Start Today with Guidance and a Glimpse of Possibilities

After the shifting and chancy light of the moon comes the beauty of The Sun, blazing down joyfully on the child who rides a horse away from a walled garden. This garden is often interpreted as being that of Eden. Rather than leaving it fearfully and in shame, however, here the child leaves its shelter optimistically, ready for the adventures that his new self-knowledge will grant him. The Sun points to the inherent capacity of simple, everyday life to be deeply infused with wonder and happiness, and the miracles in the minutiae all around us.

Three of Swords is usually easy to understand even for those who are completely new to the tarot. In this image we see three Swords pierce a heart that is suspended in a grey sky from which rain slants down. And yet, not all is as it seems, for this card is as concerned with hope, just as much as it is with emotional pain.

As a suit, Swords are linked to Air, which is the element of the intellect and the mind. In the Ace of Swords, we see a hand emerging from a cloud holding the emblem of the suit; a crown surmounts the Sword - a symbol of triumph and victory in the material world.

In the Five of Cups we see the figure of a woman, who epitomizes sorrow and loss in the manner in which she stands, head down, regretful, desolate, and - we sense - deeply alone in her sadness, quite possible by choice. The three spilled Cups that are the source of her grief lay on the ground before her; behind her stand two remaining upright Cups, as yet unseen, or unheeded.

The theme of love continues in the Two of Cups: the Rider Waite image depicts a young man and woman holding their Cups out to each other. Note its compositional similarity to The Lovers: the winged lion represents the merging of spirituality with physical passion, and the symbol beneath it is the caduceus of Hermes, which relates to wisdom and healing. We see in this card the great transformative power of love.

In the Three of Cups, we see three women captured in the moment of raising their Cups high in the air as they come together. They are surrounded by an abundant harvest and the card radiates joy and celebration: specifically, shared happiness and experience.