Tarot and the Archetypes: The Experience of the Spirit

The moon has always been synonymous with hidden things.  The moon does not generate its own light but receives its light from the sun.  Thus, the moon can deceive as well as enlighten.  

And as the moon reflects the light of the sun, so too does human intelligence reflect the creative light of the Divine - and the latter is eclipsed when the lower intellect prevails. 

The lower intellect is concerned with materiality.  It dwells with facts and figures and acts more like a computer, processing inputs and calculating outputs.  Given false inputs, the lower intellect will not realize that its outputs are also false until it hits an impasse and a forced awakening causes it to reassess.  The lower intellect is completely blind and is detached from seeing absolute reality.    

Ra says , “The moonlight, then, offers either a true picture seen in shadow or chimera and falsity. The power of falsity is deep as is the power to discern truth from shadow. The shadow of hidden things is an infinite depth in which is stored the power of the One Infinite Creator.

The adept, then, is working with the power of hidden things illuminated by that which can be false or true. To embrace falsity, to know it, to seek it, and to use it gives a power that is most great.”

The intellect alone cannot tell what is true.  Those who experience an awakening, who meet the Potentiator of the Spirit, then often find themselves immersed in what they believe is the truth, but is merely a simulacrum of truth. 

You see this sometimes manifested in those who grew up in strict religious households.  Often there is an awakening whereby the rigid structure of the tower upon which they’ve built their beliefs comes crashing down.  A rejection then occurs whereby instead of transcending the tower, the individual turns towards lower forms of expression.  

In the macrocosm, this scenario plays out as evidenced by the rise in relativistic philosophy, the rejection of the Spirit and Faith, the worship of the intellect, and ridiculous pseudo-spiritual beliefs.  The “tower” of rigid religious and superstitious beliefs has created the opposite in our society:  A tower of rigid, rational intellect.

What’s needed to evolve is to transcend the falsehood of the pure, rational intellect.  This is represented by the concept of intuition.  

The intellect is the map and your intuition is the compass.  It inspires, guides and gives insight into what is “north”. 

Those with just a map and no compass can easily get lost.  They can easily confuse the map for the territory.  Only by using intuition can one transcend the bounds of the intellect into true insight.  

All this is not to say the lower intellect has no place.  Rather, the intellect must be put in service to the higher.  The higher should guide the lower.  While the lower can discern the territory somewhat, the higher has the full picture and can guide the lower towards Truth. 

The dogs in front of the pyramids represent the ability to sense unseen things.  According to famed Occultist Manly P. Hall dogs were revered in ancient Egypt for their ability to follow and track unseen persons for miles which “symbolizes the transcendental power by which the philosopher follows the thread of truth through the labyrinth of earthly error.”  

The scorpion below can be seen as representing wisdom as well as deceit.  It is considered a symbol of both wisdom and self destruction for the fire which the Scorpion controls is capable of illuminating as well as consuming.  Scorpions were revered by the ancient Egyptians as well as the Babylonians and Assyrians as guardians of the gateway of the sun.  

Seven scorpions were said to have accompanied Isis when she searched for the remains of Osiris scattered by Typhon.  An allegory for our true nature being suppressed by the “Matrix” and those that worship it as well as the healing power of the Spirit.  

This world is seemingly immersed in falsity.  Even those who are on the path of adepthood get easily taken in by the moonlight.

Ra says, “By far, the majority of adepts remain groping in the moonlight and, as we have said, this light can deceive as well as uncover hidden mystery.”

The way out of the moonlight and falsity is to transcend the intellect by the use of intuition and faith.  

Anytime you are relying on your intellect alone, you are not seeing the full picture.  There are a variety of ways this can manifest.  Ra says,

"The power of which you speak is a spiritual power. The powers of the mind, as such, do not encompass such works as these. You may, with some fruitfulness, consider the possibilities of moonlight. You are aware that we have described the Matrix of the Spirit as a night. The moonlight, then, offers either a true picture seen in shadow or chimera and falsity."

There is hidden truth contained within all.  To grasp the “green language” is to understand the true picture seen behind the shadow.

For example, consider a situation where an emotional reaction to some occurrence continues to happen for you in your life.  Let's say the reaction is a result of your "ego" being bruised for whatever reason.  

The Ego, of course, is purely the Matrix of the Spirit.  By itself, it is completely detached from Spirit and completely immersed in Matter.  The Spirit locked completely within Ego is locked in darkness.  

Now, there are a variety of possible reasons why this individual's "ego" was bruised.  Perhaps there was not enough love given to them as a child and they, therefore, developed a big ego to give themselves the love they always sought.  True love of self, of course, comes from the Spirit, however, being immersed in the Matrix of the Spirit, they cannot consciously sense this love.   

And whenever their ego is bruised, they react, unconsciously by attacking the one who has seemingly caused this reaction within themselves.

But the emotional reaction offers the possibility of clarity for them.  It offers them the ability to awaken and uncover the hidden trauma that causes them to react this way.  To see the truth hidden behind the shadow. 

Alternatively,  it offers them the opportunity to deepen the darkness and to strengthen their personality.  To deepen the separation.   As Ra says,

"The Experience of the Spirit, that which you have called the Moon, is then, by far, the more manifest of influences upon the polarity of the adept. Even the most unhappy of experiences, shall we say, which seem to occur in the Catalyst of the adept, seen from the viewpoint of the spirit, may, with the discrimination possible in shadow, be worked with until light equaling the light of brightest noon descends upon the adept and positive or service-to-others illumination has occurred. The service-to-self adept will satisfy itself with the shadows and, grasping the light of day, will toss back the head in grim laughter, preferring the darkness." 

So the Experience of the Spirit is such that, for the most part in 3D reality, we dwell in an unconscious state.  Those that are "awake" are still veiled to a great extent, and while they are seeing more of the landscape illuminated by the Moon, they still get tricked by the shadows if they are not discerning enough.