The Transformation and Great Way of the Mind as a Mated Pair

[JustLikeYou]

Ra suggests consideration of the Transformation and Great Way cards in tandem. Because Ra says that only the Significator cards (and presumably also the Choice card) do not have a male or female alignment, it seems likely that all the other named pairs do. Thus, we are left with the somewhat difficult task of determining the male/female alignments of the very mixed Transformation and Great Way cards. I have two possible interpretations of the male/female alignments of Archetypes 6 and 7 (contradictory, of course):

1. The Transformation is female and the Great Way is male. This is supported by the two females in the Transformation card, and the obviously masculine context of the Great Way card (the chariot). The two females each point in a direction, suggesting that the conscious mind will be led by the unconscious mind, which gives prominence to the female in the Transformation. The Great Way card, on the other hand, depicts a chariot driven by a male figure.

2. The Transformation is male and the Great Way is female. This is somewhat less obvious, but it can make sense with consideration. The Transformation card is about the conscious mind’s decision to approach the unconscious mind in a certain way. The Transformation has nothing to do with what is actually presented to the conscious mind; rather, it is about the conscious mind’s projection upon the unconscious mind: is she royalty to court or a prostitute to plunder? The prominence of the role of the conscious mind in this card makes it seem very masculine. On the other side of the equation, the Great Way card may carry a masculine figure, but Ra comments that it is the same figure that is in the Significator card, and L/L Research then redraws the card to show this. This suggests that the figure in the chariot does not signify the sexual alignment. So what does? My thought is that the chariot itself signifies the sexual alignment. The chariot is drawn by the moment-to-moment choice of the conscious mind (on the STO path, this is called “living from the heart”) which is made in the Transformation card. Thus, the Great Way can be seen as the chariot which moves forward, changing its scenery, changing its creation, in response to the seed planted by the conscious mind in the Transformation.

I am inclined to adopt the second interpretation, because it provides a vision of the interplay of the two cards; whereas, the sexual union of Archetypes 6 and 7 is difficult for me to see in the first interpretation.

[abstrktion]

I think both of your analyses demonstrate "true" aspects--why must we decide that these archetypes are either one or the other? The complex analysis isn't the easiest to hold in the mind, but it may be closer to the truth than the straightforward one--if we are neither male nor female exclusively, why would we expect to see a single polarity in the archetypes? Further, our "reality" is actually based on a kind of paradox--we are all one AND we are all experiencing separation. I'd imagine paradoxes are more the norm than the exception!

I think of Great Ways as environments--so in one sense, they are FORMS. However, the environment of the Body seems dynamic to me in that it acts upon the body. I called the Great Way of the Body, "Time"--the environment in which we can experience the veiled, physical existance that brings about the transformation in the significator. So in the body series, I'd make Time a FORCE that acts upon or activates the FORM; the FORM is transformed. I called the transformation "Resurrection".

But I think we need to explore the levels more--in general I think FORM/FORCE or female/male or static/dynamic are a function of the planes of reference. The whole thing makes me think of a multi-layered chess or checkers game.

[3DMonkey]

I would add inward/outward flow.

[JustLikeYou]

First, I should say that I wrote this a few months ago and my thinking concerning the Archetypes has changed since then. I actually created this thread by scaling down one of my previous threads so that it could fit more readily into the categories I generated on the Table of Contents thread for this forum.

Second, What was at stake in my mind was the sexual alignments for the purposes of sexual union between the two. In this sense, I was seeking to determine which of the Archetypes is the activator and which the activated. I fully agree that there are many levels of polarity involved in both archetypes. However, I didn't appreciate how many different levels of polarity there were when I wrote this text.

Third, the question, re-poised above, still seems relevant. And I am still inclined to say that it is the Transformation which activates the Great Way, since the Transformation must needs involve a conscious choice; whereas, the Chariot will not move along the path unless this choice is made.

Since you brought in the Body Archetypes, Abstrktion, I have taken to viewing them as opposite (in terms of sexual activation) to the Mind correlates (big surprise, right?). Death and rebirth are usually not things that we consciously choose; they just happen to us and we can either accept or resist. On the other hand, exercising the virtue of Temperance does require a consistent and conscious effort. Although the act of conscious motivation (or activation, as I have called it) seems to lie in the Great Way, the movements of these two are, of course, more subtle than this. I hesitate to go any further down this path in this thread, though. Perhaps I'll create a new one.

[Shemaya]

Hi JustLikeyou,

I agree with you. The transformation is the activation. At least from my experience it was. I did experience this archetype in an intensive way....definitely was activation. In fact the tarot card that signaled this to me was the lovers renamed Activation.

The Chariot is where I am now with regards to my journey. Taking what has been transformed within my b/m/s and actively moving forward in a directive way. I call it getting my yang in gear and making something happen.

[JustLikeYou]

Where did you see this name given to Archetype 6, Shemaya?

The Mind Cycle has always seemed to me as the realm where most of the balancing of lower chakras (1-3) occurs. We cannot become masters of ourselves in the way that these cards suggest until the desires which seem outside out control are balanced and placed within a context where the choice has been made (in chakra 4). Whereas archetypes 1-4 seem to me to be a time of balancing red-yellow rays, the Mind Cycle seems to culminate in archetype 6, where green ray is either opened further or closed further.

I would say that this is one of the main reasons why we find the mind cycle at the beginning of the Archetypes. Ra says in Session 5 that the mind must be initiated before the body or the spirit. Ra says elsewhere that the lower chakras must be balanced before the upper ones are given significant attention. Therefore, it would seem that this balancing happens in the disciplines of the mind, where the movements of archetypes 1-7 are the most prominent.

If we look at the human beings around us, we can see that no one seems to be a master of her own experience until these lower chakras have been balanced and they have a firm grasp upon what their purpose in this world is (i.e. to serve the self or others). Thus, the choice having been made and committed to, the mind is firmly rooted in its purpose and therefore gains sufficient vision to be able to direct its energies with enough focus to move forward along the path. In this sense, the Transformation of the Mind is the ultimate activator, because it is the location where the choice is first made.

Since this discussion revolves around the concept of the Great Chain of Mind, I think it is also important to point out that while the evolution of a full life-time can be viewed as a progressive motion through these archetypes one-by-one, my experience of them has been that smaller archetypal movements are nested within this larger life-story. So while I may, for example, still be within a long-term phase of Archetype 6, I can still experience catalyst of body, transformation of spirit, and so forth, within smaller phases of my experience.

[Shemaya]

Where did you see this name given to Archetype 6, Shemaya?

This was from the " revolutionary" and pretty obscure Halo/Sharp tarot which I came upon accidently when searching the internet. Well not accidently, guided by my higher self. Didn't know anything about Tarot prior to that, and still don't consider myself a student of Tarot, but attempting to gain more clarity after integrating the catalyst. It was like abstrktion said, "The whole thing makes me think of a multi-layered chess or checkers game."

Very appreciative of your work here, even though much of your analyses flies over my head, I can still place my experiences within the context and its been helpful. Thanks

Here's a link. This is brief commentary on his interpretation of the card, he goes deeper in his books. He relates it to kundalini activation, which is kind of what happened. There was an activation of the energy, but not a full blown awakening for me.

The Lovers becomes Activation

In light of what abstrktion said, there were many overlays of distortions that I encountered and experienced with this. Looking a bit into the Tarot I saw the following interpretation of this card as twins. That weighed big in my experience.

http://www.greenmangatekeeper.com/aetlovers.html

I would say it was an experience of living the archetype, not just in its purist sense, but going through the veils and overlaying distortions. It did result in a great transformation of my individual mind. And now the onus is on me to use what I've learned and serve the emerging paradigm.

[abstrktion]

I would add inward/outward flow.

Hi 3DMonkey,
Can you expand more? JustLikeYou and I have been ferreting out all the possible ways to view polarity and I'd love to hear it if you have an addition.

We've hypothesized 3 levels of polarity in the tarot so far:

1) Inherent quality - moving or unmoving/static or dynamic

2) Function - Activator (FORCE) or acted upon (FORM) - the mover and the moved

3) "native" plane of reference
Here are some quick thoughts on this last one:

Consciousness is the pre-requisite for Will; Will is that which makes THE CHOICE possible. THE CHOICE is a thing of this world. The Magician ACTS here--in 3D. So the function of the archetype is more on the physical plane. Static on the inner; dynamic on the outer (3D). The Priestess is the opposite. Her realm is the unconscious, which is dynamic on the inner and static or hidden on the outer. When I set the polarities in the text on my website, I posited that the Mind and the Spirit would be viewed from their "native" elements--the inner. So in my analysis, I made the Matrices static (both are receivers of spiritual force) and the Potentiators dynamic (force from the inner). However, as I saw the "native" land of the Body to be 3D, I worked from the physical perspective: so the movement is dynamic and the spiritual power that limits is static (it is a dam on the outer--static; on the inner it is a force of restraint).

So what we'd get in a little chart form

Mind Complex
1st level: Magician = unmoving; Priestess = moving

2nd level: Magician = dynamic (reaching); Priestess = static (waiting)

3rd level: Magician = static; Priestess = dynamic

Body Complex:
1st level: Matrix of Body = dynamic (FORCE); Potentiator = static (FORM--that which limits or directs the movement in the matrix)

2nd level: M of B = Form (homeostatis; movement in balance); P of B = force (that which actively directs)

3rd level: M of B = dynamic; P of B = static

I need to think more about the levels and the Spirit Complex. I see the Matrix as receptive (static) and the Potentiator as an activator (dynamic) overall.

This is just a rough outline to give you an example--how would you describe inward/outward flow?

@JustLikeYou --any clarifications you'd add?

---

Where did you see this name given to Archetype 6, Shemaya?

The Mind Cycle has always seemed to me as the realm where most of the balancing of lower chakras (1-3) occurs. We cannot become masters of ourselves in the way that these cards suggest until the desires which seem outside out control are balanced and placed within a context where the choice has been made (in chakra 4). Whereas archetypes 1-4 seem to me to be a time of balancing red-yellow rays, the Mind Cycle seems to culminate in archetype 6, where green ray is either opened further or closed further.

I would say that this is one of the main reasons why we find the mind cycle at the beginning of the Archetypes. Ra says in Session 5 that the mind must be initiated before the body or the spirit. Ra says elsewhere that the lower chakras must be balanced before the upper ones are given significant attention. Therefore, it would seem that this balancing happens in the disciplines of the mind, where the movements of archetypes 1-7 are the most prominent.

If we look at the human beings around us, we can see that no one seems to be a master of her own experience until these lower chakras have been balanced and they have a firm grasp upon what their purpose in this world is (i.e. to serve the self or others). Thus, the choice having been made and committed to, the mind is firmly rooted in its purpose and therefore gains sufficient vision to be able to direct its energies with enough focus to move forward along the path. In this sense, the Transformation of the Mind is the ultimate activator, because it is the location where the choice is first made.

Since this discussion revolves around the concept of the Great Chain of Mind, I think it is also important to point out that while the evolution of a full life-time can be viewed as a progressive motion through these archetypes one-by-one, my experience of them has been that smaller archetypal movements are nested within this larger life-story. So while I may, for example, still be within a long-term phase of Archetype 6, I can still experience catalyst of body, transformation of spirit, and so forth, within smaller phases of my experience.

I've been wondering how this would be related to the Paths on the Tree of Life--The Mind archetypes are "located" at the top of the tree extending from Kether. So are they the "first" on the tree, but far from Malkuth, the physical realm--anyone have any ideas?

[ricdaw]

Ra suggests consideration of the Transformation and Great Way cards in tandem. Because Ra says that only the Significator cards (and presumably also the Choice card) do not have a male or female alignment, it seems likely that all the other named pairs do. Thus, we are left with the somewhat difficult task of determining the male/female alignments of the very mixed Transformation and Great Way cards.

I don't recall Ra stating that the card themselves were either male or female, so much as that the male or female figure on the card was relevant and worth exploring in the greater gestalt of the archetype itself.  Certainly, for cards with a single male or female figure, that attribute would be quite important. 

I see the issue posed in the Lovers Card (whether to explore the powers? gifts? of the deep unconscious either in STS or STO) is paired with the Great Way card because that last card is the reward for doing so.  It’s not enough, perhaps, to read the Ra Material, to understand these archetypes, the fundamental choice of STS/STO when there is an opportunity to put the understanding into action.  That’s how I see these two cards interact.  The male figure in Transformation is offered a choice and an opportunity to explore? invoke? act upon? that choice.   The Adept can use the Deep Mind to manifest things into physical reality; to call events and experiences into beingness.  Nothing happens if this power is only understood intellectually, that figure must choose the Transformation by choosing to Act upon the knowledge.  And the result of that choosing is the Great Way card. It doesn’t matter that the figure in the chariot is manifesting wealth and power (STS) or manifesting healing and teaching (STO), the chariot is mental movement and the closest thing to "action" in all the Mental Row of cards. 

If the Transformation is Words and Thoughts (inner work) , the Great Way is the Deeds (outer work). 

I see the two paired cards as a sort of “walk your talk” pair.  If you believe the greater paradigm (reincarnation, 50,000 year cycles, the existence of the 4[sup]th[/sup] dimension, graduation to the 4[sup]th[/sup] dimension, etc.) and you come to this understanding while still incarnate then these two cards are exhortations.  The first to do the deep exploring (meditation, channeling, the study of magic) and the second to put the lessons and abilities acquired from those explorations to use in 3 dimensional reality.
 
Jim, Carla and Don did this very thing.  They "Transformed" by initiating the Ra contact (exploring the very deepest portion of the Mind) and then they put it out there (the Great Way) by publishing the books, making this website, continuing to channel and to share thereafter.
 
At least, that's what these two paired card mean to me.

[zvonimir]

copied this from book of Israel Regardie "Garden of Pomegranates" ocr used perhaps some errors are here  doing it over phone so i apologize ,maybe it helps your discussion here  , i have no understanding of Tarot 

The Tarot card is a most interesting one, VII.-The

Chariot. It denotes a chariot, the canopy of which is blue
and decked with stars (representing Nuit, the night sky-
blue, Space, and our Lady of the Stars). In the chariot is a
crowned and armoured figure, on whose forehead glitters a
Silver Star-the symbol of spiritual rebirth. On his
shoulders are mounted two creseents, the waxing and wan-
ing Moon. Drawing the chariot are two sphinxes, one
white, the other black, representing the conflicting forces
in his being which he has mastered. On the front of the
chariot is a glyph of the lingam, his regenerated or sub-
limated “ ld ” or libido, surmounted by the winged globe,
his transcendental Ego with whom he has become
united.
The whole card adequately symbolizes the Great Work,
that process by which a man comes to know the unknown
Crown, and attains to the Knowledge and Conversation of
his Holy Guardian Angel, perfect self-integration and con-
sciousncss.
A word apropos the libido. In this term Jung saw a
concept of an unknown nature, comparable to Henri
Bergson’s sciousncss.
A word apropos the libido. In this term Jung saw a
concept of an unknown nature, comparable to Henri
Bergson’s élan vital, a hypothetical energy of life, which  
occupies itself not alone in sexuality but in various other l
physiological spiritual manifestations. Bergson speaks of
this élan viial as a movement of self-eration, a becoming,
and as the very stuff and reality of our being.
Its sacred animal is the Sphinx, whose expression of
enigma combining male, female, and animal qualities is an
apt symbol of the Great Work brought to perfection. The
Sepher Yelsirah names Ches “ The House of Influence ” ;
the Lotus is its flower, Onycha its perfume, Maroon its
colour, and Amber its jewel