The Tarot deck that I use is The Tarot of the Animal Lords. Although
Strength is XI and Justice is
Strength
depicts a mongoose wrestling with a cobra. While that is happening, the earth
is opening up under them and volcanoes are erupting behind them. The scene is
enveloped in smoke and ash. I can almost smell the sulfur spewing out of the
earth. In front of the battling pair, are two salamanders, who are facing in opposite
directions. I feel the immediacy that someone has to decide quickly to flee or
be killed. However, the two center characters are frozen in the moment of the
chaos. Does that mean that Strength can be either the calm focus or the frozen
stance? Is the downside of Strength to be locked in a struggle oblivious to
what is going on?
The Hermit presents a black bear entering a dark cave. His lamp barely
pierces the blackness. This bear carries keys and scrolls with him. This made
me wonder if he hoped to find a treasure chest. Behind him in broad daylight is
a peaceful countryside. Right above him, dripping in honey is a beehive. I
think that the Hermit is leaving the sweetness of the known life for an unknown
future. This card elicits a feeling of answering a sacred call, of going deeper
into the Divine.
The Wheel (of Fortune) telescopes the concept to a circular tree
branch and the life cycle of the butterfly. The adult butterfly lays her eggs
on a leaf that hatches into the various stages of caterpillars until finally the
juvenile butterfly becomes the adult. And the cycle continues. To emphasize The
Wheel’s motion, the wind blows in a circle high up in the mountains. The dominant
theme of this card is a circle, going round and round. I get dizzy just looking
at The Wheel. This Wheel focuses on the cycles of life that we all experience
repeatedly at different points in our lives.
No comments:
Post a Comment