On the qabalistic diagram of the tree of life the path associated with the Empress card is one of only three, along with the Fool and the Magician, which exists entirely ‘above the abyss’ in the realms of pure spirit. But most interpretations of the Empress card have a strong emphasis on material comfort, prosperity and fecundity. This seems to present a superficial contradiction in the nature of this card. This apparent contradiction is due to a misconception as to the nature of reality which has at all times been common. It has always been usual to define the spiritual, about whose nature in itself so little can be known with certain, in opposition to the material; because materiality is something which we can easily understand and experience it provides us with a solid reference point form which a person can begin to form a concept of the spiritual, simply by presuming spiritual things to possess the precise opposite qualities as the material. And, indeed, this is often the case. But consider this: is black as different as it is possible to be to white? And is hate as far from love as it is possible to get? A brief and superficial consideration may lead one to answer yes to these questions, but if you think about it black has much more in common with white than it has in common with, for example, the European Union; both black and white are functions of light absorption, whereas the European Union is something entirely different. All opposites describe the extreme points on a common spectrum, and this is also the case for spirit and matter. In this instance the common spectrum is existence or substance. Spirit is the original source, essence, and universal constant of all existence, or substance; in medieval alchemical language it is the ‘prima materia’ or original material; on the other hand matter is the particular, partial and hence relative manifestation of spirit.

            Therefore we can say that the Empress represents that aspect of the spirit which is the ‘universal constant’ of material existence. She represents both the spirit as the source of material existence, and as the eternal essence and perfect ideal (in the sense of Plato’s Idea’s) of all material things. It may be remarked at this point that the astrological symbol of the Empress is Venus, the Goddess of love, the only astrological power whose symbol, when drawn upon the tree of life, encompasses every sphere.

            On the tree of life the path of the Empress crosses that of the High Priestess, showing that they share some common element in their nature at the point where they cross. In my previous article on the High Priestess I mentioned the highest feminine archetype of the virgin mother, as exemplified in the Christian story of the Virgin Mary, and this is the point where the two paths cross. Whereas the High Priestess is in many ways most closely associated with the Virgin, with purity, passivity, and isolated detachment, one may say that the Empress is most closely associated with the Mother, with birth and creation, with love and with the security and comfort of home. The closest parallel to the Empress in mythology is therefore the Great Mother of Pagan traditions, the source of all things and the essence of the earth, often known simply as ‘Mother Earth’.

Interpretations of the Empress when it appears in a reading include: pregnancy, motherhood and the instinct to nurture, creativity and links to the arts, home-life or moving home (and in particular activities such decorating or gardening) and material comfort and contentment.

It is vitally important however that one remembers the essentially spiritual nature of this card. Although material situation and concerns are often described by the Empress, this means the highest, most perfected and exalted aspect of the material. So although the components are material, the results are spiritual. Although prosperity may be indicated, all desire and ambition are alien to this card, and so the victory of such things is not indicated. The prosperity of the Empress is one in which the necessities of material life are taken caring of, freeing the mind to turn its attention elsewhere.