The Human Condition: Class E: Cards 1-10
The Human Condition [Class E: Cards 1-10]
Introduction: General Aspects and Uses of the Mantegna Deck
The Human Condition: Class E: Cards 1-10
Apollo and The Muses: Class D: Cards 11-20
The Arts and Sciences: Class C: Cards 21-30
The Geniuses and Virtues: Class B: Cards 31-40
Planets and Celestial Spheres: Class A: Cards 41-50
Class E: Introduction
The last class of the Mantena Deck is the lowest station in medieval cosmology. It represents the human condition as one of subservience to the terrestrial hierarchy from Pope at the top down to Pauper at the bottom. The silver background of each card in this class is accented by an intricate lattice of pink or rose. Following the liturgical calendar the color pink only shows up twice a year and they mark days of joy midway through seasons of penitence. This may signify the joy of an ordered humanity (or human soul) amidst the suffering of this life.
In general, this class connoted how external, especially societal, factors control human life against the will of the individual subject. It must be remembered that social structure in medieval times was seen as “fixed” and inherent in the cosmos, much like the caste system in medieval India. The figures on the cards also lend themselves to archetypes of terrestrial roles in society, thus there is an easy application of narrative based contemplative prediction for Class E cards. Concerning the mirroring of the interior to the exterior, Class E represents the basic urges, or as Plato put it, the “appetites” of the human person. What does one need to survive materially? In the soul, the appetites supply this information in a manner that is self presenting, there is no “control” to appetites, only how one responds to them. Similarly, on the cosmic scale, the structure of human society supplies for the basic material survival of its individuals. The other cosmic powers represented in the deck move up the scale of Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs.
Class E is a succession of helpful relationships portrayed by classes in medieval society. It works from contrasts between producers and nonproducers, to quality of producers. From there the classes work from producers through mediators to noble classes, in two forms active and passive. Lastly, E Class cards have a series of four ruling class cards, each more abstract and transcendent to the peasant’s daily life.
Class E forms a chiastic balance with Class A which is its celestial and transcendent mirror, so in as much as these two types of cards interplay in a pattern, their relationship is a meditation on the interplay of determinism and fate in the querent’s life. Classes A and E are opposed by Classes B and D, which are interfaces of effect of the cosmos on the subject and the ability to manipulate that effect by use of will and knowledge that can be grown through discipline. In as much as Class E cards interplay with Class B and D cards, one may want to be conscious of the boundaries of one’s ability to control one’s situation.
Class C cards are the fulcrum of personal investment in the cosmos that balanced the deterministic chiastic parallels of AE, BD. In as much as Class E cards interface with Class C cards one may want to notice where one can expand and grow knowledge in a field and/or exert will using the knowledge one has.
As class E cards are employed the querent may meditate on how their environment or the social structure controls them or the querent may identify with the card, realizing that they themselves are an environmental/social factor that exerts control over someone else. Also one may want to consider what the card may represent about their own appetites, what they are urged to for survival and whether or not the urge is healthy and effective. Also one may contemplate whether or not one’s response to their urges is well ordered and appropriate. An upright Class E could bring to mind how these things are going well, but a reverse draw one to meditate on how these things as they negatively impact one’s life.
E.1. Misero (Pauper / Wretch)
Significance
The Wretch is very much like Rider Waite 0. This card is the first in number and is free of all restraint, which comes with stressors and benefits. The wretch does not need to conform to the restrictions of society, yet in the worst case scenarios, society does not support the wretch. Again, in Medieval cosmology, The Wretch’s condition is not a result of lack of initiative or poor choices. It simply is. “The poor you will always have with you”. Thus the disposition toward the wretch is not how to “fix” this person or societal condition. Rather, the person or condition is seen as an opportunity to encounter Christ and offer acts of charity. As we noticed in the former treatise The Onesiman Interface,
The poor are useful in that they are offering an extremely special opportunity to spread the joy of God. “What are panhandlers selling?” They are selling you the ability to fulfill your priestly function as a lay person by sacrificing something dear to you in order to show trust, faith, and/or devotion to God. They selling you the opportunity to stand in Christ’s presence on this Earth and re-do what should have been done two thousand years ago. This view of the sacrally invested indigent as standing in persona christi is a way the Catholic can approach charity toward the poor without any sense of pride, because they are doing you the favor.
In terms of the Cosmos (externally) The Wretch signifies the lowest station in human society or even a nonstation as this state “produces” nothing for the greater good and only seeks help. In terms of inversal unity at its best this station is the station that all of modes of being are oriented to help. As a signifier of one’s internal life, the wretch connotes one’s most based desires, unchecked by any ordering principle of one’s psyche or soul. Or The Wretch could signify the freedom one has from anxiety caused by one’s need to be in control and an interior beatitude.
Visual Symbology
In the image, The Wretch is shoeless and scantily clothed to indicate his poverty. This is a stark contrast to every other card in the Mantegna deck. However, his head is resting on his walking stick and his face is unexpectedly peaceful and calm. This is the peace of beatitude that is more readily available to the poor according to Luke’s Gospel. Free from attachment, The Wretch is able to see what is truly important. At his feet, dogs bark and nip at him, again reminiscent of Lazarus at the door of the rich man. The Wretch lives among the dogs, yet the dogs are not amiable toward him. Behind The Wretch are two dead trees signifying the lack of growth or fecundity of the situation. It could be his lack of contribution to society or it could be society’s lack of charity toward him. There is also a crumbling wall reminiscent of Rider
Waite XVI. The Wretch is the indicator that the carefully crafted structures of society do not work for everyone and that some are left behind.
Application
Meeting The Wretch in a meditation one is meeting one’s own ability to possess detached beatitude, even to the point of being despised by those who cling to conformity. Depending on the position in the layout the Wretch could also signify how one is perceived as such by others or one’s own encounter with people of such beatitude. For example, it could bring to mind opportunities to offer acts of charity. In the treatise, The Manifold Priesthood of the Catholic Church we discussed skills that can further enlightened the use of this card, including the existence of the indigent facilitates meeting Christ through all four modalities of Christo-analogical interchange.
In Reverse The Wretch can imply one’s own lack of psycho-spiritual discipline and one’s less noble elements out of control. The Wretch in opposition could also hint at one’s poor attitude toward those who are in a lesser position or opportunities for acts of charity left neglected. Often this comes in the form of disregard for human dignity or objectifying scapegoating. It is possible that oppositional Wretch is pointing out these relationships in the situation.
E.2. Fameio (Servant)
Significance
The Servant is one who lives for the other. This is a card of action that is other focused. He serves his master and is at his command. According to Christian power dynamics he serves The Wretch, because the greater serves the lesser. The disposition of the card is the disposition of the Christian in the world, one who serves and directs one’s life to their neighbor as an expression of God’s love. Indeed all cards in the deck, at some point of interpretation can become the best indications of The Servant if interpreted appropriately.
As a member of the human social structure, The Servant is low on the totem pole of importance. He is the least skilled among those who labor for the good of society, selling only his body and action, not any skill he may possess. This is opposed to the Artisan, who may be a servant, but he creates tools and beauty by his skill. The servant opposes the wretch because, though it is low skill, The Servant does produce. In his action, The Servant represents the motion and progression of society itself. Servants are the ones who get the job done. As an inner signifier, The Servant represents the point of the exercise of one’s own will, coupled with motion to perform a task or how the body is the servant of the soul. He can also represent one’s own disposition towards serving one’s neighbor.
Visual Symbology
In contrast to The Wretch, The Servant is richly dressed, though it is to be assumed that these clothes are somehow supplied for him as a trade off of freedom. His tights appear to be one pink and one green, signifying the motion of life, labor, and joy. He stands in a very bland and plain setting because his actions are not “about him” they are all directed toward someone else. He holds a dish in offering. It is possible this offering is to his master as a service of obligation or to The Wretch as a service of charity.
Application
To meet The Servant is to meet service itself. One will want to focus on how one uses and is subject to service in one’s own life, as well as one’s disposition toward service. The card invites a focus on how the structures of service present in one’s life effect one. For example, the effectiveness of how one is served by others or one serves others or methods for the best and most effective service may be considered. As a meditation on one’s inner life, The Servant beckons one to consider whether they act as servants to others out of charity and how they can best act for the good of others.
In Reverse The Servant brings to mind the more exploitive aspects of service. That servants are treated as a means to a goal as opposed to persons. Depending on the position in the layout, one may consider whether they are being exploited themselves. As an inner meditation, a reverse Servant may draw the querent to contemplate if their acts of service are motivated by a sense of mercenary benefit rather than true charity. As the reverse Servant relates to the Wretch, one may wonder if one has misplaced pride concerning one’s position, whereas related to the artisan, one may consider whether one is jealous of the advanced skill of others or slothful regarding one’s potential.
E.3. Artixan (Artisan)
Significance
The Artisan may or may not be a beholden servant, but he certainly is a skilled laborer, and is thus defined by that skill. What he offers to society is more than just labor, but labor that is informed by specialized knowledge and ability. The connotation is that the skill offered is not simply utility, but beauty, which in the medieval sense is as or more important than simple utility when it comes to the development of mankind. The Artisan represents society’s ability to effect beauty and craft as useful and simply for its own sake. In personal relationships, it is one’s own ability to effect beauty in the world, and as a spiritual characteristic, it is one’s sense of beauty as one applies it to the external world. The Artisan and The Servant form a duality of skilled and unskilled labor, while the two can be contrasted against The Wretch as producers and nonproducer.
Visual Symbology
The Artisan is presented in his low ceilinged workshop staring diligently at his task. The ceiling is constructed of well fitted wood slats. He is seated at a table filled with specialized tools and appears to be in the process of making an artifact, yet in the background a beautifully twisted loaf of bread is cooking over a fire. Behind him on the wall is a high shelf containing various boxes, viles, and tools. All of these symbolize the manyfold disciplines possible for an artisan’s craft. High on the wall is a small window to the outside world which seems impractically placed. This window resonates with the intense concentration read on The Artisan’s face. Both indicate an absolute focus on the exercise of one’s skill to the ignorance of one’s environment. Behind the figure is what appears to be an apprentice peering over his shoulder observing his work. The apprentice signifies the time and concentration it takes to learn a skilled craft, as opposed to an unskilled servant who is simply told what to do in the moment.
Application
Naturally to meet the artisan in a meditation is to meet skill and craft. The querent may contemplate their own talents and how they use them to the service of others. They may contemplate what beauty is needed in their own lives and who has the skill to provide it. As an inner meditation, the querent may want to consider their appreciation for craft and beauty and how their perception of it influences their interior life.
In Reverse the Artisan could draw one to an understanding of skill underdeveloped, poorly used, or unused. It could indicate a need for beauty in one’s life and urge the querent to seek it. It could also be a specialized need that the querent has and urge them to seek aid concerning this.
E.4. Merchadante (Merchant)
Significance
The Merchant is a mediator. He forms a dyad with the Artisan, because he brokers the sale between what is produced and those of means who seek to acquire it , such as the next card The Gentleman. In that role, The Merchant is very much one who brings people together for mutual benefit, edification, or aid. The card recognizes that society is often alienating and requires a person to fill the role of go between. It also calls to mind economic systems of monetary exchange, a system which itself is a mediation of goods and services with those requiring them.
As an inner meditation, The Merchant speaks to one’s need to bring people together and bridge alienating divides between people. It can also signify how one’s inner life is inter connected, the various parts of one’s self that can appear disparate work together.
Visual Symbology
The card presents The Merchant in a plain environment. He is well but modestly dressed and stares intently at a piece of paper which may be an order or a receipt. Again, the paper mediates the temporal record of a transaction, much like the merchant himself signifies the actual transaction between two agents in need of what the other has to offer.
Application
To encounter The Merchant is to encounter a call to seek the need for mediation in one’s life. It could be that one is the mediator or that one needs mediation between one’s self and another. Generally, this would gear toward interpersonal mediation, but given the mediatory nature of money, it could take on other forms.
In Reverse The Merchant focuses the querent on the worst abuses of capitalism. Examples include a mediator who seeks gross personal advantage in a situation or from the knowledge they are privy to in their mediation. Or a mediator who exploits the weaker party to the advantage of the stronger in order to curry favor. The oppositional could also indicate alienation in interpersonal relationships or a fragmented sense of self.
E.5. Zintilomo (Gentelman)
Significance
The Gentleman signifies the best aspects of a secure society. He is able to mauver social structures that are geared to benefit him with ease and grace. He has the means to enjoy the fruits of the labor of society and has the disposable time to enjoy these. His interactions with his neighbors follow the clearly defined norms of society and therefore are both predictable and pacifying. The Gentleman forms a duality with The Merchant in that The Merchant is at his disposal to supply for his needs. He also lines up with the Knight, who is the balance of the gentleman when society is malfunctioning, such as oppression and war.
The Gentleman signifies a society well run. As an internal indicator, he signifies rest and leisure in one’s soul and the fruits of one’s spiritual discipline and labor. As one works to tame and order one’s psyche, the archetype of the benevolent Gentleman is what emerges as the reward.
Visual Symbology
One sees The Gentleman in a field, presumably on a hunt. He has a hunting falcon tamed to its task perched on his hand and a servant with two well groomed and focused dogs at the ready. His boots are spurred as if he has just dismounted and is closing in on his goal. Everything about this image portrays the serene result of one who has worked hard to achieve a well working strategy toward a goal and now the exhilaration, pleasure, and peace of attainment is at hand.
Application
The Gentleman presents the querent with a meditation on how social systems benefit them or their peers. To meet The Gentleman in an invitation to meditate on what is going well in one’s life and how well one enjoys and appreciates these benefits. The Gentleman asks one to look back to labor and forward to enjoyments of the result of labor. This is true of society, one’s own use of their labor or one’s spiritual labors.
In Reverse The Gentleman represents the debauchery of an oppressor in moment of excess. This could be a disordered soul gleefully enjoying the release of succumbing to concupiscence or a social oppressor taking advantage of their position. An oppositional Gentleman could also indicate the wider negative effects of the inevitable imbalances of society and how they impact the querent. The oppositional position could also indicate the lack of enjoyment of one’s success or a lack of appreciation for what one has. Lastly, an upside down Gentleman could indicate disorder in the function of society or the soul that prevents reaching desired peace and order.
E.6. Chavalier (Knight)
Significance
The Knight, who is the balance of both The Duke and The Gentleman brings to mind situations where society is malfunctioning, such as oppression and war. He represents the noblest endeavors a person can take in the worst times. The Duke orders and The Gentleman enjoys the benefits of the order. The Knight channels courage and skill to fight in war, when society absolutely breaks down. The chivalrous Knight also fights for vulnerable against the oppressor, the ignoble elements of both The Duke and The Gentleman. The Knight is most certainly an action card and portrays the struggle of good against evil that an individual must wage and endure.
As a social indicator, the Knight represents society’s constant vigilance against chaos. As an internal significance, The Knight represents our own nobility in the face of malfunctioning social structures. In his most spiritual form, The Knight is the act of good conscience.
Visual Symbology
In this image, The Knight is portrayed as unexpectedly vulnerable. He is neither mounted nor in armor. Rather he is portrayed in clothing similar to those donned by the Gentleman. Both cards signify a posture toward society. He is shoeless. Again, his stockings are one green and one pink, indicating the rhythm of work and joy. The vulnerability of the image of Knight reminds us of the rhythm of struggle and rest in society and in life. This is suited to a deck that is cosmologically geared because “development” in this deck is a static progression of quality, not an unfolding historical development. To balance the over all vulnerable portrayal, the knight carefully holds his blade for all to see, so they may know that he is ready to act at a moment’s notice. As a cosmological deck, the Manegnan imagery is a portrayal of the static ideal, but the potential struggle is demonstrated by the display of arms. Behind the Knight is a page standing at the ready with a sword tucked under his arm. Much like the apprentice, the page demonstrates the need and the time it takes to develop the skill to engage, combat, defeat chaos, and formation of conscience as it presents in society and in one’s own moral life.
Application
To meet The Knight is an invitation to contemplate one’s exertion and valor in the face of crumbling systems. The Knight could be a call to account for how one acts as society malfunctions, or it could be an invitation to seek a protector in one’s life. The card could also call one to meditate on the formation and use of their conscience, the gaining of knowledge of the good and the exertion of will to do good in times of trial.
In Reverse The Knight is the agent of the oppressive Gentleman. He is the thug who enforces the unjust structures of society and is ruled by self interested cruelty or an apathetic, isolated sense of duty. In meditation, the querent would want to notice oppressive forces in their lives. One may also want to monitor how one engages evil or the breakdown of good in one’s personal interactions or in society. Is one taking advantage of others? Is one acting self interestedly as opposed to acting for good? Is one bolstering or enforcing injustice?
E.7. Doxe (Duke)
Significance
The Duke is the most intimate of a three tiered macrocosmic ordering of human secular society. The three elements are The Duke, The King, and The Emperor. Each one is more transcendent than the last to the needs of the common person and each has a larger eye on the macro-image of what must happen in order for society to function well. The Duke signifies the most intimately personal aspect of the overarching system of society. If a peasant has a problem, the duke is someone he can conceivably appeal to directly. As a regional governor, The Duke signifies the practical aspects of leadership and an intimate commonality between leaders and the ones they lead.
As a social indicator, The Duke implies low or middle management. As a psycho-spiritual reality, The Duke represents practical judgments for corporeal survival.
Visual Symbology
The Duke is imaged in surprisingly simplistic garb. He is wearing a heavy overclock with his hood up. The hood has an ornate signifier around the crown, noting his rank. Beneath the cloak, he is wearing a robe that resembles a Franciscan habit. Given the nature of the Franciscan order, this could indicate integration with the environment (both natural and as a mendicant order as opposed to cloistered with society). This could also indicate service to those in one's care. His face looks off into the distance and seems engaged with what is perceived.
Application
When one encounters The Duke in meditation it calls to mind intimate leadership. One should analyze one’s self as a leader and how one personally relates to those in one’s care. Or it can signify those in intimate authority over the querent and guide one to contemplate the relationship one has with them. The card can also signify a need to take stock of self care and how well one is looking to one’s basic over all needs.
In Reverse The Duke is a harbinger of direct oppression by an authority figure and or an authority figure who drives tasks in order to take credit for the benefit of their result. This leader leads to impress higher authority instead of serving those in their charge. In this case, the querent may want to examine direct oppression in their life or ponder whether or not they are an agent of oppression in the lives of others. It could also bring one to a meditation on the lack of self care in their life.
E.8. Re (King)
Significance
The King signifies leadership at a more transcendent and macrocosmic level, as compared to The Duke. The King is the ordering agent of one’s experienced society, as opposed to the emperor who is the organizing agent of society, even beyond one’s personal access to it. The King signifies the organization of the entirety of one’s lived system and how the entire social ecosystem harmonizes. The King relates to one’s interior life by symbolizing the ordering principle of one’s psyche or the well ordered nature of one’s soul.
Visual Symbology
The king is pictured seated on a simple wooden throne placed on a low dais. This moderate hight represents his level of transcendence compared to both Duke and Emperor. The throne is draped with a red cloth to evoke the energy and power of royalty. He holds a thin rod signifying his authority and his head is adorned in a traditional jewel encrusted golden crown. His face stares at the querent but is disinterested and vacant. This signifies an authority that is directly felt and applied, yet there is an element of transcendence appropriate to his overarching leadership. Particulars are not his level of engagement. The King’s left hand is perched on his hip seeming to indicate stern judgment or a stance of listening.
Application
To meet The King in meditation is to encounter the entirety of a system. One may want to consider one’s relationship to the entirety of one’s “world” as one perceives it (aware that there is existence beyond one’s perception). The querent will want to focus on the well functioning aspects of society and the organizational structures that support them. If one takes the King as indicative of one’s self, one may want to take account of the entirety of one’s personal authority and look for integration of the whole. As an internal indicator, The King signifies a well ordered soul.
In Reverse The king could draw one to macrocosmic disorder in the systems that support one’s personal life. An oppositional king could also signify undue micromanagement. One may want to reflect on the negative effects of micromanagement in one’s own life or reflect on one’s own poor use of the facets of life under their control. The reverse King could also be interpreted as a disordered or undisciplined interior life.
E.9. Imperator (Emperor)
Significance
The Emperor represents the most expansive and transcendent of the three terrestrial social rulers. He symbolizes the integration of all terrestrial structures. Since his domain covers combined kingdoms, it is beyond one’s personal world and expands to the world beyond one’s perception of it. As a subjective symbol, The Emperor symbolizes the integration of ordered interior life and well executed physical life encompassing the whole human person.
Visual Symbology
The Emperor sits on a throne that is more ornate than The Kings, yet still modest. He portrays age, wisdom, and dignity. His hair and beard are grey and flowing and he is crowned in majesty. His gaze is fixed on a sphere in his hand and he seems to be interested in nothing else. The sphere is the entirety of the world. His notice of it demonstrates his absolutely transcended perspective, indeed there is “nothing else” to look at, for he is the master of all. On his high dais, a bird is dutifully perched at his feet signifying the transcendent eye with which The Emperor surveys his domain.
Application
When one meets The Emperor one encounters a chance to consider a wide perspective that reaches far beyond one’s personal world. One may want to consider seeking a view beyond one’s current position or seek to situate oneself in a wider structure than one has perceived oneself to be in. Personally applied, one may want to consider if one has used one’s interior faculties to best serve one’s physical life and vice versa. One’s “being” is the entirety of one’s domain and the querent may want to consider the whole system if this card is presented.
In Reverse The Emperor signifies an absolute macrocosmic terrestrial malfunction. These factors may be far beyond the querent’s control and the querent should reflect on how to adapt to the situation at hand. A reverse Emperor may also indicate a disunity in the mind body relationship, thus the querent may want to take stock of their whole self and look for deficiencies.
E.10. Papa ( Pope / High Priest)
Significance
The Pope is the summation of the terrestrial system or organization. As the terrestrial vicar of Christ, he is the hierarchical symbol for the union between the transcendent and this carnal world. His office coordinates all material kingdoms and empires as well as their relationship to the divine, thus his authority transcends even The Emperor. He is the Earthly symbol of total integration of authority and order.
As a psycho-spiritual symbol, the pope represents the completion of both the inversal unity of the divine triple descent and three tiered integration of the self. He is fully integrated into the environment and aware of the profound connection between the immanent and ultimate transcendence as well as the perfect practitioner of Christian power dynamics, where the greatest serves the least.
Visual Symbology
The Pope is seen seated on a wooden throne carved with detailed feet and four animal heads (possibly the four evangelists). He holds the keys to the kingdom of heaven in his right hand and the Book of Life in his left hand. These implements demonstrate his authority as the successor of Peter. Peter was given the authority to hold bound in heaven and on earth, and thus The Pope’s image as the link between the terrestrial and the celestial. On his head is the triple tiara, which has multiple symbolic meanings. The three crowns can signify the office as Pontiff, Pastor, and Judge or Christ as Priest, Prophet, and King or it can signify the three spheres of the ecclesia, the church militant, the church suffering and the church triumphant. The latter interpretation does link well to the interpretation of the card as the link between the terrestrial and the celestial.
Application
To encounter the Pope in meditation is to be called to ponder the link between the celestial and the terrestrial from the “point of view” of the terrestrial. A querent would want to consider what concrete people, things, or actions are helping manifest transcendence in their life. One would certainly want to consider the macro structures of society that facilitate this connection as The Pope signifies the most transcendent level of temporal authority. As a personal signifier one may want to meditate on how well one is integrated as a being in the world and as a creature made in the image and likeness of God, thus able to image transcendence in this carnal world.
In Reverse The Pope signifies disintegration between heaven and earth due to earthly rebellion. A querent faced with the oppositional will want to look into the macrostructures of social sin, especially as they have an effect on one’s personal relationship with transcendence. On a personal level, one will want to take specific note of how one is alienated from one’s larger environment, especially the greater spiritual realities of the cosmos.
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