The cards shows a man dressed in the garb of a high-ranking priest seated in an ornate chair, his face calm and his eyes either gazing at his lap or closed. Behind him is a tapestry showing the crossed keys of Papal symbolism; another indication that this man is important in the church. To his left is a large window; his right shoulder is in shadow, almost as if someone else is standing beyond the image. The priest wears a stole emblazoned with red equal-sided crosses, red shoes decorated with gold equal-sided crosses, a large gold cross on a substantial gold chain around his neck, and a gold and ruby ring on the ring finger of his right hand. Red shoes have meaning within the Papacy, representing the submission of the Pope to the authority of Jesus, and the blood shed by martyrs (representing the sacrifice they made to Jesus and their willingness to die for their faith). Before the priest kneels a woman wearing a nun's robe, coif, wimple and veil. His right hand rests gently on her head, her face is serene, and her gaze is in his lap, as is her left hand. We don't know for sure, but it certainly appears that she is pleasuring him with her hand. The key phrases associated with the Decameron Hierophant are: sacredness is not always exempt from sin, power and charisma sometimes corrupts, and act prudently.
My Outer Focus card is the Queen of Pentacles. This Queen usually represents nurturing, practicality, prosperity, success, independence, and high social status. Again, we are seeing Boccaccio's scorn for those who see only their own wealth and not the need of those around them.
The Decameron card shows what appears to be several peasants, both men and women, standing in the background and watching as a finely dressed woman and her guard walk by. The guard walks behind the woman and is wearing a leather vest, a helmet on his head, and he is carrying a large and fearsome pike. The woman wears a crown, a fine dress trimmed with fir, and a gold necklace; she carries a bag filled with coins. Her guard, who has his hand over his mouth and is obviously thinking "uh oh, I'm in trouble," has stepped on the train of her dress, causing the dress to rip so much that we can see one of her breasts and her belly, the tops of her thighs, and her pubic hair. The woman is frantically holding her bag of coins with one hand and trying to grab her torn dress to cover her lower body with the other, and she is not succeeding in either effort. Coins are spilling from her bag and her dress cannot cover her nakedness because her guard is standing on it. The key phrase associated with this card is: denial in the name of greed and vanity creates absurdity and the loss of identity.
Again we have interesting meanings that offer useful messages. To me, all people and most deities are capable of both good and evil. Being a priest, priestess or other leader of a spiritual or cultural tradition carries with it responsibilities. One of those responsibilities is to think, speak and act with Perfect Love and Trust, for others are watching and emulating, and depending on the leaders to act within the rules and laws of the accepted faith and to care for all. Even as a solitary practitioner of Wicca, I have these responsibilities. I need to be aware of them, and to make certain that each word and each act is offered with the best of intentions. Being lucky enough to have a roof over my head, food to eat, and winter clothes to keep me warm, does not mean I am above others, and I have no right to act that way. Today both my thoughts and my deeds need to be beyond reproach. Even the act of offering charity can be belittling to those I am helping if I present my aid with a superior mindset. Money does not make anyone superior, and getting caught up in the finery of success, whether in the material world or within my spiritual practice, stains the glow of a healthy Self, and erodes it away. This does not mean I can't enjoy the pleasure of my senses; it just means that I must do so in Perfect Love and Trust, with Harm to None.
Happy Holidays, however you celebrate.
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