IS IT THE TWO OF WANDS or THE THREE OF WANDS?

A comment by Tarot blogger Vipera Kernewes to my previous post below led me to her Tarot blog. In a post there dated November 11, 2010 she points out a confusion or unclarity for her between the Two and Three of Wands in many decks, and illustrates this with images from several decks.

I was amazed and challenged! For all the years I’ve been working with and collecting Tarot decks I’d never noticed this. She’s right, by golly, there does tend to be a strong similarity between these two minor arcana cards in the decks she shares images from. This ultimately sent me off on a quest to compare these two cards in my own collection of decks. But first I began to contrast these cards in my mind. Asking myself just what are the distinctions between the Two and Three of Wands? I came up with lists of contrasts, such as (first the 2, then 3): inner vs. outer; embracing vs. opening; harboring vs. questing; overview beforehand vs. consequence after; containment vs. sharing; and so on.

I was not as happy with the three’s side of these contrasts, as the Three of Wands energy doesn’t usually feel to me as stable or fully here as the energy of the Two. So I modified all of the descriptive Three of Wands words I’d chosen to have a sense of imminence, i.e. the contemplative pause after a first step taken; action about to be taken; opening about to happen; possible consequence of contemplated action; etc.

Then I really became curious about looking at these two cards in decks in my collection. Below are scans of those I found most intriguing. They all seem to play out the “inner vs. outer” contrast. The cards in “The Tarot: The Complete Kit” (square cards with black backgrounds) being by far the quirkiest in design, with the energy seeming also to move in reverse. That is, the Two of Wands seems to shove the figure on it into a more contemplative or inner state in the Three. But that contrast is still there between inner and outer. Of course, I chose to look at these particular decks so my unconscious may very well have guided me to them to support my theory. And, as I have quoted here many times before, a friend and I used to say about The Tarot – only partly joking – if it doesn’t fit, we’ll make it fit. LOL!

Two & Three of Wands from:
THE TAROT/The Complete Kit and THE GOTHIC TAROT OF THE VAMPIRES

Two & Three of Wands from:
THE CIRCLE OF LIFE TAROT (the scan is not very clear -- those are snails at bottom of the Two of Wands)

Two & Three of Wands from:
THE UNIVERSAL FANTASY TAROT and THE MANGA TAROT

In any case, I’m grateful to Vipera for her post. It has, if nothing else, revivified my interest in several of the decks from which images are scanned in above, reminding me why they are in my collection to begin with.

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‘til next time, keep embracing and exploring The Tarot,

[aka: Patricia Kelly]
****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)**** SEE ALSO: Roswila’s Dream & Poetry Realm for Tarot poetry; Roswila’s Taiga Tarot for taiga (illustrated tanka); and Yahoo DREAMJIN: Group for Dreamku – Haiku-Like Dream Poems.****