Nine of Cups, Liminal Death, and the Emperess
For all the shuffling I do, I feel like I keep pulling the same cards. We are a pattern-seeking machine, so this looks like a pattern. The Nine of Cups by En Tze is a great play on the card, and I can see why I selected it for the deck. The Nine is about wish fulfillment, and there is a little of that here. The witch is clearly manifesting something. But this card is more about change and impermanence: Witches in our fables often set things in motion; they are the instigators of life. They are the ones that wake you up from your sleepy dream. In short, they’re a real pain in the ass. But that’s what it takes to grow. The card also points to the cyclical nature through the phases of the moon. What is here is only here for a brief time, so enjoy it (or enjoy its passing!).
Liminal Death by L0st Vegas. A small death, and a small change. Like stopping at a motel during a long trip. One moment you’re there, and then you aren’t. You probably won’t even remember. The only motel I really remember was the Thunderbird, a place near Missoula, MT. It was the delayed flights, beer, and smell of cigarette smoke in the “freshly” renovated room. The T on the neon sign appropriately didn’t work. But it was only for a night. All other motels are vague impressions of a memory, but they were there. Change doesn’t always have to be a decisive 43-point plan to ultimate victory and an 18-year campaign. It can be a small choice. One you don’t remember. Sitting down for a 20-minute meditation. Playing with your dog instead of watching TV. All those little choices you know you should be making. Making those small positive choices day after day after day builds you up.
The Empress, by Holly Sierra, has a sensuous element to her. She embodies nature and the body. You’ll find a deep wisdom about the interlocking pieces of life. There’s more, I am sure, but for now, this is what the card means to me.
How does this all fit together?
So we have the Nine of Cups, which asks us what changes we need to make in our lives, changes that Liminal Death mitigates. Big, powerful changes are out of the question, but what small changes could you make? What would help you instigate those small changes? If any changes take time out of your day, what small sacrifice will compensate? You can’t do everything all the time. What is going to be let go for now? The Empress is guiding you to think about your body and how it interacts with nature. Since it’s reversed, she is pressing questions about what is missing from your body.
For me, a small change would be yoga. I am old (as ancient as the sands of time) and my body shows it. Along with strength training, I need to work on stretching and flexibility. What would happen if I did 10 or 20 minutes of stretching every day? Why haven’t I done so already?
