Path: typhoon.sonic.net!feed.news.sonic.net!in.100proofnews.com!in.100proofnews.com!news.maxwell.syr.edu!postnews1.google.com!not-for-mail From: paulhume@comcast.net (Paul Hume) Newsgroups: alt.magick,alt.tarot Subject: Re: Donald Michael Kraig and the Two Temperance Cards Date: 22 Dec 2003 15:45:42 -0800 Organization: http://groups.google.com Lines: 33 Message-ID: References: NNTP-Posting-Host: 63.107.93.163 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit X-Trace: posting.google.com 1072136742 14383 127.0.0.1 (22 Dec 2003 23:45:42 GMT) X-Complaints-To: groups-abuse@google.com NNTP-Posting-Date: Mon, 22 Dec 2003 23:45:42 +0000 (UTC) Xref: typhoon.sonic.net alt.magick:362931 alt.tarot:120604 > >I am beginning Kraig's Modern Magick, with the Cicero's Golden Dawn Magical > >Tarot as my deck of choice. How should I use the two Temperance cards in the > >Tarot Contemplation Ritual and the Split Hexagram Spread, as prescribed by > >Kraig in his first lesson? Should I use one of the cards, or both of them? > >If I should discard one of them, which should it be? > > Read the Cicero's comments in their book on the role of the two cards in the Path of Samekh in the rituals leading from Yesod to Tiphareth. That will explain why you would use only one in a spread. I forget which is which (ie. which version of Temperance fills which role in the initiations) but the more "traditional" design would be the typical one to use in reading. Check with the Mathers specification for the GD deck to identify that (in The Golden Dawn, and elsewhere). Contemplation of both is fine, if you like. Generally when a deck includes multiple renderings of a given card, it is for one or more of the following reasons: - the artist prepared several renderings of the card, which are included as a bonus for the buyer, eg. the multiple Magicians in the Thoth deck. Pick one for readings, enjoy all in admiring the deck, picking a card for meditation, etc. - the card has a specific ritual use in its different renderings, as with the Ciceros' Temperance cards. Including the different versions makes the deck faithful to all its purposes as a magical tool - but in reading, you still pick one version. Studying or meditating on the different versions in connection with their roles in ritual provides useful insight into the ritual, and is worthwhile. Regards, Paul