ARIES: Ace of Cups
This month’s card — the Ace of Cups from the Secret Language of Birds Tarot — is all about romance, affection, flirtation, intimacy, communion and most of all love.
Aces represent new and unformed energy. As Cups refer to emotions, intuition and feelings, it’s likely to manifest on one of these levels.
It’s all about seeing your capacity to love and express feelings mirrored right back to you — through a new love interest, a friend or family member, or the eyes of a child.
You may be starting a new relationship or expressing yourself romantically — whether or not a serious relationship develops from that flirtation. As with all Aces, the energy is so new and so unformed that a myriad of possibilities is completely within your reach.
The process of falling in love reveals to you your purest, most perfect potential. It’s when you put your best foot forward and show the world what you’re capable of — and the Universe responds in kind.
If you’re already in an established relationship, the Ace of Cups can refer to a renewal of affection and passion. It can represent a renewal, a more “formal” commitment or the onset of a new chapter in your relationship.
Just like Alcyone’s movement from the last degree of one sign into the first degree of the next, you can replicate this energy by seeing the Ace of Cups as an opportunity to take things to the next level in your relationship as well.
TAURUS: Eight of Pentacles
You may be feeling so centered and focused this month on what you are doing that everything else fades into the background.
The Eight of Pentacles — this version from the Sun and Moon Tarot — is called the “apprenticeship” card, a reference to the dedication that is put into refining everything you do into something you can be proud of.
It refers to taking on an interest — a brand new one or a lifelong dream — and devoting yourself fully to it. It doesn’t have to be career related, but because it’s a labor of love wouldn’t it be great if it were? Doing what you love and seeing the money follow is something we all aspire to achieve.
It can be as simple as being 100 % focused on your work and wanting to show the powers that be your level of dedication and service. And it can be as innovative as taking something you are uniquely capable of and turning it into a career.
The Eight of Pentacles can refer to an all-work / no-play mentality. But this is all relative, as the hours that you’re putting in will likely not feel like “work” at all. Not if you truly love what you do. This is about being fully engrossed in what you’re learning, creating or developing.
Take some time this month — even if you’re still somewhere punching that clock — and think about what you really want to be doing. Chances are good that once you start seriously thinking about your options, taking steps toward making them happen will come to you naturally.
GEMINI: The Empress
Pampering yourself should be high on your list of priorities this month alongside enjoying the finer things in life and immersing yourself in their enjoyment … savoring life through all five senses.
Once you slow down enough to feel your true self you can see that the world is your oyster and are open to new opportunities coming into your life.
If you find yourself in a situation this month where you have to choose between someone else and yourself… choose yourself! It may not feel comfortable for you and if it doesn’t perhaps that is because it is something you need to do more of.
There is a rich inner world that each of us — male or female — possess, yet few of us take the time to fully explore. It’s a lush, fertile garden where primitive instincts and natural desires reside.
The woman in this card — the Empress from the beautiful Shadowscapes Tarot — is at one with nature. She’s at home among the exotic birds and butterflies — as well as all the bounty of fruits and foliage that surround her. She’s nurturing yet commanding and exotic yet organic.
There is no shame in choosing “you” over someone else and look at the benefits this will bring you. With more self love and acceptance for yourself you will find this flowing out towards others where it then comes back to you. In other words… what you give out you get back.
CANCER: Seven of Pentacles
You may find yourself at a professional crossroads, feeling torn between following your dreams and doing what’s already proven itself to be safe and secure.
The Seven of Pentacles — like all Sevens — represents choices and dilemmas. With respect to your work or business, it can translate to feeling like you’re missing out on something by doing what you do really well but that your heart just isn’t into.
Sometimes we have to make sacrifices (also a hallmark of the tarot’s Seven cards). We can give up our job security in order to pursue our dreams; or we can give up our dreams in order to maintain our job security. It’s a catch-22.
The woman in this card — from Cathy McClelland’s fantastic Star Tarot — is faced just such a dilemma.
She can’t decide whether she wants to throw herself fully into her work — which she’s already invested energy in and which is also already clearly producing results — or whether she wants to move in a completely different direction.
You’ll have to think about what is most important to you this month as the Seven of Pentacles is a card of priorities as well as choices. Ideally you’ll find a way to turn what you dream of doing and what you are doing into one and the same. This is all any of us can hope for in the end.
LEO: Ace of Wands
Any new project you are thinking of starting now would be a great time to begin as the new year begins bringing with it a fresh energy to help you along your way.
The image on this Ace of Wands — from the beautiful Cosmic Tarot — suggests there is a correlation between what you are thinking of doing on a higher level and bringing it into your life. If this is the case it will not be difficult.
Things will fall into place for you almost seamlessly as your thoughts and actions correlate to what is around you and help comes from unexpected sources.
There is an abundance of energy for you whether this be physical or mental and with this energy plus more importantly you are able to channel this energy into whatever you are doing. This is a good month to plough through your workload.
If you have been falling behind with your work this is the month to get on top of that. If you look at the image there’s a sense of “as above, so below” as the energy is interconnecting within the Wand.
This also gives a sense of balance to your life as you are blessed with a sense of rightness in what you are planning to do.
The Ace of Wands invites you to ask yourself what you really want to do that you can put your whole heart and soul into. It invites you to offer your intentions up to the Universe with every reason to believe you will be rewarded for doing so.Great ideas start with a small spark and I suggest you follow your heart with any small spark that comes your way… you never know where it will lead you.
VIRGO: Black Tortoise Knight
The Black Tortoise Knight — from the beautiful Feng Shui Tarot — is less about action and energy than traditional tarot’s version of the Knight of Wands, and more about discretion and forethought.
This Knight of Wands is hesitant. You can see him looking back over his shoulder at something just out of range. He appears tentative and uncertain: maybe he’s worried he’s forgotten something or left someone behind.
His horse appears to be skittish as well. He leans down to sniff at the snow-covered ground, with one wary hoof raised.
Remember that Mercury’s retrograde this month as is your ruler (Jupiter). It’s probably not the best time to be going “gung ho” over anything as this Knight of Wands already knows.
You may be second guessing earlier decisions or going back to clean up earlier mistakes. Especially those that were made impulsively.
You can get a lot accomplished still. But you should be directing that energy toward reworking goals you’ve already set in motion rather than starting something new. The Mercury / Jupiter retrograde combo tells you to revisit, review and rethink your goals.
The Black Tortoise Knight (as well as the Black Tortoise itself at the edge of the card) seem to know that there’s a lot of value in taking things slow and steady. Save the passion and energy that’s normally associated with this card for another day, preferably after Mercury goes direct.
LIBRA: Four of Tides
This card — the Four of Tides — is the Japaridze Tarot’s version of the Four of Cups.
It’s a card that generally relates to disillusionment and discontent. And you can see how the couple are floating along with their backs to one another, lost in a state of reverie.
They may not even be aware of one another’s presence. They just drift along, eyes closed, not even seeing the beauty and serenity that surrounds them.
The Four of Tides can relate to a lack of motivation or a lethargy so profound that it threatens to numb you or trap you in your sense of boredom.
It can have you wondering whether there might be something else out there that would excite or inspire you. It can also relate to a lack of energy, which may mean it could turn into a lazy day where you don’t feel like doing much of anything.
One of the positive aspects of this card though is that it reveals to you exactly what’s “wrong with this picture” and allows you the opportunity to make it right.
It can get you thinking about how things could be — in an ideal world or at least with respect to following your dreams — and then what you can do to make those dreams a reality. While you may start out thinking “what’s the point?” you’ll have a clearer idea of what’s worth salvaging and what could use a little more work in the end.
SCORPIO: Three of Cups
It’s time to let your hair down, go out and have some fun and generally not worry about a thing.
The Three of Cups — this version from the gorgeous Cecolli Tarot — stands for happiness and merriment. Happy times abide and though you soar in the exuberance of the “moment” remember what you do in this moment may have consequences that bring you down to earth (or diving for cover under water) at some point in the future.
There’s a general sense of excitement as you know you are able to let your hair down and be social on oh so many levels.
There’s the level of soaring high and being so engrossed in your own pleasure that you ignore or don’t notice what is going on around you.
And of course there’s the coming down to earth with a splash where you worry you’ve made a fool of yourself and decide that hiding your face for a while is the best thing to avoid being embarrassed.
This month you want to leave your troubles at the door and go out and have yourself some fun, There’s no room for fretting about work or other mundane concerns.
Whatever you choose to do in January there is a sense of joy and abandonment of all your worries around it. It’s as if you don’t have a care in the world and from the look on the face of the highest mermaid in this card all your cares and worries are dropping away as you soar higher and higher.
SAGITTARIUS: The Hierophant
The Hierophant card is called the “Pope” in some decks. But it’s not only about religion.
It’s about carrying the wisdom of the ancients forward. as a means of gaining a greater understanding for yourself and using it to guide others.
There are many esoteric symbols in this card, along with the very prominent Sagittarius glyph. There are also symbols for the planetoid Chiron and zodiac sign Virgo. There’s a tree of life, a centaur, a solar system and a rainbow.
The Hierophant in this card — from the beautiful Spiral Tarot — is front and center with one hand raised in the classic benediction or blessing mudra while the other holds a key.
In the upper left corner is the Hebrew symbol Vav, which represents the connection between earthly and spiritual matters.
This Hierophant is not only in search of deeper knowledge, he’s prepared to impart it to others.
You could be immersing yourself in your studies this month or making plans to embark on a spiritual journey. You may also be called upon to present your ideas to others — either formally or informally. If you find yourself having to defend your views, do it in a calm, practical manner. Mercury goes retrograde this month which makes it all the more important to choose your words wisely.
CAPRICORN: Three of Pentacles
You may feel like things are starting to come together for you this month as you see your plans beginning to fall into place.
It’s a good time to put your head together with like-minded people and work on bringing a project to fruition. This is a “teamwork” card, among other things.
This card is about hitting your stride and seeing the early results of something you’ve been working hard on. Sometimes you need help to take it to the next level, even if that comes in the form of a critical eye.
This version of the card — from Dana Driscoll’s gorgeous Tarot of Trees — depicts this energy beautifully in its stark simplicity. The three trees merge together in the center, their pentacles melding into one and supporting one another at the top.
The Three of Pentacles says you’re making progress and should be feeling good about what you’ve accomplished so far. But there’s still work to be done, and you won’t be able to do it alone.
It’s a good time to reach out to others and ask for help if you need it. It can’t hurt to offer it to those who’d benefit from your assistance too. You may need a little push to get past a hump, or you may need the discerning eye of someone you trust.
AQUARIUS: Eight of Wands
Things are moving quickly for you this month, which means that you’ll have a full schedule ahead of you even before you walk out the door.
You’ll have to stay on you toes if you want to get anything accomplished — like the woman in this card — from the beautiful Paulina Tarot. You also want to stay focused: otherwise you run the risk of being pulled in several different directions or going off on a wild goose chase that distracts you from your original goals.
There’s a a sense of progress and swiftness in this card, as if to say “things are happening, and they’re happening NOW.” The Eight of Wands is also a card of communications. Networking and sharing ideas. Hearing and being heard. It speaks of sharing ideas and exchanging information with those who are receptive.
This is important because it may feel like certain relationships are up in the air for you – especially those where differences of opinion have caused them to stall them in their tracks.
This card speaks of not only communicating effectively, but also clearing the air and getting back in sync with those you may have had differences with.
It can also refer to travel or messages that come (in the form of good news) from afar. You may feel a bit overwhelmed; like you’ve got places to go and people to see, and not enough hours in the day. But as long as you stay focused you can get a lot accomplished.
PISCES: Knight of Cups
Whether you’re single, dating, married, separated, divorced or widowed, chances are good you’re going to be thinking about relationships this month.
The Lover’s card is about “love.” But it’s not always an easy or definitive love. Sometimes there are feelings of ambivalence or uncertainty, and sometimes there are choices to be made that can complicate things even more.
The figures in this card are lost in world of their own. They hold each other in a loving embrace, oblivious to the world around them. This version of the card — from the beautiful Jaen Tarot — emphasizes love and affection.
But life — and love — is not always so simple. This card can also indicate uncertainty in relationship or a decision that needs to be made. You may be wondering where you stand or whether someone you care about feels the same.
If you’re in love and happy with your choices, remember to celebrate that love with the object of your affection. And if you’re not — if you’re out there like so many of the rest of us still looking: don’t give up.
The Lovers card — and this one in particular — can serve as a reminder that there’s someone out there for all of us, and that what is most important is having an open heart that you’re ready, willing and able to share with another.
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This month’s tarotscopes feature some of Ask the Astrologers all time favorite cards. We hope you like them too!
Don’t forget to check out this month’s Horoscopes too!
January 2016 Tarot Scopes
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