December 12, 2020: 8 of Wands and 7 of Pentacles

Today's Decameron Tarot cards:

Inner Focus: 8 of Wands.  The image on this card shows a naked woman viewed from the back who is sitting on a wooden bench, with another person kneeling before her (for the ease of description, I will call this person "he," but there is no indication of the gender of the kneeling person).  He has his face between her spread thighs and he is gripping her buttocks for leverage.  The key phrases for this card are: surprise and daring, and a part of the undertaking is complete.  

Let's think about the traditional keywords associated with the 8 of Wands, quick action, expansion, news, and the strongest expression of Fire, the element associated with the suit of Wands in most cases.  The traditional image of this card is one of the few in the Tarot that does not contain a person; it shows 8 Wands parallel to each other, as if shot from 8 bows.  This is a strong and active card that depicts expression or expansion without distraction.  

Back to the Decameron 8 of Wands.  Neither figure is being distracted, and both are focused on the pleasure of the woman.  She is leaning back on her knuckles, with her spine arched and her knees wide, as if she is pleased with what is happening to her.  We cannot see much of her face, just her lips which are slightly parted, but we can imagine that her eyes are closed as she experiences pleasure.  No distraction here.  We cannot see the face of the man who is pleasuring her either, but his fingers are gripping her buttocks with enough intensity to press into her flesh, as if he does not want her to move away.  This makes me think that he is an enthusiastic participant.  

From both viewpoints, energy is rising and becoming more and more focused.  There are no distractions visible and no deviations to the direction the energy is being built toward.  The focus of both persons is aimed at the same result.

Outer Focus: 7 of Pentacles.  The image on this card also shows a naked woman with her knees wide and her spine arched, lips parted and eyes closed.  She is astride a man who is gripping her thighs as he watches her.  There is some shadow-play in this image to be considered.  The man is completely in shadow, and the woman is in shadow from the waist down; across her upper body are shadows that could come from a window consisting of smaller panes separated by some opaque material. The key phrases for this card are: luck in business or love for women, men are bored.  

The traditional image on the 7 of Pentacles shows a person leaning on a staff or rake, looking at a lush plant or tree covered with Pentacles.  The keywords associated with this card are assessment, seeing results, and weighing a change.  Unlike the 8 of Wands, this is not an active card.  Instead, this one is about pausing and assessing what we've done so far so we can decide if it is enough, or more is needed.

In the Decameron Tarot, the suit of Pentacles is about the physical body and material goods.  In the image for the 7 of Pentacles, it appears that the woman is almost reaching the fullness of pleasure, and the man, whose eyes are open and watching her, needs to decide if he needs to do more, or if doing more would derail everything.  The woman would be depending on the man to not derail things, it is the way that she is able to close her eyes and freely immerse herself in pleasure.  While he may also be enjoying things here, the placement of the shadows in the image makes me think that she is the one who is the focus of the card's message.  Like the tree covered with Pentacles in the traditional image for this card, the woman is ripe and appears ready for harvest.  In fact, the bars of shadows across her upper body almost resemble prison bars, hinting that she has relinquished her control of the situation.  It is the man who must decide if the peak of ripeness has arrived or more time and effort are needed.

Both of these cards are about a similar goal. My Inner Focus card seems to indicate that I have some control over the methods for obtaining results.  My Outer Focus card indicates the appearance of surrender to the assistance of others.  Inner passions can certainly be the fuel that assists in manifestations on the physical plane.  Perhaps these messages are not as different as I initially thought they were.