There are four Suits in Tarot: Swords, Wands, Cups, and Pentacles. They represent four aspects of the human experience, or four different types of people. Of course, they mean different things to different people, especially to a myriad of students of the Mystic arts. In my own life, they are four states that can really be applied to becoming a better person. Below are only my interpretations of the four Suits, colored by and spoken from my personal experiences.
Clarity of Mind (Swords) –Swords stand for rational thought, intelligence, cognitive skills, etc., all powers of the mind. Often Swords rely too much on their brains and overthink everything, consequently driving themselves into endless mental traps. Thus, the Suit starts with pure mental power/energy, and ends with despair driven by illusions created by the mind. The lesson this suit teaches is that the mind is powerful, but the power must be yielded when one’s mind is Clear. Only with clarity can the power of the mind be unleashed. Clarity comes from keeping focused on one’s goal. There do not have to be many goals, but each goal should be something meaningful to the individual’s core, not just a superficial temporary need. Clarity of mind means the ability for one to distinguish the truly important, fulfilling goals from the ones that are mere distractions.
Purity of Heart (Cups) – Cups are emotional, romantic, and always driven by the Heart. However, our easily influenced Hearts can be deceiving (or deceived) and lead us astray. Once emotions overpower everything else, we become jealous, angry, resentful, a mishmash of various unpleasant feelings. What can save one from this fall from grace is keeping one’s Heart pure - do everything with good intention, and remember that kindness and love are the best solution and remedy. Purity means safeguarding the child inside us. It keeps everything fresh, interesting, and innocent. Give absolute trust, and repay betrayal with forgetting (not forgiving, because that means you still keep it in your mind). Purity of Heart is the hardest to come by in life because so many of us are taught to put up a façade to keep from getting hurt. Getting hurt is very human, and pain is always a better teacher than comfort. If you keep the Purity in you, you will overcome all the pain you may encounter.
Strength of Will (Wands) – Wands are the go-getters, doers, builders, etc. They know that they must build everything with their own hands, and that as long as they have the will to do it and keep doing it, they will succeed at doing whatever they want. It doesn’t just mean the physical ability to accomplish something, but also the proper mindset. If one wishes to accomplish something, one must have the mental strength, or power of Will to drive oneself forward. Sometimes we are left only with our Will to lead us, because everything else has fallen apart. Without this intrinsic engine to drive forward, we’ll become stagnant, and complacent, and not be able to accomplish any of our goals.
Health of Body (Pentacles) – Pentacles refer to all the worldly comforts that we can possess. People (especially in their youth) expense so much energy and time pursuing material comforts that they tend to forget that no matter how talented, beautiful, wonderfully successful they are… they cannot enjoy anything if they do not have a healthy body. I’ve often heard my professors say that there are many people who come into their clinics, mostly male in their 40-50’s who have spent their earlier years working 70+ hour weeks to build a “good life,” especially to make sure that everything is provided for in old age. And now before they reach that “old age,” they are hit with various health issues that make it impossible for them to enjoy life. Is the tradeoff worth it? People sometimes are short-sighted. And we’re always taught to enjoy the present, so people may live as if there’s no tomorrow. However, it is possible to live happily with limited resources, because the richest person does not necessarily have the most material goods, but is one who can recognize and appreciate the immaterial goods that they already have.
Now comes the question of whether or not one can truly achieve the four things listed above, some of which contradict/conflict with each other. The truth is, even if one has one of the elements above, one has probably already gone further than the rest of his/her cohort. It’s impossible to achieve all of the above. After all, we’re only human, each with our humanly faults. I am not able to do it all either, but at least I have a guide/benchmark for what I’m striving toward. And all I can hope for is I have a good balance of all of the above. I’ve always relied too much on the power of the mind (part of my Swordiness) and ignored the Heart. I’m currently having lots of trouble integrating the different aspects of life experience, but at least I am aware of the reason behind it. There are people who start from the opposite end and have an equally difficult time. I know some people with sheer Purity of Heart, and I really do admire these people. It’s difficult to put oneself in the most vulnerable position (if you love all the way all the time, that means you always put yourself in a position to get hurt). However, they are also very lucky, because allow themselves to grow with the power of the Heart.
We all have our different paths; it’s important to remember that the journey is the most important, because we may never reach our destination.
Since I have Google Analytics installed on my website, I've had the pleasure of checking out how (with what keywords) people are finding me on the internet. Some of the queries really boggles my mind…
1. Sze Kwan Chan Birthday: What!? Why is someone searching on the internet for my birthday!?I have a group of beautiful and talented ladies with whom I gather with to discuss the mystical arts. One of us studies Fungshui and 8 Word (a type of Chinese divination, in the same lineage as palm/face reading), another is an astrology expert, then there’s me, who is a student of Tarot.
I like to organize them as follows:8 Word: These “eight words” are formed from two words that represent the year you were born (ancestors), two that represent the month (parents), two that represent the day (self), and two that represent the hour (children/offspring). Tells the entire life of the querent, from the starting point of life to the end of life, including influence of parents/ancestors, children, marriage, jobs, etc. You can also match up 8 words (birthdays) to find out whether or not you’re a good match with someone. This is very useful for a long term overall view of your life, if you want that (many people don’t because it represents that loss of free will to them). I have also done 8 word (I would only allow someone I really trust with this because your birthday itself has immense power, just as many ancient peoples believe ones name holds special powers, enough to control that person). My results were quite interesting and were very much in synch with the current path I am heading down. The most poignant thing and the very first thing she mentioned was that I am a “teacher,” which I never though of as part of myself, but am now realizing more and more as part of what I want to become (or am already are/am becoming).[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="101" caption="Balancing*"] [/caption]Astrology: We often use this as a way for the stars to determine ones personal inclinations and predispositions for certain things. It's a much deeper mystical art than that of course. It’s excellent for exploration of ones personality and background and the reasons behind why one would act as one does. As you can tell, I totally buy into the Libra bit. Astrology gives amusing and eye-opening views into ones psyche and allows one to take note of the factors that influence his/her actions. This is also great for matching up people. Trust me, contradictory horoscopes have a really rough time with the relationship. Of course, that doesn't mean it's a destined failure. As long as you know what the issues are and are willing to deal with them, most things can be worked out.Tarot: As a tarot reader, I’m rather biased toward Tarot. I like it because it is NOT permanent, because at the same time that it represents the manifestation of a “destiny,” it also allows room for the “free will.” I usually use it to figure out a situation that I can’t sort out and do the same for my friends (I've rarely done public readings for strangers because it takes too much energy). On the personal level, I more often than using it as less of a divination tool, but rather a mirror of my inner self – what I truly want, what I'm truly thinking, how I truly want things to be. And most of the time, it yields amazing (and sometimes honest to the point of hurting) results. Of course, it can be used a tool of divination, but why limit it to that? The wonderful thing is to figure out what the current trend is, and make any changes for the better if necessary.I have recently done some readings for myself and others. I’ve found that the more I allow my emotions and spirit to roam free, the most accurate these readings become, to a degree that sometimes scares even me. However, the most important thing to remember is that Tarot is most powerful in its role as a guide, not as a director. You are the ruler of your own life, regardless of whether or not there is a “destiny” for each of us. If we do not apply ourselves to our destiny, it might as well be non-existent. And if you do everything as according to your heart, then you will find that your destiny is always walking right next to you.*Courtesy Jay | Su Photography.
Cards + positions:
Situation: 2W - at a standstill, generally stable. For a relationship, then that means the relationship has reached a certain degree of maturity.
Obstacle: QnC (R) – QnC is the most passionate and loving person, but if (R) then she must be feared. She will use every tool in her scheming head to twist your heart and destroy your life.
Best that can be achieved: 4P (R) – no way to maintain stability, and therefore must break out of the mold and seeming stability.
Past: Death (R) - Fear of change, refusal to change
Present: Strength (R) – lack of internal strength to move on
Future: QnS (R) – the QnS is always a intelligent and fair person, but already has the tendency of being rather demanding on herself, when reversed, she is downright harmful to herself and possibly people around her.
True Self: 6C – unable to let go of the past, nostalgia, holding on to past kindness from other people (in this case, the man ).
Environment: High Priestess – a guiding factor, someone (probably female) who holds the key to the heart. In this case I wondered if that represented myself… but that is unclear.
Hopes/fears: Wheel – hoping for a twist of fate to help one out of a situation, except the wheel is fickle, and life can as easily take a turn for the worse as for the better.
Overall: 3W – Take your eyes forward to afar. There is much else in the world. The card also has a sense of entrepreneurship, which could mean that she should concentrate on career/business for now.
Ruling/Influence agent: Emperor - a man with a VERY strong personal and a control freak. The Emperor can be a sweet and comforting figure with his status and maturity, but on the other hand, can easily become a stubborn dictator who is not open to any reasoning except for his own.
"Wheel of morality, turn turn turn. Tell us the lesson that we should learn..." -Animaniacs
[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="245" caption="Wheel of Fortune"] [/caption]Well, that's the Wheel of Morality, but more generally the wheel that we are familiar with is the Wheel of Life 生命之輪. Life often sets twists and turns in your way to test your faith (no, not religious, just faith in yourself, in life, etc.).There's a phrase/idiom in Chinese: 塞翁失馬,焉知非福。 塞翁得馬,焉知非禍. The moral is that when you are blessed with a "gift," you don't know if it will bring happiness or trouble; and when you are hit with a calamity, you don't really know if that is truly a stroke of really bad luck or a harbinger of good fortune. When you look from behind, you may realize that things have a strange way of falling into place.In 2008, I had the most (physically) traumatic experience in my life: I developed a severe inflammation that was really quite painful, to the point where I wasn't sure if I was going to survive the early mornings (that's when inflammations are the worst). I was carted off to the ER for the first time, where they performed a procedure on me, just to later find out (two days before I was supposed to leave for Taiwan and Japan) that I would need another surgery. Needless to say, I was having major emotional issues. However, now, looking back, I realize that this was for the best. I apparently (now that I can really look at things more clearly) have been brewing this condition for quite a few years (since iaTV time) but I just didn't realize it at the time.Now, a year after the event, I look back and realize that if the issue had not exploded at the time that it did, I would never have gone through the mental changes that made me who I am today, and if I had gotten sick much later, who knows if I would be near people who could help me (in this case I had my parents). So, albeit this sickness brought me pain and suffering that I would never want to experience again, it also freed me from many of my previous (mostly hidden) constraints and I can travel freely.In another example, when I became a lit major, I didn't have faith in myself. I didn't really believe that I would be able to make a living for myself using things related to my major. So I tried many other fields: Law, Web design, Marketing... etc. What seems like lifetimes (of careers) later, I realize that I'm doing for a living something my major would have applied exactly to: translating. Critics, take that! From this I realized, sometimes we just know better what's the best for ourselves, even if at the moment we didn't know. That's why, if you really want to do something, go do it. If you fail at your dream, at least your hard work was for something you love. If you fail at something you hate... you just have a lot of lost love and time. Lose to your dreams, don't lose to your reality. 寧願輸給夢想,不要輸給現實。[caption id="" align="alignright" width="360" caption="Just go for it!"] [/caption]In 2008, many other things happened.For quite a while, my heart was shattered and I thought it would remain forever broken. But at the time I didn't realize this was the time when I would grow immensely emotionally and as a person, the furthest I have ever gone in such a short period of time. It set the wheels in motion, finally, after being on standstill for so long. And I saw so much that I was unable to before. I believe now in the strength of my heart - of its potential to grow and to love. And to realize this is one of the most amazing gifts anyone can hope to have.There is a reason I brought the Wheel of Morality into the picture: do everything as you deem right. You can lie to the world, but you cannot lie to yourself. If you are true to yourself and do everything in the best interest of everyone and everything (including yourself), you will find that fate and fortune will smile upon you. If not, at least you will smile and be proud of yourself.Everyone and everything will find their place. And Karma will be silent judge.[Strength (R)]
[Death (R)] [Page of Swords (R)]
[7 of Swords (R)]
Suggestion: SunA friend of mine recently was “promoted” to a new position at work but is afraid that she is not up to the task. She is freaking out (has been for about 3 wks) wanted to know if she would succeed. Generally I would say that relying on cards for something that can be achieved through one’s own hard work and persistence is silly (and told her that clearly), but since she had been asking for a while, I just did a reading for her.Past: Strength R – lack of internal strengthBrowsing through Mary K. Greer's website, I came across this lovely video. I love the song and the lyrics and it was a fun game to go through the video and try to pick up which cards actually make an appearance. Some of the imagery was very obvious while others need a little interpretation. My favorite was the Hang Man. :D
Cards that I think make an appearance (list may change and feel free to add): 8 swords, 4 swords, World, King/Knight Swords, Lovers, 2 wands, 9 pentacles, 2 swords, 4 wands, 2 cups, 5 cups, Ace cups, Hermit, 6 wands, 5 wands, Knight Wands, 6 cups, 6 pentacles, Ace pentacles, Queen cups, Hang Man, 5 swords, Ace swords, 10 pentacles, Queen pentacles, Temperance. You can also fit a lot of the cards into the lyrics too. Too cool!
歸去,也無風雨也無晴。
Walking the Fool's Journey.