I don't know who originally stated it (maybe one of my readers knows), but there's a statement running around the U.S. political blogosphere that "Republicans look for a leader while Democrats look for a consensus." Whether or not you agree or disagree with this description, it would seem that the organization of occult groups seems to fall into one of two major categories: Those that have a leader whom members follow and those that seek a consensus from all members. Each has benefits and negative aspects. I contend it's important to understand which format your magickal group, order, coven, etc. follows. By stressing the positive aspects and being aware of the potential negative aspects

There is more than one mythic history of the Tarot. It's important to note that by mythic I don't simply mean that the stories were made up and imaginary. Rather, myths are information conveyed in a story to indicate the importance of something. Aesop's fables, for example, are myths explaining timeless truths in simple stories. Although the Tarot has been used for hundreds of years, its active use as part of ceremonial magick really only dates back to the late 19th century. The key to this was the linking of the Tarot to the Kabalistic Tree of Life. This first appeared in print in an article by the Comte de Mellet in the 1781 book, Le Monde Primitif by Court de Gébelin, which noted