Mix and match divination (just toss everything into the pot)

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Welcome to another round of the Tarot Blog Hop. Today's theme is the simple question: 

"Do you combine Tarot with any other divination system? Why or why not?"

Short answer: Yes...because I am a member of the Golden Dawn tradition.

Long answer: Well, let me illustrate what I am doing. 

Golden Dawn, a system of lodge initiations and magical instruction, founded in 1888, has mixing the Tarot with other forms of divination built into the system since day one. The common method of associating the Tarot cards with astrology that many of us know, actually first appears in the Cipher Manuscript of Golden Dawn. The Cipher Manuscript, the foundational document of Golden Dawn, lists the associations for the Major Arcana with the planets and zodiac signs. It also shows a connection of astrology with the system of divination known as geomancy.

Whoever created the Cipher Manuscript, probably the Victorian Masonic authority and writer, Kenneth Mackenzie, worked out a system of correspondence between the Kabbalah, the geomantic symbols, Tarot, and astrology. The connection between the Tarot, kabbalah, and astrology (& geomancy with astrology) was not a new idea, but the Cipher Manuscript arrangement was the one that ended up in Golden Dawn, and then spread outward into the general esoteric occult community, through the works of A. E. Waite and Aleister Crowley, and became the standard in the English branch of the Western Mystery Traditions.

(Recently, I saw an argument that claimed that Mackenzie [or whoever created the Cipher Manuscript] got his system of Tarot to astrology associations from Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers [one of the co-chiefs of the original Golden Dawn]--there is only one problem with this idea: Whoever created the Cipher Manuscript actually first assigned Strength and Justice one way to astrology, and then changed their mind in a later section--hardly what you would do if you inherited the system from someone else.)

Astrological decans and the Tarot (Golden Dawn tradition).

Thanks to the student of Golden Dawn learning these associations, they tend to explain the occult symbols in a great circle, going from one system of esoteric modeling to another, eventually ending up back at the beginning of the circle which is to say they continue to go around in a circle.

One of the exercises required from the practicing Adept Minor is to perform three operations for the same subject of a divination. In other words, the Adept Minor asks a question, and creates a geomantic shield, an astrological (horary) chart, and does a Tarot spread (Opening of the Key) for the question--comparing the three readings with one another.

It should be noted that once one passes their Adept Minor exams, that one often just sticks with a single style of divination after that point. But there are always those who continue to mix and match divination systems...

...freaks like myself.

As an example of a mix and match operation, let's look at one of my ongoing projects--the examination of astrology charts using the symbols of the Tarot and geomancy to extract meaning--a form of mediation on parts of an astrology chart.

For instance, in my birth chart, I have my natal Moon in the sign of Scorpio. Using the Tarot, the astrological position of the Moon in my birth chart can be depicted by the High Priestess (Moon), Death (Scorpio), and the fact that the moon is in the 20th degree of Scorpio with the Seven of Cups (the Minor Arcana associated with the third decan of Scorpio).

(A point of interest is that not only do I suffer a Moon in Scorpio, so did my mother and her sister, making an interesting familial dynamic.)

Stage one of this odd method--with Via, Populus and Rebis for Moon in Scorpio.

Now, my Moon is squared to my Mercury in Leo, my only planet in a Fire sign, which can be depicted with the Magician (Mercury), Strength (Leo), and the Seven of Wands (for the 21st degree of Leo which is in the third decan of the sign).

(Interestingly enough, my mother's Mercury is also in a Fire sign, that of Aries. If you ignore Pluto, it is her only planet in a Fire sign. By the way, the more I examine the charts of my relatives, the more such similarities I have discovered.) 

Stage two with Albus, Conjuntio, Fortuna Major, and Fortuna Minor for Mercury in Leo.

Now, taking the associated geomancy symbols for the planets and signs, I can further extend the symbolism by treating the geomantic symbols as part of a geomantic shield. (A geomantic shield is like a Tarot spread, but with geomancy.)

Adding and combining the points of the geomantic symbols (a standard procedure in geomancy), I end up with two more bits of information, the geomantic symbols of the Moon and Aquarius. Interestingly enough, one of the decans of Aquarius is sub-ruled by the Moon, so I end up with another symbol to add to the mix.

So I end up with another High Priestess (Moon), as well as the Star (Aquarius) and the Seven of Swords (another third decan card). 

Stage three with Via and Tristitia representing the dynamic of the Square aspect.

Now does any of this make sense? Maybe. Maybe not.

But I do exhibit a pattern of being argumentative when the (current) Moon is in Scorpio or in a Square aspect to that, especially when it comes to defending my ideals; and when I realize that it is once again that time of the month, I tend to wander off without another word rather than continue to abuse other people.

In the end, it does not matter if it is nonsense or not--what matters is that it allows me to examine parts of horoscopes from a different angle.

Blessed be.

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Mother, may I? (31-HP Day 28)

You come asking
Questioning and begging
Seeking an answer
Crossing my palm
With silver coins

Shuffle and flip
Pasteboard images
Messages and truth
Spirit communication
Divine wisdom

Your eyes blind
Your ears deaf
Ignoring reality
Your mind set
Could be home

Bits and pieces
Wrenched out
Of proper context
Only heard
Is what you want

Seeking agreement
Looking for a goat
Your course is set
Advice you need not
Permission sought

I see no good
Coming from this
Outside my fee
You are doomed
Spirits annoyed

Go forth
Do your worst
Blame the cards
Blame the reader
Anyone, but yourself

Updating and modifying rituals

One of the things that you occasionally see someone make a fuss over is the fact that some of the modern lodges have modified the rituals that they are using. No longer are the rituals the same as the ones that Westcott and Mathers were using...hence, they are not correct according to some people.

Personally, I have mixed feelings over the matter of changing the rituals myself. I have learned a lot about ritual structure though having to modify the rituals that my lodge uses, but I was not happy about having to do it in the first place.

For instance, due to the inclusion of geomancy in the Zelator Grade, our Zelator Grade ritual had to be modified. The decision to bring geomancy down to the Zelator Grade wasn't even our decision; it was something that occurred in the greater Golden Dawn community, and new members started to expect to see it there. It was a curriculum reform done by someone else, due to the nature of geomancy, and put into print.

This curriculum change has probably affected everyone in the system. Other groups have picked it up, and used it also. But here is the kicker...this curriculum change disagreed with the Outer Order Initiation rituals.

In our case, once we figured out that the ballon had gone up, we decided to bring geomancy into the Zelator ritual. Of course, this violates the sacredness of the Cipher Manuscript where it is clearly stated that geomancy is not introduced until Theoricus...at this point, one could argue that the groups that do this are no longer Golden Dawn.

(And given the people who would argue this...well, I have to thank them...I do not want to belong to the same club as they do.)

And this is not the only type of change that has happened to the Golden Dawn rituals. Recently I have been reading a discussion about the 6=5 Adeptus Major Initiation ritual. There is a lot of debate about how long the 36 hours in the pastos is supposed to be. I have my own personal opinion based on my own experience and ritual skill.

It is the latter that one should look at the rituals though. In my opinion, it does not matter what the ritual script says; if you do not have the ritual skill to maintain the energy flow while doing it strictly by the script, then you need to consider modifying the ritual.

In many ways, the fact that the Golden Dawn ritual were set in stone so soon after their modern creation limits them. For instance, the original rituals presume that only the Hierophant and Co-Chiefs know the underlying godforms; it also presume that they are the only ones with the ability to create the shells for them. Many modern groups may not even have a single Adept when they start out: What do you do then?

One of the modifications that I like is the idea that all members can take part in the building up the godforms. This is especially true for a ritual like the 6=5, where there is that question of how long is a person supposed to lay in the pastos. (Yes, there are godforms associated with the reading of the hours; they have seven layers, just like all the other Grade rituals.) Instead of one person trying to hold these godforms together, you have a team doing it. Think of it as enriching the lodge.

My bottom line is that the rituals and curriculum of Golden Dawn needs to be able to change over time. If the system does not change, it becomes a dinosaur. And we all know what happened to them, don't we?

Games for wizards 1

Today I ran errands with my wife. Among the things she needed was a new purse. Therefore, I decided to take something with me to occupy myself.

Often when shoppping with my wife, I will take homework or some reading I need to do. Today it was one of Greer's books (the semester has not started yet). I also took a notebook with me.

I ended up playing what I refer to as a wizard game.

Today's game ended up involving geomancy. I was adding up the geomantic figures to see what various combinations produced.

Sometimes exercises like this produce just sheer nonsense. Other times you end up with things that might be important.

Today, what caught my attention is that adding up Fortuna Major and Fortuna Minor (the two solar geomantic figures) yields Via. So does adding up Via and Populus (the two lunar geomantic figures). {I added up the other planetary couples, but did not get any more Vias.} A Via also results if you add up the points of Puer, Populus, Puer and Carcer (the four figures assigned to the cardinal signs).

I am not sure if it means anything. I would like it to mean something, but it may just be a coincedence that these three combinations produce a Via. Besides it is just a wizard game...it served its purpose: I did not die of boredom while waiting for my wife to make up her mind.

New Geomancy PDF

Nick Farrell just announced that he put up a new pdf on Geomancy. It can be found on his website.

Images for geomancy figures

One of the barriers to learning geomancy for many people is that the geomantic figures just appear like a random set of dots; or in a pure text media, a set of weird looking numbers made up only of ones and twos (examples: 2121 and 1221).

Another barrier is the cookbook, one size first all method of interpretation that the Victorian occult world imposed upon the system, a method of interpretation that the modern occult revival has yet to completely overcome.

A way to overcome both of these barriers is to create a set of personal mental pictures for the geomantic figures.

To read more about images for geomancy figures, click here.

Aleister Crowley’s Geomantic Mnemonic Rhyme

Caput Draconis: Strong and fierce
Of whorls---which Acquisitio beginning keeps spinning.
Puer’s a boy, with all a boy’s endeavour;
Puella’s rather good but not too clever.
Fortuna Minor means a lucky touch;
Fortuna Major more, maybe too much.
Via means change, apart from Querent’s action.
Populus, settling down, with satisfaction.
Rubeus always gives a nasty jar,
And Carcer tends to keep you where you are.
Conjunctio brings about completion; Albus
Is whiter than the walls once built by Balbus.
Tristitia lags, with heavy antic motion:
Laetitia is like the laughing ocean.
Amissio: love come, and goods diminish.
Cauda Draconis means---a sticky finish.

Ebb and flow of the esoteric traditions

Today while reading a question on a private membership forum, I was reminded that our tradition at one of the low water marks as far as the general history of the esoteric traditions is concerned.

One of the interesting things about the esoteric traditions is that it ebbs and flows. And while I am not sure if is currently ebbing or flowing, I do know that this is one of the times where the esoteric traditions are relatively impoverished. Membership in the mysteries is down, whether you are talking about Freemasonry, Wicca, or esoteric Christianity.

But it is not just the lack of warm bodies that indicate that we are at the lower end of the esoteric tide. The posting that I was reading was about geomancy, and it made reference to the older geomantic texts. I understand the student’s comment because I have seen some of the material that he was referring to. I have also seen some documents that expand upon the technique that he mentioned. Yet, I know that I am one of the few people who have learned anything about this aspect of geomancy in recent years.

The art and science of geomancy has been ebbing for the last sixty years; I know what caused this particular ebb. But it is not just geomancy that is ebbing. The entire esoteric field seems to be getting simpler and less complex all the time. I have some theories about why it is happening, but that is a subject for another time.

What I want to draw your attention to is the very existence of the ebb and flow of information about the mysteries. I want you to think about it--are the esoteric traditions getting stronger or weaker? And does the answer concern you?