Oracle of Rama

I recently got into fortune telling cards. I don’t wholeheartedly believe they can tell the future, but I’m curious to see if they can. It’s like a scientific experiment for me. If they don’t manage to tell the truth (more or less), I’ll put them away in a drawer somewhere and forget about them.

I have four decks of fortune telling cards: Doreen Virtue’s Healing with the Angels (okay, but a bit vague); The Rider Waite Tarot (the classic tarot pack, but I find the imagery a bit too pagan and twee); The Haindl Tarot (my favourite, designed by a survivor of a Russian prisoner of war camp) and David Frawley’s Oracle of Rama.

The Oracle of Rama is based on the Ramayama as told by the poet-saint Tulsidas (1497-1623 — apparently he lived to 126!). The Ramayama is the story of Rama and the obstacles and help he encountered during this relationship with  Sita, his wife. In the symbolism of the story, Rama represents the soul, while Sita is that which the soul desires. I think the story is appropriate for divination as the way good and bad fortune constantly alternate mirrors our lives: neither good or bad times can last indefinitely.

The pack is divided into two parts: seven divine guides and 49 cards each with seven verses from the oracle. I really like the fact that who can chose a guide either intuitively or according to your particular need. The seven guides are:

1. Hanuman. The monkey warrior: loyalty and courage.
2. Shatrughna. Rama’s brother: watchfulness and persistence.
3. Bharata. Rama’s brother: patience and humility.
4. Rama. God incarnate: joy, mercy and grace.
5. Sita. Goddess incarnate: virtue and purity
6. Lakshamana. Rama’s brother: clarity and intelligence.
7. Ohm. The holy name: devotion.

After you chose a guide, you then pick a card, read the general meaning of the card, then the verse which corresponds to your guide card. In the instruction booklet that comes with it, Frawley goes into detail about when and how you should consult the oracle (apparently Thursday when the moon is waxing is best — and it’s a good idea to give an offering, some flowers or  incense). Personally, I just consult the oracle in front of my shrine and use a pendulum to check whether the cards are correct.

I am going to give the oracle a go and see what it say about my career, which is in pretty poor shape at the moment.

For my guide car I pick no. 7: The Holy Name. So it seems that devotion and trust in the holy plan are important. Next I pick a verse card: Chapter 2, Section 7. The general meaning of the card reads: “Rama’s and Sita’s happy hermitage at the forest of Panchavati in the South of India is portrayed. It shows deepening inner growth and continuing general retreat from outer concerns.” So the card is positive, but is shows that perhaps I need to do some more inner work before my work takes off.

For more detail about my situation, I look for the seventh verse (corresponding with my guide card) of 2,7. It says: “Sita nurtured the mango tree with her own hands. This last verse of the section brings rain and the yield of crop increases.” The booklet gives an explanation of this verse: “Sita, the creative principle, brings about the growth of our inner nature and its plants of healing, creativity and devotion. The blessings of the Earth, both outwardly and inwardly, come through her, indicating success with food, plants, healing and the growth of our inner wishes. But these take time to fructify and we must be patient.”

So what I read as happening is that at the moment I’m sowing seeds, starting things which will aid my career and development later on, but they will take a while to happen.