“A chain of flowers is harder to break than a chain of iron”

Keywords: Lovers, Being In Love, Love, Eros, Two Paths, Choice, Freedom, Freedom of Choice.

Number: 6.

Path from Tiphereth to Binah, from Beauty to Reason

Astrologically: Oppositions, Gemini, Libra, Venus/Jupiter as an expression of great love, Aspect of Venus and Mars.

Sign: Sagittarius.

The Occult Meaning of the Card – the spiritual trial

This is one of the most complex Tarot Arcana, with outward simplicity. The Lovers card combines two plots. In the classical sense, it promises deep love experiences, but shows that such a step involves a choice: the rejection of the former way of life (parental home, easy intrigues) and the transition to a new stage – the stage of consciousness and creation of Love. Only this step opens a powerful information field, which contains the card of the Lovers. That is why its second name is “Choice”. You are facing another situation of choice, not necessarily related to love. Then it means that one way or another you have to make a choice, decisively and irrevocably, leaving no loopholes for oneself and taking on certain obligations. Being in love is a bold decision made by the heart. Which of the two plots appears before you in this case depends on the meaning of the question you asked.

Historically, marriage was for a long time a matter of duty and calculation, although, of course, most of the living souls relied on love. If the candidacy of the groom / bride did not cause delight in anyone except the lover himself, then marriage for love became a very serious choice in life, which often called into question everything else – parental goodwill, career, place of residence, title and status. And the Lovers in the layout warned of a difficult test on the way, of a decision made by the heart. And not just a decision, but a very important one, accepted irrevocably and forever.

Lovers card is a fork in the road that becomes a challenge. A card of freedom of choice – at every step a person faces a dilemma, to act one way or another, and faces the responsibility for the decision made. Thus, another meaning of the card is freedom, because a non-free, codependent person has no choice. The Lovers card also speaks of responsibility for the consequences of a choice, warns against neglect. In general, this card symbolizes the indissolubility of freedom and responsibility, where the cause and effect can be to a much greater extent than even Justice. Each choice is a test of strength and honesty. It is desirable that the decision regarding the intrapersonal conflict be harmonious and wise, and in any case, its implementation requires a combination of efforts.

General Meaning in a Spread

Trial! Who among us loves challenges?

Lovers card meaning is a Choice! And which of us is easy to make a choice when the soul is literally torn between two alternatives? Between the past and the future, old and new, whims and duty… Intrapersonal conflict – that’s what the Lovers portend.

Making a choice is far from blissful state, when it seems that it is impossible to make a decision, and the usually intelligible inner voice turns into a many-headed hydra, which begins to sing in chorus out of place, they say, the heart is not a stone, but the brain is not semolina … Just a conflict between the heart and the mind manifests itself most sharply, although this is not necessary (but if the Three of Swords is nearby, for example, then it is always a conflict). A person at this moment of his life is at a crossroads and is faced with the need to make a choice, and a very important one, and fraught with long-term consequences.

Lovers always warn that this choice will come back to haunt you (or maybe the decision will affect the rest of your life). Of course, in the most typical case, this is a choice between suppressing the desire or giving in to it. This choice may concern not only a partner, but also a profession, travel, educational institution, home, car or lifestyle in general. Moreover, alternatives, as a rule, are mutually exclusive, it is impossible to sit on two chairs. Ancient interpretations emphasize the positive meaning of the Lovers – falling out in a layout, this card indicates that the right choice shall be made! Lovers is a card of sincere deeds performed “not according to the law, but according to the soul”, fully expressing the true aspirations of a person. Of course, passionate love also applies here.

In the position of the past, the Sixth Arcana may indicate a choice has been already made, and now a person is dealing with the consequences. Being the significator of the questioner, the card can describe a person who made a sincere choice at the behest of the soul, who dared to ignore the rules and arguments of the mind. The Lovers card can also talk about the fact that right now a person is facing a decision that will require courage and loyalty to himself from him, and in no case should he succumb to manipulation and pressure. The choice must be absolutely voluntary, without doubt or compromise. At this crossroads it is necessary to show all the strength of the spirit. This is a kind of decisive trial, test, or exam.

The Lovers is a union, the appearance in life of someone who becomes your soulmate. Relationships full of mutual joy, attraction, relationships, romance. Love is a divine gift and the trial of so many efforts. Majority of questions in fortune-telling practices are about love.

Falling out in a scenario, the Lovers portend a new romance in life, even if the person did not expect this. They embody everything that is an integral part of a love connection and intimacy between people. In general, this Arcana speaks of the presence (or possibility) of a serious heartfelt attachment in life, and the Minor Arcana can tell whether the feeling is mutual, and also what outcome is most likely. If there are no negative cards around, then the Lovers are an omen of a wonderful relationship. For single people, this card is traditionally considered a harbinger of a meeting with a loved one, a true life partner. Moreover, the meaning of the Lovers is not to force events, convulsively searching for love, but in that inner event that makes one open towards the world, makes a person truly receptive to the opportunities offered in life.

In the case of the Lovers, adjacent cards are of great importance. It is believed that the Lovers “connects” the cards located on opposite sides of it. In general, the keyword of the Lovers is, perhaps, reciprocity. It can be either love or hate. There is one step between them, and precisely because of this, the intensity of rim feelings is present in both cases. This card connects what once fell into halves, and is a significator of union, merger, unification, synthesis. In general, it carries creative energy. It is believed that as the resulting alignment card (outcome of the planned business), it promises success or at least stability (preservation of the status quo).

Personal Feelings – Happy ánd Euphoric

Happiness and joy transform a person (at least for a while), a person may feel a very strong attraction to something or someone, and have the willingness to give someone your heart.

According to the Lovers, it is common for a person to run headlong and sing about his love to the whole world (or the entire Internet), shouting that all ages are submissive to love and all love impulses are beneficial. A person is in love and now has his own reality, where the sun is brighter, the grass is greener (it doesn’t matter that it’s February), and the moon is always full. Romantic excitement, of course, can manifest itself in different ways, depending on the character, but the diagnosis is usually clear to everyone: an arrow in the heart! Both true love and inappropriate sentimentality, empty passions and ridiculous hobbies can go along the Lovers, other cards can give a hint about the true nature of this state. It’s one thing when the Empress, the Hierophant and the World are nearby, another thing is when the Fool, the Devil and the Tower are around. Lovers are exclusively influenced by the surrounding cards. Neighboring cards often also indicate what a person’s attitude is to love, to relationships in general, to finding oneself in them. Sometimes it is the search for love as a salvation from all problems, including from oneself.

If the Lovers card is the significator of the questioner, then now he is clearly controlled by the heart and emotions, not reason and calculation. Feelings are set free, possible consequences are of the least concern. Attraction, love, and the voice of the heart are central to life and spiritual experience. Lovers can talk about a strong passion.

The lovers also indicates the desire for the fullness of life, the time of satisfaction, harmony and balance, the unification of masculine and feminine qualities of nature.

Sometimes the Lovers symbolizes a person who connects people and smooths out contradictions, a great mediator. The Lovers also speaks of attractiveness, beauty, sensuality, eroticism.

On a Deeper Level Card Shines Light Whom You Love and What is Your Choice

The Lovers asks – what and whom do you love? What and whom do you choose at this stage of your life? What is such a choice? In essence, Lovers are the “tuning fork” component of a person.

This is the inner knowledge of the “heart”, what is good and what is bad for you personally, which cannot be faked or deceived. You can not listen to the heart, you can pretend that you do not hear and do not know, you can act contrary, but the tone changes from this.

According to the Lovers, a person gives up one way of life for the sake of another. According to the Lovers, a person strives for unity, wholeness and happiness.

The Lovers makes a person uncompromising in terms of choice and commitment. Karmically Lovers talk about the experience of love that is not afraid to die for. The price of such a memory turns out to be expensive – subsequently a person organically does not recognize either conveniences or fakes, and no arguments of the philistine mind can save.

This is a card of human love, which is an integral and integral part of life itself. But there are other types of love – “marriage” and other types of opposites that need to be reconciled and united through love. Lovers represent the attraction of opposing forces, this duality is reflected in all aspects of existence, and in the struggle and union of man and woman it manifests itself most clearly. The sixth Arcana describes the stage of spiritual development, at which a person realizes in himself almost opposite sides of nature. He tries to choose one and suppress the other (the principle of poorly designed opposition). Lovers, on the other hand, symbolize not so much the struggle as the union of these opposites within ourselves, the ability to lovingly accept the most diverse properties of our nature – after all, even those that we do not approve of are somehow needed for further life and our continued growth. It can be a combination of consciousness and the unconscious into a kind of synergistic and creative unity. It can be a reconciliation of “reveal” and “shadow”. Each of us has positive and negative qualities, those that we accept and those that torment us, prevent us from living, as it seems, and which we would prefer to get rid of.

“Lovers” calls us to explore and reconcile the opposites within ourselves, and not to try to remove them or somehow change them. Understanding and accepting both sides of oneself, a person becomes a creatively productive whole (the result of the merging of lovers is the conception of a new one). The internal conflict does not completely cease to exist – but both sides get the right to life together (not necessarily completely cloudless, but a “honeymoon” is possible). Since this task is complex, a commitment is required to achieve it. It is necessary not only to recognize their existence, but to understand that between them there is an indissoluble, established connection from above and an obligation to achieve fruitful synergy, to become a single whole. Opposites are not necessarily good and evil. These features in ourselves or in another person are a mirror image of each other, mutual complement and support. It is necessary to achieve unity (albeit in struggle) of these opposites, make them work together (this requires a crushing force of attraction that cannot be overcome and thereby avoid the task) and create something more than just the sum of parts.

Psychologically, the pair of Forerunners depicted on the Lovers Arcana (Lovers are associated with Adam and Eve) can be considered as the male and female components of a human being. Returning to Eden, to the source of life, requires the unification of these two aspects of existence. If we consider the sequence of the Major Arcana as an allegory of the spiritual path, then at the level of the Zero Arcana this unity is present, but completely unconscious. Further, having awakened at the level of the Magician, a person consistently forms his individuality, encounters earthly and sacred manifestations of the male and female principles (Priestess and Priest, Empress and Emperor), and on the Sixth Arcana reaches the stage when he realizes the simultaneous existence, the indestructible interconnection of these two began, and at the same time – their separation by contradictions. Lovers do not hold hands, do not look into each other’s eyes. There is no unity here (which will truly be achieved only in the World) – there is simultaneous vision, awareness and opposition, and the Tree of Knowledge is not the Tree of Life. The universal law of attraction of opposites – Eros – brings not only joys, but also sufferings, and it is only true that sexuality is an impulse to return the lost part of ourselves. Spiritually and alchemically, this is a card of Sacred Marriage, passionate and deep feelings, comprehension of the secrets of life, the beginning of the Great Work to restore the lost unity and integrity. The three figures on the card symbolize different aspects of the personality: the man is the conscious mind, the woman is the unconscious, intuitive and emotional side, the angel is the higher knowledge. Symbolically behind the man’s back is the Tree of Life, behind the woman’s back is the Tree of Knowledge.

Astrologically, the card correlates with Gemini, also with Libra and transneptune Cupid. In the Hamburg School of Astrology, Cupid (associated just with the Sixth Arcanum) is responsible for the synthesis, the connection of details into a big picture – this is what the Lovers have on a deep level, expressing a great desire for unity, for a “common denominator”. Here, in the form of a man and a woman in love, the mystical connection of opposites in the world as a whole is reflected. The bifurcation of consciousness into the inner and outer worlds, into life and death, into a man and a woman – and all the contradictions that follow from this are associated with the sign of Gemini. Communication, overcoming internal resistance and disagreements – too. Gemini reflects, first of all, the perfection of perception, its accuracy, subtlety and sensitivity, since in order to recognize the highest channels and choose the right path to them among the bustle of life, a very subtle perception is required. Our rational constructions go around and around the truth, which remains between two opposite answers. Cognition occurs only at the moment of a dual conception of things, on none of which the mind can be established: two opposite thoughts are two mirrors opposite each other, showing an infinity of reflections of what is between them. The medieval execution of the classical Sixth Arcanum implied the image of mountains, a man standing at a crossroads and an angel of love, who aims a bow at a woman on a flowery plain. It meant that a person has two ways: to give himself to the world, to a woman, to flowers – and die in the spiritual sense, or, moving away from the worldly, go to the mountains to death in order to free himself for spiritual life in other worlds, and then be reborn again An angel is a purely spiritual being. Mountains are a symbol of the completed realization of personality, astrologically symbolized by the planet Saturn.

According to the mystical tradition, Arkan offers the initiate a choice between the royal path of knowledge, which requires vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, and their antipodes, wealth, excesses, power, which will inevitably lead to a dead end. The sixth Arcana points to the mechanism of the volitional act of a person who consciously reacts to the opportunities provided to him by the world. When making any decision, one should be guided by the analogy (“as above, so below”), and always remember that achieving the goal is impossible without love for the world. It is believed that for people following the esoteric path, Lovers have the meaning of initiation and transition to a new stage of spiritual development (and in an reversed position they say that a person is not ready for this or that a person has not passed the test, as if he had chosen not to make a selection).

In Marseille and some other versions of the Tarot, not two, but three human figures are depicted on the card – one young man and two girls. One of the girls personifies purity and innocence, while the other is the image of a broken seductress. The plot emphasizes the great risk that lies in wait for the young man – to make a mistake, to choose a seemingly more attractive and easily accessible woman. The card had (and has) other versions. Some of them depict an almost wedding ceremony in which the priest (or God himself) connects the young man and the girl (Adam and Eve) with sacred bonds. In the Crowley deck, the Arcana depicts the marriage of the Emperor and the Empress, and the ceremony is performed by …. Hermit! This emphasizes that true love is always part of the Path, and not an obstacle to spiritual ascent; the Higher Self blesses such a union without hesitation. Another version of the card depicts a young man standing between the figures of two women, the first of which is an angel, the guardian of man, and the second is an ever-present demon. A young man stands at the beginning of a mature life in front of a fork in which he must choose between virtue and vice, eternal and transient. At the top of the card, in a circle of light, it is not Cupid at all, but the Genius of Fate (his star).

If youth makes the wrong choice, the arrow of Fate will hit it. The fork in the road reminds a person that the price of free will, the power of choice, is responsibility.

Professional Situation

The need to choose between two paths in life, two professions, two fields of activity. It is not uncommon for a card to come up when a person feels tempted to turn a hobby into a job or receives some other tempting offer. Wise decisions, the right choice.

This is a good card for joint ventures, business partnerships and teamwork. Individual projects, isolation or great claims to leadership are clearly not here. The principle of complementarity and creative unification of efforts for the sake of the common good operates here. Alliances, partnerships. Unanimity, harmony, trust, the ability to compromise.

Collaboration, the possibility of harmonious problem solving.

Job satisfaction.

Eventally Lovers can indicate the conclusion of contracts, the merger of companies, the creation of alliances and all kinds of activities related to teambuilding (again, searching and bringing to a “common denominator”).

Sometimes the card describes true fans of their profession, people who relate to the job with genuine passion. The profession is so significant for them that all their husbands and wives, friends and girlfriends are not competitors to their career.

There is also an opinion that the Lovers advise by all means to try to enter the highest echelons of leadership in order to constantly keep a “hand on the pulse”, to be in the closest possible contact with people on whom “everything depends”. The Lovers is the formation of personal trust, human relationships that transcend business protocol.

Financial Situation

There is a high probability of making a profit as a result of an alliance with a partner (business or personal). Perhaps a spouse or a lover will provide a significant help. Obtaining financial support for the development of the project is very likely.

Personal Relations

A card of deep feelings, a responsible choice, when the voice of the heart suggests the right path. Full sincerity, following the call of the heart, the power of true love.

Of course, the Lovers are the beginning of a new strong feeling or the preservation and strengthening of the old one, the promise of a new romance, the establishment of new relationships, good relations between people. Reciprocity and harmony in relationships, affection and devotion, strong connection, reckless dedication. When confirmed by other Arcana – entry into a successful marriage. This is a card not only of passion, but also of mutual obligations – here the two stand in the presence of the Higher Power, therefore both partners are bound by mutual before the cosmic laws.

The Lovers is one of the most optimistic cards for those who wish to enter into a relationship. But there are subtleties.

As Akron and Banzhaf write: “The desire to find the lost paradise through union with another person cannot be satisfied as long as you avoid the void at the expense of a partner who “complements you”, has exactly what you lack.

It is impossible to meet a soul mate due to some external actions or a certain amount of opportunities. It’s not about going to a disco club or going to “how to get married” seminars. The only thing that will help is true inner readiness, which means much more than just the desire to meet the other half. This means that you really want and are ready to meet Him or Her, without any conditions and doubts. In other words, when it is really your choice.

The Lovers card reflects sexuality and love with all its contradictions, and also symbolizes the alchemy of the Universe. It is amazing how a civilized, super-logical, self-oriented person still manages to exist …

Sexuality is a magnet that keeps a person within eternity, helping to take a step outside of oneself and seek meetings with other people. In order to build a real love relationship, a person has to make a choice – to give up the former free way of life, from the status of a free person, from the parental home, and also openly confess his love to only one person. The necessity of these bold steps is the reason why the Arcanum Lovers is called The Choice.”

Another important aspect of the Lovers card, which distinguishes it from the Two of Cups: Lovers are an indicator of love, friendship, cooperation or other closeness of two people between whom there is a BARRIER. These two souls must overcome the barrier in order to truly merge. There is an element of antagonism, confrontation, and this is good. Opposite features in the person with whom we establish a connection are our reflection, resource, complement and support. Usually a partner reflects and manifests those aspects that are undeveloped, repressed or unspiritualized in ourselves.

That is why the “real” partner at first usually causes not only attraction, but also a fair amount of irritation. We see in the other what we lack, but you can relate to this in different ways, from “hooray, you have it!” to “well, you such a fruit!”.

Lovers say that there is no point in trying to exterminate these opposing qualities on the other.

As Napoleon Bonaparte said, you can only rely on what resists.

Lovers offer to outlive not only the experience of joy and happiness, but also the experience of pain and struggle, as mutually enriching and opening eyes to each other. In this case, it is precisely the clearly made choice and mutual obligations that are the necessary element that connects those whose lives should flow together.

At the highest level, the Lovers do describe a connection and intimacy full of wisdom and creation, essentially finding an “ideal partner” who is far from perfect, but truly “the other half.” The question is, if the first is not ideal, how can the second be ideal?! This may well be a difficult connection, embodying the unity and struggle of opposites, and peace, again, is only a dream.

The union of antipodes, between which there is a mystical spiritual connection and mutual obligations (from the series “marriages are made in heaven” – are karmically conditioned). Their lives must go together, despite what separates them and makes them antipodes. Each side contains the traits the other needs in order to survive and grow, to advance along the path of evolution.

At the end point of development, the lovers will achieve deep and beautiful relationships, great unanimity and empathy, warmth and creative wisdom.

At best scenario, the lovers give each other desire and trust, truth and devotion, honor and passion. The Lovers are able to give themselves free rein in expressing feelings, as they have overcome the stage of struggle, the period of antagonism, the phase of conventions and reservations. This is the case when another person is known so deeply and essentially that his feelings, happiness and grief are more concerned than his own.

In the worst case, the lovers have yet to understand and accept each other, overcome contradictions and become one. They will be shocked once they realize to what extent they are a couple.

Love, sensuality, longing desire, deep affection. An emotional experience of warmth, empathy, devotion, enjoying a harmonious union that brings out the best in both. In the neighborhood with favorable cards, this is really the “bliss of lovers”, which a person cherishes extremely. Sexual harmony.

The choice between two life partners.

The presence of two equal, equivalent in strength relations. The need to make some kind of final decision (especially if the layout is dominated by swords). This card may portend a love triangle, a situation where one of their lovers is tied in marriage, or when, for example, two brothers or two sisters are in love with one person, and other not very cloudless situations (the surrounding cards will tell more about this). This is especially true if there are three lovers in the used deck on the Arcana. In general, Lovers is not always “good” in the sense that it is an easy card. The situation they describe, whatever it may be, may be the most dramatic moment in a person’s entire life. And God forbid, on a sleepless night, to think about the choice that you must – and have no right to make …

The tendency to endow the partner with the features of one’s own unconscious image, to create a projection, thanks to which happiness and fullness are felt. The tendency to see in a lover a screen to project a portrait of an ideal second half, and not to notice his true nature.

Health

Good health (reversed card indicates health problems, with an emphasis on hormones).

Sometimes Lovers hint that the best medicine for a person is a friend or a lover.

Reversed Lovers

The meaning of reversed Lovers is manifold. It can be unhappy, unrequited love. Sometimes – sexual incompatibility. It can also be a purely spiritual, platonic union, a symbolic marriage between kindred spirits, which may well be hindered by material circumstances. In exceptionally rare cases, this may be an indication of the existence of an astral connection with a daimon, anima, animus (moreover, such an invisible “astral half” can invisibly protect, help maintain health, perform creative functions; in exceptional cases, a partner can play a similar role, already departed from this world, with whom, nevertheless, the widower / widow retained a connection). Surrounded by negative cards – problematic, immature, unhealthy relationships.

In ancient interpretations, such a meaning as an early marriage (which will almost certainly fall apart) is also likely to happen.

The wrong choice was made, the person seemed to “obey his heart”, but the trouble is that it missed, his magnificent optical sight for some reason went astray. Wrong choice, reckless, stupid choice (even if a person is in illusions about this). Internal turmoil, confusion, bifurcation, conflict with oneself, inability to stand the trial. Fatal desires, a union that suppresses individuality and unbridled self-indulgence can also be described by the reversed Lovers.

Reversed Lovers often indicate temporary problems in a relationship, business or personal, deteriorating now for some reason. Jealousy, possessiveness, separating interests, in any case, the inability to achieve a love idyll. Sometimes it’s cheating. Infidelity, dishonesty, unreliability. Separation (rarely divorce). Disappointment in love or marriage. Sometimes in an reversed position, Lovers say that a person has realized his own self, separated himself from his “twin”, became more independent, carved out personal space. If the question concerned the prospects for a relationship with a person of interest, then the reversed Lovers say: leave hope for a successful resolution of the situation. Unfortunately, he won’t. This card is very pessimistic if a lonely person asks a question about the prospects in his personal life.

Many authors believe that she more clearly than the Hermit or the Hanged Man reports that at this stage of life a person will not be able to find a companion. The only advice the Lovers can give is to learn to truly love yourself, regardless of whether you have a partner or not, to treat yourself as a valuable and worthy person. We can only accept that we deserve to be loved when we feel good about ourselves, no matter how “tasted” our personal lives are.

The card may indicate that the will of a person fluctuates between the opposite forces influencing him, and he cannot make a choice, because he does not know what he wants. Sometimes it can be a conflict between calling, the will of the higher self, and devotion and attachment to another person. Irresponsibility, inability to make a sincere and honest decision. If reversed Lovers appear repeatedly, then the person is very special in making the wrong choice, affecting other people, hence the feeling of guilt.

Traditional meanings of reversed lovers: misfortune, failure. Immature plans, unrealistic goals, lost opportunities, bad choices. Irresponsibility, neglect of possible consequences, the coming retribution.

With the Fool – complete irrationality, “disconnected mind.” Blind faith in the success of the enterprise and readiness to follow the chosen path.

With the Empress – sexual contentment, pleasure

With the Hierophant – stable principles, the ability to truly believe in principles and act in accordance with them without any hypocrisy

With the Hermit – isolation, loneliness, sexual coolness

With Death – a radical rejection of the old way of life

With the Devil – the risk of betrayal, a threat to relationships. Strong dependence on a partner.

With the Tower – the need to make a decision as quickly as possible, there is no time to think

With the Three of Swords – alienation, separation

With the Two of Cups – union, marriage, connection

With the Five of Cups – the collapse of relationships

With the Nine of Cups – sexual pleasure, rapture

With Ten of Pentacles – long-term alliances, family ties