Divining for the World: The Emperor from Taro as Colour
I drew a card as a reading for the world and discovered the Emperor, but not as you might recognise from traditional decks. I used Ithell Colquhoun’s Taro as Colour, inspired by visiting the exhibition of the surrealist artist’s work currently on at the Tate Britain.
Ithell Colquhoun’s deck is more difficult to read than, the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, but the vivid colours and shapes hit me on an emotional level, which I think is the point. The Taro as Colour cards “get me in the feels” as the saying goes, which I think is the point. Colquhoun wrote: “This design for a taro-pack is both personal and traditional. It renders the essence of of each card by the non-figurative means of pure colour, applied automatically in the manner of psycho-morphological movement in Surrealism.”
The feelings I got looking at this card were powerful, but mixed. The bright crimson could show passion, but to me at this moment in time it feels more like anger. I see lips in the shapes, but fear that the sounds I would hear from this open mouth would be hate-speech. Red is the colour of the planet Mars and the God of War. I think we all recognise these things as powerful and destructive forces in the world right now.
This is really very different from the meaning usually ascribed to the Emperor in the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, where the card symbolises authority, stability, order and discipline. Ithell Colquhoun intended her taro to be meditated on to get a personal meaning, rather than simply being able to look up a standard interpretation in a book that comes with the set. She didn’t provide that for her cards, although she gave each card a descriptive name that can help with interpretation. The Emperor’s is: “Sun of the Morning, Chief among the Mighty”.
Looking at this card, I found myself using techniques I normally employ when scrying. Getting into a slightly trance-like state through stilling my mind and focussing on my breathing, I then spent some time observing the image on the card, allowing thoughts and feelings to arise naturally.
The colours of the photo of the card on this post aren’t a great reproduction of the actual art, but what impressions do you get when looking at it? Please leave a comment.
Learn Scrying Online via the College of Psychic Studies
On Wednesday 3 September and 10 September I’m running a two-part online evening class on Scrying: Divination Using Crystals, Mirrors, Water and Fire via the College of Psychic Studies. Each class starts at 7pm. Tickets are £65/£85 for both workshops. You can find out more and book tickets here: collegeofpsychicstudies.co.uk/workshops/psychic-training/scrying-divination-using-crystals-mirrors-water-fire/
The college sells copies of my book Pagan Portals – Scrying and sets of Taro as Colour. You can also order my book via my publisher: collectiveinkbooks.com/moon-books/our-books/pagan-portals-scrying
Previous Related Posts
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/08/art-tate-britains-ithell-colquhoun.html
badwitch.co.uk/2022/11/ithell-colquhouns-taro-at-college-of.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/05/divination-for-world-judgement-in-cat.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/06/divination-knight-of-cups-from-thoth.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/02/pictures-tarot-origins-afterlives-at.html
To read more posts like this visit A Bad Witch’s Blog at www.badwitch.co.uk
Source: http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/08/divining-for-world-emperor-from-taro-as.html
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