The Tarot of Eli, LLC-Court Cards: Thoth- Queen of Cups & The Arcane Tarot -Queen of Cups.

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Above all things, know thyself.

Binah and the Queen of Cups

The Great Mother and the Mirror of the Soul

In Western Hermetic Qabalah, Binah, the 3rd Sephiroth on the Tree of Life, is the Great Mother Intelligence. She is called the Sanctifying Intelligence—the power that receives the raw force of Chokmah and gives it form, limitation, and understanding. Binah is the Great Dark Sea, the womb of manifestation, the Universal Collective Unconscious from which all forms arise and into which they return.

In the Tarot, this Supernal Mystery finds its most intimate expression in the Queen of Cups, known in the Thoth system as the Queen of the Thrones of the Waters. Water here is not merely emotion—it is consciousness itself in its reflective, imaginal state. This is imagination, intuition, dream, and deep feeling: the Moon-pool of the soul.

When you encounter the Queen of Cups, you are encountering Binah as reflection.

The Queen of Cups as Great Mother of Water

Within the Elemental Mysteries of Western Hermetic Magick, the Queen of Cups is the Queen of the Undines and Nymphs—the ruling intelligence of the Water element. Undines are the elemental beings of rivers, seas, lakes, and tides. Esoterically, they represent the fluid, psychic, and emotional forces of nature and psyche.

As their Queen, she is not chaos or emotional excess, but emotional sovereignty.

She governs:

• Intuition without sentimentality

• Empathy without self-loss

• Imagination without illusion

To work with her—through meditation, ritual, or Tarot—is to learn mastery of the inner waters rather than drowning in them.

Lunar Wisdom and the Reflective Power of Imagination

Binah is intrinsically lunar in expression. The Moon governs tides, cycles, fertility, memory, and dreams. Likewise, the Queen of Cups rules the reflective faculty of consciousness.

Crowley describes her perfectly in The Book of Thoth:

“Her image is of extreme purity and beauty… she reflects the nature of the observer in great perfection.”

This is the key:
You do not see her—you see yourself in her waters.

The Queen of Cups is the perfect agent and patient: she receives and transmits all impressions without being altered by them. What you imagine, believe, or project is reflected back to you through the Astral Waters of her domain.

This is why imagination is not fantasy in Hermeticism—it is creative power.

The Mirror Reveals the False Ego

Here the work becomes personal.

The Queen of Cups exposes the inner deceiver—the false ego formed by indoctrination, dogma, media hypnosis, and collective egregores. This “mind virus” masquerades as your identity while distorting your perception of yourself and others.

When you look into the Cup:

• Self-deception is revealed

• Projections dissolve

• Emotional parasites are washed from the inner vessel

This is not punishment—it is purification.

She protects the Golden Child within you: the original soul-light dulled by fear, conditioning, and unconscious imitation. She restores discernment, reminding you that not all emotions you feel are yours.

To be empathic without mastery is to be possessed by tides not your own.

Thoth, the Ibis, and the Mysteries of Reflection

In Crowley’s Queen of Cups, an Ibis appears in abstraction. This bird is sacred to Thoth-Hermes, the god of wisdom, language, and magical intelligence. Its presence confirms that Male and Female forces are never separate.

Chokmah—the First Husband—is represented as the Serpent or Python: the primal fertilizing force. In Qabalistic symbolism, this union demonstrates the formula 0 = 2: manifestation through polarity.

Mythologically, the Ibis consumes both:

• The eggs of serpents (ideas yet unformed)

• The corpses of the dead (past personalities)

This is profound:
All experience is recycled as conscious data in the Great Sea of Binah.

Nothing is wasted. Everything returns.

Water as the Perfect Solvent

The Queen of Cups represents Specific Water in the Realm of Primal Water—the Will to Form of Binah reflecting upon consciousness itself.

Water receives everything.
Water transmits everything.
Water remains unchanged—unless polluted.

If well dignified in a reading, she reveals inner beauty, psychic clarity, and emotional wisdom.
If ill dignified, reflection becomes distortion, and imagination becomes illusion.

To think ill is to be ill.
What you cast forth returns through the mirror of light.

Personality, Gender, and the Hermetic Soul

The Queen of Cups is not a gendered identity. Court Cards describe states of consciousness, not biological sex. The soul is androgynous—Hermes-Aphrodite.

Those under her influence are intuitive, empathic, imaginative, and capable of dissolving boundaries between dream and reality. Historically, many such figures have appeared under her current—artists, mystics, visionaries, scientists, and magicians alike.

Final Hermetic Synthesis

The Queen of Cups is Binah looking back at you.

She does not judge.
She reflects.

She remembers who you were before distortion.
She sees the beautiful you—even when you cannot.

To work with her is to reclaim imagination as sacred power, emotion as wisdom, and intuition as Understanding.

Eli Hermetic Axiom

“What you imagine yourself to be, you behold in the Mirror of the Great Mother.”

The Arcane Tarot presents a traditional and elegant vision of the Queen of Cups. She gazes deeply into a golden chalice, absorbed in quiet contemplation. Her hair and adornments flow in wave-like forms—rippling, flamboyant, and fluid, as though shaped from living water itself. The card is bathed in blue and silver, the sacred colors of Water and the Moon, reinforcing her role as a vessel of emotional depth and intuitive awareness.

Here, the Queen of Cups embodies nurture, kindness, compassion, and emotional presence. She is the gentle current that soothes, supports, and understands without judgment.

Upright Meaning

The Great Mother moves through you—or through someone in your life—offering compassion, emotional support, and intuitive guidance. This card invites you to trust your heart, lead with empathy, and allow yourself to be a vessel for healing rather than control.

Relationships

Love, encouragement, and emotional safety are emphasized. Deep listening and heartfelt understanding strengthen the bond. This is a time to nurture connection through empathy and emotional honesty.

Career

Supportive mentors or emotionally intelligent leadership are present. You may be guided by someone who truly understands, or you may be called to become that source of calm, encouragement, and emotional stability for others.

Reversed

Emotional imbalance or fatigue may be present. You may be out of sync with your feelings or expending too much emotional labor without replenishment. This card advises gentle self-reflection, boundary setting, and emotional rest.

The Queen of the Undines and Nymphs does not refer to a specific individual within one unified mythological system but is a title given within Western Hermeticism and esoteric traditions to embody the ruling or sovereign spirit of the elemental water beings, such as Undines and Nymphs. Let’s break down the figures associated with this concept and how it has evolved in Western mysticism and mythology:

Undines and Nymphs: Water Spirits

• Undines: These originate primarily from Paracelsus’ alchemical classification of elemental beings in the 16th century. Undines are spirits of water, closely tied to the emotional and intuitive aspects of nature. Unlike classical mythological figures, they belong more to esoteric mysticism than to ancient folklore, though their characteristics are derived from various water-related mythic traditions.

• Nymphs: Nymphs come from Greek and Roman mythology and are nature spirits tied to various natural features—water nymphs include:

  • Naiads: Freshwater spirits (rivers, springs, and fountains).
  • Oceanids: Nymphs of the sea.
  • Nereids: Sea nymphs who assist seafarers.

The Queen of Undines and Nymphs, as referred to in Western Hermeticism, draws on the mythological imagery of these beings but often represents a higher spiritual archetype.

Possible Figures Identified with This Role

While the Queen of Undines is primarily an esoteric construct, several mythological goddesses and figures could be associated with this title due to their rulership over water and mystical domains:

1. Tethys (Greek Mythology)

   • An ancient Titaness and sea goddess. As a mother of rivers and fountains, Tethys symbolizes the nurturing and sustaining aspects of water. While not directly a ruler of Undines or Nymphs, her dominion over water fits the archetype.

2. Amphitrite (Greek Mythology)

   • The wife of Poseidon and queen of the sea. Amphitrite is often depicted ruling over marine life and oceanic spirits, making her a potential mythological influence on the concept of the Queen of Undines and Nymphs.

3. The Lady of the Lake (Arthurian Legend)

   • In Western mysticism and Arthurian traditions, the Lady of the Lake is a powerful water-related figure often depicted as a mystical guide and enchantress. Some Hermetic practitioners may symbolically identify her with the ruling archetype of water spirits due to her role in wielding magical knowledge and her association with sacred waters.

4. Thalassa (Greek Sea Deity)

   • The primordial embodiment of the sea itself. In some interpretations, Thalassa represents the raw and mystical power of the ocean, making her a broader archetype that could merge with the Hermetic concept of water’s elemental queen.

The Queen in Hermetic and Esoteric Thought

In Western Hermetic Mysteries, the Queen of the Undines:

• Represents Binah on the Qabalistic Tree of Life (when viewed through the lens of water’s creative and formative powers).
• Reflects the Divine Feminine linked to intuition, receptivity, and emotional depth.
• Is personified in Tarot by the Queen of Cups, symbolizing wisdom derived from emotions and the subconscious.

In this context, her role is more spiritual than mythological, blending mystical wisdom with control over the fluid forces of life.

Modern Influence

Modern practitioners of ritual magick (such as those following Golden Dawn or Thelema systems) sometimes invoke the Queen of the Undines in rituals for emotional healing, purification, and intuition. She is not bound by a single mythological identity but is viewed as a universal archetype representing the mysteries of water.

(Click on the above button to get invocation ritual).

In astrology, each zodiac sign is divided into three decans, each spanning ten degrees of the zodiac. The last decan of Gemini and the first two decans of Cancer have distinct characteristics:

1. Last Decan of Gemini (20-30 degrees Gemini):

   • This decan is influenced by the planet Uranus. It brings an unconventional and innovative energy to the intellectual and communicative qualities of Gemini.
   • Individuals born under this decan may possess a strong sense of individuality and originality in their thinking and communication style.
   • They may be inventive, curious, and open-minded, often embracing change and exploring unconventional ideas.
   • However, they may also exhibit restlessness, unpredictability, and a tendency to challenge established norms.

2. First Decan of Cancer (0-10 degrees Cancer):

   • This decan is ruled by the Moon, the natural ruler of Cancer. It emphasizes the emotional and nurturing qualities of the sign.
   • Individuals born under this decan are typically sensitive, empathetic, and deeply intuitive. They are strongly connected to their emotions and may have a nurturing instinct.
   • Family and home are important to them, and they may prioritize creating a secure and nurturing environment for themselves and their loved ones.
   • They may also be highly imaginative and creative, with a strong attachment to the past and a tendency to be nostalgic.

3. Second Decan of Cancer (10-20 degrees Cancer):

   • This decan is influenced by the planet Pluto. It adds depth, intensity, and transformational energy to the emotional nature of Cancer.
   • Individuals born under this decan may have a powerful emotional presence, with a tendency towards intensity and passion in their relationships and pursuits.
   • They may undergo significant personal transformations throughout their lives, experiencing both emotional highs and lows.
   • They possess a strong sense of intuition and may have psychic or occult abilities. They are also drawn to uncovering hidden truths and delving into the depths of their psyche.

These decans provide additional layers of nuance and complexity to the traits associated with Gemini and Cancer, offering a more detailed understanding of individuals born under these signs.

Thoth vs Arcane Insight:
In the Thoth Tarot, the Queen of Cups emphasizes the reflective and initiatory power of imagination, revealing the observer to themselves through Binah’s Great Sea, while the Arcane Tarot presents her as the compassionate nurturer, openly offering emotional support, empathy, and relational healing in the visible world.

When the Queen of Cups Appears in a Reading

The Queen of Cups signifies profound emotional intelligence and the presence of the Great Mother current within the querent’s life or psyche.

She often indicates:

• Themes of motherhood, nurturing, or maternal influence—either literal or archetypal.

• Emotional empowerment, where feelings are expressed honestly, without blame or judgment.

• A tendency toward imagination and inner reflection, sometimes at the expense of decisive action.

• Heightened intuitive and psychic sensitivity, allowing for refined interpersonal awareness and empathic insight.

• Deep empathy that requires emotional self-regulation, as mood fluctuations and sensitivity to others’ feelings may arise.

• A period of inner inspiration, where creativity and insight are generated from contemplation rather than outward force.

• The presence of a mature, magnetic feminine influence—one of sensuality, fertility, nourishment, and emotional exchange—who may be the querent or someone shaping their path.

• Motherhood or creative gestation, whether through childbearing or the formulation of innovative ideas and artistic work.

• An ethereal and idealistic nature, often holding visions of beauty and virtue that can feel difficult to anchor in the ever-changing material world.

• Wisdom, devotion, and moral depth, traditionally associated with a loving partner and nurturing parent.

• Scrying, reflection, and inner vision, where truth is revealed through stillness rather than action.

If Ill-Defined by Surrounding Cards

The Queen’s reflective waters become distorted, leading to:

• Vagueness and lack of clarity

• Excessive dreaminess or escapism

• Emotional irrationality or poor discernment

In such cases, the card advises grounding imagination in conscious awareness and restoring emotional balance before acting.

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