Enter The Emperor.
A Tarot Meditation on Fathers Day
If I’ve been a bit quiet here lately, I’ve been away, bobbing about Northern Spain and the Bay of Biscay. It was a big boat, though tiny by the standards of the new generation of truly leviathan cruise ships. But I’m not a great sailor, and I am still feeling a bit dizzy. One of the strangest and most unaccustomed experiences was lying in bed looking out of the window at total blackness. No light pollution. No telling where the sea ended and the sky began. There was a waxing moon but not a sliver, not a ghost of moonlight, and no starlight, and no lights out at sea. Blackest black.
I took my cards, as always, but barely looked at them, except to check the weather, which wasn’t wonderful but happily better than forecast.
Home again. This Fathers Day, let’s introduce the ultimate Tarot card of the principle of Masculinity with a capital ‘M’, The Emperor.
First let's set the scene for anyone not familiar with the Tarot. The Tarot deck is a story book and every one of the 78 cards has its own story to tell, independently, and over the arc of the deck. It is the same with playing card decks, but a playing card deck lacks the 22 cards of the Tarot's Major Arcana (or greater secrets) of which The Emperor is arcana number 4.
The number 4 stands - well, foursquare. It stands for stability, structure and order. The status quo. When strength and efficiency are needed, it's no-nonsense number 4 to the rescue, running towards the problem head down, and likely to sort it hands down. The Emperor expresses his duty and devotion in deeds. In personal relationships he may not always have the words -or the inclination to express himself in words, or to discuss his feelings. But this does not mean he is not deep in feeling, and let’s see what happens when Mercury enters Cancer tomorrow, 17 June. If there’s any astrological transit that can get a clam to open up, it is Mercury in Cancer until July 2.
Smith Waite Tarot
The appearance of the Emperor in a Tarot reading signifies the current extra significance of an important man in your life, at an individual level. He’s a father, husband, life partner, employer, friend or advisor. NOTE: The Emperor is an embodiment of the principle of masculinity, which is not to say a woman does not, or may not, appear or behave as the Emperor in a reading, just as she may do in real life. Just as a male person may manifest or behave in a reading or in real life as The Empress. BUT we are talking about the masculine principle; the ARCHETYPE; the man, the ram, the bull, the boar, the stallion. The Lord of his world when in his rightful element.
The Emperor also stands for government, law and order, other big hierarchical organisations; the Armed Forces, the Police, the Civil Service, standing for the organizing principle of protection. His zodiac sign is Aries, and so The Emperor may indicate Aries timing in a predictive reading. See those ram’s heads on the arms of his throne? He's a warrior. He instigates. He is Armed. Ready to fight to defend his own. He will lay down his life if that is what it takes.
There is a shadow side of course. As with everything under the sun. The Emperor may signify a failed father, a bully, a tin-pot dictator or dictatorship, or petty officialdom, overbearing bureaucracy. The Emperor, especially when it appears together with The Tower, is a signal of War. The card may alternatively signify absence of structure and leadership. Poor governance. Failure to step up. Ineffectiveness. Lack of know-how. Lack of courage. He may be Charlemagne, or he may, when ill in dignity, be Caligula or Nero, or simply hapless. This card may also warn against a speeding accident and in particular, the risk of a head injury. The warning is to avoid haste.
Today we honour The Emperor at the top of his game. Best friend, lover and co-ruler to The Empress; those men we love, and all that we love best in men. Sons of the red earth of Adam. The Emperor needs to be needed. He thrives on thanks, and feels himself diminished, fading away in loneliness if no-one needs him. We need not begrudge him his dues, or is crown and throne when he has earned them. It takes away nothing from The Empress, who has her own crown, and her own throne, too.
Michelangelo-Creation of Adam (cropped) Public domain
All hail to The Emperor this Father's Day.
Thank you for reading, and now I’m back home, I’ll soon be back again.
Some great takeaways here. Thanks, Katie.