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Vera Sibilla | Ace of Diamonds – The Room (Stanza)

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Name: Room
Italian Name: Stanza
Playing Card: A♦
Polarity when Upright: Positive
Core Meanings: Intimacy, the intimate sphere, private meetings | news told in strict confidence, sensitive information, privacy | a place | financial prosperity
Polarity when Reversed: Negative
Reversed Core Meanings: the revelation of unpleasant or shocking news | mismanagement of money

Card Description: A comfortable room, used by someone to receive close friends and write or read important letters.

Suit and Number: like all aces, the Ace of Diamonds, too, is concerned with news and the coming together of people. In this card, the news are told confidentially, usually by someone that is close to the querent. As far as the coming together is concerned, it represents intimate meetings, that is, meetings that are not highly advertised (sometimes, but not always, of a romantic nature). Being the suit of Diamonds, this card represents situations that generate (ace) prosperity and economic advantage. Again, it brings dynamic (♦) beginnings, that is, it brings movement and progression to the spread, foretelling that developments are to be expected in the near future.

UPRIGHT A♦

General: A positive card with some neutral undertones. In the main, the Room represents news gathered from a confidential source or of a confidential nature. The nature of the news must be read from the surrounding cards, so in this sense the card is neutral. The main positive shades of meaning concern the financial sector, where the card represents prosperity and good finances, and personal relationships, where it highlights confidentiality and intimacy.

Love and Relationships: as anticipated, this is the card of intimacy. This is never a card that represents casual acquaintances (although, with negative cards, it may show that you give away sensitive information far too easily to people you are barely acquainted with).
For the most part, it represents relationships that are grounded in mutual trust and the sharing of intimate or sensitive details, both in love and in friendship. Great care should be taken when cards representing carelessness or enmity show up nearby, as this can show that your trust in someone is misplaced. This card represents the act of pouring your heart out, telling secrets, etc.
It is also the card of romantic intimacy, so it foretells satisfaction in that regard. It is also good for socialising and cultivating interpersonal relationships. If the querent is alone or single, this card normally allows for positive developments to shake things up. If surrounded by negative cards, though, it may point to inner suffering or a sense of being alone and unfulfilled, having no close connections.

Work and Money: a great card in money matters. Especially when coupled with cards that refer to the more material side of life, the Room brings satisfaction, advantage, prosperity and good prospects. It is connected to important and often sensitive information being put to good use to generate profit, such as insider knowledge and “a little bird told me” situations. Sometimes, it can refer to all unique contributions that rely on special formulas, personal recipes, etc. More simply, it may predict work meetings that are not open to the public. If the querent is unemployed, this card often marks the end of the stagnant period, if the other cards agree. It materializes a supportive environment around the querent, which for an unemployed person is normally a work environment.

Other: being a “room”, it can be a place, of course. The main difference with the House (the Two of Hearts) is that the Room is generally a space within a building, although this can be overridden by other cards, and when it represents the querent’s home, it qualifies it more clearly as an apartment.
In spiritual readings, the Room can be read as a deep personal connection with higher worlds or, depending on the context, to inner knowing. It is also connected with esoteric knowledge. Psychologically, you can read from the cards surrounding it whether querents are at peace with themselves or not, or whether they are capable of expressing their intimate thoughts (to other people or to themselves).

Important Combinations:
A♦ + 9♠ = intimacy, in a neutral sense
A♦ + 2♥ = the querent’s own home, the home environment
A♦ + 10♠R = secret intimate meeting
A♦ + 3♣ + 2♥ = moving from a house into an apartment
A♦ + 6♥ or 6♣ or 7♣ = economic prosperity

REVERSED A♦R

General: Much more negative. Its meanings are mostly a more problematic version of their upright counterpart. As such, the Room reversed signifies shocking revelations, unpleasant news, dirty secrets coming to light and, financially, mismanagement. The presence of surrounding positive cards can, however, improve on its polarity.

Love and Relationships: it is not good to have this card in your reading. It is, almost always, a harbinger of negative revelations. The concept of “negative revelation” must be applied broadly. It can be past mistakes one had swept under the carpet finally coming home to roost, being busted with the side chick or a coming out, which is not in itself negative, but usually makes for some dropped jaws. Family skeletons, infidelity, dirty little secrets, nothing is safe when this card falls in the spread. Depending on the position and the other cards, the reversed Room can show whose secret it is, whether the querent’s or someone else’s.  As with its upright counterpart, be careful of cards showing ill-will or carelessness, as gossip and scandals may be afoot.

Work and Money: in addition to the negative news possibly being about money or work, more specifically this card normally points to mismanagement, the inability to save, and major difficulties budgeting. However, when the other cards are positive, the polarity of the reversed Ace of Diamonds may be improved and its meaning once again be referred to that of prosperity and the ability to profit from reserved information, usually with the added nuance that the person is qualified as shrewd and a bit ruthless, as he or she may not think twice about using sensitive bits of knowledge or throwing someone under the bus, Devil wears Prada style. In general, as far as money goes, this card is negative but open to improvements.

Other: psychologically, the A♦R points to not being at peace with oneself and to unresolved “inner” issues. It is one of those cards that can show a tormented mental or emotional state. Similarly, it can show someone who doesn’t feel at peace with God (although, with positive cards, it may point to finally owning up to some dark past secrets that weigh on one’s conscience).

Important Combinations:
A♦R + K♠ = having charges pressed against you, legal quarrels (here, the shocking revelation is that the authority is trying to land your tush in court)
A♦R + 7♦ = traditionally, discovery of a child born outside of marriage | more generally, an unpleasant truth coming to light due to naive behavior (in this case 7♦ is interchangeable with 10♣)
A♦R + 2♥ = unpleasant family secrets coming to light
A♦R + 6♣R + 8♠ = it can signify the mismanagement of money landing you into a critical position
A♦R + 4♦ = an unpleasant revelation that is, however, false | defamation

Other Combinations: Vera Sibilla | Examples of Combinations – The Aces

Card Meanings, Cartomancy, Divination, Divination Master Post, Everyday Oracle, Fortune-telling, Sibilla della Zingara, Vera Sibilla

Vera Sibilla | Ace of Clubs – Marriage (Imeneo)

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Name: Marriage
Italian Name: Imeneo*
Playing Card: A♣
Polarity when Upright: Positive
Core Meanings: Union, Marriage, Partnership, Contract, Productivity, Good Business, Inception, Beginning
Polarity when Reversed: Neutral
Reversed Core Meanings: The material aspect of life, Wealth, Abundance, Sex, Conception, Unions or Marriages that don’t happen or fall apart

Card Description: A man is about to slip a wedding band on the finger of his beloved. In the background, a flame burns on an altar.

Suit and Number: Aces relate to the way in people come together and unite. In the suit of Clubs, this takes on the meaning of official, binding agreements, among which marriage is chief. Aces also refers to new things and news, so the Ace of Clubs is the card of all those things and projects that take root in reality, all things that materialize, and is therefore associated with production and the beginning of entertprises (or of life).

UPRIGHT A♣

General: A great card, in general, whose importance extends to all aspects of life. It represents all circumstances where two or more people come together to form a binding union, as exemplified by the picture of the exchanging of rings. Most of the times, this is the significator card for a marriage or partnership or a contract of some kind. Unless negative cards qualify it, it brings with it positive connotations of satisfaction and advancement. Just as marriage is a binding contract that marks the beginning of a new phase of life, so this card can stand for all actions that start something new, that make something begin to materialize.

Love and Relationships: this card is mute as far as feelings are concerned. In itself, it does not say whether someone loves us or not. However, it does bring with it a sense of commitment, as the general meaning of marriage implies the willingness to put your life in someone else’s hands. Near a significator card, it can show that the person is married. When it signifies the marriage itself, what happens to it must be read from the cards surrounding it. Here you will find whether the union is rooted in faithfulness or not, whether someone is interfering or all is as it should be. Beware of when cards like Falsehood or the Thief fall nearby.
In all other types of personal relationships, this card can generally be taken to signify that the person is trustworthy and keeps his or her word, but this is a rather weak undertone.

Work and Money: an excellent card. When it represents a job contract, unless other cards qualify it otherwise, it shows a good contract that will benefit the querent. The Ace of Clubs may also show a company’s ability to bind people to it, that is, acquiring (often high level) clients, contractors or subcontractors. It can foretell a good deal and it portends good business in general. As this card is a significator of marriage, it can also be a significator of a partnership of any kind, as long as it is legally binding. Again, anything that makes two or more people commit to one another.

Other: In more mundane questions, this card can represent acquiring or buying things, as the transaction is its own kind of legally binding operation between people. Usually the Ace of Clubs shows the buying of cool stuff, not a gadgeteer’s trinkets. Although its association with sex comes to the fore mostly when it is reversed, it can still, on occasion, function as a sex card when upright, provided it is surrounded by the right cards in the appropriate context. Psychologically it doesn’t have much of a meaning, except that it can represent a committed person or being productive. Artistically, it is one of the cards that can relate to music (the god Hymen was a patron of music), or creativity understood as the ability to produce new pieces (songs, books, paintings, etc.).

Important Combinations:
A♣ + 2♥ = married life | a company
A♣ + 3♠ = abandoning the marriage, separation
10♦ + A♣ = someone is trying to snatch away the partner
A♣ + 7♥ = a high level contract | a partnership or a business partner
A♣ + K♠R = a divorce (especially with 7♠)

REVERSED A♣R

General: A neutral card with slightly positive undertones, it is heavily influenced by the polarity of the surrounding cards. In the main, this is the card of all that is physical and material: sex, money, wealth, etc. The meaning of materiality comes from the card’s upright sense of “coming together” of people but now referred to a lower (reversed) aspect, which is sex, a concept that is associated with matter and materialism. This is also why the card, although neutral, can be easily influenced by negative cards.

Love and Relationships: this is the nookie card, and that’s pretty much it. It says absolutely nothing about emotional fulfillment: if it is there, other cards will show it. Alternatively, it can qualify a person who is wealthy. If it represents the querent’s marriage, though, finding it upside down is not good, and it may show it going south. Near significators, it can show them to be divorced or separated.

Work and Money: Being neutral, this card represents the concept of wealth and material possessions. It is the card of precious metals, exclusive items, finery and creature comforts. Together with cards that signify nobility of excellence it reinforces the concept, and in general it retains the notion of material benefit that it had when upright. When near negative cards, though, it can prognosticate heavy losses and financial collapse, or the collapse of business ventures. If the querent needs to sign a contract, the Reversed Marriage card together with negative cards should be a read flag, or it may show that the contract simply won’t be signed.

Other: being the card of sex, the upright concept of production can now be referred to the conception of children. Psychologically, with negative cards, it can point to feeling defeated or powerless and staring into the abyss. It can also be a sign of materialism. Otherwise, this is not a psychological card.

Important Combinations:
A♣R + 2♥R = married life is stifling, the person would like to abandon it | the company is in hot water
A♣R + A♦ = sex
A♣R + 7♦ = conception
A♣R + 6♥ = liquid assets
A♣R + 3♦ = exclusive objects | a high status (especially with 8♦ and/or 2♣)

Other Combinations: Vera Sibilla | Examples of Combinations – The Aces

* Imeneo doesn’t, strictly speaking, mean marriage. Imeneo, i.e., Hymen or Hymenaios was a minor late Greek god of marriage. The root of his name means “to sew together”, which is probably the best description of this card: it represents all acts that join people together. I chose the title “Marriage” simply because it is less awkward and it means basically the same thing.

Card Meanings, Cartomancy, Divination, Divination Master Post, Everyday Oracle, Fortune-telling, Sibilla della Zingara, Vera Sibilla

Vera Sibilla | Ace of Hearts – The Conversation (Conversazione)

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Name: Conversation
Italian Name: Conversazione
Playing Card: A♥
Polarity when Upright: Neutral with positive undertones
Core Meanings: Words, Conversation, Meeting, Expression | Groups of people leaving together, Tight-knit group
Polarity when Reversed: Neutral to negative
Reversed Core Meanings: Change, Transformation | Lack of communication, negative communications

Card Description: a group of people talking around a table. There seems to be great complicity among them.

Suit and Number: Aces all have to do with news and with how people come together to interact. In the suit of Hearts, this translates as information received by interacting with other people. The interaction is positive (or at least neutral) as words imply the mediation between different points of view, values, desires, etc.

UPRIGHT A♥

General: the card is neutral in itself, but it has positive undertones. It is concerned with words. Words are what we use to express what we have inside, to mediate with others, to get a point across, to discuss situations, to find solutions, and so on. Words, of course, imply the existence of at least two people, so this card can also represent meetings of any kind. Since Aces represent unity, the Ace of Hearts is connected with groups of people who live under the same roof, or at least are quite tight-knit. There is a sense of community to this card, and a general undertone of harmony, tranquillity and stability.

Love and Relationships: the oral aspect of the subject matter (yes, this can include oral sex, though it’s not, of course, the primary meaning). In general, this card shows meetings, dates, appointments and has a strong interpersonal component. It heralds declarations, explanations, clarifications and the like. Near negative cards, though, it brings strife (usually only arguments). In love, if the person is single, the card’s appearance will often predict the meeting of someone new, or, if sandwiched between negative cards, show that the person has difficulties with people or expressing himself. If a person’s relationship is hitting the rocks, the Conversation card can show the attempt at stitching it back together, and in itself shows the ability to find compromises, since words are what we use to connect what’s inside of me to what’s inside of you, and therefore mediate.

Work and Money: the most obvious way this card will show up is to show talks, meetings, interviews and roundtables, contacts and networking. Again, it is a neutral to positive card, easily influenced by the surrounding cards, so while it can herald opportunities, negative cards surrounding it may warn us that we are going to be talked into something bad.
Another important meaning concerns the querent’s relationships on the job, that is, whether he gets along with people or not. Naturally, the Ace of Hearts has an affinity with all careers where one is constantly around people or uses language, and it is an important card to check when one is looking to win over clients. In fact, the proximity of negative cards to the Conversation can show an inability to reach people or clearly present a product, or an unwillingness of people to come to the store and buy it.

Other: in countries like Italy, where many school exams and tests are almost exclusively oral, this is an important card to check to see how it will go. Artists also want the Ace of Hearts surrounded by good cards, as it shows their ability to express themselves and give voice to what they have inside (but depending on the context and question, it may also represent their core audence or the public). Psychologically, the Conversation can represent a people-person or someone who is capable of connecting with others (if with good cards, that is). In general, it represents openness, but with cards that hint at lies, manipulation and the likes it will show the opposite, while with cards of hardship it can point to the inability to open up about something. Spiritually, it’s the card of prayers and can represent religious or spiritual gatherings and communities.

Important Combinations:

A♥ + 4♥ = a declaration of love, a date
A♥ + K♦ = job interview, a work meeting
A♥ + 4♦ = lies, wrong information, wrong crowd
A♥ + 3♥ = traditionally an engagement, but more in general it can be a talk that yields results
A♥ + 10♠ = secret meeting (especially with the 10♠R) | lack of openness, difficulties expressing yourself | a foreign language | can also be a lie

REVERSED A♥R

General: The card remains vaguely neutral, but much more open to the influence of negative cards. It’s the kind of neutral that makes you raise an eyebrow. In its main traditional meaning, it is the card of change, because it reverses the upright sense of harmony and stability. Change can be good or bad, of course, depending on what changes and into what. Furthermore, the card takes the concept of words and applies the more negative connotation of a reversed card to it, bringing arguments, battles, communication barriers or lack of communication.

Love and Relationships: When it heralds changes to the querent’s love life, the A♥R usually either allows a single person to break a spell of solitude (if it’s followed by cards showing romance) or it can engender changes that tear a couple apart. Either way, this card does not favor stability and will normally shake things up quite noticeably, unless the cards are used to investigate some more subtle interpersonal dynamics, in which case it is can show changes of attitude, etc.
Sometimes, the Conversation Reversed highlights a lack of communication, misunderstandings, the inability or unwillingless to compromise or, with the appropriate cards, arguments. Often, there is a sense of incompleteness or lack of fulfillment, the kind of which makes you look at the other person and say “who are you really?” Alone, this is not a card that will break a couple or a family or group of friends, but it can be the cause that leads to the breakup. It also does not favor new meetings

Work and Money: when it signifies change, again, this card is neutral, its meaning fully depending on the cards that follow and precede this one. It can bring you out of a rut or hurl you into one, it can lift you up or slam you down, and the changes it herald are normally of some moment, although usually either less radical or less painful or less all-encompassing than the Death card. It can bring changes to the workplace, or changes of career field.

Under the influence of the Ace of Hearts Reversed, meetings and interviews usually either do not happen at all or do not go well. It can refer to difficulties getting along with the coworkers or luring clients to your products. Sometimes it may even show that you are not representing your product well, with the consequence that it is either not bought or it is bought under false assumptions, causing dissatisfaction.

Other: Psychologically, the Conversation Reversed is a card of instability, of lack of openness to the outside, of communication barriers that keep one from reaching out or revealing one’s most intimate ideas and feelings. It therefore can cause a sense of dissatisfaction. On the other hand, in the right context, it can allow one to develop new ideas by changing their mind. Much depends on the context of the question and the other cards.  Artistically it is generally not good, as it normally implies the inability to tap your inner creativity and express it or to find an audience.
Spiritually, it can bring conversions or loss of faith. It may reveal a lack of relationship with the divine. The Upright Conversation can in itself show the discussion of a court case, but when reversed, the card can highlight it even more, if pertinent.

Important Combinations:

A♥R + K♠ = a legal battle
A♥R + 8♣R = inability to get along
A♥R + 2♥ = can show home renovations
A♥R + 7♣ = can be a change of status
A♥R + K♦ = changes on the job

Other Combinations: Vera Sibilla | Examples of Combinations – The Aces