Generous Fire

King of Wands & Energy Management

Tomorrow: Wednesday, July 31st, it’s another Tarot Poetry Circle! It’ll be on Zoom, at 7 PM Central; details on joining at the bottom of the page, after these reflections.

Leo Season! We are in it! The Leo court card is King of Wands, so we’ll look today at this card as an embodiment of the lessons of the Chariot, which is the Major of the preceding zodiacal season, Cancer. 

As always, this concept feels awkward to explain (and in fact, I’ve taken to copy-pasting these intros) but it’s really simple at heart: take a look back at the other posts if you haven’t already, and you’ll definitely see the theory at work: Knight of Wands (Sagittarius) as a response to Death (Scorpio), Queen of Pentacles (Capricorn) as a response to Temperance (Sagittarius), King of Swords (Aquarius) as a response to the Devil (Capricorn), Knight of Cups (Pisces) as a response to the Star (Aquarius),  Queen of Wands (Aries) as a response to the Moon (Pisces), King of Pentacles (Taurus) as a response to the Emperor (Aries), Knight of Swords (Gemini) as a response to the Hierophant (Taurus), and Queen of Cups (Cancer) as a response to the Lovers (Gemini).

One of the chief and most obvious themes we can see in the Chariot and the King of Wands is success. A common keyword for the Chariot is ‘victory’; it’s seen as a card of accomplishment and drive, of achieving great things. King of Wands is likewise associated with success, and often represents leaders and bosses and people on top of their game. So these cards have some deep similarities, but how can we delineate what the Chariot has taught the King of Wands, to allow them such triumph?  

I think the key thing here is energy-management. The Charioteer has harnessed the two competing forces depicted by the black and white sphinxes (in the RWS card). Energies that could otherwise be pulling the Chariot apart have been directed towards a singular goal. It’s a sacred focus. Instead of our will being divided, it is unified. Learning to manage those internal energies isn’t easy, but it’s not an issue of force. Chariot is Cancer, which puts it under the influence of the moon (the luminary, not the Tarot card); so think ebb and flow, think cycles. Those are the kind of tides that the Charioteer has to work with. It’s less a white-knuckle hurtle in a wagon, and more like surfing. In the Chariot, we learn to ride these powerful currents without being overwhelmed by them, and allow them to carry us where we want to go.

So, since we’re shifting elements here--from the Chariot’s water to the King of Wands’ fire-- the surfing analogy won’t hold up, but energy management will: that’s something this King must necessarily master in order to thrive, and that’s what they’ve learned from the Chariot. King of Wands is fire+fire; intense, in other words. Without another element in their profile, King ofWands doesn’t have a natural check on all that fire energy. And unmanaged fire is dangerous; it consumes and burns and destroys. But with appropriate boundaries and a watchful eye, fire is life-giving. It draws us in, and makes us feel protected and nourished.

King of Wands’ fire gives them a natural charisma; when it’s unmanaged, they become capable of high-level manipulation and abuse, because people buy in. I hate to bring the Cheeto into this, but he’s an example of a shadow King of Wands: drawing people in like moths, and burning them up (even though they may not realize for some time that they’re being consumed by the fire). To a shadow King of Wands, everything is fuel for their own egoic flames. They embody the lessons of a shadow Chariot, which is all about the persona, the image of success, the hubris and pride.

A King of Wands who has learned to manage their fire becomes an embodiment of Dan Savage’s “campsite rule”, which can be summarized as: leave people better than you found them. As someone who can harness and wield their own formidable fire energy (and fire energy is intimidating! Think ambition and passion and rage and hunger) and make it sustainable, King of Wands is a real example to everyone around them. They’re inspirational, offering us a vision for what we, too, are capable of. Because of their experience and wisdom in managing their fire, they know that their own flames don’t diminish by lighting others up. They are not afraid to let other people shine.

Here's a quick, real-life story of these concepts showing up:

There were two big bike-rides I did in the last few years that really intimidated me. One was through the Saw-Tooth Mountains of Idaho with more elevation than I’d ever done before, and one was a weekend bike-packing trip where I’d be loaded down with lots of weight. I wasn’t sure if I could do it, but the morning of each of those rides, I drew King of Wands. It was inspiring and reassuring, of course, and it was also a reminder that success on any long bike ride comes down to energy management. You have to fuel yourself well, and you can’t burn yourself out.

There were moments on the ride in Idaho when I didn’t think I’d be able to keep going. It was a group event, so there were lots of folks around me, struggling up the mountain, and my partner Abi and I would holler and cheer and tell them they could do it! They were kicking ass! When I was doubting myself, I did not doubt these other people. When my self-confidence was flagging, I had confidence in them. And I noticed that by offering others encouragement, my belief in myself began to grow stronger. By stoking their fires, I was stoking my own.

We think of Kings as being generous because they come from a place of abundance. But perhaps their abundance is because of their generosity. I think that certainly plays out with King of Wands. The more fire they give away, the brighter their world is. And that’s the kind of world that King of Wands wants to live in—a world on fire with hope and confidence and faith, a world full of people that know that they have the right to shine.

Here is a prompt for a single card pull inspired by King of Wands:

Stepping into my power is an act of generosity.

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To join Tarot Poetry Circle: send any amount—whatever feels doable and comfortable for your budget— to me via Venmo (@oakmoontarot) or PayPal (oakmoontarot@gmail.com), and leave your email address in the memo. I will send you a Zoom link shortly before we gather. All you need is a deck and a journal to write down your reflections. If you have any questions, feel free to email me or DM me on Instagram.