Post by Senbecc on May 26, 2007 18:39:37 GMT -5
The Chariot
Generally speaking this card depicts some kind of travel. Should the other travel card, the six of swords also be in your card layout, then this is an indicator that you are to move across new ground. However, even by itself, as this is a major arcana card, travel is still a strong possibility. You may travel quite a distance and your goal is to get there, by whatever means you can find, even horseback if necessary. This can also mean that someone is coming from a long distance towards you. For some people this can represent getting a new mode of transport, such as buying your first car, or buying a new car or bike or whatever. The emphasis is on getting to your destination by the quickest route available. This card too is about choices. You may have to make a major decision around this time that will alter your circumstances quite dramatically. Do not resist change for that will disrupt the natural flow of events that are waiting to unfold for you. Also I have seen this card manifest in matters to do with re-decorating the home. Sometimes it is just new curtains or cushions, however the aim is to bring comfort into the home.
www.newagestore.com/research/TarotReference/Default.asp?Card=8
The Symbolism of the Chariot
Excerpt From the Essenes Book of Jesus
The Sevenfold Peace
And seeing the multitudes, Jesus went up into a mountain...he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
For, lo, I tell thee truly,
The body and the heart and the mind
Are as a chariot, and a horse, and a driver.
The chariot is the body,
Forged in strength to do the will
Of the Heavenly Father
And the Earthly Mother.
The heart is the fiery steed,
Glorious and courageous,
Who carries the chariot bravely,
Whether the road be smooth,
Or whether stones and fallen tress
Lie in its path.
And the driver is the mind,
Holding the reigns of wisdom,
Seeing from above what lieth
on the far horizon,
Charting the course of hoofs and wheels.
Excerpt From the Katha-Upanishad
The individual self and universal Self, living in the heart, like shade and light, though beyond enjoyment, enjoy the result of action. All say this, all who know Spirit, whether householder or ascetic.
Man can kindle Fire, that spirit, a bridge for all who sacrifice, a guide for all who pass beyond fear.
Self rides in the chariot of the body, intellect the firm footed charioteer, discursive reins the mind.
Senses are the horses, objects of desire the roads. When self is joined to body, mind, sense, none but He enjoys.
When man lacks steadiness, unable to control his mind, his senses are unmanageable horses.
But if he control his mind, a steady man, they are manageable horses.
The impure, self -willed, unsteady man misses the goal and is born again and again.
The self-controlled, steady, pure man goes to that goal from which he never returns.
He who call intellect to manage the reins of his mind reaches the end of his journey, finds there all pervading Spirit.
Above the senses are the objects of desire, above the objects of desire mind, above mind the intellect, above the intellect manifest nature.
Above manifest nature the unmanifest seed, above the unmanifest seed, God. God is the goal; beyond Him nothing.
Both excerpts express how the soul uses the body as a vehicle so that it can experience the physical creation.
When the Chariot is seen in a spread it symbolises excellent health. It also shows that the questioner is on the right path in life and working with the natural energies as depicted by The Empress. Through correct action comes a sense of well-being and invigoration for life.
When The Chariot is reversed it quite literally means that one’s life has gone off the road. People often say they have *lost their way*, and it is at such times that the reversed Chariot will highlight their feelings of futility within the world.
Tarot is a living organism and all interpretations will change according to the age in which we live. Therefore the chariot also symbolises the car someone drives. On several occasions I have seen the Chariot symbolising such mundane activities as a Sunday drive for pleasure, a new car; and when reversed a minor accident or breakdown.
www.toniallen.co.uk/thechariot.html
Basic Card Symbols
Triumphal "car" (chariot), armored warrior, sun/moon symbols, lingam & yoni symbol (the encircled rod on the winged shield), black and white sphinxes/lions/horses, sometimes at rest. A canopy of stars and sometimes a throne inside the car.
Basic Tarot Story
The Fool is close to completing what he set out to create long ago, back when the Magician revealed those tools to him. But enemies are now standing in his way, devious human enemies, bad circumstances, even confusion in his own mind. There's no more forward momentum; he feels he is fighting just to stay where he is. Walking along the shore, watching the waves come in, he puzzles over how to defeat these enemies and get things moving forward once again.
It is here that he comes across a charioteer, standing in his gold and silver chariot, his black and white steeds at rest. "You seem a victorious warrior," the Fool remarks. "Tell me, what is the best way to defeat an enemy?" The Charioteer nods out at the ocean. "Have you ever been swimming in the water and been trapped in that tide which pulls you out to sea? If you try to swim forward, head-on, you go nowhere. You swim forward, the tide pulls you back and, if you tire yourself out, you drown. The only way to win without sapping all your energy is to swim parallel to shore, and come in slowly, diagonally. So, too, when fighting in a chariot. You win by coming up alongside that which you wish to defeat." The warrior nods to his beasts. "Your steeds keep the wheels turning, but it is your control and direction that brings victory. Dark and light, they must be made to draw in harmony, under your guidance."
The Fool is impressed and inspired. He thinks he now knows how to win his own war. He thanks the warrior, but before he leaves, the warrior stays the Fool, "One thing more," he says, "no victory can be won unless you have unwavering confidence in your cause. And remember this above all, victory is not the end, it is the beginning."
Basic Tarot Meaning
The chariot is one of the most complex cards to define. On its most basic level, it implies war, a struggle, and an eventual, hard-won victory. Either over enemies, obstacles, nature, the beasts inside you, or to just get what you want. But there is a great deal more to it. The charioteer wears emblems of the sun, yet the sign behind this card is Cancer, the moon. The chariot is all about motion, and yet it is often shown as stationary.
What does this all mean? It means a union of opposites, like the black and white steeds. They pull in different directions, but must be (and can be!) made to go together in one direction. Control is required over opposing emotions, wants, needs, people, circumstances; bring them together and give them a single direction, your direction. Confidence is also needed and, most especially, motivation. The card can, in fact, indicate new motivation or inspiration, which gets a stagnant situation moving again. It can also imply, on a more pragmatic level, a trip (usually by car), a vehicle - in the shop for repairs if the card comes up reversed - or a message.
Thirteen's Observations
The Chariot is a fascinating card, but also frustrating. Like the crab, it is armored, but also cut off - a charioteer fights alone. It moves from one plane to the next (water to land and back again) - conscious and unconscious, Earthly and spiritual. It succeeds by attacking from the side, rather than straight on.
On the one hand, the Chariot indicates loyalty and faith and motivation; a conviction that will lead to victory no matter the odds. But the chariot can also signal a ruthless, diehard desire to win at any cost. The Querent should be reminded to save his energy for what comes after. Victory is just the start of things.
www.aeclectic.net/basics/chariot.shtml