Tarot_Cards_Masonic

Masonic Tarot Deck by Jean Beauchard. They were published by Grimaud © 1987 France. They were purchased brand new, still in original shrink-wrap. The deck includes 78 cards and instruction book in French, English and German. The colors are fantastic and they measure 6 inches by 3 inches.

Note: Nowhere in Freemasonry does the Craft practice or approve of this form of mysticism. This tarot card deck originates strictly from the imagination of its creator.

The speculations over the origins of the Tarot are as varied and diverse as those proposed for Freemasonry. Yet interestingly the chronological, geographical and theosophical sources proposed for the Tarot's origin seem to run in tandem with the theories on the origins of Freemasonry. The author of Tarot Symbolique Maconnique, Jean Beauchard concurs with this, stating that, " The origins of the Tarot, as for those of Freemasonry, are to be found (or lost) in the domain of myths and legends at the dawn of our civilisation; their evolution participates, in any case, in what is called Tradition"(1). Is it possible therefore that they have the same origin, or are they both, as many would argue, merely some of the surviving parts of the plethora of occult polemics that are part of man's historical religious baggage?

I would however first like to clarify that in my opinion divination (fortune telling) forms only a minor part of the Tarot's function, and indeed is it's lowest aspect. Fortune telling has done great harm to the image of the Tarot, principally due to the many charlatans and confidence tricksters who have seen fit to hijack it for their own ends. I hope to show that like Freemasonry it has much to teach and is in the same way much maligned by certain sectors of society. Indeed there may lie our first clue as to the common ancestry of the Tarot and Freemasonry.

I would further state that the link as I see it, between the Tarot and Freemasonry hinges on their common connection with Kabbalism. I firmly believe that Brother F. de P. Castells has proved beyond any reasonable doubt in his numerous books on the subject, that Freemasonry contains within it's rituals a modernised form of the ancient Kabbalistic teachings. (2)

Also it should be noted that two of the two most prolific and respected writers on the more occult aspect of the Craft, Brothers A.E. Waite and Manly P. Hall both accept that the Tarot is firmly entrenched in Freemasonry. Indeed the famous Rider Waite Tarot Pack compiled by our brother is generally regarded as the bench-mark pack against which to judge all others, and is of course full of Masonic symbology. It must be stressed though that both these brethren were involved in sects outside of Freemasonry, and were as such lifelong seekers of the great esoteric truth. Therefore we must always be aware that Freemasonry may not have been regarded in their lives as being any more significant than their other occult associations.

One of the most influential and informed accounts on the origins of the Tarot is generally accepted to be our learned Brother Hall's essay entitled The Tarot. In this work he traces the first recorded pack back to 1485 in Italy, this being the Mantegna deck (3), where he tells us that "...the Cabalistic (sic) significance of these cards is apparent". (4). This pack consisting of fifty subjects in numerical order, and being he tells us ".... ascribed to Botticelli and Baldini."(5), but it is not however in the format as we know it today. It does contain however about 12 cards that bear a definite resemblance to their current major arcana equivalents (6). Bro. Hall tells us that no genuine evidence concerning the Tarot is to be found before the Middle Ages, and it was not ".... until Court de Gebelin projected them into fame."(7) in 1781 that the art escalated. He notes that "Court de Gebelin was a man of unimpeachable

(1) J. Beauchard, Tarot Symbolique Maconnique, France Cartes, Paris, 1989, p.4.

(2) F de P. Castells, Antiquity of the Holy Royal Arch, A. Lewis, London, 1927.

(3) M.P. Hall, The Tarot, P.R.S., Los Angeles, 1978, p.22.

(4) M.P. Hall, The Tarot....ibid., p.22.

(5) ibid., p.22.

(6) S. Kaplan, Encyclopaedia of the Tarot Vol. 1, U.S.Games Systems Inc, New York, 1978, p.40.

(7) M.P. Hall, The Tarot....ibid., p.15.

integrity, an eminent scholar of his day, and a high Freemason of the Grand Orient of France."(8) This is of course also the same time period beyond which Freemasonry starts to become a subjective affair. However like Freemasonry the logical supposition that nothing so well organised in structure could be developed out of thin air also applies. Bro. Hall says of the Tarot that "The mathematical formulas involved in the organisation.... belie the probability of an accidental origin". (9) With regard to the rich symbolism in the Tarot, much of it overtly Masonic, he says the following. "Where, we may ask did the designers of the ancient or original Tarot secure the mass of symbolism which has led men to attribute so great an age to the designs?.....Is the medieval Tarot possibly a product of the craftsmen of the Freemasonic Order and enriched with the archaic symbolism so abundantly apparent in the rituals and the trestleboard?"(10)

Interestingly the Tarot and Freemasonry are linked again through their association with the Knights Templar. According to Mrs John King Van Rensselaer the Devil's Picture Book was brought back from the crusades by them ".... because they realised that all the Knowledge of the ages was epitomised in this little loose leaf picture book."(11) The theory that Freemasonry as an organisation evolved from the murder of Jacques de Molay and the suppression of Templar knowledge, is convincingly argued in John Robinson's book Born in Blood (12), and supported by Brother Pike in his book Morals & Dogma (13). But this is a separate subject in it's self.

A further coincidence is that the oldest surviving complete pack in the modern format is dated at 1718 by Naomi Ozaniec (14), that being the Marseilles Pack . This of course is coincidentally only one year after the founding of the United Grand Lodge in 1717. It is interesting that two ancient forms of esoteric study and practice should emerge to public view the same time. This would not however be as unusual as it first appears if the two were tied in some way and formed part of a natural paradigm shift in human spiritual consciousness. Yet again we see as in many aspects of Freemasonry, that whilst the historical path is distinctly broken at numerous irregular intervals, the closing of one era dovetails with the opening of another, as if there is a perpetual metamorphosis of knowledge right from the very beginning of time.

There is however obviously a problem with the dating of anything as ephemeral as a pasteboard card, particularly one that is found in so many countries and has developed stylistically over the years, as has the Tarot. Further we must also consider if the surviving examples we have, particularly the uncut fragments, are actually of the highest quality and purest form? Or could they be merely rejects or cheap copies of the real system? It is the opinion of Stuart Kaplan that the early examples of the Marseilles Pack fragments can be dated as far back as the late 15th to early 16th centuries (15). This of course would negate Ozaniec's date mentioned earlier.

With regard to Stuart S. Kaplan's huge volumes of work entitled Encyclopaedia of the Tarot vols. 1,2, & 3. It is my contention that this is not an encyclopaedia at all, but rather a huge

(8) Ibid. p.16.

(9) Ibid. p.15.

(10) Ibid. p.14.

(11) Ibid. p.6.

(12) J.J. Robinson, Born in Blood, Arrow Books, London, 1993.

(13) A. Pike, Morals & Dogma, L.A. Jenkins, Richmond Va, 1917.

(14) N. Ozaniec, Tarot, Element, Shaftsbury, 1994, p.5.

(15) S. Kaplan, Encyclopaedia of the Tarot Vol. 2, U.S.Games Systems Inc, N.Y., 1986, p.270.

compendium and source book, that looks at issues historically and pictorially, and side-steps the esoteric issues. If the subject matter where of a secular nature this would be no real problem, but the Tarot is distinctly and overtly esoteric and occult, as is Freemasonry. It is interesting that whilst he gives much space in his books to the Freemasons who have been associated with the Tarot, and are indeed it's most prestigious exponents like Court de Gebelin, Hall and Waite. He gives only one minor mention of the Brotherhood in his works, indicating Freemasonry to be one of the Tarot's many speculated origins. He states that "The Tarot cards are believed by some to contain the total knowledge of the entire world, as preserved in the sacred and supreme symbolic book of the Rosicrucian movement and other secret societies such as the Knights Templar and Freemasons"(16).

On the purely historical side, Kaplan is of the opinion that the earliest reference to playing cards generally is from a prohibition in Bern of 1367 (17). Noting that the earliest reference to games of any type before that time is, "Ovid (43 BC to 17 AD) (who) "enumerates several games... but among them is no reference to cards."(18). He also analyses the issue of the incomplete other Tarocchi decks which we will consider later and are of the same time period as the Mantegna deck, but bear an even greater resemblance to the modern major arcana, although they are not numbered or named, as are the Mantegna pack.

There is already in existence a Masonic Tarot pack produced recently by Jean Beauchard (19). However whist M. Beauchard provides us with an excellent text and a sound written concept, as quoted previously, the resolution I believe leaves much to be desired. In my opinion the cards are of a general astrological format set in a 1970's mystic genre, with a couple of Masonic symbols thrown in to try a justify his concept. His initials JB also seem rather convenient for the marketing of such a product.

(16) S. Kaplan, Encyclo...Vol. 1 p.22.

(17) ibid. p.24.

(18) ibid. p.33.

(19) J. Beauchard, Tarot Symbolique Maconnique,....ibid.

Let us now look for the Masonic references in these early cards, as by general agreement it can be seen that since the publication by Bro Court de Gebelin of his Monde Primitif in the late eighteenth century many Masonic, as well as Egyptian details have been added to the Tarot.

The Tarocchi of Mantegna Cards (circa 1470)

This set is divided into five sub groups of ten cards, which are numerated in a heirachy. The A series (41 to 50) details the Firmaments of the Universe, which match the astrological aspects of the Ten Sephiroth of the Otz Chiim. These being The Earth, The Seven planets, The Zodiac and the Primo mobile. This would tie in with Freemasonry through it's connection with the Kabbalah as discussed previously from Bro Castell's work.

The Sun and the Moon are illustrated with flying chariots, and could be representative of the SW and JW's at their pedestals. Mars is shown sat on the throne of a chariot between two columns with his arms and legs f.i.a.sq. and could well represent the WM. These three cards closely resemble the La Lune, Le Sol and Le Chariot typologies of the later packs produced. Saturn is believed by some to be the forerunner of L'Ermite, and the Eighth Sphere the forerunner of Les Etoiles, but these cards appear to have more to do with Classical literature than Freemasonry. Venus however has references to an e o c near to a f o w. from the FC degree and is speculated by some to be the forerunner of L'amouraux.

The B series (31 to 40) depicts the Cosmic Principles, seven of which are the noble virtues, all of which are highlighted for our guidance in the ritual. These being Charity, Prudence, Fortitude, Justice, and Temperance all mentioned specifically in the First Degree Charge, along with Hope and Faith specifically mentioned before and after the First Degree Prayer. The remaining three are interestingly Astronomy, Chronology and Cosmology. The card called Astronomy we will see later would be masonically more correct in the following C series, but mathematically it sits quit happily with the other two aspects. It is note worthy of course that we again have a seven to three relationship, which is masonically appropriate. From this series Temperance, Fortitude (as La Force), and Justice appear in more modern packs under those titles, but again these cards are more Classical than Masonic generally in appearance. However Fortitude illustrates a broken Ionic column, and Chronology has two mushroom-like trees as columns forming a masonic five to three relationship, with a three times three relationship in total.

The C series (21 to 30) depicts ten Liberal Arts and Sciences, six of which are inculcated in the FC Degree. The missing one from the seven in the FC degree is Astronomy, as noted in the B series, which is here split into it's more ancient disciplines of Astrology, Theology and Philosophy, but as Freemasonry is a progressive science the change is understandable. The tenth Poetry I feel does have illusions to an e o c near to a f o w. in the styling of the fountain, which is again from the FC degree. Whilst none of these cards appear to connect with the modern major arcana there are some masonic references. Astrology shows the terrestrial globe, a five-pointed crown, a sacred volume and a wand. Geometry has a waterfall along with point, circle, triangle and square inculcated in the RA. The figure of Rhetoric holds the T. sword with her r.a.f.i.a.sq.

The D series (11 to 20) depicts Apollo and the Muses, reflecting the Kabbalistic world of emotions and speech. Urania holds a sphere aloft along with a pair of compasses which are in her right hand in one version. Euterpe sits under what appears to be an Acacia tree and has her r.a.i.t.f.o.a.sq. Apollo rests his feet on the celestial globe and has his l.a.i.t.f.o.a.sq. holding a stem of lilies.

The E or S series (1 to 10) depict the conditions of man, and appear to have very masonic references incorporated. Further many of the characters are believed to be the foundation from which the modern arcana types developed.

The Beggar bears many similarities to the modern Le Fou and could well be representative of the non-mason. The card shows a ruined and possibly incomplete brick wall with the serpent of knowledge emerging from the debris. This card may also be representative of the ambitions of the unskilled craftsman, as the Tree of Life (Otz Chiim) has been depicted dead and barren behind him.

The Servant is well dressed and groomed and could be representative of a Steward of the Lodge.

The Artisan is of course the Craftsman as he has on his bench the working tools of his trade, his apprentice is to his side, and behind him is a window in the form of a square.

The Merchant and The Gentleman (5) are both men of opulence and learning and are stood erect with their f. f. i. a. sq.

The Knight carries a p. and may well represent the IG, as behind him is another character, standing square to him with a sword who could be the T.

The King is seated on a throne in the shape of a double cube with his l.a. and r.l.f.i.a.sq. He carries interestingly a wand of office, not a sword, and he wears a ten-pointed crown.

The Emperor is seated as the king, but is an elderly bearded figure illustrated in semi profile, and carrying an orb of office. Behind him is hung a veil and before him a falcon. This is the card, which is known by the same title in the modern packs.

The Pope would on face value be a strange card to include in the series, however needless to say it was vital for any person who valued his life in the fifteenth century not to omit the church or its royal heirachy from any aspect of life. Even if the compiler had a secret or non-Christian belief he dared not express it. This is why over the years as society became more tolerant and enlightened and the churches’ powers waned, the card earlier called The Pope has been transcribed into the more occult Hierophant and displayed in a more Egyptian manner. There is also the matter of the modern card called La Papesse, noting that the Mantegna card clearly illustrates the Pope in a feminine form. The Mantegna Pope is seated on a sided throne and carries the keys of his office and a copy of the VSL. On his chest is the Vesica Pisces, which is the mother of all platonic shapes, and on his head is the tripartite crown. The floor is interestingly a chequered pavement as in a lodge.

OTHER EARLY SETS

Whilst the following cards have no titles or numbers they depict typologies similar or even identical to the current forms, and have many masonic references. It should also be noted that these sets are incomplete and the missing cards would naturally be fundamental to our understanding of the whole pack's genre.

The Visconti and Visconti-Sforza Tarocchi Cards (circa mid 15th Cen)

The Magician sits at a table or trestleboard, which has upon it a p. ,a cup, two coins and an undefinable shape or heap. He is dressed in red and holds in his hand a wand.

The Fool is depicted in white undergarments with both legs bare, he carries a wand and he has seven feathers in his hair.

The Papesse is seated on her throne with the VSL in her left hand and a wand in her right. She is dressed in brown with a tripartite crown over a white wimple.

The Empress is throned in the same manner as The Papesse but in her left hand is a shield emblazoned with a black eagle. She has an emblem of three interlaced rings on her dress.

The Hanged Man wears a white blouse, both arms are bare and f.i.a.sq also his r.l. is f.i.a.sq.

The Star illustrates a female figure in a pose similar to the Scottish 2nd Degree H Sn. with a star in her hand. She is stood at a precipice with two hills as columns behind.

The Goldschmidt Cards (circa mid 15th Cen)

Death is illustrated by the p. with the scull and crossbones of HAB superimposed.

The Sun has the emblem of the MWGM over a cross of Constantine with three symbolic green hills with M A and C upon them, all on a chequered pavement.

The Ace of Cups shows a hexagonal font or grail on a chequered pavement encompassed by the serpent of infinity

The Gringonneur Cards (Circa mid 15th Cen)

La Lune has two Craftsmen with compasses plotting the astrological movements of the Moon, which rises above a veil.

La Mort has a skeleton clad in innocence with h.w. removed, mowing down a King, The Pope and his Bishops. Could this also be the spirit of Jacques de Molay extracting revenge?

L'Ermite wears monks’ robes and has what appears to be a white apron hung form his belt. He also appears to wear chain mail and has a long uncut beard. From all this he could well be depicting a Templar Knight.

Le Pendu has is r.l.f.i.a.sq and he holds money bags in each hand, below his head appears to be sprigs of acacia.

The Rothschild Tarot (circa late 15th or early 16th Cent)

The Moon shows two men in Roman garb, one is holding a square and the other compasses

The Star shows three figures arranged as the three Prins. of the RA. with an eight pointed star above.

All the above cards with the exception of the Mantegna pack, which is engraved, are hand painted and embossed. Needless to say these were expensive and created purely for the use and pleasure of the nobility. The development of woodblock printing in 15th Century enabled cards to be mass produced and more available to the general public. This coincided with a rise in educational standards and an increase in the rate of dissemination of knowledge. If esoteric doctrines could now be more easily made available to the masses as Freemasonry intended, these would be far better issued as a simple game rather than a ponderous manuscript or book. Further the Catholic Church could ban books, but cards where a different matter. The fact that the aristocracy had access to this knowledge for a considerable time was something the church could do little about, but it did not want their poorer congregations enlightening, and challenging their authority. Therefore the essence of esoteric knowledge could spread in the guise of a card game that unlike many other works of art and literature has slipped through the censorship net. As stated earlier it was the Freemason Court de Gebelin who finally brought the Tarot out of the closet 64 years after Freemasonry itself became public. As John Robinson points out of Freemasonry in his book, by 1717 it had ".... no more need for secrecy, no reason to hide from the establishment, or to plot against the establishment. Freemasonry had become the establishment"(20)

Sadly with this desire to be the establishment there has been a move in recent years to make Freemasonry become more mundane and secular by denying it's very obvious past. Whilst it must be acknowledged that there have been speculations made by Brethren, particularly in the late 19th C, that where beyond the bounds of historical common sense and reason. To deny at this stage of human spiritual consciousness and tolerance within world thinking, that Freemasonry is not a continuation of an age-old esoteric teaching free of sectarian rhetoric, is equally fallacious. If Freemasonry and the Tarot are not of a common stock why are the cards so masonic and why do Freemasons appear at every stage of their development?

Having considered the earliest examples we will now consider the Rider-Waite pack from the turn of the century.

(20) J.J. Robinson, Born in Blood.... ibid. p.304

The Rider-Waite Tarot Pack

As stated earlier the Rider-Waite pack is the one that others are measured against. It was conceived in 1909 when W.Bro Waite undertook with an artist called Pamela Colman Smith to produce a Tarot pack which had allegorical paintings for all of the 78 cards of the series rather than just the 22 major arcana as was the norm. Also as stated earlier there is very obvious Masonic symbolism in these cards, as would be expected under the circumstances. We will now consider a few of the more literal examples of such.

The High Priestess sits between the two demarcated columns, with a veil behind her of lily-work and pomegranates. On her head is the crown of Isis, on her breast is the equal armed cross, in her hands is the Jewish VSL and at her feet the upturned crescent Moon.

The Empress is clothed in a garment of pomegranates and is sat beside ears of corn near to a waterfall. Her coronet is adorned by laurels and 12 stars. At her feet is the symbol of Venus.

The Devil is featured as a goat and is crouched on a black double cube, with a man and a woman shackled to it. The couple are naked with their f. f. in a sq. Lucifer's head is embossed with an inverted pentagram.

The Star has a naked woman kneeling on her l k, with her r f formed in a square as in the first degree S O. Behind her are seven white stars and one large yellow luminary in the same format as the First degree tracing board but inverted. On a tree is an Ibis the symbol of Thoth the Moon God of magic and wisdom.

The Hanged Man is suspended from a Tau with both arms and his left leg in t f of a sq.

The World displays the four principal RA banners, which also reflect the four fixed points of the zodiac.

The Ace of Cups denoted the Root of the powers of Water shows a Dove bearing an equal armed cross descending into a grail embossed with a letter W formed in the shape of two columns with a Square. The water falls as either five rivers or twenty-seven (3x9) droplets in the form of Yods.

The Two of Wands is denoted Dominion and illustrates a man holding the terrestrial globe in his right hand and supporting a wand with his left. Set in a square on a pedestal below is a logo of an equal armed cross two arms of which are white lilies and the other two red roses.

The Three of Wands is denoted Established Strength and illustrates a man with his f in t f of a sq. supporting a wand in his right hand.

The Two of Swords is denoted Peace Restored and depicts a h...w...d woman clad in the robes of innocence with her f in t f of a sq, holding two swords in saltire.

The three of Pentacles denoted Material Works shows the operative mason with maul in hand and aproned, with the Architect clad in red holding the drawings and the Abbott making up a third. Behind and above them is a tripartite window of three pentacles supported by the central column.

Within this pack are many more subtle and at the same time possibly more contentious symbols which could be considered Masonic, some of which may be from Degrees of which I am not a member. I hope other Brethren will now look at the Tarot from their own personal perspective and find other meanings hidden in the cards. There are many packs available and each individual will find his own path.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

HALL, MANLY P. THE TAROT (An Essay by). LOS ANGELES: THE PHILOSOPHICAL RESEARCH SOCIETY, 1978.

KAPLAN, S.R. THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF THE TAROT. NEW YORK:U.S.GAMES SYSTEMS INC, 1978.

PIKE, A MORALS & DOGMA of the ANCIENT AND ACCEPTED SCOTTISH RITE OF FREEMASONRY. RICHMOND VA: L.H. JENKINS, 1917.

The format of the lecture

1. Introduction. I will very briefly explain what the Tarot is for clarity. (duration 3 mins)

2. The Lecture. This will be as the attached document and illustrated by slides as indicated. (duration 30 mins)

3. My Masonic Tarot. I will lay a spread of the Tarot cards which I have painted on a table in the lodge for examination. (duration 10 mins)

4. Questions. I will take questions on the Lecture, the Tarot generally and my personal cards as required ( duration will be at the WM’s discretion)

Slide 13 The Emp, The Hanged Man & The Star Encyclopedia of the Tarot vol 1 p67 70 & 72