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Tarot Work is "Black Magic": A Rant

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Tinevisce:
Disclaimer- I'm in a right, god-awful mood at work, so this is going to be a long winded rant.


I recently found out that one of my colleagues- he and I report to the same manager, although we're technically not from the same team- is a (self professed) practitioner of Kundalini Yoga.

Cool, I thought to myself, here's someone I might someday go to for handsdown advice on chakra work.

However, he's always been shifty about the topics: all, "Be very careful of what you get into" and "it's very dangerous", "I wouldn't recommend these things to anyone"

 :shifty:
I can understand cautioning someone to not try these things out on a whim, not in the least because it's the respectful thing to do- but I did feel his attitude was bordering on fear mongering.
(If this conv. was about practical tantra work, I'd happily agree to all of the above- maybe add in my own dire warnings. But I have trying to believe a spiritual practice aimed at self empowerment is as potentially detrimental as a form of magic that works with enslaved earth bound spirits. Anyway, I'm not a practitioner of Kundalini, so I told myself it might very well be true. Don't comment on things you don't know about, and all that jazz.)

Now, in my workplace, most of the people know that I read Tarot cards; and I've often done readings for my colleagues. Most people come to me with the idea of the Tarot being something akin to a hororscope with cards- since most people are quite willing listeners, I explain to them that the Tarot (for me) works on a different paradigm. I view it as a tool for examining situations.
I try my best with the cards, and let them know if I can't make too much sense of a reading (it's been happening rarer as time goes on). Of course, my querents also know when something I say resonates with them- so they won't really eat up any BS. :)
A lot of questions are very heartfelt ones, things that have really bothered them- I tread carefully with those questions. I do hope I help them see things a bit more clearly.

On Friday and today evening, I did readings for two of my colleagues- they were both very personal queries, so I commandeered the meeting romm for the readings.
Today, post reading, I go in for dinner (I'm working the night shifts this fortnight) with Kundalini dude, my roommate (yes, that one- he's also a colleague) and another colleague.
Kundalini dude takes me to a side, and asks, "Where did you learn the Tarot?"

I told him I learnt it initially over the Internet, and then it's been practice. I did sense a lecture coming on, but I don't like confrontations, so I let him go on.

He went on to tell me that I should never read for others without learning from a proper guru as...and I loosely translate..."black magics like the Tarot" has very high energy that could potentially hurt me or others.
Oooh kay- I think a fuse or two burnt out at "black magic". A warning to not take the Tarot lightly, I'd get. Even an apprehension of being too young or inexperienced to guide others, I would get and agree with. But black magic? Seriously? Not everything remotely related to the Occult (insofar as you can even define that term) is a left hand deal. Not everything is tantra. [I'm not even going to go into the whole magic-being-an-inherently-corruptive-influence issue]

To add to this, roomie gives me a side eyed glance, and says, "Yeah, not everything can be found on the Internet". Along with my dad, he's also been a bit apprehensive of my recent interest in crystals. Apparently, someone a really long time ago wore a blue sapphire and went crazy in his family/social circle.
Since our folk traditions maintain blue sapphire as a very tempermental stone that can destroy you unless you have some kinship with it, and none of my other sources (this forum, and the Crystal Bible, for example) mention this- he's somehow convinced that Indian astrology/mysticism must have it right and everything else is either wrong or misinformed.

 :brickwall: :brickwall: :brickwall:
The part that's really pissing me off though is how for one moment, I got a shiver down my own spine; one moment of what-if. I hated it, and myself

Repeat after me:
a) Not everything is a left hand path; and there is such a thing as self empowerment. This is not a bad thing.

b) The dangers of the path- unless you are indeed working with enslaved entities- are not about unknown forces striking you down; it's about creating bad situations for yourself. It won't be a mysterious streak of misfortune- your working (at absolute worst, that is) will create situation A (that you intended), which will spark off situations B, C and D (that you did not intend)


This is the exact kind of fear mongering which turned me off of Hinduism back in 2005, and blah, I hate that this fear of the unknown is still in me. I've been reading about my practices- whatever they maybe over the years- dilligently for the entire period and I don't like I still have such a plebian corner tucked in inside me
 :gaah:

Is my culture so ingrained with spirituality being something you can only achieve with someone else's help? Is self empowerment so hard to see as potentially a good thing?

earthmuffin:
T, I think you will encounter some superstitious folks in every religion and every culture. My own husband looked weirdly at me the first time I brought home a smudge stick, as if the smudge stick was going to do something evil to our house. :rolleye: But I realized it was his fear of the unknown.

I think you have a good thoughtful and respectful attitude that will serve to keep you out of any trouble whatever path you take. It seems in the types of comments you are getting from kundalini guy and others, the commenters really just want to caution you about that (not that you need the cautioning) and get carried away by their own superstitions and fears as my husband did. And then there are those who like to have their spirituality be an elitist club that only they and select others are deemed fit to practice. I say to them "whatever!" :rolleye: and just go on my merry way. :)

Tinevisce:
I think the 'black magic' bit really peeved me because it smacks of a worldview which presupposes any kind of magic is inherently corruptive.

If doing a reading connects me to my querent energetically, I'd get just as connected with them by, I dunno, talking to them.

It really messed with my head because I expected better from someone supposedly on a similar path.

Roomie's insinuation that the Indian paradigm is the only correct paradigm out there really hit a nerve. Ignorance and jingoism, hallelujah

Crystal Dragon:
 :grouphug:

Honey, just let them be paranoid and superstitious on their own ... or not, it's their choice.  From what I can tell, you're not likely to fall into anything bad.  You spend the time to do some research and ask questions because you want to understand things before jumping in ... that's a good thing.  As EM said, twits are everywhere and we can choose to not deal with them.

And those who want to malign magic or energy work?  I just ask them what they think prayer is.  ;)

Tinevisce:
 ()

Thank you!

I think it wasn't his attitudes that bothered me so much as my reaction to them- I think I was mostly pissed at myself for my own fears that surfaced, my own doubts.
I might not be a particularly kick ass practitioner skills wise; but my mysticism has been a part of my life in some shape or form for almost 7 years. I should be immune to fear mongering by now, no?

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