New Moon Spread

Yesterday we had a New Moon. The perfect time to look back at the transitions that happened during the past cycle, and to look forward to what's to come. I found the perfect spread on the internet and gave it a try with my beloved Wild Unknown Tarot. Here it is:

* Middle card - What thoughts currently occupy you? The Lovers. 

This card is about making choices. It's about founding out what you stand for, what your values are, what you think is important in life. You're at a crossroad in life, and wondering which path to take. Stay true to yourself and decide which path will be best for you in the long run.

 * Top card - What wisdom do you already have that you should call on now? Mother of Cups. 

Third time this card has shown up in one week! Guess the Universe is trying really hard to get the message across, but I don't seem to listen very well.This beautiful swan is very intuitive, sensitive and caring. When the Mother of Cups is pushed, she becomes defensive and aggressive to protect the ones she loves. Listen to her inner voice, her intuition and she'll guide you the way. Trusting my intuition is one of the hardest things. Maybe I should doubt less, and believe in myself.

* Left card(middle row) - What thoughts no longer serve you? Ace of Wands. 

The Ace of Wands is a very strong and action orientated card. You know where you goals lie, and which direction you need to go. I guess it's time to let go that urge for purpose, that urge for finding my path, my way, my direction and trust the Mother of Cups to show me where to go.

* Bottom card - What unconscious thoughts affect you now? Four of Wands.

There may be some transition going on right now which is leaving you feeling unsettled, and insecure. The transition is important and neccesary, but it is making you feel anxious and restless.

* Right card(middle row) - What should you open your mind to as you go through this moon cycle? Daughter of Pentacles.

The Daugther of Pentacles has a great amount of inner strength. She's quite shy, but hard-working and responsible. Be light-hearted, enjoy life and cherish your dream. New ventures and opportunities are just around the corner, grab your chances!

And because I love this deck so so much, here's the two card spread I did today:

Energy - Daughter of Cups

Advice - Ten of Cups

The Daughter of Cups is a true dreamer. She struggles staying grounded and because of her gentle nature she finds conflicts very disturbing. She's all about feeling the emotions, about forgiving, about receiving guidance from within. The ten of Cups(second time this week!) tells you to count your blessings, reducing stress and tensions and restoring harmony within yourself so you can experience it in your surroundings.

Ever since I got this deck, it has really grown on me. The connection wasn't there the first minutes I had the cards in my hands, but every single day I used them in my readings, the cards became clearer and clearer in what they were trying to tell me. Since my New Moon reading I know this is the deck I'll probably use most. I'm reading to take on this new moon cycle. How 'bout you?

Ten of Swords - Eight of Wands(The Wild Unknown Tarot)

Finally, yes finally!, the Wild Unknown Tarot arrived! I'll be posting the first introduction I had with this amazing deck soon, but for today it's a two-card daily spread only. Every day I start out doing a two card spread to tune in to that day's flow. The first card I pull is the energy, a general feel of the day; the second card is the advice, how to handle the things you may encounter. 

Energy - Ten of Swords

Advice - Eight of Wands

The Ten of Swords has been popping up so much lately. Not a very nice card to pull...It's all about defeat, crisis, pain, failure, ordeals and feeling crushed. Yes, I am freakin' tired and yes, sometimes I feel like just giving up and crying like a baby. But hey, look on the bright side! Things will be taking a turn for the better soon. The stressful and exhausting times will turn into (good)busy, quick action-packed times and that will give you the space and strength to move forward and to give you renewed energy. Stop feeling like you have been defeated. Make sure you know the direction you're going in and invest in that. Keep your head up!

Getting to know the Universal Waite Pocket Deck

One of the things I love about tarot is the diversity in decks available. Some decks have a very light and positive feel to them, whilst others are more dark. The artwork ranges from simple images to  more intricate designs, the symbolism in cards is sometimes easy to read, or you might have to fully rely on your own intuition to unravel the messages. Some decks are very down-to-earth, other decks have different layers and every time you work with them you discover something new.

Tarot decks I tend to like best are the decks with a more feminine feel to them, for example the Shadowscapes Tarot, the decks by Paulina Cassidy or the Dreaming Way Tarot(I'll be reviewing them too). The more classic decks don't really appeal to me, mostly because of the use of harsh primairy colours and the lack of 'personality' in the people depicted in the cards. 

 But then I came across the Universal Waite Pocket deck.The images seemed softer as well as the colours. The size of the cards and the sturdy box were the final thing that made me buy this deck. Turned out the Universal Waite Pocket Deck is a really nice deck. The quality of the cards is very good, and the cards are a great size for smaller hands to shuffle. The sturdy box allows you to carry the deck around with you without damaging the cards, although I would recommend using an elastic band to keep te box closed since the lid slides off easily. The white booklet that comes with the deck is really not that great(which isn't very different from the way the white booklets that come with decks usually are); the meanings of the cards are very simple and incomplete. I expected a bit more from it. For instance I find the booklets that come with the Paulina decks pretty accurate. But still, it doesn't really bother me that much, since it's just for reference and I don't actually use it when I do my readings.

First thing I do when I get a new deck is get to know the deck by briefly looking at every card, trying to see if the deck speaks to me or not. Are the cards easy to read or are the messages very hidden? Somehow there has to be some kind of click and this first time of going through the cards always tells me if that click is there or not.

After this brief introduction, I set up for an 'interview' reading to get to know the deck a bit better. And so I did with this deck. I was surprised by the majority of Major Arcana cards popping up! Here's what the deck showed me:

1. Welcoming card - The Hermit

Pulling this card as the very first one, told me the click is definately there! This card has this serene and wise feel to it. The Hermit who calmly and solemnly lights the path to go, the wise mentor to rely on. What a nice welcoming card!

2. What are you strong points and your limits? - The Hanged Man and The Devil

 This deck will probably let me see things from a different angle. Look at thing from a different perspective to get a better view and to hang tight for a while to observe instead of acting in the moment. That definately makes sense to me. The limits of this deck lie in The Devil. It may not be able to uncover and dive into my deepest and most hidden emotions even though sometimes that's just the thingneccessary to take the next step. I'll keep it in mind when reading these cards!

3. What are you here to teach me? - The Fool

The Fool is all about innocence, spontaneity, new beginnings and free spirit. It's about being courageous to open up new areas in your life, and enjoy every day of it. The lesson to learn is to sometimes take a step in the unknown without having fear, trusting the Universe to guide you. Believe in yourself and have faith that the path you're taking is the right one.

4. How do see me? - Page of Swords

The Page of Swords has a very curious and energetic personality and an intelligent and sensitive nature. Often times this personality feels mentally restless. This deck tells me that I start new projects and journeys with lots of energy and passion, but that I find it hard to keep up that pace. True!

5. What will be the outcome of our working together? - Two of Pentacles

Life will throw its many demands at you, but in the end there will be balance and harmony as long as you learn to be able to cope with change and remain flexible and adaptable in the way you handle things. It's all about keeping things in check.

The Universal Waite Pocekt Deck showed itself off with the daily two-card spread I did this morning. It gave me a strong and direct message with these darker cards!

Energy - Seven of Swords

Advice - Ten of Swords

Are you procastinating things, running away from the truth, or are you fooling yourself? The time has come to stop hiding, to face facts, and to surrender. For only if you surrender are you able to let go and make way for new beginnings!   7h
Read more at http://web.stagram.com/n/eeffie/#zWgykFtweuelbcB1.99

Are you procastinating things, walking away from something or are you fooling yourself? The time has come to stop running, and to surrender. Accept defeat and surrender for only then will you be able to let go and make way for new beginnings.

Are you procastinating things, running away from the truth, or are you fooling yourself? The time has come to stop hiding, to face facts, and to surrender. For only if you surrender are you able to let go and make way for new beginnings!   7h
Read more at http://web.stagram.com/n/eeffie/#zWgykFtweuelbcB1.99

Let's get this thing started!

Hi there and welcome to the Moonlit Tarot Blog where as time goes by you'll find tarot reviews, lots of two-card spreads, multi-card spreads, tarot journaling and whatever I may encounter on this exciting journey.

In my early twenties as I was discovering what it meant being an 'adult', as I was trying to find my way in life,  I found myself interested in tarot so I collected a few tarot decks and books and tried to read the messages the cards were presenting me. Working with tarot way back then was a bit too overwhelming for me with lots of stuff going, so the cards ended up gathering dust and eventually I sold all the decks and books I had collected. Life took over and the tarot never really crossed my mind again.

Until a few weeks back. Out of nowhere I suddenly found lots of pretty images on Instagram of tarot spreads, some beautiful decks and written messages which now made sense to me. My interest in tarot was triggered again and I purchased a new deck. As soon as I got my hands on the cards, I knew this was it. The symbolism, the imagery, the spreads. It seemed to make more sense than before. And so my hunger for learning the tarot was suddenly there and in no time, I got a few decks, even more books and started studying. Yet again, I felt a bit overwhelmed at first, but soon I realised I needed to let go of that 'need' to learn and let the card speak for themselves. I started doing daily two-card spreads, journaling them, and I was surprised that even a just a few weeks I made so much progress!

By no means am I a professional tarot reader, nor do I have any ambition to ever become one. What I want to share here on this blog, is how the tarot can be used to help surface what's hidden inside your unconsious mind. Help you hear your inner voice and listen to it. I hope you will enjoy being on this journey with me!

Pictured above is me holding welcoming card The Empress from the LightGrey Tarot deck. I'll be posting an interview and review of this deck soon.