V. VI.

1 I. \f/ III. 7

VII.

2 6

IV.

3 5

4

Place the Inquirer in the centre of the figure, unless it
has been drawn amongst the other cards. If the Inquirer
has been drawn you must place it in the centre, and replace
it by another major arcanum chosen by the person whose
fate is being studied.

The 12 minor arcana indicate the different phases
through which the individual life will pass, or the evo-
lution of the event during the four great periods : Com-
mencement, indicated by the major arcanum I., which
displays its character ; Apogee (arc. II.) ; Decline or Obstacle
(arc. III.) ; Fall (arc. IV.). '

Lastly, the 3 major arcaua placed in the centre indicate
the especial character of the horoscope in the Past (V.), in
the Present (VI.), and in the Future (VIL).

The future is indicated in the minor arcana by the cards
placed from 7 to 12;

The past by those placed from 1 to 4 ; and the present
by those placed from 4 to 7.

These numbers only indicate the numbers of the places
occupied by the arcana, and never the numbers of the ,

326 THE TAROT.

arcana themselves. It is important to avoid the idea
that the arcanum VII. must always return to the place
numbered VII. But our readers are sufficiently intelligent
to make any further insistence upon this point quite
unnecessary.

The explanation of the meaning of the arcana will be
perfectly easy, when the lessons 2 and 3 have been once
read.

Practice will teach all these details far better than all
the theories in the world.

SIXTH LESSON.

Etteila s oinginal and unpublished Method of Fortune-telling
by the Tarot (from one of his rarest works).

We have explained a method which is original in a
great measure, but as we have no intention of monopolizing
the art of Cartomancy, we will now say a few words upon
the system used by Etteila, the great master in this portion
of occultism.

Etteila, whose real name was Aliette, was a hairdresser's
apprentice who lived at the time of the French Revolution.
Having accidentally found a pack of Tarot cards, he was
interested by its eccentricity and began to study it. After
thirty years he believed that he had discovered the secret
of this Egyptian book. Unfortunately Etteila did not
possess any synthetic knowledge, and this ignorance led
him to the most erroneous conclusions, whilst many of his
intuitive solutions are really marvellous. There is too
much inclination to calumniate this ardent worker ; but
we must recognize the real truths contained in his works
without laying too much stress upon the ignorant simplicity
which disfigures them.

However this may be, Etteila devoted all his powers
to fortune-telling, and if his contemporaries may be believed,

328 THE TAROT.

he succeeded wonderfully in his aim. He therefore be-
came the great authority for all fortune-tellers by cards.

We will describe his system in some detail, instead of
alluding to those used by his female successors, who as a
rule misrepresented without understanding his explanations.

Four deals are required before the Tarot can be clearly
read according to this method : we will now enumerate
them one by one.

First deal : Shuffle all the cards of the Tarot, without
making any distinction between the major and minor
arcana. Then let them be cut, and divide your pack into
three heaps, each containing 26 cards.1

26 26 26

Take the central heap and place it on your right —

26 26 26 on one side

to the right.

. You have still two packets of 26 cards. Take them,
shuffle the cards, cut them, and divide them into three
heaps, each containing 17 cards —

17 17 17

1

One card will remain, but you need not trouble aboutit.

You then take the central packet and put it on your
right hand by the side of the one of 26 cards already
there —

17 * M 17 26 on one side.

1

1 Etteila quite realized that the number 26 corresponded with the
divine name îTl/T, the total being 10 + 5 + 6 + 5 = 26.

vod he vau he

THE DIVINING TAROT. 329

You then take the 35 cards which are not on one side,
shuffle and cut them, then divide them into three heaps
of 11 cards each —

11 11 11

2

Two cards remain, but these are of no consequence ; take
the central packet as before and place it on your right by
the side of those already there —

11 * 11 11 17 26

2

This ended, you collect the 24 cards that you have not
placed on one side, and you are then ready to explain the
oracle.

* *

For this purpose you first take the packet of 26 cards
from your right and lay it upon the table card by card,
going from right to left —

26 1

Then take the packet of 17 cards, which you place
beneath the others, then the 11 cards, which you also
spread out beneath the other two. You then obtain the
following arrangement.

Soul 26 1

Mind 17 1

Eody 11 1

Waste packet
24

You then explain the meaning of the cards, remember-
ing that the lowest line of 11 refers to the body, the centre

330 THE TAROT.

one to the mind, and lastly, the upper line of 26 cards to
the soul of the Inquirer.

From this system of arrangement Etteila deduced his
subtle arguments upon the creation of the Universe, the
Kabbalah, and the Philosopher's Stone. But we need not
linger over it. We will rather pass on to complete this
study of fortune-telling by the Tarot.

Second deal: Reshuffle all your cards (78) and let
them be cut for you.

Take the 17 first cards and arrange them thus —

17 1

Look quickly at the 18th card (it will be under your
hand when you have placed the 17 first) and the 78th,
which will be found beneath the pack.

The meaning of these two cards will tell you whether
any fluidic sympathetic communication is established
between the Inquirer and yourself.

You can then read the oracles spoken by the line of
cards, commencing as usual on the right.

When your line is read, you pass the 17th card to your
right and the 1st to your left, then move the 16th and
the 2nd, etc., and so on until the cards have all changed
places except the one in the centre. This card falls on
one side.1

Third deal: Take up all your cards, let them be
shuffled and cut for you, then arrange them as shown in
the following figure, according to the order of the numbers.

You thus obtain Etteila's great figure, which gives the
key to the Past, Present, and Future of the person about

1 Perhaps we have misunderstood Etteila, who is very obscure in
his books, and whom we are trying to explain ; but this last
operation seems perfectly useless.

THE DIVINING TAROT.

331

whose fate you are inquiring. To use this method success-
fully you must follow this figure very carefully. The best
plan is to draw it with all its numbers upon a table or a
large sheet of cardboard, and then to arrange the cards
according to the order of the numbers.

For reading the results of this figure you must take up

the cards two by two, the 1st with the 34th, the 2nd with
the 35th, etc., for the Past.

The 23rd with the 45th, the 24th with the 46th

the 33rd with the 55th, for the Present.

The 12th with the 66th, the 13th with the 65th

the 22nd with the 56th, for the Future.

One careful survey of the tableau will render it easily
understood.

332 THE TAROT.

Fourth deal : The fourth deal is only subsidiary.
By it answers can be obtained to any questions asked.
Shuffle all the cards, let them be cut, and then deal out the
first seven of the pack thus —

7... 1

then read the answer.

The above system of fortune-telling is based upon
Etteila's original method. We have summed up in these
few pages, an — on some points — obscure pamphlet by this
author — The Booh of Thoth. It contains a portrait of
Etteila and is very rare, like the other works of this
author. We must add that his method has never been
seriously elucidated by any of his numerous disciples;
and we believe ourselves to be one of the first to explain
it upon simple principles.

SEVENTH LESSON.

CONCLUSION.

We have learnt that intuition and practice are necessities
in the art of fortune-telling by cards, now that this art has
lost its scientific principles (Astronomy) and launched into
empiricism. Having made this reserve in our opinion of its
present value, we have studied the best method of applying
the Tarot to this curious practice, and with this object we
have learnt the meaning of the minor and major arcana,
and the best arrangement of the cards for reading them.
With this method, which is chiefly the result of our
previous studies, we were anxious to give one of the most
ancient systems, and chose the one used by Etteila, the
founder of Cartomancy.

Our readers are therefore able to choose whichever
system they prefer, and whichever they find most successful.
We must repeat that intuition is the great secret of all
these divining arts, and that fortune-telling by cards, in
water, in earth, or coffee, is precisely the same thing.

We wished to speak of the modern divining Tarot to
render our work more complete, and our lady readers
will thank us for not ignoring them in these abstract
digressions.

334 THE TAROT.

BIBLIOGRAPHY.

Mademoiselle Lemarchand, Recreation de la Cartomancie.
Paris, 1867, 12mo. R.

Julia Orsini, Le Grand Etteila, ou V Art de Tirer les Cartes.
1853, 8vo. V.

Madame Clement, Le Corbeau Sanglant ou V Avenir Dévoilé.
R.

The works of Etteila we have already quoted.