Tarot - Ace of Cups (First Posted Jan 19, 2011)

Emerging from all that is unknowable and unknown through into the most ethereal level of the Suit of Cups (the Realm of Water, the World of Feelings) is the most potent symbol of this suit/realm/world i.e., the Ace of Cups.

Behold how sublime this golden vessel appears as it fills while it empties.  Behold its strength which is based on its ability to absorb and to be absorbed.  Behold its particular gift of penetration as the lesser stream penetrates and becomes one with the greater body of water below.

The potency of the Ace of Cups emerges at the pinnacle (Crown) of the Suit of Cups (the Realm of Water, the World of Feelings) where it then flows down, down, down through the 8 "depths" of this world to finally end its enlivening journey at its final destination i.e, the "Sovereignty" level of this world (wherein dwell its Page, Knight, Queen and King to embody the principal of Cups/Water/Feelings).

But, before we begin tracing the potency of feeling's route down the Tree of Life from its Crown (enlivening as it goes the "depths" of Wisdom, Understanding, Mercy, Severity, Beauty, Victory, Splendour, Foundation) to its final destination of Sovereignty - which we will be doing in the next 9 tarot blogs - it will serve us well just to spend some time simply drinking in the obvious attributes of the Ace of Cups.

There is grace in the pure water issuing forth from this great cup.  It soothes the soul.  There is a sweet sound accompanying this same pure water as it merges with the body of water below.  It nourishes the soul.

Can there be too much water?  No, not in its own kingdom.  Here, in the Suit of Cups, it is all about feelings and all about the ways in which they colour existence in this realm.  Exploring this realm is a vastly different experience than our previous journey through the Suit of Swords (Realm of Air, World of Thought) so be prepared for a change.  Be heartened to know that, by now, this change is due.

Our exploration of the Minor Arcana of the tarot is not about achieving balance - about the blending of the suits/realms/worlds - it is about measuring the height and the breadth of each of the 4 elemental realms of air, water, fire and earth individually for they are all four equal but all four distinctly different from one another.

In fact, it is this absolute equality of - offset by this absolute difference between - the four suits of Swords, Cups, Wands and Pentacles in the Minor Arcana that we are learning to recognize and respect in this particular tarot journey.

PLEASE NOTE:  This interpretation is based purely on the feelings I experience when I  focus on, and merge with, the images in the card combined with how I understand the Minor Arcana of the Rider-Waite deck dovetails with the Tree of Life in the Qabalah (as taught by Wald and Ruth Ann Amberstone, co-founders of The Tarot School in New York City, NY).