A modern-day peasant/princess gazes into a candle flame. The white candle represents her purity of intent, and the candle flame symbolizes the uniqueness of her divine light in the world.The Child-Hero
In the Fairy Tale Tarot, Isha Lerner describes the fairy tale as a mirror of the Hero's Journey, and she relates fairy tales mythology to the Fool's Journey of the Tarot. The Child archetype, who also represents the Tarot pattern of the Fool or the Page, is the primary archetype in fairy tale art that speaks to me the most clearly. When gathering inspiration from retold folk tales and folk art, the energy of the Page brings the clearest messages with her. When creating a sketch or a story, the Page/Princess is usually what comes through the most naturally. Even though I pursue the others, the Knight and the Sovereign and the Magician, and attempt to create them, they don't come to me like the Child does. I think that's just because that's about how far along I am in the Journey.
And also … the Child archetype correlates to our Throat Chakra, our center of expression. The Throat Chakra archetype is the Messenger. The broken or shadow side of the Messenger chakra archetype is the silent inner child. If we can connect to the Page archetype in fairy tales, we access a key to that part of ourselves that can receive and express mythical ideas. When the Page is portrayed, she is usually bringing a message. This is what the heroine of a fairy tale does. The mystical meaning of a tale is delivered most by its little heroine.
The Page - The Hero
The Page of the Tarot is often described as the princess of the court cards. She has an energy of innocence and effortlessness. We are rooting for Snow White or Little Red Riding Hood, even though they don't seem to change during the course of the fairy tale. They started out sweet and innocent, and they finished the same way. The Messenger/Princess represents a type of mastery that the Child archetype embodies. The power of the Child to inspire everyone else to help her is the same power that makes her irresistable to the evil queens and bad wolves who terrorize her. Everything wants to be close to her. Everything wants to be in her life. Even baddies.
The Page/Princess in a fairy tale is caught at the most interesting part of the Love Story - she is at the part where she has gotten into some trouble and meets up with the One who will save. This is the Divine Self. The multitudes within us can save the multitudes within us.
The Page and Her Place in the Journey
Each archetype has masculine/feminine aspects. The Page is a feminine archetype but a male or female character can represent her. This is Jack of the Beanstalk, the Lost Boys of Neverland, and the Earl and Valentine of Tremors.
Later, when the princess becomes a Queen or a King, she will become a creator and a sovereign and a conscious magic-user. For now, the princess has power that comes only from her uniqueness in place and time. For now, her place in the story is what makes her so perfect. For now, the princess is a reminder that we are innocent, no matter what we have gotten ourselves into. Everything that happens is for devotion to us.
The beauty of a princess character or a folk art angel or a child sage in the Sunday Funnies is a pretty powerful beauty. The Child archetype is a reminder that we are born into original innocence. Most of all, when the Child archetype calls to us, we find ourselves, along with the monsters and princes, instantly loving her. We adore the beautiful little characters in tales and art. And when we find out we have the Child archetype living within us, the child hero of our own inner realm, we find we have been tricked into loving a part of ourselves.
The Messenger is the archetype that speaks the most to me right now. The Page from the Tarot in her perfect role--setting out, making mistakes, selling the only cow for magic beans, wandering off the path, talking to animals, finding guidance, needing protection and never realizing how much--has been the first to speak.
