The Numerical Tarot is an alternative to traditional tarot. I would love it if traditional tarotists were able to see interesting correlations between this system and tradition, but that is not really the goal of this work. In being an alternative, The Numerical Tarot makes a few changes to the form of traditional tarot that might be hard for some to swallow. One of the biggest obstacles facing acceptance of this approach, might be the way it divides the Major Trumps into two separate decks! Call it an abomination of tradition if you like, I call it an alternative. In this alternative approach, the Major Trumps have a definite purpose. In this alternative approach, the Major Trumps are seen as an illustration of the highly abstract stages of a model of existence that is built in your mind's eye, after reading the book All Things Are Numbers. On paper, this model of existence is diagrammed with the use of four concentric circles, enclosing a fifth central point.

When a line is drawn through this diagram, to label each stage of development, it produces a number line of nine numbers. Like so:

The Major Trumps of The Numerical Tarot are devoted to expressing both the fourfold nature of the model itself, as well as the ninefold nature of the number line that results from passing through to label important parts. In contemplating the model in this way, we see fourfold expressions as representations of existence itself, while ninefold expressions represent the idea of events in time existing as entities within the sea of time itself (see Significant Signature of Nature and Why Only Nine elsewhere on this site). As expressions of events in time, the two rows of nine that make up the Major Trumps of The Numerical Tarot represent the life and death cycles of humanity and the universe. As four cards "left over" the Quaternary represents the stages of existence an entity passes through on its way back to the nothingness from which it came i.e. stages of death - getting of the wheel.

Within the form of traditional tarot, hints of this kind of deck separation can be seen. I'm not going to suggest that such a separation was in mind when tarot was created, but it is interesting to observe the dramatic line of demarcation seen between the dark, sometimes ominous and death-like qualities of the Moon card (and the cards that precede it) and the light and happy look of the Sun card (and the cards that follow it). Some people see the Star, Moon and Sun as a group of cards that simply represent the idea of astrological or astronomical influences. Others see them as a representation of increasing amounts of light, and see that as symbolic of a path of enlightenment itself. Others, however, see the three cards of Sun, Judgment and World as a representation of biblical end times where God (Sun), calls up souls (Judgment) to a kingdom in heaven (World). The Numerical Tarot prefers the latter of these ideas. The Numerical Tarot definitely sees a line of demarcation between the Moon (card 18 = 1 + 8 = 9) and the cards that follow.

One of the reasons The Numerical Tarot sees such a vivid line of demarcation between Moon and Sun is because of the way this deck views cards 10 through 18. Because of this system's insistence on consistency and contrast in deck design (see Spectrum of Possibilities elsewhere on this site) The Numerical Tarot views cards 10 through 18 as "bad" or dark, or evil, or ominous - a series of ideas that express the decline and demise of an entity... with an undignified death that ends at card 9, The Moon (usually numbered 18 = 1 + 8 = 9). Likewise, in contrast, this deck views cards 1 through 9 as "good" or light or beneficial, or propitious - a series of ideas that express the ascent and enlightenment of an entity... with an inspired death that ends at card 9, The Hermit (9) (see The Spine of Tarot elsewhere on this site). So while this deck likes the idea of viewing the Sun, Judgment and World cards as a separate series of ideas, it does not necessarily require them to be thought of as a continuation of an unbroken string of 22 ideas trailing off from the card of the Moon. In The Numerical Tarot, the four cards left over are simply representations of fundamental stages of existence - our fourfold model. These four cards could theoretically be seen as trailing off the end of either the positive row of Majors (The Hermit) or the negative row (The Moon).

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The Near Death Model

As stages of existence, the four cards of The Quaternary bear an uncanny resemblance to the stages of existence described by people who survive "near death" experiences!

People who have been labeled clinically dead by medical experts, only to be miraculously revived, often refer to an experience, or journey during the time between their "death" and their return to life. Many people think that the experience is evidence of life after death. Personally, I believe it to be evidence for the existence of lines of forces, within and around ALL manifest entities, as described by the abstract model of existence put forth within the book All Things Are Numbers and everywhere else on this site. In relating the experience of death, many people describe individual elements of the experience in a random fashion, describing them as happening simultaneously. Others however describe a definite passage from one idea to the next - a journey - an experience of liberation, from the center of their existence outward to its end. It is my belief that the experience described by these people is not necessarily one of life after death, but of a passage to death, which these people were unable, unwilling, or not allowed to complete. In this way, I am able to see each stage of the experience as isomorphic in form to that of our model's concentric spheres (or circles).

In relating a near death experience, some people jump around from one idea to another, but most follow a predictable path:

4) The beginning is usually marked by an incessant noise, like a banging, whistling, high pitched squeal or thunder.

3) After the banging and noise stage, most people begin their progression out with a tunnel of darkness. Sometimes there is a light at the end of this tunnel, sometimes not. Typically this tunnel is without time or dimension. There is a feeling of passing through, but without any time consumed. Passage through this tunnel is usually accompanied by a never before felt feeling of peace and tranquility.

2) The next step usually involves an out-of-body experience, and the looking back on oneself in whatever situation the body is left in; operating table, highway median, death bed. The sensations associated with this experience are usually that of floating and a general elated, euphoric feeling, like flying.

1) The last stage of the near death experience involves that blinding white light seen from the tunnel. Many people see a heavenly/religious image within the light or sense a "being of light" that is nondescript in form. Others see their life pass before them - another occurrence that seems to not take any time to pass. Some people just have an overwhelming sense of total knowledge and oneness with the universe.

0) Many people go on to describe a limit or border, beyond which they see people from their past beckoning. This border becomes the end point from which all these people return, thus allowing them to live. In fact most people speculate that indeed if they were to have crossed that limit, they would have been truly dead and not able to return (an option that for many seemed completely acceptable, given the euphoric conditions around them).

I could go on and on about how the stages of this journey resemble the model of existence put forth within the book All Things Are Numbers, and how I think those similarities influence the supposed meaning of associated numbers of numerology... and eventually tarot icons, but, as with all the essays on this site, this will remain a painfully brief and horribly incomplete description. But before it's over, I think it would be interesting to observe the similarities between the stages of this "near death" model, just described, and the final three cards of a traditional tarot deck.

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The Four Left Over

Do the last three cards of a traditional tarot deck correlate at all with the fourfold description of the stages taken by a manifest entity on its way to death? Let's start witht the cards we know...

The Sun - There is no tunnel to be seen within any Sun card illustration that I can recall. But the descriptions and interpretations that I've read are usually extremely positive, life affirming, and generally pleasent, making associations to the peaceful, tranquil feelings of the near death model somewhat interesting to note. The inclusion of a bright light (the Sun), with or without an accompanying tunnel, is also interesting to note.

Judgment - Religious associations aside, the idea of souls rising out of coffins and floating up to heaven seems remarkably similar to the out-of-body experience of the near death model.

World - Being the last card of a traditional deck, numerous associations are made here concerning all-consuming totality, an all-knowing being, an infinite presence, a "New Jerusalem" that beckons you, as well as the idea of limits or borders and cycles of reincarnation.

NOTE: This is not a theory, just an interesting observation. The Numerical Tarot chooses to illustrate the near death model as a significant signature of nature that can be described in a fourfold manner. No association to traditional tarot is required to utilize this knowledge.

But what about the fourth card? In a traditional deck there are only three cards that follow the line of demarcation created by The Moon and The Sun. Unless... we include The Fool card as part of this progression. In The Numerical Tarot, the archetype of a fool is used to oppose the archetype of a genius. In that way it replaces the Wheel card as a symbol of someone who is ignorant, naive and fatalistic - the opposite of the Magician, who is aware, alert and singlemined. So the fourth card of The Numerical Tarot's Quaternary is a new, made up card. But what if The Fool card of a traditional deck was used as part of a "near death" description, would it make any sense?

I think it does. Of course this is only half the story. Within the Quaternary of The Numerical Tarot the reverse of any card describes the same kind of path, only to a hellish end in a Dark Abyss, rather than a heavenly end within a Bright Light.

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The Death of Sleep

Many have observed how sleep is itself a form of death. But we don't die. We are literally reborn, or reincarnated, every time we wake from this daily death. The path taken into sleep is usually gradual, and often described in stages. And while we may not experience a timeless tunnel, out-of-body floating, or an all-knowing being every time we fall asleep, I see the stages of sleep as having a relationship to our theoretical model of existence that is similar to that of the near death description, as falling asleep replicates the same stages of deliquescence or melting away of consciousness.

In the essay The Totality of Reality, I suggest the idea that there could be varying degrees of reality, as transcendental, archetypal essence evolves into transient forms for us to perceive in our equally transcendent minds (illusion is reality is illusion). In the essay Dreams and Dreaming I present a Map of Consciouness that attempts to describe with words, the melting away of a conscious, waking mind. Thus, we can see how a similar pattern of "gradual reality" is produced by a mind dissolving the reality of its waking life to fall asleep each night! As varying stages of consciousness correlate with varying degrees of reality, and vice versa, we can use our theoretical model of existence to map these stages (see Map of Consciousness in the essay Dreams and Dreaming, elsewhere on this site). In arranging sleep stages in such a way as to replicate the form of our spherical or circular model, I would logically arrange them concentrically from the center out - the center being the core of manifestation and/or consciousness. Thus, the 4/6 stage, being equivalent to the highest degree of manifestation or focused consciousness, would be equivalent to the conscious waking mind, and the 1/9 stage, being less defined, or less dense, would be equivalent to the deep sleep of an unconscious mind (signaling a different kind of awareness than the awareness a 1/9 is known for in the awake world). Progressing through the sleep stages would then be equivalent to the Near Death stages... illustrating a similar "letting go" of a manifest/conscious state. Thus, sleep becomes similar to dying.

But what interests most people about sleep is the dream state that speaks to us, as a proxy to the reality we leave behind (see Psychic Buddy elsewhere on this site). Our model of existence is perfectly designed to address this phenomena. With this idea of delequescence or melting away of consciouness we can see how, in approaching the state of dreams, it would be theorized that our minds - while at the 1/9 stage of deep sleep, but not quite ready to exit to zero and actually die - loop around (via the the transcendent Absentia) and return to the 4/6 stage (or as close as it can, given the conditions of rest and sleep imposed upon it). This, then, would be where the REM stage comes in, as the sleeping mind is now contemplating the "phantom image" of manifestation from which it just departed - and thinking it to be real. Most people break sleep stages down to 5 steps, where REM happens at stage 5. In the book All Things Are Numbers, high frequency waves are associated with the 4/6 insides of the model and slow waves with the 1/9 outsides (see Light Waves and Numbers in Space elsewhere in this site). Thus, we wee how cycling back around, through the paradox of Absentia, to high REM waves, would make sense within the stages of our theoretical model of existence.

In the model of existence being put forth on this site, the 3/7 stage is a dividing line between the negative outsides and the positive insides (see The Cosmic Engine elsewhere on this site). Thus it can also be seen as a dividing line between reality on the positive, coagulated insides and fantasy or illusion on the amorphous, less formed outsides (see Diminishing Returns elsewhere on this site). With this idea, we can see how most dreams occur at this "theoretical membrane" of transition between the formed and the unformed, as our recognition and contemplation of the "phantom image" of the reality we left behind blends with the amorphous outsides of fantasy... giving our dreams that real, but at the same time not real flavor (see the Creativity, Talent and Drug models elsewhere on this site). As sleep continues, dreams would then taper off to become less and less real, or more and more bizarre, as the mind repeats the cycle of "dying" by moving beyond the 3/7 stage and on to the 2/8 and 1/9, to cycle around again for more REM sleep and more dreams.

I know... the stages of sleep do not progress smoothly from one to the other. Neither do the stages of Near Death. In both, this would be an indication of the reluctance of life to let go (an object in consciousness tends to stay in consciousness). So while there might be some mixture of disparate wave lengths involved between waking Alpha and deep sleep Theta, the idea of cycling around, through absentias, to replace an Awake Reality with a R.E.M. Reality, that, through a continued cycle of "dying" leads to dreams that are more and more strange remains intact as a theory.

The fact that our model of existence already associates the transitional 3/7 membrane with this type of connectivity to dream-like imagination, spirituality and unity is no coincidence. People with 7s in their Name Numerology are quite often fascinated by dreams, as well as things like tarot images, and even things like making/watching movies, which are, in many ways, dreams in a can. The 3/7 stage is a fine line between fantasy and reality. The 3/7 stage is a portal, from reality to fantasy and back again, thus making reality illusion and illusion reality.

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EXTRA CREDIT

The Numerical Tarot chooses to illustrate its Quaternary deck with the idea of stages of existence, but in reality, the Quaternary can also be used to illustrate any number of other fourfold models known to man. As one acquaints oneself with these other expressions of existence, the numbers of numerology become clearer. Because the fourfold Quaternary and the ninefold Majors both represent the same thing (a model of existence) they can be used interchangeably as descriptions of numbers of numerology. In the DECK section of this site, you will find a section where I use fundamental core concepts to invent names for each card of this deck. Within the Quaternary part of this section, you will find a few other interesting expressions of Quaternaries. And within The Nickel Tour, you can find further explanations of how to use a Quaternary deck.