The Empress: The Catalyst of the Mind

[Jade]

Here is our Empress, the Catalyst of the Mind. This card represents all manifest catalyst that is perceived not consciously but unconsciously by the mind, hence the female. This is the state of the mind complex once the will has reached for the subconscious - or, as Ra puts it, the "ennobled" state of the female portion of the mind complex. This is the state of infinite available catalyst that is manifest. It is in the Experience of the Mind that we process the Catalyst and seat it in our experience.

The Empress sits atop what Ra calls a "not white and not dark" box, noting that the manifestation of catalyst in third density, at its heart, is of neither polarity. It also has many eyes, symbolizing the many possible interpretations and angles to view the catalyst. The Empress holds a bird with one wing outstretched, looking directly at it: The nature of catalyst is to get us to turn our attention towards the spirit, the bird in the cage. Catalyst allows the bird to potentially be released. The bird is in the left hand, showing that until we recognize the spirit, the nature of catalyst will seem heavily biased towards the negative. The bird is practically hitting her in the face, distracting her from the sphere of infinite magical possibilities in her right hand, behind her - she does not yet notice it. The sun sits behind her head, radiant, protecting her if she chooses to consciously use the catalyst to help free the bird. She has a snake on her brow, indicating that indigo wisdom is obtainable through the Catalyst of the Mind.

The Empress is the High Priestess revealed through the calling of the Magician. She is no longer veiled, and in fact quite exposed, but she still sits on the box near but not manifest within the illusion. Her feet rest upon a much less stable platform than the High Priestess, showing again the fluidity of your personal interpretation of what she offers.

An individual mind/body/spirit complex may use any catalyst which comes before its notice, be it through the body and its senses or through mentation or through any other more highly developed source, and use this catalyst in its unique way to form an experience unique to it, with its biases.

Here, the female figure, the ennobled High Priestess, is now offering herself to you in an obvious way. You have many choices on what to "do with her". A young suitor will let his excitement get the best of him, stimulus overload. An experienced suitor, one who has fallen in love with her, will begin to focus on the positive, manifest experiences she offers. It is the Emperor's job to decide where each experience is seated, along the lines of "good/bad" or "desirable/undesirable".