Notes on: The Ten of Cups
(A Happy Conclusion)
Artist’s Notes:
The ten of cups is one of those that has always both intrigued and worried at me the most. I think of it most often as the ‘happy ever after’ card yet the way that the card is normally portrayed, there is a young family with kids and rainbows. Everyone has truly met a happy conclusion. Yet the question invariably comes up for me. What happens next? If this card, shows the pinnacle of happiness on the physical plane then surely any change is unlikely to be for the better. That does not mean I see unhappiness as much as the human need to grow and change and that leads to new issues. The story never ends and every ending leads invariably to a new beginning. This I symbolized by the caduceus with its two snakes looking longingly at each other in a way that is almost reminiscent of the aces even as the ten cups and the array of colours symbolizes the ending.
About the Archetype:
The suite of Cups deals with our emotional nature including love, both that as in a relationship between two (and rarely more) people and that of friends and companions. Tens show the ultimate completion of the energy involved leading ultimately to a new beginning. The Ten of Cups shows the complete fulfilment of our emotions. We have everything we may have wished for in our lives and everything that we believed would fulfil us in terms of family life and appreciation of the beauty around us. We feel as if we’ve been touched by grace. However, satisfaction in one area of our lives is not the same as self-actualization and there is that in us which strives for more than ‘Happily ever after’. Eventually, this satiation will yield to a hunger for something greater.
Astrological Correspondent:
Mars in Pisces – This energy is quiet almost passive seeming to have no wants and a willingness to go along with whatever it encounters. It’s not that it has no wants as its wants are fleeting things, momentary itches as opposed to burns and easily sublimated to the happiness of others around it. However if these desires are too often frustrated without any outlet, this energy may respond in a passive-aggressive manner. Quite often Mars in Pisces can be quite scattered if it does not have some form of higher purpose or deeper meaning inspiring it and giving it purpose. This energy quite often desires nothing more than a total merging with another.
In a Reading:
The Ten of Cups in a reading can show that this is a time of harmony and enjoyment, particularly in the areas of love, relationships, and family. This often comes as a culmination of a long series of events. This care may also hold the promise for this type of fulfilling relationship. The Ten of Cups may also indicate that there is a commitment and marriage in the offering. This card may indicate a need to take the surface enjoyment of love and family and use it as a springboard to a new level of awareness.
When the Ten of Cups turns up reversed in a reading, it can mean that something is blocking the happiness shown in the card. Perhaps we have developed a problem with how we related to our loved ones and family. Perhaps we feel like we have lost the ‘closeness’ we once had or that there is something lacking in our life that we need to pursue separately from the family unit. The card reversed may also mean that we are neglecting our family in pursuit of material or other goals. It is often a call to introspect and discover what our values are or have become.
–GAR
Fate’s Whisper:
Life holds many meanings to many different people. There are those that seek to harm those who are rise while just as many reach their hand out to heal them. Regardless of how we get there we eventually reach the peak and will know the feeling of being at our best. Take your wing and fly after all a fall from this height would really hurt. Be warned though what comes after might humble you once more.
The peaks of the Havens are said to house a priceless relic. A scale of the Fish of time shines as a beacon to the lost. It marks a passage we must all endure one day. The power we once had held to bring us down. With wisdom, we seek to rise higher but know that will prove very difficult for our current selves. Cast your shell once more and make a new limit, Infinity awaits.
–NF