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Above all things, know thyself.
The Queen of Cups: Astrological, Qabalistic, and Psychic Doctrine
Astrologically, the Queen of Cups governs the final Decan of Gemini and the first two Decans of Cancer, a liminal zone where intellect dissolves into feeling and thought gives way to intuitive knowing. This is the quiet threshold between Air and Water—where perception becomes empathy and idea becomes image.
Both the Rider-Waite-Smith Tarot and the Triple Goddess Tarot emphasize this quality of tranquility. In Waite’s card, the Queen is enthroned at the edge of a calm sea, holding an ornate Moon Chalice unlike any other cup in the deck. She gazes into it not to drink, but to see. The chalice is a lunar scrying vessel—a psychic mirror through which vision arises.
Yet Waite and Smith, faithful to their era, largely present the exoteric and devotional meanings of this card. Their Queen is medieval, symbolic, and psychologically gentle—beautiful but restrained. This stands in contrast to the Qabalistic depth of Lady Frieda Harris and Aleister Crowley’s Thoth Tarot. (Readers seeking these deeper comparisons may explore the non-traditional Tarot studies at elitarotstrikingly.com.)
Still, every element of the Rider-Waite-Smith Queen of Cups unmistakably declares Water: her flowing garments, the shoreline, the tranquil sea, the Moon Chalice, and the carved mer-children adorning her throne—one bearing a fish, a symbol of generative life arising from the deep. This Queen does not wallow in emotional chaos. She is no “drama queen.” Her emotions are tools of creation. She is the Creatrix, weaving life through feeling, intuition, and magnetic presence.
When she gazes into her Moon Pool, beauty is revealed—not because the world changes, but because perception deepens.
The Queen as Consciousness, Not Personality
The Queen of Cups represents an intuitive, sensual, empathetic mode of being—emotionally mature, compassionate, and deeply receptive. She connects naturally through feeling and is often experienced as a healer. In a divination, she may describe the querent or someone in their life—but Qabalistically, the Queens are not merely people.
They are states of consciousness.
In Western Hermetic Qabalah, these are Beings—Sephirothic conditions of awareness within the Divine Universal Collective Unconscious. They are expressions of the Powerful Imagination, the psychic womb where images are emotionally formed before they become thoughts, words, or actions.
The True Mind does not speak in language—it speaks in image.
Before Mind itself, there is a magnetic vessel of potential: Kether, whose Divine Name is Eheieh—“I Will Be.” This is no-thing, yet it is the primal Will whose first act was to emote into energy. From this act, all consciousness unfolded.
You are the image fulfilling that command.
Thus, the Queens of Tarot often represent the core personality of the Soul, or what may be called the Solar Psyche—the totality of unconscious, subconscious, and waking awareness unified as a single being. This Psyche is above, within, around, and below. It is a ternary consciousness, the Willed Sun of the Divine—radiant, self-aware, and alive.
Binah, the Great Creatrix
Binah, the third Sephirah, resides in the Supernal Triangle and embodies the archetype of the Cosmic Womb. I often call this state of mind “a womb with a view”, for Binah conceives not by force, but by seeing and understanding.
Here, idea becomes form.
The word idea itself derives from the Greek ἰδέα—“form” or “pattern”—from ἰδεῖν, “to see.” Seeing, imaging, forming: these are the functions of the Goddess/Creatrix, the Great Ocean of Consciousness.
Your persona, then, is not a fixed identity of words. It is an image—a living symbol.
Words, when imposed as identity, become instruments of hypnosis. The lesser ego—the Devil of the Tarot, the Gnostic Archon, the Native American Wetiko—is constructed from fear-charged language and reactionary imagery, engineered by systems of control. This shadow identity is anti-life, for it obscures the true Solar Self beneath layers of conditioned survival thinking.
You are not made of words.
You are made of Spirit’s Will to Force and Will to Form.
The Queen of Cups as Water of Primal Earth
All Queens rule the Element of Water within their suits. The Queen of Cups, therefore, is Water of Primal Earth—Consciousness as blood, intuition as life force, emotion as formative power.
She enthrones awareness.
Her role is to receive, enclose, and gestate energy, transforming the King’s Will to Force into information—in-Form-Action. As emotive consciousness does to idea, so the Queen brings the invisible into manifestation.
To know her is to fulfill the ancient command:
Above all things, know thyself.
This knowing requires the collapse of the Tower of Babel—the illusion that you are made of words—and the rebirth of vision through the eyes of the Great Creatrix, who loved you into being as a Solar Child of the Divine.
You are Action.
The shadow is Reaction.
And the Queen of Cups is the still water in which the True Self is finally seen.
The Triple Goddess Tarot — Queen of Cups
The Triple Goddess Tarot – Queen of Cups likewise presents a vision of profound tranquility and emotional poise. She appears as a relaxed, platinum-haired Queen robed in flowing blues, seated upon a blue throne crowned with a sculpted crescent and full Moon orb—a clear declaration of lunar consciousness and intuitive sovereignty.
Her bare feet extend onto a sandy shore just beyond the softened waves of an aquamarine sea, where the ocean no longer crashes but gently breathes upon the land. This imagery reveals Water in its receptive, contemplative state—emotion at rest, yet fully aware.
The Triple Goddess Queen of Cups dares the querent to listen inwardly and allow the message to move rather than be analyzed. Here intuition precedes logic. Feeling becomes guidance.
This card emphasizes empathy, instinct, emotional equilibrium, scrying, and reflective divination. It speaks of the psychic art of receiving—of allowing images, moods, and subtle impressions to arise naturally from the depths of consciousness without force or distortion.
In this form, the Queen of Cups is not merely a personality but a living threshold of awareness—where the soul listens, the heart perceives, and the Great Ocean of the Creatrix speaks in image rather than word.
Where the Rider-Waite-Smith Queen peers into a Moon Chalice, the Triple Goddess Queen listens inwardly, daring the querent to receive rather than analyze. The message is not forced; it moves. This card emphasizes empathy, instinct, emotional balance, scrying, and reflective divination—the psychic art of allowing images and impressions to arise naturally from the depths of consciousness.
Despite stylistic differences, every depiction of the Queen of Cups—whether medieval, animistic, or modern—declares Water. Her garments, the shoreline, the tranquil sea, lunar vessels, and oceanic symbolism all speak to emotional intelligence as a creative power, not an emotional swamp. She is no “drama queen.” Her feelings are instruments of formation.
She is the Creatrix, weaving life through magnetic presence and intuitive knowing.
When she gazes into her Moon Pool—or stands barefoot at its edge—beauty is revealed, not because the world changes, but because perception deepens.
Let’s delve into the astrological decans of Gemini and Cancer:
Last Decan of Gemini (June 12 – June 20):
- Influence: This decan is influenced by another air sign, adding complexity to the Gemini personality1.
- Traits: Individuals born in this period are known for their intellect, wit, and strong communication skills. They are quick thinkers and express themselves with ease2.
- Characteristics: They appreciate power, study it in others, and may use it to further their own aspirations. They are less susceptible to the opinions of those around them and are persuasive1.
First Decan of Cancer (June 22 – July 1):
- Ruler: The Moon governs this decan, enhancing emotional sensitivity and intuition3.
- Traits: These individuals are emotional, sensitive, intuitive, and nurturing. They are good at making decisions and tend to avoid conflict4.
- Characteristics: They have a rich imagination, are very sensitive, and sometimes escape from reality. They are good at rhetoric and possess artistic talents5.
Second Decan of Cancer (July 2 – July 11):
- Ruler: Pluto influences this decan, along with traits from Scorpio3.
- Traits: People in this decan are practical, a bit stubborn, deep-thinkers, sentimental, and great caretakers4.
- Characteristics: They support their position with wisdom and experience, are quiet, determined, and approachable, yet can become fierce if their family is threatened5.
Astrology provides a nuanced view of personality, and these decans offer a more detailed perspective within each zodiac sign. Whether you resonate with these traits or not, they can be a fun way to reflect on personal characteristics and tendencies
Tarot Core Personality Birth Wheel.
Hermetic Synthesis:
The Queen of Cups is Binah reflected in the soul—Supernal Water giving form to feeling, where intuition becomes understanding and the Great Womb of Consciousness receives, nurtures, and reveals the image of the True Self.
When the Queen of Cups Is Thrown During a Reading
The Queen of Cups indicates a state of emotional receptivity and intuitive awareness. The querent may be experiencing:
Themes surrounding motherhood, nurturing, or emotional responsibility.
Emotional empowerment, where feelings can be expressed honestly, without blame or judgment.
A tendency toward excessive imagination, suggesting insight is present, yet decisive action has not fully followed.
Highly developed emotional and intuitive capacities, often manifesting as empathic sensitivity or psychic perception.
Deep empathy that requires discernment, as fluctuating moods may be unconsciously absorbed from others.
A period of inner contemplation, reflection, and inward-turned awareness, where imagination becomes the primary mode of perception.
The presence of a mature feminine force—a woman of profound emotional, sexual, and fertility power—whose life revolves around nourishment, intimacy, and creative exchange; this may describe the querent or someone influencing their life.
Motherhood, or the gestation of new ideas leading toward a creative or spiritually aligned vocation.
An ethereal nature, holding high ideals that may at times feel difficult to anchor within the changing material world.
Wisdom, virtue, and emotional integrity.
In some cases, the card may signify a harmonious partner, a devoted spouse, or a nurturing parent.
If Reversed or Ill-Dignified
The Queen of Cups reversed reflects distorted emotional intelligence or intuition severed from wisdom. It may indicate:
A seemingly refined or distinguished individual whose emotional motives are unreliable.
Emotional manipulation, vice, or moral confusion.
A perversion of nurturing instincts into control or guilt.
Dishonor or emotional depravity, where empathy is feigned rather than lived.
The archetype of the false mother—the fairy-tale stepmother—who withholds nourishment, love, or emotional safety.
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