A Courtly Tarot Celebration

'It is a joy to set a strong foundation beneath your desire and see it grow in strength and beauty...yet when you have built a grand empire from the results of your labours you must give thanks and make merry.' ~ Kim Huggens, Tarot Illuminati

This card turned up in my earlier Authentic Life Spread using the Tarot Illuminati (Dunne and Huggens, LoScarabeo 2013). Notice I've drawn another Wands card today, after yesterday's King of Wands! Here we have a Persian-looking building in the background, a male figure is wearing the turban, the baggy trousers, the sash around the waist and the pointy-toed shoes that I associate with episodes of  'I Dream of Jeannie'. The female figure looks more European to me, like a fairy tale medieval damsel, sort of like 14th century French court. The card is very reminiscent of its RWS counterpart, having four wands festooned with garlands of flowers, and a stately building or castle in the background, with people celebrating.

The Four of Wands usually signifies having a stable foundation and/or a celebration of recent accomplishments. Things are going well and you can treat yourself. The card could also predict a special event, party or celebration.

Today I celebrate the firm foundation of daily posting here at this blog, and I give thanks for the opportunities it has given me to help people through tarot readings. I thank all those who have allowed me to read for them, offering them fresh perspectives to help them see their path more clearly. And I celebrate the tarot, such an important part of my life and practice. I would love to read for you! If you would like a reading, click the button above marked 'Order a Tarot Reading' and let's chat about it.

Another King of Wands

This week's tarot is Tarot Illuminati, by Eric C Dunne and Kim Huggens, Lo Scarabeo 2013. I love this deck, and am really looking forward to sharing it on the blog. I will write a more thorough review of it at the end of the week.

Today's card is King of Wands, and what a King of Wands he is! Everything about him, from his flamboyant dress to his confident posture, speaks of forthright boldness.

The Wands suit in the Tarot Illuminati is based on Persia, and so we have lots of turbans and feathers, pointy-toed shoes, and well, Persian-looking stuff. :)

I've been drawing King of Wands a lot lately, have you noticed? And Knight of Wands haunted me for weeks and weeks a while back. Something out there is trying to tell me something. Assert myself! Take charge! WAKE UP!

How'm I doin'?

RWS

Prairie Tarot, Robin Ator 2010

A very traditional 3 of Coins we have today from The Prairie Tarot by Robin Ator, 2010. A craftsman working on decorating a structure with three coins (or pentacles), pauses as two onlookers observe his work. As in the RWS version, one of the onlookers seems to be the patron of the project (the older man), while the other might represent a muse, a softer, more emotive point of view (the girl).

In the RWS, the craftsman works on a cathedral detail, the patron appears to be a monk, and the artistic character is a man in a flamboyant robe holding plans. Maybe he is the designer of the building. Or, perhaps the man in the decorated robes is the patron, and the monk represents the spiritual muse of the cathedral (knowing what we know about monks, such as the Cistercians, it seems more likely the monk is the businessman, though).

In a reading, the 3 of Coins often signifies receiving feedback on your work, considered opinions on your job (usually positive). It can also signify working as a team, though it seems to me that the man standing on the bench is doing the actual work while the others are providing their input. Still, without the artistic vision, the financial backing, and the skill of the craftsman, nothing would be built at all. It takes all three. So maybe the card can remind us that every member of the team has an important contribution, even if in the moment it doesn't seem that way. (This message reminds me a lot of yesterday's Justice message!)

Share the load

Prairie Tarot, Robin Ator 2010

That is one po-faced looking woman. What a face. A face like a smacked bum, I've heard it called. Well, maybe she just looks a little serious. Still, she's got a job to do. She's Justice, and Justice on the Prairie is serious business. Her expression says, 'Approach if you dare, but I am taking no sh*t from you. If these scales don't balance, I am fully prepared to run you through. Or worse.'

I like that there is a yoke in the foreground. It isn't really at her feet. It's closer to us. It makes me think of the pioneer spirit which said, if you don't work, you don't eat. Everyone must do his fair share. This is only reasonable, as survival depends on the contribution of everyone. No one can afford to carry an able-bodied person. Everyone who can contribute, must.

What is it that you can contribute, but you're not currently doing? What is that you could do that would take up part of the burden, that would share the load, that would make you feel better about yourself and part of something vital? What is it that you are now leaving out, and you know it isn't fair to others, or to your own self worth?

And what do you intend to do to remedy that situation? Because eventually, without balance, there's the sword.

Wahoo!

I needed a good pick-me-up after yesterday's tough reading, so I'm glad to see today's card from Prairie Tarot by Robin Ator is 6 of Wands. That's a good one to draw. Aleister Crowley wrote that the 6 of Wands shows 'Energy in completely balanced manifestation'. The card's title is 'Victory'. Whenever I see this card, I hear Queen singing 'We are the Champions.' Is that normal? Probably not.

The Six of Wands RWS card shows a warrior returning home triumphant, surrounded by his cronies. Most RWS-based decks continue this tradition. The rider on a horse accompanied by a wreath is practically as ubiquitous as the valentine heart with three swords plunged through it in the 3 of Swords card. Iconic, I guess you could say.

In the Prairie Tarot, our champion is not a warrior but a lad showing off his riding skills, perhaps in a competition such as a rodeo. He leaps his horse over a set of steps, flanked either side by the fenceposts that seem to represent wands in this deck. I like this card very much; it conveys the spirit of the Six of Wands instantaneously. As soon as you see it, you get that Six of Wands 'Wahoo' feeling.

Out of curiosity, I had a peek at the Learn Tarot website to see what she has to say about this card.

'In readings, the Six of Wands appears when you have been working hard toward a goal, and success is finally within reach. The recognition you have sought so long is yours. Now you can receive the acclaim, honor and reward that you deserve. If you do not feel close to victory now, know that it is on its way provided you are doing all you can to make it happen. The victory of this card does not have to involve beating someone else. You can triumph over yourself, the environment, or the odds.'

 The most important message for me to take is: 'If you do not feel close to victory now, know that it is on its way provided you are doing all you can to make it happen.' Let that be a reminder to me to do the right things today to move me one step closer to my goals.