Upon entering the ranks of the professional diviner, we inevitably encounter the question "How much is enough?" Time, that is, or effort expended for value received.I was once advised that, in rural New England where I lived at the time, the going rate for a face-to-face tarot reading was a dollar a minute. This was … Continue reading Time Bites: The Value of a Minute
Culture
“Tarot-Free” Tarot Decks (or “Damn the Symbolism, Full Speed Ahead!”)
I have a problem with self-proclaimed tarot decks that strip the usual symbolism from the cards and replace it with something radically different and wholly unlikely, whether it's animals or flowers or landscapes or similar charming but overly literal artwork that conveys something other than the customary narrative cues while often being utterly devoid of … Continue reading “Tarot-Free” Tarot Decks (or “Damn the Symbolism, Full Speed Ahead!”)
“The Cups of Love” – A Re-post
Since it's Valentine's Day in the US and elsewhere (even if it is now more a "Hallmark holiday" than a religious celebration, the romantic sentiments are usually genuine), I thought I would bump my 2018 post on the subject of "love cards." https://parsifalswheeldivination.com/2018/02/06/got-love-if-you-want-it-or-love-in-its-cups/
Call Them “TINOs”
I was just reading a fascinating wiki article about Canadian cultural philosopher Marshall McLuhan, who coined the phrase "the medium is the message" while analyzing the impact of media sources like television on society, and who concluded that the delivery system is more revealing of modern collective values than the contents. In commenting on his … Continue reading Call Them “TINOs”
Jodo’s New-Age “Art” Films
Before he became a tarot star (of sorts), Alejandro Jodorowsky was a maker of exquisitely (or excruciatingly) surrealistic experimental films. I was 24 in 1972 when I first saw El Topo at a midnight drive-in theater screening in Connecticut, and it left a lasting impression (or stain?) on me. A couple of years ago, I … Continue reading Jodo’s New-Age “Art” Films
Enlightened Folly?
More musings on "how tarot works," with a new twist or two (but I will spare you a few of my overused personal aphorisms and axiomatic bromides). I've long believed that the Age of Enlightenment (aka the Age of Reason) that arose out of Renaissance "humanism" between the 17th and early 19th Centuries did more … Continue reading Enlightened Folly?
Why Waite? Why Now?
After a couple of recent conversations with what I can only think of as "traditional tarot snobs" (which is not necessarily a bad thing, it was just painfully obvious that I was talking to a wall), I decided to revisit my opinion of the Waite-Smith deck (if only because the traditionalists damn it so vehemently). … Continue reading Why Waite? Why Now?
Cartomantic Snobbery?
The snooty elitism of wine snobs is well-known. Much of their recondite vocabulary speaks of properties that apply to anything but fermented grapes. To be fair, I have come to the conclusion that some red wines do present the fanciful and not-entirely-agreeable sensory impression of "raisins" or the slightly more desirable "black currants" in both … Continue reading Cartomantic Snobbery?
A Long Way from Home
Or maybe I'm just waxing nostalgic? (Curmudgeon alert: incoming attitude!) At any rate, I'm no fan of what is apparently being touted as the emergence of a "New Tarot," a description I'd never heard until last week. (It's not a deck, it sounds more like a "cultural movement.") The gist of it seems to be … Continue reading A Long Way from Home
Trump’s “Mamushka”
I can tell by the resounding silence whenever I post one that few people here like my political readings (I'm a "small-government" New England Libertarian at heart, not a Liberal or Socialist) but that doesn't stop me and, to be honest, I do my best to "just read the cards" and not inject personal bias … Continue reading Trump’s “Mamushka”
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 