The Suit of Pentacles
This is the story of the Athenian craftsman named Daedalus who built the Labyrinth for King Minos of Crete. Daedalus is considered not as a good man yet neither as a bad man but a curious mixture of both.
Daedalus was from the royal house of Athens and was a good smith having been
taught by the goddess Athene herself. He spent many years perfecting his skills
and many say he invented the saw and the axe as well as being being the first
man to fix arms and legs to the shapeless primitive stateus of the gods. He
soon became known for his ingenuity and cunning.
His success was however trashed by the craftsman's own flawed character. Daedalus
had a nephew named Talos who was 12 years old. Talos began to take over the
craft of his gifted uncle and started creating his own tools and other objects.
He invented the potter's wheel and the compass while only very young. Daedalus'
jealousy took over and he was torn by conflict. He loved his nephew but he couldn't
tolerate his reputation being threatened in such a way. He murdered Talos by
throwing the boy from the roof of Athene's temple. He was however caught in
the act of trying to hide the body and was condemned but managed to flee Athens
before any punishment had been given to him yet.
The smith landed in Crete and received the protection of King Minos. For a
while he lived in high favour at Knossos, Minos' capital, creating all sorts
of objects of different kinds for the king and amusing the palace children with
self-made toys. A bad fate befell King Minos. Minos had offended the god Poseidon
by refusing to sacrifice a white bull on the god's altar and Poseidon retaliated
by afflicting Minos' wife Pasiphae with a violent passion for the bull. Pasiphae
appealed to Daedalus and begged him to find a way so she could couple with the
bull in secret. Daedalus was caught once again in a conflict, for Minos was
his protector and patron, yet it was clear that the hand of the god lay on Pasiphae.
Daedalus chose the god and made a wooden cow in which Pasiphae crouched and
mated with the bull. When the hideous Minotaur, with a bull's head and a man's
body, was born from this union, King Minos, ignorant of the part which Daedalus
had played in its conception, begged the smith to build a hiding-place where
the Minotaur could be hidden. Daedalus aggreed and constructed the tortuous
corridors of the Labyrinth, where once a man entered he would be lost for all
times. Yet when Theseus arrived in Crete to slay the Minotaur, and Minos' daughter
Ariadne, fell in love with him it was to Daedalus that she turned to find a
way for Theseus to enter the Labyrinth and trace his steps back out again. Daedalus
betrayed his master yet again and made a ball of golden thread, of which Adriane
held one end and Theseus held the other while entering the dark corridors. He
slew the Minotaur and followed the golden thread back out to Adriane safely.
Minos this time did however discover the treachery of his craftsman and locked
Daedalus in the Labyrinth. The smith ingeniously made a pair of wings from beeswax
and wood and feathers which the sympathetic Pasiphae brought him, and flew from
one of the towers, borne by the wind toward safe shores. Eventually he landed
in Cumae on the coast of Italy, and from there made his way to Sicily, where
he gained the favour of King Cocalus.
King Minos pursued him and tracked him all over Greece and Italy. The king carried
with him a triton shell and wherever he went he promised to reward anyone who
would pass a linen thread through it-a feat which he knew Daedalus alone could
perform. In this way he found the smith's hiding-place, but King Cocalus refused
to part with his valued guest. Cocalus ordered his daughters to pour boiling
water into Minos' bath and Daedalus thus lived into contented and wealthy old
age.
Ace of Pentacles
This is the time of material achievement, because the raw energy for this kind
of work is now available to the individual. Money is usually made available
through a legazy or some other source together with the persistance to utilize
these resources effectively.
Two of Pentacles
Money and energy are likely to be available for new projects that might lead
to a rewarding future but the individual must be willing to put his/her resources
to work and take risks and using capital rather than hoarding and saving at
a time when enw opportunities arise. This card is most likely to be a welcome
card to those who know how to 'play around' with money.
Three of Pentacles
Early success is about to come the individuals way in some material endeavour.
Finished projects may earn profits, or a creative venture such as a book may
show early success in the market. This is not however a final resolution but
a stage which will hopefully lead through hard work and difficulty to a permanent
reward.
Four of Pentacles
This card shows a warning about attitude problems like holding on to tightly
to things which are bound up with one's sense of self-value. The fear of loss
may mean no loss, but it also means no gain. The stagnation of creative energy
can eventually not only block funds but also block self-impression.
Five of Pentacles
Financial difficulty or loss could be coming up. This might also come with lotss
of faith in oneself. It is important to try to respont to challenges not only
by letting go if necessary and preparing to begin again, but also by considering
where one's own nature might have led to or brought up the problem. A reorientation
is now possible not only on a financial level but also on an inner one.
Six of Pentacles
This is a time when money as well as other things are now shared. Generosity
is given out freely and the individual and others surrounding him/her are gaining
from the generosity. Faith in life and in oneself is regained.
Seven of Pentacles
A difficult work decision might have to be made, or something of the sort. Care
and thought is needed when the question arises of whether to continue to develop
what one has already started to build, or save energy and put it into another
project.
Eight of Pentacles
The individual had to work hard, like an apprentice struggling to learn
a new skill. A talent has beed recently discovered by the individual and is
worthy of development and effort. It can also imply that a hobby could be developed
into a profession. The individual may experience great enthusiasm and interest
in some new field of work which requires him/her to become hard working and
develop that skill.
Nine of Pentacles
This promotes a time when one is feeling pleased with oneself and with the achievements
made. Often a strong sense of solit identity is present, a feeling of one's
unique abilities and the worth of one's life. This is not inflated, but based
on a realistic appreciation of one's skills. This card reflects the solitary
and self-sufficient enjoyment of good things, which does not depend upon anyone
else's agreement or validation to provide pleasure and deep satisfaction.
Ten of Pentacles
This card usually represents a time of ongoing contentment and security and
a sense of something permanent having been established which can be handed to
others. This could be wealth or property or it could be an artistic achievement
such as a book or painting which one knows will live on and offer its value
independent of one's own span of life.
Page of Pentacles
When appearing in the spread it marks the gathering of energy which can eventually
be used for building things in the world and for fulfilling the needs of the
body. Money could come available in small sums which need to be saved and nurtured
rather than thrown away as insignificant. Sometimes the individual takes up
a new hobby which could later become a profession with time and carefull work,
or he/she could begin to care more for the body and take more interest in sensual
pleasure and fulfilment. The main message in this card is that gentleness and
time are needed to bring the potential to fruition.
Knight of Pentacles
When appearing in the spread it is time for the individual to develop that dimension
of the personality which is comfortably anchored in the ordinary tasks of living.
The Knight of Pentacles may enter one's life as an industrious, humble, gentle,
hard-working young man, perhaps lacking in imagination but rich in the qualities
of reliability and gentleness. But if such a person enters one's sphere, it
may be seen as an opportunity to learn more about this side of oneself through
the catalyst of another.
Queen of Pentacles
This card represents the time when the individual needs to learn about the full
expression of his or her sensuality, the value of the body, and the importance
of those pleasures which preserve and enrish life. The individual may also be
called upon to learn to sustain and preserve material resources, holding conditions
stable and secure and husbanding money and energy. The Queen of Pentacles may
enter one's life as a strong, sensual woman, self-sufficient and hard-working
yet generous and willing to indulge herself and others if it suits her purposes.
But if such a woman enters one's life, it suggests that these qualities are
trying to emerge from within oneself.
King of Pentacles
When in the spread it is representing a time for the individual to take up the
challenge of worldly things. But inner movements often need a catalyst, and
therefore the King of Pentacles may enter one's life as an earthy, strong, successful
individual - one who had the 'Midas touch', who has the gift of manifesting
creative ideas in the world. But such an individual is a catalyst for one's
own developing material self-confidence.
The Cups
The Wands
The Swords
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