Individual Card Study

This is the index for individual card study threads. 78. (0.) Folly, or the Alchemist 1. Chaos/Male Questioner 2. Light 3. Plants 4. Heavens 5. Human and Quadrupeds 6. Stars 7. Birds and Fish 8. Rest/Female Questioner 9. Justice 10. Temperance 11. Strength 12. Prudence 13. Grand Priest 14. Devil 15. Magician or Street Performer 16. Last Judgment 17. Death 18. Monk 19. Lightning-Struck Temple 20. Wheel of Fortune 21. African Despot 22. King of Wands 23. Queen of Wands 24. Knight of Wands 25. Page of Wands 26. Ten of Wands …

Homme de campagne - Homme bon et sévère Country man - Good and severe man Upright: honest man, villager, laborer, important man, integrity, conscientiousness, favor, protection from an important man. The meaning of "an uncle unexpectedly leaving you a fortune", somewhat softened, also made it into the PKT 😄 Reversed: indulgence but also strictness, tolerance but also condescension.

Femme de Campagne - Bonne Femme Country Woman - Good Woman Upright: housewife, honest woman, virtuous woman, woman with taste for life, civility, honesty, politeness, abundance. Reversed: goodness, kindness, service, obligation.

Départ - Désunion Departure - Disunity Upright: change, journey, absence, abandonment, migration, evasion, the departure of what's signified by the following card. Reversed: separation, discord, quarrel, broken agreement or engagement, interruption.

Bon étranger - Nouvelle Good stranger - News Upright: stranger, compatriot, messenger, bearer of (family) news. The news is generally good unless this card is accompanied by bad ones. Reversed: news, announcement, admonition, story, anecdote. Again, it's generally favorable unless surrounded by negative cards.

Trahison - Obstacle Treason - Obstacle Upright: deceit, treachery, deception, surprise, duplicity, dishonesty. Reversed: obstacles, difficulties, opposition, embarrassment, (hard) work, inconvenience. also entrenchment, fortification (a military obstacle). These meanings seem to go well with the GD's "oppression". A.E. Waite also adds "that which connects [this card] with honour and good faith... also fortune, gain, any kind of success". I wonder now where those come from.

Retard - Traverses Delay - Hurdles Upright: delay, suspension, distance, prolongation, deceleration. Reversed: obstacles, impediment, disadvantage, adversity, trouble, calamity.

Partie de Campagne - Disputes Intestines Countryside Party - Internal Disputes Upright: a pleasant promenade, a picnic, countryside, agriculture, garden, forest, amusement, entertainment, peace and quiet. Reversed: family quarrels, regrets, internal agitation, doubts. One of the cards whose upright meanings seem to have been completely substituted by the GD "swiftness" in RWS (but it still features "a flight of wands through an open country" [the italics are mine]). Also, the "arrows of love" meaning is curious: countryside parties were likely a good place for those to flourish 😀 The "arrows of jealousy" for the reversed card go w…

Pourparler - Indécision Discussion - Indecision Upright: conversation, talks, especially preliminary discussions before making commitments, negotiations, commerce, correspondence. Reversed: irresolution, uncertainty, inconstance, hesitation, variation.

Domestique - Attente Servant - Waiting Upright: servant, valet, messenger, message, announcement, household. Reversed: expectation, a long wait, hope, foresight, apprehension.

Or - Procès Gold - Trial Upright: money, riches, luxury, abundance, possessions, the sun (in various senses). The meanings are mostly positive - in order to connect them with the GD meaning of "strife", A.E. Waite makes it "struggle of the search after riches and fortune". Reversed: trial, dispute, quarrel, discussion, problems, contradiction.

Société - Prospérité Society - Prosperity Upright: social gathering, assembly, confederation, church, multitude, group, mixture, unexpected fortune, new friendships. Reversed: success, advancement, happiness, good fortune, beauty. Your happiness is in your own hands.

Entreprises - Peines à leur fin Ventures - Troubles at their end Upright: enterprise, beginning, audacity, rashness, (maritime) discovery. Reversed: ending, interruption, reconciliation, discontinuation of misfortune, torment, work. The meaning of being under the protection of an influential person is reflected in PKT's "able co-operation in business, as if the successful merchant prince were looking from his side towards yours with a view to help you" (except A.E. Waite makes it an upright meaning).

Chagrin - Surprise Sorrow - Surprise Upright: sadness, distress, affliction, displeasure, melancholy, gloomy thoughts. Reversed: deception, trickery, emotion, horror, awe, admiration, miracle. This is one of the cards that differs quite drastically from RWS, its upright meanings being those for which A.E. Waite finds "there is no marriage possible [with the Golden Dawn's "dominion"]". Still, he gives it a curious try: The PKT meanings for the reversed Two of Wands are quite the same as Etteilla's.

Chute - Naissance Fall - Birth Upright: collapse, ruin, decline, destruction, error. One of the proposed meanings is, curiously, "the fire" - no doubt in its sense of a destructive power, with no esoteric elemental associations. Reversed: creation, source, origin, family, lineage, cause. Interestingly, in PKT, A.E. Waite pretty much reverses the meanings for this card: Which probably makes more sense in the Golden Dawn interpretation of the Aces, while Etteilla's Ace of Wands has a decidedly sinister angle😆

Garçon blond - Penchant Blonde boy - Liking Upright: studious, study, diligence, application, work, activity, occupation, hobby, trade, employment, observation, reflection, consideration, meditation, contemplation Reversed: soft spot, inclination, approval, attraction, passion, affection, attachment, friendship, heart, longing, desire, leaning, tendency, taste, interest, engagement, seduction, invitation, flattery, cajolery, cuddling, fawning, adulation, praise, eulogy, courtier, sycophant, to coax, to tempt, to entice, siren-song

Victoire - Sincerité Victory - Sincerity Upright: success, accomplishment, advantage, gain, winner, upper hand, lead, pomp, triumph, trophy, majesty, spectacle, parade, apparatus, gear Reversed: truth, reality, loyalty, frankness, candor, liberty, familiarity, intimacy, ingenuousness, boldness

Fille Blonde - Satisfaction Blond Girl - Satisfaction Upright: blond girl, honor, modesty, timidity, gentleness, news from a person the sitter is interested in. Reversed: contentment, pleasure, happiness, good fortune, entertainment. A.E. Waite gives the following: The latter meaning is not applicable to Etteilla: if anything, the 8 of Cups here shows good luck and a favorable outcome to whatever events indicated by the neighboring cards.

La Pensée - Projets The Thought - Plans Upright: thoughts, ideas, intentions, imagination, contemplation, deliberation. Reversed: plans, projects, intentions, desire, willingness, resolution, determination.

La passe - L'avenir The past - The future Upright: faded, withered, desiccated, preserved, old age, decrepitude, gone, formerly, previously, before, in older days, once, in the past, antiquity, antiques Reversed: after, following, subsequently, later on, looking forward, tomorrow, next time, upcoming, hereafter

Héritage - Parents Legacy - Relatives Upright: inheritance, success, marrying the desired person, gift, transmission, testament, tradition. Reversed: family, visits by relatives, ancestors, lineage, alliance, affinity, connection. It's interesting to see how A.E. Waite tries to reconcile the meanings of this card, one of the most favorable in the Etteilla deck, with the rather bleak GD 5 of Cups. Even for marrying the desired person, he notes in the PKT:

Ennui - Nouvelles Connaissances Boredom - New Acquaintances Upright: displeasure, discontentment, distaste, slight sadness. Reversed: news, novelty, new understanding, illumination, indication, precognition, prediction.

Réussite - Expédition d'Affaires Success - Business Expedition Upright: success, victory, favorable outcome, cure, relief, recovery, accomplishment, perfection. Reversed: dispatch, execution, achievement, end, termination, conclusion.

Amour - Désir Love - Desire Upright: love, affection, passion, friendship, attraction, attachment. A favorable card for receiving that which the person loves, be it another person, money, ambition, etc. Reversed: will, desire, wish, envy, greed, jealousy. Curiously, the PKT has no reversed meanings for this card, simply adding "desire" (apparently in its noblest forms) to the list.

Table - Changement Table - Change Upright: a double meaning is given for the word "table", the more obvious "piece of furniture" (hence meanings like meal, banquet, nourishment, host, hotel, abundance) and the "original" ("Egyptian"?) meaning of "table/tablet of law" (producing meanings like stability, obstinacy, painting, image, hieroglyph, catalogue). In line with that latter meaning, this card is said to confirm the prediction of the nearby cards. Reversed: unexpected change, (trans)mutation, alteration, variety, reversion, interpretation. A.E. Waite gives this card a heavy Christian slant that's notably absent in Etteilla's dec…