Cold, Hard Ground: the Four of Pentacles

The Four of Pentacles reminds me that the gifts of the zodiac signs can also be burdens.  The Earth signs of Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn are known for their conscientiousness, frugality, and practicality.    The Shadow side of these are grasping, miserliness, and stubbornness.  The rich soil freezes and becomes rocky.

The Four of Pentacles illustrates this Earthy problem.  Four, a number of stability and luck, turns sour with both Cups and Coins.  Let's take a look, shall we?

Pre-transformation Ebenezer Scrooge is one of the archetypes for this card, as well as King Midas.  In Robin Wood's deck, this man is crowned with money;  he has conquered money (it's under his feet) and yet, he is not happy.  He looks like a gargoyle, existing only to display that one coin over his chest. But, for whom is he displaying it?  He's barricaded himself behind a stone wall, heedless of the celebration in the sunshine going on behind him, indicated by the banners.  The Four of Cups could indicate sacrificing friendship, family, and joy to the cult of work.  This is also a card that can indicate conspicuous consumption, as well as miserliness.  Conspicuous consumption rarely has the desired effect, and people quickly lose interest in the new toys of others.  Eventually, the objects cease to be fulfilling.  It looks like the temperature in that little gray box is twenty degrees lower than the temperature outside.

The symbolism of Barbara G. Walker's Four of Pentacles also includes high, gray walls.  The door to the fortress is tiny.  This is an exclusive club.  There are no windows, except for the tiny holes lining the top.  The warm, giving nurturing of earth has turned into fallow stoniness and infertility--the grass is brown and the trees are dead.  It's ironic that this fortress was built to protect the green leaves of money, and yet, how does someone living in that fortress eat?  The person carrying the golden sack is bent under his burden, struggling up the well-worn, sharp-angled path to the tiny door.
As seen on this card, the Four of Pentacles can signify being overworked and under loved.  It can indicate sleepless nights and crappy food while slaving in a cubicle.  The imagination and senses starve.
To be fair, that fort would be the safest place to be during the zombie apocalypse.  

Here, in Mary Guinan's illustration for the Celtic Tarot, we have a bit of a separation from the more typically Earth behavior of hoarding and hiding, and the Four of Pentacles becomes bullying and threatening, wanting to add more to the wealth under his feet.  If violence is associated with the Four of Pentacles, it will be subtle and involve an attack on someone's financial security.  The Four of Pentacles can warn a questioner of someone whose motives are not in his best interest, or that the person they are dealing with is unethical.

Lakshmi, the Hindu goddess of wealth, is pensive here.  Kris Waldherr's deck is the only deck of mine that has a Four of Pentacles that is a sign of luck, financial stability, and wealth.  This is very interesting to me, as all my other decks use the Four of Pentacles that money should be handled with care.  Go with your intuition with the Four of Cups, and use the surrounding cards to figure out whether the meaning is positive or negative.

Reversed, the Four of Cups can indicate that the questioner is being a little too free with her money. The Four of Pentacles may not necessarily apply to money--it may mean that a person is being too stingy (or too free, as the case may be) with his or her time, talents, and goodwill.   There is a feeling of boundaries in this card.  It calls on the questioner to ask which boundaries are too open, which are too closed, and find a balance, like the perfect square the four represents.

Archetypes:
Ebenezer Scrooge
the workaholic
the conspicuous consumer
Aesop's Dog in the Manger
corrupt CEO types

Another conversation with the fabulous Lily Wight!

I read Lily Wight's Tarot twice. This second time, I used Brian Froud's Heart of Faerie Oracle. As usual, reading for Lily was so much fun!

Check it out! And don't forget to browse Lily's entire site! It's full of amazing things!

One Foot in the Water, the Other on Earth, and a Head in the Clouds: Temperance

When Temperance appears in a reading, it is a call not to just resist temptation, but to find one's center.  It is about remaining calm and steady, and not indulging in rage, terror, or frustration.  I see it as a reminder to seek solutions, and not to make yourself suffer through inaction or feelings of helplessness.

Barbara G. Walker's Temperance shows an angel woman calmly pouring water from one red pitcher to another.  She is the Water Bearer, Aquarius, the sign of innovation, social change, and global concern. Aquarians, in balance pour out blessings on the world with their communication skills and passion for equality. Temperance may indicate an Aquarius in the questioner's life.
The passionate red of the pitchers, and the deft way the water flows from one to the other, may symbolize our ability to channel our intensity in constructive ways. We can harness the emotions that could destroy us and use it to our advantage. For example, we can channel them into creative pursuits: we can write, paint, and make music, or we harness the energy to strengthen our bodies-- we can learn a martial art, or lift weights. 

Note the clarity of the blue sky, and of the water.  The woman's dress is pure white. The trees are in orderly rows.  Emotional clarity leads to better ability to solve problems, better creative prowess, and serenity.
Notice how she has one foot on land, and the other in the water? This means she is comfortable both in the intuitive and the practical realms.   The woman's wings align her with the element of Air.  She is balanced, both mentally and emotionally. She is intellectual and reserved.
The shadow side of this is that Air will trample the Earth and Water side of the personality (that is, the sensual, emotional sides, respectively) underfoot.  This, of course, leads to a cold, over-rational personality that's divorced from feelings, intuition, and even its own body.

Robin Wood's Temperance shows an angel man with golden wings, standing with one foot in water, and one foot on land. The water and sky are also clear and clean, as is his white robe.  Depending on how you read this card, the sun can be either breaking, signifying a new day, and a fresh clean slate; or the setting sun, which implies mastery and gained wisdom. There is also a little path leading from the pool. With poise and composure, everyone can find the path to a goal.
Temperance can be a man or a woman. Like Aquarius, this quality is egalitarian and androgynous.  It's interesting, the alignment of the elements with the masculine and feminine.  I'd like to take a moment to remind everyone that while elemental energies are associated with male and female energies, they are also androgynous in the sense that anyone can possess each element's qualities, no matter what their gender.
To show balance, the Angel Man is juggling three balls--one crystal, one gold, and one silver.  The silver is for intuition, gold is for intellect in the real world, and the clear one is for possibility.  Robin Wood writes in her book The Robin Wood Tarot that the silver ball is for spiritual wealth and the present, gold is for material wealth and the past, and the crystal ball is for mystery.  Temperance is equally developed in all these realms, without preference for any one.  Temperance calls us to be able to efficiently and deftly juggle all our roles and talents.

Mary Guinan and Julian De Burgh chose a wise looking woman with silver hair for their water bearer. The woman's white hair shows wisdom and knowledge gained by experience. The softness of her face and of her surroundings tell us self-control and mastery can be used to carry out loving actions.  I also love how she looks like she has no feet.  She looks like she's floating.  Self-control can be used to master skills that contribute to our own well being, like meditation and yoga, for example.  Temperance can indicate transcendence.

Interestingly, Kris Waldherr chose a goddess I associate with Pisces, Yemana, to stand for Temperance.
Yemana is the Afro-Caribbean goddess of the oceans.  She exits the sea bearing treasures to benefit those on land; she is equally comfortable both in water and on earth. Temperance indicates harmony between the unconscious and the conscious, between the internal and the external, and the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. Temperance is a picture of Jungian balance.  Temperance is equally introverted and extroverted, intuitive and sensing, feeling and thinking, judging and perceiving.

If Temperance shows in a reading, it indicates the person is well-balanced, or about to be successful in an undertaking if they remember to remain dedicated to harmony and clarity.
If reversed, it means that the questioner is either being too emotional, too intellectual, or too rigid in their thinking.  They may be feeling rage or terror.  They may be indulging in feelings of self-pity or paranoia, or they're indulging in an addiction.

Would you care for more information about the Myers-Briggs Personality Inventory? Do you want to know whether you are primarily an extrovert or introvert,  an intuitive or a sensor, a feeler or a thinker, a judger or a perceiver? Then click right here!

For more info on Yemana, click here! She's one of my favorites :)

A Reading with Lily Wight!

I recently had the honor of reading for the lovely Lily Wight.  Her page is so much fun, full of puppets and fairies and scary things.  Her reading was a little different because I read for using my Oracle of Shadows and Light. Lily herself is an excellent cartomancer.  Check her out, and read our conversation!

She Smells of Gingerbread and Pine Trees: The Queen of Pentacles

The Queen of Pentacles, like any court card, is usually associated with a person in the questioner's life. She can also represent an aspect of the questioner herself.  Since she is the Queen of Pentacles, she has certain qualities. While the Queen of Swords is the Queen of the modern, jet-set woman, the Queen of Wands the successful social butterfly, and the Queen of Cups the artistic romantic, the Queen of Pentacles (or Coins) is the archetypal nurturing mother or grandmother.

What do you think of when you think of the perfect mother, or grandmother? Probably a warm bed, and yummy food cooked with love, and big hugs. This is someone who is patient, solid, and reliable, someone who knows exactly what to do in a crisis. She pampers, but it's practical. She will dish out solid advice along with tea, sympathy, and amazing baked goods.

This is a person with wisdom. In fact, this archetype is one of the oldest there is.

This is Erda, an ancient Earth goddess, chosen by Barbara G. Walker to represent the Queen of Pentacles. You'll notice that she has large, maternal bosoms and wide hips. This speaks to her fertility and nurturing ability. Her cave entrance leads to the warm, dark womb, where all life begins and ends.  Her pentacle promises abundance and protection.  The word "Earth" comes from Erda's name, and the word material (which used to imply rocks and plants and all things from the earth) has the same root as Mother.

Kris Waldherr chose a different goddess for her deck. Lakshmi is the goddess of wealth and beauty in Hinduism.  Her beautiful costumes and jewelry underscore this association. Queen of Pentacles people, with their practicality and good sense, can accumulate quite a bit of wealth. Out of balance, they can be miserly, but in balance they are generous, including with themselves, and love fabulous things.  Lakshmi is known for giving riches to those she loves, just like Queen of Pentacles people.

Please do not think that this Queen can only be seen in women.  Men, too, can be nurturing, giving, and sage with advice.

Robin Wood's Queen of Pentacles cradles a Pentacle gently, looking at it with loving eyes.  She proves, along with Lakshmi, that the Queen of Pentacles is not necessarily an older woman.  In fact, Pentacles women can be very sensual, because of the alignment with Earth, and its material blessings. The Queen here is also fertile and abundant--she is surrounded by flowers, fruits, vegetables, and our favorite little fornicators, bunnies. Her green gown and orange apron make her one with the Earth's grass and leaves, and her purple embellishments symbolize richness, royalty, and abundance.

Mary Guinan's Queen of Pentacles, for Julian De Burgh's Celtic Deck, is also decked in orange and green. Her red hair is different from the brunette associated with Pentacles court cards, but I like it.  It makes me think of the marriage of Earth and Fire, with volcanos and magma flowing underground. There's a kinetic energy along with practicality and reliability associated with Earth.  Her arms and gaze are open, waiting to hear about your issues. She will be a fabulous listener, and then she'll clap her hands and say, "okay, here's what you gotta do! Let's go!"

Archetypes/People associated with the Queen of Pentacles:
--Nurturing Mothers and Grandmothers who are practical and loving (and men who have these traits)
--Gardeners
--Sensual people who love textures, colors, and fine things
--Great chefs
--Pregnant women, expectant fathers preparing a nest
--People with a gift for money management and are extremely generous.

Out of balance, Shadow Queen of Pentacles:
--cold, hard parents who care more about wealth than family
--a nosy, bossy person
--a lazy person
--a stingy miser
--someone who can't even nurture herself, preferring to work herself to sickness

A Spread to Keep You Steady

Dear readers,
exciting things. I am getting ready to embark further on this journey of becoming a therapist, and have been doing readings at the local metaphysical bookstore!

One of my favorite spreads to do to help get a feel for aspects in a questioner's life is the pentacle spread.

For this spread, I chose the Robin Wood deck.  The Page of Wands in the center represents the questioner for this month. Once a month is a good way to use this spread.  The second card, representing the element of Earth, is directly to the left of the center card (the reader's left. You will see). The third card is placed directly above the second and represents the element of Air.  Crowning the center card (here the Page of Wands) is the Spirit card.  Going downward, the fourth card is placed to the upper right of the center card, and the fifth card directly below it.  These represent Water and Fire, respectively.  

My dear friend, wheresmytower (who also runs onerunetofindthem), who taught me this spread, places the cards in a different order. She places the center card, followed by Earth, Spirit, Water, Air, and Fire, in that order and in those positions. Do what feels best for you.  Also, depending on the reader, the elements may be in different positions. What's important is that the Spirit card is always on top, and that the reader is consistent whenever he uses the spread. 

It is also a good idea to look at the cards as a group, and see how they relate to each other, as well as individually. 

This month, the questioner feels a strong enthusiasm for life.  There's a lot of fun and shenanigans.  There is an anticipation, an excitement. The questioner is looking forward to an active social life.  In these social interactions, there will be a sharing of ideas and great support (the wand's glow represents the bright idea).  

The second card, the Earth card, represents physical and financial health in the questioner's life.  It represents emotional security as well.  It represents how practical and realistic the questioner can/should be.  

9 of Swords, in the Earth position.  The impression from this is that the questioner is anxious about changing circumstances.  She needs to take on more responsibility, and this is frightening. There is a change in how finances will be coming on, and what can be done with that money.  

The next card is Air, right above Earth.  Air represents mental acuity, obstacles and how to get over them, communication, and travel.  For this questioner, the Emperor is in the Air position.  This indicates intelligence and confidence, providing a nice antidote to the anxiety of the 9 of Swords in the Earth position. 

The Spirit position can indicate the essence of the matter, the aspect that the questioner can best focus on. It can also indicate an outcome to avoid or the best possible outcome, depending on the other cards. In this instance, the Spirit card is the lovely 3 of Cups! 

This is awesome! The questioner is due for some celebration with loved ones. There is much to celebrate! The questioner should be proud of herself for what she has accomplished so far on this path to a new life! She has enthusiasm, confidence, and energy, and smarts. The path she is striking is a good one, and her intuition to take it is correct. 

Next is Water, right next to the Spirit card on the reader's right. This represents creativity, emotions, romance, and the subconscious.  At home in his element is the King of Cups. 

The questioner, who has been apart from her fiance (not separated emotionally, just physically), will have a wonderful, romantic time with him. She has greatly missed him. Also, I would add that there is a feeling of great compassion on the part of the questioner (necessary for her line of work) as well as a lot of great, creative ideas (she has been keeping a notebook).  

Last is the Fire position.  The Fire position is the position of energy and passion, specifically energy and passion made bringing dreams into reality. 

The 3 of Swords, in this position for this reading, seems to show a sadness on the part of the questioner, a grief for the path she was taking, but is now leaving for other options. She feels regret that things didn't work out with her original career path. These feelings are natural. She should allow herself to feel them.  However, she only has to look at the overwhelmingly positive cards in this spread--The Emperor in the Air position, the Three of Cups in the Spirit position, and the King of Cups in the Water position, to find solace. She is making the right decision. 

Above is the complete spread. It is important to examine the cards in their respective positions individually and together. This is a great spread to do once a month, or even once a day, just to get a gauge for where you are.

The Fire's Child: Page of Wands

First, I want to apologize for my extended absence.  I am excited to say I am starting a new career path, and have gone back to school. This is why the topic of this post is so apropos--I feel like I've got the Page of Wands on my side :)

The beautiful Page of Wands is the perfect companion for reaching goals.  Also known as the Princess of Wands, she is the youthful, feminine aspect of Fire energy.  This is an exuberant, friendly energy.  It makes me think of the sign of Leo--fun, playful, perhaps even flamboyant, but also very committed and motivated.

The bright red hair Mary Guinan gave the Princess of Wands for Julian De Burgh's Celtic Deck is loose and flows to her shoulders, indicating passion and freedom.  She stares into the strong, steady flame of her torch, studying the living colors and kinetic energy.  Since this is the Page/Princess, and thus is a "youthful" energy, its appearance in a reading may indicate that the potential of a fledgling idea.

Like the Princess of Wands in the Celtic Deck, the Princess of Staves for Kris Waldherr's Goddess Deck shows the goddess, Freyja, with long, free-flowing red hair. Instead of a torch, she carries a thick staff with sprouting leaves. This symbolizes the fertility of the imagination, and Freyja is a creative fertility goddess.  The Fire energy I feel from this card is warm and encouraging, like the sunshine on growing plants. Freyja, a member of the Norse Vanir, may be the goddess of fertility and beauty, but she is also a warrior goddess.  This reminds us of the dualistic nature of fire itself; this necessary, beautiful element is dangerous and destructive. Nowhere is this duality more evident than in the case of certain forest seeds. These seeds can only sprout after a forest fire, as they need intense heat.
Creativity is a messy process. It involves destroying ideas that don't work, destroying first drafts, and raging frustration.  The Page of Wands joyful demeanor reminds us that keeping the process play keeps these fires banked and working for us, not out of control.

Robin Wood's Page of Wands is a little girl with long, flowing hair and a row of firecrackers hanging from her belt.  When the Page of Wands indicates a person, this person will usually be a young, energetic, fun-loving little girl.  Alternately, the person may be a youthful, exuberant adult.  This energy is rather androgynous.  Whoever this person is, they have tons of potential and are very bright.  The little girl on this card has so much enthusiasm and inner glow that the wand she is holding becomes a blazing beacon. The light is strong and pure. The girl is inspired, but she is also a conduit, channeling enthusiasm and inspiration to others. She is a risk-taker, a path-maker, and a leader.
 In some readings, it may seem like she is holding a lightning rod, instead of a beacon. The person the card represents attracts luck and abundance through their joie de vivre, their optimism, and their risk-taking. The person this card represents may be a fount of ideas and encouragement.  Like all court cards, the Page of Wands may also represent an aspect of the questioner herself.

Okay, this next one is kind of unexpected and esoteric, like many of Barbara G. Walker's cards.

Atargatis is an ancient Canaanite goddess.  Here, she represents the woman as a fearful devourer/castrator of men, with her vagina dentata. At the same time, she is offering her breasts for sustenance. I read this as a metaphor for the dangers and rewards of risk-taking, a specialty of Wands. It could also be read as a metaphor for dysfunctional obsession, sexual or otherwise.
Now, I want to say that I myself believe very strongly in women's empowerment. While I admire Walker's work, I feel that this card alienates male questioners.  While it is successful at portraying the negative, Shadow, reversed Princess/Page of Wands, how does this image illustrate the dynamic, joyful, friendly energy of the Page/Princess of Wands?
I do have to give kudos for the marriage of the phallus (seen on the top of Atargatis' head) and the yoni.

Reversed, the Page/Princess of Wands is a person who is impulsive, reckless, manic, and emotionally exhausting, consuming those around them.  If appearing in regards to a question about an event, Page of Wands indicates that either the event will not "ignite" or it will burn out of control.  Look to the other cards for clues, and trust your intuition.