Path # 8

The Path of the Flaming Sword - The Way of Creativity.

Qualities: Illustrious, vitality, love, romance, children, creativity, entertainment, stardom, strength and spirituality.

Description: This path connects MERCY and SEVERITY. It stands as the ultimate or central connection between the right and left columns of the Tree. This path evokes creativity and romance, the marriage between masculine and feminine energies on the level of the heart. Strength, power, authority and great will power guide this connection. It is a path that requires generosity and loyalty. One of the most spiritual of all roads, it often propels a traveler into the center of attention. It is the path of the "star," who bears a great responsibility to shine and radiate divine balance to all. It rules happiness, romance, children and playfulness. 

Affirmation: I am full for strength vitality and happiness. I can create my own destiny and manifest all my wishes. I am ready to share my joy and love with all those that surround me!

Psalms 119: 65-72 “The law of Thy mouth is better unto me then thousands of gold and silver.”

Astrological Aspect: Leo

Tarot Card: STRENGTH symbolizes the power that comes from letting go of the ego and becoming a channel for the pure energy of the One. The card depicts a woman effortlessly opening the mouth of a lion. Her strength derives not from her muscles but from her spiritual will. 

Challenges: Ego. Remember: it is not your strength or authority you wield but the power of the Light. Arrogance, self-centeredness, domineering, superiority complex (and its flip side, the inferiority complex). 

Hebrew Letter: ט Tet translates as "Coiled Serpent," the serpent of wisdom and enlightenment. In Hindu tradition, the Kundalini, the energy located at the base of the spine, also means "the coiled serpent." Ideally, this serpent ascends through the spinal cord up to the brain when we attain enlightenment or any connection to God. Both the spinal cord and the heart are ruled by Leo, the astrological sign associated with this path.