AUTHOR'S NOTE: This essay - the third and final installment of my Thoth "deep dive" series - is by far the most challenging. Crowley's take on the Major Arcana was nuanced and complex, full of syncretic flourishes and just plain ol' mystical ambiguity. But at least his rarefied excursions into occult profundity were a product … Continue reading The Thoth Atu or Keys: Major Arcana in Brief
Tarot Resources
The Thoth Court Cards: Old and Trusted Friends
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is the second post in my three-part initiative to explore the Thoth tarot at a profound level that goes deeper than the card-by-card analysis I've already presented elsewhere in this blog. Here I'm tackling the court cards, for which I've always considered Crowley's compact explanations to be "some of the best out … Continue reading The Thoth Court Cards: Old and Trusted Friends
The “Glorified Pip Cards” of the Thoth Tarot
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Today I'm embarking on my promised "deep dive" into the Thoth tarot, beginning with the Minor Arcana. Note, however, that I'm not going to present an exhaustive card-by-card analysis of divinatory content; I've already done that in my posted "Tarot 101" course material, which is primarily Thoth-based, and in a more general way … Continue reading The “Glorified Pip Cards” of the Thoth Tarot
Thoth Preliminaries (and a Few Particulars)
AUTHOR'S NOTE: In yesterday's post I set myself the task of "taking a deep dive" into the Thoth Tarot, an esoteric deck I've been using since 1973. I will approach it more systematically in future essays, so here I'm only going to outline a few important details. My ultimate goal is to avoid repeating the … Continue reading Thoth Preliminaries (and a Few Particulars)
Breaking Into Spreads: A Beginner’s Syllabus
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here is another essay prompted by a "frequently asked question" from the online tarot community. Tarot beginners who follow the conventional wisdom of learning the cards one-at-a-time, both in a sequential "card-a-day" manner and via single-card pulls, are often unsure how they can break out of that narrow box and into more complex … Continue reading Breaking Into Spreads: A Beginner’s Syllabus
Rolling Back the Golden Dawn’s Syllabus
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've known for some time that those who prefer classical decks like the Tarot de Marseille to the esoteric reveries of the post-Occult Revival don't subscribe to the conflation of Hebrew letters and trump cards in general, and particularly not to the model proposed by the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. Rather … Continue reading Rolling Back the Golden Dawn’s Syllabus
A Tarot Grand Tableau: Cross-Cutting Heresy
AUTHOR'S NOTE: When Lenormand experts are confronted with the question of whether tarot cards can be paired with traditional Lenormand spreads, they sound the alarm and man the battlements. But in keeping with my current action-and-event-based approach to tarot, I can see how the Minor Arcana might be used in a manner similar to the … Continue reading A Tarot Grand Tableau: Cross-Cutting Heresy
The “Argent Helix” Second-Act Celtic Cross Variant
AUTHOR'S NOTE: In my essay yesterday I introduced the concept of a 15-card spread that is basically a Celtic Cross variant. Because it resembles a double ellipse (although a somewhat lopsided one like the lemniscate in the RWS 2 of Pentacles that suggests unbalanced change), and because tarot embodies the mystical nature of the Moon … Continue reading The “Argent Helix” Second-Act Celtic Cross Variant
Further Thoughts on the “Trump-Card Diamond”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Following up on my previous comments about inscribing an equilateral diamond (essentially a "tipped square") within the circumference of a circle, I decided to do just that with the double-triangle arrangement of trump cards from my earlier essay. Refer to the photograph below. (I did something similar with the pip and court cards … Continue reading Further Thoughts on the “Trump-Card Diamond”
A Ranged Approach to Event Timing
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Accurately predicting the time of occurrence for unscheduled events or the rise of unplanned circumstances is one of the thorniest challenges in divination. I still think the best way to pose timing questions is simply to ask "What will happen in my <insert situation here> over the next <week/month/year>?" However, it is possible … Continue reading A Ranged Approach to Event Timing
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 