Live online reading of 'The Way to Zed' - 7pm tonight for Camberwell Arts Festival

In 2018 I wrote a poem cycle, 'The Way to Zed', a personal journey through the shapes, sounds and histories of the letters of the alphabet.

'H' - The Fool

I was delighted to read the cycle in full for Camberwell Arts Festival 2020.

'M' - Reflection (Temperance)

The reading was accompanied by a presentation of the Tarot designs I've produced based on the poems - these were available in an exclusive online exhibition for the Festival (for a very limited period, so check them while you can)

'Z' - The Ace of Swords
You can see and hear the reading in full here:



The surreal quest described in the poems is mapped out by the symbols that our modern letters descended from. The corresponding ancient symbols, and the Tarot cards I've chosen to represent the letters, are as follows:


Letter
Corresponding ancient symbol
In the 'Way to Zed' tarot
A Bull's head Ace of Wealth (Pentacles)
B Building (in hieroglyphs) and a birch tree (in runes) The Empress
C Throwing stick The Moon
D 'A door or a fish' Death
E Jubilant man The Empress
F Mace Ace of Sticks (Wands)
G As 'C' Justice
HFence The Fool
I Arm The Magician
J...is 'I' with a tailThe Chariot
KOpen hand The Wheel of Fortune
L Goad for animalsThe Nomad (Hermit)
M Water Reflection (Temperance)
N Snake The World
OEyeAce of Vessels (Cups)
P Mouth The Emperor
Q Knot or monkey's tail The Hanged Man
R FaceStrength
S ToothThe Star
T A mark (in a similar way to our modern 'X') The High Priestess
U As 'F'The Lovers
V Variant of 'U' The Devil
WDouble 'U'Judgement
X The Spine of Osiris (speculative)The Tower
Y As 'F', 'U' and 'V' The Hierophant
Z A weapon Ace of Swords

--

Many aficionados will be conscious of an well-established correspondence between the Semitic alphabet and the Major Arcana cards listed above - this sequence wholly departs from that to forge a new relationship between our modern alphabet and the tarot.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

'Love Rules' - a verse for cross-border couples.

Image
These few lines were composed for Stephen and Sandra Cole, members of the Bardic College of Ynys Witrin, on the occasion of their handfasting on the Fair Field at Glastonbury Tor today. They are pictured here 'jumping the broomstick' as part of the ceremony. Stephen is British and Sandra is from Mexico - by extension, this short verse is meant for everyone in a cross-border relationship. This love has beaten national notions This love has overcome the ocean This love has defeated Theresa May This love has conquered all, today. - The mention in the third line of this short verse, of the name of our current Home Secretary in the United Kingdom, Theresa May, has a particular relevance in this country and at this time - but I hope that Bards and others will feel able to recite these lines at all times and in all places to honour the additional challenges that couples in cross-border relationships must face. The name 'Theresa May' here stands for all national officials a
Read more

Family and Private Life

or: 'I Never Thought I'd Marry Theresa May' Another one about the UK coalition Government's 2012 rules dividing British Citizens from their loved ones overseas.  Learn more about the rules from BritCits . I couldn’t have been happier, the day of our wedding. Looking back through the photos now, it’s hard to believe it - I was so overjoyed I didn’t even notice the Home Secretary there: stood between us on the pagoda where we said our vows, or sat at our table stuffing her face with cake. Parting was hard at the airport. You told me I’d see you sooner than I thought (you overdid it. By the time you stopped telling me, you ’d got me convinced I’d be seeing you that weekend). Much harder, though, was when I got to my place on the plane, and there she was, in what should have been your seat, and her awful leopard-print heels. She follows me around now. Goes all the places you would with me. It’s really not the same. There she is at breakfast, and lunch and
Read more

The Naughtiest Thing

Image
"Once upon a time in a place called Wheatley (which means wheat field, and is well named) there was a field of wheat - I tell a lie, there were many..." 'The Naughtiest Thing' , a tale of lies and curses and forbidden forays into wheat-fields, is set to be published as a Glastonbury Broadside Ballad in the first week of March 2020. Image by Pezibear from Pixabay
Read more