John Matthews | How can Happiness be a negative?

We received a question this week from a Wildwoodean via Twitter asking how a card such as the 10 of Cups, which is over-brimming with happiness, could ever be considered negative, as when it falls in a position such as ‘Actions to avoid?

John Matthews | 9 and 10 Stones

Reaching Home – the Nine and Ten of Stones

A number of people have commented over the years on the fact that in The Wildwood Tarot the two cards, the Nine and Ten of Stones seem to be reversed. Traditional meanings for the Nine of Pentacles (Stones) include affluence, achievement and a more settled way of life; while the Ten is about realising one’s potential, archiving things and creating a settle home environment. They are thus quite closely related, and are traditionally seen as ending the sequence of the suit by bringing to fruition the efforts exercised by the previous Eight.

Many of the changes implemented in the deck came about as a result of working with the pattern of the Wheel of the Year. The process thus revealed was revelatory. We could see the progression of the Fool through the Wildwood more clearly than ever before – and when it came to these two cards we felt that the traditional conclusion was arrived at too quickly. Rather than seeing the Nine as a point of rest and reflection, of achievement and completion, we wanted to show how the recognition of this lead naturally to a consideration of the established patterns and rhythms of life – in other words, tradition. Tradition is the holder of these things, and can always be accessed. Only then, when we have into focus the magical possibilities of life, can we safely reach the haven of Home (Stones 10)