The Wild Unknown Tarot - The Lovers VI

happyfish

All the thoughts here about the symbolism of geese is really helpful to me. That was the part of the card I skimmed over the most because I just wasn't sure what to make of it. Here's what I came up with for my blog.

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In The Lovers card we’re greeted by a pair of geese, flying in unison. There is harmony in their parallel wingspans, their parallel necks, and the parallel black and white of their markings. Everything is exactly how it should be.

The geese are effortless in their soaring – they aren’t flapping their wings frantically, they’re simply letting the wind carry them. This gives the card a sense of flow, ease, grace. The Lovers here trust that they naturally live in line with their values.

In many depictions of the Lovers, the two face each other. However, in the Wild Unknown, the geese both face forward. I love the symbolism here. They are on a journey together, no doubt. But at the same time, each also travels their individual path.

Again, I’m drawn to the use of lines in the Wild Unknown. In the previous card, we saw static vertical lines. In the Lovers, we have radiating lines, giving the card an expansive energy.

Behind the geese, rays of teal and dark blue emanate across the card, originating from a single point. This is reminiscent of the boldly colored rays we saw in the Magician, but the colors here are calm and peaceful. In the Magician card, the rays emanated from a point off center. In the Lovers, the point is directly above the geese and in the center of the card, showing equilibrium.

All of the design elements come together here to convey a message of harmony, ease and unity.
 

Pixna

I appreciate your beautiful insights about the Lovers, happfish! Thank you!
 

Sulis

I really like what you've said about them flying parallel to one another Happyfish and this bit that you said really resonates with me:
Happyfish said:
The geese are effortless in their soaring – they aren’t flapping their wings frantically, they’re simply letting the wind carry them. This gives the card a sense of flow, ease, grace. The Lovers here trust that they naturally live in line with their values.
I would never have got that but now you've said it, I think it fits so well with The Lovers archetype. One of the qualities of this card for me is finding that which completes you, which allows you to be yourself and find your own way..

Thanks :).
 

Drust

This one of my favourite incarnations of the lovers, there is a real sense of expanse in this card, a feeling of endless possibilities.
The choice of Canadian Geese to represent the lovers is very apt, Canadian Geese pair-bond for life, amongst hunters it's considered exceptionally cruel to kill one of a pair of mated Geese, depriving the survivor of its love.
 

Laura Borealis

I appreciate what all of you have said, and don't have much to add, except that these two geese evoke for me an actual pair of Canada geese that I have witnessed many times. They come every year to raise babies by the stream that borders my Mom's property. They seem to share all the work equally - sitting on the eggs, protecting the chicks, teaching them to fly. (I was lucky enough to witness a flying lesson up close, one year!) This pair's fidelity to each other, and their equal partnership, is inspiring. :)
 

danieljuk

love your take on the Geese Sulis and mating for life. I struggled with the rest of the card and the background. Thanks Marirowana about the sky and colours.

I just want to add some things from Kim's text about the card from the book/ app. She describes it as two Canada Geese who mate for life, "travelling partners in an expansive sky". Her keywords are Union, Desire, Joy.

The is something to this card about support and strength with someone and a connection is on the horizon, as well as calm and joy with the background. I think the lines represent the horizon or the beginning of a journey.
 

Sentient

The Lovers was one of the cards that was altered in the 2nd edition which came out Nov 2015. Roughly speaking, the lines are now colored yellow in the center, ending in red, yellow, green and blue.

The new colors add a vibrancy that seems almost kaleidoscopic, as if at the same time the geese are acting as one and celebrating their union, they're also awash in other thoughts and feelings like the challenge of maintaining flight, thinking about where they need to be and what they'll have to do once they get there, etc. Like a happy couple approaching their wedding date, they're joyful but perhaps a bit overwhelmed.

The 1st edition card had blue as its only color, which gave the scene a feeling of peaceful serenity. The new card, while certainly more exciting, has lost some of that serenity.

Beth Maiden of LittleRedTarot compared the two editions and had this to say: "In the new version I especially love the colours added to the Lovers, they seem to add to the feeling of completion and fulfillment that is at the heart of this card (for me at least)."

Commenter Eli said: "I'm torn about the Lovers. On one hand, the radiating spectrum does fit with her imagery for completeness and joy, which fits nicely... but I’ve grown quite attached to the serene harmony of the original blue: that this is a love which needs no external fireworks; it has its own sense of shared purpose and a joy in that."

The WU Lovers seems to be trying to communicate a deep sense of harmony and connection without the potentially divisive "choice" element inherent in the Marseille and WS traditions. To my eye, the 1st edition blue does that more effectively. What do you think?
 

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