Exploring the Minor Arcana: The Fours — Incandescent Tarot (2024)

We’re using a different deck than normal this week, for no other reason that that it was the closest to my morning writing spot - nestled in bed under a crisp, white duvet. Our cards have a similar energy, a focus on finding comfort and rest in difficult situations. Because, as you’ve likely noticed, The Tower is starting things off this week. What’s crumbling or has crumbled recently? What is making you tired?

After weeks of big, existential readings we come down to earth and into a somewhat chaotic situation. I’m hoping, however, that this contrast will be refreshing, as we take what we’ve learned from our experience of Major Arcana cards like Strength, and apply them to the minutiae of our daily lives.

The Knight of Pentacles is the only knight in the tarot deck whose horse has all their feet on the ground. Standing on a hillock overlooking a freshly-plowed field, the yellow pentacle in their hand matches the vibrant sky - the object of this knight’s attention matches its environment, all signs point to go, and the work is about to begin.

Well, dear readers, in a rare moment of straightforwardness, our reading is telling us that the main themes of the month are making themselves known to us at the beginning of the week. After all, Strength is our tarot card of the month. Let’s enjoy this! Take note of what you’re grappling with - it will be an ongoing project for you in February - as well as the areas you’ve been growing. The latter is actually the crux of our reading: What formerly wild, rejected, or misunderstood side of yourself has been coming into lovely focus as of late? How can you push through the last stages of integration and welcome it into your heart?

What do you do when you’re looking for a feeling? The Four of Cups sees us starting the week with a feeling of lack, but it’s tough to pin down. We’re yearning for something in the realm of the cups suit - love, connection, spirituality, or intuition - but we're not sure how to articulate it just yet. In situations like these, challenging feelings can be important guides; pay attention to where you’re yearning, pining, lonesome, or bored. What happens when you just sit with these experiences, much like the figure in the Four of Cups?

A mental storm is subsiding at the beginning of this week, dear readers, though not without some turbulence. We initially find ourselves in the position of the Page of Swords - eager, looking for answers, and kicking up a whole mess of confusion in the process.

Strength is a card that operates on quite an impressive spectrum. Sometimes we’re wanting to figure something out - a big question about our life, ourselves, or our situation - and we approach it head-on, struggling valiantly for understanding. And sometimes we do a stranger dance, one of fits and starts, as we approach our question from different angles, retreating to process, and returning again to re-engage. It’s this odd shuffle that’s animating our lives this week as we try to suss out something important in a complicated situation. Yet no matter how confusing it may seem, this card’s appearance in our reading is a big encouragement. Now is the time to work towards a breakthrough; let’s roll up our sleeves.

Last week was ruled by The Tower - that quintessential card of upsetting endings - yet it was also bolstered by the magic of the Seven of Cups. No one moment is entirely “good” or “bad",” and just as The Tower has room for beauty, beauty holds plenty of room for suffering. Yet it’s often this contrast that makes important ideas and sources of information visible. So, this week, we’re gifted with the awareness of an important wellspring, one that’s setting the stage for our next phase in life.