TITLE OF CARD IN RW DECK: Queen of Wands

ALTERNATE NAMES: Water of Fire. Mature Female Power of Fire. Committed Mother of Light.

This one, to me, is truly The Queen--authoritative yet hospitable. The Queen of Wands is like Lady Jessica in Dune--especially as mistress of House Atredies, organizing everything when they moved to Arrakis. Her word is Law, she has a grasp of the situation, and all her guests *will* be fed!

Generally, a warm, intelligent person, who could do anything from run a country to come up with some elaborate, creative projects to entertain the kids. Definitely a determined doer.

ADJECTIVES UPRIGHT: Larger than life. Vibrant and bright, powerful and exciting, stimulating and deep.. Active and enthusiastic, fiery and passionate, but with maturity and wisdom that comes from experiencing life. Welcoming, hospitable, outgoing, popular, attracts notice, makes friends and lovers easily. Unconventional, spontaneous, open, sincere, expressive, outspoken. Optimistic, kind, thoughtful, giving, warm and sunny disposition. Graciously self-assured, determined yet tempered, confident, slow to offense or anger.

ADJECTIVES REVERSED: Savage, vengeful, jealous and insecure. Deceived or deceitful, unfaithful, stupid, obstinate, dominating, spiteful, petty, abuses power. Can be narrow-minded, intolerant.

BIBLICAL: Queen of Sheba (I Kings 10; II Chronicles 9)
MYTHOLOGICAL: Norse Mother Goddess Freya--patroness of lovers, fertility, sex, and passion, as well as leader of the Valkyries. She combined the traits of fertility goddesses along with traits of battle goddesses.
HISTORICAL: Makeda from Kebra Negast
FICTIONAL: Lady Jessica Atreides from Dune

ANIMAL: cat, leopard
FLOWER/HERB/TREE: sunflower, lemon balm, pine, evergreens
LANDSCAPE OR LOCATION: Ethiopia; southeast Spain
STONE: cat's eye quartz, topaz
OILS: citruses, pines, eucalyptus
COLORS: Fiery colors: red, orange, yellow.

DRAWINGS AND ARTWORK: "Meeting of Solomon and Sheba" in the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church
QUOTES FROM OTHER SOURCES: "Du machst Licht!" "Servant to all; slave to none."
OCCUPATIONS: midwife, cleaning lady, florist; Politics, campaigns, minority support, leader, theater, nursing. (Matthews)
PEOPLE OR SITUATIONS IN MY LIFE: Marcy Cagwin. Claudia from Niederlenz.

FAVORITE REPRESENTATION: I adore the Queen of Staves in the Ancestral Path Tarot.
COMPARED TO OTHER CARDS: While the (water of water of the) Queen of Cups evaporates into the (air of water of the) King of Cups, the (air of fire of the) King of Wands breathes life into the (water of fire of the) Queen of Wands.
OTHER DECKS: The Cosmic reminds me of a gangster "moll," giving instructions to some lesser accomplice.

ANCESTRAL PATH Queen of Staves
by Julie Cuccia-Watts

This is one of my favorite Tarot cards--one that resonates and inspires. The Queen of Staves is the most regal and graceful Queen I've ever seen. She is capable and forthright, and carries herself with dignity. In a reading, the Queen of Staves reminds me to pursue poise over pose. She serves as a model of what I want to be when I "grow up."

I see her as more virtuous and subtle than the other fiery Queens. While they shine in a crowd, she shines *above* the crowd. She doesn't have the warmth and welcoming I feel with the other Queens. Her hospitality is a matter of course--or even pride--rather than fellow feeling.

The LWB says: "The perfect blend of body, emotions and intellect in a spiritual venture. The world of magic and mysticism brought to the practical level (i.e., applying magical principles in the real world for a tangible result). A committed woman of will, strength and determination. A risk-taker for personal concerns, she may show a curious lack of interest in other issues."

HALLOWEEN TAROT Queen of Imps
by Kipling West

This card is probably closest to the RW image than any other in this deck. The biggest difference (besides the colors) is that an imp presents the Queen with a sunflower (rather than her holding it). Instead of buds on her wand, it has a flame at the top; and there is no decoration on the back of her throne.

What stands out for me in this card (since someone mentioned spread legs) is that she's comfortable in her body and comfortable with her sexuality. She's not testing it out, like the Page, nor sowing wild oats, like the Knight. She neither flaunts nor hides it. She is accepting and mature, but not demure. She may play with its power, but she doesn't abuse it.

To me, the spread legs also show that she does what she wants--whats comfortable and/or makes sense--regardless of "propriety" or social strictures. Even though she's "Queen," she's not above going barefoot, or maybe even showing a little more skin. "What about my legs? I've got two of them, just like you."

The Queen of Wands as Sagittarius makes sense to me, with her frankness and unpretentiousness.

Voice	Makeda	Vision

This page is excerpted from my original contributions to online Tarot card discussions. The tarotcards list was made possible by Audra Friend and onelist.com. The Comparative Tarot list is made possible by Valerie Sim and Yahoo! groups.

http://www.moonchild.ch/Tarot/court/WQu/wquimho.html