Comments on some books please :)

jean bosco

Hi, I really like your list. I also enjoyed Hajo Banzhafs books a lot.
I bought too many beginners books when starting out with Tarot only to recognise afterwards that 1 or 2 of them would have done perfectly. I think "Tarot Wisdom" covers also basics like card meanings, spreads,... so that's fine. Once you got the basics the AT forum is worth more than most books, I think.
 

Richard

(7) The Esoteric Tarot (Ronald Decker)
I haven't read this, but I get the impression that it focusses a lot on the Etteilla (which is okay if you are interested in Etteilla :)), but it contains some speculation that Tarot historians may regard as dubious.

(8) Symbols of Transformation (Collected works of CG Jung Vol 5)
Typical Jung, highly technical, deals with much more than Tarot related symbols. Very hard to read.

(9) Tarot and Individuation: A Jungian Study of Correspondences with Cabala, Alchemy, and the Chakras (Irene Gad)
She makes up her own Tarot attributions, then discusses the resulting system in relation to individuation. Thus it is not directly relevant to the usual Golden Dawn or Thoth system of Tarot correspondences.

(10) Reading the Marseilles Tarot (Jean-Michel David)
Excellent discussion of Tarot iconography, lots of useful information which I haven't seen elsewhere. I am not enthusiastic about the practical exercises.
 

The Happy Squirrel

Thanks for your input jean bosco and LRichard!

Banzhaf's book is out of stock so I will have to wait for the next round to get this.

I had Tarot and Individuation in my cart, then dropped it for Decker's Asoteric Tarot, now I am beginning to wonder if this is the right choice. It is hard when their sample pages does not reveal much. This is when a brick and mortar book shop is far superior than online....

I think I have three 'how to' books so far and I think that is enough already (by Greer, Moore, and Pollack).

Ended up getting 3 of Jung's :p (the other two not about tarot so much). I would like to go into this direction as well so technical is all good :)

So LRichard, I wonder if she explained the basis of her own attribution system? if her attribution system only serves as a starting point to an analysis which may be useful no matter what the attribution system is, then this might still be a useful book in terms of understanding individuation, and not so much reading tarot. Not sure what it is, but I am not so sure about her book.

As for Decker's, I am not interested in Etteilla so much, but, if I understand correctly, it seems that tarot history is deeply intertwined with him (her?). I wonder if this is the context of his focus.....?
 

gregory

I think you have ordered far too may books - but on the bright side, you can stop now - except that I too should have mentioned Jean Michel David's - that is a MUST HAVE for TdM.
 

The Happy Squirrel

I think you have ordered far too may books - but on the bright side, you can stop now - except that I too should have mentioned Jean Michel David's - that is a MUST HAVE for TdM.

I agree :p

Jean Michel David TdM is on the list for next round :) It is currently out of stock (thank goodness). Thanks Gregory!

I probably have enough to read for the rest of the year.... Also, it is likely that this list will be revised, some dropped off, and some added. Or, once I received the books, I will find that some aren't quite what I am looking for and will go on ebay.....
 

Richard

You may find Gad's book to be helpful. I didn't, but it would take too long to explain why. She merely states (somewhat jokingly) that her attributions are not traditional. I suppose the remainder of the book is supposed to justify her 'creativity.'

Decker should be a qualified Tarot historian. Some think that his latest book will encourage all sorts of pseudo historical speculation about Qabalah and Tarot, which can really get tiresome. Again, you may find the book to be helpful and interesting. I'm going to pass until I see more reviews.
 

The Happy Squirrel

Thanks LRichard. As Gregory wisely pointed out I may have to curb my enthusiasm a little :D So having to choose between Gad and Decker, I am betting on Decker for now. I thought best to stick to Jung for that side of things, and Decker for the other, at least for now. Once I know the topography better from each side, I will aim which middle I should be looking at. I am not sure what it is but there is something about Gad's that is stopping me.
 

Richard

Actually, the individuation process is implicit in the so-called return path of the Rosicrucian grades. This uses the connecting paths of the Tree of Life in a certain order, each path being keyed to a Trump. The usual attributions work beautifully, but it requires some work to internalize the necessary details. The structure is quite intricate, but it is internally consistent. If a Jungian scholar were to make the effort to understand the traditional esoteric attributions, they would see that there is no need whatsoever to be 'creative.'
 

The Happy Squirrel

Ah. Interesting. At this point, I don't know what "return path of the Rosicrucian grades" and know next to nothing about the Tree of Life. So I think my decision to exclude her book might be the correct one at this point. It is obvious that this is a big world. So although I am scanning in breath right now, my hope is to do a narrow focus soon, in the hope of drilling down that specific area. I have some idea of what this area is. But it is a bit of a blur until I read a bit more :)
 

Teheuti

Sallie Nichols' Tarot and Jung is a good Jungian book if you are looking for the kind of thing that Jung might have written about the Tarot Major Arcana (Marseille deck) rather than a book about Jung's ideas. Also, his book Man and His Symbols: while Tarot is not mentioned, it is easy to take notes in the margins in 'taroteeze' and make all the needed associations yourself.