Daily “Hermetic Meditation” #1
Casting around for something new to post, I decided to do a series of daily “Hermetic Meditations” using the various Golden-Dawn and Thoth-based decks I own. I have around a dozen of them now and will be rotating them in and out of the six-card pull regularly. The layout is the graphic for my “Pentagram of Revealing” spread that is based on astrological planetary concepts. (Although it follows the flow of the ritual Banishing Pentagram of Earth, it doesn’t mirror the elemental sequence, so don’t read anything into it.) My idea was to steer clear of action-and-event implications and focus more on orientation to, and attitude toward, the affairs of the day, but the nature of the “daily draw” makes that difficult so I only partially succeeded.
This first iteration brings out the Thoth, the Tabula Mundi Colores Arcus, the Liber T: Tarot of Stars Eternal, the Navigators of the Mystic SEA, the Golden Dawn Ritual Tarot and the Magickal Tarot. Since this is intended to be a meditative exercise rather than a situational one, I chose not to use reversals. I may do so in future readings.
The Thoth deck is the “central Sun” and foundation of my personal approach to the tarot, so I placed it beneath the Sun position. The Tabula Mundi I consider the “rising star,” so it occupies the top (Mercury-Venus) vertex. The Liber T (a very close Thoth clone) holds down the Mars spot, while the unusual Navigators pack takes on the Moon. The Golden Dawn Ritual Tarot and the Magickal Tarot have graphic similarities so I put them in the Saturn and Jupiter slots, respectively.
Sun position: Self-regard and therefore self-image and mastery of the Ego; aspiration, ambition and self-projection.
3 of Disks (Work; Mars in Capricorn): The primary mission for today is to assemble a new office chair for my wife, so work is “in the cards.” It’s a simple, manual, mechanical “wrench-turning” job that requires little thought, just an ability to follow instructions. My “tarot euphemism” for this card is “Plan the work and work the plan,” which is entirely consistent with my goal. Mars and the Sun together make ideal “production partners” when disciplined by Earth.
Moon position: Emotional matters; routine or habitual behaviors; public involvement.
Queen of Pentacles/Disks (Water of Earth): This patient and gracious Queen is perfectly at home in the placid Lunar realm. I see nothing here to disrupt the “noiseless tenor” of my day at home, and I don’t plan on going out.
Mercury/Venus position: Considerations of “mind and matter;” ideas and ideals/values.
Prince of Cups (Air of Water): The “artsy” Prince in the position of “artistic appreciation.” My highly-critical “eye for detail” will be at full force since this is the second chair I bought; the first one had a cosmetic defect so I took it back (I should have known better than to make a major purchase on Friday the Thirteenth).
Mars position: Action, energy, impulse, applied Ego (the Sun’s “right-hand man”).
10 of Swords (Sun in Gemini, Ruin): In this deck the card suggests “discord” more than outright destruction. I’m thinking that I may run into more serious technical issues this time around (or maybe the assembly instructions will be incomprehensible, although I’ve done a few of these in the past and should be able to cope).
Saturn position: Structure and discipline; lessons learned; delay and frustration.
3 of Pentacles/Disks (Material Works; Mars in Capricorn): Capricorn fueled by Mars (which is exalted in the sign) in the position of Saturn (Capricorn’s ruler) seems to be all to the good for performing practical tasks with utilitarian precision. Frustrations should be of little account even though both classical “malefics” are present; the milieu is perfectly suited to the method.
Jupiter position: Expansive enthusiasm; growth and development; benevolent trends
The Universe (Saturn): The card of “eventual completion and satisfaction” coupled with Jupiter, the fortunate planet known as the “Greater Benefic” spells a “job well-done,” although perhaps not without delays. Saturn and Jupiter are considered the “social” planets in astrology, and with their harmonious interaction here I shouldn’t have to go back and make a fuss about another defective chair.
Summary: This array is loaded with Earth cards, a perfect reflection of my pragmatic (Mars in Capricorn) orientation for the day. The airy Mars card (Sun in Gemini) may give me a few fits of mental aggravation but I don’t anticipate any show-stoppers. The Moon (Queen of Pentacles) and the Mercury-Venus combo (Prince of Cups) with its dual Water emphasis and elemental affinity should cooperate seamlessly from a mental/emotional perspective.
Originally published at http://parsifalswheeldivination.wordpress.com on May 29, 2022.
