XVII. The Star
The Star is the first celestial body named in the deck and is understood to symbolise inspiration and the creative forces. The seven smaller stars have historically been thought to represent Pleiades or the seven sisters. The single fixed star is understood to be Sirius, the dog star. As the brightest star in the sky, Sirius was extremely important to the ancients. The implication of the card is that creative forces are heaven born. Every atom of our being was of course created inside a star long before Earth ever came to be. We are all stardust and we are all ancient. In this piece, the eye-studded sky of the Hermit is revisited but this time in their truest twinkling manifestation. Living is defined by death and all beings will eventually return to the stars to rest among the ancients once more.
‘Astra inclinant, sed non obligant’
‘The stars incline us, they do not bind us’