Archetypal Magic: Strength

In honor of Leo Season, I’ve chosen to write about the Strength card and sort of the idea of “strength” in general. 

This card depicts a young maidan standing over a lion, hands placed around its jaw. The look on her face is peaceful, serene. She wears a rose garland around her waist and a flower crown on her head. Above her is the symbol of infinity. There’s a gentle quality to this card.

We live in a culture that values action. Force. Control. Betraying the needs of our body in order to reach a goal. Hustle culture baby! If it hurts, that means it’s working! Improve constantly! That’s not what’s happening in this card. The maiden isn’t using brute strength to pry open the jaws of the lion. There is no force. Instead, there is allowing.

The maiden is tapping into all of the energies that are present in the space they’re in. The ground beneath her feet, the air around them, the mood of the lion, her own mood and sense of stability. These energies are all mixing together constantly and she finds the exact moment- she feels the exact moment- where this feat is possible. Where the lion is willing and she is stable enough to guide.

In trauma healing we talk a lot about slowing down, noticing, and expanding our capacity. We make room to allow what wants to come up to have some space. To show us what needs tending to. We don’t force, we don’t dig. We’re not actually trying to change anything. 

We’re making room for spaciousness and in that, noticing which pieces of ourselves need some attention. This is a gentle process. We’re careful not to retraumatize ourselves (or our clients) by demanding that we go quickly to the core of the thing. We also teach ourselves (and our clients) that we have the Strength to be with the lion. To be with the hard feelings/emotions/reactions that come alongside experiencing trauma or deep wounding. Slowly and patiently rather than intensively. As we allow room to be with this experience, we’re also learning the wisdom of these feelings. These primal states of being. We make space for the Lion. 

Now I don't think the Lion in this card represents trauma. When I look at this card I think about our relationship with our primal selves. Trauma or not, most of us have been cut off from our primal instincts. 

They’re messy. They’re scary. There are too many unknowns. What if I can’t reign it back in? What if it hurts someone? What if I won’t be accepted? What if, what if, what if. 

The maidan in this card isn’t thinking about what ifs. She’s gently responding to the energies around her. The elements. The needs of the lion. She’s noticing the state of her own nervous system. And working with all of this in harmony. She and the lion are working together. They aren’t opposing each other. The maiden hasn’t forced the lion to open its mouth, she’s not “controlling a beast” or conquering. Even though to the untrained eye it might look like way (omg look she’s so strong! She’s really beating that thing!). There’s no violence here.

There’s a lesson about diving into our primal states and our unconscious- collective and individual. We can be with them if we do so slowly and mindfully. And respect when it’s time to back off and allow space and time.

And a question comes up as I sit with this card:

What happened right before this moment? This snapshot? I bet that maiden had to learn to work with the lion and the lion with the maiden. I imagine there were many rounds where the maiden did try to force and it didn’t go well for anyone. Maybe the lion bit back or ran away for a while because trust was lost. I don’t think this moment just “happened”. I think it took a lot of work and a lot of practice. Reverence and respect. 

And what happens afterwards? What happens after this beautiful moment of understanding and trust? How does their relationship shift now that they’ve experienced this alchemy? I bet the mutual respect grows. I bet there is more room to play. More curiosity. What does the lion teach the maiden?

Does the lion teach the maiden how to roar?  

We too can learn to be with our impulses, our primal selves, our unconscious, the hard experiences. And we can do this without negative self talk (“omg just DO IT, why can’t you just do the thing what’s wrong with you??”) or pushing ourselves too hard, too fast, too soon. We can do this gently and in tandem with our external and internal environments. And that takes time! Patience! Willingness to mess up and come back to try again! 

The Strength card teaches us a totally different approach to what true strength can look like. Strength that is non-violent, curious, respectful, and mutually beneficial for everyone involved.