Pagans ride life through rhythms. We listen to the sound of life, language, and love. We are earth-based; we believe we are interconnected, that we have a sense of rhythm with the earth.
A quote often attributed to Hemingway and other writers, “There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed,” fits for us now at this time: As Pagans, we are called to bear witness and we are called to observe. As we trudge through the morass of depressing news stories, we endure a burden as reality smacks us with an uncertain future in the United States. While global implications remain unknown, we are in a time of unwanted but ever present reflection.
Sometimes I wonder as a Pagan whether it is not that we don’t fit in, but maybe we just don’t fit in where we are.
The Bell of Chersonesos, Crimea, Ukraine Dmitry A. Mottl, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
It is important to hear the bell. When it is time to stop and reflect.
This is a time of reflection: Venus retrograde in Aries, followed by Pisces, before going direct in April.
The Hanged Man tarot card encourages observation and taking the role of non-action. We surrender our need to do something in favor of waiting to see what happens. We look at the world from a non-traditional stance: hanging upside down, which clears our vision and allows us to find a solution from the forest that surrounds us rather than the trees that are too numerous to count.
Awareness while in this state brings the blessings of faith: the need to keep going, even when it seems like despair hangs over our very beings.
We embrace nature, which embodies the very cyclical nature that dictates patterns for each part of the year. Our physical bodies reflect this intimate knowledge through our entrance at birth, our maturation through puberty during adolescence, our replication of the species through procreation, our nurturing of family during our early and middle years, and our care for the elderly as our bodies weaken and prepare to leave this plane of existence.
We are paralyzed in a trance where nothing seems right, or worse, where nothing makes sense. Our code of honor, our internal moral compass as a people in the United States, now registers as a new device that needs checking before providing access. What we teach our children no longer finds reflection in everyday encounters as a guarantee.
During these times, the need to cling to each other in our mutual forest intensifies our encounters. We see the divine in nature and in a variety of situations. We cling to these encounters and experiences as life saving devices that keep us afloat temporarily in turbulent waters. We search for sanity in those who control order, and realize that we are alone and hanging upside down.
The view brings clarity, or a headache, depending on how we receive the information. We can fight the ties that bind our hands, preventing direct action or relaxing into the movement, bringing connection with the Divine and the message that we truly need to hear at this time.
At this time, I see as a Pagan the world as a piece of lace, woven bit by bit, one thread twisted and crossed over another. It reminds me of how in a sunny day a spider’s web can appear in a dark corner – delicate, yet strong in its completeness.
Do we learn from the lesson of the web or do we smash it too quickly through hasty action?
Like many other art forms, lace making is a skill experiencing a renaissance. The arts of crafting, knitting, crocheting, macrame, embroidery, tatting, and so many other types provide community, solace, stability, and preservation for the future. There is a reason why the “stitch and bitch” remains popular for those who craft in community. Quilting bees allowed time for creative work as well as community closeness, and a bit of news sharing.
As Pagans, Heathens, and polytheists, we need this attitude now. We see the world through nature and in doing so, our points of view are valuable in ascertaining a possible solution. It may not and probably will not be an immediate solution to the many thorns that prick our communal skin at present.
Pamela Colman Smith, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Pamela Colman Smith, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
However, one of lessons of the Hanged Man, the vision of the serene individual hanging upside down from the tree, regardless of tarot deck, is that there is power through surrender; moreover, there is power through increased awareness and sacrifice.
For many of us, this is not the reality we seek, nor is it one we deserve. A part of the surrender can be the knitting together of community in friendship, in listening to others, in gathering with our like-minded kindred.
Share a meal, share a burden, be open to finding those who may not be of your same tradition, but those who are willing to join with you and see the world from a different point of view.
Some are understandably angry. Some are frustrated. Some want the tools to break free of the ties that bind us to a situation no one wants.
Anger is a tool best wielded with a solid plan, which comes from knowing where and how to execute a strategy that will achieve our end goals.
We find possible understanding and solutions from those who have come before us. Aging provides wisdom for the young, and techniques that help us to navigate our everyday lives.
There is a reason why Gen Z is so hung up on “Grandma Chic” or reviving tips from the Great Depression to survive, such as cooking from scratch, air drying clothes, and not using credit unless absolutely necessary.
Seek, find, and listen to the elders. These times are not the first for our people, our country, or humanity. Our elders, including the ancients and ancestors who have passed beyond, have a great deal of wisdom that we desperately need now.
For those who have been around the community for a while, guess what? You are an elder. You have value. You have wisdom. You have awareness. You can help guide through your choices, your ability to share your past and your wisdom with those present and those who will come into our community.
Many of you have been paralyzed in the past in spirit and have come through it, and the many incarnations of the Dark Night of the Soul with a new perspective. Share that with others in our community. Share it with those outside of our community.
Goodness knows, we need it as a people, as humanity, and as beings who are one with nature. The world may appear to be down, but we are not out.
Let’s hang upside down, get a clear vision, and come back stronger for our sacrifice.
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