#qabalahtarot

[tarosophical-tarot]

The common denominator running through this spread is ☿️ Mercury (aka Thoth) - there is The Magician (☿️ ♊ ♍) planning and organising, gathering education and amazing people with his mastery of it, relying on his mystical knowledge (3 Cups, ☿️ in ♋) to guide him in the physical world (5 Pentacles ☿️ in ♉).

The Magician's Path is Beth (house), he is a channel through which the energies of The Fool are organised and passed downward - The Magus working through Mercury communicates The One Life Energy from Kether (The Father) into Binah (The Mother) across The Abyss into Geburah (willpower).

The Magician's alchemical stage is Distillation - he opens up higher forms of communication and enables the intellect to grasp new ideas in pursuit of The Higher Self bringing about the Unification of Consciousness required to see beyond the normal dimensions of sight into the Astral Plane, through his path "Intelligence of Transparency".

The 3 Cups is Binah (understanding) in Briah (the mental world) where the gifts of Mercury/Thoth overflow (as Water in abundance) - here knowledge is organised and disciplined.

This is the alchemical stage of Impregnation/Conjunction where we find the union of the soul+spirit (the energies of Kether being brought downward into the body).

This development is required to allow us to return to an existence of Pure Spirit, no longer trapped in a world of the senses (Assiah) aided by the archangel Tzaphkiel (Contemplation of God) as The Charioteer - the figure sat on the Cubic Stone carrying the Holy Grail to us, he travels back and forth across The Abyss between the macroprosopus and the microprosopos (the potential and the actual).

In the 5 Pentacles (Geburah in Assiah/the material world) we see the destruction of all that is useless or obstructive to our spiritual development.

This is the natural rhythm of The Tree of Life - obsolete structures being torn down and rebuilt so that we may learn and progress, new ideas and values being considered - death being accepted as much of a part of life as is birth.

The path of Nun, Death (although not seen here) has a benign influence in that it is here that temporary and illusory elements of the personality undergo a willful "death" in order to proceed the experience of "cosmic awareness", we are required to give up the totality of one's being, one's life in relative darkness in the faith that there will be a resurrection into the Light.

This then is the alchemical stage of Putrefaction/Digestion, the emergence of new life from the death of the old one (the tree within the seed) - the decaying black mass in the crucible turning into gold.

In order to bring about Transmutation matter must go through the process of corruption (Mars in Geburah is ruled here by Scorpio) - the blackened skeleton of the Death card is Osiris the god who was slain and resurrected.

This can be likened to the many lives of Man/Woman - we undergo an internal re-incarnation many times over until we reach perfection.

The Path of Nun is the spark required - as looking to the elemental dignities present we see Water/Air/Earth, the intellect (Air) is focused on the act of progress (Earth/Water=growth/fecundity) but we require the Yod-Fire of Death as the catalyst to convert the chemical process into heat, the metaphorical bubbling swamp of Death providing a suitable environment for the lotus to grow in, the flower itself coming to symbolise The Holy Grail carried here by Tzaphkiel.

[tarosophical-tarot]

"The first physical manifestation of Divine Breath" ' Eliphas Levi

The Queen of Swords holds a severed head in her hand - the very "centre of thinking" in Man/Woman, which she has liberated from the deception of thought.

This no doubt relates to her placement on the Tree of Life, in Binah - here she is restricting the energies of (faith and reason) flowing unbridled from Chokmah, without her discipline the minds of man/woman would be flooded with unbound Spiritual Will and endless Yod of thinking.

Binah is then the "idea" of form, giving rise to the basic plan of Divine intervention, she is the Watery part of Air which allows the emotions to motivate the intellect ("an accumulation of rainclouds analogous to an elemental influence of potential nourishment" - The Golden Dawn), water being controlled by her hand to regulate the flame of The Ace of Wands (which here symbolises the life force and vitality of Kether flowing unbridled into Chokmah and on to Binah along the Path of Illumination).

The Ace represents the primary outpouring of energy from The Universe, Kether (primordial consciousness) in Atziluth (realisation of God) - symbolising the impetus of ideas in unmanifest forms.

The Holy name for Kether in Atziluth is AHIH meaning "I am and shall be" (existence), the formula for self manifestation - the divine sparks of Yod seen on the Ace being ideas/the 10 sephiroth in unmanifest form.

The Ace also depicts a fiery Tree of Life, the middle pillar of Equilibrium highlighted in flames.

The earthly Devil seen here, represents the raw power of The Ace, he is a release from the limitations of matter found in the outpourings of Binah (regulated by The Queen).

We see "Ayin" ("Renewing Intelligence", 16th letter of the Hebrew alphabet, meaning "eye") on his left, which tells us that here The Devil symbolises the reorganisation of perspective, seeing with a new vision - this speaks of what we see from an earthly outer view and the greater vision which can be gained from using the inner eye.

The Devil is also known as " The Prince of of The Powers of Air" - as such he is the perfect partner to the Queen of Swords, she regulates the wisdom flowing from the Ace (Kether) and he (The Devil) provides the machinery to understand it through intellect and meditation to allow us to come directly to the light of knowledge.

[tarosophical-tarot]

Starting with the three of Wands, this is Binah in Atziluth, intuition in the world of pure spirit - the Sun illuminates Aries ♈ ruled by Mars, there is great strength in individual expression.

There is an initial need for discipline which leads to hard work, perfectionism fuelled by strong ambition - a constant need to transcend boundaries whilst maintaining independence.

Binah is a necessary restriction, discipline enforced on the energies flowing from Chokmah, a primordial unconsciousness of deep, dark waters full of mystery and silence (the traditional imagery of The Moon in Tarot).

There is movement but it is unseen, like the movement of the tides - a union of spirit, body and soul (the Moon's crayfish beneath the surface of the seas, swimming beneath).

The angel Hechaseiah (Secret and Impenetrable) rules over this card with Amamiah (Covered In Darkness).

In the seven of Cups, we see Netzach in Briah (instinct in the creative world), whose archangel is Haniel - his chief role here is to take the devotional emanations from Atziluth (3 of Wands) and to transmute them into something tangible via religious belief or esoteric systems.

Venus in Scorpio here alludes to occult activity guided by intuition (the influence of Binah/3 of Wands) and (thanks to the presence of Hechaseiah/Amamiah) there is a strong attraction for esoteric mysteries.

What is also unseen is made apparent on the path of The Moon - the inner demons of our unconscious mind become visible in dreams, in this landscape we are able to confront them and harness their strengths.

The Moon's dark foreboding is balanced by The Sun of the Wands card, providing the required strength and discipline to drag ourselves out of the sea in order to confront the two jackals (animalistic, lower natures) of our unconscious nightmares.

The Moon is the path of Qoph, it connects Netzach (Victory) and Malkuth (The Kingdom) with the restricting influence of Binah present, we will walk this path successfully.

This is a primitive path of our raw animal nature, but we are protected by the influence of the Wands/Cups cards which allow us to apply reason to all that we encounter.

We arise out of the dark waters of our unconscious, reborn and ressurrected - we have died and resurfaced in a new incarnation of our personality consciousness, we may look the same on the outside but much has changed inside.

[tarosophical-tarot]

"One does not need to be a philosopher to know that civilisation is the result of human reaction against pain, the consequence of the human quest for ways to overcome limitation. Disease teaches us the laws of health, frictions in human relationships goad us into the discovery of the secret harmony, and the wise declare that in the mystery of death lies the secret of immortality."

(Paul Foster Case)

In the central card here, the up/down facing flowers represent The Emperor ⬆️ and the Hanged Man ⬇️

4/Wands (Emperor) X 3/Empress=12/Hanged Man

Thus The Empress looks inwardly (Queen of Coins gazing at a coin-like mirror) to decide her next course of action. In the four/Wands she has reached a crossroads, an impasse - should she react to her situation (The Emperor) and try to change the world around her, or should she retreat inside herself (The Hanged Man) and change her self?

Currently she sees herself as having a largely ceremonial role in life (Empress), would it be more satisfying to be in the thick of it all (Queen)?

Looking to the (supposed) Hanged Man (the lower inverted flower) we see his legs forming a cross and the lines drawn from his elbows to the point formed by his hair form the sides of a reverse triangle (having his arms for its base). The inverted triangle was an ancient way of writing the letter Daleth ("Luminous Intelligence"), the path of The Empress, where subconsciousness enlightens us by its deductions from our inductive reasoning allowing us to consider ways of self preservation. The Empress represents subconsciousness as the Mother of Ideas, dividing these ideas into manifold presentations (4/Wands).

"He (The Emperor) represents the self-consciousness of Man, when it's activities are engaged in the work of inductive reasoning, whereby errors arising from superficial interpretation of experience are overthrown."

(Paul Foster Case)

Thus the Empress/Queen must look inside herself (gazing at the mirror/coin) to find the answer lies within (Le Pendu) and that by using our own inherent wisdom we can find a new solution to our problems (the four "hidden" inner white Wands) leading to a new direction (the arabesques flourishing on either side ⬅️➡️).

There are eight large petals - symbolising card number 8 "Strength", here we see an image of the Empress holding open the lion's mouth to look into it to tame her own lack of discipline in order to find resolution to her problems.

[tarosophical-tarot]

In Judgment and the Moon, we find two balancing paths on The Tree of Life, with the nine of Pentacles central - giving us Yesod in Assiah, the paths of Activating and Formative Intelligence connected by a psychic consciousness rooted in the physical world.

Venus in Virgo (the Pentacles here), represents the power of analysis, the ability of self-discernment in seeing the whole of our "self" as well as the individual parts that make up this whole.

Being Yesod, there is association with Moonstone, bringing forth psychic awareness and hidden thought forms which have until now remained hidden - we are waking to the messages being sent to the physical level from the Higher Self.

With the Moon here in the Earth element (Yesod in Assiah), the emotions are trapped in the Kingdom of Form and are expressed through material possessions, wealth is accumulated but our real values reside in that which we have inherited from our ancestors.

The Path of Qoth (The Moon) connects Netzach (Victory) to Malkuth (The Physical World), and is seen as a "gateway of Resurrection, the threshold of Life, spiritual rebirth" (A.C.), a conquest of the phantoms reflected in the material world.

We essentially see "through" the riches presented in the nine of Pentacles to discover that our real wealth lies within (not without/visibly), that Malkuth is a world of illusions and it is paradoxically only in our subconscious (inner dream state) on the astral plane that we will find our true selves.

The waters of our consciousness here are still somewhat muddied - it is only on the higher levels of the Path of Equilibrium that we will experience the crystal clear fluidity of The High Priestess.

On this path (Qoth), we find that we have been forced to suppress aspects of our true selves - by the lower animal instincts (Society in general), and in Judgement of who we truly are on the Path of Shin, we learn the lessons of the opposite path (Qoth).

The Moon (psychic consciousness) is Water, Judgement is Fire (Scorpio discerning and burning away all that is unnecessary in our lives), leading to the production of the intellectual Airy steam of Chokmah (Divine Wisdom).

Judgement can be seen as (along with The Moon) a stage of self-discernment leading to the Personality being lifted from the tomb of matter and evaluated on the extent to which it has balanced itself.

This is the start of a new chapter in our endeavours, we are the crayfish (of The Moon), rising from a material slumber - using our inherited inner wealth to propel us to higher forms of existence and clarity.

[tarosophical-tarot]

The Empress is the path of Daleth (the door), the mediating path of The Supreme Spiritual Self, Illuminating Intelligence uniting Chokmah and Binah leading to a transitional state of energy between the above 🔺 and below 🔻.

She is the Mother of Light (apt, given that The Sun is also present here), holding a Chalice-like lotus (as does the Queen of Cups), a living form of The Holy Grail. The Empress connects spiritual awareness (Binah) with spiritual will (Chokmah) via the path of The Priestess who passes through Daath (The Hidden Sphere of Knowledge) representing the concept of realisation and consciousness - alchemically the combination of two substances coming together to form a third which is of a higher function, she is in a stage of solution (also present are the elemental dignities of earth/fire/water - which combine to further the idea of fuel/heat+nourishment).

The Queen embodies the pure blend of Water (being the root of water), with the emotional depth of the Cups generally, she is prone to intuition and mysticism inspired by her ruling planet The Moon (the sign of ♋ seen here also relating to the crayfish of The Moon, signifying an awakening awareness of possibility). She rules the third decan of Gemini and the first/second decans of Cancer, showing an intuitive insight tempered with a certain unpredictable stubbornness.

Stood in front of the Queen is an ibis (representing Thoth-Hermes the Moon God) - the bird (in mythology) who eats the eggs the eggs of snakes recalls the myth of Saturn eating his own children (bringing life from death) emphasising the Queen's watery aspect that signifies "The Great Sea" from which life flows out of just as death flows inwardly (a two-way door, Daleth/The Empress).

Finally we see the path of Resh (The Sun), also known as the path of Collecting Intelligence, where we find the Queen/Empress coming to terms with the responsibilities of her powers/potential.

The Sun is essential to life and death, being the star which can nourish or wither with it's rays.

This path connects the sphere of Hod (knowledge and magic) with Yesod (spiritual receptivity) it is here that the Queen discovers the extent of her intuition and ability to commit good or evil on the world - in this walled garden (recalling The Empress' "Garden Of Eden") she must confront and harness her potential for creativity or destruction.

The energies of Netzach also feature here highlighting the struggle she must face before accomplishment is achieved - she must pass through the gateway of Venus (the symbol of rebirth - as is the emerging crayfish ♋), which is the path of Daleth (The Empress).

[tarosophical-tarot]

If six was nine ☯️ the Chariot Path of Cheth runs between Geburah and Binah as an introductory experience to the Supreme Spiritual Self, an initiation across the Abyss and (as a Water sign) one of the Four Rivers of Paradise which flow into Tiphareth.

This path is The House of Influence carrying the influence of the Higher Planes to the lower, where we may discover the secrets of the hidden senses, The Chariot is an intermediary being both above and below 🔺🔻 perfect control on more than one plane of existence, using astral travel.

He is "the soul warrior" of Geburah, sitting in meditation atop a cubic stone holding up the Holy Grail, his outer armour recalling the crab of Cancer.

The Chariot is surrounded by here by cards 6 and 9 (recalling ♋) whose sephiroth are linked on the Tree of Life by the path of Temperance (Samekh) leading from the personality to the higher self, showing the process of merging/tempering energy opposites within the body, bringing Spirit into the body to temper consciousness, with Spirit being tempered by consciousness itself, forming something new which is more than the sum of its parts (alchemy).

In the 6 of Swords (visually recalling the Chariots cube), we find Tiphareth (illuminated consciousness) in Yetzirah (formative world), there is devotion to the Great Work - Mercury in Aquarius ♒ signifying teaching and scientific development involving an ability to tap into universal understanding, an ease in reading meaning into mystical subject matter and travel.

The 9 of Cups (Lord of Material Happiness) shows 3 rows of 3 overflowing cups has Jupiter in Pisces where the spiritual aspects of life are brought forth, there is a deep yearning for inner peace - meditation provides us with clairvoyance and receptivity to Spirit.

We have two Water signs meeting an Air sign, alchemically combining to produce "steam" which in turn forms a rainbow 🌈 - the energies of The Sun manifesting through Briah (the creative world of water) symbolising the Higher Consciousness achieved by our Charioteer (Child of The Power of The Waters, Lord of The Triumph of The Light) as he crosses The Abyss, he is the conqueror, light conquering darkness, opening new boundaries and achieving enlightenment.