iKON Group Energy Analysis
Subject: iKON
Performed: June 17, 2019
Original Post Date: September 27, 2019
Spread: Group Energy Analysis, original design by BlueMoonPunch
Deck: Wisdom of The Oracle by Colette Baron-Reid and the Rider-Waite Tarot
Time: 1 hour
Details: The Group Energy Analysis reading is designed to showcase the energetic connection and balance between a group of people, while also presenting the roots of the connections as well as the potential future between the members.
Poised | Building Blocks | By The Book | Treasure Island |
Flexible | Peace | New Life | Go The Distance
They got a lot of cards here for the “pre-debut” section which I supposed makes sense as according to their Wikipedia page they were part of a competition show before they officially debuted as iKON. The first card, Poised, really carries through to the other sets where there is a vibe of them collectively moving within the guidelines or structures of what is being built up around them. It’s very willful compliance in the sense that they individually may have had ideas of what they wanted to do with their career, but once they were in a group and on the show, it was more about just doing what needed to be done. I’m not familiar with the show they were on or how things worked, but if it was like a competition style thing where there were continuous performances needed in order to make it through to the next round or something, it’s kind of like that. They each just stayed with the prompts and the rules in order to very steadily make it through.
As I said, Poised follows through into the other sets as Building Blocks and By The Book present that external factor where there was very little say from the guys themselves on how they were formed or what they were being formed into. In terms of image, sound, things like that were not entirely in their hands, but again, they all collectively carried that Poised energy and were willing to follow those guidelines. It’s almost like even after they were done with the show and they were officially iKON, they were still in the mindset of “potential elimination.” Again, I’m not familiar with the show, so I don’t know if elimination was part of it, but that’s the kind of vibe. It’s a matter of staying in line and doing what you’re told, but not in a way where it’s a thing of submission and authority, just more of hard-edged job. Of course, with Treasure Island stemming from those two cards, it’s easy to say that on a collective level, they stuck to following what the company wanted them to do entirely because they trusted them to make a success out of them.
Treasure Island is actually interesting here, because with Building Blocks you have that structure being built AROUND them, and then with By The Book, you have them very explicitly following the rules or guidelines. In my head, I was seeing the structure that was being built as Treasure Island, but it’s something they couldn’t see. Visually, it’s like a stone path is being built for them with Building Blocks and they are being led along it through the desert in By The Book while being told the stories of water and riches that are found in Treasure Island. It seems like an absolute fantasy that Treasure Island could exist for them while they are trudging through the desert, but they trusted the company — I imagine because of YG’s success and status in the industry at that time — and moved forward with them.
When the official debut happened that is where they have that New Life energy along with Go The Distance where it’s like that floodgate was opened and the water of Treasure Island rushed in, which made it possible for them to “swim” to the actual island, of “Go The Distance” and succeed with their work right off the bat. With Peace and Flexible there it’s like they found that dream of Treasure Island, the fantasy came to fruition, and at that point, it was just a matter of maintaining it. More than anything, Flexible feels much more rigid, more in line with the energy of balance and being careful, trying to flow with things as they are and not “rock the boat” too much. So, there is still that compliance, but at this point, they had their feet on Treasure Island and probably had some nerves around losing their place there.
They have this very odd vibe to them just in terms of how they fit with the company, as in they seem to follow what is laid out for them very clearly, so I feel like anything that could throw that off is almost seen as a threat. It puts in mind how the baby elephants are holding on to their mothers tail and being guided. Anything that could cause them to accidentally let go and lose that path is a threat and needs to be avoided. It’s low-key but also very high-key.
Breathe | Regeneration | Poised
That Poised card carried over again, but it’s following a time between Breathe and Regeneration which felt like “rest and rebrand.” There could be a hiatus or just a break in general where things are reworked and remade in some way. I keep seeing this as a ~business thing~ with them in a conference room brainstorming with the company about what to do next. The Regeneration card is a pretty big deal, it’s an entire rebirth, not just a “new era” or something like that, which is what gave me the “rebrand” vibe. They’re brainstorming around how to rebuild or remake themselves as a group.
Edit: When I looked at their Kprofile page to do the main reading I did see that one of the members left the group in June due to a scandal and I do think that this is what the “rebrand” or “remake” is about in terms of how the group will move forward.
This leads into the Poised card where they’re kind returning to their roots or returning to that state of almost over-compliance or willingness to be guided and, not necessarily controlled or manipulated, but strictly handled. This “rebrand” could be more in line with something that the company wants to do and therefore they have to kind of get back in line. It almost feels like a second debut as well, like really reflecting that initial energy of Poised in the previous set which reflected their energy when they first got together. It’s like they’re all very separated again, but they’re working together to move forward and find another Treasure Island in a sense.
B.I — Libra, 1996, Leader (former) — Death, 10 of Swords, 8 of Cups
Jay — Aquarius, 1994 — 6 of Swords
Song — Aquarius, 1995 — 10 of Pentacles
Bobby — Sagittarius, 1995 — Page of Swords, The Star
DK — Capricorn, 1997 — 3 of Cups
Ju-ne — Aries, 1997 — 6 of Pentacles
Chan — Aquarius, 1998 — Page of Pentacles, The High Priestess
I wanted to include B.I in the reading in spite of him not officially being in the group anymore just because his departure was so recent (only about a month ago at the time of doing this reading). Surprisingly, but also not surprisingly, the three cards that came out for him are pretty on the nose. He has Death, 10 of Swords, and the 8 of Cups. Death interested me quite a bit as in Tarot it relates to Scorpio and the 8th House, so rather than death as we think of it, it’s more about transformation and rebirth. It’s pretty much his own Regeneration card but is solo, it’s just for him. This was a painful transition, but it was one that was necessary for him on a soul level. This was then followed by the 10 of Swords, which is the actual “Death” card in my mind. This is a complete ending, complete mental and physical detachment from a situation, person, or mindset. It’s like a mental manifestation of the Death card. Then the 8 of Cups is there, a card about transition and having to leave things behind in order to move forward.
I find this very interesting because it’s showing a fated situation as he has alignment between the layers of consciousness. Death is the unconscious or soul aspect of death and rebirth, a guided transition that needed to occur in order for him to align with something else. The 10 of Swords is the mental or emotional state, almost like mourning the loss of it but still embracing the aspect of that phase of his life coming to an end. And then on a very conscious level, you have him as the man in the 8 of Cups, a man who just set down all of his cups and has left them behind in order to move on to something different. All of these cards are based around heavy and very difficult transitions, but typically indicate transitions that are absolutely necessary for an individual to experience in order to progress.
Jay has the 6 of Swords, which mirrors B.I’s 8 of Cups in terms of a transition being made, a rough but necessary journey in a new direction. According to their profiles, he is the oldest member which makes sense if you put him in the position of the man rowing the boat in the image of the 6 of Swords. The story of the card is that this family is escaping some kind of bad situation in their homeland. They don’t want to leave, but they have to, they have to move forward in order to survive. This transition is displayed in how on one side of the boat there is turbulent water, while all through the background the water is perfectly still. As the oldest member, it may be on him to row the boat, to keep everyone moving forward, to keep everything in line for the sake of their survival as a group. Even with the way that the cards are laid out, it looks like the 6 of Swords is being rowed away from B.I’s set. There’s also the aspect of Swords versus Cups where it’s more about the logical and intellectual decision to stay level-headed and move forward, while B.I is more so in the realm of emotion.
Song has the 10 of Pentacles which really brings about a sense of stability and fulfillment. It does feel a little bit separate from the others, almost like he likes to have stability and comfort for himself, but he can step out of that for other people in the group. It’s difficult to say, but it’s like I’m seeing him as the old man in the image of the 10 of Pentacles, sitting in his throne, just chilling out, but he can absolutely get up and go run around and play with his kids and grandkids in the background. I keep seeing it like the “dad friend” but it’s not literally THE dad friend, it’s like he sets an example just by existing as himself, but when he’s actually interacting with everyone, he's very playful and childlike, as if the old man in the image can turn into a child himself when he plays with his grandkids. This can definitely present a lot of comfort and stability in the group as that could make him be the kind of person that everyone can either have a serious conversation or just play around with.
Bobby has the Page of Swords and The Star which just screams innovation and wild to me. He’s a Sagittarius, so he’s already going to have that “life of the party” kind of vibe, but with The Star just drenching the Page of Swords with inspiration and stimulation, it almost explodes all of that energy and it just ripples out into everyone else. Even in the layout of the cards, he’s in the very middle, so in one way, it’s like he’s getting drenched by The Star on an unconscious level, but then on a conscious level, he becomes The Star to everyone else, he becomes this big disco ball of whatever that just kind of lights everything up. This kind of vibe gives me the sense of someone with a Sagittarius spirit, but an Aquarius perspective, and an Aries sense of humor — like he’s all over the place and he almost juxtaposes himself, but it’s the kind of personality that people can’t really pin down and thus makes him very interesting to everyone around him. He seems cool.
DK has the 3 of Cups which is all about friendship, communication, and celebration. It’s the “GO BEST FRIEND, THAT’S MY BEST FRIEND” card in my mind and it always gives me the impression of someone who has a very close bond with the people that they have in their lives. All of their connections are based on the emotions and the heart, and therefore that person comes off as very understanding and sometimes very protective of their friends and their feelings. However, that kind of stuff is sort of underneath the surface in the 3 of Cups. Compared to the 2 of Cups where there is a direct back-and-forth, a direct exchange between two people, the 3 of Cups is more about the fun and party. Basically, the 2 of Cups is where someone may find a solution to someone else’s problem through conversation, whereas the 3 of Cups is where someone finds a solution to someone else’s problem in partying or distracting them. Basically… he’s a Capricorn, lol. He cares a lot, has a lot of empathy for his friends and people close to him, but he might not put it on display all the time. He may be more likely to try and distract someone when they are sad rather than try to talk it out. Poor thing is the only Earth sign surround by Fire and a shit ton of Air. So, on a more personal level, he may lend a more “easy” or “free-flowing” kind of vibe to everyone else when they need it, a kind of “let’s not worry about that right now,” kind of thing.
Ju-ne has the 6 of Pentacles which made me laugh a bit because the way it was playing out in my head was as if the man in the image is handing out “talk tokens,” as in he’ll only listen to you if you have a “talk token” and if he hasn’t granted you one, he can’t even hear you. It sounds really dumb, but it’s like he’s kind of off in his own world sometimes and the others really have to “pay” to get in or to bring him down to earth. This can also be a matter of balance, kind of doing the same thing as some of the other members where there is a lot of importance around keeping everyone level. He could even be a negotiator within the group, handing out “talk tokens” when they have arguments and kind of guiding everyone through the discussion. I think that’s definitely some of the Aries energy where he has those moments of “granting” people permission to do certain things on his own terms, but in a way where he definitely means well and is trying to help. Like, in the 6 of Pentacles, the man is donating money to the poor, but he’s literally standing there with a scale weighing the money out and counting it to be fair. Like, it’s low-key an asshole thing to do right there in front of them, but he’s still donating money and trying to help.
Chan has the Page of Pentacles and The High Priestess which is an interesting combination, very similar to Bobby’s combination of the Page of Swords and The Star. This combination can bring a lot of interesting creation as there can be a lot of Third Eye stimulation from The High Priestess leading into the creation or manifestation of the Page’s pentacle, kind of like the Priestess projecting a blueprint and the Page, Chan on a conscious level, being able to build something from it very easily. This is more consciously intuitive energy as well, so he could be guided to do a lot of different things in a lot of different places throughout his life based on those blueprints or maps that he can just kind of feel or sense. In a similar fashion to Bobby, this energy spreads out, but in a way where it’s more functional. With Bobby, it’s providing light and a certain kind of energy, whereas Chan provides the group with what I’m seeing as of like a work station or a table to actually craft things on. It’s a bit hard to explain it, but energetically, Bobby and Chan actually work really well together in terms of what they contribute to the group, but on a conscious level they could butt heads just because they’re perspectives are so high and stimulated while being based in different spectrums. Basically, Chan provides the group with a desk while Bobby provides the lamp on the desk, and together they help to inspire and generate creativity and workflow.