Crowley tarot books?

Teheuti said:

Please let us know after you've had a chance to look at the book if this is really what you were looking for. Your "newbie" response will help all of us gain more perspective on what can be most helpful.

Mary

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OK, I'm back with my initial report!

I've read, not all, but alot of the beginning chapters of the Duquette book. I found them extremely interesting as I didn't know much true information about Crowley other than the weirdness surrounding him.

Some of the more intricate stuff is beyond me right now - since I'm still in the beginning stages of learning. Pretty much the stuff I don't want to get into yet is still confusing - the kabbalah and the rosy cross stuff. I will probably want to learn this later just not quite yet.

But I do really like Duquette's book. He does write extremely well and in easy to understand english. Not just crowley/thoth english!

If you remember earlier in this thread I said I had read another thread talking about the Aeon card. I really didn't understand what the Aeon card meant so looked up the thread talking about it. Well I had NOT one blankety blank clue what you all were saying. It was like you were talking in a different language. But......Duquette explained it very well. It was like a lightbulb went off. "OH! That's what the Aeon card means!"

I haven't even finished all the beginning chapters yet, but wanted to give you my initial thoughts.

WooHoo! I received two books in the mail today..
Duquettes , Understanding the Thoth Tarot and Crowleys, Book of Thoth

I am thrilled... I am the same Faunabay

I have already started to read Duquettes book and already up to chapter 4 ..
it is so easy to understand so far, Mind you, i have only touched on Crowleys and Harris's lives and basically where the Ideas and how Thoth was conceived..
Interesting read and thoroughly enjoying so far...
i will obviously be joining on in the studies soon once i come accross the individual study of the cards themselves...

I am very happy with the Duquette book! Now while I know I'm not up to Crowley's Book of Thoth I am thinking about getting the Thoth Companion as kind of a companion to the Duquette book. I figure they'll work well together when I want to look up things about the cards. (shrug) Not sure yet, but am thinking about it.

Hey Faunabay,

I'm so glad to hear it! And the Snuffin book will shed light on things Duquette rushes through. Thereis far amount of overlap, but both are useful i their own way...

Mainly, I'm glad the book turned on some lights. What's better than that?

Scion

Hello to All!

I should probably offer a short introduction since this is my first post.

I've been working with the Crowley deck for about 18 years now, but my interpretations came strictly from Ziegler's book as that was the only one around when I started reading in the late 80's. I was drawn to the artwork and knew nothing about Crowley when I started using them. I only found out about the Book of Thoth later, and though I bought a copy, it was way beyond me at the time.

When I decided to expand my understanding of the Thoth deck earlier this year, I read this (and other) threads with great interest. I ended up getting DuQuette's and Snuffin's books along with Crowley's. I'm reading all three simultaneously and am about ready to start studying each card individually.

Thanks to all Thoth experts and enthusiasts for generously helping neophytes like me!

MLF

Welcome

Hi MLF and welcome. There is much here to read too!

I found the Book of Thoth hard work too at first. Lon DuQuette's book really turned on all the lights for me.

Have fun!

Another good resource book is The Crowley Tarot by Akron and Hajo Banzhaf.

Crowley Tarot Books

The Akron & Banzhaf book is really good -- it gives a wide range of Desciptions, Interpretations, and Correlations, while quoting Crowley for pertinent depth and insight. It provides "Systems of Laying Cards" that are practical and useful. But Duquette is essential as well, for esoteric understanding based upon the deck's origins, including an amazing exploration of the back design not to be missed. The "Key Words" book, by Banzhaf and Theler, provides "Card of the Day" and "Year" interpretations, possibly useful to some.

Frank Hall said:

The Akron & Banzhaf book is really good -- it gives a wide range of Desciptions, Interpretations, and Correlations, while quoting Crowley for pertinent depth and insight. It provides "Systems of Laying Cards" that are practical and useful. But Duquette is essential as well, for esoteric understanding based upon the deck's origins, including an amazing exploration of the back design not to be missed. The "Key Words" book, by Banzhaf and Theler, provides "Card of the Day" and "Year" interpretations, possibly useful to some.

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To be honest, I found the Banzhaf and Akron book more useful than the Duquette (cries of horror!). I read the Duquette and felt swamped, but guess that now, after having returned to the Thoth, refusing to be intimidated, a lot of what he says has stayed with me. But the Keywords to the Thoth is so much more accessible, and the emphasis is less on the theory of the deck than actually using it. Some great spreads in there too. It is the only one which helped me to make in-roads into the Court cards...

Le Fanu said:

To be honest, I found the Banzhaf and Akron book more useful than the Duquette (cries of horror!). I read the Duquette and felt swamped, but guess that now, after having returned to the Thoth, refusing to be intimidated, a lot of what he says has stayed with me. But the Keywords to the Thoth is so much more accessible, and the emphasis is less on the theory of the deck than actually using it. Some great spreads in there too. It is the only one which helped me to make in-roads into the Court cards...

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I think that is the purpose of the DuQuette, to give you an understanding behind the keywords as to how they are gotten.

Give a man a fish and he'll feed himself for a day, teach a man to fish and he'll feed himself for life. (Or the like! )

Kenny