Card of the Day
Six Of Wands
A card of victory and celebration. A hero crowned with laurels rides triumphantly. His wand is crowned with the victory wreath. Is he the hero? The leader? In the MG deck he is much more a warrior than in the RW. Facing you full face and wearing armor.
The Thoth deck-all the wands seem very American Indian in their motifs. The six of wands are six crossed..sticks? Interlaced in a pattern, wherever the pattern crosses there is a small flame. The card is named Victory.
posted by Bettina May at 11:55 AM

Card of the Day
King of Swords
King cards-always so masculine and forceful.
The Thoth deck calls these cards the Knights, not the Kings. The Pages are Princesses, the Knights are Princes. It achieves an equality of the sexes, but....not of status? I am not sure but there must be some 'mystical' reason behind it.
RW shows a serious, almost glum king, eated on a throne. I can't tell for certain what's on the tapestry behind him-butterflies and crescent moons, maybe. I also see some cherubic or angelic figures there. His guides, perhaps. There are clouds, birds, trees, water in the background behind him. The sword is held up in a protective and forceful manner, not pointed at any one or anything, but resting and ready. This king uses the sword to proclaim the law. MG's king is seen in silhouette. he holds a sheaf of wheat in the same hand with the sword, and greenery surrounds him-branches with some sort of berries and frusit. I think they are oak leaves but I am not sure-the other greenery sort of looks like mistletoe. This king is standing ready, waiting, between whatever he faces and whatever he defends.
The Knight of swords in the Thoth deck-I have no idea what this image means! The knight is airborane on hosrback, other birdlike creatures fly below him in the blue sky. he has a sword in each hand, facing forward, but we see him from above, a bird's eye view. We see the strange top of the helmet he wears, four swords(?) wings(?) of class, like propellers, fastened to the top.

The Thoth Knight is less like a person than the other two, more like an energy -he represents some force in nature, they seem to be behaviors or principles of behavior.
posted by Bettina May at 8:48 AM

Card of the Day
Eight of Swords
Rider Waite and MG show the same sort of image, the woman, blindfolded and tied, standing in a ring (?), certainly in the midst of the eight swords. Somethihg, a castle, loomsin the bakground. In the RW the ground is detailed and shows puddles. The Thoth deck shows two similar swords vertically, and the other six, each different, arrayed horizontally, the top three with the hilts, facing to the left,the bottom three with the hilts facing to the right. The card is called Interference....exactly. An illustration for the 20th century! The swords are against an abstract fractured pattern of red and purple.....shards?
The woman is obviously trapped. Is she escaping. Does she need to be rescued. Can the swords help her? Can they cut her bindings or are they part of her bindings? She can't see, in the MG it also looks like she can't speak, in the RW her attitude makes in obvious she will not speak. She looks strangely patient, enduring at least. What is she waiting for?
posted by Bettina May at 8:53 AM

Card of the Day
Seven of Swords
I looked at the cards in the three decks I own, the Rider Waite, the Thoth and the Morgan Greer. The Morgan Greer and the RIder Waite show a similar image, a man seeming to steal away 5 of the seven swords. The figure on the cards are depicted differently-in the RW, the man seems to be sneaky, looking back to see if he is being followed. In the MG, he seems to be carrying away a burden. The Thoth deck is totally different of course, 7 swords arrayed in a branch formation under a crescent moon, against a blue patterned (ice?) background. What look like planetary astrological symbols serve as the hilts of each sword. The name of the card is futility.

All three decks show a universally negative impression of a card-I wish I could see the Goddess deck for balance. I can think of lots of reasons why taking the swords away could be a positive action-letting go of defenses, or borrowing defenses. But maybe that's not there.
posted by Bettina May at 1:03 PM

The Card of the Day

Eight of Pentacles

Study/Practice/Discipline. The card shows a worker diligently at work. You sense that the worker is definately in a "work zone" very focused and concentrated. Because of the proliferation of discs about him (8), there's a feeling of skillful production and that the worker knows what he's doing. He's gotten the formula down solid, so to speak. I like this card because it portrays those rare moments when you know what you're doing, motivated to do it and will not allow any external "noise" to distract you. This card is linked to the Hermit which speaks to the active pursuit of wisdom by retreating and instropection - soul searching.

The number 8 implies change. And in this case, although we're dealing with the pentacle suit which governs the realm of physicality, I believe the change can also be within the soul via concentrated efforts.

In reverse, the card portrays a rebelliousness and refusal to do what it takes - to go there.
posted by gygi jennings at 1:52 PM

Regarding your comments on the 7 of Pentacles: Spoken like a true Aquarian!!!
posted by gygi jennings at 1:24 PM

BTW-having trouble with blogger? It's working so much better for me now that the new servers are up. Thank you, Blogger
posted by Bettina May at 3:23 PM

About the Seven of Pentacles-I would have to agree-I don't see frustration or delay-I see a pause to contemplate and to review. The card speaks to experience, and to the wisdom gained from the work done to date.

Sometimes, however, I just feel inadequate to understand the cards-I need more decks, and different decks, and more time to think!

posted by Bettina May at 3:22 PM

The Card of the Day (for the third bloody time)

Seven of Pentacles

Delay/Incubate/Patience. This card depicts a harvester pausing to overlook the fruits of his labor. Traditionally, this card (in an upright position) is associated with delay, failure and frustration but I'm going out on a limb here and disagree. I don't feel this at all. Rather, I see it as a "smart" card where one takes a well deserved pause in his labors to consider what is physically (pentacles=material) before him. Maybe he's contemplating the next course of action. And since when is reflection a bad thing? I guess when it inhibits movement but I really don't think that what's happening here. Further, I sense patience and even, peace. This card is linked w/ Temperance which speaks to integration and blending. These qualities can be achieved through deliberation and insight.

The number 7 implies inner workings/stirrings.

In reverse, the card portrays impatience and a failure to see the fruition of a thing - blockage in seeing the big picture.

What's your take on this card?

posted by gygi jennings at 10:52 AM

How very interesting girl! The aspect of the Magician being mistrusted and in your particular case, resented because of other's feelings of inadequacy - consider Texas! Yes. I can see how taking on this role can be a burden and at times extremely alienating.

The Magician being the link between the Spiritual and everyday world speaks to the Wiccan edict of: "As above, so below". The Magician, as her stance implies, is the physical conduit.

Rosengarten (my personal hero) writes of the Magician:
"The Magician in the lab of life, he transforms darkness into light, difficulty into ease, chaos into form, the ideal into material; inspired communications; right speech, skillful means; associated w/ Hermes or Mercury; quickness of mind; (in reverse) magical, infanitle thinking and powerlessness..."

Wow! Happy Birthday, Magic Woman!
posted by gygi jennings at 10:02 AM

"Bettina as the Magician....no surprise there"
See what I mean-it took me a long time to accept this judgement from others.

So what is the Magician in the Tarot? More importantly, in our Tarot? I am starting to look up references on the Magician-just now I read that the Magician is the Master Alchemist, that (s)he is the the message bearer and channel for the divine spark, that (s)he links the magical and spiritual world with the everyday world, and signifies creative energy and science.
Sometimes the idea of the 'magician' also contains an idea of trickery or deception, and some people link the Magician with the Greek god Hermes, who was the messenger of the gods, and also the god of thieves.
I wonder about this-to me it fits strangely into something I notice about 'being' the magician. To someone who does not play that role, it may seem desireable. To those who play it, you have to deal with people's perpetual mistrust or resentment of those whom they imagine are more clever than themselves. The accusation of 'thief' or trickster attached to the 'magician' may originate with that feeling.

As far as a condo in Brooklyn Heights goes....I am not sure that's in the province of the Magician. Isn't that something one would get by virtue of the power of oh, let say, the Queen of Pentacles?
(grin)
posted by Bettina May at 10:11 AM