ancestral path tarot. the emperor

starchild

In one hand he holds an ankh, in the other a crystal ball. sitting on a wooden throne. carved into the wood is the head of aries. reminding me of his abilty to lead in war and his energy of a protector.

the one thing that took me a while to connect with this card was his crystal ball. i just couldnt see the grand emperor interested in crystal balls. he just seems so sure of himself. not the kind of person who would leave things to destiny or chance. but finaly i connected it to his need to have clear vision of his goals. without his clear vision he was just a cold man going nowhere. the shine from his large metal boots reminds me of his own disconnection from the earth. rather build on it then lie down on it.

an eagle sits on his ankh, helping the emperor keep a watchfull eye on his surrondings.

the emperor has a stern look upon his face. not much of any type of expression.

that lack of expression is the reason i see this card as someone in authority. why is it peaple in authority lack expressions?

this card could be a father figure, a boss, a lawyer, a banker, or any other person who is an authorty figure.
as a person i always see him as somewhat a cold person, someone who is to busy protecting rather then expressing there love.
that father or husband whos worked 16 hours a day for years to provide a good home and stabilty for his wife and family but forgot to say i love you ever.

as a card pulled for myself. sometimes it has reminded me i need to be a bit more like the emperor, i need to focus more on my stability of my homelife and sometimes as good as love is, it cant be eaten.

other times over the years its showed me the reverse, ive had to stop focusing only on the loving nuturing side of my family life and focus more on bringing them long term stability.

the words authority, stability, protection, and firmness all come to mind when i see this emperor.

its funny but the red in his coat and the rams heads sorronding him could give the impression of anger and passion connected with this card. and yet i have never found this with the emperor. so i guess he has a lot of self control. maybe he learnt that from the eagle.
 

Grizabella

I think maybe that's a hawk on the ankh, but I'm not sure.

I don't really care for most Emperor cards and this one is no exception. The expression on his face and his body language are just too stoic and rigid. Not only that, but he doesn't meet our gaze. He looks off to the right. (His left.) But maybe his looking to the left, and the fact that he holds his crystal ball in his left hand, indicate that he's not so rigid in his thinking. He may be a much more creative thinker than first impressions and body language would lead us to believe.

Yes, I think it indicates that, even though he manages his empire with a firm hand and a hawk eye, he still has room for thinking creatively when necessary and can be flexible if need be.