Gorilla Numerology: How to Read Pips with Brute Force

[mentalista]

This is the fruit my own experience, and not very refined. But it does produce consistent readings, and it is nearly idiot-proof.

Aces: Meaningless by themselves, but they put surrounding cards in context. A two of coins next to an ace of cups will say something about financial matters in marriage, and so on. If you must read in isolation, take it as an unexpected message or news, as in traditional French cartomancy.

The rest of the cards are split up into three groups. 3 and its multiples are auspicious. Higher prime numbers, if not inauspicious, are at least imbalanced. The remaining even numbers are neutral.

Auspicious: 3, 6 and 9
Good luck, skill, harmony in the realm of the suit.
The higher the number, the more auspicious.

Neutral: 2, 4, 8, 10
Work related to the suit, without intervention of luck.
The higher the number, the more completed the work.
Auspiciousness or lack thereof is determined by suit; i.e. cups will be well-favored, swords ill-favored, wands and coins somewhere in between.
The higher the number, the more the character of the suit will be magnified, in both its good and bad aspects.

Imbalanced: 5, 7
Excess, things out of the querent's control; a surprise.
The higher the number, the less prepared the querent will be.

If in the middle of a reading you get stuck, it can be simplified even further to good luck (3 6 9), bad luck (5 7) and mixed (2 4 8 10).

 

[Moonbow]

Thanks for posting this mentalista, and welcome to the Marseilles forum. Its always good to read about tried and tested methods of reading with the pips, especially those that come about by working experience. And the simplest to remember can also be the easiest to get to grips with. This seems reminiscent of the fortune-telling way to read the cards, and if so I would assume that the amount of auspicious cards in the spread can influence the surrounding cards, and vice versa.

 

[mentalista]

Thanks for posting this mentalista, and welcome to the Marseilles forum. Its always good to read about tried and tested methods of reading with the pips, especially those that come about by working experience. And the simplest to remember can also be the easiest to get to grips with. This seems reminiscent of the fortune-telling way to read the cards, and if so I would assume that the amount of auspicious cards in the spread can influence the surrounding cards, and vice versa.

Thanks for your kind welcome, Moonbow. I confess I don't have much of a head for Neopythagoreanism so yes, this is more of a fortune-teller's method. In general, yeah, more auspicious cards = better. But if you have a lot of clashing suits, or if they show up with - I don't know, say the Moon - then in context the situation would be less positive than the individual cards would indicate.

 

[Orenda]

Fascinating, thanks for sharing! Our next presentation in the local tarot club will be on numerological dignification, and I will be sure to share this approach with our presenter. We're looking to compare the different approaches out there, and the more varied the better for conversation

 

[Moonbow]

Thanks for your kind welcome, Moonbow. I confess I don't have much of a head for Neopythagoreanism so yes, this is more of a fortune-teller's method. In general, yeah, more auspicious cards = better. But if you have a lot of clashing suits, or if they show up with - I don't know, say the Moon - then in context the situation would be less positive than the individual cards would indicate.

I like this because it individual to what you have gained by your own experience and it will likely help someone else to start reading the Marseilles then eventually they may find their own method or expand on yours. Like all the methods here, there is usually a starting point which sets a spark alight, and before we know it we have more Marseilles enthusiasts. Reading with the Marseilles doesn't have to be complicated but if you want it to be, it can. It depends on what you use as meanings for the cards, and what add-ons you decide on, or whether to keep things simple. Already it seems to have helped out Orenda.

 

[Melanchollic]

Mentalista,

Those number meaning completely contradict the whole 3000 year tradition of Western number symbolism...


[size=+90]I LOVE IT![/size]


It's about time someone put those old Greeks in their place!! Just kidding.

Some may assume I'm "ultra-conservative" when it comes to mystical systems and their history. I do think if you going to use a particular established system, for Tarot or anything else, you should master it and try to apply its particular paradigm. This doesn't mean you can't concoct a totally different system. Even I, Pythagoras' illegitimate son have an alternative system of numerology which starts and proceeds from a totally different perspective than the traditional Greek system. (The genders even are opposite!! )

Nice thoughts on the numbers! I do think your spelling of "guerrilla" may have to be reconsidered however.

 

[mentalista]

It's about time someone put those old Greeks in their place!! Just kidding.

Well, I did Greek at a school where Iamblichus et al. were considered 'late' - which is classicistese for something like 'Nazi child molester'. So not matching up with the monad-dyad-etc. routine doesn't exactly faze me. On the other hand, my attributions match up with the Golden Dawn/RWS ones in broad connotation about 80% of the time, so I've got that going for me. ducks: as Melanchollic chucks a critical edition of the Poimandres at my head.)

In Book T, all but two of the 3 's, 6's and 9's are auspicious (3S and 9S). All but one of the 5's and 7's are inauspicious (7W). So Gorilla Numerology has a 85% accuracy rate on those 20 cards, with very little memorization. The rest of the numbers are a mixed bag as they are in Gorilla, although specific meanings match up less perfectly. And yes, conforming to the GD meanings as far as possible without sacrificing pure stone dumb simplicity was an important goal here.

Nice thoughts on the numbers! I do think your spelling of "guerrilla" may have to be reconsidered however.

Oh no, that was intentional. It was meant to capture the brutality and poor manners of the system.

 

[Melanchollic]

Oh no, that was intentional. It was meant to capture the brutality and poor manners of the system.

Ahh, I see.

I agree! Those gorillas have awful table manners! They always use the wrong fork.. and I saw one a few nights ago drinking a red Merlot from a bloomin' Champagne flute!! ~ ha ha ha ha ha ha ha...

Welcome to Aeclectic!! ))tink((