Fours as Winds?

The text below is a small compilation of some reflections I posted at the Temple of Wisdom, regarding the apparent contradiction between the number 4 and the idea of Winds. Many people who start studying the Playing Card Oracles are surprised to see the number 4, usually associated to stillness, structure, foundation and order, being symbolised by Winds – rather dynamic forces.

I spent a long time thinking about this, and came to my own conclusions about what the number 4 really represents, and how it matches the idea of the Four Winds very well. Hopefully, my ideas will help other readers and students. 

For a while I thought that the number 4 – a number of stability and structure – did not relate at all to the idea of a wind. After all, winds are an unpredictable element. They bring you rains, but they can also steal them away in a matter of minutes. They can be a welcome breeze in a summer day, or a hurricane!

I began to meditate about the 4s and I realised that, while winds can represent unpredictable forces, in the case of the cards they usually symbolise a steady, constant energy. The problem is when we automatically think of the number 4 as stillness - structures are not necessarily still. But they usually behave the same way, go in the same direction, focus on the same goal.

The 4s are symbols of single-mindedness.

Even that mischievous "South Wind" (4♦) is constant in its disorganising tendency. When it's blowing near you, you can be sure things are going differently from expected, no matter how sure the situation may appear. Now, if you happen to have the "North Wind" (4♠) too, then you'll probably be caught between two opposite and strong forces, each trying to have things done in its own way.

So, when thinking about the 4s, I no longer think just about structure, but also about constancy. Constancy is a kind of stability. So the Winds may represent a constant energy, a constant influence that blows you in one single direction. This too can be seen a structure and stability, as opposed to the real chaos of the number 5, in which everything is coming from all directions.

In a broader sense, the 4 winds together represent the 4 directions, the 4 elements, the 4 seasons, the 4 walls... the general structures of nature that surround us... or confine us. So the 4s can represent an influence that confines you to one single kind of vision or attitude. A limiting influence.

The number 4 does not make me think automatically of 'stagnancy', although some people really give this meaning to this number. All four winds in one reading – an excess of number 4 – could indicate stagnancy, because when you are in the middle of all four winds you are basically going nowhere! The structure is too strong around you.



 In a more positive context, this same combination may show that you found balance between all the 4 energies.

The "East Wind" (4♣) in the company of some heavy cards like the 8♠ or the 6♠, could indicate an unwillingness to change, to move. This idea is reinforced by a combination of even numbers - stable numbers.

Meditating about the PCO has helped me to expand my own views on the number 4!