I came way, way early over to the other side of Tokyo so I could stop by a shop (Ryukado, ) that specializes in Tarot decks. Really, it's a shop that sells a lot of useless junk (takarazuka posters for the most part) but that has a little window with about fifty decks available for purchase.
I took a look at two of the decks, The Secret Tarot and two versions of the Thoth deck, but ended up only purchasing the smaller version of the Thoth deck. I've been studying some of the differences between it and the Rider-Waite for the past hour, and just gave myself my first Cross reading with it.
This deck is exhilirating. The color and power of the imagery is splendid and at times overpowering. I had been wanting to purchase a new deck for the longest time, but have always been turned off it for one reason or another: "cheapness" of the theme, lack of symbolic depth, too Christian or otherwise ideological in its implications...
The Thoth has none of the first two faults, but certainly it falls victim to the last. Cards have been renamed and orders have been recombined, partly to fix "errors" but also to illustrate the story of Thelema, "the religion of the future." That story, which details the end of the outmoded Osirean Aeon and the beginning of the enlightened Aeon of Horus, can be dazzlingly interesting but it conflicts with some of my basic views about the world: that there is nothing inherently "wrong" with our age or time, that human beings "don't " require progression into a "higher" plane of existence before they are valid as spiritual beings, etc.
Dealing with conflicting ideologies has been the story of my spiritual life for about the past six months. There are very few people over here who get the ideas of paganism, sacrifice, reciprocity, and stewardship of the Earth on an deep level. I've really enjoyed listening and learning from others' viewpoints, but the deeper I go the more I run into complications I'm not entirely comfortable with.
The problem isn't just with people. The Thoth deck, it seems, is predisposed toward a view of the world that, if enacted sometime in the future, I probably wouldn't like. However, as I've come to terms with my own beliefs, I've also realized that I can deal with different-minded people in one of two ways: I can fight with them or ignore them, or I can listen and try to understand them.
I hope I've always kept to the high road in these discussions, but even if I haven't, it's time renew my committment to doing so.
Once we got past some of the initial differences in viewpoints, my magickal group has come to understand me more. I in turn feel more comfortable working within their Neoplatonic, mystery-heavy system. Neither of us believe we must lastingly change each other's viewpoints in order to work together. In the same fashion, by letting the Thoth deck speak for itself, I can evaluate what it has to offer on its own terms. Will I be able to glean anything useful from it? Who knows, that's a question for later. I have no desire to change anyone else's view of the world if they find meaning in it. In the same way, I'll take whatever I can from this new deck.
Preliminary results: what amazing things this deck has to say. I could stare at this reading for hours. Maybe I will:
Significator - 6 of Cups (Pleasure)
Crossed with - 5 of Swords (Futility)
Root cause - 9 of Swords (Strength)
Waning influence - Knight of Cups
Recent times/alternate future - The Sun
Waxing influence - Ace of Cups
Significator, restated - Death
Outsider's views - Defeat
Hopes and Fears, Support for the Outcome - The Chariot
The Outcome - The Magus
This has so much personal resonance and meaning for me. The symbologies (a very-20th-century take on esoteric traditions of the world) draw me in. I can feel the power of this deck...
Just because people (and as I am rapidly becoming an animist, "things") hold radically different assumptions and beliefs, doesn't mean they have nothing to teach me. I'm starting to believe that one's personal culture (the best and most relevant type of culture) should neither be guarded too strongly or given away too freely, it should merely "be examined."
Origin: witch-selena.blogspot.com
