A brief
glimpse of the process of creation of the Wild Card in the Sacred India Tarot.
In the traditional Tarot this is the Zero card of the Major Arcana also known
as the Fool. Rudra- Shiva was the choice. It is an interesting
perspective on cultural viewpoints that neither my publisher nor I ever felt
there was any issue with keeping the old name. Our printer however expressed
his deep reserve and hurt feelings..."How can you call Lord Shiva a
fool?" Not having the time to explain the context and the culture -
the gulf in perspective was too immense - we opted for discretion and called it
the Wild Card, which is actually a pretty accurate name! Self-censorship as a
preemptive precaution has unfortunately become a necessity in contemporary
India; people feel slighted and take offense at whim, and they have a whim of
iron.
THE WILD HUNTER
Rohit’s
Notes:
“He
should be of immense muscular development, an athlete-warrior-hunter. His
complexion should be white skinned with tawny or long flowing copper coloured
hair. Rudra is the Archetypal outsider god, and his expression should be
a combination of humour and danger. His clothes should either be of
deerskin or tiger skin, with the usual combination of snakes as
ornaments. His head should have the horn headdress made famous by the
Indus Valley Seals – the famous Proto-Shiva. A crescent moon within the
headdress would not be a bad idea. The whole figure should communicate
the same wild untamed irresistible energy that your Nataraja figure had.
He should have four arms and be in a cosmic dancing posture. In his hands
he should be holding a trident, an arrow, a bow, and perhaps the
creative-destructive fire of Rudra in his left upper hand. The bow should
be the composite bow of India, a wooden hilt or grip with double curved
sections of horn to make up the rest of the bow. If that is difficult,
the off centre samurai bow of Japan will do just as well.
Bhairava dancing: Rudra
Rudra
should be accompanied in his dance across the forested Himalayan landscape by
four dogs that should be red, white, black and yellow in colour. They
represent the four Vedas. Ideally all of them should be of different
breeds. The other animals seen in the first illustration you sent, also
communicate his role as the Lord of the animals, Pashupatinatha.”
Jane
had drawn Rudra before in this version shown below
Correspondence:
Jane: “Rudra/Bhairava
is based on a sculpture of Bhairava dancing, in the Malikarjuna Temple.
the posture slightly echoes the Western tarot Fool – the legs… His body
and limbs are pure white, he has long red-copper-gold hair streaming out to
each side, he is like lightning. His four hands carry arrow, trident,
fire and bow, and he wears a tiger skin and snakes.
I hope to
begin Vishnu tomorrow. He, the Sustainer, and as The Magician, will be
very still and centred.”
Jane’s
Notes:
“His
cosmic dance on the Himalayas accompanied by 4 dogs – the Vedas – emerges as
the creative potential when not yet focused or directed. The energy could
release anywhere. The Wild Hunter Rudra is before space and time.
His upper body has the hunter’s awareness. From a stormy sky he descends
like lightning. His facial expression combines humour and danger.
He is terrible yet innocent.
The
snakes refer to the universal Serpent Power – Kundalini – before she is tamed
by yoga. The wavy motion of the serpent symbolism is in all the
mythologies. They flow like water, storm and grains of sand; they
are the ley-lines of the earth, the meridians of the body, the currents of
creation.”
EARLY
VERSION OF THE CARD
Correspondence:
Rohit: (This
painting was then redone, as it was not considered wild enough -) “… The
tawny hair is a beautiful touch. The face seems out of proportion …
The lower right hand should hold a long trishul, not the short stabbing one
depicted. The upper right hand should have the damaru or small
drum. The figure you had given us earlier of the cosmic nataraja had a
great wild cosmic-shaking energy to it with wild spirals and lines, which would
be nice to have here – as the Fool is an ambivalent card expressing the
creative as well as the shadow side of the soul. Perhaps the face
expression should not be humorous as much as awesome … The madness and
exuberant freedom of Shiva is missing … As you say, he should be the wild
hunter Rudra before space and time.”
Rudra – Creative spirit or potential from the ancient ones, not yet focused –
any which way – dances in all directions
Final
form
Rohit Arya is an Author, Yogi
and Polymath. He has written the first book on Vaastu to be published in the
West, {translated into five languages} the first book on tarot to be published
in India, co-authored a book on fire sacrifice, and is the creator of The
Sacred India Tarot {82 card deck and book}. He has also written A Gathering of
Gods. He is a corporate trainer, a mythologist and vibrant speaker as
well as an arts critic and cultural commentator. Rohit is also a Lineage Master
in the Eight Spiritual Breaths system of Yoga
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