Today we’re continuing my project of exploring the Tarot de Marseille on its own terms, setting aside preconceptions about what the cards mean and trying to let the deck itself tell me its significance. If you’re new to this series of posts, check out my introduction, my posts on the methods behind my numerology and […]
Read more "A Year of Tarot de Marseille: The Twos"Work has been incredibly overwhelming lately. I’m supposed to be on the academic job market this fall, but dealing with the consequences of a negligent adviser means that my job materials are nowhere near where they need to be, and I was recently told I need to redo more than eight months’ worth of work […]
Read more "Tarot for Real Life: The Hanged Man"There are plenty of ways to draw connections between the cards of the Major Arcana. You can do it through numerology, through astrology, through the septenaries or visual cues in their symbolism. One of the simplest ways to find the connections between the cards, though, is simply to fold the sequence of the Major Arcana […]
Read more "Pairing the Major Arcana, Forward and Backward"It’s the last week of the semester. I have a pile of student essays to grade, two large research projects of my own to finish,* a couple of seasonal parties (both Pagan and secular) to attend, and just a lot on my plate, generally speaking. But hey! It’s almost Yule. Even though there’s no snow […]
Read more "Cards for Yule: The Fool, the Hanged Man, and Judgment"Welcome to Part 2 of my James Bond Tarot series, where I match up one James Bond movie to each of the cards of the Major Arcana in the Tarot. If you missed Part 1, which ran from Casino Royale as the Fool to On Her Majesty’s Secret Service as the Lovers, feel free to go check it […]
Read more "The James Bond Tarot (Part 2)"I’ve written before about themes that seem to dominate the Tarot deck. Viewed from a certain angle, it seems like every card in the Tarot means “change”. Or, alternatively, that every card means “balance”. Or “growth”. And so on. As a reader, this can be useful, because every now and then you get a reading […]
Read more "Running Towards, Running Away: The Six of Swords and Eight of Cups"Confession time: I love existentialist literature. The term “existential” has gained a negative connotation over the years. Jean-Paul Sartre himself had an anecdote about meeting a woman at a dinner party who swore profusely and, realizing that her language was not exactly à propos, excused herself by saying “I must be becoming an existentialist”. The word […]
Read more "Existentialism and Tarot, Part 1: The Sartre Cards"
Jack Chanek 