Emma – Page 4 – Tarot Training

8 Disks

Keyword: Prudence

This card shows us how the energy of the 7 disks is recovered from. What was fearful and difficult now becomes approachable. There is a change of heart – whilst still some caution applies from the left over experience of the 7 disks. There is renewed confidence and ability to speak out – the yellow-orange of the background shows a background of confidence and solid self-assurance. The tree on the card shows good strong roots going deep into the earth. Though the new flowers are protected there is a really strong base of fertility that they are springing from.

So this card talks about renewed confidence, and also the ability to take things step by step – moving forward yet not rushing anything. The foundation of the situation is strong and rooted in fertile soil. So in matters of business a project has good solid foundation for success and is reliable, a relationship is on good footings. However it is not the time to take risks nor to reveal all your plans and hopes.

The card is an 8 so on the Kabbalah this is Hod – the position of mercury and of splendour – there is a dedication to the truth and to integrity in all things. So we see in this card despite a withholding there is also high integrity and what is held back is not done so out of manipulative methods – but more of self-protection and of the need to nurture further before allowing a new idea into the world to be assessed and judged in any way.

This card is one of gaining strength, protection yourself and honouring your own need to have things feeling right before a risk or commitment is taken.

Astrologically it is Sun in Virgo and so is about perfection and striving for the best in all things. It is also about service to something higher.

There is a link with geomacy with this card as there was in last months tip – the flowers are arranged as the geomantic figure populus. Populus is about people and community and how others around us show us ourselves. In this card I feel the link is connected to the service aspect of virgo and though we may not reveal our full selves to those around us at the moment – we have the strength and self-confidence to be able to put ourselves forward into the community to be of service to others. Perhaps giving a hand in a community project, helping someone or something get off the ground by simple yet effective offers of practical help.

4 cups – Luxury

This month I am looking at the 4 cups – it follows on nicely from last months three of cups though both were drawn randomly for the month in question.

So from the abundance and perfection of the new in the three we come to the four. This is stability in the element of water. Four is a stable number yet with water stability doesn’t sit very well. Pools along the course of a river are fine – however when cut off from the flow, such as in a drought, they become stagnant. So this card has a double edge to it – there is a luxury and comfort in its experience – and yet we are warned if we become too comfortable so we will stagnant in our life and energy. Some flow or risk is needed to keep the waters clean and renewed.

Astrologically this card is Moon in Cancer and as such emotions are strongly aspected, and there is a tendency to allow our desires to take over in our life and lead to imbalance. We need to constantly be vigilant to growth opportunities and not allow our success or good feelings to become our trap. This can be seen in relationships often where a couple has met and come together – there is a great harmony after perhaps an initial start involving various conflicts as each shows their full self and acknowledges their differences. Then there comes a time of peacefulness together. This time is heart warming and loving and there can be a tendency to allow small issues, niggles and discomforts to go – be swept under the carpet. In themselves each is a small thing and ‘hardly worth mentioning’ However over time the ‘dirt under the carpet builds and the relationship becomes a kind of cosy comfort yet starts to feel stagnant and lifeless. What has happened? one of both partners start to ask – where did our vibrancy go? It is now that the 4 of cups is fully in play and there is the opportunity to risk something in the relationship – risk the dissolution of the harmony in order to achieve greater openness and intimacy and thus vibrancy together. It is not guaranteed however, yet the risk must be taken in order for the old positive feelings to have a chance of returning. So this is the time to speak of all the things that one let go of and brushed under the carpet as unimportant. To become aware of them once again in one’s self and to share them with the partner. Through uncovering that which was hidden for the sake if a peaceful life a chance of renewal comes.

Crowley talks about this card being likened or associated with the geomantic figures of Populous and Via. These figures diagrammatically can be seen below as a series of 4 dots in a vertical line (Via) Or two columns of 4 dots in vertical lines (Populus)

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Via Populus

There meanings are of similar nature to this card and can be used as another way to see the meaning of this card. Both are connected with Moon in Cancer, drawing out slightly different aspects.

Via is the road or path forward, it is considered as motion and movement, the change that is necessary to reach one’s destination. It is however slow change, as walking the path rather than running. Someone with a vis energy would be slow to anger and also slow to forgive. Change is apparent, but the way forward so set that a complete change in direction takes a while.

Populus is about people and community. There is a stability here, though this stability comes from merging with another’s thoughts needs and wishes. It is a receptive energy, and so mirrors another’s position as the moon reflects back the sun’s light rather than shining in its own light. It is all about responding to another’s energy rather than using our own perspective.

So in this card we have a great ability to empathise and be receptive to what someone wants from us – though the challenge is to remember and maintain our own needs and pathway forward. It is out challenge to remember we carve our own path forward in life and following the path that someone else has forged, whilst helpful for short periods, ultimately we need to make sure we leave the path when our own heart starts to dictate another direction. This may not mean we risk the relationship or situation ( which could be a job or other practical situation) but that we have to make a move for ourselves even if we are scared it will upset the apple cart. More often than not the disturbance leads to something better in our current situation, rather than taking us from it. For example; risking asking for a pay rise, risking asking for a part-time position at work; rather than giving us the feared response of being seen as having a lack of commitment, it more often brings us our request and respect as a valued employee; we see that we are valued and needed, the company has no wish to lose us altogether. It is a win-win situation.

So rather than hold onto your comfortable position = think about what is more you, what would be even better, what might you need to risk in order for something more to come into your life? As you find the answers to these questions so the 4 of cups has worked its magic on you.

3 of Cups – Abundance

This month I am focusing on 3 cups, keyword; abundance. This card is not traditionally associated with abundance in other decks, but usually with friendship and good feeling. However here we have the abundance keyword.

If we look at the Kabbalistic position we have the threes in the position of Binah – this is the node of understanding, it is the third node of the tree of life from the top. 1 being the oneness of all creation, 2 the duality as this oneness splits to know itself, and three the result of the 1 and 2 coming together. it is like the observer, the understanding of the oneness and duality preceding it. It can also be likened to the mother and father creating the child – the third position is a new creation that encompasses the two sides of something. So in this way it is also linked with fertility.

The three of cups is a cups card so in the realm of emotions and feeling based perception. When we have our feelings straight about who we are, when we feel connected to the whole, yet are also comfortable with our separateness and duality then we are in balance and life flows to us – creating abundance in our life so we have enough at all times comes more easily and this I feel relates to the keyword of abundance; the attraction of positive events and things to us as we allow both our connection and our duality equal place in our lives.

Crowley’s comments on the card saying that it is representing love coming to fruition and is the spiritual basis of fertility.

Often in practice this card comes up in readings when our life is feeling good and when we have connections and support around us through which abundance flows. Favours from friends and a general feeling of being able to be free of scarcity thinking is usually present in the querant’s situation. There is a sense of constant renewal and understanding we are fully free of material obsession when we trust in ourselves to be able to always create, manifest or bring to us that which we most need.

It may not indicate huge wealth, but more a feeling of physical and of emotional security. From this perspective it often refers to a close friendship, or even two, around the querant, someone who the querant can rely on to help them feel secure in their own world.

Often people intuitive feel this card is a ‘bit much’ and a bit sickly looking, this feeling also can be linked to Crowley’s warning about the card as he says “the good things in life though enjoyed, should be distrusted” So there is a sense of needing to stay aware and recognise ones own perceptions, and drives in life. In a concrete way we can see this as needing to make sure we both listen to, and enjoy, our friends’ advice, whilst also hold in our own self the separateness to consider whether we deep in ourself should follow any advice or perception or whether our truth differs from that of our friend in that situation.

The enjoyment of life’s pleasures may not be in itself the solution to our problems, as the enjoyment of chocolate doesn’t give us full nutrition. If we revel in this abundance alone without looking to all areas of our lives then we are in danger of our shadows ruling us rather than us being in conscious acceptance and balance with our shadow nature.

Working with ‘difficult’ cards

This month I have decided to make the blog connected to working with the cards with the more challenging keywords. Many people are put off using the Thoth because they are not sure how to handle these cards – either the receiving of them themselves in a reading and or the delivery of a message that is challenging to the client. In the video clip I explain how these cards can be read, focusing on the fears they are, which can, in some circumstances, lead to the creation of the very event that is feared – but the arrival of these cards in a reading actually helps us choose differently and face our fears and so avoid the manifestation of the feared outcome.

My You Tube video explaining

When delivering the challenging message to a client we also have to be aware that these areas will be very sensitive to the client – after all the reading is saying there is a fear to be overcome – so there very likely will be a tendency of the client to see the difficult cards and not to take in the positive messages that may surround it – however rosy they actually are. So it is a challenge to us to present both the truth of the message, and also enable the client to have the best possible change of hearing the full and balanced message and not to skew the message from their own fears arising.

How do we do this?

Well firstly the awareness of this issue will go a long way to help us word our sentences and structure our delivery of the message in an uplifting, honest way. In addition to this we can watch how we talk of the cards. If we call the 7 disks, failure, frequently through the reading then we are emphasising this keyword, if however we refer to it at the 7 disks then the word ‘failure’ is less likely to become a negative affirmation. If we also emphasise the positive that is present in the reading, and also the results of facing the fears, then we are giving these energies as an affirmation rather than the difficulty itself. Indeed actually leaving a client with a positive affirmation which is connected to one of the cards of the future is a good way of helping this process. It is also a good practice, if a reading ends on a difficult card, to take another card for how the world will look or being experienced, once the fear has been dealt with. If this is another challenging card we are shown the process will be a longer one, and another card can be taken until the resolution energy appears. If a positive card results then we have the affirmative energy to give to the client as a way of bringing in and getting through the challenge ahead. The sense of hope that carries one through the work.

As we work with this sensitivity we can present readings that deal accurately and honestly with challenges that arise in life and also help guide ourselves and our clients forward into the challenge and out the other side.

8 Cups Indolence

8 cups – Indolence

This months Thoth Tip focuses on 8 Cups, keyword – Indolence – I picked this card from the deck with the intention that it would be the card that would be of most use to those reading this months tips – either because of something they found confusing about reading the card or that something in the message of this card would be pertinent to them now. So this card is for you.

This card, with its dark background and empty cups, shows a picture of stagnation, where there is very little left to give. In psychological terms it is a card that often appears when we are complete exhausted and burnt out. It might br through over work and trying too hard, or it might be a relationship is taking all our energy and we are keeping none for ourself. Either way the root of this situation is usually that we haven’t valued ourselves enough to say no to what is taking our energy. We in some way fear that if we say no it either makes us a failure, or a bad person, or we won’t be loved. Actually we fear being loved, accepting love from others and being supported. It might be we feel if we were we would ‘owe’ too much back, we wouldn’t be able to repay a kindness etc. Or it may be that we are used to being treated badly and to be treated well would challenge our early beliefs about the world and about ourselves. This can be a frightening prospect. However the appearance of this card in a spread very often means it is exactly the right time to be facing these issues and in many cases it begins with saying “No”. No to extra work, no to a friend, family or partner who wants more from us, and a “Yes” to ourselves. It may just be we need a break to recover, it may be we need to make some lasting changes, but it all will start to improve as we say no.

As this is the underlying feel for this card it can also manifest in the physical world as an illness, colds and flu serve to force rest on us we need, and help us say no and take the space from those who have been making demands on us. We can prevent this happening if we take action to say no ourselves, or sometimes we can allow this to happen and be compassionate to ourselves and realise our body has given us what we really needed to further our growth.

The keyword “indolence” is defined in the dictionary as : habitually idle or lazy, indisposed to exertion or labour. So how does this rather harsh word fit in here? When we are exhausted we are actually too tired to work much further and further exertion can see our work with error and slips that can appear as being ‘lazy’ with the quality of our work. But I feel a stronger feel for this word is in the situation where we have actually known we are giving too much, we are over doing it, we are just not looking after ourselves, but despite the warning signs we have chosen to ignore them. In a sense the hard ‘work’ here is to face the truth and to set the limits we need to set for ourselves. Sometimes being lazy in our lives is actually working very hard and against our own best interests as the energy and will to create conflict with our bosses and loved ones feels too much to do. So in this sense we can be seen as indolent. Lazy in not setting our boundaries with others, hoping someone else will notice our hard work and tell us to take time off, and do the work of being responsible for us.

Still quite a hard-hitting message, however if we realise it is not in our working too little that we are lazy, but in our attention to what is best for us, our whole being, that we are lazy. We can address the situation and turn it around. Take some time off rest and recuperate and plan for a lifestyle change if one is necessary.

I welcome your thoughts and comments below.

Lust (strength)

This months Thoth Tip focuses on Lust – this card is number 11 and in other decks often called strength.

Crowley emphasised the driven obsession side of the card – where we have to exert personal strength to keep ourselves in balance when faced with our primal desires. This can take the meaning of lust to a wider sphere too where we can have lust for life and passion for many things in our lives but if we act on our ‘lust’ to the exclusion of all else our lives can become imbalanced. All training in our favourite sport and no rest, as much as watching our favourite TV show 24/7 with no activity, any extreme turns out to be bad for us, however with awareness we can live out our passions whilst also keeping in check when they become self-destructive and against our highest good.

Crowley writes in the Book of Thoth

“Lust implies not only strength, but the joy of strength exercised.”

So taking the meaning further to include the enjoyment of our own self-imposed boundaries, the finding the balance and having the strength to say no to our desires every whim brings a joy in itself – a knowledge we are in control of our lives and that we are not at the mercy of our feelings and desires, but can harness them to good use. The image shows this well with the woman having a strong hold of the reigns whilst also surrendering to passion and fire in herself. We have the picture of containment of our desires without repression.

The ground upon which the beast walks contains images of saints and traditional images of prayer where the ethos is to offer up to another our power. To ask another to judge us as good or bad, the other being representative of a higher being who ultimately judges us – this is what paved the way for the new age – age of Horus. In the new age we are responsible for our own actions and judgements we need not give our power to another but seek our own personal connection to the divine, and honour all parts of ourselves even the traditionally darker parts. As we come to love ourselves fully so we gain the strength to contain them without denial.

When lust shows in a reading it can represent the simple idea of being ‘in lust’ with someone but more often it is showing us our passions and our raw feelings are available to us and need not be avoided – we have the strength to see them, explore them and also be in charge of them – though part of us will be intoxicated by them as the woman on the card is, we can also have a grip on ourselves and form boundaries of expression that are for our highest good. We are in charge. We can have great joy and fun and know when we need to stop.

Keywords

This month I am going to talk about the keywords on the cards. Many people dislike the keywords on the Thoth cards partly because they can lead clients you see face to face to misunderstand what a reading is saying based on the keywords they can see and partly because a reader can feel limited themselves when they see a keyword for a card and it almost shouts or dictates the meaning when another, more subtle but more accurate, meaning may actually be relevant.

I have always been quite a wordy person and find associations to words more easily than to pictures so I have personally enjoyed the presence of the keywords and the richness they offer me in interpretation before even going into the cards imagery. The more challenging cards of failure, defeat I see primarily as the ‘fear of x’ rather than the actual eventuality, this approach then leads us as readers to see the circumstances around the defeat or ruin possibilities. I see the inner world of the client and thus the place where the client has control and the ability to make changes and prevent their fears from occurring, showing them how to increase the positivity and joy in their lives through this work.

In face to face readings I am careful to point out the meanings of the cards with the more difficult titles in much the same way as ensuring people don’t take one look at the death card and fear they or someone is going to die. This is also a good practice in email readings, though I am coming to feel that not even mentioning the keywords attached to the card title is better in email readings, only mentioning keywords in the prose of the card guidance if it feel appropriate in that reading.

It is not only keywords printed on cards that is interesting to me though. I am aware that when we read the tarot we all have such a plethora of meanings, connections and deep understandings of the cards that sometimes we develop a person shorthand of description of what we are seeing and meaning. In effect we develop our own sets of keywords that we use with cards and from this we develop our readings. We need awareness though, that a single word may now describe a whole plethora to us, but to the client they need to have the details explained – the connections we make, the understanding we have of the words we initially say, in order to ensure we have actually delivered the message we received. Sometimes to us, the reader, it can feel like we are ‘going on’ and surely should not need to say so much – but in many cases it is better to be explicit about our meaning and our underlying assumptions of meaning in order to be of the best service to our clients.

Have a think about the meanings you attach to the various Thoth cards, and perhaps even another deck that you use frequently. Do you use a personal mental shorthand when you read for others? Do you need to explain more perhaps? This shorthand can be very useful for readings for yourself, though even in this circumstance it can stop you hearing more innovative and creative guidance in your own situations.

One way to overcome the ‘shorthand’ in our processes is to just describe rather than interpret what you see. You can do this out loud or do it silently in your own mind – as you do so you hear yourself say things that are strong for you in the specific reading you are looking at – the cards, how they appear together, the specific images on the cards you are noticing – then as you listen to yourself, guidance and interpretation can come from there. This helps keep you in the now of the reading rather than taken back into the past of readings before, with often unspoken nuances of meaning that would be better said rather than assumed.

White Magus

Welcome to April’s Thoth tips, wonderfully hot and sunny here at the moment – really encouraging for the months to come. This months thoth tip concerns one of the Magus cards which some Thoth decks contain.

White Magus

Many people don’t use all three Magus cards in the Thoth deck as it was only ever intended to have the one – the other two were included because there were plates left at the end of printing the rest of the cards so it seemed a shame to waste the opportunity to print a couple more cards. So these two alternative designs were printed along with the rest of the deck. This led to some people thinking about using them – perhaps including the extra two cards would be an interesting thing to do. Gerd Ziegler published some meanings of these two extra cards as he saw them in his books Tarot: Mirror of the Soul and Tarot: Mirror of Your Relationships. So they became an option to use to the wider audience. I myself like to use the two as they become to me ‘yes’ and ‘no’ cards and give very clear answers should they arise in a spread involving options.

There are however deeper meanings that can be taken from the two extra cards and this month I am going to look at the White Magus, which is entitled “The Magician”, in some more depth.

When using all three Magi this card represents communication, creation and all the positive attributes of the Magus. He is someone who has only the Light in mind as he creates the world in front of him. He is honest, open and loving in all things and can allow himself to be very flexible to move the higher picture forward. This is the salesman or woman who will not manipulate you into buying but will still speak openly and positively about the product he or she is selling. And it will be something that has heart and meaning to him or her.

Within us this is the light side of ourselves – all that we love and appreciate of our nature and the ability to feel confident that we are good in what we do and how we are in our whole self. In some ways it is the innocent boasting of a child where confidence is there and there is little regard that displaying ourselves will be a danger in any way. And because of this belief, the innocent energy, often things work out very well indeed. However the shadow of this card as even this card has a shadow, is that we can be so busy ‘being good’ whatever that means to us, that we are ignoring our own personal shadow side. This is the side of us that feels angry, or arrogant, or controlling or whatever qualities we would hate to see ourselves as having. The ignoring of our shadow over a long period of time can actually cut us off from reality – both our own reality and how we really feel – “no its ok, I am fine” when actually this is not now the case, and also the reality of the world around us “he could never do that surely” This does then lead us to be vulnerable to others shadows as we draw to us the reflection of what we are ignoring in order to become whole ourselves.

So in the reading when this comes up particularly if the Black Magus follows in time, we are being shown that we are thinking a little too ‘love and light’ and not really facing the darkness in ourselves and in others. It is an early warning sign showing us it is time to wake up and ask ourselves how we really feel and whether we are truly honouring ourselves, perhaps asking of ourselves – “Is there someone out there who is starting to mirror my shadow to me so I can be whole?” If there is “What is the shadow being mirrored to me? – What feelings do I need to embrace and love myself for having the capacity to feel?”

There is an opportunity here to reach towards transformation and avert external expression of our shadow in a major way and become more whole in the process. It may be that we have been working so hard to help and look after others we have neglected our own need to be free from being on our best behaviour, perhaps we need to create a holiday, or a metaphorical playpen of some sort, where we can be with friends and let our hair down releasing some of our shadow nature in a safe contained way, with those who love us and accept all sides of us, before we go back to being responsible in our work and professional lives.

So perhaps this month you can ask yourself what do you need to create to bring balance to yourself – it might be standing up for yourself in a situation that is not for your highest good, it might be to take some time off your professional role and be yourself, responsible only for your own behaviour and not for the success or otherwise of a project. This card is a positive card overall and doesn’t foretell difficult situations – but it does ask of you to be conscious of darkness while you play in the light so you are not caught unaware when an adjustment to maintain balance is asked for.

10 Disks Wealth

This is a powerful card and possibly the greatest manifester in the deck – being a 10 it is the end of the suit of disks, and the corresponding position on the tree of life (Kabbalah) is Malkuth – the place at which the physical universe is manifest. Disks is the realm of the physical too so there is a double reference to things being physical and concrete in the world.

It is connected to Mercury in Virgo. Mercury rules Virgo and so these two are happy together, the energy of mercury bringing the energy of manifestation, creation and change into direct experience. Mercury brings energy and movement to skillful, attentive Virgo so we can use money wisely with this card. This card is also the last of the whole series of steps of manifesting spiritual reality into earthly form through all the pips cards starting with the Ace (Kether) of wands – where all is possible and going through the realm of spirit (wands), thought (swords), emotion(cups) and finally earth(disks) to come into being. The next step once this is achieved is to start again with a new manifestation so the 10 disks also takes us right back to the ace wands again with all its potential.

On the card are 10 disks arranged in the shape of the tree of life with the biggest disk at the bottom indicating the importance of this position in this card – the home of the 10 Each disk has a different symbol on – but they all are correspondences to Mercury – excepting the symbol at Hod on the tree of life (lowest coin on the Left hand side) This position is connected to Mercury anyway and the symbol here is the Sun, there is the implication here that the wealth and created things must be used and kept moving in order for more to continue to flow otherwise the 10 here becomes a stagnation and low energy card rather than one of continued wealth. The sun’s energy helping to keep things moving. So we are warned against greed and clinging to the wealth we are receiving.

In many ways when this card comes up it is telling us that we have all the wealth we need both financially, emotionally and inner skills, but that we must use these with skill and precision in order to keep things moving, allowing the energy to continue to flow rather than to stagnate in a pool. It is very much a time to get out there and show the world your riches on all levels and use them to make the world, including your own, a better place.

9 Cups

This month I am going to present you with my musings on the 9 cups, happiness.

This is not a card questioned all that often being positive so many times when it arises and unlike the RWS deck this card doesn’t have the ‘smugness’ about it. It does indeed portray solid dependable happiness, the feeling of your life being structured such that things are flowing and people help you as you need and you extend yourself to others easily and effortlessly. It is not joy though, happiness is a great feeling, but joy does have something more ethereal to it and though your life is flowing and things are working well there is a sense of sameness and somehow a lack of spirit to it. It is good for a time or as a background, but as a continued state it can feel somewhat lifeless. I am happy enough, but where is the challenge, the growth and the joy of change and transformation from one moment to the next so it is a card like all others with its downside. However when I see this in a reading it is usually very positive and adds the positive impact of the other cards around it. The exception being 4 cups which also carries the energy of stagnation out of excessive comfort and together these cards can indicate a real need for risk to come into your life.

The card is Jupiter in Pisces so as such is all about extending oneself effortlessly to help others, and to help situations around one. Spiritual service and the highest love are represented by this card. As we offer to others we receive at the same time. All struggles of need of love and personal gain are over and we can see and accept the love in all things, situations and people. However it can show up on the negative side if surrounded by more difficult cards as indicating the feelings of ‘happy happy’ – being out of touch with reality and not acknowledging the shadow side within oneself, others and situations before us. If we face the truth then true happiness can be found, joy, true joy, in effect can be the outcome. However we need to accept the truth of the situation to truly experience the joy potential of this card.

In the majority of cases this card is great news when it turns up in your reading, you have achieved a good sense of happiness in your life or the situation enquired about. I also have seen this card represent networking successfully in a business reading, and really forming the client base you need on the basis of honesty, truth and the ideals you stand for rather than some kind of temporary connection through hope of all problems being solved. It’s the soft sell ideal.

In a personal sense a group of supportive friends around you is likely where each has each others growth and highest interests at heart – so a community rather than everyone being the of the same opinion, each can extend themselves to want the best for the others even if that is different from what one would choose for oneself. In many ways this is the highest form of love.