The Tarot of the Bohemians (Papus) · 16 of 134 · tr. A.P. Morton

Chapter V (part 3)

Ut us, however, return to our deduction, and by summing up the results obtained, we shall find-- Representations of the Yod : The King The 1 or Ace The 4 The 7 Representations of the He : The Queen The 2 The 5 The 8 Representations of the Vau : The Knight The 3 The 6 The 9 Representations of the 2 nd He : The Knave The 10 FIGURATION OF ONE COLOR Head --Spirituality Divine World Chest --Vitality Human World Body --Materiality Material World Transition from one being to another Transition from another one world to STUDY OF THE FOUR COLOURS.

Supplied with these data, let us continue our study, and apply the same principle to the other cards.

The laws which we have defined for the constitution of one colour, apply in the same way to the other three colours.

But when we consider the four colours of the Tarot, new deductions will be called forth.

We must remember that these four colours are: the Sceptre, the Cup, the Sword, and the Money or Pentacles.

The Sceptre represents the Male or the Active.

The Cup is the image of the Passive or Feminine.

The Sword represents the union of the two by its crucial form.

Lastly, the Pentacles represent the second He.

The authors who have philosophically studied the Tarot are all unanimous in asserting the analogy that exists between the tetragrammaton and the four colours.

Guillaume Postel, and above all Eliphas Levi, have developed these studies with great results, and they show us the four letters of the tetragrammaton applied in the symbolism of every cultus.

We must pause one moment to notice the analogy, between these letters and the symbols of the Christian religion.

The Yod or Sceptre of the Tarot is represented by the episcopal crosier.

The 1 st He or Cup is represented by the Chalice.

The Vau or Sword by the Cross, bearing the same form.

The 2 nd He or Pentacles by the Host, the transition from the natural to the Supernatural world.

The series which we have studied in one colour is defined equally strictly in the four colours regarded as a whole, thus-- Sceptre or Yod Cup or He 2nd He or Money Vau or Sword A COMPREHENSIVE GLANCE OVER TIRE MINOR ARCANA.

If we look back a little, we can easily judge the road we have traversed.

The four colours considered in globo have shown us the application of the law Yod-he-vau-he .

But the same law is reproduced in each of the colours taken separately.

The four figures represent Yod-he-vau-he ; The four series of numbers also.

Let us then arrange all the cards according to their affinities, and we shall obtain the following results-- The 4 Kings = Yod The 4 Aces The 4 Fours The 4 Sevens The 4 Queens = He The 4 Twos The 4 Fives The 4 Eights The 4 Cavaliers = Vau The 4 Threes The 4 Sixes The 4 Nines The 4 Knaves = He The 4 Tens If we wished to represent this arrangement by a synthetic diagram, we should place the sacred name in the centre of a circle divided into four parts, which respectively correspond with each of the letters Yod-he-vau-he .

In each of the quarters, the cards that are analogous to the letters of the tetragrammaton will radiate from the centre.

See the diagram on page opposite.

The figures have the same connection with the colours as the numbers have with the figures.

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Themes

Correspondencecosmology

The Hermetic axiom that the structure of the cosmos is reflected at every scale — 'as above, so below; as within, so without' — making each level a legible map of the others.

The passage is fundamentally structured around the Hermetic axiom of correspondence, mapping Tarot cards to Hebrew letters, Christian symbols, and cosmic levels (Divine/Human/Material).

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Divine Immanencetheology

The doctrine that the divine is present within all things and the universe itself, pervading creation rather than remaining solely transcendent above it. Distinct from unity_of_being (the general claim that all existence is one substance, agnostic about whether that substance indwells its parts) and from kingdom_within (the divine present specifically IN THE INDIVIDUAL human, accessible without mediation) — divine_immanence is the general pervading-presence claim applied to all of creation, not a human-specific indwelling.

By mapping the divine name (Tetragrammaton) onto material cards and human worlds, the text suggests the divine structure pervades creation.

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Esoteric Lineagesoteriology

A historical or mythical chain of transmission for secret wisdom from master to disciple across time and cultures — the credential of the teaching, not merely its content. Distinct from oral_tradition (the spoken-not-written modality of transmission, which a lineage may or may not use) and hidden_sayings (the concealment-for-readiness of a teaching's meaning, independent of who transmitted it or in what unbroken chain).

The author references Guillaume Postel and Eliphas Levi as predecessors who developed these studies, establishing a chain of transmission for this knowledge.

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Gendercosmology

The Hermetic doctrine that a masculine-feminine generative principle operates on every plane of being, not only the biological — present at all times as a structural feature of creation itself. Distinct from divine_marriage (a specific reunification event or symbol) and aeons (paired divine beings arranged in syzygies, not a universal structural claim).

The text assigns Male/Active to the Sceptre and Passive/Feminine to the Cup, illustrating the Hermetic doctrine of gender principles operating on every plane.

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Letters Of Creationcosmology

The twenty-two Hebrew letters as the building blocks through which God creates and sustains all existence.

The text explicitly links the Hebrew letters of the Tetragrammaton to the constitution of the Tarot suits and figures, implying their creative or structural power.

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Microcosm Macrocosmcosmology

The human being as a small-scale image of the entire cosmos; the body, soul, and intellect mirroring the structure of the heavens and the divine — distinct from correspondence in that it makes the human the privileged mirror.

The passage describes the 'Head --Spirituality Divine World', 'Chest --Vitality Human World', and 'Body --Materiality Material World', reflecting the cosmic structure within the human figure/card system.

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Numerical Mysticismtheology

Numbers, proportions, and mathematical relationships as the underlying structure of divine reality.

The passage extensively details how numbers (1-10) and card series correspond to specific letters of the divine name, treating numbers as structural keys to reality.

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Sacred Namestheology

Divine names or formulas that carry ontological power, used in prayer, liturgy, or magical practice.

The text centers on the Tetragrammaton (Yod-He-Vau-He) as a sacred name whose letters govern the symbolism of the Tarot and Christian religion.

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Related passages · 8 parallels

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