All Text, Music, and Illustrations, including Paintings, Photographs, and 3D models, Copyright © 2022 by Jim Robbins.
Five of Cups: Mars in Scorpio, Mars in Power (AI Version)
LORD OF LOSS IN PLEASURE
Five of Cups (3D Version)
As Nathan was riding his horse by a stream near the castle, he noticed a man staring down in sorrow at three cups that had tipped over and spilled their contents on the ground. Two cups were still standing, and a path led across a bridge to a building in the distance, but Nathan couldn't help but identify with the poor man's plight even though other possibilities still seemed to exist for him. Nathan had considered the possibility of returning to his troubled homeland, but he was afraid that he might feel a great sense of loss if he did. Nathan had grown very attached to the Tarot Realm, but he had the nagging feeling that he might be able to do some good, at least for a few people, in the distant realm that he once called his home.
The King of Cups (AI Version)
Nathan rode his horse along the sea and eventually found the King of Cups. Nathan dismounted from his horse and bowed. "I serve thee always, your Majesty. If you don't mind, I'd like to ask a question. I have never made a secret of my desire to return home at some point, but I have grave doubts now about the reasons for my longing to return."
The King responded, "I understand. What is your query?"
Nathan carefully described the man staring at the overturned cups. Then he said, "Your Majesty, when I gazed at that man full of sorrows, a few memories came back to me. I realized that when times were good, I always convinced myself that nothing would ever change, yet change inevitably occurred. As I gazed at that man, the world around me seemed so light, so impermanent, yet somehow my memories just seem to keep growing heavier and heavier. Memories that flash through my mind sometimes feel heavier to me now than the physical world. People I once knew have vanished as if there never was any stability or permanence, only change. I have become afraid that I will end up like that man full of sorrows if I return to my homeland. Perhaps I only want to return home to try to experience again the familiar patterns of what was lost long ago. Please tell me, your Highness, is all action vanity because of the ceaseless impermanence of this temporal world?"
"I do not need to tell you that change is inescapable. The individual personality, which seeks security and continuity, often mourns change, yet our spirits are like the ocean. We cannot keep the waves from crashing on the shore. Each wave dissolves and forms into another wave. To know the unity within perpetual change, all we can do is become one with the ocean. Within the present moment we can sometimes experience the deep mysteries of Universal Consciousness. With that in mind, let me ask you a question. Did you sense any subtle forces when you gazed at the melancholy man?"
"Yes, forces associated with dramatic change and transformation, your Highness."
"Do you think Scorpio might be one of the subtle influences?"
"Well, your Majesty, the man wasn't in the throes of death, but he seemed at least to be experiencing a dramatic transformation due to his losses. Some other force seemed to be influencing the melancholy man as well."
"Just as I suspected. Can you think of any disruptive force that strikes like lightning and truly shakes up a person, sometimes for a higher good?"
"Mars can be a force that can lead to unexpected change for a higher good--or at least a force that shakes up a person so much that he examines his behavior and his priorities."
"Yes, both Mars and Scorpio are subtle forces that can lead to transformation. The change might not seem positive at first, but the reason for the transformation usually becomes clear after some self-examination."
"Yes, your Highness, I have a feeling that experiencing those two forces together might seem awful, at least at first."
"My brave knight, I ask you to consider how you can use all of your skills and knowledge in the face of inevitable change. Are you confident that you can affect beneficial change in a realm that remains so deeply troubled? You will no doubt sacrifice much if you return home, but now that you know the positive values of the Tarot Realm, perhaps you can do some lasting good in another realm that now seems beyond all hope."
"Yes, your Highness, but I fear, at least at the moment, that I am not up to the task."
"Yes, my friend, I get the sense that the wave is about to crash and dissolve and form a new wave. For a wave, that crash might not be painful, but change for us can cause many moments of distressing uncertainty."
Nathan thought for a moment. "Indeed, your Highness, this is not an easy choice."
"Mars is associated with the great rigors of justice and Scorpio with great transformation. The only question I have for you now is this: do you feel your sacrifice would be worth it?"
"Well, your Highness, whatever happens in that distant realm where I grew up might eventually affect this realm. I can't bear the thought of anything terrible happening in this realm."
The King gazed at Nathan for a moment. "I trust that you will make the right decision."
"Yes, your Majesty. As you know, I have faced my own fears before and survived. I serve thee always."
The Tower: Mars (AI Version)
Nathan found a Tarot card very similar to what he had witnessed in his vision: the Five of Cups. The decan association in the card is Mars in Scorpio, and the Tree of Life correspondence is the Mars in Power (also known as "Severity"), the fifth Emanation on the Tree of Life.
Death: Scorpio (AI Version)
Nathan rode to a secluded part of the forest where he could perform a ritual with the Five of Cups.
The Passive and Active Invoking Pentagrams
Because Nathan was creating a living image based on the Five of Cups with the Tarot Pentagram Spread, he placed all the foundation cards down on his makeshift altar with the tops facing west on his altar. Since Water is a passive element, Nathan used the Passive Invoking Spirit Pentagram while laying down the cards, starting in the lower left corner of the pentagram, moving to the upper right corner and continuing from there. After he placed all of the cards, he tapped each card in the direction of the Passive Invoking Spirit Pentagram, making sure to tap the one in the lower left corner to complete the pentagram.
Then he placed The Five of Cups in the middle of the pentagram, saying, "The Five of Cups, Mars in Scorpio, Mars in Power." Then he tapped the card.
Modifiers for the Five of Cups: Death and The Tower
Next, realizing that he was grappling with a potentially eventful choice, he placed Death on the Ace of Cups in the upper right hand corner of the pentagram as a modifier. The card representing the zodiac sign goes first, he remembered. As he placed Death on the Ace of Cups, he stated while tapping the card, "Death, Scorpio, 'The Meeting with the Powers of Death.'" As he tapped the card, he remembered that the card known as Death can also suggest a dramatic change or transformation.
Then he placed his second modifier, The Tower, in the upper right hand corner on Death, the first modifier. As he placed The Tower on Death, he stated while tapping the card, "The Tower, Mars, 'The War at the End of the World." He accepted at that moment that a drastic change might occur.
Then Nathan drew the Passive Invoking Pentagram and the spirit wheel in the air in brilliant white above the Five of Cups on the altar, charging the pentagram and the symbol in the usual way with the Sign of the Enterer.
Then, he drew an Invoking Pentagram for Water directly over the Passive Invoking Spirit Pentagram, charging the pentagram and the symbol of the eagle, associated with Scorpio, in the usual way. At that point, he imagined the symbol of the eagle's head turning into a living image of the figure in the Five of Cups. As he visualized the living image, he imagined undines flowing from the Archangel Gabriel and filling the living image while at the same time bright points of Water flowed from his aura and filled the living image as well.
Then he stated, "I name you Lord of Loss in Pleasure."
Then he said, "Lord of Loss in Pleasure, help me to meet with the powers of death and to deal appropriately with inevitable change and transformation for the highest possible good of the realm." Then he humbly stated, "Perform this task and return to the element of Water, doing no harm. So mote it be!"
Before he finished the ritual, Nathan imagined for a few minutes the living image expanding his consciousness through the experience of the subtle forces of change and transformation so that he could make the best decision about whether or not to return to his homeland.
After that, Nathan knew that the powers of change and transformation were guiding him as he journeyed through the Tarot Realm.
(Please Note: All AI generated images are based on paintings, 3D Blender renderings, or photographs by Jim Robbins.)
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