The Pictorial Key of The Tarot

The Pictorial Key to the Tarot
by A.E. Waite (1910)

Introduction
1.1 The Veil and its Symbols, Introduction
1. !lass I. The Trum"s #a$or
1.% !lass II. The &our Suites
1.' The Tarot In (istory
.1 The )octrine *ehind the Veil+ The Tarot and Secret Tradition
.. The Trum"s #a$or and Inner Symbolism
I. The #a,ician
II. The (i,h -riestess
III. The Em"ress
IV. The Em"eror
V. The (iero"hant
VI. The .o/ers
VII. The !hariot
VIII. Stren,th, or &ortitude
I0. The (ermit
0. Wheel o1 &ortune
0I. 2ustice
0II. The (an,ed #an
0III. )eath
0IV. Tem"erance
0V. The )e/il
0VI. The To3er
0VII. The Star
0VIII. The #oon
0I0. The Sun
00. The .ast 2ud,ement
4ero. The &ool
00I. The World
.% !onclusion as to the 5reater 6eys
%.1 )istinction bet3een the 5reater and .esser Arcana
%. The .esser Arcana
6in, o1 Wands
7ueen o1 Wands
6ni,ht o1 Wands
-a,e o1 Wands
Ten o1 Wands
8ine o1 Wands
Ei,ht o1 Wands
Se/en o1 Wands
Si9 o1 Wands
&i/e o1 Wands
&our o1 Wands
Three o1 Wands
T3o o1 Wands
Ace o1 Wands
6in, o1 !u"s
7ueen o1 !u"s
6ni,ht o1 !u"s
-a,e o1 !u"s
Ten o1 !u"s
8ine o1 !u"s
Ei,ht o1 !u"s
Se/en o1 !u"s
Si9 o1 !u"s
&i/e o1 !u"s
&our o1 !u"s
Three o1 !u"s
T3o o1 !u"s
Ace o1 !u"s
6in, o1 S3ords
7ueen o1 S3ords
6ni,ht o1 S3ords
-a,e o1 S3ords
Ten o1 S3ords
8ine o1 S3ords
Ei,ht o1 S3ords
Se/en o1 S3ords
Si9 o1 S3ords
&i/e o1 S3ords
&our o1 S3ords
Three o1 S3ords
T3o o1 S3ords
Ace o1 S3ords
6in, o1 -entacles
7ueen o1 -entacles
6ni,ht o1 -entacles
-a,e o1 -entacles
Ten o1 -entacles
8ine o1 -entacles
Ei,ht o1 -entacles
Se/en o1 -entacles
Si9 o1 -entacles
&i/e o1 -entacles
&our o1 -entacles
Three o1 -entacles
T3o o1 -entacles
Ace o1 -entacles
%.% The 5reater Arcana and their )i/inatory #eanin,s
%.' Some Additional #eanin,s o1 the .esser Arcana
%.: The ;ecurrence o1 !ards in )ealin,
%.< The Art o1 Tarot )i/ination
%.= An Ancient !eltic #ethod o1 )i/ination
%.> An Alternati/e #ethod o1 ;eadin, the Tarot !ards
%.9 The #ethod o1 ;eadin, by #eans o1 Thirty?&i/e !ards
*iblio,ra"hy
The -ictorial 6ey to the Tarot
*ein, 1ra,ments o1 a Secret Tradition under the Veil o1
)i/ination
Arthur Ed3ard Waite
@ri,inally "ublished in 1910
Preface
IT seems rather o1 necessity than "redilection in the sense o1 a"olo,ia that I
should "ut on record in the Arst "lace a "lain statement o1 my "ersonal "osition,
as one 3ho 1or many years o1 literary li1e has been, sub$ect to his s"iritual and
other limitations, an e9"onent o1 the hi,her mystic schools. It 3ill be thou,ht that
I am actin, stran,ely in concernin, mysel1 at this day 3ith 3hat a""ears at Arst
si,ht and sim"ly a 3ell?Bno3n method o1 1ortune?tellin,. 8o3, the o"inions o1 #r.
Smith, e/en in the literary re/ie3s, are o1 no im"ortance unless they ha""en to
a,ree 3ith our o3n, but in order to sancti1y this doctrine 3e must taBe care that
our o"inions, and the sub$ects out o1 3hich they arise, are concerned only 3ith the
hi,hest. Cet it is $ust this 3hich may seem doubt1ul, in the "resent instance, not
only to #r. Smith, 3hom I res"ect 3ithin the "ro"er measures o1 detachment, but
to some o1 more real conseDuence, seein, that their dedications are mine. To
these and to any I 3ould say that a1ter the most illuminated &rater !hristian ;osy
!ross had beheld the !hemical #arria,e in the Secret -alace o1 Transmutation, his
story breaBs oE abru"tly, 3ith an intimation that he e9"ected ne9t mornin, to be
door?Bee"er. A1ter the same manner, it ha""ens more o1ten than mi,ht seem
liBely that those 3ho ha/e seen the 6in, o1 (ea/en throu,h the most clearest
/eils o1 the sacraments are those 3ho assume therea1ter the humblest oFces o1
all about the (ouse o1 5od. *y such sim"le de/ices also are the Ade"ts and 5reat
#asters in the secret orders distin,uished 1rom the cohort o1 8eo"hytes as ser/i
ser/orum mysterii. So also, or in a 3ay 3hich is not entirely unliBe, 3e meet 3ith
the Tarot cards at the outermost ,ates??amidst the 1ritterin,s and dGbris o1 the so?
called occult arts, about 3hich no one in their senses has suEered the smallest
dece"tionH and yet these cards belon, in themsel/es to another re,ion, 1or they
contain a /ery hi,h symbolism, 3hich is inter"reted accordin, to the .a3s o1
5race rather than by the "rete9ts and intuitions o1 that 3hich "asses 1or
di/ination. The 1act that the 3isdom o1 5od is 1oolishness 3ith men does not
create a "resum"tion that the 1oolishness o1 this 3orld maBes in any sense 1or
)i/ine WisdomH so neither the scholars in the ordinary classes nor the
"eda,o,ues in the seats o1 the mi,hty 3ill be DuicB to "ercei/e the liBelihood or
e/en the "ossibility o1 this "ro"osition. The sub$ect has been in the hands o1
cartomancists as "art o1 the stocB?in?trade o1 their industryH I do not seeB to
"ersuade any one outside my o3n circles that this is o1 much or o1 no
conseDuenceH but on the historical and inter"retati/e sides it has not 1ared betterH
it has been there in the hands o1 e9"onents 3ho ha/e brou,ht it into utter
contem"t 1or those "eo"le 3ho "ossess "hiloso"hical insi,ht or 1aculties 1or the
a""reciation o1 e/idence. It is time that it should be rescued, and this I "ro"ose to
undertaBe once and 1or all, that I may ha/e done 3ith the side issues 3hich
distract 1rom the term. As "oetry is the most beauti1ul e9"ression o1 the thin,s
that are o1 all most beauti1ul, so is symbolism the most catholic e9"ression in
concealment o1 thin,s that are most "ro1ound in the Sanctuary and that ha/e not
been declared outside it 3ith the same 1ulness by means o1 the s"oBen 3ord. The
$ustiAcation o1 the rule o1 silence is no "art o1 my "resent concern, but I ha/e "ut
on record else3here, and Duite recently, 3hat it is "ossible to say on this sub$ect.
The little treatise 3hich 1ollo3s is di/ided into three "arts, in the Arst o1
3hich I ha/e dealt 3ith the antiDuities o1 the sub$ect and a 1e3 thin,s that arise
1rom and connect there3ith. It should be understood that it is not "ut 1or3ard as a
contribution to the history o1 "layin, cards, about 3hich I Bno3 and care nothin,H
it is a consideration dedicated and addressed to a certain school o1 occultism,
more es"ecially in &rance, as to the source and centre o1 all the "hantasma,oria
3hich has entered into e9"ression durin, the last A1ty years under the "retence o1
considerin, Tarot cards historically. In the second "art, I ha/e dealt 3ith the
symbolism accordin, to some o1 its hi,her as"ects, and this also ser/es to
introduce the com"lete and rectiAed Tarot, 3hich is a/ailable se"arately, in the
1orm o1 coloured cards, the desi,ns o1 3hich are added to the "resent te9t in blacB
and 3hite. They ha/e been "re"ared under my su"er/ision?in res"ect o1 the
attributions and meanin,s?by a lady 3ho has hi,h claims as an artist. ;e,ardin,
the di/inatory "art, by 3hich my thesis is terminated, I consider it "ersonally as a
1act in the history o1 the Tarot ? as such, I ha/e dra3n, 1rom all "ublished sources,
a harmony o1 the meanin,s 3hich ha/e been attached to the /arious cards, and I
ha/e ,i/en "rominence to one method o1 3orBin, that has not been "ublished
"re/iouslyH ha/in, the merit o1 sim"licity, 3hile it is also o1 uni/ersal a""lication, it
may be held to re"lace the cumbrous and in/ol/ed systems o1 the lar,er hand?
booBs.
The Contents
-;E&A!E
An e9"lanation o1 the "ersonal Bind??An illustration 1rom mystic literature??A
sub$ect 3hich calls to be rescued??.imits and intention o1 the 3orB.
-A;T I
T(E VEI. A8) ITS SC#*@.S
I 1.??Introductory and 5eneral.
I .??!lass I. The Trum"s #a$or, other3ise 5reater Arcana.
I %.??!lass II. The &our Suits, other3ise .esser Arcana.
I '.??The Tarot in (istory.
-A;T II
T(E )@!T;I8E *E(I8) T(E VEI.
I 1.??The Tarot and Secret Tradition.
I .?The Trum"s #a$or and their Inner Symbolism.
I %. !onclusion as to the 5reater 6eys.
-A;T III
T(E @JTE; #ET(@) @& T(E @;A!.ES.
I 1.??)istinction bet3een the 5reater and .esser Arcana.
I .??The .esser Arcana, other3ise, the &our Suits o1 Tarot !ards
The Suit o1 Wands.
The Suit o1 !u"s.
The Suit o1 S3ords.
The Suit o1 -entacles.
I %.??The 5reater Arcana and their )i/inatory #eanin,s.
I '.??Some additional #eanin,s o1 the .esser Arcana.
I :.??The ;ecurrence o1 !ards in )ealin,.
I <.??The Art o1 Tarot )i/ination.
I =.??An Ancient !eltic #ethod o1 )i/ination.
I >.??An Alternati/e #ethod o1 ;eadin, the Tarot !ards.
I 9.??The #ethod o1 ;eadin, by #eans o1 Thirty?A/e !ards.
*I*.I@5;A-(C
A !@8!ISE *I*.I@5;A-(C @& T(E !(IE& W@;6S )EA.I85 WIT( T(E TA;@T A8)
ITS !@88E0I@8S
PART I
The Veil and its Symbols
1
INTRODCTOR! AND "#N#RA$
T(E "atholo,y o1 the "oet says that Kthe unde/out astronomer is madKH the
"atholo,y o1 the /ery "lain man says that ,enius is madH and bet3een these
e9tremes, 3hich stand 1or ten thousand analo,ous e9cesses, the so/erei,n reason
taBes the "art o1 a moderator and does 3hat it can. I do not thinB that there is a
"atholo,y o1 the occult dedications, but about their e9tra/a,ances no one can
Duestion, and it is not less diFcult than thanBless to act as a moderator re,ardin,
them. #oreo/er, the "atholo,y, i1 it e9isted, 3ould "robably be an em"iricism
rather than a dia,nosis, and 3ould oEer no criterion. 8o3, occultism is not liBe
mystic 1aculty, and it /ery seldom 3orBs in harmony either 3ith business a"titude
in the thin,s o1 ordinary li1e or 3ith a Bno3led,e o1 the canons o1 e/idence in its
o3n s"here. I Bno3 that 1or the hi,h art o1 ribaldry there are 1e3 thin,s more dull
than the criticism 3hich maintains that a thesis is untrue, and cannot understand
that it is decorati/e. I Bno3 also that a1ter lon, dealin, 3ith doubt1ul doctrine or
3ith diFcult research it is al3ays re1reshin,, in the domain o1 this art, to meet
3ith 3hat is ob/iously o1 1raud or at least o1 com"lete unreason. *ut the as"ects
o1 history, as seen throu,h the lens o1 occultism, are not as a rule decorati/e, and
ha/e 1e3 ,i1ts o1 re1reshment to heal the lacerations 3hich they inLict on the
lo,ical understandin,. It almost reDuires a &rater Sa"iens dominabitur astris in the
&ello3shi" o1 the ;osy !ross to ha/e the "atience 3hich is not lost amidst clouds
o1 1olly 3hen the consideration o1 the Tarot is undertaBen in accordance 3ith the
hi,her la3 o1 symbolism. The true Tarot is symbolismH it s"eaBs no other lan,ua,e
and oEers no other si,ns. 5i/en the in3ard meanin, o1 its emblems, they do
become a Bind o1 al"habet 3hich is ca"able o1 indeAnite combinations and maBes
true sense in all. @n the hi,hest "lane it oEers a Bey to the #ysteries, in a manner
3hich is not arbitrary and has not been read in, *ut the 3ron, symbolical stories
ha/e been told concernin, it, and the 3ron, history has been ,i/en in e/ery
"ublished 3orB 3hich so 1ar has dealt 3ith the sub$ect. It has been intimated by
t3o or three 3riters that, at least in res"ect o1 the meanin,s, this is una/oidably
the case, because 1e3 are acDuainted 3ith them, 3hile these 1e3 hold by
transmission under "led,es and cannot betray their trust. The su,,estion is
1antastic on the sur1ace 1or there seems a certain anti?clima9 in the "ro"osition
that a "articular inter"retation o1 1ortune? tellin,??lMart de tirer les cartes??can be
reser/ed 1or Sons o1 the )octrine. The 1act remains, not3ithstandin,, that a Secret
Tradition e9ists re,ardin, the Tarot, and as there is al3ays the "ossibility that
some minor arcana o1 the #ysteries may be made "ublic 3ith a Lourish o1
trum"ets, it 3ill be as 3ell to ,o be1ore the e/ent and to 3arn those 3ho are
curious in such matters that any re/elation 3ill contain only a third "art o1 the
earth and sea and a third "art o1 the stars o1 hea/en in res"ect o1 the symbolism.
This is 1or the sim"le reason that neither in root? matter nor in de/elo"ment has
more been "ut into 3ritin,, so that much 3ill remain to be said a1ter any
"retended un/eilin,. The ,uardians o1 certain tem"les o1 initiation 3ho Bee"
3atch o/er mysteries o1 this order ha/e there1ore no cause 1or alarm.
In my "re1ace to The Tarot o1 the *ohemians, 3hich, rather by an accident o1
thin,s, has recently come to be re?issued a1ter a lon, "eriod, I ha/e said 3hat 3as
then "ossible or seemed most necessary. The "resent 3orB is desi,ned more
es"ecially??as I ha/e intimated??to introduce a rectiAed set o1 the cards
themsel/es and to tell the unadorned truth concernin, them, so 1ar as this is
"ossible in the outer circles. As re,ards the seDuence o1 ,reater symbols, their
ultimate and hi,hest meanin, lies dee"er than the common lan,ua,e o1 "icture
or hiero,ly"h. This 3ill be understood by those 3ho ha/e recei/ed some "art o1
the Secret Tradition. As re,ards the /erbal meanin,s allocated here to the more
im"ortant Trum" !ards, they are desi,ned to set aside the 1ollies and im"ostures
o1 "ast attributions, to "ut those 3ho ha/e the ,i1t o1 insi,ht on the ri,ht tracB,
and to taBe care, 3ithin the limits o1 my "ossibilities, that they are the truth so 1ar
as they ,o.
It is re,rettable in se/eral res"ects that I must con1ess to certain
reser/ations, but there is a Duestion o1 honour at issue. &urthermore, bet3een the
1ollies on the one side o1 those 3ho Bno3 nothin, o1 the tradition, yet are in their
o3n o"inion the e9"onents o1 somethin, called occult science and "hiloso"hy,
and on the other side bet3een the maBe?belie/e o1 a 1e3 3riters 3ho ha/e
recei/ed "art o1 the tradition and thinB that it constitutes a le,al title to scatter
dust in the eyes o1 the 3orld 3ithout, I 1eel that the time has come to say 3hat it
is "ossible to say, so that the eEect o1 current charlatanism and unintelli,ence
may be reduced to a minimum.
We shall see in due course that the history o1 Tarot cards is lar,ely o1 a
ne,ati/e Bind, and that, 3hen the issues are cleared by the dissi"ation o1 re/eries
and ,ratuitous s"eculations e9"ressed in the terms o1 certitude, there is in 1act no
history "rior to the 1ourteenth century. The dece"tion and sel1?dece"tion re,ardin,
their ori,in in E,y"t, India or !hina "ut a lyin, s"irit into the mouths o1 the Arst
e9"ositors, and the later occult 3riters ha/e done little more than re"roduce the
Arst 1alse testimony in the ,ood 1aith o1 an intelli,ence una3aBened to the issues
o1 research. As it so ha""ens, all e9"ositions ha/e 3orBed 3ithin a /ery narro3
ran,e, and o3e, com"arati/ely s"eaBin,, little to the in/enti/e 1aculty. @ne
brilliant o""ortunity has at least been missed, 1or it has not so 1ar occurred to any
one that the Tarot mi,ht "erha"s ha/e done duty and e/en ori,inated as a secret
symbolical lan,ua,e o1 the Albi,ensian sects. I commend this su,,estion to the
lineal descendants in the s"irit o1 5abriele ;ossetti and Eu,Nne Arou9, to #r.
(arold *ayley as another 8e3 .i,ht on the ;enaissance, and as a ta"er at least in
the darBness 3hich, 3ith ,reat res"ect, mi,ht be ser/iceable to the Oealous and
all?searchin, mind o1 #rs. !oo"er?@aBley. ThinB only 3hat the su""osed testimony
o1 3atermarBs on "a"er mi,ht ,ain 1rom the Tarot card o1 the -o"e or (iero"hant,
in conne9ion 3ith the notion o1 a secret Albi,ensian "atriarch, o1 3hich #r. *ayley
has 1ound in these same 3atermarBs so much material to his "ur"ose. ThinB only
1or a moment about the card o1 the (i,h -riestess as re"resentin, the Albi,ensian
church itsel1H and thinB o1 the To3er strucB by .i,htnin, as ty"i1yin, the desired
destruction o1 -a"al ;ome, the city on the se/en hills, 3ith the "ontiE and his
tem"oral "o3er cast do3n 1rom the s"iritual ediAce 3hen it is ri/en by the 3rath
o1 5od. The "ossibilities are so numerous and "ersuasi/e that they almost decei/e
in their e9"ression one o1 the elect 3ho has in/ented them. *ut there is more
e/en than this, thou,h I scarcely dare to cite it. When the time came 1or the Tarot
cards to be the sub$ect o1 their Arst 1ormal e9"lanation, the archaeolo,ist !ourt de
5ebelin re"roduced some o1 their most im"ortant emblems, and??i1 I may so term
it??the code9 3hich he used has ser/ed??by means o1 his en,ra/ed "lates??as a
basis o1 re1erence 1or many sets that ha/e been issued subseDuently. The A,ures
are /ery "rimiti/e and diEer as such 1rom the cards o1 Etteilla, the #arseilles
Tarot, and others still current in &rance. I am not a ,ood $ud,e in such matters, but
the 1act that e/ery one o1 the Trum"s #a$or mi,ht ha/e ans3ered 1or 3atermarB
"ur"oses is she3n by the cases 3hich I ha/e Duoted and by one most remarBable
e9am"le o1 the Ace o1 !u"s.
I should call it an eucharistic emblem a1ter the manner o1 a ciborium, but
this does not si,ni1y at the moment. The "oint is that #r. (arold *ayley ,i/es si9
analo,ous de/ices in his 8e3 .i,ht on the ;enaissance, bein, 3atermarBs on
"a"er o1 the se/enteenth century, 3hich he claims to be o1 Albi,ensian ori,in and
to re"resent sacramental and 5raal emblems. (ad he only heard o1 the Tarot, had
he Bno3n that these cards o1 di/ination, cards o1 1ortune, cards o1 all /a,rant arts,
3ere "erha"s current at the "eriod in the South o1 &rance, I thinB that his
enchantin, but all too 1antastic hy"othesis mi,ht ha/e dilated still more lar,ely in
the atmos"here o1 his dream. We should no doubt ha/e had a /ision o1 !hristian
5nosticism, #anichPanism, and all that he understands by "ure "rimiti/e 5os"el,
shinin, behind the "ictures.
I do not looB throu,h such ,lasses, and I can only commend the sub$ect to
his attention at a later "eriodH it is mentioned here that I may introduce 3ith an
unheard?o1 3onder the mar/els o1 arbitrary s"eculation as to the history o1 the
cards. With re1erence to their 1orm and number, it should scarcely be necessary to
enumerate them, 1or they must be almost commonly 1amiliar, but as it is
"recarious to assume anythin,, and as there are also other reasons, I 3ill tabulate
them brieLy as 1ollo3s+??
C$ASS I
%
TR&PS &A'OR
Other(ise) "reater Arcana
1. The Magus, Magician, or Juggler, the caster o1 the dice and mountebanB, in the
3orld o1 /ul,ar tricBery. This is the col"orta,e inter"retation, and it has the same
corres"ondence 3ith the real symbolical meanin, that the use o1 the Tarot in
1ortune?tellin, has 3ith its mystic construction accordin, to the secret science o1
symbolism. I should add that many inde"endent students o1 the sub$ect, 1ollo3in,
their o3n li,hts, ha/e "roduced indi/idual seDuences o1 meanin, in res"ect o1 the
Trum"s #a$or, and their li,hts are sometimes su,,esti/e, but they are not the true
li,hts. &or e9am"le, Qli"has .G/i says that the #a,us si,niAes that unity 3hich is
the mother o1 numbersH others say that it is the )i/ine JnityH and one o1 the latest
&rench commentators considers that in its ,eneral sense it is the 3ill.
. The High Priestess, the Pope Joan, or Female PontifH early e9"ositors ha/e
sou,ht to term this card the #other, or -o"eMs Wi1e, 3hich is o""osed to the
symbolism. It is sometimes held to re"resent the )i/ine .a3 and the 5nosis, in
3hich case the -riestess corres"onds to the idea o1 the SheBinah. She is the
Secret Tradition and the hi,her sense o1 the instituted #ysteries.
%. The Empress, 3ho is sometimes re"resented 3ith 1ull 1ace, 3hile her
corres"ondence, the Em"eror, is in "roAle. As there has been some tendency to
ascribe a symbolical si,niAcance to this distinction, it seems desirable to say that
it carries no inner meanin,. The Em"ress has been connected 3ith the ideas o1
uni/ersal 1ecundity and in a ,eneral sense 3ith acti/ity.
'. The Emperor, by im"utation the s"ouse o1 the 1ormer. (e is occasionally
re"resented as 3earin,, in addition to his "ersonal insi,nia, the stars or ribbons o1
some order o1 chi/alry. I mention this to she3 that the cards are a medley o1 old
and ne3 emblems. Those 3ho insist u"on the e/idence o1 the one may deal, i1
they can, 3ith the other. 8o eEectual ar,ument 1or the antiDuity o1 a "articular
desi,n can be dra3n 1rom the 1act that it incor"orates old materialH but there is
also none 3hich can be based on s"oradic no/elties, the inter/ention o1 3hich
may si,ni1y only the unintelli,ent hand o1 an editor or o1 a late drau,htsman.
:. The High Priest or Hierophant, called also S"iritual &ather, and more commonly
and ob/iously the -o"e. It seems e/en to ha/e been named the Abbot, and then
its corres"ondence, the (i,h -riestess, 3as the Abbess or #other o1 the !on/ent.
*oth are arbitrary names. The insi,nia o1 the A,ures are "a"al, and in such case
the (i,h -riestess is and can be only the !hurch, to 3hom -o"e and "riests are
married by the s"iritual rite o1 ordination. I thinB, ho3e/er, that in its "rimiti/e
1orm this card did not re"resent the ;oman -ontiE.
<. The Lovers or Marriage. This symbol has under,one many /ariations, as mi,ht
be e9"ected 1rom its sub$ect. In the ei,hteenth century 1orm, by 3hich it Arst
became Bno3n to the 3orld o1 archPolo,ical research, it is really a card o1
married li1e, she3in, 1ather and mother, 3ith their child "laced bet3een themH
and the "a,an !u"id abo/e, in the act o1 Lyin, his sha1t, is, o1 course, a
misa""lied emblem. The !u"id is o1 lo/e be,innin, rather than o1 lo/e in its
1ulness, ,uardin, the 1ruit thereo1. The card is said to ha/e been entitled
Simulacyum Adei, the symbol o1 con$u,al 1aith, 1or 3hich the rainbo3 as a si,n o1
the co/enant 3ould ha/e been a more a""ro"riate concomitant. The A,ures are
also held to ha/e si,niAed Truth, (onour and .o/e, but I sus"ect that this 3as, so
to s"eaB, the ,loss o1 a commentator moraliOin,. It has these, but it has other and
hi,her as"ects.
=. The Chariot. This is re"resented in some e9tant codices as bein, dra3n by t3o
s"hin9es, and the de/ice is in consonance 3ith the symbolism, but it must not be
su""osed that such 3as its ori,inal 1ormH the /ariation 3as in/ented to su""ort a
"articular historical hy"othesis. In the ei,hteenth century 3hite horses 3ere
yoBed to the car. As re,ards its usual name, the lesser stands 1or the ,reaterH it is
really the 6in, in his trium"h, ty"i1yin,, ho3e/er, the /ictory 3hich creates
Bin,shi" as its natural conseDuence and not the /ested royalty o1 the 1ourth card.
#. !ourt de 5ebelin said that it 3as @siris Trium"hin,, the conDuerin, sun in
s"rin,?time ha/in, /anDuished the obstacles o1 3inter. We Bno3 no3 that @siris
risin, 1rom the dead is not re"resented by such ob/ious symbolism. @ther animals
than horses ha/e also been used to dra3 the currus trium"halis, as, 1or e9am"le,
a lion and a leo"ard.
>. Fortitude. This is one o1 the cardinal /irtues, o1 3hich I shall s"eaB later. The
1emale A,ure is usually re"resented as closin, the mouth o1 a lion. In the earlier
1orm 3hich is "rinted by !ourt de 5ebelin, she is ob/iously o"enin, it. The Arst
alternati/e is better symbolically, but either is an instance o1 stren,th in its
con/entional understandin,, and con/eys the idea o1 mastery. It has been said
that the A,ure re"resents or,anic 1orce, moral 1orce and the "rinci"le o1 all 1orce.
9. The Hermit, as he is termed in common "arlance, stands ne9t on the listH he is
also the !a"uchin, and in more "hiloso"hical lan,ua,e the Sa,e. (e is said to be
in search o1 that Truth 3hich is located 1ar oE in the seDuence, and o1 $ustice
3hich has "receded him on the 3ay. *ut this is a card o1 attainment, as 3e shall
see later, rather than a card o1 Duest. It is said also that his lantern contains the
.i,ht o1 @ccult Science and that his staE is a #a,ic Wand. These inter"retations
are com"arable in e/ery res"ect to the di/inatory and 1ortune?tellin, meanin,s
3ith 3hich I shall ha/e to deal in their turn. The diabolism o1 both is that they are
true a1ter their o3n manner, but that they miss all the hi,h thin,s to 3hich the
5reater Arcana should be allocated. It is as i1 a man 3ho Bno3s in his heart that
all roads lead to the hei,hts, and that 5od is at the ,reat hei,ht o1 all, should
choose the 3ay o1 "erdition or the 3ay o1 1olly as the "ath o1 his o3n attainment.
Qli"has .G/i has allocated this card to -rudence, but in so doin, he has been
actuated by the 3ish to All a ,a" 3hich 3ould other3ise occur in the symbolism.
The 1our cardinal /irtues are necessary to an idealo,ical seDuence liBe the Trum"s
#a$or, but they must not be taBen only in that Arst sense 3hich e9ists 1or the use
and consolation o1 him 3ho in these days o1 hal1"enny $ournalism is called the
man in the street. In their "ro"er understandin, they are the correlati/es o1 the
counsels o1 "er1ection 3hen these ha/e been similarly re?e9"ressed, and they
read as 1ollo3s+ (a) Transcendental $ustice, the counter?eDuilibrium o1 the scales,
3hen they ha/e been o/er3ei,hted so that they di" hea/ily on the side o1 5od.
The corres"ondin, counsel is to use loaded dice 3hen you "lay 1or hi,h staBes
3ith )iabolus. The a9iom is Aut )eus, aut nihil. (b) )i/ine Ecstacy, as a
counter"oise to somethin, called Tem"erance, the si,n o1 3hich is, I belie/e, the
e9tinction o1 li,hts in the ta/ern. The corres"ondin, counsel is to drinB only o1
ne3 3ine in the 6in,dom o1 the &ather, because 5od is all in all. The a9iom is that
man bein, a reasonable bein, must ,et into9icated 3ith 5odH the im"uted case in
"oint is S"inoOa. (c) The state o1 ;oyal &ortitude, 3hich is the state o1 a To3er o1
I/ory and a (ouse o1 5old, but it is 5od and not the man 3ho has become Turris
1ortitudinis a 1acie inimici, and out o1 that (ouse the enemy has been cast. The
corres"ondin, counsel is that a man must not s"are himsel1 e/en in the "resence
o1 death, but he must be certain that his sacriAce shall be?o1 any o"en course?the
best that 3ill ensure his end. The a9iom is that the stren,th 3hich is raised to
such a de,ree that a man dares lose himsel1 shall she3 him ho3 5od is 1ound,
and as to such re1u,e??dare there1ore and learn. (d) -rudence is the economy
3hich 1ollo3s the line o1 least resistance, that the soul may ,et bacB 3hence it
came. It is a doctrine o1 di/ine "arsimony and conser/ation o1 ener,y, because o1
the stress, the terror and the mani1est im"ertinences o1 this li1e. The
corres"ondin, counsel is that true "rudence is concerned 3ith the one thin,
need1ul, and the a9iom is+ Waste not, 3ant not. The conclusion o1 the 3hole
matter is a business "ro"osition 1ounded on the la3 o1 e9chan,e+ Cou cannot hel"
,ettin, 3hat you seeB in res"ect o1 the thin,s that are )i/ine+ it is the la3 o1
su""ly and demand. I ha/e mentioned these 1e3 matters at this "oint 1or t3o
sim"le reasons+ (a) because in "ro"ortion to the im"artiality o1 the mind it seems
sometimes more diFcult to determine 3hether it is /ice or /ul,arity 3hich lays
3aste the "resent 3orld more "iteouslyH (b) because in order to remedy the
im"er1ections o1 the old notions it is hi,hly need1ul, on occasion, to em"ty terms
and "hrases o1 their acce"ted si,niAcance, that they may recei/e a ne3 and more
adeDuate meanin,.
10. The Wheel of Fortune. There is a current #anual o1 !artomancy 3hich has
obtained a considerable /o,ue in En,land, and amidst a ,reat scattermeal o1
curious thin,s to no "ur"ose has intersected a 1e3 serious sub$ects. In its last and
lar,est edition it treats in one section o1 the TarotH 3hich??i1 I inter"ret the author
ri,htly??it re,ards 1rom be,innin, to end as the Wheel o1 &ortune, this e9"ression
bein, understood in my o3n sense. I ha/e no ob$ection to such an inclusi/e
thou,h con/entional descri"tionH it obtains in all the 3orlds, and I 3onder that it
has not been ado"ted "re/iously as the most a""ro"riate name on the side o1
common 1ortune?tellin,. It is also the title o1 one o1 the Trum"s #a$or??that indeed
o1 our concern at the moment, as my sub?title she3s. @1 recent years this has
suEered many 1antastic "resentations and one hy"othetical reconstruction 3hich
is su,,esti/e in its symbolism. The 3heel has se/en radiiH in the ei,hteenth
century the ascendin, and descendin, animals 3ere really o1 nondescri"t
character, one o1 them ha/in, a human head. At the summit 3as another monster
3ith the body o1 an indeterminate beast, 3in,s on shoulders and a cro3n on
head. It carried t3o 3ands in its cla3s. These are re"laced in the reconstruction
by a (ermanubis risin, 3ith the 3heel, a S"hin9 couchant at the summit and a
Ty"hon on the descendin, side. (ere is another instance o1 an in/ention in
su""ort o1 a hy"othesisH but i1 the latter be set aside the ,rou"in, is symbolically
correct and can "ass as such.
11. Justice. That the Tarot, thou,h it is o1 all reasonable antiDuity, is not o1 time
immemorial, is she3n by this card, 3hich could ha/e been "resented in a much
more archaic manner. Those, ho3e/er, 3ho ha/e ,i1ts o1 discernment in matters
o1 this Bind 3ill not need to be told that a,e is in no sense o1 the essence o1 the
considerationH the ;ite o1 !losin, the .od,e in the Third !ra1t 5rade o1 #asonry
may belon, to the late ei,hteenth century, but the 1act si,niAes nothin,H it is still
the summary o1 all the instituted and oFcial #ysteries. The 1emale A,ure o1 the
ele/enth card is said to be AstrPa, 3ho "ersoniAed the same /irtue and is
re"resented by the same symbols. This ,oddess not3ithstandin,, and
not3ithstandin, the /ul,arian !u"id, the Tarot is not o1 ;oman mytholo,y, or o1
5reeB either. Its "resentation o1 $ustice is su""osed to be one o1 the 1our cardinal
/irtues included in the seDuence o1 5reater ArcanaH but, as it so ha""ens, the
1ourth emblem is 3antin,, and it became necessary 1or the commentators to
disco/er it at all costs. They did 3hat it 3as "ossible to do, and yet the la3s o1
research ha/e ne/er succeeded in e9tricatin, the missin, -erse"hone under the
1orm o1 -rudence. !ourt de 5ebelin attem"ted to sol/e the diFculty by a tour de
1orce, and belie/ed that he had e9tracted 3hat he 3anted 1rom the symbol o1 the
(an,ed #an??3herein he decei/ed himsel1. The Tarot has, there1ore, its $ustice, its
Tem"erance also and its &ortitude, but??o3in, to a curious omission??it does not
oEer us any ty"e o1 -rudence, thou,h it may be admitted that, in some res"ects,
the isolation o1 the (ermit, "ursuin, a solitary "ath by the li,ht o1 his o3n lam",
,i/es, to those 3ho can recei/e it, a certain hi,h counsel in res"ect o1 the /ia
"rudentiP.
1. The Hanged Man. This is the symbol 3hich is su""osed to re"resent -rudence,
and Qli"has .G/i says, in his most shallo3 and "lausible manner, that it is the
ade"t bound by his en,a,ements. The A,ure o1 a man is sus"ended head?
do3n3ards 1rom a ,ibbet, to 3hich he is attached by a ro"e about one o1 his
anBles. The arms are bound behind him, and one le, is crossed o/er the other.
Accordin, to another, and indeed the "re/ailin, inter"retation, he si,niAes
sacriAce, but all current meanin,s attributed to this card are cartomancistsM
intuitions, a"art 1rom any real /alue on the symbolical side. The 1ortune?tellers o1
the ei,hteenth century 3ho circulated Tarots, de"ict a semi? 1eminine youth in
$erBin, "oised erect on one 1oot and loosely attached to a short staBe dri/en into
the ,round.
1%. eath. The method o1 "resentation is almost in/ariable, and embodies a
bour,eois 1orm o1 symbolism. The scene is the Aeld o1 li1e, and amidst ordinary
ranB /e,etation there are li/in, arms and heads "rotrudin, 1rom the ,round. @ne
o1 the heads is cro3ned, and a sBeleton 3ith a ,reat scythe is in the act o1
mo3in, it. The trans"arent and unesca"able meanin, is death, but the
alternati/es allocated to the symbol are chan,e and trans1ormation. @ther heads
ha/e been s3e"t 1rom their "lace "re/iously, but it is, in its current and "atent
meanin,, more es"ecially a card o1 the death o1 6in,s. In the e9otic sense it has
been said to si,ni1y the ascent o1 the s"irit in the di/ine s"heres, creation and
destruction, "er"etual mo/ement, and so 1orth.
1'. Temperance. The 3in,ed A,ure o1 a 1emale??3ho, in o""osition to all doctrine
concernin, the hierarchy o1 an,els, is usually allocated to this order o1 ministerin,
s"irits??is "ourin, liDuid 1rom one "itcher to another. In his last 3orB on the Tarot,
)r. -a"us abandons the traditional 1orm and de"icts a 3oman 3earin, an
E,y"tian head?dress. The Arst thin, 3hich seems clear on the sur1ace is that the
entire symbol has no es"ecial conne9ion 3ith Tem"erance, and the 1act that this
desi,nation has al3ays obtained 1or the card oEers a /ery ob/ious instance o1 a
meanin, behind meanin,, 3hich is the title in chie1 to consideration in res"ect o1
the Tarot as a 3hole.
1:. The evil. In the ei,hteenth century this card seems to ha/e been rather a
symbol o1 merely animal im"udicity. E9ce"t 1or a 1antastic head?dress, the chie1
A,ure is entirely naBedH it has bat? liBe 3in,s, and the hands and 1eet are
re"resented by the cla3s o1 a bird. In the ri,ht hand there is a sce"tre terminatin,
in a si,n 3hich has been thou,ht to re"resent Are. The A,ure as a 3hole is not
"articularly e/ilH it has no tail, and the commentators 3ho ha/e said that the
cla3s are those o1 a har"y ha/e s"oBen at random. There is no better ,round 1or
the alternati/e su,,estion that they are ea,leMs cla3s. Attached, by a cord
de"endin, 1rom their collars, to the "edestal on 3hich the A,ure is mounted, are
t3o small demons, "resumably male and 1emale. These are tailed, but not
3in,ed. Since 1>:< the inLuence o1 Qli"has .G/i and his doctrine o1 occultism has
chan,ed the 1ace o1 this card, and it no3 a""ears as a "seudo?*a"hometic A,ure
3ith the head o1 a ,oat and a ,reat torch bet3een the hornsH it is seated instead
o1 erect, and in "lace o1 the ,enerati/e or,ans there is the (ermetic caduceus. In
.e Tarot )i/inatoire o1 -a"us the small demons are re"laced by naBed human
bein,s, male and 1emale M 3ho are yoBed only to each other. The author may be
1elicitated on this im"ro/ed symbolism.
1<. The To!er struc" #$ Lightning. Its alternati/e titles are+ !astle o1 -lutus, 5odMs
(ouse and the To3er o1 *abel. In the last case, the A,ures 1allin, there1rom are
held to be 8imrod and his minister. It is assuredly a card o1 con1usion, and the
desi,n corres"onds, broadly s"eaBin,, to any o1 the desi,nations e9ce"t #aison
)ieu, unless 3e are to understand that the (ouse o1 5od has been abandoned
and the /eil o1 the tem"le rent. It is a little sur"risin, that the de/ice has not so
1ar been allocated to the destruction @1 SolomonMs Tem"le, 3hen the li,htnin,
3ould symboliOe the Are and s3ord 3ith 3hich that ediAce 3as /isited by the 6in,
o1 the !haldees.
1=. The %tar, )o,?Star, or Sirius, also called 1antastically the Star o1 the #a,i.
5rou"ed about it are se/en minor luminaries, and beneath it is a naBed 1emale
A,ure, 3ith her le1t Bnee u"on the earth and her ri,ht 1oot u"on the 3ater. She is
in the act o1 "ourin, Luids 1rom t3o /essels. A bird is "erched on a tree near herH
1or this a butterLy on a rose has been substituted in some later cards. So also the
Star has been called that o1 (o"e. This is one o1 the cards 3hich !ourt de 5ebelin
describes as 3holly E,y"tian?that is to say, in his o3n re/erie.
1>. The Moon& Some ei,hteenth?century cards she3 the luminary on its 3anin,
sideH in the debased edition o1 Etteilla, it is the moon at ni,ht in her "lenitude, set
in a hea/en o1 starsH o1 recent years the moon is she3n on the side o1 her
increase. In nearly all "resentations she is shinin, bri,htly and sheddin, the
moisture o1 1ertiliOin, de3 in ,reat dro"s. *eneath there are t3o to3ers, bet3een
3hich a "ath 3inds to the /er,e o1 the horiOon. T3o do,s, or alternati/ely a 3ol1
and do,, are bayin, at the moon, and in the 1ore,round there is 3ater, throu,h
3hich a crayAsh mo/es to3ards the land.
19. The %un. The luminary is distin,uished in older cards by chie1 rays that are
3a/ed and salient alternately and by secondary salient rays. It a""ears to shed its
inLuence on earth not only by li,ht and heat, but??liBe the moon??by dro"s o1 de3.
!ourt de 5ebelin termed these tears o1 ,old and o1 "earl, $ust as he identiAed the
lunar de3 3ith the tears o1 Isis. *eneath the do,?star there is a 3all su,,estin, an
enclosure?as it mi,ht be, a 3alled ,arden?3herein are t3o children, either naBed
or li,htly clothed, 1acin, a 3ater, and ,ambollin,, or runnin, hand in hand.
Qli"has .G/i says that these are sometimes re"laced by a s"inner un3indin,
destinies, and other3ise by a much better symbol?a naBed child mounted on a
3hite horse and dis"layin, a scarlet standard.
0. The Last 'udgment. I ha/e s"oBen o1 this symbol already, the 1orm o1 3hich is
essentially in/ariable, e/en in the Etteilla set. An an,el sounds his trum"et "er
se"ulchra re,ionum, and the dead arise. It matters little that Etteilla omits the
an,el, or that )r. -a"us substitutes a ridiculous A,ure, 3hich is, ho3e/er, in
consonance 3ith the ,eneral moti/e o1 that Tarot set 3hich accom"anies his latest
3orB. *e1ore re$ectin, the trans"arent inter"retation o1 the symbolism 3hich is
con/eyed by the name o1 the card and by the "icture 3hich it "resents to the eye,
3e should 1eel /ery sure o1 our ,round. @n the sur1ace, at least, it is and can be
only the resurrection o1 that triad??1ather, mother, child?3hom 3e ha/e met 3ith
already in the ei,hth card. #. *our,eat haOards the su,,estion that esoterically it
is the symbol o1 e/olution??o1 3hich it carries none o1 the si,ns. @thers say that it
si,niAes rene3al, 3hich is ob/ious enou,hH that it is the triad o1 human li1eH that it
is the K,enerati/e 1orce o1 the earth... and eternal li1e.K !ourt de 5ebelin maBes
himsel1 im"ossible as usual, and "oints out that i1 the ,ra/e?stones 3ere remo/ed
it could be acce"ted as a symbol o1 creation.
1??3hich, ho3e/er, in most o1 the arran,ements is the ci"her card, number
nothin,??The Fool, Mate, or (n!ise Man. !ourt de 5ebelin "laces it at the head o1
the 3hole series as the Oero or ne,ati/e 3hich is "resu""osed by numeration, and
as this is a sim"ler so also it is a better arran,ement. It has been abandoned
because in later times the cards ha/e been attributed to the letters o1 the (ebre3
al"habet, and there has been a""arently some diFculty about allocatin, the Oero
symbol satis1actorily in a seDuence o1 letters all o1 3hich si,ni1y numbers. In the
"resent re1erence o1 the card to the letter Shin, 3hich corres"onds to 00, the
diFculty or the unreason remains. The truth is that the real arran,ement o1 the
cards has ne/er trans"ired. The &ool carries a 3alletH he is looBin, o/er his
shoulder and does not Bno3 that he is on the brinB o1 a "reci"iceH but a do, or
other animal??some call it a ti,er??is attacBin, him 1rom behind, and he is hurried
to his destruction una3ares. Etteilla has ,i/en a $ustiAable /ariation o1 this card??
as ,enerally understood?? in the 1orm o1 a court $ester, 3ith ca", bells and motley
,arb. The other descri"tions say that the 3allet contains the bearerMs 1ollies and
/ices, 3hich seems bour,eois and arbitrary.
. The World, the Jni/erse, or Time. The 1our li/in, creatures o1 the A"ocaly"se
and EOeBielMs /ision, attributed to the e/an,elists in !hristian symbolism, are
,rou"ed about an elli"tic ,arland, as i1 it 3ere a chain o1 Lo3ers intended to
symboliOe all sensible thin,sH 3ithin this ,arland there is the A,ure o1 a 3oman,
3hom the 3ind has ,irt about the loins 3ith a li,ht scar1, and this is all her
/esture. She is in the act o1 dancin,, and has a 3and in either hand. It is eloDuent
as an ima,e o1 the s3irl o1 the sensiti/e li1e, o1 $oy attained in the body, o1 the
soulMs into9ication in the earthly "aradise, but still ,uarded by the )i/ine
Watchers, as i1 by the "o3ers and the ,races o1 the (oly 8ame, Tetra,ammaton,
2V(V??those 1our ineEable letters 3hich are sometimes attributed to the mystical
beasts. Qli"has .G/i calls the ,arland a cro3n, and re"orts that the A,ure
re"resents Truth. )r. -a"us connects it 3ith the Absolute and the realiOation o1 the
5reat WorBH 1or yet others it is a symbol o1 humanity and the eternal re3ard o1 a
li1e that has been s"ent 3ell. It should be noted that in the 1our Duarters o1 the
,arland there are 1our Lo3ers distincti/ely marBed. Accordin, to -. !hristian, the
,arland should be 1ormed o1 roses, and this is the Bind o1 chain 3hich Qli"has .G/i
says is less easily broBen than a chain o1 iron. -erha"s by antithesis, but 1or the
same reason, the iron cro3n o1 -eter may he more li,htly on the heads o1
so/erei,n "ontiEs than the cro3n o1 ,old on Bin,s.
C$ASS II
*
T+# ,OR SITS
Other(ise) $esser Arcana
The resources o1 inter"retation ha/e been la/ished, i1 not e9hausted, on the
t3enty?t3o Trum"s #a$or, the symbolism o1 3hich is unDuestionable. There
remain the 1our suits, bein, Wands or Sce"tres??e9 hy"othesi, in the archPolo,y
o1 the sub$ect, the antecedents o1 )iamonds in modern cards+ !u"s,
corres"ondin, to (eartsH S3ords, 3hich ans3er to !lubs, as the 3ea"on o1
chi/alry is in relation to the "easantMs Duarter?staE or the Alsatian blud,eonH and,
Anally, -entacles??called also )eniers and #oney??3hich are the "rototy"es o1
S"ades, In the old as in the ne3 suits, there are ten numbered cards, but in the
Tarot there are 1our !ourt !ards allocated to each suit, or a 6ni,ht in addition to
6in,, 7ueen and 6na/e. The 6na/e is a "a,e, /alet, or damoiseauH most correctly,
he is an esDuire, "resumably in the ser/ice o1 the 6ni,htH but there are certain
rare sets in 3hich the "a,e becomes a maid o1 honour, thus "airin, the se9es in
the tetrad o1 the court cards. There are naturally distincti/e 1eatures in res"ect o1
the se/eral "ictures, by 3hich I mean that the 6in, o1 Wands is not e9actly the
same "ersona,e as the 6in, o1 !u"s, e/en a1ter allo3ance has been made 1or the
diEerent emblems that they bearH but the symbolism resides in their ranB and in
the suit to 3hich they belon,. So also the smaller cards, 3hich??until no3??ha/e
ne/er been issued "ictorially in these our modem days, de"end on the "articular
meanin, attachin, to their numbers in conne9ion 3ith the "articular suit. I
reser/e, there1ore, the details o1 the .esser Arcana, till I come to s"eaB in the
second "art o1 the rectiAed and "er1ected Tarot 3hich accom"anies this 3orB. The
consensus o1 di/inatory meanin,s attached both to the ,reater and lesser
symbols belon,s to the third "art.
-
T+# TAROT IN +ISTOR!
@ur immediate ne9t concern is to s"eaB o1 the cards in their history, so that the
s"eculations and
re/eries 3hich ha/e been "er"etuated and multi"lied in the schools o1 occult
research may be
dis"osed o1 once and 1or all, as intimated in the "re1ace hereto.
.et it be understood at the be,innin, o1 this "oint that there are se/eral sets or
seDuences o1 ancient
cards 3hich are only in "art o1 our concern. The Tarot o1 the *ohemians, by -a"us,
3hich I ha/e
recently carried throu,h the "ress, re/isin, the im"er1ect renderin,, has some
use1ul in1ormation in
this conne9ion, and, e9ce"t 1or the omission o1 dates and other e/idences o1 the
archaeolo,ical
sense, it 3ill ser/e the "ur"ose o1 the ,eneral reader. I do not "ro"ose to e9tend it
in the "resent
"lace in any manner that can be called considerable, but certain additions are
desirable and so also
is a distinct mode o1 "resentation.
Amon, ancient cards 3hich are mentioned in conne9ion 3ith the Tarot, there are
Arstly those o1
*aldini, 3hich are the celebrated set attributed by tradition to Andrea #ante,na,
thou,h this /ie3
is no3 ,enerally re$ected. Their date is su""osed to be about 1'=0, and it is
thou,ht that there are
not more than 1our collections e9tant in Euro"e. A co"y or re"roduction re1erred to
1'>: is "erha"s
eDually rare. A com"lete set contains A1ty numbers, di/ided into A/e denaries or
seDuences o1 ten
cards each. There seems to be no record that they 3ere used 1or the "ur"oses o1
a ,ame, 3hether o1
chance or sBillH they could scarcely ha/e lent themsel/es to di/ination or any 1orm
o1 1ortune?
tellin,H 3hile it 3ould be more than idle to im"ute a "ro1ound symbolical meanin,
to their ob/ious
emblematic desi,ns. The Arst denary embodies !onditions o1 .i1e, as 1ollo3s+ (i)
The *e,,ar, ()
the 6na/e, (%) the Artisan, (') the #erchant, (:) the 8oble, (<) the 6ni,ht, (=) the
)o,e, (>) the
6in,, (9) the Em"eror, (10) the -o"e. The second contains the #uses and their
)i/ine .eader+ (11)
!allio"e, (1) Jrania, (1%) Ter"sichore, (1') Erato, (1:) -olyhymnia, (1<) Thalia,
(1=)
#el"omene, (1>) Euter"e, (19) !lio, (0) A"ollo. The third combines "art o1 the
.iberal Arts and
Sciences 3ith other de"artments o1 human learnin,, as 1ollo3s+ (1) 5rammar,
() .o,ic, (%)
;hetoric, (') 5eometry, (:) Arithmetic, (<) #usic, (=) -oetry,(>) -hiloso"hy,
(9)
Astrolo,y, (%0) Theolo,y. The 1ourth denary com"letes the .iberal Arts and
enumerates the
Virtues+ (%1) Astronomy, (%) !hronolo,y, (%%) !osmolo,y, (%') Tem"erance, (%:)
-rudence, (%<)
Stren,th, (%=) 2usticeH (%>) !harity, (%9) (o"e, ('0) &aith. The A1th and last denary
"resents the
System o1 the (ea/ens ('1) #oon, (') #ercury, ('%) Venus, ('') Sun, (':) #ars,
('<) 2u"iter,
('=) Saturn, ('>) A Ei,hth S"here, ('9) -rimum #obile, (:0) &irst !ause.
We mnst set aside the 1antastic attem"ts to e9tract com"lete Tarot seDuences out
o1 these denariesH
3e must 1orbear 1rom sayin,, 1or e9am"le, that the !onditions o1 .i1e corres"ond
to the Trum"s
#a$or, the #uses to -entacles, the Arts and Sciences to !u"s, the Virtues, etc., to
Sce"tres, and the
conditions o1 li1e to S3ords. This Bind o1 thin, can be done by a "rocess o1 mental
contortion, but
it has no "lace in reality. At the same time, it is hardly "ossible that indi/idual
cards should not
e9hibit certain, and e/en striBin,, analo,ies. The *aldini 6in,, 6ni,ht and 6na/e
su,,est the
corres"ondin, court cards o1 the #inor Arcana. The Em"eror, -o"e, Tem"erance,
Stren,th, $ustice,
#oon and Sun are common to the #ante,na and Trum"s #a$or o1 any Tarot "acB.
-redis"osition
has also connected the *e,,ar and &ool, Venus and the Star, #ars and the
!hariot, Saturn and the
(ermit, e/en 2u"iter, or alternati/ely the &irst !ause, 3ith the Tarot card o1 the
World.R1S *ut the
most salient 1eatures o1 the Trum"s #a$or are 3antin, in the #ante,na set, and I
do not belie/e
that the ordered seDuence in the latter case ,a/e birth, as it has been su,,ested,
to the others.
;omain #erlin maintained this /ie3, and "ositi/ely assi,ned the *aldini cards to
the end o1 the
1ourteenth century.
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I1 it be a,reed that, e9ce"t accidentally and
R1. The be,,ar is "ractically naBed, and the analo,y is constituted by the
"resence o1 t3o do,s, one o1 3hich seems
to be Lyin, at his le,s. The #ars card de"icts a s3ord?bearin, 3arrior in a
cano"ied chariot, to 3hich, ho3e/er, no
horses are attached. @1 course, i1 the *aldini cards belon, to the close o1 the
A1teenth century, there is no Duestion
at issue, as the Tarot 3as Bno3n in Euro"e lon, be1ore that "eriod.S
s"oradically, the *aldini emblematic or alle,orical "ictures ha/e only a shado3y
and occasional
conne9ion 3ith Tarot cards, and, 3hate/er their most "robable date, that they can
ha/e su""lied no
ori,inatin, moti/e, it 1ollo3s that 3e are still seeBin, not only an ori,in in "lace
and time 1or the
symbols 3ith 3hich 3e are concerned, but a s"eciAc case o1 their mani1estation
on the continent o1
Euro"e to ser/e as a "oint o1 de"arture, 3hether bacB3ard or 1or3ard. 8o3 it is
3ell Bno3n that in
the year 1%9% the "ainter !harles 5rin,onneur??3ho 1or no reason that I can trace
has been termed
an occultist and Babalist by one indiEerent En,lish 3riter??desi,ned and
illuminated some Bind o1
cards 1or the di/ersion o1 !harles VI o1 &rance 3hen he 3as in mental ill?health,
and the Duestion
arises 3hether anythin, can be ascertained o1 their nature. The only a/ailable
ans3er is that at
-aris, in the *ibliothNDue du ;oi, there are se/enteen cards dra3n and illuminated
on "a"er. They
are /ery beauti1ul, antiDue and "ricelessH the A,ures ha/e a bacB,round o1 ,old,
and are 1ramed in a
sil/er borderH but they are accom"anied by no inscri"tion and no number.
It is certain, ho3e/er, that they include Tarot Trum"s #a$or, the list o1 3hich is as
1ollo3s+ &ool,
Em"eror, -o"e, .o/ers, Wheel o1 &ortune, Tem"erance, &ortitude, $ustice, #oon,
Sun, !hariot,
(ermit, (an,ed #an, )eath, To3er and .ast $ud,ment. There are also 1our Tarot
!ards at the
#usGe !arrer, Venice, and A/e others else3here, maBin, nine in all. They include
t3o "a,es or
6na/es, three 6in,s and t3o 7ueens, thus illustratin, the #inor Arcana. These
collections ha/e all
been identiAed 3ith the set "roduced by 5rin,onneur, but the ascri"tion 3as
dis"uted so 1ar bacB
as the year 1>'>, and it is not a""arently "ut 1or3ard at the "resent day, e/en by
those 3ho are
an9ious to maBe e/ident the antiDuity o1 the Tarot. It is held that they are all o1
Italian and some at
least certainly o1 Venetian ori,in. We ha/e in this manner our reDuisite "oint o1
de"arture in
res"ect o1 "lace at least. It has 1urther been stated 3ith authority that Venetian
Tarots are the old
and true 1orm, 3hich is the "arent o1 all othersH but I in1er that com"lete sets o1
the #a$or and
#inor Arcana belon, to much later "eriods. The "acB is thou,ht to ha/e consisted
o1 se/enty?ei,ht
cards.
8ot3ithstandin,, ho3e/er, the "re1erence she3n to3ards the Venetian Tarot, it is
acBno3led,ed
that some "ortions o1 a #inchiate or &lorentine set must be allocated to the "eriod
bet3een 1'1%
and 1'1>. These 3ere once in the "ossession o1 !ountess 5onOa,a, at #ilan. A
com"lete
#inchiate "acB contained ninety?se/en cards, and in s"ite o1 these /esti,es it is
re,arded, s"eaBin,
,enerally, as a later de/elo"ment. There 3ere 1orty?one Trum"s #a$or, the
additional numbers
bein, borro3ed or reLected 1rom the *aldini emblematic set. In the court cards o1
the #inor
Arcana, the 6ni,hts 3ere monsters o1 the centaur ty"e, 3hile the 6na/es 3ere
sometimes 3arriors
and sometimes ser/in,?men. Another distinction d3elt u"on is the "re/alence o1
!hrstian
mediP/al ideas and the utter absence o1 any @riental su,,estion. The Duestion,
ho3e/er, remains
3hether there are Eastern traces in any Tarot cards.
We come, in Ane, to the *olo,nese Tarot, sometimes re1erred to as that o1 Venice
and ha/in, the
Trum"s #a$or com"lete, but numbers 0 and 1 are trans"osed. In the #inor
Arcana the , %, '
and : o1 the small cards are omitted, 3ith the result that there are si9ty?t3o cards
in all. The
termination o1 the Trum"s #a$or in the re"resentation o1 the .ast $ud,ment is
curious, and a little
arrestin, as a "oint o1 symbolismH but this is all that it seems necessary to remarB
about the "acB o1
*olo,na, e9ce"t that it is said to ha/e been in/ented??or, as a Tarot, more
correctly, modiAed??
about the be,innin, o1 the A1teenth century by an e9iled -rince o1 -isa resident in
the city. The
"ur"ose 1or 3hich they 3ere used is made tolerably e/ident by the 1act that, in
1'%, St. *ernardin
o1 Sienna "reached a,ainst "layin, cards and other 1orms o1 ,amblin,. &orty
years later the
im"ortation o1 cards into En,land 3as 1orbidden, the time bein, that o1 6in,
Ed3ard IV. This is
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the Arst certain record o1 the sub$ect in our country.
It is diFcult to consult "er1ect e9am"les o1 the sets enumerated abo/e, but it is
not diFcult to meet
3ith detailed and illustrated descri"tions??I should add, "ro/ided al3ays that the
3riter is not an
occultist, 1or accounts emanatin, 1rom that source are usually im"er1ect, /a,ue
and "reoccu"ied by
considerations 3hich cloud the critical issues. An instance in "oint is oEered by
certain /ie3s
3hich ha/e been e9"ressed on the #ante,na code9??i1 I may continue to di,ni1y
card seDuences
3ith a title o1 this Bind. It has been ruled??as 3e ha/e seen??in occult re/erie that
A"ollo and the
8ine #uses are in corres"ondence 3ith -entacles, but the analo,y does not obtain
in a 3orBin,
state o1 researchH and re/erie must border on ni,htmare be1ore 3e can identi1y
Astronomy,
!hronolo,y and !osmolo,y 3ith the suit o1 !u"s. The *aldini A,ures 3hich
re"resent these
sub$ects are emblems o1 their "eriod and not symbols, liBe the Tarot.
In conclusion as to this "art, I obser/e that there has been a dis"osition amon,
e9"erts to thinB that
the Trum"s #a$or 3ere not ori,inally connected 3ith the numbered suits. I do not
3ish to oEer a
"ersonal /ie3H I am not an e9"ert in the history o1 ,ames o1 chance, and I hate
the "ro1anum /ul,us
o1 di/inatory de/icesH but I /enture, under all reser/es, to intimate that i1 later
research should
$usti1y such a leanin,, then??e9ce"t 1or the ,ood old art o1 1ortune?tellin, and its
tam"erin,s 3ith so?
called destiny??it 3ill be so much the better 1or the 5reater Arcana.
So 1ar as re,ards 3hat is indis"ensable as "reliminaries to the historical as"ects o1
Tarot cards, and
I 3ill no3 taBe u" the s"eculati/e side o1 the sub$ect and "roduce its tests o1
/alue. In my "re1ace
to The Tarot o1 the *ohemians I ha/e mentioned that the Arst 3riter 3ho made
Bno3n the 1act o1
the cards 3as the archaeolo,ist !ourt de 5ebelin, 3ho, $ust "rior to the &rench
;e/olution,
occu"ied se/eral years in the "ublication o1 his #onde -rimiti1, 3hich e9tended to
nine Duarto
/olumes. (e 3as a learned man o1 his e"och, a hi,h?,rade #ason, a member o1
the historical
.od,e o1 the -hilalethes, and a /irtuoso 3ith a "ro1ound and li1elon, interest in
the debate on
uni/ersal antiDuities be1ore a science o1 the sub$ect e9isted. E/en at this day, his
memorials and
dissertations, collected under the title 3hich I ha/e Duoted, are 3orth "ossessin,.
*y an accident o1
thin,s, he became acDuainted 3ith the Tarot 3hen it 3as Duite unBno3n in -aris,
and at once
concei/ed that it 3as the remnants o1 an E,y"tian booB. (e made inDuiries
concernin, it and
ascertained that it 3as in circulation o/er a considerable "art o1 Euro"e??S"ain,
Italy, 5ermany and
the South o1 &rance. It 3as in use as a ,ame o1 chance or sBill, a1ter the ordinary
manner o1 "layin,?
cardsH and he ascertained 1urther ho3 the ,ame 3as "layed. *ut it 3as in use also
1or the hi,her
"ur"ose o1 di/ination or 1ortune?tellin,, and 3ith the hel" o1 a learned 1riend he
disco/ered the
si,niAcance attributed to the cards, to,ether 3ith the method o1 arran,ement
ado"ted 1or this
"ur"ose. In a 3ord, he made a distinct contribution to our Bno3led,e, and he is
still a source o1
re1erence??but it is on the Duestion o1 1act only, and not on the belo/ed hy"othesis
that the Tarot
contains "ure E,y"tian doctrine. (o3e/er, he set the o"inion 3hich is "re/alent to
this day
throu,hout the occult schools, that in the mystery and 3onder, the stran,e ni,ht
o1 the ,ods, the
unBno3n ton,ue and the undeci"hered hiero,ly"hics 3hich symboliOed E,y"t at
the end o1 the
ei,hteenth century, the ori,in o1 the cards 3as lost. So dreamed one o1 the
characteristic literati o1
&rance, and one can almost understand and sym"athiOe, 1or the country about the
)elta and the
8ile 3as be,innin, to loom lar,ely in the "reoccu"ation o1 learned thou,ht, and
omne i,nolum "ro
U,y"tiaco 3as the 3ay o1 delusion to 3hich many minds tended. It 3as e9cusable
enou,h then,
but that the madness has continued and, 3ithin the charmed circle o1 the occult
sciences, still
"asses 1rom mouth to mouth??there is no e9cuse 1or this. .et us see, there1ore, the
e/idence
"roduced by #. !ourt de 5ebelin in su""ort o1 his thesis, and, that I may deal
$ustly, it shall be
summariOed as 1ar as "ossible in his o3n 3ords.
(i) The A,ures and arran,ement o1 the ,ame are mani1estly alle,oricalH () the
alle,ories are in
con1ormity 3ith the ci/il, "hiloso"hical and reli,ious doctrine o1 ancient E,y"tH (%)
i1 the cards
3ere modern, no (i,h -riestess 3ould be included amon, the 5reater ArcanaH (')
the A,ure in
Duestion bears the horns o1 IsisH (:) the card 3hich is called the Em"eror has a
sce"tre terminatin,
in a tri"le crossH (<) the card entitled the #oon, 3ho is Isis, she3s dro"s o1 rain or
de3 in the act o1
bein, shed by the luminary and these?as 3e ha/e seen?are the tears o1 Isis, 3hich
s3elled the
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3aters o1 the 8ile and 1ertiliOed the Aelds o1 E,y"tH (=) the se/enteenth card, or
Star, is the do,?
star, Sirius, 3hich 3as consecrated to Isis and symboliOed the o"enin, o1 the yearH
(>) the ,ame
"layed 3ith the Tarot is 1ounded on the sacred number se/en, 3hich 3as o1 ,reat
im"ortance in
E,y"tH (9) the 3ord Tarot is "ure E,y"tian, in 3hich lan,ua,e TarV3ay or road,
and ;oVBin, or
royal??it si,niAes there1ore the ;oyal ;oad o1 .i1eH (10) alternati/ely, it is deri/ed
1rom
AVdoctrine ;oshV #ercury VThoth, and the article TH in sum, TaroshH and
there1ore the Tarot is
the *ooB o1 Thoth, or the Table o1 the )octrine o1 #ercury.
Such is the testimony, it bein, understood that I ha/e set aside se/eral casual
statements, 1or 3hich
no Bind o1 $ustiAcation is "roduced. These, there1ore, are ten "illars 3hich su""ort
the ediAce o1
the thesis, and the same are "illars o1 sand. The Tarot is, o1 course, alle,orical??
that is to say, it is
symbolism??but alle,ory and symbol are catholic???o1 all countries, nations and
times they are not
more E,y"tian than #e9ican they are o1 Euro"e and !athay, o1 Tibet beyond the
(imalayas and o1
the .ondon ,utters. As alle,ory and symbol, the cards corres"ond to many ty"es
o1 ideas and
thin,sH they are uni/ersal and not "articularH and the 1act that they do not
es"ecially and "eculiarly
res"ond to E,y"tian doctrine??reli,ious, "hiloso"hical or ci/il??is clear 1rom the
1ailure o1 !ourt de
5ebelin to ,o 1urther than the aFrmation. The "resence o1 a (i,h -riestess
amon, the Trum"s
#a$or is more easily e9"lained as the memorial o1 some "o"ular su"erstition??that
3orshi" o1
)iana, 1or e9am"le, the "ersistence o1 3hich in modern Italy has been traced 3ith
such striBin,
results by .eland. We ha/e also to remember the uni/ersality o1 horns in e/ery
cultus, not
e9ce"tin, that o1 Tibet. The tri"le cross is "re"osterous as an instance o1 E,y"tian
symbolismH it is
the cross o1 the "atriarchal see, both 5reeB and .atin??o1 Venice, o1 2erusalem, 1or
e9am"le??and it
is the 1orm o1 si,nin, used to this day by the "riests and laity o1 the @rthodo9
;ite. I "ass o/er the
idle allusion to the tears o1 Isis, because other occult 3riters ha/e told us that
they are (ebre3
2odsH as re,ards the se/enteenth card, it is the star Sirius or another, as
"redis"osition "leasesH the
number se/en 3as certainly im"ortant in E,y"t and any treatise on numerical
mysticism 3ill she3
that the same statement a""lies e/ery3here, e/en i1 3e elect to i,nore the se/en
!hristian
Sacraments and the 5i1ts o1 the )i/ine S"irit. &inally, as re,ards the etymolo,y o1
the 3ord Tarot,
it is suFcient to obser/e that it 3as oEered be1ore the disco/ery o1 the ;osetta
Stone and 3hen
there 3as no Bno3led,e o1 the E,y"tian lan,ua,e.
The thesis o1 !ourt de 5ebelin 3as not suEered to re"ose undisturbed in the mind
o1 the a,e,
a""ealin, to the learned e9clusi/ely by means o1 a Duarto /olume. It created the
o""ortunity o1
Tarot cards in -aris, as the centre o1 &rance and all thin,s &rench in the uni/erse.
The su,,estion
that di/ination by cards had behind it the une9"ected 3arrants o1 ancient hidden
science, and that
the root o1 the 3hole sub$ect 3as in the 3onder and mystery o1 E,y"t, reLected
thereon almost a
di/ine di,nityH out o1 the "urlieus o1 occult "ractices cartomancy emer,ed into
1ashion and
assumed 1or the moment almost "ontiAcal /estures. The Arst to undertaBe the
role o1 bateleur,
ma,ician and $u,,ler, 3as the illiterate but Oealous ad/enturer, AllietteH the
second, as a Bind o1
(i,h -riestess, 1ull o1 intuitions and re/elations, 3as #lle. .enormand??but she
belon,s to a later
"eriodH 3hile lastly came 2ulia @rsini, 3ho is re1erable to a 7ueen o1 !u"s rather in
the tatters o1
clair/oyance. I am not concerned 3ith these "eo"le as tellers o1 1ortune, 3hen
destiny itsel1 3as
shuWin, and cuttin, cards 1or the ,ame o1 uni/ersal re/olution, or 1or such courts
and courtiers as
3ere those o1 .ouis 0VIII, !harles I0 and .ouis -hili""e. *ut under the occult
desi,nation o1
Etteilla, the transliteration o1 name, Alliette, that "erruDuier tooB himsel1 3ith hi,h
seriousness and
"osed rather as a "riest o1 the occult sciences than as an ordinary ade"t in lMart de
tirer les cartes.
E/en at this day there are "eo"le, liBe )r. -a"us, 3ho ha/e sou,ht to sa/e some
"art o1 his biOarre
system 1rom obli/ion.
The lon, and hetero,eneous story o1 .e #onde -rimiti1 had come to the end o1 its
tellin, in 1=>,
and in 1=>% the tracts o1 Etteilla had be,un "ourin, 1rom the "ress, testi1yin, that
already he had
s"ent thirty, nay, almost 1orty years in the study o1 E,y"tian ma,ic, and that he
had 1ound the Anal
Beys. They 3ere, in 1act, the 6eys o1 the Tarot, 3hich 3as a booB o1 "hiloso"hy
and the *ooB o1
Thoth, but at the same time it 3as actually 3ritten by se/enteen #a,i in a Tem"le
o1 &ire, on the
borders o1 the .e/ant, some three lea,ues 1rom #em"his. It contained the science
o1 the uni/erse,
and the cartomancist "roceeded to a""ly it to Astrolo,y, Alchemy, and 1ortune?
tellin,, 3ithout the
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sli,htest diFdence or reser/e as to the 1act that he 3as dri/in, a trade. I ha/e
really little doubt that
he considered it ,enuine as a mGtier, and that he himsel1 3as the Arst "erson
3hom he con/inced
concernin, his system. *ut the "oint 3hich 3e ha/e to notice is that in this
manner 3as the
antiDuity o1 the Tarot ,enerally trum"eted 1orth. The little booBs o1 Etteilla are
"roo1 "ositi/e that
he did not Bno3 e/en his o3n lan,ua,eH 3hen in the course o1 time he "roduced a
re1ormed Tarot,
e/en those 3ho thinB o1 him tenderly admit that he s"oiled its symbolismH and in
res"ect o1
antiDuities he had only !ourt de 5ebelin as his uni/ersal authority.
The cartomancists succeeded one another in the manner 3hich I ha/e mentioned,
and o1 course
there 3ere ri/al ade"ts o1 these less than least mysteriesH but the scholarshi" o1
the sub$ect, i1 it can
be said to ha/e come into e9istence, re"osed a1ter all in the Duarto o1 !ourt de
5ebelin 1or
somethin, more than si9ty years. @n his authority, there is /ery little doubt that
e/eryone 3ho
became acDuainted, by theory or "ractice, by casual or s"ecial concern, 3ith the
Duestion o1 Tarot
cards, acce"ted their E,y"tian character. It is said that "eo"le are taBen
commonly at their o3n
/aluation, and??1ollo3in, as it does the line o1 least resistance??the unsolicitous
,eneral mind
assuredly acce"ts archPolo,ical "retensions in the sense o1 their o3n darin, and
o1 those 3ho "ut
them 1or3ard. The Arst 3ho a""eared to reconsider the sub$ect 3ith some
"resum"ti/e titles to a
hearin, 3as the &rench 3riter )uchesne, but I am com"elled to "ass him o/er
3ith a mere
re1erence, and so also some interestin, researches on the ,eneral sub$ect o1
"layin,?cards by Sin,er
in En,land. The latter belie/ed that the old Venetian ,ame called Tra""ola 3as the
earliest
Euro"ean 1orm o1 card?"layin,, that it 3as o1 Arabian ori,in, and that the A1ty?t3o
cards used 1or
the "ur"ose deri/ed 1rom that re,ion. I do not ,ather that any im"ortance 3as
e/er attached to this
/ie3.
)uchesne and Sin,er 3ere 1ollo3ed by another En,lish 3riter, W. A. !hatto, 3ho
re/ie3ed the
a/ailable 1acts and the cloud o1 s"eculations 3hich had already arisen on the
sub$ect. This 3as in
1>'>, and his 3orB has still a Bind o1 standard authority, but??a1ter e/ery
allo3ance 1or a certain
ri,hteousness attributable to the inde"endent mind??it remains an indiEerent and
e/en a "oor
"er1ormance. It 3as, ho3e/er, characteristic in its 3ay o1 the a""roachin, middle
ni,ht o1 the
nineteenth century. !hatto re$ected the E,y"tian hy"othesis, but as he 3as at
/ery little "ains
concernin, it, he 3ould scarcely be held to dis"lace !ourt de 5ebelin i1 the latter
had any Arm
,round beneath his hy"othesis. In 1>:' another &rench 3riter, *oiteau, tooB u"
the ,eneral
Duestion, maintainin, the oriental ori,in o1 Tarot cards, thou,h 3ithout attem"tin,
to "ro/e it. I am
not certain, but I thinB that he is the Arst 3riter 3ho deAnitely identiAed them 3ith
the 5i"siesH 1or
him, ho3e/er, the ori,inal 5i"sy home 3as in India, and E,y"t did not there1ore
enter into his
calculation.
In 1><0 there arose Qli"has .G/i, a brilliant and "ro1ound illuminG 3hom it is
im"ossible to acce"t,
and 3ith 3hom it is e/en more im"ossible to dis"ense. There 3as ne/er a mouth
declarin, such
,reat thin,s, o1 all the 3estern /oices 3hich ha/e "roclaimed or inter"reted the
science called
occult and the doctrine called ma,ical. I su""ose that, 1undamentally s"eaBin,, he
cared as much
and as little as I do 1or the "henomenal "art, but he e9"lained the "henomena
3ith the assurance o1
one 3ho o"enly re,arded charlatanry as a ,reat means to an end, i1 used in a
ri,ht cause. (e came
unto his o3n and his o3n recei/ed him, also at his "ro"er /aluation, as a man o1
,reat learnin,??
3hich he ne/er 3as??and as a re/ealer o1 all mysteries 3ithout ha/in, been
recei/ed into any. I do
not thinB that there 3as e/er an instance o1 a 3riter 3ith ,reater ,i1ts, a1ter their
"articular Bind,
3ho "ut them to such indiEerent uses. A1ter all, he 3as only Etteilla a second time
in the Lesh,
endo3ed in his transmutation 3ith a mouth o1 ,old and a 3ider casual Bno3led,e.
This
not3ithstandin,, he has 3ritten the most com"rehensi/e, brilliant, enchantin,
(istory o1 #a,ic
3hich has e/er been dra3n into 3ritin, in any lan,ua,e. The Tarot and the de
5ebelin hy"othesis
he tooB into his heart o1 hearts, and all occult &rance and all esoteric *ritain,
#artinists, hal1?
instructed 6abalists, schools o1 soi disant theoso"hy??there, here and
e/ery3here??ha/e acce"ted
his $ud,ment about it 3ith the same conAdence as his inter"retations o1 those
,reat classics o1
6abalism 3hich he had sBimmed rather than read. The Tarot 1or him 3as not only
the most "er1ect
instrument o1 di/ination and the Beystone o1 occult science, but it 3as the
"rimiti/e booB, the sole
booB o1 the ancient #a,i, the miraculous /olume 3hich ins"ired all the sacred
3ritin,s o1
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antiDuity. In his Arst 3orB .G/i 3as content, ho3e/er, 3ith acce"tin, the
construction o1 !ourt de
5ebelin and re"roducin, the se/enth Trum" #a$or 3ith a 1e3 E,y"tian
characteristics. The
Duestion o1 Tarot transmission throu,h the 5i"sies did not occu"y him, till 2. A.
Vaillant, a biOarre
3riter 3ith ,reat Bno3led,e o1 the ;omany "eo"le, su,,ested it in his 3orB on
those 3anderin,
tribes. The t3o authors 3ere almost coincident and reLected one another
therea1ter. It remained 1or
;omain #erlin, in 1><9, to "oint out 3hat should ha/e been ob/ious, namely, that
cards o1 some
Bind 3ere Bno3n in Euro"e "rior to the arri/al o1 the 5i"sies in or about 1'1=. *ut
as this 3as
their arri/al at .Xnebur,, and as their "resence can be traced antecedently, the
correction loses a
considerable "art o1 its 1orceH it is sa1er, there1ore, to say that the e/idence 1or the
use o1 the Tarot
by ;omany tribes 3as not su,,ested till a1ter the year 1>'0H the 1act that some
5i"sies be1ore this
"eriod 3ere 1ound usin, cards is Duite e9"licable on the hy"othesis not that they
brou,ht them into
Euro"e but 1ound them there already and added them to their stocB?in?trade.
We ha/e no3 seen that there is no "article o1 e/idence 1or the E,y"tian ori,in o1
Tarot cards.
.ooBin, in other directions, it 3as once ad/anced on nati/e authority that cards o1
some Bind 3ere
in/ented in !hina about the year A.). 110. !ourt de 5ebelin belie/ed in his Oeal
that he had
traced them to a !hinese inscri"tion o1 ,reat im"uted antiDuity 3hich 3as said to
re1er to the
subsidence o1 the 3aters o1 the )elu,e. The characters o1 this inscri"tion 3ere
contained in se/enty?
se/en com"artments, and this constitutes the analo,y. India had also its tablets,
3hether cards or
other3ise, and these ha/e su,,ested similar slender similitudes. *ut the
e9istence, 1or e9am"le, o1
ten suits or styles, o1 t3el/e numbers each, and re"resentin, the a/atars o1
Vishnu as a Ash,
tortoise, boar, lion, monBey, hatchet, umbrella or bo3, as a ,oat, a boodh and as
a horse, in Ane,
are not ,oin, to hel" us to3ards the ori,in o1 our o3n Trum"s #a$or, nor do
cro3ns and har"s??
nor e/en the "resence o1 "ossible coins as a synonym o1 deniers and "erha"s as
an eDui/alent o1
"entacles??do much to elucidate the .esser Arcana. I1 e/ery ton,ue and "eo"le
and clime and
"eriod "ossessed their cards??i1 3ith these also they "hiloso"hiOed, di/ined and
,ambled??the 1act
3ould be interestin, enou,h, but unless they 3ere Tarot cards, they 3ould
illustrate only the
uni/ersal tendency o1 man to be "ursuin, the same thin,s in more or less the
same 3ay.
I end, there1ore, the history o1 this sub$ect by re"eatin, that it has no history "rior
to the 1ourteenth
century, 3hen the Arst rumours, 3ere heard concernin, cards. They may ha/e
e9isted 1or centuries,
but this "eriod 3ould be early enou,h, i1 they 3ere only intended 1or "eo"le to try
their lucB at
,amblin, or their lucB at seein, the 1utureH on the other hand, i1 they contain the
dee" intimations
o1 Secret )octrine, then the 1ourteenth century is a,ain early enou,h, or at least
in this res"ect 3e
are ,ettin, as much as 3e can.
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sacred?te9ts Waite Inde9 -re/ious 8e9t
-A;T II
The )octrine *ehind the Veil
I1
T(E TA;@T A8) SE!;ET T;A)ITI@8
T(E Tarot embodies symbolical "resentations o1 uni/ersal ideas, behind 3hich lie
all the im"licits
o1 the human mind, and it is in this sense that they contain secret doctrine, 3hich
is the realiOation
by the 1e3 o1 truths imbedded in the consciousness o1 all, thou,h they ha/e not
"assed into e9"ress
reco,nition by ordinary men. The theory is that this doctrine has al3ays e9isted??
that is to say, has
been e9co,itated in the consciousness o1 an elect minorityH that it has been
"er"etuated in secrecy
1rom one to another and has been recorded in secret literatures, liBe those o1
Alchemy and
6abalismH that it is contained also in those Instituted #ysteries o1 3hich
;osicrucianism oEers an
e9am"le near to our hand in the "ast, and !ra1t #asonry a li/in, summary, or
,eneral memorial,
1or those 3ho can inter"ret its real meanin,. *ehind the Secret )octrine it is held
that there is an
e9"erience or "ractice by 3hich the )octrine is $ustiAed. It is ob/ious that in a
handbooB liBe the
"resent I can do little more than state the claims, 3hich, ho3e/er, ha/e been
discussed at len,th in
se/eral o1 my other 3ritin,s, 3hile it is desi,ned to treat t3o o1 its more im"ortant
"hases in booBs
de/oted to the Secret Tradition in &reemasonry and in (ermetic literature. As
re,ards Tarot
claims, it should be remembered that some considerable "art o1 the im"uted
Secret )octrine has
been "resented in the "ictorial emblems o1 Alchemy, so that the im"uted *ooB o1
Thoth is in no
sense a solitary de/ice o1 this emblematic Bind. 8o3, Alchemy had t3o branches,
as I ha/e
e9"lained 1ully else3here, and the "ictorial emblems 3hich I ha/e mentioned are
common to both
di/isions. Its material side is re"resented in the stran,e symbolism o1 the #utus
.iber, "rinted in
the ,reat 1olios o1 #an,etus. There the "rocess 1or the "er1ormance o1 the ,reat
3orB o1
transmutation is de"icted in 1ourteen co""er?"late en,ra/in,s, 3hich e9hibit the
diEerent sta,es o1
the matter in the /arious chemical /essels. Abo/e these /essels there are
mytholo,ical, "lanetary,
solar and lunar symbols, as i1 the "o3ers and /irtues 3hich ?accordin, to
(ermetic teachin,??
"reside o/er the de/elo"ment and "er1ection o1 the metallic Bin,dom 3ere
inter/enin, acti/ely to
assist the t3o o"erators 3ho are toilin, belo3. The o"erators??curiously enou,h??
are male and
1emale. The s"iritual side o1 Alchemy is set 1orth in the much stran,er emblems o1
the *ooB o1
.ambs"rin,, and o1 this I ha/e already ,i/en a "reliminary inter"retation, to 3hich
the reader may
be re1erred.R1S The tract contains the mystery o1 3hat is called the mystical or
arch?natural eli9ir,
bein, the marria,e o1 the soul and the s"irit in the body o1 the ade"t "hiloso"her
and the
transmutation o1 the body as the "hysical result o1 this marria,e. I ha/e ne/er
met 3ith more
curious intimations than in this one little 3orB. It may be mentioned as a "oint o1
1act that both
tracts are /ery much later in time than the latest date that could be assi,ned to
the ,eneral
distribution o1 Tarot cards in Euro"e by the most drastic 1orm o1 criticism.
R1. See the @ccult ;e/ie3, /ol. /iii, 190>S.
They belon, res"ecti/ely to the end o1 the se/enteenth and si9teenth centuries.
As I am not
dra3in, here on the 1ont o1 ima,ination to re1resh that o1 1act and e9"erience, I do
not su,,est that
the Tarot set the e9am"le o1 e9"ressin, Secret )octrine in "ictures and that it 3as
1ollo3ed by
(ermetic 3ritersH but it is noticeable that it is "erha"s the earliest e9am"le o1 this
art. It is also the
most catholic, because it is not, by attribution or other3ise, a deri/ati/e o1 any
one school or
literature o1 occultismH it is not o1 Alchemy or 6abalism or Astrolo,y or !eremonial
#a,icH but,
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as I ha/e said, it is the "resentation o1 uni/ersal ideas by means o1 uni/ersal
ty"es, and it is in the
combination o1 these ty"es??i1 any3here??that it "resents Secret )octrine.
That combination may, e9 hy"othesi, reside in the numbered seDuence o1 its
series or in their
1ortuitous assembla,e by shuWin,, cuttin, and dealin,, as in ordinary ,ames o1
chance "layed
3ith cards. T3o 3riters ha/e ado"ted the Arst /ie3 3ithout "re$udice to the
second, and I shall do
3ell, "erha"s, to dis"ose at once o1 3hat they ha/e said. #r. #ac5re,or #athers,
3ho once
"ublished a "am"hlet on the Tarot, 3hich 3as in the main de/oted to 1ortune?
tellin,, su,,ested
that the t3enty?t3o Trum"s #a$or could be constructed, 1ollo3in, their numerical
order, into 3hat
he called a Kconnected sentence.K It 3as, in 1act, the heads o1 a moral thesis on
the human 3ill, its
enli,htenment by science, re"resented by the #a,ician, its mani1estation by
action??a si,niAcance
attributed to the (i,h -riestess?its realiOation (the Em"ress) in deeds o1 mercy
and beneAcence,
3hich Dualities 3ere allocated to the Em"eror. (e s"oBe also in the 1amiliar
con/entional manner
o1 "rudence, 1ortitude, sacriAce, ho"e and ultimate ha""iness. *ut i1 this 3ere the
messa,e o1 the
cards, it is certain that there 3ould be no e9cuse 1or "ublishin, them at this day
or taBin, the "ains
to elucidate them at some len,th. In his Tarot o1 the *ohemians, a 3orB 3ritten
3ith Oeal and
enthusiasm, s"arin, no "ains o1 thou,ht or research 3ithin its "articular lines?but
un1ortunately
3ithout real insi,ht??)r. -a"us has ,i/en a sin,ularly elaborate scheme o1 the
Trum"s #a$or. It
de"ends, liBe that o1 #r. #athers, 1rom their numerical seDuence, but e9hibits
their interrelation in
the )i/ine World, the #acrocosm and #icrocosm. In this manner 3e ,et, as it
3ere, a s"iritual
history o1 man, or o1 the soul comin, out 1rom the Eternal, "assin, into the
darBness o1 the
material body, and returnin, to the hei,ht. I thinB that the author is here 3ithin a
measurable
distance o1 the ri,ht tracB, and his /ie3s are to this e9tent in1ormin,, but his
method??in some
res"ects?con1uses the issues and the modes and "lanes o1 bein,.
The Trum"s #a$or ha/e also been treated in the alternati/e method 3hich I ha/e
mentioned, and
5rand @rient, in his #anual o1 !artomancy, under the ,uise o1 a mode o1
transcendental
di/ination, has really oEered the result o1 certain illustrati/e readin,s o1 the cards
3hen arran,ed
as the result o1 a 1ortuitous combination by means o1 shuWin, and dealin,. The
use o1 di/inatory
methods, 3ith 3hatsoe/er intention and 1or 3hate/er "ur"ose, carries 3ith it t3o
su,,estions. It
may be thou,ht that the dee"er meanin,s are im"uted rather than real, but this is
dis"osed o1 by the
1act o1 certain cards, liBe the #a,ician, the (i,h -riestess, the Wheel o1 &ortune,
the (an,ed #an,
the To3er or #aison )ieu, and se/eral others, 3hich do not corres"ond to
!onditions o1 .i1e,
Arts, Sciences, Virtues, or the other sub$ects contained in the denaries o1 the
*aldini emblematic
A,ures. They are also "roo1 "ositi/e that ob/ious and natural moralities cannot
e9"lain the
seDuence. Such cards testi1y concernin, themsel/es a1ter another mannerH and
althou,h the state in
3hich I ha/e le1t the Tarot in res"ect o1 its historical side is so much the more
diFcult as it is so
much the more o"en, they indicate the real sub$ect matter 3ith 3hich 3e are
concerned. The
methods she3 also that the Trum"s #a$or at least ha/e been ada"ted to 1ortune?
tellin, rather than
belon, thereto. The common di/inatory meanin,s 3hich 3ill be ,i/en in the third
"art are lar,ely
arbitrary attributions, or the "roduct o1 secondary and uninstructed intuitionH or,
at the /ery most,
they belon, to the sub$ect on a lo3er "lane, a"art 1rom the ori,inal intention. I1
the Tarot 3ere o1
1ortune?tellin, in the root?matter thereo1, 3e should ha/e to looB in /ery stran,e
"laces 1or the
moti/e 3hich de/ised it??to Witchcra1t and the *lacB Sabbath, rather than any
Secret )octrine.
The t3o classes o1 si,niAcance 3hich are attached to the Tarot in the su"erior and
in1erior 3orlds,
and the 1act that no occult or other 3riter has attem"ted to assi,n anythin, but a
di/inatory
meanin, to the #inor Arcana, $usti1y in yet another manner the hy"othesis that
the t3o series do
not belon, to one another. It is "ossible that their marria,e 3as eEected Arst in
the Tarot o1
*olo,na by that -rince o1 -isa 3hom I ha/e mentioned in the Arst "art. It is said
that his de/ice
obtained 1or him "ublic reco,nition and re3ard 1rom the city o1 his ado"tion,
3hich 3ould
scarcely ha/e been "ossible, e/en in those 1antastic days, 1or the "roduction o1 a
Tarot 3hich only
omitted a 1e3 o1 the small cardsH but as 3e are dealin, 3ith a Duestion o1 1act
3hich has to be
accounted 1or someho3, it is concei/able that a sensation mi,ht ha/e been
created by a
combination o1 the minor and ,amblin, cards 3ith the "hiloso"hical set, and by
the ada"tation o1
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both to a ,ame o1 chance. A1ter3ards it 3ould ha/e been 1urther ada"ted to that
other ,ame o1
chance 3hich is called 1ortune?tellin,. It should be understood here that I am not
denyin, the
"ossibility o1 di/ination, but I taBe e9ce"tion as a mystic to the dedications 3hich
brin, "eo"le
into these "aths, as i1 they had any relation to the #ystic 7uest.
The Tarot cards 3hich are issued 3ith the small edition o1 the "resent 3orB, that is
to say, 3ith the
6ey to the Tarot, ha/e been dra3n and coloured by #iss -amela !olman Smith,
and 3ill, I thinB,
be re,arded as /ery striBin, and beauti1ul, in their desi,n aliBe and e9ecution.
They are re"roduced
in the "resent enlar,ed edition o1 the 6ey as a means o1 re1erence to the te9t.
They diEer in many
im"ortant res"ects 1rom the con/entional archaisms o1 the "ast and 1rom the
3retched "roducts o1
col"orta,e 3hich no3 reach us 1rom Italy, and it remains 1or me to $usti1y their
/ariations so 1ar as
the symbolism is concerned. That 1or once in modern times I "resent a "acB 3hich
is the 3orB o1
an artist does not, I "resume, call 1or a"olo,y, e/en to the "eo"le??i1 any remain
amon, us??3ho
used to be described and to call themsel/es K/ery occult.K I1 any one 3ill looB at
the ,or,eous
Tarot /alet or Bna/e 3ho is emblaOoned on one o1 the "a,e "lates o1 !hattoMs
&acts and
S"eculations concernin, the (istory o1 -layin, !ards, he 3ill Bno3 that Italy in the
old days
"roduced some s"lendid "acBs. I could only 3ish that it had been "ossible to issue
the restored and
rectiAed cards in the same style and siOeH such a course 3ould ha/e done 1uller
$ustice to the
desi,ns, but the result 3ould ha/e "ro/ed unmana,eable 1or those "ractical
"ur"oses 3hich are
connected 3ith cards, and 1or 3hich allo3ance must be made, 3hate/er my /ie3s
thereon. &or the
/ariations in the symbolism by 3hich the desi,ns ha/e been aEected, I alone am
res"onsible. In
res"ect o1 the #a$or Arcana, they are sure to occasion criticism amon, students,
actual and
im"uted. I 3ish there1ore to say, 3ithin the reser/es o1 courtesy and la haute
con/enance
belon,in, to the 1ello3shi" o1 research, that I care nothin, utterly 1or any /ie3
that may And
e9"ression. There is a Secret Tradition concernin, the Tarot, as 3ell as a Secret
)octrine
contained thereinH I ha/e 1ollo3ed some "art o1 it 3ithout e9ceedin, the limits
3hich are dra3n
about matters o1 this Bind and belon, to the la3s o1 honour. This tradition has t3o
"arts, and as
one o1 them has "assed into 3ritin, it seems to 1ollo3 that it may be betrayed at
any moment,
3hich 3ill not si,ni1y, because the second, as I ha/e intimated, has not so "assed
at "resent and is
held by /ery 1e3 indeed. The "ur/eyors o1 s"urious co"y and the traFcBers in
stolen ,oods may
taBe note o1 this "oint, i1 they "lease. I asB, moreo/er, to be distin,uished 1rom
t3o or three 3riters
in recent times 3ho ha/e thou,ht At to hint that they could say a ,ood deal more
i1 they liBed, 1or
3e do not s"eaB the same lan,ua,eH but also 1rom any one 3ho, no3 or herea1ter,
may say that she
or he 3ill tell all, because they ha/e only the accidents and not the essentials
necessary 1or such
disclosure. I1 I ha/e 1ollo3ed on my "art the counsel o1 ;obert *urns, by Bee"in,
somethin, to
mysel1 3hich I Kscarcely tell to any,K I ha/e still said as much as I canH it is the
truth a1ter its o3n
manner, and as much as may be e9"ected or reDuired in those outer circles 3here
the DualiAcations
o1 s"ecial research cannot be e9"ected.
In re,ard to the #inor Arcana, they are the Arst in modern but not in all times to
be accom"anied
by "ictures, in addition to 3hat is called the K"i"sK??that is to say, the de/ices
belon,in, to the
numbers o1 the /arious suits. These "ictures res"ond to the di/inatory meanin,s,
3hich ha/e been
dra3n 1rom many sources. To sum u", there1ore, the "resent di/ision o1 this Bey is
de/oted to the
Trum"s #a$orH it elucidates their symbols in res"ect o1 the hi,her intention and
3ith re1erence to
the desi,ns in the "acB. The third di/ision 3ill ,i/e the di/inatory si,niAcance in
res"ect o1 the
se/enty?ei,ht Tarot cards, and 3ith "articular re1erence to the desi,ns o1 the
#inor Arcana. It 3ill
,i/e, in Ane, some modes o1 use 1or those 3ho reDuire them, and in the sense o1
the reason 3hich I
ha/e already e9"lained in the "re1ace. That 3hich hereina1ter 1ollo3s should be
taBen, 1or
"ur"oses o1 com"arison, in conne9ion 3ith the ,eneral descri"tion o1 the old Tarot
Trum"s in the
Arst "art. There it 3ill be seen that the Oero card o1 the &ool is allocated, as it
al3ays is, to the
"lace 3hich maBes it eDui/alent to the number t3enty?one. The arran,ement is
ridiculous on the
sur1ace, 3hich does not much si,ni1y, but it is also 3ron, on the symbolism, nor
does this 1are
better 3hen it is made to re"lace the t3enty?second "oint o1 the seDuence.
Etteilla reco,niOed the
diFculties o1 both attributions, but he only made bad 3orse by allocatin, the &ool
to the "lace
3hich is usually occu"ied by the Ace o1 -entacles as the last o1 the 3hole Tarot
series. This
rearran,ement has been 1ollo3ed by -a"us recently in .e Tarot )i/inatoire, 3here
the con1usion
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is o1 no conseDuence, as the Andin,s o1 1ortune tellin, de"end u"on 1ortuitous
"ositions and not
u"on essential "lace in the ,eneral seDuence o1 cards. I ha/e seen yet another
allocation o1 the Oero
symbol, 3hich no doubt obtains in certain cases, but it 1ails on the hi,hest "lanes
and 1or our
"resent reDuirements it 3ould be idle to carry the e9amination 1urther.
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.. The Trum"s #a$or and Inner Symbolism
I
T(E T;J#-S #A2@; A8) T(EI; I88E;
SC#*@.IS#
I. The #a,ician
III. The Em"ress
IV. The Em"eror
V. The (iero"hant
VI. The .o/ers
VII. The !hariot
I0. The (ermit
0. Wheel o1 &ortune
0I. 2ustice
0II. The (an,ed #an
0III. )eath
0IV. Tem"erance
0V. The )e/il
0VI. The To3er
0VII. The Star
0VIII. The #oon
0I0. The Sun
4ero. The &ool
00I. The World
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I. The #a,ician
I
The #a,ician
A youth1ul A,ure in the robe o1 a ma,ician, ha/in, the countenance o1 di/ine
A"ollo, 3ith smile
o1 conAdence and shinin, eyes. Abo/e his head is the mysterious si,n o1 the (oly
S"irit, the si,n
o1 li1e, liBe an endless cord, 1ormin, the A,ure > in a horiOontal "osition YinAnity
symbolZ. About
his 3aist is a ser"ent?cincture, the ser"ent a""earin, to de/our its o3n tail. This is
1amiliar to most
as a con/entional symbol o1 eternity, but here it indicates more es"ecially the
eternity o1
attainment in the s"irit. In the #a,icianMs ri,ht hand is a 3and raised to3ards
hea/en, 3hile the le1t
hand is "ointin, to the earth. This dual si,n is Bno3n in /ery hi,h ,rades o1 the
Instituted
#ysteriesH it she3s the descent o1 ,race, /irtue and li,ht, dra3n 1rom thin,s
abo/e and deri/ed to
thin,s belo3. The su,,estion throu,hout is there1ore the "ossession and
communication o1 the
-o3ers and 5i1ts o1 the S"irit. @n the table in 1ront o1 the #a,ician are the
symbols o1 the 1our
Tarot suits, si,ni1yin, the elements o1 natural li1e, 3hich lie liBe counters be1ore
the ade"t, and he
ada"ts them as he 3ills. *eneath are roses and lilies, the Los cam"i and lilium
con/allium, chan,ed
into ,arden Lo3ers, to she3 the culture o1 as"iration. This card si,niAes the di/ine
moti/e in man,
reLectin, 5od, the 3ill in the liberation o1 its union 3ith that 3hich is abo/e. It is
also the unity o1
indi/idual bein, on all "lanes, and in a /ery hi,h sense it is thou,ht, in the A9ation
thereo1. With
1urther re1erence to 3hat I ha/e called the si,n o1 li1e and its conne9ion 3ith the
number >, it may
be remembered that !hristian 5nosticism s"eaBs o1 rebirth in !hrist as a chan,e
Kunto the
@,doad.K The mystic number is termed 2erusalem abo/e, the .and Lo3in, 3ith
#ilB and (oney,
the (oly S"irit and the .and o1 the .ord. Accordin, to #artinism, > is the number
o1 !hrist.
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II
The (i,h -riestess
She has the lunar crescent at her 1eet, a horned diadem on her head, 3ith a ,lobe
in the middle
"lace, and a lar,e solar cross on her breast. The scroll in her hands is inscribed
3ith the 3ord Tora,
si,ni1yin, the 5reater .a3, the Secret .a3 and the second sense o1 the Word. It is
"artly co/ered
by her mantle, to she3 that some thin,s are im"lied and some s"oBen. She is
seated bet3een the
3hite and blacB "illars??2. and *.??o1 the mystic Tem"le, and the /eil o1 the Tem"le
is behind her+
it is embroidered 3ith "alms and "ome,ranates. The /estments are Lo3in, and
,auOy, and the
mantle su,,ests li,ht??a shimmerin, radiance. She has been called occult Science
on the threshold
o1 the Sanctuary o1 Isis, but she is really the Secret !hurch, the (ouse 3hich is o1
5od and man.
She re"resents also the Second #arria,e o1 the -rince 3ho is no lon,er o1 this
3orldH she is the
s"iritual *ride and #other, the dau,hter o1 the stars and the (i,her 5arden o1
Eden. She is, in
Ane, the 7ueen o1 the borro3ed li,ht, but this is the li,ht o1 all. She is the #oon
nourished by the
milB o1 the Su"ernal #other.
In a manner, she is also the Su"ernal #other hersel1??that is to say, she is the
bri,ht reLection. It is
in this sense o1 reLection that her truest and hi,hest name in bolism is SheBinah??
the co?habitin,
,lory. Accordin, to 6abalism, there is a SheBinah both abo/e and belo3. In the
su"erior 3orld it is
called *inah, the Su"ernal Jnderstandin, 3hich reLects to the emanations that
are beneath. In the
lo3er 3orld it is #aIButh??that 3orld bein,, 1or this "ur"ose, understood as a
blessed 6in,dom
that 3ith 3hich it is made blessed bein, the Ind3ellin, 5lory. #ystically s"eaBin,,
the SheBinah
is the S"iritual *ride o1 the $ust man, and 3hen he reads the .a3 she ,i/es the
)i/ine meanin,.
There are some res"ects in 3hich this card is the hi,hest and holiest o1 the
5reater Arcana.
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III. The Em"ress
III
The Em"ress
A stately A,ure, seated, ha/in, rich /estments and royal as"ect, as o1 a dau,hter
o1 hea/en and
earth. (er diadem is o1 t3el/e stars, ,athered in a cluster. The symbol o1 Venus is
on the shield
3hich rests near her. A Aeld o1 corn is ri"enin, in 1ront o1 her, and beyond there is
a 1all o1 3ater.
The sce"tre 3hich she bears is surmounted by the ,lobe o1 this 3orld. She is the
in1erior 5arden o1
Eden, the Earthly -aradise, all that is symboliOed by the /isible house o1 man. She
is not ;e,ina
coeli, but she is still re1u,ium "eccatorum, the 1ruit1ul mother o1 thousands. There
are also certain
as"ects in 3hich she has been correctly described as desire and the 3in,s
thereo1, as the 3oman
clothed 3ith the sun, as 5loria #undi and the /eil o1 the Sanctum SanctorumH but
she is not, I may
add, the soul that has attained 3in,s, unless all the symbolism is counted u"
another and unusual
3ay. She is abo/e all thin,s uni/ersal 1ecundity and the outer sense o1 the Word.
This is ob/ious,
because there is no direct messa,e 3hich has been ,i/en to man liBe that 3hich
is borne by
3omanH but she does not hersel1 carry its inter"retation.
In another order o1 ideas, the card o1 the Em"ress si,niAes the door or ,ate by
3hich an entrance is
obtained into this li1e, as into the 5arden o1 VenusH and then the 3ay 3hich leads
out there1rom,
into that 3hich is beyond, is the secret Bno3n to the (i,h -riestess+ it is
communicated by her to
the elect. #ost old attributions o1 this card are com"letely 3ron, on the
symbolism??as, 1or
e9am"le, its identiAcation 3ith the Word, )i/ine 8ature, the Triad, and so 1orth.
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IV. The Em"eror
IV
The Em"eror
(e has a 1orm o1 the !ru9 ansata 1or his sce"tre and a ,lobe in his le1t hand. (e is
a cro3ned
monarch??commandin,, stately, seated on a throne, the arms o1 3hich a9e 1ronted
by ramsM heads.
(e is e9ecuti/e and realiOation, the "o3er o1 this 3orld, here clothed 3ith the
hi,hest o1 its natural
attributes. (e is occasionally re"resented as seated on a cubic stone, 3hich,
ho3e/er, con1uses
some o1 the issues. (e is the /irile "o3er, to 3hich the Em"ress res"onds, and in
this sense is he
3ho seeBs to remo/e the Veil o1 IsisH yet she remains /ir,o intacta.
It should be understood that this card and that o1 the Em"ress do not "recisely
re"resent the
condition o1 married li1e, thou,h this state is im"lied. @n the sur1ace, as I ha/e
indicated, they
stand 1or mundane royalty, u"li1ted on the seats o1 the mi,htyH but abo/e this
there is the
su,,estion o1 another "resence. They si,ni1y also??and the male A,ure es"ecially??
the hi,her
Bin,shi", occu"yin, the intellectual throne. (ereo1 is the lordshi" o1 thou,ht
rather than o1 the
animal 3orld. *oth "ersonalities, a1ter their o3n manner, are K1ull o1 stran,e
e9"erience,K but
theirs is not consciously the 3isdom 3hich dra3s 1rom a hi,her 3orld. The
Em"eror has been
described as (a) 3ill in its embodied 1orm, but this is only one o1 its a""lications,
and (b) as an
e9"ression o1 /irtualities contained in the Absolute *ein,??but this is 1antasy.
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V. The (iero"hant
V
The (iero"hant
(e 3ears the tri"le cro3n and is seated bet3een t3o "illars, but they are not
those o1 the Tem"le
3hich is ,uarded by the (i,h -riestess. In his le1t hand he holds a sce"tre
terminatin, in the tri"le
cross, and 3ith his ri,ht hand he ,i/es the 3ell?Bno3n ecclesiastical si,n 3hich is
called that o1
esotericism, distin,uishin, bet3een the mani1est and concealed "art o1 doctrine.
It is noticeable in
this conne9ion that the (i,h -riestess maBes no si,n. At his 1eet are the crossed
Beys, and t3o
"riestly ministers in albs Bneel be1ore him. (e has been usually called the -o"e,
3hich is a
"articular a""lication o1 the more ,eneral oFce that he symboliOes. (e is the
rulin, "o3er o1
e9ternal reli,ion, as the (i,h -riestess is the "re/ailin, ,enius o1 the esoteric,
3ithdra3n "o3er.
The "ro"er meanin,s o1 this card ha/e suEered 3oe1ul admi9ture 1rom nearly all
hands. 5rand
@rient says truly that the (iero"hant is the "o3er o1 the Beys, e9oteric orthodo9
doctrine, and the
outer side o1 the li1e 3hich leads to the doctrineH but he is certainly not the "rince
o1 occult
doctrine, as another commentator has su,,ested.
(e is rather the summa totius theolo,iP, 3hen it has "assed into the utmost
ri,idity o1 e9"ressionH
but he symboliOes also all thin,s that are ri,hteous and sacred on the mani1est
side. As such, he is
the channel o1 ,race belon,in, to the 3orld o1 institution as distinct 1rom that o1
8ature, and he is
the leader o1 sal/ation 1or the human race at lar,e. (e is the order and the head
o1 the reco,niOed
hierarchy, 3hich is the reLection o1 another and ,reater hierarchic orderH but it
may so ha""en that
the "ontiE 1or,ets the si,niAcance o1 this his symbolic state and acts as i1 he
contained 3ithin his
"ro"er measures all that his si,n si,niAes or his symbol seeBs to she3 1orth. (e is
not, as it has
been thou,ht, "hiloso"hy?e9ce"t on the theolo,ical sideH he is not ins"irationH and
he is not
reli,ion, althou,h he is a mode o1 its e9"ression.
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VI. The .o/ers
VI
The .o/ers
The sun shines in the Oenith, and beneath is a ,reat 3in,ed A,ure 3ith arms
e9tended, "ourin,
do3n inLuences. In the 1ore,round are t3o human A,ures, male and 1emale,
un/eiled be1ore each
other, as i1 Adam and E/e 3hen they Arst occu"ied the "aradise o1 the earthly
body. *ehind the
man is the Tree o1 .i1e, bearin, t3el/e 1ruits, and the Tree o1 the 6no3led,e o1
5ood and E/il is
behind the 3omanH the ser"ent is t3inin, round it. The A,ures su,,est youth,
/ir,inity, innocence
and lo/e be1ore it is contaminated by ,ross material desire. This is in all sim"licity
the card o1
human lo/e, here e9hibited as "art o1 the 3ay, the truth and the li1e. It re"laces,
by recourse to Arst
"rinci"les, the old card o1 marria,e, 3hich I ha/e described "re/iously, and the
later 1ollies 3hich
de"icted man bet3een /ice and /irtue. In a /ery hi,h sense, the card is a mystery
o1 the !o/enant
and Sabbath.
The su,,estion in res"ect o1 the 3oman is that she si,niAes that attraction
to3ards the sensiti/e
li1e 3hich carries 3ithin it the idea o1 the &all o1 #an, but she is rather the 3orBin,
o1 a Secret
.a3 o1 -ro/idence than a 3illin, and conscious tem"tress. It is throu,h her
im"uted la"se that
man shall arise ultimately, and only by her can he com"lete himsel1. The card is
there1ore in its
3ay another intimation concernin, the ,reat mystery o1 3omanhood. The old
meanin,s 1all to
"ieces o1 necessity 3ith the old "ictures, but e/en as inter"retations o1 the latter,
some o1 them
3ere o1 the order o1 common"lace and others 3ere 1alse in symbolism.
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VII. The !hariot
VII
The !hariot
An erect and "rincely A,ure carryin, a dra3n s3ord and corres"ondin,, broadly
s"eaBin,, to the
traditional descri"tion 3hich I ha/e ,i/en in the Arst "art. @n the shoulders o1 the
/ictorious hero
are su""osed to be the Jrim and Thummim. (e has led ca"ti/ity ca"ti/eH he is
conDuest on all
"lanes??in the mind, in science, in "ro,ress, in certain trials o1 initiation. (e has
thus re"lied to the
s"hin9, and it is on this account that I ha/e acce"ted the /ariation o1 Qli"has .G/iH
t3o s"hin9es
thus dra3 his chariot. (e is abo/e all thin,s trium"h in the mind.
It is to be understood 1or this reason (a) that the Duestion o1 the s"hin9 is
concerned 3ith a #ystery
o1 8ature and not o1 the 3orld o1 5race, to 3hich the charioteer could oEer no
ans3erH (b) that the
"lanes o1 his conDuest are mani1est or e9ternal and not 3ithin himsel1H (c) that the
liberation 3hich
he eEects may lea/e himsel1 in the bonda,e o1 the lo,ical understandin,H (d) that
the tests o1
initiation throu,h 3hich he has "assed in trium"h are to be understood "hysically
or rationallyH and
(e) that i1 he came to the "illars o1 that Tem"le bet3een 3hich the (i,h -riestess
is seated, he
could not o"en the scroll called Tora, nor i1 she Duestioned him could he ans3er.
(e is not
hereditary royalty and he is not "riesthood.
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VIII
Stren,th, or &ortitude
A 3oman, o/er 3hose head there broods the same symbol o1 li1e 3hich 3e ha/e
seen in the card
o1 the #a,ician, is closin, the $a3s o1 a lion. The only "oint in 3hich this desi,n
diEers 1rom the
con/entional "resentations is that her beneAcent 1ortitude has already subdued
the lion, 3hich is
bein, led by a chain o1 Lo3ers. &or reasons 3hich satis1y mysel1, this card has
been interchan,ed
3ith that o1 $ustice, 3hich is usually numbered ei,ht. As the /ariation carries
nothin, 3ith it 3hich
3ill si,ni1y to the reader, there is no cause 1or e9"lanation. &ortitude, in one o1 its
most e9alted
as"ects, is connected 3ith the )i/ine #ystery o1 JnionH the /irtue, o1 course,
o"erates in all
"lanes, and hence dra3s on all in its symbolism. It connects also 3ith innocentia
in/iolata, and
3ith the stren,th 3hich resides in contem"lation.
These hi,her meanin,s are, ho3e/er, matters o1 in1erence, and I do not su,,est
that they are
trans"arent on the sur1ace o1 the card. They are intimated in a concealed manner
by the chain o1
Lo3ers, 3hich si,niAes, amon, many other thin,s, the s3eet yoBe and the li,ht
burden o1 )i/ine
.a3, 3hen it has been taBen into the heart o1 hearts. The card has nothin, to do
3ith sel1?
conAdence in the ordinary sense, thou,h this has been su,,ested??but it concerns
the conAdence o1
those 3hose stren,th is 5od, 3ho ha/e 1ound their re1u,e in (im. There is one
as"ect in 3hich the
lion si,niAes the "assions, and she 3ho is called Stren,th is the hi,her nature in
its liberation. It
has 3alBed u"on the as" and the basilisB and has trodden do3n the lion and the
dra,on.
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I0. The (ermit
I0
The (ermit
The /ariation 1rom the con/entional models in this card is only that the lam" is not
en/elo"ed
"artially in the mantle o1 its bearer, 3ho blends the idea o1 the Ancient o1 )ays
3ith the .i,ht o1
the World It is a star 3hich shines in the lantern. I ha/e said that this is a card o1
attainment, and to
e9tend this conce"tion the A,ure is seen holdin, u" his beacon on an eminence.
There1ore the
(ermit is not, as !ourt de 5ebelin e9"lained, a 3ise man in search o1 truth and
$usticeH nor is he,
as a later e9"lanation "ro"oses, an es"ecial e9am"le o1 e9"erience. (is beacon
intimates that
K3here I am, you also may be.K
It is 1urther a card 3hich is understood Duite incorrectly 3hen it is connected 3ith
the idea o1
occult isolation, as the "rotection o1 "ersonal ma,netism a,ainst admi9ture. This
is one o1 the
1ri/olous renderin,s 3hich 3e o3e to Qli"has .G/i. It has been ado"ted by the
&rench @rder o1
#artinism and some o1 us ha/e heard a ,reat deal o1 the Silent and JnBno3n
-hiloso"hy
en/elo"ed by his mantle 1rom the Bno3led,e o1 the "ro1ane. In true #artinism,
the si,niAcance o1
the term -hiloso"he inconnu 3as o1 another order. It did not re1er to the intended
concealment o1
the Instituted #ysteries, much less o1 their substitutes, but??liBe the card itsel1??to
the truth that the
)i/ine #ysteries secure their o3n "rotection 1rom those 3ho are un"re"ared.
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0. Wheel o1 &ortune
0
Wheel o1 &ortune
In this symbol I ha/e a,ain 1ollo3ed the reconstruction o1 Qli"has .G/i, 3ho has
1urnished se/eral
/ariants. It is le,itimate??as I ha/e intimated??to use E,y"tian symbolism 3hen
this ser/es our
"ur"ose, "ro/ided that no theory o1 ori,in is im"lied therein. I ha/e, ho3e/er,
"resented Ty"hon in
his ser"ent 1orm. The symbolism is, o1 course, not e9clusi/ely E,y"tian, as the
1our .i/in,
!reatures o1 EOeBiel occu"y the an,les o1 the card, and the 3heel itsel1 1ollo3s
other indications o1
.G/i in res"ect o1 EOeBielMs /ision, as illustrati/e o1 the "articular Tarot 6ey. With
the &rench
occultist, and in the desi,n itsel1, the symbolic "icture stands 1or the "er"etual
motion o1 a Luidic
uni/erse and 1or the Lu9 o1 human li1e. The S"hin9 is the eDuilibrium therein. The
transliteration
o1 Taro as ;ota is inscribed on the 3heel, counterchan,ed 3ith the letters o1 the
)i/ine 8ame??to
she3 that -ro/idence is im"hed throu,h all. *ut this is the )i/ine intention 3ithin,
and the similar
intention 3ithout is e9em"liAed by the 1our .i/in, !reatures. Sometimes the
s"hin9 is re"resented
couchant on a "edestal abo/e, 3hich de1rauds the symbolism by stulti1yin, the
essential idea o1
stability amidst mo/ement.
*ehind the ,eneral notion e9"ressed in the symbol there lies the denial o1 chance
and the 1atality
3hich is im"lied therein. It may be added that, 1rom the days o1 .G/i on3ard, the
occult
e9"lanations o1 this card are??e/en 1or occultism itsel1??o1 a sin,ularly 1atuous
Bind. It has been
said to mean "rinci"le, 1ecundity, /irile honour, rulin, authority, etc. The Andin,s
o1 common
1ortune?tellin, are better than this on their o3n "lane.
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0I. 2ustice
0I
2ustice
As this card 1ollo3s the traditional symbolism and carries abo/e all its ob/ious
meanin,s, there is
little to say re,ardin, it outside the 1e3 considerations collected in the Arst "art,
to 3hich the
reader is re1erred.
It 3ill be seen, ho3e/er, that the A,ure is seated bet3een "illars, liBe the (i,h
-riestess, and on
this account it seems desirable to indicate that the moral "rinci"le 3hich deals
unto e/ery man
accordin, to his 3orBs??3hile, o1 course, it is in strict analo,y 3ith hi,her thin,sH??
diEers in its
essence 1rom the s"iritual $ustice 3hich is in/ol/ed in the idea o1 election. The
latter belon,s to a
mysterious order o1 -ro/idence, in /irtue o1 3hich it is "ossible 1or certain men to
concei/e the
idea o1 dedication to the hi,hest thin,s. The o"eration o1 this is liBe the breathin,
o1 the S"irit
3here it 3ills, and 3e ha/e no canon o1 criticism or ,round o1 e9"lanation
concernin, it. It is
analo,ous to the "ossession o1 the 1airy ,i1ts and the hi,h ,i1ts and the ,racious
,i1ts o1 the "oet+
3e ha/e them or ha/e not, and their "resence is as much a mystery as their
absence. The la3 o1
2ustice is not ho3e/er in/ol/ed by either alternati/e. In conclusion, the "illars o1
2ustice o"en into
one 3orld and the "illars o1 the (i,h -riestess into another.
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0II. The (an,ed #an
0II
The (an,ed #an
The ,allo3s 1rom 3hich he is sus"ended 1orms a Tau cross, 3hile the A,ure??1rom
the "osition o1
the le,s??1orms a 1yl1ot cross. There is a nimbus about the head o1 the seemin,
martyr. It should be
noted (1) that the tree o1 sacriAce is li/in, 3ood, 3ith lea/es thereonH () that the
1ace e9"resses
dee" entrancement, not suEerin,H (%) that the A,ure, as a 3hole, su,,ests li1e in
sus"ension, but
li1e and not death. It is a card o1 "ro1ound si,niAcance, but all the si,niAcance is
/eiled. @ne o1 his
editors su,,ests that Qli"has .G/i did not Bno3 the meanin,, 3hich is
unDuestionable nor did the
editor himsel1. It has been called 1alsely a card o1 martyrdom, a card a o1
"rudence, a card o1 the
5reat WorB, a card o1 dutyH but 3e may e9haust all "ublished inter"retations and
And only /anity.
I 3ill say /ery sim"ly on my o3n "art that it e9"resses the relation, in one o1 its
as"ects, bet3een
the )i/ine and the Jni/erse.
(e 3ho can understand that the story o1 his hi,her nature is imbedded in this
symbolism 3ill
recei/e intimations concernin, a ,reat a3aBenin, that is "ossible, and 3ill Bno3
that a1ter the
sacred #ystery o1 )eath there is a ,lorious #ystery o1 ;esurrection.
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0III. )eath
0III
)eath
The /eil or masB o1 li1e is "er"etuated in chan,e, trans1ormation and "assa,e
1rom lo3er to hi,her,
and this is more Atly re"resented in the rectiAed Tarot by one o1 the a"ocaly"tic
/isions than by
the crude notion o1 the rea"in, sBeleton. *ehind it lies the 3hole 3orld o1 ascent
in the s"irit. The
mysterious horseman mo/es slo3ly, bearin, a blacB banner emblaOoned 3ith the
#ystic ;ose,
3hich si,niAes li1e. *et3een t3o "illars on the /er,e o1 the horiOon there shines
the sun o1
immortality. The horseman carries no /isible 3ea"on, but Bin, and child and
maiden 1all be1ore
him, 3hile a "relate 3ith clas"ed hands a3aits his end.
There should be no need to "oint out that the su,,estion o1 death 3hich I ha/e
made in connection
3ith the "re/ious card is, o1 course, to be understood mystically, but this is not
the case in the
"resent instance. The natural transit o1 man to the ne9t sta,e o1 his bein, either
is or may be one
1orm o1 his "ro,ress, but the e9otic and almost unBno3n entrance, 3hile still in
this li1e, into the
state o1 mystical death is a chan,e in the 1orm o1 consciousness and the "assa,e
into a state to
3hich ordinary death is neither the "ath nor ,ate. The e9istin, occult e9"lanations
o1 the 1%th card
are, on the 3hole, better than usual, rebirth, creation, destination, rene3al, and
the rest.
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0IV. Tem"erance
0IV
Tem"erance
A 3in,ed an,el, 3ith the si,n o1 the sun u"on his 1orehead and on his breast the
sDuare and
trian,le o1 the se"tenary. I s"eaB o1 him in the masculine sense, but the A,ure is
neither male nor
1emale. It is held to be "ourin, the essences o1 li1e 1rom chalice to chalice. It has
one 1oot u"on the
earth and one u"on 3aters, thus illustratin, the nature o1 the essences. A direct
"ath ,oes u" to
certain hei,hts on the /er,e o1 the horiOon, and abo/e there is a ,reat li,ht,
throu,h 3hich a cro3n
is seen /a,uely. (ereo1 is some "art o1 the Secret o1 Eternal .i1e, as it is "ossible
to man in his
incarnation. All the con/entional emblems are renounced herein.
So also are the con/entional meanin,s, 3hich re1er to chan,es in the seasons,
"er"etual mo/ement
o1 li1e and e/en the combination o1 ideas. It is, moreo/er, untrue to say that the
A,ure symboliOes
the ,enius o1 the sun, thou,h it is the analo,y o1 solar li,ht, realiOed in the third
"art o1 our human
tri"licity. It is called Tem"erance 1antastically, because, 3hen the rule o1 it obtains
in our
consciousness, it tem"ers, combines and harmonises the "sychic and material
natures. Jnder that
rule 3e Bno3 in our rational "art somethin, o1 3hence 3e came and 3hither 3e
are ,oin,.
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0V. The )e/il
0V
The )e/il
The desi,n is an accommodation, mean or harmony, bet3een se/eral moti/es
mentioned in the
Arst "art. The (orned 5oat o1 #endes, 3ith 3in,s liBe those o1 a bat, is standin,
on an altar. At
the "it o1 the stomach there is the si,n o1 #ercury. The ri,ht hand is u"raised and
e9tended, bein,
the re/erse o1 that benediction 3hich is ,i/en by the (iero"hant in the A1th card.
In the le1t hand
there is a ,reat Lamin, torch, in/erted to3ards the earth. A re/ersed "enta,ram
is on the 1orehead.
There is a rin, in 1ront o1 the altar, 1rom 3hich t3o chains are carried to the necBs
o1 t3o A,ures,
male and 1emale. These are analo,ous 3ith those o1 the A1th card, as i1 Adam and
E/e a1ter the
&all. (ereo1 is the chain and 1atality o1 the material li1e.
The A,ures are tailed, to si,ni1y the animal nature, but there is human intelli,ence
in the 1aces, and
he 3ho is e9alted abo/e them is not to be their master 1or e/er. E/en no3, he is
also a bondsman,
sustained by the e/il that is in him and blind to the liberty o1 ser/ice. With more
than his usual
derision 1or the arts 3hich he "retended to res"ect and inter"ret as a master
therein, Qli"has .G/i
aFrms that the *a"hometic A,ure is occult science and ma,ic. Another
commentator says that in
the )i/ine 3orld it si,niAes "redestination, but there is no corres"ondence in that
3orld 3ith the
thin,s 3hich belo3 are o1 the brute. What it does si,ni1y is the )3eller on the
Threshold 3ithout
the #ystical 5arden 3hen those are dri/en 1orth there1rom 3ho ha/e eaten the
1orbidden 1ruit.
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0VI. The To3er
0VI
The To3er
@ccult e9"lanations attached to this card are mea,re and mostly disconcertin,. It
is idle to indicate
that it de"icts min in all its as"ects, because it bears this e/idence on the sur1ace.
It is said 1urther
that it contains the Arst allusion to a material buildin,, but I do not concei/e that
the To3er is
more or less material than the "illars 3hich 3e ha/e met 3ith in three "re/ious
cases. I see nothin,
to 3arrant -a"us in su""osin, that it is literally the 1all o1 Adam, but there is more
in 1a/our o1 his
alternati/e??that it si,niAes the materialiOation o1 the s"iritual 3ord. The
biblio,ra"her !hristian
ima,ines that it is the do3n1all o1 the mind, seeBin, to "enetrate the mystery o1
5od. I a,ree rather
3ith 5rand @rient that it is the ruin o1 the (ouse o1 We, 3hen e/il has "re/ailed
therein, and
abo/e all that it is the rendin, o1 a (ouse o1 )octrine. I understand that the
re1erence is, ho3e/er,
to a (ouse o1 &alsehood. It illustrates also in the most com"rehensi/e 3ay the old
truth that
Ke9ce"t the .ord build the house, they labour in /ain that build it.K
There is a sense in 3hich the catastro"he is a reLection 1rom the "re/ious card,
but not on the side
o1 the symbolism 3hich I ha/e tried to indicate therein. It is more correctly a
Duestion o1 analo,yH
one is concerned 3ith the 1all into the material and animal state, 3hile the other
si,niAes
destruction on the intellectual side. The To3er has been s"oBen o1 as the
chastisement o1 "ride and
the intellect o/er3helmed in the attem"t to "enetrate the #ystery o1 5odH but in
neither case do
these e9"lanations account 1or the t3o "ersons 3ho are the li/in, suEerers. The
one is the literal
3ord made /oid and the other its 1alse inter"retation. In yet a dee"er sense, it
may si,ni1y also the
end o1 a dis"ensation, but there is no "ossibility here 1or the consideration o1 this
in/ol/ed
Duestion.
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0VII. The Star
0VII
The Star
A ,reat, radiant star o1 ei,ht rays, surrounded by se/en lesser stars??also o1 ei,ht
rays. The 1emale
A,ure in the 1ore,round is entirely naBed. (er le1t Bnee is on the land and her
ri,ht 1oot u"on the
3ater. She "ours Water o1 .i1e 1rom t3o ,reat e3ers, irri,atin, sea and land.
*ehind her is risin,
,round and on the ri,ht a shrub or tree, 3hereon a bird ali,hts. The A,ure
e9"resses eternal youth
and beauty. The star is lMGtoile Lamboyante, 3hich a""ears in #asonic symbolism,
but has been
con1used therein. That 3hich the A,ure communicates to the li/in, scene is the
substance o1 the
hea/ens and the elements. It has been said truly that the mottoes o1 this card are
KWaters o1 .i1e
1reelyK and K5i1ts o1 the S"irit.K
The summary o1 se/eral ta3dry e9"lanations says that it is a card o1 ho"e. @n
other "lanes it has
been certiAed as immortality and interior li,ht. &or the ma$ority o1 "re"ared
minds, the A,ure 3ill
a""ear as the ty"e o1 Truth un/eiled, ,lorious in undyin, beauty, "ourin, on the
3aters o1 the soul
some "art and measure o1 her "riceless "ossession. *ut she is in reality the 5reat
#other in the
6abalistic Se"hira *inah, 3hich is su"ernal Jnderstandin,, 3ho communicates to
the Se"hiroth
that are belo3 in the measure that they can recei/e her inLu9.
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0VIII. The #oon
0VIII
The #oon
The distinction bet3een this card and some o1 the con/entional ty"es is that the
moon is increasin,
on 3hat is called the side o1 mercy, to the ri,ht o1 the obser/er. It has si9teen
chie1 and si9teen
secondary rays. The card re"resents li1e o1 the ima,ination a"art 1rom li1e o1 the
s"irit. The "ath
bet3een the to3ers is the issue into the unBno3n. The do, and 3ol1 are the 1ears
o1 the natural
mind in the "resence o1 that "lace o1 e9it, 3hen there is only reLected li,ht to
,uide it.
The last re1erence is a Bey to another 1orm o1 symbolism. The intellectual li,ht is a
reLection and
beyond it is the unBno3n mystery 3hich it cannot she3 1orth. It illuminates our
animal nature,
ty"es o1 3hich are re"resented belo3??the do,, the 3ol1 and that 3hich comes u"
out o1 the dee"s,
the nameless and hideous tendency 3hich is lo3er than the sa/a,e beast. It
stri/es to attain
mani1estation, symboliOed by cra3lin, 1rom the abyss o1 3ater to the land, but as
a rule it sinBs
bacB 3hence it came. The 1ace o1 the mind directs a calm ,aOe u"on the unrest
belo3H the de3 o1
thou,ht 1allsH the messa,e is+ -eace, be stillH and it may be that there shall come
a calm u"on the
animal nature, 3hile the abyss beneath shall cease 1rom ,i/in, u" a 1orm.
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0I0. The Sun
0I0
The Sun
The naBed child mounted on a 3hite horse and dis"layin, a red standard has been
mentioned
already as the better symbolism connected 3ith this card. It is the destiny o1 the
Su"ernatural East
and the ,reat and holy li,ht 3hich ,oes be1ore the endless "rocession o1
humanity, comin, out
1rom the 3alled ,arden o1 the sensiti/e li1e and "assin, on the $ourney home. The
card si,niAes,
there1ore, the transit 1rom the mani1est li,ht o1 this 3orld, re"resented by the
,lorious sun o1 earth,
to the li,ht o1 the 3orld to come, 3hich ,oes be1ore as"iration and is ty"iAed by
the heart o1 a
child.
*ut the last allusion is a,ain the Bey to a diEerent 1orm or as"ect o1 the
symbolism. The sun is that
o1 consciousness in the s"irit ? the direct as the antithesis o1 the reLected li,ht.
The characteristic
ty"e o1 humanity has become a little child therein??a child in the sense o1
sim"licity and innocence
in the sense o1 3isdom. In that sim"licity, he bears the seal o1 8ature and o1 ArtH
in that innocence,
he si,niAes the restored 3orld. When the sel1?Bno3in, s"irit has da3ned in the
consciousness
abo/e the natural mind, that mind in its rene3al leads 1orth the animal nature in a
state o1 "er1ect
con1ormity.
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00
The .ast 2ud,ment
I ha/e said that this symbol is essentially in/ariable in all Tarot sets, or at least the
/ariations do
not alter its character. The ,reat an,el is here encom"assed by clouds, but he
blo3s his bannered
trum"et, and the cross as usual is dis"layed on the banner. The dead are risin,
1rom their tombs??a
3oman on the ri,ht, a man on the le1t hand, and bet3een them their child, 3hose
bacB is turned.
*ut in this card there are more than three 3ho are restored, and it has been
thou,ht 3orth 3hile to
maBe this /ariation as illustratin, the insuFciency o1 current e9"lanations. It
should be noted that
all the A,ures are as one in the 3onder, adoration and ecstacy e9"ressed by their
attitudes. It is the
card 3hich re,isters the accom"lishment o1 the ,reat 3orB o1 trans1ormation in
ans3er to the
summons o1 the Su"ernal??3hich summons is heard and ans3ered 1rom 3ithin.
(erein is the intimation o1 a si,niAcance 3hich cannot 3ell be carried 1urther in
the "resent "lace.
What is that 3ithin us 3hich does sound a trum"et and all that is lo3er in our
nature rises in
res"onse??almost in a moment, almost in the t3inBlin, o1 an eye[ .et the card
continue to de"ict,
1or those 3ho can see no 1urther, the .ast $ud,ment and the resurrection in the
natural bodyH but let
those 3ho ha/e in3ard eyes looB and disco/er there3ith. They 3ill understand
that it has been
called truly in the "ast a card o1 eternal li1e, and 1or this reason it may be
com"ared 3ith that
3hich "asses under the name o1 Tem"erance.
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4ero. The &ool
0
4E;@
The &ool
With li,ht ste", as i1 earth and its trammels had little "o3er to restrain him, a
youn, man in
,or,eous /estments "auses at the brinB o1 a "reci"ice amon, the ,reat hei,hts o1
the 3orldH he
sur/eys the blue distance be1ore him?its e9"anse o1 sBy rather than the "ros"ect
belo3. (is act o1
ea,er 3alBin, is still indicated, thou,h he is stationary at the ,i/en momentH his
do, is still
boundin,. The ed,e 3hich o"ens on the de"th has no terrorH it is as i1 an,els 3ere
3aitin, to
u"hold him, i1 it came about that he lea"ed 1rom the hei,ht. (is countenance is
1ull o1 intelli,ence
and e9"ectant dream. (e has a rose in one hand and in the other a costly 3and,
1rom 3hich
de"ends o/er his ri,ht shoulder a 3allet curiously embroidered. (e is a "rince o1
the other 3orld
on his tra/els throu,h this one?all amidst the mornin, ,lory, in the Been air. The
sun, 3hich shines
behind him, Bno3s 3hence he came, 3hither he is ,oin,, and ho3 he 3ill return
by another "ath
a1ter many days. (e is the s"irit in search o1 e9"erience. #any symbols o1 the
Instituted #ysteries
are summariOed in this card, 3hich re/erses, under hi,h 3arrants, all the
con1usions that ha/e
"receded it.
In his #anual o1 !artomancy, 5rand @rient has a curious su,,estion o1 the oFce
o1 #ystic &ool,
as a"art o1 his "rocess in hi,her di/inationH but it mi,ht call 1or more than
ordinary ,i1ts to "ut it
into o"eration. We shall see ho3 the card 1ares accordin, to the common arts o1
1ortune?tellin,,
and it 3ill be an e9am"le, to those 3ho can discern, o1 the 1act, other3ise so
e/ident, that the
Trum"s #a$or had no "lace ori,inally in the arts o1 "sychic ,amblin,, 3hen cards
are used as the
counters and "rete9ts. @1 the circumstances under 3hich this art arose 3e Bno3,
ho3e/er, /ery
little. The con/entional e9"lanations say that the &ool si,niAes the Lesh, the
sensiti/e li1e, and by
a "eculiar satire its subsidiary name 3as at one time the alchemist, as de"ictin,
1olly at the most
insensate sta,e.
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00I. The World
00I
The World
As this Anal messa,e o1 the #a$or Trum"s is unchan,ed??and indeed
unchan,eable??in res"ect o1
its desi,n, it has been "artly described already re,ardin, its dee"er sense. It
re"resents also the
"er1ection and end o1 the !osmos, the secret 3hich is 3ithin it, the ra"ture o1 the
uni/erse 3hen it
understands itsel1 in 5od. It is 1urther the state o1 the soul in the consciousness o1
)i/ine Vision,
reLected 1rom the sel1?Bno3in, s"irit. *ut these meanin,s are 3ithout "re$udice to
that 3hich I
ha/e said concernin, it on the material side.
It has more than one messa,e on the macrocosmic side and is, 1or e9am"le, the
state o1 the restored
3orld 3hen the la3 o1 mani1estation shall ha/e been carried to the hi,hest de,ree
o1 natural
"er1ection. *ut it is "erha"s more es"ecially a story o1 the "ast, re1errin, to that
day 3hen all 3as
declared to be ,ood, 3hen the mornin, stars san, to,ether and all the Sons o1
5od shouted 1or $oy.
@ne o1 the 3orst e9"lanations concernin, it is that the A,ure symboliOes the
#a,us 3hen he has
reached the hi,hest de,ree o1 initiationH another account says that it re"resents
the absolute, 3hich
is ridiculous. The A,ure has been said to stand 1or Truth, 3hich is, ho3e/er, more
"ro"erly
allocated to the se/enteenth card. .astly, it has been called the !ro3n o1 the
#a,i.
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.% !onclusion as to the 5reater 6eys
I%
!onclusion as to the 5reater 6eys
There has been no attem"t in the "re/ious tabulation to "resent the symbolism in
3hat is called the
three 3orlds??that o1 )i/inity, o1 the #acrocosm and the #icrocosm. A lar,e
/olume 3ould be
reDuired 1or de/elo"ments o1 this Bind. I ha/e taBen the cards on the hi,h "lane o1
their more
direct si,niAcance to man, 3ho??in material li1e??is on the Duest o1 eternal thin,s.
The com"iler o1
the #anual o1 !artomancy has treated them under three headin,s+ the World o1
(uman -rudence,
3hich does not diEer 1rom di/ination on its more serious sideH the World o1
!on1ormity, bein, the
li1e o1 reli,ious de/otionH and the World o1 Attainment, 3hich is that o1 Kthe soulMs
"ro,ress
to3ards the term o1 its research.K (e ,i/es also a tri"le "rocess o1 consultation,
accordin, to these
di/isions, to 3hich the reader is re1erred. I ha/e no such "rocess to oEer, as I thinB
that more may
be ,ained by indi/idual reLection on each o1 the Trum"s #a$or. I ha/e also not
ado"ted the
"re/ailin, attribution o1 the cards to the (ebre3 al"habet??Arstly, because it
3ould ser/e no
"ur"ose in an elementary handbooBH secondly, because nearly e/ery attribution is
3ron,. &inally, I
ha/e not attem"ted to recti1y the "osition o1 the cards in their relation to one
anotherH the 4ero
there1ore a""ears a1ter 8o. 0, but I ha/e taBen care not to number the World or
Jni/erse
other3ise than as 1. Where/er it ou,ht to be "ut, the 4ero is an unnumbered
card.
In conclusion as to this "art, I 3ill ,i/e these 1urther indications re,ardin, the
&ool, 3hich is the
most s"eaBin, o1 all the symbols. (e si,niAes the $ourney out3ard, the state o1
the Arst emanation,
the ,races and "assi/ity o1 the s"irit. (is 3allet is inscribed 3ith dim si,ns, to
she3 that many sub?
conscious memories are stored u" in the soul.
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-A;T III
The @uter #ethod o1 the @racles
I1
)istinction bet3een the 5reater and .esser
Arcana
I8 res"ect o1 their usual "resentation, the brid,e bet3een the 5reater and .esser
Arcana is su""lied
by the court cards??6in,, 7ueen, 6ni,ht and SDuire or -a,eH but their utter
distinction 1rom the
Trum"s #a$or is she3n by their con/entional character. .et the reader com"are
them 3ith symbols
liBe the &ool, the (i,h -riestess, the (iero"hant, or??almost 3ithout e9ce"tion??
3ith any in the
"re/ious seDuence, and he 3ill discern my meanin,. There is no es"ecial idea
connected on the
sur1ace 3ith the ordinary court cardsH they are a brid,e o1 con/entions, 3hich
1orm a transition to
the sim"le "rete9ts o1 the counters and denaries o1 the numbers 1ollo3in,. We
seem to ha/e "assed
a3ay utterly 1rom the re,ion o1 hi,her meanin,s illustrated by li/in, "ictures.
There in 3as a
"eriod, ho3e/er, 3hen the numbered cards 3ere also "ictures, but such de/ices
3ere s"oradic
in/entions o1 "articular artists and 3ere either con/entional desi,ns o1 the ty"ical
or alle,orical
Bind, distinct 1rom 3hat is understood by symbolism, or they 3ere illustrations??
shall 3e say[??o1
manners, customs and "eriods. They 3ere, in a 3ord, adornments, and as such
they did nothin, to
raise the si,niAcance o1 the .esser Arcana to the "lane o1 the Trum"s #a$orH
moreo/er, such
/ariations are e9ceedin,ly 1e3. This not3ithstandin,, there are /a,ue rumours
concernin, a hi,her
meanin, in the minor cards, but nothin, has so 1ar trans"ired, e/en 3ithin the
s"here o1 "rudence
3hich belon,s to the most occult circlesH these, it is true, ha/e certain /ariants in
res"ect o1
di/inatory /alues, but I ha/e not heard that in "ractice they oEer better results.
EEorts liBe those o1
-a"us in The Tarot ol the *ohemians are strenuous and deser/in, a1ter their o3n
BindH be, in
"articular, reco,niOes the elements o1 the )i/ine Immanence in the Trum"s #a$or,
and he seeBs to
1ollo3 them throu,h the lon, series o1 the lesser cards, as i1 these re"resented
Altrations o1 the
World o1 5race throu,h the World o1 &ortuneH but he only "roduces ?an arbitrary
scheme o1
di/ision 3hich he can carry no 1urther, and he has recourse, o1 necessity, in the
end to a common
scheme o1 di/ination as the substitute 1or a title to e9istence on the "art o1 the
.esser Arcana. 8o3,
I am "ractically in the same "ositionH but I shall maBe no attem"t here to sa/e the
situation by
dra3in, on the mystical "ro"erties o1 numbers, as he and others ha/e attem"ted,
I shall reco,niOe
at once that the Trum"s #a$or belon, to the di/ine dealin,s o1 "hiloso"hy, but all
that 1ollo3s to
1ortune?tellin,, since it has ne/er yet been translated into another lan,ua,eH the
course thus ado"ted
3ill render to di/ination, and at need e/en to ,amblin,, the thin,s that belon, to
this "articular
3orld o1 sBill, and it 3ill set a"art 1or their "ro"er business those matters that are
o1 another order.
In this 1ree introduction to the sub$ect in hand, it is only necessary to add that the
diEerence
bet3een the A1ty?si9 .esser Arcana and ordinary "layin,?cards is not only
essentially sli,ht,
because the substitution o1 !u"s 1or (earts, and so 1orth, constitutes an
accidental /ariation, but
because the "resence o1 a 6ni,ht in each o1 the 1our suits 3as characteristic at
one time o1 many
ordinary "acBs, 3hen this "ersona,e usually re"laced the 7ueen. In the rectiAed
Tarot 3hich
illustrates the "resent handbooB, all numbered cards o1 the .esser Arcana??the
Aces only e9ce"ted??
are 1urnished 3ith A,ures or "ictures to illustrate?but 3ithout e9haustin,??the
di/inatory meanin,s
attached thereto.
Some 3ho are ,i1ted 3ith reLecti/e and discernin, 1aculties in more than the
ordinary sense??I am
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not s"eaBin, o1 clair/oyance may obser/e that in many o1 the .esser Arcana there
are /a,ue
intimations con/eyed by the desi,ns 3hich seem to e9ceed the stated di/inatory
/alues. It is
desirable to a/oid misconce"tion by s"eci1yin, deAnitely that, e9ce"t in rare
instances??and then
only by accident??the /ariations are not to be re,arded as su,,estions o1 hi,her
and e9tradi/inatory
symbolism. I ha/e said that these .esser Arcana ha/e not been translated into a
lan,ua,e 3hich
transcends that o1 1ortune tellin,. I should not indeed be dis"osed to re,ard them
as belon,in, in
their e9istin, 1orms to another realm than thisH but the Aeld o1 di/inatory
"ossibilities is
ine9haustible, by the hy"othesis o1 the art, and the combined systems o1
cartomancy ha/e indicated
only the bare heads o1 si,niAcance attachin, to the emblems in use. When the
"ictures in the
"resent case ,o beyond the con/entional meanin,s they should be taBen as hints
o1 "ossible
de/elo"ments alon, the same linesH and this is one o1 the reasons 3hy the
"ictorial de/ices here
attached to the 1our denaries 3ill "ro/e a ,reat hel" to intuition. The mere
numerical "o3ers and
bare 3ords o1 the meanin,s are insuFcient by themsel/esH but the "ictures are
liBe doors 3hich
o"en into une9"ected chambers, or liBe a turn in the o"en road 3ith a 3ide
"ros"ect beyond.
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I . T(E .ESSE; A;!A8A
@ther3ise, the &our Suits o1 Tarot !ards,
3ill no3 be described accordin, to their res"ecti/e classes by the "ictures to each
belon,in,, and a
harmony o1 their meanin,s 3ill be "ro/ided 1rom all sources.
6in, o1 Wands
7ueen o1 Wands
6ni,ht o1 Wands
-a,e o1 Wands
Ten o1 Wands
8ine o1 Wands
Ei,ht o1 Wands
Se/en o1 Wands
Si9 o1 Wands
&i/e o1 Wands
&our o1 Wands
Three o1 Wands
T3o o1 Wands
Ace o1 Wands
6in, o1 !u"s
7ueen o1 !u"s
6ni,ht o1 !u"s
-a,e o1 !u"s
Ten o1 !u"s
8ine o1 !u"s
Ei,ht o1 !u"s
Se/en o1 !u"s
Si9 o1 !u"s
&i/e o1 !u"s
&our o1 !u"s
Three o1 !u"s
T3o o1 !u"s
Ace o1 !u"s
6in, o1 S3ords
7ueen o1 S3ords
6ni,ht o1 S3ords
-a,e o1 S3ords
Ten o1 S3ords
8ine o1 S3ords
Ei,ht o1 S3ords
Se/en o1 S3ords
Si9 o1 S3ords
&i/e o1 S3ords
&our o1 S3ords
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htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt0%0.htm
Three o1 S3ords
T3o o1 S3ords
Ace o1 S3ords
6in, o1 -entacles
7ueen o1 -entacles
6ni,ht o1 -entacles
-a,e o1 -entacles
Ten o1 -entacles
8ine o1 -entacles
Ei,ht o1 -entacles
Se/en o1 -entacles
Si9 o1 -entacles
&i/e o1 -entacles
&our o1 -entacles
Three o1 -entacles
T3o o1 -entacles
Ace o1 -entacles
Such are the intimations o1 the .esser Arcana in res"ect o1 di/inatory art, the
/eridic nature o1
3hich seems to de"end on an alternati/e that it may be ser/iceable to e9"ress
brieLy. The records
o1 the art are e9 hy"othesi the records o1 Andin,s in the "ast based u"on
e9"erienceH as such, they
are a ,uide to memory, and those 3ho can master the elements may??still e9
hy"othesi??,i/e
inter"retations on their basis. It is an oFcial and automatic 3orBin,. @n the other
hand, those 3ho
ha/e ,i1ts o1 intuition, o1 second si,ht, o1 clair/oyance??call it as 3e choose and
may??3ill
su""lement the e9"erience o1 the "ast by the Andin,s o1 their o3n 1aculty, and
3ill s"eaB o1 that
3hich they ha/e seen in the "rete9ts o1 the oracles. It remains to ,i/e, also
brieLy, the di/inatory
si,niAcance allocated by the same art to the Trum"s #a$or.
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6in, o1 Wands
T(E SJIT @& WA8)S
6in,
The "hysical and emotional nature to 3hich this card is attributed is darB, ardent,
lithe, animated,
im"assioned, noble. The 6in, u"li1ts a Lo3erin, 3and, and 3ears, liBe his three
corres"ondences
in the remainin, suits, 3hat is called a ca" o1 maintenance beneath his cro3n. (e
connects 3ith
the symbol o1 the lion, 3hich is emblaOoned on the bacB o1 his throne. )i/inatory
#eanin,s+ )arB
man, 1riendly, countryman, ,enerally married, honest and conscientious. The card
al3ays si,niAes
honesty, and may mean ne3s concernin, an une9"ected herita,e to 1all in be1ore
/ery lon,.
;e/ersed+ 5ood, but se/ereH austere, yet tolerant.
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7ueen o1 Wands
WA8)S
7ueen
The Wands throu,hout this suit are al3ays in lea1, as it is a suit o1 li1e and
animation. Emotionally
and other3ise, the 7ueenMs "ersonality corres"onds to that o1 the 6in,, but is
more ma,netic.
)i/inatory #eanin,s+ A darB 3oman, country3oman, 1riendly, chaste, lo/in,,
honourable. I1 the
card beside her si,niAes a man, she is 3ell dis"osed to3ards himH i1 a 3oman, she
is interested in
the 7uerent. Also, lo/e o1 money, or a certain success in business. ;e/ersed+
5ood, economical,
obli,in,, ser/iceable. Si,niAes also??but in certain "ositions and in the
nei,hbourhood o1 other
cards tendin, in such directions??o""osition, $ealousy, e/en deceit and inAdelity.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt3aDu.htm R1%T10T00 1'+<+%9S
6ni,ht o1 Wands
WA8)S
6ni,ht
(e is she3n as i1 u"on a $ourney, armed 3ith a short 3and, and althou,h mailed is
not on a
3arliBe errand. (e is "assin, mounds or "yramids. The motion o1 the horse is a
Bey to the
character o1 its rider, and su,,ests the "reci"itate mood, or thin,s connected
there3ith. )i/inatory
#eanin,s+ )e"arture, absence, Li,ht, emi,ration. A darB youn, man, 1riendly.
!han,e o1
residence. ;e/ersed+ ;u"ture, di/ision, interru"tion, discord,
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt3aBn.htm R1%T10T00 1'+<+'%S
-a,e o1 Wands
WA8)S
-a,e
In a scene similar to the 1ormer, a youn, man stands in the act o1 "roclamation.
(e is unBno3n but
1aith1ul, and his tidin,s are stran,e. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ )arB youn, man,
1aith1ul, a lo/er, an
en/oy, a "ostman. *eside a man, he 3ill bear 1a/ourable testimony concernin,
him. A dan,erous
ri/al, i1 1ollo3ed by the -a,e o1 !u"s. (as the chie1 Dualities o1 his suit. (e may
si,ni1y 1amily
intelli,ence. ;e/ersed+ Anecdotes, announcements, e/il ne3s. Also indecision and
the instability
3hich accom"anies it.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt3a"a.htm R1%T10T00 1'+<+'=S
Ten o1 Wands
WA8)S
Ten
A man o""ressed by the 3ei,ht o1 the ten sta/es 3hich he is carryin,. )i/inatory
#eanin,s+ A
card o1 many si,niAcances, and some o1 the readin,s cannot be harmoniOed. I set
aside that 3hich
connects it 3ith honour and ,ood 1aith. The chie1 meanin, is o""ression sim"ly,
but it is also
1ortune, ,ain, any Bind o1 success, and then it is the o""ression o1 these thin,s. It
is also a card o1
1alse?seemin,, dis,uise, "erAdy. The "lace 3hich the A,ure is a""roachin, may
suEer 1rom the
rods that he carries. Success is stultiAed i1 the 8ine o1 S3ords 1ollo3s, and i1 it is a
Duestion o1 a
la3suit, there 3ill be certain loss. ;e/ersed+ !ontrarieties, diFculties, intri,ues,
and their
analo,ies.
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8ine o1 Wands
WA8)S
8ine
The A,ure leans u"on his staE and has an e9"ectant looB, as i1 a3aitin, an enemy.
*ehind are
ei,ht other sta/es??erect, in orderly dis"osition, liBe a "alisade. )i/inatory
#eanin,s+ The card
si,niAes stren,th in o""osition. I1 attacBed, the "erson 3ill meet an onslau,ht
boldlyH and his build
she3s, that he may "ro/e a 1ormidable anta,onist. With this main si,niAcance
there are all its
"ossible ad$uncts??delay, sus"ension, ad$ournment. ;e/ersed+ @bstacles,
ad/ersity, calamity.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt3a09.htm R1%T10T00 1'+<+:<S
Ei,ht o1 Wands
WA8)S
Ei,ht
The card re"resents motion throu,h the immo/able?a Li,ht o1 3ands throu,h an
o"en countryH but
they dra3 to the term o1 their course. That 3hich they si,ni1y is at handH it may be
e/en on the
threshold. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ Acti/ity in undertaBin,s, the "ath o1 such acti/ity,
s3i1tness, as
that o1 an e9"ress messen,erH ,reat haste, ,reat ho"e, s"eed to3ards an end
3hich "romises
assured 1elicityH ,enerally, that 3hich is on the mo/eH also the arro3s o1 lo/e.
;e/ersed+ Arro3s o1
$ealousy, internal dis"ute, stin,in,s o1 conscience, DuarrelsH and domestic
dis"utes 1or "ersons 3ho
are married.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt3a0>.htm R1%T10T00 1'+<+:9S
Se/en o1 Wands
WA8)S
Se/en
A youn, man on a cra,,y eminence brandishin, a staEH si9 other sta/es are
raised to3ards him
1rom belo3. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ It is a card o1 /alour, 1or, on the sur1ace, si9 are
attacBin, one,
3ho has, ho3e/er, the /anta,e "osition. @n the intellectual "lane, it si,niAes
discussion, 3ordy
stri1eH in business??ne,otiations, 3ar o1 trade, barter, com"etition. It is 1urther a
card o1 success, 1or
the combatant is on the to" and his enemies may be unable to reach him.
;e/ersed+ -er"le9ity,
embarrassments, an9iety. It is also a caution a,ainst indecision.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt3a0=.htm R1%T10T00 1'+=+0'S
Si9 o1 Wands
WA8)S
Si9
A laurelled horseman bears one staE adorned 3ith a laurel cro3nH 1ootmen 3ith
sta/es are at his
side. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ The card has been so desi,ned that it can co/er
se/eral si,niAcationsH
on the sur1ace, it is a /ictor trium"hin,, but it is also ,reat ne3s, such as mi,ht be
carried in state
by the 6in,Ms courierH it is e9"ectation cro3ned 3ith its o3n desire, the cro3n o1
ho"e, and so
1orth. ;e/ersed+ A""rehension, 1ear, as o1 a /ictorious enemy at the ,ateH
treachery, disloyalty, as
o1 ,ates bein, o"ened to the enemyH also indeAnite delay.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt3a0<.htm R1%T10T00 1'+=+0>S
&i/e o1 Wands
WA8)S
&i/e
A "osse o1 youths, 3ho are brandishin, sta/es, as i1 in s"ort or stri1e. It is mimic
3ar1are, and
hereto corres"ond the )i/inatory #eanin,s+ Imitation, as, 1or e9am"le, sham
A,ht, but also the
strenuous com"etition and stru,,le o1 the search a1ter riches and 1ortune. In this
sense it connects
3ith the battle o1 li1e. (ence some attributions say that it is a card o1 ,old, ,ain,
o"ulence.
;e/ersed+ .iti,ation, dis"utes, tricBery, contradiction.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt3a0:.htm R1%T10T00 1'+=+1%S
&our o1 Wands
WA8)S
&our
&rom the 1our ,reat sta/es "lanted in the 1ore,round there is a ,reat ,arland
sus"endedH t3o 1emale
A,ures u"li1t nose,aysH at their side is a brid,e o/er a moat, leadin, to an old
manorial house.
)i/inatory #eanin,s+ They are 1or once almost on the sur1ace??country li1e, ha/en
o1 re1u,e, a
s"ecies o1 domestic har/est?home, re"ose, concord, harmony, "ros"erity, "eace,
and the "er1ected
3orB o1 these. ;e/ersed+ The meanin, remains unalteredH it is "ros"erity,
increase, 1elicity, beauty,
embellishment.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt3a0'.htm R1%T10T00 1'+=+1=S
Three o1 Wands
WA8)S
Three
A calm, stately "ersona,e, 3ith his bacB turned, looBin, 1rom a cliEMs ed,e at
shi"s "assin, o/er
the sea. Three sta/es are "lanted in the ,round, and he leans sli,htly on one o1
them. )i/inatory
#eanin,s+ (e symboliOes established stren,th, enter"rise, eEort, trade,
commerce, disco/eryH
those are his shi"s, bearin, his merchandise, 3hich are sailin, o/er the sea. The
card also si,niAes
able co?o"eration in business, as i1 the success1ul merchant "rince 3ere looBin,
1rom his side
to3ards yours 3ith a /ie3 to hel" you. ;e/ersed+ The end o1 troubles, sus"ension
or cessation o1
ad/ersity, toil and disa""ointment.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt3a0%.htm R1%T10T00 1'+=+1S
T3o o1 Wands
WA8)S
T3o
A tall man looBs 1rom a battlemented roo1 o/er sea and shoreH he holds a ,lobe in
his ri,ht hand,
3hile a staE in his le1t rests on the battlementH another is A9ed in a rin,. The ;ose
and !ross and
.ily should be noticed on the le1t side. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ *et3een the
alternati/e readin,s
there is no marria,e "ossibleH on the one hand, riches, 1ortune, ma,niAcenceH on
the other, "hysical
suEerin,, disease, cha,rin, sadness, mortiAcation. The desi,n ,i/es one
su,,estionH here is a lord
o/erlooBin, his dominion and alternately contem"latin, a ,lobeH it looBs liBe the
malady, the
mortiAcation, the sadness o1 Ale9ander amidst the ,randeur o1 this 3orldMs
3ealth. ;e/ersed+
Sur"rise, 3onder, enchantment, emotion, trouble, 1ear.
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Ace o1 Wands
WA8)S
Ace
A hand issuin, 1rom a cloud ,ras"s a stout 3and or club. )i/inatory #eanin,s+
!reation,
in/ention, enter"rise, the "o3ers 3hich result in theseH "rinci"le, be,innin,,
sourceH birth, 1amily,
ori,in, and in a sense the /irility 3hich is behind themH the startin, "oint o1
enter"risesH accordin,
to another account, money, 1ortune, inheritance. ;e/ersed+ &all, decadence, ruin,
"erdition, to
"erish also a certain clouded $oy.
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6in, o1 !u"s
T(E SJIT @& !J-S
6in,
(e holds a short sce"tre in his le1t hand and a ,reat cu" in his ri,htH his throne is
set u"on the seaH
on one side a shi" is ridin, and on the other a dol"hin is lea"in,. The im"licit is
that the Si,n o1
the !u" naturally re1ers to 3ater, 3hich a""ears in all the court cards. )i/inatory
#eanin,s+ &air
man, man o1 business, la3, or di/inityH res"onsible, dis"osed to obli,e the
7uerentH also eDuity, art
and science, includin, those 3ho "ro1ess science, la3 and artH creati/e
intelli,ence. ;e/ersed+
)ishonest, double?dealin, manH ro,uery, e9action, in$ustice, /ice, scandal, "illa,e,
considerable
loss.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"BtcuBi.htm R1%T10T00 1'+=+%%S
7ueen o1 !u"s
!J-S
7ueen
*eauti1ul, 1air, dreamy??as one 3ho sees /isions in a cu". This is, ho3e/er, only
one o1 her
as"ectsH she sees, but she also acts, and her acti/ity 1eeds her dream. )i/inatory
#eanin,s+ 5ood,
1air 3omanH honest, de/oted 3oman, 3ho 3ill do ser/ice to the 7uerentH lo/in,
intelli,ence, and
hence the ,i1t o1 /isionH success, ha""iness, "leasureH also 3isdom, /irtueH a
"er1ect s"ouse and a
,ood mother. ;e/ersed+ The accounts /aryH ,ood 3omanH other3ise, distin,uished
3oman but one
not to be trustedH "er/erse 3omanH /ice, dishonour, de"ra/ity.
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6ni,ht o1 !u"s
!J-S
6ni,ht
5race1ul, but not 3arliBeH ridin, Duietly, 3earin, a 3in,ed helmet, re1errin, to
those hi,her ,races
o1 the ima,ination 3hich sometimes characteriOe this card. (e too is a dreamer,
but the ima,es o1
the side o1 sense haunt him in his /ision. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ Arri/al, a""roach??
sometimes that
o1 a messen,erH ad/ances, "ro"osition, demeanour, in/itation, incitement.
;e/ersed+ TricBery,
artiAce, subtlety, s3indlin,, du"licity, 1raud.
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-a,e o1 !u"s
!J-S
-a,e
A 1air, "leasin,, some3hat eEeminate "a,e, o1 studious and intent as"ect,
contem"lates a Ash
risin, 1rom a cu" to looB at him. It is the "ictures o1 the mind taBin, 1orm.
)i/inatory #eanin,s+
&air youn, man, one im"elled to render ser/ice and 3ith 3hom the 7uerent 3ill
be connectedH a
studious youthH ne3s, messa,eH a""lication, reLection, meditationH also these
thin,s directed to
business. ;e/ersed+ Taste, inclination, attachment, seduction, dece"tion, artiAce.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Btcu"a.htm R1%T10T00 1'+=+':S
Ten o1 !u"s
!J-S
Ten
A""earance o1 !u"s in a rainbo3H it is contem"lated in 3onder and ecstacy by a
man and 3oman
belo3, e/idently husband and 3i1e. (is ri,ht arm is about herH his le1t is raised
u"3ardH she raises
her ri,ht arm. The t3o children dancin, near them ha/e not obser/ed the "rodi,y
but are ha""y
a1ter their o3n manner. There is a home?scene beyond. )i/inatory #eanin,s+
!ontentment, re"ose
o1 the entire heartH the "er1ection o1 that stateH also "er1ection o1 human lo/e and
1riendshi"H i1 3ith
se/eral "icture?cards, a "erson 3ho is taBin, char,e o1 the 7uerentMs interestsH
also the to3n,
/illa,e or country inhabited by the 7uerent. ;e/ersed+ ;e"ose o1 the 1alse heart,
indi,nation,
/iolence.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Btcu10.htm R1%T10T00 1'+=+'9S
8ine o1 !u"s
!J-S
8ine
A ,oodly "ersona,e has 1easted to his heartMs content, and abundant re1reshment
o1 3ine is on the
arched counter behind him, seemin, to indicate that the 1uture is also assured.
The "icture oEers
the material side only, but there are other as"ects. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ !oncord,
contentment,
"hysical bien?\treH also /ictory, success, ad/anta,eH satis1action 1or the 7uerent
or "erson 1or
3hom the consultation is made. ;e/ersed+ Truth, loyalty, libertyH but the readin,s
/ary and include
mistaBes, im"er1ections, etc.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Btcu09.htm R1%T10T00 1'+=+:'S
Ei,ht o1 !u"s
!J-S
Ei,ht
A man o1 de$ected as"ect is desertin, the cu"s o1 his 1elicity, enter"rise,
undertaBin, or "re/ious
concern. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ The card s"eaBs 1or itsel1 on the sur1ace, but other
readin,s are
entirely antithetical??,i/in, $oy, mildness, timidity, honour, modesty. In "ractice, it
is usually
1ound that the card she3s the decline o1 a matter, or that a matter 3hich has
been thou,ht to be
im"ortant is really o1 sli,ht conseDuence??either 1or ,ood or e/il. ;e/ersed+ 5reat
$oy, ha""iness,
1eastin,.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Btcu0>.htm R1%T10T00 1'+=+:>S
Se/en o1 !u"s
!J-S
Se/en
Stran,e chalices o1 /ision, but the ima,es are more es"ecially those o1 the
1antastic s"irit.
)i/inatory #eanin,s+ &airy 1a/ours, ima,es o1 reLection, sentiment, ima,ination,
thin,s seen in
the ,lass o1 contem"lationH some attainment in these de,rees, but nothin,
"ermanent or substantial
is su,,ested. ;e/ersed+ )esire, 3ill, determination, "ro$ect.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Btcu0=.htm R1%T10T00 1'+>+0S
Si9 o1 !u"s
!J-S
Si9
!hildren in an old ,arden, their cu"s Alled 3ith Lo3ers. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ A
card o1 the "ast
and o1 memories, looBin, bacB, as??1or e9am"le??on childhoodH ha""iness,
en$oyment, but comin,
rather 1rom the "astH thin,s that ha/e /anished. Another readin, re/erses this,
,i/in, ne3 relations,
ne3 Bno3led,e, ne3 en/ironment, and then the children are dis"ortin, in an
un1amiliar "recinct.
;e/ersed+ The 1uture, rene3al, that 3hich 3ill come to "ass "resently.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Btcu0<.htm R1%T10T00 1'+>+0=S
&i/e o1 !u"s
!J-S
&i/e
A darB, cloaBed A,ure, looBin, side3ays at three "rone cu"s t3o others stand
u"ri,ht behind himH
a brid,e is in the bacB,round, leadin, to a small Bee" or holdin,. )i/anatory
#eanin,s+ It is a
card o1 loss, but somethin, remains o/erH three ha/e been taBen, but t3o are le1tH
it is a card o1
inheritance, "atrimony, transmission, but not corres"ondin, to e9"ectationsH 3ith
some inter"reters
it is a card o1 marria,e, but not 3ithout bitterness or 1rustration. ;e/ersed+ 8e3s,
alliances,
aFnity, consan,uinity, ancestry, return, 1alse "ro$ects.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Btcu0:.htm R1%T10T00 1'+>+10S
&our o1 !u"s
!J-S
&our
A youn, man is seated under a tree and contem"lates three cu"s set on the ,rass
be1ore himH an
arm issuin, 1rom a cloud oEers him another cu". (is e9"ression not3ithstandin,
is one o1
discontent 3ith his en/ironment. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ Weariness, dis,ust,
a/ersion, ima,inary
/e9ations, as i1 the 3ine o1 this 3orld had caused satiety onlyH another 3ine, as i1
a 1airy ,i1t, is
no3 oEered the 3astrel, but he sees no consolation therein. This is also a card o1
blended "leasure.
;e/ersed+ 8o/elty, "resa,e, ne3 instruction, ne3 relations.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Btcu0'.htm R1%T10T00 1'+>+1:S
Three o1 !u"s
!J-S
Three
#aidens in a ,arden?,round 3ith cu"s u"li1ted, as i1 "led,in, one another.
The conclusion o1 any matter in "lenty, "er1ection and merrimentH ha""y issue,
/ictory, 1ulAlment,
solace, healin,, ;e/ersed+ E9"edition, dis"atch, achie/ement, end. It si,niAes also
the side o1
e9cess in "hysical en$oyment, and the "leasures o1 the senses.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Btcu0%.htm R1%T10T00 1'+>+19S
T3o o1 !u"s
!J-S
T3o
A youth and maiden are "led,in, one another, and abo/e their cu"s rises the
!aduceus o1 (ermes,
bet3een the ,reat 3in,s o1 3hich there a""ears a lionMs head. It is a /ariant o1 a
si,n 3hich is
1ound in a 1e3 old e9am"les o1 this card. Some curious emblematical meanin,s
are attached to it,
but they do not concern us in this "lace. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ .o/e, "assion,
1riendshi", aFnity,
union, concord, sym"athy, the interrelation o1 the se9es, and??as a su,,estion
a"art 1rom all oFces
o1 di/ination??that desire 3hich is not in 8ature, but by 3hich 8ature is sanctiAed.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Btcu0.htm R1%T10T00 1'+>+%S
Ace o1 !u"s
!J-S
Ace
The 3aters are beneath, and thereon are 3ater?liliesH the hand issues 1rom the
cloud, holdin, in its
"alm the cu", 1rom 3hich 1our streams are "ourin,H a do/e, bearin, in its bill a
cross?marBed (ost,
descends to "lace the Wa1er in the !u"H the de3 o1 3ater is 1allin, on all sides. It
is an intimation
o1 that 3hich may lie behind the .esser Arcana. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ (ouse o1 the
true heart, $oy,
content, abode, nourishment, abundance, 1ertilityH (oly Table, 1elicity hereo1.
;e/ersed+ (ouse o1
the 1alse heart, mutation, instability, re/olution.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Btcuac.htm R1%T10T00 1'+>+=S
6in, o1 S3ords
T(E SJIT @& SW@;)S
6in,
(e sits in $ud,ment, holdin, the unsheathed si,n o1 his suit. (e recalls, o1 course,
the con/entional
Symbol o1 $ustice in the Trum"s #a$or, and he may re"resent this /irtue, but he is
rather the "o3er
o1 li1e and death, in /irtue o1 his oFce. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ Whatsoe/er arises
out o1 the idea o1
$ud,ment and all its conne9ions?"o3er, command, authority, militant intelli,ence,
la3, oFces o1
the cro3n, and so 1orth. ;e/ersed+ !ruelty, "er/ersity, barbarity, "erAdy, e/il
intention.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bts3Bi.htm R1%T10T00 1'+>+%1S
7ueen o1 S3ords
SW@;)S
7ueen
(er ri,ht hand raises the 3ea"on /ertically and the hilt rests on an arm o1 her
royal chair the le1t
hand is e9tended, the arm raised her countenance is se/ere but chastenedH it
su,,ests 1amiliarity
3ith sorro3. It does not re"resent mercy, and, her s3ord not3ithstandin,, she is
scarcely a symbol
o1 "o3er. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ Wido3hood, 1emale sadness and embarrassment,
absence,
sterility, mournin,, "ri/ation, se"aration. ;e/ersed+ #alice, bi,otry, artiAce,
"rudery, bale, deceit.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bts3Du.htm R1%T10T00 1'+>+%:S
6ni,ht o1 S3ords
SW@;)S
6ni,ht
(e is ridin, in 1ull course, as i1 scatterin, his enemies. In the desi,n he is really a
"rototy"ical hero
o1 romantic chi/alry. (e mi,ht almost be 5alahad, 3hose s3ord is s3i1t and sure
because he is
clean o1 heart. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ SBill, bra/ery, ca"acity, de1ence, address,
enmity, 3rath, 3ar,
destruction, o""osition, resistance, ruin. There is there1ore a sense in 3hich the
card si,niAes
death, but it carries this meanin, only in its "ro9imity to other cards o1 1atality.
;e/ersed+
Im"rudence, inca"acity, e9tra/a,ance.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bts3Bn.htm R1%T10T00 1'+>+'0S
-a,e o1 S3ords
SW@;)S
-a,e
A lithe, acti/e A,ure holds a s3ord u"ri,ht in both hands, 3hile in the act o1 s3i1t
3alBin,. (e is
"assin, o/er ru,,ed land, and about his 3ay the clouds are collocated 3ildly. (e
is alert and lithe,
looBin, this 3ay and that, as i1 an e9"ected enemy mi,ht a""ear at any moment.
)i/inatory
#eanin,s+ Authority, o/erseein,, secret ser/ice, /i,ilance, s"yin,, e9amination,
and the Dualities
thereto belon,in,. ;e/ersed+ #ore e/il side o1 these DualitiesH 3hat is un1oreseen,
un"re"ared
stateH sicBness is also intimated.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bts3"a.htm R1%T10T00 1'+>+''S
Ten o1 S3ords
SW@;)S
Ten
A "rostrate A,ure, "ierced by all the s3ords belon,in, to the card. )i/inatory
#eanin,s+
Whatsoe/er is intimated by the desi,nH also "ain, aWiction, tears, sadness,
desolation. It is not
es"ecially a card o1 /iolent death. ;e/ersed+ Ad/anta,e, "roAt, success, 1a/our,
but none o1 these
are "ermanentH also "o3er and authority.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bts310.htm R1%T10T00 1'+>+'>S
8ine o1 S3ords
SW@;)S
8ine
@ne seated on her couch in lamentation, 3ith the s3ords o/er her. She is as one
3ho Bno3s no
sorro3 3hich is liBe unto hers. It is a card o1 utter desolation. )i/inatory #eanin,s+
)eath, 1ailure,
miscarria,e, delay, dece"tion, disa""ointment, des"air. ;e/ersed+ Im"risonment,
sus"icion, doubt,
reasonable 1ear, shame.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bts309.htm R1%T10T00 1'+>+:S
Ei,ht o1 S3ords
SW@;)S
Ei,ht
A 3oman, bound and hood3inBed, 3ith the s3ords o1 the card about her. Cet it is
rather a card o1
tem"orary durance than o1 irretrie/able bonda,e. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ *ad ne3s,
/iolent cha,rin,
crisis, censure, "o3er in trammels, conLict, calumnyH also sicBness. ;e/ersed+
)isDuiet, diFculty,
o""osition, accident, treacheryH 3hat is un1oreseenH 1atality.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bts30>.htm R1%T10T00 1'+>+:<S
Se/en o1 S3ords
SW@;)S
Se/en
A man in the act o1 carryin, a3ay A/e s3ords ra"idlyH the t3o others o1 the card
remain stucB in
the ,round. A cam" is close at hand. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ )esi,n, attem"t, 3ish,
ho"e,
conAdenceH also Duarrellin,, a "lan that may 1ail, annoyance. The desi,n is
uncertain in its im"ort,
because the si,niAcations are 3idely at /ariance 3ith each other. ;e/ersed+ 5ood
ad/ice, counsel,
instruction, slander, babblin,.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bts30=.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+00S
Si9 o1 S3ords
SW@;)S
Si9
A 1erryman carryin, "assen,ers in his "unt to the 1urther shore. The course is
smooth, and seein,
that the 1rei,ht is li,ht, it may be noted that the 3orB is not beyond his stren,th.
)i/inatory
#eanin,s+ $ourney by 3ater, route, 3ay, en/oy, commissionary, e9"edient.
;e/ersed+ )eclaration,
con1ession, "ublicityH one account says that it is a "ro"osal o1 lo/e.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bts30<.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+0'S
&i/e o1 S3ords
SW@;)S
&i/e
A disdain1ul man looBs a1ter t3o retreatin, and de$ected A,ures. Their s3ords lie
u"on the ,round.
(e carries t3o others on his le1t shoulder, and a third s3ord is in his ri,ht hand,
"oint to earth. (e
is the master in "ossession o1 the Aeld. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ )e,radation,
destruction, re/ocation,
in1amy, dishonour, loss, 3ith the /ariants and analo,ues o1 these. ;e/ersed+ The
sameH burial and
obseDuies.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bts30:.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+09S
&our o1 S3ords
SW@;)S
&our
The eF,y o1 a Bni,ht in the attitude o1 "rayer, at 1ull len,th u"on his tomb.
Vi,ilance, retreat, solitude, hermitMs re"ose, e9ile, tomb and coFn. It is these last
that ha/e
su,,ested the desi,n. ;e/ersed+ Wise administration, circums"ection, economy,
a/arice,
"recaution, testament.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bts30'.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+1%S
Three o1 S3ords
SW@;)S
Three
Three s3ords "iercin, a heartH cloud and rain behind. )i/inatory #eanin,s+
;emo/al, absence,
delay, di/ision, ru"ture, dis"ersion, and all that the desi,n si,niAes naturally,
bein, too sim"le and
ob/ious to call 1or s"eciAc enumeration. ;e/ersed+ #ental alienation, error, loss,
distraction,
disorder, con1usion.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bts30%.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+1<S
T3o o1 S3ords
SW@;)S
T3o
A hood3inBed 1emale A,ure balances t3o s3ords u"on her shoulders. )i/inatory
#eanin,s+
!on1ormity and the eDui"oise 3hich it su,,ests, coura,e, 1riendshi", concord in a
state o1 armsH
another readin, ,i/es tenderness, aEection, intimacy. The su,,estion o1 harmony
and other
1a/ourable readin,s must be considered in a DualiAed manner, as S3ords
,enerally are not
symbolical o1 beneAcent 1orces in human aEairs. ;e/ersed+ Im"osture, 1alsehood,
du"licity,
disloyalty.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bts30.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+0S
Ace o1 S3ords
SW@;)S
Ace
A hand issues 1rom a cloud, ,ras"in, as 3ord, the "oint o1 3hich is encircled by a
cro3n.
)i/inatory #eanin,s+ Trium"h, the e9cessi/e de,ree in e/erythin,, conDuest,
trium"h o1 1orce. It
is a card o1 ,reat 1orce, in lo/e as 3ell as in hatred. The cro3n may carry a much
hi,her
si,niAcance than comes usually 3ithin the s"here o1 1ortune?tellin,. ;e/ersed+
The same, but the
results are disastrousH another account says??conce"tion, childbirth,
au,mentation, multi"licity.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bts3ac.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+%S
6in, o1 -entacles
T(E SJIT @& -E8TA!.ES
6in,
The A,ure calls 1or no s"ecial descri"tion the 1ace is rather darB, su,,estin, also
coura,e, but
some3hat lethar,ic in tendency. The bullMs head should be noted as a recurrent
symbol on the
throne. The si,n o1 this suit is re"resented throu,hout as en,ra/ed or blaOoned
3ith the "enta,ram,
ty"i1yin, the corres"ondence o1 the 1our elements in human nature and that by
3hich they may be
,o/erned. In many old Tarot "acBs this suit stood 1or current coin, money, deniers.
I ha/e not
in/ented the substitution o1 "entacles and I ha/e no s"ecial cause to sustain in
res"ect o1 the
alternati/e. *ut the consensus o1 di/inatory meanin,s is on the side o1 some
chan,e, because the
cards do not ha""en to deal es"ecially 3ith Duestions o1 money. )i/inatory
#eanin,s+ Valour,
realiOin, intelli,ence, business and normal intellectual a"titude, sometimes
mathematical ,i1ts and
attainments o1 this BindH success in these "aths. ;e/ersed+ Vice, 3eaBness,
u,liness, "er/ersity,
corru"tion, "eril.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt"eBi.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+>S
7ueen o1 -entacles
-E8TA!.ES
7ueen
The 1ace su,,ests that o1 a darB 3oman, 3hose Dualities mi,ht be summed u" in
the idea o1
,reatness o1 soulH she has also the serious cast o1 intelli,enceH she contem"lates
her symbol and
may see 3orlds therein. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ @"ulence, ,enerosity,
ma,niAcence, security,
liberty. ;e/ersed+ E/il, sus"icion, sus"ense, 1ear, mistrust.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt"eDu.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+%%S
6ni,ht o1 -entacles
-E8TA!.ES
6ni,ht
(e rides a slo3, endurin,, hea/y horse, to 3hich his o3n as"ect corres"onds. (e
e9hibits his
symbol, but does not looB therein. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ Jtility, ser/iceableness,
interest,
res"onsibility, rectitude?all on the normal and e9ternal "lane. ;e/ersed+ inertia,
idleness, re"ose o1
that Bind, sta,nationH also "lacidity, discoura,ement, carelessness.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt"eBn.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+%=S
-a,e o1 -entacles
-E8TA!.ES
-a,e
A youth1ul A,ure, looBin, intently at the "entacle 3hich ho/ers o/er his raised
hands. (e mo/es
slo3ly, insensible o1 that 3hich is about him. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ A""lication,
study,
scholarshi", reLection another readin, says ne3s, messa,es and the brin,er
thereo1H also rule,
mana,ement. ;e/ersed+ -rodi,ality, dissi"ation, liberality, lu9uryH un1a/ourable
ne3s.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt"e"a.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+'1S
Ten o1 -entacles
-E8TA!.ES
Ten
A man and 3oman beneath an arch3ay 3hich ,i/es entrance to a house and
domain. They are
accom"anied by a child, 3ho looBs curiously at t3o do,s accostin, an ancient
"ersona,e seated in
the 1ore,round. The childMs hand is on one o1 them. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ 5ain,
richesH 1amily
matters, archi/es, e9traction, the abode o1 a 1amily. ;e/ersed+ !hance, 1atality,
loss, robbery,
,ames o1 haOardH sometimes ,i1t, do3ry, "ension.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt"e10.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+'<S
8ine o1 -entacles
-E8TA!.ES
8ine
A 3oman, 3ith a bird u"on her 3rist, stands amidst a ,reat abundance o1
,ra"e/ines in the ,arden
o1 a manorial house. It is a 3ide domain, su,,estin, "lenty in all thin,s. -ossibly it
is her o3n
"ossession and testiAes to material 3ell?bein,. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ -rudence,
sa1ety, success,
accom"lishment, certitude, discernment. ;e/ersed+ ;o,uery, dece"tion, /oided
"ro$ect, bad 1aith.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt"e09.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+:1S
Ei,ht o1 -entacles
-E8TA!.ES
Ei,ht
An artist in stone at his 3orB, 3hich he e9hibits in the 1orm o1 tro"hies. )i/inatory
#eanin,s+
WorB, em"loyment, commission, cra1tsmanshi", sBill in cra1t and business,
"erha"s in the
"re"aratory sta,e. ;e/ersed+ Voided ambition, /anity, cu"idity, e9action, usury. It
may also
si,ni1y the "ossession o1 sBill, in the sense o1 the in,enious mind turned to
cunnin, and intri,ue.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt"e0>.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+::S
Se/en o1 -entacles
-E8TA!.ES
Se/en
A youn, man, leanin, on his staE, looBs intently at se/en "entacles attached to a
clum" o1
,reenery on his ri,htH one 3ould say that these 3ere his treasures and that his
heart 3as there.
)i/inatory #eanin,s+ These are e9ceedin,ly contradictoryH in the main, it is a card
o1 money,
business, barterH but one readin, ,i/es altercation, Duarrels??and another
innocence, in,enuity,
"ur,ation. ;e/ersed+ !ause 1or an9iety re,ardin, money 3hich it may be
"ro"osed to lend.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt"e0=.htm R1%T10T00 1'+9+:9S
Si9 o1 -entacles
-E8TA!.ES
Si9
A "erson in the ,uise o1 a merchant 3ei,hs money in a "air o1 scales and
distributes it to the needy
and distressed. It is a testimony to his o3n success in li1e, as 3ell as to his
,oodness o1 heart.
)i/inatory #eanin,s+ -resents, ,i1ts, ,ratiAcation another account says attention,
/i,ilance no3 is
the acce"ted time, "resent "ros"erity, etc. ;e/ersed+ )esire, cu"idity, en/y,
$ealousy, illusion.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt"e0<.htm R1%T10T00 1'+%0+0%S
&i/e o1 -entacles
-E8TA!.ES
&i/e
T3o mendicants in a sno3?storm "ass a li,hted casement. )i/inatory #eanin,s+
The card 1oretells
material trouble abo/e all, 3hether in the 1orm illustrated??that is, destitution??or
other3ise. &or
some cartomancists, it is a card o1 lo/e and lo/ers?3i1e, husband, 1riend, mistressH
also
concordance, aFnities. These alternati/es cannot be harmoniOed. ;e/ersed+
)isorder, chaos, ruin,
discord, "roLi,acy.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt"e0:.htm R1%T10T00 1'+%0+0=S
&our o1 -entacles
-E8TA!.ES
&our
A cro3ned A,ure, ha/in, a "entacle o/er his cro3n, clas"s another 3ith hands
and armsH t3o
"entacles are under his 1eet. (e holds to that 3hich he has. )i/inatory #eanin,s+
The surety o1
"ossessions, clea/in, to that 3hich one has, ,i1t, le,acy, inheritance. ;e/ersed+
Sus"ense, delay,
o""osition.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt"e0'.htm R1%T10T00 1'+%0+11S
Three o1 -entacles
-E8TA!.ES
Three
A scul"tor at his 3orB in a monastery. !om"are the desi,n 3hich illustrates the
Ei,ht o1 -entacles.
The a""rentice or amateur therein has recei/ed his re3ard and is no3 at 3orB in
earnest.
)i/inatory #eanin,s+ #Gtier, trade, sBilled labourH usually, ho3e/er, re,arded as a
card o1
nobility, aristocracy, reno3n, ,lory. ;e/ersed+ #ediocrity, in 3orB and other3ise,
"uerility,
"ettiness, 3eaBness.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt"e0%.htm R1%T10T00 1'+%0+1<S
T3o o1 -entacles
-E8TA!.ES
T3o
A youn, man, in the act o1 dancin,, has a "entacle in either hand, and they are
$oined by that
endless cord 3hich is liBe the number > re/ersed. )i/inatory #eanin,s+ @n the
one hand it is
re"resented as a card o1 ,aiety, recreation and its conne9ions, 3hich is the
sub$ect o1 the desi,nH
but it is read also as ne3s and messa,es in 3ritin,, as obstacles, a,itation,
trouble, embroilment.
;e/ersed+ En1orced ,aiety, simulated en$oyment, literal sense, hand3ritin,,
com"osition, letters o1
e9chan,e.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt"e0.htm R1%T10T00 1'+%0+0S
Ace o1 -entacles
-E8TA!.ES
Ace
A hand??issuin,, as usual, 1rom a cloud??holds u" a "entacle. )i/inatory #eanin,s+
-er1ect
contentment, 1elicity, ecstasyH also s"eedy intelli,enceH ,old. ;e/ersed+ The e/il
side o1 3ealth,
bad intelli,enceH also ,reat riches. In any case it she3s "ros"erity, com1ortable
material
conditions, but 3hether these are o1 ad/anta,e to the "ossessor 3ill de"end on
3hether the card is
re/ersed or not.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Bt"eac.htm R1%T10T00 1'+%0+%S
I % T(E 5;EATE; A;!A8A A8) T(EI; )IVI8AT@;C
#EA8I85S
1. T(E #A5I!IA8.??SBill, di"lomacy, address, subtletyH sicBness, "ain, loss,
disaster, snares o1
enemiesH sel1?conAdence, 3illH the 7uerent, i1 male. ;e/ersed+ -hysician, #a,us,
mental disease,
dis,race, disDuiet.
. T(E (I5( -;IESTESS.??Secrets, mystery, the 1uture as yet unre/ealedH the
3oman 3ho
interests the 7uerent, i1 maleH the 7uerent hersel1, i1 1emaleH silence, tenacityH
mystery, 3isdom,
science. ;e/ersed+ -assion, moral or "hysical ardour, conceit, sur1ace Bno3led,e.
%. T(E E#-;ESS.??&ruit1ulness, action, initiati/e, len,th o1 daysH the unBno3n,
clandestineH also
diFculty, doubt, i,norance. ;e/ersed+ .i,ht, truth, the unra/ellin, o1 in/ol/ed
matters, "ublic
re$oicin,sH accordin, to another readin,, /acillation.
'. T(E E#-E;@;.??Stability, "o3er, "rotection, realiOationH a ,reat "ersonH aid,
reason,
con/ictionH also authority and 3ill. ;e/ersed+ *ene/olence, com"assion, creditH
also con1usion to
enemies, obstruction, immaturity.
:. T(E (IE;@-(A8T.??#arria,e, alliance, ca"ti/ity, ser/itudeH by another account,
mercy and
,oodnessH ins"irationH the man to 3hom the 7uerent has recourse. ;e/ersed+
Society, ,ood
understandin,, concord, o/erBindness, 3eaBness.
<. T(E .@VE;S.??Attraction, lo/e, beauty, trials o/ercome. ;e/ersed+ &ailure,
1oolish desi,ns.
Another account s"eaBs o1 marria,e 1rustrated and contrarieties o1 all Binds.
=. T(E !(A;I@T.??Succour, "ro/idence also 3ar, trium"h, "resum"tion,
/en,eance, trouble.
;e/ersed+ ;iot, Duarrel, dis"ute, liti,ation, de1eat.
>. &@;TITJ)E.??-o3er, ener,y, action, coura,e, ma,nanimityH also com"lete
success and
honours. ;e/ersed+ )es"otism, abuse i1 "o3er, 3eaBness, discord, sometimes
e/en dis,race.
9. T(E (E;#IT.??-rudence, circums"ectionH also and es"ecially treason,
dissimulation, ro,uery,
corru"tion. ;e/ersed+ !oncealment, dis,uise, "olicy, 1ear, unreasoned caution.
10. W(EE. @& &@;TJ8E.?)estiny, 1ortune, success, ele/ation, lucB, 1elicity.
;e/ersed+
Increase, abundance, su"erLuity.
11. 2JSTI!E.??EDuity, ri,htness, "robity, e9ecuti/eH trium"h o1 the deser/in, side
in la3.
;e/ersed+ .a3 in all its de"artments, le,al com"lications, bi,otry, bias, e9cessi/e
se/erity.
1. T(E (A85E) #A8.??Wisdom, circums"ection, discernment, trials, sacriAce,
intuition,
di/ination, "ro"hecy. ;e/ersed+ SelAshness, the cro3d, body "olitic.
1%. )EAT(.??End, mortality, destruction, corru"tion also, 1or a man, the loss o1 a
bene1actor 1or a
3oman, many contrarietiesH 1or a maid, 1ailure o1 marria,e "ro$ects. ;e/ersed+
Inertia, slee",
lethar,y, "etri1action, somnambulismH ho"e destroyed.
1'. TE#-E;A8!E.??Economy, moderation, 1ru,ality, mana,ement,
accommodation. ;e/ersed+
Thin,s connected 3ith churches, reli,ions, sects, the "riesthood, sometimes e/en
the "riest 3ho
3ill marry the 7uerentH also disunion, un1ortunate combinations, com"etin,
interests.
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1:. T(E )EVI..??;a/a,e, /iolence, /ehemence, e9traordinary eEorts, 1orce,
1atalityH that 3hich
is "redestined but is not 1or this reason e/il. ;e/ersed+ E/il 1atality, 3eaBness,
"ettiness, blindness.
1<. T(E T@WE;.??#isery, distress, indi,ence, ad/ersity, calamity, dis,race,
dece"tion, ruin. It is
a card in "articular o1 un1oreseen catastro"he. ;e/ersed+ Accordin, to one
account, the same in a
lesser de,ree also o""ression, im"risonment, tyranny.
1=. T(E STA;.??.oss, the1t, "ri/ation, abandonmentH another readin, says?ho"e
and bri,ht
"ros"ects, ;e/ersed+ Arro,ance, hau,htiness, im"otence.
1>. T(E #@@8.??(idden enemies, dan,er, calumny, darBness, terror, dece"tion,
occult 1orces,
error. ;e/ersed+ Instability, inconstancy, silence, lesser de,rees o1 dece"tion and
error.
19. T(E SJ8.??#aterial ha""iness, 1ortunate marria,e, contentment. ;e/ersed+
The same in a
lesser sense.
0. T(E .AST 2J)5#E8T.??!han,e o1 "osition, rene3al, outcome. Another account
s"eciAes
total loss thou,h la3suit. ;e/ersed+ WeaBness, "usillanimity, sim"licityH also
deliberation,
decision, sentence.
4E;@. T(E &@@..??&olly, mania, e9tra/a,ance, into9ication, delirium, 1renOy,
be3rayment.
;e/ersed+ 8e,li,ence, absence, distribution, carelessness, a"athy, nullity, /anity.
1. T(E W@;.).??Assured success, recom"ense, /oya,e, route, emi,ration, Li,ht,
chan,e o1
"lace. ;e/ersed+ Inertia, A9ity, sta,nation, "ermanence.
It 3ill be seen that, e9ce"t 3here there is an irresistible su,,estion con/eyed by
the sur1ace
meanin,, that 3hich is e9tracted 1rom the Trum"s #a$or by the di/inatory art is at
once artiAcial
and arbitrary, as it seems to me, in the hi,hest de,ree. *ut o1 one order are the
mysteries o1 li,ht
and o1 another are those o1 1antasy. The allocation o1 a 1ortune?tellin, as"ect to
these cards is the
story o1 a "rolon,ed im"ertinence.
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I ' S@#E A))ITI@8A. #EA8I85S @& T(E .ESSE; A;!A8A
WA8)S. 6in,.??5enerally 1a/ourable may si,ni1y a ,ood marria,e. ;e/ersed+
Ad/ice that should
be 1ollo3ed.
7ueen.??A ,ood har/est, 3hich may be taBen in se/eral senses. ;e/ersed+
5ood3ill to3ards the
7uerent, but 3ithout the o""ortunity to e9ercise it.
6ni,ht.??A bad cardH accordin, to some readin,s, alienation. ;e/ersed+ &or a
3oman, marria,e,
but "robably 1rustrated.
-a,e.??Coun, man o1 1amily in search o1 youn, lady. ;e/ersed+ *ad ne3s.
Ten.??)iFculties and contradictions, i1 near a ,ood card.
8ine.??5enerally s"eaBin,, a bad card.
Ei,ht.??)omestic dis"utes 1or a married "erson.
Se/en.??A darB child.
Si9.??Ser/ants may lose the conAdence o1 their mastersH a youn, lady may be
betrayed by a 1riend.
;e/ersed+ &ulAlment o1 de1erred ho"e.
&i/e.??Success in Anancial s"eculation. ;e/ersed+ 7uarrels may be turned to
ad/anta,e.
&our.??Jne9"ected ,ood 1ortune. ;e/ersed+ A married 3oman 3ill ha/e beauti1ul
children.
Three.??A /ery ,ood cardH collaboration 3ill 1a/our enter"rise.
T3o.??A youn, lady may e9"ect tri/ial disa""ointments.
Ace.??!alamities o1 all Binds. ;e/ersed+ A si,n o1 birth.
!u"s. 6in,.??*e3are o1 ill?3ill on the "art o1 a man o1 "osition, and o1 hy"ocrisy
"retendin, to
hel". ;e/ersed+ .oss.
7ueen.??Sometimes denotes a 3oman o1 eDui/ocal character. ;e/ersed+ A rich
marria,e 1or a man
and a distin,uished one 1or a 3oman.
6ni,ht.??A /isit 1rom a 1riend, 3ho 3ill brin, une9"ected money to the 7uerent.
;e/ersed+
Irre,ularity.
-a,e.??5ood au,uryH also a youn, man 3ho is un1ortunate in lo/e. ;e/ersed+
@bstacles o1 all
Binds.
Ten.??&or a male 7uerent, a ,ood marria,e and one beyond his e9"ectations.
;e/ersed+ Sorro3H
also a serious Duarrel.
8ine.??@1 ,ood au,ury 1or military men. ;e/ersed+ 5ood business.
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Ei,ht.??#arria,e 3ith a 1air 3oman. ;e/ersed+ -er1ect satis1action.
Se/en.??&air childH idea, desi,n, resol/e, mo/ement. ;e/ersed+ Success, i1
accom"anied by the
Three o1 !u"s.
Si9.??-leasant memories. ;e/ersed+ Inheritance to 1all in DuicBly.
&i/e.??5enerally 1a/ourableH a ha""y marria,eH also "atrimony, le,acies, ,i1ts,
success in
enter"rise. ;e/ersed+ ;eturn o1 some relati/e 3ho has not been seen 1or lon,.
&our.??!ontrarieties. ;e/ersed+ -resentiment.
Three.??Jne9"ected ad/ancement 1or a military man. ;e/ersed+ !onsolation, cure,
end o1 the
business.
T3o.??&a/ourable in thin,s o1 "leasure and business, as 3ell as lo/eH also 3ealth
and honour.
;e/ersed+ -assion.
Ace.??InLe9ible 3ill, unalterable la3. ;e/ersed+ Jne9"ected chan,e o1 "osition.
SW@;)S. 6in,.??A la3yer, senator, doctor. ;e/ersed+ A bad manH also a caution to
"ut an end to
a ruinous la3suit.
7ueen.??A 3ido3. ;e/ersed+ A bad 3oman, 3ith ill?3ill to3ards the 7uerent.
6ni,ht.??A soldier, man o1 arms, satellite, sti"endiaryH heroic action "redicted 1or
soldier.
;e/ersed+ )is"ute 3ith an imbecile "ersonH 1or a 3oman, stru,,le 3ith a ri/al,
3ho 3ill be
conDuered.
-a,e.??An indiscreet "erson 3ill "ry into the 7uerentMs secrets. ;e/ersed+
Astonishin, ne3s.
Ten.??&ollo3ed by Ace and 6in,, im"risonmentH 1or ,irl or 3i1e, treason on the "art
o1 1riends.
;e/ersed+ Victory and conseDuent 1ortune 1or a soldier in 3ar.
8ine.??An ecclesiastic, a "riestH ,enerally, a card o1 bad omen. ;e/ersed+ 5ood
,round 1or
sus"icion a,ainst a doubt1ul "erson.
Ei,ht.??&or a 3oman, scandal s"read in her res"ect. ;e/ersed+ )e"arture o1 a
relati/e.
Se/en.??)arB ,irlH a ,ood cardH it "romises a country li1e a1ter a com"etence has
been secured.
;e/ersed+ 5ood ad/ice, "robably ne,lected.
Si9.??The /oya,e 3ill be "leasant. ;e/ersed+ Jn1a/ourable issue o1 la3suit.
&i/e.??An attacB on the 1ortune o1 the 7uerent. ;e/ersed+ A si,n o1 sorro3 and
mournin,.
&our.??A bad card, but i1 re/ersed a DualiAed success may be e9"ected by 3ise
administration o1
aEairs. ;e/ersed+ A certain success 1ollo3in, 3ise administration.
Three.??&or a 3oman, the Li,ht o1 her lo/er. ;e/ersed+ A meetin, 3ith one 3hom
the 7uerent has
com"romisedH also a nun.
T3o.??5i1ts 1or a lady, inLuential "rotection 1or a man in search o1 hel". ;e/ersed+
)ealin,s 3ith
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ro,ues.
Ace.??5reat "ros"erity or ,reat misery. ;e/ersed+ #arria,e broBen oE, 1or a
3oman, throu,h her
o3n im"rudence.
-E8TA!.ES. 6in,.??A rather darB man, a merchant, master, "ro1essor. ;e/ersed+
An old and
/icious man.
7ueen.??)arB 3omanH "resents 1rom a rich relati/eH rich and ha""y marria,e 1or a
youn, man.
;e/ersed+ An illness.
6ni,ht.??An use1ul manH use1ul disco/eries. ;e/ersed+ A bra/e man out o1
em"loyment.
-a,e.??A darB youthH a youn, oFcer or soldierH a child. ;e/ersed+ Sometimes
de,radation and
sometimes "illa,e.
Ten.??;e"resents house or d3ellin,, and deri/es its /alue 1rom other cards.
;e/ersed+ An occasion
3hich may be 1ortunate or other3ise.
8ine.??-rom"t 1ulAlment o1 3hat is "resa,ed by nei,hbourin, cards. ;e/ersed+Vain
ho"es.
Ei,ht.??A youn, man in business 3ho has relations 3ith the 7uerentH a darB ,irl.
;e/ersed+ The
7uerent 3ill be com"romised in a matter o1 money?lendin,.
Se/en.??Im"ro/ed "osition 1or a ladyMs 1uture husband. ;e/ersed+ Im"atience,
a""rehension,
sus"icion.
Si9.??The "resent must not be relied on. ;e/ersed+ A checB on the 7uerentMs
ambition.
&i/e.??!onDuest o1 1ortune by reason. ;e/ersed+ Troubles in lo/e.
&our.??&or a bachelor, "leasant ne3s 1rom a lady. ;e/ersed+ @bser/ation,
hindrances.
Three.??I1 1or a man, celebrity 1or his eldest son. ;e/ersed+ )e"ends on
nei,hbourin, cards.
T3o.??Troubles are more ima,inary than real. ;e/ersed+ *ad omen, i,norance,
in$ustice.
Ace.??The most 1a/ourable o1 all cards. ;e/ersed+ A share in the Andin, o1
treasure.
It 3ill be obser/ed (1) that these additamenta ha/e little conne9ion 3ith the
"ictorial desi,ns o1
the cards to 3hich they re1er, as these corres"ond 3ith the more im"ortant
s"eculati/e /aluesH ()
and 1urther that the additional meanin,s are /ery o1ten in disa,reement 3ith
those "re/iously
,i/en. All meanin,s are lar,ely inde"endent o1 one another and all are reduced,
accentuated or
sub$ect to modiAcation and sometimes almost re/ersal by their "lace in a
seDuence. There is
scarcely any canon o1 criticism in matters o1 this Bind. I su""ose that in "ro"ortion
as any system
descends 1rom ,eneralities to details it becomes naturally the more "recariousH
and in the records
o1 "ro1essional 1ortune?tellin,, it oEers more o1 the dre,s and lees o1 the sub$ect.
At the same time,
di/inations based on intuition and second si,ht are o1 little "ractical /alue unless
they come do3n
1rom the re,ion o1 uni/ersals to that o1 "articularsH but in "ro"ortion as this ,i1t is
"resent in a
"articular case, the s"eciAc meanin,s recorded by "ast cartomancists 3ill be
disre,arded in 1a/our
o1 the "ersonal a""reciation o1 card /alues.
This has been intimated already. It seems necessary to add the 1ollo3in,
s"eculati/e readin,s.
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I:
T(E ;E!J;;E8!E @& !A;)S I8 )EA.I85
In the 8atural -osition
' 6in,s V ,reat honourH % 6in,s V consultationH 6in,s V minor counsel.
' 7ueens V ,reat debateH % 7ueens V dece"tion by 3omenH 7ueens V sincere
1riends.
' 6ni,hts V serious mattersH % 6ni,hts V li/ely debateH 6ni,hts V intimacy.
' -a,es V dan,erous illnessH % -a,es V dis"uteH -a,es V disDuiet.
' Tens V condemnationH % Tens V ne3 conditionH Tens V chan,e.
' 8ines V a ,ood 1riendH % 8ines V successH 8ines V recei"t.
' Ei,hts V re/erseH % Ei,hts V marria,e Ei,hts V ne3 Bno3led,e.
' Se/ens V intri,ueH % Se/ens V inArmityH Se/ens V ne3s.
' Si9es V abundanceH % Si9es V successH Si9es V irritability.
' &i/es V re,ularityH % &i/es V determinationH &i/es V /i,ils.
' &ours V $ourney near at handH % &ours V a sub$ect o1 reLectionH &ours V
insomnia.
' Threes V "ro,ressH % Threes V unity Threes V calm.
' T3os V contentionH % T3os V securityH T3os V accord.
' Aces V 1a/ourable chanceH % Aces V small successH Aces V tricBery.
;e/ersed
' 6in,s V celerityH % 6in,s V commerce 6in,s V "ro$ects.
' 7ueens V bad com"anyH % 7ueens V ,luttonyH 7ueens V 3orB.
' 6ni,hts V alliance % 6ni,hts V a duel, or "ersonal encounterH 6ni,hts V
susce"tibility.
' -a,es V "ri/ation % -a,es V idleness -a,es V society.
' Tens V e/ent, ha""enin,H % Tens disa""ointmentH Tens V e9"ectation $ustiAed.
' 8ines V usuryH % 8ines im"rudenceH 8ines V a small "roAt.
' Ei,hts V errorH % Ei,hts a s"ectacleH Ei,hts V mis1ortune.
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' Se/ens V DuarrellersH % Se/ens V $oyH Se/ens V 3omen o1 no re"ute.
' Si9es V careH % Si9es V satis1action Si9es V do3n1all.
' &i/es V orderH % &i/es V hesitationH &i/es V re/erse.
' &ours V 3alBs abroadH % &ours V disDuietH &ours V dis"ute.
' Threes V ,reat successH % Threes V serenityH Threes V sa1ety.
' T3os V reconciliationH % T3os a""rehensionH T3os V mistrust.
' Aces V dishonourH % Aces debaucheryH Aces V enemies.
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%.< The Art o1 Tarot )i/ination
I < T(E A;T @& TA;@T )IVI8ATI@8
We come no3 to the Anal and "ractical "art o1 this di/ision o1 our sub$ect, bein,
the 3ay to
consult and obtain oracles by means o1 Tarot cards. The modes o1 o"eration are
rather numerous,
and some o1 them are e9ceedin,ly in/ol/ed. I set aside those last mentioned,
because "ersons 3ho
are /ersed in such Duestions belie/e that the 3ay o1 sim"licity is the 3ay o1 truth.
I set aside also
the o"erations 3hich ha/e been re"ublished recently in that section o1 The Tarot
o1 the *ohemians
3hich is entitled KThe )i/inin, TarotKH it may be recommended at its "ro"er /alue
to readers 3ho
3ish to ,o 1urther than the limits o1 this handbooB. I oEer in the Arst "lace a short
"rocess 3hich
has been used "ri/ately 1or many years "ast in En,land, Scotland and Ireland. I do
not thinB that it
has been "ublished?certainly not in conne9ion 3ith Tarot cardsH I belie/e that it
3ill ser/e all
"ur"oses, but I 3ill add by 3ay o1 /ariation?in the second "lace 3hat used to be
Bno3n in &rance
as the @racles o1 2ulia @rsini.
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I=
A8 A8!IE8T !E.TI! #ET(@) @& )IVI8ATI@8
This mode o1 di/ination is the most suitable 1or obtainin, an ans3er to a deAnite
Duestion. The
)i/iner Arst selects a card to re"resent the "erson or, matter about 3hich inDuiry
is made. This
card is called the Si,niAcator. Should he 3ish to ascertain somethin, in conne9ion
3ith himsel1 he
taBes the one 3hich corres"onds to his "ersonal descri"tion. A 6ni,ht should be
chosen as the
Si,niAcator i1 the sub$ect o1 inDuiry is a man o1 1orty years old and u"3ardH a 6in,
should be
chosen 1or any male 3ho is under that a,e a 7ueen 1or a 3oman 3ho is o/er 1orty
years and a
-a,e 1or any 1emale o1 less a,e.
The 1our !ourt !ards in Wands re"resent /ery 1air "eo"le, 3ith yello3 or auburn
hair, 1air
com"le9ion and blue eyes. The !ourt !ards in !u"s si,ni1y "eo"le 3ith li,ht
bro3n or dull 1air
hair and ,rey or blue eyes. Those in S3ords stand 1or "eo"le ha/in, haOel or ,rey
eyes, darB
bro3n hair and dull com"le9ion. .astly, the !ourt !ards in -entacles are re1erred
to "ersons 3ith
/ery darB bro3n or blacB hair, darB eyes and sallo3 or s3arthy com"le9ions.
These allocations are
sub$ect, ho3e/er, to the 1ollo3in, reser/e, 3hich 3ill "re/ent them bein, taBen
too
con/entionally. Cou can be ,uided on occasion by the Bno3n tem"erament o1 a
"ersonH one 3ho is
e9ceedin,ly darB may be /ery ener,etic, and 3ould be better re"resented by a
S3ord card than a
-entacle. @n the other hand, a /ery 1air sub$ect 3ho is indolent and lethar,ic
should be re1erred to
!u"s rather than to Wands.
I1 it is more con/enient 1or the "ur"ose o1 a di/ination to taBe as the Si,niAcator
the matter about
3hich inDuiry is to be made, that Trum" or small card should be selected 3hich
has a meanin,
corres"ondin, to the matter. .et it be su""osed that the Duestion is+ Will a la3suit
be necessary[ In
this case, taBe the Trum" 8o. 11, or $ustice, as the Si,niAcator. This has re1erence
to le,al aEairs.
*ut i1 the Duestion is+ Shall I be success1ul in my la3suit[ one o1 the !ourt !ards
must be chosen
as the Si,niAcator. SubseDuently, consecuti/e di/inations may be "er1ormed to
ascertain the
course o1 the "rocess itsel1 and its result to each o1 the "arties concerned.
(a/in, selected the Si,niAcator, "lace it on the table, 1ace u"3ards. Then shuWe
and cut the rest
o1 the "acB three times, Bee"in, the 1aces o1 the cards do3n3ards.
Turn u" the to" or &I;ST !A;) o1 the "acBH co/er the Si,niAcator 3ith it, and say+
This co/ers
him. This card ,i/es the inLuence 3hich is aEectin, the "erson or matter o1
inDuiry ,enerally, the
atmos"here o1 it in 3hich the other currents 3orB.
Turn u" the SE!@8) !A;) and lay it across the &I;ST, sayin,+ This crosses him. It
she3s the
nature o1 the obstacles in the matter. I1 it is a 1a/ourable card, the o""osin, 1orces
3ill not be
serious, or it may indicate that somethin, ,ood in itsel1 3ill not be "roducti/e o1
,ood in the
"articular conne9ion.
Turn u" the T(I;) !A;)H "lace it abo/e the Si,niAcator, and say+ This cro3ns him.
It
re"resents (a) the 7uerentMs aim or ideal in the matterH (b) the best that can be
achie/ed under the
circumstances, but that 3hich has not yet been made actual.
Turn u" the &@J;T( !A;)H "lace it belo3 the Si,niAcator, and say+ This is beneath
him. It
she3s the 1oundation or basis o1 the matter, that 3hich has already "assed into
actuality and 3hich
the Si,niAcator has made his o3n.
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Turn u" the &I&T( !A;)H "lace it on the side o1 the Si,niAcator 1rom 3hich he is
looBin,, and
say+ This is behind him. It ,i/es the inLuence that is $ust "assed, or is no3 "assin,
a3ay.
8.*.??I1 the Si,niAcator is a Trum" or any small card that cannot be said to 1ace
either 3ay, the
)i/iner must decide be1ore be,innin, the o"eration 3hich side he 3ill taBe it as
1acin,.
Turn u" the SI0T( !A;)H "lace it on the side that the Si,niAcator is 1acin,, and
say+ This is
be1ore him. It she3s the inLuence that is comin, into action and 3ill o"erate in
the near 1uture.
The cards are no3 dis"osed in the 1orm o1 a cross, the Si,niAcator??co/ered by the
&irst !ard??
bein, in the centre.
The ne9t 1our cards are turned u" in succession and "laced one abo/e the other in
a line, on the
ri,ht hand side o1 the cross.
The Arst o1 these, or the SEVE8T( !A;) o1 the o"eration, si,niAes himsel1??that is,
the
Si,niAcator??3hether "erson or thin,?and she3s its "osition or attitude in the
circumstances.
The EI5(T( !A;) si,niAes his house, that is, his en/ironment and the tendencies
at 3orB
therein 3hich ha/e an eEect on the matter??1or instance, his "osition in li1e, the
inLuence o1
immediate 1riends, and so 1orth.
The 8I8T( !A;) ,i/es his ho"es or 1ears in the matter.
The TE8T( is 3hat 3ill come, the Anal result, the culmination 3hich is brou,ht
about by the
inLuences she3n by the other cards that ha/e been turned u" in the di/ination.
It is on this card that the )i/iner should es"ecially concentrate his intuiti/e
1aculties and his
memory in res"ect o1 the oFcial di/inatory meanin,s attached thereto. It should
embody
3hatsoe/er you may ha/e di/ined 1rom the other cards on the table, includin, the
Si,niAcator
itsel1 and concernin, him or it, not e9ce"tin, such li,hts u"on hi,her si,niAcance
as mi,ht 1all liBe
s"arBs 1rom hea/en i1 the card 3hich ser/es 1or the oracle, the card 1or readin,,
should ha""en to
be a Trum" #a$or.
The o"eration is no3 com"letedH but should it ha""en that the last card is o1 a
dubious nature, 1rom
3hich no Anal decision can be dra3n, or 3hich does not a""ear to indicate the
ultimate conclusion
o1 the aEair, it may be 3ell to re"eat the o"eration, taBin, in this case the Tenth
!ard as the
Si,niAcator, instead o1 the one "re/iously used. The "acB must be a,ain shuWed
and cut three
times and the Arst ten cards laid out as be1ore. *y this a more detailed account o1
KWhat 3ill
comeK may be obtained.
I1 in any di/ination the Tenth !ard should be a !ourt !ard, it she3s that the
sub$ect o1 the
di/ination 1alls ultimately into the hands o1 a "erson re"resented by that card, and
its end de"ends
mainly on him. In this e/ent also it is use1ul to taBe the !ourt !ard in Duestion as
the Si,niAcator
in a 1resh o"eration, and disco/er 3hat is the nature o1 his inLuence in the matter
and to 3hat issue
he 3ill brin, it.
5reat 1acility may be obtained by this method in a com"arati/ely short time,
allo3ance bein,
al3ays made 1or the ,i1ts o1 the o"erator?that is to say, his 1aculty o1 insi,ht,
latent or de/elo"ed?
and it has the s"ecial ad/anta,e o1 bein, 1ree 1rom all com"lications.
I here a""end a dia,ram o1 the cards as laid out in this mode o1 di/ination. The
Si,niAcator is here
1acin, to the le1t.
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The Si,niAcator.
1. That co/ers him
. What crosses him.
%. What cro3ns him.
'. What is beneath him.
:. What is behind him.
<. What is be1ore him.
=. (imsel1.
>. (is house.
9. (is ho"es or 1ears.
10. What 3ill come.
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I>
A8 A.TE;8ATIVE #ET(@) @& ;EA)I85 T(E TA;@T !A;)S
ShuWe the entire "acB and turn some o1 the cards round, so as to in/ert their
to"s.
.et them be cut by the 7uerent 3ith his le1t hand.
)eal out the Arst 1orty?t3o cards in si9 "acBets o1 se/en cards each, 1ace u"3ards,
so that the Arst
se/en cards 1orm the Arst "acBet, the 1ollo3in, se/en the second, and so on?as in
the 1ollo3in,
dia,ram+??
TaBe u" the Arst "acBetH lay out the cards on the table in a ro3, 1rom ri,ht to le1tH
"lace the cards o1
the second "acBet u"on them and then the "acBets 3hich remain. Cou 3ill thus
ha/e se/en ne3
"acBets o1 si9 cards each, arran,ed as 1ollo3s??
TaBe the to" card o1 each "acBet, shuWe them and lay out 1rom ri,ht to le1t,
maBin, a line o1 se/en
cards.
Then taBe u" the t3o ne9t cards 1rom each "acBet, shuWe and lay them out in t3o
lines under the
Arst line.
TaBe u" the remainin, t3enty?one cards o1 the "acBets, shuWe and lay them out
in three lines belo3
the others.
Cou 3ill thus ha/e si9 horiOontal lines o1 se/en cards each, arran,ed a1ter the
1ollo3in, manner.
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In this method, the 7uerent??i1 o1 the male se9??is re"resented by the #a,ician,
and i1 1emale by the
(i,h -riestessH but the card, in either case, is not taBen 1rom the "acB until the
1orty?t3o cards ha/e
been laid out, as abo/e directed. I1 the reDuired card is not 1ound amon, those
"laced u"on the table,
it must be sou,ht amon, the remainin, thirty?si9 cards, 3hich ha/e not been
dealt, and should be
"laced a little distance to the ri,ht o1 the Arst horiOontal line. @n the other hand, i1
it is amon, them, it
is also taBen out, "laced as stated, and a card is dra3n ha"haOard 1rom the thirty?
si9 cards undealt to
All the /acant "osition, so that there are still 1orty?t3o cards laid out on the table.
The cards are then read in succession, 1rom ri,ht to le1t throu,hout, be,innin, at
card 8o. 1 o1 the to"
line, the last to be read bein, that on the e9treme le1t, or 8o. =, o1 the bottom
line.
This method is recommended 3hen no deAnite Duestion is asBed?that is, 3hen the
7uerent 3ishes to
learn ,enerally concernin, the course o1 his li1e and destiny. I1 he 3ishes to Bno3
3hat may be1all
3ithin a certain time, this time should be clearly s"eciAed be1ore the cards are
shuWed.
With 1urther re1erence to the readin,, it should be remembered that the cards
must be inter"reted
relati/ely to the sub$ect, 3hich means that all oFcial and con/entional meanin,s
o1 the cards may
and should be ada"ted to harmoniOe 3ith the conditions o1 this "articular case in
Duestion??the
"osition, time o1 li1e and se9 o1 the 7uerent, or "erson 1or 3hom the consultation
is made.
Thus, the &ool may indicate the 3hole ran,e o1 mental "hases bet3een mere
e9citement and
madness, but the "articular "hase in each di/ination must be $ud,ed by
considerin, the ,eneral trend
o1 the cards, and in this naturally the intuiti/e 1aculty "lays an im"ortant "art.
It is 3ell, at the be,innin, o1 a readin,, to run throu,h the cards DuicBly, so that
the mind may recei/e
a ,eneral im"ression o1 the sub$ect?the trend o1 the destiny??and a1ter3ards to
start a,ain??readin,
them one by one and inter"retin, in detail.
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It should be remembered that the Trum"s re"resent more "o3er1ul and
com"ellin, 1orces??by the
Tarot hy"othesis??than are re1erable to the small cards.
The /alue o1 intuiti/e and clair/oyant 1aculties is o1 course assumed in di/ination.
Where these are
naturally "resent or ha/e been de/elo"ed by the )i/iner, the 1ortuitous
arran,ement o1 cards 1orms a
linB bet3een his mind and the atmos"here o1 the sub$ect o1 di/ination, and then
the rest is sim"le.
Where intuition 1ails, or is absent, concentration, intellectual obser/ation and
deduction must be used
to the 1ullest e9tent to obtain a satis1actory result. *ut intuition, e/en i1 a""arently
dormant, may be
culti/ated by "ractice in these di/inatory "rocesses. I1 in doubt as to the e9act
meanin, o1 a card in a
"articular conne9ion, the )i/iner is recommended, by those 3ho are /ersed in the
matter, to "lace his
hand on it, try to re1rain 1rom thinBin, o1 3hat it ou,ht to be, and note the
im"ressions that arise in
his mind. At the be,innin, this 3ill "robably resol/e itsel1 into mere ,uessin, and
may "ro/e
incorrect, but it becomes "ossible 3ith "ractice to distin,uish bet3een a ,uess o1
the conscious mind
and an im"ression arisin, 1rom the mind 3hich is sub?conscious.
It is not 3ithin my "ro/ince to oEer either theoretical or "ractical su,,estions on
this sub$ect, in
3hich I ha/e no "art, but the 1ollo3in, additamenta ha/e been contributed by one
3ho has more
titles to s"eaB than all the cartomancists o1 Euro"e, i1 they could shuWe 3ith a
sin,le "air o1 hands
and di/ine 3ith one ton,ue.
8@TES @8 T(E -;A!TI!E @& )IVI8ATI@8
1. *e1ore be,innin, the o"eration, 1ormulate your Duestion deAnitely, and re"eat
it aloud.
. #aBe your mind as blanB as "ossible 3hile shuWin, the cards.
%. -ut out o1 the mind "ersonal bias and "reconcei/ed ideas as 1ar as "ossible, or
your $ud,ment 3ill
be tinctured thereby.
'. @n this account it is more easy to di/ine correctly 1or a stran,er than 1or
yoursel1 or a 1riend.
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I9
T(E #ET(@) @& ;EA)I85 *C #EA8S @& T(I;TC?&IVE !A;)S
When the readin, is o/er, accordin, to the scheme set 1orth in the last method, it
may ha""en?as in
the "re/ious case?that somethin, remains doubt1ul, or it may be desired to carry
the Duestion
1urther, 3hich is done as 1ollo3s+??
TaBe u" the undealt cards 3hich remain o/er, not ha/in, been used in the Arst
o"eration 3ith '
cards. The latter are set aside in a hea", 3ith the 7uerent, 1ace u"3ards, on the
to". The thirty?A/e
cards, bein, shuWed and cut as be1ore, are di/ided by dealin, into si9 "acBets
thus+??
-acBet I consists o1 the Arst SEVE8 !A;)S
-acBet II consists o1 the SI0 !A;)S ne9t 1ollo3in, in orderH -acBet III consists o1
the &IVE
!A;)S 1ollo3in,H -acBet IV contains the ne9t &@J; !A;)SH -acBet V contains T3o
!A;)SH
and -acBet VI contains the last E.EVE8 !A;)S. The arran,ement 3ill then be as
1ollo3s+??
TaBe u" these "acBets successi/elyH deal out the cards 3hich they contain in si9
lines, 3hich 3ill
be necessarily o1 uneDual len,th.
T(E &I;ST .I8E stands 1or the house, the en/ironment and so 1orth.
T(E SE!@8) .I8E stands 1or the "erson or sub$ect o1 the di/ination.
T(E T(I;) .I8E stands 1or 3hat is "assin, outside, e/ents, "ersons, etc.
T(E &@J;T( .I8E stands 1or a sur"rise, the une9"ected, etc.
T(E &I&T( .I8E stands 1or consolation, and may moderate all that is un1a/ourable
in the
"recedin, lines.
T(E SI0T( .I8E is that 3hich must be consulted to elucidate the eni,matic oracles
o1 the othersH
a"art 1rom them it has no im"ortance.
These cards should all be read 1rom le1t to ri,ht, be,innin, 3ith the u""ermost
line.
It should be stated in conclusion as to this di/inatory "art that there is no method
o1 inter"retin,
Tarot cards 3hich is not a""licable to ordinary "layin,?cards, but the additional
court cards, and
abo/e all the Trum"s #a$or, are held to increase the elements and /alues o1 the
oracles.
And no3 in conclusion as to the 3hole matter, I ha/e le1t 1or these last 3ords??as
i1 by 3ay o1
e"ilo,ue??one 1urther and Anal "oint. It is the sense in 3hich I re,ard the Trum"s
#a$or as
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containin, Secret )octrine. I do not here mean that I am acDuainted 3ith orders
and 1raternities in
3hich such doctrine re"oses and is there 1ound to be "art o1 hi,her Tarot
Bno3led,e. I do not
mean that such doctrine, bein, so "reser/ed and transmitted, can be constructed
as imbedded
inde"endently in the Trum"s #a$or. I do not mean that it is somethin, a"art 1rom
the Tarot.
Associations e9ist 3hich ha/e s"ecial Bno3led,e o1 both BindsH some o1 it is
deduced 1rom the
Tarot and some o1 it is a"art there1romH in either case, it is the same in the root?
matter. *ut there
are also thin,s in reser/e 3hich are not in orders or societies, but are transmitted
a1ter another
manner. A"art 1rom all inheritance o1 this Bind, let any one 3ho is a mystic
consider se"arately
and in combination the #a,ician, the &ool, the (i,h -riestess, the (iero"hant, the
Em"ress, the
Em"eror, the (an,ed #an and the To3er. .et him then consider the card called
the .ast
2ud,ment. They contain the le,end o1 the soul. The other Trum"s #a$or are the
details and??as one
mi,ht say??the accidents. -erha"s such a "erson 3ill be,in to understand 3hat
lies 1ar behind these
symbols, by 3homsoe/er Arst in/ented and ho3e/er "reser/ed. I1 he does, he 3ill
see also 3hy I
ha/e concerned mysel1 3ith the sub$ect, e/en at the risB o1 3ritin, about
di/ination by cards.
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*iblio,ra"hy
sacred?te9ts Waite Inde9 -re/ious
*iblio,ra"hy
A !@8!ISE *I*.I@5;A-(C @& T(E
!(IE& W@;6S )EA.I85 WIT( T(E
TA;@T A8) ITS !@88E0I@8S
As in s"ite o1 its modest "retensions, this mono,ra"h is, so 1ar as I am a3are, the
Arst attem"t to
"ro/ide in En,lish a com"lete syno"tic account o1 the Tarot, 3ith its archPolo,ical
"osition
deAned, its a/ailable symbolism de/elo"ed, and??as a matter o1 curiosity in
occultism??3ith its
di/inatory meanin,s and modes o1 o"eration suFciently e9hibited, it is my 3ish,
1rom the literate
stand"oint, to enumerate those te9t?booBs o1 the sub$ect, and the most im"ortant
incidental
re1erences thereto, 3hich ha/e come under my notice. The biblio,ra"hical
"articulars that 1ollo3
lay no claim to com"leteness, as I ha/e cited nothin, that I ha/e not seen 3ith my
o3n eyesH but I
can understand that most o1 my readers 3ill be sur"rised at the e9tent o1 the
literature??i1 I may so
term it con/entionally??3hich has ,ro3n u" in the course o1 the last 10 years.
Those 3ho desire
to "ursue their inDuiries 1urther 3ill And am"le materials herein, thou,h it is not a
course 3hich I
am seeBin, to commend es"ecially, as I deem that enou,h has been said u"on
the Tarot in this
"lace to stand 1or all that has "receded it. The biblio,ra"hy itsel1 is re"resentati/e
a1ter a similar
manner. I should add that there is a considerable catalo,ue o1 cards and 3orBs on
card?"layin, in
the *ritish #useum, but I ha/e not had occasion to consult it to any e9tent 1or the
"ur"oses o1 the
"resent list.
I
#onde -rimit1, analysG et com"arG a/ec le #onde #oderne. -ar #. !ourt de
5ebelin. Vol. >, '0,
-aris, 1=>1.
The articles on the 2eu des Tarots 3ill be 1ound at "". %<: to '10. The "lates at the
end she3 the
Trum"s #a$or and the Aces o1 each suit. These are /aluable, as indications o1 the
cards at the close
o1 the ei,hteenth century. They 3ere "resumably then in circulation in the South
o1 &rance, as it is
said that at the "eriod in Duestion they 3ere "ractically unBno3n at -aris. I ha/e
dealt 3ith the
claims o1 the "a"ers in the body o1 the "resent 3orB. Their s"eculations 3ere
tolerable enou,h 1or
their maOy "eriodH but that they are suEered still, and acce"ted indeed 3ithout
Duestion, by &rench
occult 3riters is the most con/incin, testimony that one can need to the
DualiAcations o1 the latter
1or dealin, 3ith any Duestion o1 historical research.
II
The WorBs o1 Etteilla. .es Se"ts 8uances de IM]u/re "hiloso"hiDue (ermitiDueH
#aniNre de se
rGcrGer a/ec le 2eu de !artes, nommeGs TarotsH &ra,ments sur les (autes
SciencesH -hiloso"hie
des (autes SciencesH 2eu des Tarots, ou le .i/re de ThothH .eôns ThGoriDues et
-ratiDues du
.i/re de Thoth??all "ublished bet3een 1=>% and 1=>=.
These are e9ceedin,ly rare and 3ere 1ranBly amon, the 3orBs o1 col"orta,e o1
their "articular
"eriod. They contain the most curious 1ra,ments on matters 3ithin and 3ithout
the main issue,
lucubrations on ,enii, ma,ic, astrolo,y, talismans, dreams, etc. I ha/e s"oBen
suFciently in the
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*iblio,ra"hy
te9t o1 the authorMs /ie3s on the Tarot and his "lace in its modern history. (e
re,arded it as a 3orB
o1 s"eaBin, hiero,ly"hics, but to translate it 3as not easy. (e, ho3e/er,
accom"lished the tasB that
is to say, in his o3n o"inion.
III
An InDuiry into the Antient 5reeB 5ame, su""osed to ha/e been in/ented by
-alamedes. R*y
2ames !hristie.S .ondon+ '0, 1>01.
I mention this collection o1 curious dissertations because it has been cited by
3riters on the Tarot.
It seeBs to establish a close conne9ion bet3een early ,ames o1 antiDuity and
modern chess. It is
su,,ested that the in/ention attributed to -alamedes, "rior to the Sie,e o1 Troy,
3as Bno3n in
!hina 1rom a more remote "eriod o1 antiDuity. The 3orB has no re1erence to cards
o1 any Bind
3hatsoe/er.
IV
;esearches into the (istory o1 -layin, !ards. *y Samuel Weller Sin,er. '0,
.ondon, 1>1<.
The Tarot is "robably o1 Eastern ori,in and hi,h antiDuity, but the rest o1 !ourt de
5ebelinMs
theory is /a,ue and un1ounded. !ards 3ere Bno3n in Euro"e "rior to the
a""earance o1 the
E,y"tians. The 3orB has a ,ood deal o1 curious in1ormation and the a""endices
are /aluable, but
the Tarot occu"ies com"arati/ely little o1 the te9t and the "eriod is too early 1or a
tan,ible
criticism o1 its claims. There are e9cellent re"roductions o1 early s"ecimen
desi,ns. Those o1
!ourt de 5ebelin are also ,i/en in e9tenso.
V
&acts and S"eculations on -layin, !ards. *y W. A. !hatto. >/o, .ondon, 1>'>.
The author su,,ested that the Trum"s #a$or and the numeral cards 3ere once
se"arate, but 3ere
a1ter3ards combined. The oldest s"ecimens o1 Tarot cards are not later than 1''0.
*ut the claims
and /alue o1 the /olume ha/e been suFciently described in the te9t.
VI
.es !artes _ 2ouer el la !artomancie. -ar ). ;. -. *oiteau dMAmbly. '0, -aris, 1>:'.
There are some interestin, illustrations o1 early Tarot cards, Which are said to be
o1 @riental
ori,inH but they are not re1erred to E,y"t. The early ,i"sy conne9ion is aFrmed,
but there is no
e/idence "roduced. The cards came 3ith the ,i"sies 1rom India, 3here they 3ere
desi,ned to she3
1orth the intentions o1 Kthe unBno3n di/inityK rather than to be the ser/ants o1
"ro1ane amusement.
VII
)o,me el ;ituel de la (aute #a,ie. -ar Qli"has .G/i, /ols., demy >/o, -aris,
1>:'.
This is the Arst "ublication o1 Al"honse .ouis !onstant on occult "hiloso"hy, and it
is also his
ma,num o"us. It is constructed in both /olumes on the ma$or 6eys o1 the Tarot
and has been
there1ore understood as a Bind o1 de/elo"ment o1 their im"licits, in the 3ay that
these 3ere
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*iblio,ra"hy
"resented to the mind o1 the author. To su""lement 3hat has been said o1 this
3orB in the te9t o1
the "resent mono,ra"h, I need only add that the section on transmutations in the
second /olume
contains 3hat is termed the 6ey o1 Thoth. The inner circle de"icts a tri"le Tau,
3ith a he9a,ram
3here the bases $oin, and beneath is the Ace o1 !u"s. Within the e9ternal circle
are the letters
TA;@, and about this A,ure as a 3hole are ,rou"ed the symbols o1 the &our .i/in,
!reatures, the
Ace o1 Wands, Ace o1 S3ords, the letter Shin, and a ma,icianMs candle, 3hich is
identical,
accordin, to .G/i, 3ith the li,hts used in the 5oetic !ircle o1 *lacB E/ocations and
-acts. The
tri"le Tau may be taBen to re"resent the Ace o1 -entacles. The only Tarot card
,i/en in the
/olumes is the !hariot, 3hich is dra3n by t3o s"hin9esH the 1ashion thus set has
been 1ollo3ed in
later days. Those 3ho inter"ret the 3orB as a Bind o1 commentary on the Trum"s
#a$or are the
con/entional occult students and those 3ho 1ollo3 them 3ill ha/e only the "ains
o1 1ools.
VIII
.es ;`mes. -ar 2. A. Vaillant. )emy >/o, -aris, 1>:=.
The author tells us ho3 he met 3ith the cards, but the account is in a cha"ter o1
anecdotes. The
Tarot is the sidereal booB o1 Enoch, modelled on the astral 3heel o1 Athor. There is
a descri"tion
o1 the Trum"s #a$or, 3hich are e/idently re,arded as an heirloom, brou,ht by the
,i"sies 1rom
Indo?Tartary. The "ublication o1 .G/iMs )o,me et ;ituel must, I thinB, ha/e
im"ressed Vaillant
/ery much, and althou,h in this, 3hich 3as the 3riterMs most im"ortant 3orB, the
anecdote that I
ha/e mentioned is "ractically his only Tarot re1erence, he seems to ha/e ,one
much 1urther in a
later "ublication??!le1 #a,iDue de la &iction et du &ait, but I ha/e not been able to
see it, nor do I
thinB, 1rom the re"orts concernin, it, that I ha/e sustained a loss.
I0
(istoire de la #a,ie. -ar Qli"has .G/i. >/o, -aris, 1><0.
The re1erences to the Tarot are 1e3 in this brilliant 3orB, 3hich 3ill be a/ailable
shortly in
En,lish. It ,i/es the 1st Trum" #a$or, commonly called the Jni/erse, or World,
under the title o1
Cin9 -antomor"h??a seated A,ure 3earin, the cro3n o1 Isis. This has been
re"roduced by -a"us in
.e Tarot )i/inataire. The author e9"lains that the e9tant Tarot has come do3n to
us throu,h the
2e3s, but it "assed someho3 into the hands o1 the ,i"sies, 3ho brou,ht it 3ith
them 3hen they
Arst entered &rance in the early "art o1 the A1teenth century. The authority here is
Vaillant.
0
.a !le1 des 5rands #ystNres. -ar Eli"has .G/i. >/o, -aris, 1><1.
The 1rontis"iece to this 3orB re"resents the absolute 6ey o1 the occult sciences,
,i/en by William
-ostel and com"leted by the 3riter. It is re"roduced in The Tarot o1 the
*ohemians, and in the
"re1ace 3hich I ha/e "reA9ed thereto, as indeed else3here, I ha/e e9"lained that
-ostel ne/er
constructed a hiero,ly"hical Bey. Eli"has .G/i identiAes the Tarot as that sacred
al"habet 3hich
has been /ariously re1erred to Enoch, Thoth, !admus and -alamedes. It consists
o1 absolute ideas
attached to si,ns and numbers. In res"ect o1 the latter, there is an e9tended
commentary on these as
1ar as the number i,, the series bein, inter"reted as the 6eys o1 @ccult Theolo,y.
The remainin,
three numerals 3hich com"lete the (ebre3 al"habet are called the 6eys o1
8ature. The Tarot is
said to be the ori,inal o1 chess, as it is also o1 the ;oyal 5ame o1 5oose. This
/olume contains the
authorMs hy"othetical reconstruction o1 the tenth Trum" #a$or, she3in, E,y"tian
A,ures on the
Wheel o1 &ortune.
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Btbib.htm (% o1 9) R1%T10T00 1'+%0+:%S
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0I
.M(omme ;ou,e des Tuileyies. -ar -. !hristian. &ca". >/o, -aris, 1><%.
The 3orB is e9ceedin,ly rare, is much sou,ht and 3as once hi,hly "riOed in
&ranceH but )r. -a"us
has a3aBened to the 1act that it is really o1 slender /alue, and the statement
mi,ht be e9tended. It is
interestin,, ho3e/er, as containin, the 3riterMs Arst re/eries on the Tarot. (e 3as
a 1ollo3er and
imitator o1 .G/i. In the "resent 3orB, he "ro/ides a commentary on the Trum"s
#a$or and
therea1ter the desi,ns and meanin,s o1 all the #inor Arcana. There are many and
curious
astrolo,ical attributions. The 3orB does not seem to mention the Tarot by name. A
later (istoire
de la #a,ie does little more than re"roduce and e9tend the account o1 the Trum"s
#a$or ,i/en
herein.
0II
The (istory o1 -layin, !ards. *y E. S. Taylor. !r. >/o, .ondon, 1><:.
This 3as "ublished "osthumously and is "ractically a translation o1 *oiteau. It
there1ore calls 1or
little remarB on my "art. The o"inion is that cards 3ere im"orted by the ,i"sies
1rom India. There
are also re1erences to the so?called !hinese Tarot, 3hich 3as mentioned by !ourt
de 5ebelin.
0III
@ri,ine des !aries _ 2ouer. -ar ;omain #erlin. '0, -aris, 1><9.
There is no basis 1or the E,y"tian ori,in o1 the Tarot, e9ce"t in the ima,ination o1
!ourt de
5ebelin. I ha/e mentioned other3ise that the 3riter dis"oses, to his "ersonal
satis1action, o1 the
,i"sy hy"othesis, and he does the same in res"ect o1 the im"uted conne9ion 3ith
IndiaH he says
that cards 3ere Bno3n in Euro"e be1ore communication 3as o"ened ,enerally
3ith that 3orld
about 1'9'. *ut i1 the ,i"sies 3ere a -ariah tribe already d3ellin, in the West,
and i1 the cards
3ere a "art o1 their ba,,a,e, there is nothin, in this contention. The 3hole
Duestion is essentially
one o1 s"eculation.
0IV
The -latonist. Vol. II, "". 1<?>. -ublished at St. .ouis, #o., J.S.A., 1>>'?:. ;oyal
'to. This
"eriodical, the sus"ension o1 3hich must ha/e been re,retted by many admirers
o1 an unselAsh
and laborious eEort, contained one anonymous article on the Tarot by a 3riter
3ith theoso"hical
tendencies, and considerable "retensions to Bno3led,e. It has, ho3e/er, by its
o3n e/idence,
stron, titles to ne,li,ence, and is indeed a ridiculous "er1ormance. The 3ord Tarot
is the .atin
;ota V 3heel, trans"osed. The system 3as in/ented at a remote "eriod in India,
"resumably??1or
the 3riter is /a,ue??about *.!. %00. The &ool re"resents "rimordial chaos. The
Tarot is no3 used
by ;osicrucian ade"ts, but in s"ite o1 the in1erence that it may ha/e come do3n to
them 1rom their
5erman "ro,enitors in the early se/enteenth century, and not3ithstandin, the
source in India, the
t3enty?t3o Beys 3ere "ictured on the 3alls o1 E,y"tian tem"les dedicated to the
mysteries o1
initiation. Some o1 this rubbish is deri/ed 1rom -. !hristian, but the 1ollo3in,
statement is
"eculiar, I thinB, to the 3riter+ KIt is Bno3n to ade"ts that there should be t3enty?
t3o esoteric Beys,
3hich 3ould maBe the total number u" to 100.K -ersons 3ho reach a certain sta,e
o1 lucidity ha/e
only to "ro/ide blanB "asteboards o1 the reDuired number and the missin, desi,ns
3ill be
1urnished by su"erior intelli,ences. #ean3hile, America is still a3aitin, the
1ulAlment o1 the
concludin, 1orecast, that some 1e3 3ill ere lon, ha/e so 1ar de/elo"ed in that
country Kas to be
able to read "er1ectly... in that "er1ect and di/ine sybilline 3orB, the Taro.K -erha"s
the cards
htt"+TT333.sacred?te9ts.comTtarotT"Btbib.htm (' o1 9) R1%T10T00 1'+%0+:%S
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3hich accom"any the "resent /olume 3ill ,i/e the o""ortunity and the im"ulsea
0V
.o 2och de 8ai"s. -er 2ose"h *runet y *ellet. !r. >/o, *arcelona, 1>><.
With re1erence to the dream o1 E,y"tian ori,in, the author Duotes E. 5arth
WilBisonMs #anners
and !ustoms o1 the E,y"tians as ne,ati/e e/idence at least that cards 3ere
unBno3n in the old
cities o1 the )elta. The history o1 the sub$ect is sBetched, 1ollo3in, the chie1
authorities, but
3ithout re1erence to e9"onents o1 the occult schools. The mainstay throu,hout is
!hatto. There are
some interestin, "articulars about the "rohibition o1 cards in S"ain, and the
a""endices include a
1e3 /aluable documents, by one o1 3hich it a""ears, as already mentioned, that
St. *ernardin o1
Sienna "reached a,ainst ,ames in ,eneral, and cards in "articular, so 1ar bacB as
1'%. There are
illustrations o1 rude Tarots, includin, a curious e9am"le o1 an Ace o1 !u"s, 3ith a
"hoeni9 risin,
there1rom, and a 7ueen o1 !u"s, 1rom 3hose /essel issues a Lo3er.
0VI
The Tarot+ Its @ccult Si,niAcation, Jse in &ortuneTellin,, and #ethod o1 -lay. *y S.
..
#ac5re,or #athers. SD. 1<mo, .ondon, 1>>>.
This booBlet 3as desi,ned to accom"any a set o1 Tarot cards, and the current
"acBs o1 the "eriod
3ere im"orted 1rom abroad 1or the "ur"ose. There is no "retence o1 ori,inal
research, and the only
"ersonal o"inion e9"ressed by the 3riter or callin, 1or notice here states that the
Trum"s #a$or are
hiero,ly"hic symbols corres"ondin, to the occult meanin,s o1 the (ebre3
al"habet. (ere the
authority is .G/i, 1rom 3hom is also deri/ed the brie1 symbolism allocated to the
t3enty?t3o
6eys. The di/inatory meanin,s 1ollo3, and then the modes o1 o"eration. It is a
mere sBetch 3ritten
in a "retentious manner and is ne,li,ible in all res"ects.
0VII
TraitG #GthodiDue de Science @cculte. -ar -a"us. >/o, -aris, 1>91.
The rectiAed Tarot "ublished by @s3ald Wirth a1ter the indications o1 Qli"has .G/i
is re"roduced
in this 3orB, 3hich??it may be mentioned??e9tends to nearly 1,100 "a,es. There is
a section on the
,i"sies, considered as the im"orters o1 esoteric tradition into Euro"e by means o1
the cards. The
Tarot is a combination o1 numbers and ideas, 3hence its corres"ondence 3ith the
(ebre3
al"habet. Jn1ortunately, the (ebre3 citations are rendered almost unintelli,ible
by innumerable
ty"o,ra"hical errors.
0VIII
Qli"has .G/i+ .e .i/re des S"lendeurs. )emy >/o, -aris, 1>9'.
A section on the Elements o1 the 6abalah aFrms (a) That the Tarot contains in the
se/eral cards o1
the 1our suits a 1our1old e9"lanation o1 the numbers 1 to 10H (b) that the symbols
3hich 3e no3
ha/e only in the 1orm o1 cards 3ere at Arst medals and then a1ter3ards became
talismansH (c) that
the Tarot is the hiero,ly"hical booB o1 the Thirty?t3o -aths o1 6abalistic theoso"hy,
and that its
summary e9"lanation is in the Se"her CelOirahH (d) that it is the ins"iration o1 all
reli,ious theories
and symbolsH (e) that its emblems are 1ound on the ancient monuments o1 E,y"t.
With the
historical /alue o1 these "retensions I ha/e dealt in the te9t.
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0I0
!le1s #a,iDues et !la/icules de Salomon -ar Qli"has .G/i. SD. 1mo, -aris, 1>9:.
The 6eys in Duestion are said to ha/e been restored in 1><0, in their "rimiti/e
"urity, by means o1
hiero,ly"hical si,ns and numbers, 3ithout any admi9ture o1 Samaritan or
E,y"tian ima,es. There
are rude desi,ns o1 the (ebre3 letters attributed to the Trum"s #a$or, 3ith
meanin,s??most o1
3hich are to be 1ound in other 3orBs by the same 3riter. There are also
combinations o1 the letters
3hich enter into the )i/ine 8ameH these combinations are attributed to the court
cards o1 the
.esser Arcana. !ertain talismans o1 s"irits are in Ane 1urnished 3ith Tarot
attributionsH the Ace o1
!lubs corres"onds to the )eus Absconditus, the &irst -rinci"le. The little booB 3as
issued at a hi,h
"rice and as somethin, that should be reser/ed to ade"ts, or those on the "ath o1
ade"tshi", but it is
really 3ithout /alue??symbolical or other3ise.
00
.es 99ii .ames (ermGtiDues du Tarot )i/inatoire. -ar ;. &alconnier. )emy >/o,
-aris, 1>9<.
The 3ord Tarot comes 1rom the SansBrit and means KA9ed star,K 3hich in its turn
si,niAes
immutable tradition, theoso"hical synthesis, symbolism o1 "rimiti/e do,ma, etc.
5ra/en on ,olden
"lates, the desi,ns 3ere used by (ermes Trisme,istus and their mysteries 3ere
only re/ealed to
the hi,hest ,rades o1 the "riesthood o1 Isis. It is unnecessary there1ore to say that
the Tarot is o1
E,y"tian ori,in and the 3orB o1 #. &alconnier has been to reconstruct its "rimiti/e
1orm, 3hich he
does by re1erence to the monuments??that is to say, a1ter the 1ashion o1 Qli"has
.G/i, he dra3s the
desi,ns o1 the Trum"s #a$or in imitation o1 E,y"tian art. This "roduction has been
hailed by
&rench occultists as "resentin, the Tarot in its "er1ection, but the same has been
said o1 the desi,ns
o1 @s3ald Wirth, 3hich are Duite unliBe and not E,y"tian at all. To be 1ranB, these
Binds o1
1oolery may be as much as can be e9"ected 1rom the Sanctuary o1 the !omGdie?
&ranâise, to
3hich the author belon,s, and it should be reser/ed thereto.
00I
The #a,ical ;itual o1 the Sanctum ;e,num, inter"reted by the Tarot Trum"s.
Translated 1rom the
#SS. o1 Qli"has .G/i and edited by W. Wynn Westcott, #.*. &ca". >/o, .ondon,
1>9<.
It is necessary to say that the interest o1 this memorial rests rather in the 1act o1
its e9istence than
in its intrinsic im"ortance. There is a Bind o1 in1ormal commentary on the Trum"s
#a$or, or rather
there are considerations 3hich "resumably had arisen there1rom in the mind o1
the &rench author.
&or e9am"le, the card called &ortitude is an o""ortunity 1or e9"atiation on 3ill as
the secret o1
stren,th. The (an,ed #an is said to re"resent the com"letion o1 the 5reat WorB.
)eath su,,ests a
diatribe a,ainst 8ecromancy and 5obtiaH but such "hantoms ha/e no e9istence in
Kthe Sanctum
;e,numK o1 li1e. Tem"erance "roduces only a 1e3 /a"id common"laces, and the
)e/il, 3hich is
blind 1orce, is the occasion 1or re"etition o1 much that has been said already in the
earlier 3orBs o1
.G/i. The To3er re"resents the betrayal o1 the 5reat Arcanum, and this it 3as
3hich caused the
s3ord o1 Samael to be stretched o/er the 5arden o1 )eli,ht. Amon,st the "lates
there is a
mono,ram o1 the 5nosis, 3hich is also that o1 the Tarot. The editor has
thou,ht1ully a""ended
some in1ormation on the Trum" !ards taBen 1rom the early 3orBs o1 .G/i and 1rom
the
commentaries o1 -. !hristian.
00II
!omment on de/ient Alchimiste. -ar &. 2oli/et de !astellot. SD. >/o, -aris, 1>9=.
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(erein is a summary o1 the Alchemical Tarot, 3hich?3ith all my res"ect 1or
inno/ations and
in/entions?seems to be hi,h 1antasyH but Etteilla had re/eries o1 this Bind, and i1 it
should e/er be
3arrantable to "roduce a 6ey #a$or in "lace o1 the "resent 6ey #inor, it mi,ht be
3orth 3hile to
tabulate the analo,ies o1 these stran,e dreams. At the moment it 3ill be suFcient
to say that there
is ,i/en a schedule o1 the alchemical corres"ondences to the Trum"s #a$or, by
3hich it a""ears
that the $u,,ler or #a,ician symboliOes attracti/e 1orceH the (i,h -riestess is inert
matter, than
3hich nothin, is more 1alseH the -o"e is the 7uintessence, 3hich??i1 he 3ere only
acDuainted 3ith
ShaBes"eare??mi,ht tem"t the "resent successor o1 St. -eter to re"eat that Kthere
are more thin,s in
hea/en and earth, (oratio.K The )e/il, on the other hand, is the matter o1
"hiloso"hy at the blacB
sta,eH the .ast $ud,ment is the red sta,e o1 the StoneH the &ool is its
1ermentationH and, in Ane, the
last card, or the World, is the Alchemical Absolute?the Stone itsel1. I1 this should
encoura,e my
readers, they may note 1urther that the "articulars o1 /arious chemical
combinations can be
de/elo"ed by means o1 the .esser Arcana, i1 these are laid out 1or the "ur"ose.
S"eciAcally, the
6in, o1 Wands V 5old the -a,es or 6na/es re"resent animal substances the 6in,
o1 !u"s V
Sil/erH and so 1orth.
00III
.e 5rand Arcane, ou lMoccultisme dG/oilG. -ar Qli"has .G/i. )emy >/o, -aris, 1>9>.
A1ter many years and the lon, e9"erience o1 all his concerns in occultism, the
author at len,th
reduces his messa,e to one 1ormula in this 3orB. I s"eaB, o1 course, only in
res"ect o1 the Tarot+ he
says that the cards o1 Etteilla "roduce a Bind o1 hy"notism in the seer or seeress
3ho di/ines
thereby. The 1olly o1 the "sychic reads in the 1olly o1 the Duerent. )id he counsel
honesty, it is
su,,ested that he 3ould lose his clients. I ha/e 3ritten se/ere criticisms on occult
arts and
sciences, but this is astonishin, 1rom one o1 their "ast "ro1essors and, moreo/er, I
thinB that the
"sychic occasionally is a "sychic and sees in a manner as such.
00IV
.e Ser"ent de la 5en\se??.i/re IIH .a !le1 de la #a,ie 8oire. -ar Stanislas de
5uaita. >/o, -aris,
190.
It is a /ast commentary on the second se"tenary o1 the Trum"s #a$or. 2ustice
si,niAes eDuilibrium
and its a,entH the (ermit ty"iAes the mysteries o1 solitudeH the Wheel o1 &ortune
is the circulus o1
becomin, or attainin,H &ortitude si,niAes the "o3er resident in 3illH the (an,ed
#an is ma,ical
bonda,e, 3hich s"eaBs /olumes 1or the clouded and in/erted insi,ht o1 this
1antasiast in occultism+
)eath is, o1 course, that 3hich its name si,niAes, but 3ith re/ersion to the second
deathH
Tem"erance means the ma,ic o1 trans1ormations, and there1ore su,,ests e9cess
rather than
abstinence. There is more o1 the same Bind o1 thin,??I belie/e??in the Arst booB,
but this 3ill ser/e
as a s"ecimen. The demise o1 Stanislas de 5uaita "ut an end to his scheme o1
inter"retin, the Tarot
Trum"s, but it should be understood that the conne9ion is shado3y and that
actual re1erences
could be reduced to a /ery 1e3 "a,es.
00V
.e Tarot+ A"erû historiDue. -ar. 2. 2. *our,eat. SD. 1#@, -aris, 190<.
The author has illustrated his 3orB by "urely 1antastic desi,ns o1 certain Trum"s
#a$or, as, 1or
e9am"le, the Wheel o1 &ortune, )eath and the )e/il. They ha/e no conne9ion 3ith
symbolism.
The Tarot is said to ha/e ori,inated in India, 3hence it "assed to E,y"t. Qli"has
.G/i, -. !hristian,
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*iblio,ra"hy
and 2. A. Vaillant are cited in su""ort o1 statements and "oints o1 /ie3. The mode
o1 di/ination
ado"ted is 1ully and care1ully set out.
00VI
.MArt de tirer les !aries. -ar Antonio #a,us. !r. >/o, -aris, n.d. (about 190>).
This is not a 3orB o1 any es"ecial "retension, nor has it any title to consideration
on account o1 its
modesty. &ranBly, it is little??i1 any??better than a booBsellerMs e9"eriment. There is
a summary
account o1 the chie1 methods o1 di/ination, deri/ed 1rom 1amiliar sourcesH there is
a history o1
cartomancy in &ranceH and there are indiEerent re"roductions o1 Etteilla Tarot
cards, 3ith his
meanin,s and the 3ell?Bno3n mode o1 o"eration. &inally, there is a section on
common 1ortune?
tellin, by a "iDuet set o1 ordinary cards+ this seems to lacB the only merit that it
mi,ht ha/e
-ossessed, namely, "ers"icuityH but I s"eaB 3ith reser/e, as I am not "erha"s a
$ud,e "ossessin,
ideal DualiAcations in matters o1 this Bind. In any case, the Duestion si,niAes
nothin,. It is $ust to
add that the concealed author maintains 3hat he terms the E,y"tian tradition o1
the Tarot, 3hich is
the 5reat *ooB o1 Thoth. *ut there is a li,ht accent throu,hout his thesis, and it
does not 1ollo3
that he tooB the claim seriously.
00VII
.e Tarot )i/inatoire+ !le1 du tira,e des !aries et des sorts. -ar le )r. -a"us. )emy
>/o, -aris,
1909.
The te9t is accom"anied by 3hat is termed a com"lete reconstitution o1 all the
symbols, 3hich
means that in this manner 3e ha/e yet another Tarot. The Trum"s #a$or 1ollo3 the
traditional
lines, 3ith /arious e9"lanations and attributions on the mar,ins, and this -lan
obtains throu,hout
the series. &rom the drau,htsmanMs "oint o1 /ie3, it must be said that the desi,ns
are indiEerently
done, and the re"roductions seem 3orse than the desi,ns. This is "robably o1 no
es"ecial
im"ortance to the class o1 readers addressed. )r. -a"us also "resents, by 3ay o1
curious
memorials, the e/idential /alue o1 3hich he seems to acce"t im"licitly, certain
un"ublished
desi,ns o1 QIi"has .G/iH they are certainly interestin, as e9am"les o1 the manner
in 3hich the
,reat occultist manu1actured the archPolo,y o1 the Tarot to bear out his "ersonal
/ie3s. We ha/e
(a) Trum" #a$or, 8o. :, bein, (orus as the 5rand (iero"hant, dra3n a1ter the
monumentsH (b)
Trum" #a$or, 8o. , bein, the (i,h -riestess as Isis, also a1ter the monumentsH
and (c) A/e
ima,inary s"ecimens o1 an Indian Tarot. This is ho3 la haute science in &rance
contributes to the
illustration o1 that 3orB 3hich )r. -a"us terms li/re de la science GternelleH it
3ould be called by
rou,her names in En,lish criticism. The editor himsel1 taBes his usual "ains and
belie/es that he
has disco/ered the time attributed to each card by ancient E,y"t. (e a""lies it to
the "ur"ose o1
di/ination, so that the sBil1ul 1ortune?teller can no3 "redict the hour and the day
3hen the darB
youn, man 3ill meet 3ith the 1air 3ido3, and so 1orth.
00VIII
.e Tarot des *ohGmiens. -ar -a"us. >/o, -aris, 1>>9. En,lish Translation, second
edition, 1910.
An e9ceedin,ly com"le9 3orB, 3hich claims to "resent an absolute Bey to occult
science. It 3as
translated into En,lish by #r. A. -. #orton in 1>9<, and this /ersion has been re?
issued recently
under my o3n su"er/ision. The "re1ace 3hich I ha/e "reA9ed thereto contains all
that it is
necessary to say re,ardin, its claims, and it should be certainly consulted by
readers o1 the "resent
-ictorial 6ey to the Tarot. The 1act that -a"us re,ards the ,reat shea1 o1
hiero,ly"hics as Kthe most
ancient booB in the 3orld,K as Kthe *ible o1 *ibles,K and there1ore as Kthe "rimiti/e
re/elation,K
does not detract 1rom the claim o1 his ,eneral study, 3hich??it should be added??is
accom"anied by
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numerous /aluable "lates, e9hibitin, Tarot codices, old and ne3, and dia,rams
summariOin, the
"ersonal theses o1 the 3riter and o1 some others 3ho "receded him. The Tarot o1
the *ohemians is
"ublished at <s. by William ;ider c Son, .td.
00I0
#anuel SynthGtiDue et -ratiDue du Tarot. -ar Eudes -icard. >/o, -aris, 1909.
(ere is yet one more handbooB o1 the sub$ect, "resentin, in a series o1 rou,h
"lates a com"lete
seDuence o1 the cards. The Trum"s #a$or are those o1 !ourt de 5ebelin and 1or
the .esser Arcana
the 3riter has had recourse to his ima,inationH it can be said that some o1 them
are curious, a /ery
1e3 thinly su,,esti/e and the rest bad. The e9"lanations embody neither research
nor thou,ht at
Arst handH they are bald summaries o1 the occult authorities in &rance, 1ollo3ed by
a brie1 ,eneral
sense dra3n out as a harmony o1 the 3hole. The method o1 use is conAned to 1our
"a,es and
recommends that di/ination should be "er1ormed in a 1astin, state. @n the history
o1 the Tarot, #.
-icard says (a) that it is con1usedH (b) that 3e do not Bno3 "recisely 3hence it
comesH (c) that, this
not3ithstandin,, its introduction is due to the 5i"sies. (e says Anally that its
inter"retation is an
art.
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The Pictorial Key of The Tarot

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The Pictorial Key of The Tarot

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The Pictorial Key to the Tarot

by A.E. Waite (1910)

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