VIII — Strength/ Afrekete
Strength
… mastery of bravura … command of laughter …
In the Rider-Waite deck a fertility goddess, an archetype of the merry fields, clasps together the jaws a beast of power, a golden lion. Flowers are in her hair and she wears the symbol for eternity, the number 8 on its side, like a crown.
Some have seen the Strength card as the art of brute strength needed in vanquishing enemies of superior power However, control, dynamism and discipline combined with eloquence wins over brute strength any day of the week. In other words, what we really value is the mastering of challenges that present themselves to us by our cunning.
Around the world the lion is a potent sexual symbol, while the female figure might represent the higher consciousness of the reader. Unlike the Chariot (VII) which warns of one's own dogma, bullheadedness, fanaticism in the face of delicate situations, Strength is not so a measure of physical prowess but rather how tactful a person can manipulate that prowess for their own purpose. After all, the story teller reminds us, laughter is the greatest tool of them all.
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The Card
A young woman swims up through the darkness to meet a circling hammerhead shark. She is Afrekete, the sea goddess and Trickster figure of the Dahomey people of West Africa.
A Trickster is a character from religion and mythology who is both clever and mischievous with what they do. They usually appear to teach the audience some sort of moral or lesson through their bad behavior but in the end survive their perils and challenges using the same craft and cunning that got them in trouble. In the American Southwest, Coyote is a popular Trickster archetype; whereas in Southeastern storytelling it is Brer Rabbit who outwits his enemies again and again.
In storytelling it is important to remember that the Trickster, while at first seeming foolish or even malicious, helps to set our cultural norms and remind us of what is acceptable and illustrate for us the dangers of breaking those norms. Thus, while it is true that Afrekete, "daughter of Agbe and Naete," (Leach, 375) through her bravura, verve and guile, "protects all that is valuable in the sea" (Ann, 2), because she is a Trickster, she is always getting herself into trouble since as well since "she is … fond of gossip" (ibid.) and can't help but brag to everyone around her. Still, it requires defiance, strength and stubbornness to overcome one's own challenges, even if they are self-made. This is where Afrekete is at her best, since she is very stubborn in her own way and in the end masters her own difficulties to the cheers and applause of the audience.
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Strength/ Afrekete in a Reading
If you discover you have drawn the Afrekete to your reading, rejoice in the chance this gives you to laugh at your own frustrations. The circling hammerhead shark represents all our difficulties, challenges, adversaries we face on a daily basis. Think of the sea goddess as your ability to deal with those challenges light-heartedly and with humor. It might not be easy, but how much more pleasurable is it to laugh away your challenges than to fear and let them crush you? However, even if she seems foolish or childish at first, we must always show respect to Afrekete, daughter of the Dahomey. When we forget our place and mock the Trickster, that is when trouble is sure to strike. If Afrekete appears reversed in your reading it is a sign of abuse of power at one level or another. Contemplate how you are using attempting to get through the situation. Have you forgotten to laugh? Sometimes the world's biggest problems can be dispelled simply by laughing them away.
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What a shame that such things happen on such
nice days. Careful now, children. Let wind blow
away your boy-cinders. Let waves wash much
of your girl-cinders. A boy and girl go
down the beach. Two hammerhead sharks follow
the boy and the girl. They sing, "this boy whelp
is all ash! This girl whelp is all ash! Tomorrow
they'll leave Lagos to look for goop and kelp."
Sharks have to sing this way, they cannot help
it. But then Afrekete, great laughter's
girl, swims by. When you see her, give a yelp
and fall down in prayer. Even girl tricksters
like prayer. Above all if you're a hammer
head thug. Above all a child of cinder.
Notes
[line 8] Lagos is the largest city in Nigeria and located on the coast.
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Works Cited
Ann, Martha and Dorothy Myers Imel. Goddesses in World Mythology. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. (1993)
Leach, Marjorie. Guide to the Gods. Edited by Michael Owen Jones, Frances Cattermole-Tally. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. (1992)