Welcome to the School of Raq! I'm so happy you're here.

Today's episode is a bit of a freestyle as I give you a glimpse into my tarot process. After some last-minute changes in plans, and realizing that me and many of my students were feeling dysregulated this week, I thought--why the hell not? And concocted a tarot spread for tapping into gentleness.

Most of us who are committed to a spiritual path are far too hard on ourselves. Where can we find more self-compassion? What are our blind spots? Hopefully this spread can be a jumping-off point for finding more gentleness within.

Music: "Future Abstract" by penguinmusic on pixabay.com

Operation Olive Branch's gofundme for a family encampment: https://www.gofundme.com/f/operationolivebranch

Links for other Operation Olive Branch resources:
https://linktr.ee/opolivebranch?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=e5466e96-9bb2-4417-ad49-531855c29178

Book a free consult call, tarot/birth chart reading, coaching service, or get on the email list for exclusive updates:
https://linktr.ee/schoolofraq

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Instagram: @raquelleblackwood
tiktok: @schoolofraq

Happy Black History Month!!!

In honor of our Black witches and wizards, I did a little digging into the history of Black Magick and witchcraft here in the States! Though woefully incomplete, I hope this will be a jumping off point to inspire your own study and celebration as we take this month to honor Black witches and freedom fighters past and present. 

Sources:

Hoodoo:

Black Magic Matters: Hoodoo as Ancestral Religion, featuring professor Yvonne Chireau and Giovanna Parmigiani at Harvard Divinity School:

https://cswr.hds.harvard.edu/news/magic-matters/2021/11/10

Vodou and the differences between hoodoo and Vodou:

https://www.ulc.org/ulc-blog/voodoo-vs-hoodoo-whats-the-difference?srsltid=AfmBOoqp2-MjLASJKjpzKD7J03ZuiZxlNcZw5savwvDSeU7py3ndWImk

12703

https://medium.com/@ioannis.tsiokos/hoodoo-vs-voodoo-c9da8d5c193b

Uniting themes of West African Religions:

https://www.britannica.com/topic/African-religions

Orisha

Marie Laveau:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Laveau

​​Marie-Laveau

Zora Neale Hurston

about

Zora_Neale_Hurston

https://www.edgeofyesterday.com/time-travelers/discover/heroes/zora-neale-hurston

https://www.litpubcrawl.com/thescrape/zombies-amp-hoodoo-amp-zora-neale-hurston

Pamela Colman Smith

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pamela_Colman_Smith

https://news.artnet.com/art-world/pamela-colman-smith-rider-waite-tarot-2163627

https://www.americanrenaissancetarot.com/blog/2019/3/1/pamela-colman-smith-american

People to follow:

• Diana Rose (ddamascenaa on IG)
• Eroticsofliberation on IG
• Ev’Yan Whitney (Sensual Self podcast, evyan.whitney on IG)
• Jasmine’s Garden (jasminesgarden23 on TikTok)
• Bri Luna of the Hood Witch (thehoodwitch on IG)
• adrienne maree brown (adriennemareebrown)

Music: "Future Abstract" by penguinmusic on pixabay.com

Operation Olive Branch's gofundme for a family encampment: https://www.gofundme.com/f/operationolivebranch

Links for other Operation Olive Branch resources:
https://linktr.ee/opolivebranch?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=e5466e96-9bb2-4417-ad49-531855c29178

Book a free consult call, tarot/birth chart reading, coaching service, or get on the email list for exclusive updates:
https://linktr.ee/schoolofraq

Follow me on socials!
Instagram: @raquelleblackwood
tiktok: @schoolofraq

Welcome to the School of Raq! I'm so happy you're here. 

Today's episode is all about the Strength card and how to build internal fortitude which can wield external change. The tarot's particular flavor of Strength is all about kindness and compassion towards our animal selves, which extends to compassion for others. Compassion is not something we have in spite of Strength, but instead, it is the source of it. 

Music: "Future Abstract" by penguinmusic on pixabay.com

Operation Olive Branch's gofundme for a family encampment: https://www.gofundme.com/f/operationolivebranch

Links for other Operation Olive Branch resources:
https://linktr.ee/opolivebranch?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=e5466e96-9bb2-4417-ad49-531855c29178

Book a free consult call, tarot/birth chart reading, coaching service, or get on the email list for exclusive updates:
https://linktr.ee/schoolofraq

Follow me on socials!
Instagram: @raquelleblackwood
tiktok: @schoolofraq

Welcome to the School of Raq! I'm so happy you're here.

Today's episode is about accepting yourself, even if (and especially when!) it may seem selfish to do so. Loving yourself is the first step to loving others and the world around you--it is a radical act of communal care.

The episode is in three parts: 
1. Why self-acceptance is important
2. What self-acceptance is/looks like/feels like
3. How to practice self-acceptance in your every day life. 

If nobody has told you this today, you are cherished and the world needs you. I hope you find some space within all the noise to rest easy in that fact. 

Music: "Future Abstract" by penguinmusic on pixabay.com

Operation Olive Branch's gofundme for a family encampment: https://www.gofundme.com/f/operationolivebranch

Links for other Operation Olive Branch resources:
https://linktr.ee/opolivebranch?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=e5466e96-9bb2-4417-ad49-531855c29178

Book a free consult call, tarot/birth chart reading, coaching service, or get on the email list for exclusive updates:
https://linktr.ee/schoolofraq

Follow me on socials!
Instagram: @raquelleblackwood
tiktok: @schoolofraq

This episode is all about the last card of the consciousness line--the Chariot!

We also talk about how the Chariot can keep us focused on our life path, how this relates to consciousness, and why the Chariot is a last important step before moving into the subconscious. 

We also talk about focus and how to focus more efficiently so that we can stay dedicated to our mission in this lifetime. 

Music: "Future Abstract" by penguinmusic on pixabay.com

Operation Olive Branch's gofundme for a family encampment: https://www.gofundme.com/f/operationolivebranch

Links for other Operation Olive Branch resources:
https://linktr.ee/opolivebranch?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=e5466e96-9bb2-4417-ad49-531855c29178

Book a free consult call, tarot/birth chart reading, coaching service, or get on the email list for exclusive updates:
https://linktr.ee/schoolofraq

Follow me on socials!
Instagram: @raquelleblackwood
tiktok: @schoolofraq

Welcome to the School of Raq! I'm so happy you're here. 

This week, we kick off our second season with a very important post-holidays reminder: we all need rest. 

In this episode, we explore how nature urges us to rest in the winter, though many of us resist this impulse. We'll also talk about all the ways that we can hold rest, even when the world seems like it's on fire. 

Though the concepts are simple, they're anything but easy, so come curious and snuggle up as we discuss this ever-increasingly-important topic. 

Music: "Future Abstract" by penguinmusic on pixabay.com

Operation Olive Branch's gofundme for a family encampment: https://www.gofundme.com/f/operationolivebranch

Links for other Operation Olive Branch resources:
https://linktr.ee/opolivebranch?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=e5466e96-9bb2-4417-ad49-531855c29178

Book a free consult call, tarot/birth chart reading, coaching service, or get on the email list for exclusive updates:
https://linktr.ee/schoolofraq

Follow me on socials!
Instagram: @raquelleblackwood
tiktok: @schoolofraq

Welcome to the School of Raq! I'm so happy you're here.

This week, we talk all about the lovahs! The Lovers is a card about love--and love is strongest when it is deeply rooted in divine resonance. Don't worry; we'll explain what that means! As well as how to tune into this resonance to find the many soulmates you'll meet during this lifetime. 

And as always, we begin the episode with some keywords for this card (both upright and reverse), as well as how to use this card as an act of resistance. 

Music: "Future Abstract" by penguinmusic on pixabay.com

Operation Olive Branch's gofundme for a family encampment: https://www.gofundme.com/f/operationolivebranch

Links for other Operation Olive Branch resources:
https://linktr.ee/opolivebranch?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=e5466e96-9bb2-4417-ad49-531855c29178

Book a free consult call, tarot/birth chart reading, coaching service, or get on the email list for exclusive updates:
https://linktr.ee/schoolofraq

Follow me on socials!
Instagram: @raquelleblackwood
tiktok: @schoolofraq

Welcome to the School of Raq! I'm so happy you're here. 

In this episode, I share my favorite tips for one of my favorite topics--practice! You don't have to be a musician or even consider yourself "creative" to have any kind of practice, and we discuss why that is in this episode. The lessons you learn here can be applied to literally ANY kind of practice--astrology, scuba diving, patience, loving better, brushing your teeth--ANY. THING. They've also been honed over 3 years of helping my music students start and maintain practice routines, and come from decades of personal experience with my musical practice, spiritual practice, building and maintaining my business, and basically anything I set my mind to.

Seriously--if you don't listen to any other episode, I hope you listen to this one, because it's just that good. Enjoy!

Music: "Future Abstract" by penguinmusic on pixabay.com

Operation Olive Branch's gofundme for a family encampment: https://www.gofundme.com/f/operationolivebranch

Links for other Operation Olive Branch resources:
https://linktr.ee/opolivebranch?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=e5466e96-9bb2-4417-ad49-531855c29178

Book a free consult call, tarot/birth chart reading, coaching service, or get on the email list for exclusive updates:
https://linktr.ee/schoolofraq

Follow me on socials!
Instagram: @raquelleblackwood
tiktok: @schoolofraq

Welcome to the School of Raq! I'm so happy you're here. 

In this episode, we dive deep into the Hierophant, a card which has befuddled many tarot readers and querents with its religious imagery and adherence to tradition and structure. In this episode, we deconstruct the Hierophant's roots of colonialism, authority, and power, and reimagine better structures and uses of this card. May your hierarchies be healed and whole. <3

Music: "Future Abstract" by penguinmusic on pixabay.com

Operation Olive Branch's gofundme for a family encampment: https://www.gofundme.com/f/operationolivebranch

Links for other Operation Olive Branch resources:
https://linktr.ee/opolivebranch?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=e5466e96-9bb2-4417-ad49-531855c29178

Book a free consult call, tarot/birth chart reading, coaching service, or get on the email list for exclusive updates:
https://linktr.ee/schoolofraq

Follow me on socials!
Instagram: @raquelleblackwood
tiktok: @schoolofraq

Your rage, grief, and frustration are all a sacred expression of one thing: love.

In this episode, we have a frank conversation about division on the left, how we got here, and what we can do about it. We also talk about the astrological implications of the present moment, including Pluto's upcoming ingress into Aquarius and December's Mars retrograde. 

The point? Love always endures--even if humans aren't present to witness it. But why would we want to miss a second of the Earth's never-tiring love? We'll get through this together. <3

Music: "Future Abstract" by penguinmusic on pixabay.com

Operation Olive Branch's gofundme for a family encampment: https://www.gofundme.com/f/operationolivebranch

Links for other Operation Olive Branch resources:
https://linktr.ee/opolivebranch?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=e5466e96-9bb2-4417-ad49-531855c29178

Book a free consult call, tarot/birth chart reading, coaching service, or get on the email list for exclusive updates:
https://linktr.ee/schoolofraq

Follow me on socials!
Instagram: @raquelleblackwood
tiktok: @schoolofraq