Howarth-Olds gathered 22 Tarot luminaries and asked them each to write a letter to someone in the past. The letter was to be Tarot related, but beyond that, the sky was the limit.
After all the letters were written, she put them together in a very limited edition book, hand-made and absolutely gorgeous.
In the video below, Moore shows us the book, and reads the letter that she wrote, which wasn’t just to a figure from the past, but to a fictional figure from the past.
Moore wrote to Sherlock Holmes and told him that he’s a lot like the Tarot. And she makes a good argument. If he were ever alive, I’m sure he would agree with her.
I’d love to read the other letters too. The list of participants is impressive.
I posted about the book a while back while it was still in production. It explores the story behind the 23 Tarot images Waite commissioned stained-glass artist J.B. Trinick to create.
There are over 80 colour and black and white plates in the book, commentary on the images, biographies of the main players, and a peek into Waite’s mystical system for spiritual development.
Only 250 copies of this first edition will be made, so it’s kind of special. I decided to treat myself to an early Christmas present and ordered one. I can barely wait to see it.
Hopefully it’ll be published in a mass-market form soon as well. And what I’m really hoping for is a printing of the deck itself.
He’s been studying such things as clairvoyance, psychokinesis, and telepathy from a strictly scientific perspective for years.
And he’s certainly not the only one, as evidenced by the literally thousands of experiments he reviews in his books.
What makes him different is that he’s not afraid to say out loud that he’s seriously interested in such a ‘woo woo’ topic. A topic he describes as ‘taboo’ within the scientific community.
It’s not because there’s a lack of interest. As he points out, studies have consistently shown that there’s plenty, in both the general population, and that of college professors.
Radin believes it comes down to the culture of science itself, where concepts of religion and spirituality are considered completely irrational, and if not useless, potentially harmful to the search for truth.
Radin thinks otherwise, having found in his own work that there’s plenty of worthwhile research to be done in the consciousness and psychic fields. Not to mention, it’s very very interesting.
#15 The Devil
For me, this discussion brought to mind the Devil card from the Tarot deck. It’s the card I most associate with taboos, and with the breaking of them.
The Devil is very physical, maybe not so rational, but very concerned with the material, with what’s in the ‘real’ world.
His biggest challenge is to connect with the spirit and to avoid becoming so obsessed with the sensations around him that he misses the subtler energies that are also there.
When we’re unable to look beyond the purely physical, we risk getting caught up in the Devil’s trap. He convinces us that what we see is all there is, and that it’s dangerous to check for ourselves to make sure he’s right.
It’s a shame if scientists, known for their intelligence and objectivity, tie themselves to this devil-like attitude. It builds taboos around what can and cannot be explored, and does nothing more than hold us all back.
I’ve posted the 1st, 3rd, and 4th clips from Radin’s talk. It was part of the ‘Conversations from the Edge’ 2006 series in San Francisco.
The first part defines what is a taboo, while the second two discuss the scientific taboos around psychic research.
Unfortunately, due to the snowstorm in the northeast US last night, Beyond Worlds is cancelled today. But the wonderful show with Rachel Pollack described below will be rescheduled as soon as possible. Sorry for any inconvenience.
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Rachel Pollack
Today on Beyond Worlds we have a special time and a very special guest.
It’s an afternoon show with Rachel Pollack, brilliant Tarot writer, deck designer, teacher, and grand mistress of all things esoteric.
By combining a question, some cards, and the reader’s intuition, intellect, and imagination, Tarot can become a magical treasure map leading to the jewels of the soul.
There couldn’t be a better person than Rachel to help us in the quest. I can hardly wait.
We’ll be live in the chat room, or you can call in at (646) 200-0765.
Regardie’s book is facinating, depicting Crowley as human, rather than wicked, delusional or a saint.
It reads as a fair account of the mystic’s life from the perspective of someone who knew him, worked closely with him for a time, and understood well the concepts of magic and initiation.
I’m almost finished the book, so it was kind of a thrill to come across this recording.
In it, Wilson clears up some of the enduring misconceptions about Crowley, while discussing his work and his influences.
He admires Crowley for the inroads he made in the understanding of consciousness, and at one point describes him as a sort of male mix of Sinead O’Connor and Madonna.
There are a lot of different ways to read Tarot cards. All of them involve using the intuitive faculties, but some are more obviously ‘psychic’ than others.
Nancy Antenucci and Melanie Howard have written a wonderful book focusing on this aspect of Tarot. Rather than being concerned with traditional meanings of the cards, they examine how to read them using your psychic senses.
Even if you don’t think you’re psychic, Antenucci and Howard will help get you on the road to believing.
There are exercises galore, spread interpretations, and what they call the Six Principles to Divination, including grounding, intent, form, synchronicity, closure, and integration.
Whether you’re interested in reading just for yourself, or for others, the book helps build confidence in your own inner voice.
I did a lot of the exercises, and really enjoyed myself. I might even be more psychic than I thought.
And I guess that’s the point, we all are. This book helps you see it for yourself.
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Take a look at the video below to hear Nancy Antenucci talk about Tarot cards, psychic readings, and the difference between cats and dogs.
There’s a new Tarot book out this month by Dr. Roopa Patel called Experiencing Tarot: A Book of True Stories and Healing. From the looks of it though, it’s only available in India right now through Harper Collins.
Patel, an astrologer and Tarotologist, is perhaps the first Indian to write about Tarot for the Indian audience. She’s been doing it since 1995, through newspaper columns, magazine articles, TV, and the internet.
When she started with Tarot, there wasn’t a lot of research material available in India. And apparently there’s still not. To fill the gap, and clear up some of the misinformation surrounding the cards, Patel has stepped in to write her own book.
She takes a rational approach to her topic, looking at Tarot’s history, how it works, and how it connects to other new age sciences. It’s important to her that people understand how the cards can be used for both spiritual growth and alternative healing.
Illustrations by master miniaturists Amrit and Rabindra Singh, are an added bonus to Patel’s book.
The Singh Twins, soon to be honoured by Queen Elizabeth with the Member of the Order of British Empire, created the 22 original major arcana cards pictured in the book.
They said they didn’t know much about Tarot before this project, having connected it with the occult. But after researching, and actually working on the cards, they discovered they liked them and might even take Tarot forward into their next exhibition.
They’re thinking of using contemporary figures from show business and politics to highlight concepts in the cards. I really hope they do, I bet it would be amazing.
And I wish I knew where I could get a copy of the commemorative deck made to accompany the release of Experiencing Tarot. I’m going to try to hunt it down.
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Here’s an interview with the Singh Twins from 2009, shot and edited by Joe Eshwar.
