Luminous Mind, Luminous Body, Luminous Spirit

It has been some time since I have publicly worked with the cards. A troubled marriage culminated in divorce, figuring out how to be a single middle aged lady with no husband, no kids at home, new connections, new career paths- those are what has kept me from writing, and honestly at times kept me from my cards.

At times, I have been leery of the cards, even. They said my former husband was it, the one. At every step, they affirmed our relationship. This was meant to be, we had this. But in fairness, at the worst moments of the realizing the marriage wasn’t going to work, I was not consulting the cards at all. I didn’t need them to tell me what I could feel in every cell of my body, and I didn’t have a way forward so I did what every good INFP does and utterly disassociated. My former husband made some choices that changed the outcome, I made some choices that changed the outcome, and here we are. I loved him deeply, and I will hold affection and fond memories of him until the end of time, but I have critical needs that weren’t being met, and eventually not having those things became more painful than the prospect of divorce, even with the emotional, financial, and physical mess caused. Sometimes you just have to do the thing.

The Luminous Void Tarot – Nine of Cups, The Hanged Woman, Three of Cups

I am re entering the writing about my cards world today with a simple Mind, Body, Spirit spread.

The first card, indicating Mind, is the wishes fulfilled celebratory Nine of Cups. I am indeed joyful in my mind at this time, and gratefully so. I am closer today than ever before to having the things I want most in life, love and time to write being at the top of that list. I am surrounded by love daily, in this quaint old farmhouse where I live with my nesting partner, one sentient dust mop of a fluffy white dog, one silky perpetual kitten-cat, and the grandchildren tramping through on school breaks and the weekends. The nightly shared dinners, the twilight strolls, and the sweet flow of connection makes every day simple but delightful. My mind is self satisfied, as it should be.

My second card represents my Body, and with her long dark hair even resembles my physical form a bit. The Hanged Man is a card that says, we are waiting for the surrender, yet promises healing. I am in limbo physically at the moment, recovering from a long stint of anemia caused by blood loss. Anemia is such a strange condition, and a true frog steaming in gradually increasing hot water situation, in which it is manageable until suddenly it isn’t. There is no quick road to recovery either; just time and diligent consumption of iron supplements and rich foods. It is not life threatening, except when it is, and is not alarming or others to hear, so I am not sure everyone I have explained the situation to has understood the depth of my lack of energy, or will, to complete even simple tasks, or how it has made achingly tired, to the point of hospitalization more than once this summer. My iron reserves are beginning to build, and with that energy, but it is a slow process. I am now more aware of the signs and will not let it get to that point again, but in the meantime my only choice is surrender to this season and enjoy what I can have while not becoming bitter over what I can’t.

My Spirit card is the Three of Cups, the joyful, exuberant, toasting Three of Cups. My Spirit is delighted. It indicates true connection, and by divesting myself of dead ones that no longer functioned, I have made room for new ones that fill my senses. In the corporeal world, enjoying new friendships and romantic connections is enriching my life in countless ways, while in the ethereal realm, I am learning to allow the different aspects of my own Self to shine, to rage when they need to, to connect, and to flow. One of the things I often say to my partners is that I am feeling ever more myself. Yes, partners, another delightful synchronicity in the Three of Cups. Tarot always tells the truth.

New Deck Interview – The Luminous Void Tarot

Happy surprise this morning when digging through my deck I discovered a treasure- The Luminous Void Tarot by Laura Zuspan, an impulse purchased in Salida, Colorado when on a trip with the man last October if you can believe that. My tarot tastes have changed, in that I was once a voracious consumer of all new decks, but now am quite discerning in what I choose to add to the collection. The natural limitation of space of money has curbed my collection, although I suspect the man would say not nearly enough. But life is short and if there is a chance to hold 78 tiny pieces of art and symbolism in my hands, why would I pass that up?

I am using the New Deck Interview Spread originally gleaned from the now defunct Aeclectic Tarot forum that has served me well all this time.

The Luminous Void Tarot – New Deck Interview Spread

Tell me about yourself. What is your most important characteristic? Eight of Cups- This deck is emotionally draining! We say that about a human or situation and we mean it in a negative way, but I am coming to believe some emotions need to be drained, and don’t need to be held in our reserves and distributed through all our cups which we use to navigate life and relationships. I expect this deck will be cleansing, but I am not expecting “easy”. I know for certain I am carrying some negative emotions that may be hard to release, but I believe this deck can help me to do that. Rather than the Waite Smith version of the card, which features a figure walking away from an impossible configuration, the woman in this card wades through the muck and mire to be the instrument of her own healing right where she is. Sometimes, the best course of action is to remove ourselves, but when we can’t do that, we have to address our surroundings.

What are your strengths as a deck? Knight of Discs- The Luminous Void Tarot excels in delivering messages about the earthly plane, including health, career, and money. This is such a good quality to possess! Many people ask questions about love and esoteric matters, but tarot is also good to help us process the daily things that come up.

What are your limits as a deck? King of Discs- Kings are mature energy of a suit, and this deck is telling me there are few limits, but the best use of the deck is for the fulfillment of health and resources.

What are you here to teach me? Six of Wands- Always a card of triumph, often through sustained effort. Since this deck seems heavily focused on the material world, and how emotions affect our perception of that world, I can surmise that this deck will teach me to be victorious through sustained effort, which is both physical and emotional. It also reassures that the victory is mine, do I but see the effort through.

How can I best learn from and collaborate with you? Five of Cups- I need to be willing to cry, and cry hard. Like many people, I spend a lot of energy in the avoidance of tears, like they are a bad thing, a weak thing, or an unproductive thing. Fives are destabilized from the solid energy of Four and haven’t found the footing of the Six we just saw, and Cups concern our emotional landscape. Shit really does happen and need grieving at times, and allowing the space for that grief is a vital part of healing.

What is the potential outcome of our working relationship? Three of Swords- Okay no one likes seeing this shitty card, and there seems to be a lot of confusion about why the card of heartbreak belongs in the Airy, mind focused suit of Swords. My personal thought on this is the worst pain I ever feel is when what I thought to be true proves not to be. The story I have been running through my head, my perception of reality, actually is not real at all, at least to anyone but me. I don’t feel this deck is going to break my heart, but if it should, it will be the necessary breaking so that I can see the truth, whatever that may be, and not remain in a distorted truth of my own making.

I am unfamiliar with the work of Laura Zuspan, but a quick Google led me to her site. I am excited to embark on a new stage of tarot writing, with a new deck in hand to guide me along.