Hanson Roberts - The 4 Pages

Flavio

I've noticed the pages of active elements wear a hat and those pages from pasive elements wear a band in their hair, made wonder if pages of pasive elements are supposed to be girls and those pages from active elements are boys, is difficult to know as they all are kids excpet for the page of swords who looks older than the other 3.

Page of Rods
This page seems to me the happier and younger among all the pages, this page shows enthusiasm and, to me looks like playing screaming something to hear his echo. he wears a beautiful necklace with a smiling golden sun this sun is in his chest making me think all the optimism in his heart, the same optimism we have when starting a new project or the fight for something we want.

Page of Swords
The appeareance is not only older than the other 3 pages but also seems more mature, the face expression is tough and thinkful, a sword ready to attack, but will he think clearly before acting or the other way around?

Page of Pentacles
From the 4 pages, she looks to me more like a girl, her clothes seems less luxurious or elaborated among the 4 pages, this page symbols an early stage in the management of our resources, she has a pentacle in her hands like a seed waiting to be planted in the rich fields behind the page.

Page of Cups
This pages seems engaged in an interesting conversation with the fish in the cup, children create imaginary friends and this fish friend seems to have a lot to tell! behind the Page, there is a big wave symbol of the big emotional potential of the page that must mature and be directed.

On a personal level I like this card because my niece saw it when she was 4 y/o and said it was me, because I keep an aquarium at home so I also have fish friends.
 

RedMaple

What a wonderful story about the fish. The Page of Cups is one of my favorite cards in this deck. The child is so full of wonder and delight. I love the fish, and the magnificent wave behind the child, a promise of all the emotion, creativity, and love to come. I love also that the child is wearing a heart on the shoulder -- literally wearing their heart on their sleeve.

I actually see all the Pages as very androgynous, except the Page of Pentacles who does seem female. But I think it is that unfortunate 70's hairdo - the top of her head just seems too high. Maybe when she manages her resources better she can get a better haircut. She is my least favorite page in this deck - she seems sad. She has not really looked at her gift yet, her gaze is elsewhere. Maybe that is the slowness of earth in comparison to the other elements? She is in red, white, and black, which indicates the Great Mother Goddess, but she doesn't know who she is, I think.

I love the energy of the Pages of Rods and Swords. Both of them, as you say, very active. I like the connection to the sun on the wands card, and the active calling out into the world. The Page of Rods (One question I have is why she called them rods, when she portrays them as flowering wands...) has a firm grasp on the flowering wand, knows already, instinctively, how to use this gift.

The Page of Swords I have seen as a young woman, going out to meet the challenges of the world, with her sword raised, her mind sharp. She too, has already grasped the importance of her gift, and is ready to use it. In this card she is dressed in green, with white/grey feathers, are they owl feathers? In any case, she seems very grounded in the earth in spite of her intellectual sharpness, she has allies in the air and the owl. I like her very much.
 

rachelcat

Wow, what great ideas! They will definitely influence my ideas of these cards. I like the observations about the hats. I usually like to use decks in which the pages are princesses (just for gender equality!), but I can see the advantage of having cards that could be young people of either gender.

Page of Swords--I see this page as a girl, too. An idealistic college student who is determined to right wrongs. Her eyes are on the prize. She is a heroine.

Page of Coins--Oh, I think this is a beautiful card! He is not looking at his coin because he is in a still meditative state, at one with the earth. There is a story that when the Buddha was a young boy, there was a planting festival in which his father, the king, ceremonially plowed the first furrow. Sitting under a tree a bit removed from the festivities and surrounded by the beauty of the springtime earth, he entered a spontaneous natural meditative state and gained an understanding of the cycles of life and death. This is the page of coins. I just put this connection together today. Previously, I could never understand what books meant when they said "earth of earth" means something like "mystical understanding." Now I have an idea!

Page of Cups--I love your story, Flavio! I'll never look at this card again without thinking "fish friend"! But I think this page may be a bit surprised to find a fish in his cup! This is one of the cards I wish were a "princess of cups" because I think we need a "desireable young woman" card (the feminine elements of water and earth) to balance the "desireable young man" card Prince/Knight of Wands (masculine elements fire and air). But she (he) is a bit more adorned with pretty clothing than the other pages.

Page of Rods--He is calling because he is acting out the traditional page meaning of communications or messages. He is a messenger or herald. He looks like he has the Rods/Wands characteristics of confidence and competence. He is young but he has traveled far and he will accomplish his mission.

Hope this isn't too long. I'm really getting into this study group thing. Can't you tell? :)
 

RedMaple

rachelcat said:
Page of Coins--Oh, I think this is a beautiful card! He is not looking at his coin because he is in a still meditative state, at one with the earth. There is a story that when the Buddha was a young boy, there was a planting festival in which his father, the king, ceremonially plowed the first furrow. Sitting under a tree a bit removed from the festivities and surrounded by the beauty of the springtime earth, he entered a spontaneous natural meditative state and gained an understanding of the cycles of life and death. This is the page of coins. I just put this connection together today. Previously, I could never understand what books meant when they said "earth of earth" means something like "mystical understanding." Now I have an idea!

Thanks for the Buddha story, Rachelcat. I will have to look at this card in a new light. I usually like the Page of Pentacles/Coins, so was disappointed in this image.

Flavio, I also like the idea of the coin being a seed the Page can plant in the field.

You've really opened this card up for me, thanks.
 

tarotlova

The Page of Swords reminds me of my oldest daughter, very smart and always on the defensive, her clear quick thinking supprise's people when they meet her and she was,and is quiet a challanging child, so this card to me means a suprise,good or bad depending on surrounding cards and the information you get will have to be acted on quickly you will need a clear head.As Swords is air I think the wearing of a green surcoat means that what you think and do will have earthly reprecussions and the brown cloak reaffirms this to me sort of like what you sow you will reap.

I find it interesting that the Page of Pentacles has a red coat over a white hirt you would think it would be green as it is associated with earth, but as the color red means passion and new beginings, love ect I think this page has found out that all the energy he/she has put into creating some thing material wasn't all that satisfying after all hence the rather sad look. I think everyone in there life at some time has been to caught up in getting material items at the expense of there spirtual side so this card serves as a reminder it's okay to get a nice house job ect but don't let it overtake your life.

The Page of Rods on the other hand looks really happy he is shouting his news to the world whatever is flowering in his life is good, the red cloak is his passion about what he is happy about, the orange tunic the communication the sun around his neck happy news, the green belt and hat the connection to the earth it hasn't gone to his head the mountains the stability behind it, but also maybe an obstacle but he will climb over it when the time/challange comes.

The Page of Cups looks supprised to me too, wether it is the fish in his cup or at the depth of his emotions, the wave behind him looks like it is going to crash down onto him, maybe the fish in his cup is trying to warn him, how many times have we ignored our emotions, let our head rule our heart when some times it is better to follow our heart. The blue green of his clothes affirm to me that whatever the subject is, it is an emotional one, the purple under tunic a spirtual one to. I find that the red clasp holding his cloak together to be glinting over his heart confirms to listen with his heart the red ribbon around the cup too, and as the red stone around his head is smaller, to not let the head have to much say in the matter at hand. The seaweed on his cloak looks to be wavering, like his/her emotions.
 

Lurea

These are great ideas.

I really like the androgynous aspect of these cards, too. Again, it reinforces that they can be youth of either gender (or neither but messages to the querent). In my study of other decks, I've noted that all the Pages/princesses are capable of bearing 'messages'. I was a little surprised when I looked more closely at the HR LWB and found less emphasis on 'messages' meanings.

I thought it might be interesting to set my impressions from other decks against the HR LWB.

Page of Rods: Someone who is dynamic and creative, and loves challenge. Messages about using your creativity in a new direction, perhaps a new career or a new project.
LWB: Envoy. Emissary. Trusted friend. Stranger with good news. Bearer of important messages.

Page of Cups: Starting a new romance. Good news. The birth of a child.
LWB: Meditative. Loyal. Helpful person. Trustworthy.

Page of Swords: Stimulating new ideas and thoughts. Unexpected news that changes everything, equally possible in a good or bad way.
LWB: Insight. Person adept at perceiving, discovering, and discerning. Spying.

Page of Pentacles: Time to start a new job or change directions. Someone with good business sense, or who is reliable and practical. A studious person. Good news coming about a job, money or signing a contract.
LWB: The scholar. Desire for leaning. Do-gooder. Bearer of news.

Maybe it's just the way I do it, but I find I give a messages meaning to the Pages probably at least 50% of the time. I'm curious how others' experience this.

Messages or actual people?
 

Flavio

Lurea_aure said:
Maybe it's just the way I do it, but I find I give a messages meaning to the Pages probably at least 50% of the time. I'm curious how others' experience this.

Messages or actual people?
Court cards always represent a challenge for readers because of the so many things they have been known or said to represent, I've come to discover that many times is the Querent the one who has the answer or can give a clue to what kind of role is playing the Court card in the reading.

Once I had this CC with lots of court cards I was very confused, I asked the Querent about cards in position 1 and 2, I explored two theories the cards there represented her children or her job, when she said the positions 1 and 2 looked more like her children situation as she was thinking in them while shuffling the cards, the whole CC made a lot more of sense, weeks later she told me a "lady card" represented a hidden girlfriend who was causing a lot of trouble to her older son after an unfriendly break, she also provided me with feedback on some of the advice provided during the reading.

The lesson was very clear for me from that moment, when in doubt I'll ask the Querent for directions, an action like this is valid in order to get a useful reading even if at any moment might cause the Querent to doubt of my reading skills, once in the right track I'll have many chances to use the directions given for Querent's benefit.
 

Flavio

I've been avoiding the LWB, but I checked it to know about pages gender, this is the result:

Pentacles: Girl
Swords, Rods and Cups: Boys

Why only pentacles page is a girl? my first thought is because of the "Mother Earth" related to a nature femenine principle but if so, also the Cups page should be a girl. Anyway I think it doesn't matter that much when intuitively reading or considering a court card can show a person of any gender but with personality of the character.
 

JCSeawright

page of rods

alot of the time when i see the page of rods it looks to me like he/she is listening to a conversation and is sometimes not always an indication someone is calling, or writing or that they will recieve some kind of information depending as to what it is placed by depends on the type of information but this card stands out to me as the 'talking in your ear' card conversation card
 

suzsus

When I learned this deck, I was taught that the Pages represent the immature feminine energy of each element (despite their appearance in the imagery, as I can agree with the comments that certain ones are ambiguous or decidedly more male looking). The knights represent the immature masculine energy of each element; the queens the mature feminine; the kings the mature masculine. Overall I have found gender to be very fluid within tarot. Sometimes a card with an image of a male can represent a female or one of her traits, and vice versa. Basically everything is open for interpretation!