Reflecting over the image of the five of cups during the course of the past month has brought to mind the need to release something once and for all or at least part of it so that we are able to move along towards enacting further steps for releasing that which drains us of our energies and talents. The five of cups is now, at least in my psyche, conjoined to the prayer of Saint Joseph which urges us to work “…with detachment from self…and the account which [I] must render of time lost, of talents wasted, of good omitted, of vain complacency in success, so fatal to the work of God.” You most certainly need not be a devout Catholic or even “Christian” to appreciate the overall sense of this prayer (modify as you see fit) and when staring at the image of the five of cups across my table, I wonder, what is it that is not being said? What is being avoided? Why is this person unable to detach?
In wanting so much to preserve something from the past, can we truly move on? Also, will our personal success be ever tainted by that which you are trying so hard to keep close? This is not a new concept by any means, but it is one that we seem to set aside for we are not comfortable in confronting our own fears and regrets. We want to paint a smile on our face and repeat affirmations on end for promoting positivity. However, the regrets are still there and hence the positivity we want to manifest is cloaked by the dark feelings of times past, of talents wasted, of energies usurped which become fatal to our life’s purpose. There is a reason why the figure within the five of cups is draped in the dark cloak of resentment.
Yes, there is always something we can preserve, what we deem the silver lining in the dark cloud, but if we are the dark cloud holding on to those upright cups or even worse, ignoring them, then what good is the silver lining if all we can focus upon is what once was. Who we were, is not who we are, and who we will be is certainly subject to change. How we evolve to remove all these cups altogether, well that is a personal journey, tailored by none other than yourself. So how do we clear the table and our energetic being?
I suggest we start by reflecting over the matters as well as the players involved over the years which have brought upon this state of resentment. You are zapping your energy when you tie yourself time and again to the people and surrounding circumstances which have drained you. The bleeding heart cannot sustain itself, something has to give. We must seal the bleeding circuit in order to sustain substantial positive flow. The process of releasing these regrets is not exactly invigorating. In fact, is can be quite the opposite, but this will only be temporary as you will feel a return of your divine energy, a spark which ignites within you. When I look at the five of cups, I ask, what/who is it that I am not letting go? What expectation do I keep which covertly fuels my regrets?
For example, I spent a series of evenings where all I would dream about were certain individuals within a specific situation/scenario in the past. These “dreams” did not pop in out of nowhere as I did take a proactive approach for creating a personal ritual for the release of said regrets. Each evening following the ritual, my soul would rise as if it were being pulled into a portal taking me back in time, to the specific place and time, whereby I was able to reexamine the “evidence”- that is, the events as they took place- a regression of sorts. The process was extremely active in that I could feel my physical body beginning to exhaust itself, though it “slept”, though my soul carried on with its current mission. Upon “waking” I felt utterly exhausted, as if I climbed a mountain. I continued to experience this similar journey for nights to follow. I felt heavy whenever I tried to ignore the experience, only to find myself thrown back into this vortex the following evening. The exertion of my energy was incredible.
In conclusion, the message came through as vividly as my soul travels. I reached the deduction that was well overdue, thereby removing the heavy dark cloak of regret along with the false hopes of “all is not lost” (a typical interpretation for the five of cups). What I came to understand was: I did not need to keep trying so hard to preserve that which was so opposed to me. By removing the cloak I removed excess baggage and finally felt lighter. My time to super charge had arrived. As a final point, I cleared the table once set for company whom never appreciated the feast to begin with. And so, we can come to understand the mainstream interpretation of “not all is lost” for the five of cups, which has its place, when held in proper context. When looking at this card in proper context, what have not you released in your life? Perhaps now is the time to take inventory and shed the excess baggage that has accompanied you for so long.
