Zephyros
Would you say that the above also explains why there is no overt Christ-figure in the deck?
Upside-down M solved [maybe]
Teheuti
Good point. I agree that a Mariological source for it detracts from Waite's deeper import. OTOH, Waite was not adverse to acknowledging layers of meaning, not all of which fit perfectly with each other. Mary's role as "womb" of Christ clearly has relevance here, which is obvious when the Ace of Cups is considered as Grail/Graal - a subject of particular import to Waite during the period when the deck was being designed (and is discussed in his book _The Hidden Church of the Holy Graal_, published in 1909 - the same year as the deck. I can see him laughing at arguments that try to pin any of his symbols down to a single, exclusive referent. If anything, he was inclusive when it came to symbols - as long as it followed a theme found in the Secret Tradition.
Teheuti
Since Waite was relating a traditional and public tarot to the "Secret Tradition," while making it a practical deck for fortune-telling (see Pictorial Key to the Tarot where he makes his intent clear), Waite's intent was to transcend the particularities of any one religion. It's part of why he changed the title of the Pope card to Hierophant - a term used for "Speaker of Mysteries" of the Eleusinian mysteries, while still not making the deck only an Eleusinian deck. The allusions to various mystery traditions are there: the Demeter symbolism of the Empress, a one-liner where he equates the Hermit with Persephone transiting between the underworld and the world above, etc. The Secret Tradition transcends any single spiritual path, seeing, instead, facets of the Mystery of Faith in all of them.
http://www.theoi.com/image/K26.1Ploutos.jpg
Abrac
I think it explains why there's not much overtly Christian symbolism. The Hierophant's pretty clearly a Roman Catholic Pope. I can see how Judgement could be interpreted from a Christian perspective, but it could also be interpreted from a Jewish one, or Kabalistically. The Ace of Cups represents the Christian Eucharist, at least by all external appearances.
Waite referred to himself as a "Catholic Mystic," and his interest in Kabalah for what light it could throw on "Catholic Mysticism." He uses the word "catholic" other places in the sense of "universal" but it's never capitalized. He saw himself as a Catholic Mystic, whatever that means. His philosophy is full of Christian terminology, but I'm quite sure he meant something different than what mainstream Christianity means by the same language.
Waite referred to himself as a "Catholic Mystic," and his interest in Kabalah for what light it could throw on "Catholic Mysticism." He uses the word "catholic" other places in the sense of "universal" but it's never capitalized. He saw himself as a Catholic Mystic, whatever that means. His philosophy is full of Christian terminology, but I'm quite sure he meant something different than what mainstream Christianity means by the same language.
Abrac
I know Waite's symbolism is full of layers. I've encountered many, many of them. My interest is to simply try and discover, as nearly as possible, how Waite himself viewed it, and also how he probably didn't view it.
Teheuti
Mithras, Taurus-bull, two columns and two boy acolytes (in the GD system the Hierophant corresponds to Taurus). The City of London has wonderful archeological remains from one or more temples of Mithras - the earliest discoveries being in 1889: "One of these was a marble relief of Mithras in the act of killing the astral bull, the Tauroctony that was as central to Mithraism as the Crucifixion is to Christianity." Wikipedia. It's my favorite exhibit at the Museum of London.
This picture is from another source: http://www.herodote.net/_images/mithra.jpg
This picture is from another source: http://www.herodote.net/_images/mithra.jpg
Teheuti
That's my aim, too. I've been working on it for over 20 years and have found plenty of references that show that he didn't see symbols as having single referents. That's why he talks about a Secret Tradition that extends for thousands of years and includes the ancient mystery traditions and not just Kabbalism (Jewish or Christian) or Catholicism.
Waite's "Great Symbols of the Paths" - created for ritual and meditation use in his Fellowship of the Rosy Cross - shows his designs for a Christian/Kabbalistic Mystical deck. I've worked with Waite's Fellowship of the Rosy Cross deck (in a black-and-white etched version) and his modified Tree for a couple of decades. It is not a deck designed for the public, nor is it to be used for fortune-telling - it describes the mystical path he sought to embody in his ritual initiations. The images include representations of Adam, the Christ-Within, the self as priest/hierophant (and Faith itself) and various forms of the Shekinah/Sophia.
The deck he produced for public use was something else entirely, although elements of his greater vision appear in it.
Abrac
I agree that Waite saw the secret tradition as having many outer forms with a wide variety of symbolism, but as I read him he's always searching for the core doctrine, or at least looking for that which aligns with what he understands of the core doctrine. He's not very forthcoming about his own personal views but he does have them.
The deck he made for the public is something else but I wouldn't say entirely. The Waite-Smith wasn't created in a vacuum. Waite's mystical leanings began years before that deck was created. Smith's art is much different than Trinick's but many of the Great Symbols of the Paths are remarkably similar to the Waite-Smith images. I think, no, I know there's a lot to learn about the Waite-Smith from studying the FRC rituals and the GSotPs. I've discovered it for myself.
The deck he made for the public is something else but I wouldn't say entirely. The Waite-Smith wasn't created in a vacuum. Waite's mystical leanings began years before that deck was created. Smith's art is much different than Trinick's but many of the Great Symbols of the Paths are remarkably similar to the Waite-Smith images. I think, no, I know there's a lot to learn about the Waite-Smith from studying the FRC rituals and the GSotPs. I've discovered it for myself.
Teheuti
Both the Symbols and RWS are part of the Trumps lineage. Most of the Trinick cards are recognizable cognates of the Tarot (even without reading Waite) as it had evolved into the 19th & early 20th century. But other than that, I don't find many of the images "remarkably similar" - except for the Lovers & Devil (Garden of Eden theme, mirroring freedom versus enslavement) and the High Priestess. Cards like the Hermit, Moon, Star, World, Magician (except that he's more "magical") and Pope/Hierophant are as indebted to the regular Tarot tradition as they are to the RWS deck which followed that tradition. Additionally, many (but certainly not all) of the remaining 13 (not counting Da'ath) can be recognized, but I wouldn't call them "remarkably similar" to the RWS in particular. Of course, once you've read Waite's FRC rituals the allusions are clearer.
Abrac
Here's a pic from the GD Practicus Ritual. It's the altar in the "Temple in Hod" diagram. Look familiar?
Altar Diagram
The text from the ritual says: "While the Cup of Water placed at the junction of the Cross and Triangle represents the maternal letter MEM." If Occam's razor is applied it stands to reason that Waite was probably influenced by this. The obvious meaning of the "W" would seem to be water, and that fits the symbolism. Waite took it a step further though by creating the "W" from a reversed M. M could stand for Mem per the GD, but I think Waite had something else in mind. If he wanted to go strictly with Mem, he could've just used an upright M. By making it reversed, it illustrates Matrona reflected from Binah above. In this way it also incorporates Heh.
It seems likely to me Mem has something to do with it, but by 1903 Waite was head of Isis-Urania and was rewriting the rituals along mystic lines. By 1909 he could have formulated new ideas that would have taken the M to another level. At least it would fit with his later writings.
Altar Diagram
The text from the ritual says: "While the Cup of Water placed at the junction of the Cross and Triangle represents the maternal letter MEM." If Occam's razor is applied it stands to reason that Waite was probably influenced by this. The obvious meaning of the "W" would seem to be water, and that fits the symbolism. Waite took it a step further though by creating the "W" from a reversed M. M could stand for Mem per the GD, but I think Waite had something else in mind. If he wanted to go strictly with Mem, he could've just used an upright M. By making it reversed, it illustrates Matrona reflected from Binah above. In this way it also incorporates Heh.
It seems likely to me Mem has something to do with it, but by 1903 Waite was head of Isis-Urania and was rewriting the rituals along mystic lines. By 1909 he could have formulated new ideas that would have taken the M to another level. At least it would fit with his later writings.
