King of Cups

What King of Cups means

Fire of water describes a mechanism with a fault built into it. Fire supplies the part that acts and water the part that registers, so the rank must arrive at decisions using an instrument which cannot be switched off and cannot be taken at face value. Feeling is admissible evidence here, and frequently the only evidence of what is genuinely at stake — but it is evidence from a participant, and a participant’s testimony gets weighted rather than believed outright or struck from the record. The difficulty here is arithmetic of that sort. Nothing is being suppressed; something is being priced.

Upright

Strong feelings can be acknowledged without being allowed to run every decision. Bring a calm, compassionate presence to a conversation that needs room.

Reversed

Composure may be concealing a feeling that needs honest expression. Look for a response that is both emotionally truthful and responsible in its effect.

A question to sit with

How can I be honest about a feeling without making it someone else’s task to fix?

Traditional attribution

Fire of Water. Attributions follow the Golden Dawn with Waite's numbering.