A Card for Today -- The Empress (III)

The Empress (III)

When I started this blog back in 2017, I decided to use Blogger because it was already integrated with my Google account. I also made the decision to force myself to use Google Sites out of the same "convenience" (and it's the platform we are using at my work, so it had practical applications toward further educating myself on Google's apps). My objective in "simplifying things" (as opposed to third party hosting, paying for more robust developer shit, and so on), was to just focus on self-publishing my various creative writing projects and not get caught up in coding/scripting. Despite my good intentions that were very logical and sensible, things didn't pan out the way I imagined, life moved on, and several years later I had accomplished nothing in regard to self-publishing--however, I did discover tarot/oracle. (Incidentally, this coincided with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.) A co-worker and friend led me to this path, and I'm very appreciative for the synchronicity that resulted in my new found interest. 

I haven't really delved into this topic yet. As I explained in my "A New Beginning" (7/30/22) blog entry, this is the starting point, so I haven't had much time to "officially launch" a bunch of pre-prepared content. And honestly, I think that would be counter to the energy I'm working with this time around. It's more about development and growth as I make my way on this journey, so this kind of raw, unpolished inception point seems to make sense. 

That said, considering I've decided to branch out and offer to do readings outside of the close knit circle of family, friends and co-workers, it would certainly be useful to provide some details regarding how this works. I don't have time to do that right here and now, but I promise I will be following up with this information. In the meantime, my contact email is on the JFManning.com home page, and you can use that to contact me if you have questions about obtaining a tarot/oracle reading. 

And this brings me to the tarot card I pulled in relation to this blog entry. At this point I've been collecting tarot and oracle decks for two years, and as a result I have a fairly robust collection of decks that I actively use and select from. Sometimes I know what deck I want to work with, but often I like to leave it up to The Universe to make a recommendation. One of the ways I typically do this is by rolling dice. This resulted in the Centennial Smith-Waite Tarot, which is now a US Games product that features the tarot created by A.E. Waite and Pamela Colman Smith way back in 1909. What is notable about this particular deck is it is a thicker, higher quality cardstock than the standard "yellow box" Rider Tarot (has the Magician on the box) that is very well known (also US Games).

In regard to card selection, again this varies significantly depending on the situation. Impromptu cards, top/bottom cards, etc. etc.--there are many ways that cards present themselves, but most typically it's just a matter of shuffling and "feeling" them surface. For example, The Empress card separated itself as I was cutting the deck with the intention of rifle shuffling once again. I sensed it was the card that was meant to come out, and was thrilled to see the Empress when I flipped it over and placed it on the table.

I'm not goin provide an in-depth analysis of the Empress here because that would be beyond the scope of this brief blog entry. There are literally hundreds (probably thousands) of other websites out there with information about the Empress (I personally like to use BiddyTarot.com). The Empress is the third card in the Major Arcana, and as Smith has portrayed, she is the quintessential Queen of the Universe. She is the Goddess of Nature, and carries the energy of Venus/Aphrodite. There's all kinds of astrological significance here, but that isn't my area, so I'll leave that to the experts who focus on that side of the tarot. I am personally much more comfortable with numerology, and this number three card speaks to things like the blooming energy of new beginnings. This is a card of emotional flow and creative energy, and all of this is extremely relevant to exactly what I'm doing right now. In other words, in a way this is Spirit giving me a high five for actually following through with working on this project by writing another blog entry that probably nobody will read. Now I just need to keep holding up my end of the  bargain...