This clever cartoon is one of many from a book written to teach quantum physics to kids. I ran across it while searching for a suitable introduction to the quantum world for my grandkids. Let’s face it: when it comes to quantum physics, we’re all in the dark to some extent. The renown physicist Richard Feynman once admitted, “Nobody understands quantum physics.”

You’re reading about this here because without a basic understanding of quantum physics we will never understand how tarot actually works. Accordingly, many still cling to woo-woo magical explanations, insist upside down cards augur profound weightiness and allow superstition and codswallop to magnify tendencies toward confirmation bias.

Tarot, when used correctly, is a great tool for self-discovery, self-awareness and consciousness-raising. Obviously, my favorite deck is Chrysalis Tarot, not just because I wrote it but because Holly and I swept away all the quasi-religious and androcentric (male-centered) characteristics found in previous decks. We purged those superstitions and admonishments prevalent in the latter half of the 19th century when traditional tarot decks were first conceived.

In short, we sought to update tarot in much the same way quantum physics updates classical physics. I detailed this approach in the Chrysalis Tarot Companion Book. Briefly, quantum theory asserts (and also proves) that the world we live in is NOT deterministic, as asserted by classical physics. Free will does indeed exist; we create our own reality. Quantum theory further proves that everything and everybody in our universe is interconnected or quantumly entangled.

Jared Hodges’ art (above) illustrates another important quantum physics concept known as nonlocality, which describes the ability of objects – particles, people, planets, etc. – to instantly exchange information at great distances unencumbered by time via quantum entanglement . Classical physics strictly forbids such spookiness, as Einstein called it.

The Earth is surrounded by a dynamic field of information/energy called the Noosphere, an emergent property of Earth’s biosphere. In Chrysalis, we anthropomorphize the noosphere with the Greek archetype Gaia (left), the primal Mother Earth goddess.

All other Chrysalis archetypes are subsets of the noosphere and the collective unconscious, which are in turn subsets of a greater cosmic field of information known as the Akashic Field, among other names. Meditating on Gaia or on any other Chrysalis archetype (archetypes are self-organizing principles of shared information) sets into motion a consciousness-raising feedback loop (resonance) with that particular archetype.

It’s consciousness-raising for you and consciousness raising for Gaia too. Teilhard de Chardin, a Jesuit priest, philosopher and scientist who explicated the noosphere, taught that Gaia is becoming conscious of herself.

The chaotic ripple in time we’re all experiencing these days is what Teilhard termed the Omega Point – a world-changing spiritual awakening and paradigm shift. We created Chrysalis Tarot specifically to assist with the transformation to higher consciousness that this quantum shift entails.

 

© Toney Brooks, 2019