College of Thelema: Thelemic Education

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XVI
THE TOWER
(Mars)

“Strike! O, take me now, in an instant. Strike! with the passionate strength of thy love to overwhelm this silly thought I have of Thee, this struggling artifice. Flood the channels of my nerves with the lightning current of Thyself.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Red

HEBREW LETTER: Peh, mouth, especially as an organ of speech. From Peh-Yod-Hé, “breathing”; thus, mouth as the place where breath flows. Also, any opening, entrance, ingress/egress route, as in “mouth of a cave.” Sound p suggests projectile, power, penetration. Greek Phi suggests by shape the union of Phallus and Kteis. Greek Pi is the value that relates any radius to its circumference.

CARD NAME: The older name, “House of God,” connects it to Beyth and The Magus. A “tower” is distinguished by its height in comparison to its width (having various testosterone-related themes, from the obvious phallic idea to “towering over,” etc.). Nearly always, the word implies a human construct. Normally equated with strength, firmness, etc.

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Exciting Consciousness. Through it is created the Life-Breath of every creature under the Supreme Orb, as well as the motion of them all.

TREE of LIFE: Hod to Netzach. (Links ‘Glory’ and ‘Victory’; or Intellect with Desire. Force meets Form, especially the influx of unbounded Vital Force into mental structures, either to invigorate or shatter them.)

ESOTERIC TITLE: The Lord of the Hosts of the Mighty

TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Male orgasm.

DIVINATION: Sudden and eruptive change of circumstances. Overwhelming of existing structures by a sudden and tremendous energy. Revelation, disclosure, exposure. Danger, unforeseen catastrophes. Strength, energy, fighting (quarrel, combat, war), courage; or destruction, danger, ambition, fall, ruin. Destabilization or destruction as a preparation for new creation.

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XV
THE DEVIL
(Capricorn)

“Think not to hide from me, O belovéd One, in thy grotesqueries. I see Thee behind thy mask. It is thy lovely body, which I love beneath these motley veils, this midnight comedy; for there is none other than Thee to my eyes, my taste, my touch.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Indigo (very dark).

HEBREW LETTER: A’ayin, eye, the organ of sight. Also means “appearances,” especially surface appearances; “to flow out,” as tears; “fountain” or “spring,” from resemblance to eye; and “sparkling of wine,” the delightful allure of an inebriant’s entertainment. Pan = “all.”

CARD NAME: “Devil” comes from the Greek diaballein, “to slander”; therefore, its meaning is related to speech, and especially the disparaging or defaming naming of something as other than what it actually is. Interestingly, its oldest root, gwel-, “to throw,” also gives us a Greek word meaning “will.”

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Renewing Consciousness. Through it God – blessed be He! - renews all things which are newly begun in the creation of the world.

TREE of LIFE: Hod to Tifereth. (Links ‘Glory’ and ‘Beauty’; or Intellect with the Ego-center. The Trickster or Deceiver revealed as the Redeemer. Acknowledgement of intellect’s role in shrouding Light in Form.)

ESOTERIC TITLE: The Lord of the Gates of Matter, the Child of the Forces of Time

TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Material creative energy; phallus, Set, Pan.

DIVINATION: Blind impulse, irresistibly strong and unscrupulous; obsession. Materiality, material (creative) force, temptation, bondage. Ordeal, trouble, struggle. Secret plan about to be executed; hard work, obstinacy, rigidity, aching discontent, endurance.

http://semelexerri.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/thoth_devil-186x300.jpg

ס

XIV
ART
(Sagittarius)

“I am uplifted in thy heart. My every instinct has become the echo of thy heartbeat. My life dances to the rhythm of thy pulse.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Blue.

HEBREW LETTER: Samekh, prop, support: something that lifts up, or holds up, something else. Its root, SMKh, samakh, means “to place or lay (a thing);” then, by derivation, “to uphold, to sustain, to aid” and even “to approach.” All of these ideas are descriptive of that inner, uplifting, sustaining spiritual reality commonly called the Holy Guardian Angel, intimate communion with Whom is associated with the 25th Path. It is this Holy Guardian Angel that is the source of the test, trial, probing, and proving of the spiritual aspirant in the experience of this Path of the Tree of Life.

CARD NAME: “Art” (a word diversely understood) has, as its contemporary basic meaning, “human effort to imitate, supplement, alter, or counteract the work of nature.” This has strong alchemical and magical implications. It is no surprise that this Path is aimed at the sefirah called Beauty. Its Latin form, ars, stems from the Indo-European root ar-, meaning “to fit together.” The same root gives us the words harmony and aristocracy. The older title, “Temperance,” is best understood in the sense of tempering steel, and in the archaic sense of “a middle course between extremes” (although another modern use of “temper” corresponds to the Qabbalistic correspondence of this path, Wrath). Its Latin root means “to mingle in due proportion,” probably related to tempus, “time,” i.e., “in due season.”

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Consciousness of Probation (or Trial). It is the primary test by which the Creator proves the Compassionate (i.e., the Adepts).

TREE of LIFE: Yesod to Tifereth. (Links ‘the Foundation’ and ‘Beauty,’ Moon and Sun; or Subconsciousness with the Ego-center. The Path of the Arrow fired from the bow (Qesheth, QShTh). Ascent from a lesser, shifting, unstable, reflective light to a greater, surer, brighter, radiant Light. Marriage of the Sun and Moon completed. The Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel.)

ESOTERIC TITLE: The Daughter of the Reconcilers, the Bringer-forth of Life

TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Consummation of the Royal Marriage (Coagula). Merging and interchange of attributes. Mingling of elements in a “cauldron.”

DIVINATION: Fertile combination of forces, adaptation, realization; aspiration, ambition; ordeal, trial, probation, testing, refinement; action (based on accurate calculation), equilibration, resolution of errors.

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נ

XIII
DEATH
(Scorpio)

“Thou art the death of me. I am slain in my love for Thee, O devouring serpent, O immortal python, O crushing Wisdom.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Blue-green.

HEBREW LETTER: Nun, fish. Greek ’IXThYS = Redeemer. Kosher = no blood! Life migrating through the waters. That which thrives in water (ubiquitous inner consciousness), and cannot live long breathing air (intellect). That which is “caught” by the fishhook (Tzaddi). As a verb, Nun means “to sprout,” i.e., a budding start. Sound n suggests continuity, satisfaction, release.

CARD NAME: The roots of this Atu’s name are deep and complex. Its literal meaning is relevant here, yet surrenders profitably to vast poetic meanings that speak best to subconsciousness. Often it is associated with loss of breath or of blood (each of which has its own symbolic meanings). In etymology, it gets even more complex: “Death” comes from the Indo-European root dheu-, literally meaning “to become exhausted” or “to die;” yet an identically spelled and pronounced (but different) root dheu-, meaning “to flow,” gives us dew.

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Imaginative Consciousness. It provides an Image to all created things that have an appearance, in a Form fitting to each.

TREE of LIFE: Netzach to Tifereth. (Links ‘Victory’ and ‘Beauty’; or Desire and the Ego-center. The old personality slain to complete the transfer of consciousness to Tifereth.)

ESOTERIC TITLE: The child of the Great Transformers, the Lord of the Gate of Death

TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Love under will. Sexuality; resurrection.

DIVINATION: Transformation, change, metamorphosis; whether voluntary or involuntary, it is always as a logical development of existing conditions, yet perhaps sudden and unexpected. Or death, destruction (only rarely; and such an interpretation is illusory). Especially, sudden and quite unexpected change or evolution of circumstances. Redemption through putrefaction.

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https://joshblakesley.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/mem.gif

XII
THE HANGED MAN
(Water)

“Thou art the Sun at the hub of my being. Thy Word is the shaft which fills me, to which I conform myself. O, that I might be the still, silent pool that reflects Thee, the veil that reveals Thee.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Deep blue.

HEBREW LETTER: Mem, water, the universal symbol of consciousness per se. Suggests reflection, silence, and serenity. By etymology and ontogeny, M has a cross-cultural affinity with maternity and the sea, including “matter” and the subtler “matrix” of manifestation. The sound m is reminiscent of hushed running water.

CARD NAME: “Man” (from an identically spelled Indo-European root) is a pun on the root men-, meaning, “to think,” from which comes our word “mind.” The words seem closely related in human consciousness, and often are seen associated with each other. Thus, “Hanged Man” is a way of writing “suspended mind.” The key concept of the English word “hang” is “suspended from above,” i.e., dependent on (and pendant from) something higher without support from anything beneath.

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Stable (or Enduring) Consciousness. It is the power of sustenance (or, sustaining power) among all the Sephiroth.

TREE of LIFE: Hod to Geburah. (Links ‘Glory’ and ‘Strength’; or Intellect and Volition. Suspension of the mind, reversal of perspective following Tifereth stage.)

ESOTERIC TITLE: The Spirit of the Mighty Waters

**TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: **Water as a formula of Redemption: Practical formula of the Elixir, elaborated in the three cards that immediately follow.

DIVINATION: Sacrifice, punishment, suffering, loss (all either fatal or voluntary); wisdom, surrender, renunciation. A reversal of circumstances.

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XI
LUST
(Leo)

“Thou art the Rose to my cross – find new life in my heart! Thou art the Moon to my Sun, and I the wine to thy cup – I pour the whole of me into Thee.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Yellow (possibly golden).

HEBREW LETTER: Teth, serpent; more literally, that which is coiled and resembles a serpent (“serpent power”). The alchemical “lion.”

CARD NAME: “Lust,” especially meant here in the sense of “intense eagerness or enthusiasm; pleasure, relish,” comes from the Indo-European root las-, “to be eager, wanton, unruly.”

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Consciousness of the Secret of All Spiritual Activities. It is so called because of the influence disseminated by it from the Highest Blessing and the supernal Glory.

TREE of LIFE: Geburah to Chesed. (Links ‘Strength’ and ‘Mercy’; or Volition and Memory. Mercy weds Severity. The sanctification of one’s strength and volition in the RECOLLECTION that the HGA is the One Strength and One Will reflected in each manifest expression of strength and will. Kingship. NOTE: The intersection with Gimel is one of the most important features in the card.)

ESOTERIC TITLE: The Daughter of the Flaming Sword

TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The marriage as it occurs in Nature (that is, the real marriage, rather than the ceremonial formality of Zayin. The Serpent that unites the opposites in ecstasy. BABALON and THE BEAST (Moon and Sun) conjoined.

DIVINATION: Courage, strength, fortitude, energy, action, une grande passion, joy in desire. Employment of magick; use of magick power. Manifestation and control of the life-power.

http://www.weirdshitnotbullshit.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Lust-the-Thoth-Deck.jpg

93s everyone!

I've had an unusually disruptive and impactful week and will be resetting myself up to manage the weekly posts on time. We'll be resuming the regular schedule on 5/1. Sorry for the inconvenience and interruption!

93 93/93
Al-Shariyf

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X
THE WHEEL OF FORTUNE
(Jupiter)

“‘I turned me about thrice in every way; and always I came at the last unto Thee.’ For Thou art hidden in every thing I love, in all that I desire.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Violet.

HEBREW LETTER: Kaf, palm. It means “hand,” particularly the palm or grasping aspect thereof; and, more generally, any curve or cycle, e.g., “dish”; and thus the concept of circularity. The closing hand also signifies a developing grasp of a situation, co-signified by this letter-name’s other literal meaning, “rock, cliff.” Ru, wheel, breath; circulation of blood and breath; thus, getting and storing prana. Note analogy of Kaf Peh to Kappa Phi.

CARD NAME: “Wheel” comes from the Indo-European root khel-, “to revolve, move around, sojourn, dwell.” Other words stemming from this root include many Jupiter-themed words such as colony, cult, cultivate, culture, as well as cycle, cyclone, collar, pole, pulley. Other occult-themed words from this same Indo-European root include talisman (from the Greek telos, “completion of a cycle”) and chakra (from Sanskrit cakram, “circle, wheel”). – “Fortune” comes from the Latin fortuna, from fors, “chance”; but note its relationship to fortis, “strength”!

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Consciousness of the Desired, Which Fulfills. It receives the divine Influence that flows into it as a result of the blessing it confers upon all that exists.

TREE of LIFE: Netzach to Chesed. (Links ‘Victory’ and ‘Mercy’; or Desire with Memory. The sanctification of one’s desire in the RECOLLECTION that the HGA is the One Desire reflected in each manifest expression of desire. “Fortune” befits this path between two benefics.)

ESOTERIC TITLE: The Lord of the Forces of Life

TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: “Lord of the Forces of Life.” kteis + phallos, “a unity of supreme attainment and delight.”

DIVINATION: Change in fortune. Usually means good fortune and happiness, a “turn for the better” (since the fact of consultation implies anxiety or discontent). Law, rhythm, pattern, cycles. Intoxication of success.

http://semelexerri.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/thoth-fortune-201x300.jpg

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IX
THE HERMIT
(Virgo)

“I am alone, in a cold, grey, desolate land. There is no other to be found, no companion to ease the going. Yet Thou art the Light I bear (even when I know it not), and the strong, single staff that supporteth me.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Yellow-green.

HEBREW LETTER: Yod, hand. Also, “power, strength, assistance,” ideas associated with hand. “Axle,” on which the Wheel turns (cf. Kaf). “Finger” of flame. I = Identity = iota (Greek i: minute particle or spark). Initial letter of YHVH, with correspondent meanings. Foundation letter of the whole Hebrew alphabet and all Qabbalistic doctrine.

CARD NAME: Hermit, meaning one who is solitary, or outside of society as such, comes from the Middle English heremite, from Medieval Latin heremIta, from Late Latin eremita, from the Greek eremites, from eremia, “desert;” which, in turn, comes from eremos, “solitary.” That is, it means essentially the same as YChYDH, Yechidah, “the only one,” the distinctive consciousness attributed to Kether.

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Consciousness of Will. It is the pattern of all creatures. By this consciousness, one knows the actuality of Primordial Wisdom.

TREE of LIFE: Tifereth to Chesed. (Links ‘Beauty’ and ‘Mercy’; or the Ego-center with Memory. Tifereth is the lantern, or Guiding Light; Chesed the summit of the Ruach, opening onto the infinite heavens above. The sanctification of the EGO or SELF in the RECOLLECTION that the HGA is the One Self mirrored in each personal expression of self. Ascent to spiritual aristocracy.)

ESOTERIC TITLE: The Prophet of the Eternal, the Magus of the Voice of Power

TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The Spermatozoon in the womb, a bearer of Solar Light.

DIVINATION: Wisdom or illumination from within; secret impulse from within; practical plans derived accordingly. Retirement from participation in current events. Active divine inspiration. Prudence, circumspection. Sometimes “unexpected current.”

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ל

VIII
ADJUSTMENT
(Libra)

“Even if I wander from Thee, Thou art there. Thy pleasure ever leads me into the depths of Thee; thy chastening hand is the caress of reclaiming me. I walk through the alleys of Hell, in the byways of my deeds, and the stifling heat is the clasp of thine embrace – yea, of thy holding me tight unto Thee.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Green.

HEBREW LETTER: Lamed, ox-goad: that which drives and steers the ox (Alef). Also means, “to instruct, train, discipline, chastise” (cf. Alef). Greek Lambda suggests balance by its isosceles shape.

CARD NAME: Probably the best standard definition for adjustment is “to bring into proper relationship,” It stems from the Latin ad- (“toward”) + iuxt (“near”). Juxta comes from the Indo-European root yeug-, meaning “to join” (Lamed is the “yoke” of Vav). Important derivatives of this root include yoke, join, junction, conjugal, yoga, subjugate, joust, junction. Compare this to the older title, Justice, which means, “being honorable, fair, righteous, morally right, consonant with law.” It comes from the Indo-European root yewes-, “law,” as in just, jury, jurist, judge, conjure, perjure, injure, prejudice. (Both “conjure” and “perjury” come from the Latin for “to pronounce a ritual formula, or swear an oath.”)

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Faithful Consciousness. Through it, spiritual powers are increased. All dwellers on earth “abide in its shadow.”

TREE of LIFE: Tifereth to Geburah. (Links ‘Beauty’ with ‘Strength,’ the Ego-center with Volition. The “righting” effect of true volition on the equilibrated ego-center, from which place one easily moves in one’s own direction by the HGA’s goad-force that rightly drives one there.)

ESOTERIC TITLE: The Daughter of the Lords of Truth, the Ruler of the Balance

TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The Woman Satisfied: the Scarlet Woman fulfilled by directed application of Iudex and Testes.

DIVINATION: Eternal justice; or, rather, justesse, equilibrium, the act of adjustment, balance by opposites, internal compensation or adjustment within the whole, pending decision. Karma. In material matters, may mean law, legal actions, prosecutions, trial, etc. Socially, marriage or agreements; politically, treaties.

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VII
THE CHARIOT
(Cancer)

“O amber heart, O crystal bell that ringeth once without end, I am the wine Thou bearest in thy Mass. My will is to serve Thee alone. Am I fermented aright? Is the vintage ripe? O, that I may give pleasure to thy mouth, O Belovéd.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Yellow-orange (somewhat dark)

**HEBREW LETTER: **Cheth, fence: that which defines a territory; or an enclosure, field; from Hebrew root meaning, “to surround or gird.” Symbolic of any device of containment or any vehicle.

CARD NAME: Chariot: Most importantly, notice that the title is the chariot, not the charioteer. The word comes from the Indo-European root kers-, “to run.” Important derivatives include car, course, courier, current, intercourse, occur, recur, career, carry.

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Consciousness of the House of Influence. From its inmost center flow forth the Arcanum and veiled ideas, which “abide in its shadow”; thus is there cohesion (or, union) with the inmost substance of the Cause of Causes.

TREE of LIFE: Geburah to Binah. (Links ‘Strength’ with ‘Understanding’; or Volition opening to Intuition. “A mighty warrior in his chariot” (= magical image of Geburah) in victorious return to the Mother, positioned before a stream or abyss.)

ESOTERIC TITLE: The Children of the Power of Water, the Lord of the Triumph of Light

TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Unveiling the Grail.

DIVINATION: Triumph, victory, hope, memory, digestion (health sometimes unstable), extreme zeal in maintaining traditional ideas, the “diehard,” ruthlessness, lust of destruction, obedience, faithfulness, service under authority; receptive, questing, seeking, voluntary sacrifice

http://semelexerri.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/thoth-chariot.jpg

This Key can be summed up in one word with two expressions - REFLECTION. If the Fool represents inspiration, the Magus clothed it in language giving it direction, the Priestess is substance and the medium for the word to be received and cast forth. By her very nature, she is duplicitous: she is dark yet brilliant in the light of the sun, rhythmic and cyclical yet stable. She securely rests on her throne, poised between pure being and the matrix of the human personality, reflecting what is cast before her.

We find her highest expression in those moments when the light of the Sun of one's Soul is most clearly reflected outward, through the personality and into the world in the same way the Moon reflects the most of the Sun's light during a "Full Moon" (which, even then, is an illusion, since we are not necessarily seeing the moon in its ENTIRETY but rather the a face of the moon).

We find her lowest expression in those times when we are enmeshed in the matrix of the personality and our view of ourselves and the situations we find ourselves in is skewed.

Interestingly enough, the act of reflection can loosen the grip of that which we got ensnared by, giving us a chance to discern the illusions as such and return to that state between pure being and the personality. It should be noted that what is said in the prior sentence is crude and general statement summarizing the mystical journey.

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VI
THE LOVERS
(Gemini)

“O Mother, extinguish my brilliance in thy devouring night. Let not my brilliance stain the sublimity of thy perfection. Let not my little light blind me so that I cannot see Thee. Thy love is the velvet sheath to my sword, & the white-hot heat that tempers it. Take me for the sword in thine own hand, with which Thou art girt, O warrior-lover.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Orange.

HEBREW LETTER: Zayin, sword, symbolic of intellect and representative of division, multiplicity, severing, severity.

CARD NAME: “Lovers” is the title of the Second Grade of the Order per Liber Legis, equivalent to Adept. It comes from the Indo-European root leubh-, “to care, desire, love.” Important derivatives include belief, love, libido.

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Consciousness of Sensation (or Consciousness of Disposition). It provides faith to the Compassionate (i.e., the Adepts), and clothes them with the Holy Spirit. Within the Supernals, it is called the Foundation of Beauty.

TREE of LIFE: Tifereth to Biynah. (Links ‘Beauty’ and ‘Understanding’; or the Ego-center with Intuition, Ruach with N'shamah, Vav with Heh. The wedding of ‘the Son’ with ‘the Mother.’ The Ordeal of the Abyss. Confrontation of duality and multiplicity. The Mystery of Knowledge.)

ESOTERIC TITLE: The Children of the Voice, the Oracle of the Mighty Gods

TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The Wedding. Declaration of the Work to be done, employing a complex alchemical symbolism. Solve.

DIVINATION: Inspiration, receptiveness, intuition, intelligence, “second sight,” childishness, frivolity, triviality, thoughtfulness divorced from practical considerations, indecision, contradiction, self-contradiction, instability, the necessity to choose between alternate paths. May mean love, union, the proper mating of opposites, resolution of differences, a proper relationship between the inner and outer aspects of life (or between subconsciousness and ego-consciousness).

http://semelexerri.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/thoth-lovers.jpg

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V
THE HIEROPHANT
(Taurus)

“How art Thou now my husband that art my Bride? What word must I remember? Nail me to the door of thine enemy, to the door of the marketplace, to the door of thy sepulcher, that, naked & unknowing, even I may be a sign of thy devotion to all thy lovers.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Red-orange.

HEBREW LETTER: Vav, nail or hook. Used to refer to the hooks by which the veil of the Holy Tabernacle was hung. Literally, the conjunction “and” in Hebrew, signifying connection or union. Third letter of YHVH, with correspondent meanings.

CARD NAME: Hierophant, Greek for “Revealer of the Mysteries,” or “one who shows holy things.” Older titles of this card included The Pope (which is just Pop or Papa, a virtually universal linguistic artifact in just about every language).

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Eternal (or Triumphant) Consciousness. It is the pleasure of that Glory beyond which is No-Glory like unto it. It is also called the Garden of Pleasure, which is prepared for the Compassionate (i.e., the Adepts).

TREE of LIFE: Chesed to Chokmah. (Links ‘Mercy’ and ‘Wisdom’; or Memory with Infinite Will; thus, the initiated Ruach opening itself to the Wisdom or Word descending from Neshamah. Instructional or ecclesiastical authority.)

ESOTERIC TITLE: The Magus of the Eternal

TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The Stone: Sanctified Union of the Priest and Priestess.

DIVINATION: Wisdom, intuition, manifestation, teaching (inner teachings received), philosophical, goodness of heart, harmony, marriage, help from superiors, peace, stillness, occult force voluntarily invoked.

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צ

IV
THE EMPEROR
(Aries)

“Take me, O husband! Draw me up unto Thee, O monarch of my soul.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Red.

HEBREW LETTER: Tzaddi, fish-hook, an instrument cast into water to hook and draw forth a fish. As a verb, “to contemplate (think, speculate, fancy),” a synonym of dhyana. Tzaddi is the fundamental sound related to Sanskrit roots meaning “head” and “age,” from which stem words such as tzar, Caesar, Monseigneur, senate, etc.

CARD NAME: Emperor from the Latin imperator, imperare, “command.” The Indo-European root for “priest/priestess” has exactly the same spelling and sound as that for “emperor/empress,” though they are different words: per, meaning “to produce” or “to procure.” “King” is an important Qabbalistic term related to adepthood, and Tifereth in particular; “Red King” is an important Alchemical idea for the Sun.

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Natural Consciousness. Through it is completed (or, perfected) the nature of all that exist beneath the sphere of the Sun.

TREE of LIFE: Yesod to Netzach. (Links ‘the Foundation’ and ‘Victory’; or Subconsciousness with Desire: procreative energies transmuted into a more rarified desire or will force.)

ESOTERIC TITLE: Sun of the Morning, Chief Among the Mighty

TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Alchemical Sulphur (Rajas).

DIVINATION: Energy, power, vigor, ambition, conquest, victory, control, governance, law and order, originality, stability; overweening confidence, megalomania; quarrelsomeness, strife, stubbornness, rashness, ill-temper.

https://semelexerri.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/thoth-emperor.jpg

𐣣
III
THE EMPRESS
(Venus)

“Thou art about me & through me. Thy kisses are at once in all places. The moist folds of thy skin are open & engulfing & devouring the whole of me. Yet I am thy gate, & the shaft of thy burning & luminous love impales me & rips me & feeds me even as thy mouth, thy touch, thy womb swallows me up.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Green.

HEBREW LETTER: Daleth, door, gate; especially the yoni as Gate of Life. Greek Delta is a triangle, with all it implies.

CARD NAME: Empress (a form of “emperor” specifically chosen to convey a feminine idea) from Latin imperatrix, imperare, “command.” The Indo-European root for “priest/priestess” has exactly the same spelling and sound as that for “emperor/empress,” though they are different words: per, which in this other form means, “to produce” or “to procure.”

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Luminous Consciousness. It is the substance of that speaking silence (or brilliant flame) that is the instructor in the Secret Foundations of Holiness and of their (stages of) preparation.

TREE of LIFE: Binah to Chokmah. (Links ‘Understanding’ and ‘Wisdom’; or Intuition with Infinite Will, Neshamah with Chiah; or ‘the Mother’ with ‘the Father,’ the stream of life flowing into the matrix-womb of its material manifestation. Creative force operating in the field of unconsciousness.)

**ESOTERIC TITLE: **The Daughter of the Mighty Ones

TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Alchemical Salt (Tamas).

DIVINATION: Love, beauty, happiness, pleasure, sensuousness, fruitfulness, success, completion, graciousness, elegance, friendship, gentleness, delight. But with very bad dignity, it means luxury, idleness, debauchery, dissipation.

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/ec/25/29/ec2529f2bce623a7879c6d470fbe322d.jpg

That's awesome Av!!

Not so much of a Fool anymore...

This card is COLD and alludes to a certain detachment displayed by the Magus. Detached? Yes. Dispassionate? No. How can this be? We shall see...

The Magus, whirls his WORD and himself through a dark and cold world bringing LIGHT and SPECTACLE with him in his wake. The undifferentiated, formless, white-hot urge to create has been draped in a word and in meaning and more importantly given DIRECTION.

While the Fool is remains heavily engaged with what is going on OUTSIDE of time and circumstance, the Magus has bound time and circumstance to his WORD. Time, circumstance, situation and the like are the playthings and toys that provide him with much delight. It is not the plaything but the PLAYING that captivates the Magus.

Like a child, gives himself over to the joy of the playing and when he is done, he is on to the next thing without so much as a thought of that which he just discarded.

Wiley, masterful, adroit. Always one step ahead. Always scoping the angles. Forever ready for the bait and switch. A master of the game of life and living.

Further musings on the Magus -
The idea of detachment touched upon in the Fool is resumed in the Magus. Notice, 3 of the 4 magical weapons rest of lines of force (cup, wand, and pentacle) while the Sword is suspended between two lines of force.

Also, the Cadeceus that was floating around the Green Man's heart in the Fool Card is powering the Magus' movement through space. It's like the battery on his back. A subtle illustration of "Love Under Will".

ג

II
THE PRIESTESS
(Luna)

“Yet thy skin is cool & pale in the moonlight. Not even night can cool the embrace of thine arms about me, nor darken the glistening silver-white substance of our love. I close my eyes and it shields them not; rather, you grow brighter still. Your eyes lock on mine, unblinking and uneclipsed, O mother, O lover, O child.”

MEDITATION COLOR: Blue (infused with white).

HEBREW LETTER: Gimel, camel; from a root meaning, “to bear, to carry,” implying mother symbolism. As a verb, “to wean, ripen.” A camel is a means of effectively traveling long distances through dry and barren terrain – the Mystical Journey.

CARD NAME: Priestess (a form of “priest” chosen to convey a specifically feminine idea) is from the Indo-European root per-, basically meaning “forward” or “through,” and used in many extended senses such as “in front of,” “before,” “first,” “chief,” “toward,” “around.” Important derivatives (besides spatial ones: far, forth, further) include: paramount, paradise, foremost, first, privilege, privy (or deprive), proper, premier prime, primal, primary, primitive, prince, principal, principle, pristine, priest.

ESOTERIC MEANING: The Uniting Consciousness (lit., Consciousness Leading to Unity). It is the Essence of Glory. It is the consummation of the essential Truth of unified spiritual being.

TREE of LIFE: Tifereth to Kether. As on the Tree of Life, The Priestess is situated between two pillars where a veil partitions the relatively Outer from the Inner. (Links ‘Beauty’ and ‘the Crown’; or the Ego-center with Unconditional Being, Ruach with Yechidah; or ‘the Son’ with ‘the Ancient of Days.’)

ESOTERIC TITLE: The Priestess of the Silver Star

TANTRIC & ALCHEMICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The Priestess: the Vehicle (or bearer) of the Word.

DIVINATION: A pure, exalted, and gracious influence enters the matter. Change, alternation, reaction, increase and decrease, fluctuation, cyclicity, rhythm; whether for good or evil depends on the dignity. Secrets, hidden things, mysteries awaiting later disclosure. There may be, however, a liability to be carried away by enthusiasm, to become “moonstruck,” unless careful balance is maintained.

https://www.wikiart.org/en/lady-frieda-harris/atu-ii-the-high-priestess-thoth-tarot-aleister-crowley

Thanks David!

Further insights on The Fool - The active nature of Air is demonstrated in the following manner: The Green Man's arms are raised up above him, his feet are in the air protruding out of the frame of the card. He is suspended in the center of the card, in the center of everything else that is going on around him. It as if he is withdrawn from time, activity, circumstance. You can literally see it on his face. He's THERE but not there. Here but not HERE. So we can tack on suspension, withdrawal but not the type found in the Hermit and not the type of suspension that we find in Hanged Man neither. It's the instinctual inhalation and suspension of breathing when in the presence of something that takes your breath away. Baited breath. The Eureka Moment.

That type of withdrawal (the type we find in the Hermit) is much more directed and myopic. It's specific. This is a general type of withdrawal and depending on the circumstances it can be intentional though Not in response to circumstances like the Hanged Man. This is "CAUSED SUSPENSION" for the sake of "Caused Suspension" and thus, Inspiration.

Yet it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to draw a correlation of the Mercurial nature of Alchemical Air to its psychopomp-ish manifestation in the Hermit (which, by the way, also retains the Air-As- Mercury + Fire connection by way of it's attribution to the Hebrew letter Yod). Lots and lots going on here.