As the Sun moves into the Air sign of Libra, so we move into the energy of the Justice card of the Tarot. There is a clear link to this card with the symbol of the scales the lady of Justice holds aloft, along with the Sword. Unlike the figure adorning the legal system, our lady here is not blindfolded, showing that we have a need to see and therefore take full responsibility for, our actions and our truth.
Speaking as a Libran myself, truth is a very important trait, both in ourselves and others. Truth can be a vital concept on our journey through the Major Arcana as our souls evolve, when we come to meet the figure and energy of this card.
Whilst historically Justice was placed as card 8 in the numerical sequence (until AE Waite swapped it to 11 with Strength), for me I originally learnt it as 11 and consequently I always see it as that central point. This is where we meet ourselves coming back the other way, and so a meeting with the core energy of our Soul, as who and what we truly are, ensues.
In the image from my ‘Gamble-Hounsome Tarot’ you can see below, it is the eyes and the expression on the face that grab, and hold you. They pierce through any outer layers of defence, embarrassment, untruth, secrets, and fears and so on, and get to the very core of us. An angel with lovely wings she may be, but before we can enfold ourselves in those wings of love, we must first bare our naked essence before her and come to a place where we first can accept, ‘face and embrace’, all that we see, within and without, before we can move to a place of self-love.
And so, for me, here is where we have an opportunity to come to know, absolutely and finally, who and what we are and why we have chosen to live our life at this time and in this place. We can do so by gazing into this mirror and seeing what arises within us, in body, heart, mind and spirit. If we can allow ourselves to be bathed in the full glare of this light we can find that through acceptance we are ‘granted’ or allow, a sense of true love of self to wash over and through us. Once there, our vision of life and its purpose, and our place and role in the world can shift, and we are able to operate not from a place of need or want, but from something higher and/or deeper.
It is for this reason that I chose the image of the sun atop Mount Everest for the ‘Tarot Therapy Deck’ card. This is the highest point above sea level we have on the Earth and so, symbolically speaking, we can see everything. We can make an analogy here that there can be no hiding place and nowhere higher to aspire to than love of self, and its consequent outpouring once realised.
So it is I like to think of truth being the contents of one of the dishes of the scales, and love the other. The question can then be, for each of us, whether these balance and if not, what is required to bring that about?
Cards illustrated are from ‘The Gamble-Hounsome Tarot: The Tarot of Gnosis’ and ‘The Tarot Therapy Deck’.
Steve Hounsome - Tarot Therapy Ltd
Cards illustrated are from ‘The Gamble-Hounsome Tarot: The Tarot of Gnosis’ and
‘The Tarot Therapy Deck’.
You can contact Steve at the following media –
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