Decan: 0°-9° Taurus

Dates 2024: 20 April – 29 April

Ruling planet/luminary: Mercury ~ Messenger of the Gods

Zodiac sign : Taurus ~ Fixed Earth 🜃

Tarot card: 5 of Pentacles

Golden Dawn Title: Lord of Material Trouble

Associated Major Arcana:

The Magician (Mercury) & The Hierophant (Taurus)

Four Decans in to our journey, and we hit our first rough patch on the path

Moving from the warmth and light of the 4 of Wands into the cold and dark of the 5 of Pentacles feels a bit harsh. A bit like being dragged from the comfort and safety of a loving hug to be thrust out into the cold world with only a memory of what it was to feel safe and secure… and loved.

A little dramatic? Maybe. But if that were your story, it would feel extreme.

Suddenly finding yourself left out in the cold to struggle and worry alone would be terribly hard for anyone, not least of all Taurus, who loves security and the comfort that nice things and a full belly bring. Taurus likes to know where the next meal is coming from, and all the meals to follow, and this is not story told in the 5 of Pentacles.

In the Rider Waite Smith card, we see two apparently destitute and wounded characters struggling against the elements on a cold dark night. They are the les miserables, the poor and homeless, the sick and the walking wounded.

Living on the fringes, they do not look up as they make their way past the glow that emanates from the church’s beautiful stained glass window. It seems that the sanctuary on offer inside is not for the likes of them. That door is locked to them and they are stuck in the classic scarcity mindset ~ in victim mode. This idea that life is hard and that you are either a victim or a victor is a common theme in the Tarot 5s.

Let’s take a look at some keywords for Mercury and Taurus to see what they tell us about the first Decan of Taurus and the 5 of Pentacles.

Help will always be given to those who ask for it

Mercury is the ruler of two zodiac signs: Gemini and Virgo. And it is the energies of these signs that the Messenger planet brings to Taurus I. But these potentially helpful energies of communication, adaptability, action and efficient organisation, which could be used to describe the Magician I, seem to be blocked or simply resisted in the 5 of Pentacles. Retrograde, in fact.

And what does the Hierophant V (ruler of the Tarot 5s) bring to the situation in the 5 of Pentacles. Perhaps guidance, security, authority, tradition, the status quo?

But what if you struggle with authority, religion or faith even? Does the 5 of Pentacles show a lack of trust in institutions built by man to keep us safe or an actual crisis of faith? A belief that we are all alone, as we are born and die, and that no help is at hand.

All of this has brought to mind a line delivered by one of the most famous Magicians of all

‘Help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it.’
~ Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Later in the series, almost at the end in the ‘Deathly Hallows’, Dumbledore amends this line to “help will always be given to those who deserve it”. He is talking to Harry in an ‘otherworld’ after Harry has sacrificed has own life to save the lives of his friends and others locked in a battle against evil.

In the late stages of this epic tale, Harry’s faith in Dumbledore, as his mentor and guide, falters frequently, often due to his lack of knowledge and understanding of the old wizard’s ‘bigger plan’. At times during the story he feels alone, abandoned, misunderstood and utterly different to everyone else. This 5 of Pentacles style of isolation leads him to entertain dark, obsessive thoughts.

In the end, of course, Harry, a skilful wizard on the side of right, like Dumbledore himself, chooses to trust and have faith not only in his teacher and mentor, but also in himself and his own goodness and talents. He makes his own choice to live and return to fight with his friends, and ultimately vanquish the forces of evil, rather than ‘move on’ peacefully to another realm.

Ultimately he is his own authority ~ both Magician and Hierophant.

Prompts for 5 of Pentacles ~ Mercury in Taurus

When you are feeling isolated and hopeless, unlucky or ‘poor’, when everything seems to be going wrong for you…

Ask yourself:

• Who is offering help and comfort right now?
• How can you accept help with grace?
• What choices are available to you in this moment for you to help yourself?
• How can you be kinder to yourself, less judgmental of yourself?
• And, for that matter, how can you be kinder and less judgemental of others?
• Who needs your help now?
• How can you be of service to those whose needs are greater than yours?
• What is your mindset around money and abundance?
• Do you believe that you deserve to be happy and abundant?

Observations and synchronicities ~ on Taurus I

I’m making a space here to return to over the coming days of Taurus I, to add any thoughts, ideas and synchronicities as they arise…

Tracking Mercury’s progress in future Decans, the next time Mercury shows up on the Decan Walk is in the 3 of Cups (for a celebration of love, friendship and community), followed by the 10 of Pentacles (an indicator of wealth, abundance, order and security), the 8 of Wands (to move things forward towards ever-widening horizons) and finally, the 6 of Swords (the help, when help is needed, to move through rough seas to safe ground).

This whistle-stop tour feels like a Mercury coming full circle within the Zodiac wheel and the Tarot ~ from down-and-out in the 5 of Pentacles to safe passage in the 6 of Swords.

It brings me to the idea that when things are tough a possible way out is to ask where can you be of service? By helping others you may help yourself. Which would feed nicely into the next Decan and the 6 of Pentacles… but I’m getting ahead of myself. Again.

My biggest takeaways ~ Taurus I

• For a someone who is not just a confirmed Tarot nerd but also a HUGE POTTERHEAD, this grumpy Harry Potter/crisis of faith angle to the 5 of Pentacles has been illuminating and I had no idea that I was going to go there, until I started writing.
• There is a tension in the 5 of Pentacles between personal agency and blind faith.
• You are more powerful than you think.
• And you can accept help without giving up all your power.

Notes on the Decan Walk 2024/25

For more information on Decans, Astrology and Tarot and how they all synchronise please read this Substack article by Rebeka Kulcsar-Kurdi and T. Susan Chang’s 36 Secrets: A Decanic Journey through the Minor Arcana of the Tarot.

And, if you care to join me for this continuing solar return, you’ll find me on Facebook and Instagram hanging out on the corner of #decanwalk2024 and #decanastrology And I will be following @astroco_op and @tsusanchang

Here’s to another trip around the Sun!