78 Degrees Of Wisdom Pdf
The two volumes of 'Seventy Eight Degrees of Wisdom' have inspired a whole generation of students of the Tarot. Described by many as ‘the Bible of Tarot readers’, the books brought awareness of myth and modern psychology to the Tarot’s ancient esoteric symbolism.
Now, for the first time, the texts for 'The Major Arcana' and 'The Minor Arcana' appear in one volume. To mark The two volumes of 'Seventy Eight Degrees of Wisdom' have inspired a whole generation of students of the Tarot. Described by many as ‘the Bible of Tarot readers’, the books brought awareness of myth and modern psychology to the Tarot’s ancient esoteric symbolism. Now, for the first time, the texts for 'The Major Arcana' and 'The Minor Arcana' appear in one volume. To mark this special occasion, Rachel Pollack has revised and updated the book in the light of her thirty years’ teaching, reading, and writing about Tarot cards. She has also written a new preface describing her own journey through the Tarot’s world of symbols.
Pollack 78 Degrees Of Wisdom
The Tarot is an eternally fascinating set of strange and beautiful pictures. But beyond this lies a world of potent symbols granting access to a path of self knowledge, personal growth and freedom. These symbols connect us to the great stories of world mythology and the eternal truths of the soul. 'Seventy Eight Degrees of Wisdom'shows you how to use Tarot as an effective and accessible means of self-enlightenment. The book includes a complete section on how to give Tarot readings, as well as an analysis of the origins, meaning and psychological aspects of Tarot divination. These days most anybody can do a tarot reading.
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There are literally hundreds of different decks all complete with canned readings for each card. In a way, it's rather like reading your daily horoscope as the results are rather generalized to match virtually anyone. Definitely, not every tarot reader is equal in quality. The best readers go beyond simplistic generalizations. They not only tailor their layouts and reading results to match the individual but also look to the deeper meanings of the These days most anybody can do a tarot reading. There are literally hundreds of different decks all complete with canned readings for each card.
In a way, it's rather like reading your daily horoscope as the results are rather generalized to match virtually anyone. Definitely, not every tarot reader is equal in quality. The best readers go beyond simplistic generalizations. They not only tailor their layouts and reading results to match the individual but also look to the deeper meanings of the cards. These unique abilities are both invaluable skills and amazing talents. Seventy Eight Degrees of Wisdom is a must have resource for anyone wanting to do real tarot readings.
The author has an inherent ability to see depth within the cards that many need to be taught to notice. Within this book, she shares her valuable insights and urges the reader to follow suit.
Originally this book was two books separating out the major and minor arcane. This new format brings these important references into one easier to access resource. I bought this book based on positive reviews and an observation I thought I'd read somewhere about Harold Bloom having said that it was essential to understanding the tarot. (I have since looked and been unable to find mention of this anywhere.) I was rather optimistic about it, thinking I’d at last found a book that could elucidate the symbology of the (Rider-Waite-Smith) tarot for me. Less than a hundred pages later I was grinding my teeth, doing my best to dig out any interesting bits from all I bought this book based on positive reviews and an observation I thought I'd read somewhere about Harold Bloom having said that it was essential to understanding the tarot. (I have since looked and been unable to find mention of this anywhere.) I was rather optimistic about it, thinking I’d at last found a book that could elucidate the symbology of the (Rider-Waite-Smith) tarot for me. Less than a hundred pages later I was grinding my teeth, doing my best to dig out any interesting bits from all the flower-scented beautiful spiritual light.
Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom is not a book of analysis proper, but of interpretation. Rachel Pollack thinks the tarot carries not only the symbolism of the individual cards and perhaps an overall structure of some kind, but a very specific and organized set of teachings about life and the world: “The Tarot. Is not impartial. On the contrary, it attempts to push us in certain directions: optimism, spirituality, a belief in the necessity and value of change.” This stance distills much of the tarot’s putative divinatory powers into rather anodyne New Age advice, although by itself it is not contradictory if we’re parting from a hermeneutical blank slate. She divides the Major Arcana in three lines of seven, leaving the Fool out (she suggests he can fit in between any of several pairs of cards). The first one, which ranges from the Magician to the Chariot, she calls “the outer concerns of life in society”; the second one, from Strength to Temperance, “the search inwards to find out who we really are”; and the third, from the Devil to the World, “the development of a spiritual awareness and a release of archetypal energy”. These represent three stages in a linear path towards some kind of rapture, “a unity with the great forces of life itself”, each step being represented by one of the Major Arcana.
Even if we’re to give her the benefit of the doubt, we can at best countenance these interpretations as being inherent to the Waite tarot and not the primordial 15th century decks, since there are central concerns with the distinction between conscious and unconscious, “the materialist conception of the universe” and so on — notions that were just not around at the time when the tarot was originated. And even then it takes a lot of generosity to accept many of her analyses, for three main reasons: One, she finds symbolism everywhere to support her desired meanings — a sword facing upright means “both resolve and the idea that wisdom is like a sword piercing through the illusion of events to find the inner meaning”, and a yellow road is “yellow for mental action”. Even if we accept the plausibility of these images carrying such meanings, still the sword has to point somewhere, the road has to be some color.
Without recurring to authority, it’s hard to know what is relevant and what is not; and the ultimate authority on the RWS tarot, Arthur Waite’s own Pictorial Key to the Tarot, is known to be deliberately misleading when regarding certain topics that the Golden Dawn held secretive. Pollack is, therefore, justified in adopting his descriptions and divinatory meanings at times and ignoring them at others — but she does this without much criterion, saying that “to a great extent, the material in this book does not derive from teachers on Tarot (I never studied with anyone or took any classes) but just from working with the cards”. This leaves an opening for her to use only what she likes from the Pictorial Key, later filling the empty spaces with her own New Age preconceptions, without arguing for it. Two, her interpretations are often implausible. For instance, she says that a child with his back to us means that, in the context of the card being considered (Judgment), “the new existence is a mystery, with no way for us to know what it will be like until we experience it. and that we do not really know ourselves, and that we cannot until we hear and respond to the call”.
That seems a bit more elaborate than this humble symbol can support, assuming it’s meant to symbolize anything at all. This kind of symbological overburdening is much too frequent in the book. Three, her extremely systematic understanding of the Major Arcana involves certain relationships that are so elaborate that they could not possibly have been intended by the devisers of the Tarot, either Waite (who notoriously swapped two of the major arcana around) or whoever came before him. She draws not only all sorts of silly numerological relationships within and between the cards but also argues that cards on the same “column” in her three-line division are related — so the Moon relates to the Emperor, which is “above” it, as well as to Strength, because the Moon is card number 18 and Strength is card number 8; just as the Sun relates to the Hermit (19 and 9), as well as to the Magician (because “the other half to 20 of 19 is 1”) and to the Wheel of Fortune (“1 plus 9 equals 10”). The claimed significance of these relations is often subtle, but it’s easy to see how quickly they get out of hand. I find it highly implausible that someone could have built a system that univocally represents some external truth, as Pollack argues the Major Arcana does when considered sequentially, all the while carrying a scheme as elaborate as that. The way out would be to dare and say that the tarot actually reflects some transcendental blueprint of human psychology, but she doesn’t go that far.
I cannot, therefore, accept Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom as a book about the RWS tarot. It is an esoteric system built upon its images, vaguely buttressed on A. Waite’s own occult notions, but ultimately independent and, to me, unsatisfactory.
If your interest in the Tarot is exegetical and distanced, as is mine, look elsewhere. The book is not without its merits: the section on the Celtic cross spread was helpful, and in her analyses of the cards Pollack often notes the presence of interesting symbols that could easily be missed: the water behind the veil in the High Priestess, the similarity between Death and the Knight of Cups, the scales on the wall behind the old man in the Ten of Pentacles, so on. And some of her interpretations are persuasive, or at least good material for coming up with your own understanding of the cards, which seems more productive if we’re to play the game of arbitrariness anyway. I don’t regret having read this, but I could probably have gotten the same information from somewhere else, along with much this book doesn’t offer, and without having lost my time reading about all the sparkly pseudo-Jungian esotericism. Two books I think may be closer to what I was looking for are and. I haven't read them and won't read them any time soon, but if you can relate to the concerns exposed above, you may want to try starting your studies there instead. 2013/06/03: I also recommend for a more informed analysis of some of Pollack's interpretations.
This is one book that I can't recommend strongly enough, and one that I feel belongs on the shelf of every Tarot enthusiast. Using the popular Rider-Waite deck for illustration, it contains essays on each card, covering aspects of the symbolism as well as origins, history, mythology, and sociological, psychological, esoteric and religious implications.
It's rare to say that a book on Tarot is a “can't put down page-turner”, but this one is it! Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom is very well written This is one book that I can't recommend strongly enough, and one that I feel belongs on the shelf of every Tarot enthusiast.
Using the popular Rider-Waite deck for illustration, it contains essays on each card, covering aspects of the symbolism as well as origins, history, mythology, and sociological, psychological, esoteric and religious implications. It's rare to say that a book on Tarot is a “can't put down page-turner”, but this one is it! Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom is very well written and easy to understand, no matter what your level of expertise. Pollack has obviously done massive amounts of research and manages to convey a true love for the art of Tarot on each and every page, speaking to the reader as a patient, knowledgeable and wise teacher with years of experience. She also includes tutorials in the back of the book, covering such subjects as layouts, the Tree of Life, making a Mandala, and Meditations. On the whole, this is a wonderful, wonderful book and in my opinion, a true classic. I started getting frustrated when I found myself drowning in a miasma of numerology, somewhere in the preface.
The connections seemed rather tenuous, and my doubts were raised. I also found that the interpretations of the meanings of the cards didn't speak to me as did other sources, although they did seem to be a little more helpful in the context of doing a multi-card reading, especially for another person. But that's not how I've been using tarot, so it wasn't particularly helpful in that reg I started getting frustrated when I found myself drowning in a miasma of numerology, somewhere in the preface. The connections seemed rather tenuous, and my doubts were raised.
I also found that the interpretations of the meanings of the cards didn't speak to me as did other sources, although they did seem to be a little more helpful in the context of doing a multi-card reading, especially for another person. But that's not how I've been using tarot, so it wasn't particularly helpful in that regard. Also, the author has a different take on reversed cards than I was familiar with, so I struggled to get comfortable with that.
I guess it could be a problem of me not being ready to digest other sources, or it could be the doubts raised by all the numerology in the beginning; either way, I wasn't compelled to read all the way through or even consult the book all that much. Armed with this book, I am preparing myself for my encore career: psychic to the stars!
I will look into your soul and discover your deepest secrets! As Tarot books go, this is by far the best I have seen - lots of subtle nuances that are missing from standard books. I love Tarot because I am a huge fan of the power of symbolic images; the Tarot deck is like a Bacchanalian feast to me. I won't really tell all your deepest secrets. But I will enjoy the heck out of seeing how Tarot Armed with this book, I am preparing myself for my encore career: psychic to the stars! I will look into your soul and discover your deepest secrets!
As Tarot books go, this is by far the best I have seen - lots of subtle nuances that are missing from standard books. I love Tarot because I am a huge fan of the power of symbolic images; the Tarot deck is like a Bacchanalian feast to me. I won't really tell all your deepest secrets. But I will enjoy the heck out of seeing how Tarot's archetypal imagery evokes some unexpected thoughts and connections in your brain.
Don't even think about concealing your thoughts - they're written all over your face. This was a super interesting look at the Tarot from a historical, philosophical, and psychological perspective.
This is not a book about fortune telling. It's a book about the Tarot as a system of symbols that can be used to access the depths of your sub-conscious mind. It really reads the Tarot like a complex book that can be interpreted in almost infinite ways. A fantastic introduction for anyone who has any interest in the Tarot and what it really is-not magic, but a psychoanalytical tool th This was a super interesting look at the Tarot from a historical, philosophical, and psychological perspective. This is not a book about fortune telling. It's a book about the Tarot as a system of symbols that can be used to access the depths of your sub-conscious mind. It really reads the Tarot like a complex book that can be interpreted in almost infinite ways.
A fantastic introduction for anyone who has any interest in the Tarot and what it really is-not magic, but a psychoanalytical tool that has transformed itself multiple times throughout history. Damn, this is a fantastic tarot book!
Be warned, there's some woo if that's not your thing. But there's so much crammed into these pages that I was able just to ignore the woo bits and add so much to my understanding of the symbolism of these cards. Pollack does into such depth analysis of each card, often comparing different artistic renditions. It's been the most careful and considered tarot book I've read so far (though I would still recommend starting with the Joan Bunning, Learning the Taro Damn, this is a fantastic tarot book!
Be warned, there's some woo if that's not your thing. But there's so much crammed into these pages that I was able just to ignore the woo bits and add so much to my understanding of the symbolism of these cards. Pollack does into such depth analysis of each card, often comparing different artistic renditions.
It's been the most careful and considered tarot book I've read so far (though I would still recommend starting with the Joan Bunning, Learning the Tarot volume). A great book for beginners and intermediate in tarot reading.
Well, I guess that there are two main approaches in tarot reading: New Age and Mystical. This book is one of the new age approach, no doubt about that. And I don't really like New Age personally. But this book is not a Bible; it will not teach you the Tarot once and for all. It is an excellent introduction to its world and I firmly believe it does not tie you to a certain school of thought about it.
You may begin with it and then switc A great book for beginners and intermediate in tarot reading. Well, I guess that there are two main approaches in tarot reading: New Age and Mystical. This book is one of the new age approach, no doubt about that. And I don't really like New Age personally. But this book is not a Bible; it will not teach you the Tarot once and for all.
It is an excellent introduction to its world and I firmly believe it does not tie you to a certain school of thought about it. You may begin with it and then switch to the mystical path: it has to do more about your own relation with the tarot than the book itself.
If you want to learn the tarot, I 'd recommend you to read this book carefully. Use it as a reference for your spreads. Then forget it. Any book is only an introduction. Then you have to take your own steps. This book is definitely one of the best out there for both beginners and advanced tarot card readers. I would consider it the Bible of tarot card reading.
This book offers an in depth perspective on the tarot cards and their meanings. It goes a lot further than just giving the meanings of each card. Rachel Pollock goes into depth for each card. Each card is explored from both an esoteric perspective and a psychological perspective.
Everything is included in this book. Tarot history, sample readi This book is definitely one of the best out there for both beginners and advanced tarot card readers.
I would consider it the Bible of tarot card reading. This book offers an in depth perspective on the tarot cards and their meanings.
It goes a lot further than just giving the meanings of each card. Rachel Pollock goes into depth for each card. Each card is explored from both an esoteric perspective and a psychological perspective. Everything is included in this book. Tarot history, sample readings, and in depth explanations. This book will give you more clarity and a more in-depth understanding of the tarot.
I have been using and referring to this book for years when working with my tarot cards. Highly recommended for anyone who has an interest in tarot and who wants to learn how to work with tarot cards. I though of this as a very intersting way to approach life and existential issues, other than just a simple guide to tarot and divination. Although I have to admit that I was looking forward to a more 'detailed' or 'rich' explanation and insight on divination and readings (especially regarding the minor arcana and the always troublesome court cards), this book proved to be a really good starting point for someone briefly acquainted -although still a newcomer- to the system. I really liked all th I though of this as a very intersting way to approach life and existential issues, other than just a simple guide to tarot and divination.
Although I have to admit that I was looking forward to a more 'detailed' or 'rich' explanation and insight on divination and readings (especially regarding the minor arcana and the always troublesome court cards), this book proved to be a really good starting point for someone briefly acquainted -although still a newcomer- to the system. I really liked all the historic information bits here and there, albeit most of it could be inaccurate in some way. It really added a backbone to the system and formulae exposed, which would've been otherwise really tedious to discuss. Definitly a comprehensive book on tarot cards.
I havebeen reading them since I was 9. Originally as a fun little parlor trick.
And now I use them for various thoings including readings and meditation. The book in many ways made me have another look at the cards and pick up on details I have never noticed before. Some of which profoundly influenced the way I look at a great many of the cards.
Im taking one star away because reading the book, its easy to become burried under meanings and often ten Definitly a comprehensive book on tarot cards. I havebeen reading them since I was 9. Originally as a fun little parlor trick. And now I use them for various thoings including readings and meditation. The book in many ways made me have another look at the cards and pick up on details I have never noticed before. Some of which profoundly influenced the way I look at a great many of the cards. Im taking one star away because reading the book, its easy to become burried under meanings and often tenuous connections between widly varing religious and magical systems.
I dont think this book is really meant to be read through as a whole which I did but its more of a reference book. For the cards you find difficult to interprete. Its discription ofnthe celtic cross spread was acctually one of the most accesible I have come across. And I definitly feel I understand it better. If your genuinely interested in tarot its worth having. 3.5, I'd say?
There are claims in this book that are dubious, cringe-worthy, or down-right false. It's definitely New Agey, not scholarly.
But I still found some of its interpretations interesting and helpful, for my purposes. (I grant some measure of leniency in that some of the claims I find dubious and cringe-worthy nonetheless are influential ideas in such spheres.) Rachel Pollack is master of none, but knows just enough about a number of things for me to find her book informative nonetheles 3.5, I'd say?
There are claims in this book that are dubious, cringe-worthy, or down-right false. It's definitely New Agey, not scholarly. But I still found some of its interpretations interesting and helpful, for my purposes. (I grant some measure of leniency in that some of the claims I find dubious and cringe-worthy nonetheless are influential ideas in such spheres.) Rachel Pollack is master of none, but knows just enough about a number of things for me to find her book informative nonetheless. I don't think this book deserves the lofty accolades it so often receives (it seems to top lists of best tarot books fairly often.) But I also don't think more extreme critics have been entirely accurate or fair in their hissed condemnation.
Regardless, I found explaining each tarot card in accordance with its context and place within the deck/story genuinely insightful. Taken with a significant sprinkling of salt, a worth-while read. I find this book very hard to review.
For its value in teaching me tarot I'd give it 3 stars. For its value in being an interesting read with great experience I'd give it 5. There are some great insights that are really helpful, especially in the last section on readings. For Pollack's point of view on science and scientists, 2 stars, sorry I don't agree with all-or-nothing 'scientists are materialists' doctrine, nor do I really agree with materialism itself as a legitimate concept but I am awar I find this book very hard to review. For its value in teaching me tarot I'd give it 3 stars.
For its value in being an interesting read with great experience I'd give it 5. There are some great insights that are really helpful, especially in the last section on readings. For Pollack's point of view on science and scientists, 2 stars, sorry I don't agree with all-or-nothing 'scientists are materialists' doctrine, nor do I really agree with materialism itself as a legitimate concept but I am aware this comes down to opinion and worldview. Conversely, Pollack's ideas on people themselves and how they behave and respond to tarot was really interesting. Some of the card descriptions were pretty garbled, but others drew wealth from her own experiences of them so it was a bit touch and go. I'd say I've learnt quite a lot about certain cards but less about others.
I bought this book for my 48th birthday Tarot reading. The reading is still being analysed for further insights with the help of this very well written guide to Tarot symbolism and interpretation with references to Mythology, Jungian archetypes and other synchronicity based systems of interpreting reality and our place in it like Astrology, the I Ching, the Kabbalah etc. Great tool for learning the basics on using the Tarot cards for self-knowledge and growth. I particularly value the entries on I bought this book for my 48th birthday Tarot reading.
The reading is still being analysed for further insights with the help of this very well written guide to Tarot symbolism and interpretation with references to Mythology, Jungian archetypes and other synchronicity based systems of interpreting reality and our place in it like Astrology, the I Ching, the Kabbalah etc. Great tool for learning the basics on using the Tarot cards for self-knowledge and growth.
I particularly value the entries on the Minor Arcana cards because they're examined with the same attention to their symbolism and respective place in the deck as the Major Arcana cards. I will go back to this book again and again. This is the book about Tarot that I have been waiting for! It goes into lengthy detail about the symbolism and history of each and every card in the 78-card tarot deck. This is a great reference to have when trying to interpret readings as well as learning the history and culture of the art of Tarot.
The card spreads are supposed to be interpreted individually as well as telling a complete story so you have to really learn how to read into the symbolism to understand what the cards or saying and This is the book about Tarot that I have been waiting for! It goes into lengthy detail about the symbolism and history of each and every card in the 78-card tarot deck. This is a great reference to have when trying to interpret readings as well as learning the history and culture of the art of Tarot. The card spreads are supposed to be interpreted individually as well as telling a complete story so you have to really learn how to read into the symbolism to understand what the cards or saying and this is a great book to learn all of that!
I am glad I picked this up at the local bookstore! It is a priceless reference. My go to book for tarot using classic Rider-Waite deck.
Comprehensive writing, really going into the meaning/symbolism of the pictorals on the cards themselves. I like - for the most part - understanding the cards as they relate to each other and the universal picture they together are expressing. AT other times it's a nuisance to read through it all to find only then being left still to decipher personal meaning. That said, when I look at other guides and interpretations, I still find myself pi My go to book for tarot using classic Rider-Waite deck. Comprehensive writing, really going into the meaning/symbolism of the pictorals on the cards themselves. I like - for the most part - understanding the cards as they relate to each other and the universal picture they together are expressing.
AT other times it's a nuisance to read through it all to find only then being left still to decipher personal meaning. That said, when I look at other guides and interpretations, I still find myself picking up Pollack's book for deeper understanding.
A top tarotist's secrets to personal growth, one card at a time. The two volumes of Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom have inspired a whole generation of tarot students.
It has often been described by readers, booksellers, and teachers as the 'Bible of tarot readers.' It is also often cited as one of the landmark books in modern tarot, and it helped to launch the 'Tarot Renaissance' of the 1980s. The two texts-one for The Major Arcana and one for The Minor Arcana-appear together in this volume, which is a reissue of the 1998 edition first published by Thorsons. Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom draws on mythology and esoteric traditions and delves deeply into the symbolism and ideas of each card. It also gives the cards a modern psychological slant based on the pictures rather than a system of occult symbolism. This endlessly useful reference tool provides a concise history of tarot, introduces common spreads, and is a clear and readable book for both the beginning and advanced tarot student.