Playing (Destiny) Cards: Seasons and Suits: Spring and Hearts

Suits play a central role in the Playing (Destiny) Card divination system.  The four suits (Hearts, Clubs, Diamonds and Spades) represent the four seasons (Spring, Summer, Autumn (Fall) and Winter), respectively.  The unique characteristics of each season are associated to the corresponding suit.  This article explores Spring and Hearts in general and in the Playing (Destiny) Card divination system.

Spring ...

Spring is the first season and ushers in warmer weather, longer and sunnier days, rains and showers.  During this time of the year, nature seems to "spring to life" ~ certain plants and animals come out of hibernation, flowers bloom, trees and plants grow new leaves, many animals bear their young.  Everything seems fresh and new ~ it is a time of birth and rebirth, growth and regrowth, restoration, replenishment and renewal. 

However, this revitalization is not limited to the processes taking place in nature during Spring ~ it is also an important conceptual part of the human psyche, signifying spiritual rebirth, including the Christian and pagan associations with death and resurrection. 

Spring is also a fertile period during which certain animals mate and seeds of many crops are sown.  Hence, Spring has long been considered a sensual period by humans, a time for love and romance ~ as evidenced by the many artistic works and poems, songs, essays that have been produced throughout the ages.

For all of these reasons, ancient and modern cultures around the world have and continue to rejoice the return of Spring, marking and celebrating the occasion with joyful ceremonies and colorful festivals.

Finally, it should be noted that March 21 is the beginning of the western astrological calendar:  with the first sign, Aries (ruled by Mars) from 3/21 to 4/19, the second sign, Taurus (ruled by Venus) from 4/20 to 5/20 and the third sign, Gemini (ruled by Mercury) from 5/21 to 6/20.

"My Gemini Hearts" by Angelika

Hearts ...

The Heart is, of course, the universal and primary symbol for the concept of Love, whether that be romantic love, familial love, brotherly love, neighborly or community love, love of nature or otherwise.  By extension, the Heart also symbolizes emotions ~ the whole Heart, by itself, signifies a positive emotion, while the Heart, represented as two halves, signifies a negative emotion, i.e., a broken heart ~ sadness, sorrow, emotional pain.

On a deeper level, the Heart (sometimes represented in its simplied form as an an inverted triangle) has also long been considered to be at the very center of both the physical and the spiritual being.  To that end, the Heart has been closely linked with and symbolizes the Soul, as well as the dwelling place or home of the Divine.  This is evidenced by the prominent use of the Heart symbol in various religions, faiths, cults, sects and spiritual societies the world over. 

In the Tarot Card divination system, Hearts are often represented as cups, chalices, goblets or vases.  This representation is derived from the Heart being considered to be a receptacle of love and spirit.  It is also interesting to note that the Heart is the first organ that forms in the human Embryo. 

The Playing (Destiny) Card System ...

It is no wonder then that the first suit of the Playing (Destiny) Cards divination system should be the Hearts and that the Hearts correspondent to the first season of the year, Spring.  The connections are immediately obvious. 

Individuals born on a date to which one of the cards of the Heart suit is assigned are, within the system, generally considered to be the youngsters (the "Young at Heart") of the deck, with a novel, original and fresh perspective on the different aspects of life.  These individuals may have a certain innocence and vulnerability about them and are usually sensitive, caring, affectionate, loving, loyal and attentive.  They tend to be idealistic, intuitive, creative, clever and artistic.  They express themselves principally through powerful emotions which they may, at times need to learn to control, lest they suffer from extreme selfishness, self-centeredness, envy and jealousy, antipathy and other such negative and destructive emotions.

In a Playing (Destiny) Card spread, whenever a card of the Hearts suit appears, it usually signifies love, romance, affairs, emotions/feelings, associations/dealings with others, relationships of all types (spouses, lovers, friends, family members, partners, co-workers, etc.) and/or certain matters/events relating to love, romance, associations and relationships.

Although the suit of a particular card gives us, in at of itself, lots of information about an individual or a particular situation, there are other important components in the Playing (Destiny Card) system that must also be considered in reading the cards, such as the number of the card.  These topics will be covered in future posts.

In Love & Light,
Angelika

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The Playing (Destiny) Card System and the Calendar
Playing (Destiny) Cards - Suits and Seasons

Playing (Destiny) Cards - Suits and Seasons

In the Playing (Destiny) Card system, as well as in the Tarot deck, the four Suits perform an integral and critically important function.   Not only is it thought that each of the four Suits corresponds to and represents one of the four Seasons, the entire nature of this correspondence is closely linked to humanity dating back to the earliest times.

Of Seasons ....

Since the dawn of time, early man closely observed the unique characteristics of each one of the four Seasons, as such characteristics had a direct impact on his very survival.  To this end,  early man not only learned to cooperate with the flow of the natural annual cycle ~ for example, planting in Spring and harvesting in Autumn ~ but, equally significantly, man also developed a profound respect for nature.

It is believed that this profound respect for nature, the natural processes occurring on Earth and interconnected to the Sun, Moon and Planets, evolved into the earliest forms of religion, whereby man saw the entirety of the Universe as divine.  Recognition and reverance of this universal interconnectedness resulted in certain associations being formed in the mind of early man, which associations have been variously represented by symbols.

These ancient symbols emanated from all corners of the World and, in some respects, are strikingly similar.   They have endured in the human psyche throughout the ages and are worth consideration in the study of the "science" of The Playing (Destiny) Card and Tarot divination systems.

Of Suits ...

A survey of antique and modern playing cards from around the world reveals a common thread in the theme but quite a few differences in style and symbolism.  Insofar as the suits are concerned, with the notable exception of Chinese and Indian cards, four suits in a deck appears to have prevailed throughout history and in different parts of the world.  Hence, the connection of the four suits to the four seasons in the Playing (Destiny) Card system has very strong support and foundation.

As to the actual symbols used to identify each of the four suits ~ here is where we see some differences in both the playing and tarot cards.  The difference in the symbology, both in terms of identification of the suits  as well as other aspects, can largely be attributed to cultural and regional influences.  However, although the symbols may differ, the underlying meanings of the symbols are the same, or essentially the same.  The following is a chart of corresponding seasons, suit symbols and general meanings:

In Love & Light,
Angelika
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The Playing (Destiny) Card System and the Calendar
Playing (Destiny) Card:  Season and Suits:  Spring and Hearts

The Playing (Destiny) Card System and The Calendar

The Playing Card Divination System, also called or known as the Destiny Card System, is both beautifully simple and exquisitely complex, tying together numerology, symbology and astrology.  This article discusses one the most important aspects of the System:  its relationship to the calendar.  Worthy of consideration are all of the following correspondences involving the playing cards:

• There are 4 suits in a deck of playing cards, as there are 4 seasons.
• There are 13 cards in each suit, as there are 13 weeks in each season and 13 revolutions of the Moon around the Earth during a lunar year.
• There are a total of 52 cards, as there are a total of 52 weeks in each year.
• There are a total of 12 court cards, whose average value is 12, and as there are a total of 12 months in the year, 12 hours in the AM, and 12 hours in the PM.
• The average value of each card is 7, as there are 7 days in the week, 7 planets, 7 colors in a rainbow.

As can be seen from the foregoing, the Playing (Destiny) Card System has a close relationship to the calendar.  Some scholars have advanced the theory that the cards were originally a time keeping tool ~ i.e., an early calendar.   The annual calendar is, indeed, represented by the Playing (Destiny) Cards as follows:

• 52 (cards) x 7 (average value of each card) = 364 + 1 (Joker) = 365 (Days in a Year)
• 4 (suits) x 13 (cards in each suit) x 7 (average value of each card) = 364 + 1 (Joker) = 365 (Days in a Year)
• 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7 + 8 + 9 + 10 + 11 + 12 + 13 (value of individual cards in each suit) x 4 (suits) = 364 + 1 (Joker) = 365 (Days in a Year)
• 365 + 1 (the second Joker in the deck) = 366 (Days in a Leap Year)

As noted above, the Playing (Destiny) Card system is both simple and complex.  As it is my favorite divination tool and forms the basis of many of the readings I perform for my clients, I will be discussing each aspect of the system in depth in this blog.

In Love & Light,
Angelika
Related Articles:
Playing (Destiny) Cards - Suits and Seasons
Playing (Destiny) Cards: Seasons and Suits: Spring and Hearts