Cosmic Tarot - XI STRENGTH

tink27

This card is truly different from the traditional tarot decks.

http://www.angelpaths.com/decks/cosmic/majors/strength.html

When I first looked at it, I couldn’t quite grasp her message here but I think I’m beginning to understand.

Leo is the astrological influence here, representing the heart, which is the King of the organs in our bodies…representing the force of the Will rather than our physical strength. People born under this sign have an enormous sense of pride and will at all costs, defend their family. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis, also known as The Chronicles of Narnia, symbolized the complexity of the Lion….a mix of fear, majesty and instinctual power…striving for a higher destiny, a quest to express our inner divinity.

This is quite a tempestuous woman in this card. She certainly has a lot of sexual magnetism. Her shirt and her seducing ways is enticing us to enter her domain. This woman’s hair is similar to the mane of a lion, it frames her face, thick and wild looking.

She certainly attracts our attention. I wonder if everywhere she goes, she bring some kind of change into people’s lives……perhaps with dramatic results. There is a lot of creative and explosive passion here. Not only does she have the cobras ability to sense, I also feel she has the ability to see things through…..perhaps from overcoming all her conflicting desires…taming the beast within, her energy is contained, she appears not only self assured but also striving. .

This look like a highly intuitive and original woman with ideas of her own….she carries a definite sense of assertiveness and independence. To do this, I can almost hear her say, ‘You’ve made your plans but before you set them in motion, listen to the still voice within, it may well have a better plan than your own. Confident, you’re on the right track, projects out your needs and wishes, and pursue them with a sense of pride’.

But don’t offend her. She has a headstrong character, I’m sure her words could sting. And she would leap out in a moments notice to someone else’s defense...right to the bitter end.

tink :love:
 

Arania

I take it the shirt, obviously hers, points to her openly showing who she truly is inside. But she does not really need to wear it, won't need the artificial skin to let it be known she IS the lion.
 

Confucious

This card used to puzzle me. IMO, I see her holding up the shirt saying "don't be seduced by my looks...this is who I REALLY am!"

Sometimes sexy, seductive women can get the titled or misconception of being weak and naive, but the lion is reminding us that she is really strong, patient, aggressive...a "king" of her jungle (body, actions and thoughts).

The Sun (sign of the lion-Leo) is directly above her head highlighting her intuitive powers. The lion is her ego. She can control her ego (HOLDING the shirt), but only when she's being influenced by the Sun. She can easily drop it.
 

Myrrha

Inner strength. The lion is the most noble beast, so strong and regal. The uraeus on the woman's brow is another symbol of nobility. In ancient Egypt it protected the wearer but only royalty and gods/goddesses wore it. So it is saying to remember your sources of inner strength and to draw upon your own most noble qualities.

The Sun shines just above the woman's head. It is the ruling planet of Leo and also a symbol of the self. Leos are confident and sure of themselves. This woman certainly is.

The volcano in the background shows that there is the potential here for pent-up strength to come out unexpectedly. There is a tension in the card of strength held in control. If the card indicates a person there is a potential for strong passion.

In the lower right hand corner there is a white lily representing purity. If you look carefully there is also a worm or a serpent showing the ignoble impulses that we need to master and control through willpower and inner strength.

--Myrrha
 

Ace of Stars

This is an interesting card -- I'm just going to riff about what I see.

A woman, with a penetrating gaze, stares at us. She is covering her naked torso with a piece of fabric. The fabric has an image of a lion on it. The woman is wearing a cobra crown; while the lion also wears a crown, with a trident; he also has 3 bars across his brow. In the foliage surrounding the woman, we can see a piece of a serpent. The foliage is lush and healthy, and includes a white flower (lily). Beyond the women are two trees -- jungle trees, and beyond that a smoking volcano. Above her head the sun is blazing.

I can't help but think of the Adam and Eve story: the woman is naked, serpents are depicted, and she is covering herself.

It's paradoxical that the fabric she uses to cover herself, which, for me represents, civility and abiding by social norms, has a picture of a lion, which represents the animal nature. It's as if, "sure, I can tame my animal nature, because that is what is necessary to function in society, but I will not suppress it. I will use it as a tool, rather than a liability."

The trident, I read, as a symbol of Neptune, represents controlling the ocean -- water being associated with the emotions. This affirms that idea of controlling the animal self, but since it is the lion wearing the trident, the animal self is still very much present, not suppressed, merely controlled/tamed.

The serpent can represent kundalini, or creative life force, which, to me, feels the same as one's animal nature. It also can represent sexual desire -- because the woman wears it at her brow (third eye) she is able to visualize how she wants to use sexual attraction and desire. The sun, often a symbol of the masculine, at the woman's crown chakra, makes me think she has balanced masculine and feminine energy, or can use either, as necessary, at will.

The three bars on the lion's brow puzzle me. I'd love to hear what you make of this symbol.

Overall, this card seems to represent controlling, but not suppressing, one's animal nature. Using both the ego and the id with mastery, as necessary.
 

elementalush

One thing you guys forget to mention is how Leo is directly associated with the heart. The sun lies over her crown chakra, but her chest is bare. Perhaps the sun's energy boosts her visualization thru the crown. Her heart is so open that she is able to harness her boosted will. Since the energy in her heart is as intense and fierce as the lion, she has a great power of bringing her fantasies and projections to life. The compassion she feels for others is tied to her inner confidence and keen insight.

The jungle consists of her surroundings. Despite the blazing sun which empowers our heroine. The environment is moist, an inespecapable, sweltering heat. Although the element of fire is dominating this card, it's opposite in this case is water, still irreversably present in this card, as it is tied to the air. The jungle and vegetation itself represents earth, which makes sense as Leo is the 2nd fixed sign, the most grounded of fire. Stubborn, headstrong, confident, self assured, and in touch with reality.

Air is least represented, aside from the fact that she stands in an open field (plenty of personal space) I have always felt this card could represent suffocating. Perhaps its meant to show the struggle this woman undergoes in order to maintain her strength. With all that power and potential beneath her breast, it must be difficult to breathe. With such focus on inner truth, it is equally as important to maintain that which lies externally or without. Yes, this card is balanced but communication takes the backseat here, as her dead on intuition eliminates the need for self-talk.

With this in mind, I would ask if everything logically makes sense following the lesson of the temptress. This card follows the wheel of fortune and preceeds the Hanged Man. What this says to me is, it is imossible to change your fate, but important to control yourself in a tasteful way, before everything becomes still.

The last thing that strikes me with this.card is the black and white palete of the woman on Strength. This suggests contrast and necessity of balance. To approach situations in a way which compromises between both extremes, to react in an appropriate manner.
 

Gwynydd

I think I read somewhere that she is holding up a reflective fabric, which shows us the reflection of the lion she is facing? I have both the companion books, I'll look it up later.