I pulled the Two of Cups today and then, on my morning walk, I saw two magpies: two for joy.
There is so much to be gained from partnerships, from connection. They also terrify: linked as they are to the inevitable trauma(s), small or big T, of all and any childhood. To be born is to be separated, to experience trauma in some way. The path to healing is always connection: connection with the self, with other.
If we think of relationships with a small r as opposed to a capital one we can see that our lives are full of connections, of varying types, and we can (and should) consider them all important in some way. When only one relationship becomes the focus, much is lost to us, personally and collectively.
Consider the ways in which we are made both fierce and gentle in connection: the mother lion’s gentleness and her strength. The lion also speaks of pride and the group, the collective. Our individual relationships ripple out into how we are in the world beyond them: hence the hills in the background, we are part of the world in our relationships, not separate from it.
The two cups reminds us that we need others, whether we like it or not, and that expressing and owning that need is also strength. And it’s reciprocal: we fill each other, we mustn’t just take. We each have a cup to keep full, this is the relationship with the self. This is central to all connection.
This is also a card of joy. The people are happy, content. Relationships can, and should, bring us immense joy. I wish that for all of us.
Other imagery from the Two of Cups and their meanings to me:
Caduceus of Hermes: take commitments seriously, relationships can have magical properties
Equality: they stand at equal height, are equals
Sharing: they both have cups and are offering them to each other as well as having individual responsibility for them
Snakes: represent shedding and transformation. We must allow relationships to change us and we must be open to change within the self and our needs
Wings: represent freedom and the need for separation and flight/freedom within the bind
Touching: they are close, touching each others hands, but they’re still separate – stood in partnership but there is spaciousness; touch as vital for connection.
Alchemy: the cups can be linked to alchemy, the transformation of one thing into something better. Relationships have the potential to transform us
The opposites: the world is duality and oneness
Facing each other: we look and we learn to see each other clearly
