Black Cat and Queen of Wands

[satine]

Looking at the RW deck, what does the black cat on the Queen of Wands card represent potentially? It makes me think of the 9 of Pentacles, with the refined woman keeping her shadow self (or darker impulses) in check... I find it interesting also because it's always said that the Pentacles are the ones who deal the most with animals. Perhaps the Queen of Wands is a Queen by day and a broom-riding witch by night (along with her black kitty of course)? ha. I look forward to your input on this. Thanks!

[firelight]

According to Rachel Pollock (78 Degrees of Wisdom) "...A black cat guards her throne. In Christian folklore the Devil gave a black cat to a witch to guard her from attack...Sometimes if a person loves life [as the fully empowered Queen of Wands does], the world appears to respond by protecting that person and sending him/her joyous experiences...the black cat shows this response by nature to someone who approaches it with fiery joy."

Being a Queen of Wands myself, I certainly find this to be so when I fully embrace the positive side of the archetype.

[Sulis]

Black cats make me think of witchiness so I would say that this one shows that she's in tune with her intuition and also with her own sexuality.

[Starling]

She has a cat. He has a lizard. I've always found it interesting that each of them has an animal.

[elvenstar]

You may want to check out this thread too:
http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?t=56948

[satine]

Great thread, elvenstar! Thanks for giving me that link. I definitely think of the black cat in positive terms, and I like to think of the cat protecting the queen while she goes about her business. We so often think of that which protects us as something that has to be big and imposing, like a body guard, but the best protector can be sleek and subtle like the cat. Maybe the black cat is the Queen's spirit guide! The queen is so in touch with herself- her own power- but she knows it comes from something higher than herself. She is intuitively aware of all the forces that are there for her support and protection.

I love all animals, but cats have a special place in my heart. My elderly black and white kitty named Nathan has been with me for so many years. He remembers when it was just me and him, before I got married 13 years ago, before I had my two children (11 and 10 years ago), before so many changes... He's my touchstone!!

[sweet_intuition]

I always kinda felt that maybe it was a representation of the Egyptian Goddess Bast, for I feel the Court cards of the suit of wands represented Egypt (considering the Pyramid imagery in the Page, Knight and King). Even though GD correspondences place Aries as the sign of Queen of Wands, I always felt she was more Leo, considering the cat, and the cat-like beasts on the "feet" of her throne.

[balenciaga]

Cats are feminine symbols too.

[Gov]

I've always read it as a symbol of her tomcat-like sexuality and personality, like the black cat in Manet's Olympia.

[The crowned one]

The cat represents her being independent in her relationships and doing things on her own terms (James Ricklef ish). She is free to express herself quite confidently and not care what others think of those expressions however she presents them, in word, lifestyle or dress.... And I read somewhere it represents all aspects of femininity.