Understanding Aleister Crowley's Thoth Tarot etc?

[Magicienne]

I have a reasonable collection of tarot books including:

Tarot Celebrations by Geraldine Amaral and Nancy Brady Cunningham
Tarot for yourself by Mary Greer
The Way of Tarot by Jodorowsky
Meditations on the Tarot: A Journey into Christian Hermeticism
Book of Thoth by A. Crowley
The Mythic Tarot Book and Workbook by Juliet Sharmen-Burke
Jung and Tarot by Sallie Nichols

I like books that delve into the symbolism and occult side of the Tarot and the Lon Milo Duquette book looks like it fits that bill and would be good especially as I use the Thoth the most of all my decks.

Is it a good buy and what other books do you recommend that are in a similar vein?

Also do you think studying such books makes you a better Tarot reader?

 

[Lokismile]

the book you mention is positively excellent. The Book of thoth And duquette are the ONLY tarot-specific books use to read My Crowley deck. You have a lifetime of study there.

 

[Barleywine]

I have a reasonable collection of tarot books including:

Tarot Celebrations by Geraldine Amaral and Nancy Brady Cunningham
Tarot for yourself by Mary Greer
The Way of Tarot by Jodorowsky
Meditations on the Tarot: A Journey into Christian Hermeticism
Book of Thoth by A. Crowley
The Mythic Tarot Book and Workbook by Juliet Sharmen-Burke
Jung and Tarot by Sallie Nichols

I like books that delve into the symbolism and occult side of the Tarot and the Lon Milo Duquette book looks like it fits that bill and would be good especially as I use the Thoth the most of all my decks.

Is it a good buy and what other books do you recommend that are in a similar vein?

Also do you think studying such books makes you a better Tarot reader?

Last question first: generally, every time I read a thoughtful, well-written book on tarot or esoteric symbolism, it stretches my mind and deepens my understanding, which in the long run makes me more nimble at synthesizing the wealth of symbolic information thrown at me by a spread; so, yes, I think it helps as long as I can tie it in with the knowledge I've already assimilated.

Regarding DuQuette's Thoth book, I enjoyed it while I was reading it, but it won't replace the Book of Thoth. The main thing that stuck with me was the way he clearly deconstructed the Rose Cross image on the back of the Thoth cards into it's constituent elements. He also attempted to decode some of Crowley's more arcane concepts, but I had already made my peace with the original. Is it worth it? I guess it depends on how thoroughly you already understand its source material.

As to books "in a similar vein," I'm not sure whether you mean similar to your list or simply books that deal with the "symbolism and occult side of the Tarot." I'll assume the latter. Most of my tarot books that would qualify as "occult" are rooted in the Western hermetic tradition of the Qabala (as differentiated from the Hebrew Kabbalah), and the symbolism is largely derived from the Tree of Life. "The Qabalistic Tarot" by Robert Wang is a good place to start if you want to go that way, since it covers more than just the Major Arcana. I also like books that have a decided "mystical" slant that requires a more meditative approach to unlock the value. Two examples are "The Book of Tokens" by Paul Foster Case and "Kabbalistic Aphorisms" by James Sturzaker; just be aware that their purpose is not to lead you straight to the symbolic meanings but to give you creative associations that slowly release their wisdom the more you read and think about them (and they only cover the Major Arcana). However, I have no idea whether they are still in print.

 

[Magicienne]

Thank you both, I will be picking up a copy of Understanding AC's Thoth as soon as I can!

I will also check out the The Qabalistic Tarot" by Robert Wang, the others you mention look a bit harder to get a hold of but I will keep my eye out for them. Just got a great book today called "The Secrets of the Tarot" by Barbara G Walker looks good, quite a feminist take on the cards it seems!

 

[Fianic]

Duquette's book does seem to make Crowley's Book of Thoth easier to understand. But what turns me away from that book is that, after reading the Book of Thoth, you'll know that Duquette actually leaves a lot of information out.

The Book of Thoth takes a while to decode but you'll understand it eventually if you make the effort to plough through it.

 

[SilentBreeze]

I highly recommended. It was the first book I read to really get into deeper symbolism. Also I recommend reading it at the same time as book of thoth, card by card...I found that was really helpful.

I agree with what the rest say, it does leave a lot out, but if you supplement it with the book of thoth and almost use it as a preface before reading each card description you get a lot more info. Of coarse there are a lot more more complicated Crowley books that touch upon the thoth deck too. I'm sure other people here will be better able to point those out to you.