Quote

Magic is surprisingly simple. What can it offer?
1. A means to disentangle yourself from the attitudes and restrictions you were brought up with and which define the limits of what you may become.
2. Ways to examine your life to look for, understand and modify behavior, emotional and thought patterns which hinder learning and growth.
3. Increase of confidence and personal charisma.
4. A widening of your perception of just what is possible, once you set heart and mind on it.
5. To develop personal abilities, skills and perceptions—the more we see the world, the more we appreciate that it is alive.
6. To have fun. Magic should be enjoyed.
7. To bring about change—in accordance with will.
Magic can do all this, and more. It is an approach to life which begins at the most basic premises—what do I need to survive?—how do I want to live?—who do I want to be?—and then gives a set of conceptual weapons and techniques for achieving those aims.

Phil Hine, Condensed Chaos (via kojoteundkraehe)

#SaveRohingyaMuslims

pettyarab:

I don’t know if anyone has posted this set on here yet, but I haven’t seen anything on my dash about it so I thought that I would post it. Muslims in Myanmar are being burnt alive and I’m not gonna post videos or photos because they’re brutal and I feel like muslims are dehumanized enough and I’m sick of seeing our dead bodies plastered everywhere. Unfortunately all I know is from what I’ve seen on instagram and twitter, so if anyone has anything to add on, feel free to. Keep Rohingya Muslims in your duaas.

Quote

I never felt safer than when I was near antifa. They came to defend people, to put their bodies between these armed white supremacists and those of us who could not or would not fight. They protected a lot of people that day, including groups of clergy. My safety (and safety is relative in these situations) was dependent upon their willingness to commit violence. In effect, I outsourced the sin of my violence to them. I asked them to get their hands dirty so I could keep mine clean. Do you understand? They took that up for me, for the clergy they shielded, for those of us in danger. We cannot claim to be pacifists or nonviolent when our safety requires another to commit violence, and we ask for that safety.

Logan Rimel, parish administrator at University Lutheran Chapel of Berkeley, on his experiences in Charlottesville and his subsequent rethinking of non-violence as a sustainable doctrine. (via ralfmaximus)
Link

Fool’s Journey: Reading the Bottom Card of a Deck

Some call it the ‘shadow card’, others call it the ‘base’ or ‘foundation card’. For some, it’s a way to begin a tarot reading, setting the tone or establishing the focus of the reading. For others, the card on the bottom of the deck provides a ’secret message’, an additional and invaluable piece of advice, often something that is hidden. Bridget at Biddy Tarot explains that “the bottom card alludes to the hidden aspects that are influencing the situation at hand and gives deep insight into the subconscious mind of the client.” Another idea is to use the bottom card to round off the reading with a final word.

I read it differently. When a friend and I were first learning tarot, we’d lay out the Celtic Cross spread, then peek at the card on the bottom of the remaining deck, saying “it’s not about this…”. I forget whether this was a practice my friend made up, something from a book, or picked up elsewhere, but it’s stuck, and lately, I’ve been bringing it into my daily draw.

I’m finding that this ‘not about’ approach really helps me to dig deeper into those daily cards. It’s so tempting — especially as an experienced reader — to merely glance at the card, briefly summarising it with a known reading, a few keywords. But the card on the bottom of the deck nudges me to think more carefully and often challenges my preconceptions.

I am very into using the bottom card of the deck as the “it’s not about this” card.

Fool’s Journey: Reading the Bottom Card of a Deck