Arthur´s special deal...

...work with the following 4 cards from the Spear realm; these are the ones I have the most urgent need to address, he says. Then tomorrow, I may side-step the Spear realm (leaving developing my healing to the Hare, Geàrr) and work instead this quarter with the Stone realm. For, as a wise Cornishwoman once told me 'En hav per ko guav' (In Summer, think of Winter), and that´s what I intend to do. For I have discovered, that conventionality doesn´t always work for me - I have to do things my own way.

Approach to Litha

At Solstice Eve, a time for final reflections on my visit to the Sword Realm this year:
Once again, I fell behind in the lessons. Unwilling to repeat some and still stuck on others, I decided to avoid beating myself up about this and instead use some more imaginative and original ideas to get better acquainted with the Realm guarded by The Lady of The Lake. This included using the Swords´ Higher Powers in a shadow reading, keeping the Swords on my altar, calling on the Sword Royals more, especially using them as guides in a more personal way, by meditating with them. I had several encounters with them while out and about and they were very helpful.

Here is the summary for each card I came up with as an "end of term" test:
Ace - A challenge; a new way of seeing things; being open to change; a chance to see things as they really are.
Two - A choice; going within to make a decision; unable to decide; being blinkered; unwilling to change.
Three - A loss; letting go of something valued in order to progress; grieving and recovery after loss; understanding that all things must pass.
Four - A recovery; a time of quiet meditation in order to refresh the mind, body and spirit; withdrawal to clear the mind.
Five - A defeat; the aftermath of a conflict and coming to terms with it.
Six - A journey; safe passage as you move into changing circumstances.
Seven - A deceit; being the vicim or purpetrator of a deceit; deceiving oneself; something is not what it seems.
Eight - A mental trap; becoming, or feeling stuck or bogged down; unhelpful thinking; feeling a victim of circumstances.
Nine - A troubled mind; long, dark night of the soul; problems stacked up unresolved.
Ten - A closure; an issue completely and finally at an end; karmic issues to be faced up to; not accepting responsibility for a situation we created; finally seeing and accepting the truth for what it is.
Maiden - The part of me ready to accept change must happen; a guide through the process of change.
Knight - The part of me that learns; a guide to help me stay alert and focus on the current lesson.
Queen - The part of me that has intuitive knowing of my role in this incarnation; a guide to understanding the natural order of things and my place in it.
King - The part of me that is committed to understanding; a fatherly guide to keep me steered on course.
Lady of the Lake - Teacher of the divine mysteries; holds the sacred book wherein our life-plans are written; the divine feminine in her otherworldly guise.
The White Hart - Teaches us about our relationships, both with our lovers, family and friends, and also with our spiritual aspects.
The Round Table - The cycles of time and space that we are limited by and the teachings to help us transcend them; understanding the cyclical nature of all things.
The Cauldron - Teaches us to blend different aspects of ourselves to produce something new, greater than the sum of the parts.
The Moon - The dreamtime teacher who shows us the shadow side of our nature and puts us in touch with occult and esoteric. Has the ability to deceive us and create illusions.

Continuing with the Sword Court

• The part of me that is the Sword Maiden, knows I must either make improvements to my diet, posture and exercise or continue to suffer increasing physical discomfort as I age.


• The part of me that is the Sword Knight, has learnt to create a personal strength out of a former defect of character.


• The part of me that is the Sword Queen, knows my true purpose is to heal and be healed.


• The part of me that is the Sword King, wants to know why things are the way they are.

Sword Court

• Sword Maiden is the part of me that knows when change must come.
• Sword Knight is the part of me that learns.
• Sword Queen is the part of me that knows my true purpose.
• Sword King is the part of me committed to understanding.

Lesson 7 Meditation - Sword Maiden, Sword Two and Sword Three

I step into the sword realm and wander up the path from the sword castle, over the hills until I come upon the Sword Maiden. I am amazed she is so young – only about 10 or 11 I guess. She is absorbed in her handiwork and I sit on a nearby stone and watch her for a while. For one so young, she is not easily distracted and sits without fidgiting – unlike me! Her work is very fine and detailed. After some 15 minutes, she sets down her work and smiles at me. I can tell she knows all about me, which she confirms by showing me the scabbard she is weaving. It contains scenes from my life – every time I was faced with a major decision, she has recorded it and the outcome.

I ask her why I feel so fearful, and what I can do about it. She tells me that some fear is useful. "It warns us when we are in danger or are about to step into something hard to handle." "Yes" she continues, "yet you must not let fear rule your life. You know you have things you should be doing to move your quest forward and you are afraid to do them because it encroaches on what you think is more important to you. Yet it is avoidance. It you are to continue to walk your path with S, you must be prepared to dedicate your time to the needs of you both. In other words, it´s time tnow to accept that you are a bit selfish! You feel that what you have to do is harder than what he has to do, but that is not a fair appraisal. When you hit a barrier or wall of bricks, you must knock them down one by one – and keep at it – one try is not enough. Remember, to eat an elephant, you must make it into elephant burgers to eat one at a time." I don´t really like to hear this; it makes me uncomfortable but I sit and think about it for a while, before I am ready to move on.

The Sword Maiden gives me a strand of her hair – a deep, flaxen gold. She says to tie it around my finger to remind me to keep going and not give in to weakness when my fears arise. She leads me on down the path until we come to a valley with woodland on either side. She tells me that this is the battleground between the big, strong trolls with little brains, selfishly guarding their right to “do their own thing” and the tiny little dwarves, who know how to work fearlessly and cooperatively but don´t have the strength to pull it off. Both of these “enemies” are doing battle inside my mind.

The Sword Maiden bids me goodbye and I thank her thoughtfully. I can hear the trolls in the tall pinewood grumbling about not having enough time to do just what they want, when they want. I´m also aware of the dwarves in the deep, dark oakwood, saying things like, "If only she would isten to us, we could help her get things done, but we´re so tiny she doesn´t take any notice."

Under my feet the path is slippery and muddy. I am on dodgy ground if I don´t take action to get those trolls in order and help out the dwarves. I see an adder by the side of the path. I am reminded that I have “snake totem” within me and that snake can help me transmute – shedding my old worn-out scales and revealing a beautiful, shiny, supple skin. I ask adder what guidance he can give me. He says that I should slip into a new skin everytime I feel weak and small and need strength. He means that I should prepare myself for any difficult task I have to do, by getting into the right frame of mind and putting myself in order i.e. get smart and tidy, clear the decks, have everything to hand and “go for it”.

I walk onward reflectively until the landscape changes to rocks and ravines. I hear some falling rocks ahead on the path and I can see them tumbling from the broken bridge ahead. I don´t want to go on to the Bridge of Loss. I feel I´ve let go of enough in the recent changes of the last few years and I feel like giving up. What will happen when I cross over? I know that once I leave something behind there is no way back to how things were – that for every loss of concession, there are both gains and deficits. I remember Susan Jeffer´s “no lose decision” model in “Feel The Fear” and know I must “go for it”. I stand on the bridge and look down into the ravine. This is the time my knees go weak. I can feel my strength leave me and I am like jelly. I fall to my knees on the bridge and I crouch there for seemingly ages; almost hoping the whole thing would go, taking me with it and putting an end to my worries.

Evenually, I regain control of my breathing and begin to pull myself up. I have something in my hand I must let go of. It´s a scrap of paper, screwed up. I open it. It says “This fear does not serve you well – let it go!”. I screw up the paper again and throw it into the ravine, still taking care not to step too close to the edge. Well, it was just a bit of paper, yet somehow it must have been heavy baggage because I feel somewhat lightened of heart and ready to press on.

I turn back in to the rain in “my world” and step back from the Otherworld into this. I ground myself to the and thank the Sword Maiden again for being my guide.