From the Little Booklet
Majors:
The Fool. Air. Aleph. The Fool is Air, Emptiness, also Potential Purity. He holds the Wand of Fire, the Cup of Water, the Sword of Air, and the bag of planetary Disks.
Round him is the rainbow issuing from and returning to his heart, he wears the fool's cap, the horns of Bacchus, he stands on Harpocates, the Egyptian symbol of adolescent Fertility, he is unconscious of the tiger tearing at his side, he is the Green Man of the Celts, Daluah and Parsival. This is the moment of divine consciousness.
The Magus of Power. Beth. Mercury
The Magician or Juggler. Mercury. Beth. He is Mercury, the messenger of God, and juggles with the four symbols of the elements, and the papyrus or Word, the pen or Will, the wand or Wisdom.
He represents the creative force in action.
As Thoth in Egyptian tradition, his attendant and shadow is the Cynocephalus Ape.
The Priestess of the Silver Star. Gimel. Moon
The Priestess. The Moon. Gimel. She is a spiritual Isis and a virgin Artemis. With her veil of light, she is weaving the crystals and fruits of the Earth. She carries the huntress' bow and the musical sistrum
The Daughter of the Mighty Ones. Daleth. Venus.
The Empress. Venus. Daleth. The Empress is seated in the traditional posture symbolising alchemical Salt. This is woman in her all-embracing receptivity, incarnate womanhood, holding the lotus, wearing the belt of the Zodiac, surrounded by her Venus birds, the pelican of self-surrender and the heraldic white eagle of salt.
Sun of the Morning, chief among the Mighty. Heh. Aries
The Emperor. Aries. Tzaddi. Again he is seated according to tradition. His legs form a right angle, typifying rule through unyielding law and order. The goats behind him show he is governed by Aries, creative dominating force. The bees on his costume may have originated from French tradition, but more probably they typify the bees of the Secret Doctrines in the Indian Upanishads. The heraldic red eagle is the fiery sulphur of Alchemy. The lamb is possibly, a reminiscence of the Knights Templar.
The Magus of the Eternal. Vau. Taurus
The Hierophant. Taurus. Vau. The Hierophant is seated on his governing sign Taurus, the elephants are the Indian form of the same.
The pentagram with a point upwards and the dancing child shows that he has the heart of a child; in the reversed pentagram the meaning seems to suggest he has dominion through will; the final pentagram again points upwards, showing his acceptance of a governing cosmic law. The four masks are the Cherubim, man, eagle, lion and bull.
His votary the woman, stands with her sword pointing downwards signifying, perhaps, that woman in the future will draw fresh wisdom by the use of her subconscious.
The Children of the Voice; the Oracles of the Mighty Gods. Zain. Gemini
The Lovers. Gemini. Zain. This is an alchemical card illustrating the marriage or union of two opposites, thus we have the prince and princess holding the wand and the cup. Cain and Abel, Lilith and Eve. The swords at the back suggest the intellectual process in the uniting of two elements. The figure of the Creator blesses this deliberate synthesis. The alchemical white eagle of salt and the red eagle of sulphur, the Egg of wisdom and the winged wand of Osiris are at the bottom of the card.
The Chariot: From the Little Booklet
The Child of the Powers of the Waters; the Lord of the Triumph of Light. Cheth. Cancer.
Held by the charioteer is the Cup of Indian, Egyptian and Arthurian tradition and it contains the blood of voluntary sacrifice. The charioteer (spirit) is seated in the chariot of the body and is drawn by sphinxes, who represent the sixteen sub-elements of the emotions.
Adjustment: From the Little Booklet
The Daughter of the Lords of Truth: the Ruler of the Balance. Teth. Libra.
Justice. Balance. Adjustment. Suspension of action pending decision. May refer to lawsuits, trials, marriages, treaties, etc.
Traditionally called Justice, the new name is a literal translation of the French "Justesse," that is Equilibrium. She is balancing from the headdress of Isis the scales in which are the bubbles of Maya, illusion, typifying the transitory quality of human justice. The whole picture represents balance by opposites. The diamond patterning foreshadows the balancing Harlequin of the Commedia del l'Arte.
The Magus of the Voice of Power, the Prophet of the Eternal. Yod. Virgo.
The Hermit. Virgo. Yod. Here we have, in the hand of the Hermit, the lamp or Sacred Wisdom. It contains the Sun which is hidden beneath the surrounding darkness to fructify the earth. The Hermit is looking at the Egg (Universe) which is surrounded by the snake, a symbol of life. The hounds of hell endeavour to snatch the sacred light and the little Homunculus. The wheat is in the masonic tradition.
The Lord of the of Fate. Forces of Life. Kaph. Jupiter.
Fortune. Jupiter. Kaph. On the Wheel of Fortune at the top is the Sphinx meaning intelligence and balance (Hindoo=Sattvas).
On the left is Hermanubis the Ape who is unstable brilliant reason (Hindoo=Rajas).
At the bottom of the wheel is Typhon who expresses ignorance and sluggishness (Hindoo=Tamas).
Here we have the implication to be found on all these cards of possible regeneration in all circumstances, for Typhon holds the Ankh of salvation with one hand and in the other the hook with which he snatches the soul.
The eclipse of stars at the top of the card generates in forked lines the circle of the wheel.
The Daughter of the Flaming Sword. Teth. Leo.
Lust. Leo. Teth. This card was called Strength. It means joy in desire. The lion has seven heads, an angel, a saint, a poet, a warrior, a bacchante, a satyr and a lion-serpent. The woman has given herself to the forces of life. She holds the Cup or impregnated womb. The horns surrounding it represent the male element. The figures under the feet of the lion are the martyrs to whom this path towards Union is an empty dream. The reins which are held by the woman are the passion which unites her to the Beast.
The Spirit of Man. The Mighty Waters. Mem. Water.
The Hanged Man or Dying God. Water. Mem. This figure is Osiris or Christ and shows redemption through suffering. He is drowned in the waters of affliction, the attitude is traditional and involves a right angle and a triangle. His foot is bound to the Ankh of Immortality by the serpent of life. The complete symbol is a triangle and a cross.
The Child of the Great Transformers: the Lord of the Gates of Death. Nun. Scorpio
Death. Scorpio. Nun. This card means redemption through putrefaction, the seed in the ground decays, but rises again to new life. Death, crowned with the headdress of Osiris, is raising from his scythe the reincarnation bubbles of life. Behind him is the eagle, symbol of immortality, and below him are the embryonic amoeba.
Art: From the Little Booklet
The Daughter of the Reconcilers: the BringerForth of life. Samekh. Sagittarius.
Art. Temperance. Sagittarius. Samech. This is the second alchemical card, in which the Lovers are united in an androgyne figure, the Prince becoming white and the Princess black, the red lion white, the white eagle red and the cup is lighting the torch. There is a crucible engraved with a raven standing on a skull which holds the seething elements whose iridescent bubbles are reflected by the rainbow overhead. All these typify the destruction of two elements at the birth of a third. The inscription on the rainbow is the alchemical mandate "Visita interiora terrae rectificando invenies occultem lapidem."
The Lord of the Gates of Matter: the Child of the Forces of Time. Ayin. Capricorn.
The Devil. Capricornus. Ayin. As this card is governed by Capricornus, we have the traditional goat. On his forehead is the Eye of God, his curved horns represent the spiral force in nature, that is wanton creation, and his abandonment is emphasized by the bacchanalian bunch of grapes. Beneath him are his votaries in two dividing cells, stressing the doctrine that all sin is division. The background is designed from the marking on the planet Mars. The Goat is supported on the Caduceus. At the top of the Tree of Life at the back of the card is the ring of Saturn.
The Lord of the Tower. Hosts of the Mighty. Peh. Mars.
The Tower or the Blasted Tower, or the House of God. Mars. Peh. Here is purification through fire, lightning, flames, war. The open mouth at the base of the card alludes to the Hebrew attribution Peh meaning a mouth, the eye is the Eye of Shiva. The card is designed on the form of a carbon crystal, the figures falling from the tower are made of carbon, the serpent on the right is the symbol of the active will to live, the dove on the left is passive resignation to death.
The Daughter of the Firmament, the dweller between the Waters. Tzaddi. Aquarius.
The Star. Aquarius. Daleth. This is built up as a design on a spiral to show the rising force of a new age. The woman holds two cups, the north and south poles of magnetic attraction. Above her a new star is rising, beneath her are the crystallising dogmas of a former Age.
The Ruler of Flux and Reflux: the Child of the Sons of the Mighty. Queen of Pisces.
The Moon. Pisces. Koph. This is the most sinister card. Through sorcery and witchcraft it is possible to get an understanding of the universe, but the path is dangerous. On each side of the picture are dark fortresses. The Anubis the gods of death are ready to seize the soul of the aspirant and jackals wait to devour those who have fallen by the way.
The Sun is held by the Scarabeus Sacer under the water.
The design on the card is planned on the movement of the tide whose ebb and flow is governed by the Moon.
The Lord of the Fire of the World. Resh. Sun.
The Sun. Sun. Resh. This card shows the simple human approach to the mysteries. The Sun is the lord of life, liberty, light and love. The children are dancing with butterfly wings. They are surrounded by the signs of the Zodiac, showing the different houses through which the Sun passes.
Aeon: From the Little Booklet
The Spirit of the Primal Fire. Shin. Spirit and Fire.
In the centre of the card is the child Horus, who is the incarnation of the New Age. His left hand is open, signifying that the old universe has been destroyed and he is too young to formulate a new one. He is surrounded by the figure of Nuit, the Star goddess, and beneath him is the winged point Hadit.
The Aeon, or the Angel, or the Last Judgment. The card is girt about with the body of Nuit, the star goddess, representing unlimited possibility. She surrounds the globe of fire, her mate, Hadit, standing for external energy. In the middle sits their child, Horus, also a solar deity, who is the incarnation of the New Aeon. The left hand, extended and empty, reminds us that the God has destroyed the old Universe, but is, as yet, too young to form its successor. At the bottom of the card appears the Hebrew letter, Shin, that is attributed to this card. The three Yods are occupied by three human figures arising to partake of the Essence of the New Aeon.
The Great One of the Night of Time. Tau. Earth and Saturn.
The Universe. Saturn. Earth. Tau. The universe is represented as a maiden dancing with a great spiral serpent. She holds the Moon in her hand and the Sun is merged in the Eye of God. These two planets typify the positive and negative forces. Behind her is a geometrical solid by Moebius. Around her are all the stars of the Zodiac, the curved seventy-two lines stand for the quinaries and are also an attempt to convey movement and to give the fourth dimension of time. Beneath her is Sullivan's map of chemical elements. At the Four corners are the Cherubim or Winds of Heaven, the bull, the lion, the eagle and the man.
Ace of Wands. The flames are the Hebrew letter Yod, and are arranged on the Tree of Life. This is the primal condition of the element of fire.
Two of Wands: Dominion. Mars in Aries. Chokmah. Two dorjes crossed, meaning destruction as a beginning of creation.
Three of Wands: Virtue. Sun in Aries. Binah. Three lotus wands representing creation
Four of Wands: Completion. Venus in Aries. Chesed. The wands are headed by rams and at the other end doves. The number four conveys the introduction of order into creation
Five of Wands: Strife. Saturn in Leo. Geburah. The wands are the Caduceus, the Phoenix and the Lotus. Their disproportionate size indicates that, following the coordination of spirit, disunion has begun.
Six of Wands: Victory. Jupiter in Leo. Tiphareth. Caduceus, Phoenix and Lotus wands are in arranged order, the warring and the peaceful opposites are balanced.
Seven of Wands: Valour. Mars in Leo. Netzach. The wands are covered by a club. Valour implies fear as well as courage.
Eight of Wands: Swiftness. Mercury in Sagittarius. Hod. The wands have turned into electric energy, above is a rainbow. Here we have the acme of restless force.
Nine of Wands: Strength. Moon in Sagittarius. Yesod. The small wands are the arrows of Diana, the master wand has the moon for its point and the sun for its base. This shows the combined swiftness and heat of fire.
Nine of Wands: Strength. Moon in Sagittarius. Yesod. The small wands are the arrows of Diana, the master wand has the moon for its point and the sun for its base. This shows the combined swiftness and heat of fire.
Ten of Wands: Oppression. Saturn in Sagittarius. Malkuth. Eight plain wand sticks, dominated by two dorjes lengthened into bars, show the slow smouldering of an exhausted force.
Princess of Wands. The material aspect of fire is suggested, such as creeping flames liable to burst into a violent conflagration.
Prince of Wands. Here is shown the airy quality of fire, smoke and expansion.
Queen of Wands. This represents the receptivity of fire, its movement and colour
Knight of Wands. This is the purely male creative force in fire or spirit
Ace of Cups. This is the heart of the element of water and love. It is the Holy Grail receiving the impress of divine inspiration.
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Two of Cups: Love. Venus in Cancer. Chokmah. Two overflowing cups filled from a lotus and twined with the dolphins of Venus. This is the harmonious union of male and female. Three of Cups: Abundance. Mercury in Cancer. Binah. The pomegranate cups are filled by wreathed lotuses to show the happy fruition of love. Four of Cups: Luxury. Moon in Cancer. Chesed. The roughened surface of the sea on which the cups and the lotuses are balanced explains that an element of excess has entered into love. Five of Cups: Disappointment. Mars in Scorpio. Geburah. The cups are arranged on the stalks of the lotus in an inverted pentagram. Love has lost its first glamour. Six of Cups: Pleasure. Sun in Scorpio. Tiphareth. The cups are full but do not overflow, here is love for personal gratification. Seven of Cups: Debauch. Venus in Scorpio. Netzach. Here the effort to increase pleasure has ended in corruption. The lotuses have become poisonous and the cups are chipped. Eight of Cups: Indolence. Saturn in Pisces. Hod. The power is now spent, the water is turned to slime, the flowers droop, the cups are broken. Nine of Cups: Happiness. Jupiter in Pisces. The nine cups are perfectly arranged, they overflow but this is an ordered possessive aspect of love partaking of a ritual Ten of Cups: Satiety. Mars in Pisces. Malkuth. The cups are arranged on the Tree of Life and a great lotus overshadows them. Exhaustion, which comes from expended energy, is expressed Princess of Cups. Here is snow. Round the princess's dress are water crystals, beside her is a dolphin of Venus; the tortoise is an emblem of earth to show the solidification of water in mud, ice and snow. Prince of Cups. This card shows elasticity or steam of water. He is seated in a Chariot surrounded by vapour and drawn by an eagle to suggest a volatile aeriated element. Queen of Cups. This is the passive and receptive quality of water. She is almost invisible as she is enveloped by shadowy reflections. Knight of Cups. He is the strength and energy of water, the ocean. The peacock in the waves stands for brilliance, the crab for the aggression of the flood.
Ace of Swords: This card is a picture of the intellect in its best and most controlled aspect. Two of Swords: Peace. Moon in Libra. Chokmah. The two swords piercing a rose or lotus shows, in the symbol, the intellect restrained by love Three of Swords : Sorrow. Saturn in Libra. Binah. A magician's sword and two short ones are tearing the rose to pieces. This suggests the confusion and darkness of the intellect which is emancipated without a guiding principle.
Five of Swords: Defeat. Venus in Aquarius. Geburah. The swords form an inverted pentagram. They are crooked and broken and the roses are falling. The condition shown is intellect weakened by sentiment. Six of Swords: Science. Mercury in Aquarius. Tiphareth. The points of the swords centre in a rose and cross. They are lying on a fencer's diagram (14th century) which was worked out scientifically to show the positions in which a fencer can stand and be invulnerable. The card suggests by its symmetrical design a perfect balance of intellect and principle. Seven of Swords: Futility. Moon in Aquarius. Netzach. The hilts of the swords form a crescent, but the card is a tenuous design to show that the mind is confused and undecided. Eight of Swords: Interference. Jupiter in Gemini. Hod. The arrangement of these Indian swords covered by two long ones tells of outside obstruction and consequent inability to concentrate the mind. Nine of Swords: Cruelty. Mars in Gemini. Yesod. These jagged swords are dropping blood and tears, and represent mind dominated by insatiable desires.Cruelty. Yesod in the suit of Air. Mars in Gemini. Ten of Swords: Ruin. Sun in Gemini. Again the design is the Tree of Life on which the swords are arranged, the centre one is the heart or Sun which is broken in fragments. The mind has let go all control and whirls in tormented madness. Princess of Swords. This is air in the earth, the oxygen which promotes the growth of plants and the warlike rush of the figure of the princess is the incarnation of dynamic irruption. Prince of Swords. The prince conveys two ideas, one simply hail, the other the restriction of the scientific outlook, which uses but limits the imagination which is shown in the harnessed fays. Queen of Swords: The placing of the cruel queen on columns of clouds is intended to suggest rain and consequent darkening of the skies. Knight of Swords. Dashing through the air thus knight embodies all the winds of heaven. The Ace of Disks. This is primitive earth, both as a whirling planet and a substance. The movement of the planet is suggested by the wings. The Greek inscription is "to the mark of the Beast" and implies the earthy element. Two of Disks: Change. Jupiter in Capricornus. Chokmah. Here are two pentacles, the Chinese Yang and Yin. The crowned serpent surrounds them as they revolve. The card suggests that the universe is sustained in space by its rotating action. Three of Disks: Work (Card title is actually "Works.") Mars in Capricornus. Binah. A Three-dimensional pyramid is looked at from above. It is placed on three wheels on which are the signs for mercury, sulphur and salt, a fundamental analysis of the components of earth according to the alchemists. Four of Disks. Power. Sun in Capricornus. Chesed. Four square disks engraved with the signs of the elements form the towers of a fortress surrounded by a moat. The design is intended to show the perfect government of the universe by law and order. Five of Disks: Worry. Mercury in Taurus. Geburah. Five disks in a inverted pentagram They are surrounded by other disks which are bent and torn by strain. The picture shows suppressed action and the binding of celestial forces to mechanical purposes. Six of Disks: Success. Moon in Taurus. Tiphareth. The disks form a hexagram and represent the seven planets with the sun in the centre as a rose and cross. These indicate the harmonious movement of the spheres. Seven of Disks: Failure. Saturn in Taurus. Netzach. The disks are in the geomantic figure Rubeus. They now represent only the one planet Earth and are engraved with the signs of Aries and Saturn. The conception suggests the binding conditions of earthly life. Eight of Disks: Mercury (Astrological symbolism on Eight of Disks card actually reads, Sun in Virgo. Card title is Prudence.) in Virgo. Hod. The geomantic figure Populus forms the position of the disks which appear as flowers on a great tree protected by the leaves. The possession of the fruits of the earth brings its own responsibility. Nine of Disks: Gain. Venus in Virgo. Yesod. Six disks stamped with the pictures of the deities of the planets form two equilateral triangles and the remaining three are interlaced in the middle. These with their beams of light show a condition in which chance and management give an increasing good fortune. Ten of Disks: Wealth. Mercury in Virgo. Malkuth. The disks have now definitely become coins and are arranged on the Tree of Life. They are stamped with different renderings of the signs of Mercury. This mercurial signature is intended to show that though they appear solid, they are, in reality, fugitive. Princess of Disks. Here we have an attempt to translate into a picture the spiritual quality of earth, eternally pregnant and containing in its fertility the unwritten cypher of cosmic lore. Prince of Disks. The prince in a chariot, drives an impetuous bull, he is a symbol of the fruits and seeds of earth. Queen of Disks. Every symbol in this picture suggests the fertility and warmth of earth. Knight of Disks. The knight is being drawn into the soil. He represents the generative property of earth.
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Last modified:
December 20, 2012
Updated: December 24, 2012 03:13:56 AM