avatarSusannah MacKinnie

Summary

A tale of a young girl, forced to become the High Priestess, who faces the lust and greed of an emperor and a magician, leading to a curse of immortality and her transformation into an impoverished fortune-teller.

Abstract

The narrative unfolds with the haiku-like description of a woman's struggle against powerful men who covet her for different reasons: power and physical desire. The emperor and the magician's actions lead to the emperor's death and the magician's curse of eternal life upon the woman. She becomes the High Priestess, a figure of both illusion and mystery, and centuries later, she survives as a destitute fortune-teller, sensing a looming catastrophe. The story is set against a backdrop of Tarot symbolism, with references to the Emperor and the Magician cards, each representing dominion and the manifestation of desires, respectively. The woman's journey from a young girl in love to a cursed immortal is chronicled in a series of events that culminate in her preparing to face an impending storm with her accumulated magical powers.

Opinions

  • The author suggests that women often face difficult challenges due to the desires and actions of men, as illustrated by the young girl's experiences with the emperor and the magician.
  • The use of Joseph Conrad's quote implies that being a woman is inherently challenging, particularly in relation to men.
  • The story seems to convey a feminist perspective, highlighting the resilience and struggle of the protagonist against the patriarchal forces represented by the emperor and the magician.
  • The references to Tarot cards and their symbolism serve to enrich the narrative with deeper meaning and foreshadowing, suggesting that the characters are bound by destiny and archetypal roles.
  • The curse of immortality is portrayed as a burden, contrasting the often romanticized notion of eternal life in literature and mythology.

Illumination | Haiku

The Villains

The emperor and the magician attack the high priestess

Image created by the author on Canva and Prisma

“Being a woman is a terribly difficult task, since it consists principally in dealing with men.” Joseph Conrad

One craved my power

One lusted for my body

One cursed me, one died

A young girl, because she possessed a power that a greedy, ruthless man wished to control, was taken from her home to become the high priestess.

Because she had beauty as well as power, a second greedy, immoral man tried to take her to his bed.

She fought them.

The emperor died. The magician cursed her to his fate: eternal, unchanging life.

Prologue

This is the story of an impoverished fortune-teller who has lived for many centuries, barely surviving in modern times. She has sensed a coming storm and has gathered her magical powers to stand against it.

The Beginning

This was her beginning. She was a young girl in love. Then that life, with its hopes and dreams, was lost. The soldiers took her to the temple to become the high priestess.

Author’s photo

The Emperor is the fourth trump or Major Arcana card in traditional Tarot decks…. The Emperor sits on a ram-adorned throne, a symbol of Mars. Another ram head can be seen on his cloak. His long white beard bearing the symbol of “wisdom”. He holds an Ankh scepter in his right hand, and a globe, symbol of domination, in his left. The Emperor sits atop a stark, barren mountain, a sign of “sterility of regulation, and unyielding power.” He symbolizes the top of the secular hierarchy, the ultimate male ego. The Emperor is the absolute ruler of the world….Wikipedia

Author’s photo

The Magician, also known as The Magus or The Juggler, is the first trump or Major Arcana card in most traditional Tarot decks…..

The illustration of the Tarot card “The Magician” from the Rider-Waite tarot deck was developed by A. E. Waite for the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn in 1910. Waite’s magician features the infinity symbol over his head, and an ouroboros belt, both symbolizing eternity. The figure stands among a garden of flowers, to imply the manifestation and cultivation of desires…. Wikipedia

Poetry
Fiction
Story Quilt
Susannah Stewart
The Fortune Teller
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