Queen of Wands reversed/Eight of Pentacles. The Queen of Wands (cusp of Pisces, “I believe,” feelings, duality, soul growth, spirituality, and Aries, “I want,” action oriented, assertive, competitive) is Water (cold/binds and wet/adapts, and emotional, sensitive and imaginative energy which prefers to take the same path) of Fire (hot/separates and dry/shapes, and spontaneous, impulsive and energetic change), and because Water and Fire tend to cancel each other out, we are left with Air and Earth. She knows what she wants, but she can be stubborn. That sums this card up perfectly. Because she is reversed, that stubbornness might end up being a liability for me today, especially when flavored by the energies of the Eight of Pentacles (Sun, the inner core of a person or situation, in Virgo, “I serve,” practical, analytical, sensible, orderly). This Eight is about employment, commissions offered because of skills or abilities, and about finding one’s niche in life. The work associated with the Eight of Pentacles involves a conscious focus or application of knowledge, usually in a solitary manner. I guess I need to keep my nose to the grindstone; that could be one way to make use of that reversed Queen’s energies.

My Thoth card is The Devil. The Devil corresponds with Earth (cold/binds and dry/shapes, and stable, material, practical energies that are slow to change), Capricorn (“I build,” ambitious, competent, cautious, cunning), Ayin (the eye, senses), and the Path between Hod (which provides analysis and communication) and Tipareth (the hub of the creation process where energies harmonize and focus to illuminate and clarify). It represents bondage and addiction, which can also be seen as a lack of choice. This card can also represent blind ambition, and the secret plans that usually need to be in place to manifest that ambition. In some situations, The Devil can represent the primal impulses that are a part of our survival instinct. I think that today, it is reminding me that I always have a choice.

My Legacy card is The Eight of Coins reversed, flavored by the Five of Wands. Bookends! The Legacy Eight of Coins in an upright position reminds us that perseverance is the key to success in the material world. We need to make a commitment to learn, to try and in the process of trying, to make mistakes and then turn those mistakes into lessons, in order to master a particular skill or ability. The Five of Wands represents Saturn (discipline, responsibility, law and order) in Leo (“I am, passionate, dramatic, egotistical), and it represents a struggle that appears at cross purposes. This Five can represent either outer conflict or inner conflict; I am being told that for today, the energies I will be dealing with are natural, wild and untamed, and they may have a powerful impact on my ability to control and direct the events of my day. I won’t be able to prevent their presence, but I can evade the difficulties if I have a good strategy.

More about the Eight of Pentacles/Coins. In The Naples Arrangement, the number 8 represents a focused and active response to the beginning of the degeneration of the number 7. Since this 8 is of the suit of Pentacles or Coins, this focus and response will most likely be involved in the physical world. This card tells me that an assessment has already happened, and the focused action that is the Eight of Pentacles is happening in direct response to that pause and assessment. The energies of this card are meticulous and focused, but they can also result in tunnel vision, and in turn, the missing of some important event or concept. These energies can be particularly uncomfortable when we consciously feed them, for then we will end up exploiting a situation in an unethical manner for our own gain, or else trapped in a career or environment that just does not work for us. While the upright Eight of Pentacles can be seen as a Minor Arcana Heirophant, reversing the card can personify the tenet of “penny wise and pound foolish.”

My 6-digit date number is 8, the number that represents a focused response to beginning of degeneration that is the number 7.

My horoscopes: “An intense, emotional dream could move you so powerfully that you wake with the odd sense that the dream was real. Write it down, Sagittarius. Maybe it is. Efforts to overcome obstacles and advance yourself in your career could finally be paying off. You might be walking around in a daze asking if it's really happened. It has. Make the most of it. And don't be afraid to reveal your feelings to others.”

And: “Listen closely when a friend suggests a nutty idea today -- especially if it is something that strikes you as out of character for them. They might be working on a plan that could benefit you richly (emphasis on richly). This small risk might be worth it, so swallow your fear, pride or whatever else could be holding you back. If you can trust this person, you can trust their instincts. You might want to move forward cautiously, but be sure to move forward!”

And: “It is a good thing that you have a flexible state of mind, especially on a day like today. You may find that your powers of adaptation may be put to the test as you discover yourself surrounded by fickle emotions and stubborn attitudes. Don't get too hung up on getting straight answers from people today, for they are apt to be just as confused about certain issues as you are. Play it cool for now and ride the waves easily to shore.”

My Sun reading: “Beginning today and for the next six weeks, be prepared for ups and downs as Mars travels through Pisces. The extra sensitivity amplifies any tendency to take things personally. The past confuses the present in intimate relationships. It's difficult to read key clues to personalities in new meetings.”

Onward to the 28^th Path. This Path connects Netzach (victory) and Yesod (foundation), and the source of Natural Intelligence and inspiration. This Path and The Star of the Major Arcana is opposite the 30^th Path, corresponding to The Sun of the Major Arcana, and here is a pair that work well together and in keeping with the Law of Opposites, help me to define each other. The Sun and the 30^th Path are about enlightenment that comes through scientific study; The Star and the 28^th Path are about the dark of night, and the inspiration that comes to us from within.

The 28^th Path is also about aspiration, about dreaming of the future, and thus, beginning the initial process of finally manifesting our goals in the physical world. The energies of this Path flow downward into the foundations of our mind, and act as catalysts which will eventually have a physical effect, but this Path is not of the physical world.

Its astrological correspondence is Aquarius (“I know,” friendships, the group, society, cause-oriented); Aquarius is also the symbol for humankind, and for being better able to love every person collectively, rather than focusing love on just one person (again, the difference between the spotlight of The Sun and the more diffused light of The Star).

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