10 of Swords: Broken Promises & New Possibilities

New accompanying mini-cast, available through the Witch’s Sabbath patreon available here: Seasons of Change: Full Moon in Sagittarius PLUS lunar eclipse

BROKEN PROMISES & NEW POSSIBILITIES

The suit of swords in the Tarot symbolize the balance or imbalance between the mind, communication, power and control. They relate to the element of air - that which is carried through the intangible and unseen, but effecting us all the same. Words, energies, and intentions. Swords denote radical challenge, and calls upon us to check in with our own responsibilities. The Ten of Swords tarot card traditionally depicts a person stabbed in the back over and over and over, finally laid flat from the burden and exhaustion of sorrow, brutality, and betrayal. Yet the sun still rises in the distance. This card marks a difficult yet inevitable ending - as well as fresh starts, birthed by hard and painful labor. It’s a card of broken contracts, treaties, communities and trust. It’s also a card of release. Now that you know the truth and have seen what cannot be unseen, you can free-fall into acceptance of reality and step towards a fresh path of purpose and intention. We can and must bear witness to truth when the curtain has been pulled back. We now truly see without question that the Emperor (the card of 2020) has no clothes. The systems that we have been forced into were never built for the benefit and protection of all. There is inherent racism and bigotry built into the foundation of where we now stand. Our feet are not to blame, but here they are, in this moment of awakening. We have been tasked with divine obligation to take up our swords. Weapons and tools are often the same. What gives them their meaning is how they are used. With them we can cut away that which harms ourselves and others, and to dig into the crevices of old groundwork, packed tightly by generations of strain. You cannot change the actions of another person, by force, or otherwise. In trying, you’ll likely end up giving the forces of oppression exactly what they want. But you can change how you respond - and - multiple pathways of response can exist at once. You can be angry and compassionate. You can hold grief and hope. You can understand your role in the timeline of oppression and strive for independent and collective change. Realizing the mindset of nonduality and then putting it to action is but a step in upending supremacist binary norms. No person is truly individual and solitary. We are part of an ocean of life - past, present, and future. Capitalist power structures push the narrative of individuality (as long as you buy this product, do this thing, look this way, invest in these standards, you’ll be different), when we all know that this simply isn’t true and never has been. We are connected through life, sharing in the same ocean, but weathering the storm with very, very different capacities to do so. Too many are drowning, dying, and it’s on those with privilege to show up and sacrifice long-established comforts to the best of their abilities in order to break the cycles that bind us all. As the Talmud states, "Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world's grief. Do justly now, love mercy now, walk humbly now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.”

RITUAL IS RADICAL

If you fail to use your power, privilege and faith to dismantle white supremacy, do not call yourself a good member of your religious community, a supportive family member, a righteous healer, a teacher - or a witch. The legacy of a witch is someone with experience and understanding of oppression outside of themselves. It is not simply personal, it is communal. A witch is a healer, seeker, teacher, and protector. To gather in intention and hold space for change is to give energy towards the world we wish to see made possible, because we know that is can be. To stand by and allow inequity is not an option. To be passive through appropriation and oppression is to allow it to continue. The issues of the moment are directly linked to the past, and will effect the future of this world. It is a known responsibility to be sensitive towards the causes and effects as they unfold, to hold ourselves and others within our community accountable. Some magical practitioners may choose a path of peace while others find purpose in rage. Some work through their hands, others through their hearts. Some move while others speak. Some invent while others uphold. Our roles are sacred. Each are equally necessary and amplify the work of the other. Show up magically. Hold space for new beginnings while living in the understanding of the moment. Offer your energy, open your wallet, and check yourself where you can every single day. Listen to your community and share words from others especially around issues of appropriation as they become known. To be a witch is to follow a path, and make plenty of room for the paths of others.

IF YOU’RE HYSTERICAL, IT’S HISTORICAL

In trauma therapy, there’s an understanding that when we experience a “trigger,” it essentially hijacks our emotions - specifically the precious amygdala. Favoring not the right or left side of the brain but residing in both, this tiny bean-shaped cluster of neurons is responsible for the perception of emotions such as anger, fear, and sadness. It also is responsible for controlling or releasing aggression. The amygdala helps to store memories of events and emotions so that we’re able to later recognize similar events in the future, learning from the past but simultaneously charged with emotion around it. The most important set of genetic instructions we all get comes from our DNA. Scientists have long observed and studied the passing of epigenetic memories, translated down for 14 readable generations. There is of course the likelihood of many many more being present in our blood, but with this amount already understood by modern science, it’s easy to understand why trauma response might be higher in some communities around specific events, words, and acts of bigotry than others. Let’s pause for a moment and understand what trauma is. The dictionary definition is “a deeply distressing or disturbing experience.” Trauma is created for both the victim and the perpetrator, meaning that those descended from violence and those who committed the violence both suffer, perpetuating endless cycles of internalized, generational fear-based trauma. The hard work is in self-analyzation, cooperation, systemic change, and intentional lifelong recovery. This is a tall ask when racially charged hate crimes are activated so readily by the exact forces that are said to protect and serve without bias. These brushed away lies and camouflaged murders create more than anger - they create hopelessness. Spirits have been crushed, and continue to be. How a community is meant to overcome when there is nobody there to help but themselves is a living terror that only people of color understand in this country, particularly black people. This is why those with the privilege to create comfort, safety, and equity for those oppressed absolutely must do so. When someone we love is hurt, we help them. We don’t ask for accolades or attention, we just do it because our hearts demand it. This must happen every single day, in whatever capacity is available to us, while taking time to rest and enact self-care so that we may heal and continue to show up for one another. We cannot hate our ancestors for passing down this pain, no matter the cause. The effect has gripped us all, and we each have a responsibility to learn from the past and grow from it.

ANCESTRAL FORGIVENESS, LIVING CHANGE

Oppression is based on the idea that there is not enough to go around, and that resources, wealth, and comforts will be taken away. What we’ve been calling “scarcity mentality” is a product of white supremacy and its favorite child: capitalism. There is a belief that those who are not like the majority will take what the majority has. That it was worked hard for, not stolen, or acquired by unjust influence. This is difficult for many white people to internalize specifically because of having blood in the game. The colonist adjustment from purpose to career has damaged us, individually and culturally, but it’s important to remember that immigrants who came to this country were wholly ignorant as to what the effects of their actions would become. The past is murky. Their efforts and energies, hopes, dreams, resentments and shame have since been reinvented by new generations, largely suffering from apathy, anger, abandonment and spiritual loneliness. The industrialization of resources, farming, housing and faith has created much more damage than good in the long run. We can hold this truth while also knowing that many of our ancestors did what they could at the time they had to create new opportunities for their descendants. Many also acted in selfishness and cruelty. Some did wrong, and did so knowingly. Others who caused harm had no true evil intentions, just as most of us don’t now. There is rampant ignorance, but the good news of this moment in time is that we have strong collective awareness of the supremacist system. We see that it has been perpetuated, that we have been involved, and we are willing to work together to change it. To hold contempt towards the dead is an abstraction that no living soul can make sense of. In the same breath, we also can’t put our hope in blind veneration alone. In my magical community, we call upon our ancestors who love us, hoping to access the energies that support and offer wise and balanced insight. Our blood contains all possibilities. Ancestors can no longer argue, explain, or apologize, though they can find peace through the corrections made by their descendants. In this way, we must forgive them, tip our hat their way and say “thank you for all you did - I know you tried your best in life. I honor you, and will continue in a new way.”

THE MAGIC OF HEALING & THE GIFT OF STRENGTH

How we do one thing is how we do everything. Inherited trauma exists right alongside our inherited strengths. Epigenetics offers no favoritism. Our DNA doesn’t flourish in what is sensationalized. The joys and celebrations of our ancestors exist within us. They exist in our bodies and minds through dance, song, crafts, and creativity. They exist in the motions of our hands working the earth, tending to the flourishing of life. It lives on in the layers and layers of wisdom within us, passed down through the practices and lives of our blood. Over time, colonist ideals and capitalist structures have stolen away time given to these natural impulses, as well as barred and belittled traditional practices and community gatherings. To be interested in something and pursue development in a passion is a wonderful thing to do. But to see only those deemed “good at” something by commercialized curators is to imprison our birthrights and forsake our ancestors many gifts. Anyone can sing, and we all were born to. Anyone. This isn’t an abstract idea, it’s the realest thing we have. It is in fact what we are. We contain the remedy to that which poisons us, never alone but accompanied by multitudes through each breath. What we feed will grow. It’s easy to spiral into confusion and give into our base instincts. It’s challenging to delve deeper into our abilities to connect - but far more rewarding. To divest from singular systems isn’t enough. We must also incorporate the demands of our bodies and souls, brought to light by the blood that moves us to action - both in love and anger alike. To access our voice is the most revolutionary thing we can do. Find ways to distance yourself from comparison and corporate competition, given power by advertised, supremacist norms. Mend the ties to the magic given to you in sacred exchange of death and life. This alone will ensure that the gift be continued.