Monthly Archives: August 2008

Wesley the Owl

THE OWL WHISPERER
You will not find a better book on the love of animals this year, than wesley_the_owlWesley the Owl: The Remarkable Love Story of an Owl and His Girl.

One of the fascinating things about “Wesley” is the transformation you see the author, Stacey O’Brien, going through — from a very scientific, analytical mind to an awakening and acceptance of telepathy as a form of communication between humans and animals.

It’s not that the book focuses on that, it’s really a life story about her and wild owl, whom she named “Wesley.” She adopted him at 4 days old when she was working at CalTech, and this is a story that she wrote as a way to release her grief after he died. He was 19 years old. And no matter how bizarre the circumstance of having a wild animal as a companion, and no matter that every once in a while in the book she uses verbiage that is far above my level of intelligence, (and I consider myself to be of moderately high intelligence) there is a commonality in her story that every parent of an animal can easily understand. The little proclivities our animals have, the snuggling, the cuddling, the getting angry when we leave for too long of a time, these are all things we can understand and relate to from our own experience with our pets.

wesley_the_owlBut this book is so much more — this book is a work of art. I am not a big reader of stories, but I could not put this book down. The side stories are fascinating. For instance, her father was good friends with a man she mentions — the man who figured out it was the o-rings that blew up the Challenger. These are the people she associates with on a regular basis. The stories of some of the people she talks about at CalTech are fascinating, creepy, intriguing and more.

It’s not a book I’m recommending to teach you to become an animal communicator, it is on a higher level. It’s funny, it’s fascinating, it’s repelling at times, making you cringe and say “Eeeeewwwwww” out loud and, by the end, will be hard to read through your tears.

I – can’t – recommend – this – book – enough. Wesley the Owl. If you enjoy it even a fraction as much as I did, you will enjoy it, very much, indeed.

Radiant Red

RED
Key words: Life, energy, enthusiasm, vitality, passionate, intense, desire, anger, danger.

rose Red is the color of roses … and the color of apples … and the color of … blood! Yikes! But while our initial vision of blood might be the gore we see in the movies, when you think about it, all of these things have something in common: they all represent life, in one way or another.

When interpreting red in a card, we really are seeing life in all of glory and gory. Red represents everything from enthusiasm to danger, from passion to anger, from vitality to aggression. Probably no other color swings the pendulum quite so broadly across positive and negative meanings.

And we see it everywhere. Red adds life to anything where it resides. It makes pictures pop, people look powerful & confident, it calls attention to stop signs and fire engines.

With red, we couldn’t get any farther than ‘cool, soothing, blue.’ And whereas purple is a highly complex combination of both blue and red, red is simple and straight-forward. Red is hot. It’s element is fire. It’s ruling planet is Mars. Mars energy indicates ‘action,’ ‘drive’ and “will.” Red is Mana, or Life Force. Red commands attention. It’s strong, it’s passionate. The hearts and roses we get (or give) on Valentine’s Day make a dramatic statement of our love.

Red is also the color of the root chakra. It represents our base instinct for security and survival … ie: to live. And to live means living both sides of the spectrum. Being surrounded by too much red makes us stressful and tense. And while as passionate and enthusiastic as red can be in certain circumstances, taken to the extreme, red can also represent the evil & danger associated with that “red guy:” The Devil.

As far as learning the symbolism of red, it’s a walk in the park. Think about all the things that are red. No need to struggle, it’s everywhere you turn. Remember? It’s Life.


To interpret red in a tarot reading consider these connotations:

Positive & Neutral Connotations:
— Energy, enthusiasm, vitality
— Strength, power, confidence
— Motivation, action, will/willpower
— Ambition, drive, goal oriented
— Love, passion, intensity

Negative Connotations
— Danger, aggression
— Anger, Emotional outbursts
— Controlling, Impulsive
— Evil, destruction


Sample Interpretation with Red:

Deck: Universal Waite, Pocket Edition
Card: Temperance

Here we have an angel. This angel stands tall in a beautiful wetlands with one foot in the water and the other on the earth, pouring water from one cup to another, in perfect harmony and balance.

temperanceIndeed, much in this card connotes balance, and the red in the wings, infused with purple (spirituality) and crowned by orange (compassion) is no different. The message of this card, if the color of the wings are standing out to you, may be that through compassion, non-judgement, and the channeling our energies into more spiritual realms, one might be more easily capable of expressing anger appropriately, keeping emotional outbursts, or controlling and/or destructive behaviors, in check.

Alternatively, we might look at the red in the wings as that of love, compassion and spirituality: ie. that divine love that most who are on a spiritual journey seek. There is a spiritual & emotional serenity in this card in that we have not only the purple in the wings, but a lot of blues and the water in the foreground. But the red in the wings commands our attention to understand the power, passion and energy of tapping into the life force (mana) of listening to the messages that are communicated to us via our guardian angels.

As always, meanings change with every reading for every querent. Choose one or two key words that are meaningful to you for that specific reading.


References:
Pictures from the Heart: A Tarot Dictionary by Sandra A. Thomson
Color Magic for Beginners by Richard Webster
— A. Venefica’s Tarot Teachings

You can also post comments on Spiritcaat’s Tarot Forum

Is Clairvoyance Dangerous?

ASK CAAT
Question:

“I find that I have fears of being clairvoyant. And it’s kind of odd as to what I’m afraid of. With animals, I have no problem attempting to communicate with one who has passed on. ghost_painting But I find that I have fears of seeing people who have passed on. I’m sure that the images of all the ghost movies that I’ve seen over the course of my life has something to do with it, not that I’ve seen a lot of them.

Maybe it was as [you] mentioned …. how humans are “conditional” and animals are not. I know that animals are pure good and don’t have hidden agendas like a lot of humans do. Maybe I’m afraid of their potential hidden agendas harming me and that’s why I’m afraid to see them, and therefore creating clairvoyant blocks for myself.

[Do you] have any ideas as to how I can lessen these fears? Can [you] tell me what the souls of people look like to them? Are they scary and gruesome like some of the scary movies? I guess this is something that I want to work on.”

Good question. First of all, I do — absolutely — believe your fears are based on Hollywood’s depiction of ‘ghosts.’ Most people with any type of experience in the area don’t even like the word, we prefer the word ‘spirits.’

Second of all, you already are clairvoyant. When you speak with an animal and you get a vision of what they are communicating, you are using clairvoyance. When you get a feeling, you are using ‘clair-sentience.’ When you hear sounds, you are using ‘clairaudience.’ It doesn’t just have to do with people who have passed on, clairvoyance is anytime you “see” something via telepathic means.

You use that sense to communicate with animals. I use that sense when I read someone’s cards. John Edward uses that sense — that “sixth sense” – when he communicates with beings who have crossed over.

Now, another thing to remember, is what I said in a previous post about animals, unconditional love, and humans and judgement, this is based on what these being’s lives were like when they walked the earth. When spirits communicate with us from the other side, they do so by using an energy that we can easily understand, and the energy that we understand is how they were on this earth. But the etherial body is not something to fear and is not necessarily based in human or animal form.

Many cultures believe, as do I, that when we reincarnate, we can reincarnate as other types of beings. angel_sunFor humans to believe that they are the superior species is highly egotistical, something that is unique to human beings. Other species don’t have that type of ego. Personally, I believe that makes them superior to us in many ways … certainly much more spiritual.

Because we have brains, we have let our telepathy skills shrivel up and die, to the point that, as you said in a previous post, we beat it out of our kids. But, really, which is the more superior being with respect to being ‘closer to spirit?’ Certainly, this is a debatable question, but one worthy of discussion.

You have seen spirits, I’m sure. Have you ever had anyone close to you die: a person or an animal? Have they ever come to you in a dream? When I saw James Van Praagh speak, one thing he said was that is the most common way spirits communicate with us. However, outside of that, when people do ‘see’ a spirit, that spirit is going to present itself in the way you can best recognize it.

A friend of my mom’s saw the spirit of my father once. My mom wasn’t in the room, the friend had never met my father but described him to my mom, down to the type of shirt he had, one that she recognized from life, and the unique way he stood with his finger crooked in his pocket.

Most spirits are not out to hurt anyone. The type of spirits that John Edward communicates with, and I hope to communicate with as a medium, are spirits who have crossed over. They have lived their life here and have other things to do on the other side. Many times, those other things include helping us as spirit guides. (Spirit guides have lived a physical life, angels have not.) The ones most depicted in the movies, and the ones who are most well-known as “ghosts,” are spirits who have become confused in some way during their passing.

For instance, if a person is violently murdered ‘before his/her time’ (which is a theory debatable in and of itself) they may not realize they are dead. When this happens, that spirit’s soul gets “caught” in a sort of ‘no man’s land’ between this physical dimension and the dimension on the other side. Most times they may haunt places that are familiar to them and which comfort them. The best thing a medium can do for them is to help them understand that they are dead and help them move on into the light.

Think “Ghost” with Patrick Swayze. It’s like that. Only in that way, they portrayed it as a spirit which stayed to help a loved one. Not impossible, but very Hollywood. That’s the drama. In reality, yes, there are a lot of spirits that walk the earth because they don’t know they are no longer in physical body, but when you hear about ‘mediums,’ many are connecting with people who have ‘crossed over’ rather than finding those who haven’t.

There is really no reason to be afraid of connecting with spirits. There are certainly energies out there that can be harmful, but that is why all psychics, as you probably do with AC, have some sort of protection ritual. nebula We surround ourselves with protective white light so that we allow only positive energies to connect with us.

OTOH, we have all had the experience of “psychic vampires.’ These might be people in the physical world who suck you dry of your energy! I bet you know people like that! One really good book, if I remember correctly, which addressed the fear that you speak of is a book called, So You Want To Be A Medium. That type of fear is sort of like the stigma of the Ouija Board. The board and using it isn’t dangerous, what is dangerous is people using it when they have not protected themselves properly, and when they believe so strongly that it is dangerous, that they create and draw in the energy that they fear most.

Remember that energy is energy. You need to protect yourself from bad energy from people in the physical world every bit as much as those in the spirit world. I’d go more into psychic vampires, but maybe that’s a subject for another post

Suffice is to say, you are in control of what energy you allow into your life just like you are in control of who walks into your house. You wouldn’t just leave your doors opened or unlocked all the time, would you? Of course not. So this is what psychics and mediums — and animal communicators — do. We surround ourselves with protective light because we are opening a door to our psyches and our souls. We are in control of who we invite in and who we do not.

Anyway, this is a big subject for a small post, but hopefully I’ve put your mind at ease somewhat. As far as what you might do, I really suggest the John Edward book (One Last Time It’s really interesting. I couldn’t put it down.

How exciting for you, though, that you are opening a new door in your life to learn about things you never knew before. For me, that’s what living is all about. It’s such fun. I hope I helped.

Caat


If you’d like to practice animal communication, visit
Spiritcaat’s Tarot and Animal Communication Practice Forum

Tarot Collection Available

I have a friend who is parting with a large collection of tarot cards and books in a lot. If anyone is interested, please contact skyword at sbcglobal dot net.

tarot-cards-3.jpg

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You can see an additional picture on my forum.

Tarot Decks & Sets:

Many cards are still in plastic or shrink wrapped inside box.
See following codes in blue for each item:

New Box Sealed: NBS
New Deck Sealed: NDS
As New Unsealed: ANU
Good–Slight Use: GSU

1. Egyptian Tarots 23.00 ANU
2. Book of Thoth Tarot: Etteilla 25.00 NBS
3. Dante Tarot 60.00 NBS
4. Prediction Tarot 45.00 ANU
5. Ishbel’s Temple of Isis Tarot 60.00 ANU
6. Quick & Easy Tarot 15.00 NDS
7. Motherpeace Round Tarot with 2 guide books 28.00 ANU
8. Renaissance Tarot and guide book 24.00 ANU
9. Tarot of Sepiroth 16.00 NDS
10. Oswald Wirth Tarot 50.00 ANU
11. Tree of Life Tarot 22.00 NDS
12. Ramses Tarot of Eternity 54.00 NBS
13. Goddess Tarot (24.00 for 1 with book, or 2 Decks w/book 36.00 NDS
14. Faery Wicca Tarot 16.00 NBS
15. Leonardo DaVinci Tarot 12.00 NBS
17. Medieval Scapini Tarot 18.00 NBS
18. Native American Tarot (U.S. Games) 18.00 NDS w/book 24.00
19. Tarot of the Spirit 16.00 with book 24.00 ANU
20. Medicine Woman Tarot 15.00 with 19.00 NDS
21. Unicorn Tarot 18.00 NDS
23. Robin Wood Tarot 12.00 ANU
25. Tarot of the III Millennium 16.00 NBS
26. Haindl Tarot 16.00 ANU
27. Enchanted Tarot (Lo Scarabeo version) 20.00 NBS
28. Authentic Egyptian Tarot 20.00 ANU
29. Gendron Tarot (16.00) or 2 decks 28.00 NBS
30. Barbara Walker Tarot 30.00 ANU
31. Tarot of the Imagination 55.00 NBS
33. Vampire Tarot 18.00 or 2 for 30.00 NBS
34. Bosch Tarot 60.00 NBS
35. Gothic Tarot of Vampires 18.00 NBS
36. Morgan-Greer Tarot 16.00 NBS
37. Pagan Tarot 16.00 NBS
38. Golden Tarot of the TSAR 40.00 NDS
39. Aleister Crowley Thoth Tarot 14.00 GSU
41. Deva Tarot (18.00) 2 decks 30.00 NDS & ANU
42. New Century Tarot 16.00 NDS
43. Golden Dawn Tarot Deck 20.00 ANU
46. Tarot of Transition 30.00 NBS
47. The Witches Tarot 20.00
48. Tarot of the Sphynx 80.00 NDS
49. Witchy Tarot 16.00 NBS
51. Tarot of the Ages 40.00 NDS
53. Egipcios Kier Tarot 95.00 ANU
54. Tarot of the Journey to the Orient 50.00 NBS
55. The Herbal Tarot 16.00 NDS
56. Comparative Tarot 40.00 NBS
57. Esoteric Ancient Tarots 60.00 NBS
58. Ibis Tarot 24.00 NDS
59. Santa Fe Tarot 40.00 NDS
61. Tarot of the Cat People 18.00 ANU
62. Hermetic Tarot 16.00 NDS
63. Egyptian Tarot Deck & Book Set 25.00 NDS
64. Spiral Tarot 24.00 for 1 or 40.00 for 2 Deck & Book Sets NBS
65. Jungian Tarot Deck & Book Set 20.00 NBS
66. Daughters of the Moon Tarot 25.00 deck and book ANU
67. Universal Tarot Deck & Book Set 26.00 ANU
69. One World Tarot Deck & Book Set 18.00 Deck & Book Set NBS
70. Destiny Tarot 20.00 Deck & Book Set NBS
71. Merlin Tarot 50.00 Deck & Book Set ANU
72. The Egyptian Tarot 20.00 Deck & Book Set NDS
73. Osho Zen Tarot 18.00 Deck & Book Set with added book 24.00 NBS
74. Quest Tarot Deck & Book Set 25.00 NBS
75. Via Tarot Deck & Book Set 32.00 NBS
76. Transformational Tarot Deck & Book Set 18.00 GSU
77. Minchiate Tarot 25.00 Deck & Book Set (Destiny version) NBS
78. Shakespearian Tarot Deck & Book Set 55.00 ANU
80. Sacred Circle Tarot 19.00 Deck & Book Set NBS
82. William Blake Tarot of the Creative Imagination Deck & Book Set $50.00 (box/ book corner slight tear) GSU
83. Legend of the Arthurian Tarot 33.00 Deck & Book Set NDS
84. Pythagorean Tarot 35.00 Deck & Book Set NBS
86. Complete Tarot Kit Deck & Book Set 26.00 NBS
88. Tarot of the Saints 20.00 Deck & Book Set NBS
89. Tarot Affirmations 18.00 NDS

Oracle Decks:

1. The Art of the Pendulum by Maxi Cohen 14.00 NBS
3. Tree of Life Oracle Deck & Book Set 20.00 NBS
4. The Way of Cartouche Deck & Book Set 30.00 ANU
5. Inner Child Cards 30.00 Deck & Book Set GSU
6. Book of Doors 16.00 Deck & Book Set GSU
7. Angel Voices the Astrological Holy Oracle Deck & Book Set 20.00 NDS
8. Cards of Alchemy Deck & Book Set 16.00 NBS
10. Kabbalah Deck & Book Set 14.00 NBS
11. Celestial Wisdom Cards Deck & Book Set 12.00 ANU
12. Angelic Messenger Cards Deck & Book Set 24.00 ANU
13. Egyptian Oracle Deck & Book Set 16.00 ANU
15. Angel Blessings Guidance Inspiration Cards Deck & Book 12.00 GSU
16. Rituals: Light for the Soul Book, Candles & Cards Set 12.00 NBS

Interview with Marta Williams

We have a new feature: Interviews with professionals. We are so fortunate to have our first interview with one of the most well-known and well-respected communicators in the field: Marta Williams.

marta_williamsMarta has written three books:
Learning Their Language,
Beyond Words, and
Ask Your Animal.

I have only read her first book, Learning Their Language: Intuitive Communication with Animals and Nature, but I absolutely love it. I can’t think of a better book for a new AC’er to start with. It has great exercises and is written in an easy to read style.

I did a workshop with Marta and it was wonderful. She is a natural teacher, as you can easily see by not only her interview itself, but by her taking the time to give it to us. You can find her at her website here.

So, I hope you find her words of wisdom helpful in your quest to become the best animal communicator … ever!

*****************
MARTA WILLIAMS

• How do you describe animal communication to those who are unfamiliar with what it is?

I describe it as hits and hunches that we get intuitively that give us some unexplained and unsolicited information about something. Everyone can relate to having an intuitive hunch about a person or about some proposed activity. Communicating with animals intuitively has the same feeling as this only its more controlled and more drawn out. When you get a hunch or it from your intuition it can come in as an idea, a word or phrase in your mind, an image in your mind’s eye, and a feeling.

• What tips would you give to students of animal communication who are just starting out?

Take what you get without trying to spruce it up or make it right. The best way to achieve accuracy is to go with the first impression that comes to you and record it exactly as it comes in. Then go to the next one and so on. If you can keep it this simple you’ll be home free.

• Can you share some easily verifiable questions to ask the animals for people just starting out?

Some good ones are:

Tell me who else you live with (people and animals) – what do they look like and how do you feel about them?

Is there anything you are worried about? (If you get a yes ask what)

Has anything changed in your life recently? (If you get a yes ask what)

• Do you lean more towards getting your messages visually, audibly, or sentiently, or is it a combination of all? Does it change with each animal?

I get a combination and it does vary with the animal and truthfully I completely don’t worry about how information is coming in, the form, I just work on capturing it accurately. If I want something as a picture or as words I ask the animal to send it to me that way.

• Do you use the sense of smell or taste? If so, how does one become more proficient at that?

I use it for lost animal cases to get information on where they might be and to get clues. You just ask for it from every animal you talk to. So you could ask the animal to send you a favorite taste or smell, but watch out for those species differences….

• Why do you do what you do (communicate with animals)? And how do you feel it benefits humanity? How do you feel it benefits the animals?

It helps animals get their needs met and be able to tell people how they feel and what they need. It also helps animals demonstrate to people the depth of their intelligence, emotion and spirituality. I believe that humans and the natural world used to be in constant connection through intuitive communication and that humans used to consider themselves truly just a part of a nature and they considered nature a community of equals. It’s all alive, It’s all intelligent……
By bringing this skill back to modern humans I hope I am helping to reconstruct that connection of all living things.

• What would you recommend to students who are juggling with their full time jobs and/or school and/or children and trying to squeeze in time to do AC?

Work with your own animals every day. It only takes a minute. Do the exercise Ask For a Question. Ask your animal if he or she has a question for you. Whatever question occurs to you assume it is from your animal and answer as best you can. Then ask for another question and answer that one. Keep asking until the questions stop.

• When skeptics challenge you, how do you handle it? Do you answer at all, and if so, how do you respond?

I’m not too interested in convincing skeptics. There are plenty of people who are interested and want to learn how to do this. However, students can be very skeptical of their own ability. In that regard I have developed techniques they can use to prove to themselves that this ability is real using verifiable exercises. Each of my books includes such exercises. You are actually your own worst critic so once you prove it to yourself it really doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks.

*****************

Great interview. Thanks, Marta!

Beautiful Blue

BLUE
Key words: Cool, dispassionate, peace, contentment, heaven, truth, loyalty, sincerity, harmony, ‘as above, so below.’

There is no greater calming force than to sit on a beach and gaze at the vastness of the ocean oceanmeeting the freedom of the the sky. Even though there appears to be a dividing line of color at the horizon, it’s as though it all becomes one.

Such an image encompasses the epitome of what blue represents. Delving our gaze into the depth of the water inspires meditation, peacefulness & tranquility allowing us to align our three selves into oneness.

Three selves:
• Low-self (subconscious, or “Ku” in Huna teachings)
• Middle-self (conscious mind, or “Lono”)
• High-self (super-conscious, universal spirit, or “Kane”)

Water represents emotion and the sky is the element of air, which represents thought and intellect. Put those two together and we are able to use our emotional being to look within ourselves in an introspective and self-reflective manner.

If you keep in mind the sky/water image, it will help you remember in that this connection also represents the idea of “as above, so below.” This saying means that all things are one. And when you close your eyes and imagine blue, doesn’t it give you that sense of peace which would allow you to feel that oneness within yourself?

Once you feel that oneness, it is an easy jump to understand how blue symbolizes truth, honesty, loyalty, sincerity and devotion. It would be hard not to be those things when all of our once fragmented selves are perfectly aligned with each other and the universe.

But just as fire warms, water cools. We look to blue when we want someone to ‘cool down’. When blue is overactive, someone might give us ‘the cold shoulder,’ or we might be ‘feeling blue.’ moonRemember that colors, like everything else in life, have both positive and negative connotations. How we use them, or how we interpret them in a reading is what makes the difference.

Similarly, not only is there positive and negative of the colors, but the depth of the color is significant, as well. While Jupiter rules the darker blues, with it’s spiritual overtones, the Moon rules not only white, but light blue, linked to intuition and insight.

Lastly, blue is the color of the throat chakra where we communicate. One very important method of communication is through our creativity, the other is to understand that not only do we communicate interpersonally with others, but we communicate intra-personally. Blue reminds us that we need to listen to our inner voice. It may have something very important to say!

To interpret blue in a tarot reading consider these connotations:

Positive & Neutral Connotations
— Cool, Introverted
— Creativity, Emotion
— Intuition, Meditation, Dreams
— Honesty, Truth, Integrity
— Fidelity, Devotion
— Heaven, Connection with the Divine
— Harmony, Balance, Peace, Contentment, Stability

Negative Connotations
— Cold, Aloof, Dispassionate
— Depression, Sadness

Sample Interpretation with Blue:

Deck: Universal Waite, Pocket Edition
Card: King of Pentacles

Here is a man, separated from his home (wall between him and the castle) holding an earthly possession (pentacle) and cloaked in a garment with purple grapes & green leaves. king-of-pentaclesThis is an example of how small use of color in a card can be very meaningful if that is what sticks out to you in a reading. At first glance, we don’t notice much blue here. But on closer inspection we see not only the grapes and leaves, but that his garment has blue trimmings and one of the steeple roofs on the castle is blue.

Traditionally, this might be a man of finance, trustworthy & honest (blue in the garment), but I drew this card asking to give me not only a card with blue, but one which tells me something I, personally, need to know.

Remember that when you read, book meanings go only so far. You have to read from your intuition for the person you’re reading for. So what blue in this card represents for me, at this point in my life, is this: This is a person who is currently bogged down with earthly material matters. But in being so, there is emotional (blue) fruitfulness and growth (grapes and leaves) if I am willing to accept it as such. This emotional growth, however, still seems to be under the surface (blue) – not something I am yet carrying — or ‘shouldering’ (the blue is only on the robe below the shoulders). I seem still more to be stuck in the morass of earthbound matters.

The wall between me and my ‘castle’, along with the blue and red roofs, tell me that I am still removed from feeling as though I have a the secure home (blue) that I so desperately desire (red).

There is also a bit of blue in the background, but we can’t really tell if it’s an ocean, or blue hills. Because it doesn’t look completely level to me, I am seeing it as blue rolling hills. I see this as an fluid (blue) wisdom (blue and hills) that I have yet to turn around and ‘see’ or ‘look at’ which, in turn, might give me some of the security that I am seeking.

As always, choose one or two key words that are meaningful to you for that specific reading.


References:

  • "Pictures from the Heart: A Tarot Dictionary” by Sandra A. Thomson
  • "Color Magic for Beginners" by Richard Webster
  • A. Venefica’s Tarot Teachings