating on the factual play with the fluidity of intuition and suggestion. Surrendering to the intuitive resonance of the moment will gift you clearer insight than trying to get the ‘right’.
Study the symbols, meanings and associations of your tarot or oracle cards. And then, let them be true to their ever-shifting nature. They are storytellers, ready to craft a fresh new tale with every question you bring to them. After all, in the realm of magic, it’s not about deciphering the image—it’s about unlocking the secrets within.
Connect with Leela at https://linktr.ee/leelajwilliams. Image features Sacred Earth Oracle by Toni Carmine Salerno and Leela J. Williams with artwork by Helena Nelson-Reed, available from Tarotopia.
Barbara Brewster
Gerard Bini
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