V

Enjoy the Pretty Colors

The Numerical Tarot deck that appears on this site was drawn with only black and white. This gives it a certain kind of simplicity that is conducive to presenting the basic form of the deck... as describe elsewhere around this site, with all the words, diagrams and mandalas of explanation. The Isomorphic Tarot deck though, was drawn in color. Color is good for communicating on a subliminal level. In the Isomorphic Tarot, there was no great effort made to make numerical associations or color associations that obvious. But still, if you look, you can see many instances where certain colors are prominent. That is not a mistake. In the Seasonal Tarot, deliberate use of color is even more obvious.

Color is important to anyone committing acts of interpretation. Color is important to those who want to use tarot as a tool for psychoanalysis. So deciding which colors belong with which cards in a tarot deck is important. In determining what colors I should associate with which cards, or numbers of numerology, my decisions were part intuitional and part logical. I didn't really try to arrange colors to express ideas that I wanted to express, I mostly arranged colors in a way that would duplicate the underlying structure that already existed as part of the theoretical model of existence being put forth everywhere on this site. My whole model is a model of radiating influence out from a center - simple, archetypal. So when contemplating color arrangement, I merely arranged colors in a way that looked like they were radiating out from a center, or... in from the outside.

In pursuing this radiant line of reasoning, I considered relative contrast as a prime criteria and placed white and black at the extremities of 1 and 9. Violet and Yellow seemed to be the next most contrasting of colors that occurred to me at the time, so I put them with 2 and 8. Looking ahead, I noticed that the now archaic triad of primaries, taught in my grade school art classes, was taking shape. I know that Red, Yellow and Blue are no longer considered legitimate primary colors in our scientific studies of color and perception, but nevertheless, it was interesting to see them coming together like old friends, by way of my intuitive assignment of colors to the nine numbers of my number line. So... I decided to keep these primaries together, which produced an interesting result, as Orange ended up crossing over the middle from where it would have been if I had arranged these colors according to a straightforward wavelength spectrum, where Orange would have ended up in the Red/Yellow "warm" family. I thought that result was interesting because of how it could stand as a representation of the spiraling twist that occurs at the vortex of the 5 where things trade sides and mix together... so I left it that way. The end result produced an arrangement that made more and more sense, the more I thought about it (see chart below).

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A Model of Archaic "Painter's" Primaries

I started my arrangement of colors by using logic and intuition together. The unexpected result was an arrangement that made a lot of sense to me. The primaries that we learned about in grade school, and that many painters still use today for choosing pleasing color combinations for their art, may indeed be archaic to the world of science and what we know today about color perception... but those are the colors I see when I think about these numerical positions. The fact that they ended up forming the primaries and secondaries used by painters is an interesting coincidence (see graphic below).

A combination of logic and intuition produced a combination of archaic "painter's" primaries and secondaries. Superimpose one half over the other and create a color wheel.

This arrangement of painter's primaries was not calculated by considering specific numerical qualities, it was done intuitively, by considering general, overall qualities. But when it comes time to consider specific numerical qualities, many interesting correlations can be found to rationalize and legitimize this particular arrangement.

Starting from the center out, associations of Orange and Blue with the element of Fire (seen elsewhere on this site), seem quite appropriate, as the Orange flame of a candle sits upon a throne of Blue light. Orange and Blue fit well with the element of Fire. Fire then translates metaphorically into the concept of a fire in someone's heart, i.e. passion (Lovers) or courage (Emperor). Notice all the orange in the Rider/Waite/Smith Emperor card. Being associated with the highly social numbers of 4 and 6, having the color blue as a 6 makes lots of sense. People who are social value trust and faithfulness. Consider how many companies in the world, who make a living based on how much they are able to gain the trust of the public, use the color blue. Hospitals, banks, insurance companies all use blue extensively. Being a true blue friend is appropriately 6 in nature. Being a faithful lover is appropriately 6 and blue.

Associating Green with the life-giving vegetation of Earth seems straightforward enough. And given existing associations presented on this site for the Soul being the metaphysical equivalent of the Body, the idea of Red, life-giving blood inside a body makes sense to me. On a spiritual plane, Red could also stand for the blood of Christ, which would make its association to the number 7 appropriate. Lots of people associate the color Red with the passions of love (coloring valentines with red and all that) and might see it as misplaced here. But I see love and passion as two different things. People who equate sex with love might see them as the same thing, but I don't (see the essay on Virtues and Love elsewhere on this site). I equate love with 3 and 7 and the passion of sexual intercourse with 4 and 6. So, the idea of Red for love is appropriate to me.

Moving on, Violet and Yellow were more or less placed by default. But, the result - to me anyway - seems entirely appropriate! Violet seems an effective color for conveying the mystery of my negative 2 Haunt. Lots of people use deep Violets, along with lots of black and dark blue, to convey mystery. While at the same time, bright vivid Violet in the light of day can be a very inspiring color that is appropriate to my Muse. Violet might be debatable as a 2, but - to me - Yellow with an 8 makes tons of sense. Yellow is a color of health and energy, and the outer reaches of that previously mentioned candle flame of energy as it carries our Spirit to the heavenly White light above (1/9). I like all the Yellow in the Rider/Waite/Smith Strength card. I'll bet there are lots of aerobics instructors out there wearing Yellow! It is a color of excitement and enthusiasm, as well as the joy and euphoria of this number on an ethereal plane. As a representation of Flow, from the Fame, Flow, Form, Force, Function model the idea of health and a free flowing Chi is appropriate to the numbers 2 and 8, making Yellow fit that idea neatly. In a traditional tarot deck, many consider the Star to be a card of hope. The Star is usually numbered 17, which, when reduced equals an 8. Yellow as a color of hope makes sense, especially when combined with the idea of tying a yellow ribbon around a tree as a sign of hope.

Putting Black and White with the outer reaches of our number line makes some sense, when we consider pont to sphere nature of a number line as described by The Geometric Progression (found elsewhere on this site). In The Geometric Progression, we acknowledge how everything reduces to a point and expands to a sphere, and how our number line can be used to describe a path of existence between these two extremes of infinity. In The Geometric Progression, point = sphere, and sphere = point, making our model of existence recursive... the end of one line becoming the beginning of another. With this ides, we see how the Black sphere of one line (at 9) becomes the White light of the next line (at 1), thereby producing Black... with White inside, like the black emptiness of space with white stars of light within. With Black and White, associations to the mind are also obvious to me, as the Black represents the universe on the outsides, and the White represents luminescent existence on the insides. All that we can contemplate or think of with our minds, of ourselves (inside/white) or the entire universe (outsides/black). Heady thoughts in the thin Air of the outer sphere if being.

Browns, Grays and metallic colors seem appropriate to a 5 as it represents the midpoint of the number line or center of the spherical model where opposites spiral together like chocolate and vanilla in the blender. 5 is neutral, so Gray. 5 is alchemical, so Gold and Silver. If you mix together all the colors (some people believing that White and Black are not actually colors) you get mud, or different colors of Brown. If you mix just the remaining Black and White, you get Gray. Our essence is a mixture of opposites at the 5. Mixed by Temperance and her two goblets. In my deck I use a Wizard, mixing a "good" potion, and a Witch, mixing a "bad" potion.

Two diagrams that illustrate an arrangement of colors that produces a crossing over effect at the center. This crossing over is indicative of the mixing that is seen at the center of our spherical model of existence, which is the result of lines of force than spiral together in a vortex of cosmic coagulation.

The primaries and secondaries of painters are based upon the visible light spectrum, or, the colors we seen in a rainbow, or when light passes through a prism. But that's not the only way to look at colors.

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The Mystery of Magenta

The primaries of RYB and secondaries of GVO are archaic. Today we consider the primaries of color to be Cyan, Magenta and Yellow for print, and Red, Green and Blue for light. As scientifically minded people point out the archaic nature of the Red, Yellow and Blue primaries of painters, a consideration of modern, scientifically accurate colors becomes appropriate. But, in order to discuss modern primaries, we need to go one step beyond the colors that are visible to us in any spectrum of light!

The primaries of printers includes a color we call Magenta. But... when white light is divided into a spectrum, there is no Magenta to be seen! In other words... this color... which we have come to consider as "primary" doesn't even exist, within a normal "rainbow" spectrum of light. The visible light spectrum runs from Red to Violet. Beyond Red is Infra-Red, not visible to humans. Beyond Violet is Ultra-Violet, not visible to humans. But... if we bend that linear spectrum around, so that Red and Violet blend together, we discover a whole new color, which we call Magenta, which is visible to humans. Thus... in order to acquire Magenta as a color for consideration, we need to either overlap the ends of two visible light spectrums, or, take a single visible light spectrum and bend it into a shape that would allow its Red and and Violet ends to meet and create Magenta between. Some have accomplished this task using the shape of a triangle, some use a warped horseshoe shape, some accomplish it using the shape of a circle. Because of my interest in mandalas, I prefer the circular approach.

There are tons of circular color wheels out there that use varying numbers of "spokes" to convey the primary, secondary and tertiary colors available to use. Years ago I created a circular color wheel using web safe colors. Most of the time web safe colors are displayed as a grid of colors, and always using either RGB or Hexadecimal values. I decided to take those RGB values and convert them into HSB (Hue, Saturation and Brightness) values, so that they could be mapped around a circle of hues like a normal color wheel that would make sense to most artists picking colors. Like most color schemes, which consider Red to have a hue of 0, I too started my wheel at the top with Red as 0. Here it is, in case there's interest:

This diagram is reduced to fit this page. If you download it, it will be readable. It puts the color Red at the top with a hue of zero. Note: the numerical values for each hue are based on a 24 spoke wheel, the actual HSB values of each color may vary. What I did was take colors that were close to each other in hue, and staked them under a single value, on a 24 spoke wheel. I also augmented the available colors by including in between colors that could be made by dithering two other colors together like a checkerboard.

But... after subsequent consideration of the "extra-spectral" nature of Magenta, I have decided to modify this representation of colors to coincide with other patterns found elsewhere around this site. In doing so, I considered how the overlapping of the ends of a spectrum reminds me of the popular symbol of a snake eating its tail... where its open jaws and inserted tail are analogous to the overlapping of Red and Violet, to produce the all important Magenta. In most cases this round Ouroboros symbol is drawn with this conjunction of jaw and tail at the top... with its body below. That would mean that my new color wheel would want to have its extra-spectral Magenta hues at the top. Next... given how "invisible" Magenta is (being created only by a combination of colors that are visible), associating Magenta with zero seemed more appropriate to me than the standard application of Red as a hue of zero. In considering a pattern that includes zero... in a circular form... and puts that zero at its top, my Wreath mandala came to mind.

My Wreath mandala is perhaps an even more appropriate symbol to use than the Ouroboros idea, because of how its nine numbers (and zero) can be seen as positions marking off significant jumps in color. In fact, a 10 spoke wheel, with Magenta as 0, produces a series of colors that are not that far off from the suggested ideals of standard triadic color wheels that accentuate the idea of primaries and secondaries by using 6, 12, or 24 spokes. Thus, I have rearranged my web safe color wheel to have Magenta at its top, with a hue of zero and... to flesh things out a bit... 20 spokes. A color wheel with 20 spokes might seem crazy, because of how it fails to accentuate the idea of ideal, triadic primaries. But that's alright, because, it is not the goal here to create any kind of definitive color wheel of ideal colors. The goal here is to establish aesthetic rationale for associating various colors to the icons of tarot along a number line:

Here is a color wheel based on 10, or 9 numbers and 0. It actually has an ideal Cyan, Yellow and Magenta... but... they are not aligned in such a way as to correlate with the points of a perfect isosceles triangle, as seen in so many other color wheels. But, if one observes where the points of the inner pentacles face, they point to spaces on either side of colors that correspond perfectly with the ideal primaries and secondaries of print and light. The "Blue" of RGB is actually a Blue-Violet. The "Red" of RGB is actually a slightly Orange-Red. Even the Yellow of CMY is not supposed to be a perfectly bright Lemon-Yellow. So... even though this arrangement of colors abandons the notion of exact triangular primaries, they do exist in their usual places, which is close enough... because... it is not the goal here to create any kind of definitive color wheel of ideal colors. The goal here is to establish aesthetic rationale for associating various colors to the icons of tarot along a number line. For that, these 20 colors will do just fine! For an alternative to these 20 colors, consult the essay Music elsewhere on this site, where these 20 colors are reduced to only 16... in order to associate 16 colors with 8 musical tones and their 8 semitones... within a 9 tone octave!!

Thus, in spite of what others might view as deficiencies to that of scientifically perfect triads of color, this particular version of a color wheel has many interesting features and uses. One thing that is interesting to consider is how this wheel displays the extra-spectral colors between Red and Violet. Like the primaries of print and light, true Red and Violet are not really seen in this arrangement, they lie somewhere between 8 and 9 and 2 and 1. In this way, this model conveys the "isolated" nature of the numbers 1 and 9, by attributing 1 and 9 to the extra-spectral colors of Purple and Carmine, which act as intermediaries that blend extra-spectral Magenta with intra-spectral Red and Violet (to better understand the "isolated" nature of the numbers 1 and 9, consult the Apart/Together model, in the essay Why Abstract Patterns elsewhere on this site). So... with these 20 colors in mind, we can now consider how they might further illustrate the nature of our theoretical model of existence, as viewed by a number line of colors.

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A Model of Modern "Printer's" Primaries

The 20 spoke wheel of colors we have just established, doesn't display all the colors of a "modern" or "scientifically ideal" color wheel. Modern "Printer's" primaries are Cyan, Magenta and Yellow, with Red, Green and Blue as secondaries. Our 20 spoke wheel has only rough approximations of these ideal colors. In deciding how to apply rough approximations of these colors to my number line, I decided to apply these approximate "Printer's" primaries in a way that would be as similar to each number as the previous application of "Painter's" primaries that had occurred to me intuitively. Given that the Blue of the RGB portion is more of a Blue-Violet, and the Red of RGB is more of a Red-Orange, associations of "Red" to existing Orange and "Blue" to existing Violet were easy... leaving the even closer shades of Green to be almost identical. Likewise, in the CMY portion of Printer's primaries, Yellow is almost identical... leaving Blue to align with Cyan and Magenta to align with Red. The result of this logic produces an arrangement of colors that are not all that different from the original RYB/GVO arrangement we started with at the beginning of this essay:

Using colors from the 20 color wheel described earlier, variations in colors that would otherwise be nearly identical, such as yellow and green, have some variation to them. That will be useful when applying them to the icons of our number line.

When viewed as a straight line, these "printer" colors are not really all that different from the "painter" colors we started with. The difference between Violet and Blue-Violet is small. The difference between Green and Green is even smaller. The difference between Red-Orange and Orange is also small. The difference between Cyan and Blue is a little more, but also small. The difference between Magenta and Red is the largest. But again, the difference between Yellow and Yellow is very small.

With these Printer and Painter primaries being so similar we could almost make the same observations about associations to numerological positions given already. As mentioned, many use dark shades of Violet and Blue, or Blue-Violet, whenever illustrating deep dark mystery. Like the association made to nature, the greenery of leaves comes in many hues. The nearness of RGB's Red-Orange to actual Red would explain the blurred lines of distinction people make between love and passion. Cyan maintains all the associations made about Blue, just lighter. Yellow maintains all the associations made about Yellow. The only color that requires some serious mental adjustment is the association of Magenta with Red. And given the special circumstances required to make Magenta, such associations to "a realm beyond the reality of visible light" seems appropriate to the number 7, which itself has associations to the concept of reality (see The Geometric Progression in the essay Why Abstract Patterns elsewhere on this site). Associations of Magenta to the concept of love, might also help us to see it as compatible with Red. A look at any store display will reveal how most people move toward Magenta and Pink, and not Orange, when seeking out analogous color schemes for valentines. Thus, Orange, and Red-Orange, remain colors of sexual passion, while Red and Pink and Magenta are seen as colors of love.

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Two Primaries, Two Spectrums

The color associations made so far have been based largely on a symmetrical design. If we want, we can also associate colors across our number line in a more linear fashion, in order to achieve some very different results that could eventually lead to different theoretical associations, as well as some interesting color combinations that could be used by artists wanting to create their own deck of cards based upon the ideas being presented everywhere on this site. Having a unique color palette for each card of a deck will hopefully convey the specific mood of each card better than having just one or two colors.

Lots of people divide the visible light spectrum into seven distinct colors. We only use six of those colors when defining primaries and secondaries on a color wheel... but when used in a linear fashion across a number line, the inclusion of the number 5, which has thus far been assigned the color Gray, would invite us to utilize all seven of these colors... with White and Black at either end.

The arrangement above shows the visible light spectrum. The visible light spectrum is only part of a much larger electromagnetic spectrum of energy. In this spectrum, the amplitude and frequency of energy waves varies in intensity. At one end is the intense energy of Gamma and X-rays. At the other end is the lower energy levels of radio waves. Because the Violet end of the visible light spectrum is adjacent to the end of the electromagnetic spectrum that leads to X-rays and Gamma rays, I have associated the faster, shorter wavelengths of Violet with the brightness of White, and the slower, longer waves of Scarlet with the darkness of Black. Short, fast wavelengths are also analogous to the geometric idea of a point, and its infinite smallness, as presented in The Geometric Progression seen elsewhere on this site, and so are appropriate to the number 1. While at the other end, longer, slower wavelengths are analogous to an ever expanding sphere, and so are appropriate to the number 9.

By default, Violet is being placed adjacent to the number 1, because of how short fast waves compare to a small, fast point. But... in making this association, we end up with cool colors on the side of our number line that is commonly associated with the warmer aspects of the "male" side of life (see Numbers In Space elsewhere on this site). Given this warmer, active nature of the masculine, we might have expected a reverse conclusion. But... I submit that this inverse symmetry is analogous to the idea of each male having a female side, and each female having a male side. Thus, because of the penetrative nature of Gamma rays and X-rays, I am inclined to keep the orientation of Violet to the number 1, while viewing the cool colors that go with that association as a representation of the female within the male. For more on how such ironic inversions make orientations of color to our model difficult, consult the essay The Inverse Universe elsewhere on this site... where an alternative orientation that does put warm colors on the male side is discussed. See also the essay Music, where this alternative orientation is used to color musical tones in a 16 tone musical scale.

With this idea of Violet adjacent to 1 and Scarlet adjacent to 9 in place, we can now consider what kind of spectrum we would get if we were to include the missing colors between Violet and Scarlet. In the seven color spectrum, the idea of White and Black not being colors conveys the idea of 1 and 9 being separate and isolated, as put forth in the Apart/Together model seen elsewhere on this site. But if we eliminate White and Black entirely, and only use colors from our rounded spectrum - our color wheel with Magenta as Zero, at the top... and intermediary colors of Purple and Carmine in place of White and Black at the numbers 1 and 9... we get a spectrum with a slightly different spacing of colors.

In addition to repeating the isolation of 1 and 9 with the extra-spectral colors of Purple and Carmine, this arrangement also divides the numberline into thirds. Purple, Blue and Cyan being cool colors and Carmine, Red and Yellow being warm colors makes Mint, Green and Apple in between colors in a three stage Blue, Green Red spectrum. This of course is a symmetrical observation amid our attempt at linear associations, but... inasmuch as we maintain a desire to arrange colors in ways that duplicate the underlying structure of our theoretical model of existence, we can see how this arrangement illustrates the concept of a 4, 5, 6 cluster and a three stage progression of ideas, as described in the essay A Significant Signature of Nature seen elsewhere on this site. Overall, both of these linear progressions of color symbolize the idea of a numberline that augments to a climactic end, from cool to warm. These last two observations symbolize how a numberline can be viewed as both symmetrical as well as linear at the same time, as discussed in the essay The Cosmic Engine seen elsewhere on this site.

In both of these linear models, the color Green lands in the middle at number 5. In both cases, the color Green is easily seen as a between color to the extremes of cool colors and warm colors just mentioned. Thus it becomes the knot at the base of the Wreath mandala utilized above. 5 is The Village Green of our community of colors. 5 is the Central Park of our metropolis of colors.

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A Family of Colors

I hope to draw more decks in the future. I hope that one day someone else might decide to draw a deck based upon the ideas put forth everywhere on this site. To facilitate in the understanding of the symbolic significance of color to this system, color palettes for individual cards that are based upon these various arrangements would be important to establish. Color palettes are usually crafted by using the color wheel and selecting colors that are analogous, complementary or split complementary in hue to that of a chosen color that is meant to be dominant. Analogous colors are nearby colors used to emphasize a particular hue. Complementary colors are opposite colors, used for contrast. Split complementary colors are colors that are not quite opposite, used for lesser contrast. These are good rules of thumb to follow when selecting colors that will produce pleasing combinations of color harmony. However, it is not exactly the goal here to give a lesson in color harmony. The goal right now is to use colors to convey the nature of the underlying structure that governs the numbers, and the cards that illustrate those numbers. Toward this goal it would be helpful to view the four color models we have so far all together.

The top row is a rough approximation of the very popular 7 step color spectrum... with Orchid and Fuchsia filling in for White and Black, as extra-spectral outsiders. The second row is the cool to neutral to warm RGB triad, which also includes extra-spectral colors at its ends. The third row is a rough approximation of "Painter's Primaries" using colors from the 20 spoke color wheel established earlier. The last row is a rough approximation of "Printers Primaries" which also uses colors from our 20 spoke color wheel.

In the chart above, not all 20 of our established colors are being used... and one color - Green - is repeated in a darker shade. Also... being associated with zero, Magenta is not seen. Nevertheless, along with the 20 spoke color wheel, these colors will stand as a base, from which we can produce other colors, with the use of tinting, desaturating and shading. In addition, while taking colors from our color wheel, and producing two separate spectrums of 9 colors each, it might not be noticed that the two spectrums are actually one spectrum zigzagging back and forth. Here is that full spectrum, un-ziz-zagged, with Magenta off to the side:

	7 Step (+2)   10 Step (-1)         0 MG       OC 1 PU VT 2 SA BU 3 AZ CY 4 MT GN 5 LF YW 6 AP OR 7 GD SC 8 AM FU 9 CA         0 MG
Here are the colors from our color wheel that we use to create the two rows of spectrums and primaries... with Magenta thrown in, so we don't forget it's there. I included their names, letter abbreviations, abbreviated* hexadecimal values and nearly equivalent hues. *NOTE: FOF = Hexadecimal FF00FF etc.	LF = Leaf Green, the darker version of regular Green.

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The Rise and Fall of Colors

In The Numerical Tarot, suits relate to each other like the seasons of an Earth year. In Spring, the suit of Addition/Diamond/Coin goes from the darkness of Winter to the light of Summer. In Summer the suit of Multiplication/Heart/Cup sustains the light of Summer, until Autumn. In Autumn the suit of Subtraction/Club/Stave goes from the lightness of Summer to the darkness of Winter. In Winter the suit of Division/Spade/Sword sustains the dark of Winter, until Spring.

The four suits of The Numerical Tarot are like the seasons of an Earth year. The suit of Addition/Diamond/Coin augments life to a light end. The suit of Multiplication/Heart/Cup sustains that light of life. The suit of Subtraction/Club/Stave descends into darkness. The suit of Division/Spade/Sword sustains that darkness.

Differences in the character of each suit are conveyed in many other ways throughout this site. Thus... in this study of color, these differences will be conveyed using tinting, desaturating and shading of our base colors. Toward this end, the positive suit of Addition/Diamond/Coin will convey its positive state by using colors that are Vivid, i.e. not darkened or desaturated. The equally positive suit of Multiplication/Heart/Cup will express its association to the light of life by using colors that are Light in tint. The negative suit of Subtraction/Club/Stave will convey its descent toward darkness by using colors that are Dull, i.e. desaturated and darkened. And.. the equally negative suit of Division/Spade/Sword will express its association to the darkness of death by using colors that are Dark in shade. In establishing a color palette for each Minor Suit card, inclusion of this seasonal cycle will be important to note

As the importance of a seasonal-like cycle is established, the rising and falling of Addition/Diamond/Coin and Subtraction/Club/Stave will be coved by having the two spectrums of color associated to them. While the idea of sustaining the light or darkness will be conveyed through the symmetry of grouped primaries. Elsewhere on this site I compare the difference between suits to left-brained vs. right-brained thinking, and further compare that to the difference between scales and chords on a metaphorical piano (see The Endless Piano, elsewhere on this site). In this way, our linear spectrums are like fingers moving sequentially along piano keys to sound out the "do, ra, me" scales of music, while the idea of multiple fingers landing simultaneously upon multiple keys to sound out a musical chord, becomes analogous to the harmonies of equidistant triangular primaries.

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Colors and Quintagrams

The color combinations that result from a straightforward association of linear spectrums and grouped primaries is obvious. Associating spectrums and primaries with different suits is also simple enough. But... the color combinations that result from the logical placing of primaries and spectrums together are not always the most ideal. Also, color palettes usually include dominance of color as part of their aesthetics. In other words, viewing samples of suggested colors in nearly equal quantities gives a different aesthetic reaction than would be derived from viewing suggested colors in a way that would represent how dominant each color is likely to be when used in an actual illustration - like a tarot card. With this theory in mind, I decided to propose some color combinations for the various cards of the Minor Suits, using the primaries and spectrums established so far. I could have accomplished this task artistically, by starting with the spectrum and primary associations given thus far, and utilizing common rules of color harmony... but I wanted to find a way to establish color combinations that would utilize one or more of the important patterns governing the underlying structure of the theoretical model of existence being put forth everywhere on this site. I found one, by looking to the idea of Quintagrams (see Numbers In Space elsewhere on this site).

Quintagrams represent the cumulative result of binary influences upon an entity. Like the colors of light, the five positions of a Quintagram represent five different levels of cosmic vibration. The cards of the Minor Suits are designed to illustrate each of every possible binary combination. Thus, color combinations generated by a formula that is governed by the laws of Quintagrams would be extremely appropriate, and very cool. Are the combinations that result harmonious? I don't know... each individual can decide that for themself. What I wanted to do was generate colors that would speak the same message as the Quintagrams used to create them.

When generating a Quintagram, we are meant to determine the binary bias of five critical stages of existence to arrive at a cumulative influence that describes a particular person, or place... or thing. Along the way, we also narrow down the number of cards in our deck that could possibly illustrate that cumulative influence... eventually eliminating all but one possibility (see the Binary Influence Calculator). In narrowing down to a single card in our deck, the first line of a Quintagram eliminates the possibility of our card being from the positive... or negative suits. Once we know if we are positive or negative, the second line tells us if we are analytical or synthetical (i.e. whether we are playing linear scales or symmetrical chords on our metaphorical piano). The third line tells us how masculine or feminine we are. It also indicates whether we are dealing with a cause or an effect. The fourth line tells us how introspective or extrospective we are. The fifth line tells us how active or passive we are (see the Dream Analysis Calculator). When narrowing down to a single card in our grid of Minor pips, it takes the first two lines of a Quintagram to determine which suit we are in, the next three lines combine to determine which number we are heading for.

After establishing a Quintagram-to-tarot-card association, acknowledgement of where we are within the bigger picture of the deck as a whole becomes important. Toward this end, we observe how the grid of Minor pips is in fact designed to convey theoretical levels of consciousness depending on which quadrant of the Minor grid we find ourselves.

The condition of the outer box of a Quintagram tells at a glance where in our grid matrix organization of cards it resides. For more on the creation of a grid matrix of organization consult the essay Evolution of a Deck Design: The Matrix elsewhere on this site.

Cards from the beginning (1,2,3 and 4) of the analytical suits (Addition/Diamond/Coin and Subtraction/Club/Stave) represent the Actions of a fully Conscious mind, while cards from the end of those suits (6,7,8 and 9) represent the Thoughts of our PreConscious mind. Moving on to the synthetical suits (Multiplication/Heart/Cup and Division/Spade/Sword) the beginning of those suits represent the Feelings of a SubConscious mind, while the end of those suits represent the Emotions of an UnConscious mind. Thus, from any Quintagram, we can derive three important concepts: the suit (and what season of an Earth year we use to metaphorically represent that suit); a number (and the element of nature we use to metaphorically represent that numerical stage of existence); and a level of consciousness (see The Deck Operating System and Dreams and Dreaming elsewhere on this site).

When we use the Binary Influence Calculator, or the Dream Analysis Calculator, and click on the Quintagram that results, we are taken to pages on this site devoted to describing the essence of that numerological position. Near the top of those interpretation pages are some short, five line summaries that utilize the threefold nature of Quintagrams to convey numerical essence in as few words as possible. Some do so using the metaphors of seasons and elements, some do so using suits and other aspects of numerical essence - like the Frame, Flow, Form, Force, Function model discussed elsewhere on this site (see The Quaternary and the Elements of Tarot elsewhere on this site). For example... the essence of The Three of Multiplication/Heart/Cup is summed up as: "Multiplication of Form in Being"... or... "Prevalence of Touch in SubConscious." There are also two other examples on that page that invert the order of the syntax a bit to arrive at: "Earth of Summer as State"... or... "Soul of Full as Feeling." These examples point to the essence of each specific card, while also generalizing about the nature of that particular quadrant of the Minor grid. In the example being used, the quadrant in questions would be describing a "State of Being" and "SubConscious Feeling." Thus, the goal at hand is to convey these same general and essential meanings with the use of colors alone!

To accomplish the task of expressing the same three concepts seen in any Quintagram, colors needed to be associated to suits, or their metaphorical seasons; numbers, or their metaphorical elements; and levels of consciousness or states of being. This turned out to be easier than it might sound, by simply applying the ideas of "cool" vs. "warm" to the various metaphors just mentioned, and associating those warm and cool states to warm and cool colors. When a Quintagram tells us we are in a Positive suit, it is also telling us we are warm rather than cool. When a Quintagram tells us we have landed on The Three of Multiplication/Heart/Cup it is telling us again that we are warm rather than cool. When our acknowledgement of where we are on the whole grid matrix tells us that we are dealing with SubConscious Feelings, that is telling us we are cool rather than warm. This gives us a mixture of warm and cool possibilities that, if expressed with color, would lead to unique color combinations for each unique Quintagram. For example, the seasons are easily seen as warm (Spring and Summer) and cool (Autumn and Winter). As our suits follow the metaphor of seasons, they too would pick up these same associations. The elements of nature could also follow that of seasons and suits, except... in other locations around this site I indicate that, unlike so many tarot decks, I do not associate the elements of Fire, Earth, Water and Air to the suits of tarot. In my design, the elements remain associated with the numbers that represent the stages of our theoretical model of existence (see the essay Seasons elsewhere on this site). In this way, numbers that are close to the core (3, 4, 6,7) are warm, and numbers out at the periphery (1, 2, 8, 9) are cool. As for the states of consciousness... in the essay Dreams and Dreaming, I compare explorations into SubConscious and UnConscious realms of dreaming to fishing in deep waters. In this way, waking Consciousness is like the sun in the sky, fiery Orange and Yellow, and active, while our PreConscious minds are like a person standing patiently, with rod and reel and solitary thoughts, on the Green grassy shore of a lake. The shallow depths of our SubConscious are then analogous to the blue water of the lake near the shore. While the deepest depths of our UnConscious minds turn cool blue waters to dark, murky and mysterious Violet.

These are the colors. Quintagrams provide the method. The outcome of calculating Quintagrams yields a significant pattern for determining how these colors come together. Will the result be pleasing color harmonies or a chaotic "crazy quilt" of mixed up madness? To observe that result, continue on to the essay A Crazy Quilt.