More Lore
Excerpt #2 . . .
If you missed the first Lore excerpt, catch up here.
I’ve decided to choose these excerpts at random, looking at a small version of the source, and just grabbing an entry that looks about the right length. This approach should leave plenty of room for serendipity!
For example—today’s selection led me to a completely unrelated Tarot deck, as you’ll see further down.
Reminder: The excerpt format starts with my original, unrevised review from History, Mystery, and Lore, followed by a quote from the reviewed book. Then some follow-up notes, new information, etc.
Moore, Daphna. The Rabbi's Tarot: An Illumination from the Kundalmi to the Pineal to the Pituitary. Hughes Henshaw Publications, 1987.
This book is a curiosity, and it’s difficult to tell how useful it would be to any particular individual. At first I thought it was unreadable, but after a fairly short period of time it began to seem very clear, and the next thing I knew, I was growing quite fond of it! According to Ms. Moore, the text is actually a transcription of notes taken from years of lectures given by a rabbi named Aaron in die late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. “The whole object of The Rabbi’s Tarot,” she writes, “is to tell you the mechanics of purifying desire and of securing the balanced reciprocal creation of the self-conscious and the subconscious.” About these topics the books goes on at length, using Kabbalah, the Bible, alchemy, Islam, and just about everything else to make its point. It's hard to read, but frequently striking, and the treatment of “sex energy” is surprisingly balanced and clear perhaps the most sensible I've read. Keyed to the Rider-Waite deck. Out of print.
To pay attention involves three steps: (1) The first step is to see the object plainly, definitely, and functionally. (2) The second step is to see in what class of objects it comes; what it is like. (3) The third step is to see how it is different from others of its class. THESE THREE THINGS ARE INVOLVED IN THE ACT OF ADEQUATE ATTENTION IN SEEING ANYTHING DISTINCTLY. Do you wonder that everybody is deficient in the ability to pay attention? It is more necessary to cultivate attention than anything else in the world, more necessary than the ordinary business if living, and IS ESPECIALLY NECESSARY FOR THE OCCULTIST.
From what I can find out, Moore was a pioneer in the early days of self-publishing, and wrote two books on the topic. She used her own publishing company to produce the first edition of Rabbi’s Tarot, which was then picked up by Llewellyn in 1989 and reprinted with the tagline “Spiritual secrets of the Tarot.”
From 1996 to 2008, Moore’s company published a series of study guides for certification exams in nursing and massage therapy. In addition, she produced a revised edition of The Rabbi’s Tarot in 2007.
Moore’s Tarot book seems to be out of print in all editions, and somewhat expensive if you want to purchase a used copy. However—a pair of authors aligned with Moore’s ideas have published a Kindle version of her revised text, supplemented with their own material. You can “Look Inside” their version on Amazon, and get a feel for Moore’s work.
And now for something completely different . . . .
I can’t figure out the search path that led me from The Rabbi’s Tarot to Todd Alcott’s Pulp Tarot deck—but it was a happy chance!
Alcott explains:
Inspiration for the cards is drawn from everything from late 19th-century dime novels to 1970s exploitation movie posters, creating a rich, complex conversation between the arcane symbols of the Tarot and the sensationalist world of the pulps.
This is now my second-favorite novelty Tarot, ranking just a smidge below the delightful Housewives Tarot. These two decks are not just clever take-offs—they are creative reflections on the nature of Tarot itself. Thought-provoking and fun.
See you soon. C