the purpose of the Thoth deck

forgive me if this has been discussed, but does anyone know why Crowley used the tarot himself and the purpose (or purposes) for which he intended his Thoth deck to be used?

Similarly, what do you use the Thoth deck for?

I use it mainly for divination & for provoking ideas within myself.

I'm asking this because some folk of my aquaintance prefer not to use it for 'fortune-telling' & see it as having a more 'respectable' purpose; communicating with spirits, meditation upon, magick

it lead to quite a lively discussion, so I thought I'd bring it here,

Thoth is a propaganda tool for the religion of Thelema.

Crowley was an Occultist by occupation.

Having said that, I think its pretty clear what the deck was intended for

It is a deck like any other and can be used for any purpose. Crowley himself wasn't actually that fond of Tarot as a divination tool, he preferred the I Ching. What it was intended for? It is a series of illustrations for the Book of Law. I wouldn't call it propaganda exactly, or having missionary purposes, but it does have a specific doctrine and world view. But then, so does the RWS.

The Golden Dawn's view on fortune-telling was that it was vain, mundane and probably vulgar. This isn't to say you can't use it for anything you want, just that it makes sense that semi-Masonic orders dedicated to magick and ultimately achieving union with the whole universe to look down on "why hasn't he called yet" type of thing.

Me I use it for everything, although it could be said I don't tell fortunes, and read the cards hardly at all anymore. Yet it is my constant companion.

According to Crowley, the ideal way to incorporate Tarot into one's life is by way of contemplation, but he adds that this is unsuitable for most people. "The practical every-day commonplace way is divination." It is the opinion of most occultists (such as Crowley, Case, and Waite) that Tarot divination may help one to develop psychic abilities, but it is a very mundane, low priority activity. Tarot is all about spiritual development, enlightenment, and understanding. It is, after all, a model of the Qabalistic Tree of Life, and with the Thoth deck in particular, to ignore this fact is to ignore the very reason for its existence and thereby losing most of its significance.

Personally, I prefer the I Ching for "divination" because it offers down to earth constructive advice for facing the challenges of life, and it is never wrong. You can't beat that!

I agree with the above posts and I also prefer I Ching for divination.

After years of practice I have found 'divination' in multiple sources ... all around me. Maybe 'keen perception' is a better word.

For me Thoth Tarot - the Book of Thoth - is a book of Wisdom ... and like many 'books' of wisdom, of various types, they are complex, interrelated, holistic and have layers of meaning that continually unfold as oneself develops and unfolds.

Divination may be the most vulgar use of the Thoth, but the deck does lend itself to the use very well. Tarot (RWS, where I started) originally led me to explore a new spiritual path, and the Thoth has opened that path even deeper, but regardless of its 'purpose', it is a fine divination tool. It's the best deck ever created, I think, for both purposes--contemplation/Great Work, and yes also divination.

Well, I have to agee with that too

And when I used to do a lot of readings - for clients, they seemed to think it worked well.

closrapexa said:

The Golden Dawn's view on fortune-telling was that it was vain, mundane and probably vulgar. This isn't to say you can't use it for anything you want, just that it makes sense that semi-Masonic orders dedicated to magick and ultimately achieving union with the whole universe to look down on "why hasn't he called yet" type of thing.

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Goden Dawn or Crowley ? I remember that Aleister Crowley writes in Book 4 that fortune telling for money is black magik. Νοt fortune telling in general.

MasterJm said:

Goden Dawn or Crowley ? I remember that Aleister Crowley writes in Book 4 that fortune telling for money is black magik. Νοt fortune telling in general.

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LOL That made me laugh. Sorry, but Crowley calling something 'black magic' really cracks me up. He can try to get his wife to have sex with a goat and that's okay, but if someone else uses a tarot deck to help someone find clarity on a life situation, that's black magic. That's funny.