Monday, January 26, 2026
Waxing Moon
Uranus and Jupiter Retrograde
Hello, my friends, here we are in the last week of January.
Neptune moves out of Pisces today. For Pisces, especially, it brings an end to 14 very difficult and deceptive years.
Last week’s reading resonated here in the US, especially with the 3 of Swords at the center. First, we were betrayed by the 7 Vichy Dems in the House of Representatives who voted to keep funding domestic terrorism. On Saturday, those same federally sponsored terrorists murdered another person in Minnesota, with no consequences. Again. Meanwhile, politicians keep telling us to be polite as we’re murdered, so they can fundraise off outrage, instead of stopping those who kill and making them face consequences. It is very much 3 of Swords heartbreak and betrayal.
Even so, there were 10 of Cups moments in my own life, and it was hard to hold both.
At the end of this week, we end the month, and we start February with a full moon. At the start of next week is Imbolc, things stirring beneath the surface.
We also switch to a different tarot deck next week, for the month of February.
Several of this week’s cards have shown up in previous readings this month, tying the readings even more closely together.
This is the Ask the Witch tarot, which is beautiful, and the card backs are labyrinths, so you can use them for meditation as easily as the front of the card. The deck is edited by Francesca Matteoni, and illustrated by Simone Pace. You can get the deck from Red Wheel Weiser here.
This is one of my spreads, that I call The Elemental Spread. It is very similar to many of the Medicine Wheel spreads I’ve seen, but I made a few tweaks to the way I use it over the years.
We start in the center, with Spirit/Self. This is the overall energy of the week, and how we relate to it.
We move to the position above, with is North/Tangibles, connected to the element of Earth, advice on how to deal with the week on a tangible, materialistic level.
We move clockwise to the third position, East/Thought, connected to the element of Air, advice on how to intellectually deal with the week.
Then we move down to the bottom of the spread, the 4th position, South/Passion, connected to the element of Fire, advice on how to deal with the week from a place of passion and identity.
Then we move up to the left side of the spread, the 5th position, West/Emotion, connected to the element of Water, advice on how to deal with the week from a place of creativity and emotion.
We wind up where we started, at the spirit center, integrating all the information for the week.
These interpretations are mine, based on my experience, intuition and responses to the artwork.
You may have a different experience. This is an overview of the week as it stands now; every decision we make from the moment of the reading can change the outcome. If there’s something in the reading that worries you, you have the information ahead of time so that you can plan, make better choices, or handle it differently than predicted for a better outcome. Tarot sets out possibilities, which you change through your choices and actions.
Center – Spirit/Self: 3 of Wands
This card was in the North/Tangibles position in the January 12th reading. It is here, in the center/spirit position this week. What’s your plan? What actionable steps are you going to take this week? Keeping your head down and going along to get along is not an option. What are you actually going to DO and how does this align with who you ARE? Again, Wands are about passion and identity, and standing in who we are is vitally important this week.
North – Earth/Tangibles: The Sun
The sun is a wonderfully positive card, and depicts Bastet, the cat goddess. If you have cats in your household, spoil them even more than usual this week, in honor of Bastet. This is a card of vitality and lasting success, and it is in the tangible position of the spread. The caveat here, tying it to the 3 of Wands, it that the Sun will shine on us IF we stand true to our integrity and TAKE ACTION. If we do nothing, nothing will improve. If we go along to get along, it will get worse. The actions we take from our place of integrity will allow Bastet’s blessing for long-term success.
East – Air/Thought/Intellect: The Devil
Our thoughts are, rightly, tied up with tangibles. There is a lot going on that we need to think about, respond to, and act on. The Devil is often considered a negative card. However, in this deck, it depicts Lilith, and demands you take your power back. Lilith and Bastet are not in conflict here. We have to do Lilith’s bidding and take back our power in order to have long-term success and blessings from Bastet. We MUST figure out a way through this mess, first by making a plan, and then by following it through. It demands we deal with the realities in front of us and do not look away.
South – Fire/Passion/Identity: 5 of Wands
You need to decide who you are and what you stand for this week, and then do it. No hiding, no pretending, even when it causes conflict. There is no more room for you to be quiet. Get in there and fight the good fight. If there is disagreement between those fighting beside you for the better world, listen to each other and see where you can come to an agreement. But do not capitulate to those who want to maintain the status quo.
West – Water/Creativity/Emotion: 2 of Swords
This card was in the South/Identity position in last week’s reading, and has moved into the creativity/emotion slot this week. That means that what began last week, when you had to make a decision in what you stand for, continues to challenge you emotionally and creatively. How can we channel this rage into creative work that will engage a large audience? What decisions do we have to make based in both intellect and emotion to support standing in our core integrity?
This is not a gentle reading. It’s telling us we must take a stand this week, or things will only get worse. Two of the five cards are Major Arcana cards, which means big energy. The other three are minor arcana, with two being wands (identity) and one being swords (intellect). There are no cups and no pentacles in this reading. This week is about action and integrity.
Did anything resonate with you, or did you get something different from these cards? If you’re having trouble leaving messages in the comments, feel free to comment on the Instagram account for Cerridwen’s Cottage.