OF ORIGINS AND ORACLES
(An Interview with Michael Tsarion)

Michael Tsarion is a Divination Scholar and Sidereal Mythologist. He is the creator of the Archetypal Stellar Taroscopic Astrology System of Hermetic Divination and founder of the online Taroscopic Mystery School. Educated in the Krishnamurti tradition, he has taught Indigo Children at the New Age Academy in Berkeley California. Michael is the author of Atlantis, Alien Visitation and Genetic Manipulation. He gives life changing classes and presentations on Divination, Hermetics, Ancient Civilizations, Secret Societies, Astro-Theology, Symbol Literacy, and the Subversive Use of Sacred Symbolism in the Media. His acclaimed series of “High Windows” articles have appeared in the Psychic Reader since early 2000.
 

PSYCHIC READER - Michael, you have just completed your High Windows series of articles for us. So I think it would be interesting to know something about that experience from your point of view.

Well yes, it was a great experience for me, and took over 26 months in all. I work well with deadlines, and being under that kind of pressure added to the impact of the articles, each of which was blasted out in a single day. It was my intention from the outset to do a series on the Major Arcana since that is going to eventually be a master work that I am compiling that really goes into many areas of Tarot that have not been focused on properly. The High Windows articles are actually the “skeleton,” so to speak, of this treatise which I have been working on for years called the Twelve Gates of the Sphinx.

How will that book be different from the articles?

They won’t be different just more elaborate. You see the full meanings of the cards can never be plumbed, because the cards are going to mean different things for different people. But as I stress on my website and in my lectures, there is an original Tarot, which has its own inbuilt properties and secrets. Purists, therefore, need to be very conversant with what these are before just making arbitrary changes to the deck, which has been done continuously in the last several decades and even before.

So is there an authentic Tarot Deck which is more complete or accurate?

Yes, the ones from the Golden Dawn System of Magic are the best. That is the Rider Waite and the Thoth Deck. These are close to perfect. Small changes can be made to each of them, but they are the ones that I use in readings and in classes and recommend to anyone beginning to learn Tarot.

You said that no one is going to come to the bottom of the Tarot. Why is that?

Because it is a fractal or holograph. Its permutations are endless. I always maintain that the Tarot is the authentic Emerald Tablets of Hermes. It is the Book of Life. The 22 Major Trumps correspond to the Egyptian, Hebrew, Celtic and English Magical alphabets, to the Kabalistic Tree of Life, the Chakra system, to the Alchemical Magnum Opus, to sacred Numerology, the physical orbit and movement of the luminaries and planets, to the Precession of the Equinoxes, the Process of Human Individuation, the yearly maturation of the human-being, the Personality Types, the zodiac, the sequence of the historical centuries (1st - 21st), the Periodic Table of Elements and several other esoteric and exoteric phenomena.  It has endless correspondences connecting to Astro-Theology, geometry, numerology, cosmology, psychology, symbolism, general aesthetics, and so on. It communicates in non-linear symbols and that makes it very important for the future, and for the re-education of humankind.

You also emphasize that Tarot connects with other divination oracles?

Absolutely, that again is one fairly neglected area. Most scholars and practitioners are aware that there are certain connections, but not since MacGregor Mathers' and Aleister Crowley’s work have there been any major revelations about the Tarot. There are many exoteric interpretations but these are not very coherent or revealing. I consider my approach and work a follow on from the work of the masters of the Golden Dawn. But personally I love to deal with the inherent connections between the oracles (Tarot, Astrology, Kabala and Numerology) because one of them should not be used without the others. They are all sister disciplines. Never in the past were they considered separate. They were always studied, practiced and taught as one. I specialize in revealing the actual lost connections between them all. You can learn this via my online mystery school or in personal classes that I give. It is time for a true understanding of Tarot and with the technology of the internet I have global reach, which is intriguing, valuable, and appropriate given the connections between science and meta-science.

Yes we have spoken before about the internet’s role in mysticism?

Right. I personally have always considered it a "flaming sword," so to speak to be used in the very real Battle or Armageddon which is ongoing now in our world. The internet is the extension of our cerebral spinal complex. It is ruled by Uranus and Neptune astrologically. My internet entrepreneur colleagues are creating entire networks for mystery school teachings and teachers. The future for this looks very positive and is being backed by many mainstream scientists and thinkers, who now are more open to metaphysical concepts and paradigms. My mission and message could not be as effective without this modern technology and I think it is a wonderful medium.

You talk about the Inner Oracle and Wisdom Body. Can you explain more about these?

This is the core of Gnosticism and of my work also. It all rests on the understanding we are each our own priests and priestesses. The so-called right-brain houses the so called "Living Zodiac," or the "Inner Oracle," which connects us with the divine intelligence. Within our consciousness or unconscious is a reservoir or knowledge called the Akashic Record by mystics and clairvoyants. I call this the "Inner Oracle." If you imagine that the psyche is like the physical globe. Then just like the earth sphere, there are continents and cities and oceans and forests and regions to traverse. There are people to meet and experiences to go through. But if we travel far enough we come to the extreme north, to the place that is zero degrees longitude, zero degrees latitude, right. At this place we are simultaneously at all times. In fact time stops. It is the same time everywhere on earth. We are the still point, everywhere and nowhere. So it is with consciousness. As the ancient Hindus and Druids and Gnostics taught, there is a place within consciousness that is also zero degrees. This is the still-point, the place of bliss which Joseph Campbell once mentioned. Here there is a fountain, a well, a shrine, an altar where one is really connected to the divine, where self and non-self are one. This is the Inner Oracle. And there are many cryptic references to its existence in myths and magical or occult schools of thought.

That is an interesting concept, that we are all “Living Zodiacs?”

Yes it is even a new concept to common astrology, which has really gone off in a left-brain direction, as far as I am concerned, and is top-heavy with paraphernalia and mathematics. I intend in my work to rectify this because real astrology is something very different than the exoteric variety being purveyed today. But the initial principle is that we are each living breathing zodiacs and that can be proven. The Gnostics had no problem realizing or accepting this. They knew for instance that there were three kinds of time: Clock-Time, measured by the clock or watch, Seasonal Time measured by a calendar, and then there is Psychological Time. This latter form is measured by the zodiac. That is what the zodiac is, a clock for measuring Psychological Time. The first two forms of time, of course, well known. In fact we are all veritable slaves to them. They certainly are not doubted. But the lost truth is that these first two originated from the third. This is why they all feature 12 divisions: 12 hours, 12 seasons and 12 signs. To adhere exclusively to the first two and discard the third is sheer insanity and is responsible for the disorder and disempowerment so prevalent in the world today. Try living for a week without your watch or calendar and see what happens. We will be in disarray. Magnify this to the soul context and see the predicament of the psyche – afloat on the ocean of existence, lost in the labyrinth of matter without a thread. The Almighty Intelligence did not plan it this way. It gave us the means, it is we who have rejected it.

And the Tarot can lead us to this place, this reality?

It is one of the avenues yes. It contains secrets that lead the way. The cards of the Tarot, like the signs of the zodiac, are expressions or projections of consciousness. They are not really “out there.” They are graven images of what lies within. That is why when we work with them we feel the magic and get empowerment that cannot come from elsewhere.

You mentioned the Gnostics. Who were they?

Gnosticism is the seed of all religions and the Gnostics, basically, were the first depth-psychologists or cognitive therapists, so to speak. Had the orthodox church not put them all to death I feel that their voice would have lead to a freer society and world. As it is we are living in times of spiritual drought.  There is tremendous injustice, materialism and delinquency, coming about due to the Human Race neglecting its own spiritual development. The consequences of this disempowerment creates deep systemic discontent and this is cleverly kept at bay through prescription drugs and the cult of entertainment which are epidemic today.

Now, in your Taroscopic System, you do readings using the four divination arts. What is the most important thing that can be extended through the average reading?

One important thing is the discovery that we are not merely the roles we assume. Beyond all other information and learning, which is commonly sought, there is the greater human need to know exactly who and what we are, intimately and authentically. Also we need certainty in daily life. These are simply not found at the functional or utilitarian level of existence. The work we do for money and security is not the place to look, the physical sciences which explain the material universe, are also not involved on these questions. The roles we play may not be the real us. In fact it is because we have put so much faith in these areas that multitudes of people are finding themselves in a state of emotional, psychological and spiritual disempowerment.

When people hear of magic and occultism they usually get suspicious or apprehensive?

Sure, and that is understandable, given the bad media and also the charlatanism which proliferates in these subjects. However, what we need to remember is that these Divination Arts were around long before high-priced psychologists and counselors, who are good at the patch-up, but are not much involved in the prevention aspects. The Gnostics of old, the shamans and oracles were our guides and we were doing alright with them before the advent of orthodox hegemonies.

But there are still going to be cynics and skeptics?

True, but actually the true skeptic does not judge until fully conversant with the facts. Actually deep inside we are all fascinated with the archetypal mysteries. You can no more abolish them than you can stop dreams coming at night. Everyone knows their own star-sign, we toss coins into water for luck, we pick them up for luck, we love games like snakes and ladders, cards, roulette, chess, hop-scotch, we blow out candles at a birthday. All this is the vestige of Divination still within the Racial Memory. As Joseph Campbell and others have shown, it is part of the overall disempowerment of the Western Man that we regard it all as superstition and novelty. 

What do you say to those clients who are of a more orthodox background?

Well I have many Christian clients and even men of the cloth have come for readings, because remember we are all human under the roles. I simply remind them that in the early days of its existence, Christianity was an occult religion. The word occult just means hidden. And Christianity was hidden. It was revolutionary, dissenting, it was opposed to hegemony of orthodoxy. The early Christians were persecuted, they used ancient and enigmatic symbols to communicate with one another, and in fact the Vatican still does. This is, of course, before it became orthodox. Now if one does their theological homework, it will be found that the Tarot with its 22 Major cards is directly related to the 22 letters of the Hebrew, Celtic and English Alphabets. Vast research has been done about this and is absolutely irrefutable. The fact is that the Bible originates with the Torah, but the Torah originates with the Tarot and the Kabala. The Tarot may not seem a treatise on theology, since it primarily uses symbols, but it most certainly is. It must be understood that the Tarot is the earliest book on philosophy, religion, magick, morality, you name it.

In what other way was it a learning experience for you, when writing the High Window columns?

That is a hard question to answer given that we are talking about such a long period of time. There was the time it took to write them which was not all that long physically, but there was the lifetime of study which I was drawing on also. And my own mind works in very mutable ways, so there was no plan of action before each piece. I wanted to remain as open as possible so that the message whatever it was, would come through strongly and profoundly and regardless of other writing incompetence, would have and impact for the readers. And it seems to have worked. Naturally, I wanted to interest readers in the cards, those who maybe had never thought of introducing themselves to the Tarot, and I also wanted to inspire seasoned readers and students who may have seen the cards in a new way due to what I wrote. But I believe that there is information in those articles that will inspire a wide variety of readers, and not just those who are involved with esoteric subjects.

Is there a particular article that means more to you than the others?

That's a hard one to answer because as I said I did not have a set plan as to what was going to be on paper for each of them. I just allowed the card do the talking, behaving as if I knew nothing myself at all. This is something I learned from music and my relation to guitar. It does the teaching. You see I really believe that the inanimate can also be fallen in love with. It is easy to love humans and animals, because they reciprocate and give back what we want with all sorts of cues and affectations. But it is a different kind of relationship with that which is inanimate, so to speak. To me books, paintings, guitars, stones, roof-tops, lamp-posts, or decaying buildings can also be loved, and fallen in love with. It is all how one looks at it. Now in regards the articles, the one that came through with great beauty was the one for the Moon, called Sister of the Eclipse. But articles 6 though 9 will always be important for me because of what I was personally going through at the time. I also appreciate what came through with the Aeon. It was unthinkable to me to write on the Tarot, and not honor the creators of the great decks. Space did not permit dealing with homages to all of them, so I chose Aleister Crowley. I was satisfied with how that one came forth, and because it is rather more controversial. But they all have something of myself, and yet are not from me per se.

What is the main thing that you wished to accomplish through the writing?

That all great Art is not about creation but deconstruction. It does not, and cannot add to the beauty that is in nature already. But the great artist is a window cleaner. When he comes to your window he gives your glasses a wipe also. He removes the layers of nonsense. He deconstructs the lies and flushes out the mental blocks. This is my tone in the articles. I did not want to profess anything, or assert a specific point of view. I wanted to enable the reader to travel through the words to a more pristine place, not created, in the strong sense of the word, but made from space that exists from clearing away some weeds and garbage. There one can sit, like the Empress herself, or the Emperor even, and just take time out to decompress and do something very important, breathe. As Crowley pointed out, the Tarot is not the cards, the Tarot is You.

The Tarot seems to hold a deep fascination for you?

I grew up fascinated by art. I cannot draw or paint to save my life, but I love to look at art and have a great admiration for artists, in fact for any artisan or musician who lives entirely for what they do. That kind of passion is in my background and I was introduced to it very early in life. I cannot be around passionless persons who are merely reflectors of other people's light. People need to become more aware of how creativity is the one thing that makes this life endurable and beneficial. The Hindus always declared that productivity and creativity were the measure of a man. And for me it is the bottom line. I grew up with Rene Magritte, Salvador Dali, George De Chirico and M. C. Escher, and even the great film-makers like, Wem Wenders, Brunel, Werner Herzog, Sergio Leone, Patrick McGoohan, Klaus Kinski, and John Boorman, etc., those for whom there is no separation between the doing and being. I have always loved symbolism and non linear means of communication. It is a great privilege for me to even be working with the Tarot cards. I am constantly amazed that they have survived the centuries given their inner meaning. The imagery of Tarot can be transposed to art, to movies and to literature and poetry. And most important of all they can guide us on the journey toward truth. They are an precious heirloom crafted by our ancestors for our wellbeing. For me it was never enough just to continue doing readings for clients. I do that still but also got to the point of doing the classes and getting the online school in place, believing that it is crucially important for each person to be doing readings for themselves also. Its beauty and magic should be in the lives of all. If it was then we would see some really amazing changes on this planet, and in our hearts.
 

Troubling I sit, day and night. My friends are astonished at me: They forgive my wanderings. I rest not from my great task: To open the eternal worlds! To open the immortal eyes of man inward: into the worlds of thought: into eternity. Ever expanding in the bosom of God, the human imagination - William Blake

Close Page to Exit