|
Kazanlar Tarot The Kazanlar Tarot is like a miniature illuminated prayerbook. The deck’s author calls it an ecumenical tarot because it incorporates the faiths of many different cultures. Kazanlar writes that the nature of the Tarot itself is ecumenical because its holy symbols have appeared in similar forms in all the great religions. Emil Kazanlar was born in Iran. His father was Turkish and Persian, his mother was Hungarian, and both parents brought additional religious influences into their home. He further pursued the studies of painting, philosophy, kabbalah and linguistics, and eventually found in the Tarot a medium which satisfied his eclectic spiritual search. Consequently, there is a wealth of metaphysical doctrine underlying the Kazanlar Tarot. The first card below is the World, which represents the Absolute which cannot be completely perceived by man. The central circle is made by the Uroboros snake, which symbolizes matter and energy in the constant state of renewal. The Four Living Creatures at the corners of the card stand for the primordial elements, as a balanced antithesis to the unmanifest Chaos. As these four creatures are sometimes taken to symbolize the four gospel writers, Kazanlar considers the middle figure of the card to symbolize Barnabas, whom Islamic tradition believes was the first apostle to write an account of Jesus’ life. The eighth Trump shows Justice with sword and scales, and is based on Christian iconography depicting the four virtues. Though she is not blindfolded, her blank gaze illustrates Kazanlar's statement that unpartisan Justice is blind. The solar disk on her crown implies that she relies instead on her inner vision, and obeys the directives of the All-seeing Eye above her. To her right is a large palm tree whose leaves give shelter, and to her left are inscriptions which seem to be written in the sky to guide her. The entire deck is full of symbols, letters and inscriptions such as this, which are not explained in the 144-page booklet but left for us to decipher. Kazanlar uses the kabbalistic correspondences of Eliphas Levi, who places the Hebrew letter Aleph with the Magician. He closely ties the meaning of these letters into the symbolism of the cards. The Wheel of Fortune is based on the letter Yod which means ‘hand’ in Hebrew and Arabic. It is symbolic of the Hand of God entering through Destiny into the affairs of men. The card depicts the Wheel supported by a mast from a boat which sails over the waters of the Nile. The Sphinx who keeps watch can be a symbol of ourselves, says Kazanlar, since we have the power to choose our opportunities on the wheel and take advantage of its cycles; once a moment passes, it will never come again. |
|
Many kinds of symbols were used throughout the deck, such as astrological and alchemical symbols, I-Ching, Sanskrit
text, and Arabic inscriptions which run around the borders of most of the cards. The seventeenth trump The
Star is a wonderful example of this intricacy. It is based on the Hebrew letter peh which means mouth,
implying a doorway for expressing one’s thoughts or wishes. The card depicts the fairy from The Thousand and
One Knights. She lives in the light of the seven stars but desires the eighth star which fate has not yet given
her. The water she pours from the two jugs are offerings, one to the earth for the fulfillment of her practical
needs and one to the sea as a sacrificial gesture toward the source which gave to her. This portrays the attitude
we need when desiring the Universe to fulfill our hopes. |