(It feels like such a Swords month! I drew the Ten of Swords as my card for this month, and it has certainly felt like that energy is present.)
This Queen. In the Next World Tarot guidebook, Cristy Road writes, “If a situation deserves objective focus, intent, and wisdom, the Queen asks to set your heart aside and make a just decision. The Queen of Swords asks you to investigate what is truly healing. She asks you to evade unwarranted sentiments, and empathetic responses that erase your truth.”
This invitation makes me think about discourses of empathy, and of the idea that empathy is always good or preferable. It makes me think about how empathy and justice intersect.
Are there times when empathetic responses erase your truth?
Asking this question, I can immediately think of all the times someone being harmed has been asked to think about the “good intentions” or to empathize with the person who is harming them.
Are there times when sentiments are unwarranted? When they get in the way of what might be healing for us or for our relationships?
Are there times when justice means setting our hearts aside?
How do these questions settle for you? What memories, or stories from your history, come to the surface as you think about this Queen’s invitation? Is there a situation in your life right now where empathetic responses are erasing your truth, or where your heart (your lovely, loving heart) may need to be protected and secluded so that you can make a just decision?
Because of the month that I have had, I see this Queen speaking directly and compassionately to those in our community who have experienced violence and abuse.
I imagine her holding her sword and saying, “Beloved, I know that you understand the trauma of the person who hurt you. I know that you still love them, that your heart will always hold precious the relationship you’ve shared. But take this sword, trust your truth, and cut through the gaslighting, the victim-blaming, the entitlement to your time and energy and space. You know your own truth. You know you have been hurt and you did not deserve to be hurt in this way, no matter what was happening for them.”