Personal Practice with Ellen Bowles
Personal Practice is a series of reflections from trusted spiritual practitioners who are near and dear to Spirit House Collective. Here, Ellen Bowles (@ellensbowles), artist, healer and cofounder of The Woke Mystix, dives into how she works with astrology and the tarot to bring awareness to the unseen.
The Practice
I wasn’t always consciously connected to Spirit or Source energy. Growing up, it was an evasive concept for me, coming from an agnostic household. It wasn’t until my first big break up in my early 20’s and with the guidance of holistic therapy that I began to embrace that a higher power was at play. Once I was aware of this, I realized there had been indications of spiritual practices surrounding me my whole life. It was a matter of returning to myself to fully activate my own inner divine. Spirituality, for me, is about stepping into your personal power and understanding you are universal energy in a human existence.
I find comfort in knowing that we are made of the same elements as the stars. It’s a beautiful concept, we are our own universe! Astrology was a practice instilled in me as a child from my grandmother’s influence. Its analytical approach was an easy introduction to more spiritual concepts. The powerful shifts of our planets having an effect on us personally means so much to me! Of course the celestial bodies that shift the very elements of our Earth can also affect humankind.
“Spirituality, for me, is about stepping into your personal power and understanding you are universal energy in a human existence.”
When it feels like everything outside of myself is unexplainable, astrology grounds me in knowing. Being aware that there’s a bigger energy shift happening helps me to navigate how to progress in my life. Maybe I can’t delay signing a contract during Mercury Retrograde, but it’s a reminder to double check the fine print before signing the dotted line. Full Moons and New Moons help me with creating tangible intention and manifestation settings. Knowing when’s the time to start a new endeavor or when I’m supposed to release something that is long past its expiration date relaxes me into the natural flow of the cosmos. Sometimes change in our lives can be unexpected and overwhelming. But knowing our stars are always working in favor of our natural alignment is a beautiful feeling!
“Astrology and Tarot are two practices that bring awareness to the unseen. It’s not about depending on these tools as much as it is trusting your intuition to guide you in interpreting their messages.”
The second biggest part of my practice are my beloved Tarot cards. Tarot’s sometimes brutal honesty and awareness of darker energy has given it a taboo reputation. Coming from two Scorpio parents, it’s what naturally attracted me to it! Life is a constant balancing act of light and darker energy, we cannot have one without the other. For me, this divination tool personifies the inner workings of our human psyche. It's a remembrance that harder times are always followed by joy. Our guides are always seeing the bigger picture even if we cannot see it for ourselves in the 3D dimension!
My work has been guided by the mission of making spirituality tangible for others. Astrology and Tarot are two practices that bring awareness to the unseen. It’s not about depending on these tools as much as it is trusting your intuition to guide you in interpreting their messages. You hold the divinity within yourself! Astrology and tarot are simply the supportive vessels that help you with embodying this energy.
—Ellen Bowles
@ellensbowles
For more insights from Ellen and other gifted mystics, check out the “Ascend” tier of The River Patreon program. There, you’ll gain access to exclusive episodes of Stories from Spirit, a podcast from our founder AJA Daashuur. August’s episode features a conversation between AJA and Ellen that explores several facets of their respective spiritual journeys and practices.