What is the root of my problems with work and money?
Spread - Adapted from the Money Profile Spread from Barbara Moore's 'Tarot Spreads' book - p105
1**2**3**4
1)
Emotional Attitude - your feelings about work and money
Prince of Cups
Such a watery card. The prince is in a chariot pulled by an eagle, flying over the surface of water that also appears to be hit by heavy rain. Behind him are clouds, perhaps clouds of steam. He has a lotus in one hand, and in the other a cup with a serpent. He also has an eagle on his helmet. So also a card of air as well as of water, and a definite sense of energetic conditions around the Prince. This could be an intensely emotional card but the Prince is skimming over the water, and is staring fairly intently at the snake in the cup so i think it's intensity is much less that might initially appear. It would suggest you have potentially quite strong and turbulent feelings about both work and money, but that you keep these in check and deliberately take a more intellectual approach.
2)
Intellectual Attitude - your intellectual understanding about work and money - your logical theory if emotion and practical considerations were removed.
Four of Cups -
Luxury
The four cups in the card are not equal, as the top two are overfilled but the flow dwindles to the bottom two. This suggests your understanding of money is that it can certainly buy pleasure, but that it shouldn't be wasted because it might not be there for long. Your theory about money is that it doesn't ultimately buy happiness, and also that its source is far from stable. This may be linked to your intellectual attitude towards work also, which is that work may also be here today and gone tomorrow. There is definitely something in the card that describes your attitude that neither work nor money are certain prospects. The 'luxury' title of this card strikes me as having a little irony about it - perhaps signifying how it's easy to splurge only to suffer down the line.
3)
Practical Attitude - How you actually use money and go about work in your everyday life.
10 of Disks -
Wealth
The disks on this card are arranged into a symmetrical pattern There is meaning and purpose there. It looks as though you are able to use your skills and creative talents to earn money, and practically, you feel obliged to put boith your skills and financial resources you have to good use. From a work perspective, it seems that you have a drive to put your skills and abilities towards making a difference, perhaps making the world a better place, and that you are very focussed on conscious decisions about where you put your energies, and the kind of world you want to create and be a part of.
4)
Spiritual Attitude - What do you believe about work and money and the metaphysical laws of the universe regarding money, resources and work.
5 of Swords -
Defeat
The colour of this card is a sickly green, and it features an inverted pentagram, suggesting a battering of the will under the weight of material concern. The blades of the swords are bent and damaged, suggesting it's hard for you to think straight about things. From a spiritual point of view, I think you are finding that the dominant themes of work and money are taking up valuable space and energy and that you are perhaps caught up in circular thinking about work and money, and this is impacting on your spirit. Perhaps you also feel the way the laws of money and work operate are loaded against some people, and are not fundamentally fair
I asked for a further card for insight into how to tackle root cause, and pulled the
three of wands. This card has a positive aspect, there is a sun-like image behind the wands which are upright, and appear to be flowering. The message here i think is about creating, possibly with others, what you want out of life. You have a lot to offer, if you have confidence in this.
Sorry this is not at all "thothy" i still don't understand a lot of the symbolism in the deck. I also have a really heavy cold so my intuition is swathed in cotton wool. Hope some of it is useful tho.
Charlotte