These are the cards that the Tarot has drawn for you. You may want to print this page if you would like to ponder their messages later. If you do not have a printer, you may save the page to your desktop.

Past
The Empress is the fourth card in the Major Arcana, and is given the number three to signify many forms of fertility, including the reproduction that comes from human partnership. She, like the planet Venus whose symbol adorns her, rules love. The gentleness and emotional sides of motherhood are her domain. Growth is embodied in the fields of grain beneath her feet. The grain sustains and supports human life. The Empress is, in this way, an expression of mother Earth. In some instances, she can indicate a pending marriage, or herald the arrival of motherhood.

The Empress in your past indicates that the root of your issue lies in a time when you were required to use loving, caring ways to accomplish your goals without losing your power. You had to put your heart and soul into your undertakings, and cultivated your talents, but retained your control over the situation. You did not let yourself become either too easily swayed or too inflexible. Above all, you knew you were the best barometer of what was right for you. From this experience, you learned to use your judgement.

Present
The successful completion of projects is indicated by the Four of Wands. The garland hanging from the four wands suggests that your goals were recently achieved. The castle represents the solidity and splendor of what you have created. The characters in the image hold the harvest of their efforts high in the air in celebration of their success. Enjoy the well-earned fruits of completion.

Future
The Devil is the sixteenth card in the Major Arcana, and is given the number 15 to indicate the Magician (1) using the (5) elements (earth, air, fire, water, and spirit) for materialistic purposes. Note the Devil's four fingers and thumb held up (5), while the cudgel (1) aims the power down at the earth...the reverse position of the Magician. The inverted pentagram on the Devil's forehead is a symbol indicating spirit submerged in and subjugated by matter, or the material world. The Devil presides over a couple from a superior position, in a perversion of the trio on the Lovers card. The couple remain chained to his solid block of stone, though the shackles are loose. They are naked, vulnerable - and yet their faces remain calm. They are entranced by the promises of superficial gain that the belief in the Devil has given them. They remain chained to their worldly desires, believing that only what is concrete and physical is important.

When the Devil appears in your future, it can indicate pettiness, materialism, and base desires. In the Christian faiths, the Devil is the enemy. Like Lucifer, whose vanity and conceit cost him God's favor, the Devil in the Tarot can be a warning to the selfish and egotistical. Overall, the Devil indicates that you will need to take a long, hard look at your darker self, and a reminder that if pushed to the side and allowed to fester in darkness, your dark side will only grow more grotesque, and erupt when you least expect it, or when you just plain lose control. If you fear that you have not fully accepted the parts of yourself you dislike, don't lock them away. Bring them, slowly and safely, into the light. It will break the chains, and set you free.

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All text of Three Card Reading copyright © 1998, Christian Day. Content cannot be reproduced, whole or in part, without permission of the author.

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