Anna K Study Group - 8 of Pentacles

A young boy sits on a stool working on a bowl. He is supervised by an older man who looks as if he is deep in thought and behind them both are more examples of the boy's work hanging on the wall in the form of 7 pentacles. The eighth pentacle rests on the floor.

Eights to me are related to Justice. They are cards of balance and of movement to find that balance. They are cards that are about reaping what we sow and so one of the main messages is that what you get out of something will be equal to the effort you have put in.
In the case of Pentacles this is about physical effort, paying attention to the details, working and making steady progress by going over what we've done and what we've learned before.

The boy in the image is honing his craft through practice and perseverance. He carefully works on his pentacles under the watchful eye of his mentor. This may be quite boring work but he must put the effort in if he wants to become a master craftsman himself.

Here's the image: http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r298/tarotsulis/Anna K Tarot/8ofPentacles.jpg

One of the things that I find interesting about this card is the piece that the boy is currently working on.

There are 8 finished pentacles...and now it almost seems to me that the boy is beginning work on a new piece, something perhaps different than a pentacle. It is almost as if the little apprentice is fashioning something new, something different.

It seems to me that he has perfected the pentacle design, and now perhaps something else will take shape under the watchful and somewhat confounded eye of the Master. To me the Master doesn't look sure of what is taking place...as if his hand is over his mouth because he doesn't want to say anything....yet.

Also, there is a playfulness to the young man's mouth, his grin seems a little...silly.

Satori said:

One of the things that I find interesting about this card is the piece that the boy is currently working on.

There are 8 finished pentacles...and now it almost seems to me that the boy is beginning work on a new piece, something perhaps different than a pentacle. It is almost as if the little apprentice is fashioning something new, something different.

It seems to me that he has perfected the pentacle design, and now perhaps something else will take shape under the watchful and somewhat confounded eye of the Master. To me the Master doesn't look sure of what is taking place...as if his hand is over his mouth because he doesn't want to say anything....yet.

Also, there is a playfulness to the young man's mouth, his grin seems a little...silly.

Click to expand...

yes, i see that grin too now that you mention it. Maybe sometimes work doesn't have to be boring all the time. As long as you make your quota for the day to please the master...