Fixed Six: The Central Card

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 20 Aug 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Fulgour	20 Aug 2004
If you use a decanate system, all the Sixes are in the central, or Fixed decanate of the Fixed signs. For Cardinal signs, it is Three, and for Mutable signs card Nine. Aries_______Taurus_____Gemini 2-3-4.....5- 6 -7.....8-9-10 Cancer_______Leo_______Virgo 2-3-4.....5- 6 -7.....8-9-10 Libra_______Scorpio____Sagittarius 2-3-4.....5- 6 -7.....8-9-10 Capricorn___Aquarius____Pisces 2-3-4.....5- 6 -7.....8-9-10

jmd	21 Aug 2004
Just for the sense of elucidation and clarity, Fulgour points here to one of the ways already familiar to many. By dividing the wheel of the zodiac into ten degrees (decanates), and placing the pips (excluding the Aces) around the circle's circumference, the relationship which Fulgour gives is highlighted. Of especial significance with the sixes is that they occupy the central (or 'fixed') position of the central/fixed sets. In a similar vain, the Twos are in the cardinal position of the Cardinal signs, and the tens are in the mutable position of the Mutable signs. A different way to represent exactly the same relation which Fulgour presented above in the astrological sequential aspect is by taking the sequence 2-10 of each suit: Aries________Leo_____Sagittarius 2-3-4.....5- 6 -7.....8-9-10 Cancer_____Scorpio_____Pisces 2-3-4.....5- 6 -7.....8-9-10 Libra______Aquarius_____Gemini 2-3-4.....5- 6 -7.....8-9-10 Capricorn___Taurus______Virgo 2-3-4.....5- 6 -7.....8-9-10

Fulgour	21 Aug 2004
JMD: I LOVE THE WAY YOUR COLOURS MATCH THE ELEMENTS! (My chart was a progression through the 12 Signs, while you have provided a super view of the Zodiacal Quadruplicities.) Quote: Originally posted by jmd By dividing the wheel of the zodiac into ten degrees (decanates), and placing the pips (excluding the Aces) around the circle's circumference... By dividing the wheel of the zodiac into 360 degrees (the full circle) and then assigning 30 degrees to each of the 12 zodiac houses, and then creating three decanates of 10 degrees each for each 30 degree house, the dcanates may be viewed as being:

Rusty Neon	21 Aug 2004
As is probably already familiar to many, in the pip card assignments by Etteilla, Papus, and perhaps others, by using the sequence Ace to 9 of each suit, the fixed position of the fixed sets occurs at the 5 of each suit. Aires________Taurus_____Gemini 1-2-3.....4- 5 -6.....7-8-9 Cancer_______Leo______Virgo 1-2-3.....4- 5 -6.....7-8-9 Libra______Scorpio_____Sagittarius 1-2-3.....4- 5 -6.....7-8-9 Capricorn___Aquarius____Pisces 1-2-3.....4- 5 -6.....7-8-9

Fulgour	21 Aug 2004
Quote: Originally posted by jmd Of especial significance with the sixes is that they occupy the central (or 'fixed') position of the central/fixed sets. While Fixed positions tend to be Rigid, some keywords for the number SIX are: Nurturing Protective Responsible Domestic Community Fastidious Sympathetic

tmgrl2	21 Aug 2004
Way cool thread, Fulgour! Thanks for the explanations and additions, jmd and Rusty...I love this! terri (The colors are cool, too)

Fulgour	21 Aug 2004
from The Absolute Key to Occult Science by "PAPUS" Here the 10's form a transitional Epagomene which will provide the student many hours of intense analysis: http://www.sacred-texts.com/tarot/tob/img/25200.jpg NOTE: This is not the "Fixed Six" Decanate System, and is being added here for the pleasure of those interested. Soon after (in the book by Papus) there is an outline relating to the Major Arcana by Oswald Wirth (he does not discuss pips or decanates).

jmd	21 Aug 2004
What is highly interesting when looking at the sequence of numbers one to ten is to determine which it the central card. Strictly speaking, it is neither the fifth nor the sixth card. If one divides the ten into two piles, each will have five cards - so the fifth is within one of those piles, and is not 'central'. Neither is the sixth. It is only by removing one of the cards (whether the ace or the ten, as an example) that a central one emerges. Yet, it is important to also consider that each suit has (to paraphrase another text) ten pips and not nine, ten and not eleven. If one looks at the major representations of the Tree of Life, the central Sefirah is the sixth emanation... which is the fifth one reached as one climbs back up the proverbial Tree. Mathematically, half of ten is of course five. This is different to determining what is a central card or number in a sequence. One could well say that as the number of implements depicted on the ten cards of a suit totals 55 (1 + 2 + 3 + ... + 10 = 55), and that the central number of this is 23 (22 on one side, and 22 on the other - which is another interesting aspect of having precisely 10 pips per suit), that the card which incorporates the 23rd implement is the 'central' one. This is, of course, the seventh card! (1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 = 21, so the 23rd implement is the second one depicted on the seventh card). We therefore have here already three different ways of determining the 'central' card. These three ways give us: the fifth; the sixth; and the seventh. There are of course other ways which are by determining which 'best' suits the central location in whatever particular pattern one determines unveils the relationship between pips. For example, if one uses the tetractys as pattern, the Ace may very well be placed in the centre - as may the tenth (below follows a modification of part of a post I made in the thread Gender/Number associations - Pips, following the opening post by Jewel-ry - the 'X' stands for '10'): xxxx 3 xxxx xxx 7 x 8 xxx xx X x A x 5 xx x 4 x 6 x 9 x 2 x So which is the 'central' card?

Rusty Neon	21 Aug 2004
Quote: Originally posted by jmd It is only by removing one of the cards (whether the ace or the ten, as an example) that a central one emerges. If one looks at the 10 as a higher vibration or higher octave of the 1 (and thus removes the 10), then the 5 emerges as the central card. On the other hand, if one looks at the pips as composed of the Ace and the Small Cards (2 to 10), and thus removes the Ace, then the 6 emerges as the central card.

Fulgour	22 Aug 2004
Quote: Originally posted by jmd So which is the 'central' card? Tetraktys An equilateral triangle with the dots forming a figure out of the equation: 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 = 10. The Tetraktys also demonstrates several other very important mathematical relationships, including the hexagon and even the three-dimensional cube. Pythagoras believed that 1 is the source of all numbers. Male numbers are odd, and female, even. Masculine numbers are all prime, while odd numbers that are not prime (composite) are Feminine. This Tetraktys can be extended indefinitely, thus: 1, 3, 6, 10, 15, 21, 28, 36 ... and on up to the 36th "triangular" number, which is 666. A less known but even more important concept is that of [/color] (i.e., numbers that are the sum of their divisors.) The first is 6 because 6 = 1 + 2 + 3. Another attribute of perfect numbers is that every even perfect number except the first one (6) is the sum of the cubes for consecutive odd numbers. The Tetraktys: Central "Fixed" Hexagon (6-Sided) also ref: Apollonius of "Pythagoreans (Community Zero)"

Jewel-ry	22 Aug 2004
Wow guys, this is amazing! Another field of study on its own, I think. I am still trying to get to grips with this 'decanates' thing. A bit more research is required before I can comment. P.S. I still like 6 :D

Fulgour	22 Aug 2004
Laying out the Minors, by House with decanate associations, reveals: --------------------- Aries: Queen of Wands and 2 3 4 of Wands Taurus: King of Pentacles and 5 6 7 of Pentacles Gemini: Knight of Swords and 8 9 10 of Swords * Cancer: Queen of Cups and 2 3 4 of Cups Leo: King of Wands and 5 6 7 of Wands Virgo: Knight of Pentacles and 8 9 10 of Pentacles * Libra: Queen of Swords and 2 3 4 of Swords Scorpio: King of Cups and 5 6 7 of Cups Sagittarius: Knight of Wands and 8 9 10 of Wands * Capricorn: Queen of Pentacles and 2 3 4 of Pentacles Aquarius: King of Swords and 5 6 7 of Swords Pisces: Knight of Cups and 8 9 10 of Cups ---------------------

jmd	22 Aug 2004
Interesting, isn't it... In Waldorf/Steiner schools, children normally learn about 'perfect' numbers (as well as abundant and deficient ones) in class 5 (ie, when they are about 10 years old). Platonic solids and the relationship to the Golden Mean is usually covered in early adolescence... and here we are, also investigating these so important elements (as I consider worthwhile, by the way) and their possible relationship to Tarot and other esoteric aspects (which of course the children are not presented with). One of the specific reasons I coloured the tetractial form above as I did is that it depicts, in quite astounding ways, the triangular-number sequence of 1, 3, 6, 10: the one in the centre, the three at the triangle's vertices, the six as its 'flower', and, of course, the ten as the total. It also implies, in some ways, the relation which I was not going to mention here between the tetrahedron (three-sided pyramid) and the hexahedron (otherwise called the cube): the edges of the tetrahedron 'brace' the cube. The hexagon (depicted by the golden higher digits in my previous post) also represent, with the central point, the cube of which Fulgour speaks. There is also a relation between this central of all platonic solids (the tetrahedron) and all others. As a general structure for further reflections of the pips, then, it certainly has much to offer - yet let us also be mindful of the specific imagery primarily presented in the six of whatever suit is being reflected on.

Ravenswing	22 Aug 2004
We have discussed the removal of either the ace or the ten so that we can go round the circle evenly. And since it is a circle that we go round, I think it well to consider geometric principles-- in particular, the division of the circle. Of the series of numbers from 1 to 10, 7 is the only one which will not divide the circle into exact parts. 1 360/1 = 360 2 360/2 = 180 3 360/3 = 120 4 360/4 = 90 5 360/5 = 72 6 360/6 = 60 7 360/7 = 51.428571.. ( the decimal group 428571 repetes indefinately....) 8 360/8 = 45 9 360/9 = 40 10 360/10 = 36 So, if geometry (sacred or not) is taken into consideration, there is a concrete reason for omitting 7 from the series of 1 through 10. Which makes 5 the 'center' I'll have to play around with this idea a bit. fly well Raven

isthmus nekoi	22 Aug 2004
In terms of not the "central" card, but of the most fixed, 6 seems the best candidate b/c it's even. Quote: Originally posted by Fulgour While Fixed positions tend to be Rigid , some keywords for the number SIX are: Nurturing Protective Responsible Domestic Community Fastidious Sympathetic I'm just curious Fulgour - where did you get these keywords?

Rusty Neon	22 Aug 2004
Quote: Originally posted by isthmus nekoi In terms of not the "central" card, but of the most fixed, 6 seems the best candidate b/c it's even. I point out the following for discussion's sake: The 4 and 8 strike me as more fixed than the 6. Theoretically, the Cardinal-Fixed-Mutable ordering across the suit could be altered by a given tarotist if it's important to him or her to have the fixed decanate of the fixed sign fall on the most fixed number of the suit (4 or 8, as he or she chooses). But I don't see how to do it for the 4, as the sign would need to stradle 3-4-5, leaving Ace and 2 unassigned and thus messing up numerical placement opportunities for the signs. It might be do-able for the 8 as 7-8-9(if you use the Ace-to-9 sequence rather than the 2-10 sequence). In any event, I like having same-element Cardinal-Fixed-Mutable ordering across the suit. Since the 6 is more fixed than the 5 in any event, query as to whether this was a deciding factor in the Golden Dawn (rather than following Etteilla and Papus) choosing to position the fixed decanate of the fixed sign on the 6 rather than the 5.

musclegirl	22 Aug 2004
Quote: Originally posted by Fulgour Laying out the Minors, by House with decanate associations, reveals: --------------------- Aries: Queen of Wands and 2 3 4 of Wands Taurus: King of Pentacles and 5 6 7 of Pentacles Gemini: Knight of Swords and 8 9 10 of Swords * Cancer: Queen of Cups and 2 3 4 of Cups Leo: King of Wands and 5 6 7 of Wands Virgo: Knight of Pentacles and 8 9 10 of Pentacles * Libra: Queen of Swords and 2 3 4 of Swords Scorpio: King of Cups and 5 6 7 of Cups Sagittarius: Knight of Wands and 8 9 10 of Wands * Capricorn: Queen of Pentacles and 2 3 4 of Pentacles Aquarius: King of Swords and 5 6 7 of Swords Pisces: Knight of Cups and 8 9 10 of Cups --------------------- Why is this a revelation? Aren't these just the Golden Dawn astrological assignments for court cards and pip cards? Evelin Burger & Johannes Fiebig's "Complete Book of Tarot Spreads", pages 159 to 170.

Diana	22 Aug 2004
Quote: Originally posted by musclegirl Why is this a revelation? Where did Fulgour talk about a revelation? He is sharing some knowledge with people who may not be aware of it. What can you add to this thread apart from aggressing someone, in a most muscly way, who is trying to contribute actively and positively to subject at hand?

Fulgour	22 Aug 2004
Quote: Originally posted by musclegirl Aren't these just the Golden Dawn astrological assignments for court cards and pip cards? Evelin Burger & Johannes Fiebig's "Complete Book of Tarot Spreads", pages 159 to 170. Re Burger & Fiebig: On page 164, you may wish to correct the attributions for the VIII IX and X of Pentacles ~ the proper sign is Virgo and not Gemini as stated by the authors. Also see page 170 where you may wish to correct the attributions for The Queen of Pentacles and The Knight of Pentacles to read Capricorn and Virgo rather than Sagittarius and Gemini. The Chaldean Decanates have been around for some time, and too, as far as Court Cards go, the astrological attributions of the golden dawn remain an infinite mystery of whimsical logic.

Fulgour	22 Aug 2004
Quote: Originally posted by Ravenswing I'll have to play around with this idea a bit. The dividend from the division of the circle by the number seven is intriguingly close to the outer angle of the Great Pyramid: 51 degrees and 51 minutes. Numerologist Dusty Bunker writes: The mystical nature of Pi: The number 22 is considered symbolic of a complete circle, or the circle, because this is reflected by the twenty-two letters in the ancient alphabets, the twenty-two keys in the Major Arcana of the Tarot (Keys 1 - 21, plus the Fool) and indicating the full circle of experience. The function 22-7, one cycle of human experience divided by the spiritual 7 or divinity within. Bunker, Dusty, Numerology, Astrology and Dreams.

musclegirl	22 Aug 2004
Quote: Originally posted by Fulgour Re Burger & Fiebig: On page 164, you may wish to correct the attributions for the VIII IX and X of Pentacles ~ the proper sign is Virgo and not Gemini as stated by the authors. Also see page 170 where you may wish to correct the attributions for The Queen of Pentacles and The Knight of Pentacles to read Capricorn and Virgo rather than Sagittarius and Gemini . The Chaldean Decanates have been around for some time, and too, as far as Court Cards go, the astrological attributions of the golden dawn remain an infinite mystery of whimsical logic. Thanks. I guess typos arise. Actually, I was basing my observations on the summary table on pages 166 and 167 of the book. Getting back to my original quesition ... Aren't your court card and pip card assignments the same as the Golden Dawn assignments to the court cards and pip cards?

Fulgour	22 Aug 2004
Quote: Originally posted by isthmus nekoi I'm just curious Fulgour - where did you get these keywords? I think keywords for numbers really have to be a personal choice. There are so many underlying motivations to consider when one researches this subject, since every author has their own system. My keywords, therefore, are those I consider responsibly valid in terms of their applicability for use when doing interpretations.

Fulgour	22 Aug 2004
Quote: Originally posted by musclegirl Getting back to my original quesition ... Aren't your court card and pip card assignments the same as the Golden Dawn assignments to the court cards and pip cards? First, they aren't mine, and second, the short answer is, no. Fire of Fire and Water of Water are not Leo and Cancer. from the Aeclectic Tarot Forum: Can someone explain these darn Thoth Courts? ad infinitum David Allen Hulse writes: There is a more complex zodiacal attribution for these Court Cards in the Golden Dawn system of magic. This aspect has each court card bridge 2 zodiac signs. This complexity has been missed by many commentators. For the Golden Dawn system, the zodiac was further divided into 36 decans for these astrological attributions. Each sign of the zodiac is 30 degrees of a 360 degree circle for the complete zodiac. Each sign of which is subdivided into three decans, each decan ruling ten degrees of that particular sign. A decan equals about ten days, as a zodiac sign equals about 30 days of the year.

tmgrl2	22 Aug 2004
Thank you, Fulgour, for this thread. And thanks, Diana for thinking of people like me...for whom this is "brand new" information. It's a whole area of study of which I know very little. Each time there is a thread like this that I happen on...I read it, print it, and maybe at the end of it, have a "few" gems that I can use and understand. So, much appreciated from my part. terri

Fulgour	22 Aug 2004
My cards are like old friends to me, yet still so full of surprises. I love it when the most obviously simple things appear in a new light, like with the sixes all being in the fixed decanate of the fixed signs: I knew this, thought about and understood it, but suddenly there it was again like a bright little beacon to behold! I have found that it is the experience of the cards that reveals the most profound truths, and so would here recommend that the best way to see the way decanates apply to Tarot is to lay out the cards, starting with my dear friend, The Queen of Wands.

The Fixed Six: The Central Card thread was originally posted on 20 Aug 2004 in the Talking Tarot board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Talking Tarot, or read more archived threads.