The Tarot Your Guide to Tarot Mastery

Edition 3 Autumn 2011

She is an Earth Mother

and a Tarot Goddess: she is

The Empress. The Empress is more than just the wife of

The Emperor. She is a representation of all the

goodness and warmth that the Tarot holds.

In the mundane world, an empress is a

monarch. She is not just a figurehead of

sovereignty though, she has more power, honour

and rank than a Queen.

The Empress of the Tarot is not the ruler

of an empire; she rules the hearts of the characters

in the Major Arcana. She teaches you about caring

and nurturing yourself and others.

Plush, ripe, fertile, abundant; these are

words that sum up the card called The Empress.

She is sensuous, fertile, fruitful and creative. She

embraces the fullness of life and symbolises

fulfilment of potential.

The sign on her shield is a symbol for

female and it also represents the astrological

significance of the planet Venus, which helps you

to express beauty, and to draw love and friendship

into your life. The Empress exudes the qualities of

the celestial Goddess Venus, and manifests this

grace and desire in the earthly realms.

In the Rider-Waite Tarot, The Empress is

an attractive, young, motherly figure sitting upon

a plush lounge in a cornfield. She rules the land

with gentle authority. She is the embodiment of

the Earth Mother. In this edition of the Tarot newsletter, we'll

look at the qualities of The Empress and see how

they can be guidelines for life in the everyday

world.

Tarot blessings,

Page 1 - Editorial

Page 2 - The Original Rider-Waite Tarot

Page 3 - Book Review

Page 4 - The Empress of Today

Page 5 - Future Events

Page 6 - Difficult Cards

www.MisterTarot.com

The Rider-Waite Tarot

Edition 3 Autumn 2011

Did you know that if you

buy a new deck of Rider-Waite Tarot cards, the

images could be different to what was originally

drawn by Waite's artist, Pamela Colman Smith?

Unfortunately for Tarot readers, the

original printing plates of the Rider-Waite deck

were destroyed. The Rider Publishing Company

had the cards redrawn by copyists a number of

times between 1910 and 1940. I guess this was for

the purposes of printing clarity, but it's

disappointing because some of the original (and

significant) details have been lost, e.g.,

expressions on the faces of characters.

One interesting aberration is the extra

squiggly line in the card called The Sun. It seems

that Pamela Colman Smith intended to draw 11

curved rays, and 11 straight rays from the sun,

making a total of 22, thereby linking it to the 22

cards of the Major Arcana. However, it seems she

ran out of room when she had to fit in the Roman

numeral at the top of the card, so she left only one

side of a curly line. In one of the early editions, a

copyist left out this 'mistake', but by the time U.S.

Games took over the publishing rights for this

Tarot deck, it was reinstated. Later editions,

however, such as the Universal Waite Tarot have

covered over it with their colourisation of the

deck.

Black and white outlines of Smith's

original artwork were printed in a book called The

Pictorial Key to the Tarot, written by A. E.

Waite. The standard Rider-Waite deck has been

faithfully reproduced from these illustrations, but

the colouring of the cards received some subtle

changes, which sometimes makes card

interpretation more difficult than it should be.

In the Universal Waite Deck, two cards

which have suffered from artistic indulgence

during the copying stage are Temperance and the

King of Wands.

In the original line drawings of Temperance,

it's easy to see that on the top of her gown, just above

the square and triangle (written in Hebrew from right

to left) is the divine name, Yod He Vav He. In the

Universal Waite cards these letters simply become

folds in the material. Seeing this lettering means that

we pay more attention to the spiritual qualities of this

card.

In the original Rider-Waite card called King

of Wands, at the base of the throne is a salamander.

Although they resemble lizards, fire salamanders are

amphibious and they are black with yellow, orange

or red stripes and spots. This creature is a symbol of

the fire element and reinforces the fiery nature of the

character in the card.

However, in the Universal-Waite deck, the

artist has given us a green lizard. It's cute, but it

doesn't correspond to the elemental nature of the

card. It doesn't give another clue to the

interpretation of the image; it brings

confusion instead.

While learning the Tarot, use the standard

Rider-Waite pack, as it shows the symbols and

details of the image as the artist and designer

intended. Stylistic versions of this deck might be

more aesthetically pleasing, but I'd suggest leaving

them until you are familiar with the original designs.

Book Review

Whatever the reason for wanting to improve your

intuitive abilities, Paul Fenton-Smith's new book

'Intuition' can help. It's his tenth personal

development book and it's full of psychic

development tests, entertaining games, and powerful

self-awareness exercises for improving your

intuitive gifts.

For 33 years Paul has been teaching psychic

development, and he has distilled his knowledge

into this beautifully presented book. Inside its

stunning cover and within the lavishly illustrated

pages, he describes the difference between animal

intuition and spiritual intuition, techniques to

become centred, and ways to nourish yourself

spiritually. He claims that intuition 'is not a magical

gift, it's your spiritual birthright.'

My favourite chapter was on 'Living an Intuitive

Life'. In this section of Paul's book he says that

living intuitively, 'combines an acceptance of the

limitations and opportunities in the physical world

with an awareness of the deeper meaning or purpose

to our lives.' He also writes that it, 'offers you the

chance to ask for guidance when overwhelmed by

obstacles.' But there is a cost—your increased

sensitivity may mean that you'll have to avoid

circumstances where you'll feel drained by others.

For example, sensitive, intuitive people may

discover they can no longer frequent places such as

crowded shopping centres and bars.

This a useful, nicely structured book that has been

designed to help you discover your intuitive

strengths and weaknesses, improve your psychic

abilities, and guide you towards the inner voice that

wants to steer you along your spiritual path. Paul

says that by developing your intuitive abilities, 'you

can combine observation, logic and intuition to

make effective decisions and enjoy a more

rewarding life.'

RRP: AUD $34.95

Available through: www.paulfentonsmith.com

Edition 3 Autumn 2011

Insights from Tarot Gurus

She is motherhood, love, gentleness. At

the same time she signifies sexuality,

emotion, and the female as mistress....

The Empress is pure emotion...Only

through passion, can we sense, from deep

inside rather than through intellectual

argument, the spirit that fills all

existence...In readings The Empress

represents a time of passion, a period

when we approach life through feelings

and pleasure rather than thought.

- from “Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom”

by Rachel Pollack

Venus is the goddess of love, and love is

unity. So open your heart to her love.

Like the Oneness of The Fool, she is the

doorway back to unity. But in a different

manner. Meditate on The Empress to

constructively improve your powers of

imagination.

- from "Tarot - the Royal Path to Wisdom"

by Joseph D. D'Agostino

Symbols of The Empress The Empress wears a tiara of twelve stars, representing the twelve signs of the zodiac, and a pearl necklace—there is one pearl for each planet in our solar system. She holds a sheaf of corn as a symbol of authority and fertility. Here's a quote that sums up the abundance shown in the card called The Empress... 'There was a meadow full of young hay, and all the summer flowers in great abundance. Blue cornflowers, scarlet poppies, gold buttercups, a veil of speedwells, an intricate carpet of daisies where the grass was shorter, scabious, yellow snapdragons, bacon and egg plant, pale milkmaids, purple heartsease, scarlet pimpernel and white shepherd’s purse, and round this field a high bordering hedge of Queen Anne’s lace and foxglove, and above that dogroses, palely shining in a thorny hedge, honeysuckle all creamy and sweet-smelling, rambling threads of bryony and the dark stars of deadly nightshade. It was abundant, it seemed as though it must go on shining forever. The grasses had an enamelled gloss and were connected by diamond-threads of light. The larks sang, and the thrushes, and the blackbirds, sweet and clear, and there were butterflies everywhere, blue, sulphur, copper, and fragile white, dipping from flower to flower, from clover to vetch to larkspur, seeing their own guiding visions of invisible violet pentagrams and spiralling coils of petal-light.'

- from Possession, by A. S. Byatt

Edition 3 Autumn 2011

The Empress of Today In today's world, The Empress of Suburbia is a caring woman who mothers her children (and anyone else's children who happen to wander by) with kindness and sensitivity. In the Rider-Waite deck, The Empress is the embodiment of womanhood. She is an expression of Mother Nature, an Earth Goddess who is shown as a symbol of fecundity, ruling the physical realm with calmness and poise. Some Tarot decks show her as being pregnant, and this makes sense as the scene around her is always bountiful and rich with life. In Waite’s image of The Empress, a stream flows through the background, representing the surging vitality of life itself. In front of The Empress is a field of corn, another symbol of growth and sustenance. From The Empress we can learn the feminine qualities of warmth, patience and respect for self and others. She asks us to listen to the words of wisdom that tumble along the stream; to hear the truth that whispers through the treetops on the soft breeze; to know the possibilities of self expression that lie within the dormant seeds of vegetation; and to feel the ageless knowledge of the earth as it expresses itself in the harvest of fruits and grain. One of the greatest lessons from the Tarot is to make time to listen to the wisdom that each character can teach us. As The Empress of the Tarot reclines on her plush lounge, she expresses the nurturing quality that we crave from Mother-figures. From The Empress we learn to appreciate this nourishment to the soul, and if it is not available from our own mothers, then by attuning to The Empress we can receive the benefits of being valued, encourage and loved through this archetypal Mother Goddess.

Future Events

The Readers Studio

Hundreds of tarot readers, teachers, authors and

artists will gather for three extraordinary days of

Tarot study and play at The Readers Studio.

April 29 to May 1, 2011 at LaGuardia Marriott Hotel, New York

see: http://www.tarotschool.com/RS11/index.html

Tarot Convention <History and the Esoteric>

Held in France on 23rd to 25th September 2011 in a

semi-remote, mediæval village not far from Brittany.

Cost = €190

Book now!

See: http://association.tarotstudies.org

Tarot Tours

Imagine yourself watching condors in flight above the awe-inspiring Colca Canyon,

experiencing the energy of the still, deep waters of Lake Titicaca, the majesty of

Machu Picchu, the festive atmosphere of Cusco, exotic flora and fauna in lush

rainforests in the Amazon Basin. Into the mix throw tarot cards, cocoa leaf readings,

meditations and other spontaneous spiritual activities. That's the adventure you could be

sharing with like-minded people from 28 September - 16 October 2011

See: www.tarotjourney.com.au

If you have a request for specific Tarot

information, please contact me by email:

MisterTarot@yahoo.com.au

My Website: When I've met some of you at

public talks, I've had some lovely feedback

about Real Tarot and The Workbook. If you

have found the books useful, I'd really appreciate it if you could write a comment or

testimonial on the Guest Book at my website.

Hopefully your comments will inspire others to

take the Tarot journey too. You can leave your

message on my blog: www.MisterTarot.com

Links of interest

www.numberswork.com

An Adelaide-based school of numerology.

Learn how to combine Tarot and Palmistry in an innovative, five week

course, held once a week at Hahndorf, South Australia. Only $150

Email Trevor: witchabilia@hotmail.com

Edition 3 Autumn 2011

Difficult Cards

It's amazing how many people interpret the Five of Wands

card as "struggle and strife". What's overlooked is that the people

in this card are just boys. Look at the over-sized Wands and their

youthful expressions; they are playing, not fighting. Waite

described this card as, "mimic warfare", in other words, they're

having a play fight, not a serious one.

In a reading, if this card is shown in relation to a workplace

or home environment, some conflict may be present, but it is petty

rivalry, not a severe threat.

As the Wands in this card are raised, they form the

beginnings of a pentagram. This shape represents the triumph of

spirit over matter. I prefer to see this card as healthy competition,

rather than severe conflict.

Interpretations for The Empress

The Empress reveals the innate wisdom of

nature. She is fertility, natural growth, abundance,

fruitfulness, serenity, patience, and creativity. She

is the cycles of life, the rhythm of the land, and the

song of the seasons. The Empress is Mother

Nature herself.

She can represent the fullness of life,

domestic stability, generosity, contentment,

creative imagination, and potential fulfilled. This

card can sometimes even signify marriage or

motherhood.

The Empress is a supporter and nurturer.

She is emotional, sensual and gentle too.

When this card turns up in a reading, it

suggests a time to care and nurture self, family and

friends. It's a card reminding us to love ourselves,

and to be willing to cherish others.

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Copyright on all articles in this newsletter belong

to Don McLeod unless specifically stated otherwise.

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Edition 3 Autumn 2011

The bait is the means to get the fish where

you want it, catch the fish and you forget

the bait. The snare is the means to get the rabbit where you want it, catch the rabbit

and forget the snare. Words are the means

to get the idea where you want it, catch on

to the idea and you forget about the words. - Zhuangzi, Chinese Daoist

philosopher, 4th century, BCE