Practice Self-Mastery With This Tarot Card
In this series, Jamie Richardson of Ember + Aura Tarot explains how to embrace the message of each major arcana card.
The Strength card depicts a woman who has tamed the beast within. She has harnessed its power through firm, yet gentle, discipline. In turn, the animal offers its limitless strength to her in all she does. As is the case with all Tarot cards, Strength is layered in its meanings. By sifting through its symbolism, we find various traits to master: self-control, inner sight, and trust.
When you draw the Strength card, you have reached a new level of spiritual development. By rising above your shifting emotions, you have created space for calm, unruffled self-assurance to lead the way. As humans hell-bent on being the best we can be, we often resort to self-criticism, judgment, and unreal expectations of ourselves. Objectively, we can see that this brand of harsh control is not the best way to win anyone over. The Strength card is all about approaching our own weaknesses with a gentle hand, accepting them, and soothing the accusatory voice of the ego. In time, we tame the snarling, demanding energy of our smaller-self, we embrace ourselves wholly, and we discover that we are at our strongest when all parts of us have been unified in self-love.
Discover what’s in the cards for you!
Additionally, when we are developing strength, we are likely to meet inner allies whose presence, until now, has gone undetected. Diving into our shadow side and facing our demons is like walking a darkened path, but one that we need not face alone. Here, we will find that our spirit guides will make themselves known in many ways. Dreams, visions, shamanic journeys, art—all of these are in the realm of spirit, the place we find our invisible companions along the way. If ever there was a time to walk between the worlds and accept assistance in blind faith, it’s when the Strength card arrives.
Finally, true strength is achieved when we learn to whole-heartedly own our wildness—and to use it for good. All too often, we are trained to ignore our instincts, diffuse our fire, and silence our roar. And while Strength is about overriding the instability of our emotions, it is all about channeling our limitless energy and passion.
When Strength reveals itself in your next reading, you will most likely already be feeling its effects. Finding our own strength requires gentleness and self-forgiveness. Likewise, owning and displaying our newfound sense of power calls us to be responsible in regard to the feelings of others. We have shed our filters of judgment and resistance and have adopted a new method of acceptance and compassion. This updated sense of Strength will give us all that we need to overcome any obstacle in our way so we may do our part to bring healing and restoration to the planet.
Find Jamie Richardson online and on Instagram @emberandauratarot