Chapter 54
CHAPTER XX.
THE DIVINING TAROT IN SEVEN LESSONS.
Introduction: To our Lady Readers — Astronomy and Astrology —
Intuition — Fortune-telling by the Tarot in Seven Lessons.
1st Lesson: Simplification of the Rules of Fortune-telling by the
Tarot.
2nd Lesson : Minor Areana — Significations — A good Memory un-
necessary for their retention — Key to the Divining Tarot —
Sceptres — Cups — Swords — Pentacles.
3rd Lesson: Major Arcana — Significations from a Divining Point of
View.
4th Lesson: Basis of the Application of this Knowledge — Arrange-
ment of the Cards.
5th Lesson : Reading the Tarot — Rapid Process — Elaborate Process.
6th Lesson : Etteila's original and unpublished Method of reading the
Tarot (from one of his rarest works) : 1st deal — 2nd deal — 3rd
deal — 4th deal.
1th Lesson : Conclusion — Bibliography.
THE DIVINING TAROT.
INTRODUCTION.
To our Lady Readers — Astronomy and Astrology — Intuition
— Fortune-telling hy the Tarot in Seven Lessons.
The first part of our study of the Tarot, full of numbers,
of Hebrew letters, and abstract deductions, is not calcu-
lated to attract the attention of ladies. But if women
302 THE TAROT.
enjoy mystery and idealism, prefer and excuse the flights
of a vivid imagination, men exact precision and method
in studies of this kind, and I have therefore built this
arsenal of technical arguments for them, confining imagin-
ation in the narrow limits of deduction ; so that, if she
has sometimes escaped and scattered the brilliant gems
of illusion over the course of my work, the escape was only
made with great trouble, and in spite of my efforts to
retain her. It is, however, traditional that the future can
be read through the Tarot, and our feminine readers will
never forgive me if I ignore their natural curiosity on
this point.
I have therefore decided to approach this delicate
question, and I hope that the pleasure gained by the fair
inquirers will balance the scepticism of sterner intellects.
It is true that I can quote the opinion of all the writers
of antiquity, who assert that the Egyptians used the Tarot
as a means of predicting the future, and that the Jews also
employed it to confirm their prophecies. But in my
opinion an important distinction should be made on this
subject.
Unquestionably the Egyptians predicted the future
through the Tarot ; but they used its astronomical appli-
cations only. Nothing was left to chance. Thus, knowing
that most of the important events which take place upon
the earth are determined by the magnetic currents pro-
duced by the position of the earth at the moment that the
event takes place, these learned men first denned the
relations existing between the position of the stars in the
heavens, and the circumstances they created upon the
earth. Since the stars accomplish fixed revolutions, that
is to say, that they return to the same position at the end
of a certain number of years, which are mathematically
THE DIVINING TAROT. 303
determinable, the Egyptians thought that the same events
would be also reproduced at fixed intervals. It would
therefore suffice to know the movements of the stars, to
predict the coming events. This is why astronomy was only
the commencement of astrology.
As the Taiot reproduced the movements of the stars
upon a table, we can easily guess how the ancients pro-
ceeded when they read prophecy by its aid. They drew
up the Horoscope of the coming year, according to the
position which the stars would occupy during its course,
and could then at once predict two-thirds of the events
likely to occur. Fabre d'Olivet in his works shows that
one-third of the events are Determined, another third
depend upon the Human Will, and the last third is subject
to Providence. As the determining Fatality and the
human Will usually unite, almost unconsciously, we see
that the astrological Horoscope can predict two -thirds of
the events.
Later on reliable data were lost, and men commenced
to read fortunes by chance, without using any scientific
method. The astrological systems, called onomantic, that
is to say, which use the numbers formed by the letters
of the name and pronoun of the individual, are generally
false, and produce no practical results. For this reason
the astrological system described by Christian can be
regarded only as a deceitful, lying dream. The truth of
the predictions, then, depends upon the intuition of the
prophet, and this leads us to consider the differences which
may be noticed between the predictions of fortune-tellers.
Intuition plays the most important part when the more
exact methods disappear, and therefore woman's nature,
which is essentially intuitive, is well qualified to read these
divinations.
304 THE TAROT.
The discussion of the wherefore of all this would lead us
much too far from our subject. We cannot either teach
astrology by the Tarot in a few pages — a whole volume
is necessary for this purpose — nor have we the time to
handle these difficult subjects. Perhaps we may decide
to undertake them some day.
However, we see that chance and intuition are the chief
instruments in divination by the Tarot, as it is usually
practised at the present time. We must therefore aid our
readers to undertake it for themselves, and will now
explain the most simple principles of the art, dividing them
into seven lessons, so as to render them as clear as
possible.
We will arrange them so that they may be complete,
and therefore it will be unnecessary to read all the pre-
ceding abstract studies before using the Tarot from this
point of view. Lastly, we will explain the principal
methods used by masters in the art of fortune-telling, so
as to enable our readers to become adepts in the pre-
diction of the future. But we must remind them that
science has little empire over the subject, and that
imagination and intuition reign over this charming
domain.
FIRST LESSON.
SIMPLIFICATION OF THE RULES OF FORTUNE-TELLING BY
THE TAROT.
The great difficulty encountered by a beginner in the
study of divination by the Tarot, is the number of meanings
to be remembered in reading the cards.
Open any treatise upon this subject, and you will see
that you must first learn the different significations of the
78 cards of the Tarot. Then you must learn the significa-
tions of these 78 cards reversed, without counting the
meetings and other complications, which bring them to
about 200 different meanings, which must be retained in
the memory before any one can become a good fortune-
teller by cards. Habit only will enable the student to
remember all these details, and in this case intuition
becomes an important aid to the memory.
Now this complication always points to an imperfect
system. Nature is synthetic in its manifestations, and
simplicity is always found at the bottom of the most
outwardly complicated phenomena. Whilst admitting
that our work upon the Tarot may be erroneous, no one
can deny the absolute simplicity of the constituent prin-
ciples. We will therefore apply the same method to the
306 THE TAROT.
divining Tarot, and endeavour to establish a system which
will enable us to dispense with memory almost entirely,
or at least to considerably reduce its work. We shall thus
allow a certain scope for scientific data, although we are
unwilling to create any prejudice by this influence, con-
sidering the subject we are dealing with.
The first point to retain from the commencement of
this study is the necessity for clear, simple rules, by which
the divining Tarot may be read. We will explain them
in the following lessons.
SECOND LESSON.
MINOR ARCANA.
SIGNIFICATION FROM THE DIVINING POINT OF VIEW.
The Tarot pack is composed of 78 cards or plates ;
22 of them bear symbolical names (the Juggler, Sun,
Moon, Hanged Man, etc.), and they should be separated
from the 56 others, which are divided into four great
series : Sceptres, Cups, Swords, and Pentacles.
These four series each contain 14 cards (King, Queen,
Knight, Knave, Ace, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10), corre-
sponding with the four series of common playing cards
(clubs, hearts, spades, diamonds), but called Sceptres, Cups,
Swords, Pentacles. These are the Minor Arcana.
The 22 symbolical cards are the Major Arcana or Great
Arcana.
1. Minor arcana, formed of four sequences of 14
cards each, or 56 cards in all.
2. Major arcana, formed of 22 cards.
These are the two great divisions which must first be
remembered.
We have already said that the minor arcana were
divided into four sequences : Sceptres, Cups, Swords,
Pentacles. Each of these series represents one of the four
great principles, as follows —
308 • THE TAROT.
The Sceptres represent Enterprise and Glory.
The Cups — Love and Happiness.
The Swords — Hatred and Misfortune.
The Pentacles — Money and Interest.
Enterprise, Love, Hatred, Fortune, are the four
great principles which must be remembered.
If you now take one of these packets of 14 cards, you
will see that it is formed of four figures, and of 10 other
cards, which bear numbers formed by the symbols.
We will first look at the 4 figures —
The King represents Man.
Tlie Queen — Woman.
The Knight — A Young Man.
The Knave — A Child.
The Man represents the creator, the one who undertakes
the enterprises ; the woman characterizes love ; the young
man, conflict, struggle, rivalry, hatred ; the child symbolizes
the absolute neuter, the second He, which varies according
to circumstances, money, which addresses itself to all, and
applies itself to all, universal transition. Man, Woman,
Young Man, Child, are therefore the same symbols applied
to the family as the four great principles applied to
humanity, and to know them in one case is to know them
in the other.
To sum up all this, we may say that the first element
represents the positive, the second the negative, the third
the opposition between the two ; finally, the last the
absolute neuter ; and these elements are symbolized by the
four figures of each of the minor arcana.
But even as the cards are divided into two colours, red
and black, so humanity is divided into dark and fair.
The eight figures of the Sceptres and Swords therefore
THE DIVINING TAROT 309
represent dark people, the eight figures of the Cups and
Pentacles, fair people.
The figures of the Sceptres and Cups are good ; of the
Swords and Pentacles, had.
We shall presently repeat this in connection with each
colour, and will now recapitulate the meanings of the
four figures of the Sceptres.
King of Sceptres : Dark man ; good ; a friend.
Queen of Sceptres : Dark woman ; good.
Knight of Sceptres : Dark young man ; good.
Knave of Sceptres : Dark child or messenger ; good.
Besides our four figures we have to consider the 10
cards bearing numbers. How can we discover the
meaning of these 10 cards, and above all how can we
recall it ?
We have nothing new to learn, but need only apply all
that we already know. We divide our 10 cards into four
packets : three packets of 3 cards each, and one packet
formed of a single card, the 10th. When this is done we
say—
The first packet of 3 cards, formed of the ace, 2, and
3, will have the same meaning as the Man, enterprise,
commencement, the creation of some undertaking (enter-
prise, love, hatred, or money).
The second packet, composed of the 4, 5, and 6, repre-
sents Woman, and all the ideas of negation, of reflection,
associated with her; that is to say, the opposite of man,
antagonism, opposition in any matter.
The third packet signifies the equilibrium which results
from the action of the two opposites upon each other,
represented by the Young Man.
310 THE TAROT.
Lastly, the Child, the absolute neuter, will be represented
by the 10th card.
Each of the 3 cards in these packets have the same
meaning.
The first card of these 3 packets will indicate the com-
mencement; the second, opposition, antagonism ; the third,
equilibrium, which gives us the following general sequence
in our 10 cards.
KEY TO THE DIVINING TAEOT.
1. Commencement
2. Opposition \ of Commencement.
3. Equilibrium
4. Commencement
5. Opposition J- of Opposition.
6. Equilibrium
7. Commencement
8. Opposition J- of Equilibrium.
9. Equilibrium
10. Undetermined : The card which follows will explain it.
Thus the three words, Commencement, Opposition,
Equilibrium, the synonyms of Thesis, Antithesis, Synthesis,
or of Brahma, Siva, Vishnu, etc., suffice for the explanation
of all the minor arcana of the Tarot. We need only add
the words love, hatred, enterprise or fortune to each of
the series, and we can define the meaning of every card
without wearying the memory. This we will now do.
THE DIVINING TAROT.
311
Queen.
Knight.
Knave.
SIGNIFICATION OF THE FOUR SERIES OF THE MINOR
ARCANA IN THE DIVINING TAROT.
SCEPTRES.
Creation. Enterprise. Agriculture.
King. The King of Sceptres symbolizes a dark man,
a friend. He generally represents a married
man, the father of a family.
A dark woman, a friend. Represents a serious
woman, a very good counsellor, often the
mother of a family.
A dark young man, a friend.
A dark child, a friend. Also represents a
message from a near relation.
Ace of Sceptres. Commencement of an Enterprise.
Two. Opposition to the commencement of the Enter
prise.
The Enterprise is commenced when an un-
expected obstacle suddenly prevents its
execution.
Realization of the commencement of the Enter-
prise.
The basis of the work is now definitely
established, and the undertaking can be
fearlessly continued.
Obstacles to the Enterprise.
Nothing can be accomplished without ob-
stacles. We therefore now find them
appearing, and must prepare ourselves to
overcome them.
Opposition to the obstacles. Victory after
surmounting them.
Three.
Four.
Five.
312 THE TAROT. .
Six. Realization of the opposition.
At last the obstacles succeed. Failure of the
Enterprise in the midst of its execution.
Seven. Certain success to the Enterprise.
Eight. Opposition to its success. The Enterprise will
only partially succeed.
Nine. Realization of success. Success is continued.
Ten. Uncertainty in the management of the Enter-
prise.
CUPS.
Preservation. Love. Instruction.
Knowing the meaning of one series, we know à priori
the significations of the three others. We shall however
give them in order to facilitate the work.
King of Cups. A fair man, a friend. This card also repre-
sents a barrister, judge, or ecclesiastic. It
symbolizes a Bachelor.
Queen of Cups. A fair woman, a friend. The woman loved.
The Mistress.
Knight of Cups. A young fair man, a friend. The young man
loved. The Lover.
Knave of Cups. A fair child. A messenger. Birth.
Ace of Cups. Commencement of a love affair.
Two. Opposition to this commencement. Unimport-
ant obstacles raised by one of the lovers.
Three. Realization of this commencement. The love
is mutual.
Four. Serious obstacles to the love. They arise from
other persons, not from the lovers.
Five. ' Opposition to the obstacles. Victory over the
obstacles after a struggle.
THE DIVINING TAROT. 313
Six. The obstacles triumph. Love destroyed in the
midst of happiness. Widowhood.
Seven. Success assured to the lovers.
Eight. Partial failure of love. Love only partially
succeeds.
Nine. Motherhood.
Ten. Uncertainty in the management of the love
affair.
SWORDS.
Transformation. Hatred. War.
King op Swords. A dark, bad man. He is a soldier, a
powerful enemy, who must be distrusted.
Queen op Swords. A dark wicked woman. The card also indi-
cates her actions, gossip and calumnies.
Knight. A young, dark man, an enemy. He is also
a spy.
Knave. A child, an enemy. Bad news. Delay.
The figures generally indicate opposition raised outside
the house.
Ace op Swords. Commencement of enmity.
Two. Opposition to this commencement. The
enmity does not last.
Three. Realization of the enmity. Hatred.
Four. Opposition to the hatred. Success against
the enemy.
Five. Opposition to this opposition. The enemy
triumphs at the moment one fancies the
victory is secured.
Six. Equilibrium of the opposition. The enemy
is rendered powerless at last.
Seven. Success assured to the enemy.
314 THE TAROT.
Eight. Partial opposition to this success. The
enemy only partially triumphs.
Nine. Certain duration of the hatred.
Ten. Uncertainty in the enmity.
PENTACLES.
Development. Money. Trade.
King of Pentacles. A fair man, inimical or indifferent.
Queen of Pentacles. A fair woman, indifferent, or inimical.
Knight. A young, fair man. A stranger. An
arrival.
Knave. A fair child. A messenger. A letter.
The figures of the Pentacles are inverse to those of the
Sceptres and Cups, and indicate all that comes from
outside, from the country or abroad.
Ace of Pentacles. Commencement of fortune. Inheritance.
Gifts. Economy, etc., etc.
Two. Opposition to this commencement. Diffi-
culty in well establishing the first land-
marks of good fortune.
Three. Realization of this commencement of
fortune. A small sum.
Four. Opposition of fortune. Loss of money.
Five. Opposition to this opposition. A success
coming which will balance the loss.
Six. Eealization of the opposition. Ruin.
Seven. Success assured. A large fortune.
Eight. Partial success. Great loss of money at
the moment apparently of definitely
securing the fortune.
THE DIVINING TAROT. 315
Nine. Equilibrium of Equilibrium. A durable
fortune.
Ten. Uncertainty in the fortune. Great success
and great reverses.
As a whole, we see the same series always repeating
themselves. It therefore requires little time to
thoroughly learn the meaning of the minor arcana, even
without much memory. We advise those readers who
fear they may forget them, to simply write the meaning
on the cards themselves. However, professional card
readers are careful not to do this, for intuition often leads
them to an interpretation which differs from the exact
meaning of the card.
THIRD LESSON.
MAJOR ARCANA.
SIGNIFICATION FROM THE DIVINING POINT OF VIEW.
We now know the signification of the minor arcana, and
need only study the major arcana.
As we have already stated, the major arcana consist of
22 symbolical cards, which we have not yet examined as
a means of predicting the future.
Their meaning is very easy to remember, if any one will
take the trouble to consider them carefully one by one, as
their signification is described.
One general rule will also aid the memory in this
matter, that is, that the seven first cards chiefly refer to
the intellectual side of man, the seven next to his moral
mole, and the seven last to the various events of his material
life.
We will now give the signification of these 22 cards of
our Tarot —
1. The Juggler signifies Male Inquirer.
2. The High Priestess — Female Inquirer.
3. The Empress — Action. Initiative.
4. The Emperor — Will.
5. The Pope — Inspiration.
6. The Lovers — Love.
THE DIVINING TAROT.
317
7. The Chariot
8. Justice
9. The Hermit
10. The Wheel of Fortune
11. Strength
12. The Hanged Man
13. Death
14. Temperance
15. T/ie DemZ
16. T/ie Lightning-struck
Tower
17. 7%e Store
18. The Moon
19. The Sun
20. T/ie Judgment
21. T/ie JfaoZM Ifan
22. 7%e Universe
Triumph. Providential Pro-
tection.
Justice.
Prudence.
Fortune. Destiny.
Strength. Fortitude.
Trials. Sacrifice.
Death.
Temperance. Economy.
Immense Force. Illness.
Ruin. Deception.
Hope.
Hidden Enemies. Danger.
Material Happiness. Lucky
Marriage.
Change of Position.
Inconsiderate Actions. Mad-
ness.
Assured Success.
FOURTH LESSON.
BASIS OF THE APPLICATION OF THESE DATA.
ARRANGEMENT OF THE CARDS.
We are now in a position to handle the Tarot as a means
of divination.
But before we attempt to read it, we must settle how
to arrange the cards upon the table.
To know the meaning of the cards is only the first step
in the art of cartomancy ; to know how to arrange them
is still more important. As a fact, the astronomical data
should not be lost sight of, and the Tarot ought only to
be used to represent the revolutions of the stars, the
source of future events ; but that is the realm of Astrology,
and we must confine ourselves to that of telling fortunes
by the Tarot cards, and their combinations depend a little
upon chance.
We shall, however, give as many reliable elements in
this study as possible. We need only look back to the
commencement of the third part (Key to the Applications
of the Tarot), to see that the human life passes through
the four great periods of —
Childhood.
Youth.
Maturity.
Old Age.
THE DIVINING TAROT. 319
If the student is not interested in Human Life, and
simply wishes to see the evolution of an event, it will also
pass through four great evolutions —
Commencement.
Apogee.
Decline.
Fall.
We must then first determine, in our arrangement of
the cards, four points facing each other in pairs, upon
which we can afterwards place the cards which are to
reveal the future to us.
This, therefore, is our first point : the determination of
the four places 'which the cards will occupy.
4
Apogee
Youth
1
3
Commencement
Decline
Childhood
2
Fall
Maturity
Old Age
•
We must notice that the disposition of the points goes
from left to right. This is seen by the order of the numbers,
whilst the symbols are read from right to left.
The Human Life or the Event moves in three very
distinct periods —
The Past.
The Present.
The Future.
Which gives us a new figure as follows —
320
THE TAROT.
4
Future
The Inquirer is found in the Centre. The arrangement
of the triangle follows that of the figures and not of the
symbols.
However, since four points are not enough to reproduce
the movement of the sun exactly, wTe take, for important
readings of the Tarot, twelve points which correspond
with the twelve months of the year. The figure already
obtained will, at any rate, serve as a means of consulting
the Tarot upon small events. But we can also get the
following figure, which we must remember for the arrange-
ment of our cards when we wish to inquire about great
events or the course of a lifetime.
THE DIVINING
TAROT.
10
11
IL
9
12
Apogee
8
V.
Future
VI.
Commence-
\ Inquirer
III.
Decline
ment
^ \ /
VII.
2
IV.
Fall
6
321
This figure, which is very important and should be
carefully studied, is composed of three circles,
1. An outside circle, formed of twelve, houses, filled by the
minor arcana. The houses are arranged from left to right ;
this is shown by the numbers.
2. A second intermediate circle, composed of four houses,
arranged from right to left.
3. A central circle, formed by the triangle, and contain-
ing a house at each point, giving three houses in the circle.
The last three houses and the four preceding ones will
be filled by the mccjor arcana.
The Inquirer will be in the centre of the figure.
FIFTH LESSON.
FORTUNE-TELLING BY THE TAROT.