Card of the Week: Four of Cups

It has been said by many that the opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference.  At its extreme, those that completely lack empathy for others are often inhuman and open the door for true evil.

The Four of Cups indicates apathy, boredom or dissatisfaction.  When nothing interests you, you could overlook opportunities, reject gifts, spurn offered affections or even damage longstanding relationships.  While it is natural to have temporary periods of restlessness, feelings of withdrawal, or perhaps desires for solitude or meditation, do not let them become your sole permanent state.

Inverted, this card urges you to look for a premonition to lead you to a way to reconnect with life.  A new hobby, a new class, or a new social event could lead to new pleasures or new friendships.

In “Dagger of the Mind” the Enterprise stops at the penal colony on Tantalus V to determine what caused its director, Doctor Simon Van Gelder, to turn apparently insane.  Lead researcher Doctor Tristan Adams invites Captain Kirk and Doctor Helen Noel to visit the facility, and shows them an experimental device called a neural neutralizer.  Adams claims that Van Gelder injured himself while testing the device unaided.  In reality, Adams uses it to alter the memories and personalities of his patients.  Kirk and Noel try some simple experiments with the device but are interrupted by Adams, who then uses it to try to control Kirk.  Noel manages to cut its power temporarily, and Kirk scuffles with Adams to escape.  When the power is restored, Adams dies after the device leaves his mind emptied with nothing to refill it.