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The Gold Foil Tarot- Page of Wands
The Tarot of the Old Path-Page of Rods.
Being that I am a Gnostic Western Hermetic Qabalist and have made scholarly pursuits in the Western Hermetic Qabalah, Sexual Magic, and Tantra Yoga I find the Page to be a misplaced form of misogynistic fear. The Princesses of the Thoth Tarot Deck are the Pages, in many other decks, including the Tarot of the Old Path.
The pages are androgynous and most often portray a youthful person; However, Aleister Crowley insisted, since they are part of the new concept of Tetragrammaton, the pages are to be princesses. Crowley states that there is the new doctrine of Tetragrammaton where Heh' --the final earthly component, the daughter, is set upon the Throne of the mother, to awaken the Eld of the All-Father and therefore, replaces the Pages with a Princess.
The name Yod Heh Vau He, often called the Hebrew name for God, is attributed to the Court Cards, where Yod, is attributed to Knights, Heh-to Queens, Vau, is attributed to Princes and the last Heh-is attributed to Princesses, the Earthly Manifestation, as the ultimate issue of the original Energy in its Completion, i.e., crystallization/coagulation. However, they also represent the counter-balancing and re-absorption of the Energy. Therefore, the Princesses are also the Silence into which all things return.
The Tarot of the Old Path portrays the Page of Rods, as a blond, blue- eyed youth who is trustworthy and dressed in the colors of Fire: the element of this card.
In the youth's right hand is a rod of white ash and in his left is a scroll of written spells that he has been entrusted with and communicates to others.
His floppy hat partially shadows his vision of what lies ahead. Beside him are ferns which in the language of plants represent trustworthiness.
The primary meaning of the Page of Rods seems to be of a youth of good intention who unwitting transmits secret or confidential information to others.
- Envoy or messenger
- Trusted Stranger
- Friend who is a communicant.
- A loyal individual.
In traditional medieval art, there are no princes or princesses as in the nontraditional Thoth Tarot and Robert Wang's Jungian Tarot. This is because the Medieval world of Europe was under the Inquisition of the Roman Catholic Church, which is notably misogynistic in its dogma that stated women were the reason for mankind's "fall from grace". The prevailing Church backed propaganda of the time stated that she/Eve tempted Adam to disobey Yahweh and hence the expulsion from the garden of Eden. Therefore, woman should be kept as second-class citizens. Hopefully, this is a well-known example of propaganda now days and not taken seriously. Woman is the reason Humankind exists! Each of us is made of and were formed in "mother's blood". Besides, the Garden of Eden resides in all of us, but we forgot the truth of our own freedom to create ourselves as we wish for dogma and indoctrination took over as self-identity. Each of us has the identity of the One and that is called "I AM", which exclaims existence, but not what exists. The "What I AM", is our own declaration and therefore, an assumption that provides our fate. None of us have "fallen from grace". We are the Grace of the Divine made manifest.
This is not to say that the ancient Adepts didn't know the truth of YHVH (Tetragrammaton) Yod being -Father/King and Heh-being Mother/Queen, and Vau-the prince and the last Heh-the princess (page), all creating the formula of Tetragrammaton. Therefore, the pages (the last Heh) are notoriously effeminate images that hint at femininity. This kept the artist of the Tarot cards from the proclamation of heresy and the inquisitor's hot brands.
On the Rider-Waite-Smith/Gold Foil-Page of Wands, we see a young almost feminine looking man in the act of proclamation. As if stroking a phallus, he holds his leafy and phallic staff as he is proclaiming his fertility, fecundity and therefore, his creative power. He is unknown to himself, but faithful and his tidings are strange forms of "self-stroking" for he is beginning his journey into Self-knowledge.
RWS-Page of Wands
Tarot Personality birth wheel (Princess is a Page).
His outfit is in the gold and red of the element of fire. On his tunic are medieval images of salamanders, who were believed to be fire elementals. He is notorious for his dark qualities, yet also a faithful friend, lover, envoy, and postman (messenger). S/He is also noted for his quick anger and therefore, a dangerous rival. S/He is the image of fiery passion, and youthful amorousness. Again, the Rider-Waite-Smith and/or the Gold Foil card chooses to keep to Waite's oath of silence and ignore the esoteric meaning of the card, although Waite knew it as he practiced in and achieved high status in the Golden Dawn Lodge of Western Hermetic Qabalah. But keeping to his oath, he shows only the exoteric meaning with a medieval Page holding an obviously phallic wand, sprouting leaves of fertility.
As stated, Pages (Knaves in the medieval Marseilles deck from which the Rider-Waite-Smith deck was derived) were used in the old Tarot decks, because of their "effeminate qualities", like combining the prince with the "will to form"-authority of the Queen. The idea also being that the Princess Personality can be in both males and females as they are not separate sexes.: the brain is both feminine and masculine. When the "outer self" is masculine the "inner self" is feminine, and when the "outer self" is feminine than the "inner self" is masculine. However, this Law of Attraction is too esoteric for Waite to divulge in his card. The inner anima (female-Latin for Spirit) and animus (male-Latin for Soul) in the realm of psyche, was later best defined by psychologist and parapsychologist Carl Jung (look him up on the INTERNET). Therefore, the Page of Wands is comparable to the Thoth Princess of Wands but does not divulge the "inner magic" of such. Hence, the unremarkable Page has a red feather in shape of a flame (Yod) on his cap, and salamanders decorating his garment; all of which implies the element of fire. The pyramid-like mountains in the background suggests the journey into self-knowledge is not always an easy path to walk.
Always acting on impulse s/he can be very witty and possesses an extraordinary imagination, often to the delight of those around him/her. However, s/he is subject to great swings of mood; one minute s/he is the soul of decorum and the next s/he is exceptionally vulgar. When alone, s/he often feels depressed. However, s/he is bursting with innovative ideas, and passionately seeking new things to do, to study and learn, although s/he doesn't have the maturity to follow through with fleeting passions.
The primary meaning of this card is to indicate receiving a message from a near relative or close friend. It can also imply one is receiving a message from a young person.
When the Page of Wands or Rods is thrown in a divination it implies:
- A person whose beauty is created by their own vigorous energy.
- S/he represents immature sexuality and therefore, can be both seductive and permissive.
- This one's passion is so great that one is dazzled by a chemical reaction that enforces the impression of beauty on the beholder.
- Being a type of "spontaneous combustion", in anger or love s/he is violent. sudden, and implacable.
- S/he can often be irrational, when displaying her enthusiasm, fiery ambition, and aspiring nature.
- Such a Princess, never forgets an injury-----and the only patience she shows, is when lying in ambush to revenge a perceived wrong.
- S/he is often self-absorbed to the extent that she is entirely reckless in achieving gratification and is notably insatiable.
- However, as is all Power-----it is as destructive as it is constructive, so caution and encouragement compete in this one.
- Passion is the "big bang" of all Creation. But like all fires, one must know how to work with it, never against it, to properly achieve the necessary transformations of their Great Work.
If ill-defined and/or Reversed:
- The Page of Wands persona would be the defect of such passion.
- S/he would be superficial and theatrical, shallow, and false while never expecting that s/he is anything of the sort.
- S/he becomes a "spasm of mood" and s/he is cruel, unreliable, faithless, and domineering.
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