Divination Station

Please read Intro to Cartomancy and The Four Suits of the Minor Arcana before continuing with this post. We are going to learn more in depth about the Numbered Cards of the Minor Arcana. In addition to representing the Kabbalistic notion of the four worlds in the form of the four suits, tarot further separates each of the four suits into two sections: one of nine cards (Two through Ten, representing the body, and of five cards (the royal cards: Page, Knight, Queen, King and Ace), representing the soul. The nine numbered cards plus the set of royal cards mirror the Kabalistic construct known as the Ten Sefirot which is represented on the Tree of Life (ref. Fig 1) Each numbered card’s meaning derives in part from the attributes of its corresponding Sefiera. The number one is missing because it is replaced with the five court cards, which relate to the five parts of the soul. The merging of soul into body takes place in the first Sefira, as will be explained.  I highly advise you print out the Tree of Life (fig 1) and the associated meanings (fig 2) for future reference as it will be referenced throughout this course.

Kabbalah Tree of Life (fig 1)

Kabbalistic Attributions and Meanings (fig 2)

The first three Sefirot—Chochma, Binah, and Daat (ref. Fig 3)—are aspects of the intellect. The intellect is housed in the brain, which is made in the form of a triangle—two frontal lobes and the cerebellum at the back of the head. The brain is the physical vessel for the light emanating from the soul.

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Fig 3. Chokma (2 Sefirot), Binah (3 Sifirot) and Daat (Centered)

Chokma translates as “wisdom” but is often explained as “the Power of What.” This describes the brain’s experience of inspiration—receiving a flash of the spiritual light of the soul. Once we receive this flash, and we ask the question “What is this?” the answer is within reach—the information has already entered in. Chochma corresponds to the right lobe of the brain. 

Binah is related to the word for “builder.” It means “understanding” and refers to the left side of the brain. In Cabala these two lobes are called “mother and father never separated,” as these two regions of the brain, though of opposite nature, work as one. The difference between the right and left sides of the brain is as clear as light and darkness. The right side of the brain sees the light, but it is the left side of the brain, the feminine side, that takes the light of inspiration into the darkness and develops it to form a thought. 

Daat, or “knowing,” represents that spark of sudden realization, though only momentarily, that is the final goal of intellect—to actually make a decision because you just know. It corresponds to the third eye, or cerebellum.

 Binah and Chokma are represented by the numbered cards Two and Three. (There is no card number One—Kether (Sefirot 1) is represented by the five royal cards, as we will see shortly.) 

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The next group of Sefirot are representative of the emotions (ref. Fig. 4). The six Sefirot of the emotions correspond with the six days of Creation. Each day of Creation corresponds to a particular aspect of human experience or what the Torah considers emotions. For example, light was created on the first day of Creation and this event corresponds with the first of the six emotions, called chesed, or mercy. It is the attribute of giving freely and completely. Though the translations of the names of these six Sefirot do not sound like emotions to those used to thinking in terms of sad and happy, by looking deeper into this concept we discover they are the mirror to all human experience. 

(fig 4)

The first of the Sefirot of emotions, Chesed (4 Sefirot)—Mercy, indicates an endless capacity for the human being to give; it is the mother’s milk of creation. The second Sefira, Geburah (5 Sefirot)—Strength,, is an infinite capacity to hold back, restrain, and even eradicate. All strength derives from this attribute. The third Sefira, Tiphereth (6 Sefirot)—Beauty, is a combination of the previous two Sefirot. A melding of mercy and strength is what produces beauty—the beauty of truth that arises from balancing opposites. The fourth Sefira is Netzach (7 Sefirot)—Victory, the quality of persistence. Its opposite is the fifth Sefira, Hod (8 Sefirot)—Splendor. This is the Sefira of patience and hidden strength. The sixth Sefira of emotion, Yesod (9 Sefirot)—Foundation, aligns beneath Beauty/Truth. This is the Sefira of sexuality and creativity. 

These six attributes are depicted in the tarot cards numbered Four to Nine. The three Sefirot of the intellect fall within the realm of the spirit world Briah/Thought, and the six Sefirot of the emotions reflect the spirit world of Yetzirah/Emotions. 

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The lowest spirit world, Asiyah/Action, corresponds with the tenth Sefira—Malkhuth, or Speech (fig. 5). This Sefira is represented by the Ten in the numbered cards. Malkhuth/Speech is also called Kingship, because it is through the word that the king rules. Speech, more than any other human quality, separates us from the animals. The animal, at best, can utter guttural sounds meant to convey its will. The animal can growl or purr or shriek or bark, but it cannot express a complex thought. Thoughts suffuse our emotions, generating a vibration that rides upon the breath, resounds in the throat, breaks across the teeth, and finally passes through the lips—words projected into the world. Our will, generated by the goal of pleasure, is filtered through our mental senses, elaborated in our emotions, and finally spoken into the world. 

(fig. 5)

This progression can be seen in the illustration of the Tree of Life, moving from the head downward through the Ten Sefirot. The tarot cards reflect this same progression. The Ten Sefirot superimposed on the human form, speech is metaphorically equated with giving birth to action. Thus, our unique ability to articulate thoughts into speech, which is considered action, represents the divine birthing in each of us.

In essence each number card is representative of the journey our manifestation birthing process and where we (or the person being divined for) are in their journey.