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XIV - Art
Zodiac: Sagittarius (ruled by Jupiter - X. Fortune) Tree of life: From Yesod to Tiphareth Element: Fire (Hot and Dry - Choleric) Number: 14 as two times the 7, adjustment of destiny Art represents the art of alchemy, the ability to solve and combine, to turn something plain into something precious. Art is the symbol for the right mixture, the perfect balance, standing for harmony, beauty and peace. But the trump can also show that sides that were previously ignored should be lived out and that contrasts should be put together to enrich the inner spectrum with new perspectives. From a personal view the 'solve et coagula' can mean that there is a need to leave a fixed position, to retire, watch and then go back again to combine on a new basis. Drive: 'Solve et coagula' - dissolve and combine Light: Balance and harmony, fulfillness, creation, peace Shadow: Getting into extremes, splitting up and tearing apart ( source: www.corax.com/tarot/cards )
Combination of forces. Realization. Action based on accurate calculations. Economy. Management. Success after elaborate maneuvers. Escape. formerly called TEMPERANCE. The highest achievement of alchemy was the affecting of change, the transmuting of objects, qualities, colour and so on, into their opposites. Thus in this card the red lion has become white, the white eagle has become red. In the main figure, the black and white personages which were the Lovers in Card VI, are now interchanged and fused into an androgyne figure. This is the consummation of the Royal Marriage. The rainbow symbolizes another stage in the alchemical process by the aura of many-colored lights rising out of putrefaction. Putrefaction itself is shown by the raven perched on a skull on the cauldron. The consummation of the whole art of Alchemy is proclaimed in the glory with its inscription: "VISITA INTERIORA TERRAE RECTIFICANDO INVENIES OCCULTEM LAPIDEM." The counsel to visit the interior of the earth is a recapitulation (on a higher plane) of the first formula of the Work. The important word is RECTIFICANDO, it implies the right leading of the new living substance in the path of the True Will. Temperance. Sagittarius. Samech. This is the second alchemical card, in which the Lovers are united in an androgyne figure, the Prince becoming white and the Princess black, the red lion white, the white eagle red and the cup is lighting the torch. There is a crucible engraved with a raven standing on a skull which holds the seething elements whose iridescent bubbles are reflected by the rainbow overhead. All these typify the destruction of two elements at the birth of a third. The inscription on the rainbow is the alchemical mandate "Visita Interiora Terrae Rectificando Invenies Occultem Lapidem." ( source: Aleister Crowley's Thoth tarot deck booklet )
Uncle Al's extended commentaries on the Major Arcana Coming Soon! --- ( source: Aleister Crowley's Book of Thoth )
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