A couple of months ago I heard about S.H.’s tarot-project and have been impatiently waiting to get my hands on it since then.
The Tarot of the Golden Serpent is one of these pieces of true art that every tarot enthusiast will appreciate, whether it be for the aesthetics or for the deep knowledge it holds.
The theme and style of the deck is coherent yet eclectic, with influences of Hebrew, Enochian and Ceremonial Magick. The colours are bright and vivid, with Gold being prevalent. The imagery is arcane but decipherable, and exploring the details will lead to many hours of examination and meditation.
The fact that every card is painted by hand over the course of years is baffling and awe-inspiring in these times when AI generated images are shamelessly presented as “art”.
A flaw that I’ve seen in many (newer) decks is that there’s no direct correlation between the imagery and the attributed meaning of the card, and that an “occultish look” was the main factor in creating it. This is not the case here. Every single painting breathes the spirit that inhabits it. The decision to depict the Kings as the Cherubic Angels for example is one of these things that reveal that this deck is the work of a Wizard who knows his stuff.
Speaking of the courtcards: in the Rider-Waite we have the page, the knight, the queen and the king. In Crowley-Harris it’s the princess, the prince, the queen and the knight. Both of these versions have always felt a bit weird to me in their composition. I’m glad to say that in this deck the “royal families” are balanced with a princess, prince, queen and king.
There’s no booklet included, but general information for the attributed meanings of cards is easily found + the images really are expressive. In the first spread I did for example (see below), one of the cards was the 3 of Swords. Having used the Crowley tarot for years, I know that this card represents sorrow. But even if I hadn’t known that, a glance at the symbols used leaves no room for doubt. The sad mask of the angel, the grimoire opened on a page that shows the seal of Saturn, the skull, the swords arranged in the form of a triangle.
There is one extra card in the deck that’s not really a part of it. I wasn’t aware of it and was surprised when it popped up in the first spread. But I decided to leave it in as a “joker” that indicates that at the time of asking, there’s no information or advice for that particular part of the question.
In conclusion:
Beginners with an interest in the occult, as well as seasoned witches of all paths, will find in this deck an extremely useful and beautiful tool to further develop their craft.
Highly recommended!
The cards can be bought here:
https://www.thegamecrafter.com/games/tarot-of-the-golden-serpent
Consecration of Tarotcards
and the Serpent-Spread
Even though it’s been part of the Western Magician’s toolbox for a long time, the Tarot isn’t included in the medieval texts and, as such, there’s no traditional and formal consecration.
I do not doubt that there are countless modern rituals for this purpose, but I wanted something more in line with the traditional Grimoires.
Here’s a suggestion for Ceremonial Magicians, based on (a slimmed down version of) the Watchtower Ritual and the general consecration from the Grimorium Verum:
(set up your ritual space, perform the LBRP + LBRH and cleanse the cards with water and incense, then place them in the centre of the room – Divination is usually associated with the Western quarter of Water, but the Tarot has all the elements, the planets and the signs, and the consecration is performed in the centre of your circle)
if you have a bell – strike it
then declare:
HEKAS HEKAS
ESTE BIBELOI
In the South, trace a circle, and in the circle trace an invoking Fire pentagram
then vibrate
OIP TEAA PDOCE
Say “I invoke you, ye Angels of the Great Watchtower of the South.”
Move to the West and trace the circle + an invoking Water pentagram. Vibrate
MPH ARSL GAIOL
Say “I invoke ye,ye Angels of the Great Watchtower of the West.”
Continue to the East, trace the circle and an invoking Air pentagram and vibrate
ORO IBAH AOZPI
Say “I invoke ye,ye Angels of the Great Watchtower of the East.”
Go to the North, trace the circle + invoking Earth pentagram, and vibrate
MOR DIAL HCTGA
Say “I invoke ye,ye Angels of the Great Watchtower of the North.”
Return to the centre, make the “rendering of the veil” gesture above your cards and say:
OL SONF VORSG GOHO IAD BALT ELEXARPEH COMANANU TABITOM ZODAKARA OD ZODAMERANU. ODO KIKLE QAA PIAP PIAMOS OD VAOAN
Now walk the perimeter of your circle 3 times deosil,
making the sign of the Enterer each time you pass East
Return to the centre
I conjure thee, O spirit of these cards,
by the authority of God the Almighty Father,
by the virtue of Heaven and the Stars,
that thou receive all power to perform your task
and answer without trickery or falsehood
when I ask
By the command of God
Creator of the Sun and the Angels.
Amen
(trace a cross over the cards and visualize it in bright white light, then point to the centre of the cross – centre of the deck – and vibrate)
Dalmaley + Lameck + Cadat + Pancia + Velous + Merroe + Lamideck + Caldulech + Anereton + Mitraton +
most pure Angels,
be the Guardians of these cards.
Amen
Close the Watchtower Ritual by giving thanks to God and now walking the circle 3 times widdershins, again making the sign of the Enterer in the East, and then give License to depart by going to the North, East, West and South and saying: “I thank thee for having been present during this ritual, go in peace and let there be peace between me and thee”
For my interpretation of what the Angelic names in this consecration from the Grimorium Verum mean – in the context of consecrating – you can download my version of the book here:
https://wizardforums.com/threads/the-40-demons-of-vervm-yazata-and-ancient.3812/
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“the spirit of these cards”
In the Golden Dawn, and for many of the Children of Crowley, the Angel HRU is considered to be the guardian / ruler of the cards. This suggests the tarot is intended to be a daily exercise, because in Egyptian, HRU means “day” or “daily”, and each day of the month was dedicated to a god. So the first day of the month was for example called HRU TEHUTI or “the day of Thoth”.
As each day starts with the rising of the sun, or the birth of the god, the daily tarot contemplation can be seen as the ongoing journey towards the Knowledge & Conversation of the HGA which is your god.
To me, this means that HRU is not the spirit of the cards but rather a “generic” name for your Angel, and the tarot is a medium for it to communicate with you. The spirit of the tarot is subject to your Angel. Therefore, in this consecration, you use “spirit of these cards” and not HRU or the name of your Angel.
Divination
There is a (dream) divination spell in the PGM (PDM lxi 63) that calls on Har-Thoth.
The original (dream divination) spell is as follows:
write the following words on a laurel leaf with an ink made from myrrh and wine
THOYTHKH
LABINOYTHKH
PHREKH
SALBANAKHA
falcon
ape
ibis
then say the following:
Come to me, Thoth, Eldest one, Eldest one of Re, who went forth from Atum, who was born from Atum!
Come to me, Thoth, heart of Re, tongue of Tatenen, throat of the one whose name is hidden!
Come to me
HEFKAE
HEPKA
HEBIKE
NEKHE-P-KAI
Come to me Lord of Truth
who loves Truth
who judges Truth
who does Truth!
Come to me in your beautiful face in this good night
and make answer to me concerning everything about which I am entreating here today, truly without falsehood therein!
Come to me in your form of the excellent one,
in your secret image
Come to me and answer to everything
without falsehood
Then you place the laurel leaf under your head and go to sleep
I have an idea what the barbarous words could mean, and have based the following tarot ritual on this text
The Serpent-Spread
Take a small piece of paper (about 2×2 inch or 5×5 cm) and write your question on it, place it on the altar / table or floor in front of you, place your deck of cards on top of it and then say:
I am
the Heart gird with a Serpent
Come to me
as the Moon is poured out
Come to me
in a continuous drip
Come to me
living messenger and guide
let me see the secrets that these images hide
HEFKAE
HEPKA
HEBIKE
NEKHE-PE-KAI
Come to me!
(close your eyes and visualize a bright white sphere of light descending on and into your cards. Keep your eyes closed and welcome the god)
Shuffle the cards, and place the first one in the Mars position. This signifies the first step / action to take.
The second card is Mercury and is what you need to communicate.
Third is Luna, and shows the influence the subject of your question has on your subconscious.
Fourth is Venus, indicating the positive and / or an advantage that you have.
Fifth is Jupiter, meaning (outside) beneficial influence.
Sixth is Saturn, giving a likely outcome / or a limiting factor.
When the ceremony is done you can burn the paper – Keep a small bowl nearby!)
Asterrars 