The Twos in this deck are quite non-traditional.  One thing that should be mentioned before starting is that the authors noted the normal tendency for the Swords (Blades in this deck) to have more of the “negative” cards, so they made a conscious decision to spread the negative cards around a little more among the suits, resulting in some Swords cards that are more positive than usual and some cards in other suits that are more negative than usual.  We see some examples of this in the Twos and Threes.

To reiterate from a previous post on the Aces, Twos, and Threes, I see the Twos as the first step toward making something new represented by the Aces into reality or manifestation.  At this point, the new idea is not yet real, but energy is being put into it.  Alternatives are being weighed, mental, emotional and financial investment is being created, plans are being laid, and all the groundwork completed.  At this point, there is a decision to be made, to go forward or not.  Let’s see how this deck uses these ideas.

Two of Flames – Mahuea.  The Two of Flames shows a large Polynesian woman wrapped in a red and green garment from the waist down and crossing one shoulder.  She sits on a volcanic rock wall, holding her arms out to the sides, while flames are being generated from her hands and fingers.  Her black hair streams out in all directions around her head, against a purple sky.  This image represents the goddess Mahuea, who in the Polynesian tradition discovered fire and taught the islanders how to use it. 

This card represents creative manifestation – the point at which you learn enough to begin to use the fiery new energy you have been given – and it can either warm and fuel your activities, or rage out of control and be used for destruction.  In spite of the energy streaming out of her body, Mahuea appears very calm and comfortable with this energy, and she embodies the positive use of natural energy and life forces.  This card could be linked with positive visualization and acting on your ideas.

Two of Cups – Whirlpool.  In this card, a grey sky glowers over a swirling sea.  Rain falls into a whirlpool in the center of the card, while around the edges of the background, tiny glimmers of light can be seen.  One golden cup tilts downward and is about to be carried down into the whirlpool, while the other circles around the edge on its side.  Rain is also falling out the central cup in to the middle of the whirlpool, while outside the whirlpool, the air is conspicuously rain-free.  This is one of the attempts to move some of the negative cards into other suits, and actually could be considered consistent with some of the earlier European interpretations of the Two of Cups, which were typically much more negative than the modern RW versions.

Several thoughts come to mind with this card – it still suggests a two-person relationship, but one in which one person is drowning, while the other person is just circling the edges of the emotional storm, observing but unable (or unwilling) to help.  The rain which falls only on the central whirlpool and out of the drowning cup suggests that the person who is drowning is feeding their own misery and making the situation worse than it otherwise could be.  There is an imbalance between the emotional states of the two people, and they have become disconnected as a result, while one goes off the deep end (literally).  The tiny glimmers of light suggest hope for the one that is circling, while the fate of the drowning one is unknown.  This card suggests separation, emotional disconnection, and self-perpetuated misery and depression.  It is interesting how the authors of this deck consistently use natural disasters and imagery when designing negative cards, as if being unwilling to face the human element of these interactions.

Two of Blades – Moo – Analysis.  This card shows two black women in white fencing outfits, crossing curved swords.  One holds her sword in her left hand and the other in her right, and the other hands are held up with fingers extended.  Where the two swords cross, an eight-pointed star of yellow-white light is formed, and from the center of the star, colored bands of blue, green, red, and yellow energy radiate.  Shing Moo is a Chinese mother-goddess, whose name translates as the Mother who Gazes or Watches.  The DOM book (whose mythology is quite often incorrect) calls her the “Chinese goddess of perfect intelligence”.  This seems to bear little relation to the image on the card or the meanings associated with it, so it is not clear why it was added here.

This card has some of the traditional associations with balance, with a somewhat more energetic feel – the women are agile and lithe, and the swords are actively rather than passively held.  They may be opposites, or two halves of the same person.  When the swords or ideas come together, energy is released.  The name of the card, Analysis, suggests an active combination of thoughts, and the idea that two can more productively see all sides of a situation than one.  Each person benefits from the practice, honing their abilities and thoughts by having a foil in the other.  Tilted or poorly dignified, it could represent a situation in which there is argument for argument’s sake, and energy is wasted unproductively, or a situation which is not balanced, where one has an intellectual advantage over the other.

Two of Pentacles – Bull Leapers – Balance.  This is possibly the oddest card in this deck :-).  Two Greek women balance upside-down on a reddish-brown bull in an arena – one balances on the bull’s horns, the other on its back.  They are wearing only red skirts with pentacles on them (which miraculously stay up even though they are upside-down!).  Behind them around the edge of the ring are friezes showing various underwater scenes, including a temple, giving an impression of Atlantis.  Here is what the DOM book has to say about these acrobatic women: “Cretan bull dancers or bull leapers demonstrated the art of balance at ceremonies to the Goddess, which were rituals showing the great mother’s dominion over disaster.”  Apparently, both young boys and girls engaged in this sport (backed up by both archaeology and myth), possibly to celebrate the triumph of man over his animal nature, as well as to honor various deities (male and female).

My sense here is handling an almost impossible feat of balance with aplomb and skill, with fairly dire consequences should balance be lost.  Perhaps someone who is trying to juggle too much in their life, and is succeeding for now, although it should not be expected that this could continue indefinitely without something giving.  The feminist authors of the book associate this card with the struggle of women in modern life to care for their families as well as have careers, and other similar balancing acts.

Thrysse