Making space for a seed to sprout
The tarot Aces have been coming up for me recently, and with a new moon today this seemed like a good time to look more deeply at them. Placed at the beginning of the minor arcana number sequence, they are also set apart a little, because the Ace is something more than One. In many card games, Aces can be high or low. They are a new beginning, but also contain the totality of the suit energy. With the Ace, it's all there in potential, an essence or even an archetype of the energy of the suit. In numerology, One symbolises the indivisible creative principle of wholeness, and the Aces can be seen as the purest form of their elemental energy.
The Greenwood Aces together show the evolution of the Ace energy through the elements - the spark in the Wands becomes an inspiration, a breath of air in Arrows. The waters of life are the receptive vessel of the Cups, and the images open up for the Stones as the first foundations manifest in physical reality.
In the cycle of the minor arcana, the Aces follow the Ten. In the Ten, the energy is past its peak, and may have become overwhelming, like the over-burdened figure of the Ten of Wands. The Ten is a letting go, a giving up - creating space into which the pure new Ace energy can flow. Sometimes the giving up is hard, even painful - witness the figure in the Ten of Swords. All you can do is make the space, allow the new energy to manifest in your life. An Ace might mean a new opportunity or the spark of a new idea - the key is in recognising it when it comes. Aces are often interpreted as a gift from the universe, as depicted in the RWS tarot where each Ace is proffered by a hand. The Ace is about allowing the gifts of the divine into material reality.
The Greenwood Aces together show the evolution of the Ace energy through the elements - the spark in the Wands becomes an inspiration, a breath of air in Arrows. The waters of life are the receptive vessel of the Cups, and the images open up for the Stones as the first foundations manifest in physical reality.
In the cycle of the minor arcana, the Aces follow the Ten. In the Ten, the energy is past its peak, and may have become overwhelming, like the over-burdened figure of the Ten of Wands. The Ten is a letting go, a giving up - creating space into which the pure new Ace energy can flow. Sometimes the giving up is hard, even painful - witness the figure in the Ten of Swords. All you can do is make the space, allow the new energy to manifest in your life. An Ace might mean a new opportunity or the spark of a new idea - the key is in recognising it when it comes. Aces are often interpreted as a gift from the universe, as depicted in the RWS tarot where each Ace is proffered by a hand. The Ace is about allowing the gifts of the divine into material reality.