The Empress is the 3rd card in the Major Arcana.  She is a symbol of feminine strength and power.  She represents the power of creativity, fertility and abundance.  She is an especially powerful symbol for females - showing that women don't need to act masculine in order to be strong. 

In the Olympus Tarot, The Empress is symbolized by Aphrodite.  When I first saw this it took me aback.  I don't tend to associate Aphrodite with the traits of The Empress.  When I considered it further I realized Aphrodite is The Empress (or at least on possible version of her).  Aphrodite offers creativity and fertility to those who seek it from her.  Her son, Aeneas, founded Rome.  She was more than a match for Ares, playing the divine feminine to his divine masculine energy.  She could be fickle - her desire to win the title of "most beautiful" created a situation that ultimately led to the fall of Troy.  Aphrodite is not known for her maternal skills but from what I remember she did have a passing fondness for her offspring and did manage to provide them with benefits that would help them get ahead in life.  Maybe that's why I've always had a problem with The Empress.  I usually view her as the archetypal mother, giving of herself to nurture her children.  Perhaps that's not the key to understanding The Empress, or at least not the only key. 

It is possible that the secret of The Empress' power lies not in her ability to give birth but in her sexual energy?  Perhaps her feminine strength and power is not tied to her maternal tasks, but to her sexual nature; to her ability to be true to her own nature and seek sexual partners as needed and desired.  Aphrodite is not known as a faithful wife or loving mother.  She is more often portrayed as the embodiment of all that is stereotypically feminine.  She is sometimes portrayed as the poster girl for adolescent male fantasies - a canvas upon which their sexual needs and desires can be explored.  But is that really Aphrodite?  She is not an acquiescent, silent partner in her sexual escapades.  She is as much a doer as a "done to".  Aphrodite is not a victim or a cipher.  She does not simply wait for men who desire her to seek her out.  Aphrodite is very comfortable with being assertive in pursuing her sexual desires.  She seeks out sexual partners according to her own rules not theirs.  In some ways Aphrodite embodies one of the goals of the women's movement - to give women back the power over their own bodies and sexual needs. 

In this respect Aphrodite reminds me of Freya in the Norse pantheon.  Freya is a very sexual and assertive goddess who is as comfortable choosing the slain as leader of the Valkyries as she is choosing sexual partners.  She lives according to her own rules and no one else's.  Freya and Aphrodite might make other uncomfortable with their open and honest sexuality but they are following their own morals.  They are not bound by the conventions and strictures of societal expectations.  Both these goddesses exemplify women who are true unto themselves.  Their lives are their own.  They do no owe anything to sexual partners, children or the community.  This can be a very empowering choice as well as a very alienating one.

When I consider how societal expectations have warped women's choices, I can fully appreciate just how powerful Aphrodite and Freya are to have chosen the path they did.  Even today, so many women subsume their personal desires and needs to those of their children and family.  They give up what made them passionate about life and become "a mom".  I don't take away from the fact that raising children is a challenge, but it occurs to me that if women found a balance that allowed them to continue pursuing their own interests as well as spending time with their children, they'd be happier.  So many intelligent, passionate, exuberant women put their lives on hold when they become  a wife and mother.  They become the chauffeur, the cook, the social and event planner for their families.  Everyone expects them to be available at the drop of a hat.  They are expected to participate in the PTA and school fund-raisers.  They channel all their energies into their children and lost sight of who they really are.  Then one day those children grow up and develop interests and passions outside the family and these women are left feeling empty and useless.  They have lost sight of who they really are because for years they were "mom" and now that's not available anymore.  Some women deal with this by creating dependent children who never really grow up.  Others take this opportunity to find themselves again.  Maybe Aphrodite is a reminder that we shouldn't lose sight of ourselves in the first place.

How ironic that for years I've avoided The Empress because all I have ever viewed her as is "the Great Mother".  I have had an epiphany, a metanoia if your will and now I realize that what The Empress truly represents is "the Great Feminine".  She might have children, and she might not.  She might be married and she might not.  What she is, however, is a woman at home in her own skin.  She is comfortable with who she is and keeps herself juicy by regularly basting herself in things about which she is passionate.  She dances to her  own song.  She paints, sings, draws and dreams.  She gardens, cooks and creates.  She does these things because it is what she wants to do not because someone else is expecting it from her.  Hallelujah!  I've reclaimed The Empress in my life!!