Numerology of the Cards

There are no assignments in Tarot Share, but there are suggestions. At yesterday's Tarot Share, we talked about an exercise to get more acquainted with the numerology of Tarot.

There are 22 Major Arcana. 21 have numbers on them. The Fool does not. He is 0. He weaves in and out wherever he wishes. The Fool is a card which joins the end to the beginning and, as Uranus, he certainly ends and begins things.

Exercise behind cut -- click to read more:




TRY THIS:


Place the Fool to the side, face down. He is out of play for the moment. Take the next nine cards (all the single digit numbers) and lay them out in a row.


The cards:

1. Magician, 2. High Priestess,  3. Empress, 4. Emperor, 5. Hierophant,  6. Lovers,  7. Chariot  8. Strength, 9. Hermit

Your row of cards will begin with Magician and end with Hermit -- with your placement of Strength or Justice as card number 8.


Note: you will eventually have to make up your own mind about the placement of cards 8 and 11. I choose to go with the Golden Dawn and the Raider Waite placement, as that is astrological pleasing to me. There are more decks that place Justice as card 8 and Strength as card 11, but the other placement makes more sense to me and I use that instead.


Card number 10 is Wheel of Fortune. When you add the numbers together to get a single number, you add 1+0 and the number is reduced to 1. Place Wheel of Fortune (card 10) with Magician (card 1). Sun, as number 19 (1+9) reduces to 10, which furthur reduces to 1. Three cards are now in the place of the number One: Magician, Wheel of Fortune, and Sun.

Card number 11 will then be placed with card number 2. In my case, I'll place Justice with the High Priestess. (You may choose Strength as card 11 -- whichever makes the most sense to you). Judgment, card number 20, will also be placed with the High Priestess.

Card number 12 and card number 21 will be placed with Empress. (Empress, Hanged Man, World).
In this same way, continue reducing all of the double-digit numbers to a single number and place those cards with the corresponding number of the first nine. Death will be placed with Emperor. Temperance with Hierophant. Devil with Lovers. Tower with Chariot. Star with Strength (or Justice, depending), Moon with Hermit.


10. Wheel    11. Justice   12.  Hanged Man    13. Death    14.Temperance   15. Devil  16.Tower
17. Star  18. Moon   19. Sun   20. Judgment  21.World

Now take the minor Arcana and place those, according to number, with the Majors. Now you'll have Aces of Air, Fire, Water and Earth with your Magician, Wheel of Fortune, and Sun.

Two of Air, Fire, Water, and Earth will be with the High Priestess, Justice, and Judgement.

Threes will be with the Empress, Hanged Man and World.

What do you see in these groupings of the cards.

Now turn the Fool upright and place him above the groups that you have made. Move him in and out among the groups and use your wild mind/child mind to find the stories of each group of cards. You may want to journal about any particular images that arise, memories of your own story that come to life as you look at the cards. This is a wise, brave and sometimes frightening thing you are doing. Very much like the wise fool who weaves among the cards.

To learn more of the Fool: (soon to come)