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Crowley Tarot: discover the origin of this complex oracle

The Crowley Tarot, also known as the Thoth Tarot, is a 78-card oracle developed by Aleister Crowley and illustrated by his student, Lady Frieda Harris, in the 20th century.

Its fame is due not only to the art of the cards, loaded with countless symbolisms that make reading complex, but also to Crowley himself.

Get to know a little about this famous oracle, its origins, its characteristics, differences from the traditional tarot and the meaning of Crowley’s Tarot cards!

Still don’t know what Tarot is? Check out our video with the history and some features of this oracle:

Origin of Crowley Tarot

Aleister Crowley (1875-1947) was a great British occultist, magician and writer and also the founder of Thelema doctrine. Thelema was based on The Book of the Law which, according to Crowley, was dictated by Aiwass, spokesman for the god Horus.

In the 1930s, Frieda Harris suggested that Crowley re-read traditional tarot based on The Book of the Law. For five years they worked together to bring Crowley’s ideas to the world.

Despite all the work, neither of them managed to see the oracle published: Crowley’s Tarot was only published in 1969, years after Crowley’s death in 1947 and Harris’s death in 1962.

The author has also published The Book of Thoth, in which he describes the philosophy behind Crowley’s Tarot, as well as instructions for using the oracle and a 15-card drawing method. But beware: do not confuse Crowley’s work with the Book of Thoth (Egyptian Tarot)!

Crowley Tarot Features

The symbolism present in the cards is undoubtedly one of the most striking features of the Thoth Tarot. In art, it is possible to notice elements of astrology, Kabbalah and gematria (numerology), as well as images of philosophy and mythology, mainly Egyptian mythology.

And it is precisely because of all these symbolic elements that Crowley’s Tarot is one of the most complex oracles to consult, as it requires knowledge of numerous esoteric elements.

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As with other oracles, the Tarot of Thoth cards are divided into 22 major arcana and 56 minor arcana.

The differences between Crowley Tarot and traditional tarot

But if you believe that the differences between different oracles are only in the art stamped on the cards, think again! The names of some cards also change in the Crowley Tarot:

Court cards are also a little different from what we are used to:

  • Knight: King
  • Prince: Knight
  • Princess: Knave

Thoth Tarot Cards: The Major Arcana

The Major Arcana represent human archetypes and show the Fool’s spiritual journey to the end in the Universe. Want to know the meaning of the Thoth Tarot cards? See below:

  • The crazy: the beginning of the journey, the infinite potential within each one;
  • The magician: the use of the necessary skills in the best way to evolve in the journey;
  • The Priestess: connecting with inner wisdom and developing intuition;
  • The Empress: the discovery of love in all its forms;
  • The emperor: responsibility for one’s own life, organization and control, identifying what can and cannot be controlled;
  • The Hierophant: the connection with the spiritual;
  • The lovers: the break up;
  • The Carriage: the direction and conduct to achieve objectives;
  • Adjustment: the discovery of the consequences of their actions; free will; the balance of all aspects of life and karma;
  • The Hermit: the discovery of inner light through self-reflection and solitude;
  • The Fortune: the calm and balance while life happens;
  • voluptuousness: the use of passion as a motivation to achieve goals;
  • The Hanged Man: the act of making sacrifices to achieve your purposes;
  • Death: the transformation; the fundamental basis in the spiritual journey;
  • The art: becoming someone stronger and more balanced, going through trials and temptations;
  • The devil: the connection of mind, emotions and the world with the material;
  • The tower: change and transformation through total destruction;
  • The star: the hope and inspiration after the Tower’s destruction;
  • The moon: illusion, the unknown and everything we don’t want to face;
  • The sun: freedom, success and creative growth;
  • The Aeon: the beginning of a new chapter based on the knowledge acquired along the journey;
  • The universe: the end of the journey, learning and growth.
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Thoth Tarot Cards: The Minor Arcana

The 56 Minor Arcana cards of the Crowley Tarot are divided into 4 suits and each suit connects to an essential element and a distinct area of ​​our lives:

The suit of Wands is linked to initiative and the element of fire.

The suit of Spades is related to conflicts, mainly emotional, and is connected to the air element.

The suit of Cups, on the other hand, has to do with interpersonal relationships, emotions, so we are not surprised when we discover that its element is water.

Finally, the suit of Pentacles represents the material, not the subjective, grounded in the earth element.

The difference of the Thoth Tarot cards is in the titles and in the relationships with astrology: each numbered card has a keyword, an astrological sign and a planet ruling the dean of this sign associated with it.

For example, the Three of Cups card is associated with the second decan of the Sign Cancer, whose ruling planet is Mercury. Also, your keyword is “Abundance”, in the positive sense of having an excess of feelings for the people you relate to or not experiencing needs, and also in a negative sense, of having too many extravagances in your life.

Crowley’s Tarot Card Art

Each Crowley Tarot card has been designed and illustrated to express all of Aleister’s knowledge. The more we pay attention to art, the more detail we can see.

Here are some cards and their meanings present in art:

The moon

Hebrew alphabet: in this card, which represents illusions, doubts and the unknown, we can notice the letter ק (qoph), which is related to the back of the head (something we cannot see).

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Astrology: we can also perceive the symbol of the sign of Pisces, often associated with emotions and the subconscious.

Egyptian Mythology: at the bottom of the card, there is a scarab, which represents the god Khepri in Egyptian mythology, carrying a solar disk, our conscious mind that faces the fears and insecurities present in our unconscious. At the top, the god Set (left) holds the symbol of the planet Mercury, which represents the logical mind and rational thought; this god is sometimes linked to the figure of a trickster, a being who achieves his goals using trickery and illusion. The god Anubis (right), in this card, represents a guide for souls who alternate between the conscious world and the unconscious world; he holds the symbols of Neptune and Venus, also linked to the sign of Pisces.

Two of Wands

The colors used in this card leave no doubt that it is a card full of energy and will. When we pay attention to the details, we can understand its meaning even better.

There are two Tibetan daggers, signifying the power of destruction; from them spring six flames, representing not only the element of the suit of clubs, but also the will in its purest form, without goals or plans. The bottom of the card refers to the energy of the planet Mars in Aries, the sign it rules.

Crowley’s Tarot is without a doubt one of the richest oracle rich and complex decks out there. Want to learn more about the other types of tarot? Check out the course on the Tarot of Marseille:

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