Articles

The Temperance Card — Finding your Center

Temperance

So many of us struggle with finding balance in our lives, whether it’s between head and heart, career and family, or material vs. spiritual progress, etc.

The Temperance card encourages us first and foremost to seek that balance and to find our personal “Center.”

In the Archeon Tarot, we see an angelic figure: youthful, graceful and innocent.

She stands watch over two totem animals, a lamb and a tiger.

She appears to be tending equally to both of her charges.

The lamb represents peace, harmony and gentility.

The tiger represents passion, strength and a wild ferocity.

Her manner of tending them is different for each.

She keeps a cautious hand above the tiger at all times while watching over the docile lamb.

She maintains her sense of balance and equilibrium, all the while staying present in the moment.

Ask yourself in what ways taming the inner beast and activating the inner lamb can most benefit you now?

Five of Cups — Everybody Hurts

Five of Cups

Today we’re going to be looking at the Five of Cups: arguably one of the most challenging cards in the Tarot. Challenging in the sense that it’s not easy to find much ‘positive’ about this card — which is precisely the point.

The Five of Cups — this version from Timothy Lantz’ wonderful Archeon Tarot — speaks of sadness, disillusionment and discontent, even at times when things are not as bad as they seem.

As someone who speaks every single day with clients who are unhappy in their relationships, it came as no surprise when I pulled this card.

I even wondered if it wasn’t such a good idea to start with something so “negative” right out of the gate. But there are positive aspects to this card too, and important messages—even if they’re not readily apparent. We’ll start with the not so good:

I remember telling someone once that everyone I knew was either in a relationship and trying to get out, or not in a relationship and trying to get in. And while this may have been a slight exaggeration, the 5 of Cups turns out to be an appropriate representation of that sentiment.

It describes a sense of unhappiness or disillusionment in your current state of affairs, whether you’re involved in a relationship or not.

September 2013 Tarot Scopes featuring the Archeon Tarot

Seven of Swords

ARIES: The Seven of Swords — like all sevens — speaks of difficult choices and moral dilemmas. There are temptations disguised as opportunities, which could turn out to be more than you bargained for in the end.

In this rendition, we see a raven perched before the light of a full moon, a glowing sun time-piece dangling from his beak. A legend is told in Native American traditions of a snow white bird who steals the sun and moon and places them in the night sky. The sun is so hot that it chars his white feathers, rendering them permanently black.

There are four swords piercing the moon and three penetrating the earth below it. As the moon represents mystery, illusion and the depths of the human psyche, we can see this as a need to penetrate the veil that obscures our motivations.  We’re reminded that all that glitters is not gold, that there are consequences for our actions. The concept of time is also relevant here, as in keeping track of time, not wasting time, and making time for things that are most important.

There are elements of mischief, trickery and even thievery in this card, You may be tempted to engage in practices that are not aligned with your principles. Or you may be the recipient of someone else’s duplicity. But these same elements can be used to your benefit. The seven of swords represents skill and ingenuity as well. You must have a sharp mind and a vigilant approach if you’re to navigate through some of the obstacles before you. Opportunities come your way, but there’s always a catch. Just like the raven whose cunning and prowess has rewarded him with the fiery sun, but whose feathers have become permanently charred in the process.