The Gothic Tarot by Vargo - Eight Of Cups

WolfyJames

A woman, wearing a white dress, is in a cemetary, her back on us. With her left hand, she caresses a grave, while with the right hand, she caresses the statue of an angel. In her back stands eight cups.

It looks like she's about to go, but she's pausing before, hesitating, caressing her surrendings with nostalgia. The cups in her back are weight that don't want to let her go, weight that block her, anchoring her to this place.
 

Umbrae

Here, I do not see the eight cups as weighting her down, or holding the ghost back. Notice she is stepping though the opening between Cups one and eight? I perceive the eight cups as being similar to a fairy circle or a magic circle – they helped rise her up from the internment of the grave – they set her free (kind of like the old, “Love will set you free”, even in death).

The Statue holding the skull, seems to be offering it to her, like something she will be needing on her journey.

In this card of ‘moving on’, I get a feeling of love and growth – as opposed to the RWS concept of ‘turning away’.
 

Alissa

I see her as lingering, giving herself a moment longer to remember before leaving it behind. Is she remembering the one whose grave this is, guarded by the stone angel? The angelic monument is tipped, unstable ground?

And geez, I'm incorrigible. She looks like she's wearing thong underwear. (Do ghosts have thong underwear?)
 

WolfyJames

Yeah... you are incorrigible ;) I did look closely and you're right, she could be wearing a thong, but it also looks as some shadow in her back, but she could be wearing a thong too. Did you check carefully the others cards to see whether they wear underwear or not? This could be funny to discover what kind of underwear the Vargo's vampires and ghosts wear. ;) This could give us hints about Vargo and his fantaisies. Maybe it was done to accentuate the erotic aspects of the deck.
 

Adjustment

Alissa said:
I

And geez, I'm incorrigible. She looks like she's wearing thong underwear. (Do ghosts have thong underwear?)

You have very good eyes Alissa yes looksl like she is wearing a thong. She is a very curvy ghost. I see a very warm environment in this card as if she feel sorry to leave the cups behind.
 

September Pixie

I still see the 'turning away from' in this card as she walks away from 'US' and our eyes.. cloaked figure on the head stone.. could it indicate being too closed into ourselves? Skull.... something decaying in out relationships? The cups are super imposed over the picture... indicating something added to the situation? Tomb stones... paying too much attention to something buried and forgotten?
 

mercenary30

Eight of Cups

The scene depicts a graveyard, with a thick fog clinging to the ground. A bare tree and numerous tombstones stick up through the mist. The most prominent marker is a life sized statue of what looks to be a hooded death angel. A skull is held out with both hands of the figure as if presenting it to the viewer. A very attractive female spirit, surrounded by 8 chalices, seems to be walking away. Her head is turned enough to see her profile, her eyes seem to be closed, which actually give her face a less ghostly appearance. Her hand seems to be affectionately reaching for the cowled angel.

The look upon her face seems to be tranquil, like she has been released from her ghostly bonds and is now heading off into the night for the last time. Someone must have fulfilled a quest to right the wrongs that kept this spirit from reaching the ever after. I wonder what that death angel signified to her. I imagine that although it is a very good thing to have been able to free this spirit from her haunts, how hard it must be to let her go……
 

annik

Strangely, I feel that the cups are surrounding the ghost to show her the way (like going ahear, toward the angel with the skull). Seems to be the starting point of something new.

The ghost doesn't show to be affraid. She make me think of a nymph. And the way she look, she seems to be a bit unsure (to me).

She doen't have any foot. Must be cool to float above ground. It's having a certain element of a dream-state.