Major Arcana titles: La Maison-Diev

kwaw

Ross G Caldwell said:
This may make it into a talk I am giving, which involves a real case in the early 17th century of a young man selling his soul to the Devil. They recovered his pact, written on a Two of Hearts, and destroyed it. Except, in this case, they burned him. It is a sad story.

Apparently he told the story that the first few times he saw the Devil, he exclaimed "Jesus Marie!" So it makes it all the more poignant that he couldn't save his life.
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Sounds fascinating, maybe you can share the details at some point. This would make then two incidents of witchcraft/devil worship involving cards, or are there more that you know of?

Kwaw
 

Ross G Caldwell

kwaw said:
Sounds fascinating, maybe you can share the details at some point. This would make then two incidents of witchcraft/devil worship involving cards, or are there more that you know of?

Kwaw
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No, only those two (Ruth Martin's Venetian witch, and this one). There is another, in Leland's account of Italian Witchcraft, but it comes from the 19th century, although it is clearly folk magic and nothing derived from occultist ideas.

My talk is going to be on the use of playing cards in folk magic - there isn't much material, but newer information about the early use of printed images as "amulets" and such gives better context to playing cards being used that way, even if the evidence is sparse.

I will post something about the case of Jean Jourdain and his pact.
 

tmgrl2

I'm so glad this thread bumped up again....I have saved it now...excellent discussion. I couldn't remember where I had read about the "hospital" reference...but I did know Diana discussed it in her other forum....I do like this idea of a "place" where pilgrims or the weary can rest or recuperate...often during these times

...we come to grips with what we have been denying or ignoring...and in fact, are "struck" by truths....and healing as we do.

terri
 

Clay

La Maison-Dieu

I'm jumping into a very old thread here, but I just want to throw in some information that may provide a clue or two in relation to Diana's original question and the demise of the Knights Templar, which a couple of people mentioned.

First, someone said that "Hôtel-Dieu" would have been a more common term for "hospital" than "Maison-Dieu," but I believe that in Norman French, the term "Maison-Dieu" was commonly used, because in England there are still some old medieval hospital buildings called "Maison-Dieu" (also referred to as "Domus Dei"). You can see a photo of one of these at <http://www.dover-kent.co.uk/places/maison-dieu.htm>. The words "hotel," "hostel," and "hospital" are all derived from the same Late Latin word "hospitale," so "Hôtel-Dieu" would seem more appropriate, I guess, but languages change so much that I don't think we can dismiss the possibility that even in other parts of France the term "Maison-Dieu" was common for "hospital." (As for the spelling with V instead of U, it wasn't until during the 16th century or later that U and V came to be regarded as truly separate letters, and especially when using all capital letters, as they did for the Tarot card titles, printers continued to use V in all positions till quite late.)

The Knights Templar were dissolved in 1312 (suitable timing for the Tarot), ostensibly for heresy but actually probably because they had acquired too much property and power, especially in France. It was the French king, Philippe le Bel, who had them all arrested in 1307. He really "zapped" them, burning their grand master, Jacques de Molay, at the stake in 1314. Interestingly, much of their property was given to the Hospitallers, also known as the Order of St. John of Jerusalem and later as the Knights of Malta after they moved their headquarters there in 1530. If the Tower symbol does derive from the demise of the Templars, this might mean that the Tower was originally a center of power or wealth that became a hospital after it was given to the Hospitallers. In other words, what if the title "Maison Dieu" really refers to what the Tower becomes *after* it has been zapped? It makes pretty good sense to me. Any reactions to this?

Clay
 

kwaw

Clay said:
In other words, what if the title "Maison Dieu" really refers to what the Tower becomes *after* it has been zapped? It makes pretty good sense to me. Any reactions to this?

Clay
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I think they were more known in connection with hospitals for their beneficience in the creation of such during their period of power, rather the conversion of their properties to such after their demise. In addition there is no reason to believe that hospitals in general would have automatically been associated in the popular mind with the Templars. It would be a mistake I think to make such an assumption and to identify the building of hospitals solely with the Templars; hospitals were built through the beneficience of many guilds and of individuals. The Guilds of Jongleurs, Trouveres and Troubadors for example were very wealthy and known for their beneficient work. Two individual troubadors alone financed the building of both a hospital and a church between them, such was their wealth.

Kwaw
 

Clay

Hospitallers, not Templars

The primary mission of the Knights Templar was warfare, and they also engaged in banking and the safekeeping of certain properties and church treasures.
I'm not saying that hospitals were associated with the Knights Templar. I'm saying that much of their property was given to the Hospitallers (a different order from the Templars) when the Templars were disbanded and therefore some of their buildings were converted into hospitals by the new owners, the Hospitallers. Again, in other words, centers of Templar power and wealth got "zapped" and were converted into "Maisons-Dieu" by the Hospitallers.

Clay
 

kwaw

Clay said:
I'm saying that much of their property was given to the Hospitallers (a different order from the Templars) when the Templars were disbanded and therefore some of their buildings were converted into hospitals by the new owners, the Hospitallers. Again, in other words, centers of Templar power and wealth got "zapped" and were converted into "Maisons-Dieu" by the Hospitallers.

Clay
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It is possible I suppose. This would perhaps also fit in with the image being a representation of the 'fall of idols'. The transfer of property after the 'fall of the idolatrers' the Templars to the order of Hospitallers.

Kwaw
 

kwaw

kwaw said:
An interesting woodcut in relation to the tower and pilgrims from Gottselige Begierde by herman hugo, Augsburg, 1622 is reproduced on page 699 of The Hermetic Museum - Alchemy and Mysticism, published by Taschen which shows a pilgrim at a centre of a maze holding a rope the other end of which is held by an angel at the top of a tower on a rocky hill beyond the maze. On the top of the tower on the right is a flaming torch. A couple of pilgrims have fallen off the maze. Another pigrim has fallen off the path just before the door of the tower. On the right another pilgrim, who too has presumably fallen, is trying to climb up the rocky outcrop. There is another Pilgrim walking along the path of the maze with a walking staff and a dog on a lead.

The text reads:
"O that my paths may be guided to keep Thy laws
In the tangled maze with all its twists and turns
I walk and will without fear await the help promised by Thy word.
From far away I see that here and there some will fall
Who are otherwise cautious and probably the boldest:
I go blindly onwards and my arts are all in my devotion to Thee my friend!
This life is a maze; That the journer may be safe
Thou must without guile await in blind faith for God
In pure love without artifice."
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The illustration is used with reference to Psalm 118:5 [latin vulgate ordering, it is the acrostic psalm numbered 119 in other versions] in Herman Hugo's French emblem book Pia desideria published in Antwerp by Chez Jean Cnobbart in 1627.

psalm 118:5 (In Hebrew letter Aleph verse)

5 utinam dirigantur viae meae ad custodiendas iustificationes tuas


5 Oh, that my ways were steadfast in obeying your decrees!


http://special.lib.gla.ac.uk/images/emblems/SM635a_0248wf.jpg


http://special.lib.gla.ac.uk/teach/emblems/religious.html

Kwaw
 

kwaw

Meson dieu

Alternative spellings ~ Meson Dieu

kwaw said:
Haven't got abundant examples, but here is one:

La Maison Dieu as Hospital

Douceur, humilité, pitié,
Et charité et amitié,
Et jeûne faire et pénitence,
Me mettent grand deuil en la panse.
Aumône faire et Dieu prier
Cela ne peut que m'ennuyer;
Dieu aimer et chastement vivre,
Lors me semble serpent et guivre*. .
Quand en la Maison Dieu* l'on entre
Pour visiter quelque malade,
Lors ai le coeur si mort et fade
Qu'il m'est avis que point ne le sente.

From Le Miracle de Théophile (1262) by the jongleur Rutebeuf {died 1285}
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In some version of this maison dieu is spelt meson dieu:

Quant l'en en la meson-Dieu entre


And a google search with this spelling finds quite a few other texts, As in la Mort le Roi Artu:

"Rois Artus, nos avons conquestee la meson Dieu a ués monseigneur Gauvain vostre neveu por les gram bien qu'il nous a feiz."

Some others:

http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=43334

http://www.templiers.net/maitres/index.php?page=hugues-de-pairaud

http://elec.enc.sorbonne.fr/cartulaires/hotelpontoise/acte163/

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/GuillaumeTyr3.html

http://www.indiana.edu/~librcsd/resource/france/annexe/theoph.html

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=...kHUDAU8&sig=VjLgBP-GCMDsPgLUpztq-U30Hdg&hl=en

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=...chQCg7k&sig=Sl3LfOVR12qKA7q9r2f9fm8-6ns&hl=en

http://www.infobretagne.com/redon.htm
 
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