Should I go ahead with working on my poetry or concentrate on anthropolgy?

The Ten of Wands has me a bit stumped. Have your poetry and/or anthropology been some sort of burden to you? Or perhaps have played a part in alleviating a burden you had?

The Ace of Wands shouts 'creativity' loud and clear, which would first make me think of the poetry - but then anthropology can also be very creative. And it can certainly be very empowering, and help you to become more independent and self-reliant. Hmm, so that doesn't really help answer the question either...

I have to say, the Knight of Wands strikes me as the image of an early anthropologist, off to some uncharted island to live with an indigenous tribe. Although I know contemporary anthropology doesn't really fit that cliche, it certainly can involve travel and sociable behaviour. Whereas I generally wouldn't have thought of the life of a Poet as a Knight of Wandsy activity. Hmm, but then the whole 'Poetry slam' movement that's developing lately - that's very sociable - and competitive.

So I have to say, I'm not able to be much help here! The fact that there are three Wands has to be saying *something* - but in relation to the specific question that you asked, I can't read the clues. Can anyone else see them?

The one thing I would hazard to say, given that the reading seems so ambiguous to me, is that perhaps it's not really and 'either or' issue as you've asked - that the two could happily coexist if given your attention alternately? My friend writes best-selling novels, her fifth is due out very soon, and she ONLY writes on Sundays! Her 'other' life as a producer is also very demanding, so she gives Sundays 100% to her writing and the rest-of-her-life gets the other 6 days a week :)

Hello Kat and sweetestangel;
I would surely read the 10wands as saying that in the past you have perhaps done what others thought you should do you carrying their opinions to closely-the present card is the ace I would think that you now feel the potential and opportunity to follow the movement of your own truth. Finally, given that the last card is the knight I would expect that you will feel the very strong movemnet of creativity within you and it will be obvious which direction you be moved to pursue. Notable that all cards are wands-the movement of spirit/truth/creativity within you-and none are swords-thoughts and mental decisions. Tune into and follow the movement....

Thanks for the input, jamaha - excellent interpretation.

My take on this - for what it's worth - is that we're in something like a dream interpretation situation, in that an outsider can't tell you what the images mean: only you can decied what it is that feels like too much of a burden - the anthropology or the poetry. Clearly you need to abandon one or the other, at least for the time being.

...though all that red suggests you have lots of energy available - maybe you simply need to prioritize. Can you defer the anthropolgy? (I'm assuming, from experience, that it's not really possible to put poetry "on hold".

The other thing that all that red suggested to me is, which are you most passionate about?

I really think that this reading is telling you this is a toss up situation, that you could chose either and be content. I would ask the question differently for the next read. However, if one was forced to make a decision from this reading alone, I would have to say poetry. The Knight of Wands wants to be heard (communication) and he's good at seducing women with his words. But in general, this card also stands for not wanting to settle down, changeable nature. So even though we have so much red, wand energy, there is also some uncertainty.

I really think that this reading is telling you this is a toss up situation, that you could chose either and be content. I would ask the question differently for the next read. However, if one was forced to make a decision from this reading alone, I would have to say poetry. The Knight of Wands wants to be heard (communication) and he's good at seducing women with his words. But in general, this card also stands for not wanting to settle down, changeable nature. So even though we have so much red, wand energy, there is also some uncertainty.

I really think that this reading is telling you this is a toss up situation, that you could chose either and be content. I would ask the question differently for the next read. However, if one was forced to make a decision from this reading alone, I would have to say poetry. The Knight of Wands wants to be heard (communication) and he's good at seducing women with his words. But in general, this card also stands for not wanting to settle down, changeable nature. So even though we have so much red, wand energy, there is also some uncertainty.

My question to you is, why is this an either-or question? There should be room for both poetry and anthropology in your life. All three cards are Wands, pointing to your deepest convictions and values--your passions. There is no rule that says you must give up one for the other. If your question is about making a living at either anthropology or poetry, chances are that poetry will not be the way to go--poetry is for the soul, not the wallet. On the other hand, you will most likely need a doctorate in a branch of anthropology that is tied to academia or an industry of some kind. There is much dilemma reflected in this reading, but also passion. You may need to delineate for yourself what your goals/dreams/hopes are and how and why anthropology and poetry can help you fulfill them. Take this self-exploration step-by-step, to better understand your needs, wants, and abilities. Best wishes for a successful soul-searching, Autumnalle

O, PS - something told me the Knight of Wands is a portrait of John Donne, but the deck notes say Kit Marlowe: maybe not the most happy archetype, but surely saying not to give the poetry the go by, even if that were possible?

My sense is that there is a career choice question here.... Perhaps career is not the best word, but a choice on where to put ones energy. I'm sensing that this might be someone who is graduating, or has graduated, and is considering whether to continue studying Anthropology -- continuing the grind of higher education, to make it their career, commit to the financial, intellectual, and emotional burdens of higher education. My sense is a "burn out" right now, an exhaustion of emotions and mental capacities.

Because we have rods in all three positions, I feel that the essence of what brings this person to write poetry and study anthropology are the same thing. Returning to that source, that original passion, after the burden and exhaustion of the course of study, may feel impossible. I think if I were to read some of this person's poetry, it would be richly informed by their anthropological education, and that it provides the "spark" that brought them to the "discipline" of anthropology.

While rest springs to mind as an answer to this, the Ace and the Knight seem to indicate both rebirth/rediscovery and action. The question asked is one of a person trying to make a decision, to choose a path to go down -- to go from the burdened, stopped in one place person, with all the resources indicated in the bundle of rods held, but unspent, to the Knight, and the inspired Knight (ace of rods) at that.

The other thing that the Knight of Cups brings to mind, is perhaps reconsidering the direction of the anthropological study. There is a relatively new discipline, called Activist Anthropology, that comes to mind, with the Knight. UT Austin appears to be the hub here -- and I'm also wondering if this person perhaps feels trapped in a situation where teaching in a formal session is the only option for their further study.

My suggestion, to find out what the path is that will reanimate the bundle of "firewood" in the Ten of Wands into a useful and renewable resource to be used by the "spark" represented in the Ace, to fuel the progress and find the inspiration for and the form of the Knight's Quest, is to sit down and write some poetry about this question, and sees what it tells you. The challenge, I think, is to see these two things as compatible, and inter-supportive, rather than polar opposites.