The Amazing Major
Arcanum Esoteric
Symbol Game
By James W. Revak

SOURCES


Sources for the commentary appear below.  Occasionally, text was edited for purposes of presentation and clarity.  Readers who are interested in any of the cited Tarotists are encouraged to access their works for a better and more comprehensive understanding of their ideas and views.  For the source of the alternate esoteric titles of each Arcanum, see S. L. MacGregor Mathers.  The deck which each commentator typically references is also noted.

Case, Paul Foster. (1947). The Tarot: A key to the wisdom of the ages.  Richmond, VA: Macoy. Deck: The Builders of the Adytum [BOTA] Tarot designed by the author and drawn by Jessey Burnes Parke.  The Major Arcana are similar but not identical to those of Rider-Waite-Smith.

Christian, Paul. (1952).  (James Kirkup & Julian Shaw, Trans.). The history of magic.  New York: Citadel.  Originally published in 1870 as Histoire de la magie, du monde surnaturel et de la fatalité à travers les temps et les peuples.  Deck: apparently a Tarot of Marseilles.

Crowley, Aleister. (1944). The Book of Thoth: A short essay on the Tarot of the Egyptians.  York Beach, ME: Samuel Weiser. Illustrated by Lady Frieda Harris.  (It is not short.)  Deck: The Thoth Tarot designed by the author and painted by Frieda Harris.

Etteilla.  See Pierre-Joseph Joubert de La Salette.

Felkin, Harriet Miller (née Davidson).  (c. 1888).  The Tarot Trumps. In Israel Regardie (Ed.), (1989), The Golden Dawn: A complete course in practical ceremonial magic four volumes in one (6th ed.) (pp. 588-593).  St. Paul: Llewellyn.  Published under Felkin’s pseudonym Soror Q.L. (Querum Lucem).  Deck: apparently a personal copy of the Tarot drawn to Golden Dawn specifications.

Gray, Eden.  (1960).  The Tarot revealed: A modern guide to reading the Tarot cards.  New York: New American Library.  Deck: Rider-Waite-Smith.

La Salette, de, Pierre-Joseph Joubert (attrib.).  (1791).  Dictionnaire synonimique du Livre de Thot, précédé d’un discours préliminaire, par un membre de la Société des interprètes de cet ouvrage [Thesaurus of the Book of Thoth, Preceded by a Preliminary Discourse, by a Member of the Society of Interpreters of This Work].  Deck: apparently Etteilla’s Tarot.  Note well: Dictionnaire synonimique depends from the School of Etteilla, has been attributed to La Salette (a desciple of Eteilla), and virtually reproduced by D’Odoucet (another desciple of Etteilla) in his Science des signes, ou médecine de l’esprit [Science of signs, or medicine of the mind](1804-07); for convenience, excerpts from this work are labeled Etteilla in the commentary.  Extensive exceprts of Dictionnaire synonimique are in Mathers, S. L. McGregor, Papus, & Waite, A. E. (1888, 1909, 1911/2000), (James W. Revak, Ed. & Trans.), Tarot divination: Three parallel traditions.  Extensive excerpts are also in Papus, (1909), Le Tarot divinatoire: Clef du tirage des cartes et des sorts [Divination by Tarot: Key to reading cards and lots] (17th ed.).  St-Jean-de-Braye, France: Dangles.

Lévi, Eliphas. (1910). (A. E. Waite, Trans.). Transcendental magic: Its doctrine and ritual.  Kila, MT: Kessinger.  Orginally published as Dogme de la haute magie and Rituel de la haute magie in 1854 and 1855 respectively.  Deck: a Tarot of Marseilles.

Mathers, S. L. MacGregor. (c. 1888).  Book “T”—the Tarot.  In Israel Regardie (Ed.), (1989), The Golden Dawn: A complete course in practical ceremonial magic four volumes in one (6th ed.) (pp. 540-565).  St. Paul: Llewellyn.  This is the source for the alternate esoteric names of the Major Arcana per Goden Dawn tradition.  Deck: apparently a personal copy of the Tarot drawn to Golden Dawn specifications.

O’Neill, Robert V.  (1986).  Tarot symbolism. Lima, OH: Fairway. Deck: a Tarot of Marseilles.

Papus. (1910).  (A. P. Norton, Trans.; A. E. Waite, Ed.).  The Tarot of the Bohemians: The most ancient book in the world (3d ed.).  North Hollywood: Wilshire.  Originally published in 1889 as Le Tarot des Bohémiens: Le plus ancien livre du monde. Decks: Tarot of Marseilles and apparently the Oswald Wirth Tarot.

Pollack, Rachel.  (1997).  Seventy-eight degrees of wisdom: A book of Tarot (rev. ed.).  San Francisco: Harper Collins. Deck: Rider-Waite-Smith.

Sadhu, Mouni.  (1962).  The Tarot: A contemporary course of the quintessence of Hermetic Occultism.  North Hollywood: Wilshire.  Deck: one by the author and Eva G. Lucas.  It comprises the Major Aracana only, which are similar but not identical to those of Rider-Waite-Smith.

Turk, Julia A. (1997).  Navigators of the mystic sea Tarot. Stamford, CT: U.S. Games Systems.  Deck: the author’s The Navigators of the Mystic Sea Tarot.

Waite, A. E.  (1911). The pictorial key to the Tarot (being fragments of a secret tradition under the veil of divination).  New York: Barnes & Noble.  Illustrated by Pamela Colman Smith.  Deck: Rider-Waite-Smith.

Wirth, Oswald.  (1985).  The Tarot of the magicians. York Beach, ME: Samuel Weiser. Originally published in 1927 as Le Tarot, des imagiers du Moyen Age.  Deck: the author’s own, which comprises the Major Arcana only which are similar but not identical to those of Tarot of Marseilles decks.

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