eight of pentacles // creative prompts

hello, friends. i've shared my own personal insights on the eight of pentacles this month, and also offered a new tarot spread that you can use to dig into this energy on your own. and in case you missed it, i also shared a juicy essay on the eight of pentacles and the hermit, which explores the theme of devotion through a slightly different lens.

today, as always, i want to give you some creative prompts that you can use to explore this card in new ways — through writing, meditation, character creation, world building, movement, or whatever else taps into your personal artistry and creativity.

you can do anything with these prompts, including just reading through them and paying attention to whatever bubbles up. these can be great for journaling, chatting with people in your life, prayer, or anything else that gets your mind and heart working. i would also encourage you to think about your devotional relationships to things like creativity itself, and to consider how your devotions intersect with your spiritual practices. what might the eight of pentacles bring to that set of reflections? how are you devoted to creativity, spirituality, practical goals, communities, daily tasks, and more?

remember that if you'd love to explore creative devotion in a long-term spiritual container, the grove starts in just a few days on august 29th and we'd love to have you! now, for the prompts:

what does the eight of pentacles mean to you? how do you feel when you look at different versions of this card? what comes up for you when this card emerges in a reading? what kind of advice, insights, or encouragement does it have to offer?

which part of the story does this card represent for you? in the story of earth and pentacles, of growth and tending and legacy and resourcing, where does the eight fit? how is this card a response or reaction to the seven of pentacles? and how does this card pave the way for the nine of pentacles that will soon follow? why is this energy necessary for the story to continue, and what does it accomplish or reveal?

what is the environment of this card? how does it feel to step into a world or scene or place that represents this energy? what kinds of characters or people might embody the eight of pentacles, and is that an energy you like to be around?

does this card feel motivating, inspiring, encouraging? or does this card feel like pressure, stress, non-stop work? when you think about doing eight of pentacles activities or responsibilities, what comes to mind first? do you have any specific physical responses to this card?

when is eight of pentacles energy the most useful or empowering for you? when do you really want to step into this kind of dedicated effort? when does eight of pentacles energy feel like the opposite of what you want, or feel like it's not as practical for you? does this card bring up any feelings of guilt for you? what is a time that you intentionally embodied this card, and how did it go?

are there songs, colors, patterns, mediums, movements, or other embodied experiences you can think of that bring this energy to mind, or might help you channel the eight of pentacles? what experiences do you associate with devotion, and do any of them make you think about this card?

how do you express your devotion for people, places, things, values, communities? what does your devotion look like, and how did those patterns develop? does devotion feel the same as discipline to you? when does your devotion require grit and endurance, and when does it feel effortless, natural, even anticipated?

and finally, what might the eight of pentacles have to teach you, to give you, to extend to you, in this particular moment? what could working with this card accomplish right now? how might the eight of pentacles be relevant for your work, your play, your relationships, your long-term planning, your resources, your creativity, your spiritual practices?

wishing you devotion, intentionality, and precious effort, dear friends. i'll be sending out some bonus tarot spreads in a day or two, and then will be back on september 1st (!) to look at our next card in this series, the nine of pentacles.

and! the second round of the grove, the creativity devotion container that i facilitate with my wife jeanna kadlec, kicks off in just a few days! if you're craving community connection, permission to engage with creativity in a way that's true to you, and ongoing spiritual support, we'd love to have you join us.