The practice of living with the question is the essence of contemplation — and really the foundation of any therapeutic process. To enter into a dialogue with inquiry allows for a kind of awareness that directly contributes to the skill of world-building.

To answer a question prematurely is to interrupt an intelligence that serves to nurture our imagination. Staying open to what else might be true in a particular moment invites us to live from a full bodied presence, sensing into parts of the self/other/world we might not have otherwise encountered. Consider how frequently we cut ourselves off from life because of our inclination to resolve, to make sense of, to know.

In my experience, life begins at the edge of our knowing. When we enter into a space of not knowing, we enter into a space of possibility. Those moments allow for vulnerability — not in the sense of sharing something intimate about yourself — but through a kind of recognition of the human condition that goes beyond language. It is the experience of being before the impulse to articulate creeps in.

For that moment, we sense the underlying rhythm of life as time and space collapse. In that moment, we are present.

This month, I wanted to offer something a bit different for the landscape of the month, so rather than pulling tarot cards, I’ll pull a single Gene Keys card and we’ll explore its invitation for each of us. This is an invitation to live into the quality of the card, and observe your life from that frame.

Ritualistically, I have found it really helpful to place the card somewhere where I can check back in with its teaching over the span of a few days / weeks.

I’ve learned that guidance is a two-way relationship. If we wish to receive clarity, we have to be open to being led.

Without the anchor in my physical space, the subtly of these messages can be missed or reasoned through coincidence. I know, that in that moment, when I greet that symbol each morning, I’m reminded of my availability for this insight to be expressed in creative ways throughout the day. This primes my mind to stay open to the natural world continuing this dialogue with me.

It’s not uncommon to work with a specific symbol or card and experience its continuity through synchronicity and guidance in other forms.

I might pull a card on a specific theme, and then hear about that same theme later on a podcast that I frequently tune into, and it might come up again in a conversation with a client. When I pull a card with intention, I enter into a relationship with its presence, and the more receptive I am, the more I hear its teaching.

It’s as if life is seeking to infuse each moment with meaning, highlighting the synthesis that longs to be restored in each of our lives.

This happens a lot.

Pulling a card with intention is like entering a field of potential where you’re not quite sure what will emerge, but you are willing and available to be touched by the encounter. Meeting oracular practices with a sense of humility and vulnerability is essential for understanding the power and influence they evoke.

The genuine recognition of this influence allows us to see how we co-create our experience with this guidance, nurturing a sense of respect and intentionality toward such practices.

This month, we have the card of TOTALITY (Gene Key #28).

The Gene Keys is an archetypal system based on the teachings of the I Ching (The Book of Changes / an ancient Chinese text on philosophy and cosmology). This system is an integration of practical wisdom that unlocks one’s essence through the discovery of your unique blueprint.

Each card describes a quality at three levels: the shadow, the gift, the siddhi. The shadow is the quality expressed from the state of fear; and the gift is the quality expressed from the state of conscious awareness (love). The siddhi is the consequence of relaxing into the gift level of each archetype.

Totality is a card of embracing your deepest purpose when fear no longer keeps you paralyzed. When we turn toward the sensations and nature of our fears, something starts to shift. We access a kind of spaciousness that in and of itself allows for less constriction. We can breathe more deeply, and where we might have felt overwhelmed by panic, we now start to sense moments of space within the tension.

When we adopt an empowered, resourced approach to life, we can face reality for what it is, including our deepest fears, and discover new truths and solutions. The energy that you might have used to defending against the truth now becomes available for creative movement and experimental storytelling.

This month, consider what you are afraid of.

What fears might need to be named?

What would help you feel resourced enough to move toward that fear within yourself?

What would be unlocked through the confrontation of those fears?

How might your protection against fear keep you from truly engaging with life?

What might it feel like to hold your fears with spacious awareness, without struggle?

How might you be using movement or busyness as a way to avoid deeper realities that wish to be moved through and cleansed?

What would prioritizing stillness look like this month?

What might surface in that space of stillness?

This card is an invitation to explore what you’re deeply afraid of at this time in your life, and how the narrative around the fear perpetuates an outdated struggle. Now, this doesn’t mean that in a month you address and move through these underlying fears (if only!), but rather it’s intended to invite us into a space of contemplation for change.

Changes processes usually require a certain amount of time in the state of contemplation prior to any action being taken, like a thought experiment to allow us to engage in new potentials without the risk / difficulty of actual behavioral change.

This card also intrinsically relates to purpose in life, illuminating the nature of one’s purpose only when we are courageous enough to see ourselves (and life) clearly.

The shadow of this card is purposelessness, and the siddhi is immortality. The spectrum of experience in this card indicates immersion in life. We can either be isolated by the fears we possess, leading to feelings of confusion and overwhelm, or we can allow our vulnerabilities to carry us closer toward the life we long for.

Pay attention to how the exploration of (or even the thought of exploring) your fears this month provides glimpses of clarity and direction on your life purpose.

Notice how the acceptance of your fears creates space for you to align with the full scope of your experience — and how in that space more information is revealed about your creative contribution in this lifetime.

Consider what feels essential to move toward now, and what process that may ignite.

The teaching of the 28th Gene Key reminds us:

“There is a deep sense of thrill that comes as you progressively face your inner demons.”

This is the essence of totality.

Observe the energy that you receive from coming into contact with what’s actually happening for you. Feel into the trust that gradually expands as you soften into the tension of truth and re-adapt to safety each time.

Notice the vitality that is restored as you process and cleanse old stories and emotional patterns.

Let this be fuel for creatively communicating what you deeply wish to do with your precious life.