The Knight of Pentacles
Symbolism
The Knight stands on a static shire horse, strong and still and steady. He holds his pentacle in one hand with his gaze out to the fields surrounding him. The backdrop is a ploughed field that has been worked and tilled. He is looking at his land and that he is here to protect.
He represents our strong and stable connection to our bodies, our senses, our work and wealth.
His horse is still, and black. He is earthy and grounded, and he shares the message of ‘slow but sure.’ He isn’t in a hurry and is looking very carefully before he moves.
Keywords
Upright: Determined, stable, strong, slow, methodical, reliable, loyal, patient, dependable, persistent, stubborn, focussed, committed, perfectionist, nature lover.
Reversed: Headstrong, lethargic, lazy, dependant, possessive, attached, addict, selfish, superficial, self-centred, insecure, rigid, clumsy, stubborn.
Upright meaning
This Knight is that masculine part of us who is very connected to the material world. He is stable and strong and knows how to get his head down and finish any job he starts. He may not be the smartest, but he is the most dependable, and he loves routine and having something to show for his work. Here is the tortoise who may not necessarily finish first, but he will finish well.
The strength of this guy makes him a perfect protector, and he is a good defender of boundaries. He will provide us with patience and persistence to achieve our goals and have our needs met. He is great at gifting his time and service and is that natural provider inside us.
This guy is super practical about getting things done. He is a doer and can often be a bit of a perfectionist because he likes his environment to be just right and to look good. This also makes him more of a conformer and someone to continue tradition and old school patterns. He is strong but also stubborn as an Ox. His Kapha nature makes him a little slow, and he isn’t likely to adventure out into the world much.
Because this part of us loves the earthy physical world, his vision of beauty is in the grounded earthy lover who radiates health and strength. He will give importance to looks over passion and may not be the most exciting love in bed, but he will be the most persistent and long-lasting!
Reversed meaning
This Shadow Knight will have a twisted relationship with his ‘Pentacle’. The pentacle points strongly to our body and this guy can be obsessed with the way he looks, and his appearance may dominate his feelings of worthiness. He can easily be overweight and addicted to unhealthy eating habits as he can be a bodybuilder basing his identity on his physical image.
Both extremes of excess exercise or none at all come from a program that tells us that we are not good enough the way we are. This is often a school/ society induced trauma but can also come from our parents who have these same patterns and subconsciously want us to be extensions of themselves. Self-care practices and listening to our bodily needs is key for this knight.
Because slowness is this Knight’s norm, his shadow presents an excessive stagnant and stubborn quality. He may have a trauma of being judged by the world, and so he feels safer in his own home/ family environment where he is in control. He is a typical homeboy/ girl and doesn’t dare to move much or share himself with the world. This knight needs and will attract some fire to move his rigid butt out of old patterns.
This Knight is over attached to things and possessions as well as people. Everything is an extension of this guy, and so he will try to control people and own them and his harshest fear is that of losing that control and abandonment. He will be overprotective and ‘care’ too much about overs smothering their freedom and expression. He will also be greedy and codependent in his over attachment to people.
This is the part of us prone to eating disorders and addictions to work. He can lose his practical perspective, choosing habit and perfectionism over effectivity. He calls for change, for letting go of old patterns and the fire to avoid stagnancy.