78 Weeks of Tarot: The World

[Trogon]

For information on what these threads refer to, see this thread;

 

78 Weeks of Tarot - Informational Thread

 

The above linked thread gives suggested dates for the cards as well as links to the individual topics.

 

Some of us may be working through the study in a different order and using different decks. If you have general questions or comments regarding the 78 Weeks of Tarot study group, please post in the topic in the above link.

 

Have fun.

[Bookworm]

Deck: Fairytale Tarot

 

Card name: The World

 

First impressions:

 

A beautiful slender woman with very long wavy blond hair stands in the middle of the card. She looks happy as she casts off her fur cape to reveal her long colorful dress. Her arms are in a position similar to the World dancer, and she is swaying as if dancing. Statues of a lion, a bull, and several owls are present in what looks like a ballroom in a palace.

 

I don't remember this story, but it looks as though the woman has come into her own after having suffered.

 

From the book:

 

Keywords and phrases: Reaching a state of complete happiness; rapturous joy; sheer happiness - dancing through life; ultimate fulfillment, reaching your life's goal

 

It's an ancient story known in many versions, but it has lost popularity over the years, probably because its central theme - a girl who has to run from the marriage intentions of her own father - is unacceptable to modern sensibilities. However, it's a tale with much less violence than many of its contemporaries and it does end happily, albeit with the rather odd sense that Many Fur has come full circle and ends up in a kingdom very much like the one she came from.

 

The scene in which Many Fur throws off her cloak to reveal her radiant self makes a striking and thought-provoking representation of the World card. It's the moment at which the girl is able to show her true self after so much degradation. It's also the end of a journey, at which she finds love and safety. It's tempting to think of her fur cloak as a "thicker hide."

 

What of the three dresses? Do they show her as she really is or in another disguise? Certainly, when the girl flings off the fur and shines with pure gold, it's an almost alchemical moment of transformation - from someone lowly and miserable to someone perfect and perfectly confident and happy.

 

The original story:

 

"All Kinds of Fur," from Household Tales by the Brothers Grimm. (This is the same story as Many Fur.)

 

https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm065.html

 

Traditional meanings:

 

Completion, fulfillment, possibilities, outcomes, realizations, wholeness, success, totality, moving - particularly abroad, success and successful conclusions, the journey's end, goal achievement, plans falling through, house moving interrupted, unfinished business, delayed success, non-movement, stagnation, not finishing your work, being stuck in a rut.

 

My impressions of the card/story combination:

 

I like the card/story combo here, especially with Karen's explanation. She makes good points about the idea of the girl coming full circle - back to where she started, but different - that emphasizes the cyclical nature of our personal journeys.

 

I also like the idea of the fur cloak as being a thicker hide, and revealing her true self when she throws it off. That is a large part of happiness, since so much of the time we spend in the world we have to - or think we have to - cover up our true selves. It's such a relief to show ourselves as we really are. I'm not exactly sure why the girl has to take such a long time to reveal herself to the king, but "the third time is the charm" is the rule of fairy tales, so it makes sense from that standpoint.

 

I also like the idea of the nearly alchemical transformations when she reveals herself in her dresses -- one as golden as the sun, one as silver as the moon, and one that glistens like the stars. It's also a nice tie-in with the sun, moon and star cards that precede this one.

 

My take (what I make of it/what I might see in a reading where I drew it):

 

In addition to how I thought of it before - completion, understanding of the beauty of the world or moment, enlightenment - I think I would now see it also as an opportunity to be appreciated for your true self, understanding that he need for covering up who you really are is over. Perhaps I would also see it as coming back to where you started, but with a completely new understanding and role to play.

[Hemera]

Everyday Witch Tarot (D.Blake & E.Alba 2017 Llewellyn)

 

The World

 

Description:

The witch is having a picnic on the beach with her black cat. The sun is shining. There is a small pretty cottage behind her.

 

What action is going on:

The black cone hat is being flown away in the wind.

 

Images and Symbolism:

Pineapple, watermelon, cocktail glass.

Small cute beach house. Almost like a gingerbread house from a fairy tale.

 

This card encourages:

- Harmony, blessings, being in the flow

- You have achieved and arrived. See a new cycle starting.

 

Warns against:

- There are no warnings in this card. All is well with the world.

 

Traditional meanings (J. Bunning):

- Integrating; creating synthesis

- Accomplishing; prospering, flourishing

- Being involved; healing, contributing

- Fulfilment; counting your blessings

 

From the Book:

- She throws her hat away into the wind. (Why?)

- She is on a tropical beach which is a symbol of her having taken a long way to get here

 

Sallie Nichols: (in Jung and Tarot. An Archetypal Journey. Weiser 1984)

- She speaks about the traditional tarot image where the Goddess dances inside the wreath of flowers (mandala). She is the Anima Mundi, Great Goddess, who brings opposites together in a beautiful way. Again, what she writes does not apply to this deck/card at all which is a pity. (This is the last card she writes about since her book only covers the Majors)

 

Notes:

-This is a very down-to-earth World card. There is nothing Divine in this one. This is a beautiful card but a bit too mundane somehow. I find this slightly disappointing since I’d like to see a Goddess figure in this card. On the other hand, some say every woman is a Goddess, but I’m not entirely sure about that and I don’t think that is what the artist had in mind here.

-She throws her hat away – so, is she done with witchcraft now? Or why does she throw her sign of witchcraft, her crown, into the wind? Maybe she does not need any outer signs anymore? She has fully internalised her witchcraft and it is now all in her heart.