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Thursday, 28 August 2008
Archives 2006 Tarot & Your Daily Life: Aces High
| Tarot & Your Daily Life: Aces High | | Print | |
| Written by James Ricklef | |
 It is when you become grateful for what you have that you become an abundant person. --Marianne Williamson The cards in the Tarot’s Minor Arcana are divided into four suits, much like the suits of a deck of playing cards. These suits are given esoteric associations, which lend meaning to them. The most common associations for these suits are: •Wands/Fire: enthusiasm, passion, desire, confidence, inspiration •Cups/Water: emotions, empathy, relationships, intuition, imagination •Swords/Air: thought, intellect, reason, decisions, communication, conflict •Pentacles/Earth: prosperity, health, practicality, stability, security, end results The number assigned to each card in these suits also has esoteric associations, and so our understanding of a card’s meaning can be enhanced by a consideration of its numerological association within the context of its suit’s elemental association. The Tarot Aces (or ones) are concerned with beginnings, opportunities, initiative, and potential that needs to be realized. Also, they can represent the highest ideals of their suit, so even though every card has both dark and bright connotations, we will focus here on the more positive aspects of the aces as we consider the messages they hold for our daily lives. The Ace of Wands can represent a flash of insight, a spark of excitement, or a burning desire for something new, such as growth or change. It may signify a new enterprise that can transform our lives, if we allow the inspiration of the Universe to flow through us and into our efforts. But the Tarot’s aces are like seeds that need care and nurturing in order to grow, so the Ace of Wands also urges us to pursue our ventures with confidence, passion, and a concerted focus of will. The Ace of Cups can indicate a budding romance. Alternatively, it may represent the love and compassion that lies at the heart of a healthy relationship or that can heal a damaged one. In fact, perhaps this card’s best advice is to view all our relationships through the eyes of love, which leads us to greater contentment and fulfillment in them. Sometimes the Ace of Cups urges us to follow the dictates of our heart, for, in the words of Blaise Pascal, “The heart has its reasons, which reason does not know.” This card also stresses the value of love and compassion in solving issues of conflict and anger since it takes water (this suit’s element) to douse a fire. Finally, the Ace of Cups says our truest blessings may be our loving relationships, for it is through love that we find our highest connection with other people. The Ace of Swords, with its sharp-edged icon, is infamous for being the suit of pain and strife, but, as we shall see, it has its own rewards as well. In our search for truth, clarity, and understanding, the Ace of Swords can represent the power of incisive logic and reason, or it may indicate the out-of-the-box thinking symbolized by the story of the sword that cut the Gordian knot. Most often, though, new ideas and fresh insights are born out of struggle and strife, and are learned in the “school of hard knocks.” And even more difficult than this card’s advice to learn from our problems and mistakes is its message that sometimes we must face up to some uncomfortable truths. For example, in order to find fair and equitable solutions to our conflicts with other people, we should consider their point of view, but how many of us are willing to do that? More vexing still is the fact that inevitably all understanding is limited, since a concept is only a shadow of the reality it seeks to express. Even our most firmly held ideals and beliefs fall short of the whole truth and must be subject to reconsideration and revision. So the Ace of Swords urges us to question our assumptions and re-examine our ideals and beliefs with an open mind. This does not mean we must reject them, but merely that we should reexamine them now and then. Perhaps we will reaffirm them, but sometimes we may refine or even discard them. Finally, the Ace of Pentacles is concerned with our health and prosperity. But as noted above, the aces are like seeds that need to be nourished and tended in order to grow, so we must make the best of the opportunities that life presents us in order to enjoy their fruits. At the same time, it is important to trust that we are supported by the Universe and to let its gifts flow into our lives, rather than desperately grasp for them out of a sense of lack or greed. The pentacle on this card, with its encircled pentagram symbolizing the importance of the spiritual within the material world, warns against becoming fixated on the purely (or merely) material aspects of life. Perhaps the most precious facet of this card, then, is its advice to appreciate the blessings in our life. As Marianne Williamson says, “It is when you become grateful for what you have that you become an abundant person.” James is starting a Tarot Group for the L.A. area. If you would like to join, email: JAMES RICKLEF is a professional Tarot reader, teacher, and writer. His book, “Tarot: Get the Whole Story,” explains how to create spreads, and presents a variety of spreads which it illustrates using sample readings for well-known historical, mythical, and fictional characters. For more info about James’ work, see his website: www.JamesRicklef.com |
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