Side Notes
by BB Soto
The thoughts that don’t make the main text—but matter anyway ♥️
All Side Notes
Tarot Symbolism: The Hierophant
The triple crown, triple cross scepter, and crossed keys are all traditional regalia and insignia of the papal office. The crossed keys show that he sits on St. Peter's throne, referencing Jesus giving Peter the keys to the Church, and they remain part of the papacy's official emblem. Beyond these specific attributes, three small black crosses appear on his robe, and three figures appear in the scene. Anything in triplicate when it comes to Catholicism references one thing—the Holy Trinity. And though the concept of triplicity is deeply rooted in many mythologies and religions, its presentation in this image points to one thing—Catholic father of all the fathers.
Astrological Symbols & Glyphs Gloassary
Coming to astrology from a background in tarot, I remember looking at my first charts and thinking I might as well be trying to read Greek. I was accustomed to pictorial representations that resonated with archetypal experiences in the human condition and were more directly related to the symbolism I had studied in my art history courses. Still, learning the tarot involved a degree of memorization—the order of the first 22 major arcana cards, which suits corresponded to which element, etc. And so, with learning to read a system that uses a language of glyphs, memorization, at first, is key. After all, that’s what we do in Kindergarten and 1st grade. We memorize the letters of the alphabet, their shapes, and their sounds. Then we learn to put them together and form words. Then we learn to put those words together and build sentences.
Exploring Divination Practices: Tarot and Symbolism
In this post, I share some of my favorite resources that I either have on my shelves or have used. I've checked out some from the library; others are web references or tarot readers and astrologers. These resources explore the many ways the universe can communicate with us and what people across cultures have often said these symbols mean.
Tarot Symbolism: The Star Crown & Astrology
“ A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head."
—Revelations 12:1
Tarot Symbolism: Duality
In the Anglo-American tarot tradition, the Fool is the beginning and the end. Therefore the Fool is also neither the beginning nor the end.
The Magician points one hand skyward, another to the earth, all to illustrate that as above, so is below. The robed figure actively manifests awareness into reality. They are surrounded in earthy colors associated with consciousness, daytime, and masculine energy.
Tarot Symbolism: The Magician
Striking yellow, rich red, and pops of white catch the eye in the first official card of the Major Arcana. The Magician — unlike the insensate Fool who both begins and ends the Major Arcana — is standing in the conscious plane. Where the sun, representing consciousness, rose in the sky above and behind the meandering Fool, the Magician here is surrounded by the light of awareness. They are robed in pure intentions (white) and sparked with the life force, the passion, the vitality to manifest their destiny (red). The tools of the four suits, the four elements, and the four states of being are laid out before them now. They are the alchemist experimenting with creating the possibilities of creating through divine awareness.