The winter talisman
12 days of tarot and signs for the intercalary days or omen days
Happy Monday
I would love to invite you to take part in my Winter Talisman retreat here on Substack.
It'll serve as a reminder to pause and take time out for 12 days, in a way that suits you.
I'm opening this up to all subscribers for free.
This is my way of saying thank you for the support you've given the Moon Shed over the last few years.
The Winter Talisman tarot retreat will take place on the intercalary days or omen days as they are otherwise called from the 26th of December to the 6th of January.
The omen days are said to be ‘days out of time’ as they were added onto the end of the calendar year to align with the solar year.
When you take part in the Winter Talisman retreat, each day for the 12 days you open yourself up to signs and symbols found through your day and receive tarot prompts. Ill give you more on that in time.
Signs can be found everywhere. In nature, in the home, in books, in train stations or airport lounges. Signs can be felt whether you’re alone or in company. Town or country.
Each symbol or sign you connect with during the Winter Talisman retreat represents a month of the following year.
So, on the 26th of December, if a robin comes to sit on your garden fence and you sense it feels in some way meaningful, then robins are a sign for January and so on until day 12 which is December.
Some say the sign or omen predicts what will happen in that month the following year.
For me each of the 12 signs or symbols will become a muse for the month, a way to connect with myself, my journalling and meditation. A symbol to ‘listen’ to through the month.
Last year when I followed the omen days tradition when I learned about it first from
and then , I realised although the 12 days were new to me, the act of listening out for oracles in the day to day was part of who I am anyway.I feel very much in relationship with symbols and signs as a tarot reader and trainee astrologer.
The world speaks to me in many ways. Birds, trees, songs, poems, cards the sound of the wind are alive with meaning.
But there is something about winter time, the quiet intention behind noticing signs and the 12 liminal days that are more magical. More alchemical.
I put it down to the bare trees, the winter sky, the lull after the celebrations and the promise of the light after the winter solstice.
Who is this for?
This is for anyone with a wild heart.
How will it work?
For those who prefer to stay offline
Closer to the time I'll send out a retreat journal as a PDF. This means you can choose to do this in a more solitary way with your tea and mince pie and winter candles.
The retreat journal will include
Ideas for an opening ritual
A tarot prompt for each day
A daily journal to help record your reflections
A led meditation voice note
A tarot spread
An oracle card message
Astrology prompts
An essential oil blend
A closing ritual
A winter playlist
Anything else that calls me
For those of you joining online
Download the retreat journal.
You can join me online on the chat app. I'll check in once a day to connect but you can connect with one another too.
I won't be interpreting any personal tarot readings or signs on chat. This is for you to connect with you.
The retreat isn't led by me but the space is held in my mind and the invitation for you to retreat into a more archetypal mode each day is yours to follow if you wish.
I'm reluctant to set up a zoom meeting and go live. It's out of my comfort zone and if I do go live this part will be for paid subscribers. I'm just being honest. I'm not there yet.
Will you join me?
If this sounds like something you'd enjoy then do let me know here and ask any questions below.
Substack writers
The Winter Talisman Retreat may well inspire your writing and creativity.
If you decide to write to your audience as a result of the omen days reflections you can tag me and paste the retreat stamp into your newsletter and I'll share your work in notes. The stamp is here. This is me stealing like an artist from
with her 24 essays club.
I really want to share this with you. For me it feels like a creative exploration for winter time. I am Buddhist and my way of connecting with the Buddhist teachings is through becoming more receptive to my surroundings to understand how I'm connected to the world.
Will you join me? Do let me know or restack this post. Thank you.
Claire Amritavani Brown
Just posted a note to my subscribers about the Omen Days.
This sounds so inviting and interesting. Really appreciate your generosity in sharing this with everyone, thank you so much! I will definitely be joining in to do this (offline).