TAROT CARD READING - Based on My Question - Will I find Love in the Next Year?

Significator - - The 3 of Swords is a sorrowful card, because the strife or conflict impending in the 2 has at last erupted & come out into the open. Thus the theme of initial completion which links all the 3s in the Minor Arcana is here reflected in a painful situation, where some separation or heartbreak has revealed itself. Yet while it is painful, this card, which is undoubtedly a difficult one, represents a release of energy, for at least there is movement from the stagnant & unpleasant tension of the 2. Whatever has happened is in some way necessary, because something is at work which requires such conflict before it can unfold to its eventual creative end. Here Clytemnestra has had her revenge, & this revenge was inevitable from the moment that Agamemmnon chose his own glory over the life of his daughter. Something set in motion in the past comes to fruition in the meaning of the curse in Greek myth: not a spell or bad fate cast by cast by some capricious god, but the inevitable working out of the consequences of human choice over time, which sooner or later will result in heartbreak or conflict when the bill comes due.
The sorrowful vision of the 3 of Swords thus brings w/it a feeling of relief, for the poison has come out, & therefore a chance of future healing becomes possible. Resentments which have remained subterranean because we are fightened of conflict & anger have a way of bursting through at last, but often through the next generation, who are forced to act out the problems which the preceding ones refused to face. Unpleasant though the 3 of Swords is, it is nevertheless a creative step from the 2, & an ultimate resolution is now possible.

Crossing Card; describes the situation; inner & outer - - which is generating conflict & obstruction in the immediate present - - The 4 of Wands is a card of harvest & reward. The challenge of a new creative idea has been met, hard work has been applied, & now the individual can reap the solid reward which has been earned through effort. Like the 3 of Wands, this card implies something worth celebrating, but unlike the 3, it has a more solid base, & benefits are already evident. The challenge of capturing the Golden Fleece is a daunting one; how can one man alone sail to the ends of the earth, & in what? Jason has responded to this challenge by gathering around him those friends who can help him to achieve his aims. All these heroes in the myth have different skills, according to their natures. Heracles has strength; Theseus, a fiery adventurer like Jason, has creative vision; the Twins have the cutting edge of the clever mind, & Orpheus has the deep feeling & empathy to disarm any foe. Whether we take these friends as real people whose support we can enlist, or as inner resources upon which we can draw, at this stage of the process of creative work the help is available by which the goal can be reached. W/such an heroic crew gathered, & such a splendid ship built, for Jason satisfaction is in order.
On a divinatory level, the 4 of Wands augurs a time of reward for efforts made. A creative idea has yielded early fruit, & the individual has every right to celebrate the concrete results of his or her efforts. But this is only one stage of the journey, & soon the ship must set sail & face the hardest challenges before the final goal is reached.

Crowning Card; immediate atmosphere & situation which hangs over 1 - Strength - - Here we meet the great warrior Heracles, called Hercules by the Romans, who in myth was the most invincible of heroes. On an inner level, Heracles battling the Nemean Lion is an image of the problem of containing the powerful & savage beat w/in us, while still preserving those animal qualities which are creative & vital. The lion is a special kind of beast, & reflects a different aspect of the human psyche than do the wilful horses in the card of Chariot. The lion in myth has always been associated w/royalty, even when it is at its most destructive, & this king of beasts is an image of the infantile., savage & totally egocentric beginnings of a unique individuality. Thus, the Nemean Lion is not wholly evil, but possesses a magical skin which can offer invincibility. This invincibility is connected w/the sense of inner permanence which comes from a solid sense of "me." When we wear the skin of the lion which we have conquered, the ipinions of others - the great They who strike such fear into hearts of the timid - - mean little, for we are amoured in our own indestructible sense of identity.
However promising its potential, the lion is savage & vicious in its animal form. This side of a person unleashed is the "me 1st" drive which will happily destroy anyone or anything in its path, so long as one's own gratification is assured. Rage is 1 of the manifestations of this drive - - not healthy anger which might be appropriate to a situation, but a frenzied anger.
On a divinatory level, the card of Strength, when it appears in a spread, implies a situation where a collision w/the lion w/in is inevitable, & where a creative handling of 1's own rage & senseless pride is desirable. Courage, strength & self-discipline are necessary to battle w/the situation. Thru such an experience we can come in contact w/the beast, but also w/that part of us which is Heracles, the hero who can subdue it. Thus the Fool, having developed the faculties of mind/feeling, now learns to deal w/his own ferocious egotism, emerging from this contest w/trust in himself & integrity toward others.

The Base of the Matter; Describes the inner & outer situation, drive, instinct or aspiration which is really behind the apparant surface situation reflected by the Crowning Card. i.e. The root of the psyche, & often this card comes as a Surprise to the Seeker ((unconcious motivation)).
CONT'D IN 2ND POSTING...