"The security that arises from needs being met." This observation was presented in The Grand Etteilla regarding the nature of the 4 of Clubs (Wands). It equates the card with the process of "digestion" that succeeds the "generation" of the 3 of Clubs, but there is no mention of the "elimination" that must inevitably follow. … Continue reading Four as a “Closed Loop”System
Pips
The “Test of Strength” Developmental Insight Spread
As is probably obvious from my track record, I love to create spreads around cultural metaphors or analogies. This one is based on the "test of strength" games (aka "Strongman" or "High-Striker") that are popular at carnivals, in which the player uses a hammer to drive a metal striker up a vertical column with the … Continue reading The “Test of Strength” Developmental Insight Spread
A Utilitarian “Day-Trip” Event Planning Spread
While at a Maine beach yesterday I was thinking about how the tarot might be used for planning any kind of daily outing or event, covering circumstances such as weather, general comfort level, crowds and access (meaning "getting there and getting in"). It applies the 40 "elemental" minor cards and the astrological correspondences for the … Continue reading A Utilitarian “Day-Trip” Event Planning Spread
A Developmental “Reality-Check” Model
I consider the ten suit cards from Ace to Ten to show the developmental ideal for advancement of any conceivable situation. In order to do this we have to put a "good face" (or as good a face as possible) on all of them. This is easier to do with pip decks than with scenic … Continue reading A Developmental “Reality-Check” Model
Even and Odd Pips: Closed and Open Circuits
More useful insights from Paul Marteau's Tarot de Marseille book. I'm over half-way through it now and I'm not entirely sure I like his writing style; while his observations are generally coherent if a bit clinical, they tend to wander all over the spiritual, mental/emotional and material landscape without much disciplined organizational rigor other than … Continue reading Even and Odd Pips: Closed and Open Circuits
The Fives and Sevens: Transition and Improvement
In modern tarot practice, the Fives and Sevens are generally interpreted as difficult cards. But Paul Marteau, writing about the Tarot de Marseille in 1949, gave me a different perspective. It became apparent as I read his book that Marteau was heavily influenced by the numerological thinking of fellow Frenchman Joseph Maxwell in the latter's … Continue reading The Fives and Sevens: Transition and Improvement
A Tarot de Marseille “Energy Translation” Tableau
Here I align the seminal "root power" of the Ace and the linear binary projection of the Two with the "agency" of the court cards and the situational "ways and means" symbolized by the remaining pips to produce a developmental tableau that enlivens Tarot de Marseille delineation. Rather than following the esoteric assumption that only … Continue reading A Tarot de Marseille “Energy Translation” Tableau
The “Condensing and Concentrating” Cups
In his 1949 Tarot de Marseille book, Paul Marteau made frequent use of the term "condensing" when discussing the action of the suit of Cups on the emotional "vapors" (my word, not his) of the human psyche. The Cups are obviously vessels for holding liquid, and my fanciful take on Marteau's idea is that they … Continue reading The “Condensing and Concentrating” Cups
Pleasure and Fun, On The Double
This morning I was thinking abut the old Doublemint gum jingle and how it might be applied to the elemental dignities between the Minor Arcana in two-card sets. "Double your pleasure, double your fun!" But I switched it up a bit to create four "opportunities:" "Double your pleasure, double your pain;Double your money, double your … Continue reading Pleasure and Fun, On The Double
The Threes as “Feedback Loop”
In my reading I came across the assertion that the Two in tarot always represents an incipient action arising from the potential embodied in the Ace of its suit. (It shows the "first step" or initial outbound impulse that the static, self-absorbed Ace has only been pondering up to that point.) The imputed binary state … Continue reading The Threes as “Feedback Loop”
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 