78-Day Meditation Challenge: Day 68

Grace in Letting Go: The Peace Beyond Control

Card of the Day: The Hierophant (Reversed)

This card is steeped in religious tradition—vestments, symbols, rituals, procedures. But today, I wonder: do these elements deepen our connection, or distract us from it?

In its upright form, the Hierophant depicts a spiritual teacher. But what makes someone a true teacher? Is it the mastery of ritual, the perfection of form? Or does wisdom flow from something deeper—spiritual awakening, presence, consciousness?

In reverse, the card asks: What is separating you from spiritual enlightenment?

We live in a culture that places ourselves at the center. Things happen because we make them happen. It is our agency, our power, our control. After all, “people make the world go round,” we say. The ease with which we embrace this misrepresentation speaks to the depth of our unconsciousness.

I find humility in taking a step back and noticing all the things that must align—flawlessly—for even the simplest of my successes to manifest.

I successfully made a cup of coffee this morning. And I could be proud of that fact. But is it truly to my glory that this was possible? I woke up in good health. There wasn't a crisis that demanded my immediate attention. There is sufficient geopolitical stability to ensure there is gas in the pipeline, a coffee grower who could harvest and distribute their crop, and peace enough for me to sit and enjoy it. The world is bigger than me. Bigger than all of us.

There are so many ways even the simplest success could be derailed. So many variables I could never control, even if they were mine to control. And yet, we are comfortable with the idea that we make the world go round.

At first, it may feel insulting to consider that we don’t. It’s natural to resist the idea that we are not as powerful as we’ve believed. But once that discomfort passes, what remains is tremendous peace—the peace of realizing: I do not have to carry it all. That was never my purpose.

It is not for me to control a world that was never mine to control. It is for me to be present. To contribute with intention. To deepen my connection with the Universe—not apart from it, but a part of it.

I don’t make the world go round. I revolve with it, supported and surrounded by the energy of the Universe.

When we make ourselves the center—the driver—we lose grace. Success, absent grace, becomes arrogance. Failure, absent grace, becomes despair.

Could connection with the Universe—acknowledging our dependence on it, our participation in it—be a path to perpetual grace? Knowing that we are part of something greater, and choosing not to assume responsibility that was never ours to begin with?

There is peace in releasing what was never ours to carry. And perhaps that is the real teaching of this card. An invitation to stop striving for mastery over the world, and to remember the sacred work of simply moving with it.

How can I apply this today?

• Reflect on where I may be over-identifying with control

• Pause to acknowledge the invisible systems that support my daily life

• Release the impulse to be the center; return to presence

• Reclaim humility as a source of clarity, not diminishment

• Let go of what was never mine to carry

I welcome all parts of myself—known and unknown, shining and shadowed.

I honor my past for what it has taught me.

I trust my intuition to lead me.

I release what no longer serves me.

I walk forward with steadiness, guided by the light within me.

Be well, be present, be at peace.