Mother of the World by Nicholas Roerich The Sanskrit word Maya literally means "illusion" or "magic". It implies the ability to manipulate  perceptions. It refers to the fact that our knowledge of the universe is dependent upon our limited perceptions, and that a greater truth lies beyond our senses. Maya can be understood as "appearance", that which we are able to perceive. We are able to perceive things with our eyes thanks to light. This is why light is used as a metaphor for knowledge or awareness. Light is a particle which bounces off of objects in the dark. When the light particle bounces off an object and into our eyes, that's when we are able to see it. Light means the ability to perceive something which would otherwise be uknown to us. Light is radiation which is created by the movement of particles. The Universe is in constant movement, creating heat, emmitting light. At the centre of every particle, there is the void, the stillness,...

Tarot of Marseilles Twelve are the apostles of Jesus, including the traitor Judas. According to the Gospel of Matthew, Judas commited suicide by hanging himself, and so the image of a hanged man was associated with traitors. The image for the twelth Tarot card is a hanged man, known as "pittura infamante" the defaming portrait. Such portraits were painted in order to shame a known criminal. Often the portraits were life size frescoes, displayed in public spaces, and accompanied by a written label to "name and shame" the criminal. To depict someone hanging upside down was considered particularly humiliating. These images were effective in punishing noblemen for their bad debt, bankruptcy, fraud, forgery, etc. What this image says is that someone of high standing and wealth has fallen from grace, their ego has taken a beating. The lesson this card teaches is that an over-inflated ego will be turned on its head. The height of pride will become the lowest of the lo...

It's no secret that I'm pretty fucking magic. By that, what I mean is that I have the ability to get shit done in a creative and exciting way. I believe we all have magic powers. I'm not talking about supernatural abilities, I'm talking about our every day power to make stuff happen. Magic is the art of change and influence. My daily performance of taking charge of my own life might seem like miracle working. But what am I really doing? How does the trick work? Tarot of Marseilles If we translate the French name for this card, it is the "sleight of hand artist" or "illusionist". This card points toward the fact that we are living in a world of illusion, or false perception. It seems to us that the world is made up of separate parts, of opposites, of polarity. We feel ourselves to be individuals who are separate from the rest of the world. This is the illusion of ego. The number One represents the individuality of a separate "I" or ...