The Spirit Warrior: The Archangel Michael & The King of Swords

April 29, 2011


I have received the King of Swords recently in a number of Tarot readings and, while I have never felt that I had a special relationship with this particular card, I have found myself drawn to it as of late.

Although suit of swords is not a cheery suit many decks, I appreciate the energy of this suit. This is mostly because of the traditional association with swords and the element of air. Air relates to intellect and cognition and I like this association. What intrigues me the most however is the relationship between air and spirit.

In Hebrew the word for wind is ruach and while much can be said on this topic, I will only note here that Ruach Ha-Kodesh (רוח הקודש), the holy spirit is considered, in Judaism, one of the divine names of God, and wind has held this association for me on an intuitive level since childhood.

This is why the suit of Swords, and most recently its King, is of great personal importance to me. I did not, however, associate this particular King with the angelic realms until that connection was made for me by my friend, and fellow Tarot card reader, Tara Miller.

Reading for me earlier this week, Tara pulled the King of Swords and told me that this card represents the Archangel Michael's presence in my life and it is quite accurate that my relationship with Michael (or as I say, Mikha'el with inclusion of the guttural Hebrew chet), though always strong has grown closer recently. In Hebrew the name Michael means "Who is like God?" In the great Kabbalistic text, the Zohar, Michael accompanies the souls of the departed, helping them to enter the gates of the heavenly Jerusalem.

Michael is one of only two angels mentioned by name in the entire Hebrew bible and in the book of Daniel, it is Michael who comes to the aide of the archangel Gabriel to overcome the angel of Persia. Michael is in many ways a paradox: a being of light and love with a propensity for violence. Perhaps the reason the King of Swords never resonated to me as Michael before is because my own experience of him is as a figure of absolute compassion. And yet the many medieval Christian depictions of Michael doing battle are quite correctly based on scripture.

It is my opinion that Michael is correctly associated with medieval knights because, in their highest form, these warriors acted with chivalry and loyalty - often subjugating their true nature for honor (which is not unrelated to love). I believe that we can consider Michael's role as a warrior in this context. He is first and foremost a being of love, and this is what defines his role as guardian and protector.

It my belief that we can all have a relationship with this courageous and beautiful angel if we choose to do so. If you are unable to sense him, try again! It is my experience that Michael's primary intention is to freely share divine light. He is, in my understanding, a guardian to all those who would protect others and all those in need of protection themselves.

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Shalom Chaverim: In Memory

April 28, 2011

This song is commonly sung as a round in school music classes and choirs.  It is a very old folk song however and to me it has always seemed both hopeful and sad.  I sang it last night and today to a dear friend as he was failing.  I share it here so that others might have something to sing as well.

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The King of Swords as Archangel Michael: Carnivale Tarot


If you view this video full screen you will get a glimpse (at 0:48 on counter) of the archangel Michael / King of Swords card from this non-existent made for HBO Tarot deck.   Too bad this deck cannot be bought.  Still, what a really cool intro for the show and a wonderful concept for this card!
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Spotlight on Numerology: Symbolism of the Number Seven

April 13, 2011

Photo by Maximilian Csali on Unsplash

Seven is my life path number (8 + 22 + 1957 or 8 + 2 + 2 + 1 + 9 + 5 + 7 = 34 and 3 + 4 = 7). I have blogged about the number seven in a previous post but wanted to do something a little more in depth.

In Pythagorean or Western numerology, seven is considered to be an intellectual number and those with a life path of seven are known to be spiritual seekers drawn to metaphysical study. Seven's also have a love of solitude which may make it difficult for them to form close relationships. Finding a balance between intimacy and isolation is a challenge for this life path.

More about the Number Seven:

There are seven days of the week and Seven Sisters of the Pleiades. White light may be divided into the seven colors of the visible spectrum. In music there are seven musical notes. Christianity identifies seven deadly sins and hell is said to contain seven gates.

In the Hebrew Bible, God rested on the seventh day of creation making the seventh day the sabbath and the holiest of days. The ark rested on the seventh month and the dove was sent out on the seventh day. The Menorah has seven branches and the Temple took seven years to build.

There are seven Hathors (or fates) in Egyptian mythology and the priestesses of Hathor have seven jars and seven tunics. Ra has seven hawks representing the seven wise ones and there are seven houses of the underworld, as depicted in Egyptian myths, with three times seven gates. Seven is the sacred number of Osiris. It is also the number of the seven planets, or wandering stars, of the ancients.

In western mythology seven was considered sacred to Apollo, whose lyre has seven strings, and to Athene/Minerva and Ares/Mars. The deity Pan had seven pipes. There were said to be seven wise men of Greece.

In Hinduism there are Seven Jewels of the Brahmans and seven gods before the floods. Persian mythology identifies seven heavens and considers seven to be the perfect number. The chakra system numbers seven energy centers.

The cave of Mithras has seven doors, seven altars, and a ladder with seven rungs depicting the seven grades of initiation into the mystery schools. In Pythagorean numerology, seven is a cosmic number combining the three of heaven and four of the world. (The 34 of my birth date before reduction.)

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The Significance & Predictive Nature of Numbers

April 8, 2011

An issue pops up for me in regard to numerology and it is the same issue I encounter in Tarot, astrology or any other discipline which undertakes the art of predicting future.  My frame of reference and entry into spirituality is, and has always been, primarily religious in scope, and I experience a degree of conflict in regard to divination as it presents in any discipline with which it is associated.  

The bible takes a very clear position on all predictive practices (see  The Problem with Predictive Tarot for more on this).  And yet, I read Tarot, have an interest in astrology and a new fascination with the symbolism of numbers. 

I do not make hard and fast predictions in Tarot, as a matter of fact I try to stay away from predictions as best I can, and consider Tarot most importantly an instrument of spiritual insight - not a vehicle of fortune telling.  While astrology and numerology can be thought of in the same way certainly, it is difficult to deny their inherent emphasis on future.

For me it is all, in a most fundamental sense, about energy.  If we are open minded, it is not difficult to imagine that the heavenly bodies exert an energetic influence here on earth.  This is particularly true of the 2012 phenomena and the so-called galactic alignment though I am far from convinced that it all boils down to a single day. 

If energetic influences do in fact exist however, whether planetary or otherwise, it seems reasonable to me that they are predictable - not only in terms of naturally occurring cosmic phenomena but in terms of trends.  In my experience, energy has momentum and can be considered forward moving though not necessarily unstoppable and this is my context in reading Tarot. This viewpoint does not however explain the curious phenomenon of numbers.

Why do numbers, specific numbers and combinations of numbers, have meaning?  This is not an easy question to answer.  I am convinced in the sacred symbolism of numbers in Gematria, quite convinced by dreams and religious experience that certain numbers have a very real spiritual context - by association. 

What I do not understand is why certain numbers such as 12/12/2012 coincide with events or why my reduced birth date of seven and its traditional Pythagorean interpretation seem to fit me so well and while the true answer to this question is well beyond the scope of this article or perhaps even my own capacity to understand it is something I come back to repeatedly.

It seems to me that symbolism is indeed encoded in our human experience in a numeric sense and while numbers may well be a human construct they are a remarkable consistent construct with the ability to consistently express complex truths as is proved by mathematics.  Numbers may therefore not only be considered not only a construct of thought but the apparent universal language of forces that we cannot otherwise comprehend. 

Accepting this viewpoint, it seems quite possible that the numerology is equally valid in way that I cannot fully appreciate at this point in my development.  It is by the consideration of things, however, that we progress.
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Contrasting Pythagorean Numerology & Hebrew Gematria

April 5, 2011

I will be blogging about numbers this month, dealing with systems that are new to me, such as Pythagorean or Western numerology, and those I am somewhat more familiar with (Hebrew Gematria). I thought that it might be interesting to comment on the difference between these two very important systems as I understand them.

First of all, what do Western numerology and Gematria have in common? They are both numerical, of course, associating predefined key concepts with specific numerical values. Both are also frequently spiritual or metaphysical in their interpretations. Number values are arrived at through reduction (adding) in each system, though three difference methods of calculation (absolute, ordinal and reduced) may be employed in Gematria.

Western numerology, as I understand it, has a somewhat less direct association to language than is found in Gematria. In Hebrew, letters are numbers and numbers are letters. There is no separation or difference in characters. And while Western numerology assigns numbers to the letters of the alphabet, there seems to be less emphasis on the numerical value of words than in Gematria or this is my observation at the outset of this series.

There are individual differences in assignment of numbers to the respective alphabets as well. The Hebrew alef-bet (alef and bet are the first and second letters of the Hebrew alphabet) employs both different numerical assignments to letters, as well the addition of special values for final or soffit letters (which do not occur in the English alphabet). Additionally, Gematria traditionally focuses on religious associations while Western numerology focuses on various interpretations, many of which relate to individual character or destiny.

Specific Hebrew words have relatively well known numerical significance and context. The word ahava (אהבה ) or love for example has a value of 13. Kabbalah speaks of the 13 petalled rose. Maimonides, an important Jewish religious thinker, formulated 13 principles of faith and Judaism identifies 13 qualities of divine compassion. 13 is also the Gematria of the Hebrew word echad (one) which is closely associated with God. The name Micha’el (מִיכָאֵל), as in the archangel Michael, appears only 13 times in the Tanach or Hebrew Bible. Micha’el is the angel of loving-kindness. Synchronicities such as this abound.

Jews may employ Gematria in naming and while this may occur in Western numerology I suspect it is less prevalent. I choose the name Miriam for my Hebrew name because it has a value of 13 and because I felt a special affinity to the number 13 due to an experience of this number in dream.

Gematria has, for me, a mostly religious application while Western numerology seems especially well suited to personal contemplation, prediction and an understanding of individual life path and character. The number of my birth date in Western numerology reduces to seven which is an important number in terms of metaphysics and learning and I consider these associations not only accurate but validating (as I feel a strong tie to both metaphysics and study). I have never calculated the Gematria of my Hebrew birth date of Av 25, 5717, however, and am not entirely sure how to do so. Dates in the Hebrew calendar are more frequently associated with history than numbers in my experience.

I find both these systems and their differences fascinating and will be exploring each, separately, in upcoming articles.
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April: Spotlight on Numbers: Pythagorean Numerology

April 1, 2011

Photo by Jo Coenen - Studio Dries 2.6 on Unsplash

The Greek mathematician Pythagoras (circa 570 BCE to 490 BCE) is considered the father of western numerology and the author of the Pythagorean theorem (A2 + B2 = C2 ).

While scholars say that it is unclear that these concepts can be attributed directly to Pythagoras, or are the work of his students, the concept of a structured cosmos with a significant relationship to numbers is widely considered to be Pythagorean in origin. The resulting numerological system focuses on significant numbers in an person's life, reducing these numbers through reduction (addition) to a single digit number which is assigned special meaning thought to relate to the individual's life path or character. Double digit numbers are assigned significance only when occurring as 11, 22, 33 - the master numbers.

As an example of Pythagorean or western numerology, I'll use my own birth date, August 22nd 1957, which can be reduced, by adding 8 + 2 + 2 + 1 + 9 + 5 + 7, to 34. 34 can be further reduced to 3 + 4, giving a result of 7. The number 7 is then considered to be my "life path" number and can be interpreted in a predefined way. While I am not entirely clear on where these predefined interpretations originated it is not impossible that they result from the philosophy of Pythagoras. Historians agree that he taught a doctrine which emphasized the soul, reincarnation, destiny and an ordered cosmos which is not at odds with the tenants of western numerology as I understand them.

It is not enormously important to me personally whether these interpretations originated with Pythagoras or evolved over time. The true test of any system is, for me, the degree to which it resonates with my own intuition and I find that many of the number seven associations do resonate for me and are consistent with my own intuitive understanding of my individual life path.

Meaning of the number seven:

Seven is considered a mystical or spiritual number. Those with a life path of seven are thought to be intelligent, analytical and focused. They may also introspective, socially awkward and intuitive with a strong drive to acquire metaphysical knowledge. The number seven is found in the seven days of the week, the seven visible colors of the spectrum and the seven notes of the musical scale. It is associated with the sign of Cancer (my moon sign) and the Tarot card of the the Chariot which is my assigned card by at least one method of reckoning.

Look for more articles on numerology in the upcoming months!
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