Russell Targ is a physicist, an author, and a pioneer in the development of the laser. He’s also an ESP expert, known especially for his work in the area of remote viewing.
He was cofounder of the Stanford Research Institute’s investigation into psychic abilities in the 1970s and 80s, and worked closely with the CIA, NASA, the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Army and the Air Force through that time.
To get a taste of what’s in the book, take a look at the video below when you have a moment (or 34 moments to be more precise). It’s a little longer than videos I usually post, but it’s fascinating stuff.
In Tarot, the final card in the Major Arcana is most often called The World, or in the case of Aleister Crowley and Frieda Harris’ Thoth Tarot, the Universe.
The World, or Universe card, can represent a culmination of events, and an exciting return to being whole.
It reflects a connection with the grander scheme of existence, and an enlightenment that serves as reward for the long journey through the Major Arcana from the Fool to Judgment.
When it appears in a reading, it’s most often a joy, and indicates a chance to catch your breath and have a good time before jumping right back in and starting again at zero.
I like to think of the Universe card as a step back into the ether from which the Fool first emerged.
It’s the celebratory dance with the divine after a long haul through the muck of daily life, a chance to float with the stars, at least for a short time.
And though I love what the World, or Universe, represents in Tarot, what science has to say about it is at least as enchanting.
Take a look at the MinutePhysics video below to see how physicists might describe the 21st card of the Tarot deck.
In Tarot, the Suit of Cups typically represents feelings and emotionality.
Characters from the Cup Court cards are often described as sensitive and nurturing, dreamy, and artistic. They flow with the moods around them, intuitively connecting with their environment.
The Suit of Swords, on the other hand, is much more analytic and rational.
Characters from the Sword Court cards are known for their scientific thinking, clarity of mind, and straightforward manner. They’re interested in knowing why things are as they are, and enjoy logically investigating the world around them.
Of course, both personality types appreciate beauty, but sometimes the rational Sword-types are given short-shrift when it comes to such appreciation.
In the video below by Fraser Davidson called Richard Feynman – Ode To A Flower, physicist Richard Feynman helps dispel such prejudice as he wonderfully expresses a Sword perspective on the beauty of a flower.
In the fall of last year, artist Daniel Martin Diaz became obsessed with scientific diagrams. Though he knew they weren’t intended for their aesthetic value, he thought they were beautiful and was inspired to create his own.
In his forthcoming book, Soul of Science, Diaz shows us some of what he’s come up with. Using ink and graphite, he interprets big concepts like consciousness from a scientific, philosophical, and spiritual perspective.
The book will include 40 drawings by Diaz, as well essays by esteemed scientists and experts in various fields of study – mathematics, biomedicine, philosophy, plasma physics, etc.
Diaz’s work is gorgeous. And bringing together science, art, and the spirit like this is exciting.
Take a look at the video below to learn more about the project.
And if you feel like helping to make it happen and getting a copy of the book for yourself, stop by the Soul of Science Kickstarter Project page to donate.
In Tarot, the traditional RWS Sun card shows a child riding a horse outside a stone fence surrounded by sunflowers. The child holds a flag of victory and the sun itself shines huge behind him.
The Sun represents a time of joy-filled culmination. It’s a celebration, the end of a struggle and the attainment of a goal long wished for.
When the Sun appears in a reading, freedom, exhilaration, and clarity can be yours (at least for a brief moment) as the Moon’s shadows have finally been replaced by pure light.
Check out the video below from SpaceRip called The Origin of Light.
Though it’s a scientific take on the Sun and its light, it’s as magically wonderful as any Tarot card explanation could be.
Yes, it’s very basic, and is posted in the ‘oddities’ section. But I was still glad to see it there on a well-trafficked mainstream site.
It might not teach anyone how to read cards, or even encourage anyone to try. But at least it doesn’t make fun of Tarot or the people who like it.
And of course, since it is the Science Channel, there’s no suggestion that the cards are evil or any of that type of nonsense.
Instead there are questions relating to psychological concepts like archetypes, projection, and the use of Ink Blot tests.
It’s kind of fun if you’re someone who likes answering multiple-choice questions. I’m embarrassed to say though that I didn’t get 100% when I first took it.
If you take it yourself, be careful of the wording in #2, it tripped me up for sure.
Just the other day I posted about the possible benefits of ‘magical thinking’. Today, with the help of Jason Silva, it’s a post about the benefits of being awed.
In Silva’s video below called The Biological Advantage of Being Awestruck, he lays out a good case for letting ourselves be dazzled by the universe around us.
And though it has nothing to do with Tarot, or anything at all magical, I wanted to post it here anyway.
Looking at the universe the way we can now is as mystical an experience as there could possibly be. You don’t need cards or chants or complicated rituals to touch the divine.
Just contemplate the pictures that our spaceships are sending back. They truly are awesome.
“an attribution of mental properties to non-mental phenomena, or vice versa.”
What he means by this is a world view that sees natural events or objects as having within them some element of mind or consciousness.
In addition it could mean having the perception that one’s own mental processes can physically influence the world directly.
Rather then simply poo poo these ideas, Hutson tries to look at why they’re so prevalent across time and cultures, and how they affect our species for good and for ill.
In the interview below, Hutson makes the case that humans are hard-wired to see the world somewhat magically. And though he recommends the practice of active scepticism, he sees the value in keeping a little magic alive.
As a proud Tarot reading skeptical mystic and frequent magical thinker, I’m very interested in all discussions surrounding this topic. I’m going to have to get his book.
Shape shifting and invisible cloaks? It sounds like the work of Tarot’s Magician, but according to Michio Kaku, science is developing both right now.
In the Big Think video below, Kaku says that work on invisibility is already quite advanced. And if that weren’t exciting enough, scientists have turned their attention to shape shifting.
It’s called programmable matter and the idea is that by replacing atoms with micro-chips, something that starts out as one thing could be transformed into something entirely different at the touch of a button.
It really does seem magical. And I’m tempted to say I’ll believe it when I see it, or in the case of invisibility, when I don’t.
But as the Magician himself teaches, to make things real, you need to believe in the vision, then focus your mind to bring it into being.
It looks like the scientists have learnt that lesson well. They’re magicians all.
