Mainly for my own amusement, I spent some time superimposing elements of the American Justice System on the paths of my "re-imagined" version of the Hermetic (Kircher) Tree of Life. I started with the idea that Justice has to do with the "trial" in any judicial setting and Judgement speaks of the "verdict," and then … Continue reading The American Justice System Superimposed on the Astropsychological Tree of Life
Esoteric Tarot
The Astropsychology of the Tree of Life, Part 2: General Notes
Since the philosophical and hierarchical bases (beyond my First Principle that "Nothing is sacred") may not be perfectly clear for my comprehensive redistribution of the planets, signs and tarot trumps on the paths of the Hermetic Tree of Life , I decided to post my notes. My goals in reallocating the seven traditional planets to … Continue reading The Astropsychology of the Tree of Life, Part 2: General Notes
The “Higher Octave” Meditation
As a traditional natal and horary astrologer who typically uses only the seven planets of antiquity and their various modes of essential and accidental dignity, I don't assign zodiacal signs of exaltation to the modern (aka "trans-Saturnian) planets, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. In fact, I barely use those planets in my work at all, but … Continue reading The “Higher Octave” Meditation
The Astropsychology of the Tree of Life
AUTHOR'S NOTE: It's going to be another "two-fer" day for my readers since I decided to sneak this one into my usual "tarot brain-dump." It's not so much writing as thinking (way) outside the box. This is a liberal adaptation of the "standard" Hermetic (Kircher) Tree of Life that appears in most modern esoteric books. … Continue reading The Astropsychology of the Tree of Life
Foreground, Middle-Ground and Background Cards
Author's Note: For those of you who work with the esoteric tarot, this isn't a conventional explanation of the astrological decanates as they apply to the 36 minor cards (the Aces are a "special animal" in that regard) which mostly stop at sign and planet associations. I've expanded upon that model by looking more closely … Continue reading Foreground, Middle-Ground and Background Cards
Jungian Typology and the Four Elements
Twentieth Century psychologist Carl Gustav Jung subdivided the discriminating faculties of the human personality into four general "types:" sensation (encounters with the physical world that trigger our five bodily receptors); thinking (the intellectual function by which we process the evidence of our senses); feeling (the emotional ways in which we do the same thing); and … Continue reading Jungian Typology and the Four Elements
A Force Too Short (or Is It Too Long?)
Another curious phrase used by the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn describes the 8 of Swords as the "Lord of Shortened Force." To me, "shortened" implies too little of something, but in Liber T Macgregor Mathers had this to say: “Too much force applied to small things." I just can't see it in that … Continue reading A Force Too Short (or Is It Too Long?)
“Pleasure with Pain for Leaven:” Blended Satisfaction
I've often pondered what Macgregor Mathers intended by the description "blended pleasure" as a pejorative for the emotional state shown in the 4 of Cups. I had to stop and think "Blended with what, and to what end?" The purpose of blending two things is usually to improve the quality of one or both of … Continue reading “Pleasure with Pain for Leaven:” Blended Satisfaction
Temperance/Art and the Sagittarius Decans
Continuing with my exploration of the "meditation patterns" for the Minor Arcana from Jim Eshelman's Liber Theta, here are the patterns for the Sagittarius trump card, Temperance (Art in the Thoth deck), and the three decans of Sagittarius; I call this sequence "Art for Art's Sake." The Minor Arcana for Sagittarius are the 8 of … Continue reading Temperance/Art and the Sagittarius Decans
The Avatars of Tarot Past and Present
This morning I was thinking about the various "tarot factions" that exist and how I might write about them in a fresh (and satirical) way. The timeline for tarot-card development is fairly well-known, at least in broad terms: early Italian decks were appropriated by French, Swiss and German cartiers for the "Marseille" and "Besancon" styles, … Continue reading The Avatars of Tarot Past and Present
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 