塔罗历史 03(6)

当祭司偃息、圣谕噤声、方舟遗失、圣所蒙尘、庙宇崩毁之时，古老的智慧不再记录于金石之上，而是被智慧的喀巴拉教徒记录，先是用象牙和羊皮纸、镀上金银的皮革，再是不起眼的纸牌。这些纸牌总是因为藏有通往神秘大门的危险钥匙而招致教会的怀疑。这般塔罗起源，就通过象形文字和数字，展现在博识的古德杰柏林眼前。
列维的想法具有比创造另一个塔罗起源神话更深远的意义。因为若将塔罗与已有完善体系的喀巴拉学说结合，塔罗就能成为实用的占卜工具及体验古老智慧的媒介：
… Now, this clavicle regarded as lost for centuries has been recovered by us, and we have been able to open the sepulchres of the ancient world, to make the dead speak, to behold the moments of the past in all their splendor, to understand the enigmas of every sphinx and to penetrate all sanctuaries. … The Tarot is truly a philosophical machine, which keeps the mind from wandering, while leaving its initiative and liberty. It is mathematics applied to the absolute, the alliance of the positive and the ideal, a lottery of thoughts as exact as numbers, perhaps the simplest and grandest conception of human genius …