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Tarot Attributes on the Tree of Life, by Rev. Marek Bazgrzacki

by in Kaballah, Lessons, Tarot, The Mysteries and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

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The use of the Tarot fitted in nicely with the poem’s themes of the Fisher King and the Grail myths. A.E. Waite, a Grail obsessive, had worked numerous Arthurian figures and symbols into the highly popular 1910 Waite Smith Tarot deck. Along with the grail iconography Waite added aspects of the Christian Cabala and Hebrew Kabbalah, Gnosticism, Rosicrucianism and ancient Egyptian symbology into the deck [11]. This was done as part of a ambitious synthesis of the various occult traditions, a task undertaken by the grandly self-titled Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a group in which A.E. Waite was a key member. The Waite Smith Tarot was the first deck to have the 22 cards of the major arcana and the 4 suits, each of 14 of the minor arcana cards fully illustrated, a companion guidebook The pictorial key to the Tarot was published alongside the deck with full explanations of the cards.

AE-WaiteFrom the mid-nineteenth century onward the 22 cards of the major arcana had become increasingly associated with the concept of pathways and the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet within the Kabbalist ‘tree of life’ and ‘by 1890 Kabbalistic teaching was integral to Tarot design’ [12]. As a body of knowledge the Kabbalah has its origins in Hebrew oral tradition, scriptures and Jewish rabbinical writing. Its early history is unclear, but it developed further between the 7th and 18th centuries. Its formative texts include the Zohar and Sefer Yetzirah.  A key point in its development was the writing of Etz Ha-Chaim, “The Tree of Life” by Chaim Vital in the 1590s, based on the teachings of Rabbi Isaac Luria. The concept of the tree of life entered a variety of Western esoteric traditions, being taken up by the Golden Dawn and their Hermetic Qabalah.

Allusions to the components and structures of the tree of life with its alphabetised pathways and the use of kabbalistic allegory has a long tradition in Jewish and European literature.

Consisting of ten interconnected sefira (plural sefirot), the tree of life is arranged vertically into three columns or pillars: the left hand pillar, the pillar of mercy, representing the principles of benevolence; the right hand pillar, the pillar of severity, power and strict justice; while the central pillar, representing harmony and the ideal balance of mercy and justice, uniting and balancing the two sides. Each of the sefirot has an associated vice and virtue and like a snakes and ladders board, the vices and virtues form gateways and trapdoors between the sefirot.

Though each sefira is as important as the rest, the tree is arranged hierarchically into the four overlapping worlds of the Kabbalah, a ladder from the physical to the metaphysical, a ladder that one may both ascend and descend, a ladder made up of the 22 pathways.

hebrew tarotThe ten sefirot of the tree of life may have had their origins as representations of the metaphysical but they can be used as templates for personality traits, states of mind, or the developmental ages of man and are in some ways similar to Jungian archetypes. These templates are subtler than cartoon stereotypes or the motions of type-cast character actors, coming from a deep tradition influencing literary culture as well folk and pop psychology.

Each of the 22 pathways is associated with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The names of the letters have literal meanings e.g. the word aleph, the name of the Hebrew character ? also has the literal meaning of ‘ox’. Each of the 22 pathways is also associated with one of the 22 Tarot cards of the Major Arcana. In the tarot tradition these have a recognized set of attributes and symbolic and mythic associations and cards will often have links and relationships to other cards in the deck. Though the cards often represent characters they should not be seen solely in those terms, rather they present situations or dilemmas within a plot, situations that the protagonists must overcome, being integral rather than part of a parallel narrative structure. The cards, like panels from a graphic novel are dealt, interpreted and stitched into a storyboard.

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For a detailed reference on each of the Major and Minor Arcana, access our Resources link here.

Tony Fuller ~ The Elusive Tarot of the Golden Dawn – A Small Part of a Solution

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In his introduction to The Golden Dawn Companion Dr. R.A. Gilbert states, “Much remains to be discovered about the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and many questions concerning the minutiae of its history… remain to be answered.” Nearly thirty years have passed since this observation was made and yet, despite many exciting discoveries during the period, it remains as valid today as it was in 1986 when the Companion was published. Indeed, as Dr. Gilbert also notes in this regard, the Golden Dawn does not and “will not willingly yield up its remaining secrets”.

One such secret, which has stubbornly resisted numerous attempts to provide a satisfactory answer, is the question as to the nature of the particular images of the Tarot used by the original Golden Dawn Order before it collapsed into schismatic fragments. Of the twenty-two cards in the so-called Major Arcana only nine have been positively identified and this is solely because their images and descriptions appear in the Order rituals. But what of the remaining thirteen?

Prima facie, this might seem to be not merely a relatively simple task but also an unnecessary one for surely, it might be said, there are already numerous books on the Golden Dawn Tarot in addition to the published decks produced by the Golden Dawn members A.E. Waite, R.W. Felkin, Paul Foster Case, and Aleister Crowley. And since their day there has been a proliferation of modern decks purporting to be “Golden Dawn’ which are based on an interpretation of their predecessors and on study of the Order material concerning the Tarot. Unfortunately none of the information derived from any of these sources enables us to form a clear, still less authoritative, view of how the thirteen cards were seen by the founders of the Order. Indeed, although the decks of the four Golden Dawn members share common imagery in many respects, they also differ significantly in many others. And the reason for such variation is the surprising fact that, aside from the rituals, no description is provided of the Major Arcana in any of the several Order papers which constitute the ‘official’ curriculum of the Order regarding the Tarot. It must be emphasized that the Tarot deck commonly assumed by many writers on the Golden Dawn to be the Order pack is not – this has never been published and, with the exception of the nine cards which appear in the rituals, the remaining thirteen cards are entirely the personal work of Felkin and his wife, albeit often based on publicly available information.

The formal curriculum up to the Second Order Grade of Zelator Adeptus Minor (ZAM) consists of just one manuscript issued to the Outer Order Grade of ‘Practicus’, and several documents provided to the ZAM, collectively known as “Book ‘T’”. What is remarkable about ‘Book T’ is that whereas fairly detailed descriptions are provided of the imagery involved in the 56 cards of the Minor Arcana none is given for the 22 Major cards. Several references to the Trump cards do occur in these papers but these relate entirely to their various attributions and associated meanings, and give no substantial clue as to what is actually depicted.

Clearly, it is because of this apparent silence of the Golden Dawn founders on the Major Arcana that both modern commentators on the Order and the Tarot, and modern occultists alike, have either concluded that there was no precise conception of how the elusive thirteen cards should look or that the packs created by Dr. R.W. Felkin and A.E. Waite are largely in accordance with such a conception. This is, of course, an entirely reasonable and logical approach, especially when combined with a study of the sources known to be available to the founders of the Order, which included descriptions of the cards within the works of the nineteenth century mage Eliphas Levi and the various European decks then extant.

One might assume, therefore, that this is as far as the subject can be taken and that significant variations between the decks of Waite and Felkin are either the result of personal whim or informed knowledge on which we are unable to judge today. This is decidedly not the case, however, for I have located one original Golden Dawn paper which until now has completely overlooked by every historian and enthusiast of the Order, including Dr. Gilbert and Ellic Howe, author of the seminal The Magicians of the Golden Dawn. This typed manuscript provides a skeletal outline of the imagery of all 22 Major Arcana as well as throwing some light on several other manuscripts and puzzles relating to the Tarot.

Entitled “Tarot Trumps”, it is absolutely certain that the paper was written by a member of the Golden Dawn sometime before 1900 and not by any member or Chief of the Stella Matutina.  It has been suggested by Pat Zalewski, the acclaimed author of many books on the Golden Dawn, and with whom I have shared this paper, that it could be the work of one of the two founders, William W. Westcott:

 

“These are so skeletonic that they seem to follow the pattern of Westcott when he drafted up something and sent it to Mathers [co-founder S. M. L. MacGregor Mathers] to extrapolate. Because all the trumps are considered it had to be someone who was planning a great deal and I think it fits more Westcott than Mathers whom I suspect was the original author of the GD/AO 6=5 [ritual], which he most likely gave to Mathers to do his extrapolation on, but something he never did for one reason or another. This is absolutely fascinating.”

The astute reader will observe several subtle differences between even the nine known Tarot cards, which appear both in the rituals, and the so-called “Cipher Manuscripts” (from which the rituals were supposedly written) and the equivalent brief descriptions which appear here. A full analysis of these differences and similarities, in the context of the historical sources antecedent to the Golden Dawn, must await another occasion. However, one description of particular significance should be mentioned. In the Golden Dawn document Book T the Tarot card number called “Hanged Man” is also referred to as the “Drowned Man”. Within the published GD material no explanation is provided of the intriguing reference to the “Drowned Man” but it is a card which greatly exercised the thought of both A.E. Waite and Dr. R.W. Felkin around the period (1906) when they were drawing up ideas for writing their respective rituals for the Grade of Adeptus Major (6=5) in which the card appears.

Those familiar with the beautiful Major Arcana which the artist John Brahms Trinick produced under Waite’s direction for his F.R.C. Order will recall that the card, known as the ‘Drowned Giant’ depicts a ‘drowned’, and crowned, man lying underwater within a swastika shape. Crucially, Waite states in his 6=5 ritual (published in the Falcon edition of Israel Regardie’s “The Complete Golden Dawn System of Magic”) that “the drowned giant is depicted as reposing on the rocky bed of the ocean with the rainbow at his feet”. It is manifestly obvious

that Waite has taken this description, including the reference to ‘the Ark’, directly from this “Tarot Trumps” paper.

The skeletal description is capable of yielding even more valuable historical information, however, for it states that the card “should be held sideways” and the rough sketch shows the usual style of Hanged Man but placed on its side. Within the Golden Dawn 6=5 ritual, which was completely unknown to Waite, we find the following description of this Tarot card: “’The Hanged Man’, would be more commonly called – ‘The Drowned Giant’, and its position horizontal rather than perpendicular. In this position [an oblong box placed horizontally is shown], the lower side of the Key represents the Bed of the Waters, and the upper side the Keel of the Ark of Noah, flowing above the Drowned Figure”. In this context it should be noted that only one copy of the Golden Dawn 6=5 ritual is known to have survived and was located within a collection of Dr. W.E. Carnegie Dickson who received many original and rare Golden Dawn papers from Mathers’ successor, J.W. Brodie Innes. Thus, the skeletal description, almost certainly written before 1900, also provides invaluable confirmation that the 6=5 ritual was itself the genuine Golden Dawn ritual for this Grade, and not a document produced for Mathers’ Alpha et Omega Order, formed after the collapse of the Golden Dawn.

Serious students of the Golden Dawn Tarot are also urged to compare these brief descriptions with those which appear in the 6=5 paper entitled “The Order of the Ritual of the Heptagram – Part II – Of the Tarot Trumps” which has been published in Pat Zalewski’s “Inner Order Teachings of the Golden Dawn”. The original of this paper, like the 6=5 Ritual, was also part of Dickson’s collection [much of the collection came to me and which I made available to Pat Zalewski and others]. It will be observed that in places several of the skeletal descriptions also support the Heptagram paper which has been curiously neglected by Tarot scholars.

The above is merely a brief overview of this important discovery and a more in-depth study and comparison is required.

Tarot Meditation: The High Priestess

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High Priestess Meditation

 

You have chosen The High Priestess, the second major arcana card of the Tarot. This guided visualization will help to deepen your trust in your own intuitiveness and insightfulness.

In his journey The Fool meets The High Priestess whom he looks upon as his spiritual mother. She is receptive to anyone who seeks her counsel and guidance, for knowledge is revealed to those who seek it out.

The High Priestess is symbolized as the archetype of intuition, the unconscious, the healer, and feminine power. She represents all that is unknown, and yet can be accessed through stillness, and silence.

The High Priestess guided visualization begins with the creation of your own Peaceful Sanctuary. This is a place you can always come to, to find peace and calm in your life. In your Peaceful Sanctuary you will meet with The High Priestess.

 

The Fool is a soft breeze blowing everywhere in space. The Magician is a mighty whirlwind reaching from earth to sky. The High Priestess is the quiet within the wind, the peaceful eye within the storm. She dwells in a place where the air stirs not and even thoughts are quiet. This vestal is a child becoming almost a woman. Her days of protection and trust are with her yet. With her also is the first bloom of the mysteries of the Moon, the mysteries of later spring turning to summer in her body.

 

Look at the picture on the High Priestess card. See the priestess. Let your eyes meet hers. Her eyes flicker and then still. They look deeply into yours. In your heart a question grows. It slowly rises to clarity. The Priestess waits to answer it.

 

Close your eyes to the outside world. Let the blue and white of the little goddess shimmer before your mind. From your heart a need has reached out. From the temple of the Priestess a soft answer comes. The answer is not in words, for the need surpasses words. Let the soft blue and white of the goddess dissolve in silver moonlight. In the radiance find meaning.

 

In your preferred meditation posture, allow your eyes to close gently. Place your hands in your lap in line with your abdomen at the level of your navel. Hold your hands together, with the back of the right hand resting against the palm of the left hand, with your thumb tips gently touching. Have the hint of a smile on your face. Just by sitting in a meditation posture, you have already set an intention. There is dignity and grace in your posture, and you may be aware of your back straightening. You may be aware of your shoulders sloping gently downwards, releasing and letting go any tension in your neck. Your feet, flat on the floor if you are sitting on the floor, or your knees touching the floor, if you’re sitting on a cushion.

Now, take a slow deep breath, bringing the breath all the way down into your belly. And as you slowly breathe out, breathe out until your lungs are empty of air. And, when you have done this, continue to breathe naturally … being aware of the breath: the inflowing breath and the outflowing breath. Breathing freely and easily, being aware of the breath as it flows through your nostrils.

 

Allow your awareness to flow through your body and if there are any holdings or tension in any part of your body, take your breath to that place now. Breathe in and out of that place in your body where there may be tension or holding. Focusing in that place, breathing in and out of that place, allowing the tension, the holding or the blockage to be released in your body. Just being aware of the breath, allowing your body to soften with each breath … the inward breath and the outward breath … allowing the body to be soft … soft body, gentle breath.

 

Moving with the breath now into the mysteriousness that brings you in touch with the High Priestess.

 

And remaining with your eyes gently closed, visualize yourself now following a path. Look down at the path as you imagine yourself walking along it … what sort of path is it? This is the path that is leading you to your peaceful sanctuary. Enter now into your peaceful sanctuary … it could be a warm cozy room … it could be some special place in nature that you love, like the beach, the forest, a lake or some other place.   This is the place that you can always come to where you can relax where you can experience peace and calm, a place where you are always safe and protected. A place that you love to be in.

 

Being in your own special haven, look about you and acquaint yourself with your surroundings. What do you see here? Touch the things that you feel drawn to here and that you love. Smell the scents and aromas that are uplifting to your senses in this special place. And, listen to the sounds that are unique to your wonderous peaceful sanctuary.

 

See before you a special seat that you can sink into and feel cozy and relaxed. This can be any kind of seat in which you can sit in comfort and safety. Go now to your special seat and make yourself comfortable there.

 

Counting backwards now into an even deeper state of relaxation … knowing that you are in control at all times … hearing these words and letting them drift by …

 

TEN … going deeper … NINE, EIGHT … deeper and deeper … SEVEN, SIX … relaxing and deepening … FIVE, FOUR … very very deep … THREE, TWO … relaxing, deepening … relaxing, deepening … and ONE … feeling so relaxed, so very very relaxed in your peaceful sanctuary.

 

Now as you wish, invite the High Priestess to enter your sacred space. Visualize in your mind … turning your head to the right and seeing this feminine vision enter your abode. She may appear in the form of a figure familiar to you, or a light being, or someone else that is right for you. As she comes closer and closer to you … see her deep beauty … her gentle smile … her lovingness towards you … and greet this archetype of feminine power that is wise, intuitive, mysterious and understanding.

 

Feel her sensitivity to you and how much she loves you.

 

The High Priestess represents secret knowledge, hidden feelings, intuition and mysterious influences.

 

Watch as she seats herself before you, her garments flowing about her. She may be dressed in the flowing blue robes as depicted in the tarot … adorning her head is an Egyptian style headdress symbolizing the waxing moon and the waning moon … on her lap is a scroll or book of ancient wisdom … and at her feet, the lunar crescent.

 

The High Priestess conveys to you that she is associated with the Moon, which symbolizes the hidden and mysterious lunar cycles and psychic revelations.

 

Perhaps the High Priestess seated before you may have appeared in a different form. See what that is now for you.

 

The High Priestess waits with eternal patience before you, so just allow yourself to merge with the depth of her awareness, with the depth of her presence. See how she gazes at you with encouragement … how she accepts you unconditionally.

 

When someone accepts you unconditionally, can you feel that growing confidence within you? For in her presence, you are able to tap into your own source of compassionate power, intuition and wisdom. The High Priestess is conveying to you that you, too, are a compassionate, powerful, intuitive and wise being.

 

So, taking in a deep breath … breathe in the Knowing and Understanding that you are indeed compassionate, powerful, intuitive and wise. And, as you breathe out, soften and deepen … and embrace these qualities more and more … and continue to breathe naturally.

 

Looking into the face of the High Priestess, see there the ancient understanding of knowing life’s dualities … of knowing good and evil, light and dark, summer and winter … knowing all of these things … understanding all of them … accepting all of them as they are. Feeling again and again that depth of understanding that is conveyed to you by the High Priestess for she is aware of the ups and downs of life … she is aware of all the viscissitudes of life … remaining calm and peaceful as they come and go.

 

If there is something or someone in your life that you need more clarity around … perhaps a problem you may be facing, or a decision that you are in the process of making … ask the High Priestess now for her help. Speak to her as though she is a very close friend … listening to her inner guidance. It may appear to you as a symbol, a word or a thought.

 

Perhaps some aspect of your life may be out of balance … it could be your health, a relationship, your finances, or something else. Ask the High Priestess now what you need to do to bring greater balance and harmony back into your life … listen for the answers within your heart, letting go of logic, and trusting the intuitive response to your questions.

 

Sitting in the presence of the High Priestess, you can trust her counsel to seek new paths and hidden paths to Wisdom … your intuitive insights will suggest new solutions to the issues you may have in your life at this time, so trust your intuition.

 

There may be something else that you may need counsel about … and, if so, take this time now to communicate more deeply with her. The answers may come to you in the forms of a symbol, a word, or something else … and if not at this time, that is okay. Revelations may come to you as you go about your daily life.

 

The High Priestess symbolizes inner unity. Perhaps at some point in your life you may have felt separate from others … you may not have always been able to express your feelings because you may have been afraid of rejection … You may not have always been able to say what was right for you because you were afraid that speaking your truth might upset another … you may have cut off parts of yourself so that you could fit in and be acceptable … you may have secrets in your heart that reveal to you what you really want and where you are going.

 

Now, draw in a long, slow, deep breath … breathing in the essence of the High Priestess: calmness, sensitivity, stability, silence, deep understanding. And, as you slowly breathe out, let go of all the struggles in you that displace love … and continue to breathe naturally.

 

It is not by accident that you have chosen the High Priestess at this time, for she is inviting you to go inward in your meditations … to uncover your truth through inner sensations, images and flashes of insightful knowing.

 

Immerse yourself in the mysteriousness of the High Priestess, sometimes called the Daughter of the Stars … and sense or feel or see her being reflected back at you as she sits before you, and make an intention to yourself to release old patterns of conditioning that no longer serve you … simply by starting with, “I intend to release old patterns of conditioning that no longer serve me,” is a way of bringing that intention very clearly and fervently into your life.

 

By doing this each day, you can live with an open and loving heart.

 

Now, take in another long, slow deep breath, breathing the breath all the way into your belly, all the way into your body … breathing in soft healing blue light and filling your whole body with soft healing blue light … and as you breathe out, letting go of the patterns that no longer serve you … and continue to breathe freely and easily.

 

The High Priestess rises gracefully before you and bids you farewell. You may wish to express your thanks and gratitude to her. As she leaves, hear her assuring you that she is always there if you have a yearning to be in her presence.

 

It is now time for you to leave your peaceful sanctuary … and so you stand and visualize yourself now exiting from your safe place and being back on the path once more. You know that you can come here any time you wish.

 

And counting from one to five …

ONE … becoming aware of yourself sitting on the chair or aware of yourself sitting on the cushion on the floor …

 

TWO … gently wiggling your fingers …

 

THREE … slowly moving your head from side to side …

 

FOUR … being aware of your feet and toes, and wiggling your toes and moving your feet.

 

And FIVE, very very slowly opening your eyes.

 

Now, take a deep and clearing breath, and stretch your whole body if that feels good for you.

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“Priestess of the Silver Star”

2 ~ Gimel ~ HIGH PRIESTESS

Priestess – between two G.D. pillars, like the Hegemon (Red-Black Lamen and Collar)

Tarot Meditation: The Magician

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GD TAROT_Magician

 

You have chosen The Magician, the first card in the major arcana of the Tarot. This visualization guides you in deepening your connection to your creativity, and your ability to manifest in this world.

The first person that The Fool encounters on his journey is the Magician. The Magician is the archetype of manifesting in the material world. The Magician has the power to initiate The Fool. Through undergoing this initiation The Fool awakens to his creativity. His creativity flourishes, and with skill and determination he is led to new opportunities that help him to flourish and prosper.

Absorb the image of The Magician before you begin this visualization.

 

Before becoming the Magician, the Fool is a breeze blowing in light gusts everywhere in space. When the Fool becomes the Magician, the breeze becomes a whirlwind of concentrated force. When glazed, absent-minded eyes become suddenly bright and hawk-like, the Magician wakens.

 

Look at the picture on the Magician card. Imagine yourself as the magician. Your right hand rises to receive a ray of warm and brilliant light. The light travels through you, influenced by your mind. Power issues from your left hand and the world is molded in the image of your thoughts.

 

Imagine yourself alone in a vast place. You cannot see the walls or the ceiling. Air stirs about you in soft, random touches. Inside your body, near the navel, a great force dwells. Your mind is clear, with a golden light about your head. The light reaches down and sends out a wave of force, like a great curved and shapeless arm from the center near your navel. The arm of force catches the air about you. Winds begin to blow about you in circular motion. Feel the whirling vortex of power strong about you. Below you a light dimly shines. It brightens. Beneath you in the light is a great hall lined with many doors. The doors open and close at your bidding. One door attracts your attention more than the others. Let the door open. See what is beyond it.

 

Seated in your preferred meditation posture, allow your eyes to close gently. And place your hands in your lap in line with your lower abdomen. Hold your hands together, with the back of your right hand resting in the plam of your left hand, with your thumbs gently touching. Have just the hint of a smile on your face.

 

Now, draw in a long deep breath through your nose, breathing a breath all the way into your belly. And, as you breath out of your mouth, allow yourself to really sigh … AAAHHH. Continue to breathe in your own way.

 

Breathing to your own rhythm, remaining with your eyes gently closed … visualize yourself walking along a path. Look down and see the path as you imagine yourself walking along it. What sort of path is it? Feel the texture of what is under your feet on this path … it could be a smooth or rough path, or the sort of path you have always loved that is leading you to your special place of beauty, harmony and peace.

Walking along this path, see before you now your peaceful sanctuary. It could be in a warm cozy room … it could be some special place in nature that you love, like the beach, the forest, a lake or some other place. This is a place that you can always come to, where you can relax and experience peace and calm. A place where you are always safe and protected.

 

Enter now into your own special haven and look about you to acquaint yourself with your surroundings. Touch the things that await you here and that you love. Smell the special scents and aromas wafting through the air. Listen to the sounds that are unique to your wondrous place.

 

See before you now a special seat that you can sink into and feel cozy and relaxed. This can be any kind of seat in which you can sit in comfort and safety. Go now to your special seat and make yourself comfortable there.

 

Counting backwards to an even deeper state of relaxation, knowing that you are in control at all times … hearing these words and letting them drift by …

TEN … going deeper … NINE, EIGHT … deeper and deeper … SEVEN, SIX … relaxing and deepening … FIVE, FOUR … very very deep … THREE, TWO … relaxing, deepening … relaxing, deepening … and ONE … feeling so relaxed, so very very relaxed in your peaceful sanctuary.

 

Continue to breathe naturally, just being aware of the breath … the inward breath and the outward breath … allow yourself to hear these words and allow them to fade away.

 

Inside your peaceful sanctuary, visualize yourself now as The Magician. See yourself surrounded by beautiful flowers … red roses and white lilies. Imagine yourself bending forward and inhaling the delicious fragrant perfume of the roses. Smell the fragrance as it moves through the air and fills the air with wondrous delight.

Look down at your clothes, at the clothes of The Magician … you could be wearing a white robe, a red cloak and a blue belt around your waist symbolizing a snake that represents your creative powers. You could be dressed in some other way that is right for you as The Magician. Hold an image of how you would be dressed.

 

Imagine now running your hands over the textures of the fabrics you are wearing. What do these textures feel under your hands and fingers?

 

Now, imagine a table and on it, a Golden cup … a wand … a Pantacle that has the five-pointed star embossed on a round disc … and a sword that symbolizes power, strength and courage. Within these four objects, there is a totality of the Four Elements: Water, Fire, Earth and Air.

 

Now, visualize yourself moving to the table, picking up the Golden cup and drinking the pure liquid from the cup. Visualize the sweet taste of this golden nectar filling your whole being with magical powers that unfold your creativity and abilities to manifest in the world.

 

Now, placing the cup back on the table, feel in your right hand feel a wand raised toward Heaven, while your left hand is pointing to the Earth. As the archetype of the Magician, feel the strength and power that flows through your whole being as you connect with Heaven and Earth. Visualize yourself as the master of your life and destiny.

 

Now, take in a long slow deep breath through your nose as you absorb the Magician’s qualities. And, as you slowly breathe out through your nose, deepen into the Silence and stillness within you that is the way of the Magician. Continue to breathe naturally, being aware once again of the inward breath and the outward breath merging you into deeper silence and stillness.

 

Imagine now above your head the sign of eternity, the figure 8, that symbolizes that you are of Spirit and also able to bring about things in the world. Being at one with the Magician, now is the time to incorporate the lesson of “as above, so below”, the lesson being that mastery in one aspect of life brings about mastery in another.

 

Feeling the qualities of the Magician enveloping you and within you, visualize now being surrounded by bright golden light representing solar consciousness that allows you to explore the world and to master it.

 

What in your life do you want to master, right now?

 

What do you need to bring forward to master your goal, aspiration or ambition?

 

Within your own inner silence and stillness, answers may come to you intuitively and spontaneously. If not immediately, that is okay for you will discover these answers as you go about your daily life by your intention to manifest for your highest good what you most desire.

 

The Magician is the archetypal achiever. As you reflect on what you want to achieve, use your ability to be flexible, to communicate your ideas, for you have the skills. But also, listen to your inner voice. When the Magician appears within you, it symbolizes your creativity, action, initiative and self-assertiveness. You can create new opportunities that give you courage, driving power, skill and determination to enable these to flourish and blossom.

 

With the powers of the Magician, how would you like your creativity and originality to expand?

 

Imbued in the archetype of the Magician there is great power.

 

Now, take in a deep breath, breathing power and strength into your body. And as you breathe out, breathe your empowerment through every cell in your body. And, when you’ve done this, continue to breathe naturally once again.

 

Power can always be used for good or bad. Misuse of power abounds on our planet. Whether you are male or female, you carry with you certain aspects of power.

 

What does power mean to you?

 

How does it appear in your life?

 

How wisely do you use your power?

 

With the power of the Magician within you, you are urged to bring all aspects of your life together. These include love, emotions, money and morality. If one or some of these are out of balance, just allow these aspects of your life to be acknowledged, and to intend that your deeper inner knowing can bring about the changes that will help you manifest your great potential.

 

Embracing the archetype of the Magician, you are open to opportunities or the importance of a new enterprise … and you will have the willpower, the initiative and the skills to succeed in whatever you do.

 

Now, take in a long slow deep breath … and as you do, embrace the qualities of the Magician in yourself. And breathing out … know that in drawing this tarot card, you have the ability to manifest your creativity and potential.

 

Continue to breathe naturally.

 

And now, visualize the clothing of the Magician fading away.

 

Leaving your sanctuary, step now back onto the path … knowing that you can return to this safe and peaceful place any time you wish.

 

And counting from one to five …

ONE … becoming aware of yourself sitting on the chair or on your cushion …

 

TWO … gently wiggling your fingers …

 

THREE … slowly moving your head from side to side …

 

FOUR … being aware of your feet on the floor, or your knees on the floor sitting on the cushion …

 

And FIVE, very very slowly, wiggling your toes and moving your feet.

 

Take a deep and clearing breath and slowly open your eyes, stretching your whole body if that feels good for you.

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“Magus of Power”

1 ~ Beth ~ MAGICIAN

Magician with Altar and Z-A-M lesser implements before him – invoking.

Tarot Meditation: The Fool

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horus

Listen to the MP3 audio

The Fool embodies whirling wind blowing between worlds. The Fool is pure existence, without substance or form. This spirit falls into the abyss of mortality. This spirit becomes all that is, seems locked into form. Yet this one being rises freely back to the silence of formlessness. The wandering Fool is like a spinning dust-devil that comes from no visible place, assumes a cloud of matter and then vanishes back into the unknown. All other Tarot cards are images frozen in time of the whirling Fool that is beyond time. When the Fool rules the world, he is the Emperor. When the Fool sits alone in thought, she is the High Priestess. When the Fool is terror and explosion, — that is the Tower. All are bound in the oneness of the Fool. The Fool is bound by no-thing.

In your preferred meditation posture, allow your eyes to close gently. Place your hands in your lap in line with your abdomen. Hold your hands together, with the back of the right hand resting against the palm of the left hand, with your thumb tips gently touching. Have the hint of a smile on your face. Just by sitting in a meditation posture, you have already set an intention. There is dignity and grace in your posture, and you may be aware of your back straightening. You may be aware of your shoulders sloping gently downwards, releasing and letting go any tension in your neck. Your feet, flat on the floor if you are sitting on the floor, or your knees touching the floor, if you’re sitting on a cushion.

Now, take a slow deep breath, bringing the breath all the way down into your belly. And as you slowly breathe out, breathe out until your lungs are empty of air. And, when you have done this, continue to breathe naturally … being aware of the breath: the inflowing breath and the outflowing breath. Breathing freely and easily. Just allowing the breath to come and go as it will.

And remaining with your eyes gently closed, visualize yourself following a path. Look down as you imagine yourself walking along it … what sort of path is it? Feel the texture of what is under your feet on this path. It could be a smooth or a rough path, or the sort of path that you have always loved that is leading you to your special place of beauty, harmony and peace. Continue walking along this path and see before you now your peaceful sanctuary. Enter into this place, for it could be a warm cozy room … it could be some special place in nature that you love, like the beach, the forest, a lake or some other place.   This is the place that you can always come to where you can relax where you can experience peace and calm, a place where you are always safe and protected.

As you wander about in your own special haven, look about you and acquaint yourself with your surroundings. Touch the things that await you here and that you love. Smell the scents and aromas in this special place. And, listen to the sounds that are unique to your wonderous place.

See before you a special seat that you can sink into and feel cozy and relaxed. This can be any kind of seat in which you can sit in comfort and safety. Go now to your special seat and make yourself comfortable there.

Counting backwards into an even deeper state of relaxation … knowing that you are in control at all times … hearing these words and letting them drift by …

TEN … going deeper … NINE, EIGHT … deeper and deeper … SEVEN, SIX … relaxing and deepening … FIVE, FOUR … very very deep … THREE, TWO … relaxing, deepening … relaxing, deepening … and ONE … feeling so relaxed, so very very relaxed in your peaceful sanctuary.

And just being aware of the breath … the inward breath and the outward breath … hearing these words and allowing them to fade away.

Now, visualize yourself just like The Fool in the tarot. The Fool is not a derogatory name in this sense, but a term used to describe someone beginning the journey of deeper understanding (Chokmah) and self-knowledge (Binah) on the path of the flaming sword. Even though we are adults and may have already journeyed far, parts of us still remain naïve, unworldly or undeveloped. Immerse yourself now in the imagery of The Fool, entering into this archtype, whether you are female or male.

Visualize yourself as The Fool beginning a journey. It could be a physical journey or spiritual journey. It could be a journey, as in going to another country, or even changing your residence. It could be a journey into a new career. It could be a personal journey into changing habits so that you can experience greater health and abundance. It could be the journey of a new relationship, or a change in a relationship you already have. It could be a journey of that you may have wanted to do for some time, but something may be holding you back. Reflect now for a few moments on the journey you want to make, or would like to make, and hold that image in your mind.

Now, allow that image to fade. And, being in the archetype of The Fool, imagine this as a time in your life when you may be contemplating taking a risk … stepping off the cliff, so to speak, and plunging into something new. You may be at a crossroads in your life. If this is happening to you, reflect on that now. Stay very focused on what is happening to you right now.

And, letting those images fade again … and like the archetype of The Fool, you may be going on a personal quest. There is an element of impossibly setting off into the unknown. Again, like The Fool, your Inner Child may be innocent and eager, uninformed and uncorrupted, blind to any perils that lie ahead. Or, the inner critical adult may be remonstrating with you for such an absurd notion of wanting change in your life.

Allow yourself to sink into any feelings that may be arising for you now, and be aware of where those feelings are in your body. They could be feelings of fear and anxiety with impending change, or feelings of enthusiasm, excitement and joy as you visualize yourself setting off on this new journey. Whatever the feelings, just allow them to be there … be aware of them, observe them … without judgment.

Be aware of the breath again … the inward breath and the outward breath. Be aware of the breath as it enters and leaves your body … stabilizing your body, centering your body.

And now keep on feeling deeply into The Fool, for he or she is quite unconcerned.

Recall a time in your life when you felt very confident, as though you didn’t have a care in the world … that you carried very little with you, unburdened by worldly possessions. Go there now. If you cannot recall such a time, imagine how it would be like to have great confidence in yourself and not a care in the world.

Bring this memory from the past alive again with sounds you could hear then … what you could touch then … feel, smell, taste then … use all your senses to experience that time. Make it as vivid as you can. Make it as alive as you can. Be fully engaged in that moment in time and hold the good feelings that you had then in your body now.

And deepening more and more into the archetype of The Fool, anchoring those good feelings in your body, imagine that you are about to step off of the cliff, to plunge into the unknown, feeling unperturbed … the eternal optimist … ready to leap into anything because you are spontaneous and carefree … but most of all because you can trust and affirm for yourself your trust in yourself.

You may want to repeat to yourself, “I trust in myself. I trust in life. I trust and I let go.”

And, relaxing more and more into the archetype of The Fool, awakening in you a sense of adventure … when was the last time you stepped out of the status quo and had an adventure? Was it back in your youth, or more recently? What sort of adventure could enliven you now and give you greater vitality and heightened sensitivity?

It doesn’t have to be extreme, like climbing a mountain … it could be something such as starting a hobby or doing something you’ve always wanted to do. An adventure is about taking you in a new direction that is exciting and has an unknown element in it.

Visualize an adventure you would love now and bring it alive using all your senses. Seeing this new adventure … touching, tasting, smelling and hearing so many aspects of this adventure. Bringing it alive and fully participating in it now.

Go now to that place within, using the breath to take you there … the inward breath and the outward breath … the breath that deepens your intuition and insight to guide you through change no matter what your adventure may be.

Now, take in a deep breath … breathing in trust and belief in yourself … knowing that if you are called to make changes in your life, you can do so. And, as you breathe out, breathe out and relaxing … and letting go … letting go … letting go.

And take in another deep breath … breathing in faith in yourself … and as you breathe out, let go of all worries and self-doubts you may have. Breathe freely and easily now … allowing each breath to deepen your intuitive knowing and trust in yourself.

It is time now for you to leave your peaceful sanctuary … and so you exit from your safe place … and now, you are back on the path once more. You know you can come here any time you wish to be alone, to be in a place of inner calm.

And, counting from ONE to FIVE … ONE … becoming aware of yourself sitting on a chair or on a cushion on the floor … TWO … gently wiggling your fingers … THREE … slowly moving your head from side to side … FOUR … being aware of your feet and toes, and wiggling them … and FIVE … very very slowly, opening your eyes. Take a deep and clearing breath and stretch your whole body, if this feels good to you.

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“Spirit of Ether”

0 ~ Aleph ~ Fool

Man like the Greek Mercury – bounding up from the earth – the animal from behind him dragging him down.  Caduceus [of Mercury] over his shoulder – represents spiritual power restrained by material conditions.

(Animal has him by the Heel)