Astrology
There is a deep connection between tarot and astrology.
One of the best decks to look at with that in consideration is The Hermetic Tarot Deck by Godfrey Dowson. This deck is in many ways the opposite of what I'm trying to achieve with my mine in terms of its lack of color and overabundance of symbols, but nonetheless it is historically and fundamentally important in the study of tarot.
“The Tarot is a perfect symbolic picture of the cosmos as seen through the eyes of man. Tarot also reflects the many facets of man in his environment.”
I've struggled on how I want to incorporate astrological symbolism into my deck while keeping the cards clear and uncluttered, but I think its important to include them. For me, seeing the signs allows me to connect a little deeper to the cards because they are a reminder of our relationship to the cosmos. They also allow a reading to become more specific to the people in your life.
The connections between the cards and the zodiac are complex and can be overwhelming at first. That's why I made this handy chart!
Click through to see it larger on its own page.
In the center are the 8 sabbats, or wheel of the year. Next are the elements, earth, water, air and fire, as they correspond to the zodiac signs. Then I denoted whether each sign was cardinal, fixed or mutable, their ruling planets, and what card represents them. Each sign is then broken down into its 3 decans, the ruling planet of each decan, and their ruling minor arcana card. Each of those cards is assigned to one of the 7 ancient planets. Each knight, king and queen is assigned to 3 decans of the zodiac and the princesses rule over entire quadrants with the aces as their throne. On the outside of the chart are the cards associated with each planet. The cards on the colored planets specifically relate to the corresponding element
I'll get into more specifics about all these connections with each individual card, but I thought it might help me to have a visual guide as I go.
So, as a Scorpio of the second decan I am connected to Death and the VI of Cups.
Death and the IV of cups from The Hermetic Tarot
It's important to keep in mind that the planets that are associated with the cards are different from the ones that rule each sign. Scorpio is ruled by Mars and Pluto. More specifically, the second decan of Scorpio is influenced by Neptune. However, the VI of cups is ruled by the sun. The sun is ruled by well...the Sun. You could probably find a connection from yourself to everything in the universe if you tried hard enough.
It's an endless puzzle, all for us to solve.
