Tag: Temperance

Fact and Fiction in Storytelling, or, How Do You Really Forge a Blade?

Posted C. LaVielle2 CommentsPosted in Forging the Blade, Major arcana, Tarot, Writing, Young Adult Fantasy

If you want to tell a story that keeps your readers turning pages, you must convince them that perhaps it could be true. Or, at the very least, convince them to suspend their disbelief for the duration of the story. This won’t happen if they spot even small errors in your work. It breaks the spell and they stop reading–something writers strive to discourage–and say “Wait! That’s not right.” And even if they then continue to read, they will be suspicious of everything else you tell them. In chapter 14, the Temperance chapter of Forging the Blade, the Damian goddess, Brigga, forges a magic sword for Molly, the main character. She uses Molly’s blood to bind her to the blade. As the sword is forged, Molly is also forged into a warrior. I figured that forging a blade would be a perfect metaphor for Temperance. This is a key chapter in the book, and to make it work, the reader must totally believe in the drama of a… Read More »

The Fool’s Journey through the Major Arcana: SunFest 2016: Temperance

Posted C. LaVielleLeave a commentPosted in Major arcana, Tarot, The Hero's Journey

Greetings seekers! You have come far. You have befriended and tamed the beast within you. You have studied hard and learned the ways of the Multiverse. You have sacrificed yourself; fearlessly opening your mind and heart to the divine, so that you might understand its purpose for you. You have died many deaths and come to know your true self. Your conscious and not-conscious minds are learning to speak to each other. With this knowledge comes power and assurance. Life is nearly effortless. Tasks which used to be difficult or impossible are now simple. More often than not you find yourself in just the right place at just the right time to accomplish your goals. Yes, you have come far, but don’t stop here. The path to enlightenment lies ahead.  

Truth or Fiction? or Yes, I’m Still Working with Temperance.

Posted C. LaVielle11 CommentsPosted in Major arcana, Tarot, The Hero's Journey, Uncategorized, Writing

A few months ago Clio, my six-year-old grandniece, let me read a story she was in the process of writing. It was about a group of owls, and about how the smallest owl decided to leave. I was hooked until I came to the part about the little owl flying away in the middle of a bright sunshiny day. “Clio,” I said, “this is a great story, but owls don’t like to be out in the daytime. Why did the little owl leave at high noon?” “I don’t need a reason,” she replied. “It’s fiction, and I can write anything I want.” And she is absolutely correct. Everyone knows that fiction isn’t true. However, if you want to write fiction that keeps your readers turning pages, you must convince them that perhaps it could be true. Or, at the very least, convince them to suspend their disbelief for the duration of the story. This won’t happen if they spot glaring errors in your work. How… Read More »

Imbolc, Brigid, and Temperance

Posted C. LaVielleLeave a commentPosted in Major arcana, Tarot, Wheel of the Year

February 1st or 2nd , depending on who you talk to, is the Festival of Imbolc, or first light. This is the time of year when we begin to notice that yes, indeed, the days are getting longer. Bulbs are beginning to push up green spikes, and the snowdrops are in full bloom. It is a time of anticipation, new beginnings, and inspiration. Imbolc probably derives from the Old Irish i mbolg “in the belly”, which refers to the fact that this is the start of lambing time in Ireland and the rest of Europe. It is also a perfect metaphor for the season. The year is pregnant with the coming of the sun, which brings new growth. At this festival pagans honor Brigid: goddess of water and fire, wells and forges, healing and inspiration, smith craft and childbirth. I see the angel on the Temperance tarot card as a perfect representation of Brigid. He/she stands between two opposing forces and works to reconcile them… Read More »

The Major Arcana and The Hero’s Journey: Temperance, Part IV

Posted C. LaVielle4 CommentsPosted in Major arcana, Tarot, The Hero's Journey

When Temperance appears in a reading, The querent is, was, or will be up to his ass in alligators and trying to remember to drain the swamp. If he doesn’t become gator chow first, the exercise will make him stronger, more flexible, and better able to cope with the next major glitch in his life. He has come to a point where he must combine, reconcile, or referee the opposing forces and people in his life. His wife and mother may be at each other’s throats. He may be dissatisfied with his job and trying to manifest a better one. He may be dealing with spending, eating, or other addictive disorders, or healing from a serious illness. Temperance reminds us that patience, open mindedness, strength, good management of time and resources, willingness to try and try again, and lots of prayer and help from the divine are necessary in resolving life’s problems. If the card is upright, it indicates that the querent has enough of… Read More »

The Major Arcana and the Hero’s Journey: Temperance, Part III

Posted C. LaVielleLeave a commentPosted in Major arcana, Tarot, The Hero's Journey

Samekh is the Hebrew letter associated with Temperance. Most sources say that its original meaning is tent peg, or support. But the letter itself is round, in fact the cursive figure for samekh is a circle. It looks nothing like a tent peg.The Wikipedia article on Samekh points out that the Phonecian pictograph for Samekh looks a bit more like a tent peg and is probably derived from the Egyptian djed, the pillar shaped hieroglyph that means stability. So how is a circle like a tent peg? They didn’t just make this stuff up. Well, yeah, they did, but what was the method in their divine madness? The mystic interpretation of the letter samekh given by most sources is “the endless cycle”, which does match the shape of the letter. The endless cycle is something my pagan brain can grab onto. Pagans and Hebrews both see the universe as moving in circles. Black Elk, Oglala Lakota, 1863-1950 said it best: Everything the power of the… Read More »

The Major Arcana and the Hero’s Journey: Temperance, Part II

Posted C. LaVielle2 CommentsPosted in Major arcana, Tarot, The Hero's Journey, Writing

When Temperance appears in a reading it’s not uncommon for the querent to groan and say, “I’m not giving up alcohol!” I assure him that the tarot card has nothing to do with the Temperance Movement of the late 1800s and early 1900s, which eventually led to the passage of the 18th Amendment in 1919. The Amendment made consumption, possession, or manufacture of most alcoholic beverages illegal, except for medicinal purposes. The initial intent of the American Temperance Movement was to moderate the alarming increase in alcohol consumption that began after the Civil War—hence the name Temperance. But the movement eventually started advocating total abstinence as the more radical members seized control. Abstinence may also have been encouraged because, even back then, I have no doubt that reformers knew that it is impossible for alcoholics to moderate their drinking; they have to stop completely. And so “total abstinence from alcoholic beverages” is now the second or third definition of the word temperance, whose first definition… Read More »

The Major Arcana and the Hero’s Journey: Temperance, Part I

Posted C. LaVielle1 CommentPosted in Major arcana, Tarot, The Hero's Journey

One of my first tarot teachers was fond of saying, “Always remember that Temperance stands in between Death and The Devil.” That angel may look calm and serene, but he/she is struggling to reconcile opposites. He/she is a hermaphrodite, with one foot on stable land (consious mind) and the other in a pool of water (subconscious mind). On his/her breast is a triangle (creativity) inside a square (stability). On his/her left are two (polarity) irises. Iris is the Greek goddess of the rainbow, a symbol of promise and diversity. On his/her right is a single path to mountains topped with a golden crown, a symbol of success, but only if one keeps to that single path. The previous card is Death—transformation through letting go of the material world or the perceived status quo. The next card is The Devil—faith in materialism or the perceived status quo. The central image of the card is two cups. But they aren’t just sitting there being apart, aloof, or… Read More »