Wands

As a matter of fact, curiously enough, all authors agree in naming wands or clubs in the first place. In our set of playing cards the figurative symbol for it is the trefoil (French trefle) - tri-folio - and Mr. Ouspensky draws the wands bearing leaves which in many instances appear to be threefold - at least they should be. The trefoil or shamrock has always been considered a luck-charm, Porte-bonheur. (1) It is built upon the scheme of the triangle, symbol of Trinity, and the totality of the figure appears also in the masonic 'trefoil,' which is an emblem of the Divine Trinity together with the principle of activity, indicated by the staff or wand itself, eventually crossed as in the ancient emblem.



In a way we must regard this symbol as revealing the highest conception of Creation: Trinity pure and simple with only the rudiment of activity indicated, standing still above the circle, as far or as soon as the latter suggests Motion. So wands, clubs or trefles are most certainly meant as the symbol of the highest element in Creation.

The question has often been put as to whether, in the astrological idea of creation, Air or Fire ought to be regarded as the highest element. The answer depends upon the standpoint we take. In the highest cosmological or cosmo-philosophical sense it is Fire; in a cosmo-practical or cosmo-natural sense it is Air, as the Secret Doctrine undoubtedly makes us understand, where the dissolution of cosmos at the end of a Manvantara is treated of and it is said that the Earth is dissolved or engulfed by the Waters, Water evaporated by Fire, and finally Fire disappearing in the Air. Here Air is acting as the atmosphere of the globe or system disappearing. So for all practical uses, in astrology as well, it is Air which is able to give the highest expression of the Divine. As the atmosphere of a globe it is the link between it and the Ether of space, carrying the rays of the divine solar centre as well as those of the relatively 'demoniacal' surroundings to the other elements, constituting the existence of the globe. In a similar way the suit of wands will appear to be something of a link between the Lesser and the Greater Arcana. This will be dealt with later. Taken in this way Air is 'the bearer of the Message' from the Divine (Ether) or Unmanifest to the terrestrial or manifested worlds. And wands are the significators of the messages in detail and of intelligences, which astrologically correspond to Air, consequently of higher thought and mental processes.

The magic wand is used to convey the divine or at least semi-divine will-power of the Self acting as a magician into the world of phenomena.

As in Macrocosm the Message goes out to the Water (the emotional element of experience in the Soul), and Metals (sensatory elements of understanding in the Body), so in microcosm, on Earth, a wand may be used to find out water and metals in the soil. This may seem curious, but is pure analogy. From days of old a wand or staff was used to 'chastise,' i.e. to render chaste or pure, the undisciplined or disobedient, a penalty as much symbolical as corporeal, the staff being at the same time the insignum of a superior will-power or supervision.

Hermes-Mercury, Lord of the Element of Air, of Knowledge and Understanding, Bearer of the Message of the Gods, carried as his emblem, his well-known Wand encompassed by two snakes and bearing a cup on top. He was called Trismegistus, the 'threefold' Great (or the Great Trefoil which might also be translated as Lord or Magister of the register of Trefoil, King of the Wands.

And the pilgrim, who went to hear the word of deliverance and to gather knowledge, took up a staff, not only as a walking-stick but also as a symbol of his quest. The latter finds illustration in the legend of Tannhauser, whose 'sin' (ignorance) was so great, that its expiation could be expected as little as the budding of new leaves on his (dead) pilgrim's staff, the latter being evidently taken as an image of the principle of the 'wand' in his own soul. And when, by the force of Love, a higher understanding budded forth in himself, this fact was symbolised by the apparition of a fresh green leaf on hip staff.

The ancient Norsemen, highly susceptible to symbolism, wrote their signs of communication or messages on stafe, wands, which became the origin of the later word Buchstabe in German.

Pentacles

Generally cups are named in the second place but are at the same time identified with hearts. We agree that the hearts come in the second place of the hierarchy of the Tarot suits, but do not see, that they should be 'cups.' Of course we understand that the heart has been said to be the 'cup' receiving and containing the divine life, etc. But still we disagree and even think the parable rather superficial, for it leaves the mutual relation of the three remaining elements in a distorted condition. Moreover the symbolical names, as given by the different authors mentioned, do not agree.

If, taken as a whole, wands stand for the Message of the Macrocosm or Ideation, as Air transfers the message from the Ether, and if we take for granted, that the imagination of the Tarot system was meant and given for cosmo-practical or cosmo-natural usage, then we must be prepared to find in the remaining three suits the elements of (say: 'human') spirit, soul and body incarnate (i.e. as they appear in the manifested world), thus constituting together the microcosm in toto. Astrology gives for the three the symbols: Sun, Moon and Ascendant (Earth). We should rather say: the Fifth, the Ninth and the First house in the horoscopic circle. Compare our second volume on Cosmology, entitled Elements of Astrology.

If now, to indicate these three principles, we dispose of a pentacle, a cup and a sword, it is most surely the pentacle on the coin of gold or within the circle, which relates to the heart and the principle of spirit, located in the Fifth house. For here the human spirit with its fivefold nature originates and here the fivefold magic or creative force resides. It is difficult to see what other meaning the pentacle could have than the symbolising of the Fifth house in Creation, which is the heart to every living being. There is not the least shade of doubt that in the horoscope the beginning of the spiritual spiral lies in the Fifth house. Gold is the metal ruled by the Sun, lord of the Fifth sign, Leo, the heart of the solar system. So pentacles or golden coins are the hearts in playing-cards and correspond to the element Fire.



The symbol in playing-cards is drawn in the natural likeness of a heart. There is as little doubt concerning the element Fire, because, as every astrologer knows and realises, spirit, soul and body stand in the same relation as Fire, Water and Earth. Compare the Secret Doctrine, where 'a centre of Fire and Water' is the origin for a new incarnation on Earth. Curiously enough, divination never has interpreted 'hearts' in any other way than as symbolising things belonging to the heart or coming forth from it. In so far this 'colour' has been well understood. But its gold is a spiritual symbol and has as yet nothing to do with 'money.' It is in the soul and not in the spirit, that the idea of repayment is forged, though no doubt the spiritual gold may be said to be the origin of all that will later on appear as vulgar money.



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