Justice

"Though force can protect in emergency, only justice, fairness, consideration and cooperation can finally lead men to the dawn of eternal peace."

- Dwight Eisenhower

Associations / Attributions

Card Meanings / Keywords

Golden Dawn

Eternal justice and balance, but in the act of judgment. Compare with 8 - Fortitude (Strength). Legal proceedings, court of law, trial, etc.

Waite

Equity, rightness, triumph in the deserving side of law. Reversed: Legal complications, bias, excessive severity.

Crowley

The act of adjustment, suspension of action pending decision; marriage, politics, treaties.

Personal

Establish equilibrium.

Synopsis

The character of Justice is relatively straightforward, often offering opportunities to establish (or re-establish) a dynamic equilibrium when something has become unbalanced. She has the detached compassion of Ma’at, an Egyptian goddess of “truth” in multiple senses—both being without deceit and “being true”, as in straight as a line. It is on the scales of Ma’at that a heart is weighed against a feather to determine the worthiness of a soul to enter the exalted afterlife in ancient Egyptian thought.

Both the scales and the double-edged sword of Justice show her desire to bring order to life that has become out-of-balance by calling upon whatever side of the duality is lacking. The throne is representative of her mature wisdom and power as a queen—she is a woman fully in her power who knows both the earth and the heavens. Justice is associated with the astrological sign Libra (the scales), ruled by Venus, but also the thoughtful element of air (the double-edged sword) and severe Saturn. It is in this dance between the passionate and earthly feminine Venus and the detached discipline of masculine Saturn that the personality of this trump can be felt.

Poiesis

Holding scales of the heart
Blood against water
both become wine
Truth glides on the wind
as the feather of Ma’at
from one world to the next
Wielding a double-edged sword she
cuts away what is in excess,
protects what is quickening,
and unlocks the way to balance

What in my life requires an honest and true examination and rebalancing? How do I wield the sword as both protector and—when necessary—destroyer?