Robin Wood - Wheel Of Fortune - 10

spinningspider

Having my sun in Sagittarius, the Wheel of Fortune is a card that not only am I attuned to astrologically, but is a wake-up call for me if it shows up in my own, personal readings. I KNOW I need to pay close attention when this card appears. It's a card that's packed with emotional possibilities...depending on where it shows up in a spread and whether it's upright or reversed. It's a card that's "in action" for a time, but heading for the inevitability of stopping . It can stop on happiness OR it can stop on despair OR it can fall somewhere in-between. Many things can be attributed to where it stops for a person: the circumstances one finds oneself in, the general personality of the person or people involved, the mood of the moment, how one handles crises or stress, the health of the person or people involved, etc. In a reading, I try to figure out whether or not the ball is still in motion (change is occurring) or whether it has stopped (what occurred due to recent change) or that it needs to be set into motion once again (change needs to happen.)

A few sayings that I remember hearing in childhood, "All good things must end," and "What goes up must come down," come to mind when I see this card. Both sayings aren't particularly positive, but do give me a reality check, knowing that if I get too cocky or am riding a bit too high on the wave, down on my rear I will eventually go if I'm not careful to check myself. Conversely, if it feels like fate has dealt a mighty blow or blows, I know that the pendulum will swing in the other direction eventually, always giving me hope for a better situation to come.

Change is inevitable...it's the one thing we can always count on. The Wheel of Fortune card often reminds me of this.

Robin's drawing of the "Wheel of Fortune" is much more meaningful to me than that same card depicted in many other decks I've seen. I find that I don't have to strain for what I need to learn from it. What it teaches becomes crystal clear quickly. Robin's card is full of human emotions...emotions everyone can relate to at some time or another.
 

Moonson

the expression: "life is a game..." (heard it somewhere...) came to my mind when i saw this card. I got the feeling of uncertainty, feeling of everything can happen. Life's up's and down's, joys and sorrows...
The wheel turns and all we can do is see where it stops, like spinningspider has said: "It can stop on happiness OR it can stop on despair..."

I also feel like it also talks about, free will or... About all the things we can't control.
 

Morwenna

I had this deck for quite some time (I got it long before the book came out) before I realized that this card portrayed a roulette wheel. The circle of fluctuating emotions told me plenty already, but the roulette ball just made it! So instead of things going in a cycle, there's the possibility of randomness. Now that's life for you!
 

saostarr

i think the interpretation of this card depends largely on where and how it is placed in the reading.
when playing the game of life, we make decisions that set things in motion but we really don't know what the outcome will be, or how we will feel in the end. i think maybe the position of this card in the spread will give us some insight into how the chips may fall. for example, an upright Wheel of Fortune may indicate ensured success, while a reversad one could be a hint that you're gonna lose this hand.
kind of a weird interpretation, i know, but that's what i get from the card.
 

Morwenna

Very true! The reversal would make the despairing face upright!
 

shiresun

Wheel Of Fortune

I am nowhere. I am everywhere. I am on a giant wheel, walking around a yellow rim, passing segments; some with smiling faces, some with no emotion, and some the expression marred by possible misfortune. What does it all mean? How does it relate to the journeys of the past, and how will it lead to those of the future?

It is more like a piece of puzzle from a picture not of this pilgrimage. I feel confused, mystified, uncertain what to think, how to figure it out.

The title seems too obvious: WHEEL OF FORTUNE. Is life that much of a crap shoot? Do we bounce mindlessly around within our emotions, depending on events? Or could it mean that even while we grow, the things of life continue to come to us, and with learning, we can change, not the situation, but our reaction to it, learning to control the emotions? Perhaps, as in life, we are faced with many possible reactions. Until we learn more about ourselves, we are stuck within the confines of the wheel, allowing events to control us. Is this the station where we get off and see how we've done so far, and learn that the landscape of life keeps spinning and changing because we're changing at every turn? What happens when we evolve? Can we then determine how we react to any given moment?

I have to say this is a confusing card. But within a reading, IF someone did reversals, it would make more sense... or if it crossed another card, even then, it might have greater meaning. Otherwise, it's just about 'how lucky do you feel right now?' and has the appearance of the roulette wheel, with the little silver orb zooming ever on, with no surcease.

Does it say we have no choice of the events of our life, and we'll run the gamut from the most fabulous moments to the most devastating, and all that are between them? Is there a cycle... one day we're up, the next we're heading into a downward spiral, but even that will change, and we'll be riding up toward better possibilities.

I feel as if there is nothing to grasp onto, because the wheel is forever turning (say it with me... The Wheel of the Year?), and we can't really say, 'stop the world, I want to get off." can we? Is this all about simple luck of the draw? or about making a concerted effort to control how life effects us?
 

Ravenne

Isn't this card exactly what it does to us? Wanting / trying / having / willing / hoping to:
know
tell and explain,
give meaning to it
choose
And so on and so forth. This card has so many faces. But one thing it apparently does; it keeps us busy, puzzled. I try to not focus on the facial expressions anymore, unless this is the obvious meaning, as I found it very distracting.
In most readings I see it as some form of movement, change. A roulette or Wheel of Fortune isn't supposed to stand still, it's supposed to move. Depending on what's at stake, the querent can wait in hope, fear, anxiety etc. for the wheel to stop. But if it's not turned, it might be worse. Like in a casino, most people want to play, want the wheel turned. Some hope to win, other fear loss and want to get it over with. If no one turns the wheel, people might start to feel angry, flustered and if it lasts long, take it out on each other. The sheer turning of the wheel might raise adrenaline levels and expectations (hope and fear at the same time), but it least something is happening!
Nevertheless it remains a difficult card.

Ravenne
 

Moonson

Agree, it's a tricky card! :)

[offtopic: glad to see this group alive again!!]
 

Ravenne

(whispering to Moonson: me too! It's wonderful to have a separate Robin Wood section available for reference and sharing :) )