Waterhouse - Circe ~The Sorceress

Hemera

Here is a link to the picture: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sorceress

This is one of my favorite Waterhouse paintings. The window and the orchard look a lot like in the Crystal Ball so this could almost be the same house. The card doesn´t show the beautiful felines very well but looks like there are two of them in the picture. Maybe they are shapeshifters, or men or women that she has changed to animals with her potions? One of the big cats has probably knocked down the chalice but Circe doesn´t seem to notice. She is deep in her thoughts. The Grimoire on the table shows her magical drawings and there is what looks like a Mandrake root on the table.

“KIRKE (or Circe) was a goddess pharmakeia (witch or sorceress) who lived with her nymph attendants on the mythical island of Aiaia. She was skilled in the magic of metamorphosis, the power of illusion, and the dark art of necromancy. …Kirke's name was derived from the Greek verb kirkoô meaning "to secure with rings" or "hoop around"--a reference to her magical powers.” (www.theoi.com)


In a reading this card could mean:

* animals (esp. cats), shapeshifting,
* metamorphosis, sudden change
* healing, medication, dreams, hallucinations
* arts and crafts, weaving, drawing, cooking
 

seven stars

Waterhouse was just sooooo good at facial expressions - even for this card, it's all in the expression for me.

In Invidiosa, the facial expression is resolute, hurt, determined, scorned. But in the Sorceress, the expression is much more contemplative & calm.

I read a thing once on reading "eyes" - as in, how to tell if someone is lying, etc, by the direction of their eye movements ( see http://www.simplybodylanguage.com/eye-body-language.html ) - if you notice, Circe's eyes in the painting are a little downcast and to the LEFT. At that moment, she's not thinking of revenge or the things she's planning or going to do in the future, although all articles around her reflect "action" & magic & planning & plotting. She's "thinking" about the past, the lover who refused her, what could have been - there's a sorrow there.

I think we all have our moments, when we've been hurt, where we come to that crossroads of do we use our magic for good (forgiveness) or evil (revenge).