Today is the festival of my primary Goddess, Brighid. And even though Her card, the Haindl Tarot's Daughter of Cups, was the card I drew for your Daily Draw yesterday, on Imbolc Eve, I am going to speak of this same card today, because our Blog Hop topic for this festival is "oracular anomalies". And this treatment of Brighid is completely anomalous to me, because in all the years She has been my primary Deity--since 1992, to be precise--I have always seen her as "Brighid's Fire", the three Rays of Awen, Fire in the Hands, Fire in the Head, Fire in the Heart. And here, she is illustrated as the Princess of Water, She whose Well of Healing, as inconceivable as this might be, is indeed the source of Brighid's Fire. Fire from water? Really? Well....let's think about that.
We have a chant, "The Ocean Is The Beginning Of The Earth", in which is the line, "all life comes from the Sea." If we think about it, water really is the source of everything, including all forms of life, and all forms of fire as it represents the life force.
Fire in the Head, poetry and creativity, arises from the deepest emotions and intuitions of the creator. Fire in the Hands, the physical demonstration of the Will, those things we desire to create, arises from our deepest and most intense needs and desires, those things that flow within us and cause the blood to burn. And Fire in the Heart, not just love but also compassion, healing, nurture, are all represented by the Cup of Love, the Chalice of the Heart, even when it holds the fiery and intoxicating brew of true love, or whiskey at the bridal or the other special occasion. So...it should not be an Oracular Anomaly to have the Goddess we honor today, Brighid of the Triple Flame, represented as the Daughter of Cups. Because all her Fire as we demonstrate it truly does arise from Water. Sometimes an anomaly is there simply to teach us that things are not always what they look like, but need to be deeply considered. But--that's the whole point of Tarot, isn't it? Blessed Tarot to you, may your Cup overflow, and Beannacht Bhrighide!
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Thanks for sharing that. I spent all day yesterday wondering why Brigid is associated with fire yet she is always dressed in blue... I can make sense of that now! :)
ReplyDeleteAnd Brigid is also associated with the hearth/Fire, isn't she? Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteMaybe she is water as the source of life and fire as the spark of life...
ReplyDeleteI love Brighid too! I'm part of a flamekeeper group and have a candle burning for her right now. I always liked how she was associated with both fire and water because I have strong fire and water qualities in my astrological chart. Thanks for talking about her!
ReplyDeleteLoved this! I always focus on Brigid's fiery aspects, yet your post rings true for me - it all comes from the waters of life, ultimately. Wonderful exploration/explanation, thank you :)
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