the Tarot works, in part, by connecting us to both the collective unconscious and the concept of synchronicity. The collective unconscious, a term coined by Carl Jung, consists of an inherited repository of images, thoughts, feelings, and memories shared by all humanity in all cultures throughout time. These primordial images become archetypal, forming a symbol system, or--as I like to consider the Tarot--a symbolic language. The concept of synchronicity, as defined by Ed Buryn in The William Blake Tarot, "is the notion that all things happening at a given moment are related to each other in a meaningful way. Thus it follows that we can learn about unseen things by examining other things related to them, especially via symbols that connect the unseen with the seen." Is such synchronicity merely coincidence? Is coincidence merely coincidence, for that matter? And should we ignore such messages, or is there something in them for us to ponder? If so, then the Tarot cards, being a collection of universal symbols, pictures, and images, aid us in understanding these messages by connecting us to energies that are already in play. Humans are visual creatures, and as so much of ancient art makes clear (cave paintings, earth works, standing stone monuments, and the like), pictures may have preceded written language. The Tarot, with its series of symbols and images, forms an unwritten code that is readily understood by most people who view it, sometimes with the aid of an interpreter. Just as archangel Gabriel helped the prophet Daniel interpret the visions he saw, the Tarot reader can use the cards to aid others in understanding what they "see" and how they might best use it to advantage. (This is NOT to suggest, however, that Tarot readers are on the same plane as archangels!!) For example, to people in most cultures, the depiction of a skull or skeleton signifies death. And indeed, the Tarot contains a DEATH card, trump XIII. It is up to the Tarot reader, however, to help the client expand that basic symbol from meaning physical death--which it very rarely does in a reading--to the "death" of something in the querent's life. The card frequently presages a release--an instinctive shedding of something, as a tree in autumn loses its leaves or a molting snake sheds its skin (both processes lovingly depicted in the Motherpeace Tarot's version of the DEATH card). To Tarot readers, the DEATH card signifies a willing passage, the closing of one door so that another may open: in short, a step toward transformation...read more...Sunday, 5 September 2010
How The Tarot Talks To Us
the Tarot works, in part, by connecting us to both the collective unconscious and the concept of synchronicity. The collective unconscious, a term coined by Carl Jung, consists of an inherited repository of images, thoughts, feelings, and memories shared by all humanity in all cultures throughout time. These primordial images become archetypal, forming a symbol system, or--as I like to consider the Tarot--a symbolic language. The concept of synchronicity, as defined by Ed Buryn in The William Blake Tarot, "is the notion that all things happening at a given moment are related to each other in a meaningful way. Thus it follows that we can learn about unseen things by examining other things related to them, especially via symbols that connect the unseen with the seen." Is such synchronicity merely coincidence? Is coincidence merely coincidence, for that matter? And should we ignore such messages, or is there something in them for us to ponder? If so, then the Tarot cards, being a collection of universal symbols, pictures, and images, aid us in understanding these messages by connecting us to energies that are already in play. Humans are visual creatures, and as so much of ancient art makes clear (cave paintings, earth works, standing stone monuments, and the like), pictures may have preceded written language. The Tarot, with its series of symbols and images, forms an unwritten code that is readily understood by most people who view it, sometimes with the aid of an interpreter. Just as archangel Gabriel helped the prophet Daniel interpret the visions he saw, the Tarot reader can use the cards to aid others in understanding what they "see" and how they might best use it to advantage. (This is NOT to suggest, however, that Tarot readers are on the same plane as archangels!!) For example, to people in most cultures, the depiction of a skull or skeleton signifies death. And indeed, the Tarot contains a DEATH card, trump XIII. It is up to the Tarot reader, however, to help the client expand that basic symbol from meaning physical death--which it very rarely does in a reading--to the "death" of something in the querent's life. The card frequently presages a release--an instinctive shedding of something, as a tree in autumn loses its leaves or a molting snake sheds its skin (both processes lovingly depicted in the Motherpeace Tarot's version of the DEATH card). To Tarot readers, the DEATH card signifies a willing passage, the closing of one door so that another may open: in short, a step toward transformation...read more...