Today’s card is Bella Rosa (the Devil) from the Chrysalis
Tarot. This female devil comes to us from the Carnival
of Venice; beautifully dressed and with her face behind her white mask. Nobody
is to know who she really is. Her true self is hidden deep down inside. She probable
has lost her sense of self along the way too. She is wearing gloves so she doesn’t
feel the thorns nor does she see the beauty of her rose. She is detached from
real life and is soothing herself with artificial material obsessions and habits.
Her mirror symbolizes her self-indulgence
and narcissistic ego.
No matter how difficult it might be, it is time to get
real. To remove the mask and look in the mirror; to see who you really are and to
feel what you really need.
And what could that be?
The Mime (Page
of Spirals) is hopping carefree and merrily towards us accompanied by her ram. She
will help us to recollect lost, fractured and repressed memories. She will be
like a comforting balm for your soul after you've taken of your mask. She will
return who you truly are to mindfulness. The good and the bad stuff. It all
deserves to be known. It all is worthy of our compassionate love and of deep
listening. You might be surprised by the wonder of who you are without your masks and costumes.
Affirmation:
Today I will open up to find and recollect
parts of my true self and I will cradle them like a long lost child
Such a beautiful Devil! Serves to remind us of superficial visage, which The Mime understands totally. Lovely post :-)
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind words on my blog x
You're welcome Margo! and Thank you!
DeleteI like the emptiness in this card a lot
That Devil is spooky... I look at those empty holes in the mask and wonder if there is something real and solid even in there!
ReplyDeleteyes there seems to be a void in there I wonder how many of us are aware of own blind spots/ hollow spaces
DeleteInteresting imagery, cards and interpretation Ellen.
ReplyDeleteI studied the ancient Comedia del arte (Mime and half-mask) in Toronto. It came from Italy street theatre. It isn't silent as it is half mask allowing you to speak.The white faced fool is a reminder to those in court (ie the King) of his mortality and is symbolic of the death mask. And the Fool disarms the ego. Wite face mask is a very spiritual symbol.
Thanks for this information Catherine! This card makes even more sense now
DeleteHugs
It's such a pretty deck and you are doing an excellent job working directly from the images. :) Lovely deck. x
ReplyDeleteThanks Carla. It was thanks to your blog I've been persuaded to buy it and I am so happy I did. :)
DeleteOh, what a beautiful post, Ellen! Love your take on the Page - returning us to who we truly are. That's definitely something I associate with this card traditionally, too - the groundingness of doing something physical or practical with a beginner's mind :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Kerry!!
DeleteAm I right you are talking about the Page of Pentacles (groundingness, physical)? The Spirals are associated with fire which put me on the wrong foot in the beginning too. In this deck the Stones are representing Earth.
Ah, yes, you're quite right, Ellen! It's true, the playfulness of the Mime fits better with the Page of Wands, thank you.
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