Psychosomatic: (literally, mind [psyche] and body [soma] "willing to perform" [matos]); an adjective describing a physical illness or other condition caused or aggravated by a mental factor such as internal conflict or stress. In tarot circles it's generally acknowledged that attempting to divine someone's future medical condition in a diagnostic way is professionally and personally … Continue reading Health Readings: A Psychosomatic View
Tarot Theory
A Creative Approach to Weekly and Daily Draws
A common practice recommended to tarot beginners is to randomly pull one card each day and contemplate its meaning over the course of that day, with the goal of gradually mastering the complex art of interpretation. Unfortunately, this approach to learning can continue long after its initial usefulness fades; the "daily draw" becomes institutionalized and … Continue reading A Creative Approach to Weekly and Daily Draws
Buzzard Luck
"Just like a buzzard flyin' high in the skyI can't kill nothin', nothin' won't die"from "Buzzard Luck" by the Powder Blues Band AUTHOR'S NOTE: Don't expect this to be an entirely coherent ramble unless I find somewhere to take it after my preliminary comments. I've always prided myself on being able to read the tarot … Continue reading Buzzard Luck
“The Wall Was Too High” – A 9 of Swords Comparison
I've been reading Barbara Walker's excellent 1984 book, The Secrets of the Tarot: Origins, History and Symbolism, and have been gaining some valuable insights and inspiration from her brief essays on the Minor Arcana. In it she applies the Thoth title of "Cruelty" to the 9 of Swords while discussing it mainly in terms of … Continue reading “The Wall Was Too High” – A 9 of Swords Comparison
Isolation and Insight: The “Essence of Nine”
I just unearthed another random gem from Barbara Walker's book, The Secrets of the Tarot: Origins, History and Symbolism. One meaning she offers for the 4 of Swords is "insight generated by seclusion" and, judging from the obvious opportunity for introspection shown in the RWS version, I can see where she's coming from. The Thoth … Continue reading Isolation and Insight: The “Essence of Nine”
Tarot As “Wave-Form”
A wave is described as "a traveling disturbance that carries energy from one place to another." We might consider the flow of cards from one place (the first position) to another place (the last position) in a linear tarot spread to be a "wave-form," with observable peaks and troughs along the way (a mix of … Continue reading Tarot As “Wave-Form”
“Warring Archetypes”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: As my thinking on the Major Arcana continues to evolve, I occasionally experience an epiphany during my online tarot conversations. I was explaining my opinions about the most effective uses for the cards on the r/tarot forum, and was asked a question that sent me down an unexplored path. Having worked with tarot … Continue reading “Warring Archetypes”
Reversed Cards As “Interrogatories”
While working on my Pink Floyd essay, I used reversed cards to portray the questions posed in the song's lyrics as a way to distinguish them from the declarative statements made by the upright cards. "Can you feel me?" and "Would you touch me?" are two examples. This has me thinking that reversed cards might … Continue reading Reversed Cards As “Interrogatories”
Partly Dark with a Chance of Rain
Even as a naive young novice I was leery of making glib predictions with the tarot; my early work in astrology had taught me that there are few metaphysical absolutes and the Prime Directive was to offer the seeker an intricate synthesis of possibilities. There are a number of good reasons to avoid the practice … Continue reading Partly Dark with a Chance of Rain
Cosmic “Drop-Outs”*
*Alternate Titles: "Yet Another Screed on 'How Tarot Works' or 'The Things You Come Up With at 4:00 AM" Taking their cue from advances in astrophysics, science fiction writers at one time loved to talk about the "space-time continuum," mainly as a backdrop for their noodling over ideas like "curved space" and "worm-holes" as a … Continue reading Cosmic “Drop-Outs”*
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 