February 1, 2012 | Author Velvet Angel
Here are the Tarot-Scopes by Sun Sign for the month of February. For this feature, I am using traditional Western Sun signs of the zodiac, but if you’re curious what your Vedic Astrology Sun sign is, check out the Vedic Astrology Sun Signs page and compare. If your Vedic Sun sign is different than your traditional Western sign, you might even see how both of the energies listed below could apply to you – or perhaps one may be more prominent for you than the other.
Keep in mind that a single card pulled for a given sign will not represent everything you experience during the month. It is a significant theme of the month that you will probably see or relate to in one way or another. But it’s not the sum of the whole. It is, however, one important aspect or theme that the Tarot wants to bring to the attention of each Sun Sign.
This month, I am using the Gilded Tarot Deck by Ciro Marchetti. If you happen to be a fan of Ciro’s work, be sure to check out his upcoming Gilded Tarot – Royale, available this spring season! I can hardly wait to get my hot little tarot hands on his new Tarot production. The Gilded Tarot is amazing in itself, but you’ve got to check out what he’s doing with Gilded Royale – it’s even more vibrant and amazing, bringing the cards to life in ways you never would have imagined! I look forward to that very special publication!
If you are a Ciro Marchetti fan, you can ask to be put on his list for when the Gilded Tarot Royale is available. Just visit the Gilded Tarot – Royale link above, and email Ciro.
ARIES: King of Cups
If you find yourself in need of some emotional support and encouragement this month, Aries, you will likely have just what you need from someone who truly cares and wants to help. It is also possible that you may be the one called to be supportive to someone who needs you. Either way, the energy here is all about love, caring, and compassion. Whether you find yourself in the position of offering this caring support to another, or whether you are the receiver of this, everyone benefits. Both the giver and the receiver of this act of caring will find reward.
This card can indicate a need to step outside of yourself and look closely at the needs of others. Let your gentle nature take over, and allow sensitivity and empathy to be your guide. Take your loved ones by the hand, and let them know you are there for them. Perhaps you may need to lend a strong shoulder for someone to “cry” on . . . even if this tests your patience.
If you’ve been facing a disagreeable or negative emotional condition lately, the King of Cups indicates that such condition may be coming to an end! This is good news. Additionally, what you want or need could be closer to you than you had realized. You may find what you need right “in your own back yard.” This is a figure of speech which tells us that sometimes we don’t have to look all that far in order to find someone or something which makes us the happiest.
TAURUS: Reversed Devil
This is a time in which you are facing reality, accepting responsibility, and discarding illusions that you once held to. The Reversed Devil is about regaining your compassion and humanity. You have regained sight of your moral and ethical values. You are listening to and heeding the advice of your conscience and inner wisdom. It’s a time of moving past troubles and finding a better way to live.
The Reversed Devil indicates a freedom from harmful bonds. You are removing the “chains” that once bound you to something negative and perhaps even unhealthy in your life. You may now be more willing and able to accept changes in your life as you take on new perspectives. A burdensome commitment may be coming to end, Taurus, and you are now ready to break free of an oppressive situation. This reversed energy represents the opportunity to bring about positive change in your life. It’s a time where you can focus more clearly on the goals that are truly important to you.
Decisions can be made now. Realize that indecisive behavior is a weakness. It takes all your strength and drains you. In order to move forward, you need to make a decision . . . otherwise, you could be left behind. This is a time to show some spunk (in a positive way), assert your boundaries, show your true feelings, and respond with honesty. There is nothing to be gained at this time by trying to be subtle or strategic. Say it like it is, and take the right actions to make progress. Light is at the end of the tunnel now, as you gather the strength to bring yourself out of a period of stagnation or chaos.
GEMINI: Reversed 3 of Cups
Friendships and relationships may be significant for you this month, Gemini. You may find yourself surrounded by many loving and supportive friends where everyone participates on an emotional level and in an atmosphere of fun. The Three of Cups is the growth of relationships of all kinds. It’s about enjoyment, being exuberant, enjoying companionships, establishing bonds of loyalty and trust, asking for and receiving help if needed, and making some new friends. It’s the best part of what parties, family gatherings, social clubs, company, and friendship are all about 
There is certainly a great sense of joy to be found in being surrounded by those you love, and knowing you are loved in return. Often the best pleasure . . . is shared pleasure. This card encourages you to find a reason to share a celebration with someone special this month, Gemini, whether it’s a significant other, friends, or relatives. Even if you have to settle for a small, every day sort of reason to get together, rejoice in the special treasures of love and friendship.
If you are invited to a social event and can’t decide whether you really want to go or not . . . the Three of Cups encourages you to attend! This card indicates that this is not a time to spend alone. Be among friends and/or family. Do something fun! Life may hold many responsibilities and commitments, but it’s supposed to be fun, too! Celebrate friendships and close companions. You are richly rewarded with people who love you.
CANCER: 6 of Cups
This is a time where friendships, family ties, and children may bring much enjoyment. You may enjoy pleasant memories from the past — especially those memories from childhood days. Some of this happy nostalgia could come from time spent with your own children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews, siblings . . . or even just reminiscing over photos from an old picture album.
The potential energy for you, Cancer, is abundant with a great sense of emotional contentment, happiness, and enthusiasm. When you see a child’s eyes light up with a sparkle of enthusiasm and fun, it’s easy to share in that special joy and find a little bit of that childlike enthusiasm within yourself. Children have such a remarkable way of bringing out that “kid” in us . . . the one we think we left behind so long ago. Well that “kid” is still within us, if we only let him or her come out and play once in awhile
You may find yourself feeling quite satisfied in the comfort of your friends and family. And if there is something special going on in your life right now, this is a time for which someday you will likely look back on with fond memories. If you’ve been putting off that picnic or special outing for “another time” . . . let the time be now. Create some warm and fond memories to keep forever. Spend some quality time with the kids and/or other family members. Make this a time that means a lot to you and the ones you care about
LEO: 4 of Wands
Good fortune, fulfillment, happiness, and satisfaction are yours for the taking this month, Leo! Your theme for this month is about celebrating what you have completed and accomplished so far. This is a time to look back with satisfaction in what you have achieved. There is likely much to be thankful for and to feel a sense of celebration for. This card indicates peace and tranquility. It can indicate refuge from the turmoils of life. Better times are coming, ands improvement is at hand.
Life itself is a gift which holds both joys and challenges. Even the small pleasures and triumphs you encounter deserve their special notice — at least as much recognition as you would give to the petty hassles and pet peeves which are annoying to you. Life is a gift, filled each day with miracles and wonders. Look around and see all the blessings that have been bestowed upon you. It will help you appreciate all the miracles in your life — both the large and the small ones . . . all of them are important! If you take time to notice them, you not only increase the quality and enjoyment of your life, you also greatly increase the energy you use to create more of the same kinds of experiences in the future.
Count your blessings this month, Leo. Look around you. Look inside of you. Look at the good things. With the Four of Wands energy at your side, you have reached a place of peace, harvest, prosperity, and reliable foundations in some area of your life. You may have reached an important milestone in your personal journey, and this is a time to pause and enjoy the results, if not an actual celebration of your arrival and completion. You may either be finishing something important that is proving to be successful with this energy, or there is evidence that you are well on your way, even if additional work is required to cross the finish line. The end zone is certainly in sight, and you can see how your efforts are paying off. This energy represents a time of happiness, reward, enjoyment, fruition, comfort, productivity . . . and even “happy endings.”
VIRGO: Justice
This month may be one that is balanced with fairness, truth, honesty, and integrity. If things have been unbalanced or chaotic in your world, Virgo, the appearance of Justice suggests that you may reach an equitable agreement or compromise on some issue of importance. Decisions at this time should be made without prejudice, bias, or preconceptions. Strive for harmony in your situations. Put issues into their proper perspective, and be willing to listen to opposing points of view. That doesn’t mean that you have to agree, but if you listen to the other side of an issue, they should also at least be willing to listen to your side so that some kind of mutual agreement or understanding can be reached.
If there are conflicts that arise, Justice encourages you to listen carefully to the arguments of all parties involved, maintain an emotionally detached manner, and weigh the alternatives carefully. Try to arrive at equitable and mutually agreeable arrangements, taking the needs of others (as well as your own) into consideration. Hear others out and respect their opinions — but stay mindful of what is negotiable and what’s not. Help others when you can, but know the difference between interference and assistance.
Do what you know is the right thing. Practice the golden rule . . . Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Stand up for yourself and for what you believe. Have the courage of your convictions. Strive to treat everyone fairly — yourself included — and the scales will always tip in your favor. Truth and justice will prevail, whether karmic, moral, ethical, or legal, and you will get what you deserve or what you’ve earned.
LIBRA: The Magician
The Magician offers you some powerful and inspiring thoughts to work with this month, Libra! The focus now is on turning thoughts and ideas into reality. You know what you want and why you want it . . . just like the Magician. This card is about taking action and having the willpower to accomplish tasks with creativity, skill, organization, and focused attention. This can certainly be a very productive month, as you have opportunity to get a lot accomplished! And because this card is from the Major Arcana of the Tarot, it indicates that something important could present itself to open up new doors toward success in some area of your life.
This is a good time for making important decisions, especially since this may very well be a time of clear thinking for you. You may be receiving new, better, or updated information in which to make those decisions. Also, your good communication skills will help you effectively relate information to others. You will be able to get your point across confidently and with the power to make your words heard and understood.
If you’re in a position where you feel you might not have everything you need to move forward with a plan or idea, you will want to re-think that . . . because with the Magician’s energy, you realize that you really do have what you need to proceed. And if you don’t have it, you can likely find a way to improvise so that you can move ahead on something. Whatever you do this month, Libra, know that your willpower can make things happen for you. As the saying goes . . . “Where there is a will, there is a way!”
SCORPIO: 4 of Pentacles
This month’s theme is all about being practical and taking care of business, Scorpio. There might not be much progress or accomplishment at this time. It’s mostly a time to be practical, hold your ground, and keep things on an even keel as best you can.
Something you are working on could benefit from taking a second look, more preparation, or closer attention to detail. The energy at this time can seem routine, mundane, and even dull. But sometimes, those periods are as important as the fast-paced ones.
The Four of Pentacles can be an indication that you’ve become a “pack rat” of sorts, on both the mundane and emotional levels. A creature of habit, you’re afraid to let go of anything. You just keep hoarding things away and storing them up because you think you might need them later. While there’s nothing wrong with being prepared, the time has come to simplify. If you haven’t used something within the past year, get rid of it. Toss out anything broken as well. The same goes for dysfunctional relationships. Even though these are bad for us, we often stay from force of habit. A new season has dawned, and it’s time to turn over a new leaf.
SAGITTARIUS: 2 of Swords
You may be facing a tough decision, Sagittarius . . . one that requires you to put aside emotions — a task easier said than done! If you don’t feel able to give yourself whole-heartedly one way or another towards a resolution or decision, know that what you need to do is to remove any outside distractions . . . so that you can get in touch with your own inner truth and make your own decisions.
You may be putting up barriers between yourself and others. Internally, you may be blocking off emotions and refusing to feel them. You may avoid looking at the truth and pretend that all is okay. You think one way, but feel another. Your head and heart may be at odds about something (or someone).
Perhaps you are not willing to accept some truth about yourself or the situation you are in. What are you really feeling? Are you resisting certain feelings for fear of getting hurt? Are you angry even though you are smiling? Is there something that you are refusing to look at? It may be time for you to take off the blindfold and see the truth in a situation, whatever it might be. A decision is necessary, and you need to consider the facts of the situation in order to arrive at a decision.
CAPRICORN: Knight of Swords
The Knight of Swords is a card of change, and with this energy, it’s something you are ready for, Capricorn! That great new idea . . . or that moment of welcome information and insight . . . will find new power and focus as you devise different ways of using what you’ve learned . . . or to expand on your original thoughts. You may feel energized again, and this will be a welcome change for you. You may just find yourself more than ready to push these new ideas and plans of yours . . . and it seems that you are being given a very fine chance to do it!
So get your thoughts organized, Capricorn. And take action! This won’t be a time to dwell on doubts and hesitation. It’s also not a time to hope that someone else will do the job for you. Situations may call on you to cut through fear and indecision . . . and go for what you believe in. Be sure that you are willing to finish a project you’ve started before rushing off to a new one!
This can also be a time to define and defend your personal boundaries in some area. You can more easily deal with conflicts that arise if you are firm about what you are willing to put up with and what you are not, what is acceptable in your life and what is not . . . and then stand up for your rights. You have the power to do this, and you have the power to implement important changes in your life at this time.
AQUARIUS: Judgement
This is a month for renewal, Aquarius. Now you can clear away the debris of the past and begin again. You are able to let go of something if you so desire, in whichever area of your life that you choose. Release unwanted ties to the past. It’s a perfect time to forgive and forget. So hear “the present” calling you . . . and allow yourself to start over and create new and better beginnings.
This energy shows a time of following your own judgment and seeing the consequences of your choices. You are resolving doubts, answering questions, evaluating accomplishments — and being satisfied (or at least at peace) with what you find. It shows a fateful time of critical decisions. It shows you are judging the value or success of what you have done or what you have become — and being pleased with what you see. It is, in a real sense, “Judgement Day” . . . as you prepare to release something major in your life and move in new directions. But first, you acquire a vision of what you did right this time, as well as what you want to refine, do differently, or improve upon.
Progress occurs in increments. You build for a while. Then you assess what you’ve done, cut back in some areas, expand in others, abandon strategies that aren’t working, and experiment with new ones that might give better results. To pause and ponder is just as important as to push and produce. In the quiet moments, you chart your course for the future.
PISCES: 9 of Wands
Even though you may have challenges in front of you at this time, Pisces, the Nine of Wands indicates that you will still be able to maintain your integrity and values. And part of that will come through taking a more defensive stand and establishing boundaries. It allows you to be cautious so that you can avoid being hurt in the way that you may have been in the past . . . but it doesn’t leave you paranoid and afraid. You are actually stronger for the struggles you have endured and now you can use your past experiences to make better decisions in the present.
Patience is a part of the Nine of Wands, because it is better to bide your time and remain calm than to fly off the handle and risk losing out — especially when you’ve already come this far. Although you may sometimes feel that you are standing alone against the world, and you may also feel stuck . . . the indication here is that you need to just wait things out. If in doubt, do nothing for the time being.
Just when you think you have exhausted all your reserves of strength and you feel tired, feeling that you can’t take any more . . . somewhere from within, you find that last resource of energy so that you can triumph against the odds. Have faith in the resilience of your inner spirit!
Many Blessings,
Velvet Angel
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January 29, 2012 | Author Velvet Angel
Each week, I pull a card from a random Tarot deck to bring us a message or piece of wisdom that we can think about or use in our lives on some level – if not now, we can refer back to it when it seems to be more fitting for us. This is food for thought, and not drawn for any one particular person or situation.
For this week’s message, I have drawn from the Gilded Tarot Deck.
Deck by Ciro Marchetti
Companion book by Barbara Moore
© 2004 Ciro Marchetti, Published by Llewellyn
This Week’s Wisdom Message . . .
Ten of Swords
Let me be completely honest here. There is no way to get around the Ten of Swords’ harsh energy. We cannot sugar coat its meaning, nor should we try. We need to just face it head on, even if it’s one of those painful situations that make us say, “Ouch!!”
Numerically this card is a Ten, signifying that the end of something is at hand. In this case, it can suggest that you have gone through something painful, or that you may experience an upset during this week, but it is also a temporary energy that asks you to pull those proverbial swords out of your back and be willing to start a new and better cycle.
I’ve gotta say, this energy hits close to home for me this week. You’ve heard the old saying were someone gets “stabbed in the back.” And that’s what this energy is all about – not something literal, but a figure of speech. You may be betrayed, deceived, cheated, lied to, or talked unfairly about behind your back – or even boldly to your face! But just know that this ending – whether the ending of a friendship, a job, a relationship, or something else – is actually best for you.
It’s time to pick yourself up, no matter how much something or someone has hurt you . . . and just move on. There is the dawn of new hope that is shown to us in the skies of this card. Tomorrow can be a better day, but you’ve got to work on making that true. Swords is a mental energy, so whatever attitudes you adopt about a difficult situation is going to be important to help you put this ugly energy behind you and just move on.
Yes, it hurts when someone betrays you or proverbially “stabs you in the back.” But such an act tells you a lot about that person – and whether you need to let go of the negativity that someone like this brings into your life. Let the ending take place, and don’t try to hang on to this. Put an ending to something if you find the need to do so. Cut out the conflicts in your life that are simply not necessary. Cut the ties to the situations and people that hurt you or needlessly put you down.
When you feel that you’ve reached the lowest point possible with regard to something, the good news is that the only logical place to go next . . . is up! Keep that thought in mind this week if you feel as if life is breaking you down! Usually the last shoe has indeed dropped when you see this painful card, and once you get through cleaning up the mess of the situation – or healing from the trauma – you can definitely expect a turn for the better.
Something is ending, but whatever this is, it’s something for which the time has come for it to end. You’ve seen the signs, or you will see them through this 10 of Swords’ bitter energy. Let it go now.
You may be going through a serious revision of your ideas and beliefs as you come to understand reality in a different way than you had been. You may be learning the truth of a very bittersweet lesson on something that is now in ruins, but that you had very high hopes for. You may see how you have been making bad choices, possibly based on serious misunderstandings or trusting the wrong people.
You may be confronted with a major shift in plans that you hadn’t anticipated . . . or at least didn’t want to see as a possibility in your line of reasoning earlier on. This energy can force you to confront a bitter loss or disappointment, and it naturally brings stress and unhappiness with it. There can be a lot of anguish when you feel like your world is collapsing around you. Although the endings here also signify a time of starting over, it can still be hard to cope with whatever major adjustment this brings into your life.
Watch your moods, feelings, and attitudes this week. It may be easy for depression to creep up, so try to hang in there until this energy passes and things start looking up again. Something of the past may be lost — a way of life, a job, a relationship, friendship, etc. — but whatever it is, it won’t do any good to try to keep clinging to it. Be willing to release and let go when necessary, because the more you try to hang on, the more it hurts.
Affirmation: Difficult energies clear the way for better tomorrows, and as I let go of this conflict, I look forward to living my life’s purpose more fully.
Many Blessings!
Velvet Angel
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January 25, 2012 | Author Velvet Angel
The Tarot Journey –Turning Challenges into Stepping Stones
Court cards of the Tarot can be fascinating to explore, yet they may feel daunting and confusing for many people as well – especially those who are new to the tarot . . . but even pose a challenge to those who have been working with the Tarot for awhile and just can’t seem to get a grip with the court cards.
It’s time to make friends with the Tarot court cards! Make peace with them!
I’m sure you’ve heard that court cards could represent any of the following:
- Other people
- Yourself or a part of yourself trying to emerge or express itself
- Actual events or situations
- Specific energies in a situation
So the question naturally emerges: “HOW do I know which of the above possibilities a court card is implying in my readings?”
That’s the tricky thing of it all. The Tarot relies on YOUR voice to be expressed. So the court cards aren’t going to jump out and literally say, “Hey, look at me, I represent your boss at work!” Or, “Hey you, I’m a part of yourself that needs to be expressed!” And of course, neither will a card simply even tell us, “I’m just a messenger here to let you know that there is some news you’ll soon learn about.”
We might ask ourselves why we don’t get hung up on all those major arcana cards that show us people in them – such as the Magician, the Empress, Hanged Man, and so many others! So why do we get hung up on seeing people in a court card then?
It may be that subconsciously the concept of “court cards” itself is barring us from the full view. We are getting hung up and stuck on the fact that, “Oh my god, this is a court card, so I just don’t know how to read it – but I fully understand all the other cards that presented people in them, because they are not court cards.”
And yes, court cards have been labeled as “the people cards” in the Tarot. Yet many other cards of the Tarot deck also feature people in them. The Tarot Courts are also considered to be like the “royal family.” Some may view them like daughter (Page), son (Knight), mother (Queen), and father (King).
When it comes to people, we also know that the tarot doesn’t stereotype. So that “daughter” or Page could equally be a male if referencing an actual person. If a King comes up for a woman, it can be expressing her masculine energy side. Conversely, if a Page or a Queen appear for a man, that can be expressing the more feminine or emotional side of that person.
What if the Page of Cups was no longer considered a page and he was simply titled “Messenger of Emotions” or “Learning about Emotions.” What if that Page of Cups was among the Major Arcana – I’m just saying “what if” here . . . of course, the Pages are not among the Majors. They are Minor Arcana cards. But how would your perception then change of the card? Would it still be hard for you to figure out what that card had to say if you weren’t stuck on it actually having to be a person and being from that dreaded court card group?
If you lay out a spread, and court cards come up, ask yourself if you can identify with any of them as being actual people in your life. If you don’t feel that to be the case, maybe you can identify with them as a part of yourself at that given time, or a part of yourself that is wanting to be expressed. It could relate to how YOU feel about something, or what you may be inclined to do, feel, or believe.
And if you still don’t see a court card as another person or a part of yourself, then chances are, that court card simply reveals a particular energy or an event in the overall situation. For example, the Page of Cups can suggest emotional beginnings, a messenger that reveals something related to emotions, or it may show a period of you or someone learning about his/her emotions.
The thing is – court cards don’t have to represent actual people. Certainly they can, of course, but so can the Magician card, among others, represent a person or a part of yourself. A simple pip card like the 8 of Wands might represent a part of you that wants to hurry things along and get a quick result.
The King of Swords can reveal decisiveness and firm control. He’s really got his kingdom in order. Everything is organized, planned, and mapped out to a tee! So that could show something within you that is needed to come forth, or it may ask you to look for someone who is like the King of Swords who can help show you the way on whatever you’re working on. It could mean that your situation or project needs more planning, structure, and control – or that you need to literally get a grip on your life and think more logically and less emotionally. Or it could be assuring you that you do have things in order and you may be preparing to move forth with your ideas.
There are just soooo many ways to look at a court card, and that’s not necessarily good news for a student of tarot who is looking for everything to fit into a black and white mold. Eventually though, if you let your intuition start taking over, you are going to identify what those court cards mean, and they are not going to feel so dreaded every time they come up.
Don’t panic when you see a court card. And definitely don’t cover it up with a different card to avoid it! Decide to greet that card and say, “You know what, it’s time we made a friendship here, don’t you agree?” Your card will definitely agree!
Now since I know you may be feeling a bit disheartened about answers that don’t provide an easy map or step-by-step guide, there are some things you can take into consideration with the court cards to help guide you.
What direction is that court card facing?
Sometimes you can see a story when a court card is facing either another court card or some other card from the Tarot. Or maybe you will see a court card with its back turned to the next card, as if it’s not paying any attention to what’s going on.
Consider this as one example among hundreds of possibilities . . .
In this scenario with the 2 of Cups and the Queen of Cups, it looks like the situation is related to love, partnerships, or feelings and emotions. The Queen is looking in that direction, too! Her heart is urging her toward that association.
But change these two cards around, and what does it look like?
In this scenario, it actually looks like the Queen isn’t especially interested in this union. She’s got her back turned to it and may still be dwelling on a love from the past that could prevent her from moving on. The opportunity for love seems to be there, but will she take it? Will she turn around and really look at the potentials that are there?
Just because two favorable cards turn up in the Tarot together doesn’t necessarily mean that you will act favorably in the situation – or that someone else will do so.
Look at the Queen of Swords and the Queen of Pentacles. They face each other, and it looks as if they could be having a chat. The Swords suit may be well-known for conflict, but it’s also about communication. It looks like the Queen of Swords is inviting the Queen of Pentacles to talk about what’s on her mind. And with that Coin that the Queen of Pentacles holds, it may be money or business that is on her mind. She knows how to be practical and down-to-earth, but maybe she could use some of the Queen of Swords’ advice on how to be firm and establish boundaries in her business efforts.
Or this could even be a situation where the logical Queen of Swords is asking for advice from the Queen of Pentacles. With this Queen’s hand extended, she seems to either be asking for something or inviting someone/something in to her personal space.
And now, look at the Queen of Cups and the Queen of Pentacles
The Queen of Cups has her back turned on the Queen of Pentacles, because the dreamy love-filled Queen of Cups can sometimes be in her own emotional world. The Queen of Pentacles is behind her, perhaps trying to get her attention. If you see something like this in a layout, it may be that someone is trying to get your attention, or you’re trying to get the attention of someone else.
What comes to my mind with the Queen of Pentacles and the Queen of Swords in a back-to-back arrangement like this – especially with the Queen of Swords’ hand extended — is that maybe “one hand doesn’t know what the other is doing.” Obviously these are both positive upright court cards, but maybe it’s asking us to take note of what is going on around us instead of being so much “in our own heads.” We may need to be practical, which might also require more openness and communication with others.
Another consideration is when a court card has its back turned, it could imply (depending on the circumstances being asked about) that something is literally going on “behind one’s back!”
Take a look at this one – which includes a reversed court card:
I can almost feel that the Queen of Pentacles is getting gossiped about behind her back with that nasty Reversed Queen of Swords looking at her like that. Use your imagination, and let things just flow! LOL, remember what the Queen of Swords is when she’s reversed? I’ll give you a hint – it rhymes with witch!
Look at the spread below: Queen of Pentacles – Knight of Cups – The Devil
This Queen of Pentacles is someone who loves her family, her children, her home, and her career. She likes things to be in place and neatly organized. But when it comes to teenaged children, a parent learns (often the hard way) that keeping kids in order and on the up-and-up isn’t as easy as it seems it should be.
This Queen of Pentacles may be a mother who is not aware that her son or daughter is just about to get hooked up into either some kind of addiction, or a bad love relationship. Since this is the Knight of Cups, the spread could imply that it’s a teen love relationship that isn’t going to turn out well in consideration of that Devil card. If there were other cards in the spread that pointed to alcohol or drugs (addiction type cards), then there could also be that problem that the teenager is running into.
But here, the Knight of Cups hasn’t crossed over that stream yet. Even if this represented a teenager who did try drugs with his or her friends or who was otherwise starting to get involved with a negative person, it’s not too late to help that child! The horse hasn’t “crossed over” that stream yet. So this spread would be shouting for awareness to a parent who had concerns about her child or children! Even if you had the best and most well-behaved teenager like the sweet Knight of Cups . . . that doesn’t promise any assurance that the child will not be tempted toward negative and harmful things in life. The message here would be to turn around and pay attention to what your kids are doing – before it’s too late!
Try to identify each court card with someone currently in your life or that you’ve dealt with and known in the past
A helpful thing to do with the court cards is to decide who in your life you feel each one could represent. Of course, none of us are “only” like one individual court card. Men can be like any of the Kings at various times and for different situations, and the same is true for women and Queens. But generally speaking, you might pick up a trait from a court card that is a good description of someone’s typical personality or behavior.
For example, I always associate my 5-year old grandson with the Page of Wands. So when I pull that card, it could represent him, or it could represent the energy of the Page of Wands in general that is a part of a situation. It could represent someone like him if the question isn’t about him or related to him in any way.
When I pull the Reversed Queen of Swords, I know there is some real bitchy energy happening if it’s a person . . . and I have to look to whether it’s someone else, or if I myself have taken on such an attitude and need to work on an “attitude adjustment.” Or it may just be the general situation where one could say that “life is a bitch” at times, and I need to deal with it regardless. The Reversed Queen of Swords might be pointing out for me to beware of a person like this reversed card, or it may be asking me to watch out for that sort of conflicting energy overall – such as through gossip and rumors that I should not participate in if I don’t want it coming back to bite me later.
Go through your court cards and see if you can find a person that you would identify that card with. It can be someone you know from family or friendship circles, or it could even be a famous person. But see if you can connect the court card energy with an actual person – even a story book character or someone from a movie if nothing else. Then, each time you see that card in a reading, you’ll recall the “hint” of that person’s general energy that can help you understand whether the card really is pointing to a person . . . or just those energies. And sometimes those court cards do point to how we might be feeling at the time of a reading, too. A lot depends on the position of the spread it comes up in, and of course, what your intuition is telling you as well.
Seriously, do this exercise, because it can help you! There is no map or guide that lays court cards out on a step-by-step basis for interpretation, so you need to do the work to start getting better acquainted with them. If you choose not to do so, they will continue to elude you and frustrate you.
Time to get your cards out and play!
To practice with court cards, one of the best ways to do it is to play with your cards. Interact with those court cards and make peace with them.
Shuffle up your deck and lay out three cards – or you can just use two if you want to. If no court cards come up, you get a “redo.” Put those cards aside and try for two or three more cards until there is a court card in the mix.
For example, here is what I got in playing with this:
I definitely got a court card on my first try, so I’ll use these cards to simply tell a story without worrying whether I’m right or wrong – just simply playing with my cards and enjoying the process.
So what do I see here? The first card with the 9 of Wands shows us a sense of wariness – someone who is like a warrior that is defending his boundaries. It’s clear that he’s been hurt in the past, and he’s protecting himself now.
Then we have the Ace of Pentacles in the center. I see a path that I could take – a practical path perhaps and one that can lead me to prosperity. That sense of “prosperity” doesn’t have to be about money. It could equally relate to something emotional like the Knight of Cups suggests.
So here the Knight of Cups seems to be moving forward, despite past hurts in a relationship. He’s decided to take that path, even though there are mountains in the distance of the Ace of Pentacles to suggest that everything won’t necessarily come easy. You have to work at it. And if this is a relationship situation, relationships require work, too. Sometimes you have to let go of past hurts so that you don’t rob yourself of new opportunities being presented!
In this case, that Knight of Cups could be you moving into a new relationship. Or it could be you moving into a new, practical job situation. There is something “new” in this situation, even though it’s a matter for which you’ve previously felt quite guarded about. Now you are ready to open up your heart and accept the opportunity that’s there for you.
If such a description didn’t apply to you – say that you were not changing jobs and you are already happily married, then the Knight of Cups court card here could be your children . . . and if not, maybe there is something new on the way for you anyway. And that “new element” could relate to something that makes you a little wary or has hurt you in the past.
It could be something that asks you to let down your guard a little bit and re-evaluate your boundaries so that you don’t miss a good thing when it comes up for your attention. It could even suggest the rekindling of a difficult relationship if you’re partnered but things have been hard lately.
You see, there are many ways you can play with this . . . and the more you play with the court cards and see how they interact with each other and with the other cards in the tarot, the more you will see – and the more you’ll build your intuitive process. The more you will start to trust what you see . . . even when the court cards come calling!
Maybe you might prefer to just work with card pairs at first to keep things simple. So here’s an example of two cards – with one of them being a court card. I drew until I got a pair that included a court card, and here’s what I got:
The Queen of Cups and the 10 of Wands. What do you suppose that could imply? Perhaps the emotional Queen is not wanting to look at a burden in her life. Or perhaps someone is shouldering most of the burden for her, and he could actually use some help from her. Maybe she simply doesn’t want to face what she has to do, because it would be such an emotional conflict for her to do so.
If we paired keywords here we could look at this as an “emotional burden.” This Queen may have to get out of her sweet, dreamy state and do some work on the situation at hand.
We’ve also looked at how this Queen can be turning her back. Maybe she is turning her back on something that looks difficult to do. Or maybe she is so delighted by something that she isn’t actually seeing the work that it’s going to take to reach her desired goal.
These are some of the ways you could look at this pair of cards that includes the Queen of Cups court card.
So play around with your cards, using two and three cards at a time where at least one of those cards will be a court card and see what you come up with. Let this be fun so that you don’t have to keep getting that dreaded feeling inside each time you see a court card appear. Through time, you can learn to welcome the cards from this royal family of the Tarot
In the next post, I’ll talk about putting the cards together to tell a story.
Happy Tarot Journeys
Velvet Angel
Do you have a dilemma with tarot that’s got you perplexed? Are you facing a particular challenge with Tarot? Please share, and your topic may be covered in a future blog post in this Tarot Journey series.
January 23, 2012 | Author Velvet Angel
Each week, I pull a card from a random Tarot deck to bring us a message or piece of wisdom that we can think about or use in our lives on some level – if not now, we can refer back to it when it seems to be more fitting for us. This is food for thought, and not drawn for any one particular person or situation.
For this week’s message, I have drawn from the intriguing Mystic Dreamers Tarot deck by Heidi Darras and accompanying Dreamer’s Journal Guidebook by Barbara Moore. Deck published in 2008 by Llewellyn.
This Week’s Wisdom Message . . .
Reversed Lovers
Making choices this week might not be so easy. In fact, you may want to think about things before rushing into something too hastily. You may find yourself being of “two minds” about an issue that you want to resolve but can’t seem to manage. Or perhaps you’re searching for a particular solution that just doesn’t exist. There is a strong sense of opposition with the Reversed Lovers. Things are not unified or solid when this card appears to us in its reversed state. Things may feel out of balance, and it may relate to something fairly significant in your life – whether in matters of love, work, money, health, or some other issue that you’re caught up in.
As we look into this card from the Mystic Dreamers Tarot, we can get a sense of two people being back-to-back in disagreement. Upright, they seem to be in an embrace while still holding to their own individuality. So be aware that this reversed energy can suggest arguments, confrontation, or feeling dead-locked with someone in a situation. Perhaps you feel like something should be going one way, but a partner or another person feels like it should be going the other way.
Making the best choices under this reversed energy can be especially difficult. Emotions, external influences, and even potential disagreements with others around you can create additional stress and uncertainty. Your head may be telling you one thing, while your heart is saying something else. You could feel pressured into making a decision that you know your heart simply cannot support. Or you may find yourself paralyzed into complete indecision. Either way, this reversed energy can leave you feeling confused, divided, and unfocused about the situations and the choices in front of you.
If you find your emotions to be erratic or all over the place, your better judgment is blurred during that time. Work on stabilizing your emotions so that you can make calm decisions. And do be sure to look at a situation for what it really is . . . not how you wish it could be. If you work from the perspective of illusion, you can almost guarantee that you’re setting yourself up to make a choice that isn’t right for you.
This card in reverse would ask us to take responsibility for the choices we have made – even the ones which we can now see weren’t good for us, for whatever reasons. It won’t do any good to try to place blame on anyone else for what you’ve ultimately decided or chosen. But what you can do now is to learn from mistakes and move on. You’ll be wiser than you were before, so use that knowledge and inner wisdom to your advantage.
Temptations can also be quite strong with the Reversed Lovers – whether in matters of relationship choices or money issues – or other things as well! Make sure that you aren’t making a decision in haste. For now, it’s better to wait out this time of confusion and uncertainty. Don’t make any moves until you are truly calm about what you are facing and what your options are all about.
Here’s wishing you a week of making positive, healthy, and happy choices – or allowing yourself to just sit it out and wait until you are calm enough to decide
Many Blessings!
Velvet Angel
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The Mystic Dreamer Tarot is available at Amazon.com!
Questions, comments, thoughts, ideas? Feel free to comment or share below!
January 20, 2012 | Author Velvet Angel
The Tarot Journey –Turning Challenges into Stepping Stones
Today’s topic is about Tarot reversals! Most people know that using reversals for tarot readings is an optional choice. You can use them, or you can choose not to use them. It’s as simple – and as complex – as that.
The reason I note “complex” is because a reader can literally have a huge debate with herself/himself about whether to use reversals or not. They are very aware of it being a “personal choice,” but they might question whether adding the option of reversals truly has value or not.
That’s the key – do you feel that using reversals adds depth to your tarot readings? Or do you feel that they are merely an annoyance you would just as soon skip?
Use reversals for the right reasons.
Don’t use them just because your favorite readers are doing so. Don’t use them because you feel you have to.
In the same token, don’t avoid reversals for the wrong reasons either. Don’t avoid them as a means of taking the “lazy” way out even if you think there might just be “something” to them. But only YOU can decide if reversals truly add anything to a reading or not.
Let me give you an example of the conflict I went through in my early days of reading the cards that told me I needed to be using reversals.
I read online and in books that reversals weren’t necessary. I found that opinion from several sources that made me question the use of reversals even more. In the beginning of my tarot journey, I was just coming to terms with the upright meanings, and I decided, “Hey, if I don’t need to learn about reversals, then why bother?”
After a week of doing readings without allowing for reversals, I felt frustrated with my readings. Something was missing, and it wasn’t just the fact that I was still fairly new to this craft at the time.
Alas, it was the opportunity for reversals to come up that was missing, and my heart and soul told me that I personally was going to be a reader that needed to use reversals.
It didn’t matter what others were doing or not doing. I was literally having trouble connecting to my cards and readings because I suddenly wasn’t allowing for the possibility of any reversed cards to appear. It was as if I was somehow “blocking” all the possibilities and potentials that could enter the picture. I was only letting “some” of it in.
So I started allowing reversals into my readings again. And I quickly felt “complete” and more content with the information I gleaned from the cards, even if a reversal didn’t come up in all of the readings. I felt like I was connecting more fully to the Tarot. And I knew I needed to listen to my feelings about that. My trial of not using reversals was the experience I needed to show me the way – the way that was right for me individually.
I don’t shuffle the tarot pack in a way where half or over half of the cards will end up being reversed. That was yet another element that I had to decide on as to the best way to handle – a way that would feel right to me personally.
When I turn cards over in a shuffle to make way for reversals, no more than 1/8 to 1/4 of the cards get turned. So generally, there will only be about 10 to 15 cards that can end up reversed in the final deal. That feels right for me. And let me tell you, if those reversals are meant to come up, you’ll see them in the layout!
Yet, a reversal won’t always appear, and I’m fine with that – because I know that I at least allowed the possibility to come through if the Tarot needed to show me something from a different angle. And I feel that the right cards will reverse when I’m turning about an eighth or so of the deck upside down to shuffle into the mix. I no longer worry about whether the right cards will be reversed or not. I have found my own personal system that clicks with me and that I can relate to.
So that is what I struggled with in my beginning experiences – and something perhaps you might struggle with, too, if you find yourself questioning the value of reversed tarot cards.
I felt like something was missing!
If the Sun card came up as an outcome, it made me wonder – what if that card had been reversed? The sunshine might be there sooner or later . . . but if the card was meant to be reversed, I would have expected a delay before the clouds went away.
If the 5 of Pentacles came up, and I was feeling like I had been through that kind of experience already, but things were easing up, it made me wonder if that card really wanted to show up reversed to indicate that problems were being solved and that I was actually getting out from under a hardship. Or did the upright card mean that I could expect things to continue being difficult – or even get worse?
This was all in the days of self-readings and lots of practice – BEFORE I defined my own style and techniques to take out into the world of reading for other people. But I had to find my own style. I learned that I couldn’t just imitate others were doing, because it might not feel right for me personally.
So the question for you, if you’re struggling with the dilemma of using reversals or not using them, is to ask yourself, “What feels good to me when it comes to reversals and using them or not using them?”
Don’t base your choice on what most others are doing or not doing . . . base it what you feel gives you a complete picture from the cards. If you feel satisfied and that nothing is missing by using upright cards only, then that may be right for you to do it that way.
For me, I find a lot of depth by using reversals. I am alerted to blockages or potential problems that can surround even a positive kind of situation. Because keep in mind that reversals do not always signify something “negative.” Consider the 5’s of the Tarot as an example. Upright, we know that those energies are about hardship, struggle, and conflict in some way. But if a 5 appears reversed, the Tarot could be showing us that perhaps some things are not as bad as we think, or that we are actually nearing the end of such a struggle.
If a favorable card appears reversed, that’s obviously not as fun to see as if the card were upright. If we get the Wheel of Fortune in reverse, well of course we’d rather see that card upright. But a reversal doesn’t always necessarily imply an “opposite” meaning, unless that’s the way you’ve chosen to look at reversals.
One might see the upright Wheel of Fortune as being good luck, and see “bad luck” in the reversal. But what I see with this reversal is that one may be on the “down side” of things in the moment, but this card speaks of cycles whether upright or reversed. And seeing the reversal would show me a downside of a cycle that I needed to work through in order get back on track to the more fortunate side of things.
If my question relates to whether I should go forward on something or not, and the Reversed Wheel of Fortune came up in response, I would see the need to hold back for the time being. Maybe I could go for it later, but now would not feel the right time to do so.
Reversed cards in a reading show us something that isn’t straightforward. Upright cards are naturally more straightforward in their meanings . . . but when reversed, something else may be going on that we should pay attention to.
If I just used upright cards only, and the outcome presented the Wheel of Fortune, I might expect things to be easier than they might actually turn out to be – because maybe – just maybe – that outcome card really wanted to appear reversed to show me a delay of sorts. The Tarot might be wanting to tell me that, yes, favorable things are still possible to attain, but I’ve got some things to work on first that might not be so enjoyable. In such a case, I would likely have to work through some issues in order to help myself create a luckier sort of situation.
Now some people consider that if you get a reversed card, you should just pay extra attention to that card and then turn it right side up again. But we’ve also been told that when Major Arcana cards appear, we need to give those cards extra weight and really pay attention to those cards.
That leads me to the opinion that ALL the cards in the reading are important. They all come up for a reason. And while the interpretation of one card might be simple, brief, but straightforward, another card may have a little more to say – yet it doesn’t mean that some cards are not important in the spread.
Yes, some of the cards may really stand out or be “in your face” to get your attention. And you know you’d better carefully explore the messages offered from Tarot in such cases. But reversed cards tend to get kind of a bad rap that they really don’t deserve. And because of that, some readers will simply not use them. But the question is, are they avoiding reversals for the right reasons? Does not using reversed cards really feel like it brings them the full picture?
This is why you will hear so often that using reversals is a personal choice – because it really is! It’s a matter of whether you find any value in them or not. Some people really don’t, and they are content without allowing for reversed cards to enter the picture. If you feel that way, and you don’t find yourself sitting on the fence about the choice for not using reversals . . . then you’ve found the style that works for you.
But if you happen to be like I was – and you feel like something is “missing” from your readings, maybe you need to be allowing for reversals to feel like you are also allowing for the full picture to appear. If you have to second guess yourself as to whether any of the cards in a reading “might” have come up reversed if you had let them . . . then that’s probably a sign that’s indicating you are one who needs to use reversed cards.
The value for me personally in using reversed cards is that it’s what I am comfortable with. I feel like I am leaving no stones unturned when I allow for reversals to appear – even if none show up in a particular layout.
I could go on and on about what makes a reversed card “valuable,” but if it’s not something you deem to be important, then it’s not going to be valuable to you personally. And that’s okay. Each reader should define his or her own style of reading the cards – from how you shuffle, to how you cut the cards, and to whether you use reversed cards or not, etc., etc.
As long as you are doing what feels “right” and comfortable to you personally . . . then you’re on the right track, whether everyone else is doing it the way you do or not.
I can’t sit here and tell you that, “Oh my, you absolutely need to use reversals, because that’s how I do it.” That would be silly! Maybe reversals aren’t right for you personally. But for some of you, it may be just what you need to get that “complete” feeling of connection with your tarot cards. You don’t have to let half the deck be reversed. Even if you just let a few of them have the chance to come up reversed, they will always be the “right” cards, and they will appear only if the Tarot wants them to come up as a part of the message being delivered.
Thus, it really comes down to personal choice in terms of what works for you and what feels right to you individually. As readers, we don’t just say it’s a personal choice to be saying that. There’s a reason behind that statement, as discussed in this post.
In the next post, I’ll talk about court cards. Those seem to be the cards to stump new readers more than any other cards in the Tarot. How do you know if they represent a person, an energy, a situation, or a part of yourself? Tune in next week, and we’ll explore.
Happy Tarot Journeys!
Velvet Angel
What about you? Do you find tarot reversals to be helpful in your reading experiences? Or are you okay without using them? What method feels right to you personally?
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January 18, 2012 | Author Velvet Angel
This feature on the blog is designed to address questions that relate to specific challenges that a reader may be struggling with – whether it’s a new reader who is trying to put it all together and figure things out, one who has been reading the cards for awhile but still feels like he or she is meeting up with some bumps in their execution of interpreting a reading, or for those who are creating a tarot practice to do readings in the course of business.
This is even for non-readers who may have some issue they are struggling with in regard to getting a reading or even thinking about learning to read the cards. If you find yourself stuck on something with the Tarot, let’s work on this together and see if we can find some clarity for you.
What are your biggest challenges or “pain points” in reading the cards or with Tarot in general? What do you feel holds you back? Or what is it that you seem to struggle with or simply can’t reconcile in your tarot journey? This is for both readers and non-readers alike, but may be of special interest to those who read the cards or for those who are trying to learn this vast subject that is filled with so much wisdom and empowerment.
Keep in mind that none of us will ever “know it all.” We are all going to be perpetual students in the amazing subject of Tarot. But the more we learn and practice, the more enjoyable this experience continues to be.
Today’s topic starts with some Tarot basics!
The best place to start . . . is at the beginning. And no, I don’t mean we’ll grab the Fool card off the top of a new deck and begin studying. We’re going to talk today about some very basic knowledge that can help you with ALL the cards of the Tarot – some simple things, perhaps often overlooked or considered not to be very important.
Even if you are an experienced tarot reader, it’s helpful to take a step back from time to time and return to a “beginner’s mindset.” Plus – it’s fun to do! It also simplifies things when you find a tendency to make something more complex than it actually has to be.
There are many ways to look at a card to help you decide what it means:
Here are some of the ways to help you understand a card’s meaning . . .
- The imagery of the card itself (This is one of the most important ways to understand a card’s meaning!)
- Symbolism used in a card
- The number of the card
- The suit and element of a card
In terms of the imagery, think about how the card makes you feel. Do you sense happiness, sorrow, stagnation, movement, loss, gain, etc.? What is happening in the card? What kinds of symbols are contained in the card? (Symbolism in Tarot is a whole topic in itself, but it’s helpful to learn about it, as symbols can also provide important clues to a card’s meaning.)
So let’s take a look at what the numbers and court cards mean in general for all the Tarot Suits – Cups, Wands, Pentacles, and Swords. I’ll follow that up with some basic information about the suits themselves – and the elements to keep in mind. We’ll explore a few examples, and from there, you can explore the cards, too – even if you are already a seasoned reader! I’ve been reading the cards since early 1999, but I still find these exercises fun and refreshing to do.
I recommend that you create a list of your own, as you might not agree with all of my keywords and associations – or you may have some that you would add to your list that I’ve not mentioned here. A fun way to determine your keywords for the numbers is to lay out all the cards of that number – for example, lay out all of the Aces to get a general feeling for what the number one implies to your way of interpretation.
If you are unsure of what the numbers mean in Tarot, or you’re new to Tarot and don’t really know where to start with this . . . here is my list that you can use to get you going:
The Numbers of the Tarot
Aces: new beginnings; fresh start; gift; opportunity; potential; solo; focus; a seed that has potential to grow and prosper
Two’s: choice; duality; balance; bringing together opposites; polarity
Three’s: creativity; growth; teamwork; building; expansion; discussion; evaluation
Four’s: stability; structure; foundations; creation; order; routine; duties; organization; solidarity; stagnation
Five’s: conflict; struggle; hardship; loss; chaos; instability; challenges; rebelling; midpoint of a journey
Six’s: collaboration; cooperation; sharing; communication; problem solving; love; beauty; chance; reconciliation; reflection; inner work
Seven’s: reflection; assessment; imagination; inner thoughts; challenge; choice, strategy
Eight’s: movement; speed; power; strength; effort; physical work
Nine’s: nearing completion; solitude; fullness; wisdom gained from the journey; loss or fulfillment
Tens: end of a cycle; something is finished; ready to move on; staleness; exhaustion; need for revitalization
Pages: enthusiastic beginner; inexperienced but eager; students; newbies, rookies; least mature of the Tarot court cards; can represent a child or the young-at-heart
Knights: messages; movement; ambition; confidence but not yet knowing one’s limitations; courageous; bold; action that is usually taken to one extreme or another; can represent a teen or young adult
Queens: mothers or mother figures; reflection; introspection; collaboration; organization; nurturing; support
Kings: fathers or father figures; responsibility; power; control; authority; leadership
Another consideration is that numbers 1 through 4 can indicate something in the earlier stages of a situation, 5 through 7 can suggest the midpoint (with a 5 being noted especially for the midpoint of a journey), and numbers 8 through 10 show us that something may be closer to the ending. This additional consideration may not always apply for every card in every situation, but it’s something to keep in mind. The little things sometimes help you find more meanings in a card that are fitting for your situation being asked about in the Tarot.
Tarot Suits
Cups: reflection; emotion; feelings, intuition; creativity; love; nurturing; psychic ability
Wands: passion; enterprise; energy; desire; intention; fast moving energy
Swords: communication; thoughts; logic; intellect; worry; conflict
Pentacles: groundedness; practicality; money; finances; material resources; business, resources, health, slower moving energy
The Elements
Water = Cups
Fire = Wands
Earth = Pentacles
Air =Swords
So now that we’ve explored the above, how can this knowledge help?
Let’s use an example with the 7 of Pentacles. This is a card that varies somewhat in interpretation from one reader to another. If you were uncertain of what this card meant, or if this card came up in a reading that caused you to feel stumped, you could turn to the numbers and suit meanings to help sort it out.
First though, look at the card and consider what kind of feeling or sensation you get from the imagery. We see a man who is leaning on his spade and looking at his bush of Pentacles. But does he seem happy? Not especially so. We are shown 7 Pentacles on the bush with some greenery, but also with some brown decay, too.
Now let’s consider what the sevens in Tarot mean. From the list above, we might pick out reflection, assessment, and inner thoughts. It looks like this man is pausing and reflecting. He seems to be assessing his situation and the work that’s been done to determine if he is pleased with the results. Did he perhaps expect more from the harvest than what he’s actually gained so far?
The suit of Pentacles talks about practical issues, resources, and groundedness. And we know that this suit represents a slower-moving energy.
Now . . . how would you put the number 7 and the Pentacles together?
We might say that this man is assessing his situation, but something is taking more time and work than expected. And so he’s probably not thrilled about the results. He seems to be reflecting on his expectations versus what is actually there.
And there you have it – the basic meaning of the 7 of Pentacles! You can certainly go deeper in interpretation, especially with additional cards in a reading, but this gets you started to take a look at a card individually. Before you can put cards together to tell the story of the reading, you need to understand what each one means.
Let’s turn to another 7 in the Tarot, and see what we could glean by exploring the number and the suit meanings. Let’s consider the 7 of Swords.
Again, first consider what you gather just from the imagery itself, because that by itself can tell you a lot!
It looks like this man is tiptoeing away with his prize of swords. We can easily get a “sneaky” feeling from this card. Is he taking something that belongs to someone else? He certainly seems to be looking over his shoulder to make sure no one is watching him.
The number 7, as we saw above, can signify reflection, assessment, imagination, inner thoughts, and inner wisdom. It can also signify challenge, choice, or strategy. For this image, I would pick out assessment and strategy as the two main highlights for this 7. It appears that he’s looking around and assessing things to see what he can get away with. And he’s strategically being quiet as he makes his exit on tiptoes.
The Swords suit speaks of communication, thoughts, logic, intellect, worry, or conflict.
How could we put together the number 7 and the swords suit for this card?
We might say that this man is strategically sneaking away with something. The camp behind him seems quiet, so he’s assessed the situation with logic, and he’s determined at what time he can sneak away with those swords unnoticed. After assessing the situation, he decided on the best time to make his get-away – with the prize in hand. So this might be something that was thought about and planned rather than being a spontaneous act of thievery. And certainly, when the people in the camp awaken, there is bound to be conflict and upset when they discover what’s missing! So this is one of those cards that can make you uneasy, because of its sneaky and deceptive nature.
But what if we want to evaluate a card from the Major Arcana? How can we do that?
You can still apply the principles of the numbers to the Major cards, too! But here is where a little knowledge of the elements can be of help, too. I mentioned the four elements earlier: Water, Fire, Earth, and Air. These elements also relate to the corresponding Tarot suits of Wands, Cups, Pentacles, and Swords respectively.
Each of the Major Arcana is assigned to a particular element which can be helpful to keep in mind. You don’t have to memorize these – simply use the cheat sheet I’ve created below when you want to check for the element of a particular major arcana card. Through time, you’ll start to remember them.
Even though we don’t have particular suits with the Major Arcana – since these 22 cards of the Tarot are like a suit of their own — each of these cards will still relate to one of the elements, just like each of the tarot suits do.
So let’s take a look at the mysterious Moon card! If you are a beginner – or if you are going back to a beginner’s mind — the first thing to do would be to consider what you feel about the card’s imagery. We see a wolf on one side of a path, and a dog on the other side. A crayfish is emerging from the water at the forefront of the card. The Moon almost looks like the sun, and there is a face in that yellow moon that looks contemplative, but not especially happy.
The Moon is numbered 18 of the Tarot, so how do we find a number to correspond to that? We reduce 18 to the number 9 with some simple math: 1 + 8 = 9. The number 9 speaks of solitude, loss or fulfillment, nearing completion, and wisdom gained from the journey.
Hmmm, that might not tell you a lot in itself. Let’s also turn to the element that is associated with the Moon card which is Water. Water relates to the emotional energy that is found in the suit of Cups. Water is about feelings, emotions, intuition, and even psychic ability – all very fitting associations with the Moon card.
So in the Moon card, we might put this together by saying that there is a solitary feeling in this card. Emotions seem to be important here, too. There does seem to be a journey of sorts with that long path in the imagery of the card as well.
Studying symbols can also be of help, but we won’t get into that right now. However, what we can ascertain from the card’s imagery is that there are two gray pillars featured in this card which can suggest duality. You’ll find similar pillars in the card of the High Priestess, the Hierophant, and Justice. So this tells us that there is some aspect of duality happening here, even though this card is not associated with the number two.
Because of this card being associated to the Water element and to the number 9, we can determine that this card may speak of emotional duality which would lead us to the idea of “moodiness” – very applicable for the Moon card. We may feel a push and pull on our emotions. There is a path in front of us, but we might not feel too certain about it. Additionally, this card features a night time scene, and we know that things are harder to really see in the dark in comparison to what is enhanced by the daylight.
One side of the path presents a domestic dog to represent the tamer or calmer side of our natures, while the wolf on the other side of the path can represent one’s wilder instincts or those “out of control” emotions. It can represent the shadow side that every person has.
Let’s look at one more example in a court card, and then I’ll let you explore on your own. Remember that, for today, we are merely looking at some basics that are often overlooked or forgotten in one’s tarot journey. If you put these ideas together, it can help you with the card meanings. It can help you enhance and create meanings of your own for the cards, or to just understand them better.
The court cards are often the hardest for new readers to grasp. We’ll talk more about them in a future blog post, but for now, let’s just focus on applying the numbers, suits, and elemental qualities. Let’s zero in on the Queen of Pentacles.
We know that Queens of the Tarot can be motherly, nurturing, organized, supportive, and reflective. They may bring things together. They can be introspective. The suit of Pentacles is a grounded energy that can relate to money, finances, material resources, or business matters.
The tricky part with court cards is that they can represent actual people in our lives, a part of ourselves, or the energy involved in a situation. They can represent events just as any other card in the tarot can do. You have to decide if you feel it relates to you or another person, or if instead you don’t feel it’s an actual person and may relate to an event or the energy involved with a specific situation.
In this example, the Queen of Pentacles could portray someone who is helping you be more practical and grounded. This person may be nurturing and supportive. It could be an aspect of you and how you are taking care of others. But if this card came up, and you didn’t feel that it was a person, you might see this card as relating to material matters and perhaps ways that you are supporting yourself. This is a grounded energy.
Court cards can feel complicated, and it can be a whole topic by itself, just as symbolism can. There have been books written on just the court cards!
The point of this post is to help you explore your cards from the mindset of a beginner. The numbers, the suits, and the elements all have importance for each card. After we’ve read the cards for awhile, the meanings will come naturally. But for those who are just starting or who may be struggling, remember that these basic points provided in this post can help you sort through confusion about a card and at least gain a basic understanding. When you at least touch base with the simpler side of things, it will then help you grow into deeper meanings and interpretation.
In the next post, I’ll talk about card reversals to answer the question I received about whether it’s important to use them, even though it’s a personal choice to allow for reversals in a reading or not. What is the value of reversed cards, or does it even matter? We’ll discuss that next time.
Happy Tarot Journeys!
Velvet Angel
Do you have a dilemma with Tarot that’s got you perplexed? Are you facing a particular challenge with Tarot? Please share, and your topic may be covered in a future blog post in this Tarot Journey series.
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January 17, 2012 | Author Velvet Angel
This week’s question is from Marie: “I have a question regarding my job situation. I work as a “temp teacher” at a school, I love this job and I know that I am very well liked and they call me as soon as they need a temp. But it’s hard to get the hours I need every month because I just work 50%. Can you see what this spring looks like job wise for me? Do you see me continuing here or is something new on the horizon?”
Cards Drawn: The Chariot – 4 of Swords – Reversed Queen of Cups
At this time, your best opportunities seem to arise from the school you currently work with, Marie. The Chariot suggests stability here, even though it’s only a part-time or 50% arrangement. The problem I see in trying to find something else is that the 4 of Swords shows us how things are currently at rest in the situation. There is no sense of movement here that would bring on a job change over the spring. But chances are, your best opportunity, when it does finally emerge, may be at the beginning of a new school term rather than in mid-semester or mid-year. But I’m not seeing that desired change come up as soon as you want.
The Reversed Queen of Cups suggests that you may naturally be disappointed with the situation as it stands now, but one of the important factors is in liking the school you work with. And while this trio of cards isn’t giving us a picture beyond the spring season as you asked about, the solidity of the Chariot’s energy suggests to me that later on, a possibility could arise with your current school.
That is, of course, subject to change, since we are looking beyond the time frame of this reading, and there are your own choices to factor into the situation. But for now, I see things to be unmoving as you ponder your possibilities. It looks like you will be more apt to continue with your current school than to make a change – and possibly wait it out until this present school might have a full-time teaching opportunity for you at a later time.
The Chariot offers a sense of security where you are, so as long as you can make ends meet as a “temp,” it seems that your best course may be to wait things out until something opens up with this school that you’re already happy with. Trying to force a change in an undesired direction isn’t likely to fulfill you, as the Reversed Queen of Cups suggests. It seems you may have to ride this out until something does change in the situation that would be to your advantage for a permanent, full-time work arrangement.
Best Wishes and Many Blessings!
Velvet
http://www.tarotwisdomreadings.com
On the first and third Tuesday of each month, I will do a Quick Insight Tarot Reading to address one question sent in by the readers of my blog. If you would like to see your question featured here on “Tarot Tuesday,” please send your question and date of birth to velvetangel@tarotwisdomreadings.com with Tarot Tuesday in the subject line. You are free to use an alias name of your choice if you wish not to use your real name for this post. Date of birth is actually optional, but I use the numerical value of your birth date, if provided, to show me where to cut the cards after shuffling (even though I will not post your date of birth).
I do not address follow-up questions for free readings. Thank you for your understanding of my time limitations.
Please keep in mind that I cannot guarantee inclusion of your question, as I’ll be pulling just one for each Tarot Tuesday week, but if your submission is not pulled, you are welcome to send your question again (or send a new question) for another chance in the following week.
Have a question you want to ask the Tarot, but can’t wait for your entry to get pulled for a Tarot Tuesday?
You can order your own personal Mini Reading (or another reading package of your choice) from Tarot Wisdom Readings:
January 15, 2012 | Author Velvet Angel
Each week, I pull a card from a random Tarot deck to bring us a message or piece of wisdom that we can think about or use in our lives on some level – if not now, we can refer back to it when it seems to be more fitting for us. This is food for thought, and not drawn for any one particular person or situation.
For this week’s message, I have drawn from the beautiful Crystal Visions Tarot deck by Jennifer Galasso.
This Week’s Wisdom Message . . .
The Hanged Man
The Hanged Man represents a time of pausing, waiting, seeing things in a new light, and even making sacrifices. It’s about having patience and waiting to see what develops. During this time, you may feel like you’re in “limbo” as you try to understand things in a larger context. Decisions may be suspended for a time while you let things unfold without interference . . . but sometimes it’s necessary to not try to push for answers or force an issue. By trying to force changes, you can pretty much ensure that they will never happen — at least not successfully or with the results you intended.
Relax and let things happen instead of trying to make them happen. Instead of fighting against the current, let it take you with the flow for a smoother transition.
Even if you feel “stuck” about something this week, the energy within this card involves making sacrifices so that you can get “unstuck.” It involves changing directions or perspectives. Sometimes this means that you have to just let go of something. Either you have to release control over something or someone, or you have to let go of old beliefs and habits that have limited you or that have even sabotaged your best efforts.
The Hanged Man shows a willingness to release what is familiar in order to attain something new and better. In doing so, you are at an important turning point and time of transition where you’re ready to grow. In the meantime, you may need to wait for clear directions so that you don’t try to rush anything before it’s time . . . or so that you don’t interfere with something that needs to be handled by someone else.
A very important lesson which the Hanged Man teaches us is that we “control” by letting go . . . and we “win” by surrendering. The best approach to a problem is not always the most obvious. Sometimes we have to look at a situation from a whole new perspective and see things in a new light. When we most want to force something to happen or make someone do what we want, that is when we should step back, release, and let go. When we most want to have our own way, that is when we should sacrifice. When we most want to act on something, that is when we should wait. The irony is that by making these moves which are contradictory to what we think we want . . . we end up finding what we really need or what we’re looking for.
Your willing sacrifices now will bring to you something better later on . . . so hang in there . . . and look at your situations from a new perspective. Put off the big decisions for now. Wait until the picture is clearer and you have the enlightenment to proceed. Empower yourself with a brand new outlook!
Affirmation: As I look at things from a new perspective this week, a whole new level of enlightenment and understanding is found.
Many Blessings!
Velvet Angel
- Website: www.tarotwisdomreadings.com
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/tarotwisdomreadings
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/tarotbyvelvet
The Crystal Visions Tarot is available at Amazon.com!
Questions, comments, thoughts, ideas? Feel free to comment or share below!
January 9, 2012 | Author Velvet Angel
Each week, I pull a card from a random Tarot deck to bring us a message or piece of wisdom that we can think about or use in our lives on some level – if not now, we can refer back to it when it seems to be more fitting for us. This is food for thought, and not drawn for any one particular person or situation.
For this week’s message, I have drawn from the Tarot of the Celtic Fairies deck by Mark McElroy and Eldar Minibaev. Deck published in 2010 by Lo Scarabeo.
This Week’s Wisdom Message . . .
Two of Spears (Wands)
The keywords of this card are “Options” and “Decisions.” Traditionally, we see this card as one in which we are in a time of waiting or pausing as we ponder what our next action will be. And during this time, there are some options to explore and some decisions to make. Two is number of choice, duality, balance, and debate. So this week, you may need to make a decision that will influence what you’ll do next . . . and ultimately where this choice will lead you.
In this card, we see a fairy customer who is seeking the woodworker for a spear. Two expertly crafted spears are presented to this fairy, and either one would be a good choice. On page 102 of the guidebook, it tells us, “We tend to prolong this moment – the debate prior to the decision – despite the fact that, on some level, the decision has already been made.” This is the part of us that always wants to make the “best” choice possible. We don’t want to make a choice, only to decide a couple of days later, that we wished we had opted for the other choice that was available to us. That is human nature to deliberate on choices – even if they happen to be equally good choices in front of us.
In your gut instinct though, you may have already formed a decision about something. But now you have to decide for sure if that’s the direction you will actually take. This can be a time of pondering as you contemplate the alternatives available to you. This card indicates that it’s time to make a choice. Once you decide, you can take the action that will allow your ships to come in. But until you make a decision about something this week, things probably won’t be moving much, if at all.
Think about what is best for you and others when making a choice. Consider what it is that you really want among the options available. And consider WHY you want it – as the “why” element can help move you to the right decision. Once you finally make a choice, you’ll end the agony of decision-making. It’s great to have choices, but it’s not always easy to make a particular choice when multiple options are possible. You may have a debate within yourself as to the pros and cons of each choice, but that’s okay – it’s a part of helping you narrow down what you really want and need. And once the decision is made, you can find balance again. That choice may be the missing element for you right now, and it’s needed in order that you can make progress or accomplish a bigger goal.
What choices are you facing this week? What choices are necessary in order to get things moving once again? And which things, among your available choices, will help you move closer to your own ships coming in with the reward you seek? Listen to your gut instinct, because the voice of intuition is not reserved only for the water element cards. When it comes to choices, sometimes we need to rely on our intuition to determine what is really best for us above all other possibilities that are trying to get our attention.
Affirmation: Through the choices I make, I influence the direction of my life.
Many Blessings!
Velvet Angel
- Website: www.tarotwisdomreadings.com
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/tarotwisdomreadings
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/tarotbyvelvet
The Tarot of the Celtic Fairies Kit is available at Amazon.com!
Questions, comments, thoughts, ideas? Feel free to comment or share below!
January 3, 2012 | Author Velvet Angel
This week’s question is from Kim: “Dear Velvet Angel, I would like to know if the tarot suggests that I will meet Mr. Right in 2012. I have been lonely for many years. I have trust issues with men. I was in an abusive marriage for over 15 yrs. Thank you for considering my question for Tarot Tuesday.”
Cards Drawn: King of Swords – Reversed 7 of Pentacles – 7 of Wands
I have pulled the cards in a Past/Present/Future layout. The King of Swords for the past suggests that there was not a lot of romantic emotion in your 15-year marriage. And with this particular King, when he’s turned upside down, he can certainly display abuse (even though he’s displaying himself upright here). You have been with someone who was quite dominating and overpowering. Going through something like that for so many years can really leave a mark on you, and it can make you fearful about meeting new people. But in the same token, just make sure that you don’t find yourself attracted and drawn to this same kind of personality in the future.
What I am gathering from the cards at this time, Kim, is that you need to do some important work on yourself – such as working through the past traumas and the current fears you are left with. Living with someone like the King of Swords, when your own gentler personality is so different, can play a huge role in demeaning your own self-worth and confidence. So I think it’s important that you work on yourself in order to truly be “relationship ready” without having to carry that baggage of the past with you into a new relationship. That “baggage” can hold fears that might not be fully resolved for you. You might consider utilizing some self-help techniques, or if you prefer, you might want to even talk to a counselor to ensure that you get these things worked out in a healthy way. And also, if you’re not yet divorced from this man, that’s going to be a VERY important step to completely break free and gain closure on this difficult chapter of your life.
The Reversed 7 of Pentacles shows us that your efforts in trying to find or attract a new relationship may be a bit scattered and uncertain. And if you are going into this with the idea that the next or the first person you meet should be “the one,” you are robbing yourself of enjoying the journey. It’s important not to get so focused on the desired destination that you lose sight of the journey in getting to where you ultimately want to be. Dating and meeting people can be a lot of fun – but it shouldn’t be defined on an inner level as the ultimate “search” for someone special. That “special someone” will happen for you more naturally. You may feel like you are hitting a brick wall at times. But the key thing here is to make sure that you are truly free to explore a new relationship. If you are still tied to the past (such as not yet being divorced), this can really hinder you and make you feel continually limited or trapped. This card reversal is showing us that more work will be needed before you can put yourself in a more ideal position to meet someone special. So you don’t want to rush into anything and end up in a similarly undesired kind of relationship experience as what you’ve already gone through.
The 7 of Wands also suggests that you will meet with some challenges in 2012 when it comes to relationships. I am not feeling that your “Mr. Right” will be available to you in this new year. But what I am feeling is that there is some work to be done on yourself as well as tying up some loose ends that need tended to in order that you will have the freedom to explore new possibilities for love. Sevens relate to a time of reflection and assessment. This Seven is letting you know that you have the ability to take control of your life and get things sorted out. Handle what stands in your way or creates a block to finding and having a good relationship. Once you get those things taken care of, you’ll be in a much better position to attract the right kind of relationship into your life. But for this year, it’s probably going to be a time of really working on yourself and your external situations so that you will be freed up to find what you really want. Be willing to confront whatever you know you need to take care of . . . as this is a way of taking care of yourself and clearing the path to put you in a place of finding a healthy relationship experience in the future. For this year though, you need to really focus on YOU. It’s a time of assessing more so than creating, but this evaluation will help you ultimately get what you really want, and it will help you to NOT settle for less than you want and deserve.
Best Wishes and Many Blessings!
Velvet
http://www.tarotwisdomreadings.com
On the first and third Tuesday of each month, I will do a Quick Insight Tarot Reading to address one question sent in by the readers of my blog. If you would like to see your question featured here on “Tarot Tuesday,” please send your question and date of birth to velvetangel@tarotwisdomreadings.com with Tarot Tuesday in the subject line. You are free to use an alias name of your choice if you wish not to use your real name for this post. Date of birth is actually optional, but I use the numerical value of your birth date, if provided, to show me where to cut the cards after shuffling (even though I will not post your date of birth).
I do not address follow-up questions for free readings. Thank you for your understanding of my time limitations.
Please keep in mind that I cannot guarantee inclusion of your question, as I’ll be pulling just one for each Tarot Tuesday week, but if your submission is not pulled, you are welcome to send your question again (or send a new question) for another chance in the following week.
Have a question you want to ask the Tarot, but can’t wait for your entry to get pulled for a Tarot Tuesday?
You can order your own personal Mini Reading (or another reading package of your choice) from Tarot Wisdom Readings:
