Tarot reading for the week ahead with the wildwood tarot
Welcome to our weekly tarot reading, where we look at the week ahead and see what’s coming up and what we might focus on.
I have a shelf at my desk where I keep three of my most used tarot decks. The Rider-Waite sits in a velvet wrap on the left side of the shelf. On the right side is the White Numen tarot. And the Wildwood sits in the middle of the two. And as I sat down, without looking, I reached up and grabbed a deck. And it ended up being the wildwood tarot. So today’s reading for our upcoming week will be with the wildwood tarot. In the shuffle, I asked for three cards for today’s reading to cover an energy to focus on, an energy to embrace, and an energy to release, and three cards fell out simultaneously. Let’s jump in.
The first card in our spread today is Ace of Bows, showing what we should focus on for the week ahead.
In this card, we see a forest scene with a fire just getting started. The bow in this image is used as a bow drill, with the arrow being the part that creates friction. We can see that the forest is green and lush, and we see the pink glow of sunrise at the beginning of a new day.
The card is labeled ‘The Spark of Life.’ Bows in this deck are associated with the element of fire. And represent actions, creativity, desire, passion, pleasure, compulsion, and addictions. You know the idiom ‘burning desire’ or ‘a burning issue.’ Those kinds of saying are related to this suit. In this card, we also see that the fire is just starting, but it’s not quite enough to cook with or use for warmth yet. This is the spark that ignites the fire. The bow drill in the image is the mechanism here that makes the fire possible. The bow represents ourselves, humans; we are part of the device that makes the fire. Arrow in this deck represents thoughts and ideas, and here we have the arrow making that first spark that becomes the fire. So without us and an idea, this fire doesn’t get started at all. This card tells us that the energy to focus on for this week is all about that spark of an idea that sets things into motion. It’s a new week, so go ahead and start the week new for yourself as well. Don’t carry the baggage of last week with you. Focus on new ideas, creations, and ways of doing things. This might be at work, but it can also be at home. Spice things up. Think of another way you can attack a problem at home or work. Either way, make this week about creating something new and implementing it.
Our next card shows us the energy to embrace, The Two of Arrows.
This card shows a woman wearing a dress, blindfolded, and holding two arrows in her hands at her chest. With her right foot, she steps on a bow. Hanging above her is a scale with a feather on one side and gold coins on the other. This image evokes our western idea of justice blindfolded so that she can be fair and impartial on whatever decisions must be made.
What’s heavier? A pound of feathers or a pound of gold? In elementary school, there was a time when this question came up often. Your first instinct would be to say ‘gold’ because gold is heavier than feathers. And it ended up being a great way for bullies to make other kids feel stupid and pick on them without noticing it. I fell for it once and was ridiculed for it. But I learned my lesson and grew up. This card shows that situation.
The woman on the card can’t see what’s on the scale. She can only know that it is balanced, yet if she opened her eyes and investigated it, she would realize that the scale is not balanced. The feather does not weigh the same as the gold coins, yet the scale shows otherwise. Who are we to trust? Our judgment? Or the scale? Today’s embrace card shows us that not all things are as they seem, and so this week, we should embrace the idea of taking a closer look at things before we accept them. Take off the blindfold and open your eyes. See what’s going on before getting hoodwinked into believing something untrue.
Our last card in this week’s look ahead is the Queen of Bows.
Here we see a hare standing alert and attentive. Her eyes are wide open, and she appears to sniff the air. I wonder what she sees. Is she sensing something coming? A predator or something that she should run from? We see it’s nighttime with the moon rising behind the hare, and a spiny rock formation rises over the landscape in the background.
We have another card from the suits of bows. When you have two cards from the same suit or two of the same number, it often means the energy is amplified by the other card. In this case, the suit of bows and all it represents will play a big part in the coming week. Bows are all about action, creativity, passion, and pleasure. The hare is a symbol of sexuality and fertility. And being a Queen, there is also a lot of feminine energy in this card. We see the moon rising which in many cultures is seen as a feminine goddess or a female energy. This Queen represents the energy of a fiery woman capable of deep love and passion. Of great warmth and also deep jealousy and rivalry. Getting on her wrong side is not advised.
But what I’m drawn to in this card is not her femininity but her attentiveness. The hare is alert and watchful. But I don’t understand why. Right now, we’re living in a time of great tension. Banks are failing, a war in Ukraine, tensions are flaring in Iran, and storms are ripping through communities. Don’t get me started on what is going on in politics in the U.S. We are all on edge; our cortisol levels are high, and we’re quickly depleting our adrenaline. And so this card asks us to let go of any energy this week that makes us on edge. That fight or flight response might get in the way of us actually enjoying our work or our lives. It can cause us to see threats that aren’t there. We can be tricked into thinking someone is out to get us when it’s not true. But our bodies react to it because we see and feel it. We go stiff, we shut down, and we can no longer be rational and civil. And we either run, or we fight. And we might not even understand why.
This week, look at any situations in your life where you feel the urge to fight or run. As you start to feel, this energy ask yourself, “why do I feel this?” Immediately your brain will switch to rational mode. Your body will react, allowing you the time to examine and decide if the threat is real. If it’s real, run or fight. If it isn’t, then a deeper analysis is needed. Go ahead and take the time to think o it and understand why you react the way you do. And then let it go. Release it from your mind, from your body. It’ll feel like you dropped a ton of bricks, and you might also feel better about life.
Thanks for reading today. If you enjoyed this reading or if it resonated with you, please leave a comment and let me know. Also, I’d love to know what came up for you from this reading. If it didn’t resonate with you, that’s ok. Not everything will. But consider sharing this with a friend who might need to hear this message today.
Also, I’ve been working on my offerings for personal readings. And I’ve come up with a special for my medium readers only. I’m offering a 25% discount on all my readings. When you place your order, enter the code MEDIUM25 to receive 25% off any reading. Clicking this link will take you to my store page. I look forward to doing a reading with you.
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