By Sarah Taylor
This week, we have the tarot version of a carwash: something that has gone as far as it can in its current form enters a process of integration, and emerges, purged and revivified, in the landscape of the heart.
Looking at the two outer cards, there is an unmistakable mirroring in the figures of Death and the Knight of Cups. On the left, the figure of Death moves into the reading, its horse walking in the direction of the ensuing cards. On the right, both the Knight and the horse hold the same positions as their card XIII counterparts, they, too, heading in a left-to-right direction.
They, however, have passed through the jaws of Strength, and, while they have been transformed and the landscape around them has been cleared, whatever it is that the Knight offers his cup to is unknown. Its presence is hinted; it is yet to come into the picture.
But first, back to the Death card. While Strength and the Knight have two figures set against comparatively simple backgrounds, the Death card is full of detail and symbolism. I won’t go into that detail save to say this: there is a call to pay due reverence to a passing, which makes space for something new. “The King is dead. Long live the King.”