IDS study post
I agree with the previous posts. I didn't really feel anything spectacular on my 9 of Cups day, but I often think or say aloud, "I just wish I didn't feel sick all the time!" (Just digestive difficulties, but annoying . . .) And it is human nature when we don't feel bad to not notice that we actually feel good!
On to the study!
Drawn for Wednesday, January 28
Written Friday, January 30, 2009
9 of Cups Happiness!
Always a good card to see! What is there to say about a card called Happiness? First of all the 9 of Cups (and I believe the 9 of Hearts) is traditionally the wish card, as in if you get it in a reading you get your wish. And if it shows up in a negative or advice position, be careful what you wish for because you might just get it.
9 is the sephira of the moon. I associate that sephira with the persona, that illusion of a person that you present to the world as the real you. It can also be ego, the illusion of a separate self. Through these musings and trial and error I have decided that 9s represent morality and karma, what is deserved by the individual in consequence of his/her own actions.
So, if you get 9 of Cups, not only do you get Happiness and what you wish for, these things are also deserved by you. You earned them somehow.
Crowley says the significance of 9 is that although it is low on the tree, it comes back to the middle pillar and is on a straight line from Tiphareth, so it is much more fortunate than 7 or 8.
The cups are aranged in a square, showing that 9 is a “perfect” square number. (Only 4 is squarer!) And it is very balanced and regular in appearance. The water shoots out straight and overflows, both signs of the fortunate in this deck. Each cup has its own lotus blossom delivering its water, but the cups also send water streams to cups in the rows below them. (Those are lotus stems behind.) This could symbolize happiness in relation/connection with others.
I am interested in the dual suit symbols of water in this deck, cups AND lotuses. Lotuses of course represent blessedness and spiritual purity. And the interconnectedness between spirituality and mundane life. The lotus plant is rooted in the cold muck at the bottom of a pond, but the flower rises high above the surface of the water, pure and clean and cool and tranquil and beautiful (the fruits of a calm and awakened mind and life). But without the roots and mud, there would be no flower! Buddhas and bodhisattvas are often depicted seated on a stylized lotus to show they are coming to us from that calm and awakened place--but they know where their roots are. They were humans just like us once!
There are no handles on these cups, and they are very rounded, almost spherical, like coconuts with the tops cut off and cone shaped bases added. Organic shapes? Geometrical shapes? Perhaps they are geometrical shapes to compliment the perfect square math.
Colors: Hmm, not much help from Snuffin this time. Only that the sky is blue, showing the good fortune of Jupiter. The cups are lavender/amethyst. A good spiritual color . . .
Jupiter in Pisces: Jupiter rules Pisces, another reason why this is a very fortunate card. When Jupiter is comfortable, everyone gets luckier! Crowley even goes so far as to say that happiness is mostly a matter of chance, so Jupiter as fortune (like the wheel of fortune) is especially appropriate. The cups sit on the calm waters of Pisces. I don’t know much about Pisces. Banzhaf says it is a sign of spirituality, sacrificing altruism, and compassionate counselors. Lucky to be on the receiving end of that, I guess!
Crowley says Jupiter/Chesed “represents water in its highest material manifestation.” How can 4/Jupiter/Chesed represent water? In MATERIAL representation? Any clues on this would be appreciated!
Crowley is careful to point out that happiness doesn’t last forever. There is only stability in change. And fulfillment leads to satiety, 10 of Cups. But he goes on to wax poetic about the nectar of the gods poured by Ganymede himself, so if you have happiness, enjoy it while you can! And make good wishes!
As a card of the day: Once again, it’s hard to remember. I don’t think I was drinking any nectar with Ganymede—I probably would have remembered that! It is probably a follow-up to the 10 of Cups I had earlier. Yes satiety happens, but so does true happiness. Change is not a cause for cynicism, but for acceptance and compassion.
In a reading: As I said at the beginning, you will get what you wish for, you deserve it, and choose wisely. And nothing lasts forever, so enjoy it while you can. And don’t be cynical! Lots of advice for 9 small cups of nectar!
