transcendent function (12-14)

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 31 Oct 2003, and now archived in the Forum Library.

isthmus nekoi	31 Oct 2003
Some psychoanalytic thoughts on three majors... The transcendent function is a synthesis of two oppositions, a new perspective. It results from the resolution of any polarization; how this resolution comes about is to let the archetypal energy return to the unconscious... In the sequence of Hanged Man to Temperance, I see this process at work: Hanged Man: ego relinquishes its control, lets the energy descend. The ego is in suspension, or crucified. It recognizes a higher force (unconscious) Death: putrification, the energy breaks down, solutio (dissolve). Jonah in the whale, Dionysos in pieces etc. Return to the womb. Temperance (Art/Alchemy): from the cauldron of morass arises the synthesis of oppositions, the transcendent function. Water and Wine, ego and Self, man and God are united. Resolution is achieved.

punchinella	01 Nov 2003
Thank you Isthmus, you just clarified a reading for me. I wasn't understanding the Hanged Man real well until just now. But that all makes great sense--& makes sense of my reading, too. I've always felt, from my earliest exposure to a tarot deck not all that long ago, temperance to be one of the most spiritual of cards. Well--for me, in a way, it's THE most spiritual, since it's where body & spirit meet . . . A lot of people seem to see the mixing & blending (synthesis) but not the transcendence (that's the impression I get anyway, from threads on this card that I've read) . . . but, after all, she IS wearing wings isn't she. 9 of Pents (RWS) would be the 'earthy' take . . . on transcendence, that is . . . --Cool psychoanalytic overlay. I suppose it'd be even cooler if I were a psychoanalyst! P.

isthmus nekoi	01 Nov 2003
Yes, I also think Temperance is definetely a very complex and spiritual card, that it speaks to more than 'everything in moderation'. I find it is not really a quiet card, like I used to think, but in fact, very dynamic and powerful.

punchinella	02 Nov 2003
--Oh, I see it as sheer energy! --Flowing in a circle . . . a closed-circuit sort of thing. For me, this card = kata (I'm mentioning this because I know it will make sense to you too--?) --Putting energy out & taking it back in at the same time . . . The water flowing out of one cup & into another actually comes out of her body, & passes back into her body . . . P.

isthmus nekoi	02 Nov 2003
I shall bear that in mind! Idealistically, body and mind are united.

The transcendent function (12-14) thread was originally posted on 31 Oct 2003 in the Using Tarot Cards board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Using Tarot Cards, or read more archived threads.