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running press tarot-zero-the fool
Fear not. What is not real, never was and never will be.
What is real always was and cannot be destroyed.
-Bhagavad Gita
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The Featured Tarot Deck in this comparison series, is the Running Press-Tarot. Illustrated by-Julie Paschkis and authored by Dennis Fairchild. Both of the UK. These cards can be found at www.runningpress.com
I found these cards are well suited for travel and reading on boats, ships, planes and trains. Also work well in a car trip.
The Fool is a Major Arcana card, and is the universal key that is associated with the state of conscious energy that is us before form, i.e. Spirit. The Major Arcana (Arcana means "mysteries") are 22 cards of the subtle world of our Greater Self and represent the greater lessons that must be mastered by the Psyche/Soul and personality. Often this card is referred to as the "Holy Spirit"; However, the conscious state that is Holy Spirit includes the Whole of Spirit, which also is a human body. Therefore, Spirit-Mind and Body, make the whole of Spirit and such is shown in imagery on the Fool Tarot Cards. Traditionally, the Fool is an innocent, sometimes a tatterdemalion, who totally trusts the Spirit. All he needs, and/or his magic implements, are packed into a sack tied to a stick, and the Running Press Tarot, keeps to this tradition. However, he is riding a lion or large cat, which on the Thoth card is a tiger biting the leg of the Fool. So in this case, the lion is a symbol of fear that is domesticated by the Fool, showing the fearlessness of the Fool as he progresses along on life's informative journey. The Fool is just taking his time, enjoying the journey and not stressing out about the goal. The Fool knows that Being, is the goal of Spirit anything else, is just for the "experience" of it. On many Tarot Cards, doves are shown as a symbol of the soul and the "Holy Spirit", and the birds in this card could be that symbolism as well.
Many of us know that we “have a spirit" but few of us know that we are Spirit and seek not spirituality but rather are Spirituality; a Spiral Vital Force that begins as Kether a "shouting out loud" Will, that is Eheieh, a Hebrew word that means, "I Will Be". Creating the Qabalistic Tree of Life from this willed disturbance of Self-Awareness in Space., that becomes the Life Journey of Spirit. When a Soul, a sphere of Spiritual experience, becomes the accumulation of experience that allows it to transmit to a form, it has fulfilled the Will of The One, and is now "I AM Being". Hence, the Fool brings whole-conscious liberation and expansion to Earth anima (female animal mind) and animus (Male animal mind), i.e., brings Higher Self Awareness to the Lesser Self-Awareness. In Qabalah, this is called," As above, so Below".
Rather than just being assumed as being mystical, trans-personal, transcendent, and ecstatic in its nature, the Fool represents the power of wonder and ecstasy that is so apparent in the very young (and the “enlightened”) before they succumb to indoctrination and form a "cultural identity". The cultural identity is not real so Qabalists call it "reality" which we all know as relative and subjected to the “I” of the beholder. The Real is the infinite part of ourselves called I AM!
Thoth-0-The fool
The Oriental symbol for fear is the tiger. In this card, fear is seen as attempting to gnaw on the leg of the fool who isn't giving any consideration to fear. He looks forward, and the tiger can't even make a dent in his perspective.
The Fool is the energetic essence of who we are---an unflappable immortal spiritual flow of energy consciousness that flows from the Infinite Source of I AM. Therefore, this card symbolizes the creative expression that is needed to give birth to new parts of our lives and to boldly take risks that are so necessary to evolutionary development!
When this card falls in a reading it shows us that this is the moment to do what you fear and trust the spirit within!
As a Path, THE FOOL connects Kether (Crown) with Chokmah (Wisdom). To the Qabalist, Kether is known as the Source of All, and Chokmah is known as Father Creator.
The Fool is the Qabalistic Path of Aleph, (The Fool) meaning OX, is about the " unstoppable flowing of Life Force and creative power", showing that the SPIRIT had a beginning aim to be that of Earth and/or a Sensual Being.
Crowley symbolizes this "Holy Spirit" (The Spirit on every level of the Tree of Life) as a dove in the Thoth Deck Card. Crowley also called The Letter Aleph, a phallic symbol.....but then so is the Projected Will that is THE MAGUS, and one wonders if Crowley was so besotted with the Phallus, that he was unable to see anything else; However, truth be told, by reference to Sexes and sexuality do we come to the minutest glimmering of understanding about the Universe. We begin seeing that the Below is a mirror reflection of the Above The Divine Spirit is all we know, we breathe it, we live within it, it is ourselves. Because we know this Divinity to be "the One Energy that cannot be created nor destroyed, only transformed" (Psychics-Thermodynamics 1st law), we know that everything is of this One, as symbolized by THE FOOL the Path of Aleph. We can call the Fool the 1st concept of "I". The creation of "other" and or idea, becomes I AM and/or Spirit-Mind.
In this context, Aleph is attributed to Air and means Life-Breath. Just as Spirit is from the Greek root word Spiro, which means Breath. The One Spirit, the Holy Spirit, is then the Life-Breath. This is well known in Eastern cultures, and Prana Yama (Breath yoga) are a major if not primary part of all Spiritual development. The Sanskrit Word Prana, is the Life-Breath energy; Prana meaning life and Yama meaning death. Simply, inhale and exhale. The Qabalah and I have described the Magus as relating to "Words" (vibration), the underlying sonic of patterned manifestation. However, it is the power of breath that expels the sound. Thus THE FOOL activates THE MAGUS.
The Science of Crowley’s time, considered Air to be a vacuum, as related to THE FOOL, so did Crowley, but the Ancient Wisdom is that the Element Air is not a vacuum, as in empty of anything, but rather a No-thing who is the fertile No-thingness and egg of Spirit. The universal Egg of Spirit is known by students of the mysteries, to be the EGG OF AKASHA, the zero of THE FOOL, also represents this egg of spirit, and is the mathematical formula of one Male, minus one female= 0 . Therefore, the understanding is that the Egg of Akasha, is a fertilized ovum of undefined sexuality, but having the potential for both! As we modern's know, 10 cubic feet of Space, contains 10 to the 24th power- juels of energy. That is ten with twenty-four zeros. So Space is what we are, and Time is what we created as "other".
On the Thoth Fool, the Tiger, "fawning about" THE FOOL'S leg, is an archetype representing the Animal Nature of Survival thinking, that is the mind of bodies, as related to the Higher Spiritual process of Love that is fearless "will to be". Again, as this cannot be said enough, the Horns on the Thoth figure represent those ancient mysteries of Dionysus Zagreus. The green clothing is that of the Celtic Green Man of Spring, the grapes at his feet are a tribute to Bacchus, the Greek God of Ecstasy, and the Crocodile (great creative energy) is “a swimming at his feet in the Nile" (Crowley quote). Making this 0, a complexity of subtleties and far from empty.
Images referring to the Godhead in the Thoth card, are the dove of Venus and the vulture of Maat the Dark Egyptian Goddess of Judgment, where she is the Mother of Dark Matter. Then there is the triple egg shape created by the caduceus in motion, symbolizing the Ain Soph Aur (The three states of No-Thing).
As you may realize, the imagery is so subjective that I haven't the words to detail it all for you. If you need more detail, and you do, I would recommend reading Crowley's BOOK OF THOTH., Robert Wang's Book: THE QABALISTIC TAROT and also investigating the Mythology of the Ancient Greeks and Egyptians.
To even begin understanding THE FOOL, we must entertain a multifaceted and fluid interpretation of Force and Form.
Dr.Paul Foster Case calls this Eleventh Path of Aleph, in his book THE THIRTY-TWO PATHS OF WISDOM, the fiery or Scintillating Intelligence. Which makes sense as The Path of Aleph boarders on the Limitless Light (Ain Soph), which is "not" or 0. Light without limit is darkness to us who need a beginning and an end to see. In other words, measurement if information. So here we try to explain what can't be seen as The Fiery Darkness which is the possibility of vibration or motion within Energy and the First Perception of the One having potential for activity. This would make a modern definition of “Dark Energy” as the “first I” or identity.
In the context of Masculine sexuality, the Fool is the Testes, and the Magus is the Phallus, (Represented by the three flowers beneath the spread legs of THE Thoth-FOOL) as He directs active first flow from the Fool rather than potentiality doing so. However, I fear that is a rather limiting concept of the ONE as the Ain Soph is 0, but then, all concepts are less than the potential for conception.
We may reason that the potential for Thought, comes from the Dark Energy as Dark Matter (The First Material). The appearance of Thought emanates Mind, which is the vessel for Thought and/or Womb of Thought Forms, i.e. The “I-magi-nation”, transcending all reason. Thus, as often is so with the Supernal Triangle, upper triangle of the Qabalistic Tree, our reason leaves us with more questions than answers.
Limitlessness is a very difficult concept! To say that THE FOOL represents the initial potential for thought which transcends reason, i.e. the All Seeing I, is about the best I can do with words.
The special reality we may touch in sleep, often gives us images that do not correlate to our mundane understanding of reality. This being so, our dreams seem to be so much abstraction and are considered as nonsense to our waking condition. However, the Great Work (As above so below) involves the assimilation of The Real, not a reality conceived of mundane ideas. And the Real Concepts are from what is not making what is from Dreams of Potential- Self! To think of the Universe as God Dreaming (Darkness Dreaming it is Light) is very difficult to grasp, and the fact that you are a "Lucid" Dreamer (Image of God), who has been given the Power of Observation that changes a thing, meaning you can change the Principle that is Things by perspective alone, boggling as it gets. But I dare postulate that just such a glimmer of insight requires a more than mundane understanding of self! Thus, your Divinity is not often acknowledge by the mundane world of survival thinking. However, your Spiritual Womb, the conception of "the image of God", is the invisible Sephira, Daath (knowledge) seated within the
Abyss, and is the Child of the Goddess (Understanding) and the God (Wisdom) who are face to face (Yab Yum). This middle path of Union is known as the Path of Gimel (meaning Camel); THE HIGH PRIESTESS OR HIGH PRIEST; the Divine Androgyny and/or Womb of Creation.
All the Paths leading upward to Kether, THE FOOL, THE MAGUS, AND THE HIGH PRIESTESS, must be approached with a certain understanding of whimsy, as we realize that by crossing the Abyss of the Universal Unconscious means the total annihilation of Self as we perceive it. Thus presenting us with the irony of our attempt to grasp such esoteric and refined principles from an earthly-mundane perspective. Often, when teaching the Major Arcana and knowing what I speak, cannot truly convey what I am saying, brings a smile, if not outright laughter to my face. To me, the subjective I AM- potential is ironically displayed as a limited conception—a Me. Being a Me must never be taken too seriously, for that concept will change daily, when one enters the Higher Self, and becomes a master of subjectivity. That is, Objectifying subtle ideas, as Self.
To reiterate, THE FOOL- 0, is the initial potential for thought, transcending all reason. Thus objectifying the Upper Regions, the Supernal Triangle is a futile endeavor. However. Once we recognize the impossibility of consciously approaching the Highest Levels of the Tree of Life, i.e. The Universe, in a direct manner, we are forcibly driven into the key Principles of the Mysteries/Metaphysics of As Above, So Below.
We begin seeing that the Below is a mirror reflection of the Above The Divine Spirit is all we know, we breathe it, we live within it, it is ourselves. Because we know this Divinity to be "the One Energy that cannot be created nor destroyed, only transformed" (1st law of Thermodynamics), we know that everything is of this One, as symbolized by THE FOOL, the Tarot image of the Path of Aleph. Hence, all the 78 Tarot Cards, are aspects of this One Greater Self.
In this context I dare to repeat, Aleph is attributed to Air and means Life-Breath. Just as Spirit is from the Greek root word Spiro, which means Breath. The One Spirit, the Holy Spirit, is then the Life-Breath the “one rope of Life” that we are all woven strands of. This is well known in Eastern cultures, and Prana- Yama (Breath yoga) are a major if not primary part of all Spiritual development. The Word Prana, is the Life-Breath energy and is also called the Sex force and means “life-death”. Now I have described the Magus as relating to "Words" (vibration), the underlying sonic of patterned manifestation. However, it is the power of breath that expels the sound. Thus THE FOOL activates THE MAGUS.
THE FOOL, represents the fertile Nothingness and egg of Spirit. The universal Egg of Spirit is known, by Qabalists, to be the EGG OF AKASHA, THE Fool is also the mathematical formula of minus one Male, minus one female= 0. Therefore, the understanding is that the Egg of Akasha, is a fertilized ovum of undefined sexuality, but having the potential for both!
THE FOOL, is the very expression of the god name of Kether, Eheieh, which means I will be. This is the essence of the Divine Child as yet unborn, who is all potential and who is our very beginning!
When THE FOOL card is thrown of both the Thoth Tarot and The Running Press deck during a reading the querent is in or experiencing:
- A state of ecstasy and/or a state of Peek experience.
- Fearlessness. Courage.
- And is completing all motion by Faith, absolutely trusting THE SPIRIT.
- A feeling of being protected, and that everything will work out.
- Being open to what the future brings!
- Magic, amazement and desire in a relationship.
If ill-defined by accompanying negative cards in the reading, it implies:
- The Fool, is then the harbinger of folly, mania, extravagance and even negligence.
- Negative dissolutions of structures and compulsions.
- Vagueness of goals.
- Daydreaming.
- Infantilism.
- Irresponsibility.
Thank you for your interest, comments, and supportive donations. May you live long and prosper.
