Scorpio 1: First decan of Scorpio, Five of Cups

Now we have entered spooky Scorpio season, the days growing shorter and darker here in the Northern hemisphere. For me, the first frost that occurs here in this decan is always a bit of a disappointment, but so it goes. The tarot Five of Cups is called the Lord of Disappointment, also known as Loss in Pleasure – retitled simply “Disappointment” in the Thoth deck.

Magical image of the decan per 777: A man with a lance in his right hand, in his left a human head

Eek! But I get it – the lance is one of the magical weapons of Mars, and the head is the part of the body ruled by Aries, the other Mars-ruled sign. (Mars rules Aries diurnally and Scorpio nocturnally). This card is TRIPLY Mars influenced, for the ruler of Scorpio is Mars, the ruler of this particular decan is also Mars, and the Fives correspond to the fifth sephira Geburah, also Mars ruled. Mars is hot and fiery, yet Scorpio is watery and dark. Thus the figure here is shown drifting down a river very reminiscent of one of the five (yes, five!) rivers of Hades, a very Scorpionic place!

The five rivers of the Greek Underworld realm of Hades are:

  • Styx, sometimes called the River of Hatred, is the well known river that Charon ferries the souls of the dead across, and the “dread river” upon which oaths are sworn
  • Acheron, the River of Woe/Misery, (whose name means “lacking in joy”)
  • Cocytus, the River of Wailing/Lamentation
  • Lethe, the River of Forgetfulness/Oblivion
  • Phlegethon, the River of Fire/Burning

Probably not where you want to vacation! Pretty sure the river in this card is Phlegethon, with all that fiery Mars stuff going on. I’ve made the head a skull, appropriate for the decan that contains All Hallows Eve. Austin Coppock calls this decan “the jawbone”, for the hungry nature of the martial influence. Both Scorpio and Mars are all about desire. This unfulfilled desire is echoed by the deity assigned in 36 Airs of the Zodiac, the Nymphai, sirens known to lure men to destruction.

In this case, the man laments the three spilled cups before him, though he still retains two.

[coming soon]

Libra 3: third decan of Libra. Four of Swords

The third and last decan of Libra corresponds to the tarot Four of Swords. While Libra is Venus-ruled, both the decan and the numeric Four cards are Jupiter ruled (Wheel of Fortune, the Greater Benefic or Fortune). 36 Aires of the Zodiac gives the deity as Nemesis, who we think of as a goddess of retribution, but who was also, like Jupiter, sometimes called the Greater Fortune and associated with goddess Fortuna. The Wheel turns after all for better and worse; usually for the better but it revolves and evolves. The Four of Swords in Crowley’s Thoth tarot is called “Truce”, a simplification of the Golden Dawn title of “Rest After Strife”.

The magical description of the decan per Crowley’s 777 is “A man riding on an ass, preceded by a wolf“. Indeed there appears to be some sort of truce between the rider, the ass, and the wolf as they plod downhill, presumably after some arduous climb or encounter. The four swords revolve around a gyroscope – which is what Austin Coppock calls this decan in his 36 Faces. The wheel symbolism is echoed by the device the man holds, which echoes the wheel carried by Fortuna in some depictions.

[coming soon]

And now, with all decans of the 7th sign of Libra completed, we are more than halfway around the zodiac, as the decan walk evolves and the wheel revolves. I’m currently working on the first decan of Scorpio. As we plunge into the dark half of the year here in the Northern Hemisphere, some crazy decan descriptions lie ahead. I’m not sure if I will post them all (piracy prevention 101) and will probably hold some back – appropriate for the darkness I suppose. But stay tuned as there will be more to come!

Libra 2: second decan of Libra, Three of Swords

The magical image of the decan per Crowley’s 777: A man, dark, yet delicious of countenance

Ruler of Libra is Venus. Ruler of this decan of Libra is Saturn, which is exalted in Venus. Ruler of the Threes is also Saturn, through Binah.

36 Airs of the Zodiac gives the deity as Kairos, a god associated with the right or critical time; time in general being a function of Saturn. This god was said to have a front forelock of hair, but no hair on the back of it’s head, the implication being that the right moment had to be seized or it would be too late to grasp it. Often the knowing of this moment involves pain and knowledge (Saturn) of the heart (Venus) – as well as formal contracts bindings (Saturn) connecting people (Venus).

Just for fun, first here are the depictions of this card from RWS, Thoth, and Tabula Mundi:

And here is the “man, dark, yet delicious of countenance“.

Libra 1: first decan of Libra, Two of Swords

Magical description of the decan, per Crowley’s 777: A dark man, in his right hand a spear and laurel branch and in his left a book

Lord of Peace, or Peace Restored

Ruler of Libra: Venus; ruler of this decan of Libra: the Moon

Deity per 36 Airs of the Zodiac: the Erinyes aka Furies

[coming soon]

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Fortunes Wheelhouse podcast final episode

Update from the Wheelhouse:

Hello everybody. We have arrived at a major threshold in our journey together. If you are on the Fortune’s Wheelhouse Academy Facebook page, you may have already heard the news that we have decided the podcast has come to the end of its natural lifespan. The last episode was recorded this past full moon, fittingly, and will be released on the Equinox, 9/22/2021.

After we completed the 78 cards, plus the planetary, numeric, zodiacal, and elemental series, we spent some time trying to decide whether there was another system it made sense to take on, and ultimately we concluded there was not.  And for each of us to continue growing and creating in the tarot world, we needed to reclaim the time demanded by the podcast.So we decided to record one final episode. (I’d thought jokingly of going out with a bang and doing an all-phallic-symbols episode, which would have been fun.) But in the end we thought, why not do readings for each other? We’ve read for many of you patrons over the years. But neither of us gets readings for ourselves very often.  So giving the gift of divination to each other seemed like a fitting end to this 4-year adventure.

Going forward, all 120 episodes of the podcast will remain freely available on all podcast streaming services, for anyone to refer to whenever they like. Our books and decks will still be out there. You’ll still be able to find me here at tabulamundi.com and Susie at tsusanchang.com.  You’ll still be able to buy Fortune’s Wheelhouse merchandise at our RedBubble store, which is at www.redbubble.com/people/wheelhouse93/shop, and this will help fund the fees for keeping the podcast episodes still available to all. And everyone is still free to join the FWA group on Facebook.

Thank you to the over 300 of you who supported the journey with patronage via our Fortunes Wheelhouse Patreon page, for being our heroes of the astral world, and thank you to all who came along for a listen. After all, a podcast only exists for its listeners. By going on this journey through esoteric tarot with us and sharing it with others and incorporating it into your own praxis, you complete the circuit of knowledge Fortune’s Wheelhouse represents.  As above, so below.  As within, so without.

At the end of this episode, there will be some final notes on what each of us is up to. But for now, enjoy this last ride on the Wheel as we invite you enter into the draw with us.

Virgo 3: third decan of Virgo, Ten of Disks

magical image of the decan per Crowley’s 777: An old man leaning on a staff and wrapped in a mantle

Mercury rules both the sign and the decan. The related deities are Cronus and Hestia.

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Virgo 2: second decan of Virgo, Nine of Disks

magical image of the decan per Crowley’s 777: Tall, fair, large man, with him a woman holding a large black oil jar

The Nine of Disks/Pentacles is the secand decan of Virgo. Virgo is Mercury ruled and the decan is ruled by Venus

[coming soon]

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Virgo 1: first decan of Virgo, Eight of Disks

per 777: A virgin clad in linen, with an apple or pomegranate

The 8 of Disks or Pentacles is also known as the Lord of Prudence. The ruler of Virgo and 8’s is Mercury, ruler of the first decan of Virgo is the Sun.

[coming soon]

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Leo 2: second decan of Leo, Six of Wands

The tarot Six of Wands is the Lord of Victory, the succedent or middle decan of the fixed Fire sign Leo. 777 describes the decan image as “A man crowned with a white myrtle wreath, holding a bow“.

The Picatrix decan description is similar, with the additional detail that this is a man who will mount and ride [a horse].

36 Airs of the Zodiac give the related deity as Isis, the goddess who wears a crown that has what looks like the pictogram of a figure seated on a throne. It is shown here in the card on the hill in the distance that the figure rides towards.