Hallowquest Lesson 3: The Goddess of the Land

Gwyddbwyll meditation

The meditation actually started when I started laying the cards in the gwyddbwyll pattern.
To keep it short, it the suitcorners I feel the energy of the seasons, summer, autumn, winter, spring.
In some cards I feel really at home and I know what time of the day it is. The suits start at dawn and end at night, start with a two and end with the nine. The cycle is there in every aspect of this deck.
In the middle everything comes together, the integration of all and everything leads to the goddess.

kaz

Hello,

I performed the 'Gwyd...' meditation. It was a little strange and not completely what I was expecting. Immediately afterwards I thought that I'd done it 'wrong' etc but I suppose there is no wrong way to do things, so here goes.

I initially found myself feeling quite safe and enclosed within the cards on the floor. I felt excitement about the possibility of meeting the people within the cards and felt a sense of friendliness. On reflection this was good as I have a sense of trepedation about some of the cards. I sort of felt myself lying on the cards as if I was in a meadow and had a feeling that I was in some way similar to Alice in Wonderland, waiting for the white rabbit to lead me down the hole. I mentally saw myself very small in the cards, the very big. When I opened my eyes I felt quite attracted to the 'White Hare' which I related to the rabbit in Alice and Wonderland.

Have fun

Kai

kai, how interesting, Alice's journey into Wonderland and its relationship to our journey into another world. I hadn't thought of it in that way before.

Aerin, off to ponder

How do you feel about being a citizen of your country?

Bit confusing really. Which country? I've always felt like I didn't really belong. I grew up in England and it never really felt like me. Also it didn't feel like it had a identity. Wales has always felt more like home but it has such a strong national identity that it is hard to feel part of it if you're not actually welsh.
If I take myself as a citizen of Britain then I suppose I am fairly proud to be British. Whilst we can be said to have had questionable periods in our history we are a nation with something of a conscience. We take a lead in many ways in climate change talks, humanitarian issues etc. We may not always get it right but at least we make some effort.

What would your country look like as a country?

I think Britain would be a middle aged woman. She has been through her willfull impetuous maiden phase, empire building, the crusades. Now she has some maturity and represents the mother aspect of the godess. She has that caring, maternal instinct but still hasn't developed the wisdom of the crone. Her clothing would be mainly green and blues but with dirty damaged patches representing the harm done to her by industry, landfill, quarrying etc.

What characteristics are particular to your country?

Being traditional, reserved, hidding our emotions
Taliesin, Sword Maiden

What healing does it need?

As a country we tend to spend all our time talking and not doing. We expend so much time debating things and going round and round in circles that we never get round to putting anything into action.
We need a kick up the backside to make us get up and do something. Spear Maiden

What is the countries poetic name? Albion

Gwyddbwyll Board Meditation

I didn't get any profound realisations from this meditation but it was quite a medative, trance like experience setting the cards out.
I found it gave a really clear comparison of the different characteristics of the different courts. Also many of the cards that were next to each other had very similar pictures. eg. Sword 7 and sword 3. The sword 7 has a river running through the card with a sword stuck in a block of stone in the centre whilst the sword 3 has a road running through it with a sword falling through a stone bridge in the centre. Equally the spear 3 has an S shaped path running up the card and the spear 8 an S shaped river running down the card etc.. Is there reason for this? Do these pairs of cards have a special relationship? Don't know the answers to these questions yet. I'll have to give it some thought.

I've laid out the cards like this a few times - takes up a lot of room doesn't it?

The connections you point out are interesting. I think I tend to notice the colours more than the details, it looks so beautiful laid out.

We are very much in Stone round here at the moment.

Yeah it takes up loads of room. I ended up having to set it out on the bed as it was the only place that I really had space.
I know what you mean about the colours. There is quite a pattern to the colours in the majors aswell. There are little clusters of similar colours together.
I might try this layout with some of my other tarot decks to see if there are any patterns apparent with those.

I hadn't thought of using other decks for that layout. Let us know how you get on...

Pathwalker - lesson three

HallowQuest Lesson Three.

1. How do you feel about being a citizen of your country?
I feel glad to be born and live in this country, but I don’t enjoy some aspects of our society or (general) government. The land itself is beautiful and sacred, ancient myths and sites inspire me to see myself as part of a chain; and I want to be able to make a positive change.
I despair of the poisoning of the land – and the planet; the greed of so many of the people, and the lack of spirituality and goodness. I am ashamed of dirty dealings, racism, neglect and cruely.

2. If you could visualise your land as a person, what would it look like?
An old, old woman, tough and lined like the mountains and rocks, capable of anger and even violence against the foolish and cruel. But also so gentle, like river meadows on summer’s days, or lambs in Lakeland fields. Or an old gnarled shepherd – wise, capable, giving, nurturing, knowing what to do, even when it’s a time of death. Not wasteful, re-using, seeing the potential in things.

3. What national characteristics are particular to your country?
Polite reserve.
Conservative outlook.
Talking about the weather.
Kindness to animals, dogs especially.
Interest in history and lineage.
Respect for royalty and class.
Superior attitude to foreigners.

No cards really strike me as conveying those things. Several of the castles make me think of “An Englishman’s home is his castle”, and a couple of the cards show ancient monuments. In grail two someone has put out a dish of water for birds to drink.

Did I miss the point here? Will check out what others made of this when I’ve finished.

4. See your country’s failings, what kind of healing does it need?
Greed/ selfishness.
Misuse of land/resources.
Aggression – personal and national.
Lack of spiritual direction.
Constant need for “entertainment” (electronic gadgets and so on).

I felt that many of the major cards expressed qualities that would my country heal, Guinevere, Gawain, the Hermit, Star, Lady of the Lake, Cauldron, even cards like the Tower would help bring change.

5. What is your country’s romantic or poetic name?
It’s most common name is Albion, but I also think of the land in much earlier times as “Land of Trees” as woods covered much of the lowland, and I personally am very interested in trees

Pathwalker
)O(

HallowQuest Lesson Three

Tasks:

1. As you go about daily in your locality, feel the different energies of the streets, green places, buildings etc. Which areas make you confident, unsure, depressed, etc?

Most of the area around the hamlet where I live is fairly neutral. There is an area at the top of the small hill to the north – where three roads meet – which invokes mixed feelings in me. There is a large roughly triangular grass area in the centre, with trees. One Oak, to the west, has a great welcoming energy. The trees to the north cast a much darker feeling. I intend to draw a map, and dowse the whole triangle.
An old isolated church on a hilltop a few miles away is a spot that draws me. I’d like to find out more about the age of the church, and the site, there’s a pool right beside it too.
I like a certain spot on the edge of a field facing east nearby, from where I can see the iron age fort on the hill.
I think such spots are, for me, often linked to specific trees, often Oaks.

2. Choose an area in your locality which according to you is in need of healing. Do what you can practically e.g. clearing rubbish. In addition, every day actively beseech spiritual help and send it to the area choosing a card if appropriate to focus your meditation.

There’s a certain spot on the hill where lads park up and drink cans, and natter I guess, and throw their rubbish into the hedge and ditch. I clear cans from there, and recycle them. I hadn’t thought of a card or photo yet to keep calling that area to mind for a focus.


3. Choose a local area which according to you feels unsafe. Dedicate it to a specific deity, archetype, healing energy or power and invoke its help e.g. by prayer, meditation, ritual. Give it a nice name (the area) particularly if you usually think of it by a nasty one.

It occurs to me that the stretch of motorway which runs just tow fields away from my house is probably the biggest threat near to me. I often see blue lights rushing along there at night, or see lanes of stationary traffic. I think that associating it in my mind with some of the qualities of Helios, the Greek god who drove the chariot of the sun across the sky could be a good. The folks in their vehicles need to be awake, seeing clearly, and not deviating from their set course. That might help quite a bit.

4. Create a closing affirmation to end each meditation e.g. 'From that world to this world I return from (card name) to my own time and place.

“I have walked with/in ………..
and followed my quest.
Now I step back through the doorway
and travel in my journal.”


Meditation.

There didn’t seem anywhere in the house big enough to spread the cards out – so I put a white sheet down in the garden circle, and did it there. I took a photo, but I don’t think it will be good enough to see details, just to remind me of the occasion.
First thing I notice is that sitting at ground level doesn’t really give you much of a viewing vantage point. (Perhaps it’s not supposed to – reminding you that you are down there walking the board, not ‘up there’ with your ego, feeling above it?)
The grass underneath the sheet is very long, and so very uneven. The resulting Mandala is slipping and misshapen, sometimes smooth and aligned, sometimes rough and twisting. Okay, that seems clear enough!
When I laid out the cards I was tempted to reverse the positions of the Seeker and the Flowering of Logres (they seemed better the other way round) – but now that I look at them I see that as I step out as the Seeker I will first come to the Grail Court, which indeed I will in a few weeks.
I chose though to sit in the shady corner, which turned out to be the Sword court. I already feel affinity with the Sword (from path-working not connected to this pack) so this felt fine too.
I stopped there, because even though I was sitting on the ground at the end of the garden with a sheet, a deck and a book, everyone in the house had to come down at some time and see what I was doing – so not very meditative really