Parting the Mists

Laugh at the title if you will, but at least I’m being honest about my posting lately. 😉

Whenever I see this card, I remember the magic of creating with our hands and using tools, something less understood in today’s world than in the recent past. Our grandparents and great grandparents understood that developing a skill was not only needed for life, but admired and almost magical in itself.

Ace of Bows: Spark of Life

Against a shimmering background of leaves and beaches, a stout, rough-hewn hunting bow shimmers with the fire of life itself. The tip of an arrow rests on a heap of kindling chaff, and curled bark is bursting into flame as the tip flashes with brilliant incandescent light.

Meaning: As the turning of the cosmic axis generates the spark of life, so the kindling of a flame sparks the necessary light and warmth in our lives. The drill-bow suggests the human element, our partnership with the environment in which we live and the mastery of its gifts.

Reading Points: By shaping, directing, and persevering with the tool that both hunts and nutures fire, we kindle the spark that starts the process of creation and empowerment. This takes skill, effort, commitment, and persistence, but the universe always responds with enlightenment, challenge, and opportunity. This is the nature of the human relationship with creation, and leads to a deeper awareness of the part we must play in the great scheme of things.

Harnessing the energy inherent in the bow, and the skill and endurance needed to loose the hunter’s arrows accurately and efficiently, are as primal and ancient as human existence itself. Every native tribe on Earth developed the bow as a tool and choosing, shaping, and tuning the bow stave and the arrows is a time-consuming and demanding craft that hones our skills and widens our knowledge of all the materials required in the ancient art. This also includes the habits and patterns of nature associated with the prey the hunter seeks and may infuse the archer with a new respect and reverence for the creatures that inhabit the Wildwood. Be prepared to learn new skills, adapt to a changing environment, and focus and tune your instincts to the task at hand.

The Wildwood Tarot by Mark Ryan and John Matthews, art by Will Worthington