2024: Strength Redefined

Fifteen days into the year, I take this opportunity to wish YOU my dear readers and your loved ones a Happy and Blessed 2024! Had I known that the first day/s would leave me drained enough to not write this blog intended for the first day of the year, I would've surely wished you on the blog that I wrote and posted on the last day of the year gone by! Believe me when I say, I tried. The opening word has been changed from "as we step into' to three to five to ten and now fifteen! Hopefully, it should reach you today...fingers crossed.

2024 adds up to an 8 (Einstein!!) and the number is symbolic of the tarot card Strength! It is the card that represents Leo, which should be no surprise! This card, as should be expected, stands for courage and valour. It talks about inner strength. The depiction on the traditional tarot deck is beautiful as you can see below.

The Strength Card from the Original Rider Waite Tarot! Credits: Canva & Self

A woman is caressing a lion while he is benign and comfortable in her presence, There is a symbol of infinity above her head. Look at the picture above for a moment, before you read on. What does it tell you? The lion with his sheer physical force can devour her. If she wanted, she could have used her superior brain and got him caught and caged. So while one has potent physical power, the other has a superior brain but both choose the heart and are connected by it. There is mutual respect, love, understanding and comfort and that in itself is unparalleled strength.

Strength has many facets to it. However, in my opinion, it can be broadly classified under two categories. Masculine and Feminine aspects of strength. Every other word used to describe strength falls under either or both categories. This year should be dedicated into inculcating both equally.

No matter how we identify gender-wise, physically, energy-wise each of us have a masculine and feminine side to us. The masculine strength embodies muscle power and physique to fight, offensive in nature, ready to go out there, action-oriented, face hardships, in short conquer or get killed. The feminine strength is about grace, about giving, attracting and receiving. It is about nurturing and accepting. It is about being vulnerable and asking for help thus planting seeds for community living.

Each of us, should have both these energies in balance. Unfortunately, over thousands of years, the masculine and feminine energies became an obsolete concept and masculine and feminine was taken as per physical attributes, the genitalia- imagine being such superior beings physically, physiologically, mentally, emotionally and even able to access spirituality but content with being classified based on genitalia and sexual preferences!!

We are in the age of Aquarius and after Pluto's final dance between Capricorn and Aquarius after a long stint in Capricorn (15 years), it will settle into Aquarius finally in November of 2024, if I remember right, and will stay here for the next 20 years. Societies will change, thinking will change, technologies will flourish, governments will see major changes and every thing will be large scale. With Pluto which governs Scorpio (and responsible for death and reinvention) and Aquarius, embodying its rulers traditional Saturn and the powerful Uranus known for defying restrictions and old thinking, the years leading to 2044 is going to transform us individually and collectively, as a whole. 

Credits: Canva, Memes on the internet & Self; we might find ourselves like this during the year!

To be able to embrace this transformational change that is going to question everything we knew and then turn our worlds upside down, leaving us with no choice but to embrace the new, the year 2024 is, in a way, our final chance to realign willingly. Hence, the diametrically opposite sign to Aquarius, Leo, is here beckoning us to pay attention to who we are and tap into our inner resources of indomitable strength in both masculine and feminine forms. This is the eternal truth and the sooner you see it and embrace it, the better it is for you!

An ideal year for you to begin healing. Start with your inner child. Jot down what you dislike about yourself. Also, jot down things you do not like in people or the names of people you do not want in your life. Then ask yourself why you do not like them. What is it about them that triggers this negative emotion in you. Work on it. People trigger us as a part of the big universal plan, so that we can identify, those parts of ourselves that need healing. Also, embrace the most authentic version of yourself, unapologetically. 

The Star card in tarot embodies Aquarius energy. Usually, a naked figure of the water bearer depicted by a woman even though, Uranus is a neutral planet embodying  neuter gender. This is to show you that you are unique the way you are and you should accept yourself with love. To be able to get to this level of acceptance, you have to develop Strength in its most balanced form.

Healing and growth are constant processes and the shift always begins on an energetic level. Most of us have a distorted masculine and distorted feminine inside of us, irrespective of gender. Most of us have a complete, aggressive, go getter, conquer-all energy because we have reduced the feminine energy to an "oh my Lord I cannot do this on my own" energy. The feminine is strong and not the damsel in distress that we will her to be. More often than not, society decides these roles and in order to correct these, we might embrace opposites. 

Both energies are strong and exude power when in balance. Let 2024 see us transcending set ideas of the societies and within us so that we may be strong but kind, ambitious yet accepting, action oriented while being graceful, taking charge and going out of our comfort zones but being nurturing and holding up certain traditions. It will not happen overnight but where is the hurry?

I turn 50 this year and I am determined to let the greys show on my head, maybe only the greys will show for I have been colouring for a long while but I have been working on  myself, to be accepting of my physical form, for it is but a scratch of who we really are. Working on the physical form is of utmost importance though, for, our energy bodies need to thrive here on Earth and help us to align to our soul calling, to the infinite potential that awaits us. Therefore, fitness in all areas will be a theme I am aiming towards, as well. Material needs will manifest itself once the energy work is in place.

With that, I have finally finished my message to you Dear Readers. If you do have any ideas to share for balancing our strength, do comment below. I would love to hear from you. I will also link the blogs written earlier about inner child healing, vulnerability and related blogs, if you need a recap during realignment.

Have a great year ahead!

Healing the Inner Child

https://www.musingswhileunlearning.com/2020/04/healing-inner-child.html

15 Things I loved during my early years...

https://www.musingswhileunlearning.com/2020/06/15-things-i-loved-in-my-early-years-and.html

Is it Okay to be Our Vulnerable and Authentic Selves?

https://www.musingswhileunlearning.com/2020/06/is-it-okay-to-be-our-vulnerable-and.html

Ego Death: Learn, Create & Expand!

https://www.musingswhileunlearning.com/2020/08/ego-death-learn-create-expand.html

Pride, Greed ,Wrath...embrace your dark side!

https://www.musingswhileunlearning.com/2020/09/pride-greed-wrath-envy-lust-gluttony.html

Healing the Inner Child 2

https://www.musingswhileunlearning.com/2021/11/healing-inner-child-2.html

Altruism or Codependency?

https://www.musingswhileunlearning.com/2021/04/altruistic-or-codependent.html