XXI. The World. Neptune

General Book of the Tarot, by A. E. Thierens, [1930], at sacred-texts.com

XXI. The World. Neptune.

As in the case of Uranus we want to point out that originally the planet cannot have been appointed, astronomically, but the principle of cosmic magetism, of which it is the organ, and the universal magnetised, field, the field of the world in which we live, must have been well known to the initiates, who worshipped Poseidon and Varuna, gods of the world-ocean. The symbols of the four fixed signs are presented at the corners of the cards, and where

p. 80

these fixed signs are seen as the foundation stones of our physical world by such visionaries as Ezechiel and St. John of Patmos, we cannot be far wrong in assuming that originally the meaning was that of the physical world coming forth out of the magnetised etheric ocean of the universe, which itself has been represented by the oval form, be it a laurel wreath or something else. The World must have had a larger meaning, originally, than that of the world of beings moving on the surface of our Earth, and the oval figure may well have stood for the form of the solar system at large, with its planets moving in oval orbs.

Appropriated to the world of men, it must mean 1 that which falls outside our will-power, cosmic conditions to which we are subject, but which at the f same time provide us with all that is wanted for our physical conditions. The latter of course became the reason for attaching to this card a generally benefic influence, especially in the domain of the senses. "It is eloquent as an image of the swirl of the sensitive life, of joy attained in the body, of the soul's intoxication--(can any word remind us more strongly of Neptune's workings than precisely this one: 'intoxication'?--Th.)--in the earthly paradise, but still guarded by the Divine Watchers . . ." (W.) Let us put it this way: it means that if we row with the cosmic tide, we shall enjoy happiness and everything we want, but on the other hand we must not neglect the implicit possibility, that when rowing against the tidal current of the world, we shall experience trouble and no end of it, or if we 'cross the stream' we shall have to stand firm on our legs. So besides the joy of the senses, this card means also the cosmic origin

p. 81

of life, to which the candidate for initiation returns, and which now and then appears in dreams. In fact this card has much to do with dream-life. The relations of Neptune with the Moon and the lunar body are not unknown to astrologers nowadays.

The Hebrew letter Tau is related to this card and "has the same hieroglyphic meaning as the Daleth (fourth card)--that is the womb;--(which confirms the relationship to the Moon--Th.)--but it is chiefly the sign of reciprocity, the image of all that is mutual, reciprocal." It is further added that abundance and perfection lie in the card. (P.) Reciprocal certainly: from that we come and to that we shall return, be it the world's dust or the ether of the cosmic ocean.

Very striking is P.'s saying that "This symbol represents macrocosm and microcosm . . ." and even more so that "the empire of the world belongs to the empire of Light, and the empire of Light is the throne of God . . ." Scientifically expressed: the ethereal world, being the bearer of light, is the universal womb of the material or physical world. The nude female figure may certainly contain indications with regard to the life of the senses, but is also a symbol of the angelic state to which man will one day come after being delivered from the bonds of the lower world. It may have to do with nature spirits. It is Aphrodite rising from the sea, daughter of Neptune. Beauty and love and happiness arising from the communion of souls.