When I was first learning the cards, Courts gave me fits. Even though I had a general idea of the qualities of each suit, distinguishing between Pages, Knights, Queens and Kings, understanding the differences and putting it all into context in the framework of a reading was challenging for me.
I found Joan Bunning’s Learning Tarot Online, and the lesson there helped. I learned the Golden Dawn element associations for the ranks, and that helped. (A good explanation of the Golden Dawn versus Thoth system of elemental attributions for the court –and a lot more on them!—can be found in the book, Understanding the Tarot Court by Mary Greer and Tom Little.) I thought in terms of what each rank’s role in the court structure may have been, and that helped. And after a while, I just got an overall “feel” for each one’s personality through working with the cards, you know?
But even with all that study, doesn’t mean I don’t ever take a look at one of these cards and wonder, “What are you trying to say to me?”
The King of Cups can be a bit slippery anyway. He’s passionate, always! But at times, he’s also moody. He may be prone to impulsiveness, getting carried away in the heat of the moment. The Kings often show us outwardly focused energy, so whatever is in his heart, you’ll probably see it in his actions as well.
As advice, I will usually take this fellow to be saying to act upon our feelings, behave true to the heart regardless of whatever other intervening forces may appear.
That’s never bad advice. As a follow-up to the recent Hierophant sighting, he adds an element much needed when you study the wisdom of the masters: the ring of truth in your heart.
Come to think of it, that’s an element much needed for pretty much everything. He lives “heart-true.”
Do you look for “heart-true” in all you do?
 | Mystic Dreamer Tarot by Heidi Darras |
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