Comparative Tarot

Three of Wands: Authentic Nourishment
A winged, faceless female spirit walks across the landscape. On her left are three baskets. When I first looked at the card I thought it was two finished baskets and that a third one was unfinished and saw that all that's needed to complete it is work; the materials were all there. Then I realized it could be that or it could be that each basket contains a different kind of food or other material that she's gathering and bringing back to the baskets after wandering afield. Two crows fly close by the woman and baskets. Others are in the distant horizon. It could be dawn or sunset, hard to tell, or perhaps that's up to the reader. A spiral spins out from her solar plexus, winding around to extend itself out around her body and out further to blend with the land and the sun that is either rising or setting. The colors of the earth are purples and blues and ambers, matching the woman's dress. The colors of the horizon beyond the mountains are lighter with shades of yellow, orange, lavender and lines of bluish white spreading out to the blue sky. There are stars in the sky and there are stars beneath the earth as well. It looks like the woman walks from one world to another, carried on the spiral energies that spin out from herself. You could also look at this spiral and see a seashell or conch, or perhaps another basket, this one made of energy!

Book:
The 3 of wands relates to finding that which nourishes us. It encourages us to accept the responsibility for taking care of ourselves. This requires commitment and focused will, qualities of the third chakra, located in the solar plexus. In the picture, a nature spirit collects food from the fields. Earth provides many different foods and energies that nourish us, and our task is to discern what elements of this bounty support our well-being. Each of us has unique needs; thus, what is healing or healthful for one in not necessarily good for another. Some may laugh themselves back to health, while others may need to cry. In the image, a spiral connects the solar plexus with the fields of produce. You can think of this as the will spiraling out and bringing in essential nourishment. The task of finding and taking in authentic nourishment can be complicated. Those who see inner energy patterns report that parental energy is often trapped in the solar plexus. This can cause us to act out our conditioning, unconsciously repeating how our parents nourish or failed to nourish us. We can also get caught in maladaptive ways of trying to fill ourselves, not realizing that our efforts are misguided and that this drug / food / relationship / activity / feeling is not really going to accomplish what we want it to. Addictive patterns such as these reveal a loss of self-will. Righting these patterns is part of what this card is about. You must start where you are, feeling for your needs and learning to distinguish which of these are true needs and which are the bottomless cravings created by conditioning. Once you identify your true needs you can look at the various possibilities for meeting them and select the ways that are most fitting and appropriate. You must then follow through, noticing and dealing with any attempts to derail or sabotage yourself. It takes clarity and sustained effort to stay responsive to yourself in this way especially when you are overburdened, exhausted, or confused. This card reminds you that effort is needed and that it is, indeed, worth the struggle. Both this card and the three of cups show you the bounty that is possible and invite you to take it in. Strengthening and sustaining yourself through authentic nourishment is part of your larger empowerment. Here is an exercise you can use to explore a particular need. Start by putting yourself into an open and receptive state and feel your need for nourishment on each of the various levels (physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual). Pick on particular need that is not being fully met and feel this need as you currently experience it. What qualities are present and what are your feelings around it? Do you feel frustrated, desperate, hopeful, detached? Is there an unmet need from the past that contributes to or colors the experience? Notice any ways you turn away from or discount this need. Decide what you can commit to doing to support and fulfill your need, and thank yourself for paying attention.

Wulfie