August 22nd – Isa
This week’s rune is Isa or Ice, not an easy energy to work with, especially for those of us that find sitting still difficult. However this does seem to be a common theme for people at the moment, a sense that they’re on hold, on the edge of something, waiting and ready, like a sail boat stuck in the doldrums.
Isa usually arrives to put the breaks on, slow things down so that we don’t trip ourselves up rushing on headlong. In some ways it’s very like the energy of the Hermit in the Tarot. A time to take stock, to look inward, let things settle, consolidate and in some ways become more concentrated, less dilute.
We can think of ice in all its useful and destructive forms to get an idea of the power of this energy and what it brings to the table. Ice as a Glacier can carve valleys through mountains, steadily slowly and relentlessly. Food is kept fresh by freezing. Keeping something on Ice saves it for a later time when we can manage it better. And when Ice thaws things start to follow again, but in the meantime we must sit with it and consolidate what has been learnt, witnessed and experienced. Really look deep, look hard, look intently.
What jumped out at me so clearly was Isa as the eye, a reptilian eye, a cat’s eye, the eye of a dragon, the eye that sees beyond the surface. Isa asks us to stop in this time of rapid change and movement, to look deeply in. Don’t be blinded by the light. There is something beyond that needs to be seen, before we can dive into the next phase of action and movement. So don’t struggle against this standstill, use it.
All that Isa asks us in return for these in-sights is our Patience.
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