August 8th’s New Moon & Lion’s Gate
Tarot Reflections for This Astrological Moment
Today marks two significant astrological occurrences: the new moon in Leo & Lion’s Gate.
These are powerful opportunities to pause and get in alignment with what we desire and what we’re ready to release.
I did a tarot pull to serve as a guide and provide grounding through these powerful moments.
The reversed Two of Pentacles was in response to the intention: Where do the individual and collective meet?
The reversed Two of Pentacles is a reminder that although striving for balance and harmony are a meaningful endeavor, we need not hold too tightly to the idea of “perfect balance.”
Instead of being like a balanced scale, creating space for the individual and the collective may often feel more like a pendulum swinging back and forth: sometimes we pour ourselves out to serve the needs of the collective and then we retreat to recharge.
This does not mean, stop striving to find that space where the individual and collective are both served and nurtured, but to not be discouraged when it doesn’t pan out as perfectly as you’d hoped.
We are all interconnected, so what serves one, serves the other. May one serve as the training ground for the other, and in-turn, may each love practice build on the other.
The Hanged One reversed was pulled in response to: how should we approach the Lion’s Gate?
When upright, The Hanged One is a clear call to let go, release, and relinquish control. It is the liberation that comes from accepting our limitations from a place of humility and acceptance of our own humanity.
The reversed positioning invites in a bit more nuance. As we approach this space of powerful energy, it is worthwhile to take action and set ourselves up for success as well as we can. Prepare, make plans, set up your altar, gather your tools and supplies.
But at the end of the day, once we have done everything in our power, when the time comes and the energy starts to flow, your job is to let go.
To trust that you have done everything in your humanly power to prepare, to nurture, to set intentions, and to bring what you can in service of the moment.
Although spirituality is often amplified through the use of physical items, at the end of the day, the most important tool is you.
Let whatever comes come. Do not judge or limit the energy. Allow your intuition to guide you — that space that is activated when we allow the external chaos to fall away and turn within.
Sometimes the most powerful thing we can do is nothing. We sit back, we trust, and we allow ourselves to be guided from that place.
Maybe this will look like action, maybe it will look like inaction. Either way, let it flow freely and without attachment to what the ego wants it to look and feel like.
Let the mystery and paradox reside freely within you.
Let the contradictions exist and grow.
Sometimes the most spiritual act is the most mundane. Maybe it won’t look remotely spiritual in nature, but if you stay tuned in, open, loving, and willing to embrace that which comes, trust that clarity and purpose will evolve in due time.
Sometimes the best thing we can do is get out of our own way.
As you navigate personal intention-setting, I also wanted to mention a few collective intentions you could include in your ceremony/ritual:
- Honor a river or body of water near you in solidarity with the water protectors of #StopLine3 (along with supporting them in other ways).
- Do a rain ceremony in honor of those places still suffering from scorching temperatures and wildfires, such as Canada, Turkey, and Greece. Here’s an example of one by Louisa (thewitchesstone).
- Or channel a collective cause that is laying heavy on your heart right now and trust the Spirit to guide you in how to honor and support it. ❤
