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The Llewellyn Encyclopedia

Term: fool

DEFINITIONS

Fool: One of the trumps of the Major Arcana of the tarot. Numbered 0. In the system of Eliphas Levi, it is placed between XX Judgment and XXI The World and corresponds to the Hebrew letter Shin. In the system of the Golden Dawn, The Fool corresponds to the Hebrew letter Aleph and the element of Air.

Fool: The instigating character in the English mummer’s play tradition.
source: Bronwen Forbes

Fool:

Number: Generally numbered "O" or "22" of the Major Arcana

Image: Variously a Court Jester and a dog about to step off a cliff, naked child with a dog, a pilgrim in a strange land or an enthused rider with his dog jumping his horse across the chasm between the worlds

Hebrew letter: Aleph

Divinatory meaning: foolhardy courage, determination, act of faith

Path on Tree of Life: 11th path connecting Chokmah to Kether.

Sometimes called "The Foolish Man," the Fool is perhaps the most interesting card in the Tarot for it is he who makes the journey through life, from Start "0" to Finish "22." It is the Fool who is transformed by his journey, just as each of us must be to become a Whole Person.

Qabalistic Description.  The Zero Key, the 11th Path. The Magickal Title of this card is the Spirit of Ether. The Path of the Fool connects Kether to Chokmah and is known as Fiery Intelligence. It is the first current of physical vibration. The Hebrew letter Aleph is attributed to this card, and means absolute unity, hence the number is 0.

Card Description.  This card usually shows a man in a jester’s costume striding along, heedless of a dog tearing at his garments and possibly threatening to attack him. In the GD pack, an effort is made to reveal the deeper meaning. A naked child giving the Sign of Silence sits beneath a rose-tree bearing yellow roses; while reaching up to the Roses, the child also holds in leash a grey wolf—worldly wisdom held in check by perfect innocence. The colors are pale yellow, pale blue, greenish yellow—suggestive of the early dawn of a spring day.

Interpretation. Idea, thought, spirituality, that which seeks to rise above the material (that is, if the subject of enquiry is spiritual.) However, if the Divination  regards a material event of ordinary life, this card is not positive, and may indicate folly, stupidity, eccentricity, and even mania, unless balanced with very good cards. It is too ideal and unstable to be generally positive in material things.

Psychological Value. This card can be used whenever you are seeking to awaken, stir and use the energetic forces of the universe. By reconnecting with these natural forces, it can enhance your creative energy and the vital principle which is inside you. By fostering an open and quick mind, it helps you prepare for changes, challenges and trips. (According to the Divine Arcana of the Aurum Solis—Divinity: Ouranos; Greek Letter: Rho.)


source: Llewellyn's Complete Book of Psychic Empowerment, by Carl Llewellyn Weschcke & Joe H. Slate (Llewellyn Publications) - Carl Llewellyn Weschcke

Also See: Le Mat

ARTICLES

Review of The Manga Tarot
Summary: The Manga Tarot is a beautiful and insightful deck. It skillfully combines the evocative and fantastical feel of Manga with the equally evocative format of Tarot. Add to the mix some creative changes and juxtapositions and you’ve got a deck ...
Relevance:  18 % 18%


Review of Dame Fortune\'s Wheel Tarot
Summary: Dame Fortune’s Wheel Tarot is an elegant marriage of historical research and practicality. It celebrates the Tarot’s introduction as a divinatory tool, stripping it of modern esoteric burdens. The result is a deck that is eminently easy to ...
Relevance:  10 % 10%


Review of The Labyrinth Tarot Deck
Summary The Labyrinth Tarot takes the reader on a journey, as all labyrinths do. The theme is subtle, woven symbolically throughout the deck by way of evocative imagery, astrological symbols, Hebrew letters, and other symbols. While the feel is ...
Relevance:  7 % 7%


Hypnosis
If you were to ask a dozen "experts" to give a definition of hypnosis, they would give you a dozen different answers. No matter what anyone says, there is no such thing as an accepted definition of hypnosis. No one knows exactly what it is. ...
Relevance:  7 % 7%


Review of The Gilded Tarot
Summary: A spectacularly beautiful Tarot deck using modern digital art that is firmly based on the Rider-Waite-Smith model—making it easy to use for traditionalists and beginners, as well as a compliment for any book—yet significantly original so it ...
Relevance:  7 % 7%


Review of The Pictorial Key Tarot
Summary: More than just another RWS copy, The Pictorial Key Tarot takes the original RWS concepts and brings them into the 21st century. It uses the same basic symbolism as the RWS, but enhances it in places to make Waite’s original ideas clearer ...
Relevance:  7 % 7%


Review of The Llewellyn Tarot
Summary: Close enough to the RWS deck to be usable by beginners and yet filled with the beauty of the Welsh legends, something that will fascinate anyone intrigued by that myths of the Mabinogion or who spiritually lives with that pantheon. A must ...
Relevance:  3 % 3%


The Robin Wood Tarot—A Review
Summary: A delightful delicacy in lively, stand-out color that modernizes the Rider-Waite-Smith deck in style while keeping most of the symbolism (including the medieval context) and making the characters’ personalities really apparent. This moves ...
Relevance:  3 % 3%


The Sacred Circle Tarot
Summary: The Sacred Circle Tarot features brilliant, realistic art and a totally Celtic Pagan orientation. Perfect for art collectors, Pagans, and people who already have experience with Tarot, its uniqueness is its high point and its challenge, as ...
Relevance:  3 % 3%


The Contemplative Tarot Review
Summary: The Contemplative Tarot is designed for meditation, for self-discovery, and for self-improvement. It is suitable for beginners and advanced tarot users if the user desires a tool for reflection not for learning traditional tarot usage, that ...
Relevance:  3 % 3%



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