Haindl Strength

The card shows a naked woman handling a snake. I did a reading and drew this in the feelings position. I usually read Strength as 'something bothers you or even scares you, but you are handling it and you'll be comfortable with it'. In a way, the woman is like a snake handler. There isn't any of the gentleness of the RWS image, nor of the violence of earlier depictions of this card, such as Hercules subduing the Nemean lion. I think this card is somewhere between the two. I'm not sure what someone else would actually feel in terms of Strength. Uncomfortable or scary emotions is just my take on it, speaking from personal experience. Any thoughts?

I've never seen strength as scary or uncomfortable, specially not the Haindl's. The woman to me seems perfectly comfortable in her own body and she handles the snake with calm and gentle dominance. Strength merges the wild and primitive and passionate feelings of the snake with the gentle inner strength of the lady. Together their bodies form the infinity symbol like the balance of Yin and Yang. The feeling of strength is one of confidence in ones inner strength and passion. The inner beasts is your ally, just guide it gently.

In some traditions I've come across in reading, this is a card of taming or controlling one's libido...so with the snake (as phallic symbol) taking the place of the lion--which shows up on many other decks--it could be that in this particular deck, that was the artist's focus on this trump.

Thanks, SSN. I've read up on the card and what Haindl may have intended with the snake, but none of it corresponded to the feeling the card gave me in the reading. Your take makes perfect sense!

Apparently, the woman is playing with the snake, not subduing or controlling it so much. But I guess an element of control is there because otherwise play would quickly turn nasty, especially if the snake is poisonous.

Snakes have always signified change for me. I think I read that once as a symbolism and it stuck for some reason. Because snakes shed their skin periodically and start over anew. In that sense, the card to me means having the courage to make real change in your life. Which of course is not easy for a lot of people, fear of change seems common enough. It's about, to me, having the confidence to face what needs changing, to truly be willing change your life and to rewrite yourself when necessary, to be ready to improve who you are, and those good feelings of pride that come from knowing you faced something hard and came out victorious, as opposed to feeling guilt because you did not have the nerve to try.

Babs