"The sun shines in the zenith, and beneath is a
great winged figure with arms extended, pouring down influences.
In the foreground are two human figures, male and female, unveiled
before each other, as if Adam and Eve when they first occupied
the paradise of the earthly body. Behind the man is the Tree
of Life, bearing twelve fruits, and the Tree of Knowledge of Good
and Evil is behind the woman; the serpent is twining round it.
The figures suggest youth, virginity, innocence and love before
it is contaminated by gross material desire. This is in all
simplicity the card of human love, here exhibited as part of the way,
the truth and life. It replaces, by recourse to first principles,
the old card of marriage, which I have described previously,
and the later follies which depicted man between vice and virtue.
In a very high sense, the card is a mystery of the Covenant
and Sabbath.
The suggestion in respect of the woman is that she
signifies that attraction towards the sensitive life which
carries within it the idea of the Fall of Man, but she is
rather the working of a Secret Law of Providence than a willing
and conscious temptress. It is through her imputed lapse that
man shall arise ultimately, and only by her can he complete
himself. The card is therefore in its way another intimation
concerning the great mystery of womanhood. The old meanings
fall to pieces of necessity with the old pictures, but even
as interpretations of the latter, some of them were of the order
of commonplace and others were false in symbolism."
The Lovers card is probably one of the more difficult to write about, because
the tendency- or at least mine- is to keep to the easiest and most obvious
meanings as shown in most of the tarot decks, including the RW. However, as
was prefaced by my earlier post on self love, this card has a deeper context,
and one that requires actually only yourself to truly explore- in fact
perhaps that is the best way to begin, then to move forward.
As we've moved along the major trumps, you have seen various characters so
far- the Fool, the Magician, the High Priestess, the Emperor, the Empress,
the Hierophant. Now we are at card 6, and we no longer have only one figure
in the card, but instead three... a man, a woman and an angel. In the RW
deck the Angel is rather large compared to the smaller human figures. The man
stares at the woman, the woman at the angel. In older decks the man was
actually presented with TWO women to chose from, and Cupid was above, aiming
his arrow right at the man.
What the older decks show clearly is the idea of CHOICES, decisions to be
made. At this point the individual has begun to learn and grow, and now is
the time in the process where he/she is asked what do you want, where do you
go? Do you take the time now to fully integrate all aspects of your own
self, so that you move forward as a complete person? (note that this is not a
singular event, but most likely an ongoing synthesis). As has been noted in
some posts, humans have a 'male' and 'female' part in each of them. For a
while men were encouraged to get in touch with their feminine side, at least
by the monthly magazines on 'how to meet women'! But what truth is there for
both men and women in this idea? As women have branched out into the working
world in the recent years, being 'tough' like a man was essential- to the
point of wearing little bow ties (thank you John Malloy may you rest in,
well, tie hell *G*). Look like a man, talk like a man--- all these things to
be treated with equal respect (now there's an illusive goal still). Men are
staying home more, taking care of the children, roles are reversed. Is this
not an example of each finding that traditional roles, assigned by society,
are not necessarily indicative of one's true worth?
So then why is the idea of integrating both sides of our nature- which I
would venture to say have been called male and female more as an assignment
due to biological correlaries than as minimizing or derogatory-- why is this
so difficult for us to do? It goes back to accepting yourself, faults and
all, and loving all these parts without judgment. Giving yourself the same
unconditional love you would like to receive. What is the saying? Charity
(love) starts at home?
So that is one aspect of the Lovers card- seeing what issues are inside of
the person, that need deciding, consideration, exposing and acceptance.
There is of course the more obvious meaning of love in the air- romantic,
sexual, deep and abiding love.
"Sometimes at what we read our glances joined,
Looking from the book eac to the other's eyes,
And then the color in our faces drained.
But one particular moment alone it was
Defeated us: the longed-for smile, it said,
Was kissed by that most noble lover: at this,
This one, who now will never leave my side,
Kissed my mouth, tremblign. A Glaeotto, that book!
Ans so was he who wrote it; that day we red
No further."... (Dante Canto V, Inferno)
So what is love, who are lovers?
One might take the physical side of love and look into the lust, the sensual
pleasures of sharing intimacy. But perhaps this is only but a fleeting
moment of the truer lust- the passion of souls and minds that meet and join,
puzzles that fit together, if only perhaps for a moment in time. This card
definitely shows the type of love that a mature person enters into, rather
than the love for a parent or child.
The card shows the integration of the dual nature of humans, of life,
(remember the pillars we've seen in the other cards?). The opposite natures
that create the tension of attraction- pulling together with magnetic force
that which is not always similar, and sometimes, not always able to bring
about peace and equilibrium. But at some point, there is a match- there is a
reason that the two parts of the puzzle are mated.
The sun overlooks the trio, shining the deity force on the players with the
Angel, possibly Raphaaael, overlooking the two and representing the desire of
the individuals to become one, not just with each other but with the world.
There is a mountain in the background representing that which the couple
must attain. The man has a black tree with twelve flames beind him (twelve,
zodiac)- black shows the illusion of what is thought to be the benefits of
the physical world and efforts, but is ultimately not enough- the man seeks
more. The female has a red tree behind her with a snake (symbol of
everlasting life, the sexual nature of lifeforce, fertility, sacred), red for
desire and life.
There is a balance between the sexual/physical desires and the spiritual
desires. In finding one, the other is attainable. When off balance, there is
much more difficulty in achieving that balance.
It is somewhat amazing that today, despite the sexual revolution or perhaps
because of it, that sexuality is still hidden, spoken of in hushed tones, and
often kept as something that is not really part of humans. This card
acknowledges this side of the human being and asks that we do the same.
Taking lust and love and showing us the sacred part of the physical side,
rather than hiding behind society's barriers of shame. All parts of us are
of beauty and joy, and to be cherished.
Now if this card shows up what would you think? OK, the usual, lovers
relationship- then for certain you want to look at the other cards around the
Lovers to see what is going on in the relationship. Is there a relationship
on the horizon? What is it about? Is he/she true to me? This card will get
your querants going, for sure, love is definitely a favorite question in our
lives!
If you see the card reversed this might indicate a relationship that is not
equal or balanced- perhaps one is giving more than the other and while that
is sometimes normal, it may have gone beyond the 'normal' stage; or perhaps
there is a problem. I would caution you on how you word this type of
discovery--telling someone their lover is cheating on them is perhaps
melodramatic but may not be right-- be sure of yourself, or use the cards to
help THEM explore the possibilities. I am always reluctant to give facts
that I can't verify- usually the questions will point them in the direction
needed to see what is happening- or perhaps further cards to clarify.
I once read for someone who thought her husband had a serious problem but
didn't know what it was. I had gotten the OH cards as a gift, and we tried
them (this is a close friend btw). She drew the card that had the word
"Homosexual" and the picture card showed a woman walking away down a street
with two small female children holding hands with her. Yep- this was the
case, indeed down to the two girls. That was very unsettling however. Since
it was a good friend, and she'd had the cards used by someone else before,
she was prepared- maybe even more than I was! When the truth finally came
out from him, there was little surprise. Had this been for someone I didn't
know as well, it could have been far more uncomfortable.
Moral of that sidetrack is, do be careful when reading- I know some of you
feel you will say whatever and folks just live with it. I would simply
remind everyone, myself included *G*, that these are real people who are
looking for help.
So, we have the lovers, a choice to be made. Some cards show a choice between
the sexy young thing and the less attractive but 'nice' woman...is this
really about women or is it more the choice of living an exiciting but amoral
life vs a boring but moral life? I don't particularly agree that this is
really the choice to be made. What do you think though?
So when you see the Lovers card, take the time to really think it through.
Don't assume this is just about the usual boymeetsgirletcetera relationship--
there are far more complex ideas afoot here. Decisions, decisions,
decisions.
