The universe is full of magical things, patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.
~Eden Phillpotts
One of the appeals of going to a fortune teller, a psychic, or a medium is the magic of being told things a stranger shouldn't know. I think that's a legitimate bit of entertainment. When people talk about their experiences with getting readings, the tone is often so casual and like, "Whatever." Even when recounting accurate, spot on readings where the reader did indeed tell the client private things and predictions that came true, the one telling the story usually ends it with, "Yeah, but who knows?" There are always a good mix of good psychic and bad psychic stories which only partly accounts for the cautionary attitudes. Of course we need to be wary of people who deliver bullshit and take your money for it. But I find it fascinating when people who have experienced a genuine psychic reading still appear to shrug it off. So few are confident enough to say, "I know there are a bunch of sham readers out there, but the one I saw was legit." Why is that?
I think it stems from embarrassment or an unwillingness to be seen as someone who believes in "that stuff." It's like we're so scared to admit there's more to this life, our experience of it, than what we can see. We feel nudges, hunches, and odd feelings all the time. We make synchronistic associations all the time. We see signs and we dream and make connections. But we feel awkward admitting it and accepting this other input as valid. Even as a tarot reader, I still experience the same feelings. There are some days when I am sure I am spewing nonsense, just pulling random things out of my underwear. (Funny how, on those days, my readings are better.)
We are grounded to this earth in these physical bodies, so we like to be able to touch, see, and measure things. We want to know for sure and hold it in our hands before we believe. That is entirely valid and I don't think we should dismiss the need for substantive validation. Science has it's place and yet I don't think science should be the only thing we rely on. Look at how scientific discoveries change our realities, not always for the better. The USDA nutrition guidelines are a good example. For years we've been told our diet should look like this:
And then we got fat. And heart disease. And diabetes.
Now the USDA's latest recommended diet looks like this:
Half our diet should be fruits and veggies, more veggies than fruit. The other half grains (and at least half of those should be whole grains), and protein. A little bit of dairy. We learned certain oils can be good for us, dark chocolate is healthy, and maybe eating all that white flour and rice wasn't working so well.
So why did we believe the USDA back in the pyramid days? Well, when it was created, there is some speculation that it was not scientifically designed but politically designed with certain industries lobbying for a better place on the pyramid. So we can't always depend on "scientific research" so we must conduct our own. Eat like the food pyramid for a while and see what happens. For some people who live very active lives and burn off all those carbs, it's probably fine. Our bodies will respond differently depending on who we are, our genetic predisposition, our current health, our activity level, our income (healthier food choices tend to cost more), etc.
And that is my point: we must validate what we experience in our own lives. If you went to a psychic and you were amazed because the information was deeply personal, exactly what you needed to hear, connected to your life and your immediate concerns, then it is as valid as anything else real in your experience.
As my colleague, James Wells, recently blogged in his post "Tarot and Thinking are Friends" --
Intuition is simply one more sense in the panoply of human perceptions. It is neither less nor more important than sight, smell, taste, touch, hearing, thinking, or proprioception. Too many people mistake impulse for intuition, thereby making less-then-helpful decisions. Impulse carries emotional attachment whereas intuition simply provides information.I also wrote about that in my post Intuition Needs Your Input only James gets right to the point. Intuition, yours or someone else's, should be used in tandem with other discoveries and information. In fact, our balanced life should look a lot like the USDA's "My Plate." Rational logic, Swords could be one section. Emotional experience and feelings, Cups, should be another section. The third section would be Pentacles, our physical experience and knowledge. And another section should be our motivation, energy, and passion, Wands. That circle off to the side? Psychic knowing. It's all part of the information we need to live and make decisions. That rational, logical stuff that our society seems to think is the only information we should need, over and above anything we feel emotionally or experience physically or intuitively, is like the bottom-heavy grains in the old food pyramid. It just doesn't work for most of us.
I'd like us to be less ashamed of speaking about what works for us if it's not of the socially approved norm. I'd like us to go ahead and be awed and amazed when a stranger tells you something they shouldn't know. The more we accept these sources of information for what they are, we will become much better at utilizing them and know their place in our lives.
Well said as always. You're an amazing woman Ginny, God Bless...
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Great post! I'm working my way slowly towards 'unashamed', too. I've a feeling that intuition can be blocked out by shame altogether, quite easily.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, I find it pretty remarkable that you know people who will admit to having gone to a reader! We do have a bizarre culture, don't we? We subdivide human experience and insight into 'socially acceptable' and 'so shameful it could wreck my career and/or relationships if it ever came out that I paid any attention to this.' Then we eat from only half the plate, and wonder why people get so hungry.
As for official dietary guidelines... better not get me started, on the whole.
Hi Allen! Good to see you here! :) (((hugs)))
ReplyDeleteHillary, you bring up a very good point: hunger. When any of the areas are undernourished, we suffer. "Man cannot live on bread alone." Survive, maybe. Live? Not well. So it is when we under nourish our souls, when we dismiss the physical or the emotional or the psychic/intuitive. Part of the reason scammers find it so easy to scam is they prey on desperate people -- people who are *hungry* for what they offer.
Mm. I wonder how much we displace our soul's hunger onto easier/ more acceptable things? Like romance, or buying stuff? And yes, agreed, the whole confusion does make it easier for scammers of all kinds.
ReplyDeleteGinny, I created a diagram or infographic of your version of the "My Plate" eating guide on my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AstrologyAndTarotReadings
ReplyDeleteCiao Bella,
ReplyDeleteAnother poignant blog, my dear Ginny.
I LOL when I saw your pyramid graphic. It reminded me of the Tarot paper I presented at the 2012 APA/ACA conference in Boston last April on the Tarot in the Community panel. My topic was "Beyond Soothsaying: Expanding Community Definitions of Tarot Work"
In my PowerPoint presentation I included a pyramid chart of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs (5 levels), a connection that came to me in a dream when I was stuck in writing the paper.
The point I was making overlaps with yours, that the majority of Tarot readings are on the lower few levels of the pyramid, searching for basics hungers to be filled, such as security and physical affection, etc
Spiritual fulfillment is at the top of the pyramid representing a smaller percentage of the population. Intellectual activity is the next level down.
So, the qualities of being human and the way we approach most things, Tarot or not, closely resemble this pyramid theory. I would like to add, much like in your renewed mandala style image, that these various levels of needs can be embraced all at the same time with the development of a new paradigm, a healthier way of seeing ourselves.
Tarot work and contributions, such as your article, point folks to this new paradigm and invites them to move beyond their preconceived limitations.
Thank you Ginny!!
In Spirit,
Katrina
Cassandra, you are awesome. I shared your graphic all over FB. :D
ReplyDeleteKatrina, yes! I really like the inclusive circle approach much more and appreciate the efforts the USDA has made in recent years to balance the guidelines. It really is a model for living and inclusiveness...and BALANCE! :)
Olá Ginny, tudo bem? Conheci seu blog e te sigo á muito tempo gosto da forma como você se coloca diante dos sentimentos que muitos têm, o medo de fazer uma leitura, e o medo de admitir que gostam de fazer leitura de tarot. Não sei se o termo correto é medo ou na verdade preconceito. Tudo de bom muita luz em sua vida
ReplyDeleteI am so glad you're enjoying 78 Notes To Self and thank goodness for Google Translate. :) I know that some of the embarrassment about believing in the intuitive arts is based in old messages that it is dangerous on some level. But if we remove the psychic from our lives, we become deficient and our souls become unhealthy. Too much "psychic stuff" is also unhealthy. We should strive for a balance.
ReplyDeleteEstou tão feliz que você está gostando 78 Notas Para Auto e agradecer a Deus por Google Translate. :) Eu sei que alguns dos constrangimentos sobre acreditar nas artes intuitivas é baseado em mensagens antigas de que é perigoso em algum nÃvel. Mas se tirarmos o psÃquico de nossas vidas, tornar-se deficiente e as nossas almas se tornam insalubres. Muito "material psÃquico" também é insalubre. Devemos esforçar-nos para um equilÃbrio.
Thanks, Ginny. What else can I say? I always enjoy your posts! :-)
ReplyDeleteWhat i can say is just i'm so happy to be a part of your website.Your words are so kind.
ReplyDeleteHi Ginny, such a reassuring article. Am new to tarot but have experienced the intuition thing for years. My family and a couple of my friends who I have confided in are very sceptical which does nothing for my confidence. Its nice to know (as I do know) there are other people like me. Following your blog will help me to grow.
ReplyDeleteWelcome to 78 Notes To Self Seaside Sally! Hey, if even science can accept that intuition exists then I think the rest of those who doubt will catch on, too. :)
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