"XIV Trumps. art" *analysis and reading soon*, "queen of swords", "5 of wands. strife". THOTH TAROT CARD READING/s. These cards were pulled as a triple reading. The Order of the reading is from left to right.

 

"XIV. TRUMPS. Art" Analysis and reading soon.

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Queen of Swords is Aleister Crowley's (d1947) more self libreating Thoth cards, or anarcho originated, which lies within Crowley's at times perplexion, and his mental instability of both esoterica and philosophical theory, as the late occultist falls firmly in the proto-Fascist camp more than not, retintrating this contradiction, as quoted from The Book of Thoth, "a keen observer, a subtle interpreter, an intense individualist, swift and accurate at recording ideas; in action confident, in spirit gracious and just. Her movements will be graceful, and her ability in dancing and balancing exceptional."  With elements of goddess adoration, that may be influenced by his interest in Tantric Hinduism and Tibetan Buddhism, as she represent the air and the flows of water, naked from the waist up, and not portrayed as sexual stigma, but rather a liberating aspect of feminine empowerment, unlike our digital 'social' media relays, that ban female nipples, but allow men's;  the Queen of Swords, doesn't care.  Also note, she holds the head of a decapacitated beaded male  in her left hand, and a sword in her right (pointing downward), as she sits on a thrown within the heavens, further alluding to liberation and power over the Earthly realm, which may offer genderless Luciferian philosophy, as the bases of antithetical, over control and order.  

And yet, Crowley, bless his own confusion, created a caveat for the card, in his flip-flop interpretation that it can, in all his chauvinism, sexism and misogyny, be "ill-dignified", claiming that Queen of Swords is "...cruel, sly, deceitful and unreliable; in this way, very dangerous, on account of the superficial beauty and attractiveness which distinguish her."  and  she makes "rash adventures, foredoomed to failure"  Can't we ever have the best of both worlds?

I will emphasis the card's qualities, and redeem it's attributes.

Reading: 

She sits above the Earthly realm, goddess of wind and water, the flows of the Earth, as it speaks the language without words, yet holds the purpose of milieu that have passed, and all must pass through, and yet, to defy is to live, to heed to the scent in the wind, that cannot be described, the great mystery is also its motivation, as she holds the masculine at bay, the decapitation of male pride and ego in her left hand, in her right, the sword, as it points down.  She has been cast out, rejected and ostracised, yet she doesn't care.  Nor should you.  They cannot control you, or impose order on your will, as chaos is pure, and their fear, pitiful. 

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Five of Wands, which is "Strife" of the Thoth Tarot, is correlated to, according to 'The Book of The Thoth' to be from the Fifth Sephirah from the Qabalah Tree of Life, Geburah.  And if you have been following my analysis and readings of Aleister Crowley's Thoth Tarot, you would know that he had a fondness for Jewish mysticism and its esoteric teachings from the Qabalah, which was utilized in 16th Century Western alchemy as a way using Hebrew to code and number explanations of alchemist practises.  So, essentially it was taken from medieval esoteric Qabalah and morphed into a non-jewish ritualized system, such as the various occult societies that formed in Europe during the Age Enlightenment.  

And these Western occult societies fused all aspects of Eastern practises into their beliefs, Crowley was very much a product of his time, before he passed away in 1947.  His own structured belief system Thelema, was heavily influenced by his tenure with the occult society "The Golden Dawn".  Where the new found exoticism of Egyptology and Middle Eastern estorica, including to a lesser degree Islam Sufis (Crowley spent time in Morocco in the late 1800s), were all these predominate occult aspects became infused with Western astrology, ceremonies and recent scientific findings.  

The Fifth Sephirah, Geburah of Jewish Qabalah represents "Fire" and "Judgement", and this would be as close as you would get to the similarities of Jewish and Christian esoterica.  That I feel Crowley had very much aligned himself within his own belief system Themela and the Thoth Tarot.   That being Fire and Judgment handed down by God, in which the human soul, if not guided by God's law and teachings, will be unruly and unbalanced.  Crowley's own interpretation, once again holds a vagueness to the card's overall meaning, but emphases that the card represents fire and strife though and though, if it was not balanced by the Horizontal Chief Adept wand (Golden Dawn ceremonial staff).  Indicating Crowley's desire for structure or control within his belief systems.  So, the symbolism holds a curiosity of Crowley's own definition to the Qabalah and Tree of Life, where he attempts to find balance in the card's artwork by Lady Frieda Harris (d1962) within her 1940s geometric cubism style.  By incorporating the balance between the masculine and the feminine to tame that fire in us all. 

Reading:

Is the spirit restless?  Does the fire, which lies deep within, burn in disarray?  Note the Qabalah Tree of Life, that it is the Geburah of Fire and Judgement, the Fifth Sephirah.  Also meaning, Power and Strength.  If the spirit is restless, you may need to learn these terms, that there is no Fire in Judgment and no Strength in Power.  Rather than tame the Spirit, free the Spirit.  Order can be an illusion and strife a clarity.  Do we not live in tumultuous times?  Yet, it is claimed that we have order?  Order over nature?  Order over our on folly.  Do we really need structure?  Use the fire within so that one may not be subservient.  If you do indeed seek control, than learn to master thyself.  Or be exploited by the structure.  Therefore "Strive" of the Five of Wands should be inverted.  So, we may praise strife and turmoil.  To reveal  the turmoil in ourselves, not to be judged by a flawed world or sent to hell.  Rather, to heal and overcome.  Blessed are the balanced.   

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(A.Glass 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026)

All Thoth Tarot readings to date:  chiasmusmagazine.blogspot.com/search/label/Thoth%20Tarot%20reading