The Five of Cups,
Often associated with feelings of disappointments,
Regrets and loss,
Invites reflection on the past,
Present and potential future.
While it acknowledges the sorrow that comes from loss,
It also emphasises the importance of moving forward and finding paths to healing and acceptance.
This active imagination exercise aims to facilitate a deeper exploration of personal setbacks or grief and to discover the lessons they hold,
Encouraging a shift in perspective towards hope and redemption.
So first,
Just making sure you're comfortable either sitting or lying down.
Close your eyes and take a couple of deep breaths.
Just allowing your mind and body to relax and just keeping your attention on the breath.
For now.
If at any point you get distracted,
Simply bring the attention back to the exercise.
And now imagine yourself in a landscape reflective of a recent or current sorrow,
Disappointments or loss you've experienced.
This place could be anywhere that your mind associates with these feelings.
Perhaps a stormy beach,
An abandoned building,
A barren field or any other place that comes to mind.
In this space,
You find a pathway and decide to follow it.
You eventually come across five cups.
Some are standing,
Some are lying down,
Some are standing,
Some are standing,
Whilst others have fallen.
Take a moment to examine these cups more closely,
Noting their design,
Size,
Material and any intricate details.
How do you feel in this scene?
As you're immersed in this scene,
You notice a figure emerging from the landscape.
This figure seems to resonate with the emotions you're experiencing.
Allow this figure to form in your mind.
It's here to communicate with you,
To help you explore and understand your feelings.
And now you're going to initiate a conversation with the figure.
And ask them a series of questions.
Be open to their responses,
Which may come in various forms,
Through words,
Emotions,
Imagery or even a shift in the environment.
Ask this figure,
Why is this sorrow lingering in my life?
What lessons should I learn from my disappointments?
How can I see past my losses and appreciate what I still have?
What steps can I take to heal and move forward?
After asking these questions and hearing the figure's response,
You're now going to interact with the cups.
Maybe you want to set a fallen cup upright or rearrange them or transform them somehow.
Do whatever feels intuitively right to you and then observe any changes within you or in the figure or in the surrounding environment.
The figure responding to your actions might offer you something.
Perhaps a symbolic object,
A piece of advice,
A sensation or maybe nothing at all.
Their response contains a message from your higher self.
Thank the figure now for their guidance and then slowly start to walk back along the path from which you came,
Allowing the scene to dissolve now and just bringing your attention back to space around you.
Noticing any sounds or sensations.
Take a deep breath and opening your eyes again in your own time.
