I WILL BE WORKING USING THE RIDER WAITE TAROT DECK AS A BASIS FOR THIS EXPLORATION.

The Lovers depicts a naked man and a naked woman underneath an angel. This is a card of unity and opposites that connect. The masculine and feminine which up until this point in the Tarot have been separate come together in this card. This is also a card about choice and the loss of innocence…

In the Rider Waite deck the two figures are accepted to be Adam and Eve. They stand before the Tree of Life and the Tree of Eternal Knowledge of Good and Evil. The angel above Adam and Eve is blessing them and their union. Some people believe this angel to be Raphael who is a divine healer.

True to its depiction of Adam and Eve, this card may represent a choice. More specifically this card may represent a choice which is permanent and can not be reversed. The significance of this to the idea of Lovers could be the union of a marriage which of course is traditionally until death. There are themes of innocence lost and evil and bad choices that can never be reversed. The fruit behind the couple and the snake on the tree is reminiscent of that story. There is a strong them of connecting the conscious with the subconscious in this card.

This card could represent a dilemma or a choice. This is an important choice, its a choice about the way that you connect with your peers, your family and the ones you love. How do you want to perceive the world? How do you want to world to perceive you? Put time into your relationships with others. If there is a friendship you have been neglecting then reach out.

Of course, The Lovers is also about… love! This is a deep, soulful and rich connection that you can feel in every aspect of your being. This does not necessarily need to be romantic love- self love, familial love, or platonic love are all perfectly valid. This is a card about vulnerability and honesty- The Lovers are naked, they aren’t hiding anything away, they are expressing themselves in a pure and raw form. Be authentic and true to yourself.

When you find The Lovers reversed, there may be conflict. This is a slight inversion on the idea of there being a choice. It may be that you do not want to make a choice, it could be a very difficult choice that you fear the permanence of. You may also be out of step with your connections and the world around you, or even with yourself. You are allowed to get things wrong, you’re allowed to mess up, you’re allowed to wallow in that for a time, but you need to get back on your feet and put effort back into yourself, your friends, your family, in order to cultivate meaningful connections. You don’t need to be at war with yourself, reflect for a time, and then get back on the road to harmony.