The Tarot of the Bohemians (Papus) · 77 of 134 · tr. A.P. Morton
Chapter XIV (part 8)
This is the God adored by materialist science, and we see that unconsciously its homage is offered to the Divinity itself under its most material form, even whilst it foolishly boasts of Atheism.
DEATH, CORPOREAL LIFE, and the DESTINY which rules their mutual connection, constitute the preserving principles of the Universe; lastly, PLASTIC FORCE, INDIVIDUAL LIFE, and the ASTRAL LIGHT IN CIRCULATION, show us the means of Transformation and of Realization used by the Cosmos.
But these are abstract principles; if we wish to see them in action we must consider the following ternary.
The Universal Transforming Principle marks its existence by the DESTRUCTION of beings and of things; but the Opposing Principle , Involution , at once IMMORTALIZES Destruction by the influx of new divine currents into CHAOS.
Adam materialized his nature by the FALL of his spirit into matter, the source of Death ; but the Corporeal Life , the source of HOPE, arises and provides the means of redeeming the fault, by suffering in the MATERIAL BODY.
Lastly MATTER itself appears, the final term of involution, after which recommences the grand Evolution towards the primitive centre.
It is unnecessary to say that we only wished to give a rapid sketch of the evidence of the Tarot upon Theogony, Androgony, and Cosmogony, without entering into detail.
In fact these are very serious questions, which require whole volumes to themselves, and we had not the least intention of discussing them in a few pages.
COSMOGONY .
Let us now recapitulate a little, so that we may definitely end the involution of the three grand principles: From GOD THE FATHER have emanated successively-- Adam Will Natura Naturans Power Then their form The Universal Creative Fluid .
Adam realized in the Father has produced Realization and the Astral Light ; whilst the Will was realized in Necessity , Supreme Power is shown in Magic Power , and the universal creative Fluid in Force Potential in its Manifestation .
Natura naturans realized in the Universal Transforming Principle has produced Death , and the Universal Plastic Force , with their forms, Destruction , the Fall of Adam , and the visible world.
These are all the principles that have successively emanated from the Father , and which represent him.
We have reproduced them in a tableau-- The two following figures arranged upon the same plan as this one, give the emanations of the two other principles of the first ternary.
In our Introduction to the study of symbolism we have given a numbered figure which enables us to determine immediately the meaning of any card in the Tarot.
If we now apply all that we have said upon the symbolism of each of our cards to this subject, we can condense the whole symbolism of the major arcana in one figure .
The new tableau thus formed will give us the sense of all our principles, whatever their number may be, and this is how we obtain this meaning-- USE OF THE TABLEAU.
1.
Seek in the horizontal column, to the left of the principle under consideration, the sense written there.
2.
Having ascertained this meaning, return to your principle and search in the vertical column at the bottom the great principle (God, Man, or the Universe) which is written there.
3.
Combine the meaning first obtained with the name placed in the vertical column, adding to it the word (itself or manifest) written in the vertical column which contains the principle of which you are seeking the meaning.
An example will explain this better.
Let us ascertain the meaning of the MOTHER-- The first term of the 8th arcanum.
1.
I look in the horizontal column containing the word MOTHER and I find at the end, to the left, the following meaning -- Active preserving Principle .
The Mother is the Active preserving Principle.
Of what?
2.
The universal fluid or medium of occult philosophy — Lévi's Great Magical Agent — that transmits will, thought, and magical influence between minds and matter, and preserves the impress of all forms and actions as a book of consciences; cognate with akasha and the anima mundi. Distinct from cosmic_sympathy (a doctrine of hidden affinity) in being a substantival medium that can be charged, directed, and abused.
The text explicitly lists 'ASTRAL LIGHT IN CIRCULATION' as a key principle and mentions Adam realized in the Father produced 'the Astral Light'.
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 text describes a tableau where horizontal and vertical columns combine to reveal meanings, reflecting the Hermetic principle of structural correspondence between levels.
Narratives or doctrines of cosmic origin — how heaven, earth, and the primordial deities first came into being. The Kojiki's deities born alone on the Plain of High Heaven, Voluspo's Ginnungagap, Genesis's tohu wa-bohu, the Timaeus's Demiurge fashioning the Receptacle, the Hesiodic Theogony, the Kalevala's egg-cosmogony, Egyptian Nun-and-Atum. Distinct from emanation_hierarchy (structural-ontological cascade), letters_of_creation (mechanism of creation), and apocatastasis/frashokereti (end-state restoration); cosmogony is temporally-narrative beginning.
The passage is explicitly titled 'COSMOGONY' and discusses the origin of the universe, matter, and principles from God.
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.
The text states that homage is offered to the Divinity under its most material form and that principles represent God within the cosmos.
A chain of divine beings or principles flowing downward from a single transcendent source (the One or the Father), each level less perfect than the one above.
The passage explicitly details a chain of principles emanating successively from 'GOD THE FATHER' including Adam Will, Natura Naturans, and Power.
The balance of two contrary forces as the structural law of cosmos and operation — Lévi's equilibrium, expressed in Kabbalah by the senary: the will of God in its first cause, liberty in man, mathematical equilibrium in matter; the twofold vibration required to direct the Astral Light safely.
The text discusses opposing principles (Destruction vs Involution) that constitute preserving principles of the Universe.
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 text links Adam (Man) with the Father (God) and the Universe, suggesting a structural parallel between human nature and cosmic principles.
The Hermetic doctrine that apparent opposites are identical in nature but differ in degree — two extremes of the same scale (hot/cold, love/hate) — such that one pole can be shifted toward its opposite by a change of degree ('mental transmutation'). Distinct from opposites_transcended (a completion-state marking the path's end, not this doctrine's active technique) and magical_equilibrium (balance held BETWEEN two forces, not identity-by-degree of what looks like two forces).
The text discusses opposing principles such as Destruction and Involution, or Death and Corporeal Life, acting in tension.
The Hermetic doctrine of a measured swing or pendulum motion between poles — action and reaction, flow and outflow, rise and fall — operating in mental, physical, and cosmic-historical registers alike. Distinct from apocatastasis (cosmic-scale eschatological restoration after vast cycles) in naming a constant, ever-present oscillation rather than a singular restorative event.
The passage describes a cycle of involution into matter followed by evolution back to the primitive centre.