9 of Cups - Thoughts?

Little Baron

For the past couple of days, I have been pulling cards from the RWS.

Todays card is the '9 of Cups'.

I have always disliked this card the most from this deck. I just don't warm to that guy. Looking at other clones of the RWS, I get the same feeling about him - he looks even more repellant in the Morgan Greer and the Universal Tarots. There is just something I don't like; maybe it is the 'keeping you at arms length' posture. That complacency he seems to behold.

Because of this, I find it hard to interpret the card.

My thoughts today were -
He looks as though he is guarding something. His legs are astride and his arms are folded - almost saying 'don't come any further'. What is beneath the table and hidden under the fabric? The cups, to me, are like trophies. Does the fabric suggest that he hides his feelings and what we see is only the surface stuff (the cups)? Is this card suggesting we get in tune with our emotions and share them with others? Pull away the fabric and reveal what is underneath?

I have read that he is content, that he may be over-indulgent, that he is pleased by his accomplishments. All of these interpretations are interesting, but I feel there has to be something more. That table looks very tall and the fabric intreagues me. Any other ideas?

Yabs
 

Imagemaker

I can understand why a fashion designer is drawn to questioning the fabric--I never thought about it beyond a "display" setup.

I've always seen this card as pride in achievement. In some readings, that comes across as arrogance and smug superiority, in others, it's just sheer celebration (trophy dinner) for accomplishing a goal.

I think it's the Tarot of the Old Path that shows a celebration meal with multiple people. I've always seen it as a celebration and the 9 as the peak of an emotional journey.

The fabric could hide how one got there--could be destructive, possibly negative methods, but also a painful effort/sacrifice behind the smiling winner.
 

Fulgour

Caveat Emptor

The curved shape of the table, its horseshoe semicircle.
Imagine if you walk forward, to inspect the nine cups,
now with our smiling friend standing close behind you,
cups before you, cups left and right, which to choose?

Can you think clearly, with the peculiar man whispering,
"Ah! I see you have good taste, you don't miss a thing."
 

Little Baron

Never thought of the fabric maybe hiding negative methods of getting to where the guy is. I like that idea. Thanks Imagemaker.

Haha, I like that too Fulgour; even if the man whispering to me does feel a little 'creepy', hehe.

Yabs
 

poivre

I get the feeling sometimes that this card is
happiness for yourself, not a shared feeling.
The happiness will only last for a short time because it is a secret.
The secret of your happiness is hiding behind the curtain.
Once any kind of secret is brought to light the anxiety or fun of
hiding it, is over and you move on.
 

MichelleS

When I look at the card I get the idea of storing pleasures rather than fully enjoying them. This might be similar to when you have an untouched box of chocolates that look so lovely and delicious you almost feel as if it would be a shame to start eating them. The way the cups are lined up, and the way he sits before them, looks to me always as if he is guarding the pleasures but not really partaking of them. Perhaps he is saving them for a perfect moment when he can enjoy them the most. However, if he doesn't pick one soon it's possible the cups might get stale. It's also possible the "perfect" moment will never come & so he should really try to appreciate what he has & enjoy it, rather than horde onto it in a smug manner. The card always slightly unsettles me.
 

Imagemaker

It can be a reminder not to be smug about this high point. Like after a spell of amazingly accurate tarot readings, then total blankness! :)
 

Aoife

A few disjointed thoughts....
I ask myself:
~ would people in 1910 have perceived the man in quite the same way as we do now?
~ Is there something of the Protestant work ethic represented here?
~ Historical depictions of heaven frequently show 'plenty'
~ Have our attitudes towards pride changed?
~ Have our attitudes towards how we 'display' emotion changed?
~ What if the figure is female, do I still feel the same way?

Despite this, I feel there's a great disparity between the fluidity of water and the lining up of the cups. All is not as it seems.
 

Imagemaker

I feel there's a great disparity between the fluidity of water and the lining up of the cup

Ooo, I like this! The proud man trapping his emotions in a neat little row of achievements. Wow, good one!
 

Dstar

I agree that this man displays his cups as though they are trophies. As you would expect from someone displaying the cups they have achieved, there is pride, satisfaction, smugness, achievement. And as for what the curtain hides, well what must have gone into attaining each cup? How much pain and emotion is spent to achieve one trophy? But think of the sportsman displaying his cups, he doesn't outwardly show the suffering each caused him, and likewise, to me, this man hides those emotions behind his smug or proud smile, the same way that, if you were standing on the other side of the curtain, it would hide the man...and you would only see the cups.

D.