My Inner Focus card for today is VIII Justice. This card has been around before, and at the Inner Focus position. The image on the Decameron Justice card shows a woman with her back to the viewer, naked except for shoes on her feet and a belt around her waist, kneeling on two rose-colored pillows with her knees spread wide. Beneath the pillows are piles of human skulls. The woman is blindfolded with her head turned to the right, and her lips are parted. In her left hand is the center pole of scales of justice; she is holding the pole so the scales are at shoulder level. There is a statue of a naked woman with her arms around her stomach in the left bowl of the scales and a statue of a naked man gripping his erect penis in the right bowl. We can't see where Lady Justice's right hand is, but it appears to be near or on her pubis. The key phrases for this card are: commitment and trust are the qualities necessary for a successful solution, and loving justice.
My Outer Focus card for today is the 9 of Pentacles, another card that has been around more than once. The image on the 9 of Pentacles shows a naked woman laying on a made bed with her eyes closed and a smile on her face, her arms behind her head and her knees and lower legs are dangling off the mattress. Spread beneath her are what appear to be her multi-colored garments ( in the harlequin style) and a belt. She is wearing a hat that covers most of her hair and a mask over her eyes and nose. She is smiling and appears pleased with herself. The key phrases associated with this card are: a pleasant surprise and long-lasting situation.
It is interesting to me that each time I gaze at an image on a Decameron Tarot card, my eyes are drawn to different elements of symbolism. This time, the blindfold stands out and I am being reminded once again that justice needs to be blind in order to be fair. But what almost overshadows that is the fact that the blindness of Lady Justice may be allowing her to only focus on her own pleasure, even if beneath the outward appearance of the peace and love of the rose-colored pillows lies a foundation built upon dead people. Lady Justice is not focusing on the scales in her left hand; rather she is focused inward, and those shoes that should be grounding her are not on that foundation (so she can be reminded of her own mortality, and those who sacrificed so she could be where she is). She has become distracted from her commitment to justice, despite the reminders that surround her.
The last interpretation of the 9 of Pentacles seems to apply here as well. The woman in the image looks like she has expended a bit of energy in order to achieve a goal, and she believes she has been successful. But she is alone; did she achieve the goal on her own? Did she do the work by herself because she alone has the skills to get it done? Or is she alone because no one chose to help her? Like Lady Justice, her feet are not grounded and she appears lost in a dream. I again wonder if that belt is actually a serpent, ready to bite the unsuspecting woman as she remembers a time when she succeeded beyond her expectations.
Justice needs to be blind, but not blind to the law, only the application of the law to the individuals who are disputing. We may end up feeling that our efforts have created a great result, but usually there is a supporting staff involved. Very little is accomplished alone, and we need to keep in mind the pleasure of others as well as our own. Perhaps today while I strive to apply my focus objectively, I should allow myself to enjoy the sense of well-being that comes from a job nicely executed, but also remember to be alert to my immediate surroundings. Sometimes that belt looks like a serpent preparing to attack, but sometimes it is just a discarded belt.
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