Tarot Hermeneutics

The Tuesday night teleconference is open to all who wish to participate assuming you want to follow the guidelines of the group which is no more than common courtesy and a willingness to let everyone have their voice about matters under discussion. The teleconferences more a conversation among friends and does not have the directive intensity of a class. The teleconferences are designed for people who read the tarot avocationally and/or professionally. Besides the material read and discussed, we consult the cards about questions arising during our conversation.

These teleconferences are offered gratis and there are no fees attached or commitments exacted from participants. People are welcome to drop in at any time during the conversation and may address the issues under discussion.

Future topics for Tuesday night teleconference are always open for discussion, in consensus amongst participants.

I have an idea toward exploring the deep structure of the tarot via a close reading of Carl Jung’s Psychological Types http://www.amazon.com/Psychological-Types-Collected-Works-Bollingen/dp/0691018138/ . Because Jung uses classical types to delineate personality configurations, his discussion may also profoundly address deeper issues of philosophical attitude, and for tarot readers the deep structure of tarot cards, numerology, and iconology. The purpose of this reading then is not to make tarot an instrument of analytic psychology, but rather see how the fundamental ideas shape the universal significance of tarot as an oracle.

The texts I have in mind may include

Jung's Four and Some Philosophers: A Paradigm for Philosophy by Thomas Mulvihill King (Notre Dame) http://www.amazon.com/Jungs-Four-Some-Philosophers-Philosophy/dp/0268032513/

The Question of Psychological Types: The Correspondence of C. G. Jung and Hans Schmid-Guisan, 1915-1916 (Philemon) by C. G. Jung, Hans Schmid-Guisan, edited by John Beebe and Ernst Falzeder, http://www.amazon.com/Question-Psychological-Types-Correspondence-Schmid-Guisan/dp/0691155615/

Selective readings from William James, Henry Bergson, among others may be included in an ad hoc way. We may also consider some of the classical philosophers who embodied the types and provided early accounts of contemplative experience and the human condition. This would include Heraclitus, Parmenides, Plato, Aristotle, Plotinus, and Proclus. To the degree we tackle these foundational thinkers of the Western tradition we will also constantly refer to tarot reading techniques as fundamental to our dialogue with self and other, knowledge and freedom.

Previous discription:

In these teleconferences we explore the Kabbalah as relevent to our tarot understanding and readings for clients. Unlike many approaches that offer stark analogs with the Tree of Life, we  consider a more gentle view of the symbolism as it relates to experience told in story and as template for our own diverse experiences and ideas of spirituality. We read and reference exceptionally well-written material by Pamela Eakins, Rachel Pollack, and Melila Hellner-Eshed.

We read and discuss these in turn the first hour of our call. The second hour is devoted to exercises in reading and interpretation with your own tarot deck.

As usual we proceed collegially, sharing responsibility for adapting and understanding the material. Because of our open-ended, topic-driven approach, we can speed up or slow down as our consensus develops around the ideas encountered.

This is a free teleconference and people are welcome to call-in whenever they want or can to participate. However when new to the calls, take some time to listen and figure out where the group is and then freely contribute as you want.

From time to time other special material is considered. Most weeks I send out a reminder notice whch will alert you to changes in topic or other news. Email me with your email address you want to receive these reminders. Likewise send the email address to me again when you want to be removed.