#thoth deck

[thewinterworld]

PICK A PILE SHIFTING EDITION

your next adventure in your dr/adventure ideas

divider credits: strangergraphics

pile 1: nine of disks (pentacles)/gain, eight of swords/interference - you're a victorian orphan child. you roam the streets of london, breathing cold autumn fog, earn a penny here an there. you're smart, witty, but so poor. you see all these people in suits and fancy dresses going around and wish you could take a little peek at how rich folk lives. then, suddenly, two old ladies who live together in a big apartment in the center of london, notice you, your wits, your courage, and decide to take you in. that's how your new life starts.

pile 2: 4 of swords/truce, 3 of disks (pentacles)/works - you're a person living under a dictatorship. you've always wished for freedom, but haven't seen anything other than prison bars, literal or metaphorical. one day you meet a strange person at the bar. they talk to you, and word by word, you find out that there's a revolution being planned. they invite you in their own place, where you are finally able to express all those freedom ideals you've been keeping to yourself all that time. there's no actual revolution happening in the country yet, but the plans are growing more and more grandiose. but just yet, you and your revolutionary friends are full of hopes, you spread your ideas all around the country, you get in the way of the tyrant government, you're fighting, living, loving and building deep connections with each other. for the union! for the revolution!

pile 3: 10 of cups/satiety, 7 of cups/debauch - alice in wonderland time! you find yourself in a really weird place, where everything is symbolic, mysterious, enigmatic. all that you encounter on your way is meant to teach you something, to help you find true meaning of your life. you meet creatures on your way, some symbolise your fears, some - your hopes, some - your past traumas. in the end of the path you finally gained wisdom! your friends are with you, your enemies are long defeated. but you don't think that's the end, right? time to share your wisdom with others!

this is my first pick a pile! enjoy! i used thoth tarot because i like using it for wise and out of this world stuff.

[thin-white-marmaduke]

David Bowie (British, 1947-2016)

Arcane Series: Lovers, Death, Star, Moon, Earth, 1975 five hand-pulled silkscreen prints on Japan paper, each signed, dated and numbered 25 of 50 by Bowie in pencil to the lower margin 86.5 x 58.5cm (34 x 23in) each, (5)

Footnotes

arcane (adj.) understood by few, mysterious or secret Created in the mid-1970s, these five images by David Bowie, based upon the Thoth Tarot cards of famed British occultist Aleister Crowley, comprise the Arcane Series: Lovers, Death, Star, Moon and Earth. They are the foremost visual representation of David Bowie's interest in the esoteric and, following occultist practice, correspond to the pathways between the sephiroth on the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. The prints were produced around the same time as the writing of Station to Station (1975/1976), the Arcane Series draws from the same well of inspiration. Bowie's 'kooky' interests and dalliances are well documented, as is the case for his lifelong intrigue and active exploration of, the esoteric and mysterious. Early, clear examples in his songwriting are heard in Quicksand from the Hunky Dory LP. (July 1971), with the bold opening lines, "I'm closer to the Golden Dawn, immersed in Crowley's uniform, Of imagery." And it was to be Crowley's tarot set that Bowie turned to for inspiration when creating a personal series of five artworks that became known as the Arcane Series. The series of images were first intended as Christmas cards, but were published in Los Angeles in 1975 as large-size silkscreens in an edition of 50 sets, each piece hand signed, dated and numbered. Bowie only gifted these to close friends and family on select occasions, thus they are rare and seemingly held personal meaning for Bowie to have gifted them only to those he held a bond with. As a result, it is unlikely that 50 full sets were ever issued – signed, numbered and dated – and a small number of unsigned editions have been located with former colleagues and friends, which adds weight to this theory. Few have made it to the open market, and little was known of their meaning until more recently. They are an artistic representation of the 1975 climax of various esoteric interests Bowie had followed, a similar mass of influences that led to the Thin White Duke, 'Station to Station', his move from Los Angeles to Berlin, and much early-career activity. Following practices of the 'Golden Dawn', Bowie used numerology to guide his choice of cards from the Major Arcana – selecting Lovers (no. VI), Death (no. XIII), Star (no. XVII), Moon (no. XVIII) and Earth/Universe (no. XXI). The sum of these cards equates to 75; 1975 being the year he created the artworks. Provenance David Bowie, U.S.A., 1975 Private Collection, U.K. (RCA Label Executive, gifted by Bowie late-1970s) Acquired from the above by the present owner, 2019

Source.

[eating-izabella]

This card represents the triumph of ecstasy over shame. Underneath the lion you can see the folded hands and dour faces of the holy men of old. She holds aloft the Holy Grail, filling it with new sources of divine energy. Her ecstasy alters creation, since it ripples through the astral, streaming serpent-like in all directions. Her self-affirmation hastens the demise of the old world and helps usher in the new one. Like all forms of yoga, the purpose of tantra is union with the divine. But whereas yoga stresses self-denial, tantra seeks union through self-surrender. Tantra uses the passions of the soul to channel currents of divine energy. In this sense, it crosses the boundary that traditionally separates magic from mysticism. This path does not seek only union, but also the transformation of oneself and one's world.

[saganssorcery]

The Empress is using methods that are scientifically proven to bring about harmony and growth. Looking after ourselves, and others, is just as much of a science as it is an art. Figuring out the ways that actually make us feel better takes persistent observation, and careful documentation, of what does and doesn't help. This is one of the most clever and caring ways of showing true love.

Sagan's Sorcery 🔥🖋️

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𝘿𝙞𝙨𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙧: 𝘋𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘥𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘥𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘥 18+. 𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘯-𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥. 𝘖𝘶𝘵𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘨𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘦𝘥. 𝘉𝘺 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘴𝘦.

[panjackdaw]

To the Sun, Eternal Witness

O great golden eye who rises without asking, pouring memory through bone and root, I stand in the hush of your first breath and feel the shadows flee.

You do not speak— yet every leaf leans to listen. You do not judge— yet you uncover all that hides.

I have wandered under moons and behind veils of cloud, but still your flame writes my name in the silence of my cells.

Burn away what is not truth. Unmask the spirit clothed in sleep. Teach me how to open without fear of being seen.

With every turning, you remind me— what is real never hides from light.

[taladraketarot]

What makes the Thoth deck different? And why are people afraid of it?

Most tarot decks focus on divination, including the well-known Rider-Waite deck. It follows the Fool on his journey through life and the world in order to help you understand yourself and your own journey more deeply. The Rider-Waite deck was imbued with esoteric mysticism and symbolism by Pamela Coleman Smith, then stamped with Christian mysticism by Arthur Edward Waite. It’s the most influential and widely used tarot deck in the world today.

Aleister Crowley and Lady Freida Harris’s Thoth deck is a creation myth. The Fool still jaunts through the cards from the birth of the elements to the death of the universe, but the focus isn’t on divination - it’s on a meditative exploration of who you are and where you’re at in your life right now. It asks you, quite brutally and directly, what’s working and what isn’t, then offers advice drawn from science and then combined with esoteric and occult wisdom from all around the world. 

The Thoth deck is dark and dramatic and beautiful and scary, but that’s because life is dark and dramatic and beautiful and scary. But at its core, the deck is about finding a way to be true to yourself in such a world. And it’s about love. Universal, unconditional love. Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Love is the law, love under will. Crowley may have been the worst example of his own philosophy, and that’s at least one reason the deck is seen as so demonic in spite of its quite fluffy foundations. Another is the confronting nature of the cards themselves. They force you to look at yourself honestly. But there’s also hope swirling through every one of those cards, and advice to help you make that hope a practical reality. Crowley may not have been able to help himself, but he did, at least, try to help the rest of us. 

[zizzywala]

Tarot Reading 80

Deck: Thoth

Question: What advice will help me today?

Card: 10 of Swords

Resources used: Esoteric Meanings (website)

Maaaaan

It’s back! Let’s try to define it first.

The ten of swords is called ruin and is about fear of madness, hitting rock bottom, betrayal, digging yourself into a hole and having nowhere to go but up. I can’t remember what else.

To interpret it, maybe I have reached the logical conclusion of something and I need to let it go now. It’s brought me nothing but potential ruin or defeat and I oughta turn my attention to more worthwhile things.

Let’s look at Esoteric Meanings.

It talks about negative thinking disrupting the heart and the potential for loss of possessions and financial ruin. And a lot of stuff about mars and saturn and the symbols on the swords that I skimmed. It says there’s still hope because the solar influence rules.

I think that’s good for now. I’ll revisit this later. Thanks.

[krakenteacups]

Looking back, this pull for the new year for me from Eu on 01/02 has been extremely correct:

Knowing, deep seeing, manifesting, community, growth, nature, joie de vivre, trust, luck, prosperity (not just monetarily, but yes monetarily). Was already on the path, but these last few months have been pretty wondrous and beautiful in what is being built, and the resilience all around and in me 🖤