The Lovers and the Chariot together signal a departure or a new phase, an opportunity leading to decisive movement that brings optimistic tidings. The Lovers is one of the most misrepresented trump cards in modern tarot art, with many artists seeing only "ecstatic love" in it, a kind of "soul-mate connection" (or is that "twin flame" these days?). But the … Continue reading Tarot 101, My Way – Major Arcana: The Lovers and The Chariot
Trumps
Tarot 101, My Way – Major Arcana: The Emperor and The Hierophant
These cards depict the twin pillars of patriarchal authority, one secular and the other spiritual: the State and the Church. Taken as a pair, there is an undeniable aura of "Father knows best" about them. In less flattering terms, we might say they've "got you coming and going." I once created a simple allegory about … Continue reading Tarot 101, My Way – Major Arcana: The Emperor and The Hierophant
Tarot 101, My Way – Major Acana: The Priestess and The Empress
Stacking these up a bit, but I'm afraid if I sleep on this I'll lose the inspiration. Here we have two dramatically different expressions of the feminine archetype. The Priestess has her head to the sky while the feet of the Empress are firmly rooted in the earth. The Priestess is virginal - even crystalline - … Continue reading Tarot 101, My Way – Major Acana: The Priestess and The Empress
Tarot 101, My Way – Major Arcana: The Fool and The Magician
Now we dive into a card-by-card examination of the Major Arcana, which I'm taking two at a time since they are brief "thumbnail sketches" (supported by links to my previous posts). Since my approach to the tarot is esoteric in the main but with a practical slant, I've decided to begin each sub-section with commentary on the … Continue reading Tarot 101, My Way – Major Arcana: The Fool and The Magician
The “Tower Moment”
There occasionally comes a time for many of us (hopefully not often) when our personal "house of cards" topples to the ground and hope temporarily vanishes, eclipsed by despair. West Coast blues master Charles Brown once memorialized the aftermath of this traumatic scenario in the dirge-like tune "Black Night." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-71jfEwX-xQ Tarot has a card that … Continue reading The “Tower Moment”
The Nasties
When I returned to professional reading at a local New Age shop a couple of years ago, the proprietress gave me a piece of good advice: the tarot contains a few trump cards that really throw sitters for a loop if they pop up unheralded as the "outcome" in a reading, especially if those clients … Continue reading The Nasties
The Fool and Me
It never occurred to me that this 1974 hard-rock song from Robin Trower's Bridge of Sighs album, co-written and sung by the late, great James Dewar, most likely had its roots in the tarot; the timing was certainly right for a veiled New Age allusion. With lyrics that seem to play off the Fool's heedless … Continue reading The Fool and Me
Human Conflict: The Tarotscopic View
Human conflict is one of my favorite areas to explore with the tarot because it is such a target-rich environment. I don't do much with multi-party conflicts because they are much rarer than the one-on-one face-off, but here is the latest example of my current approach. Tarot is an excellent microscope through which to scrutinize … Continue reading Human Conflict: The Tarotscopic View
Down to the Crossroads
American delta blues singers of the last century were literally "bedeviled" by the idea of a crossroads, where it was believed one could go to bargain with Old Scratch at midnight. Having finally come to terms with the intricacies of Temperance, I decided to turn my attention to its astrological counterpart, the Lovers, which I … Continue reading Down to the Crossroads
The Pages and the Priestess: Acolytes of the Mysteries
I've always felt that the lowly Pages have more to them than conventional wisdom assumes. They are often described as youthful students or apprentices of either sex who have yet to attain mastery of their element, and are therefore of marginal potency in the hierarchy of the tarot court. Their function has sometimes been limited … Continue reading The Pages and the Priestess: Acolytes of the Mysteries
