A history of the Sabian Symbols

Oooooh, that is a beautiful post. And I'm very happy to see you focus on the Sabian Symbols, an object of my curiosity for decades now. The images are part of my thought process; the book (I have Rudhyar's An Astrological Mandala) is the most well-worn volume I own.

Beliefnet distorts the tarot again. Tarot as originally conceived is not a divination system. The cards were meant for games which are still played in continental Europe. Tell the whole truth about tarot. The cards were meant for game playing and not for divination.

TarotGamePlayer...it may be that the cards were meant for game playing. But that was a long time ago, and most who use the cards for divination know the origins. So now they are also meant for divination. Lynn isn't hiding the truth on this. She doesn't have space to write every blinking fact about everything.

One can build a small dog house, stick it up in the air and have birds nest in if it moves one to do so. It may seem strange to some people but not to the birds. So far there are now laws on these matters.

Anything that can get tumbled about in a random way can be used for divination (and even things that are more or less predictable...such as the solar system...it's only because the bodies are orbiting relatively slowly that their movement is predictable...in other words, what seems random is not really random). So there's no 'distortion' involved.

You may be trying to distort reality by saying usage of the cards is fixed (no contradiction here with above paragraph). In fact, it was probably predictable that you would come to this page with your complaint. How about reflecting on these 2 points re. yourself ???

Was that a slip for the Aquarian future? 'Now' in 2nd para. of my 2nd post above should be 'no'...definitely 'no' now.

Also, Lynn...I may not be correct here because my Ellias Lonsdale books are not accessible to me for the current while, but my recall says he 'based' his work on the Chandra symbols. Will have to check this when I can.

Tarot game playing is not a long time ago. Card games with tarot cards are being played today in the 21st century. What's more is that there are now some Americans learning these games from the internet. Divination may still be the majority use of the cards in this country but it does not excuse the tarot readers of speaking as if they monopolize this artifact. It can also be said that the Golden Dawn misreprested the tarot to the people of Great Britain and the United States by stripping it of its original context. My comments concerned Beliefnet as whole in terms of how they treat the subject of tarot in a biased and inaccurate way.

Visit Lynda Hill's website via the link in my post, or get Dane Rudhyar's book: http://www.amazon.com/Astrological-Mandala-Transformations-Symbolic-Phases/dp/0394719921/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247688335&sr=1-1

or Marc Edmund Jones's: http://www.amazon.com/Sabian-Symbols-Astrology-Symbol-Explained/dp/094335840X/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247688372&sr=1-3

oh pish posh!The real question is what were the origins of the iconography of the tarot decks? Most authorities agree that the classic tarot deck is actually derived from two separate decks with two very distinct origins and meanings. The suits origins can be traced to the ancient Persia and hold definitive meanings all on their own. The origins of the trumps are separate. However the art of divination is old and not unique to one culture. Cleromancy and Sortilege have distinct history. The Roman art of Sortes are the probable origin of the trumps and most assuredly used for divination using lots, tablets and pages from various books. The early Christians used pages from the bible for the same exercise and were known as the Sortes Sanctorum. If your interested, Paul Hudson has explored all this in his wonderful book "MYSTICAL ORIGINS OF THE TAROT". Recommended reading.

Thanks Alexander! I'll return the favor. :)

Mary H Ruth...glad you checked back.

By your experience...has it been to the extent, or in a way, that sometimes when your moment is full enough you can pick up on it in a kind of slow motion, or even sense something just before so your radar switches on, and catch the thing (that normally wouldn't seem anything in particular or special) happening on the fly and make a significant connection at almost the same time (even though that connection might not be something you'd want to see...in fact, it might be because of normally held resistance you've been allowed a visit when least expected...and you probably say to yourself "Oh...jeez!") ??? Is that how it works sometimes ?

There are probably (many) people who have this sort of experience (turn out to be a smashing coincidence), but I rarely meet them, never mind discuss with anyone.

In fact, my (and likely others') astrology is like this, the difference is it's a practiced, ritual case (synchronicities with background awareness going on all the time not taken as such)...unlike, e.g., a clap of thunder shattering my eardrums at the instant of a particular thought that then has its volume raised (for a reason...like, "you'd better listen up").

You say "it's easy to see how things happen." In our natural state, I guess it is.

Thanks !!!

[ btw...am only now reminded from your 1st post of a coincidence for me in your name, which I can't relate here...a thread to it could be found in Arthur Guirdham's main work, though that's a stretch...still you might find this work of interest ]