Madame Endora's (Secret Circle) Study Group: THE HARLEQUIN

THE HARLEQUIN : True Feelings Are Masked

To make things easier, I have attached an image of the card.

From The Book:
The harlequin is an actor whos true feelings are masked in order to gain acceptance. At times the harlequin is a prankster whos sense of humor and playful acts make him the center of attention. However the harlequin my also be concealing a sadness derived from loneliness or a broken heart.

Open For Discussion

This is one of my favorite cards in the deck....

It often reminds me of the Fool in tarot....or even a court jester!

Whenever this card comes up in a reading, I think about the keywords: True feelings are masked....and when I see the smiling face on the mask, I picture a sad face hidden behind it.
In other words, I tend to see it as a person who is afraid to reveal their true feelings....hiding their sadness or pain behind a smile....as we all do at certain times.

Of course, the alternative would be a person who is being deceitful or "two-faced", but so far, in my own readings, this particular interpretation has not come up.

I am curious to hear how others have interpreted the Harlequin...

Luna

Thanks again Pixie! (sometimes hard for me to find time to throw things up in the study!)

Like Luna...I find the Harlequin to be one of my favorite cards.

And I like it for the way it makes me think of jesters, and masquerades...where everyone is pretending to be something else...
and I admit I also like it because it's slightly creepy! (in that unpredictable Joker/ Villian sort of way!)

This card is interesting for me because it seems to represent two distinct areas of my life...the first is my husbands historical reenactment/theatre company, and the other is my role playing groups.

The idea of putting on a mask, or a new character or persona to entertain someone...while at the same time, hiding your true self.

The song "Tears of a Clown" reminds me of this card.

The other day, I had some emotional things that were very internal and came seemingly out of nowhere...things that were related to depression, self loathing, artists blocks and fear...
but I put on a brave face, and told everyone that I was fine...nothing was wrong.
It all ended up comming out and to the surface when I was playing a roleplaying game online...putting on yet another mask over the "i'm fine" and acting as someone else.

Amazing how the more masks you put on...the closer you actually get to the root of deeper issues.
I ended up roleplaying a lot of character angst...and realized afterwards that it was really personal stuff, and had little to do with this "character" that I was playing...and I needed to work it out.

Had me a small meltdown, and ended up drawing this card.
It seemed very appropriate.

I have to agree with both posts...

You know, it just struck me... this card reminds me of the Gemini personality... while the Siren we had before reminds me of a cross between Virgo and Scorpio...

oh yes...Sept. Pixie!
Gemini...I can definately see that...

Especially since I am one!

You know Chronata, it makes me wonder if this is a field we should check out when studying and reading..

- Does this sign fit the personality of the sitter?
- Does this sign fit the nature of the question?
- Does this sign lead to the final outcome?
- Does this sign indicate what is going on in the sitters life?

All questions worth exploring I think

Definately good things to consider Pixie! a splended idea!

When I first started using this deck...I was giving some thought into which cards would represent which zodiac signs.

I don't believe I ever actually got around to finalizing any thoughts on it however!

(just as I never found the right numbering system that worked for me either!...oh luna!...I did try! )

Maybe we can start a new study thread on these things as well!

I found this thread very helpful about this card and made me see aspects I didn't notice. It made me think of something else, this card could represent dramaqueens (or dramakings ). I've known a few, always wearing a mask of disaster and tragedy, always imaginating, or exagerating, terrible things happening to them. These individuals are two-faced too, liars, manipulators...

Possibly even if using this card to represent someone, could perhaps mean that they are in the acting/drama field or pursuing it as a job - playing one roll but really completely different in everyday life...

This card came up in a reading I did with the deck last week, and definitely spoke of masking one's true feelings, in this case as an effort to protect herself from the possibility of getting hurt in love.

And, to me there is something of the partier in this image... the gold reminds me of festivities, and those who hide behind acting the part of the life of the party in order to keep anyone from knowing their true feelings inside. Or, those who escape into substances to avoid facing their deeper issues, "party girls."

The artwork itself reminds me of the times I've been in New Orleans and Venice. Masques galore in both locales.... Just stunning!

Edited to add : the card that came up in conjunction to the Harlequin was the Shield - You are Safe from Harm.

My spread showed that which she needed to leave behind was her tendency to isolate herself, shield herself, from her emotions in order to feel "safe" from being hurt. It was almost as if the Harlequin showed the behavior (True Feelings are Masked) and the Shield showed the motivation behind it (You are Safe from Harm).

While neither card is a "bad" card, the two together definitely painted a negative picture that my sitter could not deny. She admitted she was working on it.