Easter is the perfect time to remember how the doctrine of resurrection (i.e. life after death) leads straight to that of judgement, which like Karma, leads to the moment when the rewards for your past efforts manifest.
Sounds scary?
Not really, at least not if we also remember that the wisdom of the Tarot suggests that for those who’ve met certain preconditions, judgement is a time of healing. So what are those preconditions? The symbolism on the card itself makes this clear.
The three individuals being resurrected from this square-shaped grave embody the trinity of the divinity which is now freed from the quaternity of the earthly world. This suggests that which is authentic, essential, and divine in you will be finally liberated but only to the extent you have been true to your heart, your humanity, and to your ‘higher self’.
Astrologically, this brings us to the Sun.
According to Ficino (1433-1499), the consummate Renaissance man, the Sun is the image of the ‘heart’ of all life and especially that of our psyche. As such, the Sun symbolizes insight and imagination, those qualities considered to be uniquely human. Thus solar energy is associated with consciousness, rational thought, and the pursuit of honour – the ‘higher Self’ – the wind vane that directs our key decisions. Most importantly, the sun is associated with the divinity of spirit in all things, bringing them to life, fertilizing them, and providing all that is necessary for them to thrive and grow.
In the Kabbalah, the 6th sephirah known as Tiphareth and associated with the ‘Christ’, lies at the exact center of the Kabbalistic Tree. Thus it is in Tiphareth that soul and body, self and ego, higher consciousness and personality merge.
Astrologically, Tiphareth is associated with the Sun as well as the heart-chakra. Not surprisingly then, as both the Kabbalah and Ficino remind us, the Sun, or Tiphareth, is the seat of our humanity, our ‘higher selves’.
What can you do with this?
The energy of this long Easter weekend is predominately that of the Sun in Aries, or the ‘higher self’, making a challenging square aspect to Pluto, the Lord of transfiguration, death and rebirth. If ever there was time a time to get in touch with how your ego (shadow side of the Sun) stifles your humanity, you higher Self, it’s right now.
Key to this is realizing that personalization is not the same as passion, which itself figures heavily into Easter imagery. The word Passion comes for the Latin word for suffering and so it is little surprise that with Easter, we celebrate the Passion of Christ, the betrayal, arrest, trial, and suffering of Jesus which ends with his death on the cross.
Sure, you need to have conviction in what you do and love for those for whom you do it. That’s passion! By contrast, personalization – i.e. it’s all about me – only fans the flames of ego and hubris and that’s dangerous especially at this time. Use this time on this Easter to ensure your own resurrection by getting in touch with your humanity so as to be your best version of yourself.
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