AUTHOR'S NOTE: Between the ages of 18 and 30, I lived through the 12-year period that saw the hippie zeitgeist reach its brief zenith and then fade. It was a heady time of boundless "New Age" enthusiasm for all things exotic in the realm of metaphysics, as well as the burgeoning of unique psychological and … Continue reading The Mystical Tide: Rising or Falling?
Cultural & Social Commentary
Rambling On: A Metaphysical Journey in Ten Phases
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Unsurprisingly, as I sit here lulled by the Florida sun and surf, I've momentarily run out of profound ideas for my daily deliberation. So permit me to ramble on a bit with an updated riff on a couple of old autobiographical posts. Things have been moving again, albeit glacially, and it's time for … Continue reading Rambling On: A Metaphysical Journey in Ten Phases
Tarot Syncretism*
*Syncretism: The union of different practices whose features may be synchronized to good effect. AUTHOR'S NOTE: I last weighed in on the subject of esoteric syncretism in divination with a pair of essays in April and May of 2024, and a recent encounter with the topic in an r/occult sub-reddit thread brought it to mind … Continue reading Tarot Syncretism*
Subjective Bias and Objective Transparency in Tarot Reading
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've long been a critic of the purely intuitive approach to tarot reading because I think it encourages subjective bias in the narrative, and when in a less charitable mood I've called it "subconscious navel-gazing" with no immediate objective confirmation. It's understandable that, were we to rely entirely on free-association from the images … Continue reading Subjective Bias and Objective Transparency in Tarot Reading
The Maverick Cartomant, Part 4: The Waite-Smith Tarot
AUTHOR'S NOTE: As I recently told one of my online tarot groups, I've saved "the worst for last." When compared to the majority of modern diviners, I'm very far off the beaten path in my dim view of the RWS deck. While the Waite-Smith (RWS) tarot may be the most popular deck in the world, … Continue reading The Maverick Cartomant, Part 4: The Waite-Smith Tarot
An Insurrection Panorama
"Pass the dynamite 'cause the fuse is lit"- from Riot in Cell Block #9 by The CoastersAUTHOR'S NOTE: Here I'm using my favorite sociopolitical deck, Brian Williams' PoMo Tarot, to pose the question "What are the prevailing circumstances for invoking the Insurrection Act in Minnesota?" (I decided that national/international politics and world events are still … Continue reading An Insurrection Panorama
A New Year, A New Agenda
AUTHOR'S NOTE: It's no secret that I've become thoroughly disenchanted with the populist pretensions of the online tarot community, to the point that I've decided to disengage from public conversation and return to private academic pursuits of a more esoteric nature. (I doubt the typical YouTube "talking head" will miss me or even notice.) I … Continue reading A New Year, A New Agenda
Esoteric Correspondences “In the Trenches”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've been inspired by something I just read in T. Susan Chang's Tarot Correspondences: Ancient Secrets for Everyday Readers to revisit a subject I covered a few years ago in my essay "Correspondences: How Much is Too Much?" (linked below). Her section on "putting it all together" provides useful techniques by which the … Continue reading Esoteric Correspondences “In the Trenches”
The Meaning(lessness) of Life: An Appreciation
AUTHOR'S NOTE: After chasing the esoteric implications of various forms of metaphysical practice for over five decades, I've finally concluded that, despite determined efforts to find the "meaning of life" therein, all of them nibble around the edges but never really deliver on the promise. First off, don't hand me any religious nonsense; I'm just … Continue reading The Meaning(lessness) of Life: An Appreciation
Online Tarot: Fishing for Meaning But Catching Only Noise
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here is another installment in my long-running "beating-a-dead-horse" criticism of online tarot as my impatience with its superficiality continues to simmer. I've reached a new low in my opinion of the self-indulgent shallowness exhibited by so much of what I see going on, and have retreated to my hermitage to contemplate it. I … Continue reading Online Tarot: Fishing for Meaning But Catching Only Noise
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 