An Interview With Rachel Pollack - Page 4
© Elizabeth Bissette
Q You write that Tarot is "the instrument of wisdom". What do you mean by that?
A I use that a couple of ways in the book. I take an idea and play with it in many ways. The Tarot is an instrument and can play different kinds of wisdom on it. The occult tradition is like classical music. The modern tradition is more like jazz, we build on the classical but improvise and can ask questions to learn more about wisdom.
Tarot is also an instrument because we can code things into it. We can interpret or design a deck that has large amount of meanings in each card. It's like a cd-rom, a tiny thing contains huge amounts of information. The cards in the Thoth or Rider-Waite decks are a good example of this. There's an incredible amount of traditional information already coded in.
Q How can we "play," to use your word, with such huge ideas as God, or creation? Shouldn't we take such things seriously?
A We actually get further with questions like that when we play. When you're so serious you just get orthodox. For example, you learn what St. Thomas Aquinas says and think because he's so much smarter than you are, that has to be the truth. If you take things too seriously you end up narrowing your understanding. When you play, you can discover a much wider range of truth.
Q Play involves a sense of wonder. How does the Tarot help us wonder?
A Because its such an amazing thing to do, you have these mysterious pictures with no official explanation. It's really stimulating. A picture goes to a place beyond words, almost like a dream images do.
Q How can the Tarot images be used outside of readings?
A There are lots of ways. We can contemplate the symbols. We can consider Tarot's mystical origins. We can use them to spark creativity in painting, poetry or dance.
They can be used for meditation. The problem is, some guides to Tarot for meditation give such precise instructions of what you're supposed to experience, right down to what you're supposed to feel. If you just use the cards to explore I think you'll have a better result.
Q You also talk about "gambling" as an approach to life and spirituality in your book. What do you mean by that?
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