There are three major lessons that I see instantly in this card:

1.  Our blessings sometimes come in disguise, otherwise we might not accept them. Rider-Waite describes the central figure in the card as “a man dressed as a merchant”.  Not a merchant himself, but someone who deliberately dresses to fulfill a certain expectation.  This figure is giving alms to those in need.  Obviously there was a reason for the man who is being generous to come dressed in a certain fashion.  Perhaps it is to draw attention to him.  Who knows?  However, we cannot judge the blessing itself by the vehicle in which it arrives.  It is “dressed for the occasion”.

2.  What we receive may not be the same as someone else, but it will be balanced to our need and our ability to accept. Notice that the pentacles above the scene show three to one side, one to the center, and two to the right.  You might say that the placement is due to the space left in which to place the pentacles.  I believe more is there beneath that surface.  If you notice the benefactor’s hand, four coins are spilling out to the man kneeling on the left under the three pentacles.  He is receiving the pentacles that are “lined up” for him, perhaps also the one lined up above the benefactor, given at the benefactor’s discretion.  Notice that there are two coins remaining in the benefactor’s hand, clutched to avoid allowing them to fall.  I would feel safe betting that these two coins are meant to go to the man kneeling on the right.

On the surface, it seems unfair that one man would receive four coins and the other man would receive only two.  But look at the other symbols in the card.  The men kneeling are at equal heights, neither above nor below the other.  Both are cloaked, so we really don’t know their station or their needs save that they are supplicants.  Even their hands are raised to nearly equal levels.  Also, the scales are balanced.  Even though our observant minds record that one man receives more, that is all the data we have by which to judge.  However, if the man on the left NEEDS four coins and the man on the right NEEDS only two coins, isn’t it fair to say that what was given was EQUAL ACCORDING TO NEED?

We have to be careful not to judge the abundance flowing in our lives compared against what we view might be being given to the lives of others.  The Universe has already made clear that Abundance flows to meet needs adequately.  Water filling a hole might fill to different depths dependent upon the contours of the hole, but when the hole is filled, the surface is level.  Who can judge that?  Likewise, be careful measuring what is given to you based on what is given to another, especially when the “recipients” of universal grace are “cloaked” and you don’t know all the details.

3.  Part of having wealth is the ability to share it in a way that is in line with Universal law. The benefactor in this card obviously could be a stand-in representative for the Universe, measuring out to all who ask and ensuring that the balance is kept.  Likewise, we should emulate this as much as we can.  If we have it to give, then let our hand be open and our intuition weigh things carefully when taking action.  We also need to take into account that to give requires someone to receive and doing so can set up an unhealthy and codependent dynamic between Those-That-Have and Those-That-Have-Not.  While we might be in the current guise of someone who has wealth to spare (a merchant), we must remember that we only perform this role as a service and it is not who we are.  Identifying with the role runs the risk of identifying with the power that manifests in the codependency of give and take.  Next time, it might be you kneeling and another person in the guise of the merchant — after all, that would be the ultimate manifestation of balance, would it not?  On another note, a merchant has “something to sell”.  Be careful if you are the person kneeling that the alms you are receiving do not come with a price tag of expecting you to buy into a sense of guilt or obligation.

Lessons From The Six: Blessings do not come in forms we expect, what is fair may not be readily apparent, the Universe keeps the scales balanced according to reasons that may be “cloaked” to us, part of having abundance entrusted to us is our willing participation in sharing that abundance fairly, do not identify with the role of the giver so greatly that you become the role and thus dependent upon the energy exchange occurring in that role.

Read about the Seven of Pentacles…

Photo of Six of Pentacles card, art by Pamela Colman Smith under direction of A.E. Waite, originally published by the Rider Company, 1909.