Energy

STARCHILD TAROT INTERVIEW: PLUS 5 DECKS YOU NEED TO KNOW

Posted on by Gabriela Herstik

Tarot is having a moment. And with more artists than ever bringing forth new versions of the classic Tarot, it’s never been easier to unleash your inner reader and find a deck that sings to you! Whether you’re a witchy mama looking for something a little more macabre, or a Kundalini goddess in search of some high vibes, there is a deck out there with your name on it.

To aid your search, we’ve rounded up five hot off the press tarot obsessions, kicking things off with an interview with the goddess behind The Starchild Tarot, Danielle Noel, about her special edition Akashic Records deck. By Gabriela Herstik.

Starchild Tarot creator Danielle Noel interview for The Numinous
Starchild Tarot creator Danielle Noel

The Numinous: First off, we love that you’re including the Akashic Records as a card in the major arcana of your new deck. What will the card represent?
Starchild Tarot: Thank you! I have always thought of the Akashic records as a source of mystery and divine information. At first, it was a somewhat abstract concept to grasp. When I was younger and just beginning to understand its significance, I imagined ancient manuscripts containing hidden and sacred knowledge, and thought, “how can I access this?” Now I understand the ‘Akashic Records’ as an energetic source which contains various frameworks of spiritual truths, with information pertaining to yourself, your life paths, incarnations, and the Universe at large. When you work with the cards, you have access to this information too, and are essentially connecting with the endless possibilities available to you.

The Akashic Records card of this special edition comes after the traditional 21st card (The World/The Universe), as a bridge beyond this holistic key, which I think connects well with how we are evolving at this time on our planet. I truly believe that a shift is currently taking place – energies are being enhanced and polarized, insights and sacred knowledge are rising to the surface like never before, and we are being forced to really think about our own enlightenment, mortality, and collective consciousness. This card taps into the acknowledgement of yourself as more than a physical being. It encourages you to take note of your own karmic imprints, and to consider the sacred knowledge that is being offered to us all at this time.

TN: Your imagery is super feminine and dreamy. Do you think that sort of energy in a deck makes it easier for the reader to access the Akashic Records?
ST: Certain sacred spaces and forms of sacred geometry are very activating, which is why I incorporate particular sites, colours, and symbols throughout this deck. This one also has a lot of pastel hues (pink and corals in particular) which connect with the heart chakra. My intention with each image is to inspire your imagination and intuition, through the layering of various visual triggers and healing modalities.

The Starchild Taror Akashic Records card on The Numinous

TN: Do you have a favorite card in this new deck? Why? (We won’t tell the others!)
ST: I have to say I really love the “Akashic Records” card. The image seems like one of the strongest visual portals that come up, and I’m curious to see how people will respond to it. Each symbol, colour, and portion of that card plays significant role in its interpretation. I have a deep fascination and love for Thoth and the emerald tablets, as well as the history of Atlantis, so those keys are also embedded in the image.

TN: What else is different about the new deck?
ST: There are a lot of new cards, which came from the desire to keep making new “gateways,” and the style for this deck is also slightly different than its predecessor. I added a lot of hand painted layers and watercolour textures, and it is much less “collage” based and more illustrative. Some of the cards from the original Starchild Tarot have remained in the Akashic edition, however, they have each been modified with painted overlays and new details.

Throughout the Major Arcana I have also added “Spiritual Keys” to help each reader along their journey into the Akashic records. These categories (Chakras, Gemstones, Guides, Symbols, Astrological/Planetary) can be used to expand your knowledge when working with a specific card, or to apply meditative and/or magical practices throughout the use of the Starchild Tarot. I have also added two new spreads in the guidebook (The Akashic Spread & Metatron Spread).

TN: Is creating collages on the cards a meditative experience for you? How does it aid your own journey with the Tarot?
ST: Meditation and energy work has been a huge part of my life over these past few years, and creating the cards has gone hand in hand with these explorations. I always start with the backgrounds which are ALL familiar to me in some way or another. Many of them come from photographs from my own travels, or of sacred sites from around the globe.

Our planet has so many activation points, with many of the great monuments working as chakras within the energy grid of Gaia. To acknowledge and respect these points honors the interconnectedness of us all, as they illustrate our history and spiritual evolution. The Tarot is a simple yet complex visual representation of ancient stories and concepts, and I think about this when I am creating the images. Somehow, they act as smaller pieces to a much larger cosmic puzzle.

The Hoodwitch, a.k.a. Bri Luna, as The High Priestess
The Hoodwitch, a.k.a. Bri Luna, as The High Priestess

TN: How do you choose the incredible real-life women featured in your decks?
ST: I’ve been lucky to have crossed paths with some amazing women and light workers, and when I began creating the decks, I thought that by integrating these guides, the energy of the cards would be enhanced through the powerful intention and co-creation that was put into the imagery. They are mediums, tarot readers, energy healers and others, who all share a common love for the Tarot and Magick overall.

TN: Which deck did you learn on, and what other decks are in your practice today?
ST: The first deck I ever purchased was a second-hand copy of ‘The Aquarian Tarot’ – I found it at a local flea market, and strangely, it had two Ace of Swords! After that, I learned on the ‘Tarot of a Moongarden’ and the ‘Thoth’ Tarot, but there are so many decks that I now love and appreciate. I also love that more and more people are tapping into the Tarot as a tool for self-healing and learning, and it doesn’t surprise me that it’s become so popular.

I think this comes from the “waking up” process that’s happening – there is a need for more spiritual outlets, as people are recognizing the importance of introspection, and the existence of more than what we see “on the surface”. Currently, the decks I use the most are my own, The Aquarian Tarot, The Klimt Tarot, Spiritspeak Tarot, The Goddess Tarot, and the Thoth Tarot.

TN: What’s the one thing that you want people reading your cards to know?
ST: There are many hidden layers and symbols in this deck. These were added as activation tools, so I am curious to see how they will be received. I have put a lot of love into this project, and hope that each person who reads the cards will be able to build their own relationship with the images and interpretations. That is my intention: I hope you feel supported and cared for when using these cards.

I would also like to point out that this new deck is not a replacement of the first, rather a special edition that opens up new insights. I am going to be re-releasing the “first edition” in the new year, so both decks will be available for sale, along with my future Moonchild Tarot, which is the shadow companion to The Starchild decks. I’m also working with a writer, and together we are creating a very special Oracle deck that I can’t wait to share in the not so distant future!

Starseedtravels.com

:: 5 MORE DECKS YOU NEED TO KNOW ::

The Wild Unknown second edition deck on The Numinous

The Wild Unknown Second Edition 
The Wild Unknown has quickly become a cult classic and with good reason. The wilderness inspired deck speaks to our innermost existence with its beautiful imagery, so it comes as no surprise that the Universe seems to be vibin’ at a higher frequency (read major excitement) at the release of the Second Edition deck. Although most cards remain the same as in the first edition, the cards illustrator Kim Krans has chosen to revisit are absolutely stunning – and help infuse readings with a colorful new energy.

The Four of Swords is bathed in a radiant blue green aura, Temperance is complimented with a sweet rainbow background and The Lovers scream “relationship goals” now more than ever, with cotton candy colors woven behind the two geese. The icing on the cake? A new, more in depth, fold out guide to each card. Although the old saying, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” reads true most of the time, we’re happy The Wild Unknown chose to ignore it on this occasion.

Thewildunknown.com

The Fountain Tarot deck on The Numinous
The Fountain Tarot

The Fountain Tarot
Deeply cosmic, The Fountain Tarot speaks to our unyielding need to find a deeper connection to the Universe we inhabit, and the souls who walk alongside us. The journey to this fountain of bliss starts as soon as you open the silver holographic fantasy of a box the cards reside in. From here, a greeting stating “you are the breath and voice of Universes” on the inside cover, sets the tone.

Designed and written by Jason Gruhl, Jonathan Saiz and Andi Todaro, the surreal imagery of each card allows an exploration of the sacred point where inner purpose meets outer expression. Perhaps most notably in The Fountain card itself, number “infinity,” which invites us to “surrender to that which you are, whole and perfect.” An invitation to remember that at our core, our true self is so much greater than we recognize.

Fountaintarot.com

The Serpentfire Tarot sixth edition deck on The Numinous
The Serpentfire Tarot sixth edition

Serpentfire Tarot Sixth Edition
The colorful, dreamlike landscape of the Serpentfire deck by Devany Wolfe is unparalleled – and so totally Numinous. This deck is a beautiful tribute to the Goddess in us all, with an exploration of Kundalini energy woven throughout. These cards are for the dreamers, the seekers, the weavers, and those who feel an affinity to the Universe around them, even (especially) when it seems almost too big for their grasp.

Collages appear in some capacity in almost every card, from The Lovers personified as two wolves howling at a cosmic pyramid exploding with jewel-toned bliss, to The World being held over a Goddesses head with the Moon phases interlaced on top. This is no mundane magick. From the exquisite sacred geometry collage on the back of each card, to the brightly colorful, vibrantly infused and completely otherworldly art created by Wolf, this deck is truly spectacular.

Serpentfire.ca

Spirit speak Tarot deck on The Numinous
The Spirit Speak Tarot

Spirit Speak Tarot Deck
If you’re into the more macabre, DIY, gothic look, the Spirit Speak tarot by Mary Bean Evans is right up your ally. With an alluring, sketchy quality, the illustrations for this deck resonate at their own slightly darker frequency – inviting you with a wink and a dripping dagger to step into that which is unknown. But feminist imagery, a clear love for the occult, and a really beautiful take on the Universe and the Cosmos also appears throughout.

So whether you pulling a bone hanging precariously atop a dagger to form a scale for “Justice” or a long-haired queen cradling a rune and her wand as “The Empress,” the Spirit Speak will quite literally…speak to your spirit. Let’s just say if the friendly monsters under your bed were into divination, they would have this deck on lock.

Spiritspeaktarot.com

PROTECT YOURSELF: IS MY LOVER A PSYCHIC VAMPIRE?

Posted on by Alexandra Roxo

Be Here Nowish creators Natalia Leite and Alexandra Roxo share their experience fending off Vampire Lovers, PLUS 5 ways to protect yourself from a psychic vampire from Cat Cabral. Images: Pa-kwan Promsri via Behance.net

 

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“Vampire Lovers” is our term for lovers that come flying into your world, suck out your life force. You have no idea what’s happened, but next thing you know you feel like a fucking zombie and your friends are calling for an intervention. But these vampires are not really blood drinking creatures (although sometimes they might want to do that too). They are more like psychic suckers, energy drawers, seductive manipulators who can milk your energy, mess with your psyche, throw you off balance, and take away your power.

The people are also sometimes called “energy vampires” or “emotional vampires.” It’s an archetype we all can embody unconsciously at times, it’s just that some of us have learned to master it, using it as a form of manipulation and self-preservation.

Okay, so in theory we all know we should stay away from people that make us feel helpless or weak. But can also be SO SO sexy to allow ourselves to be completely overtaken by someone. We romanticize it, imagining Brad Pitt biting our neck and kinda wishing we were Kristen Stewart in Twilight, even if we’re aware of the dangers of completely losing ourselves in that person. We each had our fair share of experience dealing with people like this in our love lives and found ways to cope with it, which we will share in this post.

At the bottom, CAT CABRAL, a New York based alchemist and tarot reader who’s been peddling the tools of the witchcraft trade for over a decade, has shared tips on how to identify and protect yourself from Vampire Lovers.

Protect yourself from Vampire Lovers feature on the numinous

 

Natalia: Why don’t we start by talking about meeting vampires on Tinder. You know, like one night stands, and the implications of that spiritually.
Alexandra: You mean the wild post-breakup Tinder phase that I like to call my “Slutty Spring?”

N: Exactly.
A: It was super fun, but you also have to really work on protecting your psyche because you’re exchanging energy with people so fast in those situations. And then you’re like “Wait, what? I’m tied up in a stranger’s bed again?!”

N: Right. Because the minute that you open up and surrender sexually to them, your energies are melding and exchanging whether you like it or not.
A: If they’re holding a lot of darkness you might get in a bad mood the next day and be super grumpy, wondering “Why do I feel so depressed?” or “Why do I feel so anxious?” – psychic gunk you maybe picked up up from the random person you just had sex with.

N: So how did you personally protect yourself and create that boundary?
A: Well, I had a date with this guy and we had really good conversation at dinner and then I went back to his house. I was getting bored and wondering where things were going but I kept thinking “In theory this guy’s great. He’s a lawyer, he’s attractive and also weird in a good way.” When we were kissing he was like; “I could totally see myself with a girl like you, you’re totally the type of girl I would fall in love with,” and that started weirding me out. And then his penis wouldn’t work so he just wanted to go down on me forever and that felt a little too intimate for a first date, so I said no. I did not want some stranger that I had literally known for two hours to just go down on me. Like actual penetrative sex would be less intimate because there’s a barrier of rubber.

protect yourself from vampire lovers feature on the numinous

N: That’s really sad!
A: Depends how you look at it. Anyway, so then I lost my phone, slipped on the rug, and hit my neck on a shelf, and at that point I was like, energetically, “THIS IS WRONG.” My intuition was like “Get out! Leave!” Not because I thought he was going to be a psycho killer,it was just an energetic thing. He texted me the next day, but the energy, all the way from the initial hook up to me hurting myself was just saying “no.” It took me a minute to shrug off that icky energy. And he ended up texting me like 100 times over a period of three months and I had to block him. So I guess he was a crazy.

N: I guess it’s not so relevant to Tinder hook-ups, but I learned a few things to do after a bad relationship to release that person’s grip. I had one ex who was a total vampire – her energy was so intense. After we broke up, I would just like go to the bathroom and every time I took a shit I would think about her leaving my body, like in my poop. And it really worked! I also associated her with “shit” and so that became suddenly funny and meaningless. It quickly released the emotional grip she had on me.
A: That’s amazing!

N: When I was like having a lot of one night stands, I would sort of protect myself by being the one who was in control of the situation. But there were several times I would just like leave feeling a little icky because of that person’s energy.
A: What we’re talking about now is people that seem like amazing beings, but underneath they just want to suck out the good vibes. We both dated people who did that.

N: So what do you think it the first sign of a vampire?
A: They divulge too much too soon! They tell you their sob story straight off the bat.

N: Yes! On our first date my ex is already telling me how she doesn’t get along with her family and whatever health condition she’s got.
A: Health conditions, financial burdens…

N: They think that playing a victim will make you feel sorry for them.
A: But actually, it’s trying to force intimacy too quickly. The next thing that they do is tell you “YOU’RE THE ONE.” Really quickly. I dated someone like that. We were walking down the street and she looked at me and said: “What if you’re the one?” But I actually have proof she says that to many, many girls.

protect yourself from vampire lovers feature on the numinous

N: Yeah. At what stage?
A: We had maybe been on three dates. And I fell for it. My heart was beating fast.

N: This girl I dated was immediately doing things to me that I had found out that she had done in multiple relationships in the past. And telling me that she had never felt like this before and how she was going to marry me. I was really freaked out at first and didn’t buy it. To which she’d be like: “Why are you not trusting love?” She would make it seem like there was something wrong with me because I wasn’t open to receiving this “deep everlasting love.” She eventually convinced me to give in and surrender to her. Then finally when I’m like, “Okay, I’m going to give you my heart. Here’s my heart.” That’s when she bit me.
A: That’s the dark manipulation side of the vampire lover. It’s the hook and bait. They like pull you in by telling you that you’re the one, and then they start fucking with you. It’s so crazy. It’s a formula. The worst part is…I don’t think they even know they are doing it!

N: They just want your heart, and they’re unaware that they’re manipulating you to get it.
A: I think that those are the people you have to try to watch out for the most because energetically you may fall apart after them. It took me a while to get my “vampire lover ex” out of my life. She would call me in the middle of the night. Then she would text and say “Let’s be friends.” And then when we tried that, out of nowhere she would text “I want to have a family with you.” It got creepy. I just had to block her completely. But two years later I saw her, and she was kind. People change and time does heal.

N: Yeah, after mine ended but it really took me a second to find myself and feel strong again. Taking some time out to be alone, or changing your scenery can be helpful. For a while I was scared of bumping into her, thinking she could tip me over just by looking at me, and not because I loved her or wanted to be with her, just because she had that power and I knew it worked on me for a period of time.
A: So alright, now we’ve shared, let’s hear how we can avoid falling into unhealthy patterns with lovers…

5 Tips On How to Protect Yourself from Vampire Lovers (and vampire energy in general) by Cat Cabral

protect yourself from vampire lovers feature on the numinous

1) Have a Daily Spiritual Practice: Be it daily meditation, chants, or prayer, some form of daily spiritual practice will not only ground and focus your own energy, but it will open your levels of awareness, sharpening your own intuitive skills. With deeper awareness, it’s harder for vampires to enter your space and it’s easier to spot their unbalanced and often charming yet ultimately harmful nature.

2) Sea Salt Baths On the Full Moon: An old and soothing tradition that will help cleanse your ethereal body. Once the Moon is full, she begins to wane, an excellent time for cleansing and removing negative energies, known and unknown. Fill your bathtub with sea salt and lunar herbs such as lavender and wormwood. Imagine all negative energies, people or situations being absorbed by the water and then going down the drain. If you only have a shower, you can pour the salt and herbs into a bowl, wash as usual, and then pour the mixture over your body following the same ritual/visualization.

3) Glinda’s Crystal Ball of Protection: Remember in The Wizard of Oz, how Glinda sails away in her pink protective ball of light? Before you leave your house, imagine at the top of your head a small globe of white light illuminating at first your third eye, then your throat chakra, moving down towards the heart center, solar plexus, lighting up your reproductive zone and continuing down to your feet, so that you are completely engulfed in healthy protective white light. Imagine this light expanding into an invisible sphere that nothing negative can penetrate.

4) Symbols of Protection: Every culture has unique and powerful symbols to ward off negativity such as the pentagram, crosses, hexagram, ankh, Hand of Fatima, Runes, the list goes on! Find one that has a special meaning to you and either wear it or carry it daily.

5) Banishing Rituals: Letting go is often hard when you’ve been under the spell of a particularly seductive vampire. Create a circle with salt around you and set up an altar for your ritual. Take a white figure or plain candle to represent the person and carve their name into the candle. Dress the candle with oil for banishing (olive oil can also be used). As you light the candle, watch as the wax drips down and imagine the person disappearing from your sphere of influence. Write a letter saying everything you’ve been thinking, saying goodbye, never wishing them ill will, but clearly stating that they hold no emotional/spiritual/physical power over you, that your paths are clear and will never cross again. When the candle is almost finished, burn the letter and then discard of the ashes and wax somewhere far from your house or bury it in the ground. Burn sage, cedarwood or frankincense to cleanse the space and move on with confidence.

Read more from Cat Cabral here and check out Natalia Leite and Alexandra Roxo’s hit web series Be Here Nowish.

How have you learned to protect yourself from a psychic vampire? Share your tips in the comments below!

AN AUSPICIOUS DAY: MASTERING THE MAGIC OF 11/11

Posted on by Felicia Bender

11/11 brings a super-charged portal of opportunity. Practical numerologist Felicia Bender has a lesson in working with the energies at play

Angel number 11/11 by Felicia Bender for The Numinous

 

 

Numerologicially speaking,  11/11 can be a significant date for us – if we’re aware and participating with the opportunities it brings our way.

I’m often asked about repeating numbers, particularly the repeating pattern 11:11. Whenever we see repeating numbers in our lives, it signifies a code that’s attempting to communicate with us on a different level than the rational, logical way we receive communication on a daily basis.

It’s kind of like the Universe is sending us a text.

In Numerology, the 11 is a Master Number – like all repeated numbers (11, 22, 33, and so on) – and Master Numbers contain a higher spiritual vibration or frequency, for lack of a better term. If a Master Number is one of the core numbers in our Numerology chart, for example, it indicates a higher level of potential, and also more challenges. So while working with Master Numbers might feel oh-so lofty, it can be a really tough obstacle course. It comes with added intensity. The Master Numbers demand that we master our life in particular ways.

That said, what about the 11 specifically?

First of all, the number 1 is all about new beginnings, independence, initiative, achievement, individuation, self-confidence, and innovative creativity. So when we see this repeating number, it’s beneficial to remind ourselves to focus on what we want in our lives opposed to what we don’t. Because the energy of the number 1 expands what we focus on, like a magnifying glass.

When we see this repeating number, a window of opportunity is being flung open – with this energy in our court, we’ll begin to manifest our thoughts and desires with turbo-speed. It requires that we’re disciplined and mindful about how we focus our thoughts and what we allow to play in our minds. If there’s any time to dive into our positive affirmation file, this is it. Don’t waste this valuable and high-powered energy on trivial or negative things.

The 11 is also the higher level 2 energy (1 + 1 = 2). The number 2 is all about harmony, balance, cooperation, diplomacy, and love. Add the Master Number and up the ante – and the 11 is the “wounded healer” and spiritual messenger.  The 11 is highly intuitive, extremely sensitive, out-of-this-world creative, and an inspired healing agent. The 11 lives mostly in the ethers and part of the struggle with the 11 energy is to bring it down to Earth in a way that’s useful and constructive.

Those with 11s in their chart will undoubtedly encounter experiences and situations that are harrowing, difficult, and extreme. This is because experience isn’t the best teacher, it’s the only teacher. The person mastering the 11 energy will come through the fire as an inspired healer and wise counselor.  Yet it takes walking the walk and talking the talk to reach the point of mastery.

As for the date 11/11 as a doorway, if we look at the numbers, we can see this is even represented visually – each 11 looks like a door. The two doors can be seen as an intersection between the physical and the spiritual world. Since the 11 is all about spiritual enlightenment, we can also use the energy of this date for understanding and manifesting our higher purpose, whatever that might be at this given moment.

In this sense, 11 is our cosmic cheerleader – here to remind us of our ever-transitioning evolution, and to assure us that we’re moving in the right direction. The day 11/11 is giving all of us a cosmic shove off the ledge, a super-charged window of opportunity. So today, let’s be sure to focus our thoughts, think big, and look for the opportunities opening up.

It’s the day to plant the seeds we’ve been wanting to plant, and to plant them mindfully, with care, and with a commitment to follow through with the actions needed to successfully cultivate these new beginnings as we enter the next phase in our lives.

BEHIND THE VEIL: A HALLOWEEN RITUAL BATH

Posted on by The Numinous

Amplify your psychic protection with this bath time Halloween ritual, says Deborah Hanekamp. Images: Zsuzsanna Dofka via Behance.net

Halloween ritual bath on The Numinous

As we enter the season of the winds, the veil between the spiritual worlds becomes thin. A time of strong psychic awareness, we open to valuable teachings from Great Spirit and our personal intuition. Energetically charged people and places, as well as lingering spirits, also become very apparent to the spiritually sensitive. For this reason, now is a time to work with extra psychic protection.

Dear One, understand this; the highest form of protection is awareness. And that love is the vehicle to awareness; become more loving, become more aware. Fear is the opposite of love, fear distracts us. But if in the midst of fear we can use our breath to go back to love and awareness, we are already so protected.

The below Halloween ritual bath and practices are tools to strengthen our connection to love, to awareness, and therefore protect us as we journey into winter.

:: THIN VEIL ESSENTIALS ::

  • Black Tourmaline, a crystal of high psychic protection, is invaluable during this time. Carry a small piece in your pocket or as a piece of jewelry. Sleep with Black Tourmaline under your pillow to protect your dream body.
  • Rosemary carries the protection of the divine feminine. Wear a drop of Rosemary essential oil on the crown of your head, and she will protect with the awareness of a mother wolf.
  • Connect to nature. Offer tobacco or white sage to a tree, stand barefoot on the roots and hold your back body to the tree. As your feet connect to tree’s spirit release any charged psychic energy you are holding through your feet, asking the earth to transform that energy into love.

Halloween ritual bath on The Numinous

:: RITUAL BATH FOR PSYCHIC PROTECTION ::

Ingredients
1 cup of Epsom Salt
4 cups of Nettles Tea infusion
1 tbsp of Apple Cider Vinegar
A few drops of Rosemary essential oil
A few drops of Rose Water or Rose Absolute Essential Oil

Crystals
Fluorite, Quartz, Citrine and Black Tourmaline

Add all ingredients to a bath of water as hot as you can stand.

Ritual
Light candles around the bath
Smudge your self by burning white sage and cedar around your body, wafting the smoke towards you with a feather
Step into the bath
Take three deep cleansing breaths
Place a candle directly in front of you and stare into the flame without blinking for five minutes. Let the flame clear your mind and bring you into psychic awareness
Dunk your head under the water
Place the Quartz crystal under you at the back of your heart, place the citrine on your solar plexus, hold the Fluorite in your left hand and the Black Tourmaline in your right
Chant the sound “Aum” (Om) at least three times
Soak in and enjoy the protective energy you’ve created

Halloween ritual bath on The Numinous

MARIANNE WILLIAMSON INTERVIEW: RECLAIMING THE POWER OF THE FEMININE

Posted on by Jo Becker

“Women ourselves have bought into this idea of ‘feminine’ as meaning ‘weaker’…” Jo Becker‘s Marianne Williamson interview speaks to what it means to be woman and a spiritual activist.

marianne williamson interview for The Numinous

 

Marianne Williamson is a powerhouse. The fierce voice of modern spirituality shares her love-driven ideas on how to heal America far and wide: she’s written four New York Times #1 bestsellers, chats with Oprah on the regular, and even ran for Congress in 2013. To me, she embodies the future of feminine leadership and spiritual activism.

I’m inspired by her eloquent commitment to heart-centered change. Years before I read her books, I heard her life-changing statement from A Return to Love, the quotation she is now famous for:

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we’re liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

I caught up with her at an Institute of Noetic Sciences conference. Astronaut Edgar Mitchell founded IONS back in 1973 after experiencing samadhi during the flight back to earth. Since then, IONS has been devoted to bringing together science and spirituality. I see Marianne Williamson as similarly groundbreaking in her work: she joyfully and relentlessly marries political activism with spiritual awareness.

The Dalai Lama said, “The world does not need more successful people. The world desperately needs more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and lovers of all kinds.” Personally, I think the world needs successful peacemakers, healers, and lovers; and numinous women like Marianne Williamson are shining examples.

A lot of people think that “spiritual activism” is a contradiction. What would you say to them?
Spiritual activism is a change in thinking: from a mental filter of fear to a mental filter of love. Given that thought is the causal level of all experience, active thought and change of thought is the most powerful force in the Universe.

Earlier today, a scientist was talking about how information, as in data, is only 10% of what causes people to actually change their behavior. And we have the data. We know what climate change is doing, we know how dangerous nuclear power is. We have the data on what violence on television and video games is doing to young people’s brains, we have the data on the carcinogens that are in the air…So why is it that “knowing the data” isn’t enough to make us change?

What makes us change comes from a deeper place, and that’s what spiritual activism is. It’s when something of the spirit, of the heart, becomes active in our thinking, and our thinking gets lit up. Because the mind itself can be used for purposes of love or purposes of fear, so spiritual activism is when we seek to do whatever it is we do from a place of love and with the intention of love.

And I’m talking about the love with which the mother lion protects her cubs. The love with which the adult female [and some males] of any species that survives and thrives exhibits fierce behavior when she senses that her cubs are threatened. So the marginalization of spirituality, the minimization of love as force, is just part of the ego mind’s propaganda.

Do you resonate with what the Dalai Lama said: “the Western woman will save the world?”
Of course I resonate with it, but with all due respect to the Dalai Lama, I don’t think we need any man’s verification. I have a bit of a problem with the fact that we’re quoting a man to affirm our own power. I have the same great respect and reverence for His Holiness as anyone, but come on girls! I think what’s most important is that you say it. And I say it. Because we are affirming what we are doing: that this world is changing because we say so. Because we say so.

Marianne Williamson interview the aphrodite training on The Numinous

You’re doing a lot of work right now with balancing masculine and feminine energies in women. Why is this important to you?
It’s such a significant issue. I am a product of the 1970’s wave of feminism—obviously the women’s movement is a wonderful thing, obviously I consider myself a feminist. But there is what I think of as a flawed strain of feminism, through which we actually suppressed the feminine in the name of feminism. And we embodied in many cases the archetype of Athena. She goes out there, she goes into the world, she manifests, she makes things happen.

But we get to embody as many energies, i.e. goddesses, as we choose, and Aphrodite is important as well. She embodies romance and beauty and pleasure, and I think many women, myself included have had a lot of psychic scars from buying into the belief that cultivating the masculine side of ourselves was actually more important than cultivating the feminine side.

I also think a lot of women have come to a very confusing point in their lives, realizing ‘I made this happen’ or ‘I made that happen.’ ‘I had these professional goals—some of which I’ve manifested, some of which I haven’t.’ But when are the other areas of my life, which are just as important to me, going to occur? Old wise women don’t get pregnant.

I’ve seen a lot of young women particularly deeply saddened, even traumatized, by the fact that while they feel they’re on some track professionally, their relationships, and child-bearing and deeper issues of cultivation of the family and romance have become…it’s like women are standing there saying, ‘How did I become clueless in this area?’ And then not only ‘How did I become clueless?’ but ‘What are the clues?’ They’ve become lost.

Inviting in the Aphrodite energy of love, pleasure, beauty – what does that look like in a woman?
The integration of the Aphrodite and the Athena in my own life has been so important. I think obviously we’re all masculine, we’re all feminine, but women are here to major in feminine. It’s part of honoring our incarnation not to sideline something so fundamental to our being. And women ourselves have bought into this idea of ‘feminine’ as meaning ‘weaker’ without knowing it. Not women as weaker, but feminine attributes as weaker. I think many of us are seeking to reclaim lost pieces of ourselves, scattered pieces of ourselves.

What advice do you have for young women?
I think my biggest advice to young women would be, ‘enjoy it while you got it.’

And not try to be the ‘wise woman’ before your time?
The decades of life are like different rooms in the house. I have a daughter, early childhood, junior high, tween, high school college, now she’s a woman on her own. None of those phases is more or less magnificent than any other. And being in your 20s is fantastic, so be in your 20s when you’re in your 20s. Being in your 50s is fantastic; being in your 60s is fantastic. With every phase you lose something and you gain something. Be where you are when you’re there.

Having said that, I think something good is happening among American women. We’re starting to catch up, and we need to. We’ve not been the most mature group compared to women in other societies. And we’ve acted like we’re clueless regarding the suffering of women around the world, particularly at the hands of our own government in too many cases. We decry the policies towards women of a place like Saudi Arabia and for good reason, but when we invade countries that didn’t do anything to hurt us, a lot of the people who are dying in such invasion are women and their children.

So this is not a time for women of any age to be ditzy. This is a time to be deep. But I see many women of all ages seeking greater depth and it’s inspiring.

 

How do you think we can start to wake up to the suffering of others without dismissing it as ‘other people’s karma’?
Oh please! What a brilliant ego device that is. It might be that person’s karma to be starving, but it is my karma to give them food. Their karmic challenge might be that challenge; my karmic challenge is to help those who suffer that way. The ego is brilliant at coming up with excuses for not helping. There is no serious spiritual path, and there never has been, that gives any of us a pass at addressing the suffering of other sentient beings.

Now, get sucked in by it? Absolutely not. But there’s a difference between denial and transcendence. If you don’t even look at it, you’re not in transcendence. You’re in denial. But if you look at it and practice positive denial, which is: I deny the power of this phenomenon to continue. Why? Because I said so. Because I’m gonna do something about it. Because I know other people are gonna do something about it and we’re gonna make sure this ends. That’s positive denial.

Do you have a daily spiritual practice?
I am a student of A Course in Miracles. The course is 365 days of lessons; mine today is, ‘I will be still an instant and go home.’ Yesterday was, ‘I trust my brothers who are one with me.’ It’s a specific curriculum for dismantling a thought system based on fear, and accepting instead a thought system based on love. So spiritual exercise becomes like physical exercise. You are rebuilding your body, but with spiritual exercise you are honing your attitudinal musculature, just like in yoga. You want the correct position in your attitude, just like in your body. With physical exercise, you are developing your physical muscles so you can be strong and run. In spiritual exercise you are developing your capacity to be still. Your capacity for impulse control.

What practical applications does this have? It means there is a greatly diminished probability that you will send the frickin’ text that you will regret for six months. It diminishes the possibility you will say or do something or push the send button that will so sabotage a relationship or work situation or whatever. It diminishes the possibility that you will be so distracted by the meaningless chaos of the world that you will not be able to show up fully as a fully actualized human. We wake up in the morning and we take a shower because we want yesterday’s dirt to be cleansed off our bodies, but if you don’t meditate or pray, you might not be cleaning yesterday’s dirt from your mind. So internal purification is as important as external purification.

Marianne Williamson’s The Aphrodite Training began October 23 2015 and will continue to be available via live stream through October 25 2015. Get all the details and sign up here.

5 RULES FOR GOOD PSYCHIC HYGIENE

Posted on by Elyssa Jakim

Getting the most from an intuitive reading is all about learning good psychic hygiene, says Elyssa Jakim.

Good Psychic Hygiene post with neon sign on The Numinous

 

As a medium, a channel, and an intuitive (yes, some like to use the word “psychic”), I have received my fair share of readings. I went through a period of being obsessed with getting readings, in fact: psychic, tarot, astrology, you name it. Looking back on it, this phase helped me innumerably as a reader, but more than that, it helped me to be okay with the process of life itself. So, I talking about good “psychic hygiene,” I do not mean clearing your energy field or removing stuck spirits (we could talk about this another time) – I actually mean being a good receiver. Having good reading receiving mind will enable you to feel like the true mistress of your destiny – which of course you absolutely are.

Here are my tips for how to receive intuitive readings in a healthy and productive way:

1. Keep what works
A reading should not feel punishing. A reading should not make you feel bad about yourself. I don’t know about you, but I’ve often gone into readings, heard a lot of great stuff about where I’m at, and then heard about a few challenges. I hold on to the challenges like they’re sad, sticky glue, and forget 95% of the mostly positive stuff! So write down the 95%. Use it to create positive affirmations. Go back to it to keep you going and keep you glowing. It’s my personal belief that the messages that feel like balm to your body and soul are the ones to really listen to.

I talked to a wonderful astrologer friend after getting a reading with some thorns, some challenges. She said that a reading should be up-lifting. If there are things that dishearten you about the information received, just throw them away. There’s no need to be punish yourself with what you hear. When the hard stuff comes up, this is a message to keep doing the best you can, so go gentle. Simply creating awareness around the challenges helps to move them. When in doubt, throw it out, and hold yourself with love. It’s a brave step to even get a reading, so be proud of yourself for showing up for your growth.

2. Don’t be too literal
I once had a reading with an incredibly skilled medium that was very specific. My grandmother came through and her message was: “you need to continue your career as an actress…this healing stuff is keeping you an in igloo of isolation, it’s good for you, but it’s not your path.” I also got the name of a lover (someone I already knew) who was apparently my soul mate, and would become my partner in the next few months. So I threw myself into acting again with gusto – for the next three weeks or so. And it felt really good. But you know what, I ran out of steam. And the man didn’t come in. I tried to connect with him but it didn’t work out. This was also very hard because she had told me “he will contact you.” So my love life was on a weird hold for a few months.

Looking back, I believe that this reading was extremely important and got me to where I am now, even though the details did not come to pass. When it came to acting, I made amends with people I’d had deep wounds with. I made myself open to a passion that I’d blocked off. I also had to claim my desire to be a healer for myself, regardless of what spirit was telling me (it was the advice of a concerned grandmother after all). After this, the pursuit of acting felt less important.

And as for the man? What I learned eventually was that it wasn’t him specifically who was going to come in, but it would be him who woke something up in me and allowed me to feel my worthiness. He made me believe that I could be with an incredible man. The dream of him gave me a sense of how incredible I was, and that’s what I really needed. Vibrationally, that reading catapulted me forward into a different phase. Spirit gave me the information I needed to hear, in a format that was right for me then. I had to let go of the exact details in order to be free enough to enter this next phase. So, don’t take a reading too literally—take it as an event to catapult you into the vibration you’re ready to stand in.

3. Stay in the present
Remember when we called intuitives and tarot readers “fortune tellers?” A reader is reading your current fate – your current vibration. Thus, it’s a reading of your present, not your future. But if you make changes to your present situation, your “fortune” can and will change. That’s why it’s so hard for psychics to read timing. Plus, there really is such a thing as divine timing.

I was getting a tarot reading from a dear friend and intuitive that clarifies this principle. The first cards in the spread opened up a conversation between the two of us about my healing work. The next 30 minutes of the reading became a brainstorming session about what I offer and what I do, and places where I could feel more vibrant, and places where I could shift. This discussion was not “in the cards,” but the cards inspired this. By the time we finished this portion of the conversation, my lovely reader said “well, the other cards are not your cards any more. This reading would have ended with you being stuck. But you adjusted your vibration and now you’re on a different path.”

We literally changed my fate over the course of the reading! This is why it’s important to think of this as a reading of your present. It’s not about fortune or future telling, it’s about reading between the lines on the current page of the book of life, and then encouraging you to choose your own adventure.

4. Find the right reader
Keep in mind that whomever is reading for you is going to have a slant. No one is going to be a perfectly clear channel. So this means it’s up to you to find someone who feels as objective, open-minded and balanced to you as possible. Find someone who does the soul work him or herself. Someone who is truly “OTP” (on the path). The more worldly and open-minded a reader is, the more likely that the times their channel is a tad fuzzy around the edges (we all have our off days!), they are still going to deliver a reading choc full of wisdom and love. Spirit is always loving, always rooting for you, and always wants to scoop all of you up in compassion. Ideally, a reading and a reader should let you feel the well of love and peace that’s always available to you.

5. Be your own psychic
At the end of the day, you must be your own psychic. Everyone is born with four psychic senses (hearing, feeling, seeing, knowing), and everyone can learn to develop them. But beyond this, when you think about it, we’re all practicing our psychic skills all the time. We’re all doing our best to make choices that serve our highest and best, and hopefully the good of others too. At the end of the day, we’ve got to ask, “how much do I need to know all the answers?” and “how much room do I give myself to make mistakes?” Allowing yourself to make mistakes in your life is perhaps the best psychic hygiene you can practice. Know that you are trying your best, and that is always one hundred percent good enough. When given a tough decision: ask your body, trust yourself, and give yourself leeway to not know.

To summarize, the best way to manifest a beautiful future is to enjoy the present and all that it has to offer. So if a reading’s got you feeling down on yourself and your life, throw it away and find a way to dance or laugh or sing and enjoy the richness of life, as it is constantly unfolding around you.

WEEKLY TAROTSCOPE: SEPT 28-OCT 4

Posted on by Louise Androlia

The Prince of Pentacles brings some much needed Earth energy, says Louise Androlia. Time to knuckle down and make some hay!

You can watch last week’s weekly tarotscope at the link – did Louise’s message resonate with you? Share in the comments below, and connect with us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter!

READING FOR THE ARIES FULL MOON ECLIPSE

Posted on by Hannah Ariel

The Aries Full Moon Eclipse is an invitation to step into the most authentic expression of you. Hannah Ariel Eckhaus explains how this will manifest in your life…

Aries full moon eclipse rainbow full moon reading on The Numinous

“ Fire is the ultra living element. It is intimate and it is universal. It lives in our heart. It lives in the sky…Fire suggests the desire to change, to speed up the passage of time, to bring all of life to its conclusion. To its here-after. It magnifies human destiny; it links the small to the great; the hearth to the volcano; the life of a log to the life of a world… It is a renewal.” – Gaston Bachelard, The Psychoanalysis of Fire

On September 27th we will be experiencing the utterly transformative power of a super Full Moon, total lunar Eclipse, blood moon and full harvest moon all rolled into one fiery phenomenon happening at 5 degrees Aries. This will be the fourth and final of a tetrad of blood moons that have taken place across the Aries/Libra axis over the past two years, transforming how we take liberated action, both uniquely as individuals and in relation to the world beyond our self.

Anytime there is an eclipse the Nodes are involved (the points where the orbit of the moon cross the ecliptic); the South Node whispers of our past life while the North Node hints at visions meant to be experienced in this lifetime. On September 27th the Nodes will be aligned with the Equinox, and everyone on planet Earth is bound to experience a great sense of destiny being magnified.

This particular change of season also asks us to step directly into the axis of self/other with the courage carried over from past lives, in order to dignify our future relationship with the world we live in. EXCITING!

We are arriving at a divine moment in time, when the Earth, Sun and Moon line up in such a way that the Sun’s light does not illuminate the Moon – instead the Earth casts a red shadow across its surface. It may feel for a moment that you are swimming in waters you cannot name, and yet at this time you are being asked to trust in the next chapter.

This Eclipse will pull on us like an ancient memory that’s ready for our full attention. It will ask for your direct participation in life, and to trust that your deepest instincts on this day will be aligned with divine energy. No matter what shows up, emotionally speaking, there is nothing to fear. You are being given the opportunity to boldly answer the call – to confront and resurrect the root of what stirs within you, no matter how unrecognizable may appear.

As the Earth casts its shadow, be mindful that whatever is unearthed from your subconscious that may require re-rooting or re-routing. You are ready! Like an Aries you will feel as if you are born ready. Trust. And remember, as Aries is the first constellation in the Zodiac it speaks to the original impulse, the initial spark that sets the whole story aflame. React authentically from an empowered position of fearlessness, and trust in your destiny.

There is a certain soul-affirming nature to this Moon, as it will not only be conjunct the South Node but the also asteroid Vesta – Goddess of the hearth, protector of the flame, her energy is one of true devotion. Who or what within us is worth protecting? Where and how in your life can you renew your devotion to your soul’s desires?

What you experience on a personal level depends on your chart, in particular, where the Aries/Libra axis falls, and whether or not you have planets in any of the Cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn).

Because Mercury is currently retrograde in Libra, this is a potent time to reflect on the relationships you are currently invested in. Remember too, that relationships do not just come in one form – observe your relationship to your thoughts, habits, a belief systems, health regimes etc. If you are trying to maintain a connection to something or someone you’ve outgrown, it will become very apparent at this time.

While the scales of Libra seek connections that create a sense of safety, a sense of “I know if I stand here then this (insert person place or thing) will be there,” at the other end of the spectrum, Aries asks what can you do to liberate yourself and transcend your current situation in order to manifest your highest destiny.

A passage of time is opening up for you to assert the Self you actually want to be. Again, in which area of life you are being asked to transform and absolutely re-invent yourself depends where this Eclipse falls in your chart. Aries rules the head, so you can also think of this as a time to quite literally blow your own mind and re-imagine who you can be in this lifetime.

For those who have been following the rhythm of 2014’s Cardinal Grand Cross, which shook many of us out of limiting self-perceptions, you will find this Eclipse to be a culmination and celebration – a moment to cross over once and for all from who you were into who you will be.

A moment to renew the original connection to your Soul and the destiny it is continuing to form a relationship with. Rest assured that wherever you are being encouraged to take action, or assert yourself in a way you never have before, is a call from your Soul’s inexplicable urge to be self-actualized, and ultimately to relate to your life in a way in the most authentic way yet!

Look to see where 5 degrees Aries falls in your natal chart to map out where you can begin to fearlessly take action and where you can begin to celebrate this culmination of energy in a way that will best support your future self:

1st house: show up for yourself in a way that honors how you would like to be seen

2nd house: initiate an empowered sense of your own personal resourcefulness

3rd house: speak your truth, and allow your words to reflect your most authentic thoughts

4th house: find where you feel most at home and know you belong there

5th house: recognize how much you shine, and realize how YOU want to enjoy your time

6th house: actively create a routine that sparkles with your individuality

7th house: your opinion matters; you do not have to be who others need you to be

8th house: transform the ways in which you evaluate your worth – individuate your magnetism

9th house: transform your relationship to the truth; tell yourself the story you know to be true

10th house: aim for authentic recognition out in the world, a personally meaningful reputation

11th house: focus on finding allies who help you shine in your community

12th house: give your longest held dreams a heartbeat of their own

To schedule a personal reading with Hannah, email: [email protected]

09/17/15: HOW TO WORK WITH THE 8888 NUMEROLOGY

Posted on by Felicia Bender

September 17 2015 is a QUADRUPLE 8 day. And 8888 numerology means time to step up and transform, says Felicia Bender.

8888 numerology on The Numinous

 

Are you feeling the burn this year – and particularly this month – in pretty much every area of your life?

Numerologically, everyone on the planet is experiencing an 8 Universal Year.

You calculate it this way:  2015 = 2 + 0 + 1 + 5 = 8

The number 8 is the money and power number. The number 8 is an amplifier. Yet, here’s the rub. The energy of the 8 tests you in the realms of power. And not just some inconsequential quiz – this is like the comprehensive exams for your doctorate. And once you pass the exams, you must write your dissertation. Once you finish your dissertation, you must defend it in front of your committee. Once you defend it in front of your committee (and you pass), only then you get your degree. Ardous? Yes. Worth it? Damn right.

2015 is your year to develop and nurture everything related to money, power, control, and authority. There can be amazing gains, wonderful advancement, powerful achievement, and financial abundance. And there can also be losses, set backs, feelings of victimization, and financial slaps-in-the-face. The 8 is about resilience.

And since you’re a member of the Numinati, and pay attention to Astrology, you’ll also know that there have been – and will be – substantial planetary shifts and events taking place this year.  Eclipses, Blood Moons, Blue Moons – need I go on?

And now here’s a “red letter” day in numerology: September 17, 2015 is a QUADRUPLE “8” day.

·      2015 is an 8 Universal Year (2+0+1+5=8)
·      September 2015 is an 8 Universal Month (9+2+0+1+5 =17; 1+7=8)
·      September 17 is an 8 Date (9+1+7=17: 1+7=8)
·      And 17 is an 8 Day (1+7=8)

What’s more, this particular 8888 numerology shows up between two powerful eclipses!

So how to bring this energy down to earth?

The whole point of this intense time is to bring us back to our roots – to the foundational, authentic you. Your soul is being revealed to you now in all its beautiful truth, and wherever we are not aligned with our soul path this will itself to us as a rather loud wake-up call. And one that can come in all forms – from pain to euphoria (and everything in between).

September 17 is also a “portal” of sorts – an energetic opening where manifestation energy is at an all-time high. Dramatic changes and transformations are happening all around us and within us. The keys to working with the energy of 8888 numerology are:

·      To be open and receptive to rapid transformation.
·      To set your intentions with the utmost clarity around what you want (rather than what you don’t want).
·      To trust your truth and your intuition.
·      To take right action to manifest the next level in your life, whatever that might be to you.
·      To ready yourself to let go of old, old, old thoughts, habits, and programming.

Many people see the number 8 simply as the money number – personally think there’s more to it.  Metaphorically, I see the 8 as a really difficult personal trainer. Think Plutonian vibes. Working with the energy of the 8 in any aspect of your life isn’t easy. It always brings substantial tests – and like a personal trainer, it’ll make you show up even when you’re hung over, and work your ass off until you can barely walk. Yet as you step up, you’ll become strong, disciplined, and ripped.

September 17, 2015 (8888) will bring challenges to those who’ve been in denial or slacking in the “life purpose” department, and a huge breakthrough to those who’ve been doing the work and are prepared to leap into their next magnificent phase. Get ready for the ch-ch-ch-changes…

How will you work with the 8888 numerology this week? Share in the comments below and connect with us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter!

MY MYSTICAL LIFE: ENERGETIC BREAKOUTS, A HEALING HANG DATE, AND SOME WARDROBE REIKI

Posted on by Ruby Warrington

This week, purging and clearing have been the themes of my mystical life…

my mystical life august 28 by Ruby Warrington of The Numinous

I experienced an energetic breakout. Okay, this sounds like it’s gonna be about some radical consciousness shift resulting from a mind-blowing new healing technique…but actually it’s the tale of an aggressive outbreak of pimples in my mystical life. Ew. Gross. I know. But please bear with me, as these aren’t just any old pimples – I believe they are the result of an ongoing energetic detox.

Because WTF. I’ve been eating cleaner than ever since going full vegan and cutting out all alcohol over a month ago. As a result (I’m just guessing here) I’ve been sleeping like a baby, and experiencing “perfect” digestion for the first time in like forever. I’ve also been taking my supplements, letting all kinds of emotional s*** go, and feeling light of spirit and supremely optimistic about life – all the ingredients, surely, for radiant skin. And yet, not since my early teens have I seen zits like these!

It felt like time to consult facialist to the Numinati, Britta Plug, who brings a deep level of energetic healing to her sessions. My question: could this bout of extra clean living actually be the cause of my skissues (skin issues?) In a word: Yes! “We know that trapped emotional energy can cause sickness and disease, so it makes sense that we might actually see or feel it coming out,” she explained. “And if it’s really deep stuff, this could get a little gunky.”

In Ayurvedic medicine, she said, it’s also believed that the skin is the final frontier for toxins leaving the system – “once it’s showing up on the skin, chances are it’s been going through an internal process for a while” (i.e. affecting digestion, sleep, mood, etc). All of which made me feel WAY better about my current pizza face. In fact, I’ve even been able to embrace the pimples as evidence the deeper emotional clearing I’ve been doing over the past few months is working! Here are some tips Britta gave me for speeding up the process:

– Dry body brushing and Epsom salt baths – to help the lymph system clear that shiz out faster
– A Manuka honey mask – mix half a teaspoon mixed with water, spread on the skin and leave for up to an hour to speed up the healing process
– Accupuncture and massage – to keep the chi flowing, and assist the energetic detox further

I went on a healing hang date. As in, rather than do dinner or a yoga class as an excuse for a gossip with my Goddess gang, we got together to do a Family Constellation. It was my friend Alexandra’s idea. “I need to do a Constellation very soon. Venus retro has been kickin’ my butt, forcing me to really clear out and rethink! I would love to do this with you strong lovely women…” went the email. And well, how could we refuse?

You can read about what a Constellation is here, but it’s basically a form of group therapy that gets deep into your family patterns in a totally mystical way. I’ve only ever done it with strangers (not as scary as it sounds), and the results have BLOWN MY MIND. But with two women I know, who know me and elements of my story already, and who I knew I could trust implicitly with whatever came up? Next level.

Of course we bought snacks (our facilitator Marine even baked a vegan lavender cake) and caught up about the other stuff going on in our lives, and the session ended up lasting four hours. Totally  recommended next time you and a gal pal are in the market for more than your average dinner date.

I finally Kondo’d my condo. I might actually be the last person on the planet to read Marie Kondo’s The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, but since I’m about to move (for the fourth time in as many years), and since I <3 tidying up big time anyway (seriously where is the Virgo hiding out in my chart?), I figured it was time to just get on this bandwagon.

And I quickly realized that “magic” is the operative word in the title, plus the reason, I believe, this little book has resonated so strongly with so many gazillions of people. Yes, there have been all the practical benefits (cleaner, neater apartment + A LOT of credit to spend in my local clothing exchange), but here are a few of Marie’s more mystical life lessons:

On tidying as meditation: “The work of carefully considering each object I own to see whether it sparks joy inside me, is like conversing with myself through the medium of my possessions.”

On healing through tidying: “If you can’t feel relaxed in a clean and tidy room, try confronting your feeling of anxiety. It may cast a light on what’s really bothering you.”

On tidying as personal evolution: “To truly cherish the things that are important to you, you must first discard those that have outlived their purpose.”

On wardrobe reiki: “When we take our clothes in our hands and fold them neatly, we are, I believe, transmitting energy which has a positive effect on our clothes.”

Conclusion? Marie Kondo is a totally witchcore modern mystic. LOVE!

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5 WAYS TO WORK WITH FULL MOON TAROT

Posted on by Gabriela Herstik

If you’re looking for a super potent time to work with the Tarot, the Full Moon could be the cosmic invitation you’re after. Gabriela Herstik has five ways to work some Full Moon Tarot magick…Image: The Starchild Tarot

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Read For The Month Ahead
Perhaps the most obvious and direct way to incorporate the Tarot into your Full Moon ritual is to do a reading. The cosmic energy now is ripe for making decisions on whatever’s been brewing since the previous New Moon, so spending some time reflecting on what you now want to manifest can only serve you. Set up a sacred space, get centered, find a layout that sings to you and draw a card, any card. Reflect on the cycles of your life, and be open to what comes up in the card you’ve chosen.

Make A Tarot Temple
The Tarot is all about imagery and symbolism after all, so why not play with this? You can create a Tarot altar or temple by picking a card that resonates with you (or simply picking one randomly with your intention for the Full Moon in mind) and choosing objects and offerings that help you personify the card. Flowers, photos, statues of deities or animals, and anything else that taps the energy of your card can bring its message to life. You can even create a piece of art that relates to your card, and display it in your chosen sacred space. Focus on the feeling the card brings up for you – especially relating to what you want to manifest in the coming weeks – and channel it into your space.

Meditate on It
The day of the Full Moon is the perfect time to manifest the results of any intentions you’ve set in recent weeks. Once the moon starts to wane, aka lose light, it’s the perfect time to let go and surrender all outcomes to the Universe. Meditating with your card can intensify whatever intention is set. So whether you’re meditating on Death and choosing transformation as the result of any process you’ve been going through, or if you’re simply sitting with The Moon card and focusing on the divine feminine, you’re golden. Taking time to breathe, absorb the energy of the Full Moon and really channel it into your intention is simple, doesn’t take a lot of time, and is a sweet reminder to just be.

Spell It Out
The Full Moon is a strong time for spell or magick work and um, hello, why not incorporate your cards into your work! Whether you’re doing some sigil magick, candle magick or something in between, using the imagery from a card can help set the tone. There’s a whole realm of tarot magick out there, so do your research and get creative.

Dress Like Your Favorite Card
If you really wanna channel your favorite card, take some sartorial cues. Dressing for your Full Moon ritual in something that chimes with the imagery of card you’re working with is a super direct way of aligning yourself with its energy. Feeling the High Priestess this month? Why not wear some jewels or a dress that reminds you of your own connection to Goddess energy? Feeling kinda Two of Cups? How about you dress in something your lover gave you, or something red and sexy. Get creative and manifest, it really is that easy!

What card are you working with this Full Moon? Connect with us and share your Full Moon rituals on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter!

11 WAYS TO MEET YOUR SOULMATE

Posted on by Gabriela Herstik

Ready to meet your soulmate? Then leave your inhibitions at the door, and arm yourself with some of these spiritual ice-breakers, says Gabriela Herstik. Image: Kazel Lim via Behance.net

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We’re totally for that cosmic connection you feel between other members of the Numinati. You know, that sweet vibration you get in your heart chakra when you meet someone else who just gets it. Yet the way in which we meet our soul sisters (or brothers) can be pretty funny. Read on and let us know – do any of these soulmate chat up lines sound familiar to you?

“Oh my god, your dogs a Scorpio? Mines a Cancer. Let’s plan a play date.”
It all takes a turn for the better when you astrologically analyze your pets.

“You have a really strong heart chakra. I can feel it.”
That moment two girls in the Trader Joe’s checkout become besties.

“That’s selenite, right? Aww, and you’re wearing it near your heart to raise your consciousness to a higher level.”
How did she know?

“I don’t mean to interrupt, but I’m getting a vibe like I knew you in a past life.”
And you thought it was just another lunchtime wait in line at Sweetgreen.

“Has anyone ever told you what a beautiful energy you have about you?”
No, but I’ve heard that about my aura.

“Did I just hear you say your spirit animal is a raven? Mine’s a crow!”
Welcome to the tribe.

“Girl, is your lucky number 13? Because you’ve killed me and shown me a new way to live…”
Death card pick-up lines are too cute.

“My third eye feels especially open when I look at you.”
I know, I’ve been working on clearing my psychic energy field

“Let me guess – you take your coffee black, iced, and bitter. Like your soul before your last past life regression.”
When your barista just gets you.

“Is the energy of this coffee shop just off to you too?”
Well, now that you mention it…

“You totally look like the kind of chick I need in my coven.”
It’s a summer goth thing, isn’t it.

How did the convo go when you met your last Numi soulmate? Give us some lolz when you share on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter and tag it #shitnuminousgirlssay…

#NOFILTER: HOW TO HARVEST YOUR OWN SPRING WATER

Posted on by Alexandra Derby

Want to feel truly ALIVE? Then it’s time to harvest your own spring water, says Alexandra Derby.

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We are literally made up of water, around 60% of our entire body, just like that of Planet Earth. After breathing, oxygen, the second most fundamental element to our existence is water. And so the water we drink is one of the biggest contributors to our state of overall health, happiness and wellbeing.

The juiciness of our cells, our bodies ability to flush out unwanted toxins, the vibrancy and elasticity of our skin: all reasons why it is so important to drink the best water possible. But living in big cities we are given very little access to natural, unadulterated water. So if you are serious about pursuring the most vibrant life possible, then it’s up to you to take matters into your own hands!

I’ve been on a quest to drink the best water possible since the birth of my daughter three years ago. As a geeky Virgo, my search led me to the study of structured water – what Gerald Pollack describes as the ‘fourth state of water’ – as found in natural spring water.

We know from our science lessons at school that water can be solid (ice), liquid (water), and gas (steam). In its forth state, the molecules of Pollack’s structured water form a crystalline lattice aligned in a Flower of Life pattern.

 

And spring water is naturally structured into a coherent crystal lattice by Mother Earth, who, left to her own devices, structures EVERYTHING into a coherent crystal lattice (including us humans!) so that all living things can vibrate together in harmony.

But what does this mean for our bodies? Well, in a word, coherence. The blood and cells in your body resonate perfectly with this state of crystalline unity. In effect, this means you can program your body with unity consciousness by simply drinking water!

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Some things I have tried in my quest to quench my thirst for structured water:

Drinking spring water from bottles. Glass is best as plastic leaches into the water and adds to the plastic waste pile that will only end up polluting our oceans.
Filtering tap water. I’ve tried Brita filters (downside is the jug is plastic and you have to replace disposable plastic filters); an elegant glass water filter with Japanese charcoal (sadly discontinued from Design Within Reach); and Berkey filters (excellent, but made of metal – glass is always best container for water).
Charging my water. Combined with a filtration system, this really makes a difference to how the water feels in your body. I have tried tesla plates (a tuned anodized aluminum plate that works to bring bioenergetic fields back into balance and harmony); placing crystals in my water to structure it in resonance to their crystalline field; and giving Reiki to my water by cupping my hands around it before I drink it.
Blessing my water by saying: “Thank you. I love you.” As Masaru Emoto demonstrated with his hauntingly beautiful images showing how water crystals resopond to intentions, music and specific words, the most powerful coherence and greatest beauty was shown when the water was acknowledged with Love and Gratitude – “Thank you. I love you.”

BUT the day I convinced by husband and kid to drive upstate and harvest our own spring water, naturally structured water, was the day I fully understood what the saying ‘you can taste the difference’ really meant!

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I knew I really had to do something more about the water I was drinking when I kept dreaming of how I needed to drink spring water. So, following my intuitive voice I found a website with just the information I was looking for.

Findaspring.com is an amazing resource mapping all of the natural springs accessible in your area, along with detailed directions. The huge and passionate natural spring water community keeps the comments updated for each spring with information about the quality of the water, accessibility, and whether the spring is dry or not.

Typing the address of our local spring into google maps, we headed off one Saturday morning with a couple of three-gallon glass bottles and a sense of adventure. As we drove further from the City, I began fretting we would never find the spot – but we kept going, and right on cue saw a car pulled over to the side of the road with a man lifting water bottles out.

There was a small gathering at the spring. An extended Polish family were filling up about 15 five-gallon bottles that would last them for months, they said. There are no legal limits on the amount of spring water you are allowed to harvest but it is recommended to harvest five gallons at a time.

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Getting my first taste of the beautiful crisp water that was gushing out of the pipe from the ground can only be described as pure magic. I knew for sure then that water is Sacred. This water was so sparkling that mini rainbows were reflecting off the droplets on my cupped hand. My body tingled with delight, I literally feel ALIVE. This water had come straight from Mother Earth, unfiltered, untouched by any processes, straight from the Source.

The first week of drinking the water we harvested, some surprising things happened. We decided to focus on using the water for drinking, as we had not harvested enough to bathe in. And so we used it in all our smoothies, nut milks and any recipe that needed unheated water.

The first thing I noticed was that heaviness that I used to feel from water sitting in my stomach was gone, as if the spring water was being taken straight into my cells. I felt light! I felt vibrant! And then… all sorts of old emotional patterns starting rising to the surface.

I realised that in drinking such pure water, all the toxins I was carrying, not just physically but DEEP emotional toxins, were being pulled to the surface to be purged. It felt like I was being guided through a process of letting go of anything that no longer served me. I felt I was being ‘cleared out’, so as to be a vessel for greater light, and greater balance. Wow. What a reminder that water is Life.

How do you make sure you’re drinking the purest water possible? Connect with us and share your tips on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! 

MY MYSTICAL WEEK: KUNDALINI HEAVYWEIGHTS, THE POWER OF SAGE, AND A BOX OF TREATS

Posted on by Ruby Warrington

Will I ever be hardcore enough to be one of the kundalini crew, asks Ruby Warrington?

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I HUNG WITH THE KUNDALINI HEAVYWEIGHTS. So kundalini yoga is generally one of those things I do because I don’t want to. I figure anything that makes my ego flip-out the way this practice does has gotta be good for furthering my personal ascension goals – plus I’ve experienced some of my most profound life realizations on my sheepskin. Like full-on psychic visions about the best next steps to take in life. So when I learned that Guru Jagat (a.k.a. the woman spearheading the current kundalini global takeover bid) was hosting a retreat with her Rama Institute in Glastonbury last weekend, OF COURSE I extended my recent stay in the UK so I could go.

Here’s a sampling of the kind of stuff that went down:

Daily 4am sadhana. Literal translation: “spiritual exertion towards an intended goal”. My translation: “a battle of ego over sleep-deprived mind, and absolute evidence that kundalini yogis – who practise sadhana every morning – are the most hardcore of yogis.”
My first 2.5 hour meditation. About 4.30am on Saturday morning, Guru Jagat announced she’d had a download that we were going to do the “Master’s Touch” meditation that morning. Here’s a video. We did this for 2.5 hours (but faster, without music, and with our hands held in the ‘crossed fingers’ position). TF for her caveat that anybody “new” to kundalini was welcome to nap if needed.
Shopping for Jupiter rings. One think I love about the kundalini community is that they’re generally dripping with jewels – and the first opportunity we got we headed to Stone Age, a high-vibe crystal jewelry store in Glastonbury town. Wearing a ring on your Jupiter finger (the pointer finger) is said to symbolize power, leadership and authority…which is interesting since most women were saying they don’t like wearing rings on that finger because it feels “ugly” and “clunky.” Hmmm!
A trip to the top of the Tor. As in, the hill that presides over Glastonbury – and which is also the axis of the mythical Earth Zodiac (which, never fear, I will write about at length in another post!) Cut to bemused stares from the ‘regular’ tourists, as our 40-strong group moved from seated meditation in the grass (substituting sheepskins for black trash bags to protect our kundalini whites)…to insane selfie excitement in the natural wind machine created by the ruins of St Michael’s castle (see below).

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I BOWED TO THE POWER OF SAGE. I actually had to leave the retreat early (which means I missed seeing Merlin’s Cave, the crop circle excursion, and the final 4am sadhana AT THE TOP OF THE TOR), because of an electrical issue that needed sorting in my London home. My shower had been giving off a *tingle* of electrical charge (eek), and the electrician had already been in twice to figure out what was causing it – to no avail. He needed to do a deep dive he said, and un/rewire my entire house to get the bottom of this one (see dollar signs stretching to infinity in my mind’s / third eye).

I figured I might as well do my bit, so I picked up a GIANT bunch of sage at Star Child Original Medicinal Botanicals in Glasto and smudged my place the night before – paying extra attention to the bathroom. I mean it could easily be an energetic problem, right? Ghost of tenants past making a watery plea for freedom? And what do you know, 15 minutes into the job, my man Shane had found and fixed the problem! He was scratching is head over how he’d missed it before…while I smiled inside cos I figured I’d essentially smoked that mo-fo out.

I RECEIVED A BOX OF TREATS. One thing I miss about my “old life” in the mainstream media is the constant stream of free beauty products I used to get sent. In fact, there was a whole other lesson in ego eradication when the supply dried up once I left my old staff job. But when I returned back to NY, I was amazed to find a box of beauty goodies from Blue Mercury awaiting me – and even better, the majority of them were all natural!

Perhaps they were a gift from Jupiter, planet of abundance, who just moved signs into my house of health and wellbeing. Or from Venus, Goddess / planet of beauty, as a thank you for honoring her with our Temple of Venus art project this past month. I mean, these are the kind of questions a girl has to ask when goodies appear from out of no-where. And my fave product in the box? A chemical-free nail lacquer from Smith & Cult in a shade of poppy red called Kundalini Hussle – of course.

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MANFESTATION STATION: HOW TO DESIGN AN ALTAR

Posted on by Emily Tepper

A cosmic radio tower for broadcasting your wishes to the Universe, manifestation expert Emily Tepper shares how to design an altar that’s perfect for YOU…

"Fluorescent Virgins" by Pilar Gordillo via Behance.net on The Numinous
From “Fluorescent Virgins” by Pilar Gordillo via Behance.net

GO WITH WHAT’S RIGHT FOR YOU
We live in a time with unprecedented access to information and advice – including this article! And while it’s amazing to be able to approach altar design by tapping into different covens and styles and belief systems, the point is to put YOU and your desires at the center of the altar. After all, it is there to act as a radio tower for the divine as experienced through YOU.

WORK WITH SYMBOLS
When choosing artefacts for your altar, think less less about the object itself and more about what it symbolizes for you. Yes, crystals, candles and other sacred objects all look beautiful and bring their own super-powers, but to truly personalise your altar include a few items that are completely unique to you and your situation. For example, if you want more dates and your ideal date is a day on the beach, you could place some sunscreen on your altar. Or if you want to call in more financial abundance, write yourself a check from your dream client.

Numinous founder Ruby Warrington's altar from summer 2014 featured on The Numinous
Numinous founder Ruby Warrington’s altar from summer 2014

FEEL INTO IT
Having trouble finding a symbol for what you want? When you’re manifesting something, the trick is to focus on creating the physical feelings of having that thing in your life before it actually materializes – that way, the Universe will pick up on the signal (feeling) you’re putting out, and send the corresponding object / event your way. So choosing your symbols, what image / object comes to mind first when you’re getting into the emotional essence of your hot beach date? Or having unlimited funds in the bank? But remember, the symbol can be anything – there are no rules!

PAY ATTENTION TO PLACEMENT
As a rule, you can work with the energy flow of your altar by placing objects and symbols relating to the things you want to call in to the right – and things that symbolise the all the things you want to  clear / move away from to the left.

Numinous Tarotscopes writer Louise Androlia's altar featured on The Numinous how to design an altar
Numinous Tarotscopes writer Louise Androlia’s altar

HAVE FUN!
Seriously – even the witchiest witch experiences work better when they vibrate with joy. And while often ritual work is about accepting things as they are and then shifting them to a better place, improvement and ascension happen in a gradient from bad, to not as bad, to pretty good, to awesome! Make creating your altar about enjoying this ride.

TAKE A MINERAL BATH AFTER YOU INTERACT WITH YOUR ALTAR
Altar and ritual work can be a bit of an out there experience, and minerals calm the spirit and bring us delicate souls “back into the body.” My personal favorite is a mineral rich blend of dead sea salt and kelp powder (also good for growing my mermaid tail back). But seriously, it’s important to honor the process of re-grounding after communing with the spirit world and that’s important. It’s what being a material girl in a mystical world is all about, after all.

What’s on your altar, and why? Share your altar pics with us on Instagram and Facebook, tag #NuminousAltars, and we’ll include them on our altar Pinterest board to inspire the Numinous community!

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