Rider Waite VS Thoth

Barleywine

Barleywine, I agree completely but for a beginner, reading not only one but two difficult texts to distill the difference - well, I wouldn't have managed it. :bugeyed:

Thinking back, that's exactly what I did in the beginning, but I had a bottomless and omnivorous appetite for all things esoteric in my early twenties, and just gobbled it all up to process and digest over the ensuing decades.
 

Thoughtful

Yes, I somewhat agree with that. Perhaps we could also recommend, for people in this 'fix' Wang's book ? It focuses on, in part, comparisons, to those two decks and another two more 'traditional' deck . Many appreciate its layout of illustrations showing the different deck cards, side by side.

here is a free copy :)

http://www.ebooks-on-cd.com/PDFs/Robert Wang - The Qabalistic Tarot.pdf

Thank you so much ravenest, having read cards that are RWS inspired and now trying to study the Thoth, this will give me a good grounding in the different styles. Its so hard to shake the RWS meanings but l am trying as much as possible to read the Thoth in its own right with a little intuition on my part.
 

foolMoon

The RWS deck has many hidden symbols (Astrological and Alchemy) on each cards. That's why you need the Giant RWS deck, if you want to find them. :D
 

ravenest

many decks have that ..... the RW ones are just more obscure .
 

foolMoon

True. But as we are talking about the RWS and Thoth in this thread ... Thoth deck also has a lot of symbols, but they are more obvious :)
 

Abrac

Some astrological symbols are in the Waite-Smith but they don't play as much of a role as they do in the Thoth. Waite threw some in—seemingly to satisfy the occultists who he saw as potential customers—but they take a back seat. If you look at the later Waite-Trinick Great Symbols, there aren't any astrological symbols at all, the moon and sun excepted. One could argue the scales in Justice represents Libra and the lightning strike in the Tower is Mars, but Waite says nothing to that effect in the relevant rituals.
 

Barleywine

Some astrological symbols are in the Waite-Smith but they don't play as much of a role as they do in the Thoth. Waite threw some in—seemingly to satisfy the occultists who he saw as potential customers—but they take a back seat. If you look at the later Waite-Trinick Great Symbols, there aren't any astrological symbols at all, the moon and sun excepted. One could argue the scales in Justice represents Libra and the lightning strike in the Tower is Mars, but Waite says nothing to that effect in the relevant rituals.

The only explicit astrological symbol I ever noticed in the RWS deck is the Venus glyph on the shield of the Empress. Some are implied - like the ram heads on the throne of the Emperor and the lunar crescent at the feet of the High Priestess - but, unless I'm missing something, most of the Golden Dawn astrological associations aren't overtly displayed. Waite's deck doesn't emphasize the decans the way Crowley's does.
 

foolMoon

There are quite a few - the best example is the Chariot card, and many more. Have a look at the Book called "Key of It All" by Hurse (? not sure the spelling of the name). Not just astrological symbols but also symbols for Hebrew letters for the Tree of Life.

I am sure there are more, and whenever I use RWS deck, I look into each cards top to bottom for details :D

Of course Waite would be reticent about them, because he intended them to be hidden away. What would be the point, hiding something, and then telling where they are, and what they are for.
 

Barleywine

There are quite a few - the best example is the Chariot card, and many more. Have a look at the Book called "Key of It All" by Hurse (? not sure the spelling of the name). Not just astrological symbols but also symbols for Hebrew letters for the Tree of Life.

I am sure there are more, and whenever I use RWS deck, I look into each cards top to bottom for details :D

Of course Waite would be reticent about them, because he intended them to be hidden away. What would be the point, hiding something, and then telling where they are, and what they are for.

Of course. I was only responding to Abrac's specific mention of astrological symbols. (As an astrologer, that concept has a rather specific range of associations for me.) There is certainly a wealth of other symbolism there.