The Three Matrix Cards

[Infinite Unity]

Hi all,

This is my first post on this forum. After reading the LOO I wrote out some notes to help so I could talk about concepts that were sparked in me. When reading through this forum I see a lot of great perspectives but didn't see much of the things that clicked in the way I saw it. I have only read LOO once so I would love some feedback if I am off track.

Traditions-
Ra suggested picking a tradition and sticking with just the one. As I read blogs and forum posts it seems like this is a harder thing to do then it seems. Maybe because at first glance it looks like by picking a tradition you would be missing out on the wisdom of the others. But this is not only not true, it really does make things more confusing.
It helped for me to look at this through the math concept of bases.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radix
Ra's tarot = base 7
astrology = base 12
kabbalah = base 10
The concepts/subject is similar but the order they are presented in and how the concepts are grouped together are different. It seems an extraordinary amount of external effort over the centuries has been put in to try and make all the traditions have one base and a lot less was put into actually trying to understand the concepts.
I resonate most with visualizing myself as the Archtypes over Zodiac, or Sephiroth. Picking a tradition is not picking a polarity. All three of these traditions have a service to others and a service to self path.

The Matrices-
ma·trix
/ˈmātriks/
noun
noun: matrix; plural noun: matrices; plural noun: matrixes
1. an environment or material in which something develops; a surrounding medium or structure.
a mass of fine-grained rock in which gems, crystals, or fossils are embedded.
Biology- the substance between cells or in which structures are embedded.
fine material.
2.  a mold in which something, such as printing type or a phonograph record, is cast or shaped.


1) Matrix of the Mind- Magician
The matrix of the mind is the environment where the mind develops. Being masculine the Magician takes an active role in that development.
A Practice of visualizations and organization of mind for adept training.
A stylized picture of a dude holding space. Thinking? Meditation? Idea?
What is thinking?
The magician can take anything (God, gods, the universe, earth, other self, an atom, self) and hold an image of it. Once that image is held, he can make adjustments to the image and give it a name. The more “solid” the image the more “real” it is to the holder.
Is this a description of thinking or a description of creation?
To know a thing is to create it.

Tools of creation-
“From Atman did space come into being;
from space, air;
from air, fire;
from fire, the waters,
from the waters, the earth;
from the earth, plants;
from plants, food;
and from food, man...” - Taittirīya Upaniṣad

I would like to take an active role in developing my mind but first I need the right tools for the job. Looks like I will have to create some tools.

Orb (or wand in the original image) -space- expansiveness. Holding space is a masculine action (often imaged as a line), but the space he is holding is feminine (imaged as a circle). If we are going to work on developing self we first need a workshop (space). The meditative practice of holding an empty mind is fundamental in many teachings for a reason.

Fractal electric boogaloo- On of the most common first concepts I come across when studying the magician is- “as above so below” (so that makes the magician the monkey in the middle? :p). This sounds like a description of a fractal.
Imagine energy moving through time from cause to effect. When that energy encounters resistance an energy field is formed. Now imagine that energy field is self aware, can consciously choose what the effect will be, and is not dependent on the cause for direction (free will). Now imagine that energy field can give direction to other energy fields without being the cause (magic).  This field (no matter how far it travels, or how much it changes) will also still be a fractal of it's cause.
When there is no resistance the energy continues on its path to its original intended effect.
When there is cooperation the strength of the energy increases exponentially.
So the ideal (perfect) magician would be without bias (causing resistance) and works in cooperation with his cause to achieve the strongest effect.

Bird in a Cage-
As mind is between spirit and body it should be able to directly perceive information coming from spirit but that communication is veiled. Because the ability to detect spirit is veiled an entity is able to fully believe that it is alone and spirit doesn't exist if it so chooses. But if one chooses to search for and work with spirit, it can be found in the heart of all creation.

Creating the Magician-
Where does one get information from to wisely make adjustments to self?
There was a time when one consulted the weavers of fate.....
"Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate." - Carl Jung

8) Matrix of body - Justice – The Maden
The matrix of body is the environment where the body develops. However, it is important to remember that all archetypes are creations of Magician. While masculine gives form (creativity), feminine is what that form is made out of. Feminine doesn't act, she “just is”.

As the magician reaches for information to hold there are three ladies that offer themselves to be formed as sources of that information. The first source (or the loudest most sparkly source) is the matrix of body.

Where Magician can only look inward, Justice has the sensory organs/tools to look outward. Being feminine she takes a passive role in the development. She pulls in and presents what she has detected through sensory input from the manifested world for the magician to grasp. She is in constant movement seeking balance (homeostasis). She makes no conscious choices. It requires a conscious mind to make decisions regarding things like health, optimal working conditions, and skill learning.

A woman in red on a throne-
Some cultures gets anxious around the word “virgin” so I will give context to say I am using it to mean “without bias”. For me the symbolism of red (in this context) is virgin masculine and white is virgin feminine.
So a woman in red is Feminine using the powers (putting on the cloths) of virgin masculine. Many folks seem to be still influencing themselves to find this threatening.

Squareness representing physical attributes is a theme that runs through many cards. In this card it feels to me that the square "throne" is the physical body and the feminine figure (with the masculine power of holding space) is the unconscious mind that holds space for balance.

Swords, Scales, and Veils-
Sword -Air- movement (between space/time and time/space).  A sword is a tool that makes a single thing into two things. When a thing that was once one is split into two, there is a gravity (love) between them. This gravity causes movement (pulling towards). Movement is change. The magician  uses the sword to make changes in/to the space he is developing (filtering/editing/breaking down).  

The scales reminds us that the body is seeking balance for optimal function (homeostasis).

The concept of the veil also makes a first appearance here as a blindfold (or sheet behind the lady in the Rider Waite version. Yellow often indicates closeness to the spirit world). This indicates how difficult it is to perceive spirit in the physical (only the tip of the birds wing crosses the dividing line of the sword).

The winged man is the magician (the position of the sword indicating partial division between mind and body). The magician gives direction to the sword arm (we use our bodies as a dividing line between self and not self).

15) Matrix of Spirit -The Devil- Holy Guardian Spirit (Crone)
The Matrix of Spirit is the environment where the spirit is developed. The misunderstandings surrounding this archetype is a great human tragedy. These misunderstanding were sometimes purposely encouraged by groups practicing service to self over centuries of time.

From the perspective of service to self, Magician and Justice are slaves/beasts chained to the whims of spirit. And spirit is a great darkness, dedicated only to the destruction of creation (reverse pentagram = entropy). How often do we say to ourselves “the universe hates me today”, “god hates me”, “f*** my life” or just “why me”? This is viewing Matrix of the Spirit as the devil.

The matrix of spirit is the second “fate” (Sometimes called Crone which also has derogatory connotations). She was the one that cut the thread of life when physical death occurred. Encouraging ignorance and fear of death created a great fear of the crone and so many saw her as a force for evil.

While the mind holds the gateway to infinity, it still has finite energy. Spirit is infinite.

If the physical is the “loudest”, spirit is the most subtle. Sun, moon, planetary and star influences, synchronicity, and church (worship and faith) are a few of places of influence of spirit. These influences are the most difficult to grasp because the magician is attempting to quantify influences that are undetectable in the manifested world.

Teaching with fire-
Stave  -fire- temperature or variable speed of movement. Now that we have space and movement we need a tool that varies the speed of that movement. Speeding up movement creates heat (and light) and slowing movement cools things off. While movement makes changes in location, temperature is where the thing can be heated, frozen, melted, or burned into a wildly different state.

Why does it always seem like as soon as we are about to get ahead or break even something happens that puts us back in the hole again. Despite all instruction to the contrary many have convinced themselves that finding comfort is the goal of life. Searching for comfort as a life goal is a search for entropy.
With the expert use of fire (temperature – variable speed) the matrix of spirit gives exactly the right amount of uncomfortable we need to keep moving.
Is sad that we generally don't show much gratitude for this service.

Take me to church-
A change in perspective changes everything. What if instead of working against (and blaming) spirit we worked with it?
Instead of seeing self as a slave to fate why not see self as under the care of a gardener that wants us to grow into our best strongest self?
It is fairly difficult to truly love all of self when a third of self (the immortal “most real self”) is seen as the devil.


Thank you for reading. Any feedback would be most welcome.

I like alot of what you said. I agree that the nature is more like a Gardner that wishes the best for us. However the best or ideal configuration of experience/growth is not all fluffy clouds. The pain, difficult situations, and strife. Are actually apart of the perfect conditions of growth. This is the aspect that is often times seen as "devilish".

Many innovations, insights, and breakthroughs are directly related or is a result of strife, struggle, and problematic situations/conditions.

The sacramental nature of every experience lends to the overall depth of "what is LOVE without sacrifice?"