November 27, 2010 - Judgement

When a Major Arcana card comes up in a reading, you're supposed to pay attention.  It means that whatever is happening is transformational, life-changing, important for your path.  Since I don't always articulate questions when I pull a card (of course there is always the unstated, I'm realizing more and more, things left unspoken but not, it seems, unvisited), it gives me a bit of wiggle room when trying to figure it out.  At least that's what I tell myself.

The scene depicted on the Judgement card is Judgement Day.  The angel of the Lord is calling forth the dead.  Those that are worthy will rise to heaven and those that are not ....  Well, let's just say most organized religions urge you not to be found unworthy.  I never quite know how I feel when this card comes up.  Sometimes judgment is necessary.  You have to commit yourself and decide.  Sometimes we are judged, fairly and unfairly.  It is a card of salvation.  The past is forgiven and you receive your just rewards.  It would be nice if we made it through life without mistakes, without hurting people, without being less than what we are and what we can be.  It's nice to know that we can be forgiven those trespasses and have our fresh start.

So what does it mean when this card comes up in a reading  Well, it can mean a day of reckoning is at hand.  It may also mean that all the waffling has to stop; that a decision needs to be made and stuck with.  I'm big on waffling.  I don't end things well, especially when I don't want things to end.  Sometimes though you do have to end things.  I keep wondering if Judgement shows up to remind me of the things that are lingering, the ones I haven't taken care of.  Another aspect of the card is salvation and redemption.  It could mean that it's time for a fresh start and that a fresh start is possible.  It could signal a time of renewed hope as well as a time to discover joy.  That would be nice, the renewed hope and discovering joy part.

In the Jane Austen Tarot, this card depicts the characters of Jane Austen's novel, Emma - Emma and Mr. Knightley; Mrs. Weston; Mr. Woodhouse; and Harriet Smith.  By the end of the book, each of these characters is ready for transformation, for the next level in his or her development.  George Knightley and Emma are deeply in love and engaged to be married; Mr. Woodhouse, a man who dreads change, is contemplating accepting it for his daughter's sake and his own.  Harriet Smith, a young woman of unknown parentage, has fallen in love multiple times and fallen out of it just as easily, and at last finds herself back where she started, with a proposal from Robert Martin.  Mrs. Weston, Emma's old governess, has married a gentleman and is expecting her first child.  Her life has changed and is going to change again from wife to mother.

What I like about the pairing of this novel and the card is how it demonstrates something critical about this card.  Transformation requires action of us.  Each of these characters had to make a choice, a judgment, and then act on it.  Fate didn't drop a happy ending in his or her lap.  Each of them had to act, to know what he or she wanted, and work towards it, trusting it would come.  This is the lesson I am taking from the Judgement card today.

November 26, 2010 - The Lady of Coins (Queen of Pentacles)

Another court card; so what else is new. When court cards appear certain character traits are highlighted. In the case of the Queen of Pentacles you are talking about someone who is down-to-earth, nurturing, bighearted, resourceful and trustworthy.  Are these me?  Or are these qualities I need to embody?  Perhaps this is the atmosphere I need to create?  Or maybe this is someone in my life.  The court cards are funny that way.  People wrestle with them, trying to figure them out.  At least I wrestle with them, trying to figure them out.

Since my time at Pacifica, I see them more as examples of Jung's typology.  Jung believed that as we individuate we become more and more able to embody typological aspects that are not our more natural fits.  Introverts become more extroverted, feelers can access their thinking function.

So what about Queen of Pentacles?  She came on a family day when I was making a home Thanksgiving.  It was a typical day with good and bad, highs and lows, ease and worry.  My dog had eaten something bad and ended up sick.  I could have over-reacted but remained calm and competent, caring but not crazed.   The Queen of Pentacles is the kind of woman you want around when you are in trouble, hurt, fearful, worried.  I hope I'm that kind of woman too, when I need to be.   I think was the day this card arrived, meaning I was as I needed to be, but larger lessons?  I'm just not sure.  I guess I'll keep drawing cards and maybe someday the court cards will make sense to me.  Until then, it's time to get the stock started, check on the dog, and try out that recipe with my daughter.  I think that's what the Queen of Pentacles would do at any rate

November 24, 2010 - The Lord of Candlesticks (King of Wands)

The court cards of each suit in the Tarot reflect mastery of the attributes of the suit, from the idealized optimism of the page to the mastery and expression of the king.  Wands represent the element of fire.  It is a suit of creativity, self- expression, entrepreneurship, and originality.  When the King arrives in a reading, fire of fire, get ready.  Here is someone who is honest, forthright, knows what he wants, and reaches out to make it happen.  He is bold, daring, and confident.  He has the courage of his convictions and always believes in himself.

So what does the King of Wands mean for me today?  My question was not really a question, asked but not really asked after receiving an email from someone who has meant the world to me, perhaps still does, and has hurt my heart more often than I can count.  It was a nice enough email, one that a even a year ago, might have made me happy, hopeful, but now brings a shrug and a wondering, 'so.'  I can tell you I don't feel one bit like the King of Wands.  There's no way I'm the center of attention, forceful in the pursuit of my goals, confident, a natural leader, bold and daring.  Creative, sure, but the rest?  The email reminds me of all I'm not, and then the King of Wands arrives to encourage me to be creative, inspiring, forceful, charismatic and bold.  Can I be the King of Wands?  Looks like I'm going to have to try.

November 23, 2010 - The Ten of Pentacles

Given that I was up early with money worries, selecting this card seems a bit ironic.  In the Tarot, tens take the culmination of the nines and kick it up to the next level.  You will find in the Tarot that as numbers repeat (e.g. 1 - The Magician; 10 - The Wheel of Fortune, and 20 - Judgment), you get different vibrations of a similar theme.  The tens of the minor arcana echo The Wheel, with two of the tens (swords and wands) reflecting more negative fortunes while the other two (cups and pentacles), reflect more positive results.

Pentacles represent the element of earth.  The suit is often referred to as "coins" and so it has to do with material gain and success.  If you look at the card, you can see times are good.  The couple is well dressed.  The patriarch looks on in comfort, his red robes luxurious.  Money is in the air.  Just looking at the card suggests the ultimate in worldly and material success.  If you are asking about your latest enterprise, this is the card you want to see.

The Ten of Pentacles is about enjoying affluence, being free from money problems, feeling financially secure.  It suggests you might be in the midst of a run of good luck and your material ventures will flourish.  Because pentacles represent the element of earth, they also refer to building foundations and following conventions. The Ten of Pentacles is about traditions, seeking permanence and success within the establishment.  This is a status quo card.  The key with the Ten of Pentacles is the understanding that to everything there is a season, a time to flow with change and a time to build foundations that will last.  We need both to be successful in this life, foundation and flow, foundation and flow.

So what does it mean to pick this card on a day when I woke up too early with money worries?  I think it means to create a firm foundation, to trust but to work for my financial security, to create a plan and then stick to it.  Now maybe it means too I will be free of money problems, in a happy way.  That's great, but I need to do my part.  If God helps those that help themselves, then I better get cracking.  If I do, maybe I'll get some sleep : )

November 22, 2010 - The World

The World is the last card of the Major Arcana.  If the twenty-two cards of the Major Arcana represent the path of life, our human journey from the Fool's leap to culmination, then the World is this perfect end, the thanksgiving feast before we begin again.  When it comes up in a reading, it's a good card.  It's the kind of card you hope to get, telling you you've integrated, accomplished, reached your goal.  This is the "Miller Time" card and yet why don't I feel better about it?

My question was the usual, "What do I need to know?" although at the care there is another pressing issue, this idea of moving on, of mastering the lessons of illness and death, of dwindling time and the need to make the most of it.  I will admit to being a bit obsessed, especially since my dad's death, with "getting" what lessons I need to and "getting" on with life.  I so want to see things in this black and white even though one of the lessons of the last few years has been shades of gray.

As those of you who read this blog know, I've been working with the Jane Austen Tarot.  Every deck has its particular philosophy, and I resonate with Jane Austen - the relational focus, the pithy observations, and a world where connections and love drive our stories.  Relating cards to stories has made it easier for me to understand the essence of certain cards even as I understand I am viewing the Tarot through a particular lens and bias.  Another year and I might find myself taken with another deck; but for now, since many of my questions seem to be relational, this is the deck for me.

So back to the World.  In the Rider-Waite deck we have a woman placed at the center of an oval.  Now this figure is sometimes represented as an androgyne, a being both male and female, representing wholeness.  This is reflected again by the oval, perhaps a laurel wreath, signifying triumph and being at the height of one's craft/field.  In each of the four corners is a representation of each of the directions/elements, suggesting that with this card, we have mastered and are reflecting every element within us.  Notice how the figure dances, light as a feather, perfectly balanced although never touching the ground.  With this card then, we have achieved balance.  Looking just at the imagery then, you don 't need to open a book to find the meaning.  It's clear by just looking at the card.  The tarot is often like this.  You just have to begin to think symbolically.

Now let's get back to where I am, which is holding this amazing card and not feeling the least bit amazing myself.  Do I feel whole, integrated, myself at last?  Yes, but it is not a static process, at least for me.  It is a constant becoming so even as I dance lightly in the air, I know I will take that step off the cliff, like the Fool, and begin again.  In fact, I want to, not because I enjoy the fall as much as I know that life is to be lived and that every equinox tips us this way and that, depending.  Do I feel accomplished?  This is a card, after all, of realizing your goals, of prospering, of seeing your dreams come true.  Yes, but each goal seems to lead to another goal and while I may be flourishing, I am still working on achieving my heart's desires.  The World is also a card of healing and sharing what you have, of giving of yourself, of being fully engaged.  Well, I am fully engaged, that's for sure, although that is not always a comfortable thing.  And as for being fulfilled, savoring he moment and counting my blessings, well that to is ongoing.  I tend to focus on what I don't have as opposed to what I do.  Thank goodness this is the season of thanksgiving and thankfulness, encouraging me to go against my grain.

The thing about Tarot is that maybe you're going to get a definitive answer, but it's always going to be something you already knew if you paid attention to your own sure, still voice instead of giving in to the endless chatter inside your head and out.  Mostly though, you're going to get reminders, and the cards are going to make you stop and think and perhaps, at last, understand yourself.  When you act, you will act consciously and perhaps realizing for the first time why you are where you are and what you have to do if you want to find yourself some where different.  And maybe you don't want to be anywhere different.  Maybe you're happy just where you are and that's good to know too.  Then you can savor the moment, count your blessings and find some contentment.

Return to Tarot - The Six of Cups

Every Tarot deck has it's own nuanced meaning.  This is how the Six of Cups looks in the Rider-Waite deck.  By just looking at it, you get a good feel for what the card is about.  Not every card speaks so clearly, but this one does.

So what do you see?  Two children.  One, an older boy is giving flowers to the young girl.  The flowers are white, the color of purity and innocence and shaped like a star, referring back to the Major Arcana card, The Star, the card of hopes and dreams.  There is a sense of nostalgia to this card and innocence.  It can be a card of children or a card of childhood.  It is always a card of simple goodness and encourages us to be our best - kind, generous and forgiving.

Now like any card, the Six of Cups has a darker side.  The innocence of this card can reflect a state of denial or blinding ourselves to the worst of a situation.  It can also mean we are being deceived.

So what does it mean?  Well, this is where interpretation comes in.  I'm encouraging you to begin to have conversations with your cards.  They will not always speak clearly or tell you what you should do.  For example, there are a few people in my life that do not honor me as I would like them too.  My question was about them. They are silent for long periods and make contact only when it serves them.  So when I ask, "What do I do?" and the six of cups comes up I have to sit with the card and begin to consider my course.  Am I being deceived or trusting them too childishly?  Maybe once but I am clear now and understand better how our relationship flows.  Do I forgive them and continue as before?  Probably not.  Once your eyes are open, can you ever not see what you have seen?  I can forgive but let them go.  I can forgive and ask more of them and hope they rise to the occasion.  I can wait and see what unfolds, seeing clearly and trying to remain detached from the outcome.  I'm choosing, based on this card, to do all three.
To be honest, I no longer want relationships without mutual respect.  I want to honor and be honored.  And I suspect with this new attitude, relationships that no longer serve will fall away.  Not without struggle of course, I am, after all, only human.

As you can see, in one way, this answer was crystal clear, but in another, wasn't.  For me at least, tarot is like that, a wonderful friend with sharp and loving insight, if I will only listen.