Tarot Thrones | The Court Card Blog

Tag: King of Cups

  • Full Moon | May | Scorpio | The King of Cups

    Today the full moon lights up the astrological sign of Scorpio.  This means that the Court Card energy we are looking at belongs to the King of Cups.

    This chap is regarded as the most diplomatic of the Kings.  In touch with his emotional centre, but not governed by it, the King of Cups understands other people’s points of view but (if he’s at the top of his game!) is not caught up in the drama of it all.

    He is compassionate and empathetic and so his challenge is to hold those feelings and still be able to take action.

    For example:  The King of Cups loathes cruelty.  His challenge is to see it and not be rendered immobile by it.  He must still take action.  This is what makes him such an excellent social worker or counsellor.

    The King of Cups calls you to:

    Listen to the other person’s point of view, with the intention of truly understanding them.

    If there is any sort of crisis or upset today, you are called to respond with empathy and consideration… and ACTION.

    How is he showing up in your life today?

  • Salvador Dali | Tarot in Art | King and Queen of Swords

    I first fell under the spell of Salvador Dali via his magnificent Christ of St John which was bought (amidst great public hooha – petitions and irate letters to the newspapers) for Glasgow City Council’s Kelvingrove Museum in the 1950s.

    I regularly visit the museum to visit the quiet and contemplative little space they have created for the painting.

    From there I was entranced by soft watches that melted like plasticine on a radiator and spindly-legged creatures that roamed fantastical landscapes.  And amidst the hurricane of clever visuals that appealed to children and art collectors alike, he created a set of Tarot cards.

    And no, I don’t own a copy…… *weeps sadly into her morning coffee*

    ……YET *flicks gaze sideways to make sure hubby isn’t listening*

    The deck was published when the artist was 80 years old – a tribute to his wife and muse, Gala .

    I came across these two beauties which were sold at Christies in London back in 2008.  They had been bought from an anonymous seller five years earlier (also at Christies) and were now being sold by the Judith and Abraham Amar Foundation, in aid of charity.  

    Dali’s work is not always actually Dali’s work, but this King and Queen have been authenticated by the late Robert Descharnes and his son Nicolas, both internationally acclaimed experts in Dali’s work.
    The two images are about A4 sized and are gouache and collage on paper.  With their butterfly motifs, these were both intended to be the images for his Tarot deck’s King and Queen of Swords.  However, in the completed Tarot deck, the King has lost his butterfly motif and has been transformed into the King of Cups.
    And their sale price?
    Queen  £12,500
    King £10,625
    You’re going to need more than a paper-round to finance your Tarot in Art addiction 😀
    Ever purchased a bit of Tarot art from an artist that you love?

  • The King of Cups | Art | Visconti Sforza

    From the workshop of Benifacio Benbo, 
    Il Re di Coppe, 
    Visconti Sforza Tarot
    Yeah, there’s so much of the figure missing that when I looked at this image I thought the King was actually lying in a box with only his legs sticking out.  As if he had been SLIGHTLY overusing his Cups.
    And here’s what The King of Cups looks like when he’s not lying in a box.
    The top image was sold in 2008 at the Milan auction house for Christies for a jaw-dropping 19,500 Euros.
    So the next time your other half rolls his/her eyes at your frantic late-night, wine-fuelled ebay bidding to procure YET ANOTHER tarot deck, you can point out that it’s AN INVESTMENT.
    That’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it!
    What’s been the most expensive Tarot deck you’ve ever purchased?

  • The 8 Marriages and 7 Husbands of Elizabeth Taylor

    King and Queen of Wands

    One of the side effects of living as Elizabeth Taylor for a week (other than really sore eyes from too much mascara and eye-liner) was an unhealthy interest in her many husbands.  And bourbon.

    Why not, suggested a friend, write about her husbands and relate them to various Tarot court cards? Why not, indeed.  

    Elizabeth Taylor’s love life is the stuff of legend – death, divorce, adultery – all seen through the lens of a newly born media merry-go-round.

    Mine is exactly the same – apart from the death, adultery and celebrity, of course.

    There’s a lot to get through – shall we just dive in?

    (more…)

  • September | New Moon | The King of Cups

    Odin – just hanging around

    And so we are huddled once again in the darkness of a moonless night! A sliver of new moon will be upon us – and whose energies will guide me from now until the moon is full once again?

    The Father of Cups from the Haindl, that’s who.

    This deck is very special to me.  It was the first ‘fancy’ Tarot deck that I ever bought.  It was also the first purchase that I ever made on ebay!  I *know.*  I’m a veritable FONT of spiritual insight.

    The image in the card depicts Odin, the Head Honcho god of the Norse pantheon.  The suit of Cups represents the North and the Northern Gods.  Interestingly, the Queen of Cups is The Willdendorf goddess, which I mentioned earlier this month, here.

    We see Odin hanging upside down (exactly like the Hanged Man card) suspended on the World Tree, Yggdrasil.  He is reaching into the Underworld to find the Runes – you may just be able to pick them out, scattered on the ground beneath his outstretched hand.  He has been half-blinded (a payment he made to Mimir) in return for a drink from the giant’s well.  The name Mimir means memory, apparently.  I may have remembered that wrong. *boom tish – eyethankyoo*

    Odin was more than just the Leader of the Norse pack and a God of War, he is also closely associated with more ‘Cups’ orientated subjects such as poetry and magic.  I’m hoping that it’s his Cups associations rather than his warlike tendancies that are coming to the fore for me!

    I usually think of the King of Cups as a slightly laughable figure – kind and diplomatic of course, but always slightly mystified as to where he’s left his car keys.  A bit of a buffoon.  Which is terribly unkind of me and probably says more about the influence of Wands and Swords on me than the poor Father of Cups!

    Yet here he is, taking me by the hand to guide me through to the full moon.

    So – until the full moon, I am prepared to go with the flow, to surrender (Hanged Man stylee) to the Father of Cups and Life Itself (which is totally unlike me).  I will endeavour to be kind and considerate; to accept people at face value; to be diplomatic (let me tell you right now, your bum does NOT look big in that).

    And most importantly, now is the time for me to reach into my own underworld and emerge with knowledge and magic… slightly scary prospect! But if I am prepared to trust the King of Cups, this is the time to do it.

    I’ve taken to intermittent fasting (fast for 24 hours, twice a week) and have been considering a deeper fast with more spiritual endeavours….

    I wondered whether I was on the right track with my thoughts bout the King and drew another card to modify him (as I do with the amplifiers exercise).  I drew the 7 of Wands: Courage.  So I think I’m on the right track after all 😀

    What does the King of Cups mean in your life, right now?