Tarot for Creativity: Two of Pentacles
Sometimes you find yourself juggling life. In those moments, keeping focus on the balance and not on each pentacle itself is the main task. Rather than trying to perfect one thing, it may be wise to simply keep the order and find enjoyment in that balancing act. This daily wisdom brought by the Two of Pentacles may resonate with creative minds with a perfectionistic streak.
That streak is not something I’m entirely unfamiliar with, and reflecting on this card inspired me to share some creative prompts. They are intended to help with the creative process, but you’re welcome to take them in any way that feels best for you — whether that’s inspiration for journalling, reflection, or action in daily life.
- Make time for play: create wildly and freely
Two of Pentacles connects to the act of playing because play is the balanced middle between lightness and determined action. When playing, you use the materials and tools freely available to you to recreate a vision that may seem far beyond your reach or unrealistic. But, unlike work, it’s forever pleasant to persevere in play because it asks for your enthusiasm, not proof of result and perfection. Set aside time for play today and let yourself create wildly without rush or pressure to achieve — your next breakthrough may lie in the outcome.
2. Compare and contrast – and find new in it
Focusing on juggling gives the perfect chance to observe each pentacle that makes way through your hands, instead of perfecting them. Take a cue from this card — collect all the details to compare and contrast between each one of them, like a curious researcher. If you’re writing a story, zone in on your characters and compare their biographies. How do they define themselves? What are their goals? How do their stories complement or conflict each other, what creates this conflict? Notice the new perspectives and ideas that come up during this act of comparison.
3. Notice the precision in your balance
Bring the attention to the balancing act itself and analyse how well you’re juggling. Coming back to the example of writing, if the storyline feels somewhat off but it’s difficult to pinpoint the issue, it would do well to analyse the balance between elements in your writing.
This prompt works well with the previous one, as you’ll need to know how each element relates to one another. If the story feels too scattered, take a look at all storyline elements and, again, consider how the parts complement or conflict each other. Notice if the parts have a common trait that strongly links them. Maybe the main character is strongly motivated, as is the environment you’ve set them in, but their motivations go opposing ways rather than creating tension that you could use to forward the story. Using this awareness, you can start redirecting the elements into a coherent order.
Conversely, the story may sometimes feel too stagnant and predictable, so it is worth asking yourself what would create meaningful chaos here. When the main character is written as a fiercefully determined person, it’s unproductive to create a setting that only gives a simple inconvenience rather than a true challenge. In The Devil Wears Prada, Andy is thrown a rather challenging workday, having to fish out copies of an unpublished Harry Potter book all while being piled on more and more usual tasks. The stresses she encounters are written to create a sense of meaningful chaos – the increasing pressure and high stakes create tension with Andy’s determination to succeed, so not the inconveniences themselves, but their rapid succession builds up the larger challenge. In the end, what matters is not only the weight, but also the intentionality of chaos you desire to cause.
