Element: Earth, second-generation female energy, yin
Kabbalistic World: Assiyah (Action), the physical world
Magical “Weapon”: Pentagram
Social Class: Merchants, from original name, Coins (modern: businesspeople, managerial class)
Biblical Object: Shekel, the coin of ancient Israel
“Ruling” Goddess: Gaia, the Earth itself, most ancient being
Primary Major Arcana Card: Empress
Medieval Virtue: Prudence, or Charity
Pentacles is the suit of the material world. Pentacles involve money, certainly, for that is in fact their origin, as Coins, and so we find both bounty and hardship in their pictures. And they involve work, what we do to get money, though at their best they show us working at our highest level. Issues of health and the body may arise as well, though these are not restricted to this one suit.
By changing the symbol from a Coin to a Pentacle, the Golden Dawn introduced a wider theme, that of magic, for the five-pointed star, the pentagram. It is not magic spells we find in this suit so much as the magic of nature itself, the wonder of existence. As we’ve seen before, the five-pointed star is the human body with the arms and the legs out (think da Vinci’s famous drawing showing the proportions of the body, the Vitruvian Man). It also appears in the center of many plants, in five-petaled flowers, especially roses, and in the path of the planet Venus. The pentacle is not simply a star, it is a star in a circle of light, and so the suit, which takes us into “dense matter,” as the Kabbalists say, also reveals the beauty of the body and the world. At the same time, the suit of earth grounds us—in nature, in practicality, in daily life.
The second generation of yin (and the second Heh in Yod-Heh-Vav-Heh) can tend toward inertness. Wands/fire bring greater energy and fresh inspiration towards action. Cups/water create emotional flow, though if we mix too much emotion with practical issues, we can just make it all muddy. Swords/air allow for new ideas and conscious awareness of what we are doing.
Ace of Pentacles
Ace of Pentacles from Golden Dawn, Marseille, Rider, Sola-Busca, Shining Tribe & Visconti
Element: Earth
Sephirah: Kether (Crown), sephirah one in Assiyah (Action)
Pythagorean: Monad, unity
Major Arcana: Magician, Justice
Rider Theme: Gift of elemental earth
Though the Magician is the primary Major card for the suit of Wands, and the Empress for Pentacles, the Magician works very well with this magical suit, and its Ace, with its gifts of nature, work, and money. We also need Justice here, for the history of almost every culture shows us how easily justice gets forgotten as soon as money is involved. The phrase “It’s just business” has allowed people to justify many terrible deeds.
In the Rider picture, we see the hand from a cloud in a lush garden, a place of life but also safety. Our word “paradise” comes from Persian paradeiza, meaning a garden (technically an enclosed space, because gardens were protected from the outer wilderness). And of course, Eden was a garden. In the picture, we see a gateway shaped like the wreath around the World dancer. At its best, our life in the material world of Assiyah can be like a sanctuary from which we eventually emerge into the wider existence shown in the later cards of the Major Arcana.
There are no Yods in the Rider Ace of Pentacles. Does this mean that the physical world is not a gift of divine grace?
The Pythagorean idea of unity can remind us of the idea we saw in the Empress, that all the myriad bits and pieces of nature are really one being. The Greeks called this original goddess Gaia, the goddess I have called the “ruling” deity for the suit. The Shining Tribe Ace of Stones depicts a single stone that emerges from darkness and rises to light. Above and Below are connected through the events of our lives.
Readings—Prosperity, sometimes a new job or an influx of money. The home (or some private place) as a sanctuary.
Reversed—Problems around money or security. Possibly moving into a new phase of life.
Two of Pentacles
Two of Pentacles from Golden Dawn, Marseille, Rider, Sola-Busca, Shining Tribe & Visconti
Element: Earth
Sephirah: Hokhmah (Wisdom), sephirah two in Assiyah (Action)
Pythagorean: Dyad, separation, dialog
Major Arcana: High Priestess, Hanged Man
Rider Theme: Choices, balance
Golden Dawn Title: Harmonious Change
Decan: 1-10 degrees Capricorn, ruled by Jupiter
Picatrix: Wandering travail, labor and joy, alternate gain and loss, weakness and necessity
In modern playing decks, the signature card, where the publisher gives the name and logo, usually is the Ace of Spades. In older, and traditional, Tarots we find it on the Two of Coins. Sometimes (as in the Marseille version opposite) we see a double loop, like a figure eight, around vertical coins, similar to the Golden Dawn image, though usually not a snake biting its tail. Notice, by the way, that even though the Hermetic Order renamed the suit Pentacles, they do not actually show that symbol but instead display a cross inside a white disk, with twelve white spokes radiating through concentric circles.
The Rider image cleverly shifts the loops sideways to display the infinity sign we see above the heads of the Magician and Strength. The theme of “balance” in this card becomes literal if we take the character as a juggler. He appears to be dancing, while behind him the waves roll in a cheerful motion, giving the whole card a light-hearted quality. Many contemporary people see this card as multi-tasking or as the person who cannot choose priorities.
The card takes on greater meaning if we consider the Kabbalist and Pythagorean ideas. As we have asked with the other suits, what is the wisdom of Pentacles? What higher truths do we learn from nature and money and work? And if two, dyad, means dialog or a mirroring, what kind of conversation can we have with nature? With money? How will they mirror us?
Readings—Juggling different activities, playfulness in work. Or finding the wisdom in daily life and in nature. Having a dialog with others or yourself over money.
Reversed—Making mistakes or falling behind in work from taking on too much. Blindness in issues around money.
Three of Pentacles
Three of Pentacles from Golden Dawn, Marseille, Rider, Sola-Busca, Shining Tribe & Visconti
Element: Earth
Sephirah: Binah (Understanding), sephirah three in Assiyah (Action)
Pythagorean: Triad, unity restored, but in the created world
Major Arcana: Empress, Death
Rider Theme: A flowering, something created from the energy of the suit
Golden Dawn Title: Material Works
Decan: 11-20 degrees Capricorn, ruled by Mars
Picatrix: Ever seeking what cannot be known and what cannot be attained
Compare the Golden Dawn name for this card with the Picatrix. At first they seem completely opposite, the material versus what cannot be known. However, if we seek the unknowable only in the mind, will we really find truth? To seek what cannot be attained within our daily activities and the work we do seems one way to make our lives really meaningful.
The Rider theme of something created from the element shows us an image of such meaningful work. A figure who appears to be a sculptor works in a church, advised by both the architect (holding the building plans) and a monk. Thus, practical knowledge and spiritual awareness help to produce work of the highest level. As described above (in the overview of the numbers), the Rider deck is meant to count down to the ace (the highest place on the tree) rather than up to the ten. Thus, we see what looks like an apprentice in the Eight and a master here in the Three. In the Shining Tribe image, we see many elements in balance to produce what I call “perfected work.”
The Three of the suit of earth does not have to show work at all. As a perfect match for the Major Arcana card, not just of the number but of the entire suit, this card really invokes the Empress, with her lush nature and love of life. Spring and new growth might very well be a theme of this card. The second Major card, Death (thirteen), reminds us that in Assiyah, the world of nature, nothing lasts, and therefore we should appreciate even more the beauty and joy of our lives.
Readings—Work at a high degree, satisfaction, people working well together. Nature, love of life. Possibly motherhood.
Reversed—Mediocre work, dissatisfaction, especially from conflicts or lack of opportunity. Failure to recognize the beauty in your daily life. Possibly difficulty becoming pregnant.
Four of Pentacles
Four of Pentacles from Golden Dawn, Marseille, Rider, Sola-Busca, Shining Tribe & Visconti
Element: Earth
Sephirah: Chesed (Mercy), sephirah four in Assiyah (Action)
Pythagorean: Tetrad, wholeness
Major Arcana: Emperor, Temperance
Rider Theme: Structure
Golden Dawn Title: Earthly Power
Decan: 21-30 degrees Capricorn, ruled by the sun
Picatrix: Covetousness, suspicion, careful ordering of matters, but with discontent
This is a case where the Picatrix description goes well with the Rider, if not with other themes of the number or element. Smith’s character is not so much covetous as miserly. The fact that he wears a crown reminds some people of Midas, the king who loved gold so much he wished that everything he touched might turn to the precious metal. He got his wish and was thrilled, at least until he tried to eat or show affection to his daughter. The crown also evokes the basic Major Arcana card for the number, the Emperor. Like the Emperor, the king in the Rider image wants to control his environment—in this case, with money or possessions. The higher number, Temperance, would help him control this need.
The Pythagorean view of structure is more positive—subtlety, wholeness. The Four of Pentacles does not have to mean money; it can refer to our whole way of life as ordered, calm, and enriching.
The theme of structure is quite different than the Golden Dawn’s idea of Chesed as benevolent outpourings of mercy. A Four of Pentacles that truly embodied Chesed might show a king who showers help and money on those who need it. Such a picture would fulfill the Virtue of Charity (unlike Smith’s miser).
Readings—Miserliness, using possessions to structure your life or perhaps to shield yourself emotionally. Alternatively, generosity, charity, sharing what you have. The two meanings cannot really be reconciled, for they come from different traditions.
Reversed—Lack of structure in daily life. Emotional vulnerability. Hesitation about helping others.
Five of Pentacles
Five of Pentacles from Golden Dawn, Marseille, Rider, Sola-Busca, Shining Tribe & Visconti
Element: Earth
Sephirah: Gevurah (Power), sephirah five in Assiyah (Action)
Pythagorean: Pentad, higher consciousness, demigod
Major Arcana: Hierophant, Devil
Rider Theme: Life’s difficulties
Golden Dawn Title: Material Trouble
Decan: 1-10 degrees Taurus, ruled by Mercury
Picatrix: Plowing, sowing, building, and earthly wisdom
Now we come to one of those unpleasant fives, at least in the Rider deck, with very different qualities if we step outside of the Golden Dawn Kabbalist tradition. In that tradition, Gevurah is the harsh place on the tree, and so the fives must show struggle of some kind. For Pentacles this means physical hardship, and we see poor and injured people walking through the snow. They pass a church, which should offer sanctuary, and yet the picture contains no door, only a window. Notice, by the way, that the stained-glass pentacles in the window form the top half of the Tree of Life. This is the half furthest from the world of physical reality. Seemingly, it cannot help them. Ironically, perhaps, the first Major Arcana card is the Hierophant, or Pope. The higher number, the Devil, would seem to have taken over. But if they cannot be with others, they have each other. Some see this as a card of a relationship made strong by shared hardship.
The Shining Tribe Five of Stones shows spirits emerging from the rock to bring healing, not just physical but emotional and spiritual. The image was inspired by a very old canyon painting in the American Southwest. After I did the picture, I read that the contemporary Indians who live in the area call the painting “The Ghost Healers.”
The meanings open up if we consider less-harsh views of the number five. If we see it simply as time, then it likely would indicate some kind of change in physical circumstances or economic conditions. The card itself would not say what kind of change, for better or for worse.
The Pythagorean idea of five as the demigod, halfway to ten, indicates the ability to see the meaning in our material lives, to get a sense that there is a reason for it all beyond the endless struggle to stay ahead financially or avoid sickness.
Readings—For the Rider, physical troubles, whether financial or health. People helping each other, especially if society fails them. Alternatively, change in physical conditions, whether for good or ill. Possibly finding greater meaning in the daily struggles of life.
Reversed—Relief of suffering. This can lead to strains in a relationship built too much on shared pain. Possibly getting stuck in the small details of daily life.
Six of Pentacles
Six of Pentacles from Golden Dawn, Marseille, Rider, Sola-Busca, Shining Tribe & Visconti
Element: Earth
Sephirah: Tipheret (Beauty), sephirah six in Assiyah (Action)
Pythagorean: Hexad, harmony, above and below, masculine and feminine
Major Arcana: Lovers, Tower
Rider Theme: Unequal relationships/generosity
Golden Dawn Title: Material Success
Decan: 11-20 degrees Taurus, ruled by the moon
Picatrix: Power, nobility, rule over the people
Harmony in the physical world. A blending of opposites that allows people to come together and to make something of their conditions. These are the themes if we consider the Pythagorean idea. We might add financial success, especially from an unlikely partnership. Good physical health would be another theme.
The Rider image seems to illustrate both the theme I have stated of unequal relationships and Ellen Goldberg’s idea of generosity. Giving charity is the very essence of generosity, and yet what could be more unequal than people on their knees, begging? At first glance, this card seems perfectly to fulfill the Virtue of Charity. Notice, however, how carefully he seems to drop the few coins, how he keeps his scales perfectly balanced. Maybe he attends to Prudence more than Charity.
Waite says something odd about this card in The Pictorial Key: “A person in the guise of a merchant…” Why not simply “a merchant?” Bad writing, perhaps, but Tarotist and teacher Edith Katz suggested years ago that “guise” might mean “disguise,” and pointed to the scales to suggest it was really Justice giving people what they need, rather than what they want.
The Shining Tribe shifts the meaning to divination. The central figure, derived from Algonkin imagery, is a shaman/seer, who uses physical devices from different cultures—dice, African cowrie shells, Chinese sticks, a crystal ball—to see the future. Ultimately, however, the rays of light around his face indicate that his visions come as a gift—charity?—from the spirit world. This too represents beauty in Assiyah and the ultimate harmonic blending of opposites, spirit and matter.
Readings—Partnership, in work and other practical areas. Harmony in the workplace, good health. Charity, but with a mind to what a person can afford. Justice working out in people’s lives. Spirituality in daily life.
Reversed—Lack of harmony at work or in daily life. People acting at cross-purposes. Holding back help from people who need it. People realizing they can help themselves instead of asking for charity.
Seven of Pentacles
Seven of Pentacles from Golden Dawn, Marseille, Rider, Sola-Busca, Shining Tribe & Visconti
Element: Earth
Sephirah: Netzach (Victory), sephirah seven in Assiyah (Action)
Pythagorean: Heptad, dynamic aware energy, the cosmos
Major Arcana: Chariot, Star
Rider Theme: Contemplation or awareness of action
Golden Dawn Title: Success Unfulfilled
Decan: 21-30 degrees Taurus, ruled by Saturn
Picatrix: Misery, slavery, necessity, madness, and baseness
The Golden Dawn title, and the extended meanings it gave for this card, including “Hope deceived and crushed…Misery…slavery…baseness,” would seem to derive from the Picatrix. Paul Huson points out that none of the other traditional cartomancers follow this distressing idea. Etteila says such things as “money, riches…silverware, whiteness, purity…the moon.” Quite a collection. Waite’s list of meanings includes the rather specific “an improved position for a lady’s future husband”!
People who know the Rider image often debate whether the man resting on his hoe looks pleased or dissatisfied. Is he thinking “Good, things are growing nicely, I can rest for a bit,” or “Oh my God, there’s so much I have to do.” In either case, he demonstrates the theme of contemplating action.
The Pythagorean version of seven sees it as dynamic and creative. As the first of the last four numbers—7, 8, 9, 10—it initiates a powerful sequence that leads to the fulfillment of the suit’s possibilities. We could see this for Pentacles as new growth leading to success and material happiness. This goes well with the first Major card, the Chariot, while the second, the Star, gives the forceful seven a flowing, hopeful quality.
The Seven of Stones in the Shining Tribe shows an amulet that is given to women giving birth in India. The card therefore means either help in bringing something into the world or else supporting someone else’s efforts.
The Kabbalist sephirah, Netzach, means victory, and in this suit that would imply success, maybe the positive completion of a project. If we see the figure in the Rider as satisfied, then we might say that the project is successfully on the way rather than completely done, and this would go with seven as the start of the final group of numbers. Netzach also is the sephirah of Venus, planet of emotion, and so the card can speak of our feelings about the work we do or of nature.
Readings—Satisfaction with work. The successful and exciting launching of a new and significant project. Contemplation of work done or needing to be done. Enjoyment of nature.
Reversed—Difficulty launching or finishing a project. Dissatisfaction, especially with material conditions.
Eight of Pentacles
Eight of Pentacles from Golden Dawn, Marseille, Rider, Sola-Busca, Shining Tribe & Visconti
Element: Earth
Sephirah: Hod (Glory), sephirah eight in Assiyah (Action)
Pythagorean: Octad, stability, safety, the spiritual mother of the gods
Major Arcana: Strength, Moon
Rider Theme: Movement
Golden Dawn Title: Prudence
Decan: 1-10 degrees Virgo, ruled by the sun
Picatrix: Sowing, plowing, planting herbs, colonization, storing
money and food
The Golden Dawn title for this card actually mirrors the Virtue Gertrude Moakley assigned to the whole suit. In this case, the stable quality of eight, the way it loops around itself as if conserving energy, would seem to go much better with Prudence than Charity (Marcia Massino’s choice for Pentacles).
In Pythagorean terms, even numbers are seen in relation to the odd number that preceded them. After the dynamic and innovative seven, the eight solidifies advances, it gives stability. The stability, however, is of a higher level of awareness than the four, for we can describe eight as two levels of four. Thus the Eight of Pentacles can show an appreciation of what we have—of life’s material gifts and of our own efforts.
As the image of cycles and repetition, the eight might indicate repetitious work—but not boring or frustrating, for there is something satisfying about the cycles of the eight in the world of Assiyah, which means action. Stability in the world of action seems a valuable thing.
The Rider picture seems to me to encapsulate many of these qualities—repetition but also satisfaction, for I can never see this figure as unhappy. He strikes me as an apprentice, learning his art by making one pentacle after another. The sephirah is Hod, the realm of Mercury and thus the mind, but since the element is earth, the mind devotes itself to producing work of high quality.
Readings—Stability, satisfaction, work continuing in a steady way. Cycles.
Reversed—Possibly frustration, but also the sense that it’s time to move to the next level.
Nine of Pentacles
Nine of Pentacles from Golden Dawn, Marseille, Rider, Sola-Busca, Shining Tribe & Visconti
Element: Earth
Sephirah: Yesod (Foundation), sephirah nine in Assiyah (Action)
Pythagorean: Ennead, fulfillment, completion, perfection
Major Arcana: Hermit, Sun
Rider Theme: Intensity, the element at a high degree
Golden Dawn Title: Material Gain
Decan: 11-20 degrees Virgo, ruled by Venus
Picatrix: Gain, covetousness, taking of goods, and rising by care and treasuring up
The Rider version of this card has always been one of my favorites, so much so that I based my own Nine of Stones closely on it. Since the Shining Tribe suit is Stones, not Pentacles, I took the opportunity to show stars brought down from Heaven to shine within the rocks—in other words, dreams made a reality through the woman’s dedication, work, and discipline. This seems to me the implied sense of the Rider version, that this is a garden of her own making. It also fulfills the idea of nine as something born from the quality of the suit. In the element of earth, that “something” could be a literal baby, though I have not seen any decks that show this. More widely, the “something” becomes a good life, one that we have made ourselves and that we appreciate. This goes beyond the limited idea of “Material Gain” found in the Golden Dawn. But then, I think of the suit of earth as much more than material gains and losses.
The falcon on her wrist is hooded, under her control. I see this as discipline, self-control and training that allow us to develop our full potential. In the first deck I had, there seemed to be a shadow on the left side of her face (right side of the picture). That would mean she has turned away from the sun, which is to say, spontaneity, maybe even relationships. Notice how this combines aspects of both Major Arcana cards, the Hermit and the Sun. She does not regret the life she has made, but she knows what she has sacrificed. Even though the “official” edition does not show the shadow, I still find that meaning valuable and implied in the fact that she is alone.
The Pythagorean ennead refers to the end of a process but also to the idea of a spiritual mothering. I would describe this card more as a culmination than a conclusion, and the ability to mother yourself, to give birth to a good life for yourself.
Readings—Self-discipline, achievement, the possibility to create a good life for yourself. May be the completion of a particular project.
Reversed—Lack of discipline, low regard for yourself, but also choosing spontaneity over long-range goals.
Ten of Pentacles
Ten of Pentacles from Golden Dawn, Marseille, Rider, Sola-Busca, Shining Tribe & Visconti
Element: Earth
Sephirah: Malkuth (Kingdom), sephirah ten in Assiyah (Action)
Pythagorean: Decad, higher unity, greater consciousness
Major Arcana: Wheel of Fortune, Judgement
Rider Theme: Excess
Golden Dawn Title: Wealth
Decan: 21-30 degrees Virgo, ruled by Mercury
Picatrix: Old age, slothfulness, loss, depopulation
Here the sephirah and the suit come together very powerfully. This is because even though the Kabbalists see each of the four worlds as having its own Tree of Life, they also sometimes divide the tree into four sections. Atzilut, the world of fire, gets the top triangle (sephiroth 1-2-3), Beriah, the world of water, gets the middle (4-5-6), and Yetsirah, the world of air, gets the bottom triangle (7-8-9). The fourth world, Assiyah, is expressed solely in the tenth sephirah, Malkuth. Thus, the Ten of Pentacles becomes the physical world, what we think of as reality. Dualistic attitudes would see the Ten of Pentacles as therefore “dense,” or “gross,” or removed from God. Kabbalah teaches that the Shekinah, the female aspect of the divine, dwells in the physical world, in Malkuth in Assiyah. The card for Ten of Earth therefore carries a kind of hidden beauty and spirituality.
The Rider version of the picture actually contains the Tree of Life in the arrangement of the Pentacles. In fact, it’s the only place in that deck where we see the full tree (the High Priestess gives us glimpses of it behind her, while both the Hanged Man and the World card embody it). At the same time, notice how the people do not interact with it in any way. In most cards, the people touch, hold, or at least look at the suit objects (see, for example, the Rider Eight of Pentacles or Ten of Cups). Here, it seems to exist apart from them. The family in Smith’s picture are clearly wealthy, but they do not appear happy. They cling to each other, but none of them look at the other. Everything that is wondrous or magical exists outside their courtyard, beginning with the mysterious old man. For the Shining Tribe version, I changed the image to stones with tribal totems painted on them—the spiritual wealth of the ancestors anchored in the physical world.
The Pythagoreans see ten as the highest fulfillment. What fulfills earth? Wealth and comfort, certainly, but also the ability to see the physical world in all its splendor, with its own imperfect perfection.
Readings—Wealth, comfort, security, but also the enjoyment of these things, the realization of the beauty of life. With the Rider, the choice of security over risk.
Reversed—Sacrificing security for adventure or new experience. A potential that is not quite realized.
A Reading Inspired by the Suit of Pentacles
1. What is my true work?
2. What helps me to do it?
3. What holds me back?
4.. What do I need to do overall?
5. What action do I need to take right now?