The Golden Dawn
Page 79
The diviner now pairs the cards from opposite ends of the horseshoe, thus:
Knave of Wands
“She is anxious about this.”
Six of Swords
Knight of Wands
“And he begins to neglect his business, which yet is fairly good.”
Ace of Pentacles
Three of Cups
“And instead throws aside his business for pleasures.”
Two of Pentacles
Knight of Cups
“The consequence of this is that the engagement between them is
broken off, shown by Knight being turned in the opposite direction.”
Five of Cups
Ten of Pentacles
“Still, his business does fairly well, though he is losing interest in it.”
Eight of Cups
Five of Swords
“The matter is the subject of much gossip …”
Ten of Cups
Nine of Wands
These two cards are of contrary suits and therefore of little importance “… among their acquaintances.”
Queen of Cups
King of Cups
“He, moreover, begins to pay attention to another girl of not quite so fair complexion.”
Knave of Cups
Wheel of Fortune
“Who, however, prefers a dark man, who is much admired by the fair sex” (shown by his being next two Knaves and a Queen).
King of Swords
Six of Wands
“But he has already gained the affections of a girl with dark brown eyes and hair.” (This description is obtains by mixing the effects of the wands with pentacles.)
Knave of Pentacles
This concludes the reading in the first operation, which may be thus resumed:
“The enquirer is a fair young man who works very hard, and has hitherto gained but little money, yet matters are beginning to improve. He is fond of society, and of visiting friends. He is rather lacking in perseverance and energy, though notwithstanding this, his business and money transactions will begin to prosper. But yet he will lose interest in it owing to his love of pleasure and society, and though his fortune is changing for the better he has yet much anxiety through falling in love with a graceful and sprightly girl with chestnut hair and fair complexion whom he has recently met. His suit is at first favourably received, but some slanderous tales and mischief-making—not altogether without foundation—come to her knowledge, though his increasing prosperity in business has led her to regard him with favour. She is made anxious by this, and he begins to neglect his business which yet is fairly good, and instead abandons it for pleasure and merry-making.
“The consequence of this is that the engagement is broken off. Still his business does fairly well though he has lost interest in it. The whole affair is the subject of much gossip among their mutual acquaintances. (One of the chief mischief-makers is a fair middle-aged woman shown by the Queen of Cups.) He, however, soon begins to pay attention to another girl of not quite so fair a complexion. She, however, prefers a dark young man who is much admired generally by the fair sex, but he has already gained the affection of a young woman with dark brown hair and blue eyes.”
SECOND OPERATION:
Representing the Development of the Matter
The enquirer again carefully shuffles the cards and places the pack on the table face downwards, but is not to cut them. The diviner now takes the pack and deals it round card by card in twelve packets face downwards in rotation as in the following diagram: (deal and read in order of houses against the direction of the sun), so that the first packet answering to the ascendant will consist of the first, thirteenth, twenty-fifth, thirty-seventh, forty-ninth, sixty-first, seventy-third cards, as shown, and so on.
This operation is under the presidency of the court cards, whose dominion in the celestial heavens falls immediately between that of the four Knaves and that of the keys answering to the twelve signs of the zodiac. It represents the twelve astrological houses of heaven, as shown. Without altering the relative order of the packets, or of the cards in the packets, the diviner examines each in succession, till he finds the one which contains the significator. This he retains for reading, noting carefully to which astrological house it corresponds, and gathers up the other packets and puts them aside, as they are not of any further use in this operation.
Second Operation—Twelve Houses
As before, the diviner reads the packet containing the significator by spreading them out in the form of a horseshoe, first reading by counting the cards in order from the significator in the direction in which the face of the figure on the card is turned, and next by pairing the cards together from the opposite ends of the horseshoe. It is hardly likely that in so small a packet there will be either three or four cards of a sort, but if there be, the diviner takes note of the same, and also observes which suit predominates. I now continue the examples commenced in the previous operation. I must here observe that the example is purely of my own invention, and of course is not contained in the Book “T,” wherein only the mode of working is given. I have purposely taken a commonplace, trivial, and material question for elucidation. (S.R.M.D.)
Example (Cont.)
We will suppose the enquirer to have duly and carefully shuffled the cards, thinking of his affairs, and that the diviner has dealt them round into twelve packets as above shown. The packet containing the significator is located in the ascendant, and it contains the following cards in the order given.
Second Operation—Example
This mode of reading shows that as the significator is in the ascendant it will principally relate to the enquirer’s manner of living at this point.
The significator is in this case right way up, whereas in the previous reading it was inverted, and is looking towards the Nine of Swords, which direction therefore the reading proceeds, counting thus: four from King of Cups—Knave of Pentacles; seven from this—Sun; nine from this—Knave of Pentacles; seven from this—Sun; where the reading ends.
King of Cups
“The enquirer is unhappy” (looking to 9 of Swords) “and makes the acquaintance of the girl with the dark hair and blue eyes with whom the dark young man (his rival) is in love. (She is artistic and well-mannered, and hopes to carry out her wishes, i.e., to marry the dark man with whom the fair girl, to whom the enquirer has transferred his affection, is now in love.) For she is beginning to be apprehensive regarding her success, and is jealous in consequence.”
Knave of Pentacles
Pairing the cards from opposite ends of the horseshoe, the diviner proceeds:
King of Cups
“The Enquirer is anxious, and his health begins to suffer …”
Nine of Swords
Eight of Pentacles
“… but hopes ultimately to succeed through skillful action in the matter.”
Sun
Four of Swords
“He therefore endeavours to make a friend of the dark girl.”
Knave of Pentacles
Temperance
“As he expects to realize his wishes by his means in the end.” (This is shown by the card being single in the end.)
THIRD OPERATION:
Continuing the Development of the Question
The enquirer again carefully shuffles the cards, while thinking earnestly of his affairs. The pack is not cut. The diviner deals out the cards into twelve packets in precisely the same manner as in the second operation. Only instead of being referred to the twelve astrological houses, these twelve packets are under the presidency of the twelve keys of the tarot attributed to the twelve signs of the zodiac. The first packet, Emperor—Aries; the second, Hierophant—Taurus; the third, Lovers—Gemini; and so on. As before the diviner selects the packet which contains the significator for reading, and rejects the rest. He notes also the meaning of the key answering to the sign of the zodiac, under which the packet falls. He spreads the cards out in the form of a horseshoe, exactly as
before. I now continue the example before commenced.
Example
We will suppose that the packet containing the King of Cups is that whose position answers to the Hierophant—Taurus—and that it consists of the following cards, arranged as in the diagram.
Third Operation—Example
The Hierophant and the majority of the cards in this packet being keys alike show that the forces at present at work are ceasing to be under the control of the enquirer. The reading proceeds according to the usual order of counting, as follows: King of Cups—Two of Wands; Magician—Queen of Wands; Universe—Tower; Two of Wands again. It may be mentioned that supposing a packet to consist of six cards, and the significator to be a Knave, or counting seven from it, it would come back to the Knave again, this would show that the enquirer would act according to his own ideas in this point of the question, and would not let his line of action be influenced by the opinion of others. (The reading would then proceed by the pairing of the cards as usual:)
King of Cups
“Though anxious concerning several matters, he (the Enquirer) is beginning to succeed better by this line of action.
Two of Wands
Magician
“which seems to be quite the best. But the older woman (who
previously made mischief and was represented by the Queen of Cups in the first operation) who is artful and a gossip …
Queen of Wands
Universe—Tower
“… again injures the matter because she wishes to get an influence over the Enquirer herself.”
Two of Wands
Pairing the cards, the diviner proceeds:
Two of Wands
“Her influence cunningly exercised, brings about a complete
disruption of the whole matter.
Tower
Universe
“The entire matter becomes invested with trickery and glamour …
Magician
Queen of Wands
“… as she herself pays him a good deal of attention and sympathy,
King of Cups
Two of Pentacles
“which furthers her plans by bringing about a friendship between them.”
FOURTH OPERATION:
The Further Development of the Question
As before the enquirer is instructed to shuffle the pack and place it on the table but not to cut it.
The diviner takes the pack, turns it face upwards, and goes through it, being careful not to disarrange the order of the cards, till he finds the significator; at this point he cuts the pack, that is to say, he takes the significator and the cards which had been beneath it and places them on the top of the remainder, turning the whole face downwards again, ready for dealing out.9
The consequence of this operation is that the significator becomes the top card in the pack (bottom, really; face on table.) The diviner takes off the significator, places it face upwards on the middle of the table and then the following thirty-six decanates—thirty-six cards—out in the form of a circle round it, face upwards, answering to the thirty-six decanates of the zodiac, and showing the further development of the question. These are dealt round in the order and direction of dealing as the twelve packets in the two previous operations.
The reading proceeds by the same law of counting, but instead of counting from the significator itself, it begins from the first card of the thirty-six, and always goes in the direction of dealing. The suit which is in the majority and the circumstances of either three or four cards of a sort being found in the thirty-six decanates are also noted. When the reading by counting is finished the cards are paired together: first and thirty-sixth; second and thirty-fifth; third and thirty-fourth; and so on, placed in order successively upon the significator. I now continue the example before commenced:
Example
We will suppose the enquirer to have shuffled the pack, and that the diviner takes it in his hands, and in turning it up finds the bottom card to be Temperance. On going through it he comes to the significator, thus:
Fourth Operation—Cutting the Cards
He therefore takes the cards from King of Cups to Temperance included and places them above 10 the Five of Pentacles, being careful not to disturb their relative order. This has really the effect of cutting the pack between the Queen of Wands and the King of Cups and of course when he again turns them face downwards ready for dealing, the King of Cups will necessarily be the top card and the Queen of Wands the bottom card; Temperance being immediately above the Five of Pentacles, the former top card. The diviner takes the top card, the significator, and places it face upwards in the centre, and then deals round in succession thirty-six cards, face upwards in the order shown in the diagram on page 730.
Fourth Operation—Example
Let us suppose them to be thus arranged. The reading always proceeds in the same direction as the dealing in this form of operation, commencing the counting from the first card dealt.
We here find twelve out of the twenty-two keys; Seven of Wands; Seven of Cups; Five of Swords; Six of Pentacles; total thirty-seven including significator. The preponderance of the keys represent “influences beyond the control of the enquirer.” There are four Princes (Kings)—“meetings with influential persons,” and four Eights, “much news and correspondence.”
The counting proceeds as follows from the first card dealt. King of Cups—Six of Cups—Five of Pentacles—Hermit—Four of Cups—Fortitude—Four of Swords—Seven of Cups—Justice—Five of Cups—King of Swords—Emperor—Six of Cups again.
King of Cups
“The enquirer’s love of pleasure-going,
Six of Cups
Five of Pentacles
“brings about loss of money and business,
Hermit
“and he is forced to be more prudent,
Four of Cups
“and not go into the society of others too much, which has already brought him anxiety” (shown by Four of Cups between two wands, contrary element weakening effect of this card).
Fortitude
“He works more closely,
Four of Swords
“and begins to get better.
Seven of Cups
“Yet he has not sufficient energy in his nature to stick to work for long.
Justice
“The retributive effect of this is …
Five of Cups
“… That he loses his friends.
King of Wands
“And his former rival who, though rather a vain man, is energetic and hard working …
Emperor
“… replaces him in popularity and esteem.”
Six of Cups
Pairing them now, the diviner proceeds:
King of Cups
“The enquirer loses pleasure in consequence
Death
Six of Cups
Four of Swords
“and becomes less energetic even than before, and more anxious for pleasure-going than ever,
Seven of Cups
Moon
“yielding to the temptation of idleness and vanity by means of fraud.
Chariot
Eight of Swords
“He embezzles the money of his employer, and sees prison staring him in the face.
Ace of Pentacles
Eight of Cups
“The result of this is the loss of good name …
Temperance
Three of Pentacles
“… and of his situation of trust.
Five of Pentacles
Ten of Wands
“His former friends and admirers turn a cold shoulder to him.
Two of Cups
Foolish Man
“And the result of his folly is that he is arrested and brought before a court of law.
Justice
Seven of Wands
“The decision is adverse …
Hierophant
Judgment
“… and judgment very justly given again
st him.
Hermit
Emperor
“But his employer, though stern, is a kind-hearted man, and …