The Boundaries of Tarotcard Two of Swords

When you search Google for the meaning of Two of Swords, you will see that there are generally limited interpretations that predominate; The most commonly mentioned meanings are ‘Blocking out emotions’ and ‘conflicts or doubt’. The ‘most peculiar’ I found: “Someone who adapts to the precepts of those in power”…

I do not agree with these simple interpretations; In addition to being particularly colored, they are also one-sided and detract from the value of this card; That’s why I’d like to show another side here, where the Marseille Tarot will come to the rescue later.

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Tarotcard Pentacles 9 and being your own Village

“Sometimes we need to be our own village by utilizing all of our skills and learning more”

(from Daily OM website)

I read this quote on a spiritual blog (OM) and immediately thought of Tarot card ‘Pentacles 9’! The card is often explained as obtaining success and wealth, with the ‘warning’that you should be careful not to isolate yourself too much in your own (lush) castle garden…

When you look at it differently – not necessarily in the sense of wealth and success, but more in the sense of autonomy and independence – then the comparison with ‘being your own village’ is very apt!

Everyone is ‘born’ with numerous skills and talents. If you just want to ‘survive’, you can fall back on these skills. However, chasing dreams requires much more than this; Most people rely on the support of a village or city to manage their affairs;  This can mean anything from asking for help from friends and acquaintances, leaning on loved ones in times of grief, to hiring a
professional craftsman/woman to do jobs.  But every person can also be his
or her own village!

We fulfill many roles throughout our lives, all of which are representative of our capacity for autonomy and independence. At various times in our lives, we are our own counselor, custodian, caretaker, cook, healer, teacher, and student. Our enthusiasm and energy to fulfill these roles gives us the power to maintain control over the direction of our own lives.

In the past, people learned all the skills needed to survive. Today, most people specialize in a single discipline, which they sharpen throughout their lives. That’s why we sometimes feel uncomfortable being at the helm of our own existence. We question our ability to make decisions about our own health, happiness, and well-being, and we often feel dependent on others who we believe to be “capable.”

This is most evident with so-called ‘thinking’ professions. For example, you can be a judge or a lawyer, but what if anarchy breaks out and all laws fall away (or change), what can you do to earn a living? When someone asks me what I’m good at, and I say: ‘booking TV commercials’, I always immediately think that I can’t really do anything that is of use to anyone 🙂 That’s pretty scary and it sometimes makes you insecure.

But basically, it’s just a matter of believing that we have the necessary skills and intelligence to deal with any circumstance that the universe throws at us.

By proving that we can each be our own village (by taking action and taking the bull by the horns), we can accept that we are strong enough to live an autonomous existence. And an autonomous existence does not necessarily have to mean that you live ‘off the grid’; It’s all in the little things: Being conscious of your money, cooking for yourself, making small repairs to the house, living a healthier life, following a specific study or training. This kind of thing means that you can take care of your own affairs and are happy and satisfied with it.

Being your own village doesn’t mean embracing isolation – On the contrary, being your own village is more about celebrating your own miraculous inner strength and ingenuity and your (innate) ability to make your own life ‘a success’.

I really enjoyed reading the article and being able to connect it to this tarotcard. The 9 of pentacles became alive in front of me! You can read more of these inspiring articles on the website of Daily OM

Tarotcard 4 of cups: Spoiled or Neglected?

Tarotcard Four of Cups is a card that I always thought was a bit “out of place”. I never really thought about why I had that feeling. The meaning of the card was clear to me. However, something was always gnawing at me somewhere inside, but I never had the time or patience to investigate this. Cups aren’t really my suit anyway ;-). But the other day something happened that reminded me of this card. So I dived in and tried to look at the four of cups with a pair of ‘fresh eyes’.  

The keywords and meanings that are generally assigned to this card are (among others):

  • Not wanting to see what you’re offered
  • Wanting something that isn’t available
  • Being dissatisfied
  • Acting Spoiled, ‘adolescent’ behaviour

Waite also mentions “Aversion” and “disgust.” Literally, he writes in ‘Pictorial Key’:

“A Young man is seated under a tree and contemplates three cups set on the grass before him; An arm issuing from a loud offers him another up. His expression notwithstanding is one discontent with his envronment. Divinatory meanings: Weariness, disgust, aversion, imaginary vexations, as if the wine of this world had caused satiety only; another wine, as if a fairy gift, is now offered the wastrel, but he sees no consolation therein. This is also a card of blended pleasure. Reversed: Novelty, presage, new instruction, new relations”

A.E. Waite – The Pictorial Key to the Tarot (1911)

What does Waite mean by “blended” pleasure? Does he mean that you have too much of something that makes you ‘fed up’? The inverted meaning – which I never see as ‘reversed’ but more as the other end of the spectrum – doesn’t seem to make any sense to me.

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The Mystical Wine Press and Ten of Pentacles

Pentacles 10 has been showing up a lot lately. A while ago I took a good look at the card again, and only then realized that the symbol on the old man’s cloak is not really explained anywhere. I asked the question on the socials and there were a number of theories and suggestions:

Pentakels 10  from a deck where the symbol on the cloak of the old man is enlarged
  1. It is a fertility symbol (pomegranate and sprites)
  2. It is an astrological symbol: two crescent moons and the (split of the ram?) sign
  3. It is an Alchemical emblem
  4. It is a (family) coat of arms
  5. It’s not a symbol, just decoration

When I heard someone say on You Tube that he thought the symbol on the old man’s cloak was a wine press, I thought that was very far-fetched. The man in question had found a picture of a medieval wine press that looked exactly like the symbol on the cloak however, so I browsed the internet to learn what the wine press could symbolize.

The ‘Mystical’ wine press is Christian symbolism. Some images show Jesus in the wine press, where he himself is pressed along with the grapes. This symbolizes that Jesus sacrifices himself for the people. But more often I read that most people see ‘The Mystical Winepress’ as a symbol for ‘the end of time’ or the ‘day of judgment’ where God destroys the unbelievers.

Luckily, a more humanistic interpretation also exists: the winepress symbolizes the spiritual strength needed to endure suffering. Maybe a bit like ‘what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger’?

various depictions of 'Jesus in the magical winepress' as well as photo's of actual antique winepresses
Various depictions of ‘Jesus in the magical winepress’ as well as photo’s of actual antique winepresses

I also tried to search for an image of an antique wine press that looks like the symbol on the old men’s cloak. But I can’t find it. There is a lot to be found about the Symbolism of the grapes, but not about this particular symbol.

Since Waite and Smith where not the kind of people that just ‘doodled’ some cards (every penstroke has a meaning!), I think there’s definitely some symbolism hidden in it. But what?

Please let me know if you have any ideas about this.