☽ Asterope ☾

Yes! Basically the most important thing isn’t so much the kamidana itself, but an item called an “Ofuda” this is the item that calls to the kami’s energy and essence. Ofuda (only to be bought from shrines) are usually no more than 20$ USD (with shipping included) Tsubaki Gosaijin (Sarutahiko Okami-sama, Ame no Uzume no Mikoto-sama, Amaterasu Omikami-sama (Jingutaima)http://www.tsubakishrine.org/omamori/kamidana.html

Inari Okami-sama

http://shusseinarishrine.org/?goods_category=ofuda

Konpira-sama (Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha ofuda)

Tenjin-sama (Hawaii Dazaifu Tenmangu ofuda) 

http://www.e-shrine.org/omamori.html

(This shrine also enshrines Hachiman Okami-sama and other kami, scroll down to the chart here: http://www.e-shrine.org/history.html , e-mail them for what to do about home worship for them) If you cannot afford the ofuda…. one can use another item or object to act as a yorishiro, or vessel for the kami. Usually this is a sacred mirror, or something called a gohei. If you make a gohei you have to purify yourself first. In the same manner as the ofuda, take a bath and purify your physical body, and rinse your mouth. Get dressed as well and get ready as if you were going out.Second, you have to purify the paper you will use for the gohei. Put a pinch of salt on the paper itself, and pray. You do not have to recite the whole Oharae no Kotoba, but chant saying “Oharae tamae, Kiyome tamae" 3 times.Since this will act as the vessel for the Kami, it has to be treated with the utmost respect and be purified properly. You should practice with scrap paper before making a legitimate one. When you make a real one, please treat it like a serious ritual/ceremony, not  a craft project or origami. It’s for your Kami-sama, not your own personal use, so we have to be careful. Learn how to make gohei here (diagram) and this video  *note  the person is being a little rougher in the video as it is for demonstrative purposes* Sometimes a gemstone is used too as a yorishiroFor either a gemstone or sacred mirror, leaving them in the sunlight, sprinkling salt around them, and chanting Oharae tamae kiyome tamae 3 times is good before ritual use - but after they cannot be used for anything else but as a yorishiro for the kami. In the case of lacking an ofuda for your kami-sama, or unable to obtain a new one for Japan, the above is also helpful.

The 42nd Traditional Kaga Yuzen Crafts Exhibition

Gold Award:Visiting dress 

Title “My Hometown” by Shizuka Hashimoto

Fireflies, constellations, rivers, flowers are Campanula I designed a night scene in June.

The 42nd Annual Exhibition of Traditional Kaga Yuzen Crafts is being held at the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, from September 16th (Wed) to 22nd (Tue).

- Shiva’s Dominant is a woman.

- The empire is named Zanbrek or Thanbrech or something like that. (ザンブレク)

- The Battle of the Twin Realms was between two continents of Dhalmek and Crusaders(sorry XIV theorists, no shards or crossovers here) and the old man who is shouting is from the Dhalmek nation.

- The “mothercrystal” provides protection against a blight and humans will die from it without that protection. The Japanese version gives the impression this “blight” has been around for a long time and the countries fight over these mothercrystals for the protection.

- Joshua is the blonde knights’ younger brother. Though it’s still very difficult to tell if Joshua is the one being torn apart of doing the tearing apart.

- The main guy at the end seems to be more interested in killed a group of people rather than just one person as it seems in the english lines. (The dominants perhaps? The people manipulating the dominants?)

Also, I believe the blonde knight is Joshua’s brother. But if it’s really the MC pronouncing those words it might just be terms of endearment rather than an actual blood relation between both.

The thing being ripped apart on the trailer is Phoenix and, given the alarmed cries of the knight, it seems like the summons death means the dominant’s death. (But hey, it’s Phoenix, he’ll be back, no real pay off here).

Another thing that seems clear is that the woman smoking is with the empire and is withdrawing from helping the old dude, sassing him about being the one who was against the dhalmeg taking part in the war of “two continents”.

A personal theory of mine is that Shiva’s dominant will become our ally, making her the main female character and our best shot to defeat Ifrit (and this could be the beginning of a Cecil Harvey like arc for the MC). And also that if 2 Eikons of fire are an impossible thing, Joshua may be somehow the origin of both (via some contraption manufactured by the empire).

now get ready for Danger Rocks

Please do not lick any of these

1. Chrysotile

aka Asbestos! It heals lung cancer! heals it from 0HP to full health! it causes cancer do not touch do not lick

okay but this is a cool danger rock, it’s a physical carcinogen. As in, it doesn’t poison you into having cancer, it just has little needle-y bits that LITERALLY STIR UP your DNA and break it, and when the cells try to repair their DNA they get it wrong and you get cancer

2. Torbenite

A super pretty danger rock! it’s a uranium ore and releases radon gas for Extra Poison!

3. Hutchinsonite - (Tl,Pb)2As5S9

This danger rock has it all! Lead! arsenic! Thallium! All super toxic! Will legit kill you

seriously don’t lick this one, i’m looking at you, fellow geologists

thallium doesn’t taste like anything so you’re not even getting data, just poisoned

4. Cinnabar (Mercury sulfide)

Can be a very pretty red color! so it was used to make paint. The paint was super toxic.

In addition to being dangerous to your health, it’s also morally dangerous! someone had to mine it (v dangerous) so even owning it feels unethical

5. Stibnite (Antimony sulfide)

people used to make spoons and makeup and shit out of this, the spoons poisoned people who ate with them. It’s kinda pretty but not worth dying over

6. Orpiment  (an arsenic sulfide)

Look how pretty it is!!

“Incorrect handling” WILL poison you, that’s fucking arsenic

Honorable mentions:

🌿🕯💰🍄🍵☀️🥗☀️🍵🍄💰🕯🌿

How to Spice Up Your Tarot Readings

End them with charmcasting

Combine them with oracle cards

Blend them with Lenormand

Learn these 3-in-1 spreads

Acquire a variety of decks

Use custom-fit spreads:

Past Life Spread

Life Purpose Spread

Life Prediction Spread

Life Advice Spread

Soulmate Spread

Relationship Spread

Sex Life Spread

Future Children Spread

Death Prediction Spread

Dream Interpretation Spread

High Priestess Spread

True Colors Spread

Two Paths Spread

Ancestors Spread

Major Arcana Grand Tableau

The What If Spread

The Three Wishes Tarot Spread

✧ The House of Self

Type Angular

Trinity Spiritual Action

Element Fire

Mode Cardinal

Rulership Aries/Mars

Polarity Me (1st House) VS We (7th House)

Keywords Ascendant, self, outlook, appearance, vitality, first impressions, personality, sense of identity, physical body.

Marking the cusp of the 1st house, the Ascendant (or Rising Sign) shows the exact degree of the zodiacal sign which is rising over the eastern horizon at the time of birth. 

A common point of view amongst astrologers is that the Ascendant  is how we hatch into the world and our various placements help us  grow into our sun sign. 

It affects several areas of our lives:

✧ The Persona

The sign ruling the first house can be seen as our Persona, the façade we present to the world, the personality traits to which we instinctively come back when we are facing something or someone new, much like a defence mechanism to which we switch back to when we are uncomfortable. Because 1st house energies are met and awakened so early in life, we form a close identification with the archetypes which the planets and signs there represent. These archetypes, energies, attributes represent the kinds of functions most valuable in discovering our unique identity. 

If it is really different from the signs ruling your personal planets (Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter), as people will eventually see past it as they get to know you.

The placements in this house may also have an influence of our physical appearance (although this is a controversial topic and it is much more likely that the entirety of the chart has an influence on one’s appearance), our sense of fashion and the way we want to be seen by others. As a Fire House, it gives clues about vitality, health and assertiveness.

✧ The Archetype of Initiation

As it coincides with our first breath, it marks the beginning of a cycle, the initial step/stage in the process of Becoming. Each new beginning resonates with the qualities of earlier new beginnings, reawakening similar issues and associations.  This is why the 1st House informs us on how we enter different phases of our lives (different houses of the astrological wheel), how we initiate tasks and project, how we behave when we meet someone new or are presented with an unfamiliar situation. In essence, the quality of the Rising sign and planets located in the 1st House come out when we experience something new. It also reflects the inborn expectations and images whenever we have to ‘get something started’.

Planets near and within the 1st house may also describe the very first beginning, the experience of one’s birth, the circumstances of how we came into the world. 

✧ Our Energy

The energy we put out into the world and the energy the world feeds back to us is seen in the 1st House. Because the Ascendant informs us on the initial spark of our very existence, it leaves a deep mark on our psyche as ‘that which life is all about’. We therefore try without fail to give and receive these essential attributes as a way to emulate and maintain this spark. We attribute to life the qualities of the sign on the Ascendant or any planets nearby. It is the lens through which we perceive life and we invariably act and behave in accordance with it. And as the placements of this house make us more sensitive to recognising the attributes we assign to life, we pick those up with more ease and feel like the Cosmos reflects them back to us. It expresses both what we are looking for and what is doing the looking.

Similarly, the Ascendant represents the effect our initial spark may have had on the world, how our coming to the world was received.

Cardinal fire represents a principle which radiates out into life.The attributes of any placements in the 1st house are somehow amplified by being in that position, as if the volume of their ‘tone’ has been raised. 

✧ The Chart’s Ruler

The Ascendant’s ruling Planet is considered the Chart Ruler and its location in the chart shows where we most naturally use its skills. Some astrologers find its placement more relevant to the way we are perceived than the the Ascendant itself.

✧ Assessing the Ascendant

When assessing any of the workings of the Ascendant, a number of factors needs to be considered: 

the sign on the Ascendant

the ruling planet – its sign, house and aspects

planets in/near the Ascendant

aspects to the Ascendant

✧ In combination with other houses 

The chart is meant to be read as a whole and there are therefore many parallels, contrasts and combinations an astrologer can draw in order to better understand it. For instance we can look at the first house as opposing the 7th, informing us of the qualities we are born with and those we are looking for in a partner in order to learn to develop them. Along with the 3rd, 4th and 10th houses, the 1st house denotes something about the atmosphere in our early environment (house, family, neighbours).

More on this in a future article along with details on 1st house placements and the Ruler’s placements through houses and signs. Currently working on those :) 

Author/Artist: Danielle Noel

Editor: N/A

ISBN: N/A

Link: https://www.starchildtarot.com/the-akashic-edition/9goq7r5c354wu1z4tvh7dnu70ync0s

At this point, I have reviewed two of Danielle Noel’s decks and I have found myself to be very receptive to her art style and symbolism. I figured I may as well complete my collection and get the Starchild Tarot next. Turns out there is an Akashic Edition, meant to, among other things, help you access your own Akashic Records ! And here it is:

Author/Artist: Liz Greene ✧ Juliet Sharman Burke ✧ Giovanni Caselli

Editor: Vega/Tredaniel

ISBN: 978-2-85829-663-7

Link: http://www.editions-tredaniel.com/le-tarot-mythique-p-663.html ✧ https://www.amazon.co.uk/New-Mythic-Tarot-Deck/dp/1846041783

Mythology is full of colourful characters, impressive creature, tragic relationships and important moral and teachings. It permeates our lives so much that we hardly notice it anymore: you find greek mythology in the names of constellations, space programs, courtiers, jewellery makers, video games, movies, TV shows, etc). We are surrounded by it and at this point it’s very much a part of our subconscious, assimilating those archetypes without us noticing. It’s only natural then that someone would create a Tarot deck assigning mythological characters to the Arcana. 

Disclaimer: I have the French edition of this deck and provided 2 links in the above blurb, 1 to buy that same version and an Amazon link for the English version.

Significators (or Signifiers) are quite common in Lenormand. They are used to symbolise an individual (the querent, their partner, their daughter, their cat, etc), or a theme (my sister’s wedding, the birth of my nephew, my workplace, your love life, my cat’s health) or to deepen a specific topic that appeared in a reading.

You will find 10 different ways to chose and to use Significators for your Tarot readings in this article.

Author/Artist: Claire Goodchild at Black and the Moon

Editor: N/A

ISBN: N/A

Link: https://black-and-the-moon.myshopify.com/products/compendium-of-constellations-oracle-deck

I am using this deck almost every time I pull Tarot as clarifying cards. They are very easy to use and quite cute! Let’s have a look at them together…

1.)    Your Conscious Self This card represents what you are aware of about yourself, including attributes, flaws, and potential. This represents the energy with which you naturally face life events/circumstances/other people throughout your solar year.

2.)    Your Unconscious Self The card in this position is here to enlighten you to things about yourself that will influence your behavior environment and manifestation of the available energy throughout the year. These are tools/flaws/attitudes/abilities you may underestimate, but they are here to assist you or enlighten you to opportunities for growth and development.  This card (if negative) can also represent the querent’s shadow.

3.)    – 10.) Cross roads spread (Includes card#1)

Horizontal = Past/Present/Future

Vertical = Love/Money/Home Life

3.)Present Love 9.)Past Love 7.)Future Love 1.)Present Money 5.)Past Money 4.) Future Money 6.)Present Home 8.)Past Home 10.) Future Home

11-13 Represent hopes fears and unknown energy for the year

11.)Highest Hopes for the manifestation of the years energy. This can be a specific goal, a personal transformation or just the type of experiences/lessons you wish to encounter.

12.) JAN Advice/Clarification (High Hopes MTHS 1-6) 13.) JUL Advice/Clarification (High Hopes MTHS 7-12) 14.) FEB Advice/Clarification 15.) AUG Advice/Clarification 16.) MAR  Advice/Clarification 17.) SEPT Advice/Clarification 18.) APR Advice/Clarification 19.) OCT Advice/Clarification 20.) MAY Advice/Clarification 21.) NOV Advice/Clarification 22.) JUN Advice/Clarification 23.)DEC Advice/Clarification 28.) JAN Overall Energy/Main Event 29.) FEB Overall Energy/Main Event 30.) MAR Overall Energy/Main Event 31.) APR Overall Energy/Main Event 32.) MAY Overall Energy/Main Event 33.) JUN Overall Energy/Main Event 35.)JUL Overall Energy/Main Event 36.) AUG Overall Energy/Main Event 37.) SEPT Overall Energy/Main Event 38.) OCT Overall Energy/Main Event 39.) NOV Overall Energy/Main Event 40.) DEC Overall Energy/Main Event