Ace of Cups
Keywords & phrases
- Peace, love and contentment
- Unconditional love
- An open heart – receptive
- New emotional matter/connection
- Emotional fulfilment
- Healing – giving & receiving
- Spiritual awakening/sustenance
- A new relationship or new chapter phase of an existing relationship
Keywords & phrases
- Peace, love and contentment
- Unconditional love
- An open heart – receptive
- New emotional matter/connection
- Emotional fulfilment
- Healing – giving & receiving
- Spiritual awakening/sustenance
- A new relationship or new chapter phase of an existing relationship
First impressions
A beautiful card symbolising love in its purest form. It shimmers and glows and radiates positivity and hope.
What is happening in the card?
The hand of god appears from the heavens bearing a shimmering cup, the gift of of love. The water from the cup runs over and a shower of yods fall like droplets of water or tears onto the lily pads in the water below. A white dove descends from above carrying a holy wafer.
How can we relate to this card?
We experience the energy of this card in moments of emotional contentment. The Ace of Cups invites us to open up our hearts to love in any form. It’s easy to relate to this card in those times when we feel full with love towards our children, lovers, family and friends. That feeling can be intense.
The Ace of Cups is also a good card to connect with when you are facing conflict of challenges in a relationship and you are struggling to keep an open heart.
This card reminds us that there is no limit to love. As the water pours out of the cup, so it is refilled. As you pour love into others, so your heart will be filled with love.
Elements, numbers, symbols & imagery
- Element of Water – the realm of feelings, emotions, relationships, intuition and creativity
- Ace – number 1, new beginnings
- A white dove, the symbol of peace, hope and purity
- Holy wafer – the eucharist symbolising spiritual nourishment, feeding the soul
- Yods falling like drops of water from heaven – the first letter of the unpronounceable name of God and symbolising the presence of the divine in the situation
- Golden chalice – the holy grail
Emotions expressed
- Love
- Joy
- Contentment
- Gratitude
- Hope
Other associations
Tree of life:
1st Sephira of Keter – crown, origin, divine will – in the realm of B’riah – the world of creation, spirit and feeling.
Thoth:
Ace of Cups, Mercury in Cancer
Golden Dawn title:
Root of the Powers of the Water
Astrological associations:
Water signs – Cancer*, Scorpio & Pisces
Major Arcana:
Associated with The Magician I
*Aces are more often associated with the Cardinal signs of their element
Message & affirmations
Today and every day I show up in my life and my relationships with an open heart, with compassion, gratitude, patience, faith, love and forgiveness. And the most important of these, of course, is LOVE.
Love for myself, for my fellow man, the planet and all its creatures. Light is my guide.
” Pure love is a willingness to give without a thought of receiving anything in return.”
“Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace;
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
And where there is sadness, joy.Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console;
To be understood, as to understand;
To be loved, as to love;
For it is in giving that we receive,
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
And it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.
Amen.“
~ Peace Prayer of St Francis
My personal experiences of this card
As a teenager and young woman, I always took this card to mean that romantic love, which was all I could think about (probably), was just around the corner.
Now it triggers feelings and memories in me of all the love that I have experienced in life as a mother and a friend, a daughter, a sister, an aunt as well as in romantic relationships.
It reminds me to be grateful and to be ready open and willing to accept more love in my life.
This is a beautiful card in any deck, but I think my favourite has got to be the Thoth. It positively vibrates with love, light and energy. It’s such a dynamic image and gives a sense of the power of love. Which, of course, immediately makes me think of Frankie Goes to Hollywood!
~
The power of love
A force from above
Cleaning my soul
Flame on, burn desire
Love with tongues of fire
Purge the soul
Make love your goal~
~The Power of Love, Frankie Goes to Hollywood
The Ace of Cups from the Light Seer’s Tarot, Thoth and Morgan Greer Tarot
Events, situations & readings
In a relationship spread:
Generally a fabulous card in any spread relating to love and relationships. If the situation that you are asking about is a challenging one the Ace of Cups can help you to open you heart to others and find better understanding.
In a personal/spiritual development spread:
This is a deeply spiritual card and may indicate entering into a new phase of self-discovery and growth.
In a career spread:
A great indicator for new beginnings and ventures, particularly creative or artistic projects or those involving caring, nurturing or giving.
People & interaction with other cards
This card embodies the idea the love comes from a deep unfathomable well that never runs dry. A mother does not have to divide up her love when she has a second or third child, her heart simply grows. And it is unconditional.
- With the Lovers or the 2 of Cups a strong positive indicator for new or blossoming relationships. If you are at the end of a relationship this combination of cards may encourage you to be more mindful of how you are relating to the other person and promote more compassionate interactions or a ‘conscious uncoupling’.
- Appearing with The Empress or 3 of Wands, 3 of Pentacles or 3 of Cups, it brings an extra dose of creative energy to work or artistic projects and collaborations.
- And with 3 of Swords, this Ace can bring hope and healing to wounded hearts.
Questions, prompts & insights
How can you open your heart to give and receive more love in your life? Who needs your unconditional love and understanding right now?
What relationships do you cherish and how can you nurture them?
Featured decks and credits:
Main image from The Rider Waite Tarot. Also featured images from Chris Anne’s Light Seers Tarot, Aleister Crowley’s Thoth Tarot and the Morgan Greer Tarot.
The animated image of The Ace of Cups is part of an ongoing AI art Tarot project by Still Small Voice Tarot.
Explore the Tarot deck with me
This is a work in progress, a project far from complete. I’m exploring traditional and personal meanings for the Tarot cards in a semi-orderly fashion. Please take a look by clicking on the cards below. Or you can pick a card to see what comes up for you today.
