mental power with emotional awareness and respect for others. He
gives perfect expression to the powers of his psyche and lives life
in a near perfect balance between his intellect, will and emotions.
His skill in intimate relationships blends well with the passionate
emotional waters that flow in his inner depths providing a
compassionate foundation for his kingly intellect to rule others
with grace, consideration and respect.
INTUITIVE CLOUDS
When the King of Cups appears he may indicate you, another
person close to you, someone who may enter your life, an aspect of
your own personality or an aspect of yourself that needs to be
recognized, developed or asserted. He may also represent a
situation that you find yourself in.
When Appearing Upright and Representing a Person
The King of Cups is a learned and professional man skilled in both
legal matters and political affairs. His sympathetic, kind and
considerate nature bring him success in his personal relationships
and his mental agility and originality of thought make him
recognized as an outstanding leader. Though deeply emotional, he
often conceals this aspect of his personality and acts with a rational
authority. He is a creative, stable and wise person. You can trust
this man.
247
The Mirror of the Moment
When Appearing Upright and Not Representing a Person
When The King of Wands is revealed Upright in your reading, its
meaning(s) may correspond to: success in the matter of your
inquiry;
kindness;
consideration;
intelligence;
emotional
sensitivity; compassion; responsible behavior; creativity; a need
for more professionalism; emotional sympathy; stability; wisdom;
trustworthiness.
When Appearing Reversed and Representing a Person
Reversed, this card represents a powerful man of fierce nature who
is both crafty and violent. He is dishonest by nature and is prone to
vice and hedonism. He can be treacherous and unscrupulous in his
dealings with others and those who enter into a business or
personal relationships with him will suffer considerably. He has a
reputation for duplicity and is a double dealer and a robber. Do not
trust this man!
When Appearing Reversed and Not Representing a Person
When The King of Wands is revealed Reversed in your reading,
its meaning(s) may correspond to: a lack of success in the matter of
your inquiry; craftiness; double-dealing; scandalous behavior;
dishonesty; a lack of scruples; fierceness; violence; treachery;
unscrupulous behavior.
248
The Mirror of the Moment
THE KING OF SWORDS
King of the Spirits of Air
Fire of Air
DESCRIPTION AND SYMBOLISM
The powerful King of Swords looks us straight in the eye as he sits
alone on
his throne ready to
dispense
harsh
justice or
compassionate mercy. Stern judgment may await us when we face
him as he is the guardian of the rational order and takes his
responsibility very seriously. He holds a razor sharp sword in his
right hand pointing upwards towards the heavens. His throne is
decorated with butterflies and crescent Moons. An Angel whispers
into his right ear. Two birds soar in the lofty heights above him. He
is clothed in blue and royal purple and wears a golden crown upon
his head upon which is carved the image of an angelic being. A
signet ring of kingly power graces his left hand. The sky is mostly
clear with only a few grayish clouds reflecting the stern and just
249
The Mirror of the Moment
and unyielding will of this King whose sword can cleave either
and death.
MEDITATION
This King’
s rationality and practicality as well as his devotion to
intellect, logic, duty and responsibility blend well with the
compassionate, humanitarian and higher mental energies of his
royal being and strike the balance man must find between the cold
and impersonal nature of the intellect and the universal human
sympathy and higher mental development reflected by the exercise
of compassion in all judgments. Logic and reason cannot be the
final arbiters of our actions – we must temper their impersonality
with feeling. When the will and intellect become the perfected
expression of the illuminated mind they are able to act in an
impartial but
compassionate
manner
taking
humanity
into
consideration as well as facts and logical considerations. Perfection
of the mind lies not only in the airy spheres of reason and intellect
but equally in the watery depths of compassion and love.
INTUITIVE CLOUDS
When the King of Swords appears he may indicate yourself,
another person close to you, someone who may enter your life, an
aspect of your own personality or an aspect of yourself that needs
to be recognized and further developed or asserted. He may also
represent a situation you find yourself in.
When Appearing Upright and Representing a Person
The King of Swords represents a man who holds a position of
political power. Although oftentimes overcautious, he is a rational
thinker and has a logical and inventive mind. Old-fashioned ideas
guide his life and he can be a loyal friend or a fearsome enemy if
you cross him. He represents law and authority and is an active,
250
The Mirror of the Moment
subtle and clever man but one who can be can be very volatile and
domineering. He holds himself to the highest ethical standards and
is not without compassion in his judgments but seldom lets his
heart overrule the dictates of his reason and will. You are advised
to be cautious in any personal dealings with him.
When Appearing Upright and Not Representing a Person
When The King of Swords is revealed Upright in your reading,
its meaning(s) may correspond to: a positive mental influence;
excess rationality; courage; cleverness; strength; the exercise of
just authority; impartiality; a capacity for compassion and mercy;
loyalty; subtlety; being logical and inventive; a tendency to be
overcautious; emotional coldness; upholding conventional ideas of
law and order; holding a position of power and wealth.
When Appearing Reversed and Representing a Person
Reversed, the King represents a crafty man of evil intent who is
unscrupulous and cruel. He cares nothing for the lives or well
being of others and lives with evil intention towards all. He is a
man of malicious temperament who cannot be trusted under any
circumstances. Beware of any close personal relationship with this
man for his cunning and perversity could lead to your undoing.
When Appearing Reversed and Not Representing a Person
When The King of Sword
s is revealed Reversed in your reading,
its meaning(s) may correspond to: a negative mental influence;
someone having evil intentions towards you; becoming a victim of
cunning;
malice;
unfairness;
harshness;
injustice;
cruelty;
perversity; manipulation; craftiness; unscrupulous dealings; a lack
of emotional development.
251
The Mirror of the Moment
THE KING OF PENTACLES
The King of the Spirits of Earth
Fire of Earth
DESCRIPTION AND SYMBOLISM
Seated on a black throne decorated with carvings of bulls and vines
and rich with fruit, the King of Pentacles embodies the wealth and
power and authority of the material kingdom over which he reigns.
His throne is surrounded with vines and plants of all kinds
representing his material success. In his right hand he holds his
scepter of power and in his left he balances a single golden
pentacle which he regards with a blissful smile of satisfaction and
fulfillment. He has surrounded himself with the splendor of the
natural world and in his kingly reign expresses the sense of
responsibility and true understanding of prosperity that results
from the rightful use of power and money.
252
The Mirror of the Moment
MEDITATION
In the King of Pentacles lives the Fire of Earth – the lion sitting
upon his throne – someone who brings his unquenchable energies
to the processes of growth and prosperity so that all who come
under his influence may prosper. He celebrates the richness of his
own life while striving to share its abundance with all of his
subjects. Material success and spiritual wisdom must lie side by
side or our human development will be incomplete. All life’s
polarities must be balanced within ourselves before we can
experience the creative radiance of the Higher Self.
INTUITIVE CLOUDS
When the King of Pentacles appears in a reading he may indicate
you, another person close to you, someone who may enter your
life, an aspect of your own personality or an aspect of yourself that
needs to be recognized and further developed or asserted. He may
also represent a situation in which you find yourself.
When Appearing Upright and Representing a Person
The King of Pentacles signifies a patient, methodical and reliable
individual who is both loyal and trustworthy. He is an enterprising
man who is slow to anger and is blessed with outstanding business
acumen and great financial understanding. This card often points to
the possibility of improvement in your material circumstances.
You can trust this person.
When Appearing Upright and Not Representing a Person
When The King of Pentacles is revealed Upright in your reading,
its meaning(s) may correspond to: a focus on business and money;
reliability; generosity; a solid character; steadiness; patience; being
methodical; loyalty; trustworthiness; a gifted and enterprising
person; the possibility of bettering your material circumstances;
maintaining your present material status quo.
253
The Mirror of the Moment
When Appearing Reversed and Representing a Person
This card signifies a dull and materialistic person – a stupid,
obstinate, heavy handed and very tyrannical individual. Though
slow to anger, he can be very dangerous when aroused. He lives
like a cow chewing its cud and, if crossed, can become a very
violent person. Evil, corruption and immorality are the foundation
of his life. You should avoid this person at all costs.
When Appearing Reversed and Not Representing a Person
When The King of Pentacles is revealed Reversed in your
reading, its meaning(s) may correspond to: materialism; stupidity;
weakness; vice; corruption; greed; dullness of mind; immorality;
evil intentions; a heavy handed, tyrannical and dangerous person.
254
Intuitive Contextual Reading
255
The Mirror of the Moment
INTUITIVE CONTEXTUAL TAROT READING
THE BOBBLEHEAD
When I was a child, I viewed a television story written by the great
dramatic writer, Mr. Rod Serling, and produced on his television
series “The Twilight Zone.”This episode starred a noted actor who
later rose to preeminence playing the character in a science fiction
series. In this story he portrays a newlywed who while on his
honeymoon stops with his new bride for a quick lunch at a small
roadside diner. Both he and his new bride seat themselves in a
comfortable booth characteristic of small eateries in that historical
period. Centered on the booth and attached to the wall is a fortune
telling machine, which for a quarter will answer any question you
ask of it. On top of this device is affixed a “bobblehead”in the
shape of a clown’s head attached to the machine by a flexible
spring that allows it to “bobble”and move around if it is touched
or played with.
The groom is obviously superstitious by nature and seizes the
opportunity to give the “bobble head”fortune teller a try. He asks a
simple question and receives an encouraging reply. Confirmation
of the truth of the fortunetellers response comes to him and he is so
astounded by this that he begins to ask the machine question after
question concerning every aspect of his life and potential future.
As the sun sets, he is seen still sitting in his booth along with his
unhappy bride asking the machine question after question and
always needing another answer as what the machine says never
seems to quite satisfy him.
The point of this great story is quite clear – how a mind prone to
superstition can easily become entrapped by its own ignorance and
fears. Fortunetellers, be they human or mechanical, all sell the
same ultimate dream – the promise of the power to know the future
– and entrap the unwary and unwise in the pursuit of this
essentially futile endeavor.
256
The Mirror of the Moment
So is it also with the Tarot – the Tarot is neither a method of
foretelling the future nor a method of deciding trivial pursuits like
using it to inquire whether to have pancakes or eggs for breakfast
in the morning. The Tarot is a “Mirror of the Moment” and
through its revelations allows a broadened perspective, a sort of
“birds eye view”on how things stand with respect to any given
inquiry and should be used as an Oracle only for serious concerns
and not for trivial pursuits or essentially day to day activities less
you risk becoming like the unfortunate bridegroom, trapped by his
own fears and by the arrogant belief that you can gain power over
time.
This chapter explains several techniques of correctly reading the
Tarot and utilizes as examples a broad selection of real readings
done for real people in the real world using their actual questions.
This approach will portray how the Tarot can be use
d effectively
as a guide proving insight to questions related to the central areas
of human concern: love and romance, personal relationships, work
and employment, career, money and financial matters or personal
and spiritual concerns. It is written to reveal how the Tarot
responds to actual questions through real examples of its response
and the interpretations associated with those particular responses.
As can be seen, the Tarot is not in the fortune telling business of
“selling dreams”but of providing valuable insight to those who are
wise enough to seek out its guidance. Each major area of human
concern is illustrated by several reading examples. These were real
readings performed for real individuals in the course of a long
Tarot practice. Each reading is interpreted so as to illuminate the
true character of the Oracle’s response to their question. Examples
more complex readings such as the Three Card Reading and the
Celtic Cross Reading are illustrated and interpreted. When
studying these readings it is well to remember that the Tarot is a
truth teller. It reveals the true reality informing the matter you
inquired about. What you do with this revelation is entirely up to
you.
257
The Mirror of the Moment
A One Card Reading is a precise focus, like a spotlight shown
upon the matter of inquiry. More complex readings like the “Three
Card Reading”and the “Celtic Cross Reading” yield more detailed
stories and thus more insight and information.
No study of Tarot readings can proceed without addressing one
very important fundamental question: “Can the Tarot be used to
read the minds of others or to surreptitiously look into others
consciousness without their knowledge or consent?”This is a very
important question which must be addressed before commencing
the study of actual readings. In my opinion, this is a self delusion -
an unfortunate practice that demonstrates that anything, no matter
how intrinsically good, can be put to evil ends. Whether someone
wants to spy on a husband or boyfriend, look into the
consciousness of a supervisor or figure out what a parent or friend