Tarot Masterclass With Kathy Hughes & Lily Wight ~ The Heart Of Faerie Oracle

This week the gracious and gifted Kathy Hughes, from Turtlephoenix, has drawn a seven card Faerie Path spread for Lily Wight. The deck used is Brian and Wendy Froud’s The Heart Of Faerie Oracle.

The Froud’s work may look familiar to regular site visitors from film fantasies, Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal. You will find more of their creations in the Gallery, in the album Faerie Lore & Fairy Tales.

Position 1. ~ The Returning

KH: Your first card is The Returning. You have come to rest after a whirlwind of activity. This whirlwind of activity was not fruitless. You have brought something back with you and found something waiting in the calm. Perhaps you have found a new capacity for empathy or intuition and brought it back to apply to yourself.

LW: This already seems in tune with the previous spread you read for me with the Oracle Of Shadows & Light. I get swept up by multi-tasking so the whirlwind metaphor is spot-on. A lesson learned is probably the best thing you can bring back from a stressful period. Having a little empathy for myself as well as others is good advice.

KH: Perhaps, waiting there, was someone to take care of you for a change, or a restorative calm. You’ve gained new insight and wisdom. Waiting back home are people willing to listen to you.

LW: Home can be my sanctuary but I do let others bring me their problems. The faerie has a slightly admonishing look on her face to remind me I ought to know better!

Position 2. The First Helper Or Challenge ~ The Child

KH: You are curious and find joy in the little things and beauty in unexpected places.

LW: Yes, very much so.

KH: After a rough period you are relaxing now, letting yourself have fun and be taken care of. See the other guy in the background? That’s someone in your life watching over you and enjoying your happiness. This person makes you feel safe.

LW: I do have people to lean on, I just have trouble releasing responsibility but I won’t be resting properly until I do. I’ve just noticed that the quills beneath The Child’s wings look like lilies! Perhaps she’s a lily wight too.

Position 3. (informs the meaning of the spread) ~ In Two Minds

KH: The Child looks at this card, seeing the one face made of two and laughing with delight. Two faces in one! Having it all!

LW: I need to find the right balance between rest and activity.

KH: The magic you brought back on your Returning (Position 1.) can help you marry two choices that are equally strong in their pulling.

Position 4. The Second Helper Or Challenge ~ The Remembrance

KH: The eyes of The Remembrance are sad but clear. In this time of Returning to yourself – to the innocent, joyful child self – you are able to look at a memory that used to make you angry or hurt and see the people involved with compassion and understanding. A terrible relationship has now become bittersweet.

LW: Oh, that is very specific. I have been swept up by someone else’s problems which left me feeling worn out and tarnished. Something that pulled me away from my home and myself.

KH: You are able to live in the two minds of your mixed feelings comfortably. You are able to find the valuable lessons in the pain and the joy as well.

LW: I feel that this is The Challenge in the spread and The Child is The Helper. I have good memories from childhood that recent problems shouldn’t be allowed to spoil.

Position 5. ~ The Challenge

LW: Yep, Remembrance is definitely a challenge.

KH: The Challenge is telling you that now, since you have reached clarity, compassion and peace with your memories you must take those feelings and use them to make changes in your present. What do you want to do differently in your interactions with others? With yourself?

Position 6. The Heart Of The Matter ~ The Gift

LW: Could this be what I have brought back from the whole experience?

KH: The Gift wants you to know that no matter what happens, or how discombobulated you felt, you have a gift for wisdom and intuition.

LW: As a Celtic Mythologist sylvan gods have great significance to me. It’s interesting to see a female interpretation.

KH: She wants to give you the gift of reassurance. You can relax in the knowledge that everything will turn out right.

LW: Yes. When we try to control things too much we lose touch and faith in the concept of synchronicity.

Position 7. The Final Message Or Gift ~ The Lady Of Sorrows

KH: The Lady Of Sorrows is a conqueror. She tames the sorrows and turns them into sources of strength and inspiration. She has been through a lot – as you can tell by the scar on her cheek – but she is still lovely. She is kind and her methods are gentle. She is your guardian as you leave the Faerie Realm. She will remind you that forgiveness is more valuable than being right and that you can let go of the bad and keep the good.