NMR ISSUE 38

Astrological Forecast 38
Beyond the Need to Control
Editorial 38
Esoteric Symbology of the Tarot
Ethics and the Ethic
Ghigau's Song
I'm a Witch, Okay?
Letters 38
Luna
Meditation on the Elements: Air
Pagan Meets Neo-Pagan
Place Between the Worlds
Prophecy II
Protection Charm for your Car
Rain
Saturn Rising
Shadowland
Soul Mates
Summer Opportunities
The Magician
Trout and Dragonfly

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The Esoteric Symbology of the Rider-Waite Tarot

The Wheel of Fortune

By Gary Shook

If the seeker has arrived at the Wheel of Fortune he has left the stage of the Hermit behind. True growth must have taken place in the seeker's awakening to the fact that spiritual growth seldom, if ever, comes from denying the reality of the mundane world. His earlier steps upon the path of the Tarot have also shown him success on that mundane plane does not lead to that spiritual growth towards perfection either. So on what path must the seeker tread to reach what he seeks? In the Wheel we find a large part of that answer.

While the Wheel is not a map of the rest of his journey, at least it defines the rules of the road. It defines the role of the mundane world that the seeker inhabits, and its relevance to his quest. The deeper message of the Wheel is one of transcendence. To be a part of, yet transcend the mortal shell and world the seeker inhabits.

In the Wheel the symbolism is both very important, and yet unimportant as well. In the preceding cards we have found an underlying theme of balance, and in the Wheel we find it as well. The Wheel shows how that balance is imposed upon the mundane world. The importance of the symbolism here is in its general message: whatever ascends will also descend. For every gain there is a corresponding loss and that give and take is on a grand scale. It is the ruling principle of the material plane. The inhabitants of that plane just as the figures that ride the outside of the Wheel, have no real power to change that ruling principle. Thus they are of little importance, in and of themselves, in its grand design.

Lets look at the symbolism of the Wheel from the outside in, beginning with the figures at the outside corners of the card. Here are the four creatures from the Bible (Ezekiel 1:10 and Revelations 4:7) and they have the following correspondences: Upper left corner Aquarius, Mental, Man, and Air. Lower Left Taurus, Physical, Bull, and Earth. Lower right Leo, Spiritual, Lion, and Fire. Upper right Scorpio, Emotional, Eagle, Water. These figures strongly state that the realm where the central figure (the Wheel and its riders) exist is the material one. Another important symbolic aspect of each of these figures is that they each hold an open book. These are the books of knowledge which that Quarter, or figure has to offer. They represent the attainment and use of the knowledge available in each area of humanity's material plane development.

Before we examine the figures that ride the Wheel we need to understand the Wheel itself. It consists of three circles. The outer circle is the physical world, or material realm in which the seeker exists. The middle wheel represents the harnessed formative power that is attained from the center wheel, the creative force. This same symbolism is in the Hierophant's three-tiered crown. Inside the wheel are eight spokes. Upon the spokes are the four alchemical symbols of salt, sulfur, mercury and dissolution. They are the exchange and interplay of energy that propel the Wheel in its endless cycles. The Hebrew letters in the wheel are equivalent to the Aramaic I,H,V,H—Yod Hey Vav Hey, or Jehovah.

The figures on the Wheel are the Sphinx, the serpent, and the jackal headed god Hermes/Anubis. Their positions on the wheel are somewhat idealized in that the positive Elements are shown rising and the negative in descent. The serpent is also known as Typhon. Typhon is the Egyptian god of evil and here represents humanity's descent into darkness. Hermes/Anubis is the Egyptian god of knowledge and intelligence. He is shown here rising upward toward the light of wisdom. The Sphinx is equated with wisdom and balance, and is shown resting at the top of the wheel. The Sphinx has added importance. As wisdom it is the doorway into the center of the wheel.

It is the events of the Wheel itself that the seeker must escape, not the material plane. The Wheel is the never ending pendulum of change, the oscillations of life moving from success to failure, from good to bad, from light to dark and then back again. In other older Tarot decks the Wheel is depicted as saying I shall reign, I do reign, I did reign and I don't reign. This accurately symbolizes humanity's climb to the top one minute, and falling into despair and darkness the next. This is the rise and fall of humanity's existence, the never ending changes of life. All the successes and gains made here are fleeting as the Wheel will impose its own balance into life.

So the true path of the seeker lies not on the Wheel, but within it. He must descend into the Wheel and himself, while remaining and interacting with the physical world around him, to continue his journey towards perfection. Jehovah, the god form used by the Golden Dawn and Waite, lies inside the circle. Deity lies within, and so the path to it also lies within.

This is part of a series of articles on the esoteric symbology of the Rider-Waite tarot deck. Dr. Waite spoke to us not in words, but in hidden symbols. Symbols are truly the universal language expressing ideas in a way that, with study and contemplation, all can understand. But this understanding may not be the same for everyone who seeks it. While symbols do speak to all that will listen, they may say different things to different people. To truly understand the archetypal symbology of the Tarot, you must listen to a chorus of voices, not just one. Read as many different explanations as you can on the Tarot, and then the true meanings of the symbols will naturally come to you from within.