Constellation of the Empress

rwcarter

The Constellation of the Empress
The Principle of Love and Creative Imagination
Empress – Hanged Man – World – Threes


Keywords: Creativity. Nurturance. Sacrifice. Surrender. Form. Relatedness. Fertility. Limitation. Imagination.

The Empress is the archetypal woman and as such is the epitome of love and motherhood. She is pregnant with potential. Hathor was the goddess of joy and love. She was also the goddess of music, dance and song, all of which are the result of the creative imagination. She sits in a garden that is enclosed by a wall. The garden is associated with the mind and the unconscious, which together are the seat of the imagination. The wall symbolizes the womb, which is safe and protective. Just as the doorway in the wall represents the passage from one state to another, birth and rebirth, the Empress herself is the door to a new age since it is through her that the next generation is born. Seed is stored in the vessel next to her. Once that seed is sown, it will become the rich harvest shown at the feet of the Empress. The fruit of her garden suggests the fruit of her loins.

The Hanged Man represents a voluntary sacrifice for a belief or an ideal and depicts a situation of self-sacrifice in which one appears to relinquish control while actually being in control. Only by surrendering in this manner can Osiris attain the next step along his personal journey. By giving of himself this way, he is opening himself up to be able to receive. His position could be seen as an extreme form of either meditation during which one gets in touch with their creative imagination or prostration that allows one to clear their head.

The World is the flip side of the Empress in terms of nurturance and of the Hanged Man in terms of sacrifice. While the Empress represents the nurturing stage, the World represents the end result of nurturance. While the Hanged Man represents sacrifice, the World represents the end result of sacrifice. In both cases, this end result is completion and (hopefully) perfection. The World also represents completion that lays the seeds for a new journey. Nuit was thought to give birth to the Sun each day. To give birth to is to create.

As an aspect of the creative imagination, the 3 Wands suggests meditation because by meditating, one shuts out the noise that keeps one from their creative center. As a gift of love, it suggests the ability or desire to begin anew. As a challenge to love, the 3W suggests needing some time alone to get one’s head together.

As an aspect of the creative imagination, the 3 Cups suggests the power to communicate and express one’s ideas freely because ideas without the ability to communicate them does no one any good. As a gift of love, the 3C suggests celebration and happiness. As a challenge to love, the 3C suggests lascivious thoughts towards another.

As an aspect of the creative imagination, the 3 Swords suggests the sorrow and heartbreak that spur some people to “lose themselves in their work” during which time they end up being their most creative. As a gift of love, the 3S suggests the ending of an unsatisfactory relationship. As a challenge to love, the 3S suggests arguments and quarreling.

As an aspect of the creative imagination, the 3 Disks suggests the mastery of practical skills. As a gift of love, the 3D suggests building something together for the future. As a challenge to love, the 3D suggests a relationship that is too much like hard work.

Rodney