From: msesheta <msesheta@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 23 Aug 2011 10:03:17 -0400
Subject: {Open Tarot Nexus} The World Card - Evangelists, Fixed Stars,
Archangels or Fixed Signs of the Zodiac?
To: Opentarot Group <OpenTarot@yahoogroups.com>, Google Opentarotnexus
<opentarotnexus@googlegroups.com>
Hello,
If the images in the corners are taken as the fixed zodiacal signs,
they must be in the order shown on the RWS deck. The man represents
Aquarius and he needs to be placed diagonally to Leo the lion. The
same goes for the bull which represents Taurus - it must be placed
diagonally across from the eagle which represents Scorpio. Some decks
switch the order - perhaps they are following the order of the
Evangelists as given in Ezekiel and not the proper zodiacal
positioning? The Cosmic tarot is an example of the change. Notice that
the lion and the bull are reversed. This is not the proper order of
the signs of the zodiac or the fixed stars found within the
constellations.
Below is a post from aeclectic which talks about Babylonian astrology
and the four fixed stars.
First is a description from Wikipedia and after that the post about fixed stars.
A naked woman or hermaphrodite hovers or dances above the Earth
holding a staff in each hand, surrounded by a green wreath, being
watched by various creatures. In older decks, these are usually a
human face or head, a lion, an ox, and an eagle, the symbols of the
four Evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
Matthew the Evangelist, the author of the first gospel, symbolized by a man...
Mark the Evangelist, the author of the second gospel, symbolized by a lion...
Luke the Evangelist, the author of the third gospel and the Acts of
the Apostles, symbolized by a bull or a calf...
John the Evangelist, the author of the fourth gospel, symbolized by an eagle...
It also holds reference to the vision of Ezekiel in the old testament.
This is a reference to the all-encompassing knowledge of the Bible,
the Word of God. Later decks avoid such blatant Christian symbolism,
or ignore it altogether, choosing to explain these observers as
representatives of the natural world, or the kingdom of beasts. An
alternative explanation is based on astrological symbolism. The human
face, bull, lion, and eagle represent the fixed signs of the zodiac,
Aquarius, Taurus, Leo, and Scorpio. In some decks the wreath is a
basilisk (crowned reptile) biting its own tail; this basilisk is also
sometimes called an Ouroborous.
In some decks, this card is also called "The Universe."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_World_(Tarot_card)
I agree with the poster who spoke about the ancient Babylonian
symbolism of the four beasts, representing the root symbolism of this
card on which many other cycles of symbolism are layered. It was
during the Babylonian period of history that the Sun conjuncting the
four stars Aldebaran (Eye of Taurus, the Bull), Regulus (Heart of the
Lion), Antares (Heart of the Scorpion) and Fomalhaut (Mouth of the
Fish) marked the changes in seasons of the solar year. You will note
that the Lady of "The World" is encircled by an oval wreath marked
into four sections. The oval wreath represents the Solar Year. The
four beasts mark the stars that represented the Solstices and
Equinoxes when astrology was first invented. The animals fall into
exactly the sequence of the seasons when we follow them
counterclockwise around the card--first Spring (Bull/Taurus), then
Summer (lion/Leo), then Autumn (eagle/Scorpio), then Winter
(man/Aquarius).
Aquarius, by the way, is the "water bearer", astrologically symbolized
by a man pouring or carrying water: therefore, his symbol is a human
form. All four beasts in Babylonian myth have wings, so you could say
he is a winged man and therefore an angel, or you could say the four
beasts are all angels, since they all have wings.
And the Lady (the World), dances within the oval (quite accurate,
actually--the solar year is better described as an oval than a circle)
solar cycle of the seasons.
The Babylonians referred to the four stars as "the Watchers" of the
four directions of the compass. As a result of Ezekiel and Daniel
borrowing heavily on the beasts of Babylonian astrological symbolism
in describing their visions, the identical concepts were imported into
Hebrew symbolism in the book of Daniel and later Christian symbolism
in the book of Revelation. The term for "Watchers" in Hebrew
translates to messengers, or Angels in English.
The Four Watchers, then, became associated with the four Archangels:
Aldebaran = Uriel, or Light of God
Regulus = Raphael, or Healing of God
Antares = Michael, or Like God
Fomalhaut = Gabriel, or Strength of God
http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?t=83945
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