The Weekend Tarot Reading — Sunday, December 2, 2012

By Sarah Taylor

In the last reading of this series using the Röhrig-Tarot, we have a synthesis of two different aspects of who it is that we are, which work together to create a sense of balance between inner and outer, between intuition and emotion, and — more concretely — between Spirit and matter.

Taking an initial feel of the reading, from left to right we have two major arcana cards and one court card. This elevates the reading from the level of the mundane to one that is soul-focussed; it is a card of beingness rather than doingness first, which is then translated into action in the world.

The two majors are further differentiated due to their nature: The Magus is a personal card, The Star is transpersonal — individual and universal energy respectively, the first a human experience of the second. The Queen is more like The Magus in this respect — she represents an aspect of who you choose to be in your everyday life.

What also feels apparent: The Magus is at the centre of the reading both physically and metaphorically. He is the point of contact between the two outer cards. In other words, you are the point of contact between the two outer cards.

Let’s look at The Star first. The Star corresponds to the sign of Aquarius, which in turn relates to the collective rather than the individual. Here, as in many versions of The Star, this principle is embodied in the female form — and in this particular card she is looking away from the centre of the reading. This speaks to me of radiance (rather than uni-directional movement), which is associated with the celestial body it is named after. The handwritten notes on the card further this idea:

Inspiration, Aura, Crystallization, Self-Knowledge, clear Vision, Self-Confidence, Conjunction with universal intelligence.

The light in The Star is different from that in The Magus. It is sharper; it is closer to Source. In The Magus the light is softer, more diffuse, echoed in the feathered flames like wings above his eyebrows — like the wings of Mercury who can travel on the currents of your consciousness.

The Magus in the tarot describes a state of effortless concentration. Look at him, looking at you. He is relaxed, but deeply focused, a half-smile playing at his lips — seductive, even. When you are aligned with source energy — with universal Light — there is a sense of magnetism because the light draws you in. Whether you know it or not, like is attracted to like; light is attracted to Light. When you look into the eyes of The Magus, you are looking at that aspect of yourself that is aligned with light — with Truth — and it can feel wonderful.

When The Magus is activated in us, we are in the flow. We simultaneously lose and find ourselves. We become highly creative, fleet-of-foot, inspirational quicksilver. The words written on this card are:

handling of all possibilities of communication playfully, flexibility, genius. Communication.

The key word here: communication. Communing. Coming together with the Divine. The reading is a depiction of your ascent to that “universal intelligence” in The Star, which you can then bring back down into the world in the form of the final card: the Queen of Cups.

Notice that the Queen has both light sources reflected in her card: the two coronas above her head, which have assumed the colour of green — when the watery blue of her suit commingles with the yellow light of a Sun: how we would see The Star from Earth. These coronas also remind me of breasts. The Queen of Cups is mother in the emotional sense, and there is a fecundity to the image that is spoken of in her own form of seduction: the parted lips, the eye contact that is both enigmatic and alluring, the curve of her neck.

The Magus has ascended and brought something back that is feminine, knowing yet mysterious, asking you to submerge into the depths of feeling, taking you on a journey into what has not yet fully become conscious and realised in you.

The writing on the Queen of Cups exhorts you: “as above as below”. What has become flesh is emotional relating that is mature, sure of itself — drawn as it is from your intuitive connection with Divine love — and expressed with integrity, holding to the Truth of who you are.

Astrology correspondences: The Star (Aquarius), The Magus (Mercury), Queen of Cups (“the watery aspect of water” — Gerd Ziegler, Tarot: Mirror of the Soul)

If you want to experiment with tarot cards and don’t have any, we provide a free tarot spread generator using the Celtic Wings spread, which is based on the traditional Celtic Cross spread. This article explains how to use the spread.