Tree of Life Spread by Rachael Pollack

linabeet

I just did this reading for myself from her book and it's completely sucked me right into the vast world of Kaballah. As such I am still a complete novice with this system and scrambling to find a foothold to start in. I've been reading some old threads here which has been useful.

My question is does anyone else have experience with or comments on the spread as she has it her the 78 Degrees book?

Most tree of life spreads are just 10 cards right?

I have found her spread (and credit due I suppose the tree itself)to contain so much information, so many openings and vast meanings and relevances to my life. It's going to take a long time to interpret.

So, thoughts?
 

Metanoia

For you and anyone interested in the tarot as relating to the kabbalah please do yourself a favour and purchase "The Mystikal Kabbalah" by Dion Fortune. It is a fantastic book that gives a great beginners basis on the Kabbalah and begins relating all the tarot cards to each sephiroth.

For myself, I had no real interest in the Tarot until I began learning about the Kabbalah. I have recently finished reading Dion Fortunes book for the first time and plan on reading it again before the year is out possibly twice more. I now also have the rider waite and sephiroth tarot as study guides for the relation between tarot symbology and the kabbalah system. It even inspired me to start drawing a poster of associations on what is currently a 3xA2 size paper.

How the tarot works on a tree of life spread I am not yet aware, yet even my partner who is not versed in either is encouraging me to find a way to get it to work. The important thing is developing interpretations/correspondences within the tarot which are complimentary to the Kabbalah or all meaning will be useless.

The major Arcana of the tarot corresponds to the 22 paths of the tree of life. Then the numbered cards correspond to the sephiroth starting with aces on Kether (the top) and ending with 10's on Malkuth (at the bottom). It is important to remember that Daath is an anti-Sephiroth or a sephiroth on another dimension and which is a reflection of the tree of life in its negative aspect. It has neither correspondences, associations or tarot cards representing it.

The last four types of cards - the suits, king, queen, prince and princess - from what I remember all trumps are corresponding to Kether, and also have the following associations: King:Chokmah, Queen:Binah, Prince:Tiphereth, Princess:Malkuth. These associations make more sense after gaining an understanding of the individual sephiroth and their relationship to the tree.

It is my understanding that tarot is not a complete or practicle mathod of divination without an understanding of the kabbalah and my aim is not to become a tarot expert, but to develop my knowledge of the kabbalah
 

jmd

Welcome to Aeclectic Metanoia.

For those interested in the manner in which the Golden Dawn specifically allocates the Tarot's Atouts (Major Arcana) to the so-called 'paths' of the Kircher version of the Tree of Life, then I too would certainly recommend Dion Fortune's Mystical Qabalah.

To study Kabalah independently of this peculiar manner of allocation, however, I would first and foremost recommend the works of G. Scholem, Aryeh Kaplan and Moshe Idel.

Tarot may be studied quite independently of Kabalah, and vice versa.

As some older members may know, I too do have Kabalistic interests and also prefer to work with the Tree of Life and Tarot in an integrated manner - but not in the way suggested by the Golden Dawn and its derivatives (for whom Dion Fortune writes). Her general discussion of the Sefirot is on the whole superb, and well worth reading and comparing with other materials.

The personal study of another's system gives insights into the various manner in which others have worked, and for this, looking at the GD is one of those interesting areas easily available.
 

Driley

Book recommendation

For a good bridge between Tarot and Kabbalah, I recommend "Tarot and the Tree of Life: Finding Everyday Wisdom in the Minor Arcana" by Isabel Radow Kliegman. It makes a nice transition from something you know (Tarot) to something you wish to learn (Kabbalah).

I also admit to having a special fondness for it's focus on the Minor Arcana, which tend to get overlooked in other such works.

Just my .02.
 

tarobones

A second for Isabel

I just want to second Driley's suggestion on Tarot and the Tree of Life. It'sa wonderful book relating Tarot Minor Arcana and the Tree of Life; a great insight into the RWS tarot deck and into Kabbalah. I cannot recommendit highloy enough. Also, Rachel Pollack's book on Kabbalah fits in nicely, it seems to me. BB, Michael