The Tarot and the Kabbalistic Tree of Life, miscopied and misunderstood, have survived from Sumerian times, disguising esoteric Sufi teachings.
Nicholas SwiftThe images on the Marseille Tarot cards started out as illustrations of Sumero-Bablyonian myths, preserved through the centuries on cylinder seals. They were copied by people who didnt understand them but who also had access to some form, whether written or oral, of the wisdom encoded in those myths and in Bible stories. That wisdom is identical with Sufi teachings as espoused by teachers like Ibn al Arabi, Rumi, and others, including Gurdjieff and his teachings about the enneagram. The myths and stories are decoded in this book using the multiple meanings conveyed by Arabic consonantal word roots and by reference to those doctrines and to modern discoveries about conditioning and the hemispheric specialization of the brain. Arabic is the closest existing descendant of the ancient Protosemitic language. The Kabbalah, long rumoured to be linked to the Tarot, is shown to come from the same sources, and originally had eight, not ten, sefiroth. The visual evidence alone is overwhelming: the mystery of where the Tarot comes from has been definitively solved.
- A great work on the origins of Tarot & Sufi lore Mr Swift has written which is probably the most lucid and interesting book available on the Sufi origins of the Tarot symbolism, a matter that had already been remarked upon by Idries Shah in his groundbreaking work ''The Sufis'' (1964) -- the book that most contributed to acquaint Western readers with the monumental and fascinating body of knowledge of which Sufis have been custodians for millennia. The author... unveils for us the real meaning of the Tarot cards... Their message -- the message hidden in the Tarot cards -- is of more far-reaching consequences, and Mr Swift tell us about it in a fascinating prose... Congratulations, Mr Swift! You have written a real masterpiece! ~ Xokhtenger, amazon.com
Mirror of the free, Nicholas Swift: on the origin of the Tarot
by Katinka Hesselink - Spirituality on November 24, 2011
Those of you who are into Western Esotericism and Tarot will be glad to hear that Nicholas Swift has taken Blavatsky up on the hints she gave in her letters and looked at the Babylonian cylinders. Blavatsky Collected Writings Vol XIV pp 106, 94 and 174, p. 12 of the book under review
.
This is not the kind of book you can just read at your leisure. In fact, I’ll freely admit that I haven’t read the whole thing through for this review. I’m not currently very interested in the Tarot, though I dabbled in it in my late teens and early twenties.
The tarot is of course a type of divination and like all types of divination it works best if you use it as a method to access your own intuition. However, that doesn’t mean that it is not also a good idea to know about the background of those symbols. That’s what Nicholas Swift has tried to uncover. In the process he goes into Sufism, Gurdjieff and Fourth Way as well as Taoism. In short: he’s your classic occult author, mixing and matching stories, graphs, quotes and inspiration from all over in order to delve deeper into the soul.
Like Blavatsky herself he doesn’t do this always equally logically. He jumps from one reference to the next and the reader may get lost trying to figure out if there was any connection.
That said – for the serious student of the tarot and theosophy this really is the kind of book that just can’t be ignored. It will stay in my own personal library, unlike many books publishers send me, because the research done here is invaluable.
~ Katinka Hesselink, http://www.greatspiritualbooks.com/2011/mirror-of-the-free-nicholas-swift-tarot/(On the 2005 limited edition)
Thanks go to Jean-Michel David for including an excerpt from this book in the January 2006 edition of the Association For Tarot Studies e-newsletter. I found the excerpt very interesting, and wanted to see what else this author had to say. I also found it interesting that I had just finished a review of the Babylonian Tarot, by Sandra Tabatha Cicero, which is based on the deities and myths of Mesopotamia -- the very territory that Swift is addressing... Swift starts out with the thought that perhaps authors of Tarot books claim that the origin of the Tarot is unknown because they really prefer not to know, as if it is better left a "mystery". He also posits that after reading this book the reader may find it hard to justify the manner in which they are accustomed to using the Tarot. His wry sense of humor is evident from the very beginning of the book... The body of this book is Swifts linking of the imagery in the Marseilles deck to the iconography of ancient Mesopotamian cylinder seals, and he does an excellent job of this. Scans of the Tarot cards and representations of the seals that they are being compared to are thought provoking, to say the least!... There are in-depth discussions of the imagery of the seals, and how it transfers to the Tarot (and it does so remarkably well). Sufi myths are presented in a story-like manner (I read this book in one sitting - it is that interesting!), and there is a great deal of discussion of word derivations, sound-alike words, the alphabet etc. The work of many of the masters is referenced in a knowledgeable manner (masters such as Madam Blavatsky, Idries Shah, Gurdjieff, and many more Sufi writers), and in a manner that is easily understood by those of us who may not have the background that we would like to have on esoteric subjects. Tossed in amongst this mix are such jewels as Madam Blavatskys belief that the first three sephiroth are actually blinds, and the notion that horns on individuals found on the seals indicate not that they are "devils", but that they are Gods, with multiple horns indicating high ranking gods. While the reader is free to disagree with Swift on any or all of his suppositions, my feeling is that this book at the very least presents ideas for further study, and opens the mind in many ways - not only as to the origins of the Tarot, but as a mini-study in word derivation and usage. I am left with the thought that this material certainly warrants further study, and that the material here has found its time. I should mention here that there is an extensive bibliography, in case the reader does want to do some research of their own... [It is] very much an "Aha!" experience!
~ Bonnie Cehovet, Aeclectic Tarot website(On the 2005 limited edition)
[I] feel motivated to express admiration and respect for the wonderful work of research and presentation of these not commonly met subjects.
~ Ilya S., Tel Aviv , Correspondence(On the 2005 limited edition)
The basic premise looks sound: the pictures on the medieval Marseille tarot cards have never been explained satisfactorily, but they match the images on Archaic cylinder seals too well for coincidence. Nick Swifts investigations into ancient and modern near-Eastern languages underpin some fascinating linguistic detective work. He makes a strong case that the Sumerian seals were part of a mythological wisdom tradition that was still available in some form to the originators of the tarot deck several millennia later. Happily, the research is presented in an engaging and at times amusing style. Mirror of the Free should fascinate everyone from scholars of iconography to readers of Dan Brown. Students of sufism, Kabbalah, Fourth Way and related experiential paths will find it particularly valuable.
~ Michael Emmans Dean, author The Trials of Homeopathy: Origins, Structure and Development, Unpublished review(On the 2005 limited edition)
Thank you for publishing such an amazing and interesting book.
~ Deb G., USA, Correspondence(On the 2005 limited edition)
There is no doubt that this book contains some new and highly important information which has not been published previously. His research covers parallels with Gurdjieffs teaching which has been previously documented and also connections with the Ikhwan as-Safa and Ibn Arabis thought which has been touched on by Idries Shah in The Sufis and Jereer el-Moor in The Occult Tradition of the Tarot in Tangency with Ibn Arabis Life and Teachings, but it is in the linking of the Tarot depictions and imagery to be found in the Marseille deck to the iconography of ancient Mesopotamian cylinder seals that the work is truly groundbreaking. Consider the following two depictions: ... To keep this brief Ill just pick up on a few points: the Devil motif, the Hanged Man and possible Islamic/Sufi influence on the development of the pack (it would be good to also include a look at the eight-fold Cabala)... The Devil: the observation is made early on (see also in Gurdjieffs teachings) that the god-figures are the ones that have horns whereas our contemporary society is more accustomed to associated horns with evil in general and Old Nick himself in particular. It is a marked feature of Gurdjieffs teaching that he takes a controversial character -- one who is reviled or avoided -- such as Judas or the Devil and rehabilitates them as not just blameless but as adepts of the highest degree (without of course accepting any of the baggage assigned to them by the erstwhile detractors). In doing this, G is merely following an earlier Sufi practice... I think this book will prove to be something of a watershed and there are really some revolutionary ideas there - far more so than meet the eye on first contact.
~ Tarquin Rees, Anulios blog(On the 2005 limited edition)
March 23rd, 2007 One of my backorders finally came in. This now makes three books that Ive found quite useful for understanding and working with the Tarot, so in case anyone is interested, these are the titles: Mirror of the Free by Nicholas Swift, A Brief Hirstory of Time by Orryelle Defenstrate-Bascule, and Tarot and the Magus by Paul Hughes-Barlow... Generally speaking, most books about the Tarot are worth just about as much as any other. Maybe youll learn some theory, some history (although mostly about the cards themselves, not the origins of the Atus, on which Swifts book is the only decent one Ive found so far)...
~ Infra, eso.terica.net/skinfilter blog(On the 2005 limited edition)
... this astonishing book...
~ Kai, Germany, Correspondence(On the 2005 limited edition)
2008/01/23/a-gorgeous-orrery Mostly, when it comes to things like that, I simply stumble across them: an acquaintance introduces me to someone else, who recommends a book, which comes from a distributor that carries small press items, which mentions a specific press, which carries a limited edition book thats only available from them. Or something along those lines. (Thats how I found out about Mirror of the Free, which examines Sufi and Near Eastern cylinder seal influences on the Tarot. Worth the read, if you come across it and that subject interests you.) Oh, Infra. I think we may be kindred spirits. And thats not to mention our similar affections for language. ;)
~ Daisy, Our Descent Into Madness blogNicholas Swifts book Mirror of the Free is a revelation of the veiled for those interested in the Tarot, the Kabbalistic Tree of Life, and in the esoteric transmission of knowledge. This book is not only a treasure-trove for the Tarot expert, enthusiast, and student; it is also of profound value to the seeker of higher learning. In an erudite weaving of coded symbolism from Sufic sources and their expression in a range of Western esotericism, Swift does a remarkable job in making the complex understandable. This is a book of depth, and the author clearly shows his awareness of the subtle layers in the Tarot transmission. It is a delight to be introduced to new insights and revelations in this book. A remarkable contribution to a much misunderstood subject. Hats off to Nicholas Swift!
~ Kingsley Dennis, author, New Consciousness for a New World; co-founder, WorldShift International; visiting fellow, Lancaster University, Unpublished reviewThis book about the Tarot is fascinating if you are interested in unlocking the secrets hidden in them. I generally use and teach from the Rider-Waite deck because it is full of Jungian symbolism, kabala, astrology, and more. However, this book has opened my eyes to more. I found this a difficult book to read because it isnt organized in a way that makes it easy, Im guessing on purpose.
Many years ago, I was a student of the teachings of Blavatsky, Alice Bailey, et al and I found his style of writing reminiscent of that, only easier to understand. I am a fan of Rumi and Swift makes a lot of references to the Tarot and Rumi. Other correlations, to Sufism, the Babylonian cylinders, Gurdjieff, and Taoism, plus others paints a deep and rich picture of the power of the Tarot to help us with deep self-understanding and personal growth.
I would love it if this books illustrations were in color and bigger since visuals are such an important part of the learning.
~ Anita Burns, Editor, The Messenger: A Guide to Life's Adventure, http://www.themessenger.info/content/home/item/1652-mirror-of-the-freeHere in the UK, at least, some "crossover" writing is finding an audience. Malcolm Gladwell and Ethan Watters, for example, have both been published by mainstream imprints, despite the fact that they are both niche American authors. In general Im noticing, at least as far as popular writing goes, some erosion of the self-imposed separation between subjects and disciplines. Dot connecting seems to be coming into vogue, and the idea that there is a kind of gingerbread trail of knowledge one can follow, which winds through numerous fields but is linear in historical or intellectual terms, is being tolerated more than I can remember. This seems to fit into the broader trend towards a more holistic view of the planet and the human experience -- shocking that its taken us this long to start seeing life as an interwoven tapestry -- but the rise of environmental concerns in particular, I believe, has had an effect on the way people see themselves and their societies. In a sense, the horizon of cause and effect is expanding laterally, and I definitely think that Eurocentric culture seems more willing than before to accept its place within a much broader historical and cultural context. Mirror of the Free is firmly a part of that.
~ Mike Freedman, independent film maker (Critical Mass), London, UK, Correspondence- Worth the price for just the comments on The Story of Mushkil Gusha!!! This is a most remarkable book by Nicholas Swift --the author of ''The Longest Circle'' too -- and although I don't have the knowledge or scholarship to do it justice, I can tell you it is very much worth its price for just the most enlightening comments Mr Swift makes on ''The Story of Mushkil Gusha'', included in Idries Shah's ''Caravan of Dreams''. Shah, the leading authority on Sufism for the Western world, said that ''The Story of Mushkil Gusha'' was the most important teaching-story to transmit to the students of Sufism a kind of higher knowledge that cannot be transmitted by any other means, since it pertains to an entirely different ''level of being''. Mr Swift's comments on ''The Story of Mushkil Gusha'' reveal not only a deep scholarship and his excellent command of Persian and Arabic languages, but also a most remarkable mind and a gifted writer and storyteller. ~ Un lector, amazon.com
