The Meaning of Tarot Cards

Often books on Tarot will go into detail, speculating on the meaning of the Tarot cards; citing historical references (older speculations) and attempting to explain the relevance of this to Interpretations via Cartomancy. Through the process of authors researching other authors' books, an assortment of explanations have been honed to mutual consensus.

Now I will tell you the real reason for Tarot decks, what they are and how they are organized. In the past, Magic was banned by the church and its practice was punishable by death. The Tarot is a secret book of instructions showing exactly how to do it, designed to avoid detection and censorship. The following is its fundamental engineering:

A Circle may be drawn and divided into 12 equal segments. A circle of 360 degrees will thus contain 30 degrees each. Therefore each sign is under the Rulership of the Triple aspect of Divinity expressed through the complete Sephiroth (3x10=30). Each segment will be represented by a sign. Each sign will be divided into 3 equal parts of 10 degrees each, called the Decans of that sign. There are 36 of these Decans. Each Decan has its own set of Angels: a Day Angel and a Night Angel; drawn from the Shemhamaphoresh, the 72 letter God-Name, in pairs (36x2=72). These 3-5 letter Names are the Names of the Genii of the Mercury Sphere.

There are discrepancies in the assignments. Some start with 1 degree Aries and line them up from there; others (notably the Lineages affiliated with Eliaphas Levi and the Golden Dawn) begin from Cor Leonis (due to the progression of the equinoxes ) and line them up from there. For Our purposes neither method is as important as Esoterics: personal recognition and induction.

Next, a planet is assigned to each Decan. The Golden Dawn uses the Chaldean method while others use the Jyotishi method (cadence/triplicities).

Now the minor Arcana (the 'pip's) of the Tarot deck are lined up, one per Decan, according to sequence and the Presiding Element of the Sign expressed as a suite (Wands=Fire, Cups=Water, etc.).

The Face value of each card is prescribed according to the attributes thus accrued. The combination of the Sign and the Planet of its relevant Decan, the Angel of the Decan, and the number of the pip expressed in a given Sephirah is used to determine the meaning of the card that has been played.

The 360 degrees, then includes the entire panorama of our ego-centric perspective; our Great Circle.  Of course, the various actions within and proximate to that Circle (extension, attraction, mediation, integration) are performed by the Agents nearest to Us. This relationship is a chain of cause and effect but can be rather mechanical and automatic if not directed by an orderly purpose. It is to the Benefit of All that Order and Purpose are Universal. We will begin with the Orders that are closest to us:

The 360 Heads of the Zone Girdling the Earth  (these are Intelligences)

These heads, which I will now describe in detail, hold in constant harmony, in

the zone girdling the earth, all actions and conditions.

In harmony because of the Sun; actions relate to applied force (=physical 'work') conditions relate to the Astral (the circumstances necessary to bring such actions about; an extension of the Space-Time continuum)

Each head is a high

intelligence with all the faculties that any being of this sphere may possess.

So, for instance, a magician can be informed by any of these heads about the

past, the present and the future of our physical world, and each head, by

force of the Akasha-principle, can affect our earth.

Via Akasha principle means God (or the Holy Spirit of God) acting through each head; 'by transferring a volt into the Akasha Principle

Apart from this each head