The “Three of a Perfect Pair*” Tarot Card Selection Method
I’m always looking for novel ways to pull cards for a tarot reading. Here I’ve adopted (and also adapted) the “card pairing” method of the Golden Dawn as used in the First Operation of the “Opening of the Key.” First, I shuffled the deck and pulled a single card to show the “Heart of the Matter” or subject of the reading. In this case it was the Emperor. (Although two of the decks in the first photo below appear as reversed, I didn’t use reversals in this example reading.)
I put the Emperor back in the deck (face up so I could easily find it again) and reshuffled the cards. Then I located this card in the pack and pulled it and the two cards on either side of it to form a triplet. These outside cards show the object of the reading, and in this draw they were the Princess of Cups and the Princess of Swords. (This objective can be any scenario with two inputs or two contending outcomes; here it suggests the “choice” implied in the Tarot de Marseille “Lover” card. At times it might display a “before-and-after” tableau, either from left-to-right or according to any “facing” present in the subject card.)
I left the Emperor out of the deck and put the two Princesses back in face-up, then reshuffled.
I located each Princess and pulled it along with the two cards adjacent to it. These surrounding cards may identify the companions, cohorts, lieutenants or “posse” of any court card that shows up in the “object” position or, more generally, the defining circumstances of the situation. For the Princess of Cups I came up with the Chariot and the Princess of Wands, while for the Princess of Swords I got the 4 of Disks and the 6 of Cups.
I referred to my table of sequential numbers for the 78 cards (which runs from the Fool as zero to the King of Pentacles/Disks as 78) and identified the card that sits midway between the two Princesses; this was the 4 of Swords. This “advice” card describes the best posture for the subject (e.g. the Emperor) to take in dealing with the situation and arriving at a workable solution; it might be dubbed the judicious “Middle Way.”
*The lyrics of the King Crimson song “Three of a Perfect Pair” make an excellent argument for how all of this might work out.
Interpretation:
The Emperor is the quintessential “alpha male.” He has but to gesture and nod and it is done. Here I peg him as a mature, well-established man, perhaps a successful, self-confidant businessman or leader of some kind. Right off the bat we can see that he has an interest in two quite different and much younger women (neither of whom is his daughter although they’re both sucking up to him). The Emperor is facing to the left, clearly indicating that he is enticed by the alluring Princess of Cups while the menacing Princess of Swords looks like she wants to stab him in the back; his crossed legs suggest that he is wisely “keeping it in his shorts” for the moment.
The Princess of Cups we’ll call “Elaine,” the pagan Celts’ Virgin Moongoddess, a “Dispenser of Joy” and source of inspiration; and the Princess of Swords we will name “Skuld,” the third Norn of Nordic legend and leader of the Valkyries, conductors of fallen heroes to Valhalla; in other words a “Valkyrie-like, sharp-minded woman of keen judgment and high spirit, who might prove dangerous to those unable to meet her challenge” (both descriptions courtesy of Barbara Walker). Let’s nickname the former “Honey” and the latter “Hari”” (for a youthful “harridan”).
The assumption is that “Honey” is naive and unwise in the ways of men; she would make a pliable and uncomplaining consort for the Emperor; “Hari” on the other hand is worldly and would give as good as she gets. “Honey” would flatter his male ego but “Hari” would stimulate his mind as well as provoke (or “needle”) him.
Sweet-natured “Honey” comes with a fiercely-loyal sister and a capable “big brother” (perhaps a knight) to defend her virtue. (Elemental Dignities between the three cards imply that the siblings are not on the best of terms with one another, and the Princess of Wands is usually caught in the middle.) “Hari” brings her “assets,” perhaps property (or dowry) and a sensuous personality, both of which she has firmly under her control (however, the Elemental Dignities suggest she might be a profligate spender with a distaste for financial constraints); she also most likely has a dagger concealed in her garter. The 4 of Disks and 6 of Cups together remind me of Michael Palin telling Terry Jones (“Prince Herbert”) in Monty Python and the Holy Grail that “Princess Daisy has huge . . . tracts of land!” while appearing to fondle an invisible pair of enormous breasts.
The 4 of Swords (titled “Truce” in the Thoth deck) as advice for the Emperor suggests the prudent course of “diplomacy.” If he offends “Elaine,” he risks alienating her touchy and potentially vengeful sister and losing the support of her brother (the Chariot) in his next campaign; and if he offends “Skuld,” he might very will sprout a “pig-sticker” between his ribs. The Emperor must walk a fine line here and needs all the cool reserve he can muster. Just to be safe, maybe he should send one to a nunnery and the other on a long-term diplomatic mission to France.
However, in light of recent events, there is a less charming possibility here: the Emperor could be an arrogant pedophile, with the Princess of Cups/Princess of Wands/Chariot configuration as his teen-age victim and her outraged relatives; the Princess of Swords as his aggressive young defense attorney who is experienced with sexual-abuse cases (6 of Cups) and who has access to his “deep pockets” (4 of Disks); and the 4 of Swords as the opportunity for a “plea-bargain.”
Originally published at http://parsifalswheeldivination.wordpress.com on February 10, 2022.
