But I do appreciate some companion write-up explaining why the creator chose those associations or correspondences. I’m not going to judge right or wrong; I just wanna understand the thought process. =) Like you know how Yoshi Yoshitani’s Tarot of the Divine has a companion book of fairytales that comes with the deck? Jui Guoliang’s The Chinese Tarot is the type of deck that would have been best served with a fully fleshed out companion book.  Continuing on with my walk-through of the cards… Strength (Key 8 in this deck) features Wu Song, one of the 36 heavenly spirits from the Chinese novel Water Margin. I talk about the significance of Water Margin to tarot’s ancestry in the chapter “Cultural Integration and the Prisca Theologia” from the Revelation Edition of the Book of Maps. I liken the pictorial depictions of Water Margin spirits and demons on Ming Dynasty Chinese playing cards to Dante’s Divine Comedy referenced in the 15th century Italian tarots. You can read more about that in the “Cultural Integration” chapter.  Justice (Key 11) is Wei Tuo (韋馱), a Buddhist guardian spirit who, when mortal was a great warrior general. Wei Tuo fell in love with a human incarnation of Kuan Yin, but didn’t feel worthy of being her husband, so instead of pursuing his romantic feelings, he pledged his unconditional loyalty to her and served as her protector. (Oh man, talk about being eternally friend-zoned…) He’s typically depicted as having kind of an angry face and wields a sword. Given that back story, it’s quite poignant to have him as Justice, corresponding astrologically to Libra. |
