Why did Eliphas Levi attribute Le Mat to the letter Shin?

[PIRUCHO]

-Btw...

-Can anyone tell me why Eliphas Levi attributed LE MAT to the letter Shin ?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shin_(letter)

a-It is the number 21 of the alphabet
b-It s number value is 300

-That is surely a "Sin" I just think the association Levi done.


*Just another clumsy incongruity ...

 

[Teheuti]

-Btw...

-Can anyone tell me why Eliphas Levi attributed LE MAT to the letter Shin ?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shin_(letter)

a-It is the number 21 of the alphabet
b-It s number value is 300

-That is surely a "Sin" I just think the association Levi done.


*Just another clumsy incongruity ...

This should probably be moved to a new topic, but here's some info anyway

from Transcendental Magic:
Lévi says that according to a 16th century Hebrew document:
"SHIN. – To have the secret of wealth, to be always its master and
never its slave. To enjoy even poverty and never become abject or miserable."

Also: "The man of genius differs from the dreamer and the fool in this only, that his creations are analogous to truth, while those of the fool and the dreamer are lost reflections and betrayed images." (see the last quote for how he equates Shin with "fatalities of the astral light.")

"The Fool of the Tarot. Day of failure and miscarriage in all things."

from Lévi's, The Key to the Mysteries (the whole section is several pages long):

"The thirty-first path is called the perpetual intelligence; and it governs the sun and the moon, and the other stars and figures, each in its respective orb. And it distributes what is needful to all created things, according to their disposition to the signs and figures." . . .

The thirty-first refers to HB:Shin , which represents the magic lamp, or the light between the horns of Baphomet [Ob, Od, & Aour in the form of a caduceus]. . . .

The universal light, when it magnetizes the worlds, is called astral light; when it forms the metals, one calls it azoth, or philosophical mercury; when it gives life to animals, it should be called anima magnetism. The brute is subject to the fatalities of this light; man is able to direct it. It is the intelligence which, by adapting the sign to the thought, creates forms and images. . . .

Man formulates the light by his imagination; he attracts to himself the light in sufficient quantities to give suitable forms to his thoughts and even to his dreams; if this light overcomes him, if he drowns his understanding in the forms which he evokes, he is mad. But the fluidic atmosphere of madmen is
often a poison for tottering reason and for exalted imaginations. . . .

[Levi then speaks of ghosts and the stupidity of mediumship]
Our doctrine is that of the rabbis who compiled the Zohar.
AXIOM
The spirit clothes itself to descend, and strips itself to rise. . . .

This is what the Saviour declares in His Gospel, when He makes the soul of a saint say:
"Now the great abyss is established between us, and those who are above can no longer descend to those who are below." . . .

Magnetic maladies are the road to madness; they are always born from the hypertrophy or atrophy of the nervous system.

. . . the influence of astral and magnetic intoxication. . . .

To preserve one's reason in the midst of madmen, one's faith in the midst of superstitions, one's dignity in the midst of buffoons, and one's independence among the sheep of Panurge, is of all miracles the rarest, the finest, and the most difficult to accomplish.

This theme is summed up at the end of Transcendental Magic:

"Magic can be no longer the art of fascinations and illusions: those only who wish to be deceived can be deceived now. But the narrow and rash incredulity of the last century is denied in totality by Nature herself. We are environed by prophecies and miracles; unbelief once denied them unwisely; now, science explains them. . . . a lost spirit is not allowed to disturb the empire of God! No, things unknown cannot be explained by things impossible! No, invisible beings are not permitted to deceive, torment, seduce and even kill the living creatures of God, poor human beings, so ignorant, as it is, so weak, scarce able to combat their own delusions! Those who told you all this in your childhood . . . have deceived you, and if you were child enough once to listen, be man enough now to disbelieve. Man is himself the creator of his heaven and hell, and there are no demons except our own follies."

Essentially - Magic is science. Some humans have their delusions, which it is a folly to believe. The letter Shin refers to mastering these illusions and in this is found true wealth. It is spiritually fatal to believe in such delusions (see bold text above).

 

[PIRUCHO]

Hello Teheuti:
Also I don t want go off topic here,but I remark that Levi was a clumsy pagliaccio as Mouni Sadhu for example.
Levi misunderstood Hermetecism as his book Dogme et rituel de la haute magie proved it.

He copied the worst school: Pico
He ignored the best : Marsilio,his Teacher.

-For example Mouni Sadhu a later never "initiated" disciple by Levi do by surely by his self not from Levi "Sanctis" approval, (as Levi done prior ),located LE MAT prior to LE MONDE,just for do a coincidence with the letter 21.
Or there is another deepest reason for it ?

Oh ! I forgot Papus !!!

Caravan of liars...

 

[PIRUCHO]

The Master Levi a self-illuminated mentioned this in his book Dogme et rituel de la haute magie.about LE MAT :

El. Loco: un hombre vestido de loco, marcha al azar, cargado con una saca que lleva a
in espada y que, sin duda, está llena de sus ridiculeces y de sus vicios; sus ropas en desorden dejan
al descubierto lo que debiera ocultar, y un tigre que le sigue, le muerde sin que él trate de evitarlo o
de defenderse.


That is only of course for spanish members here.
You know sufficiently this text.


"cargado con una saca que lleva a
in espada y que, sin duda, está llena de sus ridiculeces y de sus vicios; "

"sus ropas en desorden dejan
al descubierto lo que debiera ocultar,"

Levi misunderstood "all".

My best T.

 

[PIRUCHO]

Let s me laugh T...
As you said Levi "testified" :

"from Transcendental Magic:
Lévi says that according to a 16th century Hebrew document:
"SHIN. – To have the secret of wealth, to be always its master and
never its slave. To enjoy even poverty and never become abject or miserable."




E.

 

[Teheuti]

The Master Levi a self-illuminated mentioned this in his book Dogme et rituel de la haute magie.about LE MAT :

El. Loco: un hombre vestido de loco, marcha al azar, cargado con una saca que lleva a
in espada y que, sin duda, está llena de sus ridiculeces y de sus vicios; sus ropas en desorden dejan
al descubierto lo que debiera ocultar, y un tigre que le sigue, le muerde sin que él trate de evitarlo o
de defenderse.

I didn't quote the above piece because you asked specifically about why Lévi related the card to Shin - so I only quoted material that related specifically to the Fool-as-Shin (on the 31st Path).

I don't agree with Lévi, but I'm beginning to understand his reasoning.

 

[PIRUCHO]

Obviously Levi never read the Corpus Hermeticum.
Marsilio Ficino did the translation from the greek as you surely know.
And Pico ...

 

[PIRUCHO]

Hello T. :
Regarding to Levi-

"beginning to understand his reasoning."

T: Don t waste your time baby !

E.

 

[Teheuti]

Hello T. :
Regarding to Levi-

"beginning to understand his reasoning."

T: Don t waste your time baby !

E.

The history of tarot is also about understanding the history and development of ideas. It doesn't matter if Lévi was right or wrong. Historically speaking he made a claim and other tarot commentators have reacted to that claim. There is a chain of influence and of understandings and misunderstandings. I thought you wanted to know WHY Lévi assigned Shin to the Fool.

 

[Umbrae]

Also I don t want go off topic here,but I remark that Levi was a clumsy pagliaccio as Mouni Sadhu for example.
Levi misunderstood Hermetecism as his book Dogme et rituel de la haute magie proved it.

Levi based his work on Jewish (Eastern) Kabbalah as opposed to Hermitic (Western) Kabbalah.

In Jewish Kabbalah, the letter Shin means: tooth, claw, horn, hoof, a person, the head, the highest, to grind down, to chew away (boundaries) nibble-bite, warn or guard (think ‘sheep-dog’) monster teeth, resolve, purpose, divine peace, power and mastery. Shi is also the letter of the mezuzah – and thus also represents the Holy Spirit.

Many modern printings of Tarot in the US and England show the Fool as designated with Aleph. In France, Spain, Italy, Germany, decks tend to follow Jewish Kabbalah (and thus mirror Levi) and designate the Fool as Shin.

There ARE those of us out here who follow Jewish Kabbalah as opposed to Hermitic Kabbalah that say the same sorts of things about Hermeticism and Hermetics.