First, a “bed” of spinach. Just because. This was one half of the spinach harvest, washed and laid out on a cot to dry.

According to Rex E. Bill’s The Rulership Book spinach falls under the auspices of Saturn, Venus, and yes, Taurus, which is the sign associated to the Hierophant card. Beds are also Venus, Taurus’ ruler, because of course they are. When posting the last update on the new deck with some of the cards of Aries, Taurus, and Gemini, I meant to include The Hierophant, but forgot, so here it is now, with the bonus of a side of spinach.

But first, the description of the card from 777: “Between the Pillars sits an Ancient. He is crowned, sceptred, and blessing all in a threefold manner. Four living creatures adore him, the whole suggesting a pentagram by its shape.”

Oh boy, that’s a lot to get into the image isn’t it? Pillars, an Ancient, with crown, sceptre, threefold blessing, four “adoring” creatures, arranged as a pentagram.

The crowned and sceptred Ancient “blessing all in a threefold manner” was inspired by St Patrick, who used a shamrock to teach the Christian doctrine of “three persons in one God” – except here in this more Thelemic take the three Gods are Nuit, Hadit, and Horus, and the three Aeons of Isis, Osiris, and Horus. Only Horus for this the New Aeon appears directly in the image as the dancing child, though Nuit can be inferred by the starry canopy and Hadit as the central point of focus, unseen and hidden behind the child.

The “four adoring creatures” that so lovingly accompany him are of course the Kerubic creatures of the four fixed astrological signs, elementally all accounted for. The interlocking pentagrams and hexagram suggest the uniting of macro and microcosms, divine and earthly consciousness, via the Hierophant as the connecting “nail” of Vav, the Son and the Holy Guardian Angel.

The Golden Dawn color scale colors are Red Orange, Deep Indigo, Deep Warm Olive*, and Rich Brown.

*spinach?

Work continues on the new deck. I’ve just finished all the Cancer cards: the Two, Three, and Four of Cups with their decan imagery, and done in their respective decan periods. Simultaneously also worked on and completed the other Cancer cards: the Chariot and the Queen of Cups. More to follow…