THE TRUTH ABOUT THE TAROT

T H E T R U T H AB OUT T H E T A R O T
A Manual of Practice and Theory
h
Geral d Suster
SKOOB BOOKS PUBLISHING
LONDON
F OR M I C H A E L A
C opyri ght Geral d Suster 1990
C over picture/ Appendi x B, di agram R A G d ' '
Series Edi tors; Chri stopher Johnson and C arol i ne Wise
C an dy Stapleton
P u b l i s h e d b y :
1 9 6 9 - 1 9 9 0
S K O O B B O O K S PU B L I S H I NG L T D
Skoob Esoteri ca Series
19, Bury Place
Bloomsbury
L o n do n W C 1 A 2 J H.
A l l rights reserved.
I S B N 1 871438 07 1 Paperback.
Typeset by Shades and Characters L t d .
Pri nted by H i l l ma n Printers (Frome) L t d.
C O N T E N T S
Preface page v i i
Foreword i x
Introduction x i i i
PAR T O NE
1 D i v i n a t i o n 3
2 The R o y a l Game of H u m a n L i f e : 11
Or , C el est i al Snakes and L adders
3 Qabal ah 17
4 A s t r o l o g y 32
5 M y t h o l o g y 41
6 M e di t a t i o n 53
7 M o r a l i t y , M e di c i n e and M o r e M e t h o ds 55
8 Tarot and I - C h i n g 60
9 Sc r yi ng 65
PAR T T WO
10 Tarot and the M i n d 71
Epilogue 103
Appendix A 104
Appendix B 106
Tree of L i f e illustration 109
v
Preface
Author's Note
Throughout this treatise, the following equation of terminology
between the Court Cards of the various Tarot packs is employed:-
Knight for King.
Queen - Queen.
Prince for Knight, in those packs wherein the Knight is the
second male force.
Princess for Page.
Moreover, the traditional word 'he' has been used for the term
*any person', or 'he or she'. The present writer trusts that his
woman readers will excuse his endeavour to evade cumbersome
phrases, his sole motive herein. As will be discerned, a principal
beauty of the Tarot is its expression of male and female equality.
G. S.
At a ti me wh e n there are more books on the Tarot t han shelf-
space t o store t hem, a wo r k ent i t l ed s i mp l y T H E T R U T H
A B O U T T H E T A R O T mi ght st ri ke some a s bei ng a n arrogant
i n t r us i o n . T hat i s f or the reader to j udge. The i n t en t i o n of thi s
wo r k i s t o do n o t h i n g less t han l i ve up t o its b i l l i n g .
I t i s wr i t t e n f or the absolute begi nner a n d also f or the most
advanc ed students of the Tarot on the gl obe. I use the wo r d
' student' i n the sense i t was used by one of the wi sest men I ever
met, my late, great f r i e n d, Dr . I srael Regardi e (1907-85), psy-
c hol ogi st , healer, mag i c i an an d mys t i c . A l t h o u g h he enj oyed a
we a l t h of mor e t han f i f t y years' pr ac t i c al experi ence of the
esoteric wi s d o m , whenever he was asked hi s ' grade' a t erm
s i g n i f y i n g achi evement an d attai nment rather t han l ay open
c l a i m t o A de p t s h i p or M a s t e r s h i p , he al ways r e p l i e d: ' I ' m a
student. We' re a l l students. ' Qui t e .
I t was Socrates wh o dec l ar ed: ' The more y o u kn o w, the less
y o u kn o w. ' I have f o un d thi s t o be Of A l l T r u t h i n my o wn quest
f or t r ut h , l i be r at i o n an d enl i ght enment , f or l i f e, l ove, l i bert y a n d
l i ght ; wh i c h quest has mattered, does matter an d w i l l matter
more t o me t han an y t h i n g else i n my experi ence. Suc h nuggets of
wi s d o m I have gai ned I offer f reel y: but I have gathered t hem
o n l y because I kn e w wh at I d i d not kn o w. As i t i s wr i t t e n i n a
n o bl e d o c u me n t o f e n l i g h t e n me n t , Liber Librae: ' H e wh o
kn o we t h l i t t l e, t hi nket h he kn o we t h muc h ; but he kn o we t h
mu c h hat h l earned hi s o wn i gnoranc e. Seest t h o u a ma n wi s e i n
hi s o wn concei t? There i s more hope of a f o o l , t han of h i m . '
M y o wn c ommi t ment s are t o the r ai s i n g o f i n d i v i d u a l h u ma n
consci ousness an d to the advancement of general h uma n evol u
t i o n d u r i n g a p e r i o d of the greatest cri si s t o c onf r ont M a n k i n d
on thi s pl anet f or very man y centuri es. I t i s my c o n v i c t i o n that
the Tarot offers an i nv al uabl e, true, t r i ed a n d tested Wa y of
a c c o mp l i s h i n g these objectives.
v i
v i i
Theref ore my W i l l i n the wr i t i n g o f this wo r k i s t hreef ol d: -
To gi ve the novi c e every possi bl e t o o l r equi r ed f or under s t andi ng
a n d appr ec i at i o n of an d wo r k wi t h the Tarot as a nobl e route
f r o m the E a r t h to the Stars.
To share wi t h my peers the l ear ni ng , wi s d o m an d percepti ons
I have gai ned f r o m t went y-f i ve years of c ont i nuous study an d
practi ce wi t h the Tarot .
To entertai n and del i ght those whose under s t andi ng of the
Tarot may be i n advance of mi n e .
We l i ve i n an ex t r aor di nar y age of i nc reasi ngl y accel erati ng
consci ousness. Sma l l wo n der i t i s sai d that the T r ut h and the
Tarot are many - s pl endo ur ed t hi ngs.
Foreword
A l t h o u g h I h a d been s t udy i n g the basics of C o mp a r a t i v e R el i
g i o n since the age of ten, I knew n o t h i n g at a l l of the Tarot u n t i l
I t ur ned thi rteen and came across it in a t hri l l er, The Devil Rides
Out by Denni s Wheat l ey. H i s des c r i pt i o n of those wh o l l y unf a
mi l i a r v i s ua l images c apt i vat ed my earl y adolescent consci ous
ness, t ho ug h I c o ul d not express just wh y I was so d r a wn to
t hem, an d they i mmedi at el y i ns pi r ed me t o create my o wn pac k.
T hi s was a most sat i sf yi ng endeavour but I h ad no i dea wh at to
do wi t h these strange pi ctures I h ad so c r udel y executed. There
was wi t h i n me a gut c o n v i c t i o n that the symbol s c ont ai ned that
wi s d o m after wh i c h I was seeki ng so c onf usedl y and i nar t i c u
lately but I l ac ked a l l keys to under s t andi ng .
T hi s p r o mp t e d a p e r i o d of f ur i ous readi ng. I bought and
dev o ur ed every avai l abl e wo r k wh i c h mi ght have beari ng on the
Tarot . F or every v o l ume wh i c h assisted me, there were at least
ten wh i c h d i d not, f or I was l ear ni ng that the f i rst vi rt ue on the
Pat h i s Di s c r i mi n a t i o n . Ho we v e r , I was amazed an d del i ght ed t o
di scover, f or i nstance, that the Tarot pl ays a v i t a l part i n wh a t I
s t i l l regard as bei ng the most beaut i f ul expressi on of h u ma n
despai r in the E n g l i s h language, The Waste Land by T.S. E l i o t . ' '
By the age of f i f teen, I was wo r k i n g wi t h a t r a di t i o n a l Tarot pac k
an d un de r t a ki n g occul t experi ment s and my s t i c a l practi ces
wh i c h augmented my c ompr ehensi on, dr i v e n by a ravenous
appeti te wh i c h , as the H i n d u pr over b has i t, p r o v o ke d me ' to
pant after wi s d o m as the mi ser pants after g o l d ' .
As I c o nt i nued to study the teachings and practi se the di sc i
pl i nes of way s to enl i ghtenment, the Tarot became my gui de,
phi l o s o pher and f r i en d. I di v i n e d freely f or anyone wh o re
quested i t t hr oughout my f our years at C a mbr i dg e Un i v e r s i t y . I t
was a joy to encounter the i n i t i a l i nt el l ec t ual scept i ci sm and
subsequent sur pr i sed respect of my f e l l o w undergraduates. T hei r
fairness and the Tarot' s accuracy have not been f orgot t en.
v i i i
i x
I have gone on wo r k i n g wi t h the Tarot and many al l i ed
way s to wi s d o m t hr oughout the f i f teen years wh i c h have
passed since my g r aduat i o n , seeki ng a l l the wh i l e by its means to
br oaden an d deepen my under st andi ng o f M a n and hi s place i n
the Uni v er s e. F ort une has f avour ed me, f or I have been enabl ed
t o wa l k and tal k wi t h students and schol ars, wi t h Adept s and
M ast er s, wi t h h o l y men and h o l y wo me n o f every Pat h: t ho ug h
a l l true Paths are One: and t hr o ugh our f r u i t f u l c o mmun i c a t i o n
there has ari sen greater c ompr ehens i on.
M a n y books far too many have been wr i t t en on the
Tarot. Some are good but most are poi ntl ess. W h y wr i t e another?
A n d wh y do so wh e n there already exists a masterpiece on the
matter? I refer to The Book ofThoth by Al ei st er C r o wl e y wh i c h ,
as he declares i n the B i b l i o g r a p h i c a l N o t e , ' was dashed
o f f . . . wi t ho ut hel p f r o m parents' to accompany the st unni ng Tarot
deck he desi gned, pai nt ed exqui si tel y by L a dy F ri eda H a r r i s .
Her e, a l l previ ous knowl edge has been synthesi sed, mar r i ed wi t h
the i nsi ghts and i nner knowl edge ac qui red over a l i f eti me of
s p i r i t ua l ex pl o r at i o n and devot i on to the di v i n e, and then set f or t h
i n a c ompl ex but beaut i f ul system wh i c h i s l ogi c al l y coherent and
fits wi t h the k n o wn facts about h uman i t y and the Uni ver se.
I t is unnecessary to waste muc h time and space on def endi ng
C r o wl e y wh o , among other thi ngs, was the greatest occul t scholar
an d pract i t i oner of our century. T went y years of met i cul ous re
search suppor t my i nevi tabl e c o nc l us i o n that hi s ' e v i l ' legend was
and i s a s o r di d mi sh- mash of mal i c i ous lies and di sgust i ngl y
deliberate v i l i f i c a t i o n . People wh o tel l the t r ut h are usual l y l i ed
about and persecuted h o r r i bl y and so was he. The subject has
been dealt wi t h f ul l y i n my The Legacy of the Beast ( W H . Al l en ,
L o n d o n 1988; Samuel Weiser, M a i n e , U S A , 1989) t o wh i c h the
interested reader i s c o r di al l y i nvi t ed to refer. The questi on before
us i s whether C r o wl e y ' s wo r k, devel opi ng as i t does the synthesis
of a l l past teachings ac c ompl i shed by ' M a c Gr e g o r ' M at hers and
the Her met i c Or der of the Go l de n D a wn dur i n g the 1890's and
f r o m wh i c h we l l most subsequent authors have d r a wn wi t h o ut
due acknowl edgement , yes, whether C r o wl e y ' s wo r k has rendered
subsequent efforts redundant .
N o t so i f we judge s i mpl y by the sheer vast number of
books on the Tarot publ i s h ed since C r o wl e y ' s death i n 1947. A r e
these real l y necessary? I t hi nk that some of t hem are. F or
C r o wl e y makes few concessions to hi s readers, on whose part he
assumes a h i g h l y educated bac kg r o un d kno wl edg e wi t h the
predi ct abl e result that most beginners f i n d The Book ofThoth to
be v i r t ua l l y i nc omprehensi bl e. As its aut hor once wr o t e, i n the
manner of Robert B r o wn i n g :
'It's rather h a r d, i sn' t i t , sir, to make sense of i t . ' The same
c o ul d of course be sai d of the maj or wo r ks of, say, F r e ud, J ung,
B er t r and R us s el l , Wi t t genst ei n or E i ns t ei n wh o ex pl o r ed,
inter alia, issues to be t ac kl ed later i n this wo r k . But this h a r dl y
helps the novi c e.
Secondl y, as C r o wl e y real i sed, the Tarot i s an e v o l v i n g t o o l
capable of al most i ndef i ni t e ex pans i on. He hi msel f made a
maj or c o n t r i but i o n i n hi s rel at i ng of the Tarot to Qa ba l a h ,
A s t r o l o g y , M a g i c k , Psyc hol ogy an d I - C h i n g , but muc h progress
has been made i n a l l these f i el ds since hi s ti me. Gl o b a l c ondi t i ons
have changed i n a way he wo u l d barel y recogni se, atti tudes have
ev o l v ed, pi oneers have di scovered new techni ques and advances
of awareness have been attai ned i n a l l the areas to wh i c h he
di rected our at t ent i on.
C r o wl e y took Tarot f r o m the Ne wt o n i a n mechanics of predeces
sors such as El i phas L e v i , ' Papus' (Dr. Ger ar d Encausse) and the
Go l de n D a wn , i nto the twenti eth century rel at i vi sm of Ei nst ei n.
F or the present, t hough, it is not yet necessary f or us to be
concerned wi t h the abstruse and the abstract. T heo r y means
l i ttl e i n the absence of practi ce, wh i c h i s exactl y wh y the I ntro
duc t i o n w i l l be f o l l o we d by thi ngs t o do wi t h the Tarot . O n l y
wh e n the reader i s t ho r o ug hl y f ami l i ar wi t h the Tarot keys by
di nt of repeated usage wi t h a vari et y of methods w i l l he or she be
able to embrace the Yo g a of Kn o wl e dg e . F ur t her mor e, the con
t empl at i o n of its celesti al harmoni es w i l l a dd new di mensi ons t o
the perc ept i on of pr ac t i c al persistence.
M o s t peopl e kn o w that the Tarot i s of ten emp l o y ed f or the
purpose of vul gar f ortune t el l i ng. Here y o u mi g ht be t o l d that
y o u w i l l meet a t al l , dar k stranger of uni que aspect wh o i s
x i
devoted to musi c and desires muc h of great i mp o r t f r o m one
wh o i s wo r t h y and a f ew hours later y o u encounter a one-
eyed, banj o- st r ummi ng busker wi t h a bad case of s un bur n wh o
demands y o ur money wi t h f o ul - mo ut h e d menaces. A l t h o u g h
this wo r k w i l l gi ve the student the means for g o i ng about trite
operati ons of this nature, i t i s i n i t i a l l y more concerned wi t h
pr oper di v i n a t i o n , that i s, the science and art of us i ng the Tarot
so as to percei ve the forces of our past, the r hyt hms of our
present and the probabi l i t i es of our f uture i n terms of a l l we
real l y wan t t o do i n L i f e .
H o we v e r , di v i n a t i o n i s onl y one way of wo r k i n g wi t h these
wo n dr o us keys t o the M yst er i es of M a n and Na t ur e . Others
i nc l ude the study of anci ent kno wl edge c ont ai ned i n s y mbo l i s m
an d my t h o l o g y ; psyc hol ogy, physi c s, metaphysi cs an d mat h-
emati cs, of wh i c h the Tarot i s a c o mp e n di um; an d the practi ce of
esoteric di sc i pl i nes, f r o m A s t r o l o g y t o Qabal ah , f r o m I - C h i n g t o
medi t at i o n , f r o m the art some k n o w as ' s c r y i ng i n the spi r i t
v i s i o n ' to the craft k n o wn by others as the subtlest game i n the
wo r l d.
F or the Tarot i s a genui ne Wa y of devel o pi ng the eight ni nt hs
of the br a i n wh i c h scientists declare to be u n k n o wn t erri t ory; of
o bt ai n i n g i n i t i a t i o n i nt o the great secrets of anci ent times and
the greater secrets of our o wn ; and of br i n g i n g the body, i magi
n at i o n , i ntellect, emoti ons and sexual i t y; and the nervous sys
tem, cells and spi ri t to a god- l i ke state of har mo ni o us wi s d o m,
l ove and power, that we may rejoice i n our rapture as we
experi ence our ecstatic un i o n wi t h our vast and starry Uni verse
wh e r e i n we l i ve and have our g o i n g .
Introduction
The Tarot is a pack of 78 cards. There are f our suits: Wands, C up s ,
Swords and Di s ks . E ac h suit consists of cards numbered f r o m Ac e
to Ten and f our C o ur t C ar ds : the Kn i g h t , the Queen, the Pri nce and
the Princess. O ur ordi nary pl ay i ng cards deri ve f r o m the Tarot.
There are also 22 ' Trumps' , numbered cards wi t h curi ous pictures
and titles l i ke ' Deat h' , ' The D e v i l ' , ' The Priestess', ' The Star', ' The
He r mi t ' and ' The L overs' . These are numbered f r o m I to X X I apart
f r o m the c ard cal l ed ' The F o o l ' , wh i c h i s numbered 0 and has
survi ved i n our moder n pl ay i n g pack as The Joker.
The ori gi ns of the Tarot r emai n a mystery. A n c i e n t E g y pt ,
Sumeri a, M o r o c c o and even I ndi a have been suggested, and even
i nsi sted up o n wi t h o ut any s up p o r t i n g evi dence. I t has been
pr oposed by many authors that a gr o up of sages or an i n d i v i d u a l
sage wi s h e d to express uni ver sal truths i n s ymbol i c pi ctures
wh i c h wo u l d survi ve the centuries. Possi bl y so: but a l l we kn o w
f or certai n is that the Gypsi es brought the cards to E ur o pe at
some uni dent i f i abl e po i nt pr i o r to the f ourt eent h century and
empl o y ed t hem f or purposes of f o r t une- t el l i ng. I n the late
ei ghteenth century, F renc h occulti sts c l ai med to di scern h i dde n
si gni f i cance i n the Tarot and its occul t wi s d o m was i nsi sted up o n
i n the ni neteenth century by the f ounder of its occul t r e v i v a l ,
E l i phas L e v i , and then by his F renc h successor, Dr . Ge r a r d
E nc ausse, in the latter' s The Tarot of the Bohemians, wr i t t e n
under the name of ' Papus' . There are few wh o f i n d the wo r k of
L e v i and Papus t o be par t i c ul ar l y h e l p f ul no waday s . The evi
dence suggests that L e v i knew essential truths about the Tarot
but was unabl e to tel l them o wi n g to oaths of secrecy he h ad
s wo r n ; and so there i s l i ttl e i n hi s publ i s hed wo r k wh i c h can
assist us here. F or hi s part, Papus f ai l ed to put The F o o l where
any mat hemat i c i an or person of c o mmo n sense wo u l d have put
a c ard number ed 0 o bv i o us l y at the begi nni ng and so
succeeded i n getti ng nearl y every at t r i but i o n wr o n g .
x i i x i i i
Ho we v e r , the collected percepti ons of L e v i and Papus, and
also of thei r many associates and successors such as de Gui a t a
an d Sar Pel adan and Huy s man s wh i c h gal vani sed F renc h,
E n g l i s h and Ge r ma n arts and letters 1880-1900 undo ubt edl y
i nf l uenc ed the next stage of research. Publ i s hed wr i t i n g s , c i rc u
l ated manusc ri pt s and repeated hearsay p o ur e d i nt o the Her
meti c Or de r o f the Go l de n D a wn , wh i c h was f o unded i n L o n d o n
in 1887. Its ori gi ns are not germane to this treatise. I t suffices to
state that it was a gr o up dedi cated to experi enc i ng the L i g h t of
the Di v i n e t hr ough devel opment of the Self v i a sophi sti cated
practi ces desi gned to enhance every h uma n f acul ty. Its mo v i n g
spi r i t , S. L . ' M a c Gr e g o r ' M at her s , consequentl y ex pl or ed every
met hod of enhanc i ng h uma n consciousness of wh i c h he was
aware, synthesi sed West ern and M i d d l e East ern wi s d o m t radi
ti ons of the past 2500 years, and taught the r esul t i ng system to
Go l d e n D a wn i ni ti ates. The Tarot pl ayed a v i t a l part i n the
Go l d e n D a wn recensi on o f p r e - C h r i s t i a n wi s d o m as mo di f i e d by
2000 years of sl ow redi scovery f o l l o we d, after the Renaissance,
by f urt her experi ment at i on and subsequent devel opment .
Thi s ast oundi ng c o mp e n di um of esoteric l earni ng and praxi s
c an be s t udi e d w i t h p r o f i t i n The Complete Golden Dawn System
ofMagick, c o mp i l e d, edi ted and comment ed up o n by the late Dr.
I srael Regardi e. The hi st ory of the Or der can be read i n Regardie' s
What You Should Know About the Golden Dawn; Modern Ritual
Magic by F ranci s K i n g ; and E l l i c Ho we' s The Magicians of the
Golden Dawn, wh i c h unites meti cul ous document ary research
wi t h a p u z z l i n g host i l i t y to the author' s subject matter.
Yet wh y i s the Go l de n D a wn so i mpor t ant to a c omprehensi on
of the Tarot? Af t er a l l , many authors have wr i t t en on the matter
wi t h o ut reference to its body of knowl edge. That is preci sely the
poi nt . There are wri ters on the Tarot wh o use it s i mpl y as a vehi cle
f or e x p o un di n g their o wn pri vate convi ct i ons this tells us muc h
about them and wi t h l uc k they give us i n d i v i d u a l i nsi ghts i nt o the
Tarot, but we l earn preci ous li ttle else. We enter the wo r l d of a
pri vat e i n d i v i d u a l and i t may or may not be r ewar di ng : we do not
encounter the Uni verse. Other wri t ers on the Tarot have devi sed
systems to wh i c h the cards relate and wh i c h pur po r t to ex pl ai n the
Uni verse: here one tends to f i n d that the i nt ernal l ogi c of the
system does not cohere and the presumed ' facts' contradi ct one's
o wn experience of l i f e. Ho wever , the vast maj ori ty of wri t ers dr aw
up o n the Go l de n D a wn synthesis of age-ol d wi s d o m t radi t i ons,
usual l y wi t h o ut acknowl edgement; even so, let us enqui re i nto the
nature of this synthesis.
The Go l de n D a wn taught its i ni ti ates h o w t o di vi ne wi t h the
Tarot, the si gni f i cance' of its s y mbo l i s m, its use i n medi t at i on, i t s
empl oyment f or ex pl o r at i o n of what some wo u l d t erm 'the
A s t r a l Pl ane' , what J ungi ans wo u l d c al l the ' C ol l ec t i ve Unc o n
sci ous' and wh at we w i l l name ' s c r yi ng' ; and asserted that the
Tarot i s a p i c t o r i a l ex posi t i on of the Qabal ah .
Thi s n o t i o n w i l l be expl ored more f ul l y i n a later chapter. F or
the present it is enough to state that Qa ba l a h is an ext raordi
n ar i l y sophi sti cated system of st r uc t ur i ng the data of the U n i
verse wh i c h i s predi cat ed up o n Numbe r , and up o n the alleged
af f i ni t y between Nu mb e r and Letter, assumi ng the a x i o m that,
as the Renaissance magus Dr . J ohn Dee put i t; ' What ever i s i n the
Uni verse possesses order, agreement and s i mi l ar f o r m wi t h
somet hi ng else.' Qabal ah came f r o m the anci ent He br e w Rab
bi s, was taken up by non- J ewi sh pi oneers and redi scoverers of
wi s d o m dur i n g the Renaissance and has been devel oped f urther
by thei r successors i n the ni neteenth and t went i et h centuri es.
The c onnec t i on between the Tarot and the Qabal ah has been
di sput ed f r o m t wo perspectives. One body of o p i n i o n , de r i v i n g
f r o m sc hol arl y J udai s m, deplores a l l departures f r o m the ortho
dox H a s i di c t r adi t i o n but ignores the counter-arguments that the
Qabal ah , l i ke the Tarot, i s an e v o l v i n g t o o l , i nt r i ns i c al l y capable
of al most i nf i ni t e expansi on. Others have deni ed a l l c onnec t i on
between Qa ba l a h and Tarot on the grounds that there i s no
pr o v en c onnec t i on between the J ewi sh creators of the Qa ba l a h
and whoever was responsi ble for the Tarot.
I t cannot be pr oved but it can be suggested that the Qabal ah
and the Tarot shared a c o mmo n o r i g i n i n An c i e n t Egypt . The
s y mbo l of the Sphi nx on the Wh eel of F ortune T r ump i n the
medi eval packs, l o ng before the Sphi nx was k n o wn i n Europe,
makes this pl ausi bl e i n the case of the Tarot. As f or the Qabal ah, i t
xi v
xv
i s bel i eved to have ori gi nat ed wi t h M oses, wh o recei ved his
educ at i on i n Egypt and wh o , ac c ordi ng to The Bible, became a
most f or mi dabl e M a g i c i a n and a M y s t i c wi t h di rect access to
G o d . I t has been asserted also that the 22 T r umps were pai nt ed on
the wal l s of one of the l ower chambers of the Sphi nx , t hough the
present wr i t er requi res f urther evi dence of this c ont ent i on.
M or eover , f urther research on the ori gi ns and travels of the
Gypsi es, wh o o r i gi nal l y brought the Tarot to E ur opean attenti on,
is o bvi o us l y needed. I s there any genuine et ymol ogi c al connecti on
between the wor ds ' gypsy' and ' E gypt ' ; and i f so, has i t any
mat eri al , hi st or i c al significance? O n l y more research by open-
mi n de d scholars can c o n f i r m or di sprove the E g y pt i an hypothesi s.
Neverthel ess, i t can cert ai nl y be sai d that those wh o deny any
connecti ons between the Tarot and the Qa ba l a h have sel dom
done any pr ac t i c al wo r k wi t h either. M o r e o v e r , those wi t h
pr ac t i c al experience of bot h declare the c onnec t i on to be self-
evi dent and concur wi t h C r o wl e y : ' The o n l y theory of ulti mate
interest about the Tarot i s that i t i s an admi rabl e symbol i c
pi ct ure of the Uni verse, based on the data of the H o l y Qabal ah . '
Thi s matter w i l l be exami ned and set f o r t h i n due course: i t i s
not a prerequi si te for practi ce wi t h Tarot. N o r i s the next n o t i o n ,
ex po unded once agai n by the Go l de n D a wn , that the 22 T r umps
represent the Twel ve Signs and Ten Planets of As t r o l o g y .
The Tarot has also been s h o wn to correlate, v i a the Qabal ah ,
wi t h that nobl e, ancient and ex t r aor di nar y C hi nese systemisa-
t i o n of wi s d o m, the I - C h i n g .
F or the present, t hough, let us concentrate on basic practi
cal i t y. Y o u wi s h t o kn o w and use the Tarot? Ve r y we l l : y o u w i l l
need a pack of Tarot cards. H a v i n g secured these, the f i rst step is
to get ac quai nt ed, f or the cards are l i v i n g bei ngs, representi ng
l i v i n g forces i n M i n d and i n Nat ur e . S i mp l y t humb t hr ough
t hem and l o o k at t hem.
There is no need for the present wr i t er to i mi tate his predeces
sors and waste space and time by descri bi ng the cards: this seems
a poi ntless exercise in vi ew of the facts that the designs vary f r o m
pack to pack and moreover, y o u have eyes. As y o u regard the
Tarot keys, qui etl y observe each det ai l of s y mbo l i s m and note the
thoughts and feelings, i f any, wh i c h arise i n y o u. I n order to obt ai n
ma x i mu m benefit f r o m this and the ensui ng exercises, y o u w i l l
need a notebook and pen. Every time y o u consul t the Tarot, wri t e
d o wn the date, the ti me, the dur at i o n of your c onsul t at i on, the
nature of the practice and any effect up o n y o u. I n this way , y o u
w i l l have a sci enti fi c record of your progress.
D u r i n g this p r e l i mi n ar y stage, be g ui ded s i mpl y by y o ur
i n c l i n at i o n . Observe wh i c h cards attract y o ur at t ent i on and
whether there are any y o u l i ke or di s l i ke and try to analyse
wh y . Some prefer t o wo r k and/or pl ay wi t h the Tarot s i mpl y
wh e n the mo o d takes t hem. The advantage of this appr oac h i s its
spontanaei ty. Its di sadvantage is the c uri ous ps y c ho l o g i c al phe
no meno n, not ed repeatedly i n the wo r k of a l l wh o seek t o
enhance the spi r i t : at f i rst the practices seem easy and del i g h t f ul ;
then they become an i nt ol erabl y tedi ous chore; and i n the end, a
pri st i ne pack of v i r t ua l l y unused Tarot cards lies neglected i n a
drawer, enl i ght eni ng nei ther man nor beast. I n fact, i f one onl y
persists t h r o ug h the cust omary per i o d of bo r e do m and di s i l l u
si onment, a f resh state of mi n d arises whereby sessions wi t h the
Tarot take on new meani ng and renewed joy. Thi s i s un l i ke l y to
occur i f times for study and practi ce are governed by mo o d and
wh i m : and that i s wh y the t r adi t i o n al met hod tends to achieve
more pr oduc t i ve results.
Thi s met hod consists of appo i n t i n g a certai n per i od of the day
for wo r k wi t h the Tarot and keepi ng to that sel f -i mposed resolu
t i on. One s ho ul d set oneself a realistic target wh i c h can be f ul f i l l e d
wi t h o ut di f f i c ul t y and wh i c h renders excuses r i di c ul o us . Ten
mi nutes a day for twenty-ei ght days is vastly preferable to an hour
on the f i rst day, thi rty mi nutes on the second, f i ve mi nutes on the
t h i r d and a shiftless collapse for the rest of the mo nt h. Weari ness is
i ndeed l i kel y to set i n after the i n i t i a l g l o w of pleasure but by
vi rtue of s i mpl y keepi ng your wo r d of ho no ur t o yoursel f on your
promi sed t i mi ngs, y o u w i l l f i n d a qui et pr i de, a g r o wi n g ment al
strength and a devel opi ng percepti on un t i l y o u break t hr ough to
that exalted stage whereby the wo r k goes of its o wn accord.
Wh i c h pack s ho ul d y o u use? There are so many to choose f r o m
these days. One mi ght we l l opt for somet hi ng t r adi t i o nal . Ni n e -
xvi
xvii
teenth cent ury F r enc h occulti sts sc rut i ni sed wh at was avai l abl e,
searchi ng f or a pack wh i c h expressed the most comprehensi ve
c o mp e n di um of s y mbo l i s m. They chose one k n o wn as the M a r
seilles deck, wh i c h i s o l d a n d crude but effective a n d appeal i ng
a n d c an s t i l l be r eadi l y obt ai ned. T hi s dec i si on was wi se, f or then
as n o w, there were decks wh i c h were d r a wn a n d pai nt ed we l l
eno ug h: but these amount ed to l i ttl e more t han pretty pi ctures by
prof essi onal f ortune-tellers wh o may we l l have possessed predi c
ti ve abi l i t y but wh o kn e w n o t h i n g of the Tarot' s deeper si gni f i
cance. The so-cal l ed ' Swi ss Tarot ' an d the Tarot of Et t ei l a
p s e udo n y m f or one Al i et t e, an 18th century barber and c l ai rvoy
ant are classic examples of debasement. Neverthel ess, it must
be admi t t ed that these and other packs c an be used effecti vely f or
di v i n a t o r y purposes: t hough the same i s true of o r di n a r y p l a y i n g
cards, a p o o l of i n k i n the p a l m of the h a n d or tea leaves.
The M ar s e i l l e s Tarot c an teach us rather more t han tea leaves
a n d one shares the respect p a i d to i t d u r i n g the ni neteenth
c ent ury a n d even n o w. E v e n so, i t was c ert ai nl y capabl e of
i mp r o v e me n t . O s wa l d W i r t h , a F r e n c h arti st a n d oc c ul t i st
t aught by E l i p h as L e v i desi gned a deck i nt ended to c l ar i f y the
s y mbo l i s m, wh i c h Papus p ubl i s h e d al ongsi de the M ar s e i l l e s
dec k i n hi s The Tarot of the Bohemians. T h i s ni net eent h c ent ur y
ref i nement has val ue an d i s avai l abl e.
The Go l d e n D a w n gave its i ni ti ates f urt her an d more c o mpl ex
teachi ngs on the Tarot and set f o r t h desi gns wh i c h s ummar i s ed
a l l kn o wl e dg e wi t h i n its port al s. One i ni t i at e, A . E . Wa ke , later
, wo r k e d wi t h the arti st Pamel a C o l e ma n - S mi t h t o create wh a t
became the best -sel l i ng Tarot pack i n the wo r l d , mar ket ed under
the i mp r i n t of R i de r . What ever its vi rt ues, i t i s not i n fact f a i t h f ul
t o the o r i g i n a l Go l d e n D a wn desi gns. Nevert hel ess, many f i n d i t
to be thei r f av o ur i t e: wh i l e others, suc h as the present wr i t er ,
f i n d i t tame a n d twee, a c h a r mi n g v er s i o n i ndeed but wh o l l y
l a c ki n g i n force a n d f i re, bear i ng the same r el at i o n t o the mi g h t y
Un i v er s e as the enc hant i ng, de l i g h t f ul but ul t i mat el y l i mi t e d
ani mat ed cartoons of Wa l t Di sney.
The same c an be sai d of the Pa u l F oster C ase pack, wh i c h
cl osel y f o l l o ws that of Wai t e. H o we v e r , despi te my reservati ons,
the decks of Wai t e a n d C ase are i n the same class as that of W i r t h
and the M ar s e i l l e s pac k a n d are s o un d f or our purposes i f that i s
the reader' s preference.
A deck based u p o n the o r i g i n a l Go l d e n D a w n designs has
been i ssued. I srael Regardi e acted as C o n s ul t a n t . The arti st was
Rober t Wa n g , aut hor of g o o d books on the Tarot an d R i t u a l
M a g i c . The desi gns are c ommendabl e, as i s the draught sman
shi p, but the o v e r al l effect i s weak.
I n 1944, after f i ve years of arduous l abour, Al ei st er C r o wl e y as
designer an d L a d y F r i eda H a r r i s as A r t i s t Executant publ i s hed
The Book of Thoth, t hough the cards were n o t i ssued as a pack
un t i l over twenty years later. As C r o wl e y sai d of H a r r i s : 'She
ac c or di ngl y f orc ed hi m. . . t o undertake wh at i s t o a l l i ntent an
o r i g i n a l wo r k, i n c l udi n g the latest di scoveri es i n mo de r n science,
mathemati cs, phi l o s o phy , and ant hr o po l o g y ; i n a wo r d , t o repro
duce the wh o l e of hi s M a g i c a l M i n d p i c t o r i al l y on the skel eton of
the anci ent Qabal i st i c t r adi t i o n . ' ( B i bl i o g r aphi c al No t e to The
Book ofThoth). I t i s the pack I wo ul d most st rongl y r ec ommend.
Here every l i ne, every c ol our and every s y mbo l i s i n c l ude d f or a
speci fi c reason g ui de d by a central purpose an d one s h o ul d a dd
so is every br us h stroke. I t is a great achi evement.
T h i s cannot be sai d of the many other Tarot decks wh i c h
abo un d. The A q u a r i a n Tarot has aesthetic meri t but i t i s too
sti l ted a n d p a l l i d . The Tarot of Sal vador D a l i cont ai ns some
beaut i f ul exampl es of hi s wo r k but tells us muc h more about the
artist' s pri vat e obsessions t han i t does about the Un i v er s e. The
maj ori t y of packs have been created by peopl e wi t h l i t t l e com
pr ehensi on of the subject an d c an be di smi ssed as l o g i c al l y
wort hl ess an d de v o i d of arti sti c appeal , the n adi r bei ng reached,
perhaps, wi t h t h e p ubl i c a t i o n o f The James Bond Tarot. T h e
student wo u l d do far better t o create hi s o wn , ho wev er c r ude,
t han e mp l o y a deck wh i c h mi sl eads a n d of f ends.
L et us assume, therefore, that y o u have the pac k y o u l i ke most
before y o u . At f i rst i t i s best to regard t hem as just 78 i nt erest i ng
v i s ual i mages wh i c h arouse v ar i ed reacti ons wi t h i n y o u an d f or
wh i c h great c l ai ms have been made but not yet p r o v e n . The next
step i s to sort t hem out. F i rst , separate the 22 T r ump s , or M a j o r
x v i i i x i x
A r c a n a , and place t hem i n numer i c al order wi t h The F o o l
number ed 0 at the begi nni ng and The Uni verse number ed
X X I at the end. T hen arrange the M i n o r A r c a n a i n the f our
suits of Wan ds , C up s , Swords and Di s ks ; then put each sui t i n
n umer i c al order, f r o m the Ten to the Ac e and f o l l o w that wi t h
the Pri ncess, Pri nc e, Queen and Kn i g h t .
H a v i n g ordered y o ur Tarot and put The Uni verse up o n the
K n i g h t of Wan ds , i n short, h a v i n g i mposed f or the ti me bei ng a
structured pattern up o n a r a n do m and chaoti c Uni verse, y o u are
n o w ready to try the exercise wh i c h draws most peopl e to the
Tarot.
D i v i n a t i o n : and a l l that lies beyond i t.
xx
C H A P T E R I
Divination
By underst andi ng the forces of the past act i ng up o n ourselves i n the
present, we can perceive probabi l i t i es f or the f uture. The Tarot i s a
superb t ool some wo u l d say the finest f or do i n g this.
H o w does d i v i n a t i o n wo r k? There are v ar i o us theories t o
account f or i t . The t r a di t i o n a l one was cogent l y e x p o un de d by
C r o wl ey.
' 1. We post ul at e the existence of i ntel l i gences, ei ther wi t h i n or
wi t h o ut the di vi ner , of wh i c h he i s not i mmedi at el y c onsc i ous.
(It does not matter to the theory whet her the c o mmun i c a t i n g
s pi r i t so- c al l ed i s an objective enti ty or a conceal ed p o r t i o n of
the di vi ner ' s mi n d. ) We assume that suc h i ntel l i gences are able
to repl y c orrec t l y wi t h i n l i mi t s to the questi ons asked.
2. We postul ate that i t i s possi bl e to const ruct a c o mp e n di u m
of hi er o gl yphs suf f i c i ent l y elastic i n mean i n g t o i nc l ude every
possi bl e i dea, a n d that one or more of these may al way s be
taken to represent any i dea. We assume that these hi er o g l y phs
w i l l be understood by the intelligences wi t h wh o m we wi s h to
c ommuni c at e i n the same sense as i t i s by oursel ves. We have
therefore a sort of language. . . better s t i l l is the anal ogy be-
tween the c o n v en t i o n al signs a n d symbol s e mp l o y e d by math
emati ci ans, wh o can thus c onvey thei r ideas perf ectl y wi t h o ut
speaki ng a wo r d of each other' s languages.
3. We postul ate that the i ntelli gences wh o we wi s h to c onsul t
are wi l l i n g , or may be c o mp el l ed, t o answer us t r ut h f ul l y . '
(Magick: In Theory and Practice.)
A si mpl er theory i s that there exists wi t h i n the br a i n a f acul ty,
often c al l ed ' c l ai rvoyanc e' , wh i c h c an predi c t f ut ure probabi l i t i es
and wh i c h i s brought i nt o pl ay t hr o ug h a vari et y of tools: astro-
logy, I - C h i n g , a c ryst al ba l l , tea leaves or the Tarot. U n de r this
theory, the tools have l i ttl e val ue i n themselves an d are there o n l y
1
to sti mulate a part of the br ai n wh i c h we do not n o r mal l y use.
A t h i r d theory was advanc ed by the psyc hol ogi st C a r l J ung;
the theory of Sync hr oni c i t y. Her e i t i s argued that ever yt hi ng i n
the Uni ver se i s connected wi t h ever yt hi ng else, so that l a y i n g our
the Tarot cards w i l l gi ve us a pi c t ure of uni ver s al rhyt hms.
M o r e o v e r , J ung posi t ed the existence of the ' C o l l ec t i v e Un c o n
sci ous' , that part of the mi n d wh i c h i s c o mmo n t o a l l h uman i t y ,
past an d present, and wh i c h therefore contai ns the wh o l e of
h uma n e v o l ut i o n an d experi ence. T hi s C o l l ec t i v e Unc o ns c i o us
mi r r o r s the external uni verse and mani pul at es our hands and
fi ngers i n the s huf f l i ng of the cards.
F o r the purposes of pr ac t i c al di v i n a t i o n , i t does not matt
wh i c h of these theories i s adopt ed. ' Wh o has the h o w i s careless
o f the wh y . ' A n d t o begi n wi t h , di v i n a t o r y wo r k i s mec hani c al .
One starts wi t h l o o ki n g up the meani ngs of the cards i n a book.
Gr a dua l l y , however, as y o u memori se the basic meani ngs then
l earn more of the cards' nature, y o u w i l l f i n d that the Tarot i s
wo r k i n g u p o n y o u and genui ne i nsi ghts i nt o the si tuati ons y o u
expl ore w i l l arise spontaneousl y. A p r i ma r y benefit of pr ac t i s i ng
di v i n a t i o n i s the r esul t i ng devel opment of y o ur i n t ui t i o n .
A n y system of di v i n a t i o n requi res met ho d and meani ngs.
There are very many methods f r o m wh i c h to choose. The most
c ompl ex i s the Go l d e n D a wn system, wh i c h C r o wl e y repro-
duc ed i n The Book of Thoth. Its advantage is its met i c ul ous ex
p l o r a t i o n of det ai l . Its di sadvantages are that i t i s l engthy and
cumbersome. Personal l y, I have never f o un d i t sat i sf yi ng. F or
years I searched after a met hod that is s i mpl e, qui c k, di rect and
effective an d event ual l y di sc overed i t at the age of t went y- t wo
the number of the Tarot T r ump s .
Here i t i s.
1. T h i n k of a quest i on. I t can be as vague as: ' Wh at are the
general devel opments i n my li f e over the next mo n t h ? ' I t can
be h i g h l y speci f i c. F rame i t cl earl y.
2. Shuf f l e the cards wh i l e c onc ent rat i ng exc l usi vel y on the ques
t i o n . I f y o u are d i v i n i n g f or another, then that person per
f orms the mechani cs.
3. Wh e n y o u have done wi t h s h uf f l i n g go by f eel i ng here
concentrate on the quest i on one f i n a l ti me an d cut wi t h the
left h a n d.
4. L a y out the cards as f o l l o ws :
3
1 5 2
4
The fact that certai n cards may be reversed pl ays no part i n
this met ho d.
5. (1) is the i nf l uence c o mi n g i nt o the matter. (2) is the i nf l uence
in the process of depart i ng f r o m the matter. (3) is the most
i mmedi at el y apparent or consci ous i nf l uenc e. (4) i s the h i d
den, latent i nf l uence or subconsci ous factor. (5) is the key
bi n di n g i t a l l together.
6. Begi n by i nt er pr et i ng wi t h a wo r k of reference wh i c h gives
y o u the di v i n a t o r y meani ngs. W i t h practi ce, y o u w i l l n o
longer need i t.
7. Wr i t e d o wn the i nt erpret at i on as a series of statements. At the
end, try to put a l l the i nf luences together an d summari se the
posi t i on.
8. I f y o u are di ssati sf i ed wi t h the result, do not ask the same
quest i on agai n on the same day. Af t e r a l l , one does not behave
i n this wa y t o another h uma n bei ng: i t i s bad manners.
Ho wev er , do wr i t e d o wn the di v i n a t i o n i n y o ur R e c o r d.
9. Wh e n suf f i ci ent ti me has el apsed, mar k y o ur wo r k f or accu
racy or l ack of i t. L et us say y o u have wr i t t e n ten statements.
Has each statement t urned out to be true or false? Gi v e
3
your sel f 1 f or true an d 0 f or false. Tot up the mar ks at the end
a n d express i t as a percentage. At the end of, say, a year
t h o ug h y o u c o ul d use three mont hs or si x mont hs average
y o ur percentages.
10. Do not be di sc our aged i f y o ur r ec or d of accuracy i s i n i t i a l l y
poor . I n the case of one di v i n e r k n o wn to the present wr i t er , a
year' s si ncere, pati ent ef f ort y i e l de d a mi serabl e ma r k of 35%.
But a year later he ac hi eved 85 % an d a year after that, 92%.
11. Do not fake y o ur r ec or d i n order t o i mpress y o ur acquai nt
ances for y o u w i l l onl y be cheati ng yoursel f and this may l ead
to the Tarot c heat i ng y o u .
Si xt een years o n , I s t i l l use thi s me t h o d.
Wh a t do the 78 cards mean? L et us take the M i n o r A r c a n a f i rst.
M u c h i s sanc t i f i ed by t r a di t i o n , that i s, a bo dy of kn o wl e dg e
t r i ed a n d tested over the centuri es. H o we v e r , i n r ec ogni si ng the
correspondences between the Tarot , A s t r o l o g y and Qa ba l a h , the
Go l d e n D a wn an d C r o wl e y r ef i ned thi s t r a di t i o n a n d de mo n -
strated its i nt er nal l o gi c . E ac h of the cards f r o m T wo t o T en
represents, a mo n g other t hi ngs, the as t r ol ogi c al i nf l uenc e of a
p ar t i c ul ar pl anet i n a par t i c ul ar si gn.
The next i dea to grasp i s that of the F o ur El ements. O r i g i n a l l y ,
man y anci ent myst ery school s taught that ev er y t hi ng i s made up
of three elements: F i r e, Wat er a n d A i r . L at er they added a f o ur t h :
E ar t h . I n the Tarot, Wan ds are F i r e, C up s are Water, Swo r ds are
A i r and Di sks are Eart h. F urthermore, Wands are W i l l , C ups are
L o v e a n d U n de r s t a n di n g , Swo r ds are M i n d an d C o n f l i c t a n d
Di s ks are M at t er , i n c l u d i n g M o n e y .
The Qa ba l a h teaches that the D i v i n e mani f ests t h r o ug h ten
progressi vel y more dense emanat i ons of energy c al l ed Sephi r ot h,
wh i c h are number ed f r o m one t o ten. A m o n g other t hi ngs, the
M i n o r A r c a n a s ho w h o w the f o ur E l ement al energies are af
fected by these succeedi ngl y more mat er i al emanat i ons. F or
i nstance, the Ac e of Wan ds represents F i re a n d W i l l i n absolute
p ur i t y . These descend t h r o ug h the Se p h i r o t h u n t i l a f i nal
generati on i n the T en of Wan ds , wh i c h also represents Sat ur n
Sagi t t ari us; the result i s O p p r e s s i o n .
The f o l l o wi n g table sets out the meani ngs a n d the ast r ol ogi c al
rrespondences: -
Wands
Ace = The Root of the Powers of F i re. W i l l .
2 = Do mi n i o n . M ar s i n Ar i es .
3 = Vi r t ue. M o o n i n Ar i es. '
4 = C o mp l e t i o n . Venus i n A r i e s .
5 = Stri fe. Sat ur n i n L e o .
6 = Vi c t o r y . J upi t er i n L e o .
7 = Va l o ur . M a r s i n L e o .
8 = Swi f tness. M e r c u r y i n Sagi ttari us.
9 = Strength. M o o n i n Sagi t t ari us.
10 = Op p r e s s i o n . Sat urn i n Sagi t t ari us.
Ar i e s , L eo a n d Sagi ttari us are, of course, the three F i re Si gns.
Cups
Ac e = The R o o t of the Powers of Water. Supreme L o v e/Under -
st andi ng.
2 = L o v e . Venus i n C ancer.
3 = A bun da n c e . M e r c u r y i n C anc er.
4 = L ux ur y . M o o n i n Cancer.
5 = Di s appo i n t men t . M a r s i n Sc o r pi o .
6 = Pl easure. Sun i n Sc o r pi o .
7 = Debauc h. Veni j s i n Sc o r pi o .
8 = I ndol ence. Sat ur n i n Pisces.
9 = Happi n es s . J upi t er i n Pisces.
10 = Satiety. M a r s i n Pisces.
C ancer, Sc or pi o an d Pisces are the three Water Si gns.
Swords
Ac e = The R o o t of the Powers of A i r . C l e ar M i n d .
2 = Peace. M o o n i n L i b r a .
3 = So r r o w. Sat ur n i n L i b r a .
4 = Truc e. J upi t er i n L i b r a .
5 = Defeat. Venus i n A qua r i us .
6 = Science. M e r c ur y i n A q ua r i us .
7 = F ut i l i t y . M o o n i n A qua r i us .
8 = I nterference. J upi ter i n Ge mi n i .
9 = C r uel t y . M a r s i n Ge mi n i .
1 0 = R u i n . Sun i n Ge mi n i .
L i b r a , A qua r i us and Ge mi n i are the three A i r Si gns.
Disks
Ac e = The R o o t of the Powers of E ar t h . Energy E ar t hed.
2 = C hange. J upi ter i n C a p r i c o r n .
3 = Wo r k. M a r s i n C a p r i c o r n .
4 = Power. Sun i n C a p r i c o r n .
5 = Wo r r y . Venus i n Taurus.
6 = Success. M o o n i n Taurus.
7 = F ai l ure. Sat urn i n Taurus.
8 = Prudence. Sun i n Vi r g o .
9 = Ga i n . Venus i n Vi r g o .
10 = Weal t h. M e r c ur y i n Vi r g o .
C a p r i c o r n , Taurus and Vi r g o are the three E ar t h Si gns.
I t remai ns to be added that our o r di n ar y p l a y i n g cards deri ve
f r o m the Tarot' s F our Suits i n the f o l l o wi n g way : Wands = C l ubs ;
C up s = Heart s; Swords = Spades; Di sks = Di amo n ds .
The C o ur t C ar ds analyse the f our Elements and the H o l y Name
of Tet ragrammat on i n the Qabal ah ; this latter w i l l be dealt wi t h
i n due course. F or di v i n at o r y purposes, they describe various
types of men and wo me n . C r o wl e y also gave them a coherent
but extremely c ompl ex ast rol ogi c al at t r i but i on wh i c h few f i n d
to be especi ally h e l p f ul wh e n d i v i n i n g . I shal l therefore gi ve a
muc h si mpl er and cruder ast rol ogi c al at t r i but i on. Thi s may
appal the puri st but many s ki l l ed di vi ners f i n d that i t wo r ks . The
f o l l o wi n g consequently consists of thi s, the elemental analysi s
and a few psyc hol ogi c al characteri sti cs: -
Knight ofWands. F i re of F i re. A F i re Si gn. A p r o u d , genenerous,
fierce and i mpul s i v e man. He can be c r uel , bi got ed and br ut al .
Queen ofWands. Water of F i re. A F i re Si gn. A p r o u d , authori ta
ti ve, strong-hearted, hot-tempered, l o v i n g wo ma n . She can be
vengef ul , t yr anni c al , obstinate and savage.
PrinceofWands. A i r of F i re. A F i re Si gn, qui te pr obabl y a L eo.
A strong, swi f t , humo r o us , clever and nobl e man. He can be
sadi sti c, c al l ous, l azy and a braggart.
Princess of Wands. E ar t h of F i re. A F i re Si gn. An energetic,
vi ol ent , enthusi asti c, i mpl ac abl e wo ma n . She can be mo o dy ,
unrel i abl e, faithless and domi neer i ng.
Knight of Cups. F i re of Water. A Water Si gn, qui te pr o babl y
C ancer. An extremely sensitive, ami abl e, i nnocent, gracef ul
and passive man. He can be sensual, i dl e and a l i ar.
Queen of Cups. Water of Water. A Water Si gn, qui te pr obabl y
Pisces. A dreamy, t r an qui l and gentle wo ma n . She can be
wh o l l y l ac ki n g i n character and i ni t i at i ve.
Prince of Cups. A i r of Water. A Water Si gn, pr obabl y Sc or pi o.
An arti sti c, subtle, able and ruthless man. He can be i rrespon
sible, secretive and dev o i d of conscience.
Princess of Cups. Earth of Water. A Water Sign. A gracious, sweet,
romantic, voluptuous and tender wo man. She can be selfish and lazy.
Knight of Swords. F i re of A i r . An A i r Si gn, qui te pr obabl y
Ge mi n i . A clever, s ki l f u l , fierce, delicate and courageous man.
He can be vi ol ent for no reason, l ac ki n g i n powers of reflec
t i on and i ncapabl e of purpose and dec i si on.
Queen of Swords. Wa t e r o f A i r . An A i r Si g n . A per c ept i ve,
subtle, i n di v i dua l i s t i c , conf i dent and just wo ma n . She can be
c ruel , sly and unrel i abl e.
Prince of Swords. A i r o f A i r . An A i r Si gn. An intensely i ntel l i gent
man. He can be too i nt el l ec t ual , de v o i d of mor al i t y, i mpr ac t i
cal and wh o l l y l ac ki n g i n c o mmo n sense.
Princess of Swords. E ar t h of A i r . An A i r Si gn. A clever, pr ac t i c al ,
aggressive, stern and revengef ul wo ma n . She can mani fest l o w
c unni ng, anxi ety and incoherence.
Knight of Disks. F i re of E ar t h. An E ar t h Si gn, qui te pr obabl y
Vi r g o . A l abori ous, pati ent, i nst i nct i ve, down- t o- ear t h man.
He can be dul l , slavi sh and st upi d.
7
Queen ofDisks. Water of E ar t h. An E ar t h Si gn, qui te pr o bal y
C a p r i c o r n . An i nt ui t i ve, practi cal , quiet, h a r d- wo r ki n g , sensi
ble a n d affectionate wo ma n . She can be qui et l y debauc hed;
an d d u l l , servi le an d f o o l i s h .
Prince of Disks. A i r of E ar t h. An E ar t h Si gn, qui te pr o babl y
Taurus. An i ngeni ous, energetic, capable, t rust wort hy, steady
and t ho ug ht f ul man . He can be i nsensi ti ve, n a r r o w- mi n de d
an d resentf ul .
Princess ofDisks. E ar t h of E ar t h. An E ar t h Si gn. She contai ns al l
the characteristics of Wo ma n but external i nf l uence det ermi ned
wh i c h ones she manifests. She can be utterly i nconsi stent.
I t w i l l readi l y be observed that the bad qual i ti es descri bed i n
each case are a par o dy and degenerati on of the good qual i t i es. A
g o o d wa y of getti ng to gri ps wi t h the C o u r t C ar ds i s to attri bute
t hem to each and every i n d i v i d u a l that y o u kn o w. I f the astro
l o g i c al met hod proves unsati sf actory, s i mp l y attri bute i n terms
of qual i ti es descri bed. T r y also to f i n d the c ar d wh i c h most
accurately represents y o u and contemplate its v i s ual i magery.
The T r ump s are muc h more c ompl i c at ed and harder to under
st and, f or they c ont ai n so muc h i n f o r ma t i o n that each one can
be regarded as a book in itself. Neverthel ess, f or our present
purposes, r a p i d advancement w i l l be best achi eved v i a a rough
and ready s i mpl i c i t y . The f o l l o wi n g meani ngs w i l l serve as a
usef ul st ar t i ng- poi nt : -
0 The Fool - c hao t i c ex per i enc e; r ap t ur e a n d i n t o x i c a t i o n ;
wi s d o m i n s p i r i t ua l matters, f o l l y i n mat er i al ; the agony
a n d the ecstasy.
1 The Magus - great i ntel l i gence; s ki l f u l ma n i p ul a t i o n .
I I The Priestess - di vi ne i n s p i r at i o n and/or bl essi ng.
III The Empress - f r u i t f u l p r o duc t i o n t h r o ug h femeni ne
i nf l uence or qual i t i es.
I V The Emperor - Reason; male aggressi on and honour .
V The Hierophant - I n t ui t i o n ; the wi s d o m of age an d of
the ages.
VI The Lovers - the un i o n of opposi tes; or, i ndec i s i o n.
VI I The Chariot - t r i ump h , but o n l y i f soft f emi ni ne qual i ti es
are empl o yed wi t h i n a h a r d, mascul i ne exteri or.
VI I I Adjustment - Justice; essential balance, or f ai l ure to
mai n t ai n i t.
I X The Hermit - I l l umi n at i o n f r o m wi t h i n ; reti rement, per
manent or t emporary; sel f -suf f i ci ency; ' to thi ne o wn self
be t rue. '
X Fortune - Great g o o d f ortune if wel l - aspec t ed; the re
verse i f i l l .
I X Lust- C our age, strength, energy. A great l ove.
XI I The Hanged Man - puni shment , self-sacri fi ce, suf f eri ng.
XI I I Death - A maj or t r ans f o r mat i o n.
XI V Art- H a r mo n y between c o n f l i c t i n g forces.
XV The Devil - I mmense force; bl i n d i mpul s e; er upt i o n of
an i mal i nsti nct.
XVI The Tower- Great c onf l i c t ; sudden and devastati ng event
or real i sat i on.
XVI I The Star - H o p e and i de al i s m f ul f i l l e d unless badl y
aspected, i n wh i c h case heart -breaki ng di sappoi nt ment .
XVI I I The Moon - I l l us i o n, fantasies, dreams an d shadows un
less we l l aspected; then 'the darkest hour before the da wn .
XI X The Sun - Gl o r y and great joy.
XX The Aeon - T a ki n g a def i ni te step; the f or c ef ul r esol ut i on
of the quest i on.
X X I The Universe - Persistence t hr o ugh di f f i c ul t y i f badl y
aspected. Ot herwi se, deli ght i n the or der i ng of experience.
Students wh o use packs other t han the C r o wl e y - H a r r i s deck
f h o ul d note the f o l l o wi n g equati ons i n terms of T r ump titles.
The M a g us = The Juggler or The M a g i c i a n ; The Priestess = The
H i g h Priestess or L a Papesse; The Hi e r o p h a n t = The Pope;
Adj ust ment = Justice; L ust = Strength; A r t = Temperance; The
A e o n = Judgement; The Uni ver se = The W o r l d .
Two poi nts must be borne i n mi n d by the as pi r i n g di v i ner .
f i rstl y, each c ar d i s affected i.e. aspected and hence mo d i -
8
9
ti ed by the others on any spread. The di vi ner must therefore
endeavour to transcend one's o r i g i n a l , pedestri an, ' by the book
met hod t hr ough ma r r y i n g the forces represented by the cards
Thi s cannot be done i nt el l ect ual l y, t hough i t s ho ul d be attempted
at f i rst; but onl y constant practi ce can suppl y the i n t ui t B
necessary f or this operat i on.
Secondl y, the Tarot, i n c o mmo n wi t h a l l di v i n at o r y systems
does not deal i n certai nti es. I f i t d i d , there wo u l d be no free wi l l
at a l l and we wo u l d be pr o g r ammed robots. D i v i n a t i o n i s about
pr obabi l i t i es. A n y gi ven spread represents the ebb and f l o w
the Uni verse wi t h regard to the par t i c ul ar si t uat i on under exami
nat i o n. S ki l f ul di v i n a t i o n consists of per c ei vi ng what i s most
l i ke l y to occur gi ven the factors i n v o l v e d. Thi s i s wh y accom
pl i s hed di vi ners are so accurate so of ten. Ho wev er , the Uni verse
i s a muc h stranger place than i s c o mmo n l y supposed and a
qua n t um physi ci sts i n f o r m us, 'there i s a factor i nf i ni t e and
u n k n o wn ' . Thi s i s wh y even the most ac c ompl i shed di vi ners are
oc c asi onal l y absol utel y wr o n g .
There i s muc h , muc h more to be l earned about the meani ng
and use of the Tarot, a l l of wh i c h w i l l greatly f aci li tate successful
di v i n a t i o n , but the present wr i t er trusts that there is enough so
far to enable the novi ce to essay this i n t r i g ui n g art; and that the
more experi enced of hi s readers w i l l at least have d r a wn some
t hi ng usef ul f r o m this chapter.
C onst ant practi ce of D i v i n a t i o n not onl y develops the i ntui
t i o n but enables one to become aware of the f l o wi n g r h y t h ms -
an d even quan t um j umps of the Uni verse and so to under
stand and appreci ate our o wn di vi ne place wi t h i n i t.
C H A P T E R 2
The Royat Game of Human Life:
Or, Celestial Snakes and Ladders.
The f i rst part of my ti tle comes f r o m Papus' The Tarot Of The
Bohemians. N e a r the e n d, the aut h o r sets o ut a game to be
pl ay ed wi t h the Tarot. I t i nvol ves di v i n a t i o n too. At f i rst si ght, i t
seems wh o l l y f asci nat i ng and one wo u l d l i ke t o try i t. Un f o r t u
nately, the author' s i nstructi ons f or p l a y i n g ' T h e j l o y a l Game of
H u m a n L i f e ' are so unclear, that one regret f ul l y concl udes that i t
cannot be pl ay ed or else i s not wo r t h p l a y i n g .
E ven so, I was i nspi r ed by the c onc ept i on of a game wi t h the
Tarot. My desire to create one was further enf l amed by H e r ma n n
Hesse's The Glass Bead Game. I n this extremely i nteresti ng no v el ,
wi se men i n an undated future express their wi s d o m and that of
humani t y by p l ay i n g a game wi t h glass beads. Eac h move repre
sents a wave of thought or sensi bi li ty wh i c h affects a l l previ ous
moves. Unf ort unat el y, the author does not t el l us h o w we can pl ay
i t. I t remains an i deal . However , there i s meri t i n the n o t i o n therei n
that moves are j udged not so muc h i n terms of ' wi n n i n g ' and
' l osi ng' but i n terms of aesthetic pl ay.
I i nvented a number of games wi t h the Tarot, t ri ed them on my
f ri ends, pr oduc ed del i ght for a l i mi t e d per i o d i n some cases but
i nf l i c t ed bor edom i n most, then wi t h dr e w i n an endeavour t o
create another. F i nal l y, and once agai n at the age of 22,1 came up
wi t h a game wh i c h f ul f i l l e d al l the cri teri a I h ad set mysel f and
wh i c h was wel c omed wi t h enthusi asm. I t i s s t i l l bei ng pl ayed i n
vari ous parts of E n g l an d, most, notabl y L o n d o n , and was recently
i nt rooduced i nt o C a l i f o r n i a , where i t has spread wi t h gr at i f yi ng
swiftness. M a n y have asked me to c odi f y the rules and to br i n g i t
to the attenti on of a wi der p ubl i c : I dul y obl i ge.
A l t h o u g h the reasons f or c al l i n g i t ' The R o y a l Game of H u
ma n L i f e ' o r ' C el es t i al Snakes and L a dde r s ' w i l l become
10 11
apparent, f or the sake of s i mpl i c i t y , let us t erm i t ' The Game' .
The Game has f i ve purposes.
1 - As an enjoyable and i n t r i g ui n g c ard game wh i c h can be
p l ay e d by anybody, whether a student of the Tarot or not.
2 - As the swi ftest and most pai nless met ho d of dy n ami c al l y
l ear ni ng the correspondence between the Tarot and the Tree
of L i f e , the di ag r am wh i c h summari ses the Qabal ah .
3 - As a c ompl ex but r e war di n g met hod of c o mmun i c at i o n
between pl ayers, suggesti ng Hesse's The Glass Bead Game.
4 - As a medi t at i ve met ho d of l ear ni ng about bot h the nature of
the cards and one's o wn strengths an d weaknesses.
5 - As a met hod of o bt ai ni ng a di v i n a t i o n for one's li fe at the
po i nt wh e n the game i s p l ay e d, suggesti ng what can be ex-
t r ac t ed f r o m Pa p u s ' The Royal Game ofHuman Life.
I n order to pl ay i t, y o u w i l l need a pack of Tarot cards and the
di agr am o f the Tree o f L i f e -given i n this book (back page). This
di agr am shows the Ten Sephi roth of the Qabal ah f r o m 10 to 1 and
the 22 Paths, represented by the 22 T r umps , wh i c h connect them
The next chapter on Q abal ah w i l l expl ai n the theory of this di a-
gr am and also wh y C r o wl e y changed certai n Go l de n D a wn attribu
tions but theory i s not requi red for i n i t i a l practice of The Game.
F i rst l o o k at the di agr
-
am. T hi s i s the map of The Game to
wh i c h any pl ayer may refer at any ti me. Y o u w i l l be dealt eleven
cards. The object i s to pl ay these cards and others y o u wi l l
acqui re so as to ascend f r o m 10 at the bo t t o m to 1 at the top
before any other pl ayer. Y o u do this by p l a y i n g y o ur cards i n
n ume r i c al order, as in 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, A c e . So far, so
uni nt erest i ng perhaps, but the Game has rather more to i t. I t is
pr o babl y best unders- t ood i f y o u pl ay t hr o ugh a h a n d. I f y o u
have no one i n the v i c i n i t y wi l l i n g t o be c onsc ri pt ed, s i mpl y deal
out t wo sets of 11 cards f or yoursel f and an i magi nar y player.
The Game i s f or 2-7 peopl e.
L o o k at your h an d and arrange i t i n a way wh i c h satisfies y o u.
I t i s pr udent to put any T r umps to one si de. T hei r ext r aor di ni nar y
use w i l l be ex pl ai ned. The so-cal l ed ' s mal l cards' represent
o bv i o us l y enough, the numbers they have on t hem. Wh a t about
the C o u r t C ards?
The Princess - 10.
The Pri nce - 9.
The Queen - 6.
The Kn i g h t - 1; and can be used as a w i l d c ard to substitute
for A N Y N U M B E R . One c o ul d, f or exam
pl e, pl ay a K n i g h t f or 10; hence the sayi ng,
' a K n i g h t to the rescue!'
Ver y we l l ; i t i s y o ur go. A ' go' consists of any one of the
f o l l o wi n g : -
Y o u bu i l d on y o ur o wn pack. E ac h pl ayer has the pack he
bui l ds before h i m and therefore can observe the progress of
the other pl ayers. I n y o ur case here, y o ur a i m is to get started
by establ i shi ng yoursel f in 10. Theref ore, pl ay a 10 or a
Pri ncess, or f a i l i n g that, a Kn i g h t , i f y o u have them. Place the
c ard i n f ront of y o u. OR
Y o u can, i n the f ut ure, accelerate y o ur o wn progress up the
Tree by p l a y i n g an appropri at e T r ump on y o ur pack. Thi s
remai ns to be ex pl ai ned. OR
Once your opponent(s) commences bu i l d i n g hi s o wn Tree,
y o u can i mpede i t by pl ac i n g an appropri at e T r ump on hi s
pack. T hi s remai ns to be ex pl ai ned. OR
I f y o u can do none of the above, y o u may pi c k up the top
c ard f r o m the undeal t pack. T h en y o u must di sc ard any c ar d
i n your h an d that y o u choose. T hi s may be the c ard y o u have
just pi c ked up . Y o u place i t face up on top of the di sc ard pi l e.
O R
Y o u may take the c ard face up on the di sc ard pi l e and replace
i t wi t h one f r o m y o ur h an d. OR
Y o u may open negoti ati ons wi t h any or a l l of the other
players by aski ng f or a c ard y o u need. No one has to deal wi t h
y o u and y o u don' t have t o deal wi t h anyone else. A pl ayer
may want a c ard y o u have i n exchange. Y o u do not have t o
state whether y o u have this c ar d or not. Ho we v e r , a l l com
pleted transacti ons must be by mut ua l consent and st ri ct l y
onest. A c ompl et ed transacti on constitutes y o ur go. I f y o ur
negoti ati ons y i e l d no result, then y o u must exercise one of the
opti ons 1-5.
12 13
7 - Every go must end wi t h y o u hol di ng 11 cards i n your hand. I f y o u make a mi stake, before y o u begi n your next go,
y o u start your t urn by di scardi ng i f y o u have more than 11 or pi c ki ng up i f y o u have less.
Eac h player has a go in the above way. L et us suppose, then, that y o u have pl ayed a 10. The next step is to pl ay a 9.
But this i s where the Trumps come i n and the ' L adders' aspect. I t i s possi ble to take short cuts. I f y o u have The M o o n ,
pl ay that, for, as the ' map' shows, it wi l l enable y o u to omi t the pl ayi ng of 9 and 8 and travel towards 7. I f y o u have
and pl ay the Aeo n , y o u may travel towards 8 wi t hout botheri ng wi t h 9.
I t is essential that the players grasp the not i on of ' travel l i ng towards' . The Trumps are not Number s ; they are paths
between the Numbers. If y o u pl ay The M o o n f r om 10, on your next go y o u wi l l be l ooki ng for a 7, and unt i l y o u have
pl ayed a 7, y o u cannot progress. Not e also that there i s no poi nt i n pl ayi ng a T r ump wh i c h i s not a short cut at al l .
E. g. i t wo ul d be a waste to pl ay The Uni verse upo n your 10 because after that, y o u wo ul d sti l l be l ooki ng for a 9
anyway.
Go o d fortune i n the hand c oul d enable a l uc ky player to wi n very qui c kl y vi a the f ol l owi ng route: 10, 9, Ar t , 6, The
Priestess, Ace--strai ght up the M i ddl e Pi l l ar. But games are onl y rarely as easy as that.
One major reason is the use of the Trumps as 'Snakes' or weapons. Suppose an opponent is at 9. Yo u c oul d place The
Uni verse upo n hi s pack. Thi s wo ul d send h i m back to 10. Un t i l he f ound and pl ayed a 10, he c oul d not conti nue. Or
y o u c oul d be very pleased wi t h yourself, havi ng ascended f r om 10 to 8 vi a The Aeo n, onl y for an opponent to knock
y o u back towards 9 wi t h The Sun.
Yo u can use the Trumps to send opponents upwar ds and onwards onl y to encounter the disaster y o u pl anned. F or
instance, i n one game, A was del i ghted, bei ng establi shed at 6, to have The L overs pl aced upo n hi s pack by B. Thi s
took h i m f r om 6 towards 3, wh i c h 3 he pl ayed on hi s next go. Unf ortunatel y for h i m, B knoc ked h i m back towards 5
wi t h The C hari ot, and wh e n he' d pl ayed a 5, towards 8 wi t h The Hang ed M a n , and wh en he' d pl ayed an 8, she
dropped h i m back towards 10 wi t h The Aeon. I t i s an essential part of the spi ri t of the game to pl ay i t utterly
ruthl essl y wi t h no thought of personal i ty. The wo r d ' sorry' i s al l o wed as Game etiquette but i f often adds I nsult to i nj ury. The
wi nner i s the fi rst pl ayer wh o can place an Ac e on hi s pack. He or she then leaves the Game. I f the others wi c s h to conti nue, wh i c h i s
opt i onal , the wi nner' s remai ni ng cards are added to the pi c k- up pi l e. I f the pl ayer lacks an Ac e, he may f i ni sh wi t h a Kni ght , but he
hads not yet wo n f or one r o un d of goes. I f dur i ng this r o und, anyone can place The F ool on hi s Ki nght , he i s sent back t owards 2.
The F ool has a uni que f unc t i on i n the Pack. I t i s a compl et el y wi l d c ard and can be pl ayed as a substi tute for any number or any
T r ump. Wh e n the pi c k- up pack i s exhausted, one s i mpl y turns over the di scard pack, l eavi ng the last c ard exposed. I f i t i s
i mpossi bl e for anyone to reach 1 and stalemate ensues, the wi nner i s the pl ayer wh o has reached or i s t ravel l i ng t owards the hi ghest
number.
The wi nner s ho ul d closely scruti ni se hi s wi n n i n g pack before handi ni ng i t i n s ho ul d other pl ayers wi s h t o conti nue. A n d these other
players shoul d exami ne the packs that have been bui l t at the c onc l usi on of The Game. F or each playter wi l l have acqui red a
di vi ni at i on of hi s state wh i c h s ho ul d be read c ard by c ard, i n chronol ogi cal order, f r o m the begi nni ng to the end, as a story. The c ard
on wh i c h on ends has the greatest i mportance for the i mmedi at e f uture.
The Game i s i n fact muc h less c ompl i c at ed that i t seems at fi rst. M ost peopl e pi c k i t up easi ly i n the course of their fi rst attempt. I n
most cases, i t grows on the pl ayer an d reveals h i dden depths. Organi si ng a h an d f or ma x i mum benefit becomes a subtle and
medi t at i ve acti vi ty. One starts to perci eve what i s needed and what isn' t needed at vari ous stages of li fe and l earni ng. The relati ons
between the cards become i ncreasi ngl y apparent. Practi sed peopl e pl ay wi t h wi t and elegance.
I nnovati ons t o The Game have been proposed. One vari ant, wh i c h I heard about f r o m M r . D a v i d Ranki ne, bri ngs i n a myst i c al
doctri ne. The Number s 1,2, and 3 are hel d to be supreme and i dea i n the Qabal ah, bey o nd the abyss that yawns between I deal and
Ac t ual . Any o ne wh o reaches 2 or 3 must therefor gi ve up hi s hand to the di scard pi l e an reci eve 5 cards.

[note: format change due to scanning errors]
I f he i s brought d o wn bel ow 3 agai n, however, he i s dealt
another 6 cards. T hi s i n n o v a t i o n has its attracti ons but it re
mai ns to be seen whet her or not i t w i l l pass i nt o general pl ay.
A techni que of p l ay some have c r i t i c i sed as poi ntl ess neverthe
less deserves me n t i o n here, f or i t has been demonst rat ed to me as
h a v i n g a use. T hi s consists of p l a y i n g a T r ump up o n oneself
wh e n , to a l l intents an d purposes, i t i s not needed. F or instance
a pl ayer i n 7 pl ays Deat h. T hi s takes h i m t r avel l i ng to 6, but he
can go there by p l a y i n g 6 an y way so wh y do it? The reason i s
to a v o i d getti ng dragged away f r o m 7 by another pl ayer. F or
exampl e, wh i l e y o u are i n 7 an d l o o ki n g for a 6, another mi ght
pi c k up and later pl ay The M o o n o n y o u , sendi ng y o u d o wn
t owards 10. I t i s, then, a pr udent move under cert ai n c i rc um
stances, f or wh e n y o u are t r avel l i ng up o n a T r ump , no one can
pl ay a c ard up o n y o ur pack.
I t i s to be hoped that The Game w i l l br i n g many hours of
pleasure and even more t o readers wh o try i t. C er t ai n l y i t wi l l
accelerate c o mp r e h e n s i o n of the i mmens el y c o mp l e x subject we
are about to tackle, wh i c h subject is the backbone of the Tarot
and the key to Un de r s t an di n g .
Qabal ah .
C H A P T E R 3
Qabalah
The contents of this chapter, though dry and detai led, are essential
for any student wh o wants his understandi ng and usage of the Tarot
to advance beyond the superf i ci al. Practice is i ndeed the f oundat i on
of our ki ng do m, but in the absence of a uni f y i ng , g ui di ng theory, its
potential accomplishments are sadly l i mi t ed. Hence it is strictly
necessary at this juncture to tackle the matter of Qabal ah.
Wh at i s Qabal ah? One c o ul d do worse t han gi ve the answer
of the late Dame Frances Yates:
' The Wo r d means " t r a di t i o n " . I t
A
was bel i eved that wh e n G o d
gave the L a w to M oses He gave also a second revel at i on as to
the secret meani ng of the L a w. T hi s esoteric t r adi t i o n was sai d
to have been passed d o wn the ages o r al l y by i ni ti ates. I t was a
mys t i c i s m and a c ul t but root ed i n the text of the Scri ptures, i n
the Hebr ew language, the h o l y language i n wh i c h G o d h ad
spoken t o man . '
(The Occult Philosophy in the Elizabethan Age)
D u r i n g the Renaissance, Qabal ah became an i nt egral part of
its Hermet i c Phi l os ophy, the relevant parts of wh i c h can be
summari sed as f o l l o ws :
A l l i s a U n i t y , created and sustai ned by G o d t hr o ugh H i s
L aws .
These L aws are predi cat ed up o n Numbe r .
There i s an art of c o mbi n i n g He br e w letters and equat i ng
them wi t h Nu mb e r so as to percei ve p r o f o u n d truths con
c erni ng the nature o f G o d and H i s deal i ngs wi t h M a n .
A c c o r di n g to the Qabal ah , G o d mani fests by means of ten
progressi vel y more dense emanat i ons: and M a n , by dedicat
i ng hi s mi n d t o the study of di v i n e wi s d o m, by r ef i ni ng hi s
who l e bei ng and by eventual c o mmun i o n wi t h the angels
themselves, may at last enter i nt o the presence of G o d .
16 17
|note: Iormat change due to scanning errors|
5 - The Universe is an ordered pattern of correspondence: or as Dr. J ohn Dee put it: 'Whatever is in the Universe
possesses order, agreement and similar form with something else.'
(Gerald Suster: J ohn Dee: Essential Readings) We have noted how, in the late nineteenth century, S.L. 'MacGregor'
Mathers welded together Renaissance occult philosophy, including and especially the Qabalah with certain of its
sources which had come to light by his time in the creation of the Golden Dawn system. However, the practical use of
Qabalah Magicians and Mystics has still to be defined and in 777, Aleister Crowley gave the most succinct answer
ever written. 'Qabalah is:
(a) A language fitted to describe certain classes of phenomena and to express certain classes of ideas which escape
regular phraseology. You might as well object to the technical terminology of chemistry.
(b) An unsectarian and elastic terminology by means of which it is possible to equate the mental processes of people
apparently diverse owing to the constraint imposed upon them by the peculiarities of their literary expression. You
might as well object to a lexicon or a treatise on comparative religion.
(c) A system of symbolism which enables thinkers to formulate their ideas with complete precision and to find simple
expression for complex thoughts, especially such as include previously disconnected orders of conception. You might
as well object to algebraic symbols.
(d) An instrument for interpreting symbols whose meaning has been obscure, forgotten or misunderstood by
establishing a necessary connection between the essence of forms, sound simple ideas (such as number) and their
spiritual, moral or intellectual equivalents. You might as well object to interpreting ancient art by consideration of
beauty as determined by physiological facts.
(e) A system of omniform ideas so as to enable the mind to increase its vocabulary of thoughts and facts through
organising and correlating them. You might as well object to
18
the mnemonic value of Arabic modifications of roots.
(f) An instrument for proceeding from the known to the unknown on similar principles to those of mathematics. You
might as well object to the use of V-l, x4 etc.
(g) A system of criteria by which the truth of correspondences may be tested with a view to criticising new discoveries
in the light of their coherence with the whole body of truth. You might as well object to judging character and status
by educational and social convention.'
The formalised basis of the system is the diagram we have already encountered, the Tree of Life. This is a multi-
purpose map. It can be used to classify states of consciousness, numbers, letters, colours, deities of every mythology,
plants, jewels, the physical body, the Tarot or anything else in the Universe. It is a unifying symbol which embodies
the entire cosmos.
It begins with Nothing, which is termed Ain. Ain is unknowable, unthinkable and unspeakable. To render Itself
comprehensible to itself, Ain becomes Ain Soph (Infinity) and then Ain Soph Aour (Absolute Limitless Light) which
concentrates itself into a central, dimensionless point. This point is called Kether and it is the first Sephirah (sphere) of
the Tree of Life. The Light proceeds to manifest in nine more progressively dense emanations down to the tenth and
final Sephirah,
Malkuth, the physical world. This then, is how the Universe manifests, or how God or Goddess manifests, or how
Darkness becomes Light and then Life whichever terms are preferred and it is held that every set of phenomena
follows this pattern, This is why the Tree of Life is viewed as a multi-purpose map.
So our map so far consists of ten Sephiroth. These Sephiroth are connected by twenty-two Paths which express the
relations between the Sephiroth they connect. The original creators of the Qabalah attributed the twenty-two letters of
the Hebrew alpha-them with a symbol, the Serpent of Wisdom, who includes all Paths within its coils as it climbs
from the lowest to the highest.
This system has been further expanded and made more complex over the centuries. It is held by most Qabalists that
there are
F o ur Wo r l d s , or di mensi ons of existence, and each W o r l d has i ts
o wn Tree o f L i f e . M a n y g o f urt her a n d wo r k wi t h a syst em
whereby each Sephi r ah contai ns a Tree, g i v i n g us a t ot al of a
h un dr e d Trees or, i f we br i n g i n the F our Wo r l ds , f our h un dr e d
These refi nements are bey o n d the scope of this wo r k but can
c ert ai nl y be st udi ed wi t h advantage i n The Mystical Qabalah by
D i o n F ort une or I srael Regardi e' s A Garden of Pomegranates.
I t shoul d be added, however, that there are two ways of
regardi ng Qabalah. The traditionalists believe that the Tree of
L i f e i s the ac t ual f r amewo r k of the Uni ver se. C r o wl e y disagrees
an d c omment ed a c i dl y :
'It was as if some one h ad seri ousl y mai nt ai ned that a cat
was a creature constructed by pl ac i ng the letters C . A . T . i n that
order. I t i s no wo n de r that M a g i c k has exci ted the r i di c ul e of
the uni nt el l i gent , since even its educated students can be gui l t y
of so gross a v i o l a t i o n of the f i rst pr i nc i pl es of c o mmo n sense
(Magick: In Theory and Practice.)
H i s p o i n t was that the Tree of L i f e is a classification of the
Uni ver s e, not a t hi ng i n itself. Its uni que advantage, as M at her s
C r o wl e y , Regardi e, F ort une and other Qabal i st s i nsi st, i s that i t
i s the most suppl e, c omprehensi ve, i ngeni ous and most usef ul
t o o l of uni ver s al c l assi f i c at i on that the mi n d of ma n has ever
i nvent ed.
D u r i n g the 1890's, M at her s proceeded to wr i t e Tables of the
Tree of L i f e t o cl assi f y hi s vast occul t kn o wl e dg e . Dr . Wy n n
Westcott very pr o babl y assisted h i m and these Tables were
c i r c ul at ed amo n g I nner O r de r i ni t i at es, i n c l u d i n g C r o wl e y ' s
teacher, A l l a n Bennett. Bennett was an excellent Qabal i s t i n hi s
o wn ri ght and C r o wl e y learned f r o m h i m, then acqui red his o wn
experi ence. A most f r ui t f ul resul t was the p ubl i c a t i o n i n 1909 of
777, the classic di c t i o nar y of correspondences, wh i c h most sub
sequent wri t ers have p l un de r e d wi t h o ut ac knowl edgement . As
C r o wl e y wr ot e i n hi s Pref ace:
' The f o l l o wi n g i s an attempt to systematise al i ke the data of
my s t i c i s m and the results of c omparat i ve r el i gi on. . . f or us i t i s
left to sacri fi ce l i t erary c h ar m and even some accuracy, i n
order to br i n g out the one great po i n t .
' T hi s : That wh e n a Japanese t hi nks of H a c h i ma n , and a Boer
of the L o r d of Host s, they are not t wo thoughts, but one. '
The ma i n Tables are based on t h i r t y - t wo number s: that i s, the
ten Sephi rot h and the t went y - t wo Paths. I f we l o o k at the
correspondences per t ai ni ng to the number T wel v e, for exampl e,
we w i l l f i n d that the Planet i s M e r c ur y , the Pat h j oi ns the
sephi rot h 1 and 3, the f oremost c o l o ur i s y e l l o w, the E g y p t i a n
Go d i s T h o t h , the H i n d u dei ty i s H a n u ma n , the Greek G o d i s
Hermes, the R o ma n G o d i s ' M e r c ur y , the ani mal s are the Swal
l ow, I bis, A p e and T wi n Serpents, the plants are Ve r v a i n , H e r b
M er c ur y , M a r j o r a m and Pa l m, the gems are the o pal an d agate,
the magi c al we ap o n i s the Wa n d or C aduc eus, the perf umes are
M as t i c , whi t e sandal , mace and st orax, the met al i s merc ury, the
H e br e w letter i s Beth and the Tarot T r u mp i s The M a g us . One
could say that The M a g us i s a p i c t o r i a l representati on of a l l
these associated ideas.
One uses 777 or an equi val ent wo r k to set up mag i c al cer
emonies, to gui de one i n medi t at i o n and/or to compare systems
of s y mbo l i s m and my t ho l o g y . Onc e its basic pr i nc i pl es are com
pr ehended, one can cl assi f y . new kn o wl edg e.
We must n o w bri ef l y t ur n our at t ent i on t o wh at i s k n o wn as
Gemat r i a, a way of ' c o mbi n i n g He br e w letters and equat i ng
them wi t h Nu mb e r so as t o percei ve p r o f o un d truths c onc er ni ng
the nature o f Go d and H i s deal i ngs wi t h M a n . ' Spec i f i c al l y,
Gemat ri a is the art of di s c over i ng the secret sense of a wo r d by
means of the n ume r i c al equi val ents of each letter. As Regardi e
states in A Garden of Pomegranates:
'Its met hod of procedure depends on the fact that each
Hebr ew letter h ad a def i ni te n ume r i c al val ue and may ac t ual l y
be used i n place of a number. Wh e n the t ot al of the numbers
of the letters of any one wo r d were i dent i c al wi t h that of
another wo r d , no matter h o w di f f erent its meani ng an d trans
l at i on, a close correspondence an d anal ogy was seen.'
He gives us an i nteresti ng exampl e. The He br e w of ' Serpent'
adds to 358 and so does the He br e w f or ' M e s s i a h ' . T hi s may
i ni t i al l y appear rather s ur p r i s i n g but close i nspec t i on and a
further oper at i on of Gemat r i a w i l l c l ar i f y the matter. F or wh a t i s
20 21
the Serpent? As Regardi e puts i t: ' The Serpent i s a s y mbo l of the
K u n d a l i n i , the s pi r i t ual creative force i n each man wh i c h , wh e n
aroused by means of a t rai ned w i l l , re-creates the entire i n di -
v i dua l , maki n g h i m a G o d - M a n . ' A n d the M essi ah i s a Go d-
M a n .
F ur t her mor e, i f we a dd up the di gi ts 3, 5, 8, we obt ai n 16, and
i f we l o o k up the correspondences of that number i n 777, we
f i n d Di o n y s us the Redeemer an d the Tarot T r u mp The
Hi e r o p h a n t , di vi ne and h uma n i ni t i at or i nt o the sacred myst er-
ies of r eal i si ng one's o wn i nnate di v i n i t y . A n o t h e r correspond
ence is that of Parsifal, who li ke The Hi erophant, becomes able
to perf orm the messianic miracle of redempti on. As Regardie
r i g ht l y states: ' We thus see the speci fi c anal ogy between the
wo r ds ' Serpent' and ' M e s s i a h ' wh i c h the Qa ba l a h has been able
to reveal . '
C r o wl e y gives us f urther examples i n The Book ofThoth:
' For example, A C h D uni ty (1 + 8 + 4) = 13; and the A H B H love
(1 + 5 + 2 +5) = 13. Thi s fact is hel d to i ndi cate "The nature of
U n i t y is L o v e . " T h e n 1 H VH J e h o v a h (10 + 5 + 6 + 5) = 26 = 2x13.
Therefore: "Jehovah i s Un i t y manifested i n Dual i t y. '
L et us take the Nu mb e r 419. I t i s a p r i me. Wh a t can we l earn
of it? I nvesti gati ons w i l l pr o babl y prove f ut i l e u n t i l we hi t the
key real i sat i on that i t i s the number of the He br e w L etter Teth
spel l ed i n f u l l . A n d Tet h corresponds t o the Tarot T r u mp L ust
We can therefore expl ore the nature of 419 by medi t at i ng upo n
this Tarot T r u mp and its var i ous correspondences.
The student wh o wi shes to i nvesti gate f urt her the f asc i nat i ng
science and art of Gemat r i a s h o ul d obt ai n The Qabalah of
Aleister Crowley, wh i c h v o l ume contai ns hi s three maj or c ont ri -
but i o n s to Q a b a l a h : Ge ma t r i a , 777 a n d Sepher Sephiroth. This
last v o l ume i s a di c t i onar y of He br e w wo r ds arranged accor di ng
to their n ume r i c a l val ue. Gemat r i a also investigates the charac-
teristics of many numbers. Y o u can then l o o k up the propert i es
of any number. I f y o u wi s h to i nvesti gate a wo r d , change i t i nto
H e br e w letters, a dd up the n ume r i c a l equi val ents of these letters
an d refer to the book f or the meani ng or meani ngs. I f at f i rst this
sheds l i ttl e l i ght up o n the pat h, di v i de the number y o u have and
inspect the meani ngs of the f actors. Remember that y o u c an
substitute the appr opr i at e Tarot T r u mp i f a Nu mb e r i s between
and i n c l udi n g 11 (The F ool ) and 32 (The Uni verse) . I f the result
i s s t i l l less t han sati sfactory, try a ddi n g up the di gi t s. Tarot, then,
can assist us i n our c ompr ehensi on of Ge ma t r i a , wh i c h , one has
to admi t , at f i rst stri kes the casual reader as abs ur d. Yet anyone
wh o undertakes its practi ce w i l l come t o agree wi t h C r o wl e y :
' C ompl et e mystery surrounds the quest i on of the o r i g i n of
this system; any theory wh i c h -satisfies the facts demands as
sumpti ons wh i c h are compl etel y absur d. To e x p l ai n i t at a l l ,
one has to postulate in the obscure past a fantastic assembly of
learned rabbi ns, wh o sol emnl y cal cul ated a l l sorts of c ombi na
tions of letters and numbers, and created the He br e w language
on this series of mani pul at i o ns . T hi s theory i s p l a i n l y contrary,
not onl y to c o mmo n sense, but to the facts of hi st ory, and to a l l
that we kn o w about the f o r mat i o n of language. Nevertheless,
the evidence is equal l y strong that there is somet hi ng, not a
li ttle of somet hi ng but a great deal of somet hi ng, a somet hi ng
wh i c h excludes a l l reasonable theories of coi nci dence, i n the
correspondence between wo r ds and numbers. '
(The Book ofThoth.)
F or i t must be stressed that Qa ba l a h i s us ual l y f o un d as
meaningless as H i g h e r M at hemat i c s by those wi t h no pr ac t i c al
experience of the subject. One cannot l earn Qa ba l a h s i mp l y by
readi ng about i t any more t han one can l earn chemi st ry wi t h o ut
ever enteri ng a l abor at or y and p e r f o r mi n g an experi ment . U n
derst andi ng depends up o n and grows wi t h honest wo r k.
N o w, even the dullest student cannot f ai l to have noti ced h o w
neatly the Qabal ah and the Tarot f i t together. There are ten
Sephi roth and F our Wo r l ds and f our suits of ten cards numbered
f r o m 1 to 10. There are 22 Paths, 22 Hebr ew letters and 22
Trumps. Qabal ah begins wi t h 0 and so does the Tarot wi t h The
F o o l . F urthermore, i f one l ooks up the E gypt i an, Greek and R o ma n
Gods and Goddesses for numbers 11-32 i ncl usi ve i n 777 or an
equivalent, one w i l l f i n d these reflected i n the c orrespondi ng Tarot
t rumps. One c o ul d adduce many other consi derati ons and con
ti nue at i nt ol erabl y weari some length, c i t i ng paral l el after par al l el ;
22
23
and opponents of this posi t i on have yet to expl ai n these parallels
sati sfactori ly. But the central poi nt i s that those wh o wo r k wi t h
bot h Qabal ah and Tarot f i n d the connections to be self-evident.
I t has been obj ected by some aut hors on the Tarot a n d they
ought to k n o w better that c onnec t i ng the Tarot to the
Qa ba l a h , or any other systemi sati on of knowl edge and wi s do m,
i s ' do gmat i c ' and even ' ant i -t arot i c' , what ever that last phrase
may me a n . T h i s at t i t ude di s p l a y s a d i s m a l p a uc i t y o f
rat i oc i nat i ve f acul ty. One of the many joys of the Tarot is that it
can increase our under st andi ng and appr ec i at i on of so many
other ways of st r uc t ur i ng the Uni ver se.
I n c o mmo n wi t h the Tree of L i f e it portrays, the Tarot is a multi
purpose t ool and a multi -f aceted map. M a n y get to gri ps wi t h
st udi ed and revered by Qabal i st s, Shemhamphor ash, wh i c h ex
presses what i s k n o wn as the F o r mul a of Tet ragrammat on and
wh i c h wh e n pr o no unc ed correctly, i s al l eged to destroy the
Uni verse or, one mi ght say, anni hi l at e the personal i t y t hr o ug h
i mmedi ate contact wi t h the di vi ne. I t i s not the purpose of this
treatise to enter deeply i nt o this par t i c ul ar subject but an elemen
tary sketch of the f o r mul a of Tet ragrammat on is necessary.
Tet ragrammat on can be descri bed as the F our Letters of the
(Divine Na me o f G o d : I H V H wh i c h i n He br e w i s Y o d H e h V a u
H e h , usual l y vul gar i sed as J ehovah. These letters are por t r ayed
as Father, M o t h e r , Son and Daughter. I n the t r adi t i o n al He br e w
system, the di vi ne forces symbol i sed by the F ather ( Acti ve) uni te
wi t h the M o t h e r (Passive) to produc e M at t er i n the f o r m of the Son and the Daughter.
Qabalah through the Tarot rather than vice-versa, for they find they respond better to the i magery than to the abstractions of
Number. For instance, on the Tree of Life the seventh Sephirah is
Net z ac h, the tenth Sephi rah i s M a l k u t h , and these are connected by
the twenti eth Path, wh i c h expresses the relations between them.
H o w is one to comprehend the nature of this relati onshi p?
A pure Qabal i st , after l o o ki n g up any correspondences he had
not al ready memori sed, wo u l d pr obabl y begi n by s t udy i n g the
meani ng of the He br e w letter Q o p h ; this means ' Back of head' i n
E n g l i s h , wh i c h cl earl y refers t o the c erebel l um or p r i mi t i v e
repti le br ai n and a l l that this i mpl i es ; after wh i c h he wo ul d
pr o babl y expl ore a l l relevant numbers. But one wh o approached
the matter v i a the Tarot wo u l d f i rst study the Tarot T r ump
number ed X V , The M o o n , t o wh i c h the Pat h i s at t ri but ed, and
mi ght we l l f i n d that the v i s ual s y mbo l and the trains of thought
i t evokes grant greater c o mpr ehens i o n t han i nt el l ec t ual abstrac
ti ons. O bv i o us l y a t ho r o ugh seeker after wi s d o m wo u l d st udy
the matter f r o m bot h aspects. T h r o ug h the one, we can gai n
i nc reasi ng perc ept i on of the other and vi ce-versa. The student
must remember that each Tarot c ard i s not c al l ed a ' key' for
n o t h i n g , f or each one i s a c o mp e n di um of associ ated ideas,
represented by s y mbo l i s m.
We agai n f i n d the Tarot to be of i nval uabl e assistance i n
endeavour i ng to c omprehend the nature of that Di v i n e Name
The Pagan system i s subtler and more i n accord wi t h our
contemporary knowl edge of the Uni ver se. I t encapsulates the
equat i on ' Na ug h t = M a n y = T wo = One = A l l = Na ug h t ' wh i c h
can be reduced to 0 = (+1) + (-1), or in shor t hand, 0 = 2. In other
words, No t h i n g manifests t hr ough vari ous processes as Every
t h i n g t hr ough Pai rs of Opposi t es. One way of expressi ng the
process i s to say that the Father (Yod) and M o t h e r ( Heh) , f r o m
wh o m issue a l l created thi ngs, uni te to br i n g f o r t h the Son (Vau)
wh o i s the hei r, and then the Daught er ( Heh) . T h r o ug h hi s
bravery, the Son wi ns the Daughter i n marri age, and she i s set
up o n the throne of her M o t h er . She then awakens the E l d of the
o r i g i n al Father wh o becomes the y o un g Son wh i l e the Son takes
his Father's place and the cycle i s renewed. As C r o wl e y
remarks:
' I n this c ompl ex f ami l y rel at i onshi p i s symbol i sed the wh o l e
course of the Uni ver s e. '
(Magick: In Theory and Practice)
Thi s f o r mul a has many and v ar i ed appl i c at i ons t o M a g i c k
and M y s t i c i s m and L i f e generally and these c an be st udi ed i n the
relevant speci ali st wo r ks . Wh a t i s presently germane to our
Purposes i s that we f i n d this F o r mul a embodi ed i n the C o ur t
C ards of the Tarot. The Kn i g h t i s the F ather; the Queen i s the
M o t h e r ; the Pri nce i s the Son; and the Princess i s the Daughter.
|note: ltallclsed text should be ln left-hand column|
24 25
C o n t e mp l a t i o n of these keys w i l l i mmeasur abl y assist compre
hens i on of the i mmensel y c ompl ex and p o we r f ul wi s d o m en
shr i ned i n T et r agr ammat on. F or these my s t i c al f ormul ae can
o n l y be grasped to a l i mi t e d degree t hr o ug h pur el y rat i onal
anal ysi s. T h r o ug h Tarot and Qa ba l a h we can acqui re
another h i g h l y effective wa y of us i ng our brai ns. ' Assoc i at i ve
t h i n ki n g ' mi ght be one way of desc r i bi ng i t, ' l at eral t hi nki ng '
another, t hough bot h these terms are i nadequate.
O u r next c onsi der at i on i s Daat h . T hi s i s the eleventh Sephi r ah
of the Tree of L i f e and has hi t hert o not been ment i oned. I t pl ays
l i ttl e part i n the t r a di t i o n a l system. The o r t h o do x Hebr ew
qabali sts thought that, pr o per l y speaki ng, i t was not real a
Sephi r ah at a l l . Recent ti mes, however, have wi t nessed great
interest in Daath and the matter has been explored in the works
of M r . Kenneth Grant, and those i nfluenced by them. The place
of Da a t h is in the A by s s , between 3 (Bi nah) and 4 (Chesed) and 2
( C ho kmah) and 5 ( Geburah) . T r a di t i o n has i t that i t means
Kn o wl e dg e but i s i n fact the False C r o w n of False Kn o wl e dg e . I t
represents, i t i s s ai d, the hi ghest state to wh i c h a h uma n bei ng
can br i n g hi s i nt el l ec t ual faculti es and s p i r i t ua l e v o l ut i o n with
out do i n g what he then must do gi ve up a l l that he has and al l
that he i s, a n n i h i l a t i n g his self i n a myst i c marri age wi t h the
Uni ver se. To stay i n the state of Daat h , i t i s s ai d, i s to c l i n g to
one's ego and to be dest royed.
A number of c ont empor ar y wri t ers suc h as M r . Gr a n t have
argued vehementl y f or a r ev i s i o n of this p o s i t i o n . They poi nt
out, amo n g other thi ngs, that the He br e w Rabbi s were r i ddl e d
wi t h g ui l t ; that the number of M a g i c k i s 11 and so the Tree of
L i f e s h o ul d reflect this wi t h 11 Sephi r ot h; and that Daat h , far
f r o m bei ng a False C r o w n of False Kn o wl e dg e , i s the Gat eway
t h r o ug h the A by s s to B i n ah ( Underst andi ng) and the bi r t h
wi t h i n us of cosmi c consci ousness.
I n the o p i n i o n of the present wri t er, the si gni f i cance of Death
i s s t i l l a matter f or debate and w i l l onl y be resol ved by pati ent
study and experi ment at i on, t hough the latter may l ead to casual
ties. The matter is ment i oned here so as to enable the student to
get to gri ps wi t h recensions of the Tree of L i f e based on el even
Sephi rot h; an d to have a basis f or under s t andi ng mat er i al to be
presented i n the succeedi ng chapter on A s t r o l o g y .
Penul t i mat el y, t wo more t echni cal matters demand our atten
t i o n. F i rst l y, al t ho ugh the M ar s ei l l es deck h a d Justice at VI I I and
Strength at X I , wh y d i d Wai t e and C ase counterchange t hem,
and wh y d i d C r o wl e y revert t o the t r adi t i o n al at t ri but i on? At
fi rst i nspec t i on, i t l ooks as t hough Wai t e and C ase were ri ght . A
L i o n usual l y appears on Strength, wh i c h therefore o bv i o us l y
refers t o the A s t r o l o g i c a l Si gn, L eo ; a wo ma n wi t h s wo r d and
scales usual l y appears on Justice, and this o bv i o us l y refers to the
As t r o l o g i c al Si gn of L i b r a , the Bal ance: and i n the Zo di a c , L eo
comes before L i b r a .
C r o wl e y was at f i rst per pl exed by the t r a di t i o n a l o r de r i n g .
However, i n 1904 he recei ved The Book of the Law, wh i c h at the
very least i s an i ntensely beaut i f ul prose-poem an n o un c i n g a new
A e o n of e v o l ut i o n f or h uman i t y an d wh i c h he asserted t o have
been di ctated to h i m by a praet er-human I ntelli gence c al l ed
Ai wass. Wi t h reference to the Tarot , The Book of the Law states:
' A l l these o l d letters of my book are ari ght ; but T z a d d i i s not the
Star. Thi s also i s secret; my prophet s h al l reveal i t to the wi s e . ' I n
other wo r ds , the He br e w letter T z a d d i and the Pat h to wh i c h i t i s
attri buted do not c orrespondv t o the T r u mp number ed X V I I The
Star, cont rary t o Go l d e n D a wn teachi ng. As C r o wl e y comment s:
' Thi s was exceedi ngl y a n n o y i n g . I f T z a d d i was not "The
Star", what was? A n d wh at was T z addi ? He t ri ed f or years t o
counterchange this c ar d, "The Star", wh i c h i s number ed
X V I I , wi t h some other. He h a d no success. I t was many years
later that the s o l ut i o n came t o h i m . T z a d d i i s " The E mp e r o r " ;
and theref ore the p o s i t i o n s of X V I I a n d I V mus t be
counterchanged. T hi s at t r i but i o n i s very sati sf actory. . .
' F or " The Star" i s ref erred t o A q ua r i us i n the Zo di a c , and
"The E mp e r o r " t o A r i e s . N o w A r i e s and A q ua r i us are o n
each side of Pisces, just as L eo and L i b r a are on each side of
Vi r go; that i s t o say, t h e c or r ec t i on i n t h e Book of the Law
gives a perfect symmet ry in the z o di ac al at t r i but i o n , just as if
a l oop were f o r med at one end of the el l i pse to c or r es pond
exactly wi t h the exi st i ng l o o p at the other end.
26 27
'These matters sound rather technical; in fact, they are; but
the more one studies the Tarot, the more one perceives the
admirable symmetry and perfection of the symbolism. Yet,
even to the layman, it ought to be apparent that balance and
fitness are essential to any perfection, and the elucidation of
these two tangles in the last 150 years is undoubtedly a very
remarkable phenomenon.'
(The Book ofThoth)
In other words we obtain a symmetrical, balanced, and satisfying
systemisation of Tarot in terms of all it wxpounds, if we place
Adjustment (justice) at VIII and Lust (strenght) as XI; and if we
attribute the Hebrew letter
Tzaddi adn the path between 9 (Yesod) and 7 (netzach) to IV The
Emperor; and the Hebrew letter Heh- The Great Mother and teh
Great Daughter- and the path between
6 (Tipareth) and 2 (Chokmah) to XVII The Star.
This latter counterchange also makes sense in terms of our
growing comprehension of enlightenment during the age in which
we live. Under the traditional system, the way of spirit
from (Tipareth -- Beauty) to 2 (Chokmah -- Wisdom) was thought
to be via the Path of The Emperor, who among other things
symbolises the might male ruler, the All-Father, Jehovah. The Star
was thought to symbolise just the passing from 9 (Yesod --
Foundation -- the subconscious and imagination) to 7 (Netzach --
Victory --Emotion),
exalted thought that passing is. Crowley must have been
intuitively dissatisfied with this, for in his beautiful and haunting
fairy tale The Wake World, written before he finally accepted The
Book of the Law in 1909, although he employed the traditional
attributions in his story of the ascent of the human soul from the
dross of the human to the fire of the divine, he nevertheless
hinted at teh realisation that The Star portrays the Great Godess.
'Then there was another passage which was really too secret for
anything; all I shall tell you is, there was teh beautiful GOdess that
ever was, and she was washing herself in a river of dew. If you ask
what she is doing, she says: ''I'm making thunderbolts.'' It was
only starlight, and yet one could see quite clearly, so don't think
I'm making a mistake.
(From Konx Om Pax)
Today most seekers realise the nature of the evils which
authoritarian patriarchy has wrought upon the Earth and can
apprehend the greatness of the Goddess in the Earth, the Moon
and above a l l , the stars. Crowley's counterchange is therefore
singularly appropriate. Instead of the worst aspect of The Em
peror leading us to cosmic consciousness, a fierce, jealous and
bloodthirsty father-figure roaring: 'Don't argue! Do as I say!'
there is the Star Goddess compared to whom one's ego is but a
grain of dust but whose nature is Love and who enchants us w i t
h
her cry: 'To me! To me!'
Likewise, instead of the worst aspect of The Star leading us from
the personal subconscious, inluding its ills, to the experience of
genuine emotion by means of self-pity, self-indulgence and a cry
for an all-forgiving mother-figure, there is instead the strong,
masculine force of The Emperor to remind us of the needs for
self-discipline, reason and will if this transition is to be successfully
accomplished.

The present writer has never seen the point of plagiarism or of
tampering w i t h words which cannot be bettered. This is there
fore an opportune moment to quote Crowley's 'Summary of the
Questions Hitherto Discussed.'
'1. The origin of the Tarot is quite irrelevant, even if it were
certain. It must stand or f a l l as a system on its own merits.
traditional attributions in his story of the ascent of the human
soul f r om trie d r o s s o f ^ M i m ^ & the Mome^^e1 ^ n e v e f f
i S e ^ i n H e d at the realisation that The Star portrays t
pictorial form, the doctrines of the Qabalah.-
3. The evidence for this is very much like the evidence brought
forward by a person doing a crossword puzzle. He knows
from the "Across" clues that his w o r d is " S C R U N blank
H " ; so it is certain, beyond error, that the blank must be a
" C " .
4- These attributions are in one sense a conventional, symbolic
map; such could be invented by some person or persons of
great artistic imagination and ingenuity combined w i t h
almost unthinkably great scholarship and philosophical
clarity.
5. Such persons, however eminent we may suppose them to
( F r o m Konx Om Pi have been, are not quite capable of making a
system so
Victory Emotion), exalted though that passing is. Crowley
must have been intuitively dissatisfied w i t h this, for in his
beautiful
and haunting f a i ry tale The Wake World, w r i t t e n before he
finally
accepted The Book of the Law i n 1909, although he employed the
'Then there was another passage which was really too
secret for anything; a l l I shall tell y o u is, there was the most
beautiful Goddess that ever was, and she was washing herself
in a river of dew. If y ou ask what she is doing, she says: "I'm
making thunderbolts." It was only starlight, and yet one
could see quite clearly, so don't think I'm making a mistake.'
abstruse i n its entirety wi t h o ut the assistance of superi ors
whose ment al processes were, or are, per t ai ni ng to a hi gher
Di me n s i o n . '
So i n a ddi t i o n to our practices of D i v i n a t i o n and the Royal
Game of H u m a n L i f e , we also have a map. Its f urt her detai ls wi l l
be made k n o wn t o us onl y t hr o ugh f urt her study an d experi ence.
A v i t a l key here i s medi t at i on, wh i c h w i l l f o r m the subject of a
later chapter. Eac h c ar d and the mul t i f ar i o us ideas associated
wi t h i t, must be r evol ved t hr o ugh the mi n d agai n and agai n and
agai n. I n the end, any c ard s h o ul d trigger a stream of li vi ng
correspondences: and this i s rather l i ke ac qui r i n g a new br ai n .
F or the present, t hough, the student is i n v i t ed to try a series of
abstract medi t at i ons based up o n C r o wl e y ' s ' Napl es A r r a n g e -
ment' , the si mpl est recensi on of h o w the mani f ested Uni verse
came to be as expressed t hr o ugh the schema of the Tree of Life.
I t consists of thi rteen separate medi t at i ons to be done f or thir-
teen days at a m i n i m u m of f i ve mi nutes a day. Si mp l y sit wi t h a
strai ght back i n an upr i ght chai r, concentrate one- poi nt edl y on
the f o l l o wi n g and record the results.
0 C ont empl at e Abs o l ut e N o t h i n g .
0 C ont empl at e Space, I nf i ni ty.
0 C ont empl at e L i mi t l ess L i g h t as a basis of a possi ble v i br at i o n .
1 C oncentrate on an i ndef i nabl e Poi nt .
2 C oncentrate on a L i n e wh i c h connects t wo Poi nt s.
3 C oncentrate on a Tri angl e. The o r i g i n a l Poi nt i s n o w def i ned
by r el at i on to t wo others.
4 Go from two to three dimensions. Concentrate on Matter.
What is it?
5 Events can onl y occur t hr ough M o t i o n an d i n T i me. C oncen-
trate on M o t i o n and T i me. Wh a t are they?
6 C oncentrate on a Poi nt wh i c h i s consci ous of itself i n terms of
itself, another poi nt , another t wo poi nt s, M at t er and Ti me
and Motion. In other words, it lives, moves, has its being and
knows it.
7 C oncentrate on this Poi nt' s Idea of Bl i ss.
8 C oncentrate on the Poi nt' s I dea of T ho ug ht .
9 C oncentrate on the Poi nt' s Idea of Bei ng.
10 C oncentrate on this Poi nt f u l f i l l i n g itself by its experience of
7 8 and 9 si mul t aneousl y.
Thi s is not an easy series of exercises but experience wi t h the
hardest, however ar duous, w i l l stand one i n g o o d stead f or
obt ai ni ng m a x i m u m benefit f r o m less de man di n g practi ces.
What is bei ng essayed here is no more and no less t han a
reali sati on of h o w one came to be.
A l t h o ug h this series of exercises i s exceedi ngly si mpl e and
direct, this i s preci sely the p r i n c i p a l di sadvantage f or most
people. The maj ori ty may we l l get nowhere wi t h i t. Thi s i s yet
another reason wh y the Tarot is so i ndi spensabl e a t o o l . Its very
compl exi t y stimulates the student, enabl i ng h i m to apprehend at
last the supreme s i mpl i c i t y of the Uni verse.
N O T E
The techni cally mi n de d may f i n d that there i s s t i l l some conf u
si on pert ai ni ng to the counterchange o ut l i ned i n this chapter
between Adj ust ment an d L ust ; and The E mper o r and The Star.
I n the o p i n i o n of the present wri t er, those wo r k i n g wi t h the
Tree of L i f e s h o ul d attri bute Adj us t ment (Justice) to the He br e w
L etter L ame d and the Nu mbe r 22 on the Key Scale of 0-32; L ust
goes wi t h Teth and 19. The E mper or bei ng T z a d d i a root of
e words Tzar, Caesar, Seigneur etc is at t ri but ed to 28 on the
key scale; and The Star to 15 ( Heh) .
The result i s balance.
30 31
C H A P T E R 4
Astrology
As pr evi ous chapters have s h o wn , the Tarot corresponds wi th
As t r o l o g y , bot h i n itself an d v i a the Tree of L i f e . A n y o n e wi t h
kno wl edge of A s t r o l o g y w i l l f i n d that i t augments comprehen-
s i on of the Tarot and vi ce-versa. L et us therefore regard the
various correspondences, starting with the twelve Signs of the
Zodiac:-
Ar i e s the R a m i s represented by I V The Emperor, wh o i s usual l y
por t r ayed wi t h a r a m or a ram' s head.
Taurus the B u l l equates wi t h V The Hi e r o p h a n t . Students of
my t h o l o g y may rec al l the f un c t i o n of the b u l l as Redeemer i n
the mysteries of A p i s and M i t h r a s .
F or Ge mi n i the T wi n s , we have VI The L over s.
C anc er the C r a b i s represented i n the Tarot by VI I The C hari ot.
L eo the L i o n i s represented by XI L ust , on wh i c h a l i o n or l i on-
l i ke beast i s usual l y depi ct ed. L o g i c a l l y we s h o ul d expect to
f i n d this key at VI I I , wh i c h i s wh y Wai t e and C ase put i t t here.
Ho we v e r , al t hough this i mpart s a neater sequence of astro-
l o g i c al at t ri but i ons, i t does not f i t wi t h others. A s t r o l o
consi derati ons have therefore been sacri f i ced to a greter
cause. I n any case, the reasoni ng of the matter has been dealt
wi t h i n the previ ous chapter.
Vi r g o the V i r g i n i s s h o wn i n the Tarot by I X The H e r mi t .
L i br a the Balance i s VI I I Adj ust ment , usual l y por t r ayed wi th
s wo r d and balance.
Sc or pi o the Sc o r pi o n i s symbol i sed i n the Tarot by XI I I Death.
Sagi ttari us the A r c h e r equates wi t h X I V A r t i n the Tarot. T he
bo w and ar r o w stand f or the un i o n of male and f emal e
pi c t ur ed i n most Tarot decks by a wo ma n or her maphr odi t e
mi x i n g t wo di f f erent substances.
C ap r i c o r n the Goat i s appr opr i at el y por t r ayed i n the Tarot as
XV The De v i l .
Aquar i us the Water Bearer i s pi c t ur ed i n the Tarot by X V I I The
Star, i n wh i c h a wo ma n or Goddess bears and pours water.
Pisces the F i s h i s represented i n the Tarot by XVI I I The M o o n .
Let us n o w t ur n to the 7 Planets k n o wn to the Anc i ent s .
The Sun i s o bvi o us l y represented by X I X The Sun.
M er c ur y i s por t r ayed by I The M a g us .
Venus is pi c t ur ed by III The Empress.
The M o o n i s s h o wn by I I The Priestess.
M ar s i s X V I The Tower.
Jupiter is X F ort une.
Saturn i s X X I The Uni verse.
There i s some di f f i c ul t y wh e n we t ur n to the r emai ni ng three
cards. T r adi t i o nal l y , they were thought to equate wi t h the or i gi
nal ancient theory of a l l bei ng c omposed of three Ideas or
Elements: A i r (The F ool ) , Water (The Ha n g e d M a n ) and F i re
(The Aeon) . A p r o bl e m arose wi t h the po s i t i n g of a f o ur t h Idea
or Element, E ar t h, and so i n some systems, The Uni verse h ad to
do double dut y for this and Sat urn, demonst rat i ng the i nti mate
connecti on between the farthest k n o wn pl anet and our o wn as i n
the sayi ng ' A s above, so bel ow. ' An alternati ve was to let the
F our Elements of the M i n o r A r c a n a represent E ar t h. Ho we v e r ,
the whol e matter h ad to be revi sed in v i ew of the ast r onomi c al
discoveries of Ur anus , Nept une and Pl ut o . The present p o s i t i o n
gives the f o l l o wi n g at t r i but i o ns : -
U r a n u s - XX The A e o n .
Nept une - XI I The Han g e d M a n .
P l u t o - 0 The F o o l .
Thi s w i l l do f or the present but the student i s earnestly
cauti oned against accepti ng i t too readi l y. L et h i m remember
that our underst andi ng of the Tarot is s t i l l e v o l v i n g , wh i c h is one
of the p r i n c i p a l joys of the subject.
What can we act ual l y do wi t h these equati ons? We can i n
crease our understanding of various matters through, for
instance, the performance of three interesting exercises.
32 33
A - Relating Astrology and Tarot.
1 - O bt a i n a g o o d, short pr i mer on A s t r o l o g y , one wh i c h does
l i ttl e more t han set out the basi c meani ngs of the Signs and
Planets.
2 - L e ar n h o w to dr a w the ast r ol ogi c al symbol s. A wo r k i n g
kn o wl edg e of these gl yphs i s usef ul and enl i ght eni ng.
3 - A p p l y y o ur ast rol ogi c al kn o wl edg e to the relevant Tarot
keys. Take it a Si gn at a ti me, then a Planet at a ti me.
4 - No t e h o w y o ur kno wl edg e of the Si gn/Planet i s s i mi l ar to or
di f f erent f r o m the Tarot key y o u exami ne. H o w do the sym-
bols express the ast rol ogi c al i nf o r mat i o n? I s there anyt hi ng
there wh i c h adds t o y o ur knowl edge?
5 - Do not be too per pl exed if at ti mes, in the course of your
medi t at i o n , y o u encounter c ont r adi c t i ons. One lesson taughr
by the Tarot i s that every i dea contai ns wi t h i n itself the seed of
its o wn opposi t e.
B ~ Help for a Horoscope.
1 - O b t a i n a short , s i mpl e p r i me r wh i c h i nst ruc t s y o u on how
to set up a horosc ope a n d do so f or your sel f . Pr o ba bl y you
w i l l al so need a set of as t r o l o g i c al tables. A l t e r n a t i v e l y ,
o bt a i n y o ur hor osc ope f r o m an ast rol oger f r i e n d or a c om-
me r c i a l servi ce wh i c h empl o y s a c o mput er an d charges
reasonabl y.
2 - T r y to i nterpret the data wi t h the ai d of y o ur As t r o l o g y
pri mer. R e c o r d the results.
3 - N o w exami ne y o ur horoscope by setti ng out the rel evant
Tarot cards i n place of the ast rol ogi c al symbol s. I n other
wo r ds , put the Si gn cards i n a ci rcl e and put the Planetary
cards where i ndi c at ed by y o ur horosc ope. T r y t o i nterpret t he
data pur el y on the basis of y o ur Tarot kn o wl edg e. R ec o r d t he
results.
4 - C o mp a r e and contrast y o ur t wo sets of results.
C ~ The Tree of Life: An Alternative Approach
I am i ndebt ed for this t o the wo r k of M r . M i c h a e l M agee,
whose arti cle A New Attribution, p ubl i s h e d i n S O T H I S maga-
zi ne duri ng the 1970's, opened new possi bi l i t i es. T her ei n he
argued persuasi vel y that since the Tree of L i f e is just a way of
structuri ng un i v er s al dat a, not the Uni ver se Itself, there i s
nothi ng to prevent us f r o m devi si ng al ternati ve means of order-
i ng this data, p r o v i d i n g that these structures have thei r i nt er nal
logic and reveal truths.
M ap s are a g o o d anal ogy here. I f we are i n L o n d o n an d
wal ki n g , d r i v i n g o r bei ng dr i v e n , we w i l l p r o ba bl y need a n
' A - Z ' street map wh i c h i s precise i n terms of l oc at i ons and
distances. B ut i f we are t r av e l l i n g on the U n d e r g r o u n d , thi s w i l l
be of l i ttl e use. We w i l l need a L o n d o n T r an s po r t map . T hi s i s
wholly i naccurate i n terms of scale of di stances but we w i l l
need t o k n o w i t , rather t han the ' A - Z ' i f we are t o t r avel
successfully by tube.
The same i s true of speci ali st gui de- books. A br i l l i a n t exposi -
tion of h o w best to expl ore L o ndo n' s many exhi bi t i ons of c ul
ture and the arts is useless to the i nt er nat i onal gourmet wh o has
come to t o wn f or the excl usi ve purpose of breakf ast i ng, l unc h
i ng and di n i n g exqui si t el y; yet a wo r k wr i t t e n spec i f i c al l y f or the
gourmet wo u l d dri ve the c ul t ur e- vul t ur e t o R us s i an Roul et t e.
Both wo r ks , however accurate, wo u l d do l i t t l e t o assist an
i nternati onal c r i mi n a l keen on ma ki n g contacts wi t h the centres
of organi sed c r i me: a rather di f f erent l y st ruc t ured g ui de- bo o k
wo ul d be r equi r ed here. A n d W i l l i a m Blake' s magni f i c ent map
pi ng of the sacred spots of L o n d o n , wh i l e i t del i ghts an d en
chants the poet and myst i c , c o ul d gi ve the average t ouri st a
nervous br e a kdo wn .
We need, then, di f f erent maps for di f f erent purposes. W i t h the
appl i c at i on of each map, we can l earn more. H o we v e r , we must
not forget our o r i g i n a l map of the Tree of L i f e any more t han we
should forget that, however the data i s st ruc t ured, Hamp s t ead i s
nor t h of Pi c c adi l l y .
That sai d, let us essay the exercise, wh i c h i s based up o n the
Tree of L i f e but wi t h the a ddi t i o n of the Sephi r ah bri ef l y di s-
cussed in the previous chapter, Daath. For it is argued by many
THAT we live in a New Aeon and that each New Aeon of human
evolution requi res a new system of c l assi f i c at i on of the Uni ver se.
34 35
F i r st place the 12 Si gn cards i n a ci rcl e f r o m A r i e s to Pisces
symbol i se the stars beyond our solar system. T h en , wi t h i n t hi s
c i rc l e, l ay out the cards as f o l l o ws : -
Neptune
The Universe
Binah
Understanding
5
Mars
The Tower
Geburah
Power
8
Mercury
The Magus
Hod
Splendour
1
Pluto
The Fool
Kether
The Crown
11
Saturn
The Hanged Ma n
Daath
Knowledge
6
Sun
The Sun
Tiphareth
Beauty
9
Moon
The Priestess
Yesod
Foundation
2
Uranu
The Ae
Chokm
Wisdo
4
Jupiter
Fortun
Chese
Glory
7
Venus
The Emp
Netzac
Victo
M u c h kno wl edg e of the nature of the Sephi r ot h and Planets
can be der i ved by medi t at i ng up o n this arrangement, yet i t i s
open to c r i t i c i s m i n its pl acement of the cards above ' The A by s s '
i.e. that gul f between I deal and A c t u a l wh i c h separates 1,2, 3
and Daat h f r o m 4-10, that c hasm between the consci ousness of
M a n , however elevated, an d the consci ousness of the l i v i n g
Uni verse. N o t f or n o t h i n g i s i t stated that the as pi r i n g myst i c
must, at a cert ai n exal ted stage of A de p t s h i p , gi ve up a l l that he
has and a l l that he i s i n a marri age wi t h the U n i v e r s a l L i f e wh i c h
annihilates the ego.
Bel ow the A by s s , Reason ends by c o n t r adi c t i n g itself, as the
phi l os ophi c al wr i t i n g s of Berkeley, H u me and Ka n t demonstrate
al l too cl earl y. A bo v e the A by s s , a l l c ont radi c t i ons are resol ved.
We s houl d not be un dul y ast oni shed, therefore, i f the p o s i t i o n i n g
of at t ri but i ons above the A by s s has not yet been sat i sf act ori l y
resolved. F or there is a seri ous obj ecti on to the pl aci ngs hi t hert o
descri bed.
H o w can Ur anus at 2 be put before Nept une at 3 wh e n
everyone kn o ws that Nept une is nearer t han Ur anus to Pl ut o at 1?
Ot her at t r i but i ons above the A by s s have therefore been
attempted.
1
Pluto
The Fool
Kether 3
Uranus
The Aeon
Binah 11
Saturn
The Universe
Daath
2
Neptune
The Hanged Man
Chokmah
10
Earth
The Mi nor Arcana
Malkuth
Kingdom
Thi s i s even more open to c r i t i c i s m.
1 ~T r adi t i o n al l y , 2, C h o k m a h , represents the El ement F i re. H o w
can we therefore attri bute The H a n g e d M a n , representi ng
Water? M o r e o v e r , the He br e w L etter M e m , wh i c h corre
sponds t o The Ha n g e d M a n , means Water.
36
37
2 - L o o k i n g at L i f e and what we k n o w of its behavi our, i t i s very
di f f i c ul t to accept that di vi ne Wi s d o m resides i n the self-
sacri fi ce symbol i sed by The Ha n g e d M a n . The T r u mp c o ul d
serve as a perfect g l y p h f or the sacri fi ce of a l l that one has and
i s i n crossi ng the Aby s s f r o m h uma n t o Di v i n e , but i t i s hardl y
a sati sf actory s y mbo l for one wh o has attai ned beyond that
and unt o Wi s d o m.
3 - 3 , B i n a h , i s the sphere of recepti ve, f emi ni ne Understandi ng
Wh a t i s the f i ery and di s r upt i ve pl anet Ur anus do i n g t here?
A n d h o w can B i n ah , the Great M o t h e r , be reconci l ed wi t h a
s y mbo l so expressive of mascul i ne energy as The A e o n , even
i n its ol der f o r m of Judgement?
4 - Suc h knowl edge as we have associates Ur anus wi t h Magi c
and Nept une wi t h M y s t i c i s m, a doctri ne beaut i f ul l y ref l ect ed
i n Symphony of the Planets by Gus t a v H o i s t . T her ef or e Nep-
tune appears t o have muc h i n c o mmo n wi t h B i n a h and
Ur anus wi t h C h o k ma h . Yet h o w can this be rec onc i l ed wi t h
thei r posi t i ons i n the solar system?
We can pr obabl y l earn somet hi ng f r o m the above endeavour
but ul t i mat el y, i t s i mpl y w i l l not do. L et us exami ne C r o wl e y ' s
p r o p o s al .
1
Pluto
The Fool
Kether 3
Saturn
The Universe
Binah 11
Uranus
The Aeon
Daath
2
Neptune
The Hanged Man
Chokmah
3
Saturn
The Universe
Binah
2
Uranus
The Aeon
Chokmah
Thi s i s s t i l l open to a l l the objections rel at i ng to the C h o kma h
Ha n g e d M a n p r o bl e m as o ut l i n ed above. I have p r o p o s e d
another one.
1
Pluto
The Fool
Kether
11
Neptune
The Hanged Ma n
Daath
Thi s does not vi ol at e any of the canons of t r a di t i o n a l
Qabali sti c doc t ri ne. The v i o l a t i o n i s i n terms of A s t r o n o my . One
sti l l has t o j ust i f y p ut t i n g Nept une ' be l o w' Ur anus and Sat urn.
Three reasons can be stated.
A - Daat h connects di rec t l y wi t h Kether.
B - Daat h is not in a set of t wo di mens i o nal li nes but at a three
di mensi onal angle t o Kether, C h o k m a h and B i n ah .
C - Nept une the M y s t i c i s appr opr i at el y pl ac ed f or the experi
ence k n o wn as C r o s s i n g the A by s s .
Ar e these arguments real l y c onvi nc i ng? The student s h o ul d
examine the data and make up hi s o wn m i n d , f or the matter
remains in a state of f l ux , l i ke the Uni verse Itself. Perhaps one
coul d try f orget t i ng Daat h altogether as not bei ng a Sephi rah at
al l , an argument sancti oned by qabal i sti c t r a di t i o n . Thi s c o ul d
possibly l ead to a more coherent arrangement.
At this po i nt , some readers may have lost a l l patience and f i n d
themselves unabl e to see the po i nt at a l l . Wh y juggle wi t h the
cards and thei r meanings?
F or the same reason that mathemati ci ans and physi ci sts juggle
wi t h equati ons and chemists constantl y experi ment : to try and
order the data L i f e presents to us so as to make sense of i t. M a n
i s a pat t ern- maki ng a n i ma l .
No r shoul d we forget that Bi nary Mathemati cs, wh i c h was created
by L ei bni z as a wo r k of 'pointless j uggli ng wi t h figures' and seemed to
have no practi cal appl i cati on, is what made the computer possible.
I n the tradi ti onal Tarot decks, The M agus is called The Juggler. The
Magus corresponds wi t h M erc ury, Planet and R o man Go d , and wi t h
38
39
the Egypti an equivalent Thot h, Go d of Magi c k, the Wor d and Wi s-
dom. No t f or nothi ng di d Crowl ey call the Tarot The Book of Thot h.
As i f thi s whol e mat t er of at t r i but i on were not c ompl e x and
cont r over s i al enough, I was recentl y i nf or med by Mr . R o y Al ex-
ander, the not ed astrol oger, t hat one s chool of t hought at t ri but es
Pl ut o/ The F o o l t o Da a t h and Ne pt une / The Ha nge d M a n t o
Ket her ( Ur anus/ The Ae o n i s i n Ch o k ma h and Sat ur n/ The Uni -
verse i n Bi nah) ; here, one asks wha t The Ha nge d Ma n , s ymol
of the Dy i n g Go d , the Pi scean Age and the Ol d Ae o n i s doi ng i n
Ket her. A n d i f a l l thi ngs come f r o m the Vo i d symbol i sed by The
F o o l , wha t i s he doi ng i n Daat h?
Ther e doesn' t appear t o be an at t r i but i on wh i c h satisfies al l
the dat a a nd i s above r epr oach. Tent at i vel y, I wo u l d propose a
possi bl e wa y out of thi s di l e mma . I t i s t hat a l l the equat i ons so
f ar pr opos ed have a cert ai n val i di t y. I wo u l d suggest t hat above
the Abyss that is, Kether, Chokmah, Binah and Daath--
energy behaves as it does within the atom, in the manner de-
scri bed by qua nt um theory. Just as el ectrons abr upt l y change
t hei r posi t i ons wi t hout appear i ng t o t ravel any i nt erveni ng di s-
tance i n qua nt um ' j umps ' , so the energies above the Abys s are i n
a const ant state of f l ux and i nt erchange. No ma p can therefore
be absol ut el y ri ght , f or we cannot f i x what i s i n f l ux. Ho we v e r ,
any gi ven ma p mi ght descri be accurat el y a gi ven i nstant i n t i me.
An y gi ven ma p wh i c h has its o wn coherent l ogi c c an pr ove
ver y usef ul a nd f or some purposes, i ndi spensabl e. One j udges by
the results of appl yi ng it.
I n or der f i rst t o appr ehend and t hen t o do somet hi ng usef ul
wi t h the i nf or ma t i on at our di s pos al , i t i s essenti al t o undert ake
experi ment s and t hen t o f i nd sat i sf yi ng coherent ways of arrange-
i ng our knowl edge. Thi s wi l l enabl e us t o cl assi f y conveni ent l y
a l l dat a at our di s pos al , whi c h i n t ur n wi l l enabl e us t o expl ore
ne w areas f r o m establ i shed poi nt s of reference. One purpose of
thi s chapt er has been t o s how the students h o w i nvesti gati i ons
i nt o the esoteric are conduct ed by its pi oneers. As Cr o wl e y
stated, we do i ndeed st udy Tar ot wi t h ' the A i m of Re l i gi on' : but
the means consi st of ' The Me t h o d of Sci ence' .
There remai ns muc h more t o expl ore. Let us t ur n t o Myt hol ogy.
40
C HA P T E R 5
Mythology
Myt hol ogy, l egend and f ol k- l or e are pr obabl y the most genui ne
expressi on of that wh i c h any peopl e feels to be t rue of the nat ure
of Li f e and of itself. Thi s makes f or wonde r f ul stories wh i c h st i l l
inspire creat i ve artists and audi ences undebauched by the
val i um of t oo muc h t el evi si on. Al t h o ug h humani t y has had
experience of many var yi ng geogr aphi cal and cl i mat i c c o ndi -
tions, pr ompt i ng many di f f erent et hi cal bel i efs, we al l share the
same f undament al myt hs on the gl obal vi l l age wh i c h our pl anet
has become. The essential i dent i t y of these myt hs led Ca r l J ung
to posi t the existence of the Col l ect i ve Unc ons c i ous , somet hi ng
far deeper t han the per sonal subconsci ous, a great and vi r t ual l y
ageless mi n d shared i n c o mmo n by each and every member of
humani ty, past , present and f ut ure, wh i c h mani fest s i n my t h,
legend, f ol k- l or e and dr eam.
Fundament al to this not i on is the i dea of archetypes. These
are powe r f ul symbol s wh i c h appear i n uni ver sal myt hs and
dreams: they are symbol s of great f orce; and they l ead us to
greater under st andi ng of oursel ves, t o the goal J ung t ermed
individuation: wh i c h i s sel f - underst andi ng and the perfect har-
moni si ng of a l l our f acul t i es, enabl i ng us t o rej oi ce i n Li f e and i n
a f rui t f ul and f ul f i l l i ng r el at i onshi p wi t h the Uni ver se.
J ung was not al one among psychol ogi st s i n percei vi ng the
central i mpor t ance of My t h o l o g y t o an under s t andi ng of the
human mi n d. Hi s one- t i me teacher, Si gmund Fr e ud, di scerned
Prof ound si gni f i cance i n , f or i nst ance, the Gr eek myt h of Oe di -
Pus. Her e, al t hough Oedi pus i s a hero wh o solves the Ri ddl e of
t he Sphi nx whi c h i s the Ri ddl e of Ma n ; as pr ophesi ed he un-
knowi ngl y slays hi s father and marri es hi s mot her ; this bri ngs
drought t o hi s k i ng do m; and whe n the nat ure of his act i ons i s
bought home t o h i m by the bl i nd seer Ti resi as, he i s so hor r i f i ed
41
that he abdicates and puts out hi s eyes wi t h the needles of hi s
mother' s j ewels. F r eud hel d that this tale embo di ed a un i v e r s a l
t r ut h of M a n : that a l l males subc onsc i ousl y wan t t o k i l l their,
fathers and make l ove t o thei r mot hers, wh i c h f o r bi dde n ac t i ons
cause repressi on, g ui l t , the ' s i n c o mpl ex ' and i n some cases,
p s y c h o l o g i c al devast at i on. The Oedi pus c ompl ex has also been
h e l d responsi bl e f or homos ex ual i t y and sado- masoc hi sm.
The study of my t h o l o g y i s consequentl y not merel y the inno-
cent enj oyment of tales t o l d by our ancestors; i t i s the s t u d y of
the structure of our mi n ds . Na t u r a l l y the Tarot reflects thi s. One
of its many f unc t i ons i s as an enc yc l opedi a of uni ver s al my t h s .
I n order to appreci ate this chapter f ul l y , the reader w i l l requi re
a s o un d, basic kno wl edg e of my t ho l o g y , to be ac qui r ed before or
after its per usal . One can safely r ec ommend The Greek Myths
a n d The White Goddess by R o be r t Gr a v e s or the Larousse En-
cyclopedia of Mythology, wh i c h are i nv al uabl e: but M y t h o l o g y
is best enjoyed and appreci at ed in one or several of the many
excellent books put out f or c h i l dr e n , especi ally those illustrated
by f i ne arti sts. No reader can af f or d to neglect the joys inherent
in these; and the same is true of any seri ous student.
M o s t students of the Tarot want to k n o w wh a t the cards
mean and this i s a nat ur al and legi ti mate request. But i t i s rather
l i ke as ki n g : ' Wh at does the c ol our " r e d " mean?' One cannot
defi ne any Tarot c ard i n the precise sense that we can define a
wo r d by the di c t i onar y. Wh a t we can do i s i ndi cat e its parameters. So far, basic di v i n at o r y meani ngs, qabal i st i c meani ngs and
ast r ol ogi c al meani ngs have been g i v en . I t i s f or the st udent to
integrate a l l this i n f o r ma t i o n i nt o that pri vat e Templ e of Wi s-
d o m each one of us must b u i l d f or ourselves. M y t h o l o g y pro-
vi des us wi t h a quar r y of r i c h materi al s.
The subject i s not wi t h o ut its di f f i c ul t i es even al t hough we
have our s p l e n di d t o o l of c l assi f i c at i on i n the Tree of L i f e.
Ho we v e r , let us take an exampl e i n the E g y p t i a n Goddess Isis. As
C r o wl e y remarks i n 777:
'...I sis mi ght be gi ven t o Zer o as c ont ermi nous wi t h Nat ur e,
to 3 as M o t h e r , to 4 as Venus to 6 as H a r mo n y , to 7 as Love,
to 9 as the M o o n , to 10 as Vi r g i n , to 13 agai n as the M o o n , to
42
14 as Venus , to 15 as connected wi t h the letter H e h , to 16 as
the Sacred C o w, to 18 as Goddess of Water, to 24 as Dr a c o , to
28 as Gi ver of R a i n , to 29 as the M o o n , and to 32 as L ady of
the M yst eri es ( Saturn, B i nah) . '
A n d , one mi ght a dd, t o 2 as Wi s d o m .
A l l this i s ac t ual l y less c o nf us i ng t han i t appears to be. F or Isis
i s a mul t i -f ac et ed dei ty, wo r s h i p p e d by h uman i t y i n di vers cir
cumstances an d therefore i n di vers f orms over many centuri es.
Anal ysi s t hr o ug h the Tree of L i f e enables us to percei ve the many
ideas summar i sed in the concept or energy aggregate of
Isis. Ho we v e r , we w i l l not f i n d not i ons of the Sun or M a r s , for
instance. But we must bear i n m i n d the el asti ci ty of my t h o l o g i c a l
conceptions. They merge i nt o one another rather l i ke the way i n
whi c h thi ngs do i n dreams, t hough the scope of each c onc ept i on
other t han 0, however br o ad, i s ul t i mat el y l i mi t e d.
Gi ven this, let us explore some of the myt hol ogi c al correspondences
of the Tarot Trumps. Vol umes c oul d be wri t t en on the subject but space
is li mi ted and I trust that the reader wi l l forgive what is merely a brief
exposition of essentials.
0 The Fool i s No t h i n g and therefore A l l . F r o m the u n i o n of male
and female wi t h i n the androgynous F o o l , a l l created things pro
ceed. He i s the supreme f o r m of Pan, wh i c h wo r d means ' A l l ' .
The F o o l i s di v i n e ecstasy, that rapt ure of u n i o n wi t h the
Uni verse wh i c h makes ever yt hi ng else meani ngl ess by c o mpar i
son and wh i c h i s yet termed f ool i shness by the wo r l d l y wi se.
Hi s wi s d o m i s eart hl y f o l l y and hi s f o l l y i s heavenl y wi s d o m .
We f i n d this i n a l l legends wh i c h per t ai n t o ' h o l y me n ' wh o
speak the w i l l of the Go ds but wh o m many f i n d i n di s t i n g ui s h
able f r o m vi l l age i di o t s .
He embodi es the erupt i ons of Sp r i n g . He i s the unc onsc i ous
i mpulse e x p l o di n g wi t h i n us, eager to embrace each and every
experi enc e i n an ecstatic spasm of l ove f or c reat i on. He i s
Pa r z i v a l , and the K n i g h t E r r ant of F ai r y Tales, whose i nnocence,
though r evi l ed by men, enables h i m to redeem the E ar t h . I n
German f ai ry stories, he i s the i nnocent peasant wh o marri es the
Ki ng' s daughter and ascends to the t hrone. I n M i d d l e Eastern
l egends, he i s the M u l l a h N a s r u d i n .
43
I n E g y p t i a n my t h o l o g y , The F o o l i s H o o r - p a a r - k r a t
( Harpocrates) , the si lent Babe i n the E g g f r o m wh o m a l l t hi ngs
proceed and ret urn. I n Gr aec o - R o man myt hol ogy, he i s Zeus
Ar r heno t hel us , the Al l -Begetter, and Di o n y s us and Bacchus, t he
i nt oxi c at ed Redeemer of M a n k i n d . I n C h r i s t i an i t y , bei ng Ai r, he
i s the H o l y Ghost . I n a l l rel i gi ons, he i s the C reat i ve L i g h t .
I t is i nteresti ng to observe the debased medi eval c ont i nuat i on
of the F o o l i n a secular context. At the courts of ki ngs, onl y one
f unc t i onar y was al l o we d t o depart f r o m servi le and sycophanti c
flattery of the mo nar c h and t el l the t r ut h, t hough this was done
i n the f o r m of jest. Thi s f unc t i onary was the court F o o l . Hi s
comedy and hi s tragedy have been unf orgettabl y port rayed by
Shakes pear e i n King Lear.
C r o wl e y has also left us wi t h h aun t i n g remarks on The F ool
in The Wake World.
' L ast of a l l i s the most mysteri ous passage of them a l l , and i f
any of y o u saw i t y o u wo u l d t hi nk there was a f o o l i s h man i n
i t bei ng bi tten by crocodi l es and dogs, and c ar r y i n g a sack
wi t h n o t h i n g any use at a l l i n i t. But real l y i t i s the man who
meant to wake up, and d i d wake up . So that i s his Ho us e, he i s
the o l d K i n g hi msel f , and so are y o u. So he wo ul dn ' t c are
what any one thought he was. '
(Konx Otn P
The F ool survives in our modern pack of pl ayi ng cards as The Joker.
J The Magus: in t r adi t i o nal packs he is termed The Juggler and
depi cted wi t h wa n d, c up, s wo r d and di sk, wh i c h represent Wi l l ,
L o v e , M i n d and B o dy and are the weapons of the prac t i si ng
M a g i c i a n . The F o o l i s the di vi ne W i l l and the M a g us i s the Word
wh i c h gives expressi on to i t.
I t s h o ul d not surpri se us to di scover that dur i n g the hundreds
of years dur i n g wh i c h t rut h was obscured by the mur ky cl ouds
of dogmat i c C h r i s t i an i t y backed up by wel l - or gani sed bodi es of
torturers, that the di vi ne Wo r d was pi c t ur ed as a vul gar street
tri ckster. But there i s a deeper met aphysi c al t r ut h herei n. At hi s
hi ghest, The M ag us represents T h o t h , the E g y pt i an God of
Wi s d o m, M a g i c k, Wr i t i n g and the Wo r d . On the Tree of L i f e,
this equates wi t h 2 , C h o k ma h , Wi s d o m , an d wi t h the Pat h
between 3, B i n a h , Under s t andi ng and 1, Kether, The C r o wn .
However, i n E g y pt i an myt hol ogy, T h o t h i s usual l y ac c ompani ed
by an ape-l i ke creature wh o mocks the God' s wo r ds . Thi s A p e i s
t o be f o und i n H i n d u myt ho l o gy as H a n u ma n , the c un n i n g and
mischievous M o n k e y - G o d , wh o equates wi t h 8, H o d , the sphere
of mundane i ntellect. Thi s shows that the f i ni te brai ns of h uma n
beings are usual l y i ncapable of apprehendi ng di vi ne wi s d o m. I t
i s spoken but not underst ood and so i s debased.
Even i n dai l y li f e we are f ami l i ar wi t h h o w even the si mpl est
statements, wh e n repeated, can become altered out of a l l recog
ni t i on. B i l l mi ght say: 'I 've got a bul l do g ' and this can go t hr ough
the processes of: ' Bi l l ' s got a bul l - t er r i er ' ; ' Bi l l ' s got a f ox-terri er. '
' Bill' s got a f o x h o un d' ; ' B i l l ' s got a g r ey ho und' ; ' B i l l ' s got a grey
dog' ; ' Bi l l ' s dog i s nearly bl ack' ; ' B i l l ' s dog i s di r t y ' ; and f i nal l y ,
'They say you' re a di r t y dog, B i l l . '
I n the same way, Truths i ntended to liberate M a n k i n d become
twisted out of a l l rec ogni t i on and end as engines of tyranny.
The c or r espondi ng Go ds i n Greek and R o ma n myt ho l o gy are
Hermes and M e r c ur y , wh o at their highest equate wi t h 2,
C h o kmah , an d at their lowest wi t h 8, H o d . To pass f r o m
C h o kmah t o H o d i s t o cross the Abys s f r o m I deal t o A c t u a l and
t o f i nd Wi s d o m degenerati ng i nt o i nt el l ec t ual i sm and bei ng
street-smart.
The M ag us i s M e r c ur i us , the un i f y i n g s y mbo l . At hi s hi ghest,
he i s the Messenger of the Go ds and supreme creative artist. At
his lowest i n 8, he i s not onl y the G o d of h uma n reason and
wr i t i ng , but of merchants, l i ars, tri cksters, doctors, accountants,
lawyers and thieves.
The M a g us i s also Prometheus wh o steals the fire f r o m
Heaven and gives it to men.
A n d i n a l l myt hol ogi es, he i s the Tri ckster. L o k i i n No r s e
M yt hol ogy is one exampl e, but perhaps the most exalted concep
tion here i s i n B uddh i s m, where he i s M a y a n , the Great Sorcerer
who has made this Uni ver se, wh i c h i s just an i l l us i o n .
II The Priestess: she is Isis, especi ally as Et ernal Vi r g i n and L a dy
of the M yst eri es. She is the Wh i t e Goddess, the M us e of the
Poets, V i r g i n wh o gives t o a l l wh o ask yet wh o remai ns intact.
44 45
She i s Ar t emi s and Di a n a , v i r g i n huntresses and Go ddes s es of
the M o o n , i n its purest and most exalted c onc ept i on. He r Divine
L i g h t i s the V e i l of True Spi ri t . She i s the pure, eternal feminine.
I n M a g i c k, she i s the H o l y Gu a r d i a n A n g e l t o wh o m one
aspires an d wh o i n the E n d awai ts one above the Aby s s .
Ill The Empress: she is Wo ma n as Real rather than as I deal. Her
f unc t i o n i s that of the Wi f e . The Priestess arouses M a n to aspire;
The Empress enables h i m to earth i t.
She i s Goddess of L o v e ; Ha t h o r i n E gypt , A p h r o di t e i n
Greece, Venus i n Rome.
As consort of The Emperor, she equates wi t h the Queen
Goddesses, the Greek He r a and the R o ma n J uno.
As Demeter, she i s Nat ur e , and not onl y its bount y and
f rui t f ul ness, but ' Nat ur e red i n t oot h and c l aw. '
TV The Emperor: he i s the M i g h t y Rul er wh o governs a l l with
hi s orb and his c r o wn and hi s sceptre; the Greek Zeus, the
R o ma n Jupi ter, the No r s e O d i n , the Teutoni c Wo t an , the Hi ndu
I ndra. On E ar t h he i s the archetype of the great warri or-ki ngs
such as A r t h ur , C harl emagne and Al ex ander .
The swi f t , creative and masculi ne energy of The E mper o r
reinforces the i dea of the war r i or . Hence he is also the Greek Ares
and the R o ma n M a r s , Go ds of War ; and Yah we h , L o r d of Hosts.
Ho we v e r , as the Rul er wh o conserves the ki n g do m, he i s an
aspect of Vi s h n u the Preserver i n H i n d u i s m .
As The Empress symboli ses Wo ma n , so The E mper or i s Man.
V The Hierophant: he used to be cal l ed the Pope and is H i g h Priest
of the Sacred Mysteri es. He is Osi ri s as I nitiator, Asar the Redeemer.
There is the Taurus connection of The Hi erophant and the Bull.
Here he is A p i s the Redeemer and in H i n dui s m, Shi va as L o r d of the
Mysteri es. He equates wi t h the Norse O d i n as the Supreme Wi se One.
As C r o wl e y reali sed i n his desi gn, there i s a f emi ni ne aspect to
this c ard. She is best represented by Pallas At h en a, wa r r i o r God-
dess of Wi s d o m, wh o sprang f ul l y armed f r o m the head of Zeus-
The Hi e r o p h a n t heralds each succeedi ng stage of h uma n evo-
l ut i o n.
VI The L oers: portrayed in the t r adi t i o nal desi gn by a man
t r y i n g t o choose between t wo wo me n wi t h C u p i d poi sed i n t he
air above h i m . Thus this c ard o bv i o us l y pertai ns to E r o s / C up i d
whose arrows of love slay a l l reason i n pur s ui t of its rapt ure.
Superfi ci al commentators hel d that one wo ma n was Bad and the
other was Go o d , wh i c h showed that M a n M us t M a ke The Ri ght
Choice but the Tarot hardl y stands for anythi ng quite so di smal l y
platitudinous. C r o wl ey caught the t radi t i onal spi ri t more accurately:
' The passage where the t wi ns l i ve i s very di f f i c ul t too. They
are t wo sisters; and one i s very pure and g o o d, and the other i s
a h o r r i d fast wo ma n . But that shows y o u h o w s i l l y dream
language i s real l y there i s another way to put i t : y o u can say
they are t wo sisters, and one i s very si l l y and i gnorant , and the
other has learnt to kn o w and enjoy.
' N o w wh e n one i s a Princess i t i s very i mpor t ant to have
good manners; so y o u have to go i nt o the passage, and take
one on each ar m, and go t hr ough wi t h them si ngi ng and
danci ng; and i f y o u hur t the feelings of either of them the least
little bi t i n the wo r l d i t wo u l d show y o u were not real l y a
great l ady, onl y a dress l ady, and there i s a man wi t h a bo w
and ar r ow i n the air, and he wo u l d soon f i n i s h y o u, and y o u
wo u l d never get t o the T h i r d Ho us e at a l l . '
(The Wake World f r o m K o n x Om Pax)
The C r o wl e y - H a r r i s desi gn goes f urther i n terms of symbol
i sm too. T wo lovers are s h o wn un i t i n g i n mysti c marri age,
blessed by a hooded f i gure representi ng I X The H e r mi t , t hough
C up i d also appears. The L overs i s qui ntessenti al l y a c ard of A l
chemy i n its po r t r ay al of the un i o n of opposi tes.
I n terms of Tet ragrammat on, the L overs are the Son and the
Daughter of The Father and The M o t h e r and so T wi n s , appro
priate i n v i ew of the ast rol ogi c al at t r i but i on of Ge mi n i . The c ar d
therefore refers also to a l l t wi n deities such as C ast or and Po l l ux .
I n its most mat er i al f o r m, i t recalls a l l the great l ove stories
of the wo r l d.
VII The Chariot: this recalls A p o l l o the C hari oteer, whose vehi
cle bears the Sun. But a more sati sf yi ng alternati ve is the vi ew
that the C hari ot eer bears the H o l y Gr a a l .
The beasts wh i c h draw the C har i ot are referred to the Sphi nx
and are port rayed as sphi nxes i n the C r o wl e y - H a r r i s deck.
46
47
The Sphi nx i s the guar di an of the R i ddl e of M a n and embodies the
F our Powers of M a g i c k: To K n o w, t o Dare, t o W i l l and t o Be Si l ent .
VIII Adjustment: this c ard is of ten termed Justi ce. But there is no
justice as we k n o w i t i n the Uni ver se. There i s exacti tude an d the
preci se r ec t i f i c at i on of i mbal anc e. One mi ght we l l refer i t t o t he
Gr eek Nemes i s , the aut omat i c justice of Na t ur e .
Adj us t men t also corresponds to the Goddesses of justi ce, the
Gr eek T hemi s an d especi ally, the E g y p t i a n M a a t .
She i s K a r ma , the L a w of C ause and Effect. ' A s ye sow, so
s h al l ye reap. ' ' Those wh o l i ve by the s wo r d , shal l per i sh by t he
s wo r d. ' ' A l l you do wi l l return t o y o u. '
I n A l c h e my , Adj us t ment i s the Wo ma n J ust i f i ed.
FX The Hermit: he o bv i o us l y encapsulates a l l the l e g e n ds of
wi s e, o l d men. M e r l i n spri ngs t o m i n d .
There i s a sense too i n wh i c h , as pur e, p h al l i c force equating
wi t h Y o d , the A l l - F a t h e r , The H e r mi t i s supreme.
' T hen there was a real l y l ovel y passage, l i ke a deep wo o d i n
Spr i ngt i me, the dearest o l d ma n came al o ng wh o had li ved
there a l l hi s l i f e, because he was the g uar di an of it, and he
di dn ' t need to t ravel because he bel onged to the F i rst House
real l y f r o m the very begi nni ng. He wor e a vast c l oak, and he
c ar r i ed a l amp and a l o n g sti ck; and he sai d that the cloak
meant y o u were to be si lent and not say an y t h i n g y o u saw,
a n d the l amp meant y o u were to t el l ever ybody and make
t hem g l a d, an d the sti ck was l i ke a gui de to t el l y o u wh i c h to
do . But I di dn ' t qui te believe that, because I am getti ng a
g r o wn - up g i r l n o w, and I wasn' t to be put off l i ke that. I coul d
see that the sti ck was real l y the measur i ng r o d wi t h wh i c h the
wh o l e Palace was bui l t , and the l amp was the o n l y l i ght they
h a d to b u i l d i t by, and the c l oak was the abyss of darkness
that covers i t a l l u p . '
( C r o wl e y : The Wake World f r o m Konx Om Pax)
X Fortune: the correspondences wi t h Jupiter obvi ousl y suggest that
G o d or his Greek f o r m of Zeus i n his most abstract f o r m. Brahma the
C reator wo u l d be the H i n d u and A mo un - R a the Egypt i an equivalents.
The three f i gures on the wheel can be read as p r i ma r y F i re, Ai r
a n d Water t h r o ug h wh i c h the A l l - F a t h e r mani fests. Ot her paral -
lels are the Three Fates of West ern M y t h o l o g y ; and i n H i n d u i s m ,
the three Gunas Sattvas, Rajas and Tamas out of wh i c h a l l
things are c o mpo s ed. They are also the Sul phur , M e r c u r y and
Salt of A l c h e my .
I n the C r o wl e y - H a r r i s deck, they are po r t r ay ed as the Sphi nx
at the top, wi t h He r ma n ubi s , the creati ve f o r m of M e r c u r y
ascending, and T y p h o n , dei ty of dest ruc t i on, desc endi ng.
The Wh e e l i s that of existence, of bi r t h , l i f e, death and rei n
carnati on.
XI: Lust: this is c al l ed so to emphasi se not just strength, as of
yore, but joy of strength exerci sed. I n the t r adi t i o n al packs, the
wo ma n represents the E g y p t i a n l i o n es s - h eaded Go dde s s
Sekhmet and/or her equal l y fierce H i n d u equi val ent , Dur g a .
I n the few packs where a man i s s h o wn wi t h a L i o n , this
stands for legends of encounters between M a n and Beast such as
Samson's s l ay i ng of the l i o n an d hi s sayi ng: ' O ut of the st rong
came f or t h sweetness; Her c ul es ' conquest of the l i o n ; and Da n i e l
i n the l i o n s ' den.
The wo ma n and the l i o n stand f or the many legends of u n i o n
between the h uma n female and a G o d i n the f o r m of a beast: e.g.
L eda and the Swa n .
M y t h has i t that the result of such uni ons i s a di v i n e or semi -
di vi ne bei ng: e.g. Hermes or Di o n y s us .
I n the B i bl e, we have the Beast and the Scarlet Wo m a n of
Revelations. C r o wl e y p r o udl y por t r ayed t hem i n hi s recensi on of
the c ar d. F or h i m , there were no e v i l c onnot at i ons, just the
ecstasy of un i o n between mal e and f emal e, G o d and Goddess
f rom wh i c h f l o w a l l created thi ngs. The Beast i s G o d , M a n and
A n i ma l c onj oi ned; the Wo ma n i s B abal o n the Great Goddess
and she bears the Holy Graal.
XII: The Hanged Man: he represents those Gods who sacrifice
themselves to redeem humani t y Asar, A d o n i s , At t i s , Osi ri s and of
course, Jesus C hr i st . They are D y i n g Go ds but they rise agai n.
He i s also O d i n the Shaman, wh o hanged hi msel f upsi de
do wn f r o m a sacred tree i n order to acqui re hi s power s .
Because M e m , the c or r es pondi ng He br e w letter, means water,
he corresponds wi t h the sea Go ds , Po s ei do n and Ne p t un e .
48 49
He c an also be t aken t o represent the O e di p us c o m p l e x ,
wh i c h F r e ud t hought t o be the root of g ui l t an d si n complexes
general l y.
XIII Death: this c ard o bv i o us l y stands f or death.
A f urt her associ ati on i s Sat urn as F ather T i me.
XTV A r t : t h e f i gur e represents Ne p t h y s , the B l ac k Isis i n
E g y p t i a n M y t h o l o g y . I n Gr a e c o - R o ma n my t h o l o g y , and
p a r t l y on ac c ount of the Sagi t t ari us as s o c i at i o n, she i s Di ana
the Hun t r e s s .
I n H i n d u i s m , she i s K a l i , wh o creates f r o m and reduces all
to put r ef ac t i o n .
Ho we v e r , the p r i ma r y si gni f i cance of A r t i s A l c h e mi c a l .
I t port rays the result of the M y s t i c M a r r i a g e of VI The L overs.
XV The Devil: he represents Pan, the Al l -Beget t er, Set i n Egyp-
t i an M y t h o l o g y , and Baphomet, the i d o l al l egedl y worshi pped
by the Kni g ht s Templ ar. A l l ph al l i c deities such as Pri apus and
Bacchus can be attri buted to The D e v i l .
To i mpose a C h r i s t i a n perspecti ve is to mi sunder st and the
nature of the c ar d, wh i c h i s the b l i n d , i nst i nct i ve and irrepress-
i ble force of Nat ur e .
X V 7 The Tower: this card remi nds one of the f al l of Jericho; but it
is also a g l y p h of the i mpact of the di vi ne on h uman consciousness.
A l l preconceptions are shattered. I n H i n d u i s m there i s the doctrine
of the Eye of Shi va, wh i c h , wh en opened, destroys the Universe.
A si mi l ar power i s attri buted to the E g y pt i an Go d , H o r us .
H o r u s i s, a mo n g other t hi ngs , the G o d o f Wa r an d s o
thi s c a r d i s al so assoc i at ed wi t h the Gr eek Ar e s an d the
R o m a n M a r s .
XVII The Star: thi s por t r ays N u i t , t h e Supreme Goddess of
the stars. She i s also the Great M o t h e r i n whose wo mb we ate
a l l begotten.
XVIII The Moon: thi s i s the wa n i n g mo o n of wi t c hc raf t
a n d sacred t o Hec at e. H e r e i n i s g l a mo ur , i l l u s i o n , fantasy
a n d sorc ery.
The dogs, wo l ves and/or j ackal s i n the c ar d represent
A n u b i s , the E g y p t i a n j ac kal -headed G o d , wh o gui des the soul
t h r o ug h the U n d e r wo r l d .
The c rab- l i ke creature i n t r adi t i o n al packs i s more pr o per l y
the M i d n i g h t Beetle, Kh e p h - R a i n E g y p t i a n myt hol ogy, wh o
bears the sacred bark of the Sun i n its ni g ht l y j ourney t hr o ugh
the darkness.
XI X The Sun: a l l Sun Go ds are represented here the Graeco-
Roman He l i o s and A p o l l o , the E g y p t i a n Ra etc.
The c h i l d or c h i l dr e n represent that compl ete f reedom to
wards wh i c h humani t y i s p a i n f ul l y e v o l v i n g .
XX The Aeon: this used to be c al l ed J udgement and i n i t an
Ang el awoke the dead wi t h the blast of the L ast T r u mp . The
C hr i s t i an s y mbo l i s m i s obvi ous.
Gods of Judgement and of F i re are represented here: the
H i n d u A g n i (F ire) and Ya ma (Judgement), the Greek Hades , the
Roman Pl ut o and the E g y p t i a n H o r u s .
I n the C r o wl e y - H a r r i s deck, the s y mbo l i s m has been altered
i n the l i ght of The Book of the Law to symbol i se a N e w A e o n f or
humani t y. I nf i ni te Space and un l i mi t e d po s s i bi l i t y are s h o wn by
the Goddess N u i t ; the force wi t h i n the at om, the i nf i ni t el y s mal l
Poi nt wh i c h i s everywhere, i s s h o wn by the wi n g e d gl obe, the
Go d H a d i t . A l l things come f r o m the perpet ual mat i ng o f N u i t
and H a di t . A c c o r d i n g t o The Book of the Law, their most i m
portant c onj unc t i on f r o m the po i nt of vi ew of our pl anet i s the
Go d H e r u - R a - H a , L o r d or R u l i n g F orce of the E ar t h dur i n g the
next evol ut i onar y stage.
H e r u - R a - H a i s a f o r m of H o r us and a do ubl e- g o d. I n hi s
active f o r m, he i s the hawk- headed R a - H o o r - K h u i t ; i n hi s pas
sive f o r m, he is the si lent Ho o r - paar - kr aat , the Babe in the E gg.
XXI The Universe: the wo ma n is The Daught er of Tetra-
grammat on. She i s M o t h e r E ar t h, Ceres the C o r n Goddess,
Persephone i n p r o f us i o n of mani f est at i on.
The F our Beasts ar o und her represent the F our Elements and
the F our Powers of the Sphi nx .
N o t h i n g has mani f ested as C reat i ve L i g h t i n The F o o l and
gone t hr o ugh twenty stages to mani f est as E v e r y t h i n g i n The
Uni verse, wh i c h w i l l itself ret urn t o N o t h i n g and The F o o l .
I hope that the reader has f o un d this l i s t i n g of associ ati ons
and al l usi ons t o be h e l p f ul . As w i l l readi l y have been seen, some
50 51
cards are muc h more c o mpl ex t han others an d o n l y the
p r i n c i p a l correspondences have been del i neat ed. The interested
reader i s best advi sed to soak hi msel f i n M y t h o l o g y on the basis
of the above, f or this w i l l greatly increase appr ec i at i on of the
Tarot . One glance at a g l y p h w i l l evoke a stream of suggestive
t hought s. I t is an i nteresti ng exercise to contempl ate a part i cul ar
c ar d wh i l e a l l o wi n g a l l legends connected wi t h i t t o f l ow
t h r o ug h the m i n d .
T hi s requi res some wo r ds on M e d i t a t i o n .
N O T E
The subject of Tarot, my t h and l egend has been ex pl or ed br i l -
l i an t l y i n the n o v e l The C astl e of C r os s ed Desti ni es by Italo
C a l v i n o . Here the Tarot i s l a i d out i n patterns f r o m wh i c h
t went y - f o ur arc het ypal tales are der i v ed. The wo r k ranks among
the fi nest exampl es of creati ve use of the cards.
C H A P T E R 6
Meditation
H o w i s the data on the Tarot to be pr o f i t abl y assi mi l ated? The
best met hod i s p o p ul a r l y termed medi t at i o n. Set aside a cert ai n
time of the day and use i t to contempl ate each c ar d i n t ur n . T hi s
i s a process wh i c h must be gone t hr o ug h ti me and ti me agai n, f or
the keys take on new meani ng wi t h each succeedi ng sessi on.
No t e every det ai l of s y mbo l i s m an d ask yoursel f wh y i t i s
there. Wh a t precise effect do the c ol ours have on you? Af ter
wards, rec ord ever yt hi ng y o u di d not underst and and try t o
solve the p r o bl e m by us i ng wo r ks of reference. B r i n g y o ur
discoveries to the next stage.
L et al l the i nf ormat i on y o u have on the card i n question f l o w
through the mi n d. Try to perceive connections between these ideas,
above al l , the central concept wh i c h l i nks al l of them. Then proceed
f rom the k n o wn to the un kn o wn . Qui et l y observe wh i c h thoughts arise
spontaneously i n your mi n d when a parti cular card i s before y o u.
I f y o u have been or are a c ompul si ve collector of Tarot packs,
as the present wr i t er was for a per i o d, y o u can n o w do somet hi ng
useful wi t h even the most f uti l e of decks. L a y out the vari ous
versions of a part i c ul ar c ard and see what they have i n c o mmo n .
A l wa y s keep a r ec or d and read t h r o ug h i t at least every
three mo nt hs .
The f oregoi ng exercises are wa r ml y rec ommended but stri ctl y
speaki ng, they are not meditation at a l l , cont rary to a l l the non
sense that has been wr i t t en and spoken on the subject. T h en what
shoul d one c a l l them? ' Qui et observat i on' and ' C reat i ve i magi
nat i on' seem to describe accurately the ment al processes i n v o l v e d.
A l t h o ug h these are essential prel i mi nari es for most, i n too many
cases they degenerate i nt o sterile reverie and i dl e day- dr eam.
F or medi t at i o n i s the one-poi nt ed rest rai ni ng of the mi n d to a
si ngl e wo r d , s o un d, i mage or t hought . The best results come
f r o m arduous and at times ex c r uc i at i ng c onc ent rat i on.
52
53
The met hod is to focus y o ur entire attenti on up o n the card
chosen wi t h o ut permi t t i ng any di stracti on whatsoever to enter the
mi n d . A l t h o u g h this process may even seem pleasant at first, i t soon
becomes torment. I n order to record y o ur progress, y o u make a
mar k on a piece of paper every time your attenti on wanders i n any
way f r o m the c ar d. The itches, twitches and aches of y o ur body wi ll
be a pr i me source of interference and this pr o bl em is best sol ved by
taking up Yoga but the body is only the beginning. There is no
limit to the monkey-tricks the mind can play. Memories, dreams,
reflections, rumi nat i ons, even snatches of songs and other irrelevant
i ntrusi ons w i l l rape your attenti on time and time agai n.
A great threat to your f i x i t y of thought w i l l i n fact be the
kno wl edge of the Tarot wh i c h y o u have p a i n f ul l y learned but
wh i c h w i l l di st urb the mi n d y o u are t r y i n g t o keep perfectly st i l l
and qui et and concentrated enti rely up o n a v i s ual i mage. Y o u may
also suffer f r o m an i nner c r i t i c al comment ary on y o ur medi t at i on.
A voice within you says: 'I'm doing well,' or 'Total concentratiion
at last!' Unfortunately, you will also find that as your awareness
y o ur mi n d and vi gi l anc e over i t increase, your powers of concen-
t rat i on w i l l seem t o be getti ng worse and worse.
Take c omf or t . I f after 28 days of 5 mi nutes a day, y o u can go
93 seconds wi t h o ut a break i n t hought , y o u are ma ki n g good
progress. 31 seconds wo u l d be sati sfactory. Sadl y, most do not
f i n i s h the course. The advantages of this met hod are:
1 - I t is the supreme way of t r ai n i n g the mi n d .
2 - I t is the most di rect wa y of openi ng the h i dde n depths of the
m i n d , and of o peni ng i t to the h i dde n depths of the Tarot.
3 - I f pursued di l i gent l y it leads to the summi ts of mysti cal experience.
M e di t a t i o n , Qui et Observat i on and C reati ve I magi nati on shoul d
always be practised with a straight spine, a posture which is steady
and easy and breathing that is easy, deep, regular and slow.
I have kept this chapter short quite deliberately for there is
nothing more to add other than Crowley's key words:
'Sit st i l l .
Stop t h i n ki n g .
Shut up .
Get out . '
C H A P T E R 7
Morality, Medicine and More Methods
M ost wri t ers agree that the Tarot embodi es a secret doctri ne of
Wi s do m. T hi s i s perfectly true. The secrecy lies not i n the power of
any sinister society but i n the di f f i c ul t y of t r y i n g to ex po und i n
words that wh i c h i s beyond them. One c o ul d broadcast the secrets
on wo r l d - wi d e t el evi si on and few wo u l d be one wh i t the wi ser.
L u d wi g Wi ttgenstei n, arguably the twenti eth century' s greatest
Western p h i l o s o p h e r , c o n c l ude d i n hi s Tractatus Logico-
Philosophicus that onl y t wo sorts of pr o po s i t i o n have meani ng:
those wh i c h state that somethi ng is the same as somethi ng else, l i ke
definitions or the proposi t i ons of mathemati cs: and those wh i c h can
be tested by experi ment, l i ke the proposi t i ons of science. He hel d i n
the Tractatus that stri ctly speaki ng, a l l other proposi t i ons lack l ogi c
and make no sense at a l l . Yet, as he c ont i nued:
' There i s i ndeed the my s t i c al . T hi s shows i tself. '
An advantage of the Tarot i s that i t can show wh a t wo r ds
cannot adequately descri be. Wo r ds on the Tarot c ert ai nl y have
their i ndi spensabl e use as gui des but one is ul t i mat el y r emi n ded
of the Z e n pr o v er b: ' Teachi ng i s l i ke p o i n t i n g a f i nger at the
M o o n . The student must l o o k at the M o o n and not at the f i nger. '
Quest i ons of M o r a l i t y enter i nt o most books on the Tarot .
There is a regrettable tendency on the part of many authors to
use the cards as a vehi cl e f or thei r o wn p a i n f u l l y l i mi t e d
noti ons. One reads a l l too of t en, f or i nstance, that XV The
Dev i l just symbol i ses bondage t o f l eshl y lusts and mat e r i al i s m
wh i c h i s A B ad T h i n g . Sections on VI I I Adj us t me n t (Justice)
often teach us that i t i s g o o d to be G o o d an d bad to be B a d. XX
The A e o n (Judgement) has been used to i n f o r m us that the
wi c k e d w i l l be p un i s h e d and the g o o d r e war de d c o mf o r t i n g ,
no doubt , t o the m u l t i - m i l l i o n vi c t i ms of war , genoci de, f ami ne,
torture and pesti lence.
54 55
Thi s t ri vi al i sat i on of the Tarot is intensely i rri t at i ng. I t is as though
the Powers of the Uni verse were expected to c onf or m to the mores
some excepti onally dul l , l ower mi ddl e class, pr o v i nc i al suburb. Smal l
wonder that C r o wl e y felt moved to parody this Sunday School
at t i t ude i n hi s r emar ks o n X I V A r t i n The Wake World.
' Then there was another passage c al l ed the A r r o w by Day,
and there was a most l ovel y l ady a l l s hi ni ng wi t h the sun, and
mo o n , and stars, wh o was l i ght i ng a great b o wl of water wi th
one h an d, by dr o p p i n g dew on i t out of a c up, and wi t h t he
other she was put t i ng out a terri ble fi re wi t h a t orc h. She had a
red l i o n and a whi t e eagle, that she h ad al ways had ever si nce
she was a l i ttl e g i r l . She h ad f o un d them i n a nasty pi t f u l l of al l
ki nds of f i l t h , and they were very savage; but by al ways treati ng
t hem ki n d l y they had g r o wn up f ai t hf ul and g o o d. Thi s shoul d
be a lesson to a l l of us never to be u n k i n d to our pets. '
(Konx Om Pax.)
The Tarot can assist us to lead a more f ul f i l l i n g li f e but onl y i f
we underst and its f unc t i on. Tarot keys are no more ' mo r a l ' or
' i mmo r a l ' than the L a w of Gr a v i t y or the L a w of Inverse Squares,
wh i c h L aws we can use to benefit ourselves. F or each one of you is
here on E ar t h to kn o w and be yoursel f the di vi ne essence
wi t h i n y o u ; just as water s houl d seek its l evel , sheep s houl d eat
grass and wol ves s houl d eat sheep. The Tarot i s i n accord wi t h the
L a w of Nat ur e. Pr o v i ded we realise thi s, the keys w i l l serve as
astute guides to a more li berated and enli ghtened l i f e.
To begi n wi t h , c ont empl at i on of the Aces can br i n g out Wi l l ,
Un de r s t an di n g , M i n d and M a t e r i a l Effectiveness f r o m wi t h i n
us. The cards numbered 2-10 i n the M i n o r A r c a n a analyse
situations described by the titles, showing how these can be
brought about.
' The 6 of Wands i s referred to Jupi ter i n L eo, and cal l ed the
L o r d of Vi c t o r y . Thi s indicates not onl y what vi c t or y i s l i ke, but
also the c ondi t i ons to be f ul f i l l e d i n order to obt ai n vi ctory.
There is need of the fi ery energy of the sui t of Wands, the
balance of the Numbe r 6, the st ubborn courage of L eo and also
the i nf luence of Jupiter, the li ttle bi t of l uc k that tips the scales.'
( C r o wl ey : The Book of Thoth)
This f or mul a can (and should) be appl i ed to every c ard. I n times of
fai lure, for instance, one shoul d study F ai l ure, the 7 of Di s ks , to
discern h o w the factors wh i c h make up the c ard appl y to one's o wn
posi ti on. The way out of f ai lure i s to appl y the opposi te quali ti es.
The C o ur t C ar ds can be used for ps yc ho l o gi c al anal ysi s. Take
the key wh i c h represents y o u and exami ne wh i c h aspects of y o ur
o wn li fe cause y o ur best qual i ti es to degenerate i nt o y o ur wor st .
The C o ur t C ar ds are also usef ul ai ds to wo r k i n g out relati on
ships. Whenever y o u are t h i n ki n g on a p r o bl e m here, have
before y o u the cards wh i c h best represent the person(s) i n v o l v e d.
Endeavour to percei ve what matters of f r i c t i o n mi ght obt ai n
between the cards and appl y that to the si t uat i on i n quest i on.
The Trumps can be used to rectify imbalances i n your o wn psyche.
Persistent attention to the appropri ate key can enhance a qual i ty y o u
lack or alleviate a har mf ul excess. Here is a si mple table:-
Trump Enhances Alleviates
0 The Fool Joy; creativity; Repression.
laughter
I The Magus Clear thought; elasticity Rigidity of mind/
behaviour.
n The Priestess Inspiration; intuirion. Over-mtellectualism
in The Empress Harmony; generosity. Meanness
rv The Emperor Courage. Cowardice.
V The Hierophant Spiritual progress. Anxiety.
VI The Lovers Love. Anger.
VII The Chariot Single-mindedness. Vacillarion.
vm Adjustment Equilibrium Mental chaos.
IX The Hermit Self-sufficiency. Social insecurity.
X Fortune. Life-acceptance. Life-denial.
XI
Lust Strength Weakness
XII Hanged Ma n Endurance. Resentment.
XIII
Death Perception. Depression.
xrv
Art Understanding Confusion.
XV
The Devil Wi l l ; instinct. Guilt.
XVI The Tower Energy. Egotism.
XVII The Star Rapture. Envy.
xvm The Moon Imagination. Dullness
XIX The Sun Spontanaeity Frustration.
XX
The Aeon Drive Sloth
XXI
The Universe Gladness Boredom.
56
57
I t is merel y a matter of c hoosi ng the relevant c ar d to be your
doct or and g i v i n g i t frequent c onsul t at i on. Qui et observati on
w i l l do , t hough stri ct medi t at i on i s the best means. Those who
wo r k wi t h this met hod and so encounter the keys as healers wi l l
soon enough agree wi t h the present wri t er' s desc r i pt i on of the
Tarot as a ' gui de, phi l osopher and f r i e n d. '
Before we tackle more theory, here are more ways of getting
to k n o w the Tarot even better. They consi st of l a y i n g out vari ous
arrangements and t r y i n g to perceive bot h the i n di v i dua l i t y of
each c ard and the pattern to wh i c h each c ar d i s c o nt r i but i ng .
1 - L a y out each sui t f r o m Ac e to Ten and regard the vari ous
t ransf ormat i ons of the o r i g i n a l El ement al Energy.
2 - L ay out each set of C o ur t C ar ds i n t ur n and t hi nk of
T et r agr ammat on. See the Kn i g h t as the Father, the o r i gi nal ,
magi c al W i l l ; the Queen as the M o t h er , the my s t i c al accept-
ance wh i c h i s Un de r s t an di n g ; the Pri nce as the A l c h e mi c a l
Son, bo r n of their un i o n ; and the Daught er as the f i nal ,
mat er i al result. T hen remember that the Son w i l l set the
Daught er on the Throne of the M o t h e r for the process to
commence agai n, l i ke a wh i r l i n g wheel . Suc h i s the transfor-
ma t i o n f r o m Energy t o M at t er and back agai n.
3 - C ont empl at e the F our Kni g ht s together. Repeat wi t h the
F our Queens, Pri nces and Princesses i n t ur n. Wher e are they
s i mi l ar and where do they differ?
4 - E x ami ne the M i n o r A r c a n a i n sets of f our f r o m the Aces to
the Tens wi t h the same atti tude.
5 - Separate, in the way y o u t hi nk best, the male T r ump s , the
female T r umps and the T r umps wh i c h are bot h male and
female. Scruti ni se each of the three sets. R ec o r d your obser-
vat i ons.
6 - T r y the f o l l o wi n g patterns of 3
iii_ F ortune - The Emperor -
The Hierophant
iv - Lust - Art - Adjustment.
v- The Lovers - Lust - Art.
vi - The M o o n
The A e o n
v i i - The D e v i l -
The Sun
A r t - Deat h
v i i i -The Hanged M a n -
The Tower - The Chariot.
- The Lovers - The Priestess
The Star.
The Priestess - The Sun -
The F o o l .
- The F o o l - Adj us t ment -
The Uni ver se
Devi se other Tri ads of y o ur own.
i x
x i
M as c ul i ne Energy.
F emi ni ne Energy.
Al c hemy; di vi ne and human
mi ng l ed to effect C hange.
E v o l ut i o n a r y progress.
Gat eways t o i n d i v i d u a l
superconsci ousness.
A n n i h i l a t i o n of ego.
Gat eways to cosmi c
superconsci ousness.
The Supreme I ni t i at i on.
Wh o l e course of the
Tarot and L i f e .
7 - L ay the cards d o wn one by one, f r o m 0 to X X I to i l l ustrate a
story y o u make up and t el l to an interested f r i end or to
yoursel f . T r y several stories. E x per i ment , i f y o u wi s h , wi t h the
genres of f ai ry tale, science f i c t i o n , fantasy, c ri me, hi st ory,
romance and t hri l l er.
These methods a l l l ead to an essential poi nt . T h r o ug h a
t hor ough i nt egrat i on of the Tarot wi t h its every resonance i n
the psyche, we too can t h r i l l to its di vi ne dance and embrace
its l i v i n g forces as we wo u l d wi l l i n g partners.
The F o o l - The M ag us -
The H e r mi t .
The Priestess - The Empress
The Star.
Suggestive Summary
M an i f e s t at i o n o f G o d .
M an i f e s t at i o n of Goddess
i i
58
59
I
C H A P T E R 8
Tarot and I-Cbing
The E as t er n c o unt er par t of the T ar ot i s the I - C h i n g or Book
of Changes wh i c h o r i g i n a t e d over three t h o us a n d years ago i n
C h i n a , the wo r l d ' s ol dest c o n t i n uo us c i v i l i s a t i o n . The I - C h i n g
deri ves f r o m the p h i l o s o p h y o f T a o i s m as e x p o un de d i n t he
Tao Teh Ching.
Tao c annot be decl ared either by speech or by si lence. I t i s
be y o n d bot h. No attempt t o express its nature c an possibly
succeed, f or i t i s be y o n d a l l h uma n c o mpr ehens i o n. I t i s beyond
even A l p h a a n d Ome g a, the F i r st a n d the L ast . The Tao Te Teh
Ching states that we s h o ul d have u n i o n wi t h thi s Tao we cannot
express. I f we have u n i o n wi t h this i nexpressi bl e, inconceivable,
i nc ompr ehens i bl e Tao, a l l i s as i t s h o ul d be.
T e h i s h o w Tao mani f est s i tself i n the U n i v e r s e : a n d t he
C h i n e s e sages creat ed a s y mb o l to express Tao T eh the Yi n-
Ya n g . T h i s consi st s of a c i r c l e equal l y d i v i d e d by a serpentine
c ur v e i nt o bl ac k a n d wh i t e p o r t i o n s . The bl ac k p o r t i o n ( Yi n )
a n d the wh i t e p o r t i o n ( Yang) together express the nat ure of
the U n i v e r s e i n ac t i o n . There i s c o n t i n uo us i n t e r p l a y between
t hem. Y a n g i s, f or i nst ance, mal e, f i r e, p o s i t i v e , do mi n a n t and
Y i n i s f emal e, wat er, negat i ve, y i e l d i n g ; a n d the constant
i n t e r p l a y bet ween Y i n a n d Ya n g i s the nat ure o f a l l . Y a n g a n d
Y i n are the pai r s o f opposi t es i nt o wh i c h a l l p h e n o me n a c an
be di v i de d.
Wh a t needs t o be stressed about the Y i n - Y a n g symbol s i s
that i t i s not a rigid d i v i s i o n i nt o pai r s of o ppo s i t es : the C hi -
nese perc ei ve these opposi t es as f l o wi n g i nt o one anot her i n a
c onst ant i nt erc hange of energi es. T h i s i s wh y there i s t he
wh i t e spot of Y a n g at the centre of Y i n a n d the bl ac k spot of
Y i n at the centre of Ya n g . On c e one has gr asped the nature of
thi s s y mb o l , i t becomes easier to un de r s t an d the Tao Teh
Ching- I t r ec o mmends that one s h o u l d become awar e of the
Y i n - Y a n g wi t h i n oneself a n d i n the U n i v e r s e , bal anc e the Y i n
and Y a n g w i t h i n a n d wi t h o u t oneself a n d g o w i t h i t , f l o w
wi t h i t as i f one wer e wat er seeki ng i ts l e v e l . T h i s i s wh y the
Way of the Tao has been desc r i bed as ' the art of d o i n g
ever yt hi ng by d o i n g n o t h i n g . '
The Tao Teh Ching begi ns wi t h aph o r i s ms or ' st rands of
thought' wh i c h p o i n t t o h o w one may become one wi t h , a n d so
Tao. I t goes on to r ec o mmen d p r ac t i c al courses of c o nduc t
i n a wi d e var i et y of si t uat i ons T eh. On e wh o i s i n accord
ance wi t h Tao w i l l mani f est T eh i n a l l matters, great a n d s ma l l ,
f rom the governance of a k i n g d o m to ' the ni ce c o nduc t of a
c l ouded cane' . F o r h e w i l l have Y i n a n d Ya n g i n perfect bal
ance, a n d Y i n a n d Ya n g w i l l mani f est , not by the self but
through the self. T hi s endeavour to express the i nexpressi bl e is
obvi ousl y i nadequate. One can onl y exhort the reader to t ur n to
the ori gi nal wo r k.
E ssent i al l y, the I - C h i n g i s a p p l i e d T a o i s m. I t i s sai d that
C o n f uc i us dec l ar ed that h a d he anot her f i f t y years t o l i v e , he
wo u l d devot e each day of each year t o s t udy of the I - C h i n g .
Thi s begi ns wi t h Tao T eh i n the f o r m o f the Y i n - Y a n g . T h e n
Y i n i s s y mbo l i s e d by a br o ke n l i ne , a n d Ya n g by a st rai ght
line . Y i n a n d Ya n g , the br o ke n l i ne a n d the st rai ght l i ne, are
how Tao T eh mani f est s. The C hi nese sages pr oc eeded to con
struct a syst em based on Y i n - Y a n g i n t e r ac t i o n : 8 ' t r i g r ams ' , the
8 possi bl e way s of p ut t i n g together 3 li nes f r o m the st rai ght
and the br o ke n . Si nce these 8 s ymbo l s were i n s uf f i c i e n t l y
compl ex to render a det ai l ed un de r s t a n di n g of un i v e r s a l phe
nomena, they mu l t i p l i e d the system i nt o 64 s y mbo l s , created
t hrough c o mb i n i n g the o r i g i n a l 8 t r i gr ams wi t h the same 8
tngrams i n c o mbi n at i o n s of 6 l i nes, wh i c h they c al l ed ' hexa
grams' . I n other wo r d s , there are 64 possi bl e wa y s of c o mbi n
i ng a st rai ght l i ne a n d a br o ke n l i ne i n s y mbo l s of 6 l i nes. T h i s
is the basi s of the I - C h i n g .
I f one wi s h es to c o n s ul t the I - C h i n g , one asks a que s t i o n
and, wh i l e c o n c e n t r a t i n g u p o n i t , p e r f o r ms a me c h a n i c a l
oper at i on. T h i s i n v o l v e s the t h r o wi n g o f c o i n s wh e r e by
60 61
' heads' stands f or Ya n g a n d ' t ai l s ' f or Y i n o r the more
t r a d i t i o n a l m a n i p u l a t i o n of y a r r o w st al ks. T h i s gi ves one a
p a r t i c ul a r h e x a g r a m an d may we l l a dd s pec i al po i nt s t o
note a n d reference to a sec ond h e x a g r a m i nt o wh i c h the
mat t er changes. On e t hen takes up an I - C h i n g text; there
are ma n y v er s i o n s . The text consi st s of ' The T i t l e ' (of the
h ex ag r am) , ' The D e c i s i o n ' , ' The C o mme n t a r y ' (by the Duke
of C h o u , a di s c i pl e of C o n f u c i u s ) , somet i mes unnecessary
c omment ar i es by subsequent edi t o r s , and ' The I mage' i t
evokes. A c c o m p a n y i n g i t , there i s a c o mment de c l a r i n g how
' the s uper i o r ma n ' w o u l d act. T h i s ' s up er i o r ma n ' i s one i n
ac c ordanc e wi t h Tao T eh. F i n a l l y , there i s an anal ysi s of
each i n d i v i d u a l l i ne of the h e x a g r a m wi t h c o mmen t ar y by
the D u k e o f C h o u .
T ho s e wh o use the I - C h i n g f i n d i t t o be e x t r a o r di n a r i l y
wi s e a n d h e l p f u l i n the c o n duc t of l i f e a n d thi s was cer-
t a i n l y the case, f or e x amp l e , wi t h A l e i s t e r C r o wl e y , who
c o n s ul t e d i t c onsi st ent l y, of t en da i l y , an d e n de av o ur e d t o
ma r r y h i ms e l f t o the wi s d o m c o n t a i n e d t her ei n. N o r was he
the o n l y great West erner t o e x t o l its v i r t ue s . The mat h-
e ma t i c i a n a n d p h i l o s o p h e r L e i bn i z - i n s t a n t l y per c ei v ed that
the I - C h i n g was p r e di c at e d o n bi n a r y mat hemat i c s , wh i c h
he t ho ug ht he al one h a d di s c o v e r e d, a n d thi s great l y i m-
pressed h i m . C a r l J un g gave great h o n o ur a n d respect t o
the I - C h i n g a n d , wi t h R i c h a r d W i l h e l m , was responsi bl e
f or a l a uda bl e a n d wi d e l y k n o w n e d i t i o n .
I t was C r o wl e y wh o managed the di f f i c ul t an d remarkable
feat of equat i ng C hi nese concepti ons wi t h the Qabal i s t i c Tree
of L i f e i n a manner wh i c h makes absolute sense an d sheds new
l i ght o n bo t h. T hi s equat i on was p ubl i s h e d i n The Book of
Thoth. Tao i s equated wi t h the Qabal i s t i c A i n ( 0 or Not hi ng) -
Tao mani f ests as Tao Teh 1, Kether, The Po i nt . The second
Sephi r ah, C h o k m a h , masc ul i ne, i s equated wi t h Ya n g . The
t h i r d Sephi r ah, B i n ah , f emi ni ne, i s equated wi t h Y i n . Uni t ed,
Ya n g an d Y i n , C h o k m a h and B i n a h , mani f est as a l l created
t hi ngs. Here i s the correspondence wi t h the Tree of L i f e ; note
that Daat h i s used.
1
TAO TEH
KE T HE R
3 2
YIN YANG
BI NAH 1 1 C H O KMA H
CH' EEN
H E A VE N L Y FAT HE R
D A A T H
5 4
CHEN TUI
FIRE WATER
GEBURAH CHESED
6
LI
SUN
8 T I PHARE T H 7
SUN KE N
AIR E A R T H
H O D 9 N E T Z A C H
K' A N
MO O N
YESOD
10
K' UN
E A R T H MO T H E R
MA L KU T H
62
63
I t i s i ns t r uc t i ve to c ompare the p r i ma r y s ymbo l s of
I - C h i n g wi t h the c o r r e s p o n di n g Tarot T r ump s as o ut l i n e d i n
the A s t r o l o g y chapter of thi s wo r k . The student s h o ul d also
bear i n m i n d the i nt erest i ng fact that j ust as the Tree of L i f e i s
based on 32 (10 Seph i r o t h and 22 Paths) , so the I - C h i n g iss
based on 2 x 32 = 64 (8 x 8 p r i ma r y t ri grams) . These equa-
ti ons bet ween the C hi nese an d Qabal i s t i c systems of thought
make one wo n de r whet her they reflect the st ruct ure of the
m i n d a n d t o wh a t extent the structure of the m i n d reflects i n
t ur n the st ruct ure of the Un i v er s e.
One way of i nvest i gat i ng this matter i s c al l ed Sc r y i ng .
C H A P T E R 9
Scrying
The f o l l o wi n g advanced practice shoul d under no circumstances be
attempted unless the student can per f or m The Lesser Bani shi ng
Ri tual of the Pentagram a si mpl e ceremony wi t h wh i c h the
operation must begi n and end. F or a p r i n c i p al purpose of the
Pentagram r i t ual is to prevent the occurrence of the p r i n c i p al
danger of this exercise: obsession. F ortunately, it is v i r t ual l y impos
sible to succeed in this operati on wi t ho ut some previ ous experience
i n the t rai ni ng of the mi n d , but even so, sl oppy technique usual l y
results i n unhealthy and unbalanced thought and f eeli ng. The
Pentagram i s gi ven i n the Appendi c es. The operati on i s as f o l l o ws : -
1 - Per f or m the Lesser B ani shi ng R i t ua l of the Pent agram.
2 - Sit up strai ght in a har d- bac ked c hai r f ac i ng East. Breathe
sl owl y, deeply, r egul ar l y; and let the m i n d be c al m.
3 - C lose y o ur eyes and pi cture the Tarot c ard selected.
4 - I magine that it is on a door.
5 - Imagine yourself goi ng through that door. (This is rather l i ke Alice
Through the Looking-Glass and is usually the pr i nc i pal di f f i cul t y) .
6- Yo u may f i nd yourself i n a strange landscape and encounteri ng al l
manner of beings. Be conti nuousl y aware of your experience it
is rather l i ke a dream and believe not hi ng. I t may even seem as
though y o u are encountering noble and spl endi d entities wh o have
messages of great i mpor t for y o u; but it is equally possible that y o u
are just expl or i ng the contents of your unconscious and any great
revelations' are just y o u chattering to yourself.
7~ Ei ther the experience w i l l come to an end nat ur al l y i.e. y o u
wi l l wake up as f r o m a dream; or y o u w i l l choose t o end i t by
wi t h dr a wi n g t hr ough an i magi ned door back to your chair.
8~Per f or m the Lesser B ani shi ng R i t ua l of the Pent agram.
9~I mmedi ately wr i t e d o wn y o ur experi ence.
10~ C heck the symbol i sm i n 777 or a si mi l ar wo r k. I f what y o u saw
64 65
and heard corresponds wi t h the Tarot card y o u chose, y o u have
h ad an experience wh i c h has increased your comprehensi on.
11 - I f y o ur data is c ont r adi c t or y i f, f or exampl e, y o u used
The H e r mi t but the do mi nant c o l o ur was bri ght y e l l o w - you
have ben engaged i n wort hl ess ment al dr i f t i n g .
I t is not proposed to waste space and time by di scussi ng whether
these experiences are subj ecti vei . e. we are ex pl o r i ng the Collective
Unc onsc i ous wi t h i n us or objective i.e. we are exploring
another di mens i on of reali ty wh i c h i s usual l y termed 'the Astral
pl ane' . The questi on is open and the matter is st i l l debated by the most
advanced students, whose opi ni ons differ. Thi s does not matter. By
do i n g certai n thi ngs, certai n things happen.
Of greater interest and more capable of r at i o n al explanati on
is the quest i on of correspondences. Persistent experi mentati on
has demonst rat ed that i n the practi ce of s c r y i ng , we encounter
the symbol s set f o r t h i n theory. I n other wo r ds , the Tarot really
does reflect the contents and structure of our Un c o n s c i o us ; and
i f there i s i ndeed the A s t r a l Pl ane, i t i s an accurate map .
Sc r y i n g i s sometimes c al l ed ' Pat h Wo r k i n g ' , since we art
e x p l o r i n g the Paths between the var i ous Sephi r ot h, but the latter
t erm is also used to denote one or more of three practices
under t aken by groups. Here they are: -
A - Responses
1 - A parti cular card is chosen and each member of the group has it be-
fore h i m or her. Al ternati vel y, everyone focuses on a projected slide.
2 - Af t er a peri od of silence dur i ng wh i c h each member tries to enter the
wo r l d of the key, it is taken in t urn for each one to voice the experience.
T hi s can be extremely enjoyable; one c o ul d try it as a party
game. Ho we v e r , i t has t wo di sadvantages. F i rst l y, weaker
members are a l l too l i ke l y to be un dul y i nf l uenc ed by the
wo r ds of others rather than report their o wn experience,
wh i c h alone gives meri t to the exercise. F or i nstance, i t i s
di f f i c ul t to i magi ne someone s ayi ng: ' I ' m not getti ng a thing,'
t h o ug h it is v i t a l to say this if it is the t r ut h. Secondly, the
exercise can a l l too easi ly degenerate i nt o un p r o duc t i v e , ego-
t i st i c al f antasy and wo o l l y , sel f -i ndul gent rambl i ngs masquer-
a di n g as s p i r i t ua l i nsi ght .
B - Guidance
1 _ A Gui de i s appoi nt ed by the g r o up . T hi s must be a person
wi t h some det ai l ed kn o wl edg e of Tarot correspondences.
2 - Onc e agai n, each member concentrates on the key agreed
up o n by the g r o up .
3 _ The Gui de voi ces the var i ous correspondences, i n c l udi n g
short tales of my t ho l o g y .
4 - There i s a p e r i o d of silence d u r i n g wh i c h each member tries
to expl ore the wo r l d of the c a r d.
5 - E ac h per son then wri t es d o wn the experi ence.
6 - These experiences are then c o mp ar e d.
C - Drama
1 - A c ar d is chosen by the g r o up .
2 - A short pl ay or r i t ual is then created to embody the forces
wi t h i n the c ar d. I t can i nc l ude rel evant poet ry; also musi c .
3 - One way i s f or someone to pl ay the C andi dat e f or I ni t i at i on
wh i l e the others personi f y the beings i n the c ard and i nstruct
the C andi dat e.
4 -The Complete Golden Dawn System of Magic gi ves f i ne ex
amples of this techni que i n its i n i t i at o r y r i t ual s.
5 - The precise f o r mul a t i o n of this me t h o d, however, is best left
to the prac t i t i oners' i n g e n i um.
The p r i ma r y di sadvantage of g r o up wo r k i n g consists of the
di f f i c ul t y i n f i n d i n g sui table peopl e wi t h wh o m t o wo r k. One
shoul d never wo r k wi t h peopl e w h o m one wo u l d di s l i ke i n an
ordi nary soc i al context: the fact that they l i ke Tarot too s i mp l y
isn't g o o d enough i f one i s t o wo r k wi t h t hem i n deli cate
operati ons. A l s o a v o i d a l l gr oups wh i c h charge y o u a l ot of
money, or are r u n by a ' g ur u- f i g ur e' wh o wants some measure of
cont rol over y o ur pri vat e l i f e. Y o u r pri vat e li f e i s enti rel y y o ur
o wn affai r. A n y gr o up wh i c h makes the sli ghtest suggesti on that
i t shoul d have i nf l uence over i t , s h o ul d be shunned as one wo u l d
shun a leper. The onl y groups wo r t h j o i n i n g are associ ati ons of
i n di v i dua l s wh o have come together f reel y f or a c o mmo n pur
Pose. Y o u w i l l be f ortunate i ndeed t o f i n d one of these.
I ndi v i dual practice and personal st udy f o r m the spine of s pi r i t ual
attainment. To further these, I gi ve t wo more exercises. F i rstl y, try
66 67
ma ki n g your o wn cards, especially the M aj o r T r umps. C ompare
these, wh e n done, wi t h your f avouri te deck and wi t h other decks.
On no account be deterred by fears that your draughtsmanshi p i s
hopeless or any supposed lack of artistic abi l i ty. Here the effort is
a l l . C ont rast your o wn recension wi t h the established wo r k of
others, no t i ng the si mi lari ti es and differences, especially the sym-
bols y o u have stressed and those y o u have i gnored.
Secondl y, take a l l the knowl edge y o u have of the Tree of L i f e,
especi al l y i n v i e w of the Tarot, and go on an i magi nat i ve journey
f r o m M a l k u t h t o Kether v i a the cards. Y o u may we l l have done
this on one plane by p l a y i n g The R o y a l Game of H u m a n L i f e as
descri bed i n C hapt er T wo . N o w do i t i n y o ur o wn i magi nat i on. PART II
L et us end this C hapt er, therefore, wi t h respectf ul remem-
brance of M at her s and the Go l de n D a wn , wh o demonstrated
that the Tarot is a uni ver sal and coherent system of hi erogl yphs:
and wi t h a salute t o Al ei st er C r o wl e y , wh o devel oped the work
and made the greatest c o n t r i but i o n to its evol ved underst andi ng
i n the f i rst hal f of the t went i et h century.
'78.
W H E E L A N D W O A !
The Great Wh e e l of Samsara.
The Wh e e l of the L a w ( Dhamma) .
The Wh e e l of the Taro.
The Wh e e l of the Heavens.
The Wh e e l of L i f e .
A l l these Wheel s be one; yet of a l l these the Wh e e l of the
T A R O alone avai l s thee consci ousl y.
M edi t at e l o n g and br o ad and deep, O man , up o n this Wheel ,
r e v o l v i n g i t i n thy m i n d !
Be this thy task, to see h o w each card springs necessarily f r o m each
other card, even i n due order f r o m The F o o l unto The Ten of
C oi ns. Then, when thou know' st the Wheel of Destiny complete,
mayst thou perceive T H A T W i l l wh i c h moved i t first. (There i s
no first or last). A n d l o ! thou art past through the Abyss. '
(The Book of Lies: Wh i c h Is A l s o F al sel y C a l l e d Breaks:
The Wander i ngs or F al si f i cat i ons of The One T ho ug ht
of F rater Perdurabo Wh i c h T h o ug h t I s Itself Untrue. )
68
C H A P T E R 10
Tarot And The Mind
A mo n g other thi ngs, the Tarot i s an ex t r aor di nar y gui de to the
worki ngs of consci ousness. M o r e , i t c an gui de us i n real i si ng our
own deepest pot ent i al .
H o w come? Real l y, what can we l earn here? The reader i s
cordi al l y i n v i t ed t o take a g ui ded tour of the mi n d , wh i c h mi n d ,
it has been suggested, reflects the structure of the Uni verse. The
more we underst and ourselves, the more we underst and the
Universe ar o un d us. A n y i n f o r ma t i o n as to h o w we can do this i s
therefore val uabl e and it is the present author' s c ont ent i on
that this i n f o r ma t i o n is s uppl i ed by the Tarot.
We start on E ar t h and ri ght l y. I t i s no use at a l l h a v i n g our
heads i n the sky i f our feet are not on the g r o un d. I f y o u don' t get
the basics ri ght , y o u w i l l get n o t h i n g ri ght at a l l . T hi s i s a l l very
well and any sane h uma n bei ng wo u l d agree but does the
Tarot reflect this basic truth?
I t does so very s i mp l y an d cl earl y. The Ten of Di s ks i s c al l ed
Weal th. There i s n o t h i n g wr o n g wi t h ma k i n g money there
i s everyt hi ng wr o n g wi t h be l i e v i n g that this i s the o n l y objec
tive i n l i f e. One can see thi s wi t h br ut a l accuracy i n the e v i l
social effects consequent up o n any soci ety ac c ept i ng money,
not as a me d i u m of exchange, but as a measure of per s o nal
Worth c o r r u p t i o n , c r i me, p r o s t i t ut i o n of bo t h bo dy an d
mi nd and a t ot al absence of mo r a l val ues. T oo many wh o
achieve we a l t h f i n d thei r coffers to be f u l l and thei r selves to
be empty.
The Ten of Swor ds , R u i n , shows the effects of f i g ht i ng to no
Purpose, wh i c h i s done dai l y by far too many.
. The Ten of C up s , Satiety, shows that if one i mmerses oneself
i n mat eri al i sm wi t h o ut any consciousness of spi r i t , one w i l l feel
j aded at best and (again) empty at wor st .
71
The Ten of Wands di spl ays (among other things) the condition
of h uma n beings at the end of the 1980's, that di sgust i ng decade of
c o wer i n g and abasement, and i t i s c al l ed Oppr es s i on. I n ten years
of despicable gr o vel l i ng, M a n and Wo ma n have been degraded
The c ard also declares that if we cannot raise our eyes to the stars,
we w i l l have our snouts i n a t rough. At present, the life of homo
sapiens i n the T h i r d Wo r l d i s largely nasty, br ut i sh and short. I n
the West i t i s largely nasty, brut i sh and l o ng.
It is surel y obvi ous to any t h i n ki n g person that the 1990' s will
wi tness a l l matters of h uma n s ur v i v a l c o mi n g to a cri si s. The
pl anet c o ul d bl o w t hr ough the s t upi di t y of its leaders we
c o ul d a l l per i sh i n nucl ear war. Al t er nat i v el y , we c o ul d rape the
E ar t h on wh i c h we l i ve and p o i s o n ourselves t o death s l o wl y and
p a i n f ul l y an unappeal i ng prospect. Or we c o ul d go forward
to the stars, wh i c h is surely part of our desti ny, and assist the
accel erati on of ev o l ut i o n on what must surely be one of the most
beaut i f ul planets i n the M i l k y Way .
Thi s mi ght sound a li ttle too muc h to the casual reader, per-
haps, but certai n proposi t i ons cannot be deni ed. The Tarot i n-
f orms us that the life of the average man on E ar t h consists of the
pur sui t of and rule by Weal t h, the constant threat of R u i n , the
sheer bo r edo m of Satiety and the omnipresence of Oppressi on.
T hi s is a l l most unpleasant but it is what faced the average
ma n and wo ma n dur i n g the wret c hed and mi serable 1980's. I s
there a way out? Yes, there is. The Tarot declares s i mpl y that
there is somet hi ng more to l i f e. I t is c al l ed The Uni verse, the
M a j o r T r u mp numbered X X I . I t leads f r o m the li fe of M a n on
E ar t h, c al l ed M a l k u t h on the Tree of L i f e , to the stars.
It is necessary, therefore, to become aware of those aspects of
L i f e wh i c h are more t han merely ' bi r t h , c o p ul at i o n and death'
(to use T.S. El i ot ' s phrase) on a c hunk of rock on wh i c h crawl
i mpur e l umps of c arbon and water, s p i n n i n g somewhere i n the
blackness of meaningless space. We can do so by awakeni ng the
subconsci ous. X X I The Uni verse i ndi cates h o w this can best be
done. The Woman/Goddess at the centre of the c ard is usually
por t r ayed as s ur r o unded by the f our K e r u b i m, the L i o n , the
M a n , the Eagle and the B u l l . These represent the F our Elements
by wh i c h we can classi f y li f e on E ar t h: and also the F our Powers
of the Sphi nx by wh i c h we can awaken t o K n o w, t o W i l l , t o
Dare and to Keep Si lent. We are r emi nded too of the basic t r ut h,
f ul l y underst ood by the anci ent E gypt i ans, that we must accept
ourselves as ani mal s before we can realise ourselves as Go ds .
The Woman/Goddess i n the centre of the c ard remi nds one
that the nature of Exi stence is pure joy. O u r paths to this ecstasy
consist of ex pan di n g our mi nds out war ds to I nf i ni te Space and
i nwards to expl ore the Uni verse of our o wn Unc o ns c i o us .
The F our Ni n e s gi ve us f urther i n f o r ma t i o n on Yes o d, the
ni nt h Sephi rah, wh i c h relates to the subconsci ous especi ally i n
its sexual mani f est at i on. The Ni n e of Wan ds , Strength, makes
the v i t al po i nt that our sexual i t y i s the basis of our creat i vi t y and
conti nued e v o l ut i o n . The Ni n e of C up s , Happi nes s , symboli ses
here the a mbi t i o n of the average ma n and wo ma n to enjoy
mari tal bl i ss. The Ni n e of Swor ds, C r uel t y , shows the di rect
result of sexual repressi on. The Ni n e of Di s ks , Ga i n , shows the
i ni t i al result of expanded awareness.
Ho wev er , Yes od i s onl y our f i rst resti ng place; i t i s very, very
far f r o m bei ng the goal . We w i l l have to go t hr o ugh the experi
ence por t r ayed by XX The A e o n . I n this context and the
reader must bear i n mi n d that this i s s i mp l y one amo ng a number
of ways of regardi ng the Tarot i t c o ul d be sai d that The A e o n
symbolises the dest ruc t i on of the Uni verse by f i re. Thi s i s i n fact
the result of persistence at any v a l i d magi c al or my s t i c al di sci
pli ne: the openi ng up of new levels of awareness destroys o l d
notions of one's l i mi t at i o ns , and burns up stale preconcepti ons
and useless prej udi ces. One i s reborn, as i t were, i n the ei ght h
Sephi rah, H o d , sphere of the I ntellect, wi t h a new i deo l o g i c al
f ramework.
Thi s ex hi l ar at i o n i s dr amat i c al l y por t r ayed by X I X The Sun,
wh i c h leads f r o m Yesod t o H o d .
The expansi on of awareness, ac c ompani ed as it is by the
di sc ardi ng of those o l d ideas wh i c h were shackles up o n one's
ment al power s, leads to an ecstatic er upt i o n of j oyous, subcon
scious energies. As The Sun shows, contact i s made agai n wi t h
the gl or i ous feelings of c h i l dh o o d. One experiences W i l l i a m
72
73
Blake' s t r ut h that: ' Energy i s eternal del i ght and i s of the body. '
I n the state of H o d , it is the task of the A s p i r a n t to di sci pli ne
an d c o n t r o l the consci ous mi n d . Thi s i s no easy task. As the
E i ght of Wa n ds , Swi f tness, shows us, the mi n d moves so fast,
j ump i n g f r o m one i dea to another, that i t i s very di f f i c ul t even to
observe one's o wn ment al processes c al ml y. Thi s practice i s
essenti al, however ; the Yogi s c al l i t Prat yahara; f or wh e n we gain
some c ompr ehensi on of h o w the mi n d wo r ks , we become the
masters not the vi c t i ms of its speed.
The Ei ght of C up s nevertheless demonstrates a speci al danger
of H o d , I ndolence. One' s i n i t i a l successes can lead to a rest upon
one's laurels and no t hi ng f urther i s ac c ompl i shed. A g a i n , facility
of i ntellect can l ead one to the t empt at i on whereby one thi nks it
unnecessary to wo r k h ar d at any t hi ng and once agai n, all
progress stops. The Ei ght of Swor ds , I nterference, di spl ays the
tendency of the mi n d to i mpede one's W i l l to Sel f -Ac t ual i sat i on
t hr o ug h its c ont i nuous changes: di s c i p l i n e d c onc ent rat i on upon
a one-poi nt ed objective is the onl y answer here. The c ard also
i nf o r ms us that once we have reached a certai n stage, we nor-
ma l l y f i n d a h un dr e d reasons, external and i nt er nal , for putti ng
off the arduous l abours of the next stage un t i l some time after
the mi ddl e of next week. Thi s p r o bl em i s answered by the Eight
of Di s ks , Prudence. We must l abour pati entl y and wi t h o ut a
squanderi ng of energy if the Tree of Self we are c ul t i v at i n g is
bear edi bl e f r ui t .
Ver y we l l : we have opened up t o our sexual i ty and changed
our mi nds but there is also the matter of our emoti ons. Once
agai n, the f i rst wa y i s t hr ough the subconsci ous as we go f rom
M a l k u t h t o the seventh Sephi rah, Ne t z a c h , v i a XVI I I The M o o n ,
but this i s where far too many go wr o n g . Thei r experiences have
been so ext raordi nary by c o mpar i s o n wi t h the banali ti es of so-
c al l ed ' everyday l i f e' that, as C r o wl e y puts i t, ' semi-educated
stutterers wa l l o w i n oceans of gush' . The Tarot demands the
empl oyment of one's creative i mag i n at i o n : yet too many drift
i nt o a sterile wo r l d of unpr oduc t i ve fantasy. There are great
schemes and great dreams aplenty but n o t h i n g ever comes of
t hem. Some even let their sc r yi ng degenerate so abo mi nabl y that
i nternal ment al chatter i s mi st aken f or great revelati ons by the
Gods or H i d d e n Masters and they become what F ranci s K i n g
aptly termed ' astral j unki es' . C r o wl e y ' s remarks i n MAGICK: In
Theory and Practice s umma r i s e the danger s here.
' The M a g i c i a n may go on f or a l o n g time bei ng f ool ed and
flattered by the Ast r al s that he has hi msel f mo di f i e d or manu
f actured. T hei r nat ur al subservience t o hi msel f w i l l please
h i m, poor ape. '
' They w i l l pretend t o show h i m mar vel l ous mysteri es, pag
eants of beauty and wo n der unspeakabl y s p l e n di d; he w i l l
i nc l i ne to accept them as true, for the very reason that they are
images of hi msel f i deal i sed by i mag i n at i o n . '
' But hi s real progress w i l l stop dead. These phantasms w i l l
prevent h i m f r o m c o mi n g i nt o contact wi t h i ndependent i ntel
ligences, f r o m wh o m alone he can l earn an y t h i n g new. '
' H e w i l l become i ncreasi ngl y interested i n hi msel f , i magi ne
hi msel f to be at t ai ni ng one i n i t i a t i o n after another. H i s Ego
w i l l ex pand unc hec ked, t i l l he seem t o hi msel f t o have heaven
at hi s feet. Yet a l l this w i l l be n o t h i n g but hi s fool' s face of
Narc i ssus s mi r ki n g up f r o m the p o o l that w i l l d r o wn h i m . '
F ortunatel y, i n the C r o wl e y - H a r r i s p o r t r ay al o f The M o o n ,
there i s s h o wn the way t hr ough: i t i s i dent i f i c at i o n wi t h the sun
at mi dn i g h t , that i s to say, the W i l l and this must be done even
and especi ally dur i n g those moods of anxi ety and depressi on
wh i c h af f l i ct the aspi rant.
Thi s message i s rei nf orced by I V The Emperor, wh i c h leads
f rom Yesod to Net z ac h. We are t r yi ng to become f ul l y aware of
our feelings; the greatest of these feelings is L o v e ; yet as it is
Written i n The Book of the Law, ' L ove is the l aw, l ove under wi l l ' .
The nature of the Uni verse is L ove, or the urge for un i o n between
opposites, but for each one, that L ove must be i n accordance wi t h
the True W i l l of the i n d i v i d u a l . The onl y true di sc i pl i ne i s self-
di sci pli ne and, as The E mperor shows, that i s preci sely what i s
requi red here. C o m i n g f r o m Yesod, the aspi rant must ri de up o n
his/her sexuali ty as a strong h uman bei ng masters a st al l i on.
Yet one's di f f i c ul t i es are far f r o m over. The struggles of the
Wi l l
to break t hr ough the snares of fantasy, di st r ac t i on an d
74
75
not i ons of vague senti mental i ty have thei r effect i n H o d (the
I ntellect) and this effect i s s h o wn by X V I The Tower, wh i c h leads
f r o m H o d t o Ne t z a c h . At this stage, the consci ousness of
hei ghtened and deepened awareness of ten blasts the aspirant's
most pr ec i ousl y h e l d c onvi c t i ons. The ego i s not anni hi l at ed at
this stage but it f requentl y feels as t hough it has been and there
ensues a state of c o nf us i o n.
The anci ent qabali sts di d not name Ne t z ac h ' external splen-
dour and i nt er nal c o r r up t i o n ' for n o t h i n g , as the F our Sevens
demonstrate. One sought to i dent i f y wi t h one's feelings onl y to
di scover one has preci ous l i ttl e i dea of what those feelings
genui nel y are. The Seven of Wan ds , Val o ur , i s that to wh i c h one
must c l i n g dur i n g this exc ruc i at i ngl y di f f i c ul t stage, part of
wh i c h i s the put ref ac t i on summari sed by the Seven of C ups,
Debauc h. One i s a l l too l i kel y to collapse for a ti me. The Seven
of Swor ds shows the consequent c o n v i c t i o n of F ut i l i t y and i s
succeeded by the Seven of Di s ks , F ai l ur e. The Great Wo r k seems
wort hl ess and so does everyt hi ng else. Wh y d i d one bother i n
the f i rst place? A l l that wo r k, a l l that exci tement and n o w one
feels o n l y a n umb bitterness.
The o n l y way out of this a p p a l l i n g state i s to persist i n
as pi r at i on t owards a c onc ept i on greater t han the personal ego
i t i s i mmat e r i al wh i c h wo r d or phrase i s used as nomenclature
f or this c onc ept i on.
To this end, we must ret urn to Yesod on the M i d d l e Pi l l ar of
the Tree of L i f e and empl oy methods g i ven by X I V A r t , whi c h
one c o ul d summari se by the ap h o r i s m of the Al c hemi s t s : 'Solve
et Coagula\ We must di ssolve the self the personal ego and
recombi ne its elements.
There i s a f o r mul a k n o wn as I A O I s i s - Apo ph i s - Os i r i s
wh i c h expresses the process i n v o l v e d here. I n begi nni ng any set
of practi ces f or sel f -i mprovement , there is a f i rst or Isis stage.
The wo r k seems pleasant, easy, exc i t i ng and del i g h t f ul . Thi s i s
soon enough succeeded by the A p o p h i s stage: one reacts to the
wo r k wi t h i nf i ni t e weari ness and detestati on. N o t h i n g goes wel l
at a l l . Ho we v e r , f urther persistence i s r ewar ded by the Osi ri s
stage: a gl or i ous resurrect i on of bo t h as pi r at i o n and results.
The wo r k of X I V A r t begins wi t h the put r ef ac t i on that has
f o l l o wed up o n i n i t i a l j oys. I t i s our task to analyse the nature of
that put ref ac t i on. T h en we must do somet hi ng about i t. No r
mal l y i t i s f o un d that any p r o bl e m consists of three elements
two opposi tes and thei r r esol ut i on. One f i nds this n o t i o n also i n
M a r x i s t di al ecti c as deri ved f r o m Heg el thesis, antithesis an d
synthesis. Here and speci f i cal l y, we have a c onf l i c t between
Intellect and E mo t i o n to be resol ved by deeper awareness of the
Unc onsc i ous. We must sharpen our i ntellect, p ur i f y our feelings
and resolve a l l conf l i cts at a deeper l evel of awareness wh i l e
keepi ng the bo dy heal thy and di rec t i ng our sexual i t y t owards
the hi ghest we can i magi ne. Wi t h a l l our faculti es har mo ni s ed,
we c an set out f r o m Ye s o d t o war ds the s i x t h Se p h i r ah ,
Ti pharet h, wh i c h is the centre of the Tree of L i f e and the seat of
Hi gher C onsci ousness. As C r o wl e y c omment ed, we must f i re
ourselves at this state l i ke a strai ght ar r ow.
O ur i ntellect, t hough sharp as a razor, must not be a l l o we d to
get in the way . I t is a s pl endi d servant but a bad master. T hi s is
one of many meani ngs of the Pat h wh i c h leads f r o m H o d to
Ti pharet h, XV The D e v i l . T hi s experience i nvol ves the realisa
t i on, n o bl y expressed once agai n by W i l l i a m Bl ake, that 'every
thi ng that li ves i s h o l y ' . We must f ul l y accept our o wn sexual i t y
and that of the Uni verse for, as the arti st and mag i c i an A u s t i n
Osman Spare wr ot e: ' A l l thi ngs f orni cate a l l the t i me. ' We must
accept that many truths about the Uni verse are s h o c ki n g to the
average ego. A n d we must face what has been c al l ed The Dwe l l e r
on the T h r e s h o l d.
C o m i n g t o k n o w G o d or the attai nment of Superc on-
sciousness or what ever sectari an terms is pref erred is f or most
a t er r i f yi ng experience wh i c h evokes every possi bl e dread and
element of par anoi a f r o m the psyche. I t takes a wh i l e to com
prehend that a l l one's i nt el l ec t ual concepti ons, ar r i v ed at after
agonies, are s t i l l i nadequate. M a n y f i n d that their li ves go hay
wi re at this po i nt , that the Uni verse proceeds to behave in a
manner c ont rary to a l l the k n o wn rules of Physi cs and Ps y c ho l -
ogy as accepted by the most learned men and wo me n of h uma n -
i t y Y o u w i l l pr o babl y have t o face y o ur o wn deepest fears and
76 77
not i n y o ur head, wh i c h wi l l i n any case be suf f i c i ent l y bom-
bar ded by per pl ex i n g data, but i n the events of dai l y l i v i n g .
But let us suppose that y o u have the courage to persist. Yo u
accept y o ur sexual i ty, y o u ex pand y o ur mi n d , y o u a l l o w yourself
t o feel y o ur emoti ons reverberati ng t r ul y i n y o ur heart and you
harmoni se a l l these i n the true wo r k of Ne t z a c h . Spl endi d!
Surel y y o u are ready for the next stage? N o t on y o ur l i f e.
F or the next stage is Deat h.
XI I I Deat h leads f r o m Net z ac h to T i phar et h, the si x t h Sephirah
of Beauty, H a r mo n y , Sel f - Ac t ual i sat i on and, as some c al l it, the
Kn o wl e dg e and C o nver s at i o n of the H o l y Gua r di a n A n g e l . I n
order to attai n i t, the harmoni sed Personali ty must die so as to
experience a far deeper I ndi vi dual i t y. A l l that y o u have gained
must be anni hi l at ed, sacri f i ced, gi ven to somet hi ng greater, to
the Self far greater than anyt hi ng y o u ever cal l ed y o ur self.
T hi s is the greatest experience open to the maj ori ty of men and
wo me n on this planet. I t is, , for the time bei ng, the goal of
ev o l ut i o n . The harmoni sed faculties of body, sexuali ty, intellect
and emot i on are sacri fi ced to and then adorned by the no bi l i t y of
aware Spi ri t . Once that has been done, one kno ws one's True Wi l l
i n the Wo r l d . Do what t hou wi l t shal l be the who l e of the L aw.
Thi s f oremost a x i o m of The Book of the Law does not mean
an y t h i n g as trite and s i l l y as ' Do what y o u want ' . I t means that
y o u are on this planet for a purpose. Thi s purpose mi ght be
an y t h i n g . I t c o ul d mean the pai n t i n g of pi ctures or the wr i t i n g of
books but i t c o ul d also mean a career i n C har t er ed Account ancy.
I t c o ul d mean prof essi onal bo x i n g or business or carpentry or
t el evi si on comedy. I t c o ul d equal l y we l l mean that your W i l l i s
ul t i mat el y to be a fine parent of a remarkabl e c h i l d . Y o u know
y o ur True W i l l by the ext raordi nary joy y o u experience i n doi ng
i t and y o u w i l l di scover that mere wants interfere wi t h the Wi l l -
As C r o wl e y r i ght l y has i t i n MAGICK WITHOUT TEARS:
'If there i s any t rut h at a l l i n anyt hi ng, or even any meani ng i n
l i f e, i n Nat ur e herself; then there i s one t hi ng, one t hi ng only
par amount ; to f i n d out wh o one i s, what i s one's necessary Way. '
' The alternati ve to the Great Wo r k is the hot c hpot c h of
di sper si on, of f atui ty, or di sconnected nonsense' .
The rewards of the Great Wo r k are succi nct l y stated i n the
four Sixes. The Si x of Wands di spl ays Vi c t o r y of the W i l l over a l l
that has i mpeded i t. The Si x of C up s i s c al l ed Pleasure an d
ri ghtly so. The Si x of Swor ds, Science, shows the h uma n mi n d
raised to its hi ghest power of i nt el l ec t ual penet rat i on. The Si x of
Di sks i s s i mp l y Success.
There i s a wo r d f or this attai nment: A de p t s h i p . An A de p t i s
one wh o has brought a l l hi s or her faculti es to an hei ghtened
reali sati on of purpose i n li f e t hr ough the experience of super-
consciousness. E ac h system has its o wn ways of c l assi f yi ng levels
of devel opment but i t may f ai r l y be stated that they can a l l be
reduced to f our : Student; I nitiate; A de p t ; and M ast er. A Student
studies ways of e v o l v i n g . An I nitiate i s experi enced i n the act ual
practice of these ways . An A de p t has di scovered the True W i l l
wi t h i n and can put this i nt o act i on despite the many restri cti ons
of our society. F or the present it is best not to speak of a M ast er
there are very few of t hem.
The task of the new A de p t or, if the reader prefers, an
enlightened and evol ved person is first to perfect that Adept s hi p.
This is no easy task. Adept s hi p is a great attai nment. One c o ul d
hardly be bl amed for remai ni ng in that state. Yet there is the c al l to
come farther up and further i n . Nat ur al l y the Tarot shows ho w.
XI I The Ha n g e d M a n , wh i c h leads f r o m H o d 8 (Intellect) t o
Geburah 5 (Force), has baf f l ed a number of comment at ors. I t
coul d be argued that for once, C r o wl e y a l l o we d hi s personal
anti pathy t owards the C h r i s t i a n f ai t h t o interfere wi t h j udi c i ous
observati on. F or the Key expresses the central mystery of West
ern r el i g i o n over the past t wo t housand years: that there was a
G o d - M a n wh o di ed and rose agai n, k n o wn v ar i o us l y ar o un d the
M edi t erranean basi n as Os i r i s , A d o n i s , A t t i s , Di o n y s us and
Jesus C h r i s t , under whose name the var i ous c ompet i ng cults
were subsumed. Thi s cul t i s essentially solar and based up o n the
supersti ti on of t wo t housand years ago an d before, that the Sun
died every ni ght and requi red wo r s h i p , prayers and magi c i n
or der f o r to be reborn. These days we kn o w that to be
nonsense the Sun is there a l l the time whatever we do .
Obv i o us l y any r el i g i o n s h o ul d reflect this reali ty.
78
79
The Ha n g e d M a n has cl earl y o ut l i v ed hi s usefulness on that
l evel . Si gni f i c ant l y, he appears in the t went i et h century' s greatest
poet i c ex pr es s i o n of p e s s i mi s m, The Waste Land by T. S. E l i o t .
' I do not f i n d The Han g ed M a n
F ear death by water. '
A n d as the attentive reader may rec al l , The Ha n g e d M a n
corresponds to the Hebr ew letter M e m , wh i c h means water, and
of wh i c h correspondence E l i o t was unaware wh e n wr i t i n g the
po em a c uri ous exampl e of sync hroni c i t y.
But i s The Ha n g e d M a n of any possi ble use to us today?
present wr i t er wo u l d respectf ully disagree wi t h C r o wl e y
argue that i t is. Af t e r a l l , N e w A e o n or not, i t expresses the
rel at i on between 8 and 5 and the c or r espondi ng psychol ogi cal
reali ty. One wa y of regardi ng the matter i s i n terms of ordeals. I f
y o u try to liberate yourself , the p ai n can be exc ruc i at i ng.
' N o w just as the A s p i r a n t , on the T h r es h o l d of I ni ti ati on,
f i nds hi msel f assai led by the " c ompl exes" wh i c h have cor-
r upt ed h i m, their ext ernal i sat i on exc ruc i at i ng h i m, and his
agoni sed reluctance t o their el i mi n at i o n p l un g i n g h i m into
such ordeals that he seems (both to hi msel f and to others) to
have t urned f r o m a nobl e and upr i ght man i nt o an unutter-
able sc oundr el ; so does the First Matter bl ac ken and putrefy
as the A l c h e mi s t breaks up its coagul ati ons of i mp ur i t y . '
( C r o wl e y : MAGICK: In Theory and Practice.)
The nature of 5 Gebur ah is F i re and in order to advance one's
A de p t s h i p , a l l r emai ni ng i mpuri t i es must be sacri f i ced as burned
offeri ngs and consumed by somet hi ng greater t han oneself. Ob-
v i o us l y this process i s p a i n f ul .
VI I I Adj us t ment also leads to 5 Ge bur ah but f r o m 6 Ti phareth
i n wh i c h one s h o ul d be centred. I n order to progress, there must
be e q ui l i br i um of the Self. There has to be a bal anced poise.
There are a number of ways of ac hi evi ng thi s. One is a dispas-
sionate mat i ng of every i dea and tendency wi t h i n oneself wi t h its
opposi te. A n o t h e r i s a ref usal to undertake any ac t i on unless i t i s
necessary to the f ul f i l ment of the W i l l or the i mmedi at e task in
h an d, wh i c h s h o ul d amount t o the same t hi ng. A n y A de p t worth
a p i n c h of salt s h o ul d be capable of devi si ng f urther methods.
The experience of the naked F orce of Ge bur ah is not easy to
handle. The F i ve of Wands , Stri fe, declares the conf l i cts that w i l l
arise, bot h wi t h i n the self and wi t h i n the envi ronment . The F i ve
of C up s shows a l l false i l l usi ons dr o p p i n g away i n Di sappoi nt
ment. The F i ve of Swords makes it clear that the pur sui t of
i n di v i dua l power, so t empt i ng to many at this po i nt , can onl y
lead to its ti tle, Defeat. There is bo un d to be a per i o d of self-
questi oni ng and, as the F i ve of Di sks has i t, Wo r r y .
The A de p t w i l l once agai n have to return to o r i g i n al aspi rat i on
founded i n t rut h of feeli ng. The Uni verse i s i ndeed l i ke the wheel
portrayed i n X F ort une, wh i c h leads f r o m 7 Net z ac h to the next
destination, 4 C hesed (F orm), but it must be realised that the place
to be is not wh i r l i n g ar ound on the wheel but at the very centre,
the ulti mate poi nt of wh i c h does not move at a l l . One c o ul d l earn
so muc h and feel so good i f onl y one c o ul d sit s t i l l and be qui et.
Thi s message i s rei nf orced by I X The H e r mi t wh i c h takes one
f rom 6 T i phar et h to 4 C hesed. I t is the True W i l l , the Si lent Self
wi t h i n us, wh i c h moves us to go o n : i t i s also the L i g h t before us
whi c h calls us to come o n. I t i s that wh i c h was pure i n the
begi nni ng. and w i l l be pure, t hough i nf i ni t el y more experi enced
and theref ore greater at the e n d.
To this end we must be aware of I T and mate I T wi t h i n us to
A l l that exists wi t h o ut us, rej oi ci ng i n the ecstasy and comedy of
Existence, as s h o wn i n XI L ust . O n l y t hr ough apprec i at i on of
the di vi ne spasms of every moment of life can the cells wi t h i n us
attain f u l l pot ent i al .
A gl ori ous state awai ts those wh o succeed. The F our of
Wands si gni fi es C o mp l e t i o n : the A de p t has brought A de p t s h i p
to its hi ghest perf ecti on. I n consequence, there is the F our of
C ups, L u x u r y , to be enjoyed. Thi s may occur i n the us ual , vul gar
sense of the wo r d : t hough some perfected Adept s rejoice i n the
unashamed l ux ur y of a h un k of freshly baked bread and a glass
of good, pure water, f i n di n g here greater deli ghts t han the gour
met di n i n g of the f asti di ous epi cure. Thi s i s har dl y s ur pr i s i ng,
since the F our of Swords, Truce, di spl ays the psyche at peace
With itself. The F our of Di s ks declares the r e war d: Power.
This may come t hr ough i n many ways : i n d i v i d u a l c hari sma;
80 81
a wo r k of art or science; remarkabl e business apt i t ude; sporti ng
pr of i c i enc y or medi a presence one mi ght even be f amous for
bei ng f amous on account of n o t h i n g i n part i c ul ar. I n any event, a
l ast i ng mar k i s made up o n the envi ronment . N o w comes the
greatest cri si s of a l l . H a v i n g attai ned to the supreme l evel of
A de p t s h i p possi bl e t o any h uma n bei ng, y o u have t o gi ve up all
that y o u have and a l l that y o u are to the Uni ver se Itself. Yo u
even have t o gi ve up your prec i ousl y wo n super-consciousness.
' Yo u have to leave the House of L o v e, as they c al l the F ourth
Ho us e. Y o u are qui te, quite naked; y o u must take off your
husband-cl othes, and your baby-clothes, and a l l your pleasure-
clothes, and your s ki n, and your flesh, and your bones, every
one of them must come ri ght off. A n d then y o u must take off
y o ur f eel i ng clothes; and then your i dea clothes; and then what
we c al l y o ur tendency clothes wh i c h y o u have al ways wo r n and
wh i c h make y o u what y o u are. Af t er that y o u take off your
consciousness clothes, wh i c h y o u have al ways thought were
y o ur very o wn self, and y o u leap out i nto the c o l d abyss, and
y o u can' t t hi nk h o w l onel y i t i s. There i sn' t any l i ght , or any
pat h, or anyt hi ng to catch h o l d of to hel p y o u, and there i s no
F ai ry Pri nce any more: y o u can' t even hear his voi ce c al l i ng you
to come o n. There's no t hi ng to tel l y o u wh i c h way to go, and
y o u feel the most horri bl e sensation of f a l l i n g away f rom
everyt hi ng that ever was. Yo u' v e got no n o t h i n g at a l l ; you
don' t kn o w h o w a wf ul i t a l l is. Y o u wo u l d t urn back i f you
c o ul d onl y stop f al l i n g ; but l uc ki l y y o u can' t. So y o u f al l faster
and faster; and I can' t tell y o u any more. '
( C r o wl e y : The Wake World f r o m Konx Om Pax.)
Onc e agai n the Tarot is the supreme gui de to thi s, the greatest
cri si s of a l l i ni t i at i ons. There i s no pat h f r o m 4 to 3. Y o u just
have to take a leap in the dark, as the Exi stenti al i sts advocate.
A n d i f one g r ai n of ego remai ns, the result w i l l be not a Master
but a monster. A l l that can br i n g one t hr o ug h i s L o v e , given
freely and wi t h o ut c o n di t i o n , t o and f or A l l .
I t i s h ar dl y s ur pr i s i n g , therefore, that the pat h wh i c h leads to
3 ( Underst andi ng) f r o m the Beauty an d H a r mo n y of 6 i s
po r t r ay ed by VI The L over s. The experience i s not termed a
M ys t i c M a r r i a g e f or no t hi ng . Y o u have to mate the deepest and
finest and grandest wi t h i n y o u wi t h A l l wi t h o ut y o u .
Here one s ho ul d r emi nd the reader of C r o wl ey ' s 0 = 2 equat i on,
wh i c h expresses the nature of the Uni verse. I t is the shortest and
simplest way of expressi ng: 0 = (+1) + (-1). If we l o o k at the
manifested Uni ver se, we f i n d that each and every phenomenon
has its opposi te. I n other wo r ds , as the Yi n - Ya n g s y mbo l i nf orms
us, the Uni verse manifests as pai rs of opposi tes: male and female,
positive and negative. I f we put these pai rs of opposites together,
they cancel out to No t h i n g . Hence 0 = 2. A n d hence The L overs,
i n wh i c h the opposites are mated and an n i h i l at i o n ensues.
O ur second gui de t hr ough the A by s s between A c t u a l and
Ideal i s VI I The C h a r i o t . The pat h runs f r o m 5 to 3. The
charioteer i s ar med wi t h a l l weapons but he bears the H o l y
Gr aal i nt o wh i c h one must gi ve every last dr o p of one's o wn
bl ood, keepi ng back n o t h i n g . T hi s t r ut h i s stated ti me and ti me
again i n the magni f i cent tales of the quest for the H o l y Gr a a l :
M al o r y ' s Morte d'Arthur (Not Tennyson' s) is its supreme ex
pressi on i n E n g l i s h . K i n g A r t h ur ' s kni ght s are the bravest,
toughest, most i ntel l i gent an d most c hi val r ous beings on the
earth but they must give up their a l l for the H o l y Gr a a l .
There has been a f or es hadowi ng of this i n A t u XI L ust , i n
wh i c h O u r L a dy B A B A L O N wh o ri des up o n The Beast bears the
H o l y Gr a a l f i l l e d wi t h the bl o o d of the saints wh o m She has
slaughtered. One i s r emi nded of an A me r i c a n book, wr i t t en
many years ago f or wo me n but equal l y appl i c abl e to men; i t i s
c al l ed The Power of Sexual Surrender.
I n Si r Thomas M a l o r y ' s recensi on of the Gr a a l Quest, onl y
f our kni ght s reach the stage of The C h a r i o t . Si r L anc el ot receives
a v i s i o n of the Gr a a l but cannot go f urther, for his adul t ery wi t h
Gui nevere i s no t r i v i a l sexual adventure; i t i s a bet rayal of hi s
Oat h of L o y a l t y s wo r n t o hi s K i n g . I n M a g i c k, y o u cannot break
an O a t h . Si r Ga l a h a d, the Pure F o o l , comes to the Gr a a l and
dies. One does. A n d i f the death i s ph y s i c al , one wo u l d wel c ome
i t. Others l i ke Si r Ga l a h a d are s i mpl y si lent.
Si r Perceval comes to the Gr a a l after wh i c h he is a hermi t f or a
year. As Vo l t ai r e recommends, he culti vates hi s o wn garden.
82 83
T h en he dies wi l l i n g l y and gl adl y. The cases of Si r Ga l a h a d and
Si r Perceval have their paral l el s i n T her avada ( Hi nayana) Bud-
dh i s m, whereby the i deal i s to become an A r h a t , one wh o has
attai ned unt o that Not hi ngness wh i c h i s termed N i r v a n a .
Ho we v e r , i n M a y a h a n a B uddh i s m the i deal i s to become a
B odhi sat t va, one wh o w i l l not accept the r ewar d of Ni r v a n a
un t i l a l l sentient beings have equal l y at t ai ned. I n M a l o r y ' s ac-
count , this i s symbol i sed by Si r Bors, wh o must be a hermi t for a
year, then r et ur n to the court of K i n g A r t h u r to recount his
experiences. T hi s too i s the case wi t h the maj ori t y of Adept s who
reach the exal ted state of M ast er. Yet it is not exal ted, f or there is
N o t h i n g to exalt. There i s just a l i ttl e pi l e of dust and ashes; but
a star i s i gni t ed bel ow the Aby s s and wi t h i n the h uma n bei ng and
i t li ves and moves and has its bei ng, to a l l appearances bei ng no
di f f erent f r o m anyone else.
A c aut i onar y wo r d i s i n order here. I n the West ern T r adi t i on,
there is somet hi ng c al l ed the O a t h of the A by s s . Its most im-
port ant secti on consists of sweari ng to regard each and every
event as a deal i ng between the Uni ver se and the Self. Thi s of
course appl i es to the most t r i v i a l matters, i n c l udi n g an adver-
tisement seen on t el evi si on or a change i n traf f i c l i ght s. I t wo ul d
appl y also to the event of bei ng gi ven a c up of unsati sf actory tea.
I t s h o ul d be obvi ous to any attentive reader that it is har d to
di s t i n g ui s h this state f r o m that of p a r a n o i d psychosi s, or one
i nduc ed by a p o we r f ul dose of L S D or that of a s mal l c h i l d. The
last anal ogy is the closest. I t is si mi l ar very s i mi l ar to,
t hough not preci sely i dent i c al wi t h the state of bei ng under
c onsi der at i on. One of the f i ner sayings at t ri but ed to Jesus C hri st
i s: ' Except ye be as l i ttl e c h i l dr e n , ye s hal l i n no wi se enter the
k i n g d o m of heaven' . I n the Western T r a di t i o n , i t i s not for
n o t h i n g that this state is termed: the Babe of the A by s s .
F or 1900 years, the recei ved wi s d o m was that one d i d not
dare to swear the O a t h of the Aby s s un t i l one became a perfected
A de p t i n 4. Thi s i s sound teachi ng and s t i l l appl i es but the
t we n t i e t h c ent ur y has wi t nes s ed the most ex t r ao r di n ar y
changes. F or a start, there has been more t ec hnol ogi c al change
t han i n the prec edi ng 1900 years put together. A l s o , times are
cri t i cal to the s ur v i v a l of this planet. Theref ore there has been an
acceleration of e v o l ut i o n and certai n ti me h o n o ur ed rules have
been rel axed. I n consequence, as C r o wl e y stated, anyone genu-
inely on the Pat h can at any stage swear this O a t h of the Aby s s .
A n y o n e wh o does so runs the most a p p a l l i n g ri sks. I ndeed,
the present wr i t er wo u l d argue st rongl y f or the mai ntenance of
t r adi t i onal wi s d o m on the grounds that he does not l i ke the
casualty li sts. F or i f y o u do i t at the wr o n g ti me and f or the
wr o n g reasons, y o u w i l l be back t o the Ten of Swor ds ( Rui n) and
al l y o ur good wo r k w i l l be reduced t o r ubbl e. The usual penal
ties for the abuse of M a g i c k and M y s t i c i s m are t ot al loss of
c o mmo n sense, complete absence of h umo ur , rage at the slightest
c r i t i c i sm and egoti sti cal megal omani a. T hi s i s a l l too l i ke l y at the
earliest stages but here the disease must be wi t nessed to be
bel i eved.
We can f i n d an excellent case study of this phenomenon i n
Frater A c h a d , C harl es Stansf i eld Jones, a l eadi ng di sci pl e of
Alei ster C r o wl e y . He got d o wn t o wo r k wi t h the earnest, prac t i c al
self -di sci pli ne wh i c h di sti ngui shes the best Amer i c ans . H i s early
di ari es, p u bl i s h e d in The Equinox III 1 ( aka The Blue Equinox)
are fi ne examples of what a magi cal di ary s ho ul d be and one's
study is greatly augmented by the comments of M a j o r F ul l er
his supervi sor and later a M aj o r - Gener al and creator of Blitzkrieg
and more so, Al ei st er C r o wl e y . I n A me r i c a 1915, C r o wl e y
perf ormed an operat i on wi t h one 'Sister H i l a r i o n ' (aka Jeanne
Foster) to beget 'a magi c al Son' . I n complete i gnorance of this
Oper at i on and preci sely ni ne months later, Frater A c h a d ( Uni ty)
swore the O a t h of the Abys s and became a Babe therei n.
At f i rst, i t seemed that a l l was we l l . Achad/Jones di sc overed
the ma t h e ma t i c a l ke y to The Book of the Law t hat ex t r aor -
di nary doc ument di ctated t o C r o wl e y i n C a i r o A p r i l 1904 by a
Praeter-human I ntelligence wh i c h key i s 31. T hi s techni cal
matter is beyond the scope of this treatise. I t suffices to state that
the matter was predi c t ed i n The Book of the Law itself.
Yet after that, A c h a d went wr o n g . Af t er wr i t i n g some very fine
Work on Qa ba l a h a n d hi s wo n d r o u s Hymns to the Star Goddess,
it is f ai r to state that he made a complete prat of hi mself. He
i nverted a l l the paths on the Qabal i st i c Tree of L i f e wi t h no
di scerni ble benefit to anyone, i n c l udi n g and especially hi mself. He
went ar o und ' di s pel l i ng the veils of i l l us i o n . ' I n theory, this i s sound.
I n hi s practice, it was not, for he wandered about the streets, naked
beneath a rai ncoat, do i n g what any sane person wo u l d c al l ' flash-
i n g ' , to the great shame of al l connected wi t h h i m. F or a time he
j oi ned the R o ma n C at hol i c C h ur c h , h o p i n g f o r l o r n l y t o convert an
organi sat i on predi cated up o n the p i t i f ul and evi l noti ons of guilt
and si n to a way wh i c h regards these as di sgust i ng perversions:
needless to say, he made no headway there. The classic tale of the
J ones/Achad f ol l y and f atui ty has been related in one of the many
excellent books of F ranci s K i n g . Jones was t r yi ng to mend his car i n
the street. He t ri ed for many hours over t wo weeks wi t h o ut any
success. F i nal l y a nei ghbour wh o knew of Jones' venerati on for
C r o wl e y sarcastically suggested that a readi ng of The Master' s
poetry to the car mi ght mend matters.
'I 've t ri ed that, ' sai d Jones, ' and she just dr i ps o i l . '
I n a f i n a l burst of i nani t y, J ones/Ac had anno unc ed i n the late
F orti es that the A g e of H o r u s the C h i l d , H o r u s the G o d of War,
H o r u s the G o d W h o states that we must reali se ourselves as
ani mal s before we can become as Go ds an d Goddesses, the Age
pr o phes i ed by C r o wl e y t o f o l l o w the A g e of the M o t h e r and
the A g e of the F ather Isis and Os i r i s h a d been aborted
before i t h a d even p r o p e r l y got st art ed; an d was abol i shed i n
f av o ur o f the A e o n o f M a a t p o r t r ay e d i n A t u VI I I Adj ust -
ment the A e o n of T r ut h an d Justi ce. T hi s i s i ndeed p r o p h -
esi ed i n The Book of the Lawt o f o l l o w the A e o n o f H o r us and
of course one l o o ks f o r wa r d to its appearance wi t h i n some
hundr eds of years but any newspaper can i n f o r m one that i t
i s not here n o w an d anyone wh o t hi nks i t i s c an nei ther see
wi t h eyes nor hear wi t h ears. I f we wan t that to come about, we
w i l l have t o f i ght and f uc k f or i t. T hat i s wh a t the A e o n of
H o r u s i s about . We must l i berate ourselves f r o m ext ernal and
i n t er n al t yr anny by f i g h t i n g , then come closer to one another
by f u c ki n g . W i t h L o v e we can come t h r o ug h thi s c r i t i c a l tran-
s i t i o n and make a better wo r l d .
The Book of the Law aboli shes i tself a t the ri ght t i me, un l i ke
any other pr ophet i c wr i t i n g . I t gives us the Signs f or wh i c h we
must l o o k i n its T h i r d C hapt er, Verse 34.
' But your h o l y place shal l be unt ouc hed t hroughout the centu
ries: t hough wi t h fire and s wo r d i t be burnt d o wn & shattered, yet
an i nvi si bl e house there standeth, and shal l stand un t i l the f al l of
the Great E qui n o x ; wh e n Hr umac h i s shal l arise and the doubl e-
wa n de d one assume my throne and place. An o t h e r prophet shal l
arise, and br i n g fresh fever f r o m the ski es; another wo ma n shal l
awake the lust & wo r s h i p of the Snake; another s oul of Go d and
beast shal l mi ngl e i n the gl obed pri est; another sacrifice shal l stai n
the t omb; another ki n g shal l rei gn; and blessi ng no longer be
po ur ed T o the Ha wk- h e a de d myst i c al L o r d ! '
Wher e d i d Achad/Jones go wr ong? M o s t wo u l d argue that he
took the O a t h of the Aby s s at 10 ( M a l kut h ) an admi t t ed fact
and the qua n t um j ump i nt o 3 ( Underst andi ng) was too muc h
for h i m ; he h a d not l earned enough t o be wo r t h a n n i h i l a t i o n . Or
else, he d i d it f or the wor s t possi ble reason he wan t ed to be a
Master. I f y o u wa n t to be a M ast er, y o u haven' t a hope i n h e l l .
Yo ur desire i s the measure of y o ur egot i sm.
The present wr i t e r has unf ort unat el y wi t nessed far too many
p r o mi s i n g candi dates a ddi n g thei r names to the casualty l i st out
of a s i l l y desire f or M as t er s h i p . The result i s a bun c h of mal ad
justed, mal c ont ent ed, mi s al i gned n i n c o mpo o ps k n o wi n g l i ttl e
but t h i n ki n g they kn o w a l l and i mp o s i n g o n the g ul l i bl e wi t h
ps yc hol ogi c al tri cks wh i l e they wander away i n the waste.
T oo many forget that wi t h i n each Sephi r ah of the Tree of L i f e
there i s another Tree. M a n y do i ndeed cross an A by s s and of ten:
but they f a i l to realise that they have o n l y crossed it in 10 or 9 or
8 or 7 or hi gher and y o u must cross i t agai n and agai n an d
agai n. Do i t f or its o wn sake. I f any part of y o ur mot i ve to be a
M ast er forget i t. Y o u ' l l never get there. Y o u haven' t got i t. At
this stage, even the noblest a mbi t i o n i s an egot i st i cal vi ce.
The truths wh i c h the Tarot states about 3 B i n a h , Under
st andi ng, as we must not forget, appl y to the true c rossi ng of
the Aby s s and therefore also to every c rossi ng wi t h i n the l ower
Sephi rot h wh i c h reflect It. The Three of Wands i s c al l ed Vi r t ue .
86
87
T h i s i s a wo r d wh i c h has been grossl y debased. I t i s a wo r d
exal t ed by a ver y p o p ul a r but very feeble movement c al l ed The
N e w A g e . On e sighs i n despai r over its f at ui t y.
T h i s movement i s essenti ally we l l - i n t e n t i o n e d. H o we v e r , i n
the c r i t i c a l ti mes i n wh i c h we l i v e , g o o d i nt ent i ons alone are
def i ni t el y not enough; acti ons must mat c h wo r ds a n d there are
f ew t hi ngs more c ont empt i bl e t han f i ne wo r ds f o l l o we d by
shabby acti ons. The present wr i t e r i s aware that he may have
man y N e w A g e readers. He regards t hem as bei ng honestly
mi s g ui de d at best. There i s c ert ai nl y no di sgrace i n bei ng ho n-
estly mi s g ui de d: i t c an happen to the best of us. H o we v e r there i s
no excuse f or not t r y i n g to do thi ngs better t han before.
' Vi r t u e ' i s a very N e w A g e wo r d . Wher e does i t come f rom? I t
comes f r o m the L a t i n Vir a M a n . The R o ma n Virtus therefore
expresses heal thy, nat ur al mal e qual i t i es. I n these c urrent , de-
generate ti mes wh i c h the H i n d u s r i g h t l y c a l l the Kali Yuga,
the D a r k A g e we f i n d a feeble f l o p i n the present compre-
hens i o n of ' v i r t ue' . W o u l d y o u rather meet a v i r t uo us ma n or a
v i r i l e man? The answer i s obvi ous t o a l l wh o have not been
bemused, abused an d c onf used by l udi c r o us not i ons of what i t
means t o be ' s p i r i t ua l ' , another N e w Ag e buz z wo r d .
The wo r d ' s p i r i t ua l ' , wh i c h used t o mean s o met hi ng i mpor -
tant, has l i ke ' v i r t ue ' degenerated i nt o me an i n g somet hi ng fee-
bl e, l i ke a c up of sc ummy, l u k e wa r m mi l k . W o u l d y o u rather
meet someone wh o i s s p i r i t ua l or someone wh o i s spi ri ted?
A g a i n , the ques t i on i s as easy as the answer i s o bv i o us .
N e w A g e readers are st rongl y urged t o c onsi der the f o l l o wi n g
p r o p o s i t i o n s , p r o mp t e d by Vi r t ue the 3 of Wan ds i n B i n ah
( Underst andi ng) an d c ert ai nl y not i n s p i r e d by the s o r di d
mot i ves wh i c h enable those wi t h a l i t t l e but not mu c h occult
kn o wl e dg e or under s t andi ng t o make mo ney f r o m p an de r i n g t o
the prej udi ces of sai d readers. The present wr i t e r hopes and
trusts that the present reader i s not a g ul l i bl e dupe.
a - N e w A g e i s merel y softened d o wn a n d tarted up C h r i s t i a n i t y ;
an o ut mo de d r e l i g i o n once adhered t o by p r i mi t i v e ma mma -
l i a n pri mat es based u p o n l udi c r o us not i ons o f s i n a n d gui lt-
U n d e r C h r i s t i a n i t y , perf ec t l y n a t ur a l desires were c al l ed
' s i n f ul ' . U n de r N e w Ag e , y o u s t i l l have t o be g ui l t y as s i n f or the
same, f or the wo r ds an d phrases are ' un s p i r i t ua l ' what ever
that may mean or ' not v i r t uo us ' . What ever wo r ds are used,
peopl e s t i l l end up f eel i ng gui l t y over perf ectly nat ur al an d
honour abl e feelings l i ke l ove, hate, lust, anger et al.
b - N e w A g e i s i nt el l ec t ual l y sl oppy. I f y o u are N e w A g e , y o u c an
beli eve a n y t h i n g y o u l i ke as l o n g as i t doesn' t wo r k .
c - N e w A g e i s h o r r i bl y mi ddl e class. I n c o mmo n wi t h any
sensible i n d i v i d u a l , the present wr i t e r does not care i f y o u are
upper class, mi ddl e class or wo r k i n g class: it's just that i f you' r e
mi ddl e class, y o u s h o ul d do somet hi ng about i t. I n E n g l a n d, at
any rate, the upper classes and the wo r k i n g classes share the
same code of h o n o ur : observers are c onf used too of t en because
the same code i s expressed i n di f f erent f orms of the E n g l i s h
language. A l t h o u g h there are thank heavens! excepti ons,
the average mi ddl e class i n d i v i d u a l has no code of honour.
A n y o n e wi t h no code of ho no ur i s a slave. I t doesn' t matter i f
y o ur chai ns are of g o l d or of plasti c y o u are s t i l l a slave. T hi s
i s wh y one c an a l l too of ten see crass examples suc h as those
wh o bleat about c hangi ng the wo r l d , then freak out l i ke a shel l -
shoc ked i n v a l i d on account of a cigarette bei ng s mo ked wi t h
j oy i n a Gl as t o n bur y t ea-room. T hi s i s wh y one can hear
wh i n g e i n g nonsense whenever there i s a seri ous medi t at i o n
practi ce f r o m some N e w Ag e twi ts wh o wh i n e t o be excused on
the qui c ksands of: ' O h but we' re prof essi onal medi t at ors. '
H o w i s a ' prof essi onal ' medi t at or t o be di st i ngui shed f r o m one
wh o meditates? apart f r o m the o bvi o us fact that they' re
p r o babl y c o n n i n g the g ul l i bl e f or money? N o . T hi s wo n ' t do at
a l l a n d it' s h i g h ti me someone sai d so.
d - N e w A g e i s di shonest. The beliefs its adherents h o l d c o nt r a-
di c t one another. I f y o u are N e w A g e , y o u c an be a H i n d u an d
a B uddh i s t . H i n d u s beli eve that there i s a s o ul (attnan). B u d -
dhi sts beli eve that there i sn' t (anatta). Y o u can' t beli eve bo t h
at the same t i me. Yes, of course, it is sai d that above the
A by s s , a l l c ont r adi c t i ons resolve themselves. T h i s i s true as
the Tarot shows us but the present wr i t e r doubt s i f there
are c ur r ent l y more t han 93 i n di v i dua l s on the gl obe capabl e of
88
89
ma t i n g the c ont radi c t i ons i n s el f - anni hi l at i o n. B el ow the
A by s s , Reason i s K i n g . Facts must be accurate an d L o g i c must
be coherent. Unl ess y o u get that ri ght , y o u w i l l get not hi ng
ri ght at a l l and N e w Ag e doesn' t.
e - N e w Ag e consists of senti mental sl op, cateri ng to hal f - wi t t ed,
pani c-stri cken, middle-class prejudice. The Uni verse is not l i ke that.
L et us remember, therefore, that the M ast er has spi r i t and vir
and vir appl i es exactly to an ac kno wl edged female M ast er li ke
M a da me Bl avat sky and pass on to the Three of C up s , A b u n -
dance. Once y o u have transcended a l l that y o u c al l ed y o ur Self,
y o u w i l l be gi ven a l l that y o u need. Needs vary. A n d y o u yourself
must gi ve to those needs, f or the more y o u gi ve, the more i t wi l l
be renewed. The p r i n c i p a l job of the M ast er wh o has attai ned to
Un de r s t an di n g i s qui et l y to tend a s mal l garden of di sci pl es who
w i l l one day sit al ongsi de h i m as pi les of dust casti ng f o r t h a star
unt o M a n k i n d . I n the g i v i n g i s the A bun da n c e , for this We l l c an
never be exhausted.
A p p r o p r i a t e l y enough, the Three of Swords i s c al l ed Sorrow,
another Na me f or 3 B i nah. I n this state of Un der s t an di n g , one
perceives the Pai n of Exi stence. I t a l l seems to be such a waste.
There i s a l l this agony and for what? H i n d u theologi ans have
yet to answer the questi on as to wh y a Self o r i g i n al l y perfect
(atman) i n Not hi ngness f r o m wh i c h a l l i s created (Brahman)
s h o ul d enter i nt o mani f ested Existence (Maya = I l l usi on) solely
i n order to ret urn i ntact and perfect to B r ah man . Buddhi st
theologi ans have yet to ex pl ai n the po i nt of i t a l l .
B uddh i s m is the most l ogi cal l y coherent of al l the organised
reli gi ons. Its founder, Gaut ama for ' buddha' means si mpl y ' En-
tightened One' the man wh o was bo m a Prince and di ed a beggar
for the sake of human evol ut i on, declared F our No bl e Trut hs: -
1 - Exi stence is Suf f eri ng.
2 - The cause of Suf f eri ng is C r a v i n g .
3 - The cessati on of suf f eri ng is the cessati on of c r av i n g .
4 - The Wa y to this cessati on is the f o l l o wi n g of the Nobl e
E i g h t f o l d Pat h.
T h i s , as any prac t i si ng B uddhi s t can i n f o r m one, consists of
ei ght pr i nc i pl es of c onduc t and ment al t r ai n i n g . B u d d h i s m i n the
f o r m k n o wn as H i n a y a n a or T her avada i s Sout hern B u d d h i s m
and closest to the o r i g i n a l teachings of Gaut ama. The system i s
appr opr i at el y si mpl e. The i dea i s to stop exi st i ng. Those wh o
i magi ne that N i r v a n a i mpl i es some k i n d of self -consci ous bli ss
are merel y engagi ng i n a c o wa r dl y wi s h - f ul f i l me n t fantasy. I f the
Wh e e l of Exi stence (Samsara) wh i c h consists of seemi ngly end
less i nc arnat i ons, i s Suf f eri ng, then N i r v a n a ( Non-Exi st ence)
shows us the wa y out. We stop exi st i ng.
A n d Suf f eri ng ends.
' B i r t h i s M i s e r y .
L i f e i s M i s e r y .
Deat h i s M i s e r y
But Resurrec t i on i s the greatest M i s e r y of a l l . '
Thus runs the great, t i me- honour ed wi s d o m of B uddh i s m. No
ble i ndeed. Yet they s t i l l haven' t t o l d us the po i nt of i t a l l . We
come i nt o suf f eri ng i n order to stop suf f eri ng we l l , that makes
l oadsa sense, doesn' t it?
Sma l l wo nder that dur i n g his B uddh i s t phase 1901-4, Al ei st er
C r o wl e y sent hi s f ri ends N e w Year postcards sayi ng s i mp l y :
' Wi s h i n g y o u a speedy t er mi nat i on of Exi stence. '
I n the Three of Swords of the Tarot, one reaches the p o s i t i o n
a dv a n c e d by H u m e i n A Treatise of Human Nature a n d An
Enquiry Concerning Humdn Understanding. T h er e i s no G o d
and there is no Self and there is no C ause and there is no reason
t o believe i n an y t h i n g whatsoever. O u r mi nds are f or med merel y
t hr ough what H u me calls ' c ust om an d habi t ' . One c o ul d also
c al l i t 'genetics and c o n di t i o n i n g ' .
The c l ar i t y of this eighteenth century Scotti sh phi l osopher i s
utterly remarkabl e so is the fact that he states B uddhi s t
p h i l o s o p h y and psyc hol ogy wi t h such precise exacti tude. Eve
r y t h i n g depends on the tendencies of the mi n d , wh i c h tendencies
are themselves wh o l l y unpredi c t abl e. We mi ght expect an appl e
to taste l i ke an appl e because it has done so one m i l l i o n times
before. Yet the next time we may be sur pr i sed to f i n d that i t
tastes l i ke a pot at o. M o r eo v er , our mi nds mi ght have changed so
muc h that we expect it to taste l i ke a potato an y way one
never kn o ws . A c c o r d i n g to H ume and nobody, but nobody,
90 91
has been able to refute hi s reasoni ng, f r o m K a n t to Bert rand
R us s e l l and after our consci ous beliefs have no basis i n fact
an d an y t h i n g mi g h t happen at any second.
Wh a t i s the Self? H u me asks. S i mp l y a successi on of thoughts
an d feelings wh i c h change constantl y an d wh i c h i mp l y no cen-
t r al u n i f y i n g i dea of ' i dent i t y' .
Wh a t i s 'cause'? H u me asks. M e r e l y an obser vat i on of one
event us ual l y f o l l o we d by another event wh i c h leads us to as-
sume that there i s some myst eri ous ' c ausal ' c onnec t i on between
t hem. T hi s sounds as unbel i evabl e as M a g i c k .
The Three of Swords (Sorrow) also covers Hume' s f i n al posi t i on.
H a v i n g demonstrated that there i s no reason at a l l to believe i n
anyt hi ng whatsoever, he asks honestly whether he hi msel f believes
hi s o wn wr i t i ngs . Obv i o us l y he does at the time of wr i t i n g , but he
confesses that subsequently he w i l l see f ri ends, dr i n k wi n e and play
a game or t wo of bac kgammon, wh i c h actions w i l l make h i m as
muc h a creature of c ust om and habi t (i.e. genetics and condi ti oni ng)
as anyone else. What , then, is the poi nt of Phi l osophy? Hume
answers: just a pleasant way of passi ng the ti me.
There is also the Trance of Sorrow. Its nature and its significance
to Western M a n have been br i l l i ant l y expl ored, for instance, by
C o l i n Wi l s o n i n The Outsider. The outsi der i s one wh o 'sees too
deep and too muc h ' , bec omi ng i n consequence, ali enated f r o m the
herd and its mat eri al concerns; for he i s appal l ed by the f ut i l i t y of al l
h uma n endeavour. Buddhi sts c al l this the Trance of Sorrow. Others
mi ght term i t ' an exi stenti al cri si s' . A l l wh o have experi enced i t
agree on three poi nt s: the feeli ng is one of bitter agony; eventually
one becomes consci ous of a ravenous hunger and i nf i ni t e yearni ng
suspected in themselves to be futi le for some secret glory
wh i c h w i l l restore essential meani ng to l i f e; and i t changes one's
f undament al poi nt of vi ew for a li f eti me. I t i s this experience wh i c h
starts so many up o n the Quest. A n d at this ex t r aor di nar i l y exalted
stage of 3 (Binah) we f i n d at this end what was at the begi nni ng,
onl y after a deeper and i nf i ni t el y more p o we r f ul manner.
F i n a l l y , i f we l o o k obj ecti vely at this beaut i f ul pl anet of ours,
we w i l l be tempted to respond to the p a i n up o n i t and the sheer
s t upi di t y wh i c h governs i t by c r y i n g our eyes out f r o m our heart.
I t s h o ul d be wi t h reli ef, then, that we dr y our eyes, heave a
si gh wi t h a great, deep breath and t ur n to wh at we can do
about i t. T hi s i s s h o wn wi t h the ut most c l ar i t y by the Three of
Di s ks Wo r ks . N o t h i n g can happen unless there i s ac t i on. I f we
wi s h t o i mp r o v e somet hi ng, wo r ds alone wo n ' t do i t. Go o d
i ntenti ons alone c ert ai nl y wo n ' t achieve an y t h i n g at a l l . Wo r k i s
what count s.
T hi s is a pi t y or at least it appears so i n i t i a l l y because
wo r k c an come over as bei ng such a bore. Someti mes one wo u l d
rather do an y t h i n g other t han wo r k . One can be l i ke the ma n
wh o s ai d: ' I l ove wo r k . I can sit and l o o k at i t for h o ur s . ' There i s
also mu c h to be sai d f or wh at that fi ne and unj ust l y neglected
arti st A r t h u r M a c h e n i nsi st ed up o n i n prai se of i dleness, ' con
c er ni ng wh i c h so muc h cant and false doc t r i ne have been
preac hed. ' E v e n so, onl y wo r k can make the I deal A c t u a l .
T oday many people l i ke to t hi nk that they are enli ghtened. They
mi ght be ri ght. Af t er a l l , we l i ve i n strange times and sometimes
mi racles do happen. The trouble is that so many of these people
wh o c al l themselves enli ghtened don' t do anyt hi ng about i t. L i t t l e i s
conveyed to anyone else other than a false sense of superi ori ty. The
fact i s that i t doesn't matter h o w enli ghtened y o u are or h o w
enli ghtened y o u may fancy yourself to be: unless y o u wo r k to earth
that enli ghtenment, the game is not wo r t h the candle.
Al ei s t er C r o wl e y descri bed hi msel f i n hi s Bibliographical
Note to The Book of Thoth as 'the lazi est man i n three c o nt i -
nents! ' yet also wr ot e and meant i t an d s ho wed i t:
' To advance that means Wo r k . Pati ent, exhaust i ng,
thankl ess, of ten be wi l de r i n g Wo r k . Dear sister, i f y o u wo u l d
but Wo r k ! Wo r k bl i n dl y , f o o l i s hl y, mi s g ui dedl y , i t doesn' t
matter i n the end: Wo r k i n itself has absolute v i r t ue . '
(Magick Without Tears)
Whet her we are genui nel y at the state of M as t er s h i p or
whet her we are ref l ect i ng i t t hr o ug h progress on a l o wer l evel ,
the Tree of L i f e an d its Paths as expressed by the Tarot conti nues
to be our gui de, phi l o s o pher and f r i e n d. T hi s i s especi al l y true of
X V I I The Star, the Pat h wh i c h leads f r o m 6, where we centre the
Self, to 2 C h o k m a h ( Wi s dom) where we have transcended the
92 93
Self an d are way bey o nd i t. The Star port rays N U I T , Goddess of
I n f i n i t e Space a n d the I nf i ni t e Stars thereof . I n The Book of the
Law she cries ' To me! To me! ' and ' To l ove me i s better than al l
t hi ngs, ' an d 'seek me o n l y ! T hen the joys of my l ove w i l l redeem
ye f r o m a l l p a i n . T hi s i s so: I swear i t by the vaul t of my body; by
my sacred heart and tongue; by a l l I can gi ve, by a l l I desire of ye
a l l . ' F i n a l l y at this poi nt-event, f or one can onl y exhort the
reader to t ur n to the o r i g i n a l ' Si ng the rapt urous l ove-song
unt o me! B ur n to me perf umes! Wear to me j ewel s! D r i n k to me,
f or I l ove y o u ! I l ove y o u ! '
We are al ways bei ng t o l d that we s h o ul d go ar o un d g i v i n g out
more l ove t han we do. Thi s i s true enough t hough i n the
present wri t er' s experi ence, the maj ori t y of people do a decent
job of i t under very di f f i c ul t ci rcumstances. A far greater di f f i -
c ul t y i s t h e acceptance o f l ove f r o m another. E mo t i o n a l li fe i s
harsh f or most. T o ug h people wh o are the best people and
usual l y the most sensitive somehow s t i l l manage to gi ve love
yet a l l too often cannot accept i t. I t is h a r d to believe that one
c o ul d be l o ved utterl y and t ot al l y s i mp l y f or bei ng wh at one is.
Yet this is just wh at the Goddess does.
Too muc h nonsense has been wri t t en about the Goddess by Ne w
Age theologians wr i t i n g on somethi ng called ' Wi c c a' i t used to be
cal l ed Wi t c hc raf t . They seem to want to give the Go d castrati on and
the Goddess a cli torectomy. By their accounts, the Goddess of the
Stars, sky, mo o n and earth i s a terri bly ni ce, wel l -i nt ent i oned and
properl y brought up y o ung l ady i n a f l oppy, f lower-patterned L aura
As hl ey dress and she smiles a lot, dri nks herb tea, says we shoul d al l
be a bi t nicer to one another and i mpl i es that too muc h sex is, we l l ,
y o u kn o w, a bi t messy. They make Her sound l i ke the best sort of
trendy, schoolteachi ng n un t hough let us not forget that N u n , the
Hebr ew letter wh i c h means F i sh, corresponds wi t h the Tarot
T r ump XI I I Deat h. Thi s not i on of the Goddess i s a rather si l l y f i b.
Whenever it is advanced, the present wri t er is remi nded of the
conceited y o ung man wh o want ed to embarrass the Duke of
Wel l i n g t o n soci al l y and wh o therefore greeted h i m at some f unct i on
wi t h the wo r ds : ' Go o d af ternoon, sir. M r . Smi t h, I beli eve. ' 'If y o u
believe that,' the I ron Duke repl i ed, ' y o u w i l l believe anyt hi ng. '
The Goddess can be l et hal , l us t f ul and bl oodt hi r st y. The
H i n d u s see this cl earl y enough i n thei r wo r s h i p of K a l i . Yet the
Goddess can also be the gentlest, greatest and most l o v i n g force
i n the Uni verse. A l l we have t o do i s accept He r L o v e .
I f we can do that, i f we can onl y c omprehend that i n the stars
wi t h o ut us, there i s somet hi ng i nf i ni t el y greater and i nf i ni t el y
more l o v i n g t o wh i c h we aspi re, then we can move f r o m the
qui et passi vi t y of Under s t andi ng i n 3 to the acti ve Wi s d o m of 2.
I n or der t o do that suc c essf ul l y, we w i l l need V The
Hi e r o p h an t , wh i c h Pat h leads f r o m 4 to 2. On one l evel and i t
s h o ul d be obvi ous by n o w that one of the p r i n c i p a l joys of the
Tarot is that it is mul t i - l ev el l ed the Hi erophant - st ands f or the
Teacher or Gu r u wh o gets y o u t o l earn h o w t o j o i n h i m as an
equal . The troubl e is that there are very few of these peopl e
about wh o are genui ne. The few wh o are, w i l l pr o babl y show
complete di si nterest i n keen students anyway. They are sick and
t i red of casti ng pearls before swi ne, of bei ng energised by fi ne
wo r ds then di s i l l us i o n ed by shabby acti ons. Pr obabl y these days
they w i l l t el l y o u t o go away and do some wo r k an d ask t hem i f
y o u have any questi ons. A s k i n g people to do some wo r k i s the
best wa y of getti ng r i d of useless wastrel s.
These ex t r aor di nar y peopl e, wh o are very h a r d to f i n d , are
n o t h i n g l i ke the vast maj ori t y wh o pose as ' teachers' or 'mas
ters'. Y o u can spot these latter and di sgrac ef ul sorts f ai r l y si m
p l y : they al ways want to have power over y o u. As the seventh
E a r l of T anker vi l l e (unjustly?) accused Al ei st er C r o wl e y : ' I ' m
sick of y o u al ways teachi ng, teachi ng, teachi ng, as i f y o u were
Go d A l mi g h t y and I were some poor, bl o o dy shi t i n the street.'
These charlatans and post uri ng c l owns, wh o m one i s a l l too
l i kel y to meet on the occult scene, s houl d be shunned more than one
wo u l d shun H I V carriers. Y o u mi ght be l uc ky enough t o meet a
genuine Teacher, t hough y o u probabl y won' t unless it's essential
and you' re ready for i t. There's not hi ng y o u can do about i t anyway.
M a n y advance t hrough discamate teachers: here I refer not to
mysteri ous entities whose very existence is a matter f or debate, but
to the authors of good wri t i ngs. As L o r d M ac aul ey ri ght l y stated:
' A good book i s the preci ous l i f e-bl ood of a master spi ri t . '
94 95
F i n a l l y , as the late Dr. I srael Regardi e i nsi st ed to me ti me and
ti me agai n, the best teacher of a l l i s wi t h i n y o u . Do i t yoursel f .
I n the C r o wl e y - H a r r i s ver s i on of the Tarot, the Hi e r o p h a n t i s
po r t r ay ed wi t h the Goddess beneath h i m as the source of hi s
power. One c o ul d wr i t e an entire v o l ume on this theme but f or
our present purposes this shows a ri ght mat i n g between the r i ght
and left h an d hemi spheres of the br ai n , and between the mas-
c ul i ne and f emi ni ne wh i c h co-exi st i n each and every h uma n
bei ng. We must become aware of and l i st en to the deepest and
nobl est er upt i o n of spi r i t wi t h i n us.
We understand our spi ri t by f l o wi n g wi t h our Nat ur e, as f ul l y
demonstrated by III The Empress, wh i c h leads f r o m 3 Under -
st andi ng, i t w i l l be remembered to 2, Wi s d o m. Do what t hou
wi l t shal l be the who l e of the L a w i s the obvi ous c ommandment for
this stage of evol ut i on. I t bi ds water to f l o w d o wn i n seeki ng its o wn
l evel , it bi ds sheep to eat grass and it bi ds wol ves to eat sheep.
Ho wev er , the society i n wh i c h we have h ad the mi sf ortune to be
l i v i n g , i s so cock-eyed and cack-handed as to encourage and r ewar d
unnat ur al conduct, qui te contrary to the instincts of humani t y. Thi s
i s wh y people actual l y have to enquire h ar d as to what constitutes
the W i l l . So unnat ur al are our times that learned psychologi sts and
phi l osophers have even doubt ed whether there is such a phenom-
enon as the W i l l or not. As Schi ller has i t: ' Wi t h st upi di t y, the Gods
themselves argue i n v a i n . ' A l l y o u have t o do i s resolve t o h o l d your
breath for, say, 93 seconds by your wat c h and i n keepi ng your
wo r d t o yourself, you wi l l f i nd out what W i l l is.
The purpose of M a g i c k, Yo g a , Ze n , Suf i s m et a l . , i s so that
y o u can f i n d out wh at y o u are here t o do and then do i t. E v e n so,
a s ur p r i s i n g number of peopl e i n our beni ghted times are so cut
off f r o m the i nner spi r i t and f i n d talk of Tarot, M a g i c k and
M y s t i c i s m to be so ' c r anky ' as opposed to bei ng sensible
techni ques f or the accel erati on of y o ur o wn e v o l ut i o n that
they ask h o w t o f i n d thei r o wn True W i l l . At least there i s a
r o ug h an d ready rul e of t humb techni que. We have feeli ngs. I f
as the Empress wh i c h i s Nat ur e declares i f i t makes y o u feel
g o o d, do i t. I f i t makes y o u feel bad, don' t do i t. T hat i s the best
r o ug h gui de to the W i l l and i t i s accurate i n at least ni ne cases
out of ten. T hi s cannot be sai d f or many rules or gui des; nor
s h o ul d we f orget that there i s al ways i n this Uni ver s e ' a f actor
i nf i ni t e and u n k n o wn ' .
Go l d e n rul es, so-c al l ed, s h o ul d al ways be wei g hed and con
si dered c aref ul l y. F or i nstance, h o w does one defi ne ' evi l ' ? The
present wr i t e r does not believe i n the C h r i s t i a n G o d and by the
same t oken, he does not believe i n the C h r i s t i a n D e v i l . There i s
no o r gani s i ng force of E v i l i n the Un i v er s e. There i s rest ri c t i on of
Nat ur e and there i s mess. Ho we v e r , as a r o ug h an d ready rul e of
t humb, i f y o u can onl y feel good by ma ki n g other peopl e feel
bad, then y o u are e v i l .
The Empress reinforces The Star and the centre piece of The
Hi e r o p h a n t i n that the female, the f emi ni ne and the wo ma n l y
are stressed and ri ght l y. Once agai n, too muc h r ubbi s h i s t al ked
about this matter. O bv i o us l y men and wo me n are equal but
what sane h uma n bei ng has the slightest patience wi t h l oony,
f emi ni st nonsense? I f we rename San F ranci sco' s ' F i sherman' s
Wh a r f , ' F i sherperson' s Wh a r f as has been done, and i f we
rename my Rot hman' s cigarettes ' Rot hpersons' cigarettes, we w i l l
go nowhere and achieve no t hi ng . The same can be sai d of those
humourl ess, sel f -proc l ai med ' f emi ni sts' whose aggressive behav
i our and self -consci ously mascul i ne ' slob clothes' wo u l d disgrace
a dr un ke n sai l or on a bad ni ght i n Belfast. At the same ti me, any
sane man must f i ght for the ri ght f or wo me n to have equal ri ghts
soci al l y, p o l i t i c al l y and economi cal l y.
I t i s t y p i c a l of our times wh i c h times are f ort unat el y
c hang i ng that men and wo me n , wh o were made f or one
another, waste so muc h energy i s quarrel s an d separat i on. One
must r et ur n to basics if there is to be any sense here. The t roubl e
wi t h wo me n let's face i t i s that they' re s i l l y bi tches. The
t roubl e wi t h men let's face it is that they' re s t up i d sods. I f
men and wo me n onl y under st ood this si mpl e, basic t r ut h, then
we ' d a l l get al o n g a who l e lot better.
There i s more, of course. We b u i l d f r o m a basic t r ut h . As
C r o wl e y stated, i t i s the nature of M a n to penetrate as i t i s the
Nat ur e of Wo ma n t o enclose. Thi s i s cert ai nl y true bi o l o g i c al l y
an d tends to be true on most other planes as we l l .
96 97
T h e proper study o f M a n k i n d i s M a n , ' wrot e Al e x an de r
Pope, the most quot ed author i n the E n g l i s h language after
Shakespeare, and o bv i o us l y M a n i s a generic t erm here f or M a n
and Wo ma n , arguabl y the most f asci nat i ng st udy on E ar t h.
' M e n are stronger, wo me n are tougher, ' is just one of the gems
one f i nds . 'If men h ad the babies, the h uma n race wo ul d' v e di ed
out centuri es ago, ' is another. A s L at i n macho af i c i onados never
tire o f t el l i ng one, i t is the cojones balls wh i c h make a man:
true, yet the par adox is that the testicles are the most acutely
sensitive part of the male anatomy. There is also that fine
C hi nese pr o ver b: ' M e n t hi nk and ask wh y . Wo me n dream and
say W h y N o t ? '
A g a i n , a treatise c o ul d be wr i t t e n on the subject and many
have been i ssued. Here there i s onl y ti me and space f or remarks
i n s pi r ed by The Empress. We l earn He r lessons by the study of
Na t ur e . F or i nstance, there i s a classic M an ' s p r o bl e m. The male
ego doesn' t ask muc h i n l i f e: merely appl ause f or breakfast, an
encore at l unc heon and a st andi ng o v at i o n at di nner. U n f o r t u-
nately, most men wo r t h y of wi n n i n g those trophi es f r o m a
c o mpl i an t wo ma n usual l y get bored wi t h her wi t h i n a year and
r un after some heartless bi t c h.
E qual l y , there i s a classic Woman' s p r o bl e m. I t i s: wh y i s i t
that the men I f i n d domest i c al l y c ompat i bl e bore me shitless and
the men I f i n d sexual l y exc i t i ng are domest i c al l y abomi nabl e?
There i s also the p uz z l i n g pr o bl em of female emot i onal maso=
c hi sm. Wh y is it that the best advi ce one can give to a teenage boy
wh o wants to l ay a respectable teenage g i r l i s s i mpl y to i nf uri ate
her mother? Wh y is it that the best way not to seduce a wo ma n is
to t ur n up punc t ual to the mi nut e, i n a smart sui t done up on the
mi ddl e but t on c ar r y i ng a bottle of champagne, a box of choco
lates and a bunc h of red roses al l graced by a soupy, wel l - meani ng
beam? I t is har dl y masochi sti c for a wo ma n to ki c k a r i di c ul ous
f o o l l i ke that but then wh y mi ght a wi se man t ur n up an hour
late f or the same g i r l , reeki ng of beer and p i c kl e d oni ons, sl oppi l y
dressed and bl i t hel y obl i vi ous of any suggestion that he mi ght be
out of order as he tumbles casually i nto bed wi t h her? Sensible
men do rather wi s h that wo me n di dn' t force them i nt o do i n g that
sort of t hi ng, amusi ng t hough i t can be on occasi on. As a c o l d
matter of fact, most men want to treat a wo ma n we l l .
I t i s i nteresti ng t o consi der h o w we l l C r o wl e y ' s o p i n i o n has
st ood the test of ti me. He thought that a l l wo me n were mo t i -
vated by one of three p r i ma r y dri ves: The M o t h e r ; The Wi f e ; and
The Wh o r e . A l l have their proper f unc t i o n t o f u l f i l and a l l are
wo r t h y of equal respect. The M o t h e r f ul f i l s her W i l l t hr o ugh her
c h i l dr e n ; the ma n wh o i mpregnates her and protects her nest i s
secondary. The Wi f e f ul f i l s her W i l l t hr o ugh the best man she
can f i n d ; the c h i l dr e n she bears h i m are secondary. The Wh o r e
puts herself f i rst and f ul f i l s her W i l l by i t: bot h men and c h i l dr e n
are secondary. T hi s i ncl udes career wo me n . But i t must be very
p l a i n l y under st ood that the t erm ' Wh o r e ' here possesses no
derogatory c onnot at i on whatsoever. At its best, one i s r emi nded
of the ei ghteenth century E n g l i s h p r o n un c i a t i o n , ' hoor' , an d
hence of the di v i n e angels wh o mi ni st er to the war r i o r s of the
M u s l i m Paradi se, the houris. A whor e i s s i mp l y a free wo ma n
wh o uses her body i n accordance wi t h her w i l l . She i s on no
account to be conf used wi t h a prosti tute. T h o ug h a mi n o r i t y of
whores have recourse to prof essi onal pr o s t i t ut i o n wh e n short of
money, prosti tutes are n o r ma l l y wo me n wh o do somet hi ng they
don' t l i ke for money wh i c h they need.
There i s for the present purpose a f i n a l lesson i n The Empress.
B o t h M a n and Wo ma n can onl y evol ve by o peni ng up t o and
accepti ng Nat ur e and the A i l - P o we r f u l F emale wh o i s present
bot h wi t h i n us and wi t h o ut us.
At 2 we move f r o m recepti on i nto acti vi ty. At the most exalted
level it is sai d that onl y eight men have ever attained to i t: L a o - T z u,
Si ddart ha (Gautama); Kr i s h n a; T ahut i (Thoth); M oses; Di onysus;
M o h a mma d ; and Perdurabo ( C rowl ey) . Eac h one brought a new
T r ut h for humani t y summed up i n one Wo r d and each one was
mi sunderst ood. Even so, each one had a job to do and di d it.
The T wo of Wands, Do mi n i o n , shows that one wo r d can have the
power to shake life on earth to its foundati ons by alteri ng funda
mentally the t hi nki ng and feeling of humani ty. A beggar dies of
dysentery i n an I ndi an gutter Gaut ama B uddha yet his Wo r d
A N A T T A ( No God) alters the life experience for countless mi l l i ons i n
98
99
the many centuries wh i c h come after h i m. An illiterate ex-camel
dri ver catapulted to the head of an obscure but war l i ke A r a b desert
tribe dies sayi ng: 'Please remember I was a man. Just a man, '
M o hammad yet his Wo r d A L L A H (God) transforms the M i ddl e
East and brings c i vi l i sat i on to the West of the di s mal Dar k Ages. An
elderly heroi n addi ct expires f r o m cardiac arrest brought on by a
li feti me of di ssi pated excess i n an E ngl i sh resi denti al hotel reminiscent
o f Fawlty Towers C r o wl e y yet his Wo r d T H E L E M A is daily
affecting events on the globe as the Berl i n Wa l l falls, the Sout h A f r i c a n
government repudiates aparthei d and more and more are starting to
t hi nk for themselves. Nat ur al l y, unless we have D o mi n i o n over our
o wn thoughts, they w i l l have Do mi n i o n over us and we wi l l be slaves,
vi cti ms of every fleeti ng wh i m and passi ng i mpul se. Thi s cannot be
sai d of anyone wh o has ever f ul f i l l ed wor ds t hrough acti on.
' L o v e i s t h e l aw, l ove under wi l l , ' as The Book of the Law
states, so i t s h o ul d h ar dl y surpri se us to f i n d that the T wo of
C up s i s L o v e . F or ' There i s no bo n d that can uni te the di v i de d
but l o v e. ' The very nature of the Uni ver se i s f or each element to
seek its opposi t e. L o v e i s the un i o n of opposi tes, the un i o n of
pol ar i t i es. I f we cannot feel l ove i n our hearts, we w i l l feel
n o t h i n g very muc h , thank y o u . I t i s the greatest strength i n the
wo r l d other than W i l l ; yet i t f ul f i l s W i l l through its yi el di ng.
The T wo of Swo r ds , Peace, shows the stage wh i c h comes about
wh e n a l l wi t h i n and a l l wi t h o ut are c omposed t o thei r appr o -
pri ate stati ons. T hi s i s i ndeed that Peace of wh i c h mysti cs have
s poken, that ' peac e. . . whi c h passeth a l l un der s t an di n g . '
E v e n this does not last for ever. N o t h i n g does, apart, o bv i -
ousl y, f r o m N o t h i n g . The T wo of Di s ks remi nds us of what we
s h o ul d have k n o wn before i f we do not realise i t n o w, that the
nature of the Uni ver s e i s C hange. Thi s i s one reason wh y that
unf at ho mabl y wi se C hi nese B o o k of Wi s d o m , the I-Ching i s also
c al l ed The Book of Changes. A l l thi ngs change a l l t h e ti me.
Wh e n we can percei ve the nature of these changes and al i gn
ourselves to t hem, we can wo r k wi t h t hem so as to affect a l l to
the advantage of everyone. T hi s i s what the M a g i do .
There are three Paths to the Supreme in 1 Kether, wh i c h is the
ac t ual i sat i on of Go dh e a d. The Priestess goes f r o m 6 to 1. On the
M i d d l e Pi l l ar , between F orce and F o r m, between posi ti ve and
negati ve, between also the sun of T i phar et h and the Sun behi nd
the Sun (Sirius) i n Kether, and un i t i n g them i n L o v e , The Priestess
of the Si l ver Star gives her A l l to E v e r y t h i n g yet remai ns eternally
a v i r g i n . T hi s last may appear par ado x i c al yet i t i s not muc h more
than sayi ng that the Uni verse i s i n a c ont i nuous process of Its o wn
renewal and hence perpet ual l y new every spl i t second.
I t i s L o v e alone that can take one t hr o ug h the A by s s . There
must be an i nner, ac hi ng urge f or u n i o n wi t h the A l l , as repre
sented by the Goddess N U I T . O n l y then can one attai n H A D F T ,
one- poi nt ed i dent i f i c at i o n i n ecstasy wi t h the star one i s.
The M a g us goes f r o m 3 (Bi nah) to 1. T hi s experi ence essen
t i al l y consists of per c ei vi ng the mani f ested Uni ver s e to be an
I l l us i o n . H i n d u s and Buddhi st s percei ve this as M a y a , the Great
M a g us and maker of i l l u s i o n . One can o n l y r espond by concen
t r at i ng ever yt hi ng i nt o one poi nt .
The M a g us also shows the C urse l a i d up o n those wh o at t ai n
to H i m . They have to preach the W o r d f or the current state of
e v o l ut i o n on earth. They have t o teach and enl i ght en h uman i t y .
As i f this wasn' t a suf f i c i ent l y thankless and gr i sl y fate, they
k n o w also that the truths they utter w i l l be mi s under s t o o d and
c o r r upt ed bel ow the A by s s , that thei r truths are a l l i l l u s i o n , to
wi t l i es. Yet they s t i l l have to do i t.
On e wa y out of wh a t c o u l d be agony of s p i r i t i s t o treat the
wh o l e t h i n g as a cosmi c j oke a n d burst out l a ug h i n g . I f we
can' t l a ug h at the sheer abs ur di t y of i t a l l , there i s not mu c h
hope f or our c o n t i n ue d sani ty. The mani f est ed Un i v e r s e i s the
c o n t i n uo us i n t e r p l ay o f L o v e bet ween N U I T an d H A D I T
the I nf i ni t el y Gr eat an d the I nf i ni t el y S ma l l and i n thei r
c o n t i n uo us c o p ul a t i o n i s an i n f i n i t y o f j oy. As N U I T has i t i n
The Book of the Law:
' I am above y o u and i n y o u . M y ecstasy i s i n y o ur s . M y joy i s
to see y o ur j o y '
A n d a s H A D I T states:
' Remember a l l ye that existence i s pure j oy; that a l l the
sor r ows are but as shadows; they pass and are done; but there
i s that wh i c h remai ns. '
100
101
0 The F o o l goes f r o m 2 to 1. At its most exal t ed, i t i s too far
beyond h uma n concepti ons to be rendered capable of descri p-
t i o n . I t i s the state k n o wn as The I psi ssi mus. N o t h i n g sensi ble
can be sai d about i t at a l l .
Ho we v e r , one can s t i l l j oke. Wh o on earth i s The I psi ssi mus?
H i s / H e r O a t h f orbi ds the di v ul g i n g of the fact. One mi ght
pi c t ure The I psi ssi mus i n some T i bet an fastness, lost i n si lent,
myst i c c o nt empl at i o n. One mi g ht pi c t ure the I psi ssi mus mo v i n g
st eal t hi l y behi nd the scenes of wo r l d events so as to i nf l uence
t hem. These c h ar mi n g l y r omant i c not i ons may be course be true:
but i t i s v i t a l to remember that i t i s equal l y l i ke l y that The
I psi ssi mus i s a pot at o f armer i n I owa. E qua l l y we l l , he mi ght be
l i v i n g next door t o y o u .
On a l o wer l evel ref l ecti ng this supreme state, The F o o l i s an
ecstatic state of g o i ng . E v e r y t h i n g changes, ever yt hi ng goes. It's
a l l go f r o m the start. One can feel i t as a gi gant i c spasm of
di v i n e l y enrapt ured i n t o x i c at i o n .
At 1, there are the F our Aces pure energy.
I n Kether, W i l l , L ove, M i n d and Body are a bl azi ng uni ty i n
the star one i s wi t h i n the bo dy of N U I T .
Wh a t lies beyond? The Tarot doesn' t tel l us. Here we go
beyond the W o r d and the F o o l . The Qabal i st s speak of the Three
Vei l s o f the Neg at i v e; A i n Soph A o u r , A i n So ph an d A i n
L i mi t l es s L i g h t , Wi t h o ut L i m i t and N o t h i n g .
The ul t i mat e fate of each an d every star i s suc c i nc t l y stated i n
The Book of the Law.
' There i s the di s s o l ut i o n and eternal ecstasy i n the kisses of N u . '
Epilogue
One mi ght we l l ask, h a v i n g d r a wn a l l t o a po i nt an d anni hi l at ed
I t i n I nf i ni te Space, wh at i s the po i nt of i t all?
I t is t hought by a number that a star goes f or countless
i nc arnat i ons i n order to experience every at om of Itself i n ac t i on.
I t goes to be t ot al l y consci ous of Itself. I n the g o i n g , there is joy.
The F o o l shows i t, for The F o o l goes f or and rejoices i n every
experi ence.
I t i s very i nteresti ng but ul t i mat el y un p r o duc t i v e to speculate
too muc h about these v i r t ua l l y i nc omprehensi bl e matters. Eve-
r y t h i n g i s a Po i nt - E vent an d that's that.
O u r ti me wo u l d be better spent deal i ng wi t h ourselves i n the
here and n o w on earth. I n the Tarot, we have pr ac t i c al tools f or
i mp r o v i n g ourselves and i ncreasi ng our c ompr ehensi on of thi ngs
a r o un d us. The Tarot i s not the onl y set but i t i s an excellent one
and its el asti ci ty i n r el at i on to other sets i s a di st i nc t advantage.
A bo v e a l l else, the Tarot i s there to be used.
The reader may be exhausted but the subject i s not. T hi s book
s i mp l y outl i nes the bare bones of the matter: it is f or the student
to gi ve i t bl o o d and f lesh i t out. Research i s sorel y needed i nt o
t wo subjects so deep and c ompl ex as to be outsi de the scope of
this treatise: Tarot and A l c h e my ; and Tarot and the System of
M a g i c k k n o wn as E n o c h i an . I n bot h areas there are mi nes of
wi s do m.
' Yo u' r e n o t h i n g but a pack of c ards! ' A l i c e exc l ai med i n
Wo n de r l a n d; but one wo u l d a d d : ' What c ards! '
M a y the Tarot ai d the reader i n g o i ng t o awareness and
enl i ghtenment. M a y T h y W i l l be done wi t h L o v e i n the vast and
starry Uni ver se i n wh i c h we l i ve and move and have our g o i ng ,
Space wi t ho ut E n d , A U M G N .
102
103
A PPE N D I X A
THE LESSER BANISHING RITUAL
OF THE PENTA GRAM
F ace East
1 - T o uc h the f orehead, say A T O H ( Unto Thee)
2 - T o uc h the breast, say M A L K U T H (The Ki n g do m)
3 - T o uc h the ri ght shoulder, say V E - G E B U R A H (and the
4 - T o uc h the left shoulder, s a y V E - G E D U L A H (and the Gl o r y)
5 - C l as p the hands up o n the breast, say L E - O L A H M , A M E N
( Unto the Ages, Amen)
6 - M a k e the Bani shi ng Pentagram of E ar t h (i llustrated). Say
I H V H . (Pronounced Y E - H O - V A U o r Y O D - H E H - V A U - H E H )
7 - T ur n to the Sout h, the same, but say A D O N A I .
8 - T ur n to the West, the same, but say E H E I E H .
9 - T ur n to the N o r t h , the same, but say A G L A .
10 - T ur n to the East. Ext end the arms in the f o r m of a cross.
E xt end the legs to make the Pentagram of your body. Say:
11 - Before me R aphael ;
12 - B ehi nd me Ga br i e l ;
1 3 - On my ri ght hand, M i c h a e l ( Pronounced M I - K A Y - E L )
14 - On my left hand, A u r i e l .
15 - F or about me flames the Pentagram,
16 - A n d i n the C o l u m n stands the si x-rayed Star.
17-21 - Repeat 1-5, the Qabal i st i c C ross.
NOTES ON PERFORMANCE
A - C ommenc e by vi s ual i s i ng yoursel f g r o wi n g i nf i ni t el y t al l and
up wa r d to the stars.
B - Reach out and above wi t h the ri ght h an d. See yoursel f t aki ng
L i g ht .
'see Aleister Crowley: Magick, A P P E N D I X VII L I BER 0 vel MA N U S ET
S A G U T A E , SUB F I GU R A VI section I V for sequence i n whi ch pentagrams
should be traced with wand.
104
C - L et the L i g h t blaze up o n your br ow.
D - At M A L K U T H , i magi ne y o u have dr a wn this L i ght do wn
t hr ough y o ur body f r o m top to toe.
E - I gnite it agai n at the ri ght shoul der and take it to the left,
f o r mi n g an i nt ernal A n k h of L i g h t wi t h y o ur head as the l o o p.
F - ' Say' means ' vi brate' sai d wo r d i n capi tals and the Names of
the A r c h - A n g e l s i f y o u choose. To vi brate i s s i mpl y to gi ve a
wo r d ma x i mu m sonic resonance by usi ng y o ur voi ce. M a ke i t
deep and sonorous; or give it the pi t c h of the h ummi n g - bi r d.
G - The f our Hebr ew Wo r ds wh i c h accompany the Pentagrams
are Hebr ew Names of Go d , to be f o un d i n The Bible.
H - L et the a r m s wi ng nat ural l y, goi ng wi t h a l l y o ur body, to
make bi g Pentagrams. I magine these dr a wn i n physi c al flame or
br i l l i ant laser l i ght . As y o u vi brate the Go d - Na me , vi suali se the
Pentagram bl az i ng .
I - To commence wi t h , i magi ne each A r c h - A n g e l as a p i l l ar or
p y r a mi d of br i l l i ant whi t e l i ght.
J - At (15), vi sual i se the Pentagrams bl az i ng a l l ar o und y o u and
wi t h i n y o u.
K - At 16, vi sual i se the Hex ag r am, the si x- poi nt ed star, on y o ur
spi ne, its topmost and bottom-most poi nts bei ng at c r o wn of
head a n d soles of feet.
L - Success is k n o wn by an unmi stakeabl e f eel i ng of cleanliness.
I t has been sai d that dai l y perf ormance of the Lesser B ani sh-
i ng R i t ua l of the Pentagram for six months it takes less than
f i ve mi nutes a day w i l l radi c al l y t r ansf or m one's li fe by
openi ng strong and hi dden depths of the spi ri t . The present
wri ter' s experience conf i rms thi s.
The Pentagram i s the di vi ne Star of M a n k i n d .
T H E P E N T A G R A M T H E H E X A G R A M
105
APPE NDI X B
An explanation of the symbolism contained within the cover painting
by the artist Rag.
The Tarot , c al l ed by some, the ' B ook of T h o t h ' i s related to the
sphere of H o d on the Tree of L i f e ; the number of wh i c h i s eight.
T h us , an eight spoked wheel i n orange, the c o l o ur of H o d , i s
po r t r ay ed wi t h an eye at its centre. T hi s eye i s the M a g i c k Eye
used to b u i l d up images on the astral pl ane, the pl ane where the
Tarot l i ves and moves. The eye i s also s ymbol i c of the u n i o n of
opposi t es, f or the blue l i ds f o r m the vesi ca of the Goddess, i n the
centre of wh i c h i s the bur n i n g red of the G o d . T hei r embrace
produces the p ur p l e , representi ng thei r balance and perf ec t i on i n
the f o r m of a c h i l d.
The purpose of the wheel i s mo t i o n and the eye directs this
mo t i o n . Together they symbol i se the G o d H a d i t , the mot i ve
force of the Uni ver se t r av el l i ng t hr o ug h the bo dy of the Star
Goddess N u i t wh o i s s h o wn as the bac kg r o un d of the ni ght sky.
She has 231 g o l den stars, each one of wh i c h i s l i ken ed unt o
H a d i t . 231 i s the s um of numbers of the Tarot t r umps , 0 to 21.
A l s o , by E n g l i s h Qabal a, 231 i s the number of ' ci rcumf erence' , a
wo r d used i n ' The B ook of the L a w' t o describe N u i t .
The wi n g s are a s y mbo l of ' g o i n g ' or f l i g ht and are green to
symbol i se that the nature of t r av e l l i n g i s l ove, f or green i s the
c o l o ur of Ve n us , the Goddess of L o v e . E ac h wi n g contai ns 18
feathers, together ma ki n g 36, wh i c h refers to the decans of the
z o di ac or segments of the Goddess t h r o ug h wh i c h the Sun G o d
passes. The serpent eati ng its o wn t ai l shows that this l ove i s
i n f i n i t e ; not bo un d by any one par t i c ul ar f o r m. I t i s l ove
be y o n d f o r m.
I t i s n o w seen that this ' wi n g e d wheel wi t h O p e n E ye' i s bui
the headdress of the E g y p t i a n G o d T h o t h , pat r o n of M a g i c k
wr i t i n g an d language wh i c h are qual i t i es o f H o d . He i s, l i ke h i :
R o ma n and Greek counterparts, M e r c u r y and Her mes , a mes-
senger. The Tarot is also a message, br i n g i n g the answer to ou:
quest i on or i n t ui t i o n to our reason.
The letters T . A . R . O . can also be wr i t t e n R . O . T . A . wh i c h
means wh eel . T hey are here used to show the cycle of the
elements as they occur i n T et r agr ammat on and ref erri ng to the
F o ur suits of the mi r r o r cards.
T. is Tet h, related to <|, the strangest of the F i re signs and thus is
here used as F i re.
A. i s A l e p h , the babe i n the waters of its mother an d thus i s here
used as Water.
R. i s Resh, the Sun, us ual l y related to A i r and thus i s used as ai r.
O. i s A y i n , related to y^, an earth si gn. A n d by its shape the letter
symbol i ses the receptive qual i t y and i s thus used to represent
the F emi ni ne aspect of E ar t h .
They appear i n the us ual c ol ours of these elements each bal anced
by its correct c ompl ement ary.
At the t op, the number of the Tarot cards, 78 can be seen
wi t h i n a ray of whi t e l i ght . T hi s ray i s M e z l a , the i nf l uence f r o m
above, the number of wh i c h i s 78.
The blackness between the spoke of the wheel is the ul t i mat e
v o i d f r o m wh i c h A l l has s pr ung .
106
107
FORTHCOMING TITLES FROM SKOOB ESOTERICA
Michael Harrison: Fire From Heaven
A thorough exploration of the phenomenon of Spontaneous Human Combustion
that is notwithout humour.
The Roots ofWitchcraft
Reprint of classic in depth work on witchcraft.
Victor B Neuburg: The Triumph of Pan
Originally published byAleister Crowley's Equinox Press in 1910. Out now
Three books byVeeVan Dam:
The Psychic Explorer pbk.
Concerned with astral projection and out of the body experience.
The Power of Mind and Consciousness
Creative visualization, meditation and subjectivejourneys through innerspace.
Star Craft
Discovering auric energies and working with devas.
E Graham Howe: The Mindofthe Druid pbk.
Meditations on the elemental origins of human psychology and faith. Out now.
Gerald Suster: The Truth About the Tarot pbk.
An illuminating, provocative, and instructive consideration of the tarot. Concise,
witty and wise.
Coming from Kenneth Grant
Remembering Aleister Crowley lllus.
What this memoir of the personal relationship between KG and Crowley in the
latter's last years brings to light will change the perspective of occult history. A
sjbtle wisdom and humour informs KG's commentary on their mutual correspon
dence.
Hecate's Fountain
Often Lovecraftian in ethos, the workings of Grant's Nuit-lsis Lodge have opened
the gates to an influx of alien magickal intelligence, which lies behind Grant's
revolutionary poetic and scholarly exegesis of Liber Al, and reveals the alchemic
potential of ourown bodies.
Subsequently the earlier volumes of the two trilogies will be reprinted.
Out now (with Steffi Grant)
Hidden Lore A4 lllus. Limited to 1000
By their studies of Crowley, Fortune, Spare, Lovecraft and the Tantric tradition the
authors have radically altered the direction of the 20th Century Occultism. A
distillation in ten essays. With tipped-in colour plates of Steffi Grant's paintings, it
constitutes a grimoire. Out now.
SKOOB O C C U L T REVI EW
SUBSCRIPTIONS
'Food reading for the thinking occultist.' Pagan News
10 per Year for 4 issues. Post free in U K.
Please specify issue number you wish subscription to start with.
T H E T R U T H A B O U T T H E T A R O T i s the f i rst t r ul y
p r ac t i c al ma n ua l of mag i c kal di v i n a t i o n by the r en o wn ed and
' provoc at i ve author, Ge r a l d Suster/Best k n o wn for hi s def i ni t i ve
. works on C r o wi e y and Regardi e, Ge r a l d has battl ed t hr ough
f i ct i on, bi 6gra*phy, and a p r o l i f i c out put of articles i n the occul t
press agai nst the h y p o c r i s y and moral squeami shness that i s of ten
trotted out i n the name-of M a g i c k . %
T h i s bo o k tears away the subur ban mo r al i t y so of ten appl i ed
to the T ar ot , and i n its place provi des a prac t i c al met hod of usi ng
the cards as a r a di c a l , p o we r f ul , and dynami c i nf l uence i n
personal t r ans f o r mat i o n. Rather t han g i v i n g a
A
statk set of val ues,
Ge r a l d Suster encourages an i n di v i du a l j ourney of sel f -expi orat i qn,
c o mbi n e d wi t h an exhausti ve study of the arcana.
The reader w i l l not be c onf ront ed wi t h a merel i st of t erm* t o
memori se. I nstead, a t ho r o ugh i nt egrat i on wi t h the 'Jarot, must be
under t aken, i n wh i c h no facet of the i n d i v i d u a l i s left unt ouc hed,
by the powers and i nsi ghts encoded i nt o the cards by* the
u n k n o wn M ast ers wh o created i t AT he reader w i l l be left i n no-
doubt that the symbol s were devi sed wi t h matters .of far greater -
consequence i n m i n d t han mere ' f or t une- t el l i ng' , and the results
of wo r k i n g wi t h this bo o k s h o ul d be l i f e- t r ans f or mi ng. The onl y
' dar k stranger' one i s l i ke l y to encounter i s oneself.
UK PRI CE 4 . 9 9
ISBN 1-871438-07-1
9 TO
i l l
O c c ul t