Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Day reflection exercise

I can't quite recall if I've done this kind of exercise here before but basically...the idea is to pull a card or two at the very end of a day with the intention of reflecting on what has happened/what you experienced, rather than pulling it earlier for prediction/advice. More for perspective and whatnot...

We see two figures in this card, the one above on the dias and the one laying on the carpet before, The title, dominion, suggests one particular scenario: that of the master and the slave, dominance and submission. But what of the traditional meaning of this card, of doorways and opportunities, potential? The way that the top figure holds those wands is still very suggestive of a door, a passage.

Perhaps the figure at the bottom is in fact there by choice - after all, he is positioned quite comfortably, quite casually, all in all. Perhaps there is some advantage in giving in, to a point, to that authority, domination, external discipline and self-discipline, assertion...

I did gather up my courage and do a few things today that needed some assertiveness, minor in the grand scheme of things - a phone call, a knock on a neighbor's door, a vaguely awkward conversation with a friend - but ones that had been hanging over me the last day or two.

And, speaking of positions, the positions of the two main figures in this image are particularly striking to me, in the context of reflecting on a day because...they remind me of yoga poses. The red carpet could, from a certain perspective, even be seen as a mat. In following up on previous reading, I did in fact go through with signing up for a week's trial of Bikram yoga classes at a studio nearish to my school. Poses in a heated room, trying to find some kind of dominion over my body, my breathing...

2 comments:

Sharyn Mallow Woerz said...

Bikram. Oh you Are brave :)

Inner Whispers said...

Good luck with the yoga. Will be interested to hear what you think of Bikram. I prefer to build up a sweat from the inside out, but that's just me ;)

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