This is the fifth and last installment in this Weekly Tarot Card series. The next series will begin on Monday. However, if you’d like to get caught up on the rest of the week, you can use the following links:
- Monday Description and Observation
- Tuesday Meditation
- Wednesday Suit/Element and Number
- Thursday Symbolism
Each week’s tarot card lessons are divided in such a way to encourage you to spend time with the card to fully develop the understanding of the card itself. Through observation, meditation, and breaking the card down, you should have the beginning tools to unlock the card.
Once we finally reach Friday, I give my own insight to the card, though this is my own insight, and may not be yours. I want to hear your discoveries and definitions that you’ve explored and developed over the week or in the past. Please don’t hesitate to share.
Defining the Card
The 2 of cups is heavily ruled by Water and the concept of duality. While the 2’s in general deal with balance and harmony, the Water in the 2 of Cups encourages this on an emotional level.
We understand ourselves through introspection, but likewise, part of who we are is reflected in those we spend time with. The 2 of Cups invites us to share ourselves with another. By doing so, we share of ourselves and thus we grow, and likewise we learn about ourselves by seeing who we are through the eyes of another.
However, a balance has to be maintained. When we are sharing, we must be sure that we are keeping enough of our own waters for ourselves so that we can nourish and hydrate. How can we give to another if we have nothing of us to give?
Likewise, there is the suggestion to share of ourselves wisely. Not only should we be mindful of the balance that must be maintained of what we give, but we also must be sure to give to those who are equally willing to give to us. The two figures in the Rider-Waite are stepping toward each other, giving an offering of their own Waters.
This is a card of love, there are no two ways about it. But there is more than love on an emotional level. There is love on a familial level, a friendship, the love and respect shared between one human being and another simply for existing, and the love of self.
The 2 of Cups invites us to reflect on how we share ourselves, if we share ourselves, and what might be blocking us from doing so. Often the answer is found within our own waters, our subconscious, our intuition, our emotional state. Consider what is blocking your Heart Chakra in these matters, spend time working with it, developing the understanding as to where to protect it, and where to open it.
Divinatory Meaning
This is a card of union between two people, either in communication, trade, love, or through other emotion. It is a bridge between two, and one that can give way to harmony and healing.
Keywords: unity, communication, harmony, respect, partnership.
We are now halfway through our 2’s in the Minor Arcana. We covered the 2 of Wands last week, and now have just wrapped up the 2 of Cups this week. Next week will be the 2 of Swords, followed by the 2 of Pentacles. To wrap up the 2’s we’ll cover the High Priestess.
How do you feel about the exercises from this week? How do you feel about the 2 of Cups? Where do you think it’s showing up in your own life? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments!
The Decks Used
The Aquarian Tarot in a Tin by Italian-born, American-raised David Palladini, was published originally in 1970 by U.S. Games Systems Inc, and then republished again in 2016 in a smaller size. Named after the Age of Aquarius, the Aquarian Tarot is a midieval depiction of the Rider-Waite Tarot system. The images are closer, and thus might give the impression of being more character-based rather than relying on symbolism. This intimate deck provides a stark reflection of the human condition in it’s journey through the tarot.
Faerie Tarot by Nathalie Hertz, published by U.S. Games Systems, Inc, 2008. Hertz is a French artist, and the creator of several other beautiful tarot decks. The Faerie Tarot was ‘inspired by the flora and fauna of the French countryside,’ and ‘invites you to see the world in a delightful new way…blending fantasy, whimsy, and nature.’
Impressionist Tarot by Arturo Picca (artist) and Corrine Kenner (author), published by Lo Scarabeo in 2015. This deck takes works of classic impressionist paintings and recreates them to fit the meanings of the tarot. It pulls from works of Edonard Manet, Claude Monet, Pierre Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, Vincent van Gough, and Paul Gauguin. A truly beautiful deck, especially for those who have interest in the art world.
Prisma Visions Tarot by James R. Eads, 3rd ed., published in 2016. The deck itself is beautiful, though perhaps not for the beginning tarot reader. The suits all fit together to create a master picture displaying the energy and progression of the suits. The figures and images flow from one card to the next, showing movement within the stationary cards.
Rider-Waite by A. E. Waite. The deck used in these photos is currently out of print. I won’t say much about this deck, as it is fairly standard and probably one of the most produced decks. It serves as a standard for many tarot readers and artists, depicting classic images relating in part to the original playing cards that tarot developed from.
The Spiral Tarot by Kay Steventon. With turn-of-the-20th-century style art, this deck takes from the classic Rider-Waite deck and brings it up to the late 1800-early 1900’s, a time of industry and contemplation for the western world as it moved forward into a more technological era. I am a little biased toward this deck as it’s been my main deck for 15 years. The cards are thick with additional symbolism that can be tricky to pick out of the traditional Rider-Waite, and adds layers of Greek myth throughout the Major Arcana.
Thoth Tarot by Aleister Crowley (designer and author) and Lady Frieda Harris (artist), published by U. S. Games Systems, Inc., in 1978. This deck takes from most esoteric imagery, and requires the reader of the deck to have deep, initiate knowledge of the symbolism used. There is nothing within the cards that is without meaning. However, on a more surface level, the deck draws from Egyptian symbolism and from the style of the Marseille Tarot (mostly seen within the Minor Arcana). For those looking for deeper understandings of the universe, I recommend this deck. I would caution that this deck is highly advanced, and might be avoided for the budding reader.
Vampire Tarot – by Nathalie Hertz, published by U.S. Games Systems, Inc. in 2000. As mentioned above in reference to the Faerie Tarot, Hertze is a French artist who gained her notability through the publication of her tarot decks. The Vampire Tarot was a bestselling deck upon its release, and plays on more gothic symbolism, providing more jarring interpretations to allow for the accepting of negative forces within the world to compliment the positive forces. The deck brings together myths and legends in the form of vampires, which ‘gives tarot readers a macabre passport’ into the world of divination.
