What is Tarot?
Tarot is now recognized as a legitimate method of predicting the future of the individual. The origin of the cards is shrouded in mystery, though the most popular theory is that Tarot was invented in ancient Egypt, and brought to Europe around the fourteenth century by wandering tribes of Gypsies. According to scholars, the illustrations on the card sare allegorical illustrations of secrets of the age. An interesting theory springs from Papus, the Key to Occult Science. The text explains that the kingdom was in danger of being overthrown, so ancient Egyptian priests designed the deck as one way of preserving their secrets for initiates of future ages. These secrets were developed in a symbolic manner, for future generations to crack them. Other schools of thought the orised tarot cards to be secrets of underground groups. The origin of tarot, however, can be safely attributed to the Gnostics, a heretic sect which was forced to take its operations underground. The origin of the name "Tarot" is in doubt. One simple explanation attributes the origin to crossed lines, called tarotee, which appear on the back of the cards. Others say the name comes from the tarrochi, which supplied the cards of the Minor Arcana There are 78 cards in a Tarot deck, divided into the Major Arcane and the Minor Arcana. The word "Arcana" (singular Arcanum) comes from the Latin arcanus, which means secret, in the context of tarot. The Major Arcana portrayed the stages of personal development required of initiates as they progressed toward the status of adept. By recording their teachings in a symbolic manner, it would be available to serious students of the occult arts. Another theory suggests that the Tarot philosophy was derived from that of the Cabala. The order of the Major Arcana is connected to the Hebrew system of letters and numbers. The Cabala, a mystical Jewish tradition attributes divine powers to numbers and letters. Minor Arcana has four types of cards which is wands, cups, swords, pentacles Other schools of thought also the orise that the Major Arcana is a record of the secret teachings of various underground religious groups.
FOR MORE DETAIL E-MAIL US AT : spraydk@spraydk.org