The Tools of Mysticism : Introduction

In encountering the experience of life, there is only one word that emerges to a man of reason as a description of the experience. That word is ' mystery.' Its a word and meaning that occupies every nerve and sinew of his being. It activates everything in him like a finely tuned instrument to engage and deal with the mystery. In the course of a lifetime the individual develops the qualities of mysticism right down to his socks.

In the early beginnings of religion, the serpent is featured as a major instrument in its application of itself to understanding. This should not be sneezed at today … on the contrary we realize that we are coming to view it as the basis of what is represented as modern knowledge.

The tarot is the instrument of divination by mystics. It represents the principle of the continuity of life. The snake, whether it is represented as Eridanus the river or Serpens himself in the constellations are indicative of such a continuity. Serpens is guided by Ophiucus, the musician.

In the cards of the major arcana, one views the representation of a way of life. There's the Emperor and Empress, there are the lovers, the devil and the fool as representations of the major experiences of life. From the perception of early divinity, man is the fool … he creates simple attachments to issues that are fleeting, falls in love and comes to great misery and tearful dispositions.

The divine forces take pity on him and try to help him. He is after all the basis on which life revolves. They bring a rudimentary guide to him. In his fall, they carry him to the experiences of when he was born, the nature of his family, his friendships, his faith and his hopes for the future. They help him to recall all these things so that he can come to understand and to respond to his condition.

As a start they begin with the knowledge of divination, mysticism, the gnosis, sophism, animal natures and the elements of the earth. They put him in contact with the startling discovery of the divination powers of the baby. How it puts together the entire mystery of the universe by simple playfulness of its nature in order to view its experiences. It is a start. The day this happens is the first day in the rest of the life of the man.