on writing again

It feels good to be writing again. I know this blog is no masterpiece but just putting my words down into some kind of order feels strangely satisfying. So, I’ve decided to draw a card from the Celtic Wisdom deck to shed some light on this feeling and what might be behind it….

I have drawn the 8 Elopement of Knowledge (8 of Disks). The story linked to this card is that of Ceridwen and her cauldron of wisdom. In order to give wisdom to her less than beautiful son Afagddu she intends to boil the brew for a year and a day and puts Gwion in charge of tending the cauldron. He accidentally tastes a drop from the cauldron and so gains all the wisdom intended for Afagddu. Ceridwen, less than impressed, begins the chase that results in them both changing into a sequence of animals. Gwion becomes a hare, Ceridwen a greyhoud, he a fish, she an otter, he a bird, she a hawk, he a grain of wheat and she a hen. After she ingests him she gives birth nine months later to the poet Taliesin.

Caitlin Matthews, in the companion book, gives the following as the soul wisdom; "For us to attain any mastery in any area of learning, we have to engage and connect with the knowledge already within us." She also asks the question "What needs to be assimilated still?"
Traditionally the 8 of Disks speaks of study or apprenticeship or learning. This is also the divinatory meaning given for the Celtic Wisdom deck. Looking beyond that to the story of Ceridwen and Gwion, I’m interested in how this applies to my current enjoyment of the writing process. It is a story about learning and about transformation but also about applying our wisdom. For me, I see this as saying that I need to be flexible and to adapt to the situation at hand. Perhaps this format of writing allows me to do that. I can work hard at what I’m doing, practice the craft of writing, with the only goal being to gain wisdom and insights. How exciting to know that at the end of the story the great poet Taliesin awaits me.

Still struggling with committing to the Celtic Wisdom deck I decided to draw a card from the Hanson-Roberts as well, seeing as though it’s placing itself as a contender. I drew the Ace of Cups.

I am immediately drawn to the water overflowing from the cup, the open flowers and the bird in the sky. This card gives me a sense of relief. It’s as if I’m able to pour out my emotions with my writing. The bird to me symbolises my intellectual engagement with the process, but if this card is answering my original question as to what lies beneath my joy of writing, I’d say the answer is that it provides me with an outlet for my creativity and emotions. No wonder it feels good.