15

THE GRAIL, THE TAROT,
AND THE TREE

(A)bove all (the Grail) is a symbol of symbolism itself.
It represents the very potency by which a symbol symbolizes.

…

Peter Lamborn Wilson, Angels

Greater and Lesser Powers

The great Arthurian scholar Jessie L. Weston was amongst the first people to notice the similarity between the Grail hallows and the suits of the tarot. In her celebrated book From Ritual to Romance, in which she declared her indebtedness to Golden Dawn luminaries
G. R. S. Mead, A. E. Waite, and W. B. Yeats, she notes that the Cup, Lance, Sword, and Pentangle (Pentacle/Coin) of the tarot suits exactly correspond to the objects in the Grail procession. We would go further to say that many of the archetypes amongst the tarot trumps derive from Arthurian and Grail sources, and that a further examination of these, utilizing meditational skills, reveals further important correspondences. This is not the place to go into a lengthy discussion of the esoteric import of the tarot, but using it as a system of related images, it is possible to construct an archetypal Grail story that may then be explored in depths, as in The Grail Tarot (see below).

The Grail is not simply a beautiful and powerful object in an old story. It stands for spiritual truths that are as important now as they ever were. In our own lives the search for the Grail can represent the essential element that makes us who we are, the mystery at the center of our being that drives us to ask questions and seek answers.

The tarot is, of course, primarily a tool for asking and answering just such questions, which is why the two streams go so well together. Questioning has always been an important part of the Grail Quest, as we saw in the Perceval story where the young knight’s failure to ask about the nature of the Grail held him up for a long time, forcing him to take a very much longer path to reach his goal. In the same way, if you do not question the things that happen to you, the same thing can result. By asking yourself questions, you take the first steps towards entering your own quest.

It is perhaps something of a truism to say that life itself is like a quest, but nonetheless this is clearly the case, as anyone who sets out to follow the Arthurian knights quickly discovers. From the start we seek to discover our purpose, our role in the pattern that makes up the span of our years. Where will we go? Who will we be with? What goals will we seek to fulfil? Just as Perceval undertook the quest for the Grail knowing none of the answers, so we set forth in ignorance of what the future holds. We may have helpers already—parents or grandparents or friends. We may meet others on the way. But if we seek to apply the pattern of the quest to our own lives, we may need to ask some questions first to help us focus on our intention and the way forward.

With this section you enter the season of autumn/fall.

The Tarot of Arthur

There are many correspondences between the traditional imagery of the tarot and the Arthurian legends, and those who study both disciplines will quickly find themselves finding their own parallels. We have returned to this a number of times over the years, and it is worth looking at some of the correspondences here as an illustration of the ways in which the Arthurian archetypes work within the framework of other esoteric systems.

Some years ago, when Marian Green and I were working on a book called The Grail Seeker’s Companion, we listed parallels between the Grail mysteries and the Major Arcana of the tarot as follows:

The MAJOR ARCANA AND THE ARTHURIAD

Number	Tarot Card	Arthurian Character
0	The Fool	Perceval
1	The Magician	Merlin
2	The High Priestess	Morgan/Ceridwen
3	The Empress	Igraine
4	The Emperor	Uther
5	The Hierophant	Blaise/Prester John
6	The Lovers	Lancelot and Guinevere
7	The Chariot	Taliesin
8	Justice	Arthur
9	The Hermit	Joseph of Arimathea
10	The Wheel	Round Table
11	Strength	Bors
12	The Hanged Man	Fisher King
13	Death	The Green Knight
14	Temperance	Galahad
15	The Devil	Klingsor
16	The Tower	Kundrie
17	The Star	Dindrane
18	The Moon	Nimue
19	The Sun	Gawain
20	Judgement	Avalon of the Stars
21	The World	The Grail

We also added some suggested applications of the way these archetypes might fit on the pathways of the Qabalistic Tree of Life.

figure 16:
The Tarot of Arthur on the Tree of Life

A little while later, between the years of 1987 and 1989 Caitlín and I worked together on The Arthurian Tarot, based on meditations undertaken by Caitlín between 1985 and 1986, with illustrations by Miranda Gray. This has been a foundation for much of our work on the Arthuriad ever since. We listed the cards as follows:

The Greater Powers

Number	Tarot	Hallowquest Title
0	The Fool	Seeker in the Wasteland
I	The Magician	Merlin
II	The High Priestess	Lady of the Lake
III	The Empress	Guinevere
IV	The Emperor	Arthur
V	The Hierophant	Taliesin
VI	The Lovers	White Hart
VII	The Chariot	Prydwen
VIII	Strength	Gawain
IX	The Hermit	Grail Hermit
X	The Wheel of Fortune	Round Table
XI	Justice	Sovereignty
XII	The Hanged Man	Wounded King
XIII	Death	Washer at the Ford
XIV	Temperance	Cauldron
XV	The Devil	Green Knight
XVI	The Tower	Spiral Tower
XVII	The Star	Star of Prophecy
XVIII	The Moon	Moon
XIX	The Sun	Sun
XX	Judgement	Sleeping Lord
XXI	The World	Flowering of Logres

We quickly discovered that the Major Arcana wanted to be called the Greater Powers and to include the main outline of Arthur’s story. Each had one additional feature: a totem animal associated with the character. The Minor Arcana became the Lesser Powers, with the suits representing the hallows—Sword, Spear, Grail, and Stone, corresponding in traditional tarot to Swords, Wands, Cups, and Pentacles. Each suit was also associated with a season, with the number cards of each suit corresponding to the landscape throughout the year—purposely left without any figures so that the user could enter each card as on their own quest. The court cards represented four of the families connected to the hallows, designated Maiden, Knight, Queen, and King.

The Lesser Powers

The Hallow Suits and Their Correspondences

Arthurian	Classic	Season	Element
Sword	Swords	Spring	Air
Spear	Wands	Summer	Fire
Grail	Cups	Autumn	Water
Stone	Pentacles	Winter	Earth

These were constructed as follows:

Aces: The four hallows of the Arthurian tradition—sword, spear, grail, and stone

Cards 2–9: The landscape of the Hallowquest through which the seeker journeys

Card 10: One of the four courts of the hallows, represented by a castle

Court Cards: The Maiden, Knight, Queen, and King belonging to each hallow castle

The deck appeared in 1990, and then in 1993 Caitlín followed it with The Arthurian Tarot Course, designed to enable the user to spend a whole year working with the imagery and background of the cards.

Working with students and colleagues, we quickly learned that there was far more within the Arthurian tarot than either of us had realized. The structure provided by the otherworld though meditation meant that the cards cross-correlated in an extraordinary way. The qualities of the hallows began to percolate out in ritual and meditational form, and we shall explore these in more detail in the next chapter. For the moment it is enough to say that in every country there are traditions of empowering and mysterious artefacts or regalia that enable certain actions and qualities within the land. They appear and disappear; they are objects of quests that often lie in the otherworld; they grant immortality, special gifts, or healing; they can only be found by the most brave or the most simple. These objects are representations of the greater powers and often reflect or evoke qualities that are innate to land, culture, or people. Whether the Golden Fleece, the Phoenix, or the Grail, people need their grace to transform and heal things.

In British tradition there is the story of the thirteen treasures of Britain, which can only be wielded by the rightful hero; in Ireland the hallows are the four treasures of the Tuatha de Danaan: the Sword of Nuadu, the Spear of Lugh, the Cauldron of the Dagda, and the Stone of Faíl. These are empowering objects that cannot be found by metal detectors and put in a museum. They are powerful, otherworldly coordinates of great transformation.

In preparing the tarot, we had four suits and so only four hallow quests were possible. We decided to draw upon the frequency of the four elemental hallows as the basis for this pack. These were:

The Sword: Powers of justice, inspiration, and life—the hallow sought by the young seeker setting out in the world and offered the strength to set things straight

The Spear: Powers of energy, intuition, and light—the hallow those upon the spiritual path need to wield wisely; it brings the strength to coordinate our energies creatively

The Grail: Powers of compassion, emotional maturity, and love—the hallow that those who have been on the path for some time begin to acquire; it brings the power to heal and restore

The Stone: Powers of wisdom, instinct, and law—the hallow that comes to those who are most experienced on the path and leads to the place of establishment; it offers the strength to establish good ways of living

In working with the cards, each quest aims to take the seeker through the landscapes of the cards and the seasons to find and establish these qualities within our own lives. Readers are encouraged to study the inner correlatives of the cards: to create inner landscapes, to explore the card’s relevance to them personally, to manifest the card’s symbolism through the agency of the unfolding year and through ritual enactment. This may seem odd to those who are used to tarot as divination, but these images arise from the depths of a tradition that conveyed its teachings through story and symbol. It is by these means that the hallows, or sacred treasures, can be activated and restored to our earth once more.

The re-creation of the inner landscape within us is a potent method of exploring our lives and reattuning ourselves to our true desire and purpose. By this means, we simultaneously create pathways through which the living reality of the archetypes represented on these cards can manifest within our world: this two-way exchange is at the heart of the Arthurian and Grail mysteries. When you have actually travelled this inner landscape for yourself, you know the cards and what they stand for in a much more intimate way. You also will have helped create new pathways for those who come after you.

In addition to the magical energies and realizations derived from this method of working, readers who use tarot solely for divination will find their skills considerably enhanced and that the “voice of the oracle” will take on accents of profound wisdom.

Whatever your age, race, abode, or experience, you are a skillful inhabitant of the sacred planet Earth. You have the priceless heritage of life from your ancestors; you inherit the riches and responsibilities of your planet. You are a precious human being with the gifts of love and laughter within you. Step upon your path with joy and purposeful desire as the Seeker in the Wasteland and never stop asking the questions “Why are things like this? What can I do?”

Our work with the Arthurian tarot did not end there. Most recently we fully revised the course as The Complete Arthurian Tarot.The book and deck together form an extended course of study lasting over a period of a year or longer, and it is this that we recommend to students who wish to explore the ideas of the tarot and Arthur further.

The Tarot of the Grail

In 2007 I returned to the imagery of the tarot, this time focusing on the Grail Quest specifically as seen through the eyes of the Templars. Here the cards were designed to retell the story of the Grail, forming a frieze when laid in order side by side, following the path of the neophyte Templar to his or her acceptance as a master of the order and a guardian of the Grail. Here the ascriptions of the cards changed again, reflecting the association of the Templars with the history of the Grail and illustrating the way in which the archetypes adapt to the nature of the work involved.

Grail Tarot	Traditional
0 The Grail Seeker	The Fool
1 The Gnostic Christ	The Magician
2 The Magdalene	The High Priestess
3 Sheba	The Empress
4 Solomon	The Emperor
5 Melchizadek	The Hierophant
6 Two Knights of the Temple	The Lovers
7 Ship of Solomon	The Chariot
8 The Commanderie	Justice
9 Prester John	The Hermit
10 Fortune’s Wheel	Wheel of Fortune
11 Shekinah	Strength
12 The Wounded King	The Hanged Man
13 The Holy Sepulchre	Death
14 Sarras	Temperance
15 Lucifer	The Devil
16 Fall of the Temple	The Tower
17 Perceval	The Star
18 Dindrane	The Moon
19 Bors	The Sun
20 Galahad	Judgement
21 Procession of the Grail	The World

Just as with the Major Arcana, the four suits of the Grail Tarot continue the story of the Seeker from the Major Arcana, progressing him from the status of Neophyte to Knight, Master, and finally to Guardian of the Grail. All the images are based on the experiences of knights in the many medieval versions of the myth, and each suit is based on one of the hallows, which here form a quaternity representing the different aspects of the Grail, stages on the quest, and the elements:

The Suit of Stones (traditionally Pentacles): Earth

The Suit of Swords (traditionally Swords): Air

The Suit of Lances (traditionally Wands): Fire

The Suit of Vessels (traditionally Cups): Water

Replacing the “families” of the classic suits (King, Queen, Knight, and Page) are the Lady (who represents four aspects of the Virgin Mary, to whom the Templars had a particular devotion); the Master (representing four different Grand Masters of the Templar Order); the Preceptor (representing the initiatory aspects of Templar hierarchy); and the Brother (representing the Seeker/Neophyte of the order). The Lady (Queen) is placed first as an indication of her importance.

figure 17:
The Grail Seeker, The Shekinah, and Melchizedek; images by Giovanni Casselli from The Grail Tarot by John Matthews (Connections, 2007)

While working on the Grail Tarot, I became aware of certain intriguing numerical signposts that suggested a deeper resonance between the archetypal symbols of the tarot and the mystery of the Templars. One of the most immediate was the fact that there were twenty-two Grand Masters of the order—the same number as the major trumps in the tarot. In addition, certain cards within the sequence, considered numerically, added up to significant dates in the history of the Templars. For example: the date when the Templars were attacked—13 October 1307—adds up to the number 16, which in the traditional sequence of the Major Arcana is the card known as the “Lightning-Struck Tower” (also known as “The Fall of the Temple”). This card is traditionally associated with sudden and brutal change, endings, the breaking down of old orders, the dissolution of patterns.

Such parallels may be no more than coincidence—but at least ten of the cards from the Major Arcana can be connected numerically with significant events in the history of the order, which was sufficient to build a powerful case for connections between the tarot and the Templars.

In addition, it may or may not be significant that archetypes associated with the Templars—King Solomon, the Magdalene, and Melchizedek—are also to be found within the sequence of the Major Arcana. These are all matters for further study, and we have no doubt that the parallel development of the Arthurian mysteries and the tarot will continue to reveal more fascinating information. It is also possible to open this yet further by applying the correspondences already explored by many seekers between tarot and Qabalah.

The Grail and the Tree

(CM and JM)

It was probably in Toledo during the fourteenth century that certain concepts from the Jewish mystical tradition of Qabalah became irrevocably linked with the legends of Arthur and the Grail. The study of Qabalah dates back at least as far as the second century AD and possibly earlier. It emerged from a profound study of biblical texts and the deep personal revelations that often accompanied this. More deeply still, it relates to a difficulty among Jewish mystics of mentioning the secret name of God. Driven to using synonyms and unable to make a likeness of their deity, the Qabalists evolved a way of dealing with the limitations thus imposed upon them by their faith. The power or even perhaps the structure of God became represented by the Tree of Life.

The tree showed a series of paths between sephiroth (spheres), which must be traversed in order to progress through stages of understanding and initiation to the eventual attainment of union with the infinite. This symbolic journey represented the course of human life, with all its sufferings and joys—a quest very similar to that for the Grail. However, while the learned rabbis who studied the Qabalah did not seek to overthrow the accepted tenets of their faith, they were led further and further into areas of esoteric speculation, which made their orthodox brethren far from happy. Because of this, Qabalists tended to practice in small groups and to keep their activities quiet, yet despite this secrecy it is from this highly eclectic source that another strand in the history of the Grail appeared.

Exactly as in the quest for the Grail, the impulse that gave rise to the system of the tree was a yearning for union with God. One of the most profound ways in which this is represented is through the figure of the Shekinah, who (as we saw in chapter 6) represents the compassionate Presence of God. She chose to accompany Adam and Eve into exile when they were exiled from paradise. Following this, humankind is understood as being in captivity on earth, exiled from a perfect state of oneness with the Infinite. However, because the Shekinah accompanies them, they are enabled to approach that longed-for state again. In this we see a further restatement of the quest of Seth for the Oil of Mercy, which (as we saw in chapter 6) offers hope that humankind may one day be restored to paradise.

The Shekinah is sometimes described as the Veil of God, protecting mankind from his awful presence. It is she who broods upon the face of the waters when the world is created. She may also be seen as a paradigm for the Grail—a vessel of honor that stands as a covenant for all of God’s mercy and richness, a presence to be sought, a love that prompts mystics to journey in perpetual quest until union or self-realization is achieved. All of this looks directly to the beginnings of the sacred vessel and to the kraters and cauldrons in which creation itself was formed.

The idea of a feminine counterpart to God, or at least a feminine agency within the Godhead, is known in Gnostic tradition as Sophia, the Bride of God. As we have seen, this figure permeates much of the civilization of the world, becoming inextricably linked with the idea of Wisdom personified as a woman. The Shekinah was implicit in Jewish mystical understanding as a helpmeet of God and is shown to be this in the biblical Books of Wisdom. In early Gnostic thought this connected with both classical mystery religions and the traditions of Islam. Sophia was considered to be a source of creation and redemption. The early church fathers rejected this idea, deploring the dualism suggested in such a theory. Thus the idea of a compassionate feminine force descending from the Godhead was neglected within the formalized Christian church.

Despite this, the figure of Sophia became associated with the actions of the Holy Spirit, viewed as a feminine aspect of the creator. In Christian iconography she is represented as a dove. It is significant that the dove has always represented a feminine, maternal watchfulness that is seen as “deploying her strength from one end of the earth to the other, ordering all things for good.”286 Nor is it accidental that the dove is a symbol of hope to the Grail guardians in Wolfram’s Parzival. Here the Grail messenger, the darkly ugly Kundrie, comes to announce the lordship of the vessel to Parzival dressed in a hood of black samite on which “gleamed a flock of turtle-doves finely wrought in Arabian gold in the style of the Grail insignia.” We encountered this directly in meditation on the Wounded King.

The feminine quality of the Grail—something that was always present but which is less often acknowledged—is emphasized in the section of Parzival where the above reference appears. Feirefiz, Parzival’s half brother, is a Pagan and, because of mixed parentage from Europe and the East, is pied white and black—a curious medieval attempt to come to terms with people of mixed race. When the sacred vessel is born among the company, Feirefiz announces that he sees no Grail, only its bearer, the Grail princess, Repanse de Schoye. Caring nothing for the vessel, he is willing to be baptized so that he may marry the one who carries it.

Wolfram’s description of Repanse includes many attributes of Sophia and the Shekinah—she bears the vessel of love for all mankind, she shares the sufferings of humanity so that “her looks have suffered,” she wears a crown of Sovereignty or Wisdom. Of all the company, only Feirefiz recognizes her true quality. In the baptism which follows, the significance of his personal transformation is shown when the font, tipped towards the Grail, miraculously fills with water. All of this symbolism is echoed on the Tree of Life.

Several authors have investigated the connection of the tree with the Grail mysteries in some depth, notably Alan Richardson in his Mystical Qabalah and again The Gate of Moon. In the former he projects a speculative Arthurian tree in which the Grail appears at Yesod, the Foundation. This is interesting in that it places the Grail sphere close to Malkuth, the sphere of Earth, though of course this “closeness” is illusory and the traversing of the whole tree is still called for—a way of showing what must already be clear to those involved in the quest: that the shortest way to the Grail is also the longest.

It will be clear from the above that there is a great deal to be learned from placing the elements of the Grail Quest on the various spheres of the tree. One might (for example) place some of the castles or cities of the Grail at various points: Camelot being Malkuth (or indeed the Wasteland), the Chessboard Castle at Tiphareth (Beauty), the Grail Castle at Da’ath, and the Holy City of Sarras at Kether (the Crown). Certain archetypal characters may be found to fit well at various spheres: Kundrie, the fearsome Grail Messenger, at Geburah (Severity); Nasciens, the Grail Hermit who balances her, at Chesed (Mercy); Galahad at Netzach (Victory); Perceval at Yesod (the Foundation); Bors at Hod (Glory)—these last three forming a triangle which is expressed again by their higher selves at Tiphareth, Geburah, Chesed, and again at Binah, Chokmah, and Kether.

figure 18:
The Grail on the Tree of Life

Thus we have in effect three levels of the Grail, which might tentatively be called the levels of Mind, Heart, and Spirit, each of which is needed if our approach to the Grail is not to be unbalanced. In the reverse or shadow side of the tree, the paths lead to a Black Grail, which represents nothingness and extinction rather than fullness and fulfillment. Klingsor’s dark castle is thus situated at Da’ath and the negative aspects of the protagonists at the same spheres, but in shadow, falling away into the dark place where the Grail serves only to empty out the wisdom, love, and mercy that have been gained through the journey. In Qabalistic symbolism this is known as the Qlippothic path in the negative shadow side of the tree. This demonstrates, perhaps more clearly than anywhere, that the way to the Grail is not without its perils.

These ascriptions are, of course, only suggestions. Much work remains to be done in the placing of the Grail symbols within this framework; only patient study and meditation on each of the spheres and their qualities, together with those related aspects of Grail lore, can make this clear in time. Some brief suggestions that open the way to further exploration follow.

The Arthurian Cosmos: The Tarot and the Tree

(CM)

The spheres on the Tree of Life are emanations of divine power, vessels like matrixes that flow one to the other from Kether to Malkuth, each with its own scintillation or quality. Each of the ten spheres is called a sephira; collectively they are called sephiroth. Sepher is the Hebrew for book; it is also the basis of the word sapphire, a shining, reflective gem. Each of the sephira can be thought of as a jewel-book from whose every facet wisdom scintillates. The sephiroth work together in cellular form, imparting their many qualities as a united system.

Sephiroth	Hebrew Name	Translation
1	Kether	Crown
2	Chokmah	Wisdom
3	Binah	Understanding
4	Chesed	Mercy
5	Geburah	Severity
6	Tiphareth	Beauty
7	Netzach	Victory
8	Hod	Glory
9	Yesod	Foundation
10	Malkuth	Kingdom

In Qabalistic lore and magic, the paths that connect the sephiroth have been associated with the twenty-two Hebrew letters. In 1856 the French esotericist Eliphas Levi recognized that the twenty-two tarot trumps might also be associated with the paths, and many people have worked with the tarot in this way ever since. Many garbled methods of assigning both letters and trumps to the tree have been attempted, with middling results. The method that we have used is that of the British occultist William G. Gray, which makes better sense of the relationships between the three pillars without any forcing. His understanding, along with that of Israel Regardie, with whom we discussed this issue in London in 1983, was that the magical ascriptions to the Tree of Life were often given out in garbled form to protect the material in times when magical orders guarded their secrets closely—and also to test the neophyte. A good student would be able to work out the correct ascriptions from the practical recognition formed by personal experience. Here we can show the standard tarot trump title, its position on the Tree of Life, and its corresponding title in the Arthurian Tarot.

Tarot Trump	Between Sephiroth	Arthurian Tarot
V Hierophant	1-2 Crown/Wisdom	V Taliesin
IX Hermit	1-3 Crown/Understanding	IX Grail Hermit
XVII Star	1-6 Crown/Beauty	XVII Star of Prophecy
XX Judgement	3-6 Understanding/Wisdom	XX Sleeping Lord
IV Emperor	2-4 Wisdom/Mercy	IV Arthur
XIV Temperance	2-6 Wisdom/Beauty	XIV Cauldron
XIII Death	3-5 Understanding/Severity	XIII Washer at the Ford
XII Hanged Man	3-6 Understanding/Beauty	XII Wounded King
XI Justice	4-5 Mercy/Severity	XI Sovereignty
VIII Strength	4-6 Mercy/Beauty	VIII Gawain
III Empress	7 Mercy/Victory	III Guinevere
XVI Tower	5-6 Severity/Beauty	XVI Spiral Tower
XV Devil	5-8 Severity/Glory	XV Green Knight
VI Lovers	6-7 Beauty/Victory	VI White Hart
VII Chariot	6-9 Beauty/Foundation	VII Prydwen
XIX Sun	6-8 Beauty/Glory	XIX Sun
X Wheel of Fortune	7-8 Victory/Glory	X Round Table
II High Priestess	7-10 Victory/Foundation	II Lady of the Lake
XXI World	7-10 Victory/Kingdom	XXI Flowering of Logres
I Magician	8-9 Glory/Foundation	I Merlin
0 Fool	8-10 Glory/Kingdom	O Seeker in the Wasteland
XVIII Moon	9-10 Foundation/Kingdom	XVIII Moon

Note that in the early twentieth century, Justice and Strength swapped positions in the tarot sequence under the influence of the Golden Dawn. If you are using an older tarot, Strength will be numbered XI and Justice VIII.

Tarot Triads

Taking this a stage further, we may look at the idea of tarot triads, which are made by combining three paths on the tree that join three sephiroth and their parallels in the tarot. Thus, for example, a triad of paths connecting 7: Victory, 8: Glory, and 9: Foundation are the Wheel of Fortune, the High Priestess, and the Magician. In Arthurian Tarot terms, this triad is made up of X: The Round Table, XI: The Lady of the Lake, and I: Merlin. Immediately we see how this triad concerns the foundation of the Round Table and the spiritual inculcation of Arthur by the Lady of the Lake, who gives him his empowering sword, and Merlin, who educates him. This powerful triad establishes Arthur’s early formation, leading to the Round Table as an ethically based fellowship.

A practical way of working with this would be to select the three tarot cards and meditate upon them as in the images shown in figure 19. First set the cards before you, experiencing the dynamic that arises between them. Or, if you prefer, lay the three cards on the floor in a triangle while you stand in the middle of them. What does it feel like to face each in turn? You might also walk from one to the other, experiencing in your body and soul the nature of the connection between each pair of cards. This physical pathworking combines the impressions of the physical and the spiritual, giving you a unique understanding of how the Tree of Life and the tarot trumps relate. Be sure to note down your findings.

Here are some further triads to explore, using the sephiroth, the tarot trumps’ customary titles, and some suggestions as to how these relate to the world of Arthur. Discover for yourself new and different relationships.

1-2-3: Hierophant, Judgement, Hermit—Taliesin enables Merlin to return from his seclusion in the forest after the Battle of Arderydd, when Merlin loses his mind with the anguish of war.

4-5-6: Justice, Strength, Tower—Sovereignty tests the candidates for kingship to see if they are able to build up or tear down the realm.

7-8-9: Priestess, Magician, Wheel—The Lady of the Lake and Merlin set up the foundations for the Round Table.

2-3-6: Temperance, Hanged Man, Judgement—The nine sisters maintain the wounded Arthur in Avalon as the once and future king.

1-2-6: Hierophant, Temperance, Star—The prophecy of the Pendragon’s coming.

2-4-6: Emperor, Strength, Temperance—Arthur rules Logres with merciful strength with the help of his knights, sworn to service the principles of the Round Table.

4-6-7: Empress, Lovers, Strength—The love of Guinevere as the representative of Sovereignty maintains the honor of the realm.

7-6-9: Lovers, Priestess, Sun—The honorable respect given to all women in Logres enables the realm to be wisely upheld.

7-9-10: High Priestess, Universe, Moon—The wisdom of the lake maintains Arthur’s realm.

8-9-10: Moon, Fool, Magician—The guiding vision of Merlin for Arthur is curtailed when he permits himself to fall under the spell of Nimue.

6-8-9: Sun, Magician, Chariot—The mediation of spiritual mentors and the Round Table fellowship enables the realm to work peacefully.

5-6-8: Tower, Chariot, Devil—The machinations of Mordred put the fall of the Round Table into motion.

6-7-8: Lovers, Chariot, Wheel—The secret love of Lancelot and Guinevere put into train the loss of the Round Table fellowship.

3-5-6: Hanged Man, Tower, Death—The powerlessness of Arthur to prevent the fall of the Round Table.

1-6-3: Star, Hanged Man, Hermit—The once and future king remains as a prophecy to be fulfilled.

In this way it is possible to range widely through the entire cycle of the Arthuriad, discovering the powerful attraction that exists between tarot and tree.

figure 19:
The Lady of the Lake, Merlin, and the Spiral Tower; images by Miranda Gray from The Compete Arthurian Tarot by Caitlín and John Matthews (Connections, 2015)

figure 20:
The Tarot on the Tree of Life

Working with Images and Archetypes

Both tarot and Qabalah deal centrally with archetypal imagery. One of the many ways in which these can reveal their inner secrets is by using these powerful symbols as meditational devices. Thus, for example, you might take one or more of the archetypes as a companion on your own quest. As we saw in chapter 9, working with archetypal characters from the Arthuriad can guide you into a deeper place of realization.

To this end, in 2012 I created the Camelot Oracle, based on a method of working that I had taught in courses around the world before this. It was intended to enable practitioners to work with the figures of Arthur’s knights, with their ladies, servants, friends, and enemies—even their weapons and horses—which are so deeply imbedded in the minds and hearts of people everywhere that they have taken on a deeper reality. These reflect the heritage of the Arthurian mysteries, seeded by countless generations until they burst forth in the flowering of medieval romance literature. Here, the themes that had dominated inner consciousness from a time before history found a home. The eternal interaction of the otherworld with our own dimension formed a backdrop to the tales of Arthur and his heroes, their loves and their adventures. The secrets of immortality, of harmony with the earth, and of true love and spiritual fulfillment were only some of the rich gifts offered by the beings that appear and disappear in countless texts.

Strange and terrible were the adventures they undertook with a merry heart; strange and terrible also were their adversaries: shapeshifting magicians and enchantresses, wild beasts possessed of intelligence, serpents that turned into beautiful women if anyone was daring enough to kiss them, invisible foes who struck from nowhere, demons and ghosts and knights whose armor changed color in the blink of an eye. Even the landscape itself was unearthly, with its underwater bridges, fountains that ran with blood, trees one half in flame and the other in green leaf, wasted lands that grew green again following a single act.

As we have seen, the universal appeal of these characters stems from the primal quality of the tales, which deal with every aspect of life, from the struggle to overcome obstacles via love, politics, spirituality, and heroism to the continuing search for a fulfilled and fulfilling life. The adventures and heroic deeds of the knights, riding forth in search of wrongs to right and bound together in eternal fellowship, along with the adversaries they encounter, both human and magical, make their path one that affects everyone who reads about them and shares in their mystical power.

Many of the characters that appear in their most archetypal forms have a vast history that would require entire books to relate, but while we have drawn upon the many sources behind each archetype, the focus is on the more esoteric side of their natures.

The characters of the Arthurian myths are far more than just men and women; as we have seen repeatedly in this book, they are also archetypes that embody the characteristics of the human experience. It is thus possible to identify closely with different people from the stories and journey with them—learning from their wisdom and growing in the process. In this way we learn to know and understand our own inner champion, the strong and powerful person we can become.

Using guided imagery combined with the oracular meaning of each companion, it is possible to take journeys into the Lands Adventurous, the heartlands of the Arthuriad. Travelling from Camelot, following a path chosen by the oracle and accompanied by one or other of the characters who inhabit Camelot’s inner world, we may discover new and powerful truths about ourselves, drawing upon a deep pool of wisdom that stretches back to a time when the world was a simpler place.

Along the way we may interact with these archetypal beings, each of which represents an aspect of the soul’s journey. These individual encounters bring guidance by challenging us to take a fresh or deeper look at the circumstances of whatever issue we bring to the Round Table.

The simpler and deeper ways of Camelot and the Lands Adventurous are not lost to us any more than the great heroes and champions of those older times. We can still journey to meet them whenever we wish and find council, wisdom, and support when it is most needed. The Camelot Oracle was devised for exactly this purpose and is based on the principle that both the places and people it describes possess a reality that can be accessed in vision and meditation and through imagery. I have used this method in workshops for years and found it, again and again, to be a helpful, supportive, and at times devastatingly accurate tool.

There is a story told in Plutarch’s Moralia of a Greek ship en route for Italy. As it passed near the island of Paxi, everyone heard, in the silence of the evening, a voice calling out to one of the crew. Twice he was called and made no answer, but the third time he responded and the voice said: “When you come opposite to Palodes, announce that Great Pan is dead.”287 Scarcely understanding what they did, the ship sailed on and when it came to the island of Palodes the sailor called out the words as he had been told: Great Pan is dead. At once there arose the sound of great and terrible lamentation, though the mourners could not be seen. Hastily the ship’s captain sailed on, not looking back.

The point of this story is that of course Great Pan is not dead—any more than Arthur, Morgain, Galahad, or their ilk. Their faces may have changed; they may have dwindled into folk-lore characters, becoming the haunters of wood and stream, but they have never completely left the lands that once lay under their care—nor will they as long as at least one person keeps them in mind.

figure 21:
Arthur, the Questing Beast, and Guinevere; images by Will Worthington from The Camelot Oracle by John Matthews (Connections, 2012)

In this way they have assumed another function: that of inner guides. Of course there are as many inner dimensions as there are people, and most of us have our own inner landscapes—whether these are based in the Arthuriad or classical myths or the mysteries of other lands, they are all real to us at the deepest level. It is in that level that the imagination is king, yet it is not an imaginary place. It has a reality of its own that is not bound by human laws. It is a place where dreams occur and yet it is itself no dream. Within it the archetypal forces of creation are made visible and given voices. It is the realm of quest and achievement, of challenger and encounter, of initiation and enlightenment.

It is a vast and largely uncharted country to which there are no maps, where guides are few, and where, quite literally, anything can happen. For all of these reasons we need those who know their way around these places if we are to enter and exit without confusion or danger, and if we are to learn from our journey.

Perhaps you too will venture in quest of the Grail or one of the other hallows, and perhaps one or more of the heroes and heroines of the Arthuriad will accompany you. A list of the primary characters from the legends will be found in Part Three. Many others exist, and these are but a few. Once you are deeply involved in the work, you will find that others appear as a focus for your practice.

In order to work in this way, all you have to do is choose a companion. Sometimes the being in question will find you, and some of you may already have contacts of this kind. For those who do not, the best method is to read as much as you can about a theme that interests you and that you already feel drawn to, and this is the primary function of the chapters of PART ONE; they are designed to introduce you to the most profound levels of the Arthuriad—indeed, to help you hear the call of Arthur.

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286. Weston, J. L. From Ritual to Romance (Doubleday, 1957).

287. Matthews, J. and M. Green. The Grail Seeker’s Companion (Aquarian Press, 1986; reprinted by Thoth Books, 2002).