Many tarot enthusiasts shy away from divination of the "fortune-telling" sort and instead use the cards for augmenting their personal sense of mental, emotional, physical and spiritual well-being. Most of the spreads I've seen for this are usually light on detail, typically no more than five cards. Here I'm offering a more complex spread for … Continue reading The “Great Make-over” Personal Tune-up Spread
Tarot
Company in the Cross-hairs: A SWOT Road-map
The subject of "SWOT" analysis (Strengths/Weaknesses/Opportunities/Threats) comes up fairly often on the tarot forums, usually in the context of personal circumstances rather than the corporate affairs for which it was originally intended. I can see the appeal, but I think it's a bit mechanistic for that purpose and have created many SWOT alternative spreads that … Continue reading Company in the Cross-hairs: A SWOT Road-map
Win, Lose or Punt?
To punt (Informal): To cease doing something; give up. ("Let's punt on this and try something else.") Predicting the scores for opposing teams in sporting events is a fascinating minor sidelight to our more ponderous cartomantic excursions, and - at least in my experience - one that seldom yields accurate results. I've come to believe … Continue reading Win, Lose or Punt?
The “Powers” of the Court Cards
In The Complete Golden Dawn System of Magic, Israel Reagrdie published a version of the "tarot papers" of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, collectively titled Liber T, that has additional content - some inserted by Regardie, apparently from the Whare Ra Temple documents, some written by his publisher Christopher Hyatt, and some generated … Continue reading The “Powers” of the Court Cards
Court Card Thumbnails – The King/Knight of Swords
The Minor Arcana: The King/Knight of Swords Titles: Fire of Air; The Lord of the Winds and the Breezes; the King of the Spirits of Air Astrological Correspondence: 21° of Taurus to 20° of Gemini Commentary: Golden Dawn “Liber T” (S.L. Mathers): “Active, clever, subtle, fierce, delicate, courageous, skillful, but inclined to domineer. Also to … Continue reading Court Card Thumbnails – The King/Knight of Swords
The River Was Dry
Country singer Hank Williams once wrote a country blues song called "Long Gone Lonesome Blues" that contained the verse: "And then I jumped in the river, but the doggone river was dry." Funny thing about trying to read for oneself on a daily basis, especially after doing it for years on end. Eventually it can … Continue reading The River Was Dry
The Art of the Draw
There is a old phrase used in card-playing circles that has made its way into general usage as an expression of the fickleness of life: "the luck of the draw." It's a philosophical bookend to the related sentiment "Play the hand you're dealt." There is a fated quality to both that doesn't sit well with … Continue reading The Art of the Draw
The Book of Thoth – An Appreciation
One doesn't really review Aleister Crowley's Book of Thoth (BoT), his exquisitely (and often excruciatingly) erudite companion volume to the magnificent deck of tarot cards he and Freida Harris bestowed upon the world. One stands back at a safe distance, squints sagely at it, maybe scratches one's addled pate, and tries to think of something … Continue reading The Book of Thoth – An Appreciation
The Suit of Swords as “Opportunity” – 6 of Swords
Radiant Rider-Waite-Smith, © U.S. Games Systems, Inc. The RWS 6 of Swords is the last of the Swords pip cards that I consider ambivalent in their expression of opportunity. The rest of the suit - Ace, Two and Four - are essentially neutral in that regard, and the Six nudges the dial close to dead-center … Continue reading The Suit of Swords as “Opportunity” – 6 of Swords
The Suit of Swords as “Opportunity” – 5 of Swords
Radiant Rider-Waite-Smith, © U.S. Games Systems, Inc. The 5 of Swords is another RWS card in which Smith's image sends a mixed message that has caused a good deal of head-scratching. The man in the foreground appears to be victorious over his retreating adversaries (and even sports a small, self-satisfied smile), but the Golden Dawn … Continue reading The Suit of Swords as “Opportunity” – 5 of Swords
