The Emperor

The Emperor - This card is the archetypal Father. When we remember how God was taught to us in Sunday school this card is most representative of that. He is Zeus. The ram heads on his throne, and shoulder are the give away, for Zeus was associated with the Egyptian Ammon, the ram headed god. He is Father as seen through the eyes of a child, filled with unshakable beliefs, volatile dictator of The Law. The Mother is "flow" and "ease", but He is immovable, as his throne and the mountains behind him suggest.
When he shows up in a spread father or fathering issues are being addressed. He is the enforcer of social thought, its ideals, its mores. He is the super ego, not the more realistic ego, and can be a very devilish figure to those who don't learn to temper his wisdom with a little kindness. In film he was portrayed as the tin woodsman who was prone to being rigid, and needed a heart.

Like the Empress he wears a 12 part crown (though the 2 sides and back 5 are inferred) because he is father of all living. The red and white gems refer to lunar and solar, female and male, i.e. "all living". The three part "flower" on his crown refers to the three part nature of true God ( the mother/father principle often just called the void; the child of the void whom most think is there spirit guide; and the mirror or twin of the child who we are, who is the traveler and the adventurer into creation). The yellows, oranges and reds refer to his fiery nature, as well as his carnal nature - our personal, genetic fathers. There is water in his card because just as the tin man already had a "heart", and male and female can appear separate, on a greater level they are the polarized aspects of one, and are always connected. The flow of his hair and clothing means the same thing - he seems all male but is always connected to his other self, the Empress. The globe in his hand represents both the earth, his wife, and the sun, for his energy is often too harsh and solar. The staff could be seen as stylized genitals, saying yet again his energy is masculine; or as a stylized caduceus - the circle is the cerebellum, the wings are the cerebrum, and the rod is the spinal cord, with his fingers wrapped serpentine at the base indicating again that his energy is masculine. The stone throne and bare mountains, even his armor indicate his immovable opinions and attitude.

The Empress

The Empress - This card is the archetypal Mother, with a capitol "M". She is Mater and matter. She represents all the joys and troubles you have ever had with mother figures, and mothering. She is Ninharsag who created modern man. But more she is Nature.

When reading the Major Arcana as "the Book of Life" this card is the supreme governess of Life. And she tests her children - is the duckling sound enough to break free of his shell, is the child robust enough to survive childhood disease. It is her's to oversee Life's balance; impersonal life, nature. She is also the loving mother, but when it comes to nature vs ego, the continuance of Life takes precedence over the continuance of a life. She is all that is good in life, pure waters, fruitful orchards, laughing children; but she also allows into life that which will ultimately be sacrificed for the good of the whole - fruits, crops, deformed wildebeast calves...

In mundane terms she is also the cerebellum. Here are a few examples of the unconscious processes the cerebellum oversees:
Every second we loose 10 million cells, and in the next second it makes another 10 million to replace them. Every one of the 100 trillion cells in the body goes through 100,000 chemical reactions every sec. There are 3.2 billion nucleic acids that make up the genes in one cell, and enzymes are sent up and down those chains all the time repairing mutations. It runs all the organized processes of digestion.
This is why the cerebellum is called the house of God/dess in man.

When she shows up in a spread mothering is the issue. It may be mothering one's own children, or how the querent is being mothered. It could be pregnancy or infertility(some people have so many children in one life they get to have a life free of child care). It could even be Nature herself saying you need to be more aligned with her, more respectful of her needs and powers.

The symbolism in the card reads thus - She wears the 12 starred crown of all living, which is to say: all living were born under one of the 12 signs of the zodiac, and she is queen of that. The pearls at her neck are 7 in number, which says the lessons enfolded in the seven seals are only understandable lessons if you have a body with which to interact with matter. The pearls are the wisdom gained from those lessons. The fruits (pomegranates) on her dress are stylized to look like the symbol for both female and Venus, indicating sexual reproduction. The rod and globe in her hand is a stylized brainstem and cerebellum. She reclines on red cushions that indicate the carnal nature of birth and survival in nature. Her couch is on a raised earthen mound(pregnant belly of nature) surrounded by the waters (her nurturing fluids) on one side, and grains (all of us alive) in front. The tree above her left hand also is indicative of the cerebellum as director of the body's unconscious processes.

Live Avian Flu Virus Placed in Baxter Vaccine Materials Sent to 18 Countries

Vaccines as Biological Weapons? Live Avian Flu Virus Placed in Baxter Vaccine Materials Sent to 18 Countries

(NaturalNews) There's a popular medical thriller novel in which a global pandemic is intentionally set off by an evil plot designed to reduce the human population. In the book, a nefarious drug company inserts live avian flu viruses into vaccine materials that are distributed to countries around the world to be injected into patients as "flu shots." Those patients then become carriers for these highly-virulent strains of avian flu which go on to infect the world population and cause widespread death.

There's only one problem with this story: It's not fiction. Or, at least, the part about live avian flu viruses being inserted into vaccine materials isn't fiction. It's happening right now.

Deerfield, Illinois-based pharmaceutical company Baxter International Inc. has just been caught shipping live avian flu viruses mixed with vaccine material to medical distributors in 18 countries. The "mistake" (if you can call it that, see below...) was discovered by the National Microbiology Laboratory in Canada. The World Health Organization was alerted and panic spread throughout the vaccine community as health experts asked the obvious question: How could this have happened?

As published on LifeGen.de (http://www.lifegen.de/newsip/showne...), serious questions like this are being raised:

"Baxter International Inc. in Austria 'unintentionally contaminated samples with the bird flu virus that were used in laboratories in 3 neighbouring countries, raising concern about the potential spread of the deadly disease'. Austria, Germany, Slowenia and the Czech Republic - these are the countries in which labs were hit with dangerous viruses. Not by bioterrorist commandos, but by Baxter. In other words: One of the major global pharmaceutical players seems to have lost control over a virus which is considered by many virologists to be one of the components leading some day to a new pandemic."

Or, put another way, Baxter is acting a whole lot like a biological terrorism organization these days, sending deadly viral samples around the world. If you mail an envelope full of anthrax to your Senator, you get arrested as a terrorist. So why is Baxter -- which mailed samples of a far more deadly viral strain to labs around the world -- getting away with saying, essentially, "Oops?"

But there's a bigger question in all this: How could this company have accidentally mixed LIVE avian flu viruses (both H5N1 and H3N2, the human form) in this vaccine material?

Was the viral contamination intentional?
The shocking answer is that this couldn't have been an accident. Why? Because Baxter International adheres to something called BSL3 (Biosafety Level 3) - a set of laboratory safety protocols that prevent the cross-contamination of materials.

"Laboratory personnel have specific training in handling pathogenic and potentially lethal agents, and are supervised by competent scientists who are experienced in working with these agents. This is considered a neutral or warm zone. All procedures involving the manipulation of infectious materials are conducted within biological safety cabinets or other physical containment devices, or by personnel wearing appropriate personal protective clothing and equipment. The laboratory has special engineering and design features."

The High Priestess

The High Priestess - This is the card which has dominion over what will and will not be allowed to manifest at a given time. Did you ever wonder why you could work and work, bitch, demand, weep and sulk, and still your God/dess did not send that one thing, that wealth, fame, soulmate... Well this it the card that addresses that.

When reading the Major Arcana as "the Book of Life" this card is Hecate, the supreme governess of the borders between the normal world and the spirit world. She knows all about the Fool's past life, and his game plan for this life, and will gift him with a new body only if he is deserving, because bodies are in hot demand.

In a spread this card may stand for the querent as the one who must ultimately decide whether or not to "step through the door" of opportunity opened by the Magus; whether to stay engaged in the comfortable known, or to engage an unknown. In mundane terms this is the cerebrum, charged with the duty of seeing to it that we survive, unfortunately survival can be a gilded cage, one that ultimately shortens life, because there is no reason for a stagnant life to go on. On another level this card may be saying that you do not deserve your soulmate (or what ever) yet. Perhaps you haven't learned to love yourself yet. If not, how can you love your other self? You are the same person. And further, sometimes we don't get what we want because it is the carrot spirit is using to drag us forward, out of tradition, out of judgemental attitudes, out of stagnation and into evolution.

The symbolism in the cards reads thus -
Her foot is on the moon because she has risen above her lesser, lunar/estrogenic nature. Hekate was a virgin Goddess. She sits at the gateway of rebirth. The pillars are paired male and female, just as people are on this material plane. The veil behind her is covered with pomegranates, and palms, the tree and fruit most symbolic of motherhood. But this goddess obstructs the way. In her hand is a scroll that says "Tora_", Torah (Hebrew: "learning" or "instruction," sometimes translated as "Law") which likely has the verdict in it as to the Fool's fate, rebirth or wait. She has the symbol of the cross roads on her chest. Her crown is a stylized brain, with frontal lobe, and the two hemispheres as wings or horns. Her clothes are blue-white to indicate her spectral nature, as well as her virginity.

The Magus

The Magus - This is the card that represents the action of making manifest a physical object. And it represents the spiritual truth "as above so below".
When reading the Major Arcana as "the Book of Life" this card is, in fact, Hermes the psychopomp. He is guiding the Fool through the process of rebirth. Most people need to be helped through the process because, either they aren't aware going back is an option, and. or they don't recall how they did it last time, having drunk the waters of forgetfullness.

In a spread the Magus may stand for the querent as a manifestor. We all are manifesting our current reality all the time. If reversed it may indicate that the querent is creating their lives unconsciously, rather with intent and purpose. It can also mean that something is very close to manifestation. It can mean pregnancy.

The symbolism in the cards reads thus -
First, he is standing amidst a garden of lilies and roses. The lilies represent the underworld goddess, the High Priestess. The roses represent the mother goddess, the Empress. The Magus works with both of them. The lily goddess of the underworld/afterworld may permit or deny the Fool be released from her realm, perhaps judging that he did not live well in his past life and so he must wait while the more deserving get their turn to be reborn. The Rose/Mother goddess may also accept or refuse the person seeking reincarnation. The table in front of the Magus is all of the physical plane, and it has on it emblems of the four elements of which everything on this realm is made(staves for fire, cups for water, sword for air, and the pentacle coin for earth). He wears the ourobouros, symbolic of reincarnation(the snake became associated with many lives because of an old sumerian pun, where the word -ti meant both life and rib) as a belt. He wears white and red as the colors of life and death. The infinity symbol over his head recalls to us the forever ongoingness of life, with or without the body. The wand he has upraised is really Hermes wand, the Caduceus, which is the central nervous system with the kundalini rising up from the base. Having it uplifted tells us his main purpose, in this card, is to renew physical life.

The Fool

The Fool - this is the card which represents any person about to embark on a new adventure. And it represents the spiritual directive - Go forth and make known the unknown.

When reading the Major Arcana as "the Book of Life" the Fool is the virginal soul seeking rebirth. Virginal not necessarily in that it has never been born before, but in that it has drunk from the waters of forgetfullness, and has no memory of past lives to hamper it in this lifetime.

In a spread The fool may indicate that a would-be child spirit is near the questioner, seeking a chance for rebirth. Or, more likely, that the querent will soon have the opportunity to embark on a new adventure in life, the opportunity is becoming manifest.

But why does this card say these things?
First, he is striding down a mountain out of the lofty heights. This means descent from an etheric place into a more material state. He is at the cliff's edge. This referrs to the unpleasant falling sensation that often accompanies a return to the body after astral travel. His yellow boots say he is immature. The white rose and undergarments say he has been cleansed of his memory of his past life, or possibly he has never been incarnate before. The rod, or stave he carries is of the element of fire and represents the kundalini, which is the life force - notice how it seems finite, but when you look closer it might go on and on; this is because, I am told, if you keep making known the unknown you don't fall into stagnation and therefore there is no reason for God to shorten your life. The dog and the sack represent two aspects of the soul; the dog represents the guide (before we are born we create a destiny for our selves, which is suposed to help us resolve our imbalances, and this destiny is carried in the soul), and the sack represents the recorder of this life's events. Like a beechcomber's bag we get to fill it up with grand memories(and likely some not so grand). His dress represents his mother's fruitful womb, rather like the caul and the afterbirth. The feather in his hat is the new brain he is comming into possession of, with his new body.

Minor Arcana

In the Minor Arcana we have 16 face cards, four representing each of the elements, in each of the four suites, which also represent the four elements. The King is Fire, the Queen is Water, the Knight is Air, and the Page is Earth.; no matter which suit they are in. These represent the four personality types: phlegmatic - water, melancholic - earth, sanguine - air, and choleric - fire; multiplied by themselves. So, if you look at the King of Cups, for instance, he is the fire of water, which is to say he is a choleric-phlegmatic personality type. If you looked at the Queen of cups, the water of water, she would be just phlegmatic. Of the sixteen, twelve represent both the signs of the zodiac, and corespond to the major Greek gods. The other four represent the cusps that fall on the quarters of the year, and also corespond to a major greek god

Choleric.......Fire/Wands...... Zeus(Sagitt), *Hera, Ares(Aries), Heracles(Leo)

Sanguine.......Air/Swords...... Apollo(Gemini), Athene(Aquarius), Hermes(Libra), *Artemis

Phlegmatic.....Water/Cups...... Neptune(Cancer), Aphrodite(Pisces), *Eros, Dionysus(scorpio)

Melancholic....Earth/Coins..... *Hades, Demeter(Taurus), Hephaestus(Capricorn), Persephone(Virgo)


*four cusps, at solstices and equinoxes -

Pisces/Aries - water of fire - Queen of Wands - VE - Hera

Gemini/Cancer - Air of Water - Knight of Cups - MS - Eros

Virgo/Libra - Earth of Air - page of swords - AE - Artemis

Sagitt/Capri - Fire of Earth - King of Coins - WE - Hades


Choleric: A person who is choleric is a doer and a leader. They have a lot of ambition, energy, and passion, and try to instill it in others. They can dominate people of other temperaments, especially phlegmatic types. Many great charismatic military and political figures were cholerics. On the negative side, they are easily angered or bad-tempered. - Testosterone

Melancholic: a person who is a thoughtful ponderer has a melancholic disposition. Often very kind and considerate, melancholics can be highly creative – as in poetry and art - but also can become overly pre-occupied with the tragedy and cruelty in the world, thus becoming depressed. The temperament is associated with the season of fall/autumn (dry and cold) and the element earth. A melancholic is also often a perfectionist, being very particular about what they want and how they want it in some cases. This often results in being unsatisfied with one's own artistic or creative works and always pointing out to themselves what could and should be improved - Melatonin

Sanguine: A person who is sanguine is generally light-hearted, funloving, a people person, loves to entertain, spontaneous, and confident. However they can be arrogant, cocky, and indulgent. He/She can be day-dreamy and off-task to the point of not accomplishing anything and can be impulsive, possibly acting on whims in an unpredictable fashion. - Serotonin

Phlegmatic: While phlegmatics are generally self-content and kind, their shy personality can often inhibit enthusiasm in others and make themselves lazy and resistant to change. They are very consistent, relaxed, rational, curious, and observant, making them good administrators and diplomats. Like the sanguine personality, the phlegmatic has many friends. However the phlegmatic is more reliable and compassionate; these characteristics typically make the phlegmatic a more dependable friend. - Estrogen


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Temperaments#Temperament_Blends
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humorism

“These studies are a spur...

...to the young, a delight to the old; an ornament in prosperity, a consoling refuge in adversity; they are pleasure for us at home, and no burden abroad; they stay up with us at night, they accompany us when we travel...” - Marcus Tullius Cicero

Two of my all time favorite authors are Jean Shinoda-Bolen,M. D., who wrote "The Goddess in Every Woman", and Clarissa Pinkola Estes, Ph.D, who wrote "Women Who Run With Wolves". Both are Jungian analysts. After reading them, I had to read the master -Jung. He found the Tarot's Major Arcana to be a set of archetypes.

archetype –noun
1.the original pattern or model from which all things of the same kind are copied or on which they are based; a model or first form; prototype.
2.(in Jungian psychology) a collectively inherited unconscious idea, pattern of thought, image, etc., universally present in individual psyches.

So I went searching for a set of archetypal figures that fit the cards, and I found the Titans. The first set of matches is most likely, and very tidy, But some titan's have little mythos left to read, unless you can reliable give them their summerian names, and so I made a second list with names that may seem more memorable or harmonious. And after all, an archetype by any name, is likely still the same.

22 Major Arcana -

0 - Fool - Any man or woman

1 - Magus - Epimetheus, he and his brother created beasts and man.
2 - High Prstss - Pandora, her box is both funerary and womb - speaking about rebirth

3 - Empress - Rhea, her name means ease, and flow
4 - Emperor - Zeus

5 - Heirophant - Oceanus(he is pictured as a man-fish or man-serpent and is wise like Ea
6 - Lovers - Tethys, she draws the waters up from the earth or down from the sky

7 - Chariot - Crius/aries, his name means Ram
8 - Strength - Eurybia means wide strength or force

9 - Hermit - Coeus/Polus ("the inquirer"and north Pillar)
10 - Wheel of F - Phoebe as queen of the turning heavens

11 - Justice - Themis/Libra
12 - Hanged Man - Prometheus

13 - Death - Cronus/Khronos
14 - Temperance - Uranus

15 - Devil - Iapetos ("the piercer" and west pillar)
16 - tower - Klymene("fame")

17 - Star - Aphrodite, seaborn of Uranos

18 - Moon - Theia Euryphaessa as Moon goddess
19 - Sun - Helios Hyperion ("watcher from above" or "he who goes above" east Pillar)

20 - Day of J - Mnemosyne - "memory" - keeps the waters of Memory as opposed to Lethe
21 - World - Gaia

The above are mostly in pairs, husband and wife, or mother and child.

More Memorable -

0 - Fool - Epimetheus - "after thought" He was called a fool in Olympian times, for several reasons
1 - Magus - Hermes - as psycho pomp
2 - High Prstss - Hecate or Persephone, as she who allows the dead rebirth
3 - Empress - Rhea - Mother
4 - Emperor - Zeus - Father
5 - Heirophant - Oceanus/Ea - Teacher
6 - Lovers - Pandora, Helen and Paris - Choice
7 - Chariot - Crius or Athene - Force or Power
8 - Strength - Eurybia/Leo - Tame the animal nature
9 - Hermit - Coeus ("the inquirer"and north Pillar) - The Observer
10 - Wheel of F - Fortuna - Fate, Genetics
11 - Justice - Themis - Law, Natural law
12 - Hanged Man - Prometheus or Dionysus - Midlife crisis, spiritual rebirth
13 - Death - Cronus - to heal from the past and do away with it.
14 - Temperance - Atlas or Apollo - the wisdom gained by resolving the past creates virtue/temperance
15 - Devil - Pan(panic, fear) - That fear which keeps us within the sphere of what is known, rather than evolving.
16 - tower - Menoetius or Nemesis - Death, if you can't defeat the challenge of the devil card
17 - Star - Aphrodite(Venus = morning star = sirius/Sothis) - light at the end of the tunnel
18 - Moon - Selene as Moon goddess - Heaven #2, the earth bound realm
19 - Sun - Hyperion - Heaven #3 visible light
20 - Day of J - Mnemosyne - "memory"- the light or life review. On the day that the soul is healed of its shame and guilt and anger, it is pure and may pass to higher heavens. This only happens if the person "drinks not of the waters of Lethe"
21 - World - Gaia - the four higher heavens

Thus we see that the Major Arcana, as well as describing the archetypes also tell the tale of a person from before rebirth to after death, or to the transcendence of death which happens if the person is able to defeat the challenge the Devil represents. To this second person the Tower is the alchemical reduction of all that person's remaining dogmas, judgments, prejudices... essentially all that remains of the human animal. The Star then is the birth of Christ consciousness. All of the heavens are open to them, and when the soul is reviewed it is found spotless.

The Terraces of Purgatory - Mordor and the ascent of Mount Doom

Dante's Terraces of Purgatory

First Terrace: Pride, by carrying a heavy weight on their backs. The wearer is unable to stand up straight (Cantos X through XII). This teaches the sinner that pride puts weight on the soul and it is better to throw it off. Furthermore, there are stones of historical and mythological examples of pride to learn from. With the weight on one's back, one cannot help but see this carved pavement and learn from it.

Second Terrace: Envy, by having one's eyes sewn shut, and wearing clothing that makes the soul indistinguishable from the ground (Cantos XIII through XV).

Third Terrace: Wrath, by walking around in acrid smoke (Cantos XV through XVII). Souls correct themselves by learning how wrath has blinded their vision, impeding their judgment.

Fourth Terrace: Sloth, by continually running (Cantos XVIII and XIX). Those who were slothful in life can only purge this sin by being zealous in their desire for penance.

Fifth Terrace: Avarice & Prodigality, by lying face-down on the ground, unable to move (Cantos XIX through XXI). Excessive concern for earthly goods - whether in the form of greed or extravagance - is punished and purified. The sinner learns to turn his desire from possessions, power, or position, to God.

Sixth Terrace: Gluttony, by abstaining from any food or drink (Cantos XXII through XXIV). Here, people's desire to eat a forbidden fruit causes their shade to starve. Once they master their desire to be a glutton, their appetite for sin leaves them and they are no longer starved by it.

Seventh Terrace: Lust, by burning in an immense wall of flames (Cantos XXV through XXVII). All of those who committed sexual sins, both heterosexual and homosexual, are purified by the fire. Excessive sexual desire misdirects one's love from God and this terrace is meant to correct that. In addition, perhaps because all sin has its roots in love, every soul who has completed his penance on the lower six cornices must pass through the wall of flame before ascending to the Earthly Paradise.

I think the parallels are obvious. I am not sure why Tolkien wanted this in his Master work, but there it is.

Where ever you go, there you are...

... still the center of your own universe, still a captive in the Matrix, the Ring of
Doom remains intact.

Different cultures and authors have chosen to associate the elements with different points of the compass. The earliest reference to this I have seen is in the way the tribes of Israel were directed to camp around the temple while Moses led them through the wilderness. On the east side was Judah the Lion. Ephraim was on the west was the ox or bull. Reuben was on the South was Aquarius and Dan was on the north as an eagle(a well known alternative symbol for Scorpio. From where they were geographically these associations made perfect sense.

East/LEO/FIRE - Dawn
WEST/TAURUS/EARTH - Africa
South/Aquarius/Air - Sahara, and the disease carrying winds of Set
North/Scorpio/Water - Mediterranean

Frank Baum has his imaginary world set up thus:
WEST/YELLOW/TIN/AIR/Aquarius - Winkie Country. It is distinguished by the color yellow which is worn by most of the local inhabitants as well as the color of their surroundings. This was the country ruled by the Wicked Witch of the West before Dorothy melted her with a bucket of water in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz; since then, the Tin Woodman has ruled the Winkies as their Emperor.

EAST/BLUE/SILVER/WATER/SCORPIO - Munchkin Country. They are described as being somewhat short of stature, and wear only blue. The Wicked Witch of the East is the ruler of Munchkin Country. The young girl's house lands on top of The Witch. The Witch, who had been ruling over the Munchkins, is killed instantly with only her feet sticking out from under the house. The Witch was wearing magical shoes (made of silver in the book).

NORTH/Purple/GOLD/EARTH/Taurus - Gillikin Country is the northern division of L. Frank Baum's land of Oz. It is distinguished by the color purple worn by most of the local inhabitants as well as the color of their surroundings.
* The forest of the Winged Monkeys, creatures that obey whoever wears the enchanted Golden Cap
* The palace of the Good Witch of the North (never actually mentioned, but assumed to exist because the Good Witch of the North rules this particular province)
* The ruby palace of Gayelette

SOUTH/RED/COPPER/FIRE/LEO - Quadling Country is the southern division of L. Frank Baum's Land of Oz. It is distinguished by the color red, worn by most of the local inhabitants as well as the color of their surroundings.
*Glinda, the Good Witch of the South
*The Cowardly Lion kills a giant spider, who is terrorizing the animals in a forest, and he agrees to return there to rule them.
In the books, Glinda is depicted as a beautiful young woman with long, rich red hair and blue eyes, wearing a pure white dress. Glinda lives in a palace near the southern border of the Quadling Country, attended by one hundred beautiful maidens (twenty-five from each country of Oz). She also employs a large army of female soldiers, with which she placed Ozma on the throne of Oz at the end of The Marvelous Land of Oz. Men are not prominent in Glinda's society.

CENTER/GREEN/Emerald Tablet of Hermes _ The Oz books describe the Emerald City as being built of green glass, emeralds, and other jewels. The buildings were decorated with gold as well.

JKRowling seems to place them thus:
Air/West - Ravenclaw house.

Water/East - Slytherin

Fire/North - Gryffindor

Earth/South - Hufflepuff

Modern Pagan(and I am going to lump Wiccan in with the whole) practice seems divided on whether air or earth should go in the north.

Geographically it would make sense if the elemental/directional correspondences changed to reflect your place on the earth. In that view a person practicing on the east coast of the US would put water in the east(the Atlantic), fire in the south, earth in the west(the continent), and air to the north. Or if you lived far enough north to see the aurora you might even put fire in the north.

Fortunately, for me at least, we are talking about a deeper, more universal understanding. This is my case for Earth being in the north/spiritual realm -
1) The qualities that make "earth"/solid, different from the other elements are its density, and resistance to flow. The further north you go the more solid, the earth is, due to frost. The hardest form of earth is the diamond(as far as I know), and in the north we have diamond-like snow.
2) The alchemists say the highest form of matter is gold, and the highest form of gold is the philosopher's stone, which is not a stone at all, but a fine white powder - like snow.
3) While we are the God at the axis mundi of our own known, microcosm, the one who stands as axis of the world is God of the Earth, and all the world is known to him. He sees all that passes beneath and above. He is the Observer.

He may have two "wives", one representing the point of contact with the earth(the earthen mound usually being an under statement for the nearest holy mountain), and the other representing the point of contact with the heavens(the pole star or circumpolar constellation). We see this in the two forms of Arianrod's name. Arianrhod - the Welsh arian, "silver," and rhod, "wheel". Alternately, the earliest form of the name may have been Aranrot "Round Hill, or Mound".

The Wise amongst ancient people surely knew that the axis mundi was as far North (speaking only of the Northern hemisphere) as north existed on this earth - the shortest distance between the earth and the celestial pole.

Symbolically it may have been seen as the nearest holy mountain, or oracle, because at these places the unknown could be seen more clearly. But in truth it was in the distant north, behind the north wind, so to speak.

If you have ever stepped back and just watched yourself, perhaps observing your body instincts wanting to react to some stressor, then you have "become the observer". That is your spiritual place of power. In that state you can know the unknown, the occult, the hidden, heal yourself and others, remote view, all that. That is embodying your God. And where is that God found? At the North Pole. He IS the North Pole, but he is also Santa, and he has gifts of occult knowledge in his "sack". And since that God is also within, you don't even have to travel.

These things, to me, equate the element of earth with north and Spirit.

There was also an understanding I read once that explained how ancient thinkers believed the immaterial became manifest. They thought it descended through the different elements, from finest to solid. So it would travel from ether to fire, to air, then water then solid. My understanding of this is that they may have actually thought it traveled through the actual elements, or they may have been using the elements as symbolic of the actual process. In the symbolic scenario it would go something like this. There is a spark of inspiration (fire) received from the All(ether) that is then contemplated(thought/air) which produces emotions(water - the chemicals of emotion in the blood stream) and the chemicals of emotion stimulate the cells to make proteins, matter. In this scenario we literally become what we have given focus to. The next step would be that we draw to ourselves what we are, then the think contemplated on should show up in our explicit reality. Since this is how I have been taught manifestation actually works, I am sort of reconstructing what the old teaching seems to have really meant. To me this is why - fire is associated with innocence, beginnings, and the passion that comes with epiphany; air with thought and intellect; and water with emotion. Earth or solid then becomes a thing we can actually experience and gain wisdom from - making known the unknown - and wisdom is the diamond, or fruit of the earth.

Big Carnivores, a Witches pov.

Defenders of Wildlife

It is one thing to weep for the wolves of the Rockies, and the polar bears who are starving, and quite another thing to have to live with them. I'm not sure many people would be calm and cool, and merciful, if there were wolves in their forest. I am not sorry T-rex is only a bad memory, and bones in the sandstone. The only good I see in sharks is Orca food, and the only good I see in Orcas is their intelligence, and that I think some of them have human souls. Still... if Francis of Assisi (Giovanni Francesco Bernardone) could find peace with even the carnivores, then it must be something possible for us all. Perhaps there will always be animal attacks as long as there are people who are terrified by these creatures. Perhaps it is the fear that goads them to attack. I have been assured that the things we fear most are the things we draw to our selves - so that we can make them known, and thus they are not fear inspiring anymore. There are times too, when I yearn for the world to be "Bigger" again, and I am reminded of Capt. Jack Sparrow's line: "The world's still the same. There's just less in it."
Collectively all of nature equates to "Life", because it is the platform which allows life to continue on our world. Yet around the world there has arisen a hostility between mankind, and "Life". It has come to all out war. Who will win? Life will. I want to be on that side. The side of the wild stallion, the wolf, and the spotted owl. So I recycle, turn off my lights, live close to the earth (garden and goats...), and everyday in my email I get notices from my favorite activist groups - NRDC, Greenpeace, NOW, NARAL, True Majority, Save Alaska's Wolves, and Millions Against Monsanto. On line activism is easy, and the groups keep me abreast of current issues. I think my representatives may get tired of hearing from me, but that's their job. The best part though is I can see it making a difference. Have we finally reached that hundredth monkey? I hope you all have or will jump on the Train with me. It's a gasgasgas.