Interpretation Of King of Wands - Upright - Minor Arcana

The Rider Waite Tarot Deck - Discussion and cards explained.

Moderators: eye_of_tiger, shalimar123, TarotModerator

Tarot
Posts: 903
Joined: Wed Jun 22, 2005 2:21 am

Interpretation Of King of Wands - Upright - Minor Arcana

Post by Tarot » Tue May 16, 2006 9:22 am

King of Wands - Upright

Minor Arcana

You are a charismatic leader. You have a wonderful personality and a mature. You are independent old and inspiring. You are highly motivated and reliable.

Image

Let's hear your interpretation of the card...

User avatar
Rhutobello
Posts: 10724
Joined: Fri Jun 16, 2006 8:39 pm

My opinion on this card.

Post by Rhutobello » Fri Jul 07, 2006 1:53 pm

I see a man sitting on a throne.
He is  out in the open, and you can see no surroundings, but below, so it must be on a hilltop. He is secure..no guards.. looking outwards. He holds his wand in a relax matter. His Throne is decorated with symbols. Beside the throne you can see a little lizard that show no fear.
We can assume this is a man of great power that has the ability to listen to you and give you good advices (from his outward looking position) You shall approach him with no fear and listen well to his advices:)

samantha234
Posts: 464
Joined: Mon Jun 12, 2006 12:09 am
Contact:

Post by samantha234 » Fri Jul 07, 2006 6:26 pm

He is also a businessman.

User avatar
Rhutobello
Posts: 10724
Joined: Fri Jun 16, 2006 8:39 pm

Post by Rhutobello » Fri Jul 07, 2006 7:41 pm

Okay...I might have misunderstod something here:) (goes for all card I have done until now.

When I am asked to interpret these cards, then I "Forget" all those meanings that is given for the card itself, these meanings are written and can be taken into account when the card shall be used in a reading.


If you want me to include " their spesiality" I will do so, but I belive you can't tell that from the card itself :smt018
If you did't know he was a businessman, how would you interpret it from the card? :smt012
I am not arguing....just telling how I have done it :smt013
Just say, shut up and do it....and I will :smt006


hmm I am a bit confussed now.....I will start to use what I know beside the card when I interpret the rest.of them..  :smt004

samantha234
Posts: 464
Joined: Mon Jun 12, 2006 12:09 am
Contact:

Post by samantha234 » Sat Jul 08, 2006 3:55 am

Hi Rhutobello,
I am sorry if i confused you, the suit of wands has to do with business and growth, so the King of Wands would be a business owner, possibly in carpentry, or construction. check out the lessons for the answer,ok?
it was pretty confusing to me too when i first started out. :)

samantha234
Posts: 464
Joined: Mon Jun 12, 2006 12:09 am
Contact:

rhutobello

Post by samantha234 » Sat Jul 08, 2006 5:04 am

Oh, by the way, you are doing a great job! :)

User avatar
Rhutobello
Posts: 10724
Joined: Fri Jun 16, 2006 8:39 pm

Post by Rhutobello » Sat Jul 08, 2006 4:37 pm

Thx for kind words Samantha:)

Read my last post once more. It can sound a bit souer....I assure you that is not the case....that is the schackle of language to blame!:)

Always interpret my post positive...all of you...I never complain in an open forum so if my post sounds like that....then just say "poor old man he has missed the word again:)"

Big smile to you all:)

User avatar
Bhadra
Posts: 75
Joined: Fri Mar 10, 2006 7:55 pm
Location: TX

Interpretation of King of Wands - Upright - Minor Arcana

Post by Bhadra » Sat Jul 08, 2006 5:21 pm

I love focusing in on the symbology of cards and what that symbology means so I'm going to start with one of the symbols on this card. Behind the King, who I will get to in a minute, on the back of his throne are two heraldic and alchemical symbols. The first is the lion rampant - again I'll deal with that later, for now I want to focus in on the salamander eating its tail as it is an important symbol that give you clues to this person or help interpret the possible meaning of this card.

I've taken the liberty of doing a little research and found something which I will reprint with the link and the reference so others in the class can take a look.

So about the salamander:

The salamander is a common symbol in Alchemy, sometimes representing the Red Stone also known as The Philosophers Stone. The salamander represents the energy of transformation, the ability to control the fiery spirit as we meet the challenges of life.

The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols tells us that "in medieval iconography, the salamander stands for the righteous person who never relinquishes peace of soul of trust in God in the midst of tribulation."

The Salamander, eating its tail as it is on these cards, is a symbol of completion, mastery, maturity, and is similar to the oroborous (the snake eating its own tail, a symbol of eternity) found on the Magician card.
http://www.free-tarot-reading.net/forum ... topic=7730
The Tower of Alchemy, An advanced Guide to the Great Work
Copyright © 1999 by David Goddard
Published by Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC
ISBN 1-57863-113-0

The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols
Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrant
Translated by John Buchanan-Brown
translation copyright© John Buchanan-Brown 1994
Copyright © Editions Robert Laffont S.A.
Penguin Books 1996 ISBN 0-14-051254-3

The Rider Tarot Deck
Designed by Pamela Colman Smith
Under the direction of Arthur Edward Waite
Copyright© 1971 Us Games System, Inc.
ISBN 0-913866-13-X

The Wheel of Change Tarot
Deck and book set
Copyright© 1997 Alexandra Genetti
Destiny Books
ISBN 0-89281-609-0

Ooops, just got a call from a friend who needs a ride, I'll finish this up later. For now, this gives some food for thought.

samantha234
Posts: 464
Joined: Mon Jun 12, 2006 12:09 am
Contact:

Post by samantha234 » Sat Jul 08, 2006 5:36 pm

Rhutobello, lol, no problem! Bhadra, very informative, great work, :smt006
i have learned something new todaY! :)

User avatar
Bhadra
Posts: 75
Joined: Fri Mar 10, 2006 7:55 pm
Location: TX

Interpretation of the King of Wands -Upright-Minor Arcana

Post by Bhadra » Sat Jul 08, 2006 10:25 pm

Sorry about that interruption...and thanks Samantha! Now where was I oh yes, the salamander. And this is going to be long so please bear with me.

Personally I find this symbol on the card very indicative since I recently started teaching someone about Alchemy and particularly the Hermetic Principles which are all about transformation and transmutation. That person was the same person I gave a ride to and this was one of the topics of discussion...transmuting emotional states in particular.  

Since the Salamander sometimes represents the Philosopher's Stone let's deal with that in brief. The Philosopher's Stone was thought to be a stone that could assist in turning base metal...lead and mercury...into gold. But in Hermetics, it is the ability to transmute the base metal of the self into the gold of the Self, the mastery of raising one's vibrations at will to achieve any emotional state desired. If one possesses mastery of vibration one can transmute and create anything..literally...very powerful principle.

The person represented by the King of wands has done just that very thing..

The King shows almost all of the salamanders on his clothing as full circles. He has become the master of the creative fire represented in the suit of wands.

Let's move on to the other heraldic and alchemical symbol, the Lion Rampant...being a Leo who is currently rampant in some respects I have a special interest in this symbol as well.

Heraldry is the science and art of designing, displaying, describing and recording coats of arms and badges, as well as the formal ceremonies and laws that regulate the use and inheritance of arms. The origins of heraldry lie in the need to distinguish participants in battles or jousts, whose faces were hidden by steel helmets.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heraldry

The Lion Rampant is the royal standard of the Scottish kings. The Noble Lion, a symbol of courage and power was very common in heraldry and was depicted in a multitude of art styles over the centuries.  The heraldic artists devised these lions to not so much reflect the lion as he exists in nature, but rather to reflect the lion ideal of the human mind.  The attenuated heraldic lion was delineated in a simplified form, clearly recognizable at a distance; it’s meaning glaring.  So, too, it is displayed both on the chair and robes of the King of Wands. Now bear with me, this will all make sense in a minute...but it gets deep!

The truth about the Holy Land of Scotland went to print by an author called Barry Dunsford - who amongst other things pointed out that Pontius Pilate was born in central Scotland at a place called Fortingale, near Killin. It always seemed strange that a family - the Pilate family central to the destruction of one of Gods and Histories central characters was located not very far from Edinburgh, Scotland.

Dunsford’s source was the books by W Comyns Beaumont on the riddle of prehistoric Britain, and Britain - the key to World History.

It is therein suggested that the ancient Merovingians wandered the planet but that the origins of the Jews may well be rooted in the Scottish Atlantean Mystery. After the deluge - the ruling tribe of Aryans returned. These people were known historically as the People of the Cat, the lion rampant their symbol - the popular flag of Caledonia Scotland and also of the King of Norway - also anciently a country part of Atlantean Thule. Edinburgh, having a very sphinx like hill later called Arthur’s Seat, which looks like a lion couchant was also known as the City of the Lion. The patron Saint of Edinburgh is David.

Why did I include this? Because it can give you clues about the King (the querent or the person represented by the King of Wands)of course, but also because on a personal note, as a Merovingian descendant on both sides of my family it was significant to me personally. But I digress as I am wont to do!

Kindly remember that Waite was an interpreter of the Zohar and that tarot has many correspondences which are Qabbalistic in nature. You will get to that in advanced studies.

I interpret the Lion Rampant to allude to the transmuted Sacred Fire.  In Waite's interpretation he draws heavily from the alchemical principles expressed in the Qabbala.

"Four: Fire from Water..."

The Foundation of the Act of Creation is Breath, as everything came into
being when "God Said...etc." But the Substance of Formation is Water,
more specifically what is called "Philosophical Water", the purely fluid
and volatile Substance which was the only thing Created, and can be fixed
into any given form. That Fire ensues from Water indicates that the
Spiritual Principle of the Creative Will is not lost from the substance
in it's "Descent".

In terms of two substances, the possession of - or conscious
contact with - the Holy Ruach of Heaven, is that which gives the "Power"
(an abused word, as it is easily associated with abuse) to to Fix the
Volatile into any form, and/or to return a fixed form to a volatile
state, and then "re-fix" it in another form.
http://www.levity.com/alchemy/I-kabbal.html.

To me, this lion represents the ability to transmute the sacred fire internally with and into strength and courage by an act of Will. To transmute fear and weakness within ourselves. The King of Wands has mastered this within himself or suggests to the querant that they have within themselves to do likewise..perhaps they already have.  If it represents another person in the reading it represents a man who has Mastered himself and who has power, strength and courage. He may well be light haired and blue eyed or even red haired and green eyed and may even be of Scottish descent but that is really reaching.  The point is, this is the guy with the power, self control and courage to get just about any job done. He often shows up as a mentor or as someone wealthy who can assist one along one's path.

This relates back to the topic of discussion I had with my friend today because he was talking about his efforts to transmute anger...particularly old anger triggers that he was revisiting in his experience that was manifesting in some ways he did not like.

Having the King of Wands on my mind I suggested to him that perhaps he was merely "peeling the onion" and finding a layer of yet unreconciled issues or discovering triggers he never knew he had because the emotion itself, rather than being transmuted, had been repressed before.  Mastery is all about getting to know one's self.

Now, let's turn to the other symbols in this card. The sky is the same sky blue without clouds as in the Page of Wands. This represents contact with the Heavens.  The King is facing left...the side of the sacred feminine or the Goddess. He wears a green collar on which is a prominent piece of jewelry, a lions head..note the lion again. But this is a Female Lion..a lioness..again, the allusion to the Sacred Feminine principle. This person might be a Leo! The shoes are correspondingly green. Notice the salamander at his feet?   The inner part of the cloak is rarely noticed. It is ermine. His cloak is the color of red earth...another thing to tell you he is well grounded, but also yet another allusion to the Sacred Feminine...this man will have balanced his Masculine and Feminine aspects. He also balances Heaven and Earth..as above so below, as below so above.  His throne sits on a light blue grey dais which is on ground...he is OUTSIDE!!

It appears that he may be holding court out of doors and is perhaps speaking to others, making a pronouncement, perhaps passing judgement upon issues brought to the Crown by subjects engaged in a controversy.
He may be an outdoorsman...but in any event he is strongly connected to the earth or well grounded.

In his right hand he holds the wand, Aarons Rod! The Rod of Healing...the Green Bough which represents growth and fertility. It rests not on the dais but upon the ground!!!! It is tilted slightly toward him as he holds it. It merely rests in his hand. He holds his power gently with honor and fairness and does not abuse it.

This man holds the key to healing, growth and fertility. (Particularly in matters of business or career which the Suit of Wands indicates)

But that rod also has another significance that is Qabbalistic.. it is the central pillar of the Tree of Life!

The central column corresponds to the central Pillar of Equilibrium (sefirot 1, 6, 9 and 10).

The Kabalistic Tree is sometimes called The Sephirotic Tree of Life. The circles or spheres are called sephiroth.  A single circle or sphere is called a sephira.  The teachings about the Kabalistic Tree of Life are very deep and complex. The ten spheres and 22 paths of The Tree generally represent the nature of the forces behind Creation on all levels, from microscopic to macrocosmic. The Tarot Cards are also associated with The Tree.  

This central pillar represents the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.
The "middle pillar" of the Tree of Life is closely associated with Ya'kov, the Messiah, Malkitzedek, Henok, and the mysterious Metatron. This middle pillar (the pillar of equilibrium) strikes the "balance" between the masculine and feminine sides:

Zohar, p. 227 - "The Middle Pillar [of the Godhead] is Metatron, Who has accomplished peace above, according to the glorious state there.".

As the Sefirotic "Tree of Life" is in the image of God, and the rest of Creation came through this, we can then expect to see some type of Sefirot pattern within Creation.
The Universe is based on order; its basic pattern is summed up in the Laws embodied in the Sefirotic Tree.

So we see in the King of Wands, the Masculine, Feminine and the Balance of the Middle or Central Pillar, bringing peace and equilibrium between the two...in the Zohar it states that in between these two Spirit is the Balancer.

So this man represented by the King of Wands holds the Rod of Power to bring peace, healing, equilibrium and balance to any situation.

Once finished with looking at all the symbols in a card and their meanings we put them all together and it gives us an in depth picture and description of the person it represents.

We look at the keywords and the correspondences to summarize;

Keywords for King of Wands

Entrepreneur
Inspiration
Boldness
Leadership
Mature
Honor
Strong Wisdom

Correspondences:
Paul Fenton-Smith, in his book 'The Tarot Revealed' gives each type of court card an element. I know that Crowley did this too but Paul Fenton-Smith's correspondences resonate with me much better than those used by Crowley.
These are the correspondences I've been using.

Page / Princess - air - beginnings
Knight /Prince - fire - action, change
Queen - Water - emotions, feelings
King - Earth -manifestation


This would make the King of Wands Earth of Fire: He achieves practical, material success through self discipline, enthusiasm and passion. He puts the qualities of the fire suit to real, practical use.
http://www.tarotforum.net/archive/index ... 40917.html

So what do we have here! We have a mature man...40+ in age, light or most likely red haired and green or blue eyed. A master of his self, of manifestation and will, strong, self disciplined,  powerful, commanding in presence, in a position of authority. Probably a business owner, and probably wealthy, honorable, a bold leader who inspires through example and through the use of wisdom. The cards surrounding the King of Wands and the position he falls in ...and what type of spread is done tells the relationship to the querent and gives further information on his influence over the querent.

Sorry if I got carried away here and got a bit to complex.

This was good and I enjoyed taking a deeper look at this card.

User avatar
Rhutobello
Posts: 10724
Joined: Fri Jun 16, 2006 8:39 pm

Post by Rhutobello » Sat Jul 08, 2006 10:57 pm

Great job agein, it gives very fine background material and open my eyes for how to seek information.
I can see you can your stuff.
What I am now going to say must be taken in the best possible way...I am just thinking loud.

This is a course for "newcomers". Some have a bit off knowledge in Tarot some have none.
Some are English other are not and can have problems to come up with the right words.

Your contribution is GREAT and I love it, but I am asking myself, can such a brilliant contribution make it harder for a newcomer to write his own Interpretation? Will it be easier for him/her to slip out of the class because the standard become to high...I will not..I just give the thought.

In my opinion so do you possess great resourses Bahdra, but I think you belong in a higher division.
Maybe you and Samantha should work together with the class or start an advance one.
Agein...this is posted in a posetiv way and I admirer you knowledge and I hope to see your interpretation of the whole deck:)

User avatar
Bhadra
Posts: 75
Joined: Fri Mar 10, 2006 7:55 pm
Location: TX

Reply to Rhutobello

Post by Bhadra » Sat Jul 08, 2006 11:50 pm

Rhutobello wrote:Great job agein, it gives very fine background material and open my eyes for how to seek information.
I can see you can your stuff.
What I am now going to say must be taken in the best possible way...I am just thinking loud.

This is a course for "newcomers". Some have a bit off knowledge in Tarot some have none.
Some are English other are not and can have problems to come up with the right words.

Your contribution is GREAT and I love it, but I am asking myself, can such a brilliant contribution make it harder for a newcomer to write his own Interpretation? Will it be easier for him/her to slip out of the class because the standard become to high...I will not..I just give the thought.

In my opinion so do you possess great resourses Bahdra, but I think you belong in a higher division.
Maybe you and Samantha should work together with the class or start an advance one.
Agein...this is posted in a posetiv way and I admirer you knowledge and I hope to see your interpretation of the whole deck:)
***I appreciate your point and was thinking that perhaps in my quest for knowledge I was going over the heads of the newbies. It's that Virgo Rising sign of mine! Always overdoing things.

Tell you what I think would be best. Let's do both. I'll keep it simpler from now on for the newbies and talk to Samantha about doing a more advanced class. By the way, on my resources, I do simple google searches on what I want to research, but since I know what I am looking for because I have more experience I realize a newbie would not know what to search on.

See you on the next interpretation, right now I'm going to watch a good movie and clean my house. Thank you so much for bringing up this point and your wonderful way of putting it.

samantha234
Posts: 464
Joined: Mon Jun 12, 2006 12:09 am
Contact:

Post by samantha234 » Sun Jul 09, 2006 12:06 am

Rhutobello, good idea! Bhadra, i think it would be great if we got together and discussed this! Anytime,
                           Samantha

User avatar
nicnic
Posts: 165
Joined: Wed Jun 28, 2006 5:40 am
Location: Australia

Post by nicnic » Sun Jul 09, 2006 10:07 am

Wow how can I possibly follow Bhardra interpretation.....congratulations on a great job!

However here is what I see and just for the record I am using the Sharman-Caselli Tarot deck which is very closely related to the Rider Waite Tarot. http://www.tarotpassages.com/sharmancaselli.htm

This king sits in all his splendour on a very rich looking throne. He is a strong leader as depicted by the Lions seated at the top of the throne. He is also very ambitious and is of a very competitive nature.

He is an excellent leader and a successful business man enjoying the fruits of his labour. He is full of charm and people admire and follow him. He is surrounded by two rams which show me that he is Aries. Aries to me is a very fiery sign, and this king will be a good friend to you however cross him and he will really fire up. He will not suffer fools gladly.

Can represent a male boss.

Maybe you will have some dealings with someone in a business way.

Again I this is another card that I have a lot of trouble with when I try to read the cards. I know what he is and what his character is like but when he comes up in a spread.....I am stuck!!!!

samantha234
Posts: 464
Joined: Mon Jun 12, 2006 12:09 am
Contact:

intuition is the key!

Post by samantha234 » Sun Jul 09, 2006 1:50 pm

hi nicnic, :smt006
good job! Sometimes it helps to just relax and listen to your intuition, it will guide you in reading the cards. Sometimes he could be a total stranger and other times the querant knows him, listen to spirit and you will get the right answer!
 Also, what helps me remember is looking at each court card and relating it to someone i know. This way when i see the card, i know what the person is like and I see them in my mind! Try it, works for me! Keep up the good work!! I'm so proud of all of you!! :)
                                                         Love and Light,
                                                              Samantha

Post Reply

Return to “Rider Waite Tarot”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 2 guests