Contents: Name | Beliefs | Rituals | Empathy | Links | Books | Tarot

I have recently chosen the magickal name of Anariel.

This name popped into my head unbidden in the late autumn of 2002, shortly after I moved to Seattle. I recognized it as Quenya (J.R.R. Tolkein's High Elvish language) and the "-iel" suffix as meaning "daughter", but had to go look up the "anar-" root. Turned out that it means "Daughter of the Sun".

"Huh - interesting," I thought. "But I don't want to define myself by my relationship to something else. Saying I am something is okay, but the daughter of something? Doesn't seem right." And so I let it be for a while.

Then in early January I had somewhat of a revelation. "Daughter of the Sun" was symbolically equivalent to the Princess of Wands!

Some background: I have always been a heavy user of Tarot in my magickal workings - the images really resonate with me, and link smoothly with the way my mind works. And my significator, the card that symbolizes me, in almost every single deck I've used since I started in 1997, has been the Princess (or Page, or Daughter, depending on the deck) of Wands.

Let's look at what some of my books on Tarot have to say about the Princess of Wands.

From Tarot Unveiled: "...enterprising and creative by nature. He or she may be a bit impulsive and quick to react..."

From The Illustrated Guide: "...expresses the idea of a fresh beginning. The Page of Wands is eager, excited, and ready to try new things. She or he can be a very loyal friend or lover, for there is no duplicity in this person. "[Reversed]...the simple Page can become indecisive, even confused, as life seems too complex at times."

And from The Book of Thoth: The Princess of Wands represents the earthy part of Fire; one might say, she is the fuel of Fire.... The character of the Princess is extremely individual. She is brilliant and daring. She creates her own beauty by her essential vigour and energy. The force of her character imposes the impression of beauty upon the beholder. In anger or love she is sudden, violent, and implacable. She consumes all that comes into her sphere. She is ambitious and aspiring, full of enthusiasm which is often irrational."

Well, shucks if that don't sum up my best and worst qualities. Creative, enthusiastic, impulsive, indecisive. Yep. That's me. And it has remained me through two (so far) major shifts of personality and self-expression, which indicates that these are indeed the core qualities that define who I am.

Now why is the Princess of Wands symbolically equivalent to the Daughter of the Sun? The first half is simple enough: The court card I call the Princess goes by other names in other decks - most traditionally the Page, but also the Daughter. And Wands are the suit symbolizing Fire. And what better manifestation of Fire in the real world than the Sun?

It is also interesting to note the similarity, in sound and meaning, of Anariel to my previous use name of Annûnel, which means (also in Quenya) "Sunset Star". (It is from that name that the name of this website comes.)

Now, why Quenya? Why should I take some made-up language as my own in this way? First I shall say that The Lord of the Rings has been my favorite work of literature for as long as I can remember. More than a favorite, it inspires me, rejuvenates my worldview, reconnects me with my ideals and my goals. Quenya, as Tolkein's linguistic masterpiece, is a symbol of that. (It's also a damn beautiful language.)

I don't think I'm going to make a point of adopting Anariel day-to-day - it's a bit formal-sounding (and I will *not* go by Annie! :). (Though if anyone wants to start calling me that, feel free.) But in my magick and in my heart, my name is Anariel: written in Tolkien's Tengwar script, it is

At the center of my philosophy, religion, spirituality, what-have-you is the concept of Will; the idea that every being has some ultimate purpose, something that they can do that no one else can because of the very nature of who they are. I am simultaneously the artist and the tool that will create the work of art that was/is/will be my life.

Right now I believe I have discovered a large part of my Will - my journey is currently centered around figuring out how to carry it out.

I call myself a Thelemite. I am an initiate of the Ordo Templi Orientis. That's all I'm going to say for now. More later, perhaps, as I figure out how to express it.

Coming soon, but in the meantime:
The Empaths community on LiveJournal

Thelema:
Ordo Templi Orientis A Thelemic order.
The Book of the Law The 'holy book' of Thelema.
The Writings of Aleister Crowley
Your One Stop Libri Shop
BeastBay Kind of a Slashdot for Thelemites

Pagan:
sk4p.net Occult Resources
Alternative Religions Educational Network
Church of All Worlds
Church of Satan
Kemetic Orthodoxy Modern practice of the ancient Egyptian religion
Omphalos Pagan search engine and directory
Ontario Center for Religious Tolerance
Pagan WebCrafters Association
The Witches' Voice
The Wizard Academy
The Small Denominational Order of Loose Change

Here are a few decks I've used, with brief synopses. At the end are a few links to sites about tarot.

Adrian By Adrian Kohli. This is a very unusual deck, with sparse abstract designs behind very smooth illustration. Haven't had much luck working with it but it's a beauty to look at.
Arthurian By Miranda Gray & Caitlin and John Matthews. Illustrating the Arthurian legends in all their glory. The artwork has always seemed very pale and washed out to me, though it's well executed.
Barbara Walker By (guess!) Barbara Walker. The artwork is a little crude, but visually intense. The entire deck is quite depressing, but has worked well for me in divinations involving fighting off inner demons.
Celtic Dragon By Lisa Hunt and D.J. Conway. This is a beautiful deck, with stunning detail in the images. Dragons are everywhere - in the sky, in the water, in the rocks.
Cosmic Tribe by Stevee Postman and Eric Ganther. This intensely colorful deck hits you right in the gut. A beautiful touch is the inclusion of three Lovers cards for different sexual orientations.
Crow's Magick By Londa Marks. A very dark, visually striking deck. There's a bit of a problem with the illustrations, the captions, and the enclosed booklet all disagreeing on the cards' meanings, but I've had good luck with it if I just look at the card itself.
Dali Universal By Salvador Dali. This is the last thing he did before he died, and he was quite mad at the time. This is a collage deck, and not very intuitive - in fact, it's downright weird, and expensive to boot. Probably not worth it unless you are a Dali fanatic like me :)
Dragon By Peter Pracownik. This deck has bold colors and clean lines, and has been a good divination tool for me.
Gendron By Melanie Gendron. This is a very happy deck with soft-edged photographic artwork.
Halloween By Kipling West. The art is very cartoonish, but strangely appealing, and there is a black cat on every single card. The suits are different (pumpkins = disks, bats = swords, imps = wands, ghosts = cups) and that can take some getting used to.
Legend: Arthurian By Anna-Marie Ferguson. Another Arthurian deck, with very detailed and realistic artwork. Still a bit too washed out for my taste, but I know people who have had amazing success with this deck.
Osho Zen By Ma Deva Padma. Surreal, jewel-toned, full of motion - I adore the artwork on this deck. Unfortunately I don't own it so haven't been able to work with it, but it's at the top of my wish list.
Robin Wood By Robin Wood. A cheerful illustrative deck along fairly traditional lines. I like it because I have difficulties with the traditional Rider-Waite style of artwork but the symbology is frequently useful.
Rohrig By Carl Rohrig. This deck makes me want to cry. Some of the most beautiful artwork I've ever seen, yet the suits are hideously unbalanced. I've never gotten a good reading out of it.
Shapeshifter By Lisa Hunt, Simona Knight, and D.J. Conway. This deck again has beautiful artwork, but based on an odd symbology. Swords and Wands are mixed up (not just the symbols, which I could deal with, but the elemental associations). It just doesn't work well if you are used to other more standard decks.
Terrestrial This was my first tarot deck. The artwork is very abstract, and so interpretation can be difficult.
Thoth Designed by Aleister Crowley and illustrated by Frieda Harris. This is my (current) all-time favorite deck. It has slapped me upside the head when I was being an idiot, made me laugh when I was being too serious about a situation, and in general been a good friend. Vivid colors and strong lines.
Vertigo By Dave McKean. This deck is based on Neil Gaiman's Sandman books, but even if you haven't read them this is an unbelievably beautiful deck. After being out of print for years, it has finally been reissued.
Voyager By James Wanless and Ken Knutson. Each card is a collage of photographs in vivid colors. Some of the suits are named differently (disks = worlds, swords = crystals), and the court cards are Child, Woman, Man, and Sage, which can throw off the standard interpretations but have rich possibilities of their own. I've had good success with this deck, but it's not for a beginner due to its eccentricities.

Aeclectic.net
American Tarot Association
Art of Tarot
Tarot FAQ