PKT:Secret Trad#1 - Study Group

Teheuti

Added for clarification: Based on an earlier poll of people's preferences, this is a study group focusing on Waite's intentions for the RWS deck based on what he wrote in Pictorial Key to the Tarot, beginning with Part II where he explains his core philosophy regarding the "Secret Tradition." Other books by Waite (and works he specifically references) will be consulted for additional information about his terminology and intent.

Here's the first two sentences (the sentences & paragraphs are very long), which I've numbered for easy reference. I suggest that everyone tries summarizing what Waite says in their own words as it becomes very clear in this way what we understand and what we don't. Feel free to refer to Part 1 and other works by Waite to help elucidate the material.

PART II - "The Doctrine Behind the Veil - 1: The Tarot and Secret Tradition"

1."The Tarot embodies symbolical presentations of universal ideas, behind which lie all the implicits of the human mind, and it is in this sense that they contain secret doctrine, which is the realization by the few of truths imbedded in the consciousness of all, though they have not passed into express recognition by ordinary men.

2. "The theory is that this doctrine has always existed—that is to say, has been excogitated in the consciousness of an elect minority; that it has been perpetuated in secrecy from one to another and has been recorded in secret literatures, like those of Alchemy and Kabalism; that it is contained also in those Instituted Mysteries of which Rosicrucianism offers an example near to our hand in the past, and Craft Masonry a living summary, or general memorial, for those who can interpret its real meaning."
pp 59-60.

excogitate: 1. to devise, invent, or contrive
2. to think out in detail
(from: Latin: excogitat - 'found by process of thought')

Craft Masonry: This system of three degrees is sometimes called The Symbolic Degrees, consisting of: Entered Apprentice, Fellowcraft Degree, Master Mason. This is the core of Masonry.
 

INIVEA

ok I am only going by what you posted here.

Both 1 and 2, seem to be telling me that it about (akasha records, universal unconscious mind) trance / meditation. All great minds have tapped into this.
 

Abrac

What I take away from this is Waite is saying the Secret Doctrine is represented by symbols. Some things are written or spoken openly, while other things are veiled in symbol.
 

Teheuti

I just did a presentation on Tarot & Jung's Map of the Soul at BATS, in which I demonstrated some parallels in the ideas of Waite and Jung:

Waite: "The Tarot embodies symbolical presentations of universal ideas, behind which lie all the implicits of the human mind . . . truths imbedded in the consciousness of all."

Jung: "Archetypes are latent potentialities of the human psyche—a vast store of ancestral knowledge about the profound relations between God, man and cosmos."
--in Jolande Jacobi, The Psychology of C. G. Jung [I chose this sentence on archetypes because it is succinctly close to Waite's and Jung does tend to go on and on.]

They are both talking about what Jung called archetypes in the collective unconscious that keep emerging spontaneously and universally in myth and symbol.

"They contain secret doctrine" - Waite uses words very precisely. Doctrine is "teachings;" it is secret because it is not consciously known or even comprehensible to everyone. "Secret Tradition" is the lineage or continuance of this knowledge through time and in many forms such as alchemy, Kabbala and formal orders that that memorialize (keep it vital and alive in consciousness) this knowledge through their stories and rituals. Tarot is an embodiment of this "archetypal" knowledge in the collective unconscious. Waite includes among the "Instituted Mysteries" everything from the ancient pagan mystery schools (Eleusinian, Pythagorean, Apollonian, Mithraic, etc.) through the magical orders to the Christian mystical mysteries. Simultaneously with creating this deck & book, Waite was writing The Hidden Church of the Holy Graal in which he demonstrates how the Secret Doctrine was embodied in the Grail stories.
 

Teheuti

Waite is trying to summarize in this short chapter the key, relevant points he makes in the dozens of books he wrote throughout his lifetime on the Secret Tradition. Each sentence is actually very significant in terms of the "secret" he sought to share. BTW, this Secret Doctrine is essentially the same as the Theosophical one, about which Helena Blavatsky wrote two huge books. The concept is just viewed through a different lens (though very important in their differences).
 

INIVEA

okay so I understand, correctly, is Waite saying that for all of us to understand tarot, we must read about all the doctrines that have been written over the millennia's, to bring what is in the unconscious to the for front conscious mind.

If so, is there a much easier way that is less exhaustive.

Sorry, I am one that no matter how hard I try, I'm unable to meditate, and reading tons of books is not my forte.
 

Teheuti

okay so I understand, correctly, is Waite saying that for all of us to understand tarot, we must read about all the doctrines that have been written over the millennia's, to bring what is in the unconscious to the for front conscious mind.
Added: Waite makes sure that people can use Tarot in a variety of ways (and thus at a variety of levels of knowledge & understanding). He just wants to clue people in to there being a deeper significance. It's similar to Jung who wanted to clue people into a "depth study of the soul" that most people would be totally uninterested in pursuing.

I don't think we have to read everything (we obviously can't!), but the more you know the more you recognize the deeper meaning of symbols and mythic content when they appear and, by recognizing them, can learn from them to add to your understanding. It's why the GD taught correspondences and encouraged a deeper study of Kabbalah and alchemy. As Jung said re dreamwork: "Learn everything you can about myth and symbols and then forget it all when interpretating a dream" (a remembered paraphrase). Learning these things helps one distinguish between personal, cultural and universal symbols. Personal & cultural symbols are often heavy with bias, prejudice, misunderstandings, etc.

If so, is there a much easier way that is less exhaustive.
I assume this is a question. If so, my answer is, not really. The true mystical route is just as exhausting in its own way. It takes an inquiring mind & willingness to be on a lifelong journey to walk these paths - which is why Waite says the Secret Doctrine is not for everybody. Note how very few Extrovert Sensates there are among 500 Tarot reader respondents on the MBPI Poll in the Book & Media section - showing that Tarot is not for everybody either.

BTW, you will get whatever you get from this study or you will decide that a different approach to Tarot works better for you. That's no condemnation - after all, few people like Waite.
 

INIVEA

Added: Waite makes sure that people can use Tarot in a variety of ways (and thus at a variety of levels of knowledge & understanding). He just wants to clue people in to there being a deeper significance. It's similar to Jung who want to clue people into a "depth study of the soul" that most people would be totally uninterested in pursuing.

I don't think we have to read everything (we obviously can't!), but the more you know the more you recognize the deeper meaning of symbols and mythic content when they appear and, by recognizing them, can learn from them to add to your understanding. It's why the GD taught correspondences and encouraged a deeper study of Kabbalah and alchemy. As Jung said re dreamwork: "Learn everything you can about myth and symbols and then forget it all when interpretating a dream" (a remembered paraphrase).

okay this is great, I guess, it comes down to me reading what I am interested in, and for the most part, I haven't found it yet.

I tried Kabbalah, too complicated and ended up losing interest, same with alchemy, I looked into the humors, that sorta interested me a bit. I tried even to learn elements ( water + earth + air = ?) sorry I couldn't grasp the concept. basically I can only read the picture, in it's basic form :(

Learning these things helps one distinguish between personal, cultural and universal symbols. Personal & cultural symbols are often heavy with bias, prejudice, misunderstandings, etc.

I get that, like there is 2 sides to every coin, then there is the truth in-between :)

I assume this is a question. If so, my answer is, not really. The true mystical route is just as exhausting in its own way. It takes an inquiring mind & willingness to be on a lifelong journey to walk these paths - which is why Waite says the Secret Doctrine is not for everybody. Note how very few Extrovert Sensates there are among 500 Tarot reader respondents on the MBPI Poll in the Book & Media section - showing that Tarot is not for everybody either.

BTW, you will get whatever you get from this study or you will decide that a different approach to Tarot works better for you. That's no condemnation - after all, few people like Waite.

yes it was a question, thanks for answering it. This study will be good for me, I feel, I may actually find out what I am interested in (correspondence) wise. the route, that fires me up with delight.

Thanks for take the time to answer :)
 

Abrac

To me there's a difference between understanding "tarot" in general and understanding the Waite-Smith tarot. The PKT is the only commentary we have from Waite on the deck, and it's pretty vague. To get a clearer picture of what its symbolism is saying, one can benefit from reading Waite's other material, and books about his life. Bits and pieces will start to accumulate and gradually it will come into focus. I don't believe there's an easier way, unfortunately.

The kind of realization Waite's talking about occurs spontaneously only in very rare cases. For most it arises out of a serious commitment to the external forms and doctrine. I do think a better level of understanding can be acquired by a better understanding of the PKT, but that's just the first step imo.
 

Teheuti

Please continue to comment on the first two sentences as well as on these additional ones. I'll stop for a while & let people catch up.

"The Tarot and Secret Tradition" continued

3. "Behind the Secret Doctrine it is held that there is an experience or practice by which the Doctrine is justified.

4. "It is obvious that in a handbook like the present I can do little more than state the claims, which, however, have been discussed at length in several of my other writings, while it is designed to treat two of its more important phases in books devoted to the Secret Tradition in Freemasonry and in Hermetic literature.

5. "As regards Tarot claims, it should be remembered that some considerable part of the imputed Secret Doctrine has been presented in the pictorial emblems of Alchemy, so that the imputed Book Of Thoth is in no sense a solitary device of this emblematic kind."

impute (used twice in sentence 5):
1. to credit to a person or a cause;
2. to lay the responsibility or blame for often falsely or unjustly attributing
3. conjectured cause