AUTHOR'S NOTE: Along with pictorial iconography and suit-and-number theory, color symbolism plays a major role in our interpretation of the Tarot de Marseille cards, and some TdM authors have gone on at length about the significance of the different pigments used by 17th Century printers. I decided to stick my oar in the water. The … Continue reading The Colors of Compromise
TdM Material
A Bridge to Somewhere
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The title of this essay alludes to an episode from one of the Presidential terms of Bill Clinton during which he proposed building a bridge spanning the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. Conservative critics at the time immediately panned the idea as a costly boondoggle, a "bridge to nowhere" (which would almost certainly have … Continue reading A Bridge to Somewhere
Leveraging the French Cross: An Alternative to Yes-or-No Reading
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Conventional wisdom is that tarot is ineffective for addressing simple "yes-or-no" questions because it is more suitable for telling stories. I've always taken issue with this opinion, believing that the cards will provide an answer for any inquiry that is phrased properly. So rather than wanting to know "Will I or won't I … Continue reading Leveraging the French Cross: An Alternative to Yes-or-No Reading
“What is Dead May Never Die” – An Alternate Take on Death
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I should mention in advance that nothing you see here (or in any of my essays) is AI-generated because I believe resorting to AI "web-scraping" - when it isn't outright theft - depreciates the original contribution of creative artists and writers. (But artificial intelligence - isn't there an oxymoron in there somewhere? - … Continue reading “What is Dead May Never Die” – An Alternate Take on Death
“The Carrot and the Stick” – A French Cross Variation
AUTHOR'S NOTE: In this spread I'm using the French Cross (tirage en croix) as the template for a tarot-based exploration of I Ching Hexagram 35 (Jin; Advancement), with its emphasis on loyalty and generosity as the keys to progress. I've tinkered with the position meanings but have left the structure largely intact. Note that all … Continue reading “The Carrot and the Stick” – A French Cross Variation
Inside the Box: Quaternary vs. Quinary Synthesis*
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've been loosely using the term "quintessence" to describe the numerical conflation of any quantity of tarot cards in a spread, but traditionalists have criticized that assumption as being inconsistent with the historical meaning of the word as the symbolic fifth iteration (or "quinary essence") of a four-card "tirage on croix" (French Cross) … Continue reading Inside the Box: Quaternary vs. Quinary Synthesis*
Assembling a Puzzle or Building a Bridge: Two Modes of Tarot Divination
AUTHOR'S NOTE: When using a tarot spread with defined position meanings, synthesizing the key points to form a single coherent narrative offers inevitable comparisons to assembling a jigsaw puzzle in which each card contributes one - and only one - irreplaceable "piece of the puzzle" as determined by its positional import. On the other hand, … Continue reading Assembling a Puzzle or Building a Bridge: Two Modes of Tarot Divination
“Dividing the Chaos” – Reconstituting the Trump Cards
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here is another oddball experiment (I have a few of them queued up) in which pairs of trump cards are collated numerologically (similar to the "quintessence" calculation but with pre-selected components) to intentionally yield the numerical value of a third trump. The goal is to create a three-part dynamic with two "modifying" cards … Continue reading “Dividing the Chaos” – Reconstituting the Trump Cards
Divinatory Syncretism: Synthesizing vs. Particularizing*
*Syncretism: The union of different practices whose features may be synchronized to good effect. AUTHOR'S NOTE: Before I get into my subject, I should acknowledge that I sympathize (that is, I agree in principle) with Ronald Decker's criticism of the Golden Dawn's application of "Chaldean" astrology (which I understand does not signify a geographic region … Continue reading Divinatory Syncretism: Synthesizing vs. Particularizing*
Tarot and the “Virtues”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Reading Ronald Decker's occult tarot history book, The Esoteric Tarot . . . etc, has put me into "intellectual overdrive." Here I'm reflecting on his discussion of the "Virtues" - both the four Platonic originals and the three "theological" additions of Christianity - in which he explores their relationship to the Major Arcana … Continue reading Tarot and the “Virtues”
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 