LGAL Cosmos Tarot - Fool/Sagitarrius

JDusk

LGAL Cosmos Tarot - Fool/Sagittarius

Image can be viewed at: http://lightgreyartlab.com/cosmos

Image: A huge stone centaur rearing up with bow drawn, aiming at something upward and offscreen. Its torso and arms are fracturing with chips falling away, revealing red beneath the surface, and one hoof has fallen off completely. It is supported by a wide, somewhat trapezoidal column. Behind it are a large and small silvery orb, planets or moons. Two figures in matching red and silver spacesuits walk towards the centaur. In the distant background there are two trapezoidal columns, one on each side of the centaur.

Keywords: travel, culture, life philosophy, and adventure.

Element: Fire.

Visual analysis: There is a strong sense of bold energy and adventure, both from the archer’s pose and the astronauts venturing into space. The silvery blue colors give a futuristic vibe. My first thought is some kind of space colony where these columns and statue have been built, perhaps to represent moving boldly to new heights. But this symbol is falling apart – part of the past, already crumbling, and the two astronauts represent the true future. The time for symbol is past, now it is time for action.

My first impression was actually that space explorers were discovering monuments built by some ancient space civilization for the first time. The marble monuments and mythic symbolism combine oddly with the futuristic atmosphere – it feels almost outside of time. From this perspective, the remnants of the old civilization are chipping away, and the red underneath – linking to the red of the spacesuits – shows that something new is about to emerge.

The enormous moon in the background looms so close that it almost looks like it’s resting on the back of the centaur, and its weight is causing the fractures. Carrying the weight of the metaphorical world?

As Sagittarius: The handbook mentions the balance of human and animal in the centaur - reason and quest for knowledge versus wild wanderlust, and exploring outer space seems representative of both. The description mentions travel and exploring new cultures as fusing these two sides, which is also represented here: space travel and maybe discovering the civilization that created these monuments. It also mentions Sagittarius wrestling with “impossibly big concepts,” like the planets/moons representing the universe, and those seeming to physically weigh on the centaur—an obsession with grappling with these concepts?

The reversed meanings mention restlessness and oppression. There is the weight of the moon and the fact that something beneath the surface of the centaur seems to be breaking out, maybe struggling to free itself?

As the Fool: I definitely see the Fool here – bold ventures, exploration, new beginnings (starting again on a moon colony?). The archer looking up into the distance, the future. The astronauts leaving behind their old world for the endless potential of outer space. The recklessness could perhaps be represented by them walking casually toward a towering monument which is clearly in the process of collapsing – a danger.
 

Penthasilia

Wonderful synopsis- and I am going to go full tilt on my intuitive read on this one!

The armor is chipping away- you can feel the movement in the card as if when the bow is shot all the plaster will come falling off and the true thing hidden underneath will both be revealed and released. I get a keen sense of spiritual journeying with this card- more so than any other Fool card I have seen. Between the cosmic background, and the archetypal idea of leaving the body/plaster behind- I see this Fool as that pivotal moment right before the body is released and spirit jumps up and out to go dive within the other realms that we do not see with our human eyes.

Definitely, this can be perceived as reckless- however the aim of that arrow is true, a great deal of time has been spent in getting it perfect- this is not a reckless endeavor but a calculated move toward that journey- the course has been set and all that remains is leaving the shell behind.

In some ways- it can also mirror Death a bit I suppose- but this is less the transformation and more that aha moment right before the setting off. It is as if the two people below are standing as witness to the beginning of it- waiting for the one who is coming. The monuments and planets are waiting- the adventure begins! No wonder this is given to the element of fire- the passion and excitement are palpable.

Reversed would leave me thinking you are still stuck in that shell- unable to lift out of it and grow- almost like a crustacean that has outgrown the outer limits but is unable to break free. I can completely understand the feeling of it from this imagery.

And- on an interesting note- I had to get the card itself versus looking at the image online. Those images are so flat compared to the real thing- which lifts up almost as a 3 dimensional world. Amazing.
 

JDusk

Great observations! I especially love this:

you can feel the movement in the card as if when the bow is shot all the plaster will come falling off and the true thing hidden underneath will both be revealed and released.

And very interesting connection to the sense of spiritual journeying that you made, as well. I had been distracted by the futuristic/space age dimensions but looking at it again, I do see that spiritual vibe as well. And I had been thinking about those columns in the background and they reminded me a bit of how the High Priestess is often flanked with columns, which also invokes that spiritual connection. And also, since they're in the distance, it makes me wonder if there could be more statues behind the centaur, like these astronauts will be walking through and seeing the fool's journey for themselves.

Reversed would leave me thinking you are still stuck in that shell- unable to lift out of it and grow- almost like a crustacean that has outgrown the outer limits but is unable to break free. I can completely understand the feeling of it from this imagery.

I like this too. I hadn't flipped the card upside down when I was studying it, but that would also point the arrow downward, like shooting an arrow into the ground instead of letting it fly loose at a target. And those astronauts would be floating upside down as if lost in space. Both carry a sense of aimlessness in contrast to the calculated movement of the upright.
 

Penthasilia

I hadn't flipped the card upside down when I was studying it, but that would also point the arrow downward, like shooting an arrow into the ground instead of letting it fly loose at a target. And those astronauts would be floating upside down as if lost in space. Both carry a sense of aimlessness in contrast to the calculated movement of the upright.

Yes- definitely- it almost looks like he is going to drop the bow and arrow completely when you turn it upside down- so both a lack of growth as well as helplessness and aimlessness.

I had not been reading with reversals with this deck- but given the study on this card alone, I think I will likely do so!