A Tiny Compass
The Queen of Pentacles, The Fool and Temperance on Chastity, Poverty and Humility
In 12th century France, Bernard of Clairvaux wrote from his monastery on the importance of poverty, chastity and humility. To our contemporary ears, these concepts harken to a time of brutal austerity. It conjures up the Dark Ages when the Church demanded its followers worship through suffering and self-denial while it stuffed its coffers with tithes and stolen gold. It’s hard to argue against that perception when, historically, the Church (and many other religious institutions, for that matter) has not been the shepherd it should be to its flock. The monastic abbot knew, even those many centuries ago, that a great deal of things distance us from goodness.
It always seemed to me that just as so much occult imagery holds an esoteric meaning, poverty, chastity and humility also veil multitudes beyond first glance. It’s fitting that they should be so modest as to shield us from easily understanding them. I’ve often wondered at their fate, not only in theory but in practice. If Clairvaux needed to enshrine them in his sermons and letters over eight hundred years ago as an answer to growing lust for glory and greed, are they to be banished to blackened obscurity beyond reach in this age? Perhaps if we hold a little lantern to them we can see what is truly at the heart of this trinity and find something of them worth saving. Our tarot reading this week helps us translate their meanings.
The Queen of Pentacles, The Fool and Temperance
The image of the Queen of Pentacles is colored in burnished reds and yellow, like the mellow fires of a hearth. She can signify home, the acquisition of property or a place to belong. The Queen of Pentacles is the soul of a material place that makes it not simply a dwelling but a sanctuary. For these reasons, the card is often associated with domestic bliss.
The Queen of Pentacles is said to be a loyal, honest and chaste wife. Chastity is not a matter of sexual purity. Nor does the essence of this card, which is deeply feminine, omit its relevance to all identities. Just as the church was to be viewed as the bride of Christ in the medieval era, the Queen of Pentacles’ fidelity lies in embodying the virtues of truth, beauty and goodness. This chastity is not one of compliance to petty jealousy or possessiveness. Nor does it imply she will not sleep with whom she pleases. Rather, the Queen of Pentacles is incorruptible in the virtues instilled in her. She sets a place in her heart for any person in need of a prayer. The oath she keeps to honor virtue and goodness, to place loving others earnestly before vanity or wealth, is how she preserves her chastity.
The Fool
The Fool wanders the outdoors with very little in his possession, yet he is joyful. The beams of his house are cedar, their rafters made of fir. His bed is verdant. The glory of nature is his home. It easy to say one loves the poor in principle. It is easy to love the poor when one is in a position to feed them. Yet, if we won’t risk speaking against corruption for fear of losing social status, for fear of losing the means to give, we do not truly love the poor as equals. How can one be revolted by the idea of being poor more greatly than being revolted by the idea of colluding with corruption? The Fool embraces poverty knowing that no worldly wedge exists between him and Divinity. In his nothingness he is a part of, and partakes of, everything. His peers are the animals and rocks and the sea at his side. His kingdom is in endless blue skies.
Temperance
Humility is not the absence of dignity. It’s the ash we turn to when we burn with passion and inspiration. It’s the nothingness we become when we are swept away by waves of mercy. The Temperance card shows an angel, holding two vessels. They pour into each other. In order to receive mercy and forgiveness we render it, too. In Valentin Tomberg’s Meditations on the Tarot, he writes that while there are moments of consequences that come for us all, the wings of the guardian angel depicted on the Temperance card shield us from severe sentencing. In being given the gift of grace we receive humility.
Dear Known and Unknown Friends,
I hope that you enjoyed A Tiny Compass. Not a day goes by that I don’t wonder at the relevance in sharing my thoughts and obsessions on the arcane with those kind enough to hear them. I feel called to keep these practices in tact the way one might shield a flame from a howling wind that eddies at its wick. For me, that work is done through writing. Your support allows me to carry on this mission. I thank you sincerely. For those interested in theurgy, I’ll be hosting a two week course on angelic invocation literature and practice . You can also tap me for a private divination at www.gemineyetarot.com