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Letters to Leonardo the Renaissance Lion: #5
Translations provided by the Avenger Rat; both letters were originally written in Italian.
Dear Leonardo,
When we hear of tarot cards, divinity is the first thing that comes to mind. As we already know, in the world of Christianity, divinity is forbidden because Christians put their faith in God, regardless of the sect. Most people don't know about the origins of tarot cards, which are traced right back into your hometown of Bologna, the historically, culturally, and economically rich regional capital of Emilia-Romagna. Tarot cards were originally not made for divinity; they started off as playing cards for the game of tarocchini back in the 16th century. The designs for the original tarot playing cards are similar to the modern casino playing cards, which are associated with gambling. Tarocchini of course has no gambling element to it, just a set of playing cards for fun. Variants of this game has entered in the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Germany, where their statesmen at the time played tarocchini. Tarocchini is a very complex game, but the rules have changed very little over the years. Today, very few people still play this game, but at least we know its still alive throughout the centuries.
But how did tarot become associated with divinity and occultism? That was way until the 18th century, when French occultists believed tarot cards have meanings, so they started to experiment them through divinity. Throughout the French Empire, these occultists spread out across the world with their own divine practice with their tarot cards before teaching local students who are interested in their practice. And this is how the practice of tarot card readings became popular around the world. Of course, it's met their oppositions, and they're not limited to just Christian opposition.
When practitioners of tarot readings started charging people for their services, many people questioned their ethics. It was indeed an opportunity to scam people to provide them their readings. It has gotten to the point that a significant number of governments around the world started enforcing legislation on charging for tarot readings by controlling their prices or in extreme cases, outright banning the sale of tarot readings. In the American state of Pennsylvania, it is illegal to charge for tarot readings, meaning that tarot readings are legal, but must be free of charge, to keep scammers out from performing these readings. Personally, I agree that tarot readings must be free of charge. At the same time, our culture discourages us from seeking divinity, because we are a Catholic country.
So what do I think of tarot card readings? I think it can be easily abused to fool with someone's spirit, and that has a lot of ethical challenges. But at the same time, if someone takes part in this kind of stuff, then that's them. So what do you think about the fact that modern tarot cards as we know of today have their origins in your hometown as playing cards?
Costanzo Evangelisti, age 23 (grey wolf)
Turin, Piedmont, Italy
Leonardo's response:
Dear Costanzo:
Tarot cards are a difficult subject for me to talk about because reading them or using them in any way is forbidden in the G-52 organization. It does not surprise me to discover that my hometown is the birthplace of such sinful things, but as you said, that was not their original purpose. The original purpose was making a different game altogether: tarocchini. The most popular variation of this game is ottocento, a game my current neighbors admitted they have played every now and then, but just as a game. They don't use the game for fortune telling purposes. Because it is a trick-taking game, it reminded me of the traditional card games people play today that involve taking tricks, such as hearts, spades, and contract bridge.
I've chosen not to let it bother me; what bothers me instead is that it's not just unbiblical to start with, but the fact people make money off of this. To me, that is extortion, but perhaps I'm just overreacting. In the end, all I would do is make it worse if I tried to intervene, so it is better I just let them make idiots of themselves and let the Lord judge them in the end. Our culture does indeed discourage us from seeking divinity, but we can still seek a new life in Jesus Christ. His divine forgiveness and His gift of salvation are open to everybody.
I would rather people have nothing to do with tarot cards, but I don't control them. Only they control them. And besides, if they hadn't started in my hometown, they would have started someplace else.
Hope that helps; if it doesn't, let me know where I goofed.
Yours truly,
Leonardo di Catio, a.k.a. Leonardo the Renaissance Lion
-----------------------------------------
Letters to Leonardo the Renaissance Lion: #5
Translations provided by the Avenger Rat; both letters were originally written in Italian.
Dear Leonardo,
When we hear of tarot cards, divinity is the first thing that comes to mind. As we already know, in the world of Christianity, divinity is forbidden because Christians put their faith in God, regardless of the sect. Most people don't know about the origins of tarot cards, which are traced right back into your hometown of Bologna, the historically, culturally, and economically rich regional capital of Emilia-Romagna. Tarot cards were originally not made for divinity; they started off as playing cards for the game of tarocchini back in the 16th century. The designs for the original tarot playing cards are similar to the modern casino playing cards, which are associated with gambling. Tarocchini of course has no gambling element to it, just a set of playing cards for fun. Variants of this game has entered in the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Germany, where their statesmen at the time played tarocchini. Tarocchini is a very complex game, but the rules have changed very little over the years. Today, very few people still play this game, but at least we know its still alive throughout the centuries.
But how did tarot become associated with divinity and occultism? That was way until the 18th century, when French occultists believed tarot cards have meanings, so they started to experiment them through divinity. Throughout the French Empire, these occultists spread out across the world with their own divine practice with their tarot cards before teaching local students who are interested in their practice. And this is how the practice of tarot card readings became popular around the world. Of course, it's met their oppositions, and they're not limited to just Christian opposition.
When practitioners of tarot readings started charging people for their services, many people questioned their ethics. It was indeed an opportunity to scam people to provide them their readings. It has gotten to the point that a significant number of governments around the world started enforcing legislation on charging for tarot readings by controlling their prices or in extreme cases, outright banning the sale of tarot readings. In the American state of Pennsylvania, it is illegal to charge for tarot readings, meaning that tarot readings are legal, but must be free of charge, to keep scammers out from performing these readings. Personally, I agree that tarot readings must be free of charge. At the same time, our culture discourages us from seeking divinity, because we are a Catholic country.
So what do I think of tarot card readings? I think it can be easily abused to fool with someone's spirit, and that has a lot of ethical challenges. But at the same time, if someone takes part in this kind of stuff, then that's them. So what do you think about the fact that modern tarot cards as we know of today have their origins in your hometown as playing cards?
Costanzo Evangelisti, age 23 (grey wolf)
Turin, Piedmont, Italy
Leonardo's response:
Dear Costanzo:
Tarot cards are a difficult subject for me to talk about because reading them or using them in any way is forbidden in the G-52 organization. It does not surprise me to discover that my hometown is the birthplace of such sinful things, but as you said, that was not their original purpose. The original purpose was making a different game altogether: tarocchini. The most popular variation of this game is ottocento, a game my current neighbors admitted they have played every now and then, but just as a game. They don't use the game for fortune telling purposes. Because it is a trick-taking game, it reminded me of the traditional card games people play today that involve taking tricks, such as hearts, spades, and contract bridge.
I've chosen not to let it bother me; what bothers me instead is that it's not just unbiblical to start with, but the fact people make money off of this. To me, that is extortion, but perhaps I'm just overreacting. In the end, all I would do is make it worse if I tried to intervene, so it is better I just let them make idiots of themselves and let the Lord judge them in the end. Our culture does indeed discourage us from seeking divinity, but we can still seek a new life in Jesus Christ. His divine forgiveness and His gift of salvation are open to everybody.
I would rather people have nothing to do with tarot cards, but I don't control them. Only they control them. And besides, if they hadn't started in my hometown, they would have started someplace else.
Hope that helps; if it doesn't, let me know where I goofed.
Yours truly,
Leonardo di Catio, a.k.a. Leonardo the Renaissance Lion
Letters to Leonardo the Renaissance Lion: #5
Leonardo's fifth letter.
Character joint-owned by me and
Chuong; he wrote the original letter, and I did the response.
Story details:
G-52 organization, Drumbums, Circus of the Superstars, and other such groups © me and me alone.
Some G-52s are joint-owned by me and Chuong; see my bios gallery for which is which.
UN1024s, AIRAF, GSAF, Royal Pagans, and other such groups © Chuong alone
D-19 ©
16weeks
Blue, Toppet Kingdom, etc. ©
BlueMario1016
G-52 logo drawn by
zakavatarz; the world of Noah and all associates thereof © him and him alone
Current icon of me drawn by
pimpartist
Any canon characters mentioned © all who own the rights.
All music, movies, or television shows referenced © all who own the rights
Character joint-owned by me and
Chuong; he wrote the original letter, and I did the response.
Story details:
G-52 organization, Drumbums, Circus of the Superstars, and other such groups © me and me alone.
Some G-52s are joint-owned by me and
Chuong; see my bios gallery for which is which.UN1024s, AIRAF, GSAF, Royal Pagans, and other such groups ©
Chuong aloneD-19 ©
16weeksBlue, Toppet Kingdom, etc. ©
BlueMario1016G-52 logo drawn by
zakavatarz; the world of Noah and all associates thereof © him and him aloneCurrent icon of me drawn by
pimpartistAny canon characters mentioned © all who own the rights.
All music, movies, or television shows referenced © all who own the rights
Category Story / All
Species Unspecified / Any
Gender Any
Size 120 x 86px
File Size 4.8 kB
Listed in Folders
Chuong: I didn't know tarot cards originated in Italy at Leonardo's hometown in the form of playing cards. Even more interesting is that French occultists in the 18th century were responsible for making tarot cards in their current forms. I wonder how Leonce feels about this.
Zax: I know in Asia in general, y'all practice divination. But how common are tarot cards used in Vietnam?
Chuong: Not common and most of us don't care for them. But it surprises me how this form of occultism has been around for about 300 years, which isn't ancient or anything.
Battle Bear: These occultists you speak of were ecclesiastical in nature, where they combined various philosophies and ideas. Christianity and mysticism were part of this.
Zax: Then where did the idea that tarot readings were demonic in nature come from then?
Battle Bear: Probably your horror movies or around the time Ouija boards were deemed unbiblical.
Dawn: Tarot readings are in a grey area because of how they are used. In the unethical sense is charging money for this, especially today. I can see why the state of Pennsylvania outlawed charging for tarot readings. On the other hand, a hospitalized patient can request their own divine practitioner to come to their room, assuming they don't have a contagious disease, to use tarot readings in relation to their health problems. In this situation, the practitioner must be extremely careful in interpreting the readings to avoid causing anxiety in the patient.
Shadow Lord Razor Fang: Most pagans have zero understanding about tarot card readings because of their relatively recent origins with French occultists. But I do have a personal rule to go by that most people can agree on; if you don't know what it is, you should ignore them and leave them alone.
Juno: In Asian horror movies involving their local mythology, you see examples of divination in them. Korean horror movies depicting ghosts and spirits will feature practitioners of divination, who are often sought by the protagonist for help.
Shadow Hunter: In The Philippines, they're a Christian nation yet they still hold on to their original mythology. I wonder if there are divine practitioners there.
Bamboo Bear: Still there even after our time as a Spanish colony. We are a world of our own and our culture and heritage is still rich as ever.
Zax: I know in Asia in general, y'all practice divination. But how common are tarot cards used in Vietnam?
Chuong: Not common and most of us don't care for them. But it surprises me how this form of occultism has been around for about 300 years, which isn't ancient or anything.
Battle Bear: These occultists you speak of were ecclesiastical in nature, where they combined various philosophies and ideas. Christianity and mysticism were part of this.
Zax: Then where did the idea that tarot readings were demonic in nature come from then?
Battle Bear: Probably your horror movies or around the time Ouija boards were deemed unbiblical.
Dawn: Tarot readings are in a grey area because of how they are used. In the unethical sense is charging money for this, especially today. I can see why the state of Pennsylvania outlawed charging for tarot readings. On the other hand, a hospitalized patient can request their own divine practitioner to come to their room, assuming they don't have a contagious disease, to use tarot readings in relation to their health problems. In this situation, the practitioner must be extremely careful in interpreting the readings to avoid causing anxiety in the patient.
Shadow Lord Razor Fang: Most pagans have zero understanding about tarot card readings because of their relatively recent origins with French occultists. But I do have a personal rule to go by that most people can agree on; if you don't know what it is, you should ignore them and leave them alone.
Juno: In Asian horror movies involving their local mythology, you see examples of divination in them. Korean horror movies depicting ghosts and spirits will feature practitioners of divination, who are often sought by the protagonist for help.
Shadow Hunter: In The Philippines, they're a Christian nation yet they still hold on to their original mythology. I wonder if there are divine practitioners there.
Bamboo Bear: Still there even after our time as a Spanish colony. We are a world of our own and our culture and heritage is still rich as ever.
Leonce: When you look at my religious background, Moon Moon, I can confirm for you that it angered me. But there was nothing I could do about it. I spoke out against it, but no one listened. Such a thing would get me in trouble today.
Super C: It would, but I get it. I also find it disgusting. It's why I ban the G-52s and their allies from using tarot cards, Ouija boards, and anything else associated with the occult. Would I be correct to say you'd also get furious over people making money off this?
Leonce: You would.
Super C: *to Razor Fang* That's a good rule to go by; I'm adapting it for the G-52 Code of Conduct.
Leo: So what does bother you the most about the concept?
Leonardo: Probably the fact they were ecclesiastical in nature. God's Word is sacred. There are severe consequences to those who add to it, subtract from it, or twist it out of context for their own gain. I thought that's what these tarot people were doing.
Leonce: So did I. Were we mistaken?
Super C: I don't know; that's a good question. It's not my area of expertise.
Super C: It would, but I get it. I also find it disgusting. It's why I ban the G-52s and their allies from using tarot cards, Ouija boards, and anything else associated with the occult. Would I be correct to say you'd also get furious over people making money off this?
Leonce: You would.
Super C: *to Razor Fang* That's a good rule to go by; I'm adapting it for the G-52 Code of Conduct.
Leo: So what does bother you the most about the concept?
Leonardo: Probably the fact they were ecclesiastical in nature. God's Word is sacred. There are severe consequences to those who add to it, subtract from it, or twist it out of context for their own gain. I thought that's what these tarot people were doing.
Leonce: So did I. Were we mistaken?
Super C: I don't know; that's a good question. It's not my area of expertise.
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