Living the Wheel: Seasonal Musings of the Pagan Year

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The Queen of Pentacles: Guide and Mentor

   Each day I do a Tarot reading. The time of day varies--Sunday is really the only day I do a morning reading. Sometimes it's when I get home from work around 4:30 and I am sitting with a mug of tea. Other times it's after dinner at 7:30. Most usually it's just before I go to bed, and by that time it's late enough where I don't do a full reading  and instead do a single-card draw.

     For the last three months or so, the single card I regularly select is the Queen of Pentacles. I use Kris Waldherr's Goddess Tarot, and in that deck the Queen of Pentacles is depicted as a beautiful silk-draped Indian woman, regal and self-assured. (In Waldherr's deck the suit of Pentacles is associated with the goddess Lakshmi.)

     Looking back through notes, I realized that the Queen of Pentacles has appeared quite regularly in the four card 'Past/Present/Future' spread as well. She appears in both the Present- and Future- draw, and also as the fourth card, the card that is the overall message, the summation of the other three cards.

     Who is this woman, this Queen of the Earth realm? What is she trying to tell me? What does she want of me? What do I need to know that only she can teach me?

     According to Waldherr, 'The Queen of Pentacles is the personification of the fertile life force of the Divine Feminine. This expansive, joyful woman has the talent to create heaven on earth. The archetypal Earth Mother, [she] is the physical manifestation of the goddess Lakshmi on earth.' (181-82) Ideally, she represents fertility, both physical and spiritual, prosperity, and the home.

     In many cases this card represents a woman one knows or will meet, someone who can become a mentor (more on this later). She is usually a woman with drive and focus, successful in business while still managing to be a constant presence and nurturing influence for her family. This woman is a powerhouse: she works full-time, takes care of her children, her house is spotless, she probably has her own investment portfolio and actually knows what that means, and still has time to read, both for fun and the business section of the newspaper. She is someone I would like to be.

     Other sources suggests that the Queen of Pentacles represents a part of one's own self, especially if you invest much of your time in the care of others. Thus, the Queen of Pentacles is a spiritual aspect of nearly every woman and man on this planet: parents, teachers, medical professionals, volunteers, counselors, and so many more.

     The Queen of Pentacles is also focused on balance. With so many of us working to provide for our families, we are often unable to spend time with the family we are working for. It is a convoluted circle--I often feel like I am chasing myself through the day, weekends especially, when I have two full days at home and want to get everything done.

     Finding the balance the Queen of Pentacles offers is crucial to happiness. Spending all of my time off running around to do everything without taking some time to read or putter around in my kitchen cooking something new isn't relaxing, and I will be irritable, my family will be irritable, and on Monday my workweek will start on a sour note.

     I will admit, I am a homebody. I love being home, being a homemaker. I love to sit on my back steps, mug in hand, and watch birds hop around in the grapevine-swathed maple sapling next to the steps. Watering my plants, dusting my books, making messes in my kitchen, these are some of my favorite things. (I love ironing, too. My mother thinks I'm crazy.) When my youngest child was born I had five amazing years home from work, being a mother to all three children and keeping house. I recognized when that time needed to end, however, and was very lucky to land in an amazing healthcare facility. And here we circle back to the theme of caring for others, something I did not realize the Queen of Pentacles was telling me until I began my research.

     Three months ago I was given a promotion from Administrative Assistant to Human Resource Manager. According to what I learned from BiddyTarot.com, the Queen of Pentacles asks that one maintains a 'compassionate, nurturing, down-to-earth attitude while dealing with others and their circumstances.' One needs to be practical, deal with issues as they arise, and come up with realistic and simple solutions. The Queen of Pentacles also says people will come [to me] looking for insight and advise.

     If that doesn't sound like HR I don't know what does.

     The Queen of Pentacles also suggests that I access feminine energy for material success, and that this is a time to focus on accomplishment.

     About the middle of June I realized that my job had the potential to become a career. Based on that, I applied to the American Women's College at Bay Path University. In September I will begin my classes for a Bachelor's of Science in Human Resource Management. Was this decision also due in part to some subtle influence by the Queen of Pentacles? (By this I mean as my own awakening knowledge of possibility and how I can reach those possibilities.)

     A further detail I learned from PsychicRevelation.com struck a definite tone: 'The Queen of Pentacles suggests [you] are making headway at work,' as is clearly illustrated by my journey from Activity Aide to Administrative Assistant to Human Resource Manager. 'A woman with dark hair and eyes may play a significant role in your working life--she is an ally.' (In every Tarot deck the Queen of Pentacles is depicted with dark hair and eyes, as the suit of Pentacles represents the earth.) My Executive Director, a brilliant, engaging woman of Korean heritage is not only my direct supervisor, but a good friend, and as the card suggests, a mentor. (I got goosebumps when I read that piece of information of PsychicRevelation.com: it described E.U. to a tee.)

     Above all, the Queen of Pentacles adjures me to trust myself, something I have a very hard time doing. If I trust myself, I will see that my decisions are correct, and that I am doing what is best for myself. Those decisions will impact my family and coworkers in a positive way, continuing the cycle of care of others, but in a way that is beneficial to all. The Queen of Pentacles knows this: she has been by my side these last few months with an encouraging hand on my shoulder.

    (Image: 'Queen of Pentacles' from The Goddess Tarot by Kris Waldherr)

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I am a writer and poet living in western Massachusetts. I have a degree in English Lit, with a focus on the nineteenth century, and am working toward a degree in Women's Studies as well. My work has previously appeared in The Pagan Activist, The Pagan Review, GrannyMoon's Morning Feast, and The Montague Reporter. I am currently working on a series of children's books, a novel trilogy, and a poetry manuscript (I simply can't do one thing at a time!). I also have several random fantasy-based short story projects that I attack once in a while.   I am a Dianic Pagan and practice Kitchen Wicca, and am also a Reiki Master. For a glimpse into my own little corner of reality, you can stop in and visit me at Ellie.

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