Internal fortitude
The Cards on the table:
We open our reading with the element of Silver. We have the Fool, your signifier, followed by the Angel Lauviah. Below these three there are two knights; a knight of wands, belonging to the realm of Atziluth, the realm of divine emanation; a knight of Swords, belonging to the world of Yetzirah, the realm of formation.
We are blessed to have a major key showing up so honestly and openly, it is the Justice Card. In the Oswald Wirth tarot deck, Justice is attributed to the letter 8 and therefore has the letter Chet attached to it. As a reminder; in Crowley’s tarot this is not the case, the attributed Hebrew letter changes much about the meanings of a card, as you will see later in this video.
And finally, we have the 5 of Pentacles, the influence of Gevurah. Its astrological influence of mercury in Taurus – signifying a mentality about our livelihood, most notably our earthly gains and possessions.
Straight away there are a couple of elements jumping out, such as the double knights, the complications of the 5 of pentacles in a reading detailing our material wellbeing within our close future, there is a fool card and a justice card – which are inclined to engage with each other when in close proximity.
For me personally, the number 26 – the Number of God - is also an important one, although not necessarily important on its own, it is rather prominent because of the Knights whom are placed in Chokmah, the face of God, we have the transcendence of Justice with the metaphysical number 8 – that which goes beyond Creation – and there’s the Fool, who acts on more than just mere human instinct, because in its highest octave, divine guidance is detected, and behaves in ways that appear erratic and unexplainable.
So naturally, on the surface, the Fool and the Knight can be troublemakers in Tarot, emphasising a sort of reasoning that won’t align itself with the status quo. They signify action and dynamism, showing up as agents of spontaneous emergence, evoking the essence of Chokmah in its unrealised potential. As a result, they bring about a sense of unpredictability and unwarranted change – procuring instances in which the emergence of understanding, or the verbality of such, happens after they have long made their choices and are living out the consequences of their actions. Ideally, we will want to make our choices based on critical assessment of the situation, but it appears that this is may not be a possibility to begin with and you are asked to act on pre-existing knowledge, whether this pre-knowledge is true or reliable or not is something to find out after the Knight reaches their station in Binah.
The Pathway of Dalet and Chet - Chadah - 50 ways of Understanding something:
And that is also what is implied, that through an impassioned impetus, borne out of inspiration, the querent is driven to live the consequences of their actions. The angel Lauviah, as presented by the creators of the deck themselves, warns against this sort of impetuosity – and rather asks for the querent to allow the seed of thought, as observed in the Knights, to take root and develop into an inspiration – and finally watch this inspiration turn into something real.This path is observed in earnest within the diagram of the Tree of Life for this particular reading:
The 18th path: "By probing with it, a secret mystery (Raz) and an allusion are transmitted to those who dwell in its shadow and bind themselves to probing its substance from the cause of causes."
Tree of Life diagram: These paths reveal the “coming into being” of all things considered matter. According to Kabbalah, the development of verbality is a key part of this process. When inspiration takes hold of the recipient and generates the desire to be channeled into a mold that befits reality. It is through the rather stringent means of the laws of physics, the laws of Binah, upon which material reality is build. And so, in order for us to make anything a reality at all, we will have to take in account how realistic these ideas are in the first place. The very beginning of this process happens through formulating the idea we currently can hold in our minds. Attempting to walk this particular path of both verbality and of silence, the dialectal path of Dalet, this extra dimension activates Binah, also known as Understanding.
The 18th path of Chet holds some of the secrets that were revealed to us by contemplating the pathways between Binah and Chokmah. This one particularly depicted as a mystery such as the Holy Grail in Crowley’s tarot – or the upper heaven laden with fixed stars and omens, as considered within the Rider Waite Smith tarot - but in this very instance, we have the mysteries reminiscent of the Egyptian Goddess Ma’at, providing the universe with order and inviting us to a developed insight of cause and effect – in other words, intelligence. And so, the intelligence of the recipient is sharpened and this discernment becomes key to understanding and navigating the world as it unfolds.
The Hebrew letter Chet which correlates with the number 8, and the number 8 resembles all that goes beyond the mundane and it is closely associated with the word “chaim”, meaning life.
And so, to summarise it, this sort of existential factor plays a role in your line of work, or it will become more apparent over the course of months. If so, this existential crisis – as prefaced by the 5 of pentacles as a shortage on the material sense – will heighten the desire for meaningful answers. As mentioned before, the 5 of pentacles asks us to become intrinsically motivated for the duration of these hardships.
The 18th Path relates to a particular psalm, according to Aryeh Kaplan, he reveals that the aforementioned shadow means the following:
“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty”
“I will say to the LORD, “you are my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”
This highlights a reveal that is perhaps rather uncommon for today’s world, but it asks of us to put our faith in a divine plan and trust that God provides, whilst we are actively navigating the trappings of various judgements and judgement calls.
It is a given that people will have a thing or two to say about our circumstances; they may like to say that they know better – and that they may earn more money and are more stable. They may have a nicer car and a nicer house.
However, what they probably won’t have, for they aren’t in the same phase of life, is a rapport between themselves and God. Like the Fool suggests, he will move about – perhaps erratically so, where only he can understand his own logic – but he will not remain still and he will not remain stuck. The 5 of pentacles is a temporary station and the presence of Justice shows, just as much, if not more rigidly so – following the presumed laws of the Universe – that we will find our equilibrium, as long we keep putting one foot in front of the other and maintain a conscious connection with our conscientious self.
The 14th and 18th path combined, showing up as a continuous connection within a single reading, convinces me, as the interpreter of the reading, that this alludes to the knowledge of the existence of God, this in such a way that one may/will not share with those not as trusting in Him. It is a secret.
The Angel Lauviah means: The Exalted God. His importance is most definitely highlighted and if one is not a believer of Him, you may find yourself on the path of a new faith-based religion that involves Him and aligns more closely with His guidance.
Other notable words:
Chabah – To withdraw, to hide
Chayah – To be alive
Chadah – To Rejoice, to Make Glad
It appears this process is one of rejoice and has the ability to truly uplift the individual out of a difficult situation, as suggested with the 5 of Pentacles – a messenger of material hardship.
Pechad - Dread
The exacting nature of Gevurah:
The word Sephirah means counting, it shares the root with “Sepher” meaning “text” and “Sephar” which means “number”. “Communication” is “Sippur” as Aryeh Kaplan writes in the Sefer Yetzirah. He continues on to explain that the Sephiroth represent the basic 10 digits, but they aren’t actual numbers. “Rather, they are the sources from which the numbers originate.”[1]This is an important distinction to make, because the Sephiroth don’t exist in a vacuum to begin with. When we speak of the Sephirah Gevurah, or Dinn, it means that encapsulated within that very node is the essence of Chesed, that of Loving-Kindness. And this is where the difficulty comes into play, because as we count the Sephirah, the fifth node contains judgement or punishment – and it is cast from the fourth - a seed of Love and the Triune at the top – that of (Divine) Understanding (Kether, Chokmah and Binah). In a benign or mundane situation, you could think of a parent, needing to teach a child a firm lesson – so that they may be protected from harm or a bad decision in the future. This is a necessary act of love and not one of cruelty. If one becomes cruel, one actually loses the aspect of Gevurah (Strength). It is no wonder that love and strength are placed together, side by side, as a reminder and not necessarily a polar opposite to one another – for Gevurah had come into being through Chesed first and not after. However, they are meant to balance each other out, and amplify one another - because leaning too much into either one of them leads to all sorts of problems that would be solved by addressing either Gevurah or Chesed, given the situation.
For instance, we could think of creating a healthy boundary, and so, we preserve our love and our kindness. Or we could soften our anger and find forgiveness in the process.
So, traditionally, we are able to see the role of the parent or mentor and then, even beyond them, we can see the influence of the Torah playing their part in shaping what Gevurah looks like. In the most extreme appearance of this particular sephirah, we can think of the story of the binding of Isaac, where the boy bore witness of the authority of his father and the Heavenly Father – he caught sight of the insurmountable loss of his own life and experienced a powerlessness facing his fate at the hand of those whom he loved and trusted. This type existential fear for the Lord is also part of Gevurah’s practice and it makes a difficult placement to ponder, especially because this awe was born from our Love for God and God’s Love for Mankind.
The 5 of Pentacles is sometimes considered a card of trust and of devotion, where the complicated existential feelings are weighed against that of Chesed, that of kindness and that of Tiphareth, the place of Beauty and Hope. It is evident that Gevurah is supported by the surrounding nodes on the Tree of Life and its strength is shown through endurance and faith. Especially when one finds themselves materially in a bad place and the state of bankruptcy, either morally or materially, is just around the corner. The 5 of pentacles asks us to be intrinsically motivated, at least for a time, so that we may face the darkest and coldest of nights and witness the beauty and the warming kindness of a rising sun once again.
A "Fool's Journey":
The Fool’s card is an interesting influence and in this reading it is suggested that the querent identifies themselves with the Fool – and possibly inhabits some of its unusual and unpredictable power. On the surface, people will see a person who is rather unconventional and even though some will find this fascinating, most of the populace will try to limit the Fool. This in order to protect this strange man from his own folly. And others will try and see if they can deceive him or take advantage of him. It is very likely that this man is the black sheep of the family and lives a nomadic lifestyle, either in material sense or emotional sense – never wearing out their welcome and moving on before people can figure them out.
He most likely will keep his life free from heavy responsibilities that are meant to tame or to limit him, as a result he may not look like much on the outside. He may have a rather modest type of existence and not much of a tangible legacy appealing to the status quo.
The metaphysical part of the Fool, which is his most guarded secret, is the ability to have a promethean quality, that is to say, to be blessed with the clarity of ‘forethought’; adjacent to this talent, it is strengthened by his faith in life and himself, and to a greater extent, having faith in God who provides. In his highest octave, the Fool changes the game and its rules; he changes the lives around him.
Within the confines of the game of Tarot, he manages to defy all odds by being given the ability to appear and vanish at will – not tied by the sequential affinities of any other given Tarot card – the Fool can be the beginning and the ending or somewhere in-between. And so, he has many faces and many roles – the Fool can be many things to many people. This makes him the prime suspect of being a divine agent, adhering to one authority above any other – and that is the authority of God. No-one will be able to tame him, nor will they have the ability to control him.
This means that if the Fool is well-adjusted, he is possessing traits of cunning and intelligence. In this deck the letter Shin is attributed to the Fool and as seen within the letter itself, it addresses all three pillars. These are the pillars of mercy, severity and of mildness – set alight by the Yod, the divine spark and the hand of God – and thus reinforcing the powerful influence a Fool can muster. His power is not his own, however, and this he knows.
In his shadow quality, the fool is merely an unconscious drifter – no home, no attachments, no knowledge. He simply exists and although that is the prime requisite for being a human in alignment with a force greater than ours – it is the consciousness that will bring the Fool its strength and adaptability. If he remains in the dark, he will be a powerful teacher, but one that may teach us about difficult life-lessons, such as drug-addiction and abusive relationships. Perhaps you know a few people who never turned to look at the truth of things, but always turned away from the source of Light, watching the shadows dance on the wall instead. And so, the Fool can also be a form of entrapment, rather than a freedom.
To remedy this, if one feels powerless over their own fate, is to understand the underlying motives and desires, as well as to open up to the idea that there is, in fact, more out there. The point of this card is to tell us not to resist, but rather, to co-operate and in time, co-create. And this is where the Shin element turns into a more potent and indefinable force, that of Aleph as witnessed in Crowley’s deck. It is an invitation to be initiated into the mysteries of the occult.
30 pieces of Silver:
The aspect of betrayal should be named, because it does touch on it – albeit very briefly. This may be a situation from the past, as reflected in the 5 of pentacles – still affects you to this day. The Fool provides the way through and the embrace of a new future. Whatever side of the coin you were on during this betrayal, the reading here emphasises that it matters not and that a new future is in the works for us.
I will have to admit, this speaks more of the Hanged Man and so, it may not be you but another who suffers for they remained stuck and the so-called “Fool” moved on.
The shadow card is the Star, the 17th Key. One can expect an unexplainable sort of protection for the “Tzedekim”, those that follow The Path earnestly. The element of Peh relates to our ability to verbalise our thoughts, our emotions and our intentions. We can map out entire movements within our mind, carefully choosing our words and our motivations, to further our own understanding.
This process will be the cause for a solid foundation that is internal, rather than external. This internal foundation, this intellectual fortitude, will assure you succeed in the years to come.
[1] Sefer Yetzirah, revised edition 1:2 – translation by Aryeh Kaplan.
For instance, we could think of creating a healthy boundary, and so, we preserve our love and our kindness. Or we could soften our anger and find forgiveness in the process.
So, traditionally, we are able to see the role of the parent or mentor and then, even beyond them, we can see the influence of the Torah playing their part in shaping what Gevurah looks like. In the most extreme appearance of this particular sephirah, we can think of the story of the binding of Isaac, where the boy bore witness of the authority of his father and the Heavenly Father – he caught sight of the insurmountable loss of his own life and experienced a powerlessness facing his fate at the hand of those whom he loved and trusted. This type existential fear for the Lord is also part of Gevurah’s practice and it makes a difficult placement to ponder, especially because this awe was born from our Love for God and God’s Love for Mankind.
The 5 of Pentacles is sometimes considered a card of trust and of devotion, where the complicated existential feelings are weighed against that of Chesed, that of kindness and that of Tiphareth, the place of Beauty and Hope. It is evident that Gevurah is supported by the surrounding nodes on the Tree of Life and its strength is shown through endurance and faith. Especially when one finds themselves materially in a bad place and the state of bankruptcy, either morally or materially, is just around the corner. The 5 of pentacles asks us to be intrinsically motivated, at least for a time, so that we may face the darkest and coldest of nights and witness the beauty and the warming kindness of a rising sun once again.
A "Fool's Journey":
The Fool’s card is an interesting influence and in this reading it is suggested that the querent identifies themselves with the Fool – and possibly inhabits some of its unusual and unpredictable power. On the surface, people will see a person who is rather unconventional and even though some will find this fascinating, most of the populace will try to limit the Fool. This in order to protect this strange man from his own folly. And others will try and see if they can deceive him or take advantage of him. It is very likely that this man is the black sheep of the family and lives a nomadic lifestyle, either in material sense or emotional sense – never wearing out their welcome and moving on before people can figure them out.
He most likely will keep his life free from heavy responsibilities that are meant to tame or to limit him, as a result he may not look like much on the outside. He may have a rather modest type of existence and not much of a tangible legacy appealing to the status quo.
The metaphysical part of the Fool, which is his most guarded secret, is the ability to have a promethean quality, that is to say, to be blessed with the clarity of ‘forethought’; adjacent to this talent, it is strengthened by his faith in life and himself, and to a greater extent, having faith in God who provides. In his highest octave, the Fool changes the game and its rules; he changes the lives around him.
Within the confines of the game of Tarot, he manages to defy all odds by being given the ability to appear and vanish at will – not tied by the sequential affinities of any other given Tarot card – the Fool can be the beginning and the ending or somewhere in-between. And so, he has many faces and many roles – the Fool can be many things to many people. This makes him the prime suspect of being a divine agent, adhering to one authority above any other – and that is the authority of God. No-one will be able to tame him, nor will they have the ability to control him.
This means that if the Fool is well-adjusted, he is possessing traits of cunning and intelligence. In this deck the letter Shin is attributed to the Fool and as seen within the letter itself, it addresses all three pillars. These are the pillars of mercy, severity and of mildness – set alight by the Yod, the divine spark and the hand of God – and thus reinforcing the powerful influence a Fool can muster. His power is not his own, however, and this he knows.
In his shadow quality, the fool is merely an unconscious drifter – no home, no attachments, no knowledge. He simply exists and although that is the prime requisite for being a human in alignment with a force greater than ours – it is the consciousness that will bring the Fool its strength and adaptability. If he remains in the dark, he will be a powerful teacher, but one that may teach us about difficult life-lessons, such as drug-addiction and abusive relationships. Perhaps you know a few people who never turned to look at the truth of things, but always turned away from the source of Light, watching the shadows dance on the wall instead. And so, the Fool can also be a form of entrapment, rather than a freedom.
To remedy this, if one feels powerless over their own fate, is to understand the underlying motives and desires, as well as to open up to the idea that there is, in fact, more out there. The point of this card is to tell us not to resist, but rather, to co-operate and in time, co-create. And this is where the Shin element turns into a more potent and indefinable force, that of Aleph as witnessed in Crowley’s deck. It is an invitation to be initiated into the mysteries of the occult.
30 pieces of Silver:
The aspect of betrayal should be named, because it does touch on it – albeit very briefly. This may be a situation from the past, as reflected in the 5 of pentacles – still affects you to this day. The Fool provides the way through and the embrace of a new future. Whatever side of the coin you were on during this betrayal, the reading here emphasises that it matters not and that a new future is in the works for us.
I will have to admit, this speaks more of the Hanged Man and so, it may not be you but another who suffers for they remained stuck and the so-called “Fool” moved on.
Le Pendu loses his money. It's letter: Lamed (30)
The Shadow Card:
The insecurities are frequent and most likely will manifest around and pertaining to your livelihood.The shadow card is the Star, the 17th Key. One can expect an unexplainable sort of protection for the “Tzedekim”, those that follow The Path earnestly. The element of Peh relates to our ability to verbalise our thoughts, our emotions and our intentions. We can map out entire movements within our mind, carefully choosing our words and our motivations, to further our own understanding.
This process will be the cause for a solid foundation that is internal, rather than external. This internal foundation, this intellectual fortitude, will assure you succeed in the years to come.
[1] Sefer Yetzirah, revised edition 1:2 – translation by Aryeh Kaplan.
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