Tarot Journaling … and the Queen of Cups

There are many ways to do a “Card of the Day” Tarot journal, but they pretty much all have one thing in common: you write about the card.  You can jot down general meanings for the card that occur to you as you think about it.  These can be the old, tried-and-true meanings, or they can be new revelations that come to you as you contemplate a card.  They can be thoughts about the particular features of the version of the card in the deck you are using, or they can be general thoughts relevant to any version of it.  You can apply the card’s meaning to your life in general or specifically to your life today: what’s planned for the day, what you hope for the day, or what might happen that day.  You can create an affirmation for the card to use that day, or you can write a poem about the card.  Again, the important thing is that you write about the card.

So, what value is all this?  For one thing, there are always new insights that you can get into any of the cards. Also, the cards can always give you new insights into life.  Another benefit is that it’s a simple but valuable reading practice to see what a card says about what’s going on in your life.

Do I journal about a card every day?  Well … I used to when I was relatively new to the Tarot.  Now I do it sporadically, and the reason I am mentioning it now in this blog post is because I recently journaled about the Queen of Cups with interesting results.  In addition, sharing this bit of journaling may provide a helpful bit of inspiration or a useful example for other people to start their own Tarot journal.

Generally I see love and compassion in this queen. She is able to understand other people on an emotional level, she gives them emotional support or support for their relationships, and she has empathy for other people.

In my own Tarot of the Masters version of this card, the Queen of Cups has a distant, starry look in her eyes that may indicate that she sees past the surface and the superficial aspects of a person in order to see deep into their hearts. Her hand gesture (which is a symbolic gesture of blessing) indicates that she is able to do this without being judgmental and that it is a blessing for others when she does so.  This may be because seeing someone through the eyes of love and compassion helps that person see herself that way too and helps her manifest love and compassion in her own life.

I also looked at this card within the context of how it might apply to being an effective Tarot reader.  What I saw is that in order for our readings to be of value to people, we have to see more than just their problems and circumstances.  We also need to see into their hearts and to do so without judgment. Doing readings is not just about solving problems; it’s also about bringing love and light into people’s lives.

Finally, considering the Queen of Cups got me thinking about the varying relationships between each of the Cups court cards and the topic of love.  I generally see a hierarchy within the court cards, and that contributed to the following views of these cards:

*  The Page of Cups is about discovering love, being amazed at its mystery.

*  The Knight is exploring romantic relationships.

*  The Queen of Cups, as noted above, sees the love in other people and supports their own discovery of it.

*  The King sees love everywhere and he rules with compassion.

Note that the above comments are positive, if not ideal, aspects of these four court cards.  There are, of course, many other layers of meanings to them and other ways to consider them.