Spring Equinox: The Flight of the Plumed Serpent

Yesterday he had the Spring Equinox here in the Southern Hemisphere, which is an important transitional moment of the year, when day and night are equal in length. Aside from the usual ritual to celebrate the new season, I also tried one of the new layouts taught by Ana Cortez in The Doors of Somlipith, which is called The Flight of the Plumed Serpent.

The goal of this spread is to provide a 'map' for the coming season, with each card representing a period of roughly 10 days. As Ana Cortez describes in her book:

"At the completion of your time with the Plumed Serpent, you will possess a road map of evolution for the coming season, along with two personal 'gods' to remain as guides. This consists of nine cards from the Lower Kingdom and two cards from the Upper Kingdom. The nine cards are stepping-stones that work in synchronization with your Time Gates. The two 'gods' are aspects of your own self to aspire to and learn from." (p. 267)

So, this spread is not focused on results, but rather on evolution and one's personal journey. The question to be asked is always the same: What is my journey as a being who wishes for personal evolution, and what do I need to know about this journey?

One unique attribute of this spread is that you have to use the whole deck in it, but you only read the cards related to the season starting at the moment of the reading. For this reason, The Flight of the Plumed Serpent can only be done during Solstices and Equinoxes, precisely at the 'gate' points that separate the seasons.

Here is what my Plumed Serpent looked like:

I have no intention of analysing this huge spread all at once, and I am sure (or, at least, I hope) that I will return to it many times until the next Solstice. But here are some initial key-points that got my attention:

• The rulers presiding at the pyramid crown, Sol (K♣) and Dango (J♦) are of complementary suits, but lack in female energy. I feel like they represent the need to develop more active qualities in myself (I have been quite 'slow' since my graduation) and also point to working to develop and heal 'maleness', both inside and outside myself.

• Sol (K♣) and Dango (J♦), due to their age and hierarchical differences, also give me a 'mentorship' vibe. The J♦ can be a bit of a wild card sometimes, but the K♣, with his calm and rational demeanour, can help cool Dango down a bit, and inspire him to act more sensibly. Meanwhile, Dango brings vitality and action to Sol's life, putting in practice what his 'mentor' teaches. I wonder if this points to such a relationship appearing in my life, one way or another.

• All four suits are present, which shows that in the coming season there will be opportunities to balance all different aspects of the self. But the suits of the rulers – Diamonds and Clubs – are, curiously, the ones with the most cards, suggesting that this particular leg of the journey will focus on mental, communicational, creative and possibly financial issues.

• We have a sequence of Diamond cards: the A♦, 2♦ and 3♦ (although this last one is separated from the other two by the 9♣ and the 2♣). Again, I have the impression there is an ascending movement in the areas under Ignita's rulership: money, self-esteem, vitality, creativity and ambitions in general. The presence of the A♦ only intensified this.

• The first step of the pyramid is the 4♣ (East Wind), which… totally suits my moment right now. I have been living in the 4♣ since my graduation ceremony last August. My life, which had been a flurry of activity for the last two years, suddenly screeched into a halt… and I don't feel ready yet for my next step (because I am not sure what it is). The 4♣ is also about procrastination which, I won't lie, I have been guilty of lately. So, this journey starts on a slow note, but promises to pick up after a while.


More to come on this spread… I am nowhere near done with it!