The Archetype and The Tarot: The Scribe and Ten of Wands
Through the Scribe and the Ten of Wands, this week we’re being called to stop striving and start recording. Can we simply spend some time in quiet reflection?
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The Scribe Archetype
At first glance, the Scribe might not seem like the juiciest of archetypes, especially compared to some we’ve had lately (looking at you Exorcist). But, really, our lives would be a lot less fulfilling if not for the Scribe.
The Scribe is the great recorder of events. Most often we see this one wearing the faces of historian, accountant, secretary, copyist, journalist, etc. But the Scribe is also a type of artist, bringing abstract concepts into form. In ancient times, it was the Scribe who carved symbols into rock or painted hieroglyphics on tomb walls. It is because of the Scribe that we have the sacred texts that are so meaningful to us today. And for the witchy readers here, it’s our inner Scribe that prompts us to keep a grimoire or book of shadows.
The Scribe has a deep relationship with time and is committed to remembrance. A devoted memory keeper, they understand how profoundly the past informs the present. Even when we are “in the now” we are standing upon a foundation of the past. It is through the Scribe that we come to know this foundation.
When the Scribe card comes up, we’re being asked to look at our relationship with memory and keeping records.
In the light, the Scribe possesses great powers of awareness, attention, and discernment. They have a keen eye and the ability to know which experiences matter most and need to be recorded. Their recordings are accurate and truthful. Perhaps most importantly, the Scribe in the light does their recording without a personal agenda. They understand that they are the conduits of remembrance, and so their motivation is to faithfully record things as they are.
The shadow Scribe, on the other hand, is not a faithful recorder. They might intentionally record things incorrectly for the sake of personal gain, such as an accountant who cooks the books. Or they might influence the future by recording things with a heavy bias, such as those who create propaganda. The shadow Scribe might also be sloppy, inaccurate, or simply fail to keep records in the first place. On the other end of this, the shadow Scribe might become obsessive, needing to record every single thing, and thereby missing out on a lot of present moment experience.
How is the Scribe showing up for you?
Some questions to consider this week:
What emotions come up for you when you are asked to keep records. Are you excited? Is there a tendency to procrastinate or feel resistance?
Is it even possible to record something without a bias?
Do you record your dreams?
Have you ever looked at an old journal entry or photograph and been surprised by how differently you’d been remembering the event?
The Ten of Wands
In this card, we see a figure with their arms full of ten wands. In many traditional interpretations of this card, the message is about being overburdened. To me, though, it looks as though this person is right at the moment of setting down all those wands. The way they lean forward with their face buried in the wands doesn’t so much look to me like someone on a forward trajectory, but that they’re in the process of dropping the wands. Perhaps they’ve been overburdened, but this is the moment they set down all that they carry.
To me, a wand is the tool that connects us to Spirit, to Magic. At the beginning of the story of the wands, the Ace brings a wand, offering the gift of being able to connect with the Spirit realm. Through this connection, the person in the wands story invokes a sense of passion and purpose into their life. As the story progresses, though, something shifts. Slowly, the “wands person” stops seeing the wand as a tool of connection and, instead, they start to believe it is solely up to them to generate and maintain a sense of purpose. Forgetting to trust in the true source of passion, they keep picking up more wands, believing that they have to make things happen for themself; that their fulfillment is up to them alone. By the time they’ve reached the ten here, they’ve nearly lost their faith.
But not completely. This is the moment they realize what has happened. This is the moment they understand they must set down the wands. It was never meant to be their burden to carry alone. This is the moment their faith is restored.
With this card, we’re being called to look at the ways we may have been trying too hard to make something happen on our own. Maybe we’ve forgotten the true gift of the wand, and that ‘enthusiasm’ means ‘the gods within’.
How does this pair work together?
The image I see here is the person from the tarot card dropping all those wands and then picking up a pencil. They go find a really comfortable place to sit (surrounded by candles and endless cups of herbal tea). They know that this week is about not trying to make anything happen, but rather being the impartial observer and recorder of whatever is going on.
I think this week we’re being asked to let our wand re-charge—to not strive for anything on our own—and take a deep dive into journaling and reflection.
Writing that paragraph above feels like a big, huge, much-needed sigh of relief. Who’s with me in taking a week to be the slow, quiet Scribe? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below or by replying to this email.
Enjoy the week, everyone!
Well! This is funny since I've been tasked to get our tax records pulled together by the end of next week and I absolutely hate doing it ;)
I feel like the 10ofW lately. Holding too tight while at the same time spreading myself too thin. The wands for me represent my passion, the fires in my belly and my "spiritual" longings. Wand energy is not something to try to control, hold onto, or force in a direction. The 10ofW is all about attempting to do that. A good thing that the pendulum swings. That after a tight grip there is only one place to go and that is an open hand. More receptivity. Cycles change, like here at the spring equinox, a birthing is at hand. And the Scribe in me takes note! Writing, journaling, tarot readings... all are means to explore what I am moving through. I feel at a precipice. Time to be The Fool and jump!