Four of Pentacles: Material Bonds
I like possessions. Though I don’t think I’m materialistic; just a sentimentalist. I form bonds with really strange objects and it’s generally not what you would think. Sometimes it’s pieces of jewellery or tiny objects that I just think are beautiful and so I looked to look at them to make me happy. Otherwise it’s candles or perfumes or even clothes that I can’t explain why I’m so attached to, but I am devastated when they are over or they break or wear out.
The interesting thing is they don’t generally need to be expensive (I often like them better when they are not), or a specific brand. Sometimes there are memories directly attached, and other times they remind me of something that makes me happy. My mum used to call me a magpie for the random assortment of things I would save in my cupboard. Now, I often wish I didn’t have these ties — it would be so freeing to be able to just let go of it all, and not have the worry and pain of losing these items. But, in other ways they are security blankets and if I didn’t have these things I wouldn’t know how to placate myself. Perhaps, there in lies of challenge of true spirituality.
What you see: A man wearing a gold crown sits with a city visible behind him. He holds tightly onto a pentacle in his hands, balances another on his head and two more lie securely under each of his feet.
What it means: The man is a miser, holding on tightly to his material wealth. He appears to be unable to do much else, as he has tied himself to securing his possessions. The pentacle on his head implies he is unable to connect to his spirituality as the coin is impeding that link.
The story: The Four of Pentacles, represents possessiveness and hoarding; a tie to materialistic goods that prevents you from transcending it.
Reversed meaning: Reversed, the card represents generosity and the lack of materialism so that you have more room for spirituality. It could also mean recklessness with your possessions and material goods.
Reflection: The pentacles in this card really constrain the man, He almost seems like he is in a box, as his body language is drawn in. The man looks neither happy nor sad, just resigned in a sense and potentially too focussed on what he is doing, to be able to really tune into himself and his mind and spirit.
My research sources:
A Complete Guide to the Tarot, Eden Gray, 1970
Tarot Card Meanings, Biddy Tarot
Card Meanings, Labyrinthos
Root Lock Radio: A Tarot Podcast
