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Title: Tarot and the Journey of the Hero by Hajo Banzhaf, Brigitte Theler ISBN: 1-57863-117-3 Publisher: Weiser Books Pub. Date: 01 May, 2000 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 5 (6 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: The gate is narrow and the way is hard....
Comment: If you know something about the Tarot cards, you may find TAROT AND THE JOURNEY OF THE HERO by Hajo Banzhaf contains familiar material as he agrees with much of what has been written elsewhere by Joseph Campbell and other experts. However, Banzhaf is extremely articulate, his writing clearly stated and beautifully illustrated, and his exploration of the links between the arcane language of the ancients and modern Jungian psychology rich and comprehensive.
If you are not familiar with the Tarot cards, Banzhaf's book is a good place to begin, especially if you have an interest Western literature, music, and/or the visual arts -- including Medieval and Renaissance paintings, German philosophy, and films by the Fargo Brothers such as "Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?"
Banzhaf is a very educated man who has studied religious and/or mythological tales and/or classical stories and appears to have an in-depth knowledge of the religious and/or philosophical nature of humans. He not only interprets key myths and tales, he explains the content of artworks from ancient India, Egypt, Greece, Rome, Italy, and Medieval Europe used to illustrate his text.
Banzhaf uses the Waite and Marseilles decks to illustrate each of the Major Arcana. Although he appreciates much of the content of the Waite deck, he challenges some of the changes Waite made relative to older decks. Banzhaf eschews discussion of the Minor Arcana suggesting these cards are more recent and may be nothing more than playing cards or cards for fortune telling. On the other hand, he views the 22 cards of Major Arcana (the Fool and his 21 stations) as the organizing principle for the classic tale of the hero -- whether Moses or Parzifal, Galahad or Ra, Gilgamesh or Jesus -- and the core story of every human life.
Banzhaf lays out the cards of the Major Aracana sequentially and divides the layout into two major paths -- the path of the daytime sun (active) and the path of the nighttime moon (passive). He suggests that each soul must follow this path to reach paradise, heaven or the spritual world however it is defined. The daytime path has to do with becoming EGO, the worldly individual. The nighttime path is more difficlut and many become snared like the hanged man, slowly twisting in the wind. The nightime path involves the spiritual life where the gate is narrow and the way is hard.
This is a beautiful book, and although I bought the paperback, I plan to purchase the hardcover since I will be referring to the book again..and again. As Banzhaf says, "If we look to the path as a spiral, that gradually leads us to what is Highest, then each turn on this spriral corresponds to one hero's journey. Seen in this manner, as long as we are traveling, we will return to all twenty-one stations over and over, yet--at least we hope--this will always be on a somewhat higher level. At the uppermost point of the path, but really only there, does this last card mean the unity of all things."
Rating: 5
Summary: An Amazing Book - Diverse, In Depth, yet Accessible
Comment: I'm by no means a Tarot, psychology or any other sort of scholar. What I am is a person who has been deeply fascinated by the place of enlightment found at the intersection of Tarot, psychology, and mythology. I itch to relate the Hero myth to Jung, Jung to Tarot, Tarot to the Hero Myth.
This book satisfactorily scratched all those itches, and more. It is a pleasure to read visually and in terms of the thought it provokes. I don't believe anyone could walk away from reading this book without having been enriched in many ways. Its diversity in the cultural, mythological, philosophical, and artistic traditions upon which it draws is enormous. This book could make a fine basis for teaching a university course in a number of disciplines.
I will leave you, gentle Amazon reader, to the wisdom of other reviewers, but I urge your consideration of this book. I believe you will not be sorry.
Enjoy.
Rating: 5
Summary: A lucid contemplation on the Path of the Hero
Comment: This is a very useful book. For one, Banzhaf traces the "hero's" progress consecutively from one tarot card to the next and frames his hero's progress according to an understood direction of enlightenment. Each card is viewed as evolutionary stages that may potentially yield insight into our current spiritual, material or social placement and well-being. What I find insightful and comprehensive about Banzhaf's schema is that Banzhaf explains the "hero's" path through the use of many different religions, myths and motifs, which serve to encompass a broad perspective on what enlightenment means. This is no small feat, since the Waite deck, which Banzhaf prominently displays (as on the front cover), is very Judea-Christian. This broadening of the hero's journey, to encompass a universal experience, manages to make the heroes journey a universal journey on becoming oneself; and it therefore functions well in a number of spiritual and religious frameworks.
Banzhaf-as is characteristic of him-uses brilliantly practical language. His layout is intelligent and well presented. Each tarot card is summarized in a chart, which appears at the end of each essay, and which has the following layout: Title: Keywords for (the tarot card's name goes here); Categories: Archetype, Task, Goal, Risk, and Feeling in life. As you can see, Banzhaf's focus is always lucid and balanced.
I do wish, however, that Banzhaf had extended his approach to encompass the minor arcana, too. In the minor arcana there is also a feeling of progression, which is not quite so clean and neat as in the major arcana. The minor arcana exposes the many side paths and loopholes, which the hero will meet and be challenged with. One can say, that they express the minute details of the hero's' experience, which I feel could have been quite innovatively placed in this hero's journey. However, my comment is not a criticism. Rather, it is a suggestion, which any tarot reader can meditate on. Since, Banzhaf's has the gift of lucidity and practical focus, I just wish that he had considered a broader and more complex schema.
Overall, I think this book is a well-written addition to any tarot card reader's library, and I do not think that it is too difficult for a beginner. In fact, this book has the uncanny ability to grow with you as you progress in your tarot card understanding, which mimics the "hero's" own growth. Of course, this is whole point. You will come to understand that you are the hero, and that both your paths are alike.
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Title: The Forest of Souls: A Walk Through the Tarot by Rachel Pollack ISBN: 1567185339 Publisher: Llewellyn Publications Pub. Date: 01 September, 2002 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: The Complete Book of Tarot Reversals (Special Topics in Tarot) by Mary K. Greer ISBN: 1567182852 Publisher: Llewellyn Publications Pub. Date: 01 March, 2002 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: The Tarot Court Cards: Archetypal Patterns of Relationship in the Minor Arcana by Kate Warwick-Smith ISBN: 0892810920 Publisher: Destiny Books Pub. Date: 05 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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Title: Tarot and Psychology : Spectrums of Possibility by Arthur Rosengarten ISBN: 1557787840 Publisher: Paragon House Publishers Pub. Date: 01 April, 2000 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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Title: The Encyclopedia Of Tarot, Volume III by Stuart R. Kaplan ISBN: 0880791225 Publisher: U.S. Games Systems Pub. Date: 01 June, 1990 List Price(USD): $45.00 |
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