THE WORD OF ONE

Interpretations

(a)Mandala Ace of Serpents: The ACE OF SERPENTS is a temple tripod in which there is a votive offering of sacred fire, which takes the form of an eyeball with an amethyst pupil. In the background we see the web of destiny. The symbolism of fire derives from the illumination of fire which shows us there is a meaning to pain and suffering as well as joy (the necessary challenge to our spontaneity and creativity). Fire also destroys and is painful. The amethyst or sapphire pupil is symbolic of the precious jewel that we sacrifice on the temple of life. One meaning is the sacrifice of some of the better things in life (what we ordinarily call good) as part of the larger web of destiny, a sacrifice which does not go unseen by the Creative Forces.
(b) Image1 Serpent: A sacrifice is required to maintain unity. There was a time when we sacrificed animals or humans in a temple, thus recognizing the serious and sacred aspects of sacrifice. Now we are less literal, and sacrifice pride, or authority, or time and money, or peace and quiet, or put aside our own desires for the sake of unity. Our sacrifice does not go unnoticed by ONE. A second meaning: the drummer unifies the emotions of the crowd.

(a)Mandala Ace of Pears: Inside the ACE OF PEARS we see the tools of the carpenter or craftsman, from which two beams of light shoot forth. The scene is simply a large pear. The interior somewhat suggests the 'circle and the square' of the Masons. A favorable card for the artist or craftsman, particularly one with intuitive and spiritual things to express.
(b) Image1 Pear: The unity of pure light is broken up into all the colors of the rainbow by the stones of the rose window. The reverse process is also possible. That is, the pure light can be created out of the myriad colors. "Light" is a symbol for "enlightenment," for "seeing the light." Depending on where it falls in the spread, this card may mean that the querent has to construct a synthesis out of many different ideas, each true in its own realm. Second meaning: The wise one resolves conflict.

(a) Mandala Ace of Blades: In the ACE OF BLADES there is a scene inside an ornate standing blade. It is night and winter in the frozen arctic. Aurora borealis play overhead. Below is a mysterious circular sea, mirror-smooth and exactly at the pole, showing symmetrical cracks in response to the lights overhead. The aurora is a form of solar energy to light up the long night. It presages the breaking up of the ice and the summer to follow. Thus, in a reading, it would be the first flash of inspiration, from which all else flows.
(b) Image of 1 Blade: Here we see the unity of the whole Earth, while the aurora is caused by storms on the Sun, thus showing the unity of the entire solar system. The serene unity of Earth is now disturbed by the activities of mankind. We are disturbing a chaotic system, too complicated to be understood, or modeled by computers. Blades divide time, thus symbolizing decisions. The fate of the Earth depends on our decisions now. For the querent, this means Think! Study! Try to discover what disrupts the Earth's unity, and do something about it. Second meaning: Synthesis of opposing forces.

(a)Mandala Ace of Stones: The ACE OF STONES is an inactive volcano, filled with water, around which circles a dragon. A dragon fly is seen against the sun overhead, while lower is a full moon, showing the waxing and waning quarters at the same time. The dragon is a serpent with wings, meaning that rooting ourselves in nature (a necessary stage for the Seeker) is a prelude to entrance to the higher realms. It is a peaceful, evocative, moody scene of swamps and marshes, where dragon-flies are to be heard, totally devoid of man and his technology. In a reading, this card would pertain to just such a return to nature, return to simplicity, getting away from 20th century man and his technology and re-establishing roots in timeless nature.
(b)Image 1 Stone: The great synthesis and unity of a Cathedral is created by numerous craftsmen, using thousands of small carved blocks of limestone, designed with no more sophisticated tools than the circle and the square. These are the symbols of the freemasons, a semi- secret occult society, which began with the master masons who built the great medieval Cathedrals. In a reading, this tells the querent to take up his tools and begin work on the sacred project, even if he may not see it completed, even if it takes hundreds of others to complete it. Second meaning: The warrior achieves a volcanic unification of appearances.

(a)Mandala Deuce of Pears: In TWO PEARS the sun burns through the mist of ignorance and confusion, and takes definite form as two pears, crystallizing out of the light of an e1)tire season. The scene is darkness except for a larger sphere, which may be the sun or the moon. On its face we see two pears forming, stem to stem, horizontally. A good card for the Speaker or Seeker or Mage-artist for it is a card of success and fulfillment in spiritual tasks, just as the world needs it most.
(b) Image 2 Pears: The differentiation of the Tai Chi shows that in the heart of darkness lies the seed of light, while in the heart of light lies the seed of darkness, thus, the two forever oscillate in the rhythm of life, like the seasons. The twin poles of something often seem like enemies and opposites, yet each completes the other, which is why "opposites attract." The wise one sees the unity in the duality.

(a)Mandala Deuce of Blades: TWO BLADES is an acorn, sitting on its base, ready to sprout and grow into a mighty oak. A favorable card for almost any enterprise. Creativity has now proceeded much further than in the ace of blades. Indeed, it has already been given its potential form. But it still needs to sprout, and be watered, and be lucky enough to avoid harm through many seasons before it is a mighty oak. The same reversed.
(b) Image 2 Blades: The two warriors are twins. Literal battle is not implied. Things are never black and white. There is always a downside to every good thing. A thing's virtues are also its vices. Think on this. Intelligence is understanding both sides of every issue. In a reading, conflict is implied. Perhaps separation.

(a) Mandala Deuce of Stones: TWO STONES are two mountains deep within the plain, but growing upward, about to burst through, like molars. Thus, mighty forces and massive changes (no one could miss noticing a mountain where previously had been a plain) are gathering momentum, but are not yet visible. Their growth may halt, or it may speed up. They may erupt tomorrow or in a thousand years. It depends on the querent.
(b) Image 2 Stones: The earth shows its life by motion and change. But every change has its victims and its regrets. The rifts shown in the picture show the boundary zone between two of the parts, grinding past or under one another, where earthquakes happen. In a reading, an "earthquake" is implied. The wise one knows that earthquakes are necessary and welcome signs of life. In the heat and violence of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, minerals are refined and crystallized, sometimes as precious jewels.

(a)Mandala Deuce of Serpents: TWO SERPENTS channels the light. A good card for communicators or administrators. The six petalled figure in the center circle outlined by the two serpents suggests mandala forms, as in a rose window. It also reminds us of the six figured star formed from two triangles, one pointed up, and the other down. "As above, so below" as the hermetics say. The union of water and fire. Or if that confuses you, just think of the rose window in a cathedral.
(b)Image 2 Serpents: Polarity in emotion can lead to extremes of action, here represented by the horrid mushroom cloud of a nuclear blast on the one hand, and the romantic rose on the other. In a reading, this can refer to someone who "blows his stack" sometimes, but is at other times tender and romantic.

(a) Mandala Trey of Stones: THREE STONES is three exotic flowers blooming in the arid desert, with the Great Pyramid and its companions in the background, which were used for occult initiations; The flowers are also an exotic and marvelous thing to find sitting in the desert, as are the Great Pyramids, where one would not expect to find the works of man. We live in a desert of machines in which the exotic mysteries of wisdom and beauty are not to be expected. Often means the querent is an exotic flower of the desert, ready for the great pyramid.
(b)Image 3 Stones: The three pyramids at Giza, once used for initiation. A flower blooms in the desert, unseen. The querent is just such a desert flower, needing initiation into the secret rules of the quest, in order to fulfill their destiny. If inverted, can mean being a cog in anonymous social structures, loss of identity, dry, autumnal times.

(a) Mandala Trey of Pears: THREE PEARS are 'on the beam', while confusion and shifting currents of thought and feeling swirl around off the beam. This is a card of reassurance, especially to new age people who may have doubts about their own 'unconventional' ways, or may be under pressure to be like other people.
(b)Image 3 Pears: A sacrificial vessel, which is a rare and valuable object, like the Holy Grail. The querent finds the meaning of life in making themselves a sacrificial vessel, from which others receive their sacrament. Or the querent quests after his or her own "Holy Grail," something different for each.

(a) Mandala Trey of Serpents: THREE SERPENTS is an aquarium in which there are schools of fishes. The querent has escaped that, however, and frolics on the beach with three serpents, unconfined and free. This card may indicate an unconventional querent, or someone who has or will escape from a confining situation (depending on where the card lands in the layout).
(b) Image 3 Serpents: The querent is in a school of fish, completely absorbed in the fads of the moment. He or she may escape, transformed by the initiation of the serpent, to immersion in the tranquil rhythms of wind and tide.

(a) Mandala Trey of Blades: THREE BLADES were cut from a field of blades, and could have been cut out in many different ways. The figures themselves (in the original mandala) could easily fracture into shards which could reassemble in many ways. This card shows up in the readings of people who like to occasionally reassemble their lives in new patterns; new jobs, loves, locations.
(b) 3 Blades: The holy warrior. The Sword of Merlin awaits, to be pulled out by the Awaited One. Or, if inverted, may indicate an attraction to sects and cults.

(a) Mandala 4 stones: Speaking of deserts, FOUR STONES is an aerial view of a desert, showing oases and tracks. If we assume that all people thirst for knowledge of immortality and of a meaning and purpose in life, then we will find no water for our thirst in conventional society. It is not to be found in the science of the universities, or the business-greed of the corporations, nor in the power-hunger of government. The economic and political issues trumpeted by the media do not water our real thirsts. We find nothing of the sacred or magical or profound, no holistic wisdom among our bestsellers, or on TV or among those who say they are our leaders. It is an arid environment. FOUR STONES often means the querent has just found the teacher, the book, the divinatory system or the class which will satisfy his thirst.
(b)Image of Four Stones: A desert scene. In the top scene, we see desert and mountains. In the bottom scene we see the Nile delta as seen from outer space. Vast amounts of time were required to create the Nile delta, a lush and fertile place, just as millions of years of earthquakes have pushed up the mountains. The querent is counselled to have patience.

(a) Mandala 4 of blades: Four actual blades, cutting a swath, slicing back and forth, up and down, against one another, constitute FOUR BLADES. There are forces, changes, or people who mow down all opposition. If in the crossing, covering or home position, we may expect this is being done to others. If before, behind or final outcome, we must look at the other cards, which should also provide a clue as to the type of 'mowing down'. It could be anything from success in business or other competition to the scythe of the grim reaper.
(b) Image of Four Blades: Four blades cuts a swath. As ye sow, so shall ye reap. Depending on its place in the layout, can mean a bountiful harvest, or that one is about to be mowed down on the earth plane. Neither affect the soul. The image portrays the harvest.

(a) Mandala 4 Serpents: FOUR SERPENTS is either a hot-house herbarium (a protected environment for plants) or teeming microscopic life as seen under a microscope. In the one case, it shows up in readings of people who have something to protect, preserve and nurture, but in the other sense, it means the querent needs to take a closer look at something, for if they will look more closely they will find LIFE where it is presently or ordinarily invisible.
(b) Four Serpents: A photograph of the teeming bacterial life seen under a microscope. This is Gaia, the ancient, eternal one, ancestor and basis of all higher forms of life. The invisible, unseen order in nature. Ignoring Gaia can lead to sickness or disaster, such as floods and landslides.

(a) Mandala 4 Pears: FOUR PEARS is also an aerial view, of natural fields, ungeometrized by man's machines, varied and in harmony. The highest state of being can not be directly created or engineered. It cannot be planned. It must be allowed to grow, achieving its own ecological harmony. Sometimes this can be advice to the querent not to try to mold everything and everyone. Rather, be a gardener or conservationist, intervening only where necessary.
(b) Image of Four Pears: The wise one tends his garden, and creates his own paradise. Nature is wise and is as it should be. The ancient ways are best. Tamper not, or suffer the consequences. The image shown is of busy cultivated fields. That, too, is a kind of garden.

(a) Mandala 5 Serpents: FIVE SERPENTS is one of those fantastic images that could only be a mandala. A humanoid figure on the right is slowly deflating like a sack or balloon as his light flows into strange life forms on the left. All this takes place deep in the sea, meaning that we are talking about ideas and inspiration. The querent is a source of inspiration for others. The querent's light may feed others.
(b) Image 5 Serpents: We dive into the sea and encounter many strange and unusual creatures. Likewise, we dive into the collective unconscious to pull up strange and unusual ideas. The querent is a source or recipient of inspiration and creativity. Old meaning: competitive struggle and confusion.

(a) Mandala 5 Pears: FIVE PEARS shows us the temple of the spirit, mirrored by the temple of man. In the original mandala, these are beautiful and exotic structures, like something out of the Arabian Nights, with shimmering, dream-like colors, and bell or pear-shaped domes and towers. Outside the temple of man, all is dark. Outside and inside the temple of the spirit mirrored below, all is light. What separates the two is the claws of the crab, which pinch off the heads of those who pass the threshold from one realm to the other. The head is a symbol of the intellect and ego. You must close your eyes and leap to pass from one realm to the other. There are things you simply cannot plan. and cannot figure out. Yet all is well, and the temple of the spirit shall be mirrored in the temple of man if you simply have the courage to leap, whether it makes 'rational' sense or not. No one could rationally think that a world-changing movement could begin in such an obscure way, here and now, with yourself. This card is an assurance that it can be so, your dreams can be actualized if you forget your rational doubts and go ahead and start.
(b) Image 5 Pears: Outside the temple of man, all is dark. Outside and inside the temple of the mirror image temple of the spirit, all is light. One must make a leap of courage to pass from one to the other. Give up conventional thinking, tribal mythology and social custom. Give up the conventional worldview. Old meaning: an emotional loss.

(a) Mandala 5 Blades: FIVE BLADES is a cosmic cat, swallowing up a little fishy, whose eyes are worlds. Fish swim in schools, thus representing conventionality. The fish's eyes reflect the world, thus sees all, and knows all conventional knowledge. Yet, for all that the fish is swallowed up by something much larger than anything in the world, something unexpected. This card is likely to show up in a reading for a conventional, knowledgable, skeptical person, not yet a new age person. If 5 blades is in a future position, the querent is about to be converted, indeed, swallowed whole by cosmic purposes he did not know existed.
(b) Image 5 Blades: There are things unseen by the naked eye which are vaster than we can imagine. The querent is about to be swallowed up by cosmic purposes the querent did not know existed. Old meaning; fall from grace.

(a) Mandala 5 Stones: FIVE STONES is some sort of night-time ritual, part of the pre-western medicine path of native America. There are shocks of grain, feathers, bones, wands and fronds. In a solemn invocation of the waning moon, the head of a chief sitting on a rock is commanded to speak. You have to imagine the still night air, the mists, the frogs or bird cries in the dark, the flickering firelight, the dim light of the old, waning moon. And the head does speak, giving advice and knowledge from the spirit realm. Or perhaps it is not a head on a rock, but an old chief wrapped in a blanket, taking counsel, while the shaman solemnly invokes the four winds of change, one by one. Frequently the card appears in layouts of those attracted to the medicine path. The 'head is about to speak' and the querent will receive advice.
(b) Image 5 Stones: The statues of Easter Island originally had huge eyes and a top-knot. They faced inward, backs to the sea, watching the villagers. Each contained the spirit of a dead ancestor. The villagers were very afraid of their dead ancestors, so much so that they wrecked the ecology of the island by cutting down all the trees, including the breadfruit trees which provided a staple food. Logs were required to transport and erect the statues. When the trees were gone, the soil washed away, so the arable land was greatly reduced. The result was famine, war and rebellion against ancestor worship. In this rebellion, the eyes were removed, statues were toppled or turned around so they faced outward. This de-sanctified them and made the spirit leave. This shows the horrible result of following ideas that have no direct basis in experience.

(a) Mandala 6 Serpents: In SIX SERPENTS, the querent is trapped in a cave with furry crawling things around. The light outside is visible to the querent. It is only necessary to pass through double-curved crescents joined back to back which screen the querent from the outside. These crescents are the waxing moon and the waning moon, joined together. This might suggest confinement in the cave of darkness and illusion for a period of time, through several complete cycles. These moon devices were used as headdresses by magicians in some of the old pagan religions. This may suggest the possibility of a magical release from the period of stifling confinement and darkness if the querent wishes.
(b) Image 6 Serpents: Six serpents is a beautiful painting deep in a cave, a mile from the entrance. Our ancestors had to wriggle through many tight places, carrying primitive stone lamps to see this beauty. The querent may also be creating beautiful and wonderful things, but unknown, and far from public recognition. Do not despair. It will be known.

(a) Mandala 6 Pears: SIX PEARS is the Great Mother, pregnant with new worlds. Always a favorable image, related to the book of the Mother. A perfect card for new age people, since it implies the querent will create a new world, indeed, is already 'pregnant' with it. Same reversed.
(b) Image 6 Pears: The images are of Isis, just one form of the Goddess, and the eyes of Horus the hawk, which see far, and protect the querent, and the mandala ankh, which stands for the burgeoning life which the goddess brings forth, and also for "T," the welcoming gesture to all that life has to offer, much used by early Christian artists. Probably the origin of the crucifix, which was not found in this early phase.

(a) Mandala 6 Stones: SIX STONES is a coral, the skeletons of which build up reefs in tropical seas, reefs which protect the headlands from battering waves. Whole islands are made from coral. Yet it has a delicate beauty and fantastic shape, alas blooming unseen in the inky blackness of the ocean. In other words, the Querent's work will have lasting importance and will be completely marvelous, but is not too likely to ever be brought to light, i.e. noticed, as an individual achievement.
(b) Image 6 Stones: Coral reefs are dying at an alarming rate, and no one knows why. Since corals have been around for hundreds of millions of years, it must be our fault. This fact may figure into your interpretation. 6 stones is a beautiful coral, living in the inky darkness, where its colors cannot be seen except by the diver with his lights. The querent may also be a beautiful coral, living in inky darkness, with beauty unknown and unrecognized by those around. The querent will be valued by those who come and search. Meantime, the querent is busily building up the "coral reef," a place of refuge for the "small fish," who would otherwise be in danger. A more sinister possibility is that the querent is dying of unknown causes, and may not know that he or she is dying.

(a) Mandala 6 Blades: The card for SIX BLADES is like a photograph of a skyscraper through a fish-eye lens. We see down both sides of the street at once, and we see the building and whatever is reflected in its acres of glass at once. Thus, the querent has in view multiple avenues, multiple possibilities, multiple images all combined in a single whole. The querent should focus on the unchanging structure, rather than the ephemeral images of clouds reflected on the surface. The street is a two-way street, and the querent can turn one way or the other. For instance, in a marriage, a person can focus on the underlying Unity, or on the passing surface conditions, and as a result go toward Unity or away from it. It is the Querent's choice.
(b) Image 6 Blades: The image for 6 blades is Osiris, god of the underworld, the gate-keeper, not unlike the Major Arcanum Renewer, whose flesh is also blue. The sixes are all about challenges that call forth great effort and creativity. They are also about loss, death, and destruction of the old and wornout, to make way for the new. The querent is not destroyed by this process, only renewed, filled once again with spontaneity, joy, love, innocence and grace. The querent must pass the gatekeeper and wander for a time in darkness, before a spiritual or physical rebirth.

(a) Mandala 7 Serpents: SEVEN SERPENTS shows the bubbles rising from champagne (toasts for victor4s and success) or from the yeasty workings of some creative broth, brewing up something good.
(b) Image 7 Serpents: Serpents are fire, hot-blooded, vital energy. 7 serpents is intuition, imagination and good luck in emotional matters. The querent is called upon to use intuition and imagination to have good luck with love.

(a) Mandala 7 Pears: SEVEN PEARS shows a road along a canal. A passing parade of humanity has halted to observe a strange light coming from the depths. Some kneel down at the waters edge. There are halted vehicles as well as pedestrians. SEVEN PEARS symbolizes a sudden event, as does 7 stones. But in the case of 7 pears, it is specifically light from the deeps. A revelation, a message from the deeps, illumination, but in any case something of value to the whole passing parade of humanity, and not just the querent.
(b) Image 7 Pears: Pears are water, blood, spirit, old and wise. The wise one trusts intuition, and will have good luck with the fruits of creativity.

(a) Mandala 7 Blades: SEVEN BLADES is an unbroken road to the horizon, paved with semi-precious stones, mosaics and colorful designs. In other words, the barriers are down, the horizon is unlimited, the road lies before you, straight and open.
(b) Image 7 Blades: Blades are air, lungs, decisive changes, and prana, the energy of the mind. Prana actually means "breath." Ideas and decisions must rest on intuition. Creativity is required. Then the intellectual or executive will thrive.

(a) Mandala 7 Stones: SEVEN STONES is an erupting volcano, but what is erupting is a ribbon, on which there are messages of good fortune. Lots of good fortune comes suddenly as from a volcanic eruption, and it often takes the form of paper, i.e. a letter, a check, a ticker tape, a message of some sort.
(b) Image 7 Stones: Stones are earth, flesh, Gaia, the Goddess. This is advice for a hands-on person, a carpenter, mason, or anyone who builds things, whether they be computers or buildings. Or it could be advice for a devotee of the Goddess. The advice is not to rely totally on the intellect or the "established opinion." Let intuition be your guide and creativity and success will follow.

(a) Mandala 8 Serpents: EIGHT SERPENTS is the stream of life, with the Tree of Life superimposed. It is a lazy Nile, seen through a haze of timeless vegetation, palm fronds and reeds. In the original mandala, this card has a very lazy. hazy feeling, like late afternoon sun. I believe it could be described as the ever-flowing stream of life seen as an unchanging, timeless reality. This is a card that essentially indicates no change, a period of quiet, a time just to let the stream of life flow. Reversed, it means just the opposite.
(b) Image 8 Serpents: The intellect expressed passionately. The Golden Gate Bridge was a passionate creation, for which the ordinary citizens pledged their houses and property. Sometimes the passionate intellect over-reaches itself, and disaster results. The Tacoma Narrows bridge collapse is an example.

(a) Mandala 8 Pears: EIGHT PEARS is a dark night, a waning sliver of moon, a deserted beach, a lonely headland pounded by the sea. Perhaps the querent has the need for solitude for a phase, while affairs wane, a period to contemplate the ceaseless, timeless struggle between cliff and wave.
(b) Image 8 Pears: The intellect applied to intuition produces someone like C.G. Jung, who introduced the mandala to the West. In the top image, the serpent plants a seed. Spiritual union of masculine and feminine. Lower image: inner realization allows a creative relationship with outer world.

(a) Mandala 8 Blades: EIGHT BLADES shows us two very large extinct animals, the plesiosaurus and the right whale. Both swam through the sea apparently masters of their fate, going where they will, eating everything in sight. Yet, both extinct, destroyed by changing conditions. What this means to the q'eerent depends on whether he identifies with the whale-plesiosaurus or with its tiny successors. This same image is used by Scientific American as a symbol for itself, but again what this means may depend on the attitude of both querent and reader. Is science a student of ecology, the preserver of endangered species? Or is it itself a kind of dinosaur, a bloated organization, supremely overconfident of its unlimited power (yet perhaps headed for a fall)?
(b) Image 8 Blades: The intellect of intellects. Genius. Hubris. Disaster. Disaster is not intended, nor is it inevitable. Yet, we are reminded of the sin of intellectual pride.

(a) Mandala 8 Stones: EIGHT STONES is money. The institutions that control money here constitute a giant temple, a gem-stone, which sends out its green and yellow rays to nourish many human activities, the same way the rays of the sun cause plants to grow. Large projects, with the precisely cut angles may also be implied, and any kind of large scale organization. The temple of money is so large that it confines human beings to a narrow ledge next to a precipice. Human figures and vehicles may be seen, very tiny, in the narrow strip on the right of the gem-temple; next to a black abyss. Quite a different possibility for the arrangement of man's physical needs is suggested by the beautiful and ordered garden in the lower left, much more on a human scale.
(b) Image 8 Stones: The Triumph of engineering, which is the intellect applied to the construction of technology. Here, too, there is the danger of over-reaching, as indicated by the Challenger disaster in the top image. Disaster is not inevitable. In Shuttle flights, there is a one in fifty chance on each launch.

(a) Mandala 9 Serpents: NINE SERPENTS frequently appears in readings today. It indicates a violent contrast. In one part of the card, we see the ordered harmonies of a figured sun, a nice emblem of the Way of the Sun, because you can figure and color it any way you like. In the other part of the card we see confusion, like the individual pieces of a cloth all unraveled and useless. This represents the kind of guidance we get from our ordinary environment, from TV, movies, books, school. A lot of separate strings which do not fit together in any harmonious whole. I think this card is saying "sit up and take notice I Look at this enormous contrast between the Way of the Sun and the conventional culture. Which will you choose?"
(b) Image 9 Serpents: Here we see nightmares of fire in the night, nuclear winter, total destruction.

(a) Mandala 9 Pears: NINE PEARS. A hooded figure with knapsack kneels placing a sack on the ground. Behind is desert, before, a stream and green growing things. The querent has a gift to life borne across the desert. Now he or she kneels down and places this burden or gift into the stream of life. For an artist or writer this might mean a long period of non-recognition, yet it also implies that the querent has something of great value to give. Depending on where it appears in the layout, it can mean that the desert has been crossed, and a creatively fruitful time is about to begin.
(b) Image 9 Pears: The shell of a man in white, supported by boats in water. This is the Self, resting upon the waters of the deep, the collective unconscious. A bagpipe on his head plays a merry tune, and people are dancing.

(a) Mandala 9 Blades: NINE BLADES is a pelican with a pot belly looking comical and absurd. Its heart is an elaborate jewel or crystal of many colors. This is an awkward goony bird to the world, misunderstood and subject to fun (or at least ignored by the world), yet it has a secret heart which -is a precious jewel. In other words, there is much more to the querent than anyone suspects. This is a card of reassurance to someone who may be doubting their self-worth.
(b) Image 9 Blades: Here we see musical instruments, and a man impaled in a harp. He does not appear to be in any distress. He has chosen that fate, and the blades represent decisions made, not actual blades. Music is an abstract and intellectual pursuit, and thus belongs with the blades.

(a) Mandala 9 Stones: NINE STONES. In outline we see the skirted torso of a matronly woman. Within this outline is another skirted female figure, but with the head of a cormorant. Fisher birds such as the cormorant are traditional 'messengers of the gods' because they dive into the sea to pick up a 'fish' (idea, inspiration, illumination) and yet can take it up into the airy realm of action and thought with their wings. It is by yin activity that we make contact with the deeps, thus the skirt on the cormorant, and the nurturing of such abilities is also a maternal, yin thing to do, indicated by the matronly outline within which is the 'fisher'. The querent may be the one nurturing and protecting the growth of such an intuitive talent, or the querent may be the one being sheltered.
(b) Image 9 Stones: A bird monster eats a man and shits him out again to be plagued by other such devils. Such apocalyptic fears are common in an unsettled age, when the old certainties are questioned and revolutionary new ideas are put forward. Today is such a time, as was the 15th Century, the time of discovery of new lands, and corruption in the church, which led up to the Reformation and religious wars.

Everyone has different experiences in the world. It is the querent who must tell the reader what initiatory, life-changing experiences they have had which were emotional-sexual (serpents), intellectual or decisive (blades), mystical, intuitive, symbolic, psychedelic (pears), or constructive of gardens, buildings, engineering or artwork (stones). I have put down the meanings of the tens in the old tarot, but only the querent can tell you what they really mean for them.

(a) Mandala 10 Serpents: TEN SERPENTS shows us the querent on the very threshold of a journey. Is he hesitant? Hasn't quite decided whether to go or not? The way is long, but it leads to the distant fire. It leads past a rather phallic shaped rock and into a jungle in the shape of a human heart. Some people shrink from life, and hesitate to plunge into the jungle, thinking there may be some more refined way to progress. But there isn't. So enjoy the adventure. We chose these challenges, and could not progress without them.
(b) Image 10 Serpents: A refining test by fire, the heart tried by pain. Problem soon to be solved.

(a) Mandala 10 Pears: TEN PEARS is four scenes, seen in rotation. On one end (could be top or bottom) is a child's toy, abandoned, a pull-dinosaur with a flag coming out of its back. Next, clockwise is a rose in full bloom. Next, a rack of moose antlers. Finally, a mysterious reclining figure in shadow, with a rolling landscape in the background. The figure could be a stone idol, its features eroded away by time. This mandala refers to the inevitable cycle of time and our nostalgia for that which is fleeting, such as childhood, or a rose, or the autumn rutting season. Even mankind's idols are eventually pulled over and dissolve in the rain.
(b) Image 10 Pears: Contentment. Lasting happiness because it is inspired from above rather than being mere sensual satisfaction. Perfection of human love. Great friendship. Lasting success. Peacemaking.

(a) Mandala 10 Blades: Ten BLADES shows the querent in over his head. The image is that of a deep-sea diver, whose suit has malfunctioned and ballooned and whose face is that of a ruined city. It suggests to me an uncomfortable situation from which the querent is about to he painfully ejected. It can be dangerous to wander out of our true environment.
(b) Image 10 Blades: Ruin of plans and projects. Defeat in war. Disruption of home life. Tears will fall. Trouble will come in spite of riches and high position. Not a card of violent death. A suggestion to give charity freely to those in trouble.

(a) Mandala 10 Stones: TEN STONES suggests mountains breaking apart, releasing a crystal spring. The 'mountains' are also jeweled helmets, set in opposition. The helmets are so beautiful, it all suggests a game. Strife can be fruitful. We can be friends with our enemies and even glad to have enemies, for it forces us to extend ourselves, or breaks up an unfruitful solidification of things.
(b) Image 10 Stones: A strange luminscent denizen of deep water, with stinging barbs, and rows of marquee lights. In the depths are many things of strange beauty and danger.

Blade Page: Sign Gemini, represented by the Gemini sign at the bottom, and by the face half yellow and half black. Instrument: spiraling horn. Headdress: laurel wreath of the hero. Cup: bronze chalice pouring out transmuting liquid. Element: air. New philosopher integrating unconscious wisdom and conscious knowledge.

Serpent Page: Sign Sagittarius, represented by a black and yellow striped horse, which may be hard to see. Lightning struck zebra may be a message or "bolt out of the blue." Headress: lei. Cup: half coconut pouring purple essence. Instrument: drum. Element: fire. This is the Feeling Page, in tune with the presence of ONE, who restores a spontaneous creativity to religion; a mystical magician, a visionary go-between between the inner and outer worlds.

Pear Page: Sign Pisces, represented by cup pouring out shimmering moonlight, headress pear blossom wreath, instrument lute, element water. This page is highly responsive to the emotions of others. An intuitive aesthete, mystical artist, visionary of angels and fairies.

Stone Page: Sign Virgo, represented by the apple. Headress: simple band with a single feather. Clay cup, pours water. Musical instrument: two rattles. Element stone, here an emerald crystal. To bring order out of chaos is essential to the Virgo Page. Great server and healer. Tireless desire to help friends. Cannot abide waste; her intent is to make things whole.

Knight of Serpents: the letter G is a whirling force, spiraling in and out, connected to the libido. He has discarded his mask on the hot ground. His "weapon" is a trumpet, and the blasts of this trumpet make the ground erupt. The G force is "a most vast and raging fire gathered from the sun." Apocalyptic red horse.

Knight of Pears: the U force is an open bowl to receive flows of the waters of life, a fount to shoot the waters skyward again, a shell upon a seashore awaiting the damp dews of the moon. Mask and staff forgotten. Mysterious liquid energy of intuition. The horseman of the apocalypse riding a white horse, who is given a crown to wear. He will conquer and it will be an inner world he or she wins.

Knight of Stones: T is his letter - T, the tester, the cross, the balance. Threw away his feathered war-bonnet. Stone weapon. Sensation is the power of materialization. Earthquake force unless the Seeker places himself on the T. Black horse of apocalypse, carrying a balance or scales in his hand.

Knight of Blades: I is his letter, the Mind and its most abstract, interior force. He has left his helmet on a field of ice. Lightning of genius emblazoning the wintry scene. Points the way. Purity of intention.

Queen of Blades: all-seeing eye of horus in crown. Her mind, like the eye, is wide open in full consciousness and as keen and brilliant as the spikes of her golden crown. Libra is her sign. She can be proud and haughty as the peacock. Her Viking ship is undaunted by storm or calm.

Queen of Serpents: woman of dark hot South. Ruled by the cool moon in her crown. Boat light cockle-shell sailing over smooth and tranquil sea. Crocodile represents instincts. She has rhythm, music and art important to her. She will have many and varied lovers.

Queen of Pears: Pearl of the Orient. Crown is the half dorje. Boat a Chinese junk, slow yet sturdy and seaworthy. Cancer her sign. High priestess of the unconscious. Intuitive and introverted, fragile as pear blossoms. Esthetic and lavish, she showers her loved ones with her strange moon-maiden bounty.

Queen of Stones: Earth Spider. Realm far down in the cracks and crannies of her arid land, from which she creeps out by night to await a victim. Ship outrigger canoe which resembles the moon. Inclined to hibernate and guard her riches. She is delicate cactus flower blossoming from a touch and spiny stalk. Sign Capricorn, a respector of authority.

King of Blades: quintessence of thinking. His cloak is purple, representing order, justice and ceremonial magic. His crown is of swords that meet at a central jewel of knowledge, the scintillating sapphire. Sign Aquarius. Opens the New Age. He has advanced the world with his thinking about nature and machines. Crusader King who champions rational causes. Can be a fanatic. Emperor of the North.

King of Serpents: Parchment escutcheon for a cloak. Leo his sign. Weapon a phallic spear of superiority and pride. Rules South, the Feeling function, heat and fire. Takes chances. Tireless, with an impulsive taciturn temper. He enjoys commanding, and glories in roaring rebuttal to any competitor.

King of Pears: East, the water of intuition. Blue vase his "cloak." Double-axe his weapon, intuitively comprehending the objective and subjective as one. Scorpio his sign. His crown is the double dorje, the thunderbolt of initiation in Eastern religions. He does not mean to be superior to others; he just is.

King of Stones: representative of the Red Root Race, the dry desert-world of the West. A red blanket his cloak. Symbolizes the sense of touch and the more sensuous are his possesions the better he likes it. He is stoic and tranquil when alone in nature. Taurus his sign. The swastika an ancient pagan symbol. He keeps his feet on the ground, though he knows other worlds exist.

New Tarot Contents | 29. Divination