Saturday, April 10, 2021

Tarot Tales: I is for Illusion (The Moon)

Welcome to the 2021 A to Z Blogging Challenge! My theme this year is Tarot Tales. I am making a selection of folktales, legends, and other traditional stories that correspond to tarot cards. Storytelling and tarot go well together. Do other stories come to mind? Let me know in the comments!


The card: The Moon

Meanings: The Moon is a card of shadowy things, things that can't quite be seen. It is about anxiety, deception, and foreboding. But it is also about intuition, illusions, mystery, and hidden truths. It is about things not always being what they seem; about caution, fearing the unknown, and moving through uncertain times. Through the role of the Moon in folklore, it is connected to ritual and divine guidance.

Selection process: Despite all the millions of tales about the Moon out there, this one was an easy choice. From the moment I first read about the Moon card, this was the story that immediately came to mind. 

The story: The Buried Moon

Origin: England

Summary:
The Moon decides to come down to earth one night to see all the things her light protects people from. Whenever she shines in the sky, she chases away the Things that live in the bogs and marshlands and threaten people in the dark. As she walks around the bog, she slips into a pool and gets caught by the creatures. While she struggles, a mortal man comes along, and to warn him of the danger, the Moon throws back her hood and shines her light around. The man escapes, but the Moon remains trapped. Before the sun rises, the Things roll a big rock over her to keep her from returning to the sky.
When the Moon remains lost for several nights, people begin to worry. What will happen to then at night if her light never returns? Eventually the man who escaped the bog tells the others about the light he'd seen. Following a wise woman's advice people set out into the bog to find and rescue the Moon. They do so together, and the Moon flies back to the sky, chasing the Things away with her radiant light. 

Sources & notes: Read the story here, or the more archaic text here.

Have you ever walked in moonlight at night? What is your favorite thing about the moon?

16 comments:

  1. Hi, I love walking in the moonlight, with its mysteries. There are many wonderful things you can see by its light that are invisible during the day. I used to take my dogs for one last walk at night, and I've seen foxes, rabbits and owls.

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  2. The Moon is very special to me, it's a friend and a presence (Hmm, sounds weird!). When I used to sail, and during the watches, she was the one who kept me company when everyone else was asleep. She is high enought to see half the planet, and some parts were my family (parents, sisters) were living, so she was a bond between us. I was talking to her, so that she would repeat to them what I was saying. Yeah yeah I know, weird... ;))
    Quilting Patchwork & Appliqué

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  3. I love the moon, in all phases. I have read your story before, but had completely forgotten all about it, so your retelling felt like throwing back the hood and releasing something hidden under a rock!
    Black and White: I for Isles

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  4. Love this story about the lunar cycles. Also I love the moon. I like to think She prefers to expose herself in her own time and way, but I like this story too. Pretty sure it's all a lesson for the people who found Her! ;-)

    Anne from annehiga.com

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  5. Love the idea of the moon coming down for a visit. Great tale.
    https://iainkellywriting.com/2021/04/10/the-state-trilogy-a-z-guide-i/

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  6. A good story - I was expecting the passing man to rescue the moon from the Things, but she saved him instead with her warning. I would imagine there would be a lot of scary things in a folktale English bog, judging by the stories.

    I have just celebrated Passover, which is always on a full moon night. We have a lunar calendar.

    I love the full moon, and occasionally have the thrill of seeing a huge red moon, though it gets higher in the sky as the evening goes and the red colour vanishes.

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  7. PS my current A to Z post is here.

    I Is For Iphigenia

    https://suebursztynski.blogspot.com/2021/04/a-to-z-blogging-challenge-2021-i-is-for.html

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  8. I like that the story you bought is the opposite of what the card says because to me, Moon is peace, harmony.

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  9. A delightful tale. I often take a stroll in the moonlight. I love it when it plays hide and seek with the clouds! There's something special about the silvery light with which it embraces everything.

    Here's my I!



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  10. What a charming tale. And people rescuing the Moon together - I hope we are still capable of it.

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  11. I'm definitely a lunar daughter and love the moon in all her guises. I'm so glad she got rescued from the watery depths.

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  12. I absolutely love the moon and sometimes wonder how people can truly show thanks for such important things in our life. This story is fantastic. The people risking their lives for the thing that keeps them safe. I love it!

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  13. The most Amazing story indeed !Its so beautiful to address the moon as a woman. In our Indian culture the moon is a "he". Could you share more stories to show how this distinction came about in different cultures and folklore.

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  14. I love moonlight. Many times when I look up at the Moon, I hear the George Harrison song "Here Comes the Moon."

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  15. Love that story!

    Ronel visiting for the A-Z Challenge with an A-Z of Faerie: Different Imps in Folklore

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  16. What a beautiful story!

    @JazzFeathers
    The Old Shelter - The Great War

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