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| Illustration by Bill Worthington |
Today's Card: ADDER-- "Nathair" in Gaelic. Transformation, Healing, Life Energy
The card shows two intertwined snakes upon a stony lake shore that includes shells (but its not sandy, so 'lake'). Grass tufts are at the foot of the stone phallus in the background with a snake eating an egg carved upon it with ivy circling the structure. Below the adders is a boulder with a labyrinth carving and stones like eggs and shells that encompass the spiral or egg motif.
I step through the doorway from my realm. Its warm, though the sun is filtered, and there is a light breeze. Warmth radiates out from the rocky shore below my feet. The Adders are nearly still, just their forked tongues flicking in and out.
I sit down in the warm rocks. They're smooth enough under my butt not to be too uncomfortable. I have an embarrassing confession to make to these spirit animals, "I've taken over a month to do this with you. It's silly, I know, but I didn't feel ready to deal with your energy, and I turned the card over and walked away rather than do the journey."
The black and white adder says, "Not ssso sssilly..." I am amused by the sibilant S in his verbal speech. Most animals communicate telepathically, but the Adder is talking in English!
The tan Adder reminds me of my powerful previous dreams with snakes in them (using mental touch like most totemic animals do). They are the kundalini energy resting at the base of our spine. They are like both lightning and spirals. They are very primitive and transformative. I've been through so much change lately that I balked at dealing with a spirit animal that embodies massive shifts in life. Loss, shedding of the old, striking out, slithering through the webs and weaves of life...
I smile, "Okay, not so silly. But I'm sorry it took so long to get back to you."
They don't care. I'm here now. And it's time to move!
The Adders slither and undulate between rocks and through the grass up to the phallic stone. I rub my hands up and down the rock, and then laugh at the gesture. The Adders watch approvingly, and then they take off across the flattish grass field, gliding as they slither along.
I soon realize I have to keep going at a brisk trot to keep up! They make waving patterns in the grass as we move that are rather mesmerizing to watch, and soon I'm in a sort of trance. We travel further and further from the lake (which I never turned to look at yet-- but I could smell the water...) and then we come to a hole in the ground.
I'm instructed to duck down and grab one snake with each hand, so I do. Next I am being slid down into the hole, through the dark, and we're going through some sort of complicated maze, and we end up in a white room full of giant quartz crystals--!!
Say what?!
I let go of the snakes, and they part and then sort of become upright on their tails! I notice energy like electricity buzzing through the crystals, moving around and making my hair stand on end. The Adders remind me of illustrations of Basilisks, moving so oddly now in this special lair.
I have one snake on each side of me and they lead me to a chair-- like a throne, and each one transforms into a sort of pillar and I realize we've just become the High Priestess tarot card! I can't help but laugh, but then the snakes change again into bare lines of electric energy and they begin to circle me, Sun-wise, faster and faster!
And as I watch the white energy turns blue, I'm thinking these oracle card journeys keep shocking the hell out of me! As I think this, I start to get little zips and jolts of electrical shocks. That, too, makes me laugh a little.
As the Adders whirl faster and faster, my body gets more and more energized, and it starts to feel pretty good. Soon I de-materialize into a white light, into a God light is how I would describe it. Then the Adders spin Widdershins (counter-clockwise) and turn into red lines of energy and pull me back into my material self. I am soon back in the chair, and they become upright snakes again.
I know they are basically going through the steps of death. You enter the dark unknown, but then emerge into the Spirit Realm. Next, I know I will undergo the steps of re-birth!
They come together and rise in front of me into the air, leaving their tails for me to grab. I grab them and they pull me UP into the ceiling of the crystalline chamber. The top seems like its made of liquid, and I am pulled through a suddenly cold and wet body of water!
I emerge onto the surface of the lake, and the snakes are now undulating horizontally again, across the top of the water, pulling me to the rocky shore. I step back up and shake off some water.
That was fun!
I sit on the stones and let their warmth penetrate my chill. The sun warms me from above and I dry out. The snakes curl into my lap and I stroke their smooth scales over and over and very much enjoy the sensation. We converse about how death is "down" and life is "up" to them, when many cultures see it the other way around. I know there is nothing to fear from the Adders ever again.
With a kiss to the top of their heads for my good-bye, I step through into my own realm again, realizing it really is silly to be even a little afraid of these journeys.
END.
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