**rubs hands together with enthusiasm**. Okay, a Major Arcana card!
My Inner Focus card is II The High Priestess. The image on the Decameron High Priestess card is interesting. It shows a naked woman wearing a crown and veil, and a gold necklace with a gold penis pendant than hangs down between her breasts. She is seated on a book, with her knees drawn up close to her body and her hands also pressing down on the book. She is holding a large key between her feet, with her left thumb hooked in the loop at the top of the key. While she is facing the viewers, her eyes are looking at someone or something to the viewer's right. She has a very serious look on her face. In the shadows behind her are two men. The one over her left shoulder has dark skin and is facing the viewer but because of the shadows, we can't see his eyes. He is wearing a crown and some kind of ornate stole. The man over her right shoulder is dressed in a dark brown hood and cloak; he is looking at the viewer and is holding his erect penis. The message of this card is: unhoped for goals can be achieved through study and work, bur remember that every success has its price, so act prudently.
Traditionally, The High Priestess is seen as the guardian of hidden knowledge, knowledge that she protects so only those who have learned to understand and manifest that knowledge may access it. The usual image associated with The High Priestess shows a robed woman with a rolled up scroll in her lap, seated before a curtain or veil that is held up by two pillars, one is white and one is black. Our Decameron High Priestess is guarding her hidden knowledge and the key to that knowledge, literally with her body. We can understand why she is uneasy, for behind her are representations of a guardian of tradition, and temptation to indulge in physical pleasures. Either one of those two persons could make her job easier in the short term, but in the end they will distract her from her job (guarding knowledge), either by imposing accepted traditions or by offering hedonistic pleasures. She appears uneasy and uncomfortable, but she is sticking to her role as guardian of knowledge without allowing either man to taint what she guards.
My Outer Focus card is the King of Wands. The image on this card shows a gray-haired and bearded man dressed in kingly clothes and wearing a crown and holding a wooden staff that is topped by a penis and a crown, taking a naked woman from the rear. He is reaching around her with his left hand to grasp her breast. His eyes are closed and he appears to be roaring with pleasure; her eyes are open and her lips are parted. The key phrases for this card are: absolute power without questioning, and the weakest partner must surrender.
The traditional keywords for the King of Wands are leadership, charisma and authority. While this Decameron King appears to be experiencing intense sexual pleasure, he also appears to be completely dominating the situation. She is naked, he is dressed. She is on her hands and knees, facing away from him; he appears to be squatting behind her, using his thick and powerful staff to steady himself. He is exhibiting authority for sure, manifesting the strong passions and extreme experiences of the suit of Wands.
There appears to be a huge difference between the message regarding my inner self and my outer self. I am being told that I need to protect the knowledge and beliefs that are valuable to me and stick to the plan, even if I feel oppressive or tempting distractions. I can certainly submit to authority and keep true to myself at the same time, and I do know exactly what situation this is referring to. I don't need to explain more here.
This deck seems to present its messages in a convoluted manner, but as I untangle those convoluted messages I get valuable insight.
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