January 4, 2010 - Queen of Swords

Another Queen. Wonder if I will parade through all of them these next few weeks, a good reminder that we are never one thing but hopefully, helpfully, in touch with so much more. It reminds me of what one of my professors at Pacifica said about Jungian typology, that we have our preferences but gradually, as we age, if we're lucky, we come to integrate all the types.

The Queen of Swords presents all the positive qualities of the element of air, with the more inward focus of a queen. She is the embodiment of the best of the suit of Swords. She's honest, upfront, faces the truth even if it's unpleasant. She's astute, sizing up situations instinctively and understands hidden motives and desires. She is forthright, witty, and experienced.

Joan Bunning of learntarot.com says when the Queen comes up in reading it's time to ask yourself some questions. Are you being honest (with your self and others)? Do you see the humor in a situation (usually easy for me, harder these last few years but back I think, at last)? Are you getting to the point or beating around the bush? Have you figured out what's really going on or you letting yourself be fooled? The Queen wants to know if you are acting like a queen. She's calling you to it.

In the Jane Austen Tarot, the Queen of Swords (Lady of Quills) is depicted by Anne Elliot, the heroine of Persuasion. Older, wiser, past the first flush of youth and beauty, prepared to be a spinster, Anne does find love, surprisingly out of the blue. The man she refused years ago because he had few prospects and could not support her, returns successful. Anne finds she's still in love with him but is not sure at all of his feelings. In fact, he seems to be wooing the young daughters of a family she knows. Anne gets to watch the romance unfold, knowing she could have had the man she loved, but lost him. I love Persuasion. And while I would love to be Lizzie Bennett, I'm the capable, past her prime Anne Elliott.

The Lady of Quills embodies the perfect balance of heart and mind. Intelligence is married to feeling, and she never lets her emotions overcome her discernment. Facing loss, Anne would go on. She would not have given herself over to grief as I did, to the point of illness. When the card comes up, you may be asked to make hard, thoughtful decisions, even though heart may urge you in a completely different direction.

What Would Jane Do?

"Discernment without emotion is unbearable; pictures of perfection make me sick and wicked. Yet emotion that receives no check is a river in which one drowns - and alas! not quietly and in a dignified manner. This is a time to look rationally, even harshly, at the particulars of a situation. There is no cruelty in this. In order to love wisely, one must actually be wise." P. 122