The purpose of this essay is to inquire "At what point does (or should) a serious tarot scholar become a diviner?" The best answer to that comes from Aleister Crowley's Book of Thoth, at the beginning of Appendix A, "The Behaviour of the Tarot: Its Use in the Art of Divination," which I will quote … Continue reading “Inner Navigation” with the Thoth Tarot
Tarot Opinion
The “One-and-Done” Single Use Dilemma
There are at least four instances (and one related case) I can think of where a card in the tarot deck is limited to a single appearance in a reading when it might be reasonable (and in some cases necessary) to assume that it warrants more than one iteration. One of these is the 12-card … Continue reading The “One-and-Done” Single Use Dilemma
“Who’s Got the Ball?” – Court Cards As “Agency”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The ideas and practices described here are updated from those presented in at least one earlier post on the subject. It has always struck me that the court cards of a tarot deck have a fairly narrow range of usefulness in a reading (not to mention that they are often a source of … Continue reading “Who’s Got the Ball?” – Court Cards As “Agency”
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
“You’ll Fall Right In . . .” (b/w “The Beef Stew Annual Forecast Spread”)
A discussion I've been following on the "r/tarot" reddit board brought up the point that the tarot can be overused (or improperly used) in the search for personal awareness and advancement. It is a fascinating thread for what it reveals about the extremes some people will go to in overthinking their daily lives rather than … Continue reading “You’ll Fall Right In . . .” (b/w “The Beef Stew Annual Forecast Spread”)
Tarot 101 “Whys and Wherefores”
I've noticed a considerable increase in traffic on this blog lately, much of it coming from those new to tarot who are seeking beginner material. They are immediately confronted with a puzzle: why do I call my newbie stuff "Tarot 101, My Way" when what I've done is round up and judiciously condense the keywords … Continue reading Tarot 101 “Whys and Wherefores”
Chasing the Sun and Moon: The Astro-Psychology of the Major Arcana
According to the psychological astrology that had its roots in the groundbreaking work of Dane Rudhyar and Marc Edmund Jones and its initial flowering during the 1970s, the zodiacal (sign) placement of the Sun shows our Ego-center or, in more poetical terms, how we can "shine" most brightly in our personal self-expression (the house placement … Continue reading Chasing the Sun and Moon: The Astro-Psychology of the Major Arcana
A Reasonable Assumption
As regular readers of this blog know, I'm not an advocate of remote tarot reading of any kind although, with COVID keeping me away from "live" divination venues for the foreseeable future, I've been doing a few of them by email. The thought struck me that useful parallels might be drawn between the conventions of … Continue reading A Reasonable Assumption
Express Yourself
"It's not what you look likeWhen you're doin' what you're doin'It's what you're doin' when you're doin'What you look like you're doin'Express yourselfExpress yourself"- Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band Before we moved across the State, I had an occasional tarot reading gig at a local esoteric shop and then, after the … Continue reading Express Yourself
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 