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The Eight Arcanum shows a maiden holding an uplifted sword, symbol of Truth. In the other hand she holds a pair of scales. One of the most dramatic episodes recounted in the Egyptian Book of the Dead is that of the weighing of the heart when the soul comes to Judgment soon after death. The weighing of the heart determines his place, whether it is to be in the upper or lower abodes, with gods or demons.
This symbolic weighing of the heart bears an interesting significance for the occultist, who understands that the seed atom of the physical body is located in the apex of the etheric heart and contains an indelible record of every thought, word and deed of that individual during his earth life. It is from this record in the heart that the values of each earth life are assessed at the time of death.
The aspirant has made much progress along the Path when he can bravely face his trials and errors and acknowledge that he alone is responsible for them all.
All Wisdom Books — and this includes both the Bible and the Tarot — lay much emphasis upon the fact that there is a great and immutable Law of Destiny under which man on this planet lives, moves and has his being. The eight Arcanum bears testimony to this in its every detail. The maiden wears a crown of iron about her brow, symbolizing the immutability of karmic Law; her eyes are bandaged, to signify that justice is meted out in perfect impartiality.
The biblical story correlative to this theme is that of Belshazzar, King of Chaldea.
Belshazzar was proud, haughty and insolent. He showed his contempt for the Hebrew captives by commanding that the gold and silver vessels, which had been used in the Temple at Jerusalem and were held sacred, should be brought to his banquet hall, there to be used in scenes of wildest revelry. The splendor of the royal banquet with its throngs of guests, its flowers, the flowing of heavily perfumed wines and the wild abandonment of merrymaking, has long been a favorite theme for artist and poets. It was while the orgy was at its height that the mysterious hand appeared upon the wall and wrote in a mystic script, "MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN," "Thou art weighed in the balance and art found wanting. Thy kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and the Persians."
And even as these letters were inscribed on the wall in letters of fire, the soldiers of Cyrus were surrounding the city and forcing an entrance through the canals, whose floodgates had been opened from within to allow the waters to recede, affording a passageway for the Persian troops. The supposedly impregnable city fell, taken by surprise, and Belshazzar, a prisoner to Cyrus, was later killed when he attempted to lead his people in an uprising.
At this time the purity and beauty that had belonged to early Babylonian religion were largely lost, and the sacred rites had degenerated into gross superstition. As often happens in periods of decadence, the people and their leaders were no longer able to contact the spiritual Hierarchies who had previously guided them, and failing this they came under the influence of earthbound discarnate entities and succumbed to idolatry and sorcery with their attendant cruelties. All early races possessed a type of involuntary clairvoyance: hence it was an easy matter for them to read etheric records wherein is inscribed the outline of the most important events to occur in any individual life, Belshazzar had been given his opportunity for leadership and had failed ignominiously. The record of that failure was written in the ethers, and it was this record which was revealed in his last fateful celebration.
Archeology adds its mute testimony to this romantic story. An ancient temple of the goddess of harvests has been found in Babylonia and upon the walls are letters which were ancient even in the time of Belshazzar, and these letters might well have been interpreted to have a meaning as related in the Bible. Belshazzar was interested in the antiquities of his nation, as were other kings before and after him. Such kings often rebuilt abandoned temples or temples lying in ruin under the cities when these were accidentally discovered by masons and workmen, Inscriptions on the walls of these temples might be read and interpreted by sages and seers together, combining their powers of scholarship and seership.
This Arcanum shows us the picture of an elderly philosopher carrying in his hand a lighted lantern, which he has partially concealed by his mantle. The light symbolized Wisdom, and the fact that it is partly concealed by the philosopher's mantle indicates that Wisdom is never to be lightly worn. The aspirant must prove his worthiness, and for some length of time, before the light of Wisdom can be revealed to him.
In the words of the Psalmist, "Thou wilt light my candle; the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness." The candle flame is not a mere figure of speech. It is visible to the spiritual sight, and many illumined artists show it burning above the heads of the angels, nature spirits, and also of human beings. We see it again in many of the cards of this Egyptian series.
Solomon, famed for his great learning, exhorted his sons to seek Wisdom above all things, saying, "Happy is the man that findeth wisdom and that getteth understanding, for the merchandise of it is better than silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold. She is more precious than rubies, and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared to her" (Prov. 3: 13-15).
In the New Testament the Ninth Arcane is associated with the "Widow's Son of Nain," or Nine, the great Initiate of the Christ era, known as Lazarus, who later instituted the work of the Rose Cross in medieval Europe and founded the scientific School of the Mysteries which pertains to this era.
The glyph shows with what reverence Truth is received by the illumined mind and how carefully it is preserved. In the teachings of the Rose Cross the Initiate who has passed the Ninth Initiation is ready to take the First Great Initiation in which there is revealed "the Mystery of the Mind" and the "Religion of the Father." This is the mysterious flame hidden beneath the cloak of the Nine Lesser Mysteries.
In another reading the "Old Man of the Mysteries" represents the Wanderer through the world, the Virgin Spirit on its pilgrimage through matter with its manifold illusions, as shown by the pilgrim's staff upon which he leans while walking, and by the manner in which he holds his cloak to protect the flame of his lamp. He is sometimes. called the Hermit, and as such he portrays the biblical characters of Elijah and John the Baptist. Elijah is the Great Light, the Hierophant, of esoteric Judaism. The kabbalists teach that he is the reincarnation of Moses. According to the Christian kabbalist, Elijah was reborn as John the Baptist, as shown in the words of the Christ, "This is Elias." In John the Baptist the Light of the ancient Mysteries of the Holy Land passes over into the New Mysteries of the Dispensation of the Kingdom of Christ.
The tenth Arcanum again sets before us the action of cosmic Law. We see here the revolving Wheel of Life. It is to this Wheel that all are bound as it revolves between heaven and earth, carrying the spirit upward into high realms after death, and then downward again into lower realms incident to physical rebirth. Each earth life is a day in God's great School, and each pupil must return day after day, life after life, until every lesson this earth has to teach has been learned.
We have shown two cards here — that of the Egyptian series popularly called the "St. Germain," although there is no proof that Count St. Germain was responsible for these cards, and that of the A. E. Waite series. Mr. Waite interprets the four strange figures shown on the Egyptian wheel as representing the four Beasts of Ezekiel's Vision, which we see again in the XIXth Tarot.
Poised atop the revolving wheel is the figure of the Sphinx, which remains calm, unmoved by the rapid revolutions of the Wheel. She is the Divine Watcher, the very essence of Life who yet remains aloof, over and above the movements of life in the particular, the mystery of the Virgin Spirit consciousness which is made in the image and likeness of God; evolving from lower to higher forms on the great wheel, while in its own pure essence it remains perfect and unmoved.
There are two strange figures attached to the wheel, one of which seems to be carried upward, the other downward. These represent the forces of good and evil — the god Knephta and the evil Typhon — and the figure representing evil seems in imminent danger of being thrown off the wheel entirely, in accordance with the fact that good always triumphs in the cycle of ages, while evil is predestined to annihilation since it is not a thing in itself but only a misconception of Reality. If it seems that these two forces, good and evil, still strive to conquer the spirit of mankind, further observation shows that Good alone has power and is constantly ascending, while evil is constantly descending and being thrown off from the wheel. It has no persistence, no real and enduring life.
The Wisdom books of all the world contain the definite message that good will ultimately triumph over evil. The Tenth Arcanum of the Tarot repeats this message when it shows the good ascending toward the Sphinx while the evil descends toward the abyss.
At the base of the axis which supports the Wheel are two cobras which represent the positive and the negative forces manifesting throughout nature. Each of these forces strives unceasingly to gain the ascendancy over the other. It is this conflict of opposites which produces most of the inharmony in the life of mankind, an inharmony destined to continue until man has learned to balance the two forces within himself. Only when harmony has been established within will harmony be reflected on the outward world of time and space.
The four dominant phases of human life are symbolized in the Sphinx-birth and childhood, maturity and parenthood, rulership and power, and finally death. The Bull and the Eagle have special rule over the karmic debts of the planet earth in its present material state; Aquarius and Leo belong more especially to the future when man has become the winged citizen of the skies, both in a physical or scientific sense, journeying to far-away universes, and in a spiritual sense, becoming an angelic being winged with Wisdom and Love.
We stand now on the threshold of the Aquarian Age, the Age of the Winged Man of Heaven. The Aquarian Age is only about two or three thousand years in duration, as measured by time, but it is the seed of an entire new order, and its germination belongs to the wondrous adventurings of Spirit in the Macrocosm.
The signs of Lion and Man in the skies typify the incoming Aquarian Age with its keynote of Love and Brotherhood, giving a preview, as it were, of the high destiny awaiting the human race when the current Piscean Age of darkness and sorrow has passed away.
A further, deeply esoteric, meaning is also discernible in this Tarot as relating to the occult forces which rise through the spine to the brain, where they awaken the power of the spiritual centers of the brain itself and also of the glands in the head which are important in the alchemy of soul-growth.
Here we see a young maiden who, without any apparent effort, is opening and closing the mouth of a lion. It has often been said that man's first Bible was the starry script of the skies, where all the mysteries of life and death are revealed to him who knows the language of Archangels.
In the Eleventh Arcanum the lion represents the constellation Leo, the keynote of which is Love. As previously stated, the maiden is the constellation Virgo, the keynote of which is Wisdom. The ancients believed that Virgo had a special relationship to the human race, followed by Gemini and Aquarius. These three constellations are all represented by human figures, Gemini the Twins, Virgo the Maiden, Aquarius the Man. When the Maiden has control over the Lion, the human spirit has achieved a union of Wisdom and Love and possesses all power over heaven and earth.
As the sun reaches the highest point in its northernmost ascension, the Christ likewise ascends into the spiritual realm described biblically as the throne of the Father, the abode of the God of this solar system. God is Love and God is Light. Love and Light are keynotes of the Hierarchy of Leo, the Lords of Flame (Love). Under the supervision of the Lords of Flame, and united with the powers of the Father, the first aspect of the trinity, the Lord Christ works with the supreme power of Love, the stabilizing force of the earth. Here He becomes the channel for that Love power whereby He rotates the earth on its axis and revolves it in its orbit around the sun. This love power is reflected by the Hierarchy of Leo to its opposite sign, Aquarius; hence, it will be the power animating the new Aquarian Age.
In September the blessed Christ Ray turns from the glory of the highest heavens and begins the descent toward physical realms. Throughout this month of the tender, yearning beauty of nature is like that of no other season, for the Christ is brooding over the earth with the same gentle sorrow He felt as He wept over Jerusalem long ago. His tears were shed because He knew the long ages of pain and suffering through which humanity must pass, in having chosen darkness rather than light. His great heart grieved over the dark clouds that would encompass Jerusalem, the heart city of the planet to which He had dedicated Himself in service and upon which He was pouring out His great love.
September is a special month of preparation for a disciple. One of the keywords of Virgo is sacrifice. An earnest disciple, preparing himself by means of sacrifice and self-renunciation to take part in the coming winter feasts, meditates often upon the spiritual keynote of Virgo, "If any man would be first, the same shall be last of all, and the servant of all." (Mark 9:35.)
This Arcanum depicts a human figure suspended head downward between two columns, hanging by one foot, the free leg crossed upon it to form an inverted triangle. From his hands, which are bound together beneath his head, golden coins are dropping upon the ground.
In the sixth Arcanum we saw the aspirant beginning his work upon the Path. There it was essential that he develop discrimination and will-power-discrimination to know right from wrong, the better from the good, and the best from the better-and the concentrated will to act upon his discernment. Now in the twelfth Arcanum the disciple has progressed so far that Selflessness is demanded of him. He may not achieve his ideal immediately, but he must be one-pointed in his dedication. The supreme Master said, "Greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friend."
Upon the initiatory Path, however, it does not mean necessarily that one must die to prove his selflessness. One may be crucified in the renunciation of a great personal love for the sake of a spiritual ideal; a promising career may be abandoned because of a disabled parent, or to assume the responsibility of a child. In many ways a disciple can be tested to prove his selflessness, but if he is earnest and sincere and his renunciations are for the betterment and upliftment of others, his spiritual recompense is sure.
The golden coins dripping from the hands of the hanged or sacrificed man signify the high idealism which motivates his action, and causes him to become an example set up for the emulation of others. The great Indian Saint Gandhi was such a one. St. Peter met death hanging head downward upon a cross.
Humility is an essential part of selflessness. This was sublimely illustrated in the life of St. Peter. Despite his marvellous spiritual attainments, the legends state, when he came to his martyrdom he asked to be crucified head downward, because he felt unworthy to be placed on the cross in the manner his Master had been.
The glorious golden Christ, the supreme Master of the world, evinced this same spirit of humility, saying, "Of myself I can do nothing; the Father in me, He doeth the works." Christ Jesus admonished his disciples repeatedly, "Let him that would be greatest among you be the servant of all." The Coin of Spirit is pure gold of renunciation, which opens for the soul the Gates of the inner worlds.
Here we see a skeleton, scythe in hand, with which he is mowing down the figures of human beings, who have fallen into a trench or grave, from which heads, hands, feet and limbs obtrude.
We have said that both the Bible and the Tarot teach the One Law — the Tarot in symbolism, the Bible in direct statement and also in allegory. "Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." If a man sows the wind, he will necessarily reap the whirlwind.
The figure of the skeleton in this Arcanum represents the fleetingness of all earthly things; but behind the skeleton, across the horizon, arches the great rainbow, symbol of hope and of the promise that man's spirit is eternal.
The fourteenth Arcanum shows us a handsome youth, illuminated by the great yellow sun which shines above him. In his hands he holds two urns, one gold the other silver; and from the gold urn he pours a rare electric and magnetic fluid into the silver urn. He pours this elixir most carefully, so that not a drop of the precious liquid is lost.
Great wings spring from his shoulders and smaller ones from his feet.
Wings belong to the air, which gives evidence that this youth belongs to the Air Age of Aquarius. When St. Paul taught his disciples, "Ye are the temples of the living God," he foresaw a time when this truth would be outwardly evident, visible to the eye in the perfect body of the New Age Pioneer.
The two urns with their precious fluid are physiologically symbolic of the voluntary and sympathetic nervous systems, the golden urn representing the masculine or cerebro-spinal system and the silver representing the feminine or sympathetic system. At the present time most of the work which the human spirit performs consciously in the body is under the control of the cerebro-spinal system. Man has little control over the activities governed by the sympathetic or automatic nervous system which regulates the life processes. But are the life processes of the human body in fact automatic? The occult scientist says that these processes are also governed by intelligences invisible and unknown to the material scientist; and the work of the sympathetic nervous system, which is called feminine, is hidden, secret and mysterious. The feminine always signifies Life, and Life is as yet concealed by a veil. But in the New Age — as contemporary events already hint — humanity will awaken within itself the Divine Feminine of Wisdom and will be able to control and direct, consciously and voluntarily, all of the life processes of the body, thus achieving the foretaste of immortality.
One of the most beautiful mystic prophets of the Old Testament dispensation was Zechariah. In his Book he details something of the wonders of the body of the New Age pioneer.
From an historical viewpoint the two olive trees "that stand by the Lord" refer to the High Priest Joshua and the King Zerubbabel. But there is also an initiatory interpretation pertaining to the alchemy of the two nerve systems which play so important a role in human regeneration. For this work man must do for himself. The Hierarchies cannot do it for him. They have been teaching him to build the living temple. Now he must show that he has learned his lesson and begin to build for himself.
The sympathetic nervous system is the stronghold of the vital body with its life forces; the cerebro-spinal system is under the dominant control of the desires and the selfish will of the ego. As the ego becomes "unselfed" and unites its will to the Will of Cosmic Good, it gains control of the sympathetic nervous system, and its powers are greatly augmented. The individual then becomes aware of ethereal but mighty forces pouring through nature in great tides. Being aware of them, he is able to use them advantageously and thus to create a more perfect world and achieve illumination himself.
The alchemical mystery always involves the balancing or harmonizing of the dual creative forces of the universe, in human experience termed masculine and feminine. We have said that the cerebro-spinal nerve system is tenned positive, or masculine, the sympathetic negative, or feminine. A balance achieved between them means that neither one nor the other predominates, but both are equal and cooperative under the will of the ego, which is biune. Then love and reason function together as a unity, for reason is one aspect of Cosmic Wisdom as it operates at the human level. "These are the two anointed ones that stand by the Lord of the whole earth."
— Corinne Heline
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