I'm currently reading a book on Mudra's, and there is a section where it goes over several different systems of correspondences for the hands. In some, there are distinct overlaps, while in others there are basic elements that are quite different (the same element or Chakra might be associated with different fingers). This is actually quite common the more systems you look into.
Which brings up the question: what to do about this information? I am not someone who believes in 'the one true way'. I don't think any system is the ultimate Truth. I definitely feel that some people work better with one way of viewing things and others with other ways. Where I feel the question gets very tricky though is when the same person likes two different systems that don't always align.
I run into this quite a lot. I love different ways of looking at things, and am endlessly fascinated by other points of view. This often leads me to liking very different ways of doing the same thing. Sometimes there is no conflict at all, for example I have many different ways that I ground. On any given day, I will pick the one I feel like doing, and if the next time I feel like grounding a different way, that is what I do.
But sometimes it feels like there is the potential for a problem. Especially with things I am just learning, or am not very familiar with. It is very easy to get muddled and mix up different perspectives. The more familiar I am with a subject, the easier it is for me to keep different views distinct. Bringing it back to the Mudra book, I have worked with elemental associations for the fingers before, but not a lot, so I don't have my own personal preference on which finger is associated with which element. When I read different systems of elements (whether Western or Eastern elements), it can confusing with some of the correspondences (like fingers) that I don't use all the time.
I also think about this in regards to deities. I consider myself a hard polytheist, in that I don't think that all harvest deities are the same deity. I am also what I consider a Norse-centric fusion witch, meaning that I blend multiple systems together into my personal path, but I tend to lean heavily towards Norse concepts. My primary deities are Norse, but I do not exclusively work with Norse deities. When I have a need, and wish to work with a deity, I have some I have pretty solid ties to, but sometimes an odd situation will come up and I'll have to look outside my current toolkit. This often leads me to entirely different pantheons (and there are several deities I consider myself drawn to that aren't Norse deities). So, although Freyja is often associated with cats, when I think of work involving my cats, I turn to Bast.
A lot of my own personal path is about doing what works, and what works for me can change (or I can find multiple things that work). So I am all about having multiple methods of doing the same thing. Sometimes it takes a bit of a mental flop to go from thinking about something in one light to thinking about it in another. I like to think of it as mental referencing. Think about color associations for a minute. It is quite common to associate the color red with both (romantic) love and anger. But it is the situation that helps shift what the color means to you. If you see a card with a bright red heart on it, you will probably think of love, but if you see a cartoon of a person who's face is filled in with the same red, you might think anger.
So how do you figure out which system to use in a particular situation? Sometimes, the situation will fit better with some systems. I have a lot of different divination tools, and some are much more specific than others. Some questions that I am seeking answers for really fit with some tools and don't fit with others. Learning which to use is part intuition (which one feels right) and part experience (the more you use a tool, the more you will learn what it does well and what it doesn't do so well).
Other times it is a matter of personal preference. No one system is better suited for the situation, it is just a matter of which you feel like using that day. I like to try out different systems for a while to really decide if I like them, and how they work best for me. I tend to work with the system as it is presented to me (unless there is a reason I absolutely have to make a change from the start). I feel this lets me see the system on it's own before I add my own personal taste into it. Once I have worked with it a while, and really taken the time to appreciate it for what it is, then I may start to work with adjusting it so it fits me better.
Sometimes it also lets you work with things that you wouldn't normally put together. When I first was started, I learned these basic elemental associations: air/east/wand, fire/south/sword (or dagger), water/west/chalice and earth/north/pentacle. Over the years I have encountered many systems that vary from this. While my basic practice holds to the original associations I learned, I do find it interesting to work other systems sometimes. I now have a rock I associate with fire and healing (learned from reading about Pow Wow). I also have a fan that I use to represent air (instead of a wand).
What I really find fascinating about examining multiple systems is that sometimes it builds connections between things that wouldn't ordinarily be connected. I find this really interesting when looking at the Eastern and Western elements. Although three of the elements bear the same name, they don't hold the same meaning. Both earth and water are associated with the season of winter, which makes me think about how each of them would represent the winter, but also how I might use a combination of the two (in the form of ice or solid water) to work with wintry things.
At first, I typically find learning a new version of something confusing. When it is all just words on paper, my brain wants to go back to what it is familiar with and to try to translate into a system it already knows. But if I stick with it, and really strive to learn and then internalize the new system, I find it gives me a lot more flexibility, not only in my own path but in understanding and working with people who work very differently from me. And this becomes a wonderful, looping system...as the more I am able to understand someone's different ways, the more I can learn from them and the more that learning helps me understand more people!
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