Cutting Through Obstacles

Nahualli Animal Oracle cards

From the guide book:

"The very first god that Star Skirt ... created was not a god, as we think of gods, but a tool: the sacrificial obsidian knife, Itztli. .... Itztli is a cutting energy. The force of cutting through obstacles and bad habits is here for your use, but you must be willing to use it. When you pick up the blade of Itztli, it must be with a unified purpose and a firm hand. If your conscious mind is willing, but your subconscious is fearful, you do not have a unified purpose and your ability to wield the force of this Night Lord successfully will be lost. Both your minds must be united, and then your cut will be clear and true."

As usual when I do divination, I asked for guidance and for a strength which might be necessary or useful for the coming week. As I shuffled the cards, a gentle focus and quiet slipped into the room. I cut the deck one final time and turned over the top card ~ not my preferred pattern for drawing cards. I noticed the Divine Stone immediately.

A pattern in my life is in the process of significant change. I need to cut through the obstacle keeping me bound to the old pattern. It's an important step so that I can move on. Yet... I am aware that my conscious and unconscious minds need to be unified before I take the blade and cut the cord. My heart wants the cut to be true.

I believe the Ancestors and the Divine set my hand on this card to reinforce both my decision to change the pattern and my intuition to have a unified purpose. The card now sits on my altar as a reminder. Two words beat their cadence in my mind: Unity and Gratitude.

What pattern in your life calls to be changed? What obstacle do you need to cut through? How can you move forward? How unified are your conscious and unconscious minds in wielding the Obsidian Knife?

Rich Transformation

The Nahualli Animal Oracle

From the guide:
"In the sacred Aztec calendar the day-sign Vulture represents old age and riches. Because it is known as an eater of carrion, it is a symbol of the underworld as well. ... Vulture is also associated with the traditional definition of hidden wealth, discovered only if one is willing to do some digging. Vulture takes something that seemingly has no value - a dead animal - and breaks it down so that its elements can be reabsorbed into the earth, providing fuel for new life. Vulture's lesson is that true wealth is all around us, just under the surface, waiting to be discovered. ...
A rich, long life may lie ahead of you. At the very least you can expect abundance around whatever your issue or question addresses. .... Vulture consumes those life-sapping remnants of negativity while helping you find hidden pockets of gold and precious stones in the everyday world that you've lived in since you were born."

My question as I shuffled the deck of cards: What strength is needed for the coming week? What an incredible response! Vulture transforms by aiding the process of degeneration. Any habit that needs to be changed will find a willing accomplice in Vulture. This is an especially powerful time to make those changes ~ it's Spring. Time for deep cleaning, planting, eating fresh and local food. Anything that was put aside during the Winter months. Since it is nearly the New Moon, it is also time to put a plan together for letting go of what no longer serves and calling in what will replace it.

Vulture as a symbol of old age and the Underworld fits in with my current internal spiritual and emotional work. As I work with the Ancestors, I walk in a deeper awareness of the meaning of old age and elderhood. The darkness, pull and power of the Underworld has recently been present in my life which makes drawing this particular card ironic as well.

What does Vulture symbolize for you? What habit of yours has Vulture come to transform? What do you want to see blossom in its place? What is the treasure hidden in your Underworld that is rising to the surface? How will you support it as it rises?