Tobaira of the Waters

Sophie

Every day since my leg went awry, Tobaira has shown up for me. She does not want me to forget her, she knows I must keep healing and listening to her counsel, bathing in her streams, tasting her sweet Alpine water.

She is like the home nurse that calls once a day, to make sure I've taken my medecine and check my pulse.


I asked her - you are coming to me everyday: what do I need to do that I am not doing yet, to assist your healing?

She gave me the Bright Mother. Nurture...

But that's another thread :)
 

Satori

Monday we chanted for you H.
It was fun.
And throughout the day, the kids would sing, "Helvetica....Heal...Helvetica!" It was so sweet!

I think Tobaira approved.
 

Sophie

Aha! And Monday I was feeling much better!
Thanks elf - and your children :)

Tobaira would approve, I am sure.

I see her everywhere these days - see her, hear her, smell her, taste her, feel her. Especially when I walk in the woods. She's a live presence.
 

Amashelle

Sweet Tobaira

I hope I'm not overstepping any bounds, I'm sort of new here, but of any card, in any deck, that I would choose to comment on, this is it.

I got the Faeries' Oracle about four years ago, and Tobaira was one of the first cards I was drawn to, but my impressions of her are somewhat different from what has already been mentioned here, so I thought I'd share them.

When I look at Tobaira's card, my heart reaches out to her. She is like the Laume, in some ways: they both deal with the pain and sorrow and NEED of the world. Tobaira may be surrounded by others who would gladly help her in her work, but her eyes are closed to them; she is so caught up in the pains of our world that she has trouble remembering she is not alone. What's more, the grumpy goblin lurks behind her, annoyed because she cleans his murky waters, but also a reminder that her work is never done.

Tobaira reminds me that we all need to do our part to lessen the sorrows that surround us. The faeries may enjoy helping out, guiding us, watching over us --- or healing us (or helping us to heal ourselves, as the case may be), as Tobaira did for you, Fudugazi, but the exchange can be worked both ways.

I feel Tobaira with me when I smile at strangers in the street, or when I make peace with my sister after one of our quarrels (or when I remember not to quarrel in the first place, which is always better). She is the gentle voice that inspires good will and harmony.

I can see why she would come to you, Fudugazi. She is a healer in a lot of ways, and you're right: blood is water, too. But she is also an alchemest, not the way Nelys is an alchemist, because Nelys' transformations are irrevocable, but in the way that Tobaira takes one thing and changes it into another. She is an empath, reaching through the water to all of us, taking our grief and sorrow and changing it into faith and love.

If you lay the cards out, in order (starting with #1), into thirteen columns (five rows), Tobaira lands under the Singer of Transfiguration. I think this is significant. I don't remember reading about it in the book, so I don't know if it was done on purpous, but I am sure it was done by faerie design. A lot of the cards take on another dimention of meaning when you look at them this way.

Not sure how much sense that made, a lot of it was just spewed out, and I do my best not to edit when Faerie insights are concerned ;). Again, hope I'm not stepping on any toes, and if I am, I do appologize!
 

Sophie

Just found this thread again! Nearly four years since this happened. Tobaira saved my life and calmed by fears, back then...I was posting in the middle of the worst health crisis in my life.


Amashelle - I love what you say! With hindsight, I agree with you. This crisis, and Tobaira's gentle, empathetic, action, transformed my life. I've not been the same person since - so much of my life changed (including my screen name ;)). But, as you say - hers is gentle, incremental change.

Amashelle said:
She is like the Laume, in some ways: they both deal with the pain and sorrow and NEED of the world. Tobaira may be surrounded by others who would gladly help her in her work, but her eyes are closed to them; she is so caught up in the pains of our world that she has trouble remembering she is not alone. What's more, the grumpy goblin lurks behind her, annoyed because she cleans his murky waters, but also a reminder that her work is never done.
What you write here touches me on an even deeper level. You see, at the time this happened to me, I was still working as a humanitarian worker. I was WHOLLY caught up in the pains of the world, and could see very little else. I forgot myself...I felt guilty if I thought of leaving that type of work. It was my life! It took this health wake-up call and Tobaira's gentle prodding - or perhaps the mirror she held up to me in her clear waters - to realise that if I didn't look after myself, I'd be no good to anyone else.

Hard lesson to learn, and I'm still trying to perfect that balance. It precipitated a Hermit period that is still not entirely ended. I wrote myself out of that time - writing being in my blood (as natural as mountain water!).

And I am learning to become a natural healer: the first rule of which is that a healer cannot help anyone without healing herself as well.


Yes, Tobaira is an alchemist, and a peacemaker: and she teaches that peace, like charity, begins at home.


Thank you for that most beautiful of insignts. I see I still have a lot to learn about these amazing faeries.
 

Amashelle

Fudugazi said:
Yes, Tobaira is an alchemist, and a peacemaker: and she teaches that peace, like charity, begins at home.

I think you've nailed Tobaira's lesson on the head, here --- you found the words I was looking for but couldn't put together at the time. It is a very imortant lesson that we all struggle with, but as you said, Tobaira is patient and gentle with us, even when we aren't listening.

And I don't think any of us will ever learn everything we can about the faeries and their lessons; there's too much to know, and the lessons grow as we do. Maybe that's another message Tobaira can give to us: just as there are always more waters to change, more people to touch, we will never really stop growing and learning. We are all caught up in the ever-changing river of life, flowing along, sometimes crashing against rocks and dams that divert our course, or trickling on through droughts, or getting caught up in the floods. We flow into and diverge from other rivers as our relationships grow and change... it's a play on an old metaphor, I know, but life really is more like a river than a road, don't you think?

I don't know, it's a thought that just came to me.
 

Jewel

Amashelle, welcome to the Faeries Oracle study group, and please never feel as if you are going to step on anyone's toes. I think you said it best when you said none of us will learn everything the faeries have to teach, but by sharing we can all expand our perceptions, awareness, and knowledge. That is exactly what this forum is here for.

I look forward to you sharing more of yours with us.
 

Amashelle

Thank you, Jewel :) Mostly I was just worried that I was skipping over some sort of joining-procedure, so I'm glad to hear I wasn't. Tobaira is my favorite card in this deck, and has been almost since I got it six or seven odd years ago, so I just had to put in my impressions of her.
 

DragonFae

First the reversed presentation: Hmmm perhaps telling us that we all need to get in touch with our emotional selves and that are spirits are "thirsty" for us to provide them with a cool drink of water to refresh them.

This is a card of choice: cool calming faery waters or turbulent, boiling emotions. We have to recognize that we have a choice and we make the choice.

Also I think of the fluid changing nature of water. I think the water represents what we need at any given time......in other words we find what we need NOT what we seek. Sometimes they are the same but not always.
Reversed the card also speaks of calming down and quieting the waters before making decisions...probably never a bad thing.

Water...we are.... like what.... made up of a large percentage of water.... does that mean we have the healing power of water inside each of us...but we just need to figure out how to access it?
 

Jewel

DragonFae said:
Water...we are.... like what.... made up of a large percentage of water.... does that mean we have the healing power of water inside each of us...but we just need to figure out how to access it?
Yes that is exactly correct. We are born about 70% water. If you want to learn more about this I would highly recommend you read the books on water crystals by Masaru Emoto. I just finished reading The Hidden Messages in Water, I really got a lot from it and hope to read more of his books.

When I first started working with teh faeries oracle I used to use reversals with it (like I do with tarot), after I got to know these guys and they became interactive and much more than cards I quit because they just flat out tell me what they have to say without need of the reversals *LOL*.