This card will often prominently feature an angelic or divine being. Water is often another prominent feature, either as a body of water or as the liquid the angel is pouring from one cup to another. Also note that there will usually be ideas suggesting a balance of opposites, like the angel one foot in and one foot out of the water.
Temperance coming up in a reading lets us know there is a need for balance. But balance is much more complicated than it sounds. Firstly, what can balance one person can be wildly unbalancing for another. Secondly, what one person needs to be balanced can vary widely within their lifetime. Don’t think of balance as a final goal, but as an ongoing process. And to understand what you need to find balance at any particular moment requires self-knowledge. The journey Elizabeth goes on in Eat, Pray, Love is an example for what the quest for balance can look like.
Temperance Upright Keywords: balance, moderation, self-knowledge, assessing your needs, seeking peace
While Temperance upright can be seen as a gentle reminder to seek balance, reversed it’s more of a loud siren going off to alert you that things are off-kilter. You may be in situations where you have over-committed yourself. When faced with a situation you may have chosen a path that threw you more off-balance and never faced the core issues. Walter White’s descent into crime in the series Breaking Bad is an extreme example of this kind of energy.
Temperance Reversed Keywords: excess, doubling down, out of control, spreading yourself too thin
