DARK GRIMOIRE TAROT Ancient texts of magic, witchcraft, and rituals are called Claiculae or Grimoire! The latter were often "oo#s of $lac# Magic% in them initiates could find instructions and magic formulas for concocting &otions, medicine, s&ells, and talismans with alchemical, astrological, or ca""alistic deriations, sometimes finali'ed at summoning angels and demons! It was thought that these (for"idden( "oo#s were rare and dangerous, es&eciall) if used without due &recautions! The Church condemned them unreseredl) in *++ with the Index I ndex -i"rorum .roi"itorum, "ut all this sered onl) to fuel the legend and clandestine mar#et! Authentic co&ies were confused with masterful counterfeits and the co&ies, "oth real and &resumed, of ancient "oo#s of magic s&read throughout throughout the world from the Middle Ages onwards! In addition addition to the famous Claicula /alomonis, the -emegeton, the Mutus -i"er, The $oo# of the /acred Magic of A"ramelin the Mage, the 0o)nich Manuscri&t, and man) other legendar) "oo#s, the rediscoer) of the following were declared% The $oo# of A"raham the 1ew, The $oo# of D')an, The $oo# of Enoch! 2ecronomicon /ome "oo#s of magic, "orn as narratie deices for tales of horror, "ecame so famous that man) actuall) "elieed in their existence! The "est #nown of these &seudo"oo#s is certainl) the 2ecronomicon, "orn of the extraordinar) extraordinar) nocturnal isions of 3oward .hilli&s -oecraft 4*5678 *69:! In the Call of the Cthulhu, this writer from .roidence, Rhode Island ex&lains the genesis and histor) of this cele"rated grimoire, written in the 5tn centur) ") the Ara" &oet and magician A"dul Alha'red under the title of Al A'if and later translated into Gree# and -atin! According to -oecraft;s tales, the original Ara"ic text for the 2ecronomicon was lost, "ut its translations continue to im&art the m)tholog) of the Great Old Ones, eil creatures who arried on our &lanet thousands of )ears ago, and the rituals to summon them forth, releasing them from the dar#, secret &risons to which the) were condemned< the erudite m)stic, 1ohn Dee, su&&osedl) wrote an English ersion in the *=tn centur) at the court of Em&eror Rudol&h, who was a scholar of alchem) and enthusiast of occultism! There are those who maintain that the 2ecronomicon was written on &archment made from the s#in of humans #illed during "lac# magic rituals, while its histor) "ecame tainted with legend! -oecraft himself stated that this grimoire was merel) a literar) inention, "ut man) other narrators continued to write a"out it and later, the &restigious ex&ert on the occult, Colin >ilson, h)&othesi'ed that the author trul) &ossessed a co&) of the 2ecronomicon, "ut was intent on den)ing its existence to not reeal the initiator) secrets of an esoteric sect! >hat is certain is that the success of the literar) genre and the wides&read diffusion of -oecraft;s m)tholog), which would recruit followers li#e Ro"ert $loch, inentor of the ominous grimoire De 0ermis M)steriis, and renown admirers li#e /te&hen King, who mentions it in his tale entitled 1erusalem;s -ot! It does not matter that The .na#otici Manuscri&ts in the e?uall) imaginar) Mis#atonic @niersit) -i"rar) do not exist, nor that no rancesco Maria Gua''o neer wrote a Com&endium Maleficarum, nor that The 2ine Gatewa)s to the Realm of /hadows fail to lead to the Clu" Dumas< what is im&ortant is that the human imagination is free to create extraordinar) worlds, "reathing life into m)tho&oiesis and renewing the art that, as Oid taught taught us, is often ins&ired ") the un#nown, ") the shadows that animate dreams, ") our dee&est fears! Tarots as $oo#s of Magic This dec# of Tarot cards was ins&ired ") the dream worlds of fantas) literature, ") grimoires, whether real or imaginar), ") the nightmares that the) hae generated and continue to generate in the de&ths of the su"conscious! .erha&s een these cards are fragments from an ancient sacred "oo# of illustrations onl)% a text full of wisdom and #nowledge that transmits s)m"olic messages with a language similar to that of dreams! It was not ") chance that Court de Ge"elin associated Tarots with the m)thical $oo# of Thot in *5*% (a >or# of the ancient Eg)&tians that esca&ed the flames that destro)ed their su&er" li"raries 4!!!:, who would not "e eager to #now such an extraordinar) $oo#B(! -i#ewise,
the esoteric ex&ert, Eli&has -ei, author of the Dogme et Rituel de la 3aute Magie 4*5++:, defined the Tarots as (a miraculous "oo# ins&ired ") all the sacred "oo# of ancient ciili'ations(! The most humanistic Tarolog) of the *st centur), which is considered in #ee&ing with the theories of 1ung and .auli on s)nchronism and Archet)&es, een if distant from the world of the occult and magic, continues to "e of great interest for its oneiric and s)m"olic dimensions! In the world of s)m"ols, in fact, fantas) literature can "e an extraordinar) source of meditation and com&rehension for messages that rise from the de&ths of the unconscious! The Dar# Grimoire Tarots are therefore a true Claicula due to their intrinsic nature and genesis% a #e) that can o&en forgotten doors in the dar#est corners of the &s)che, those doors hidden in the shadows and engulfed in s&ider we"s! O&ening those doors can mean gaining #nowledge of our own fears and recognising our own dar# side, learning how it can "alance our whole "eing! In those secret cham"ers, "e)ond the dar#ness, is where creatiit) is often im&risoned li#e an exiled deit) who sends oneiric messages eiled in s)m"ols to free himself ") reaching "e)ond to transform nightmares into dreams! Ke) to Reading The &rofound meaning of the Tarots is a message of loe, of awareness, and com&rehension that see#s to answer the eternal ?ueries of man, who can there") esca&e his so8called destin) ") deelo&ing his consciousness, li#e in the ancient Del&hic sa)ing (Know )ourself! or this reason, ignorance can neer "e redeeming, nor can awareness "ring a"out an) determinist curse! Therefore, Tarots could neer "e an eil and frightful grimoire, "ut rather will alwa)s ada&t to "eing an instrument of the will of man, a true master of his own destin) and alwa)s more aware of this &ower! As a diinator) game, randoml) select fie cards from the dec# and arrange them according to the Magic .entagram, a s)m"ol that the grimoires adised for fettering the demons of Air, the s&irits of ire, the s&ectre of >ater, and the ghosts of the Earth! .osition *% The &ur&ose of the ?uer), the o"ectie or the desire of the uerient! .osition % The &ast that led to the current situation! .osition 9% The &ro"a"le eolution of the current situation! .osition F% O"stacles and difficulties to "e oercome! .osition +% The suggestion for oercoming the o"stacles! Maor Arcana 7 8 The ool! If the a")ss of the unconscious unex&ectedl) ga&es o&en "efore )ou, all reason ma) fail! As )ou &ass the s&heres of existence one ") one, )ou a&&roach the centre of the External @nierse where time and s&ace no longer hae meaning! Extraordinar) creatures are "orn of chaos in the mad mind of A'athoth and settle in the multidimensional world! I 8 The Magician! Thirteen centuries ago, the emeni wi'ard and &oet A"dul Alha'red wrote the 2ecronomicon% the #e) that o&ens the gatewa) to the underworld! rom the o&en window oerloo#ing the countr)side of Damascus, we can hear the nocturnal insects that the &eo&le call Al A'if, "ut the Magician #nows that the) are reall) ancient demons! II 8 The 3igh .riestess! The wise woman holds the nocturnal #nowledge of the >orld of Dreams and ealousl) guards the "oo# of incantations! Eer) waterwa) sustains witches, who float een if "ound! III 8 The Em&ress! In the grottoes of the isle of R;l)eh, the -ad) reigns oer the creatures "anished there while waiting to "e conured u& to once again reign oer the surface of the &lanet together with Cthulhu! As during the long winter, Mother 2ature eils herself in dar#ness and awaits the &ro&itious moment to manifest life again! The -ad) is the mother and the Goddess of the Ancient inha"itants of the world! I0 8 The Em&eror! The occultist Em&eror Rudol&h II thus dreamed of himself in the secret undergrounds of the &alace of .rague, after haing o"tained a translation of fragments from the 2ecronomicon from court magicians 1ohn Dee and Edward Kelle)! 3e holds the secret to ma#ing gold dust and #ee&s the two alchemists as serants! The) are ") now mad and reduced to formless creatures!
0 8 The 3iero&hant! The 3igh .riest Hanthu ino#es his god thogtha against the t)rant Ghatanothoa on the lost continent of Mu! This arrogant gesture will &roo#e the ire of the Old Ones and the destruction of Mu, which will sin# into eastern oceans! 3e gras&s the The Hanthu Ta"lets tightl) to his "reast, "ut een this grimoire "rings with it the terri"le destin) of he who desired &ower! 0I 8 The -oers! The call of the creatures of the moors &ierces the fog and shows us the &ath that leads to the su"tle dimensions of the $e)ond! The two loers gras& each others; hands! The time has come to decide% sa) good8")e and head out to ex&lore that un#nown world "etween the roc#s of the Antarctic or remain united into the fading of time "etween the Mountains of Madness! 0II 8 The Chariot! ar from the concentric shells of A'athot and from The >orld of Dreams, the $e)ond awaits the chariot of the irrational one, where &ure creatiit) can generate the fantas) of the immaterial s&irit or the madness of the eternal nightmare! The charioteer whi&s the two horses with glowing em"er e)es while trans&orting the remains of material "odies! 0III 8 1ustice! At the foot of the im&assie and seere idol that #ee&s the chalices of /hadow and of -ight in e?uili"rium, the seritors of Cthulhu hae left traces of "lac# magic, eocations of demons and 0oodoo rituals! I 8 The 3ermit! In the solitude of his studies, this scholar of the occult consults the grimoire De 0ermis M)steriis, written ") the heretical warloc# -udwig .rinn in a gloom) dungeon of the In?uisition "efore "eing "urnt at the sta#e! The &rudence of the scholar discourages him from chanting the eocation to sae the Earth from the terri"le scourge of the li"eration of the demons! 8 The >heel! In the northern wood, ancient her8mae guide the seritors of Cthulhu to the clearing where the) find the ga&ing >ell of the /hoggot! The de&ths of the well o&en towards the a")ss and the seritors eo#e the creature who hae lied for ages in that &it! Man o"seres this ritual and The Thing at the Threshold! I 8 /trength! >ith the /hining Tra&e'ohedron the girl confronts the gigantic aatar of 2)arlathote&, that (something that is not in the stone, "ut watches her from "e)ond the stone(% the /trength to con?uer the eo#ed demon can "e found in )our heart and not in the grimoire! II 8 The 3anged Man! The terror triggered ") reading the grimoire gies rise to the dee&est des&eration in those who #now that (the window in the room under the eaes is a gatewa) to other dimensions, to times and s&aces not of our world!!!(! III 8 Death! In the 2ameless Cit) the mad &oet who wrote the 2ecronomicon also wrote the famous erses% >hat can lie eternall) cannot "e dead, and in strange aeons een death can die(! I0 8 Tem&erance! In the sacred woods the secret of eternal -ife is im&arted ") the ount of -ife! The sacred waters gentl) &rotect from excess! 0 8 The Deil! In the creasse that mirrors the Moon, the gigantic hands of the slim) and scal) Dagon emerge from the waters, li#e the dee&est horrors emerge from our unconscious! 0I 8 The Tower! The monstrous Cthulhu with its "lo"8li#e octo&us head has reawa#ened% it now wra&s its flaccid "od) and tentacles around the Tower, which colla&ses under the "lows of the horror that came from the stars to wait in the shadows! 0II 8 The /tar! The demons that came from distant s&aces are im&risoned ") the energ) of the &erfect alignment of the /tars% the eil stellar &rogen) has "een defeated ") the &ro&itious astral conunction! 0III 8 -a Moon! The ull Moon reflects on the ocean of the unconscious% the nocturnal light uneils some shadows where monsters lur#, read) to reawa#en and am"ush the mind! I 8 The /un! In the legendar) cit) of Ar#ham, (suddenl) the /un seemed to fade, )et there was not it cloud in the s#)!, !a "olt of lightening flashed in the distance, and astonished men scoured the s#) for signs of a storm in ain!!!all raising their arms rh)thmicall)!!!( 8 1udgment! The Great Old Ones need man and ma#e themseles #nown in their dreams ") calling low% the monolith rises "etween the rain"ows that recall the &act "etween man and his /oul!
I 8 The >orld! $e)ond the &h)sical world created ") the madman A'athoth, reaching The $e)ond ia the most su"tle oneiric dimensions means saing )ourself and fulfilling )our greatest dream! Minor Arcana acing )our most &rofound self means #nowing een )our dar# sides and )our wea# &oints as well as strong ones! Then )our Dreams will emerge from amidst )our desires and fears, together with the /hadows and -ights to "e harmoni'ed and the Demons to "e dominated! All these energies "ecome resources if guided irtuousl) ") awareness! The traditional Elementar) ?uadri&artition can "e found in the s)m"ols of the Minor Arcana and in the essence of man himself% in this wa), he who )earns to #now himself will find it significant that the four suits will corres&ond to his own four main centres, which must tend to integrate! The Chalices are Dreams and re&resent emotions and the Element of >ater, corres&onding to )our own emotional centre, o)s and &ains! Dreams are delicate and are held in the heart li#e wine in a chalice! Dreams sometimes well and oerflow, li#e tears in our e)es when we are moed! The .entacles are /hadows and re&resent matter and the Element of the Earth, corres&onding to our own &h)sical centre, the "od), its needs, and the material that surrounds it! Amidst the /hadows grow attachments of men who identif) themseles with their "od) and with the o"ects the) &ossess! The >ands are -ights and re&resent creatiit) and the Element of ire, corres&onding to our own creatie centre, together with sexualit)! The -ights defeat the dar#ness and dis&erse fears, releasing a i"rant creatiit)! The /words are Demons and re&resent thoughts and the Element of Air, corres&onding to our own intellectual centre, with the mind and its &otential! If thoughts esca&e our control, the) can "ecome o"sessions, ta#ing the form of Demons that enslae the mind! The following general indications should "e used to inter&ret the indiidual cards, ta#ing into consideration the meanings of the suits and alwa)s rel)ing on one;s own sensations and instinct! Ace% the "oo# of indiidual &otential is still closed< a "eginning, concentration of forces! Two% dierse energies face off in the de&ths% o"stacles, a critical &oint, accumulation! Three% The grimoire falls o&ens to natural magic, to creatiit), to union! our% a leel of com&rehension is reached and consolidated< sta"ilit), fulfilment! ie% there is the o&&ortunit) to moe on to a higher leel of consciousness, "ut there is also uncertaint) and difficult) in a"andoning &ersonal conictions! /ix% anal)sis of the situation and reflection are necessar) "efore deciding! /een% mental and &h)sical actions are deelo&ing d)namicall)! Eight% the a"ilit) to decide and fortitude come from reason and generate a desire for "alance, stagnation! 2ine% the ex&erience &roduced a"undance, wholeness, "ut &erha&s also isolation and crisis! Ten% the end of a cha&ter of the grimoire re&resents fulfilment, consolidation, and a new "eginning! Knae% &resage of the onset of a transformation% the secret learning of the hidden #nowledge of the .)ramids! Knight% enter&rise and iacit) urge to action% inclination to a sudden turn of eents! ueen% the #ee&er of the forces of one of the four &ersonal centres, the &erce&tion of this energ)! King% the control of one of the four &ersonal centres, the full &ossession of one;s resources!
