Two

Astrology 101
for Tarot Readers

Suspiciendo despicio (Looking upward, I see below) 30

Tycho Brahe (1546–1601)

None other than Stuart Kaplan, an expert on tarot symbolism and founder of the publishing house U.S. Games Systems, asserts: “A knowledge of astrology can greatly aid in the interpretation of the tarot, and vice versa. It was the genius of the Golden Dawn to synthesize these systems.” 31 Kaplan also notes that Waite instructed artist Pamela Colman Smith (affectionately known as “Pixie”) to create images for the forty pip cards that “follow very carefully the astrological significance of each suit as it is influenced by different zodiacal signs.” 32

Following Stuart Kaplan’s lead, this chapter is devoted to the basics of astrology as they apply to tarot interpretation. My goal is to flesh out the astrological ideas Pixie used to create the images of the influential Waite-Smith deck. Readers unfamiliar with astrology may find the material a bit overwhelming and may wish to skim the chapter quickly now, referring back to it as they read later chapters. For those versed in astrology, actual readings are included to illustrate the combined use of astrology and tarot.

The word “astrology” comes from the Latin astrologia, meaning “astronomy,” and the Greek astron, “celestial body” and logia, “the study of.” The origins of astrology are tied to the development of the calendars needed for agriculture. Modern astrology dates back thousands of years to priestly observations of “celestial omens,” correlations between heavenly phenomena and events on Earth. Such correlations ranged from what we would now call scientific—for example, “when a certain constellation appears in the sky, the Nile River will overflow its banks”—to pseudoscientific, such as “when Mars aligns with Jupiter, Babylonia will go to war.”

Astrology as Divination

Both astrology and the tarot seek to fathom the will of the divine in the patterns of the natural order. Like tarot, astrology is a method of divination, but, instead of using tarot cards, astrology studies the interactions of stars and planets to decipher what the divine has to say about happenings on Earth. This principle is expressed in the famous Hermetic dictum: “As above, so below.” In the thirteenth century, Italian astrologer Guido Bonatti (a contemporary of Thomas Aquinas) viewed astrology fundamentally as a method of divination (discerning the intent of the divine) and did readings for clients only after they spent sufficient time seeking divine guidance. If a client still had doubts after a period of prayer and contemplation, Bonatti would then cast a chart to divine in the symbolism of the heavens the will of the Almighty regarding the matter.

The Planets and the Signs of the Zodiac

Ancient observers noticed among the myriad stars in the night sky that certain celestial bodies appeared to wander amidst the backdrop of the fixed stars. They called these objects “planets,” from the Greek planetes, meaning “wanderers.” With the naked eye, observers were able to distinguish seven objects that appeared to move of their own volition. These wanderers included the Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. Each of the seven visible planets of antiquity appeared to have its own characteristics regarding color, size, periodicity, phase changes, speed, direction of motion, and so on.

The ancients also observed that recurring configurations of these wanderers correlated with events on Earth and could thus be used for prediction. They identified the wandering planets with the gods of mythology. In modern times, astrologers often view the planets as symbols of Jungian archetypes of the collective unconscious. Modern Western astrology originated in the horoscopic astrology of Hellenistic Egypt in the second and first centuries BCE and drew especially upon the myths of ancient Greece, Egypt, and Babylon. As astrology spread through the Roman Empire, the names and myths of the Roman gods supplanted those of the Greeks.

To locate the planets in the heavens, the ancient stargazers developed a coordinate system. They located each planet with reference to the path of the Sun, the major “Light” in the sky, which appeared to travel in a circle around the Earth through twelve unequal constellations of stars. The constellations of the zodiac were named after animals and mythological figures and included a thirteenth constellation, now called Ophiuchus (the “serpent bearer”), which dips into the zodiac belt between Scorpio and Sagittarius. In 1928, the International Astronomy Union set the boundaries of all eighty-eight constellations in the night sky, adding Ophiuchus to the twelve constellations of the zodiac belt.

The word zodiac comes from Greek and means “circle of animals.” Fortunately, all the wandering planets appeared to move through the same band of constellations that encircle the Earth in the form of a “zodiac belt.” Being mathematically inclined, the Hellenistic Greeks divided the 360-degree circle into twelve 30-degree segments, which they called zodiac “signs” as opposed to the “constellations” of varying widths. Astrologers named each sign after its corresponding constellation on the zodiac belt of two thousand years ago. On the basis of “as above, so below,” the ancients correlated each sign with a particular part of the human body.

Further observations led the astrologers to believe that each planet “ruled” or was “exalted” in a sign where it had much “dignity.” The seventeenth-century astrologer William Lilly, explaining the dignity of “exaltation,” said that in some regions of the zodiac planets can “more evidently declare their effects than in others.” On the contrary, a planet with little or no dignity was like a man “ready to be turned out of doors, having much ado to maintain himself in credit and reputation” or like a family “at the last gasp,” … “barely able to support itself.” 33 In signs where planets seemed to act weakly or badly, they were considered “debilitated,” “in detriment,” or “in fall.” A planet in detriment occupies the sign opposite the one it rules. A planet in fall occupies the sign opposite the one where it is exalted. With regard to dignity, moving a planet to the opposite sign is similar to inverting a card in the tarot.

The accompanying figure illustrates an important historical horoscope, the Thema Mundi, which was used by Hellenistic astrologers to show the zodiacal positions of the seven visible planets at the beginning of time. In Hellenistic cosmology, the signs occupied by the planets in the Thema Mundi are the ones they naturally rule. Inspection of this figure shows that each planet lies in the middle of the 30-degree sign that it has ruled since the beginning of time. The center of this horoscope represents the position of an Egyptian observer, who is facing south toward the equator and looking up directly at Aries, the sign that marks the beginning of spring. The sign Cancer, which marks the onset of summer, is ascending on the eastern horizon. The houses of the Thema Mundi resemble those of a horoscope cast for the Great Pyramid of Giza at midsummer with Cancer rising and the Sun in mid-Leo.

The Thema Mundi of Hellenistic astrology. 34

The Seven Visible Planets

Sun

The regal Sun is the heart of the solar system and the giver of light and life. The Sun governs the sign Leo and is exalted in Aries . The Sun was viewed as a fatherly monarch who rules the kingdom of Leo and is an honored guest (exalted) in the kingdom of Aries, ruled by Mars. The Sun is treated like royalty when passing through Aries.

The Sun’s day is Sunday (duh!). It is associated with daylight, vitality, power, authority, male potency, fatherhood, creation, eminence, honor, will, constancy, success, fame, heroism, kings, and government. The Sun is considered hot and dry, like the element Fire of ancient Greece.

The Golden Dawn assigned the Sun to tarot trump XIX, the Sun. This book uses the Golden Dawn system for assigning astrological symbols to tarot cards because it is so widely known and has had a considerably powerful influence on the divinatory meanings of modern tarot decks.

The Moon

The inconstant Moon is the consort of the Sun and queen of the night. The Moon’s appearance is constantly changing as she shifts from one phase to the next over the course of a month. In Roman mythology, the Moon was identified with Diana, the chaste hunter goddess associated with wild animals like those shown on the Moon trump of the tarot. The Moon was also linked to Hecate, the goddess of triple nature, who watched over crossroads, childbirth, dogs, the night sky, healing, and the nurturing of the young. Hecate comforted the goddess Demeter when Hades (Pluto) kidnapped her daughter Persephone and took her to the Underworld in his chariot. Hecate also became Persephone’s companion in the Underworld and helped her to escape and reunite with Demeter. Jungian tarot readers often identify the Empress with Demeter, the High Priestess with Persephone, and the Moon trump with Hecate.

Our word lunatic comes from the Latin luna, meaning moon, because the insane mind is as unsteady as the ever-changing Moon. Luna rules Cancer and is exalted in Taurus , the bull whose horns have the shape of a crescent Moon. The Moon signifies mothers and mothers’ milk. Taurus (the cow) is a major source of milk for the human child.

The Moon’s day is Monday. Luna is symbolic of periodicity, fluctuation, instability, cycles (going through phases), femininity, nurturing, food, breast milk, motherhood, families, women, domestic life, emotions, responses, instinct, habit, tides, memory, and receptivity. The Moon is considered cold and wet, like the element Water of ancient Greece. The Sun and the Moon form a fundamental complementary pair of “planets” in astrology. Other complementary pairings include Venus and Mars, and Jupiter and Saturn.

The Golden Dawn assigned the Moon to tarot trump II, the High Priestess or Female Pope, who provides spiritual “milk” to nurture the human soul.

Mercury

Mercury (the Greek trickster god Hermes) is the winged messenger of the gods. Mercury rules Gemini and Virgo . Mercury is exalted in Virgo. The English word “mercurial” is used to describe people who are volatile, fickle, swift, animated, quick-witted, or unpredictable.

Mercury’s day is Wednesday. He is associated with thought, communication, storytelling, learning, education, speech, writing, literature, media, news, advertising, travel, transport, commerce, duality, cleverness, adroitness, trickery, magic, and theft. Mercury is considered cool and dry, like the element Earth of ancient Greece.

The Golden Dawn assigned quick and clever Mercury to tarot trump I, the Magician.

Venus

Venus is the Roman goddess of love. Venus rules Libra and Taurus . Venus is exalted in Pisces . The English word “venereal” (of Venus) means “related to erotic desire or sexual intercourse,” a favorite pastime of the voluptuous love goddess who sometimes followed the motto “if it feels good, do it.”

Venus’s day is Friday. She is associated with love, beauty, music, art, gifts, adornment, fashion, pleasure, sexual delight, indulgence, peace, harmony, charm, relationships, appeasement, sweethearts, lovemaking, and good fortune. Venus is considered wet and warm, like the element Air of ancient Greece. Venus and Mars form a complementary pair. Cupid, the god of desire and erotic love, was an offspring of the mating of Venus with the war god Mars. In early tarot decks, Cupid is seen shooting his arrows at the Lovers on trump VI.

The Golden Dawn assigned sexy Venus to tarot trump III, the Empress.

Mars

The red planet Mars is the Roman god of war and bloodshed. Mars rules Aries and Scorpio . Mars is exalted in Capricorn . Our phrase “martial arts” comes from the Latin martialis (of Mars). A favorite saying of Mars is “I want what I want when I want it.” The exaltation of phallic Mars in Capricorn may account for this sign’s fondness for frequent sex.

Mars’s day is Tuesday. He is associated with self-will, conquest, testosterone, muscular exertion, heat, fire, burning, passion, penetration, insemination, desire, drive, courage, strife, war, bloodshed, accidents, violence, competition, assertiveness, impulsivity, construction, and men in uniform. Mars is considered dry and hot, like the element Fire of ancient Greece. Classical astrology teaches that Mars expresses himself more constructively at night because the coolness of the night tempers his natural ardor and impetuousness.

The Golden Dawn assigned macho Mars to tarot trump XVI, the Tower.

Jupiter

Jupiter is the king of the Roman gods. In the Greek pantheon, Jupiter was lustful Zeus, the regent of Mount Olympus, whence he could see far and wide. Jupiter rules Sagittarius and Pisces . Jupiter is exalted in Cancer . The Romans referred to Jupiter as Jove, which is the origin of our adjective “jovial,” meaning good-humored, jolly, sanguine, and of good cheer.

Jupiter’s day is Thursday. He is associated with luck, abundance, protection, expansion, excess, increase, optimism, wealth, success, aristocracy, generosity, adventure, global travel, wisdom, broadmindedness, philosophy, religious beliefs, clerics, courts, justice, the law, the professions, publishing, higher education, lust for life, and the thirst for knowledge. Jupiter is considered warm and dry, like the element Fire of ancient Greece.

The Golden Dawn assigned generous Jupiter to tarot trump X, the Wheel of Fortune.

Saturn

Saturn (the Greek god Cronos) has been called Father Time, the Cosmic Teacher, the Great Taskmaster, and the Grim Reaper. Saturn rules Capricorn and Aquarius and is exalted in Libra (aka the Claws of the Scorpion). The adjective “saturnine” refers to someone who is somber, taciturn, gloomy, brooding, or bitter; it is the opposite of jovial.

Saturn’s day is Saturday. As the outermost visible planet of antiquity, Saturn rules boundaries, limitation, laws, rules, regulations, tradition, stability, order, structure, delay, deprivation, burdens, death, and lessons to be learned. Lying farthest from the Sun, Saturn is the last stop on the soul’s journey from Earth to heaven. Saturn is cold, strict, hard, serious, constricting, rule-bound, and inhibiting. He is considered cold and dry, like the element Earth of ancient Greece. Jupiter and Saturn form a complementary pair; Jupiter expands whereas Saturn contracts. Classical astrology taught that Saturn expresses itself more constructively during the day because the warmth of the life-giving Sun tempers Saturn’s natural coldness, rigidity, and austerity.

Although in the earliest tarot decks the Hermit card displayed Saturn as Father Time carrying an hourglass, the Golden Dawn assigned Saturn to tarot trump XXI, the World, the final stop on the Fool’s journey.

The Outer Planets: Uranus, Neptune, Pluto

In addition to the seven visible planets, contemporary astrologers use three “modern” or “outer” planets and numerous other celestial entities. The three outer planets—Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto—are so called because they lie outside the orbit of Saturn, which is the outer limit of the classical solar system. Astrologers have found that the movements of the three outer planets correlate with profound changes in worldly events and major shifts in one’s personal life.

Uranus

Often called the Awakener, Uranus was not recognized as a planet until 1781, the same year that Antoine Court de Gébelin published his essay that created excitement about the tarot throughout the popular culture of the time. The discovery of Uranus shattered the structure of classical astrology, whose theoretical foundation rested on the existence of seven visible planets, no more and no less. Strictly speaking, Uranus is just barely visible to the naked eye but the ancients were unable to see it, blinded as they were by traditional astrological theory, which allowed only seven visible planets. Believing was seeing.

Uranus is linked to the types of insights provided by the mathematical symbolism of astrology, and many astrologers have Uranus prominent in their birth charts. Contemporary astrologers believe Uranus rules Aquarius k (Saturn is the classical ruler). Uranus is associated with shocking events, novelty, disruption, unconventionality, upheaval, divorce, the unexpected, revolution, anarchy, rebellion, accidents, earthquakes, innovation, sudden insights, bursts of light, inventions, electricity, modern technology, liberation, breaking free, and abstract systems of thought. Uranus shatters the structures Saturn has built.

Modern occultists associate the maverick Uranus with tarot trump 0, the Fool.

Neptune

Neptune, named after Roman god of the sea, was discovered in 1846, perhaps heralding the 1848 revolutions in Europe. Neptune (or Poseidon, the Greek god of earthquakes and the sea) has a special link with the intuitive insights based upon the archetypal images of the tarot. In the birth
charts of tarot readers, Neptune tends to figure prominently, often in aspect to the Moon, which is also related to intuition and psychic awareness.

Contemporary astrologers give Neptune rulership over Pisces (Jupiter is the classical ruler). Ralph Waldo Emerson was clearly in tune with Neptune when he wrote in 1836:

Standing on the bare ground,—my head bathed by the blithe air and uplifted into infinite space,—all mean egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eye-ball; I am nothing; I see all; the currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or particle of God. 35

Neptune is associated with illusion, mystery, mysticism, dreams, symbolism, imagination, the unconscious, intuition, poetry, music, film, transcendence, universality, idealism, spirituality, merging, fogginess, escapism, sacrifice, intoxication, deception, scandal, and the dissolution or blurring of boundaries. Neptune erodes and dissolves the structures built by Saturn. The discovery of Neptune occurred in the same year that Marx and Engels published their utopian view of society in the Communist Manifesto.

Modern occultists associate Neptune with tarot trump XII, the Hanged Man, who is suspended by his foot (the part of the body ruled by Pisces).

Pluto

Pluto, named after the Roman god of the underworld, was discovered in 1930. Contemporary astrologers give Pluto rulership of Scorpio (Mars is the classical ruler). Pluto (the Greek god Hades) is associated with divination because it symbolizes the revelation of secret or occult knowledge. Astronomers have reclassified Pluto as a dwarf planet; nonetheless, astrologers continue to regard Pluto as immensely powerful in a horoscope. Conan O’Brien was speaking of a Plutonian experience when he told the 2011 Dartmouth graduating class: “There are few things more liberating in this life than having your worst fear realized.” 36

Pluto has become associated with atomic power, metamorphosis, transformation, regeneration, volcanic eruption, sweeping change, deep emotion, psychoanalysis, research, in-depth understanding, uncovering that which lies hidden beneath the surface, detective work, irresistible force, life-changing events, wakeup calls, the occult, the underworld, the wealth provided by natural resources, death, rebirth, and regeneration. Pluto completely uproots and radically transforms the structures built by Saturn.

Modern occultists associate Pluto with tarot trump XX, Judgment.

The Outer Planets in the Life of Tiger Woods

To illustrate the impact of the outer planets, let’s consider an example from the life of Tiger Woods. His birth data is 10:50 p.m., 30 December 1975, Long Beach, California. On November 25, 2009, The National Enquirer reported that the golf pro was having an extramarital affair with a New York City nightclub manager. A couple days later Tiger had a dramatic car accident which focused media attention on his marital problems. On August 23, 2010, Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren finalized their divorce. Such life-altering events almost always involve transits of the outer planets to the birth chart.

The accompanying table lists all the major hard aspects of Uranus (the planet of upheaval and divorce), Neptune (dissolution and deception), and Pluto (radical change and transformation) to Woods’s birth chart during the five-year period 2008–2013. Hard aspects are based on division of the circle by 4, the number of manifestation. The major hard aspects include the conjunction (two planets at the same point on the zodiac circle), the square (two planets 90o apart) and the opposition (two planets 180o apart). Because the transiting outer planets move so slowly, their interactions with the birth chart correlate with events that are experienced for months either side of the date they become exact. Most astrologers do not believe planets “cause” events but rather that important correlations occur between changing planetary patterns and life events on Earth. Correlation is not causation.

Hard Outer-Planet Aspects to the Natal Chart of Tiger Woods, 2008–2013
Aspect	Date(s)	Typical Meanings & Tarot Associations
Transiting Uranus square (90o) natal Mars	Feb. 18, 2008	Feeling tense and frustrated. Needing to find an outlet for pent-up sexual and aggressive impulses. (The Fool confronts the Tower.)
Transiting Uranus square (90o) natal Moon	May 31, 2008 July 23, 2008 Mar. 8, 2009	Disruptions in domestic life. Wanting to break free of emotional constraints. (The Fool confronts the High Priestess.)
Transiting Uranus square (90o) Midheaven axis	April 5, 2009 Oct. 5, 2009 Jan. 25, 2010	Tension and stress in professional life that may affect home and family. Sudden changes, accidents, or disruptions affecting career or domestic life. (The Fool confronts the Devil.)
	Nov. 25, 2009	News breaks about extramarital affair.
Transiting Uranus oppose (180o) Ascendant (i.e., conjunct the Descendant or cusp of the marriage House)	April 14, 2009 Sep. 22, 2009 Feb. 5, 2010	“Your relationship with your partner now becomes the target for disruptions and change, particularly if there have been problems which have been pushed underground in the past.”* A classic “divorce aspect.” (The Fool enters the house analagous to Libra, the sign of Justice.)
	Aug. 23 2010	Divorce finalized.
Transiting Neptune square (90o) Venus	May 6, 2010 Jun. 26, 2010 Feb. 20, 2011 Dec. 16, 2011	Secret love affairs. Confusion, illusion or deception in love. Dissolution of an intimate partnership. Scandal. (The Hanged Man confronts the Empress.)
Transiting Pluto conjunct (0o) natal Sun	Feb. 21, 2012 May 31, 2012 Dec. 21, 2012	Radical change, life-changing events, profound personal transformation. Life is never the same afterward. (Judgment in the light of the Sun.)

* Interpretation of transiting Uranus oppose Ascendant, Solar Fire Gold, v 7.3.1 (Stepney, South Australia: Esoteric Technologies, 2010).

Tropical Astrology: The Four Seasons and the Zodiac

I recall from my teenage years the stir caused in the United States by the 1961 publication of Henry Miller’s Tropic of Cancer and the subsequent obscenity trial that challenged this country’s laws on pornography. The astronomical Tropic of Cancer is not as sexy as the novel. Instead, it refers to the Northern Tropic, that is, the northernmost circle of latitude (approximately 23° 26' 21" N) at which the Sun appears directly overhead during its annual cycle.

Each year the Sun reaches the Tropic of Cancer on the day of the June solstice, the beginning of summer in the northern hemisphere and the onset of winter south of the equator. In geography, the tropics and equinoxes indicate the start of the four seasons. The equinoxes occur twice per year on the first day of autumn (September 23) and spring (March 21) when the number of hours of daylight equals the length of the night (hence, equi-nox). At the moment of the equinox, the tilt of the Earth’s axis is inclined neither away from nor toward the Sun.

In ancient times, astrologers had to choose where to start the zodiac. There were two options. In the West, astrologers chose to begin the zodiac at 0o Aries, which they assigned to the spring equinox (March 21). Thus, Western astrologers defined the zodiac by the Earth’s seasons, and the Western zodiac is called the “tropical” or season-based zodiac. In contrast, Hindu or Vedic astrologers, who also start the zodiac at 0o Aries, assigned the start of the zodiac to the beginning of the constellation of stars known as Aries. Thus, Western astrologers use a tropical (season-based or Sun-based) zodiac whereas Indian astrologers use a sidereal (star-based) zodiac determined by the constellations. Because the Earth wobbles slowly on its axis (the precession of the equinoxes), the two zodiacs have drifted apart since Ptolemy wrote about it in the second century CE. In fact, the two zodiacs coincide only once in every 26,000 years! Currently in the West, the zodiac begins at 0o Aries on March 21 but it begins on April 15 in the sidereal system of India. Both the tropical and the sidereal zodiacs divide the circle into twelve equal segments called “signs,” which are mathematical constructs named after the constellations in the sky.

By definition, a zodiacal sign is one-twelfth of the zodiac circle. There are important philosophical reasons why astrologers divide the 360o circle by twelve. Essentially there are four fundamental energies called elements (Fire, Water, Air, and Earth) that can express themselves in three distinct ways (cardinal, fixed, and mutable). These twelve possible manifestations of energy (4 x 3 = 12) are called the signs of the zodiac. Debunkers of astrology lack this basic understanding of astrology as a mathematical model that posits twelve equal, 30-degree signs, regardless of the number of constellations on the zodiac belt. The astrological signs merely get their names from the constellations. Every so often a story appears in the media claiming that scientists have discovered a thirteenth sign, which is tantamount to saying that scientific research has recently discovered that thirteen items make a dozen. Poppycock!

The Twelve Signs of the Zodiac

To recap, Western astrologers opted to begin the zodiac at the onset of spring, the vernal equinox, which occurs around March 21 each year north of the equator. The tropical zodiac is based on which season the Earth is experiencing. Each season is allotted ninety degrees of the full circle. Spring begins at 0o Aries, summer at 0o Cancer, autumn at 0o Libra, and winter at 0o Capricorn. The four signs that begin the seasons are called the cardinal signs (from the Latin cardo, meaning “pivot” or “hinge”) because the seasons of the year hinge on them.

Keywords & Associations for the Modalities and Tarot Pip Cards
Modality	Keywords & Associations
Cardinal (Pips 2, 3, 4)	Leads, initiates, instigates, incites, commands, plans, pioneers, rouses, forges ahead, likes to take action and run the show
Fixed (Pips 5, 6, 7)	Stable, steady, persevering, dependable, established, stubborn, entrenched, enduring, slow to change, works persistently to bring plans to full realization
Mutable (Pips 8, 9, 10)	Transitioning, flexible, restless, adaptable, communicative, mobile, thrives on change, likes to prepare for ending and moving on

Being keen observers, the ancient astrologers noticed that people tended to display certain character traits according to the season in which they were born. For example, children born in late summer (at the time of the harvest) grew up to be hard-working, meticulous, and perfectionist adults. Instead of calling these kids “late summer babies,” astrologers used the shorthand that the Sun in Virgo is critical and detail-oriented, and so on. Virgo is the last zodiac sign of summer, that is, the last thirty-degree segment of the summer quadrant initiated by 0o Cancer. Key properties of the sun signs are summarized in the accompanying table.

Keywords for the Signs of the Zodiac
Sun Sign	Properties	Sun Sign across the Wheel	Properties
Aries (+)	Cardinal Fire. Ardent, self-seeking, impulsive, assertive, pioneering.	Libra (+)	Cardinal Air. Balanced, sociable, indecisive, relationship-oriented.
Taurus (-)	Fixed Earth. Reliable, steady, practical, fond of luxury, reluctant to change.	Scorpio (-)	Fixed Water. Intense, private, determined, penetrating, secretive.
Gemini (+)	Mutable Air. Versatile, chatty, communicative, mobile, scattered.	Sagittarius (+)	Mutable Fire. Frank, freedom-loving, tolerant, adventurous, philosophical.
Cancer (-)	Cardinal Water. Protective, domestic, shy, nurturing, security-conscious.	Capricorn (-)	Cardinal Earth. Ambitious, reserved, practical, hard-working, status-oriented.
Leo (+)	Fixed Fire. Proud, fun-loving, creative, enthusiastic, dramatic, bossy.	Aquarius (+)	Fixed Air. Detached, modern, inventive, outgoing, unique, eccentric.
Virgo (-)	Mutable Earth. Meticulous, critical, analytical, modest, discerning, service-oriented.	Pisces (-)	Mutable Water. Sensitive, artistic, intuitive, poetic, dreamy, escapist, gullible.

Just as the year is divided into four seasons, the zodiac wheel is divided into four quadrants measured counterclockwise starting at 0o Aries at the very left on the eastern horizon. In the horoscope, the horizon is represented by a horizontal line that divides the circle into equal hemispheres above and below. The direction east is located to the left because astrologers faced southward toward the equator when they studied the night sky. In short, the horoscope is a map of the heavens with due south placed at the top of the map.

Each season has a beginning, middle, and an end—each of which corresponds to the three zodiac signs that make up the quadrant. The accompanying diagram of a square horoscope lists the zodiac signs that comprise the four quadrants and the four seasons:

Quadrants, Directions, Seasons, Signs, and Houses of the Natural Horoscope
SOUTH 4th Quadrant (Winter) 10. Capricorn 11. Aquarius 12. Pisces Ascendant	Midheaven 3rd Quadrant (Autumn) 9. Sagittarius 8. Scorpio 7. Libra WEST
EAST 1st Quadrant (Spring) 1. Aries 2. Taurus 3. Gemini Imum Coeli	Descendant 2nd Quadrant (Summer) 6. Virgo 5. Leo 4. Cancer NORTH

The natural Aries-rising zodiac.

The Qualities: Cardinal, Fixed, Mutable

Astrologers saw as symbolic the fact that each season is divided into three parts: a beginning, a middle, and an end. The signs that initiate seasons are called cardinal because the entry into the season hinges on them. The signs in the middle of the season are called fixed because the season is in full force at its middle. Finally, the signs at the end of a season are called mutable because they cover the period when a season is breaking down so that the next season can break through.

By analogy, people born with their Sun in cardinal signs are enterprising and like to initiate new ventures. Those with their Sun in fixed signs tend to be somewhat stubborn, dedicated, firm in their opinions, slow to change, and set in their ways. People born with their Sun in mutable signs tend to be adaptable, clever, quick to learn, mercurial, and able to act as “go-betweens” and cope with transition. In the nineteenth century, the Golden Dawn used these distinctions to delineate the tarot pip cards numbered 2 through 10. The Golden Dawn regarded the pips numbered 2, 3, and 4 of each suit to be of a cardinal or initiatory nature; the pips numbered 5, 6, and 7 to be fixed and more entrenched; and the pip cards numbered 8, 9, and 10 to be mutable or transitional, giving way to a new cycle.

Zodiac Signs and the Four Elements

In addition to assigning the qualities of cardinal, fixed, or mutable to each sign, the ancient astrologers also allotted them one of the four elements of Greek philosophy in the order Fire, Earth, Air, Water. The first sign Aries was a Fire sign; the second sign Taurus, an Earth sign; the third sign Gemini, an Air sign; and the fourth sign Cancer, a Water sign. This pattern was repeated around the wheel. Key symbolic features of each element included:

• Fire is ambitious, enlivening, enthusiastic, active, expansive, adventurous, competitive, outgoing, enterprising, energetic, and future-oriented. (The blossoming Wands of the tarot are associated with Fire. The Queen of Wands acts as midwife to the onset of spring.)
• Water is emotional, sensitive, artistic, flowing, empathetic, nurturing, caring, and oriented toward the past. (The receptive Cups of the tarot are associated with Water. The Queen of Cups acts as midwife to the start of summer.)
• Air is communicative, mental, social, associative, inventive, and relationship-oriented. (The piercing Swords of the tarot are associated with Air. The Queen of Swords acts as midwife to the beginning of autumn.)
• Earth is grounded, practical, tangible, diligent, reliable, detail-oriented, health-conscious, orderly, and industrious. (The serviceable Coins/Disks/Pentacles of the tarot are associated with Earth. The Queen of Pentacles acts as midwife to the onset of winter.)

As mentioned, the philosophical concepts of three qualities and four elements form the theoretical basis for the twelve signs of the zodiac. The twelve signs are archetypes or ways of being in the universe. Because the material universe can be explained in terms of the four elements, and each element can behave in one of three modes (cardinal, fixed, mutable), there are only twelve distinct archetypal ways of being in the world. Having decided on exactly twelve archetypal ways of being represented by the signs, the ancient astrologers named each of the twelve signs after one of the constellations along the zodiac belt. The Golden Dawn would later assign the tarot pip cards to the signs of the zodiac as shown in the table.

The Twelve Signs as Manifestations of the Three Qualities and the Four Elements
	Fire Triplicity:	Water Triplicity:	Air Triplicity:	Earth Triplicity:
Cardinal: (Pips 2, 3, 4)	Aries	Cancer	Libra	Capricorn
Fixed: (Pips 5, 6, 7)	Leo	Scorpio	Aquarius	Taurus
Mutable: (Pips 8, 9, 10)	Sagittarius	Pisces	Gemini	Virgo

The 24-Hour Day Reflected in the Horoscope

The Earth rotates on its axis once every twenty-four hours and revolves around the sun once a year. The sun’s annual cycle is related to the four seasons and the twelve signs of the zodiac. The daily cycle of the sun, due to the rotation of the Earth, accounts for the cycle of day and night, which is represented in the horoscope as the twelve astrological houses.

The twelve houses symbolize twelve distinct areas of life. The cusp of the first house is called the Ascendant because it is the degree of the zodiac ascending or rising on the eastern horizon at the time of birth. It is also called the rising sign. The Ascendant carries the symbolism of sunrise, birth, and coming into being; as such, it is the most important point in the horoscope. Next in importance is the Midheaven, the point on the zodiac circle that the Sun occupies at midday. The Midheaven is the highest, most visible, and prominent point in the horoscope. Symbolically it signifies our personal high noon: career, worldly status, reputation, and public standing. At the Ascendant we come into the world, and at the Midheaven we make our mark on it.

The twelve houses are analogous to the twelve signs of the zodiac and share some of their symbolism. Astrological houses and the zodiacal signs, however, are distinct concepts; they cannot be equated as some modern astrologers erroneously try to do. The renowned astrologer Dane Rudhyar stressed that zodiacal signs are twelve modes of life energy, whereas astrological houses are sections of space that represent twelve fields of experience. The meanings of the houses derive from centuries of observations of the horoscopes of people, nations, and worldly events. Unlike the thirty-degree signs, the twelve houses are not of equal size because of the “obliquity of the ecliptic,” the fact that the Earth’s axis is tilted about 23.4º with respect to the zodiac circle. The horoscope is a two-dimensional map of the heavens; when three-dimensional space is projected onto a two-dimensional surface, the houses appear to be uneven in width.

The houses come in pairs. Drawing on the symbolism of night and day, the ancients considered the nighttime hemisphere below the horizon to be personal and subjective, and the daytime hemisphere above the horizon to be public and objective. Each hemisphere contains six houses. Houses that oppose each other across the wheel are complementary pairs. The seventeenth-century astrologer Morin de Villefranche taught that each astrological house participates “accidentally” in the symbolism of the house opposite; that is, each house has its own essential nature and also partakes of the meaning of the house directly opposite.

Meanings of the Twelve Houses

The first house represents one’s body, life, physical appearance, vitality, basic motivation, and sense of identity. The opposite seventh house signifies one’s spouse or partner but also open enemies, opponents, wars, lawsuits, and thieves. The first and seventh houses represent the duality of self and other. Lying opposite the first house, planets in the seventh can stressfully affect the native’s health and vitality. In mundane astrology (the astrology of world events), the first house symbolizes the nation, its populace, and its image in the world. The opposite seventh house stands for treaties, contracts, lawsuits, agreements, foreign relations, allies, opponents, wars, and disputes.

The second house signifies income, money, resources, supports, values, and belongings (moveable goods). The opposite eighth house represents death, the goods of the dead, legacies, the partner’s money, joint finances, shared resources, danger, fear, anguish of mind, taboos, the occult, and esoteric interests. In mundane astrology, the second house stands for banks, financial institutions, the money market, and the nation’s wealth. The opposite eighth house symbolizes taxes, probate, inheritances, borrowed money, international finance, and multinational corporations.

The third house signifies siblings, kin, modes of communication, news, gossip, the sharing of ideas, learning, reading, writing, early education, neighborhood matters, transport, and local travel. The opposite ninth house (of the Sun god, who daily transports the Sun across the sky in his chariot) represents long journeys, higher education, knowledge, philosophy, the law, religion, the clergy, expanded horizons, dreams, prophecy, divination, the dissemination of ideas, in-laws, and foreign affairs. In mundane astrology, the third house stands for schools, education, media, transport, roads, bridges, and the postal service. The opposite ninth house signifies foreign nations and peoples, higher education, publishing, the church, ecclesiastical affairs, the law, the justice system, and foreign travel.

The fourth house refers to home, father, family, progenitors, homeland, ancestry, heredity, early environment, real estate, things hidden in the earth, buried treasure, the end of matters, and the grave. The opposite tenth house signifies authority figures, mother, career, office, achievements, professional ambitions, social status, reputation, honors, and public standing. In mundane astrology, the fourth house represents the land, the housing industry, agriculture, farming, mines, natural resources (in the ground), the weather, and the political party opposing the ruling party. The opposite tenth house signifies the ruling political party, the government, judges, the chief executive, and the prestige and honor of the nation.

The fifth house signifies children, pleasures, recreation, hobbies, games, gambling, sexual delights, pregnancy, love affairs, and creative self-expression. The opposite eleventh house signifies friends, alliances, groups of like-minded persons, social activities, confidence, praise, trust, hopes, wishes, and humanitarian concerns. In mundane astrology, the fifth house represents the entertainment industry, amusements, recreation, leisure activities, the arts, theatre, fashion, sports, children, speculation, casinos, the stock market, and colonies of the nation. The opposite eleventh house shows resources and supporters of the government or whoever is in command.

Finally, the sixth house refers to illness, ailments, duties, service, routine tasks, the workplace, daily toil, subordinates, servants, caretaking, pets, small animals, detailed work, apprenticeship, and the organization and storage of information. The complementary twelfth house represents confinement, seclusion, exile, prison, hospitals, infirmaries, charitable work, secret enemies, clandestine affairs, false friends, suffering, sorrows, illness, limitations, scandal, self-undoing, large animals, and spirituality. In mundane astrology, the sixth house signifies medical services, the army, navy, police force, civil service, animal control, trade unions, the food industry, sanitation, public health, service organizations, and the working classes. The twelfth house represents large institutions, hospitals, captives, slaves, witches, prisons, asylums, places of detention or confinement, monasteries, spiritual retreats, charities, secret organizations, sedition, terrorists, and hidden enemies.

Horoscope Tarot Spreads

Tarot readers often lay out one or more cards per house around a horoscope wheel and interpret the cards in the context of the house where they fall. It is also possible to represent one’s birth chart using the Golden Dawn assignments of tarot cards to signs and planets in one’s nativity. The birth chart can be read as a horoscope spread, utilizing the houses into which the cards for each sign and planet fall. Astrologers can also use this method to read what the tarot has to say about the year ahead in their annual solar return.

For example, Tiger Woods, whose romantic escapades are a matter of public record, has Mercury (the Magician) in Capricorn (the Devil) in his fifth house of love and romance. A possible reading of this combination is that such a person might act like a cunning trickster (Mercury the Magician) in a devilish pursuit (Capricorn the Devil) of sexual delight (fifth house). In Woods’s chart, Mercury occupies the Sun decan of Capricorn, which is linked to the Four of Pentacles, a card of covetousness and the wish to have as much as one can get. The Sun, ruler of this decan, is a quintessential symbol of male potency. 37

Keywords for Houses
1. Self, body, life, vitality, personality, character, appearance, personal initiative	7. Marriage, divorce, close partnerships, consultants, open enemies, disputes, war, lawsuits, thieves
2. Valuables, income, goods, assets, possessions, money, wealth, resources	8. Resources of partners, death, loss, the dead, legacies, surgery, the occult, fear, anguish of mind, transformation
3. Siblings, kin, news, communication, messages, writing, short trips, learning, education, local environment	9. Higher education, journeys, foreign lands, prophecy, dreams, publishing, philosophy, religion, clergy, in-laws
4. Home, family, fathers, real estate, roots, foundation, tradition, the end of matters, the grave	10. Career, profession, achievements, public standing, honors, reputation, dignity, authority, judges, mothers
5. Fun, romance, pleasure, lovemaking, children, pregnancy, creative self-expression, gambling, vacations	11. Resources related to career, friends, social groups, hopes, praise, trust, fidelity, optimism, fulfillment of wishes
6. Daily routine, service, caretaking, toil, labor, disease, ailments, subordinates, tenants, pets, small animals	12. Self-undoing, sacrifice, confinement, seclusion, exile, secret enemies, sorrow, defects, charity, large animals

The Thirty-Six Decans

A knowledge of decans is essential to understanding the Golden Dawn system of tarot interpretation. The word decan (pronounced like “deck-an”) derives from the Latin decanus, meaning the chief of a group of ten. A decan results from dividing a zodiac sign into three equal 10-degree segments. In ancient Greece, the number ten was sacred. It was natural for Hellenistic astrologers to divide the 360o circle into 36 decans (360o = 36 x 10o). When it came to distributing the seven visible planets among the 36 decans, each planet was given five decans (5 x 7 = 35) and one got an extra decan (35 + 1 = 36). The planet chosen to receive the extra decan was Mars who, because of his heat, was given the last decan of winter and the first decan of spring.

In the thinking of the occultists, the transition from winter to spring at the beginning of Aries required an extra boost of the fiery energy of Mars. This symbolism is reflected in the Waite-Smith Two of Wands by the crossing of two plant stems, one bearing white lilies on either end and the other with red roses on each end. Pisces is a cold Water sign that marks the end of winter. Mars ruling the last decan of Pisces serves to melt the white snow (the color of lilies and virginity) and prepare the way for the blossoming of the flowers in spring (the red roses, red being the color of Mars and a symbol of passion and the defloration of the virgin).

The Golden Dawn followed the Chaldean method of assigning the thirty-six decans to the seven known planets, starting with Mars in the first decan of Aries and proceeding in the descending order of the planets’ speed of motion. Specifically, the Chaldean order is: (1) Saturn, (2) Jupiter, (3) Mars, (4) the Sun, (5) Venus, (6) Mercury, and finally (7) the Moon. As we shall see, these assignments are incorporated into the delineation of the tarot, specifically in the traditional meanings of the pip cards numbered two through ten.

The ancient Greek astrologers were influenced by Pythagorean number symbolism and most likely were aware that the cross formed by the horizon and meridian axes of the horoscope was flanked by the decan rulers in Chaldean order. The two adjacent Mars decans in the east mark the spring equinox at the Ascendant of the natural Aries-rising horoscope. The adjacent Sun and Venus decans at the bottom flank the summer solstice at the Imum Coeli (IC). The adjacent Moon and Mercury decans in the west mark the fall equinox at the descendant. Finally, the adjacent Saturn and Jupiter decans at the top straddle the winter solstice at the Midheaven.

Jupiter (Winter) Mars	Saturn (Autumn) Moon
Mars (Spring) Sun	Mercury (Summer) Venus

The central axis or cross that divides the year into four seasons,
flanked by the planetary decan rulers in Chaldean order.

The Four Seasons, the Thirty-Six Decans, and the Tarot

Let’s look the meanings attributed to some tarot cards today. As mentioned, nineteenth-century occultists, particularly the Order of the Golden Dawn, relied on astrology to assign meanings to the cards. In the early twentieth century, Waite instructed illustrator Pamela Colman Smith to use her knowledge of astrology to illustrate the pip cards. As you read the following, you may wish to lay out the pip cards being discussed in the pattern of the central horizon/meridian cross in the accompanying diagram. And if you have ever wondered why the Ten of Swords has such a negative reputation in the tarot, you are about to find out.

Spring (0 o Aries)

Ten of Cups–Two of Wands

Mars/Pisces–Mars/Aries

The beginning of the cycle of seasons occurs at the spring equinox (around March 21 in the northern hemisphere). It is flanked by two decans: Mars/Pisces and Mars/Aries. The Golden Dawn assigned these decans to the Ten of Cups and the Two of Wands, respectively. At the vernal equinox, day and night are equal in duration, that is, the amounts of light and darkness are in perfect balance. The Waite-Smith Ten of Cups corresponds to the final days of winter just before the spring equinox. It depicts a scene of family harmony beneath a rainbow. The subsequent Two of Wands (the start of spring) shows a young man trying to decide how to engage in the fresh energy of springtime with its many opportunities for new life.

Summer (0 o Cancer)

Ten of Swords–Two of Cups

Sun/Gemini–Venus/Cancer

The summer solstice (around June 21 in the northern hemisphere) is flanked by two decans: Sun/Gemini and Venus/Cancer. These decans correspond to the Ten of Swords and the Two of Cups, respectively. At the summer solstice, the Sun appears to stop and change direction from traveling northward to heading south. The summer solstice is the longest day of the year; it has the most sunlight and the smallest amount of darkness.

Leading up to the summer solstice is the Sun decan of Gemini, which is assigned to the Ten of Swords (the ending of spring). The Waite-Smith Ten of Swords shows a dead man with ten swords in his back. Crowley labels this card “Ruin.” How could the life-affirming Sun in the mental sign Gemini have such an ominous significance? The answer lies in the astrological symbolism of the summer solstice, the fourth-house cusp, and the opposition of the third to the ninth house of the sun god. In its passage through Gemini, the Sun travels opposite the ninth house (of the sun god) of the natural Aries-rising horoscope. In astrology, opposition indicates stress, disharmony, and conflict. In Gemini, the Sun is weakened by opposing a house where it is treated like a god. As Lincoln observed, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”

Furthermore, on its annual path, the Sun slows down in Gemini and makes a complete stop (symbolic of death) when it reaches the end of Gemini at the summer solstice. The end of Gemini/beginning of Cancer also corresponds to the midnight point of the natural zodiac, that is, the point of maximum darkness in the Sun’s daily course around the Earth. The symbolism is again of death. At midnight, the Sun is at its weakest point of the day, the point furthest from high noon where the Sun is at its most powerful. In the natural Aries-rising horoscope, the cusp of the fourth house corresponds to the change from Gemini to Cancer and signifies final endings. At midnight, the Sun has reached rock bottom, its darkest night of the soul. The only way to go from here is upward.

Autumn (0 o Libra)

Ten of Pentacles–Two of Swords

Mercury/Virgo–Moon/Libra

The fall equinox (around September 23) is flanked by two decans: Mercury/Virgo and Moon/Libra. These decans correspond to the Ten of Pentacles and the Two of Swords, respectively. At the fall equinox, day and night are equal in duration. There is a perfect balance between light and darkness. The Waite-Smith Ten of Pentacles (the end of summer), which leads up to the fall equinox, depicts a scene of family prosperity, harmony, and contentment. Often this card is taken to mean an inheritance, that is, an equitable distribution of family wealth just as the hours of day and night are equally divided at the equinox. The Two of Swords (the start of autumn), which follows the Ten of Pentacles, depicts a woman carefully pondering equally weighted choices. Etteilla viewed the Two of Swords as a card of friendship, which involves balancing your own needs against those of someone you care about.

Winter (0 o Capricorn)

Ten of Wands–Two of Pentacles

Saturn/Sagittarius–Jupiter/Capricorn

The winter solstice (around December 21) is flanked by two decans: Saturn/Sagittarius and Jupiter/Capricorn. These decans correspond to the Ten of Wands and the Two of Pentacles, respectively. The Waite-Smith Ten of Wands (the end of autumn) shows a man burdened with a heavy load. The Sun comes to a complete stop at the end of Sagittarius/beginning of Capricorn. The beginning of winter (0o Capricorn) is the shortest day of the year, with the least sunlight and the greatest amount of darkness. Randy Capricorn is assigned to the Devil trump; the devil, as we all know, is the Prince of Darkness.

Because Saturn rules the last decan of Sagittarius, the Sun in this decan must act in concert with Saturn, whose nature is to weigh down and inhibit. The Ten of Wands thus depicts the fiery ambition of the Sun being weighted down by Saturn. The Ten of Wands, however, is not as negative as the Ten of Swords. Having assumed the heavy load of Saturn in the last decan of Sagittarius, the Sun next moves into the first decan of Capricorn, which is associated with Jupiter and the start of winter. Jupiter represents expansion and abundance, and Capricorn is a sign of responsibilities. Thus, the Jupiter decan of Capricorn (the Two of Pentacles) carries the meaning of juggling a host of duties and responsibilities.

The Chaldean rulers of the thirty-six decans used by the Golden Dawn.

Aleister Crowley and the Thirty-Six Decans

Aleister Crowley (1875–1947), the intellectual creator of the Thoth deck, served as a ghostwriter for the famous New York astrologer Evangeline Adams, who popularized astrology in the United States in the early decades of the twentieth century. Although different systems of correlation exist, Crowley’s teachings, based on the Golden Dawn correspondences, have played an important role in my own development as an astrologer and tarot reader. Astrological correlations can add a valuable dimension to tarot reading. Especially useful are the associations between the pip cards numbered two through ten and the thirty-six decans:

• Pips 2, 3, and 4 are assigned in order to the three decans of the cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn), which symbolize creation, initiation, and action.
• Pips 5, 6, and 7 are assigned in order to the three decans of the fixed signs (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius), which symbolize purpose, consolidation, and stabilization.
• Pips 8, 9, and 10 are assigned in order to the three decans of the mutable signs (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces), which symbolize adaptation, transition, and letting go.

These relationships are summarized in the accompanying tables.

The Decans of the Hot Masculine Phallic Suits (Fire and Air)
Pip	WANDS (hot & dry)			Thoth deck
#	Sign	Decan	Ruler	Name
2	Aries	1st	Mars	Dominion
3	Aries	2nd	Sun	Virtue
4	Aries	3rd	Venus	Completion
5	Leo	1st	Saturn	Strife
6	Leo	2nd	Jupiter	Victory
7	Leo	3rd	Mars	Valour
8	Sagittarius	1st	Mercury	Swiftness
9	Sagittarius	2nd	Moon	Strength
10	Sagittarius	3rd	Saturn	Oppression

The Decans of the Hot Masculine Phallic Suits (Fire and Air) ctd.
Pip	SWORDS (wet & hot)			Thoth deck
#	Sign	Decan	Ruler	Name
2	Libra	1st	Moon	Peace
3	Libra	2nd	Saturn	Sorrow
4	Libra	3rd	Jupiter	Truce
5	Aquarius	1st	Venus	Defeat
6	Aquarius	2nd	Mercury	Science
7	Aquarius	3rd	Moon	Futility
8	Gemini	1st	Jupiter	Interference
9	Gemini	2nd	Mars	Cruelty
10	Gemini	3rd	Sun	Ruin

The Decans of the Cold Feminine Receptive Suits (Water and Earth)
Pip	CUPS (cold & wet)			Thoth deck
#	Sign	Decan	Ruler	Name
2	Cancer	1st	Venus	Love
3	Cancer	2nd	Mercury	Abundance
4	Cancer	3rd	Moon	Luxury
5	Scorpio	1st	Mars	Disappointment
6	Scorpio	2nd	Sun	Pleasure
7	Scorpio	3rd	Venus	Debauch
8	Pisces	1st	Saturn	Indolence
9	Pisces	2nd	Jupiter	Happiness
10	Pisces	3rd	Mars	Satiety

The Decans of the Cold Feminine Receptive Suits (Water and Earth) ctd.
Pip	PENTACLES (dry & cold)			Thoth deck
#	Sign	Decan	Ruler	Name
2	Capricorn	1st	Jupiter	Change
3	Capricorn	2nd	Mars	Work
4	Capricorn	3rd	Sun	Power
5	Taurus	1st	Mercury	Worry
6	Taurus	2nd	Moon	Success
7	Taurus	3rd	Saturn	Failure
8	Virgo	1st	Sun	Prudence
9	Virgo	2nd	Venus	Gain
10	Virgo	3rd	Mercury	Wealth

The Use of Decans in a Spread about Marital Problems

I received an email from a man I’ll call Dimitri, who asked for a reading about his marriage. He offered little background information except to say that things were going badly and he was worried about divorce. I did a Celtic Cross spread using the Lo Scarabeo Tarot, their flagship deck that combines three major traditions—Marseille, Waite-Smith, and Crowley-Harris. I noted the time I read his email to be able to cast a horary chart and correlate the astrology with the tarot. Horary astrology is an ancient method of answering questions based on the horoscope for the “birth” of the question in the astrologer’s mind. In Dimitri’s case, I first did the Celtic Cross spread and studied the horary chart. The order is reversed in the following.

Dimitri’s horary chart: What is happening in my marriage?

The Ascendant of Dimitri’s horary chart lies in the middle decan of Scorpio. The Ascendant signifies the querent, so Dimitri is represented by Scorpio and its ruler Mars. The Sun governs the middle decan of Scorpio, which Crowley links to the Six of Cups (“Pleasure”). This card makes sense because Dimitri is worried that the pleasure has gone out of his marriage. Modern readers view the Six of Cups as representing nostalgia for the past, also an apt meaning given his concerns.

Dimitri’s Ascendant-ruler Mars occupies the third decan of Taurus in the seventh house of marriage. This last decan of Taurus is ruled by Saturn, the planet of harsh reality, which is connected with the Seven of Pentacles (“Failure,” according to Crowley). Dimitri is worried about the possible failure of his marriage and the poor “return on his investment” (another meaning of the Seven of Pentacles) in the relationship.

Dimitri’s wife is symbolized by the seventh-house cusp (Descendant) in Taurus, ruled by Venus. The seventh-house cusp lies in the second decan of Taurus (“Success”), implying that his wife has the upper hand. Both Mars (Dimitri) and Venus (his wife) occupy Dimitri’s seventh house of marriage, but Venus is moving away from Mars, about to leave the seventh house. Symbolically, Dimitri’s wife is thinking about leaving the marriage. Venus (his wife) lies in the first decan of Gemini, which is ruled by Jupiter and associated with the Eight of Swords (“Interference”). The symbolism suggests that his wife feels trapped in the marriage and wants to get out.

Venus (his wife) is headed toward a union with the Sun, which rules the tenth house with Leo on its cusp. In horary astrology, the tenth house symbolizes the final ending of the seventh-house marriage (the tenth is the fourth house of endings from the fourth). Again, the chart suggests that his wife (Venus) is thinking of ending the marriage (the Sun).

This interpretation is reinforced by the fact that the Sun occupies and rules the third decan of Gemini, which is associated with the Ten of Sword (“Ruin”), another card of endings. At the end of Gemini, the Sun (representing the end of the marriage) lies at the lowest point of the natural Aries-rising horoscope, so symbolically their marriage has hit bottom. Finally, the cusp of the tenth house, which symbolizes the end of the marriage, lies in the third decan of Leo, ruled by Mars (Dimitri) and associated with the Seven of Wands (“Valour”). Typically the Seven of Wands represents quarreling, opposition, a defensive stance, and victory only in small matters. The fact that Mars (Dimitri) rules the decan occupied by the tenth-house cusp (the end of the marriage) suggests that Dimitri’s own behavior will play a major role in the outcome.

Now let’s look at the Celtic Cross spread for the same question, which I cast using only upright cards:

1. This covers you: The Magician, trump I
2. This crosses you: Three of Swords
3. This is beneath you: Nine of Swords
4. This is behind you: King of Swords
5. This crowns you: The Emperor, trump IV
6. This lies ahead of you: Two of Wands
7. This represents you in the situation: Page of Pentacles
8. This represents those around you: Eight of Pentacles
9. This is your hopes and fears: Nine of Pentacles
10. This is the likely outcome: The Lovers, trump VI

Not knowing the specifics of his situation, I responded to Dimitri as follows:

This is a generally favorable spread. You have the resources you need to overcome the situation (the Magician). Most likely you are dealing with a lawyer and facing a legal situation (King of Swords), which has caused you much heartache (Three of Swords). The Three of Swords crosses you and suggests separation, sadness, tears, and sometimes a need for surgery. You have experienced stress and anxiety in your marriage for a long time (Nine of Swords). This is the foundation of your question. You may have acted in an insensitive way toward your spouse, and she may now be dealing with an attorney (King of Swords). Your conscious goal is to reestablish yourself in a powerful position (the Emperor) and again become king of your castle. A partnership (Two of Wands) may lie in the near future. This could be a sexual relationship or possibly a business partnership. If it is sexual, it would be important to keep contraception in mind because the Emperor often signifies fatherhood, and the Two of Wands refers to new life that emerges at the start of spring. You may also need to make a decision about what path to take and how you want to live your life in the future (Two of Wands).

You are feeling a need to start over financially (Page of Pentacles). Those around you are advising you to act prudently and proceed step-by-step to get your financial affairs in order (Eight of Pentacles); you will need to work diligently to get back on your feet. You fear that you will have to pay a large alimony, which will make it more difficult for you to achieve your own financial independence (Nine of Pentacles). In the end, you are likely to find a new love, which will restore your happiness (the Lovers), and you may need to choose between reconciliation with your wife and a new love relationship. There are no Cups in the spread but there are many Swords and Pentacles, placing an emphasis on conflict, legalities, and money issues rather than love and intimate relationships.

Dimitri responded that my comments were on target. He provided further details. For a long time, his wife had been complaining that he was not attentive enough, spent too much time on his own leisure interests, and did not provide well for her and the children. Dimitri told her she should not try to change him but should accept him as he is. She responded by consulting a lawyer and asking Dimitri to move out. When a family member unexpectedly needed surgery, Dimitri hoped there would be a thaw in their relationship, but it was short-lived, and he would be facing divorce proceedings in the coming month.

I responded by reviewing the horary chart in terms of the tarot reading. His wife appeared to be moving away from him emotionally, but reconciliation was still possible if he was willing to make the changes she wanted. The Lovers in the outcome position looked favorable. I felt that ultimately he would find emotional satisfaction either with his wife or in a new relationship. Dimitri answered that he and his wife were both very stubborn and neither was likely to modify their positions any time soon. Given their fixed attitudes, divorce seemed likely. The horary Ascendant, signifying Dimitri, lying in the fixed sign Scorpio, and the Descendant (his wife) in the fixed sign Taurus, mirrored their mutual obstinacy, which eventually did lead to divorce.

Using Tarot to Delineate the Ascendant

The Four of Wands:
the Venus decan of Aries
(Universal Tarot).

Let’s consider the horoscope of a man born on September 10, 1968, with 18o Capricorn rising and Saturn at 24o Aries. The Ascendant is the most important point in the horoscope, as it represents one’s life force and basic motivations. We expect this man to show traits associated with Capricorn and its ruler Saturn, the planet of patience, concentration, hard work, duty, and responsibility. Capricorn rising suggests someone who is practical, ambitious, just, reserved, and conscientious. It often indicates an “emotional and introspective type, a love of music or other forms of art being a common characteristic.” 38

The Ascendant falls in the middle (Mars) decan of Capricorn, which is associated with the Three of Pentacles. Mars is the assertive god of war. This man had spent part of his career in the military and had a fondness for implements of war. The Three of Pentacles suggests someone who is hard-working and proud of his accomplishments.

To further delineate the Ascendant, we consider the placement of the Ascendant-ruler Saturn, which falls in the third decan of Aries. Saturn signifies lessons to be learned and Aries represents assertion and self-reliance. We expect him to have to learn how to assert himself confidently in his life. Because Saturn lies in a decan ruled by Venus, we also expect him to be fond of music and art (ruled by Venus), but these fun activities may cause some consternation because of stern Saturn’s influence.

The Golden Dawn assigned the Four of Wands to the Venus decan of Aries, which is occupied by Saturn in his chart. Crowley called the Four of Wands “Completion,” and Waite associated this card with a haven of refuge, a country harvest-home, prosperity, harmony, and perfected work. The Four of Wands also refers to stability, rites of passage, social success, marriage, and a happy home. With Saturn as the Ascendant ruler, this man will need to work hard to achieve the promises of the Four of Wands. All this activity takes place in his third house of siblings, kin, education, communication, writing, teaching, transport, and local travel. No doubt these third-house matters play a major role in his life. When I presented this delineation to the person in question, he readily identified with the Four of Wands and thought that the comments accurately described him.

Using the Tarot with a Horary Chart

On Memorial Day of 2011 (Monday, May 30, at 12:10 p.m. EDT), my wife asked me to help her locate her sandals. They were nowhere to be found, and she had looked in all the usual places. As we were discussing the missing sandals, it occurred to her to ask a horary question. In the past, I had been able to find missing items for her using this ancient technique.

The chart indicated that within ten hours she would find the sandals in a location related to the ninth house. This puzzled me because the ninth house has to do with higher education, religion, travel, and the dissemination of ideas; she normally would have placed the sandals in the bedroom closet. I suggested she look in her study, which has travel books and a computer connected to the Internet, all ninth-house associations. No sandals there.

I looked again at the chart and noticed Mercury, the signifier of her sandals, in the Earth sign Taurus. Earth suggests a ground floor location, but her study was upstairs. We looked around the ground floor of our house, and still no sandals. I suggested that we stop looking because the chart indicated that within ten hours she would find them anyway. Around 8 p.m. my wife was in our sunroom, which has a wall of windows and two walls of sliding glass doors. She happened to spot the sandals in a basket we use for the dog’s toys. Someone (not me, of course) must have been tidying up and put them there.

The ancients called the ninth “the house of the Sun god.” The cusp of the second house, which signifies the missing item, lies in the third decan of Virgo, associated with the tarot Ten of Pentacles. This card traditionally means material gain (she would get her sandals back) and shows a family enjoying a sunny day with their two dogs prominently displayed in the foreground—duh!

Missing sandals horary chart.

For the astrologically inclined, let me review further details of the horary technique. The Ascendant represents the querent, in this case, my wife. Virgo rises, so my wife is ruled by Mercury. The missing sandals are signified by the second house of possessions, whose cusp is also in Virgo. Thus, the same planet Mercury simultaneously rules both the sandals and my wife, suggesting that she will find them. The cusp of the second house lies in the Mercury decan of Virgo, associated with the Ten of Pentacles.

Mercury (the sandals) resides in the ninth house and in the Saturn decan of Taurus. Its location in an Earth sign suggests the ground floor. Had I envisioned the ninth as the domain of the Sun god, my wife would have found her sandals sooner. Why the delay? Mercury occupies the Saturn decan of Taurus, and Saturn implies delays. The Saturn decan of Taurus is linked to the Seven of Pentacles, which shows a farmer pausing to look at his crop. It is called “Success Unfulfilled” by the Golden Dawn. Why ten hours? In horary astrology, the Moon co-rules the querent. In this chart, the Moon (my wife) in Taurus is distant from Mercury (the sandals) by ten degrees, symbolizing the number of hours that will transpire before the outcome.

If we create a two-card spread using the cards associated with the second house and its ruler, representing the missing item, we get the Ten of Pentacles followed by the Seven of Pentacles. The Ten of Pentacles suggests a sunny location where a family might gather with its dogs and the Seven of Pentacles, a period of patient waiting for the outcome.

Missing sandals two-card spread, left to right:
Ten and Seven of Pentacles (Universal Tarot).

How Pixie Chose Images for Her Cards

As mentioned earlier, Waite instructed Pamela (“Pixie”) Colman Smith to use her knowledge of astrology to illustrate the cards of each suit. Let me conclude this chapter with a hypothesis on how Pixie did it. Both Waite and Smith were well versed in the celestial art and the teachings of the Golden Dawn. Waite rearranged the major arcana to place Justice as number XI, exactly in the center of the twenty-one numbered trumps, because he associated Justice with Libra, the sign of balance, which marks the start of autumn at the midpoint of the sun’s annual cycle. In older decks, the unnumbered Fool stood outside of the trump cards as an observer. In those decks, Justice was number VIII, not XI. Waite reordered the traditional sequence of the major arcana to make his deck consistent with astrological symbolism.

Except for the Sola Busca tarot of 1491, traditional decks prior to Waite-Smith did not illustrate the pip cards; they looked more like modern playing cards. Pixie studied the Sola Busca deck and selected images to fit with astrological symbolism. The best example of this occurs with the Three of Swords, which is almost identical in both decks. Images that did not correspond astrologically had to be created anew, using the following principles.

In his 1911 text The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, Waite used the sequence of the four seasons (spring, summer, autumn, winter) to order the suits of his tarot. The year begins with Aries at the start of spring. Thus, Waite’s minor arcana begins with the fiery suit of budding Wands associated with creation, enterprise, and the spark of life. Spring gives way to summer in the sign Cancer. Next in order comes the watery suit of Cups, linked to the world of emotions, joy, and nurturing. Summer yields to autumn at midyear with the Air sign Libra; hence, Cups are followed by Swords, symbolizing intellect, worry, strife, and affliction. Finally, winter arrives with the Earth sign Capricorn, representing tangible reality, worldly ambition, and manifestation on an earthly plane. This developmental sequence terminates in Pisces, the final zodiac sign of winter. The cycle begins anew in Aries with the start of the following springtime.

Not only did Pixie have in mind the symbolism of the four seasons but she also took into account the nature of the zodiac sign and decan associated each pip when she painted her cards. We will elaborate this theme in more detail in the chapter on number symbolism. Suffice it to say here that Pixie used the meanings of the astrological modalities (cardinal, fixed, mutable) in combination with the symbolism of the four seasons, the three decans (beginning, middle, end), and the nature of each tarot suit to stimulate her artistic imagination.

A useful metaphor for the sequence of modalities (and the parallel symbolism of the three decans: first—middle—last) comes from gardening. In the cardinal or first phase, we plant the seeds and clear the weeds to ensure that the seeds have optimal growing conditions. In the fixed or middle phase, we cultivate the garden so the plants can reach full bloom. In the mutable or final phase, we harvest our crops and allow what remains to wither, die, and return nutrients to the soil for the next generation.

In an analogous way, pips 2, 3, and 4 of each suit relate to planting seeds and clearing weeds; decans 2, 3, and 4 are the beginning, middle, and end stages of the initiatory phase of a new season. Pips 5, 6, and 7 relate to cultivating the garden so that what was planted will endure and fully develop; decans 5, 6, and 7 are the beginning, middle, and end stages of a season now established and in full bloom. Finally, pips 8, 9, and 10 relate to harvesting our crops and allowing old plants to wither and die so the next generation can flourish; decans 8, 9, and 10 are the beginning, middle, and end stages of the terminal phase of a season that is fading away to make room for the next season of the year.

The Six of Cups: Middle decan of the fixed sign
Scorpio, ruled by the Sun
(Universal Tarot).

As an illustrative example, let’s select a card at random from the Waite-Smith deck, say, the Six of Cups, which Etteilla delineates simply as “the past” and Waite describes as “children in an old garden, their cups filled with flowers … a card of the past and of memories, looking back, as for example on childhood; happiness, enjoyment, but coming rather from the past.” 39 In Pixie’s mind, six refers to the middle or second decan of a fixed sign, which has to do with the desire to consolidate and make enduring. The Sun, which rules this decan, is linked to children and happiness through its connection with Leo and the fifth house. The watery Cups allude to emotions, relationships, and pleasant experiences. The fixed Water sign Scorpio is noted for clinging to past emotions. From such associations, Pixie’s imagination generated an image to portray the idea “to make enduring pleasant feelings clung to from the past.”

I hope by now the reader is convinced of the tremendous role played by astrology in assigning meanings to cards in the Waite-Smith tradition. In the next chapter, we will look at tarot reversals.

[contents]

30 . New World Encyclopedia, s.v. “Brahe, Tycho,” http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Tycho_Brahe (accessed 7 Mar. 2013).

31 . Stuart Kaplan, LWB for the Hermetic Tarot deck (Stamford, CT: U.S. Games Systems, 2006), p. 6.

32 . Stuart Kaplan, The Artwork & Times of Pamela Colman Smith (Stamford, CT: U.S. Games Systems, 2003), p. 76.

33 . William Lilly, Christian Astrology (1647) (Exeter, UK: Regulus, 1985), p. 103.

34 . Chris Brennan, “The Thema Mundi,” posted 11 Jun. 2007, The Horoscopic Astrology Blog, http://horoscopicastrologyblog.com/2007/06/11/the-thema-mundi/ (accessed 6 Mar. 2013), image reproduced with permission.

35 . Ralph Waldo Emerson, “Nature” (1836), http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/phl302/texts/emerson/nature-contents.html (accessed 5 Mar. 2012).

36 . Conan O’Brien, “Dartmouth College Commencement Address,” Dartmouth College, http://www.dartmouth.edu/~commence/news/speeches/2011/obrien-speech.html (accessed 17 June 2012).

37 . Tiger Woods’s natal chart can be seen at “Sex Addict?,” Anthony Louis Astrology and Tarot blog, http://tonylouis.wordpress.com/2013/03/31/sex-addict/ (accessed 31 Mar. 2013).

38 . Charles E. O. Carter, The Principles of Astrology (London: Quest Books, 1963), p. 77.

39 . Waite, Pictorial Key (1959), p. 214.