This has already been visible in the "trailer" for the deck that I made to launch the Kickstarter project, so I guess it's not much of a reveal! I sat on it for so long because I was thinking over some changes in the design. Just today I decided -- Nope! I like it as it is! Hope you agree.
The Temperance Card typically pictures an Angel pouring two liquids together from separate vessels, whilst standing with one foot in a body of water. Air, Earth, Fire and Water, all melding into a harmonized whole. Harmony, unity, balance -- the conscious with the unconscious, the past with the future, this card was a tough nut for me to crack symbolically, which is why I put it off so long (I'm afraid putting things off is my preferred method of "dealing" with things that I am not ready to face).
There's no obvious metaphor in the world of the Circus for the themes presented in the Temperance card. Or is there? It was only after coming across the central figure that I hit on juggling. A juggler is taking objects in opposition and blending them in flight. This was my lightbulb moment -- juggling as Art as Temperance was the perfect solution. The lady in the card above has one other virtue: while she is juggling, she is also balancing. It takes tremendous skill and concentration. Having already decided to abandon the RWS title of "Temperance" in favor of Crowley's "Art," the connection was even easier to make.
I did consider adding a lemiscate over her to better connect the airborne balls on her right to the ones in her hands and on her head. But -- I didn't put them there; she did! So the connection is taken on faith, even if the two balls in the air look suspiciously like planets in the distant sky.
I realized that this was actually one of my favorite cards... so I'm leaving it alone.
õnnistagu -
-- Freder
www.ducksoup.me
