Another Shadow in the Court: Revisiting Significators, Court Cards, and Shadows
For the final week of my Holding Court Challenge to find your place in the tarot court, I asked participants to look at the three minor arcana associated with the court card covers their birthday decan. (If you’ve never heard of a decan or astrological tarot, you may want to start with “Exploring the Minor Arcana through Astrology, Part 1.”) One is their (less obvious) shadow or some area of weakness, and two are strengths (or at least more obvious neutral features).
For example, I use the Golden Dawn method of attributing the King of Pentacles to the 30º segment of the zodiac that ranges from 20º Aries to 20º Taurus. My sun sign lands in that segment, so I would consider this card one of my significators, the one based on my sun sign or my life path and soul purpose. That seems important, right?
Using the same Golden Dawn system of attributing one of the minor arcana to each decan (10º arc), I can identify three minor arcana as part of the King of Pentacles:
4 of Wands (Venus ruling Aries)
5 of Pentacles (Mercury ruling Taurus)
6 of Pentacles (Moon ruling Taurus)
You may know that the Pentacles are associated with earth and Taurus is an earth sign, so it makes sense that two of the cards associated with the King of Pentacles are linked to Taurus. What may be surprising is that one of the three cards is linked to Aries. (Interestingly, the 4 of Wands is also linked to Venus, the ruler of Taurus, but that’s just a happy coincidence.)
That first card from an unexpected sign covers the court card’s shadow decan.* This is the area where the court card’s shadows may be illustrated particularly well, even if the shadow is typically hidden. The other two cards offer areas of strength and more obvious appreciation.
*“Shadow decan” is a term I picked up from to geniuses T. Susan (“Susie”) Chang and M. M. (“Mel”) Meleen and their Fortune’s Wheelhouse podcast.
So what does that mean for the court card?
More importantly, what could that mean for you if that card represents you?
Let’s look at the King of Pentacles to find out.
The King of Pentacles is generally a solid and stable figure who is good with money and enjoys his comforts. He likes nice things, and he typically finds satisfaction and success (as he defines it) fairly easily.
What’s the downside of that kind of persona?
Stagnation. Complacency. Hedonism. It’s sloth, lust, and gluttony all in one, with a little bit of unwillingness to change. (I don’t know anyone like that, he lies.)
Coloring in the King of Pentacles from my Life Line Tarot: Color Outside the Lines Coloring & Activity Book PDF while referencing Awaken the Court Cards: A workbook to bring the court cards to life, available in print on Amazon or as a PDF in my shop.
Sure. the King of Pentacles has a lot of great attributes. He likes to enjoy himself and he’s resilient even in the face of obstacles. And he doesn’t keep it all to himself when things are going well: he’s happy to share the wealth and comforts as he’s able to do so because that is part of his “wealth” of spirit.
But he can also be a bit of a pig-headed potato.
A lot of that comes from the 4 of Wands. He’s found that beautiful resting point of “Completion,” the card’s title in the Golden Dawn system, where the Empress (Venus) and the Emperor (Aries) come together. There’s a pause to activity after expansion, and it’s time to celebrate. But that celebration can get a little sloppy, and that satisfied plateau can become comfortable laurels on which to rest. Is that really so surprising? It’s hard to get an elephant (or bull) moving once he’s down and relaxed: it’s a lot of mass to shift.
So when that inertia is combined with the 5 of Pentacles? It’s easy to keep going even when you’re struggling. But the answer is in the 6 of Pentacles—and it was there in the 4 of Wands and 5 of Pentacles too. The answer is interdependence and community. The King is usually happy to share what he has, at least for a time. But he’s loath to ask for help. It’ll ruin the vibe … and the façade of easy success.
It also exposes the Venusian nature of the 4 of Wands.
Enjoying a little Venusian beauty with the 4 of Wands from my Color Outside the Lines edition of the Life Line Tarot.
Taurus is ruled by Venus, and the 4 of Wands is a card putting Venus in the sign where she is at her worst, Aries. Because it’s a Mars-ruled sign, you can find some harmony in the complement of Venus and Mars, but it’s where Venus is, frankly, weakest in the zodiac. So the King, who is heavily influenced by Venus thanks to being 1/3 Venus and 2/3 Taurus, is at his lowest there. In the card where it seems like things are all tickety-boo, he’s at his least empowered. The King wants to melt into that moment and never let it go. But the party can’t go on forever. And when it’s over, the final bill comes due.
So for the Kings of Pentacles, I would encourage us to find gratitude in those beautiful moments, to elevate the love of Venus, and to appreciate it for what it is without worrying that it will never come again. That fear of loss and the associated lack mentality are what leads the 4 of Wands to become excessive under the wrong conditions. When you give in to that fear of never experiencing that moment again, you overdo it, trying to suck every measure of pleasure out of the moment. And afterwards comes the reckoning.
It’s funny that a card of such easy wealth and comfort and excess would be sitting atop a mountain of material insecurity. But our shadows aren’t rational.
Even with the best intentions, it’s easy to get lost in the moment and forget all of the joy and pleasure that every day holds. It’s also important to release the façade of ease when it’s not easy. You let everyone else be who they are and want to be, but that doesn’t have to come at the expense of you doing the same.
Likewise, it’s okay to strive for more even if people think you have enough. The 6 of Pentacles is all about money in motion. That energy stagnates as well, and you have to keep moving. Let it sit there, like the 4 of Pentacles, and the grapes will just rot on the vine.
But remember to connect it with your loved ones and the community that would support you if you only asked for that support. Share the wealth when you have it, and ask for those favors in return for your good deeds when you need them. Be we healers or bankers or bakers, we are at our best when we keep the energy moving and love flowing.
Do get comfortable. But never get complacent.
Almost a year ago, I posted the article “Me and My Shadow, or Significators, Court Cards, and Shadows,” where I looked at the court card associated with my Moon sign (Knight of Pentacles) and its shadows. It’s still relevant today, but it’s a field I’ve plowed before, so I wanted to take a different tack with my Sun sign. Maybe next year, we’ll look at my Rising sign, the King of Wands. Rowr.
So you’re excited to learn more about the court cards? Enroll in Awaken the Court Cards, an in-depth exploration of how to bring the court cards to life in your tarot readings and your everyday life. They’re part of you, and by connecting with them, you empower yourself.
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