Cat Guru Merlin Teaches Push Push Tarot.

Dearest ones, it’s with a heavy heart at today’s Monday’s With Merlin to announce a cosmic kick in the pants. Just when we thought the tech gods were friendly they pulled a double whammy crashing our site and everything got restored except today’s mega 1000 word opus on spiritual teachers, life purpose plus my first tarot reading and lesson for Push Push my new feline student, Push Push. Alas, everything in life is an illusion and temporary. I’ll do a shorter revised version and you getextra karmic Brownie points if you share. I’ll include a few of your comments from that post if possible. Many thanks.

It was never my intention to be a spiritual guide, guru or teacher with devotees and millions of followers like some cats. I’d quoted my reasons from a Taoist verse about success in my previous post, but I’d like to share something more timely from Tao Te Ching. It’s wisdom we can all learn from no matter what loss or troubles plague us. If you’re in a hurry, scroll down to the reading but you know what they say:

When a Student is ready a Teacher appears.

Tao Te Ching – Lao Tzu – chapter 64

Peace is easily maintained;
Trouble is easily overcome before it starts.
The brittle is easily shattered;
The small is easily scattered.

Deal with it before it happens.
Set things in order before there is confusion.

A tree as great as a man’s embrace springs from a small shoot;
A terrace nine stories high begins with a pile of earth;
A journey of a thousand miles starts under one’s feet.

He who acts defeats his own purpose;
He who grasps loses.
The sage does no act, and so is not defeated.
He does not grasp and therefore does not lose.

People usually fail when they are on the verge of success.
So give as much care to the end as to the beginning;
Then there will be no failure.

Therefore the sage seeks freedom from desire.
He does not collect precious things.
He learns not to hold on to ideas.
He brings men back to what they have lost.
He helps the ten thousand things find their own nature,
But refrains from action.

My student Push Push is lives in the Bohemian Cat House in Vermont with several felines and two humans of CrazyCatLadyCeramics. She recently expressed her desire to learn more about the tarot as a tool of self-knowledge and wrote to me:

” Dearest Merlin, may I call you Darling? My tarot question for you is about fame — specifically about a contest I’ve entered to grace the cover of Modern Cat Magazine. Do you think this mature (I am not a kitten anymore) fuller figured lady has a chance? Am I crazy to think I could win? Is my ego clouding my mind? Cats are born indolent pleasure-seekers but I want more. I feel torn between wanting material stuff and a spiritually meaningful life. Will I win and can I use it walk a more spiritual path?

Dearest Push Push,

My ego is small and have no need of grand titles like Master so you may call me anything you like. Sincerity in any student is all I ask.

Open and follow your heart. Listen to your body and not the mind chatter. The Truth and your True Nature is in the stillness with the center of your purr.

Since cats don’t have opposable thumbs, I ask Layla to shuffle the cards. One of them popped out. It doesn’t happen that open so we take it as a clue to exminine it. It was the two of Pentacles, a card of the multi-tasker, juggling two balls in the air in an infinity loop. I have a very modern take on this card given how much busier people are these days. We’re all so plugged in 24/7 doing so much, it’s easy to drop a ball or get off track. My suggestion for you Push Push is to make sure your pawrents aren’t juggling many projects at once. It may also apply to your many questions within questions. The clarity of an answer is dictated by the clarity of the question. Some readers will answer yes or no type uestio I usually don’t.

Life is never purely black or white but with infinite nuances. Broader questions cast a wider net of possibilities. The most expansive and useful uestion for anyone to ask is : What do I need to know right now? Or: What do I need to know about X to achieve Y?

Now to what looks like a very positive reading. If one was a novice, it would look like a slamdunk for winning the contest but you asked several questions.

In the PAST the six of Pentacles, a generous, material gift of money or charitable donation. The card is about the ability to acknowledge and receive abundance. If we need more money it prompts us to explore sources expected and unexpected. For those who want to give but feel poor, it shows abundance takes many forms. Even when less than flush, we can give time, skills, smiles and share on social media (like this post).

The Present is the ultimate card of fate and destiny The Wheel of Fortune. What better card for a question on winning contests? The wheel is forever turning. Around and around she goes, where she stops nobody knows. It’s up to lady luck and your karma. A big weight can be lifted from your furry shoulders dear one, because it’s out of your hands. Relax, what’s yours cannot be denied. I will add, dearest Push Push you are ageless and not fat. It’s your duty to inspire all women to embrace the fur they’re in.

The Future is the classic card of victory after much hard work and struggle to triumph. The question is what will the victory be about? The contest? Tangential fame and opportunities? bigger following? You’re easily top the 20,000 mark on your Instagram page. On a spiritual level, I see great strides if you stay on track and don’t get distracted by anything or anyone who pulls you down. And as I’ve always said, Carpe Diem, darling.

I don’t wager on horse races or contests but I feel no matter what the outcome, I feel you are a winner. Push Push, I will say, you are an excellent candidate and don’t think winning would go to your pretty head. However, I do see more life lessons ahead regardless of the outcome and hope to be there as your guide or guru. Btw, Guru (Sanskrit: गुरु. IAST: guru) is a Sanskrit term for someone who is a “teacher, guide or master” of certain knowledge.

Dearest reader, may ask for your vote if you feel Push Push deserves to win? It’s a very quick click at her direct profile page where she shares all her nicknames and more!

http://moderncat.com/starcat/entry/push-push-0