Sage Taru on the Constellations and the Book of Hours

The Principles

Edge is the principle of conflict, of blades, of battle and of struggle.

Forge is the principle of making and unmaking, of something that can change you into something else, of consumption and creation.

Grail is the principle of the blood and the birth and the body, of hunger, of lust, of the drowning waters.

Heart is the principle which does not cease. Heart preserves and it continues and it guards the skin of the world we understand.

Knock is the principle which opens doors. It permits no isolation. It is also the principle of wounds, because wounds are doors and doors are also wounds, and keys can be a kind of weapon.

Lantern is the principle of information, of illumination, of the truth that burns. It shines in the House of the Sun, the secret place that only minds know.

Moth is the principle of change. Snip snip snip! It is perilous and it is beautiful, it is the becoming and the yearning to become. (The Lantern is a question, and the Moth always answers ‘yes’.)

Winter is the principle at the end of all stories. Winter is what is left when everything else has ceased.

The Ancient Powers

is the Ancient Power that governs the lower heavens, the order of things, birds, music, and mathematics. Sky supports the current hierarchy of existence, aligned with the forces of Eternity but attempting to support harmony and tranquility. Sky cares about a world in which sapience can thrive.

is the Ancient Power that governs the low and dark places, and everything that’s ever been buried. Scale wishes to overthrow the current hierarchy of existence in favour of the forces of History, and the way things used to be. Scale cares about a world in which monstrosity can thrive.

is the Ancient Power of secrecy, the sea, and nighttime. Moon hides that which is unsafe or unwise to know, and all those things which might wish to conceal themselves from light. is the Ancient Power that was once blood, before the Heart and Grail took blood for their own. It still flows in the veins of the world. It is the wild and the untamed; it is the green fuse that drives every living thing, whether or not they wish to acknowledge it.

is the Ancient Power of discovery. There are eight, and only eight, known directions in which one could travel. Rose is the ninth direction

The Constellations

The Key-and-Gate is very clearly ; it is about opening doors and about exploring what you find there.

The Lantern-and-Eye is, obviously,

The Beating Heart is, similarly obviously, , and that which remains of , and a little bit of , I think.

The Duelist’s Mask is , overwhelmingly, and also , but also as I’ve mentioned previously. The Mask Continues.

The Unburnt Book is . Patterns and powers that persist, though their principles may be overwritten.

The Sundered Wolf is and ; it could not be anything else but that.

The Hollow Skull is -primary and possibly exclusively.

The Golden Lion is , and a little ; it’s about changing yourself to prove a point, which is a very Moth thing to do.

The Fiend Engine is but it is also, profoundly and esoterically, .

The Soldier-and-Brother are and , I think. This one I’m less sure about.

The Falling Leaf is… also , but a little . There is peace and harmony and awareness of the music underlying all things, there.

The Dreaming Serpent is also and a little . It is patient and it will wait for the right moment to reveal its secrets.

The Stillness is and the Song is also . The Song is and the Stillness is also .

The Empty Space in the Sky is, of course, .