Page of Cups

The Lovers' Tarot (Connections 2005)

Today's card from my new deck, The Lovers' Tarot by Jane Lyle, is Page of Cups. The image makes very clear reference to the RWS Page of Cups: The figure is facing to the left side of the card, red and blue clothing, standing on the edge of water, and most curiously, there is a fish emerging from the cup. The creator of the Rider Waite Smith deck,  Arthur Edward Waite, provides only this explanation in his Pictorial Key to the Tarot: 'A fair, pleasing, somewhat effeminate page, of studious and intent aspect, contemplates a fish rising from a cup to look at him. It is the picture of the mind taking form' [italics mine]. Now, that's interesting. Many contemporary tarot readers, if they mention the fish at all, talk about the Page of Cups' imagination and sense of wonder being symbolised by the fish emerging from the cup. That may be quite valid. But Waite's explanation, brief as it may be, seems perhaps to go a bit further. 'The picture of the mind taking form' is a very big picture indeed! It is the awakening of consciousness, emotional intelligence, and self-awareness, is it not? The fish is a fitting symbol for these things...a creature that is foreign to us, able to breathe where our bodies would drown, living in a place that we cannot see (beyond the most fleeting glimpses) but can only imagine, hidden from us and our experience, creatures that go with unseen flows, that can travel great distances at great speeds. As most of the earth's surface is covered by water, fish may symbolise greater freedom than we land-crawlers enjoy -- more territory to explore, and moving through it with greater ease and in deeper harmony than we can in our own dry environments. They are light and buoyant and quick, where we are weighed down by gravity, heavy and slow.Yes, the fish is a good symbol of the unseen, the depths, freedom, vastness, unfettered movement...the inner mind, the heart, the subconscious, the emotions. So the fish emerging from the cup represents our first awareness of this rich inner world, the first consideration that we might have depths unplumbed within ourselves, waiting to be explored.

In what way are you awakening to an unsuspected hidden depth? How has its emergence surprised you? What do you think you will do with this new awareness?

The Lovers' Tarot by Jane Lyle - Review

The Lovers' Tarot by Jane Lyle (Connections, 2005)

Apparently The Lovers' Tarot by Jane Lyle has been through many editions, the first one coming out in 1992 as a majors only deck. I bought the 78-card version because I watched a video of Four Queens unboxing hers and when upon investigation I discovered that the pip cards are very plain, I ordered it. I quite like pips-only decks. There's something that feels very fortune-tellerish about laying out a bunch of plain cards and doing a reading with them; I feel it shows some knowledge, and appears less like you're 'just looking at the pictures and making stuff up.' I have both kinds of decks, of course, but I think it's good to use pips-only decks, too.

This deck is called The Lovers' Tarot and it is specifically intended to be used for love and relationship readings. The 64-page guidebook accordingly confines its interpretations to that context, which makes for an interesting read. Though the book is very brief, it is packed with useful information, making it a valuable and convenient resource for quick reference. Each major card gets one page of text that includes ruling planet, element, and a keyword, a 2 or 3 paragraph explanation of the card, and two key phrases called 'essence'. I feel the book really comes into its own with the minors and courts. Instead of organising them by suit, Ace - Ten, as most (but not all) guidebooks do, this book is organised by number. For each number, all four cards are featured across two facing pages, with one-half a page each. The upright meaning is called 'The Gift' and the reversed meaning is called 'The Challenge'. Each card is given a keyword for both upright and reversed:

The Lovers' Tarot by Jane Lyle (Connections 2005)

About the art -- it's a kind of photo collage which some call awkward and clunky, but I think it's meant to be like that. The illustrator, Oliver Burston, is a professional commercial artist so I have no doubt he has the skill to create something realistic and lifelike. I just don't think that was the object here. I like that the art looks like pieces cut from the work of great masters and pasted down. I like the flatness and odd proportions. It's why I like the Tarot Illuminati as well. See what you think:

Majors from The Lovers' Tarot (Connections 2005)

Courts from The Lover's Tarot (Connections 2005)

The only down side I see to this deck is the suit of Wands. There is no movement there, and for the Fire suit, I would like to see the arrangement less static. I'll show you what I mean. The wands are used to create almost like a wall or fence as the numbers get higher. This disappoints me. I would like to have seen, for example, all of them aligned for 8 of Wands, and a bit more confusion in 5 of Wands and 10 of Wands. I know it's a pips-only deck, but there's just something about the way the wands form a kind of garden fence that doesn't seem very Wandsy to me. I would also have preferred a red or orange background colour, to reflect the Fire element. That's the only negative thing I have to say about this deck, though.

I find this an attractive deck with a useful little guidebook, and it comes with a lovely sturdy box, all for a very reasonable price. I am quite pleased with it, and feel it's a keeper.