Major Arcana 5

For some reason the energy levels and health levels have been very low, and so no posts for quite a while!

And it's strange, because the next card in the major arcana is the Hierophant - the man who stands between the world of matter and that of the spirit.

Ah well, read all about it for yourself.

5 Hierophant: Desmond Tutu

Archetype and divinatory meaning: The hierophant represents commitment, stability, captivity, servitude, marriage and alliance. It is a reminder of the importance of making commitments and being true to such commitments. In divination this card warns the enquirer about the need to recommit to either a relationship or a plan, or warns of impending commitments or debts that will have to be honored.

Image: Bishop Tutu is shown in the purple robes of the arch-bishop, smiling his characteristic smile of love and goodwill. He is surrounded by the blue sky of Africa and a halo of white representing purity.

Origin: Desmond Tutu is a living legend, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, one-time archbishop of Cape Town and fearless fighter for justice. He is also a raconteur of note, a man who delights in life and lives it fully while being absolutely committed to the ideals of the spiritual life.

His compassion and empathy make him a popular man, but one who never hesitates to do what is right and to say what may be unpopular. He fought against apartheid from the deep belief and spiritual wisdom he displays. He has been honored with numerous awards for his work as an ambassador of healing and forgiveness.

His chairmanship of the Council for Peace and Reconciliation was humble yet clear and I would refer the interested reader to accounts such as Antjie Krog’s work, The Country of my Skull. In his life and his work as spiritual leader in the church, Bishop Tutu has exemplified a life lived in service of others and commitment to high ideals.

Major Arcana 4

Today it's on to the next card, the Emperor.

The male counterpart of the Empress, he is based on a historical figure - that of Shaka, the man who united scattered tribes into the Zulu nation, once the most feared warriors in Southern Africa.

4 Emperor: Shaka

Archetype and divinatory meaning: The emperor represents strength, power, nobility and forces going into action. He is a ruler over the world by the use of his insight and his resources. For the diviner this indicates the realisation of goals and a time for action and change leading to success in a chosen path, especially if the foundations of the plans are sound.

Image: Shaka, the emperor and uniter, stands ready to lead his warriors into battle, in the midst of the fields already part of his kingdom. He is the strong and fearless leader, ready for council or war, able to inspire and guide his people.

Origin: The story of Shaka is a large part of the history of Southern Africa. Born out of wedlock, despised as a youth, he rose in military rank and welded a fighting force out of a band of tribes, founding the traditions of the present Zulu nation. Using the stabbing spear or assegai, and classic pincer maneuvers on the battlefield, the Zulus soon became a formidable fighting force.

Shaka is held by some to have been a tyrant and despot, ruling over the life and death of his subjects and often taking revenge on any he felt may have slighted him. Yet his memory is revered by the Zulu nation as their founder and father, and all speak of his wisdom and insight.

Shaka was assassinated by his half-brother, Dingane, who assumed his mantle. Dingane was the leader of the Zulus at the time that their contacts with white settlers became increasingly acrimonious, leading to such battles as Rorke’s Drift and Blood River, and finally to the subjugation of the Zulu.

Major Arcana 3

The next card in the major arcana of the Tarot is the Empress - a ruler but also the mother figure.

As you can see from the information given and the picture, I used the idea of Inkosazana, similar to Ceres, Demeter and Hera in other mythologies - the goddess of plenty!

3 Empress: Inkosazana

Archetype and divinatory meaning: She is the representation of womanhood and motherhood, the universal provider and carer. She makes the earth yield its fruits and transforms them into sustenance. She represents fruitfulness and also being in touch with emotions and feelings. In divination this card usually tells of strong feelings in home or family life, usually in a beneficent manner, or of the flowering of plans into success.

Image: Powerful and regal, this queen and mother of kings and queens gazes across her kingdom. She wears a royal robe and the headdress of the mother. She is strong and confident, aware of her power and beauty, adorned with jewels as a symbol of wealth.

Origin: Inkosazana is regarded as the spirit who makes crops grow, the deity of agriculture. It is said that she is followed by a troop of her children and that men do not commonly see her, but that she sometimes meets a man in his garden and blesses it with fruitfulness.

Her words are considered to be greater laws than that of the chief. She will order when children are to be weaned (suckling children acts to some degree as a prophylactic in that it prevents pregnancy) so that the wives may bear again, she orders beer made and poured on the mountains as libation. The fertility of the land lies in her hands.

Inkosazana is also the name of a river in Kwa-Zulu Natal on whose banks cattle are watered, crops are planted and which provides the lush green hills of this part of South Africa with its nourishment. It is a traditional name for girls, and means princess, or little chieftainess.

Major Arcana 2

Today we come to the third card in the Major Arcana of the Tarot, and she is the female analogue to the Magician, the High Priestess.

2 High Priestess: Modjadji – the Rain Queen

Archetype and divinatory meaning: The high priestess is one who guards sacred knowledge, revealing it and teaching it to the searcher, using it in harmony with the needs of the earth and its people. The divinationary focus is on waiting, waiting for the right time, for energies to be gathered before being released.

Image: Modjadji, her face serene and welcoming, is seated on a stone throne with a fall of water and abundant flowering aloes on either side of her, symbolising the healing power she holds. She is wrapped in blue robes, the color of water, and her power hidden until it needs to be used.

Origin: The tribes that lived in and around the valleys and hills where Modjadji, the rain queen lived, knew that she and her tribe were sacrosanct. She controlled the clouds, the life giving rain for crops and cattle, and she and her tribe were thus not part of the wars and squabbles of those around.

Visiting the rain queen to implore her intercession was only done after the efforts of your own sangomas and indunas had failed, when no other recourse was open and the land needed rain desperately.  Then the journey to Modjadji was undertaken, and her help sought.

Her face was seldom seen as she was considered to be divine, and only her inner court was permitted to approach her. Her tribe, the Lobedu, is thought to have been started by a rain-making princess from the Karanga tribe in Zimbabwe. She is considered immortal, although it is more that she lives on in successive bodies in much the same way the Dalai Llama is believed to be reincarnated.

The Major Arcana

The last post was an introduction and showed the first card in the Major Arcana, the 22 cards that are considered the main archetypal cards. The next card in the series is the Magician, shown up above.

1 Magician: Sangoma

Archetype and divinatory meaning: The magician is the balancer of forces, the user of natural and supernatural to change and direct events. He is in control of this world and is in touch with the next. He can wield great power and is an agent of change. He is also a diplomat, full of skill and self-confidence, a user of will-power. In divination this card indicates new beginnings flowing from conscious actions. It warns the querient to be on guard as willpower and determination is needed in order to launch a plan.

Image: A sangoma, clad in skins, gazes into the sky, listening for the voices of the ancestors. He is in control of what is happening around him, sure of what he is doing. He is strong both physically and spiritually, ready to intercede and use his powers to heal.

Origin: Sangomas can be male or female, and can clothe themselves in various styles. They use small stones, bones and twigs cast on skin to communicate with the ancestors or for divination. They are called by the ancestors to serve as channels for communication, and are given their powers by the ancestors. There is a strict code of ethics, and an apprenticeship period.

The sangoma is wise, a healer and a counselor, facilitating a persons contact with the ancestors. Ancestor worship is a common element to many diverse cultures and should perhaps be more accurately termed ancestor reverence rather than worship. The spirits of the ancestors are still involved with matters here on earth, but also have access to the next world and its powers, and can intercede on behalf of their descendants. Prayers and offerings to the ancestors are thus a means of asking for their intercession with God, rather than ascribing to them the power of God.

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Introduction to the Tarot

Hi and welcome to the African Tarot. This project was undertaken as a means of providing Southern Africans with the archetypes from their legends and history, in order to utilise for meditation and self-examination.

The first card, shown above, is The Fool.

0 The Fool: Nongquwuse

Archetype and divinatory meaning: The fool is the first card of the major arcana, and is about blind faith, belief, taking chances, setting out for impossible shores and dreaming great dreams. It is the beginning of a spiritual journey, and it highlights the uncertainties of life and its contradictions. If used in divination the card of the fool is a warning, but also encouragement for those setting out on a spiritual journey. The path of spirit is often the path of the fool, and indeed this will always be the case, as rational thought will always war with spiritual insight and thought.

Image:  The spirit of Nongquwuse floats over a land where cattle lie in a heap after their slaughter, her eyes fixed on the future where they will rise and fill the green hills and valleys below her. She is serene and calm, sure that what is coming is good and that the path will lead to a better place.

Origin: The history of the Xhosa people in the mid 1800’s provides this starting card for the African Tarot. The Xhosa were farmers, with cattle and corn their main staples. As the white settlers moved from the tip of Africa (Cape Town) into the hinterland, clashes between the already settled black farmers and the land-seeking white farmers became a problem. The British, whose colony the Cape was at that time, were required to provide protection for the settlers. (If the story sounds familiar, think of America and its skirmishes between Native American and settler.)

Nonquwuse, a young girl, had a vision of two ancestors telling her that the Xhosa were filled with corruption and that they had to slaughter all their cattle, burn all their corn and once this purification had taken place, the white settlers would be put to flight, the cattle and corn would be restored intact and the Xhosa would rise to great prosperity.

Over the next two years she gained a following to such an extent that the Xhosa began to starve, and thus started losing the skirmishes and wars, finally being overrun and conquered. Of course no cattle rose from the dead, the Xhosa nation became subject to the British crown and she was reviled as fool or traitor.

As a footnote: If we look at the present situation in South Africa, we find that the ruling party, the ANC, counts among its leaders many Xhosa, most notable of which is Nelson Rohilahla Mandela. It can indeed be said that the Xhosa have indeed risen to great heights!