One of my favourite rituals at the beginning of the year is a self-tarot reading so that I might get a better sense of the year to come. The Tarot, for me, is a way of bringing unconscious material to the fore through the activation of archetypes or abstract ideas. In doing so, I get a better sense of my partially known and unknown desires and turn them into action. This can determine my future behaviour and therefore affect outcomes almost through dint of will.
Last year I focused much of my time on writing, and I wanted to better understand where I should be placing my efforts this year. I was struck by the clear directive in the spread I plucked from the deck and one card caused an intake of breath. The Ace of Pentacles was positioned in the place of the Signifier, or the card that bears the most significance on the rest of the spread. It is one of my favourite cards full of potential and from which I can draw strength throughout the year.
About the Ace of Pentacles
This card is the final card in the deck (although some Readers do sequence the suits differently) which gives it special status. It marks a journey’s end, the achievement of an ultimate goal, or a movement towards the whole Self. In the card, a hand materialises from the ether holding a single gold pentacle in its palm. It is the biggest pentacle in the suit and is held respectfully aloft in a sky of pearlescent grey.
Below the hand is a peaceful garden, perhaps the Eden that Adam and Eve were cast out of when they discovered their true, naked selves. Beyond the arbour of grapes we see shadows of mountains but we’ve already climbed and conquered them throughout the deck to get to this tranquil spot. The pentacle represents a goal attained through hard, arduous work and the opportunity to stop and enjoy our achievements.
What does the Ace of Pentacles mean to me?
I love this card because it is positive and optimistic. To me it suggests wholeness, stability, and nurturance of one’s larger goals and ambitions. For me, this means putting writing at the centre of everything I do because it is who I am as much as what I do. The pentacle represents the writer’s gift requiring careful custodianship but also the Self, integrated and transcendent, when writing and self are minted into union.
Writing as an occupation is fraught with peril and it can often feel like a slog or a thankless task, but ultimately it is the thing that gives my life meaning and also reinforces my sense of Self. I am happiest when I am creating, so that any task that fully diverts away from creativity can be challenging. What this card says to me is keep going, keep working towards that ultimate goal and find nourishment from it. In essence, just be yourself!
Paull Blakeman is the author of The Moon & The Priestess – Accessing the Creative Unconscious with Tarot’s Archetypes. Purchase here.
Paull Blakeman 
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