Osho Zen Tarot Card Book

by Alyce Howell

  The dive is the entity, and the joy of it as we fall free in the emptiness. This card indicates that what awaits for us at the other side—a silky, warm, beautiful pink rose petals...oh c'mon!

  Queen of Water: Receptivity

  Receptivity signifies the feminism, amenable feature of water and of the feelings. Her arms are stretched upwards to accept, and she is totally dipped in the water. She is headless, free and peaceful mind for pure receptivity. And as she is filling, she is also constantly draining herself, flooding, and getting more. The lotus design or matrix that arises from her signifies the flawless accord of the universe which becomes clear when we are in harmony with it.

  The Water Queen conveys a phase of unboundedness and appreciation for whatsoever life offers, with no hopes or demands. Nor duty neither thought of merit or prize are significant. Compassion, instinct and sympathy are the qualities that sparkle forth presently, removing all the hindrances that keep us unconnected from each other and from the world.

  King of Water: Healing

  It is a moment when the deeply suppressed wounds from the past are approaching to the surface, prepared and open to be healed. The character in this card is undressed, exposed, and receptive to the warm touch of life. The aura around him is filled with light, and the quality of easing, compassion and affection which surrounds him is disappearing his struggle and misery. Lotuses filled with light emerge on his physical body, and around the delicate energy figures that healers say enclose all of us. In each of these delicate layers there is a healing gem or mold.

  When we are in the healing effect of the Water King we can no longer hide from ourselves or other people. In this outlook of receptiveness and approval we can be healed, and support others also to be fit and complete.

  Osho Zen Tarot

  Minor Arcana: Suit of Clouds

  Ace of Clouds: Consciousness

  Maximum cards in mind’s suit are either funny looking or upset, due to the impact of the mind in our lives is usually either absurd or cruel. But this card displays a massive Buddha figure. He is so wide that he has gone even above the stars, and over his head is complete emptiness. He signifies the consciousness which is offered to all who becomes the master of mind and can utilize it as the servant that’s how it is meant to be.

  This card signifies that there is an absolute clarity offered right now, disconnected, embedded in the deep silence that rests at the heart of your existence. There is no need to understand from the viewpoint of the mind—the perception you have presently is existential, completely in accord with the throb of life itself. Receive this abundant gift, and share it.

  2 of Clouds: Schizophrenia

  The character in this card creates a new variation to the olden idea of "getting trapped between two edges"! But we are in exactly this kind of situation when we get trapped in the uncertain and dualistic side of the mind. Would I leave the grip of arms and drop head-first, or leave the hold of my legs and drop feet-first? Would I go this way or that? Should I accept or not? And whatsoever choice we make, we will always think if we should have chosen the other way.

  The simple way-out of this confusion is, unluckily, to let go of both sides at together. You cannot work your way-out of this problem by resolving it, creating a list of pros and cons, or in some way fixing with your mind. It’s better to follow what your heart say. If you can't find a solution, simply jump—your heart will begin to beat so rapidly that there will be no error about where it is!

  3 of Clouds: Ice-olation

  In our society, males in specific have been taught not to cry, to place a bold face on things when they get upset and not display that they are in discomfort. But females can fell into this ploy too, and all of us at times could feel that the lone way to continue is to hide our feelings and sentiments so we can't get be hurt once more. If our pain is predominantly deep, we could even try to suppress it from ourselves. This can make us ice-covered, stiff, because deep down we are aware that one minor break in the ice will release that feeling of hurt to begin flowing through us again.

  The multi-colored tears on this character's face hold the lever to crash this 'ice-olation'. The cries, and only the cries, have the power to melt down the ice. It's okay to shed tears, and there is no reason to feel embarrassed of your cries. Tears helps us to let go of agony, lets us to be kind with ourselves, and ultimately helps us to rebuild.

  4 of Clouds: Postponement

  The lady in this card is living in a gloomy landscape, filled with illusory, cut-out clouds. Through the frame she can see shades and light and liveliness, and although she wanted to move through the frame—as it seems by the spectral colors reflecting at her clothes—she is not able to do it because there is ample of 'what-if?' action in her mind.

  It is said that “Tomorrow never comes”, but doesn’t matter how frequently it is said, it appears that maximum of us tend to overlook the truth of it. In fact, the one and only outcome of postponing things is a grey and miserable feeling of incompleteness and 'stuck-ness' currently. The liberation and vastness you will experience once you put away all the indecisive thoughts that are stopping you from accomplishing now will make you think why you ever postponed so long.

  5 of Clouds: Comparison

  Whosoever tells you that the bamboo is more fine-looking than the oak, or the oak more expensive than the bamboo? Do you believe that the oak wishes to have a void trunk like bamboo? Is bamboo jealous of the oak due to its height and colorful leaves? The very thought of the two trees competing with each other looks absurd, but we people seem to discover this habit very tough to break.

  Let's accept it, there is always someone who is better-looking, more talented, tougher, more intellectual, or apparently better-off than you are. And on the other hand, there will always be someone who is less than you in all these manners. The method to discover who you really are is not by equaling yourself with others, but by observing whether you are satisfying your own potential in the finest way you know how.

  6 of Clouds: The Burden

  When we bear the load of should and shouldn’t force on us by other people we become like this shabby, stressed character trying to make it to uphill. "Go quicker, try harder, make it to the top!" screams the foolish dictator he carry on shoulder, while the dictator himself is topped with an arrogant rooster. If life feels like a fight from the crib to the grave, it is time to widen your shoulders and see what it felt like to move without these characters on your shoulders.

  You have your own foothills to conquer, your own desires to fulfill, but you will certainly not have the energy to follow them until you free yourself from all the hopes you've collected from others but now feel are your own. Probabilities are they occur only in your own brain, but this does not mean they can't ponder you down. It's time to relieve yourself, and send them on their pathway.

  7 of Clouds: Politics

  Do you identify this guy? All but the utmost innocent and honest of us have a politician prowling someplace in our brain. In fact, the brain is political. Its very nature is to plot and organize and try to control situations and individuals so that it can acquire what it desires. Here, the brain is signified by the snake, wrapped with clouds and "talking with a split tongue". But the main thing to understand about this card is that both the faces are deceitful. The delightful, guiltless, "believe me" face is a cover, and the wicked, deadly, "I'll get what I want" face is a cover, as well. Politicians never have genuine faces. The entire game is a white lie.

  Take a decent look at yourself to observe that if you are participating in this play. What you realize can be hurtful, but not as hurting as continuing to play. It will not serve anyone's interest in the finale, minimum of all yours. Whatsoever you may attain in this way will just become sand in your hands.

  8 of Clouds: Guilt

  Guilt is the most damaging sentiment in which we can get trapped. If we have done wrong with someone, or went against our own honesty, then of course we will end up feeling bad. But to allow ourselves
be overcome with guilt is to summon a migraine. We get surrounded by distressing clouds of insecurity and feelings of irrelevance to the point where we can’t see any of the magnificence and bliss that life is trying to propose.

  We all wish to be a better person—more affectionate, more mindful, and more real to ourselves. But when we penalize ourselves for our disappointments by feeling guilty, we can get stuck into an endless cycle of misery and futility that steals from us of all transparency about ourselves and the circumstances we encounter. You are completely alright as you are, and it is totally natural to go amiss from time to time. Simply learn from it, move ahead, and use the moral not to make the similar fault again.

  9 of Clouds: Sorrow

  This picture is of Ananda, a disciple and relative of Gautama Buddha. He was with Buddha constantly, taking care of his every requirement for 45 years. When Buddha passed away, Ananda was still with him, crying. The other followers chastised him for his misinterpretation: Buddha had passed away completely fulfilled; he must be in joy. But Ananda said, "You misjudge. I’m not crying for him but for myself, because all these years I have been always with him but I have still not achieved." Ananda didn’t sleep that night, meditating intensely and experiencing his agony and grief. By the dawn, he was enlightened.

  Times of immense sorrow have the possibilities to be times of prodigious revolution. But in order for change to occur we must go to the bottom, to the very origins of our agony, and feel it as it is, without any guilt or misery.

  10 of Clouds: Rebirth

  This card portrays the development of mindfulness as it is defined in book “Thus Spake Zarathustra” by Friedrich Nietzsche. He talks about 3 stages of Camel, Lion and Kid. The camel is drowsy, dull, and smug. He lives in misbelief, feeling he's a highland peak, but actually he is so disturbed with others' ideas that he barely has any energy of his own. Rising from the camel is a lion. When we recognize we have a missing life, we begin saying no to the requests of others. We go out of the mass, alone and gratified, roaring our reality.

  But this is not the finale. Lastly the child arises, neither compliant nor disobedient, but innocent and natural and real to his own being. Whatsoever the place you're in presently—drowsy and unhappy, or roaring and disobedient—be aware that it will change into something fresh if you let it. It is a moment of development and alteration.

  Page of Clouds: Mind

  This is what takes place when we disremember that the mind is intended to be a servant, and let run our lives. The mind is full of mechanisms, the mouth is angry and wild, and the entire surrounding environment is being polluted by this workshop of quarrels and opinions. "But hang on", you say. "The mind also makes us human being, it's the foundation of all progresses, all great realities."

  If you trust that, tryout this experiment: go to your room, close the door, switch on a recorder, and, say and record whatever is there in your mind. If you actually let it to all come out with no censorship or editing, you will be surprised at the extent of nonsense that comes discharging forth. The Cloud’s Page is indicating that someone, somewhere, is trapped inside his/her head. Observe and make certain it isn't you.

  Knight of Clouds: Fighting

  The character in this card is covered with a suit of armor. Only his stare of fury is evident, and the white knuckles of his clasped fists. If you see carefully at the armor, you can observe it's sealed with buttons, prepared to explode if anyone so much as scrubs against them. In the backdrop there is a faint movie which plays in this guy's mind—two characters battling for a fortress. A short-temper or a fiery rage often covers a deep feeling of agony.

  We believe that if we scare others away, we can keep away from being hurt even more. In fact, it is just the reverse is this case. By hiding our wounds inside an armor we are stopping them from being cured. By slamming out at other people we keep ourselves away from the affection and nourishment we require. If this explanation seems to fit you, it's moment to stop battling. There is so much affection offered to you if you simply let it in. Begin by pardoning yourself: you're worth it.

  Queen of Clouds: Morality

  Morality has controlled all the nectar and liveliness of life with the thin tunnels of her mind. It can't stream there, so she turned into a dry and old prune. Her entire manner is very accurate and rigid and strict, and she is always prepared to look at every condition in black and white color, similar to the brooch she attires around her neck.

  The Cloud’s Queen prowls everyone’s mind who have been brought up with severe thoughts of decent and evil, immoral and moral, acceptable and unacceptable, ethical and unethical. It's essential to remember that all these conclusions of the mind are just produces of our habituation. And whether our conclusions are applied to ourselves or to other people, they preserve us from experiencing the magnificence and holiness that rests within. Only when we breakdown the cage of our habituation and reach the reality of our own hearts then we initiate to look at life as it truly is.

  King of Clouds: Control

  There is a moment and a space for restrain, but if we make ourselves in charge of our lives we will become stiff. The character is enclosed in the pyramids that frames him. Light sparkles and flashes off his glossy surfaces, but doesn’t penetrate. It's as if he is nearly mummified in this building he has built around himself. His hands are clasped, and his gaze is blank, almost sightless. The lower portion of the body is underneath the slab is at a dagger point, a sharp edge that splits and parts. His world is well-ordered and seamless, but it is lifeless—he can’t let any naturalness or weakness to go in.

  The picture of the Cloud’s King reminds us to breathe deeply, loose our ties and take it easy. If blunders happen, it's alright. There is many more things in life than being "on topmost of everything".

  Osho Zen Tarot

  Minor Arcana: Suit of Fire

  Ace of Fire: The Source

  When we talk about being "grounded" or "balanced" it the Source we are speak about. When we initiate an innovative project, it is the Source that we adjust into. This card indicates us that there is a huge reservoir of energy offered to us. And that we blow into it not by judgement and preparation but by being grounded, balanced, and calm enough to be in connection with this Source. It is inside all of us, like a special, discrete sun offering us life and sustenance. Pure energy, pulsating, available, it is ready to give us anything we need to accomplish something, and prepared to greet us back home when we wish to relax.

  So whether you are starting something fresh and require motivation right now, or you have completed something and wish to relax, go to the Source. It's always there for you, and you don't have to move out of your home to look for it.

  2 of Fire: Possibilities

  The eagle has an indication of all the probabilities surrounded in the landscape beneath, as he hovers liberally, naturally and smoothly through the skies. He is truly in his territory, very majestic and independent.

  This card reveals that you are at a stage where a world of options is exposed to you. Because you have become more affectionate towards yourself, more independent, you can work effortlessly with other people. Because you are calm and at comfort, you can identify possibilities as they offer themselves, occasionally even beforehand other people can see them. Because you are in sync with your own environment, you comprehend that life is providing you with precisely what you want. Enjoy the flying! And rejoice all the diverse wonders of the landscape widened before you.

  3 of Fire: Experiencing

  An "experience" is not somewhat which can be filed in a notepad, or recorded in a cd and glued into a scrapbook. 'Experiencing' is a sensation of miracle itself, the excitement of unity, the feeling of our connectedness with all our surroundings.

  The lady in this card is not merely holding this shrub, she is in unity with it, and she has virtually turn one with it. It is an older shrub, and has experienced numerous hard times. Her stroke is mild, reverent, and the white color inside of her cloth reveals the puren
ess of her heart. She is modest, simple—and that is the correct manner to approach nature.

  Nature doesn't thump any drums when it spurts forth into blossoms, nor cries when the shrubs let go of their leaves in each season. But when we deal with her in the true spirit, she has numerous surprises to give. If you have not listen to the whispering of nature lately, now is a perfect time to provide her the opportunity.

  4 of Fire: Participation

  Each pair of hands in this mandala has placed the right hand upside, in an approach of acceptance, and the left hand is downside, in an approach of giving. The entire circle generates a great energy arena which takes on the form of the dual dorje, a Tibetan icon for the thunderbolt. The mandala has a feature like that of the energy arena which shapes around the Buddha, where all the people participating in the circle make an exclusive contribution to build an integrated and energetic whole. It is like a floret, whose fullness is even more magnificent than the totality of its portions, at the same time increasing the beauty of all the petals.